I'm a chump and never finished this yesterday. I'll get better about this, no worries.
So Sisters of Mercy is this old Goth band from England. I first heard them when my brother showed me a Project 86 cover of this song. While I like elements of the cover a lot I really have to stick with the wonderful sound that is the 80s Goth scene.
The rest of their music is about what you'd expect really, but there's some songs with sick guitar tones to them that I like a lot.
I don't tend to enjoy TobyMac at all. His music is dated and cliched, and he's a former member of DC Talk. Every now and then the dude puts out some decent music though, and this is one of them. I'm gonna be honest, you know NF is one of the primary saviors of this song. He's probably top 5 rappers for me right now, and his verse here isn't an exception. It's a little lighter than his usual material, so enjoy that part.
Then there's the little instrumental bit after the chorus, that's straight gold, I love it a lot.
And you know what, even TobyMac isn't too bad on this track. Kudos sir.
Well if it isn't the internet's favorite guitarist, Rob Scallon.
Rob has been making music for the last 10 years on YouTube, but most people only became aware of him in the last 3 or 4 because of his banjo covers of popular Metal bands.
I feel like his originals don't really get the respect that they deserve though, so whenever I post him I really try to include them as much as possible.
Let's talk about his 9 string guitar real quick. It's basically a one of a kind prototype that he received due to his partnership with Schecter, a popular guitar brand for Metal musicians. The big thing that he does with the guitar is he doesn't abuse the lowest string. It's such a hugely different range between the lowest and the highest strings that if you're doing what Rob does here with playing across the whole thing it turns a little muddy. All in all it's a really solid song to listen to though, so have fun listening to it and supporting an independent artist.
Band: The Dillinger Escape Plan
Genre: Mathcore, Progressive Metal
I remember when my brother showed me this band for the first time, I really hated it. I wasn't into Grind yet though, and I also wasn't listening to any of their better songs.
They've got a fun chaotic sound that I'm starting to get into more, it's sometimes a mess, but it's surprisingly coordinated at the same time. I love it, the controlled chaos. It's one of the things I like a lot about bands of this style. To pull off something like that you need to have some insanely talented musicians.
This song has trumpets in it, which is straight up fantastic. It's something that people kinda dropped when Ska stopped being as big a deal.
Yeah yeah, going up a little late, I apologize. I was catching up with a friend last night after work and forgot that I hadn't written this. Realistically you're much better off having me write this now instead of at 2:30 in the morning though, I'm an absolute mess then, haha.
So Love and Death, Head's side project outside of Korn. They're really a fantastic group who are really funny guys, as you can see in this video, and I think they're putting out an album this year? That's the rumors I'm hearing at least.
Artist: Waka Flocka Flame ft. Wale & Roscoe Dash
Genre: Rap
Language: Strong
So I figured I'd hit Waka Flocka after Cover Week cause I was reminded of him recently.
So obviously I wasn't shot at the Chief Keef show. In fact, Keef was so late that I bailed before he showed up. I waited from 9:50 to 11:15 and he didn't even show till at least 12:30. Sheesh.
His opening group did show though, and after 3 terrible local acts we got who he's actually touring with. Long story short the main guy of the trio made me think of Waka Flocka.
And here's Waka Flocka, the original angry shouting thug! My friend Luis was telling me that this song was really vibing with the street back when he lived in the Bronx, so that tote's means it's for real.
To round out this wonderful week of covers I give you Ghost's cover of Missionary Man.
At first I didn't realize that it was a cover, but basically as soon as I kinda listened to it a second time I realized that it really doesn't sound like one of their songs. They managed to really take it and give it their flavour, but it's still noticeably not theirs. I like it.
This is the lovely end of Cover Week, and I hope you liked the songs I showed you. Coolio, it was fun.
When it comes to decent Metal bands you really can't ignore Machine Head. Lifting themselves from a questionable Nu-Metal past in which they made some... interesting music. It wasn't bad and I really like a lot of it, but it objectively isn't as good as what they're putting out now.
On their grammy winning album though, the special edition featured a couple covers. They were both quite good and didn't sound too much like a departure from their traditional sound, even though both were from very different bands.
1, Hallowed Be Thy Name by Iron Maiden. I think I posted it a while ago, but I don't feel like looking for it right now.
2, Battery by Metallica. Both of them sound like songs that were clearly not written by Machine Head, but at the same time they were both taken into the style well enough. I do miss the open string harmonics that are so prevalent in MH's music, but I can live without them I guess.
I don't mean to take away from the original when I say I like this version a lot more. I do believe that Lorde makes fantastic music, but I'm going to say I like this song a little better.
There's an edge to this one that simply doesn't exist in the original. The chorus just kills me everytime I listen to it, the way it kicks in with the screaming and growling guitars just makes me really happy.
As a general rule I don't mind Otep's music at all since she's a female Metal vocalist that goes down the harsh path rather than a prettier way that people seem to typically go. And not just screaming, cause there's plenty of high screaming Metal chicks out there, but she goes with a growling edge too. It's just a rather good song because of it.
Band: Dropkick Murphys
Genre: Celtic Punk
Language: Strong
As somebody who only passingly listens to Dropkick Murphys I must say their covers are always a blast. They all basically sound the same, but that's not the important part. The important part is that they all sound the same as, not only each other, but as a lot of their other songs as well.
I really love the energy that they bring to every song they make. You can feel the punk sound, the hatred of England, and whatever other really Irish things you can think of.
Interestingly enough these guys are from Boston though, and I can't decide if that hurts their Irish-ness or not. Maybe I don't really know what I'm talking about in that regard, but who knows. They've been around since '96, so I'm sure they've earned the right to be whatever they want to be.
Also not to brag or anything, but today marks my 888th post. Got some sick trips there, pretty proud of that achievement. Not a single missed day, just some that were a little late from time to time.
I have a lot of negative things to say about this song.
Like, Tate. Just accept that your solo project didn't work out, don't take over the Newsboys. And don't cover one of your own songs, that's just hella weird.
I'm not too sure how else to feel about it to be honest. It's like, 2 childhood artists ran into each other, got stuck together, and all of the sudden they're a new thing that's putting out relevant music again. Not cool guys, make way for somebody with a better sound.
It's a good cover though, it honestly is. If it didn't have one of the original members from DC Talk I'd probably be really happy with it. It's just weird and I'm not comfortable with the change it brings.
Band: Five Finger Death Punch (5FDP)
Genre: Heavy Metal
Language: Strong
I believe I covered this song a while ago in a rather terrible post that, not only do I ramble on, but all the songs are no longer available for whatever reason.
I mean, the main point I want to try and make is that the song is a good cover, but I feel like I probably owe you guys a little more than that since the post would be done right here if I tried that stunt.
Traditionally there's a mountain of argument that goes into any sort of Pantera cover. There's the issue with Dime's guitar tone. The dude had a very unique sound that doesn't translate to other people well because nobody has really replicated his tone.
Then there's Phil and his vocal chord damaging singing style. The man destroyed his voice over his career which, while commendable, is kinda dumb. He honestly had one of the largest vocal ranges in Metal which is really noticeable on the song Cemetery Gates. The notes he hits are astounding considering what he's capable of now.
But this isn't Pantera, this is Five Finger Death Punch. Honestly, they did a good cover. They did it back in their early days when Ivan was still a little crazy with his vocal work in his post Motograter days so they captured a little of that psycho that everybody loves. The music feels like typical Death Punch though, so kinda whatever on that front, ya know?
I decided that it would be time for another Cover Week to pop up, yeah? We really need to get into some good covers cause I still love them a lot.
This is a song that turned up in a suggested song list I had a while ago, and surprisingly enough it wasn't too bad at all. I liked how it changed it up just enough to make it what I kinda feel like is a better song. Not that the original wasn't good. While I really The Smashing Pumpkins singer's voice to be kinda annoying, I also realize that it fits their music pretty much perfectly. This song just happens to be more in the range that I tend to listen to.
Yo, so this Saturday I'm going to a fun little concert. One Chief Keef, a rapper who has been referred to as many things such as spokesman for the prison industrial complex, a representative of Chicago's skyrocketing murder rate, and other such things that make him seem to be a guy I wouldn't want to see. Mostly because I'm white, and this dude's a thug. But hey, whatever, I'm sure I won't die.
I actually thought this dude was more famous than he was when I bought my ticket, mostly cause I knew who he was before I started listening to Rap in general. Hey, it'll be an experience though, yeah? The security at BT is usually pretty good, so as long as I'm not stupid I feel like I'll be fine.
Song's solid by the way, and it apparently speaks to the youth of Chicago. Not a good thing really since this dude promotes drugs and such, but whatevs. We don't need to worry about the urban youth, right?
I had really stopped listening to these guys a while ago because I got way too much of their music at once. That's one thing that bugs me honestly, if I have access to too much music from an artist at once it's really hard for me to get into it, ya know? When I started with these guys I wanna say they had a solid 5 albums, which was just a little too much for me to just start.
Well my brother started listening to them again on recommendation from the drummer in his band and, as this new album came out, he gave me a couple good tracks to check out.
You need to hear the scream at the end of this song, it's amazing. He just holds it out for so long with it raising in pitch as it goes, it's fantastic.
Oh man, look at me. I like a popular grunge song and I'm in the year 2017, I'm so cool and edgy.
Basically every comment under your typical Nirvana video. I honestly don't get why people post stuff like that. Like, if people want to like pop music then let them. Every song made before the year 2000 seems to have some sort of weird base of people who all claim to be under the age of 14 telling the world that they love music that isn't part of the top 40s list.
I get it, a lot of Rock classics haven't been put out since then, but to be totally honest, the Classic Rock sound just doesn't sell anymore. The majority of people, while they may like a lot of the old bands, would be incredibly frustrated if all music stayed the same like that. New music is basically the best thing you can get, ya know?
Not to say older Rock music is bad. Not that this is an excessively old song either honestly, but since it's a couple years older than I am and that means it's old by music standards. Sorry literally everybody older than me, I don't mean to imply you're old, just that music ages much more quickly than you do.
Artist: Drake
Genre: Rap, Hip Hop
Language: Strong
Honestly the first time I heard this song it wasn't even the real song, all I heard was a parody. It was great though, really worth listening to.
For the most part I'm over Drake. His music doesn't grab me the way it used to and I feel like that's because he sounds a little too whiny most of the time. When he's annoyed he makes good music though, so let's check out one of the diss tracks he made toward Meek Mill.
Those dudes had a giant beef with each other last year and the year before, but it seems to have quieted down anymore. That's good I suppose.
In a less good front I got my credit information stolen for the first time yesterday, so that's cool. Got about $200 in limbo right now which is less than ok, but Capital One is pretty cool so I'll get it back eventually. Really nice phone guys, I appreciate them.
Just call me Mr. Late-To-The-Party, but I only just started listening to the new Green Day album maybe a week ago. I have since decided that it's about a million times better than the triple release they did a few years ago though. Like, my goodness, that triple album was just not really good. They are way too far into their career to manage releasing a triple like they did. Maybe back in the American Idiot era, but not after 21st Century Breakdown.
All in all Revolution Radio has about as many good songs on it as ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, ¡Tre! combined, which is to say more than half of this album and only about 7 of the 37 songs off of the triple.
I feel like I'm really trashing on the last release, but my goodness it was bad.
Artist: Kyle feat Lil Yachty
Genre: Rap, Hip Hop
Language: Strong
I had never heard of this guy before a friend of mine sent me this song saying it was being called "the next Broccoli". Well I honestly can't say that I like this song nearly as much I have to say it's pretty catchy. It's got Lil Yachty in it too though, which is the part I'm not cool with. I'm really not a huge fan of his work and now that he's being used everywhere it bums me out a little bit.
Band: Pantera
Genre: Thrash Metal
Language: Brief, Strong
I feel like every time I talk about Pantera it has something to do with Phil Anselmo and his racism or something, but today it's just because I wanted to.
I trash on Pantera a lot, but honestly they aren't too bad. They aren't as generic as I always thought they were or any of that. Dime played really fast guitar, Vinnie smacked away on the drums while stinking drunk all the time, and Phil is screeching away. Then there's Rex, who I recently learned is the bassist. I feel bad for Rex, I didn't even know his name till recently.
I was gonna introduce this dude in April for the A to Z, but why wait till them to show you the genius that is Weird Al?
I don't think that anybody is quite as goo at song parodies as this guy is. He mimicks songs in a way that nobody else quite does, and he manages to make a good copy of the videos that go with them.
Like this one for instance. I'm pretty sure everybody has heard Michael Jackson's song Bad, but if you haven't seen the video I urge you to take a second to watch it so you can appreciate what Weird Al did.
Another return to Capital lights, mostly because I like them.
The side project of Thousand Foot Krutch's singer, Capital lights are a group I've always given too little attention to. I used to only listen to 1 or 2 of their songs, but there's no reason for this since all of their songs are just rather good. I'd heavily advise listening to this album from start to finish, it's a blast.
A bunch of my friends were making fun of me for how hyped I was about Lady Gaga's Super Bowl performance this year, but I feel like I was pretty justified. This is the first performance in years that hasn't had featured acts, and I feel this is really important since the last few years felt like they were pulling in anybody who was breathing so they could stay relevant.
Lady Gaga is a performer. She's honestly good at what she does and never disappoints with a gigantic stage show of some sort. This performance was no different, hitting most of her big hits in a smooth manner while also keeping a massive group of people active.
I found it to be a really good show. Yeah, it was obvious that there was some lip syncing, but I feel like it's not like that should be unexpected for the Halftime Show. She did also sing live on the lead lines so I don't know what you'd complain about.
I dunno, I thought it was fantastic. What did you think?
Originally I was going to post this because I was watching It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia for the last 3 weeks straight and this song turned up somewhere in the middle on me, but then I had an even better reason to.
So I've been really sick for the last week. Not sure what it was, I just know it wasn't the flu. But I had a fever to go with it and that's the important part of this story. Fever dreams.
I had this dream that David Byrne (Talking Heads frontman, 2nd from the left in the picture) was making an art film with Eminem (not pictured). Eminem was reciting free verse poetry in a gigantic warehouse that was painted flat gray, and David was having none of it. No matter what Eminem did it was never quite what he was looking for. Long story short they argued for a while and I got crushed under 4 gigantic stone spheres. Fever dreams, amirite?
But yeah, good song, good band. I'll link to a live show next time, you'll love the stage show these guys put on.
