The Electro Wars

The Electro Wars is a newly released documentary about the evolution of electronic music, the culture that surrounds it, and what's in store with the future. This is a breaking-edge movie; the first of it's kind. Electronic music has taken over today; I consider it our generations' rock and roll or jazz. It's a huge influence in tons of different genres today. Think about it; Stargate (known for tons of Rihanna's hits) has invaded the Billboard charts, and are considered some of the top producers today. They specialize in electronic, though. You can't flip through a top 40 station today and not hear the influence.

If you are a fan of music in general, this is a must-see. Luckily, you can watch it for free this week at the URL at the bottom of this. My internet sucks where I'm at so I'm only 2 chapters through, but it's great so far. It gives a full-on approach to the electronic music industry, with interviews from the biggest names out there. (Steve Aoki and Skrillex, anyone?) Like I said, this is a MUST-SEE. Watch it here!

http://pitchfork.com/tv/#/one-week-only/1654-the-electro-wars/




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Worst Shows I've Been To

So I was flipping through channels, hoping to find something on that didn't kill brain cells. I stumbled upon an appearance of Cee-Lo Green on "Last Call wish Carson Daly," and it looked like a clip of him performing "Fuck You" in a club or bar. Now, as a musician and audio engineer and blah blah blah, I have mad props for this guy. He brings a unique sound and has a unique (yet tasty) voice. But this performance was fucking awful. All the words were mumbled, there was no stage presence... I mean, just plain bad. And this got me thinking of all those terrible shows I've been to.

AFI

I saw AFI a few years back (maybe two?) after winning meet-and-greet passes as well. We went up to the band hangout spot at the Newport Music Hall in Columbus, Ohio with the others who won meet-and-greets. First off, this crazy bitch baked a cake for the band, which I thought was weird. But after being in the room with the band for a mere 30 seconds, I could tell these guys were just awkward.

The lead singer and drummer were very welcome to everyone and chatted everyone up and tried to keep convos going. (In the picture above, they're the two on the left if I remember correctly) The other two, though, acted like anti-social emo kids. Anytime any one of the excited 13-year-olds asked the bassist or guitarist anything, they responded with one-word answers and never made eye contact. I felt like HATED me. AAWWWKKKKWWWAAARRRDDDDD.

The show finally came up. I've never been more disappointed after a show. The set was all their newer "more emo" stuff. (Which I actually enjoy, but it's not the material you want for a bangin' rock concert) There was no crowd energy (partly due to the massive crowd of 12-year-old girls screaming for the lead singer), and few signs of emotion from the band. I think that's the only show or concert I've debated leaving early from.

Puddle Of Mudd

I saw Puddle Of Mudd last summer at Rock On The Range. Have you ever seen a band who thought they were the fucking shit, but really they weren't? Yeaaaahhhhhhh...... In a crowd of thousands of hardcore, gnarly people who had been kicking each others' asses all day (which my scrawny ass in the middle of it, of course), maybe 5 were moshing to this. They tried to soup up all their popular singles (Singing a song about how "she fucking hates me" [la la la laaaaa!] won't get the crowd going) but they failed at that. The singer attempted to sing, but he failed miserably at that as well. By far, they were the worst act I saw at that festival.

Wicked Wisdom

Wicked Wisdom was a relatively short-lived band I saw at Ozzfest around 2005 or so. The lead singer was actually Will Smith's wife. (The More You Know!) Now, I have never been a fan of women as lead vocalists for metal screaming bands, and this was only reinforced that opinion. Awful show. Just..... awful. The crowd was boo-ing halfway through the set, there was no energy, and it all just sounded like noise. No music, simply noise. There was a reason why these guys were short-lived....

Now, as a musician and all that shit I mentioned above, I respect anyone trying to go out there and make a few bucks playing music for a living. However, I'm only playing the role of "critique" in my experience of the many shows I've been to. Have any of you had any bad shows that sound like this?

Static Yeti - SINGLE RE-RELEASE!

I want to thank everyone who critiqued on my last post, and to say "fuck off" to everyone posting pointless, generic comments. I re-mixed (as in the literal sense, not some hip-hop RRREEEEMMMIIIIIXXXXXX!!!) this and added a few things, and hopefully should be better than the previous version. If you've given it a listen, I ask you listen again and tell me what you think! If you haven't checked it out, then CHECK IT!

EDIT: Re-upped. I must've loaded up the first one instead of the second edition. Enjoy!

Static Yeti - SINGLE RELEASE!

I've released ANOTHER song! Check it out and let me know what you think. This one's a little more pop-y and club-like, but hopefully you all enjoy!

I Simply Don't Care.

It has come to light about the layout of this fine, fine blog is "visually retarded" and "looks like King Kong taking a shit on birthday cake." When I created this blog, I started it with the mindset of not giving a single fuck. Think about it; why should I care about what I write? Why should you care what I write about? You should care because I tell you. Basically. So care.

I wanted to change things up often. I've had Mario riding a dinosaur, cool electronic patterns, and other stupid stuff as a background. Currently, there's ice cream trucks, to fit the summer them. Who doesn't like ice cream trucks? Yeah, it might clash. But that's because I simply don't give a fuck. (Do you see a theme here?) I'm not making a blog to fit in and make it like everyone elses. Where's the fun in that?

Have you ever had a friend show you a song and after listening to it, you reply, "Oh yeah, that sounds like (mainstream band here)." Where's the fun in ripping off another's ideas? By putting whatever I want on here, it's a way of expressing one's self. One day, MAYBE this blog will become huge and take over the world. I wouldn't want people to say, "Have you checked out that mega huge blog that's fucking everywhere now? (referring to my badass setup I got going on here) Reminds me a lot of (another mainstream noun)." I DON'T WANT TO FOLLOW IN THE TRACKS OF EVERYONE. And not everyone should. If we did, then we'd all be stuck in monotonous routine that gets old real fast.

So what am I saying in the end? I simply do not care. I don't care if you read this and scoff, or applaud me as a genius. I simply do not care. I'm not in charge of your life, as you're not in charge of mine. Everyone gets so caught up in doing what others want us to do, or to do what is seen as "more traditional." If we always did that, then there would never be anything new produced, and the world would be a very, very boring place.

This dude is sad because he never branched off and thought on his own.

Don't be afraid to take a chance. Get the balls to talk to that hot chick you've been eyeing. Go out and try some new food. Do that thing you've been wanting to do, but just haven't done yet for whatever reason. By not caring, you shun out all those others that may judge you or look down at you. And honestly, they're fucking worthless. They have nothing better to do but bring you down. 

Music is how it is today because people stopped giving a fuck about what others say and just tried something new. Eminem famously said in his song "Without Me" in 2006 that "no one listens to techno music." Now, don't me wrong, Eminem is the man. But people didn't listen to him, and now techno and electronic music is HUGE.

In conclusion, you just have to stop giving a fuck sometimes and do what you want, regardless of what others think. Do something different. Don't be afraid to put up tacky ice cream trucks as a background.... TO YOUR LIFE.

(that last sentence was deep, wasn't it?)

Foo Fighters Documentary

Wise words from a wise man

As some of you might now, Foo Fighters released their latest album Wasting Light this past Tuesday. Critics are calling it one of their heavier albums to date, relating it to some of their older albums. Revisiting their roots would make sense, as they recorded this album in Dave Grohl's garage. Wasting Light isn't the only new Foo out though... They have also released a documentary about the band, highlighting a lot of the history of the group as well as many other inside sneak peeks. Back And Forth is out now, but if you're reading this all like, "OMG WTF, i did not no dat dey haev a dokumentari!!1," then you probably haven't seen it yet, so check out the trailer in the meantime, and be sure to download Wasting Light! (legally, of course...)

4:20 Music Break

I recently learned that DayGlow, a huuuuge paint party concert rave thingieso, is coming to my hometown, with artist David Berrie DJ'ing through the night. I decided to check him out, and I like a lot of his shit. If you're into electronic or dance music, check it right here. You can check out more on his website at http:/davidberrie.com, and learn more abut DayGlow at http://dayglowtour.com.

Danger Mouse and Jack White Collaboration

Wiggity-wiggity-WHAAAAT!? Danger Mouse (Gnarles Barkley) and Jack White (The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather) have teamed up in a collaboration to bring you a dark, but very nice new track. Danger Mouse teamed up with Italian producer Daniele Luppi to bring a project called Rome due out in May, releasing this track (titled "Two Against One") and another one featuring Norah Jones. Check these out, and look forward to the release of Rome! http://pitchfork.com/news/42082-listen-danger-mouse-and-jack-white-collab/

I personally love this shit. It's something different from what I'm used to listening to, so I welcome a fresh flavor. What do you guys think?

Also, help a brother out and click an advertisement while you're at it, and "thumbs up" this on StumbleUpon. Keep my ass out of trouble by helping me out and having me write these articles, yo.

HUUUUUUUGE 4:20 Music Break

Today is a glorious day, ladies and gentlemen. March 29th marks the latest in the sagas that are Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa. Snoop Dogg is celebrating the release of his newest album, "Doggumentary" while Wiz Khalifa releases the much anticipated "Rolling Papers." The best of old and new school are coming together, giving you plenty to listen to. I personally plan on listening to these later on, and I'll give my input. Give yours too. Check back to this post if you give a shit, otherwise I don't care. But seriously, next time you're lightin' up and you're feeling adventurous, check out "Doggumentary" and "Rolling Papers" today.

And now, my awesome opinion.

Let's be honest; I wasn't impressed by Doggumentary and Rolling Papers after my first time listening to it. I feel both albums sounded like stuff from the past, even to the extent of Wiz using lines from previous songs. Doggumentary sounded like it is; a regular 'ol Snoop album. Rolling Papers was also more of the same; anthems about fucking bitches and smoking weed. (Awwww yeaaaahhhhh)

One track that stood out to me was "Superman" off of Doggumentary. This Snoop Dogg/Willie Nelson collaboration sounds like nothing else on the album, and was something fresh and both Snoop and Willie both did really well.

In the end, both of these albums will appeal to any hardcore fans of these power smokers. As for me, I'll personally stick to the older albums. Speaking of, I got a nice glass of OJ just waiting for me...

Oh, and I'll keep this video up since everyone seemed to enjoy it so much.

4:20 Music Break

It's time for a 4:20 music break.... at 1:46. Well it's 4:20 somewhere, and I want to share some of the albums I've been digging when I just wanna sit back and enjoy some good music after a good smoke.

The Black Keys - Brothers

Hands down, most unique album cover of all-time. This is a late 2010 release, but I never got around to listening to it. UNTIL RECENTLY. It's one of the best "chill" albums I've heard in a long time, and would suggest this to any fan of music. Many of the songs jam in a unique way. Folky lyrics mixed with simplified song structure, the Akron, OH duo delivers a huge hit with this. The album has been accepted as one of 2010's best since it's release, and it's still bangin' in 2011. If you haven't checked this one out, you're really missing out. Also, if you've never experienced Dan Auerbach's (lead singer) beard, please feel free to. It's so good that I set it as the background for a bit.

Wiz Khalifa - Kush & OJ

"The perfect formula for a wake and bake."

Kush & OJ single-handedly got me back into hip-hop. It sounds like nothing else there, and the whole albums flows so well together. This is one that you HAVE to listen through the first time you listen to it. I have memories of relaxing on my front porch in the middle of winter jamming to this while taking a smoke break. Smooth, fresh beats mixed with Wiz's clever lyrics deliver in a scrumptious fashion that might just make one high without ever taking a hit. Aside from "Black and Yellow," this is seen as Wiz Khalifa's best mixtape. If youre looking for a change of pace, you can check it out here for free: http://www.datpiff.com/Wiz-Khalifa-Kush-OJ-mixtape.112367.html You can expect more from Wiz tomorrow right here!

Mumford & Sons - Sign No More

Arguably the best album of 2010, Mumford and Sons hits the music scene with their debut album that has made a huge impression on the scene. Only releasing two singles from this album (Little Lion Man and The Cave), Mumford and Sons are seen as rock stars today after clearing the talk show, summer festival and even music award show circuits (you didn't forget about their badass performance on the Grammy's, did you?). I was absolutely blown away by this album. It's beautiful in every way, and the whole album flows well together; you must listen through the whole thing. One might say that the songs begin to sound alike, but the songs are just so good that I personally didn't give two shits. Sigh No More hit an emotional nerve that music tends to not do anymore, and it's nice to see people put so much effort into making good music. This is highly suggested for anyone who wants to sit back (glass of OJ in hand) and simply feel good.

To listen to any of these (legally, of course), check out GrooveShark at http://listen.grooveshark.com/#/