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Dave's Favorite Albums of 2011 Part Four: 10-1

2012-01-23T21:40:00.000-05:00

So here we are, again, still way too late, but we won’t hold that against me will we? Without any further ado let’s finish this bad boy and move on with 2012 tunes, eh?!

10. Thundercat- Golden Age of the Apocalypse

There was a period towards the end of my time in high school where I got really into 70’s jazz and fusion, most notably Herbie Hancock and bass god Jaco Pastorius and his work with Weather Report. I liked the funky vibes, and especially with Weather Report there was a very cheery mood that somehow managed to stay cool without getting stupid and sounding like elevator music. Now, in 2011 I was graced to hear Suicidal Tendencies’ bassist Stephen Bruner, under the stage name Thundercat, release an LP in the same line of that 70’s fusion, this time interjected with some 00’s flare. And the end result is a surprisingly tight and unique brand of bass lead electronically injected fusion. It’s surprising a hardcore punk bassist would decide to make a jazz LP, and perhaps more surprising that it is not only good, but great. Cheers!

NOTABLE TRACKS: Fleer Ultra, For Love I Come, Jamboree

9. J. Cole- Cole World: The Sideline Story

Signed by the great Jay-Z, there was a lot of hype behind German born and North Carolina rasied J. Cole. After a handful of mixtapes and a few years paying dues, Cole released his first full length LP in Cole World: The Sideline Story. And I must admit, at first I was put off to the LP, as the pun-based album name is really, really corny. But when I finally decided it was time to push play on The Sideline Story I felt as though my early judgments on the corniness of the albums name were only keeping me from hearing the awesome tunes on the LP. Now, Cole isn’t the best at what he does, but the way he presents his work is his strong point. This LP is unique, original, and really ambitious. A lot of people said Wale was going to be the ‘rookie’ of 2011, but Cole swiftly knocked Wale off his throne with incredible ease. And he proves a point that all hip-hoppers need smart lyrics and catchy beats to really hook in audiences. Cole is the full package and this album is proof.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Can’t Get Enough, Mr. Nice Watch, Work Out

8. Foo Fighters- Wasting Light

I’ve never been a huge Foo Fighters fan. I’ve always dug their classics, songs like “My Hero”, “Learn to Fly”, “Monkey Wrench” and more recently “The Pretender” are all jams that get spun pretty frequently for me. But I’ve never gotten really into their albums, and when I saw them live I was really disappointed. So, when I heard Wasting Light was not an overproduced, grandiose album filled with symphonies and such I was a bit taken aback. As the Fighters have gotten more and more mainstream, they’ve seemingly taken a lot of cliche steps. They lost their punk edge, they made an entirely acoustic LP, and got so overexposed everyone and their mother knows their lyrics. But back to the point, I doubted Dave Grohl and company could actually execute an album of fun jams, and oh was I wrong. Wasting Light is chock full of awesome, foot tapping arena rock tracks. And while that’s not the punky edge they had in their youth, it’s certainly several steps above what they were doing before. I feel as though Dave’s time in Them Crooked Vultures alongside John Paul Jones and Josh Homme really sharpened him up, and this album really feels awesome. I never thought it’d be a 2011 album that would turn me into a full fledged fan of this band, but here I am, finally waving the Foo Fighters flag.

NOTABLE TRACKS: White Limo, Rope, These Days

7. The Roots- undun

The Roots are easily one of, if not the, hardest working groups in music. Between their day job as house band on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, extensive touring, Questlove’s side jobs DJ’ing and constantly tweeting and even throwing a giant concert for their hometown every year, it’s weird thinking that they have time to release new music. And I’ve found their last few albums to be a bit lackluster, 2008’s Rising Down felt like a poor retread of the bands 2006 classic Game Theory, then in 2010 they released the more rock-based How I Got Over and a quickly thrown together collaboration LP with John Legend Wake Up! Now granted, none of these albums are bad by any stretch, but they really lacked that passion and raw emotion present in both Game Theory and their prior classics like Things Fall Apart. But undun is a different beast altogether. It has a bit of the edge that made How I Got Over different, with all the emotion of Game Theory, and it has a story, a narrative. Which to me is just downright amazing. The band has been around since 1987, and now fifteen years later, they decide to make a concept album, and not just make one, craft one that’s breathtaking. The album tells the story of fictional Redford Stephens and his life...in reverse. Sort of like the serious How I Met Your Mother of hip-hop. And the topics touched upon, the energy in both the music and Blackthought’s lyrics, and the overall vibe of the album is top notch. This album is easily the bands most ambitious work, and sits atop the list of their best.

NOTABLE TRACKS: One Time, Tip the Scale, Lighthouse

6. Jay-Z and Kanye West- Watch The Throne

This album may be the most talked about album of the past year. The hype behind it was astronomical, and many feel that it didn’t deliver upon being released. There was a lot of people saying that Jay and Kanye are wealthy, powerful people just rapping about their wealth and power. And you know what? I agree. And I love it. While this album isn’t perfect, the good parts are great, and they come frequently. Also, Jay-Z hasn’t been this strong lyrically since The Black Album dropped in 2003. Not to mention this album touts party jam after party jam after party jam, and they are all songs that aren’t going anywhere. “Niggas in Paris” is going to be a staple of awesomeness for quite some time. And Kanye West’s production on this LP is near flawless. He has a very strong command of how to handle beats, as we’ve seen on his solo work and production work for others, but on this album he takes it to a new extreme. And it works. With this album the idea of high risk high reward comes into mind. These two bragged for 50 minutes while they sampled iconic artists and spmgs, things could’ve gone sour very easily, but instead these two men secure even moreso that they do deserve the throne that we are watching.

NOTABLE TRACKS: No Church in the Wild, Niggas in Paris, Who Gon Stop Me

5. Battles- Gloss Drop

Friends of mine had been recommending Battles debut LP Mirrored for years, and I’d always said “Yeah sure!” and never gave it the time of day. So when Gloss Drop came out, and the same comments started coming out, I figured it was time to give the band their due. And this album is really good! The mostly instrumental, sort of progressive, and always fun and funky Gloss Drop is a reminder that happy music doesn’t always have to have the Andrew W.K. style that so many people assume. This album is intricate and really musical and sounds really unique, but at the same time it always had me smiling and every time I listen to it I get pumped up. The way the trio play their instruments is really cool, and they weave within each others grooves and loops and create this just fun, and kind of schizophrenic listening experience. And the cover of this album is so weird. That deserves kudos too right?

NOTABLE TRACKS: Futura, My Machines, Rolls Bayce

4. Beastie Boys- Hot Sauce Committee Part Two

I wrote a lengthy review of this LP on this blog before, so I will keep this short: I didn’t expect the Beastie Boys to make a good album following the innovation-less To The 5 Boroughs and the instrumental The Mix-Up, but alas! They’ve proven me wrong. I love this album. A great LP from a great group. Listen to it and read my full review if you want to know my real in depth thoughts!

NOTABLE TRACKS: Make Some Noise, Tadlock’s Glasses, Say It

3. TV on the Radio- Nine Types Of Light

First and foremost, when writing this, I need to say rest in peace Gerard Smith, the man responsible for the bass guitar on this album. Now, in the past few months I’ve fallen in love with this band. I’ve had their prior two LP’s Return to Cookie Mountain and Dear Science gathering digital dust in my iTunes, so I decided to give them spins and I found all of these things I missed in them when I first heard them. And Nine Types Of Light fits perfectly into the groups discography. Everything this band does is great. The unique voices, harmonies, the atmospheric guitar and thumping bass, the saxophone lines...I could go on and on. At the end of the day this group knows how to craft a solid LP of great songs. All the pieces fit together on this vast LP, and while the band is not for everyone, I am glad to have them click for me after all this time.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Second Song, No Future Shock, New Cannonball Blues

2. Danny Brown- XXX

While Odd Future may have cornered the mainstream market of hip-hop fans who want to hear obscene topics covered, they did so with a constant sigh of disappointment from me. Everything they did was pretty good and had great moments, and then fell flat on it’s face for being so dumb and repetitive. So where did I turn when I wanted to hear a vulgar, filthy, emcee who has no restraint rap over really strong beats? Well I turn to Danny Brown’s FREE LP XXX. The title of the album comes from the fact that he hit the big 3-0 in 2011 and because he is an abuser of illegal substances. And with both of those facts we have more life experience that the teens of Odd Future, and with the substance abuse we have credibility when talking about doing drugs and the highs and lows that ensue, whereas Tyler, The Creator has admitted publicly that he's straight edge. And the end result with this album is just extreme everything. The beats hit hard, the lyrics are clever and sometimes hilarious and super crude and violent. This just hits the nail on the head for what it’s trying to do. It’s tongue in cheek in a sense that everything is over the top, but it’s honest in a sense that it shows the listener a man who is absolutely absorbed in a life controlled by substances. Download XXX because it’s FREE.

NOTABLE TRACKS: XXX, Die Like a Rockstar, Monopoly

1. Grieves- Together/Apart

I knew nothing about Grieves and his production partner Budo going into this album. I saw a bunch of mini-video podcasts on the Rhymesayers Youtube channel, so when I saw it at FYE, I decided it was worth a gift card swipe. And sure enough this album blew my mind. If Atmosphere dominated the late 90’s and the 00’s with their brand of honest and gripping hip-hop, then I think they are passing the torch to these two. Grieves is a phenomenal lyricist. He throws references to corny 90’s things like tamagatchi’s without coming off like a Chris Webby or a Mac Miller, and then lines later he’ll be talking about losing loved ones. Being a recovering addict whose relapsed certainly helps Grieves in the credibility department, as his words hold a bit more poignancy knowing that they aren’t falsified. And he also manages to entertain while spilling his guts on the track. He can spin issues to being about him overcoming, and how life is worth living, instead of simply wallowing. And while his name isn’t on the album, the production from Budo is amazing as well. His use of live instruments that he plays most of the time (keyboard, trumpet, guitar, and percussion) really give the beats a natural feel, unlike some mainstream artists who have beats that feel as though they came off a conveyor belt. The passion and delivery on this album make it a standout LP among the lengthy and iconic Rhymesayers catalogue, and it is without question my favorite album of 2011.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Bloody Poetry, Tragic, Prize Fighter

That’s that. Hopefully I’ll post more on this blog in 2012. Who knows?

Dave's Favorite Albums of 2011 Part Three: 20-11

2012-01-17T23:10:00.007-05:00

Okay, so I know I said this would be up last week, and it probably should’ve been up before January 1st, but who cares right? And if you really do care, you can blame my job and Arkham City, as those two things have chewed away at my time more than anything else. And my Arkham City save file just corrupted, so what the heck else am I going to do? Here are numbers 20-11!

20. Manchester Orchestra- Simple Math

Atlanta’s Manchester Orhcestra is a band I’ve slept on for a while. I like them, I liked their last album Mean Everything to Nothing so much that it ranked #16 in my Top 20 albums of 2009, and I honestly think that Simple Math is an improvement on that LP. The album is indeed a somewhat simple, yet still awesome rock and roll in an age that the great things about the gnere are being covered up by trendy indie bands and obnoxious pop music. And while these guys are conventional rock, they don’t do it in an Andrew W.K. style of just non-stop noise, they are methodical with their music and create a really cool 44 minute LP that doesn’t just rock your face, but challenges you a bit as a rock fan. It’s not experimental per se, but it is different than your normal batch of foot tappers and I really do enjoy that.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Deer, Pensacola, Pale Black Eye

19. The Black Keys- El Camino

I’d never been a big fan of The Black Keys until I listened to their 2010 LP Brothers, wherein I was promptly forced to apologize to friends who had been recommending them to me for years. So when I heard they were dropping El Camino a little more than a year and a half later, I was a bit worried that it would sound lazy and perhaps come off as a Brothers b-sides LP, and gladly El Camino isn’t that at all! While this album is more of an effort to be mainstream, as Brothers was too, it still succeeds at creating really catchy bluesy rock jams. So while the old school Keys fans are shaking their fists at this more poppy, mainstream sound, myself, and not to mention the Black Keys themselves are smiling and waving (and the band are laughing their way to the bank!)

NOTABLE TRACKS: Gold on the Ceiling, Hell of a Season, Mind Eraser

18. Evidence- Cats & Dogs

Producer, Rapper and Dilated Peoples member Evidence released his first LP on indie hip-hop label Rhymesayers, and the end result is a polished, straightforward hip-hop album. Ev covers typical hip-hop bases and does so with ease and great success. He effortlessly breezes across subject matter like a poor upbringing, his daily routine, death, his hometown, working with Kanye West and Will.i.am and several others over beats that are as smooth as butter. And this album is chock full of great guest spots, Rass Kass, Raekwon, Prodigy, Slug, and Aesop Rock to name a few, and Ev chooses their places wisely, as opposed to a more mainstream figure would, just tossing names onto tracks for exposure. And another thing that Ev does in his stoned out head is make a somewhat simple idea such as being late for a flight into a great track that makes that concept abstract, and the great “Late For the Sky” is the end result of that. So, I highly recommend this LP to people that want straight up hip-hop from a source that isn’t force fed to you by way of the radio.

NOTABLE TRACKS: It Wasn’t Me, Late For The Sky, Where You Came From

17. Lil’ Wayne- Tha Carter IV

Ah Lil’ Wayne, the most talked about rapper of 2011. So many people absolutely loathe everything he does, and then so many more people think he’s the best thing this side of Eminem and Jay-Z. And Tha Carter IV, his first legitimate hip-hop LP since 2008’s Tha Carter III, is exactly what fans expected it to be. It’s filled to the brim with party jams and a who’s-who of guest spots including Drake, T-Pain, Rick Ross, Jadakiss, NaS, Andre 3000, Busta Rhymes and a whole lot more. Now, this album is not the kind of thing that is put together artfully, each track isn’t placed in it’s slot for a reason, and I think a lot of the backlash on this album is the fact that this LP feels more like a collection of unrelated songs than it does a real LP. And taking that into account, this is really good. I mean, yeah there are a few duds, but for the most part this album is fun and Wayne does a lot of good in showing off his guests. Not to mention he himself is one of the better punchline rappers to grace the radio. If you’re into fun music that’s full of brags and over the top ideas of people, enjoy Tha Carter IV.

NOTABLE TRACKS: John, 6 Foot 7 Foot, Abortion

16. Death Grips- Ex-Military

Every now and again I like it when the music I listen to grabs me by my collar and smashes my head into the ground several times and leaves me with the impression of “Wow, that was crazy.” and with Death Grips FREE LP Ex-Military, that’s exactly what happens. It’s loud to the point of being disturbing, and the lyrics are militant. Now, I know there has been aggressive hip-hop, but this breed of aggression brought classically angry groups like N.W.A and Public Enemy to mind, just with a tinge of DMX’s rage into them. And just like with those classic militant hip-hop, the beats on Ex-Military are part of the reason why this comes off as so over-the-top. And those beats can be attributed to Hella drummer Zach Hill, whose diverse ear gives the beats the edge over the rest of the beats floating around the internet. Now, I know this kind of music isn’t for everyone, in fact, many people I’ve recommended this to have disliked it. But the commitment to the insanity, as well as the way it just never ceases, really makes me love this LP. And did I mention it’s FREE?

NOTABLE TRACKS: Beware, Lord of the Game, Thru the Walls

15. Patrick Stump- Soul Punk

So in 2011 I found myself falling in love with Fall Out Boy, a band I loathed during high school and college. And seemingly right as I grew more and more fond of FoB, their lead singer and guitarist Patrick Stump released his solo LP Soul Punk. The album can be taken as literally as the title. It’s a great infusion of Michael Jackson and Prince style soul music with that punk rock edge that Fall Out Boy made famous in the mid-00’s. But to the Fall Out Boy haters of the world, this album isn’t weighed down with obnoxious song titles and overly dramatic lyrics, well not as much as Fall Out Boy, it’s just a solid, fun LP of songs that show that Stump doesn’t need Pete Wentz to put out hits. For fans of both Fall Out Boy and those classic artists like Michael and Prince, this album is worth a listen. Maybe you’ll leave it jaded because it’s that clown from Fall Out Boy, or maybe you’ll appreciate a fan of a genre doing his best to modernize it, at least that’s what I got out of this.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Explode, Run Dry (X Heart X Fingers), Dance Miserable

14. Mastodon- The Hunter

For years friends of mine had been trying to get me into Mastodon, now not even just metalhead fans, though they were trying too. It was as if the band retained their credibility while appealing to a broad audience. And on The Hunter, it appears as though they are reaching out to the mainstream a bit more openly. This album doesn’t feature epic tracks, in fact the longest track on the album is only slightly over five minutes. Now, just like with The Black Keys, I can be called out for being a bit of an amateur fan of this band, but I can’t deny that I really like this album. It hits hard, and granted, it might not hit as hard as their earlier albums, and it might not be as sludgy either, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t pretty awesome. So picky fans can be picky, but please allow me to enjoy my entry level metal music for at least a little while.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Black Tongue, Curl Of The Burl, The Hunter

13. Bon Iver- Bon Iver, Bon Iver

Pitchfork’s #1 album of 2011 really had a strong impact on me as well. I sat on this one for a while and when I finally turned it on for the first time I just sat with the speakers cranked up and my jaw hanging a lot of times. This album is just sonically awesome. I know a lot of people have chastised Bon Iver for not caring too much about the mix on this album, and that it could have a completely more well rounded sound if time were put into mixing and whatnot, but I think the flurry of sounds thrown at the listener is beautiful. I’m generally not a fan of atmospheric indie music, but throughout the course of this album I was taken places in my ears and brain that I’ve only dreamed of! Very rarely do I love a Pitchfork favorite, but with this album I’m forced to shut up and say they made a good call.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Holocene, Wash, Minnesota, WI

12. Chickenfoot- Chickenfoot III

And immediately following the indie darling is the cock rock masterpiece of 2011. Now for those that haven’t seen my insane number of tweets about this band, Chickenfoot is the definition of a supergroup. Fronted by solo artist and former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar, featuring VH bassist Michael Anthony, solo guitar god Joe Satriani, and drummer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers Chad Smith, the group make the exact style of music you would assume them to make. And this album is really, really, really fun. I was a bit skeptical going into it due to the limited promotion and the short time between its announcement and release date, but I was silenced immediately as I first popped this into my CD player. It just runs its course and easily entertains. For those that do know Chickenfoot, and have listened to their self titled debut, there may be questions of “How is this any different than the first one?” and to me the differences aren’t really blatant, but they are present. The band feels more at home with the songs on this LP, and the cheeziness seems to be embraced in the right ways a bit more. And I absolutely love that. There’s no age to these guys, as these tunes feel like 20 year olds could be churning them out. And I mean that as a compliment, not a slight! Not to mention the 3D packaging is AMAZING.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Alright Alright, Up Next, Dubai Blues

11. tUnE-yArDs- who kill

Connecticut born tUnE-yArDs was an act I had a hard time getting into. Maybe it was just because I was stubborn, or maybe it was because the vocal looping was annoying to me at first, but once I escaped that imaginary barrier, I really loved this LP. And what I think is the factor that made me love it is the fact that at the end of the day, regardless of the indie blog press it’s been getting, is that this is essentially stripped down pop music. Now, maybe this isn't Miley Cyrus or Ke$ha pop music, but with some more conventional instruments playing these tunes instead of vocal loops and ukulele this could be mainstream! And I give credit to tUnE-yArDs to keeping this as weird as possible.

NOTABLE TRACKS: Riotriot, Bizness, You Yes You

SEE YOU NEXT TIME!!!!

Dave's Favorite Albums of 2011 Part Two: Let Downs and Honorable Mentions

2012-01-09T22:23:00.006-05:00

Hello! Back again with the albums that didn't make my Favorite list! Shame on them! Or if it's the honorable mention area, good effort!

The Let Downs:

1. The Strokes- Angles

The Strokes are responsible for one of the most iconic albums of the 2000’s with their debut Is This It? Not to mention their follow-up LP’s Room On Fire and First Impressions of Earth had a handful of gems on them, regardless of their failure to live up to their predecessor. So when it was announced that the band was back together after hiatus I expected great things, and following the release of the single “Under Cover of Darkness” I thought perhaps the band could make another iconic LP. Alas...this album is so flat and void of emotion aside from “Under Cover” and the cool guitar line in the track “Metabolism”. It’s clear the band doesn’t get along, considering singer Julian Casablancas e-mailed in his vocals and feedback on the music, and guitarist Albert Hammond Junior spent much of the recording process battling drug addiction. The point in which this album, and to a certain degree the band as a whole, looked bleak was when Casablancas said in an interview that he was proud of “About 60% of the album.” Next time I release an album to the masses, I’m going to make sure to tell them it’s only a little more than half good.

2. Tyler, The Creator- Goblin

In the first quarter of 2011, Tyler, The Creator and his cronies in the Odd Future movement had the world in their hands. After a shockingly bizarre performance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon and the viral success of the music video for the song “Yonkers,” it seemed as though there was no way Goblin wouldn’t live up to the hype. When the LP dropped, the hardcore OFWGKTA fans ate it up and praised it, however, I can’t stand it. There are some great tracks, some good ones and then the rest of this album is god-awful. There are songs on this album that I would go as far as to say are among the worst songs I’ve ever heard in my life. With so many well-received mixtapes and digital albums under his belt, I assumed Tyler would know how to please a mainstream audience. But unfortunately Tyler was perhaps a bit too cocky with his song choices, and the end result is upsettingly bad. I pray that he can regroup and make his next LP, Wolf, a cleaner and more well thought out effort.

3. Lupe Fiasco- Lasers

Five years into the hip-hop game, Lupe Fiasco seemingly had the world in his palm. He’d achieved both critical and relatively commercial success with his first two LP’s Food and Liquor and The Cool. And the longer he awaited after the latter of those two albums, the more unintentional hype he put behind the LP that we came to know as Lasers. And when it dropped the negative reviews came from all corners, and I didn’t want to believe them. But then I listened to this album. It’s infused with poppy, electronic beats, and the lyrics are not nearly as potent as they once were. Lupe Fiasco could have cemented himself as a mainstay in the genre, but all of the things I’ve just mentioned, as well as lazy guest spots did a lot of damage to Lupe’s image. This album really is a fiasco.

4. Red Hot Chili Peppers- I’m With You

After longtime guitarist John Frusciante quit the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2009 and was quickly replaced with touring guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, there was a bit of unease from hardcore fans. Could the band continue to play funky jams and entertain fans without the signature sound of Frusciante (not to mention his vocal harmonies)? And the answer was yes. Klinghoffer fit in very well. The problem was, the entire band decided to record and release a more or less lazy LP on every front. Where once Flea slapped and popped strings left and right, here he plucks his way through riffs, like the single “The Adventures of Raindance Maggie”, and where once lead singer Anthony Kiedis crafted quirky and fun lyrics, now he seems like an awkward older guy trying to grab onto the youth inside of him with lines like “Hustle me bitch and you best beware!” And you can’t say Klinghoffer takes away, it’s almost as if he’s not even there! The guitar is almost a secondary instrument on this album. And perhaps the biggest let down of this LP is that there are moments of sheer greatness, tracks like “Monarchy of Roses” and “Look Around” are amazing, and different than the “Can’t Stop” and “Give It Away” style that RHCP have sort of gotten stuck in. But the goods are too little and the mediocres are far too many. Is there any ounce of decency left in the Chili Peppers? Yes, they just seem to brush over it. I pray they can regroup and forge onward instead of holding their current ground, as the new stylings they played with on I’m With You could flourish if given more time to develop.

5. Childish Gambino- CAMP

Troy from NBC’s Community, a.k.a founding member of the Youtube comedy group Derrick Comedy a.k.a Donald Glover a.k. Childish Gambino finally released his first studio LP following a string of free tapes and the aplty titled EP earlier in 2011. And to put it bluntly Gambino can’t be taken seriously. While he is a fiery lyricist, and delivers some downright amazing punchlines, the overall themes of songs are diminished, as they almost contradict each other from track to track. Glover keeps saying he’s pining after one girl, and then has a track about how his fake girlfriend has a key to his house and he doesn’t want his real girlfriend, and how his girl is a Maxim model. Then he says he wants to be relatable to the black community as an alternative to what you hear on the radio, then he makes a brag track in the same vein as Kanye West, Lil’ Wayne or a more commercial Tyler, The Creator. And how can he seem relatable when he keeps saying he great he is? I really enjoyed this album after the first few listens, but the more it sunk in, the more I just got frustrated with how lazy and inconsistent this is. I had very high hopes for this LP and while it does offer some cool beats and good punchlines, its lack of any real focus really brings it down.

The Honorable Mentions:
(note: the term ‘honorable mention’ does not mean that these next LP’s deserve the 21-25 slot on my list, it means they stood out in one way or another. Quality is not always what makes the effort honorable.)

1. Bad Meets Evil- Hell: The Sequel

In a further step to return to the notoriety he had in the early to mid 2000’s, Eminem reunited with former ally Royce Da 5’9” to deliver Hell: The Sequel, a 9 track EP that’s just as vulgar, violent and vicious as the filthiest tracks in Em’s discography. And Royce is no chump on the mic, as fans of his solo work know. It’s an impressive EP lyrically, and reminds us that even though Em has found commercial success with songs about overcoming obstacles like “Not Afraid” he can still chew you up if he wants to. What brings this EP down is the need for hooks. Tracks like “Lighters” and “Above the Law”, while potent in their lyrical content, feature gag worthy hooks that belong on someone else’s songs. So yeah, cheers to Em and Royce for spitting fire, even after being in the game for so long, but us real hip-hop fans don’t need Bruno Mars singing hooks. Hopefully following the success both critically and commercially of this and Em’s last LP Recovery, we can see the man truly regain his place as one of hip-hops greatest lyricist.

2. Drake- Take Care

With his first album, the ambitiously titled Thank Me Later, Drake did nothing more than brag about how great he was, regardless of how little time he’d spent in the spotlight. And that left an incredibly sour taste in my mouth. So when Take Care started getting raving reviews I was skeptical about whether or not it was worth my time to listen to it. But I succumbed to the peer pressure and finally gave this album a few spins, and while I’m not a huge fan of it as a whole, there’s a whole lot of audacity going into this release. Drake opens up his soul and pours it all over the duration of this, and for the first time in history, I’ve felt a connection to him. He talks about how fame can’t buy him money, regardless of how much fun he appears to be having. And he has the balls to sing a good majority of this album. So to me Drake could’ve coasted along with another LP full of brag tracks where he sings hooks and then raps verses, but on Take Care he really explores a lot of things musically. So I do give credit where credit is due.

3. Mac Miller- Blue Slide Park

I’d first heard Mac Miller on Chris Webby’s track “I Need A Dollar” wherein Miller killed Webby in a verse that seemed to take little to no effort from Miller. So after hearing his K.I.D.S mixtape and getting really excited from that, I was ready to enjoy Blue Slide Park. And I did. It’s a solid output. It’s not great. But there are a few things that I really admire. Number one is the fact that it sold 145,000 copies in its first week. Now Miller is not a mainstay on hip-hop radio, nor is signed to a massive record label. He’s toured extensively and built a following off of social networking and releasing mixtapes. So, it’s good to see his hard work pay off. And what else makes this album so notable? The fact that regardless of his affiliations with Wiz Khalifa, Maroon 5 and several other mainstream music figures, Miller doesn’t have a single guest appearance on this album. In an age where most hip-hop albums don’t go more than two tracks without guests, this kid from Pittsburg put out an album with ZERO guests and sold 145,000 copies in a week. That my friends, is incredibly honorable.

4. Wale- Ambition

I’ve been an on and off fan of Wale for some time. I enjoyed his tape The Mixtape About Nothing, hated his debut LP Attention Deficit, and then loved his mixtape More About Nothing. So when Rick Ross’s Maybach Music Group signed him to a deal, I was both excited and scared. Could Wale deliver an LP on a major label that delivered the lyrical poignancy that he became known for on his mixtapes? And he did! Ambition is exactly what its title implies, and Wale can finally be proud of both commercial and critical success. This isn’t the best hip-hop album of the year by a long shot, but the fact that Wale transcended a record label watering down what makes him who he is and delivered a solid LP proves that the music industry is not run by corporations, but by individuals and groups of people with drive. I think with some fine tuning, Wale can follow up Ambition with something equally hungry, just a bit more fine tuned.

5. Primus- Green Naugahyde/Yellowcard- When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes/Bela Fleck and the Flecktones- Rocket Science

Why have I lumped a funk metal band, a pop punk band and a bluegrass band in one category? Allow me to explain. All three of the groups I’ve placed here are among my favorites. Primus is without question my favorite band of all time, Yellowcard was my guilty pleasure all throughout high school and college, and The Flecktones were a group that really challenged me musically, and continue to do so. Essentially, all three of these groups are in my ‘top tier’ of bands. And all three released good LP’s in 2011. However, all three groups produced albums of tunes that sort of fit in with their prior releases without really doing much to grow artistically. I’ve listened to all three of these albums extensively and really enjoy them, I just can’t call these among the best of the year because the bands are musically treading water. So good tunes yes, but charging forward musically instead of standing still would’ve pushed them from the honorable mentions onto my favorites. No big deal!

Alright folks! Numbers 20-11 will be up soon, with numbers 10-1 up shortly thereafter! Hope you're enjoying 2012! The world will end this year!

Dave's Favorite Albums of 2011 Part One: The Queue and The Preface

2011-12-29T14:47:00.002-05:00

So here we are, the end of 2011, a brand spankin’ new year less than a week away! I know I haven’t been all that present this year on this blog and I do apologize for that. But I’ll do my best to update more in 2012. I may move over to Word Press soon! But enough of that. Just as I did last year, I wanted to give you all, the very small number of readers, a list of the albums I have listened to from the past year year. So that way, when you say “Where is The King of Limbs on your Favorite’s list?” I can say, “I didn’t listen to it, didn’t you look at the list of albums I listened to?” and you will be sad. So here it is folks in alphabetical order.

2011 Albums I listened to:
1. Adele-21
2. All Pigs Must Die-God Is War
3. ASAP Rocky-LiveLoveA$AP
4. Atmosphere-The Family Sign
5. B.o.B.-E.P.I.C. (Every Play Is Crucial)
6. Bad Meets Evil- Hell: The Sequel
7. Battles- Gloss Drop
8. Beastie Boys- Hot Sauce Committee Part Two
9. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones- Rocket Science
10. The Black Keys- El Camino
11. Bon Iver- Bon Iver, Bon Iver
12. Cage The Elephant- Thank You, Happy Birthday
13. Chickenfoot- Chickenfoot III
14. Childish Gambino- CAMP
15. Childish Gambino- EP
16. Chris Brown- F.A.M.E.
17. Common- The Dreamer/The Believer
18. The Cool Kids- When Fish Ride Bicycles
19. Danny Brown- XXX
20. Death Grips- Exmilitary
21. Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows- D.R.U.G.S.
22. Drake- Take Care
23. Everlast- Songs of the Ungrateful Living
24. Evidence- Cats & Dogs
25. Foo Fighters- Wasting Light
26. Frank Ocean- Nostalgia, Ultra
27. The Go! Team- Rolling Blackouts
28. Grives- Together/Apart
29. Hail Mary Mallon- Are You Gonna Eat That?
30. J. Cole- Cole World: The Sideline Story
31. Jay-Z and Kanye West- Watch the Throne
32. Kendrick Lamar- Section .80
33. Lights- Siberia
34. Lil B- I’m Gay (I’m Happy)
35. Lil’ Wayne- Tha Carter IV
36. Limp Bizkit- Gold Cobra
37. Little Dragon-Ritual Union
38. The Lonely Island- Turtleneck and Chain
39. Lupe Fiasco- Lasers
40. Mac Miller- Best Day Ever
41. Mac Miller- Blue Slide Park
42. Manchester Orchestra- Simple Math
43. Mastodon- The Hunter
44. Patrick Stump- Soul Punk
45. Primus- Green Naugahyde
46. Pusha T- Fear of God
47. Pusha T- Fear of God II: Let us Pray
48. Raekwon- Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang
49. The Roots- Undun
50. Shabazz Palaces- Black Up
51. Slaughterhouse- The Slaughterhouse EP
52. St. Vincent- Strange Mercy
53. Steel Panther- Balls Out
54. The Strokes- Angles
55. T-Pain- rEVOLVEr
56. Tech N9ne- All 6’s and 7’s
57. Thundercat- The Golden Age of Apocalypse
58. Tune-Yards- w H o K i L l
59. TV on the Radio- 9 Types of Light
60. Tyler, The Creator- Goblin
61. Wale- Ambition
62. The Weekend- House of Balloons
63. Wiz Khalifa- Rolling Papers
64. Yellowcard- When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes

The Preface:
Okay, sixty four albums this year. That’s a lot. A lot more than I’ve listened to in past years. There are some obvious ones that’ll get knocked off just because they don’t live up to the hype, or I just expected them to be bad. But this year has been a year of real musical discovery for me. Maybe it’s because I had a lot more free time over the past several months than I did in college, or maybe it’s because I’ve been reading blogs like The Needle Drop and a little Pitchfork, or watching reviews on Youtube, but I have expanded my pallet a lot more this year. But don’t let me listening to more give you the impression that these blogs and websites and vloggers have a stronger influence on how I feel about what I'm listening. I love suggestions, but I still have the same tastes I’ve had in the past. So you can say “So he listened to St. Vincent, how can he put Yellowcard or Limp Bizkit above them on a ‘best of’ list?” and I remind you this is NOT a ‘best of 2011’ list, this is my FAVORITE albums. Don’t confuse the two. You may see some albums on this list that don’t show up on others, and that’s because I love what I love. So, I hope you enjoy the list as it comes to you! It was a tough one to make!

Hot Sauce Committee Part Two Review!

2011-05-19T19:01:00.002-04:00

I remember the first time I heard the Beastie Boys very well. My mom and I had driven to pick my brother up from his trumpet lesson, I was in middle school and was too young to be left at home to my own devices for small periods of time. However, I was allowed to be left in a Subaru Outback while my mom went inside and paid my brothers instructor and chatted for a moment. I’d usually dart the radio to Connecticut’s “alternative” rock station 104.1 and pray to hear some Linkin Park, Nirvana or whatever else I had heard on MTV2 that week. But one day, as I turned the dial I heard something unique. An alien-like voice rapping over a heavily layered and catchy beat, repeating one line over and over again. Fast forward to getting home and logging onto Napster, when I typed “Intergalactic” into the search bar, my view on music changed forever.

So, here I am, ten years later, and the Beastie Boys have become one of my favorite groups of all time. Over the years I have come to own all of their LP’s, even the awfully recorded punk rock demos Some Old Bullshit. And after their last two albums, my love and anticipation for new material has sort of stagnated, 2003’s To The 5 Boroughs was a step back in every aspect, it came off as a generic, run of the mill hip-hop record, from a group synonymous with changing the game, and 2007’s The Mix Up, while entertaning, did nothing to further the artistic vision of the Beastie Boys. So in 2009, when Adam “MCA” Yauch announced that an immediate need to treat lymph node cancer would put their forthcoming album Hot Sauce Committee Part One on hold, I wasn’t all that upset (for the lack of an album, I was upset he was sick). I did enjoy the collabo-track “Too Many Rappers” that came out, featuring another prolific New York rapper, NaS. But even with that one new song, I wasn’t back on the “The Beastie Boys are the greatest group in hip-hop!” train.

Then, just a few weeks ago, the rumblings started. Amidst the obscene hype of new-coming hip-hoppers like Odd Future, Lil’ B, and the slew of other characters trying to catch my attention, the Beastie Boys released a trailer. It featured comedians Danny McBride, Seth Rogen and hobbit Elijah Wood in the same get-ups that the B-Boys wore in their iconic music video “Fight For Your Right” walking down the streets of New York crossing paths with the likes of Ted Dansen, Susan Sarandon, Orlando Bloom, Will Arnett and a load of other notable comedy names. Fast forward to the film’s release, and it is hilarious! But the music stood out between the a-list cameos and hijinks. There were a few tunes highlighted that were downright awesome. And with that, I was back.

Hot Sauce Committee Part Two picks up creatively where their iconic Hello Nasty ended. Within the first few moments of the album, we are given a new vision on the classic B-Boys sound. The first track, which is chopped up throughout their film, “Make Some Noise” is everything us Beastie fans have been without. Funky keyboards and live instruments reminiscent of Check Your Heads and The Mix-Up with the catchy and trademarked lyrical style that has made the group the icons they are. This song is a perfect opener, because it really sweeps the listener back into what the Beastie Boys are all about. While the chorus is a tad cliché (“Party on the left / Party on the right / Party for your mother fucking right to fight”) the sheer catchiness of the ordeal overshadows that. The next track features a bass line very similar stylistically to Herbie Hancock’s classic “Watermelon Man” over minimalist drums and tinny vocals. Mike D has a fun verse, but as the track goes on it gets a tad boring, especially when the vocal mix gets more and more tweaked. I mean, I understand stylistically this is something we’ve never really heard, but considering the beat is so minimal and the flow is laid back, that’s not necessary in my opinion.

The next track “Ok” kicks off with a more rock-feel, frequent collaborator Money Mark plays a simple keyboard lick and Mike D plays a straightforward rock beat. The verse lyrics are kind of boring, but in the chorus we see the Boys properly utilizing vocal effects, as a robot-like character gets soloed in a catchy and appropriate way. “Too Many Rappers” follows “Ok”, touting a ‘New Reactionaries Version’ following the title, and considering how much I loved the original version of this song, I am floored by this version. The easiest way to describe the remix would be inflated. It’s as if the 2009 version was stuck with a plug and pumped full of air. Everything is so much more resonant, the vocals echo from time to time and an added keyboard layer really adds a spacey dimension to this. My only problem with this track is minor, and it’s that NaS didn’t come in and spit a new verse. We hear changes from the boys, but NaS’s output is exactly the same as it was 2 years ago. His verse was good, so my complaint comes only as a super-fan.

A highlight follows “Too Many Rappers”, the song “Say It” feels like it belongs on Ill Communication. It’s dirty, features a punky guitar line and chorus. This fits very nicely next to their smash hit “Sabotage” and while that albums sound turns off some fans, I think it’s great, and this song is a nice throwback to that style. There’s a feel of angst and aggression that made me forget that these guys are in their mid 40’s. After a skit, the album changes pace with the reggae sounding “Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win” featuring Santigold. At first, I was really turned off to this song, it sort of sticks out like a sore thumb, but the more I listen to this album, the more I like this track. It’s really an area the Boys haven’t approached in this style. It’s got a catchy chorus from Santigold and the verses are solid. The next few tracks are more of what has been established on the first few tracks, “Long Burn the Fire” and “Funky Donkey” are both decent songs.

“Tadlock’s Glasses” follows another interlude and is one of the coolest beats on the album. This song was originally the title track of the album, and with good reason, it’s really unique. The samples are really cool, and the returning spacey vocals actually fit properly. “Lee Majors Comes Again” is another punky number that reminds me of their days as a legitimate punk rock band. It’s an odd track, and I can see it being something that the true hip-hop fans don’t like, but I think it’s pretty cool. They follow that with “Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament” a funky instrumental that acts as a nice cool down point following the loud and perhaps polarizing “Lee Majors”. The album ends with two decent tracks and a final skit, all of which entertain, but don’t do too much to make the album better or worse. Ending on a more bland note is a bit upsetting, but considering the bang of the first few tracks, it’s entirely forgivable.

At the end of the day there are visible errors with this album, problems that I can point at and say “I don’t like this thing” or “I wish they hadn’t done this,” but for every one of those moments there are two or three ones where I find myself going “That is really cool.” So the minor errors, ones that don’t have a truly negative effect on the songs, are entirely overshadowed by the unique, refreshing sound of the Beastie Boys. Having listened to this album several times, I can gladly say that it ranks among their best, and is sure to please true fans of the group. Also, I think it’s worth noting that this album has a much wider appeal, in the diversity of songs and beats, non-fans may find this album easier to dive into than say Check Your Head or even their debut. As of this moment, this is my favorite album of the year thus far. Will it hold onto that coveted title? Only time will tell.

The WWE Draft: It All Starts (or Ends) Here

2011-04-25T16:11:00.004-04:00

The following is essentially a rant, so excuse any misspellings or grammar issues.

So tonight is the WWE Draft, an event that has become synonymous with crushing momentum, prematurely ending careers, and very rarely, causing for some good feuds. Not to say that every single move in the draft is a bad one, but for the most part, the major trades have resulted in the previously mentioned negative things. We saw Jim Ross go from being the voice of WWE’s flagship programming to miserably calling Smackdown for a handful of months. Not to mention the Draft acts as a precursor to layoffs, which have been discussed for a long while. Here are my thoughts on the Draft, some obvious, some less so.

Smackdown obviously needs a major face with a lot of charisma and one who is not accident prone. Randy Orton obviously tops that list, as the WWE clearly won’t move John Cena off of Raw. But will they take that risk with moving Orton, another big ratings draw that has a good reputation among fans of all ages and genders? Smackdown is not short on face main event players, but they are certainly lacking that one guy who can carry them like Edge was and like Cena and Batista were in the past. I think this would be a great opportunity for them to start building Kofi Kingston as a legitimate main event player, or perhaps move John Morrison over and do something with him. WWE is failing at pushing young talents properly, and taking a risk of making JoMo or Kofi the posterboy for Smackdown is certainly a risk, it’s one that could yield long terms results, not to mention WWE fans won’t stop watching WWE because one aspect of the two hour show isn’t to their liking. I mean, I’ve lasted this long.

Another thing that I think this draft needs to do is re-evaluate the main event scene for both shows. The lines are so blurry, it’s confusing as to who is a legitimate threat and who is just being pushed to the upper mid-card just to hang there for a long time. The definite main eventers are clear, Cena, Orton, Mysterio, Undertaker, The Miz, and Aberto Del Rio (also Triple H, who is being less and less active). However, it’s the grey area guys that need to be defined. And that is a larger list of people who have held major titles or been contenders for a long time. People like CM Punk, Jack Swagger, Sheamus, Christian, R-Truth, Wade Barrett, Kane and The Big Show, all ride this constant purgatory of being pushed to the main event and getting title shots and then winding up in mindless feuds that never result in anything. A year ago Jack Swagger was the World Heavyweight Champion, now he’s Michael Cole’s lackey. For the entire second half of last year Kane was dominating a feud with the Undertaker, a well deserved bone being thrown his way after years of having no credibility, but now he struts around the ring doing the trombone thing with Santino. And the most annoying of all of these de-pushes (why isn’t the term PULL used more often?) are two of the best guys on the roster, Sheamus and Wade Barrett. Sheamus is a 2 time WWE champion and Barrett spent most of last year in a massive angle with John Cena, now both of them wear defining mid-card titles. I think if both of these guys dropped their belts and switched brands they would both benefit.

"We'll both be irrelevant in a matter of months."

You could have Sheamus drop the belt to Daniel Bryan in a good match, and move him to Smackdown and have him challenge the likes of Christian and Mysterio. Then you can have Barrett drop the title to someone along the lines of Chavo Guerrero, Yoshi Tatsu, Zack Ryder, Curt Hawkins or one of the hundred other wrestlers who have nothing going for them. Then Barrett could go back to Raw, where he has beef with literally everyone from Cena to Orton to the Nexus to former Nexus members who are still around...no disrespect is meant to The Corre, but we all know that both Nexus and Corre have overstayed their welcome. You could even have Barrett go to Raw and leave the Corre behind, just to have the New Nexus jump him and have the Corre invade to make the save, which could culminate in one last feud for both groups with the Corre as faces and the Nexus as heels. It’d make the whole thing go full circle and could help establish the individual members of these groups rather than just Punk and Barrett, their leaders.

I also think strong tag teams need to be formed or cultivated in this draft. There are only really four functioning tag teams in the entire WWE, the champs Kane and Big Show (wait didn’t I bring their names up before?), Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel, The Uso’s and Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov. WWE is certainly undermining the potential of their tag team division. Edge, Christian, Jeff Hardy, Shawn Michaels, John Morrison, The Miz, Triple H and countless others are all products of TAG TEAMS, so to package young, unused talents as credible tag teams could easily jet them to fame. Trent Barreta and Curt Hawkins are already essentially a tag team, give them matching tights and push them as another incarnation of the Dudebusters, bring back the Hart Dynasty (why did they even break them up?), make David Otunga and Mike McGilligutty a legitimate team, and have Yoshi Tatsu and Evan Bourne team up to be a new Rockers sort of team and you have some potential to have great matches! That way all of that wasted talent would no longer be wasted!

Also, the announcing situation has to be addressed. Good things have come of the recent Jerry Lawler/Michael Cole feud, and also several bad things have as well. The good, the best in fact, is that Jim Ross is back announcing. Ross is a god, the voice of the WWE, and having him around is a pleasure, and I pray that McMahon can understand that while he is aging, it’s better to have Ross wind down his career doing what he’s best at, than having him sit at home and squander his talent posting on Twitter. No offense is meant to Michael Cole of course, the man has a lot of talent and has been doing his thing for a long time, it’s just since NXT started and he became more of a heel, he’s been taking his toll on me as well as a whole bunch of loyal fans. If he were put on just one of WWE’s shows that’d be fine. Also Booker T is bad. Either Vince isn’t letting him be himself or he is honestly terrible at announcing. He has a few decent quips here and there, but his voice is so tolling and he just babbles. Isn’t Nash on the WWE’s payroll? Bring him in to replace Booker T.

This will give Jenna Morasca vs. Queen Sharmell a run for its money.

As far as cuts are concerned, I think a bunch of them are obvious if creative hasn’t come up with some plans behind the backs of viewers. Curt Hawkins, JTG, Trent Barreta, Tyson Kidd, D.H. Smith, Husky Harris, The Uso’s, and Tyler Reks have been doing absolutely nothing for the past few months. Not to mention Youtube sensation Zack Ryder hasn’t been given anything despite his amazing charisma and eagerness to perform (I do recommend those interested check out Z True Long Island Story if you are a fan of WWE, Ryder is funny and he really shows he should be used more prominently). Not to mention, the guys in the back have started confiscating Ryder signs for some strange reason. You think confiscating signs will make people stop wishing for more Zack Ryder? Come on...

If only he had the production budget of Raw or Smackdown, he would have more than a home made poster to stand in front of.

So that’s it. Tonight has potential to change things for the better in WWE, but will they take advantage of the opportunity or will they continue to disrespect their longtime fans with this poor quality programming.

Prowrasslin' Roundup!

2011-04-01T22:35:00.002-04:00

This is the big weekend for pro wrestling, so I'd like to come here and just give my opinions on the goings on in Ring of Honor, Total Nonstop Action and World Wrestling Entertainment. I am also doing this from my now functioning dual monitor setup. I like it a lot, but it really strains my eyes after an hour or so. But how is that relevant?

Ring of Honor
-This weekend is ROH's 'Honor Takes Center Stage' series which are both pretty awesome shows (one of them is over and I haven't read the results). It's good for ROH to put on high profile shows Wrestlemania weekend in Atlanta. Especially considering they are putting on two. I am glad Shelton and Charlie are wrestling on both shows, and I pray the Briscoes destroy them.
-Eddie Edwards won the ROH World Heavyweight Championship from my guy Roderick Strong. I feel like they are jumping the gun with Edwards. He's a phenomenal talent, and one that certainly is Championship material, I just think giving him the belt at this juncture is a bit quick, and really takes away from Roddy's title reign. Eddie Edwards was trending on Twitter, which is amazing! I pray that ROH fans keep up the networking regarding the product, it is amazing and it can truly vill the void presented by WWE and...

Total Nonstop Action
-A lot of stuff has happened in TNA since I last updated this blog. So allow me to pull my tweets from the now infamous 80 second main event where a stoned Jeff Hardy came out visibly inebriated and unable to perform, and after Sting won, he acknowledged the fans "Bullsh*t!" chants by shrugging and saying "I know!" Here is my tweet (remember to follow me @DH_Winchell, I have protected tweets, but accept pretty much all follower requests)....

Good to know that at every corner of his career @jeffhardybrand continues to screw up and let his fans and employers down. Pathetic.

-Bringing back Christopher Daniels is not a bad move, but it is an upsetting one. His move to ROH showed that he has passion for THIS BUSINESS rather than a paycheck. Aligning him with Fortune is brilliant though, and if they toss Samoa Joe in there as well and promote Fortune as the Whose Who in TNA it can really be a good stable of deserving people.
-I am sick of nearly every feud in TNA right now. I am sick of the main event, even though I like all of the wrestlers in it. It's stale and it takes away credibility from the wrestlers in it. Mr. Anderson is still young, I shouldn't be so tired of him yet.
-The hypnotizing angle with Angelina Love/Velvet Sky/Winter is absurd. It's so unrealistic. Not only because the hypnotizing is dumb, but because Winter was in WWE and garnered a decent amount of respect as Katie Lea Burchill. When they go "Where did she come from!?" I just want to call Dixie Carter and say "I remember her from ECW on SyFy 2 years ago."

World Wrestling Entertainment
-Wrestlemania is shaping up to be great. I am really proud of the people in WWE for putting on Monday's Raw. The energy was high, the star power was there, and the writing for the most part was good. In wrestling, it's upsetting to see such piss poor writing as of lately, because it makes non-fans who flip by it on TV go "Whoever watches this is a moron." but when they see The Rock in an awesome bit, or see guys like Sheamus, Daniel Bryan and more bust their rears on TV they may be more likely to leave it on.
-A lot of people have been criticizing the youth movement and saying The Miz and Alberto Del Rio have been pushed too quickly and neither deserve a major title. I disagree entirely. Miz has the work ethic of a poor person! The guy is working his tail off promoting WWE and for critics to say he's not a great wrestler and people hate him are jaded fans. As far as Del Rio is concerned, his buildup has been superb and completely logical. It made sense for him to have those series of matches with Rey Mysterio, and then injuring Christian only to take on his real life best friend at Mania is perfect. Not to mention that in the process of putting himself over, Del Rio has brought Christian up to the main event level without forcing him. If Vince denies him the chance for a good heel run or a face one against Del Rio he is a fool. Look at the pops Christian is getting.
-Triple H/Undertaker got really good Monday when Shawn Michaels came out. I had no excitement for this match until that promo. Does it deserve to close the show? No. Not in my opinion at least. We all know Undertaker is going to win. Triple H doesn't deserve to be able to say that he ended the streak.
-As far as The Rock's return, I am a bit jaded. I am siding with Cena here, or whoever wrote Cena's first and final promos against Rocky. I love The Rock, but for him to basically command the fans to turn on Cena is so dumb! Cena HAS been working his tail off for more than half a decade and The Rock has the audacity to cut a clearly unwritten promo where he said he loves the people and he'll always be with the people, yet he swore off WWE before so many of his films flopped. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Rocky is back where he belongs, I just think his approach to his return is disrespectful.
-Snooki is on Wrestlemania in a match with John Morrison, Trish Stratus, Dolph Ziggler and Layla El and Michelle McCool. Biggest waste of 5 people for buys? And honestly who is buying Wrestlemania for Snooki?

That's it! I've been tuning into a podcast by wrestling critics Bill & Doug (youtube username rvdtito4life) and I think it's something all fans should listen to. BUT, I feel like they are very, very extreme in their opinions. I mean, it is entertainment. I left them a formspring question and they called me a loser, saying the Miz is good. So I mean, a good listen for people critical of the industry, but not one to really stand behind, because they are just angry, cynical non-fans.

Shuffle=Life

2011-03-13T17:57:00.002-04:00

I read this thing on the Rate Your Music forums asking people to shuffle their iTunes and describe the first 20 songs and see how they define them as music listeners. I like the idea, but since it’s a 6 page thread that no one cares about I’d rather post something like this here, especially since I haven’t posted in a while. So...20 randomly shuffled songs from my iTunes. I’m going to hone down onto my “NO FAIL” playlist which is made of like 600 songs which I would listen to on the train during my NYC commute last year and working with Hofstra Concerts in the office. Yeah 600 songs on a playlist. It used to be called “The Unskippables” but since I end up skipping songs I felt that “NO FAIL” is better, because while I may skip songs, it doesn’t mean they “fail”. So let’s go.

1. Notorious B.I.G.- Machine Gun Funk

Biggie is an obvious rapper to have on ones iTunes, and “Machine Gun Funk” is one of his more well known songs, but it’s not like “Juicy” or “Hypnotize” where it’s gotten to the point where every annoying non-rap fan can spit along with him. This is a raw track, probably my favorite B.I.G. track. I remember one time at work this 35 year old black guy like challenged me when I said I liked B.I.G and put me on the spot to name one of his songs that I liked, and when I said this one he was like "Wow, good call."

2. The Dead Weather- Blue Blood Blues

Over the past year and some change I’ve really grown to love Jack White’s The Dead Weather. The textures and sounds that White and the crew choose to make their sound are pretty crazy. This song in particular kicks pretty hard, the bass has this effect on it where it sounds tougher than any distorted guitar. I mean, it’s not like a life changing song, but it creates this dirty, down south, real sex driven sound. Some people kinda hate on this album for White’s weird lyrics, but I dig ‘em.

3. Van Halen- Hot For Teacher

Don’t have to explain much here. This song has an awesome intro, the guitar tapping is pretty nutty. I remember I brought this song into Jim Clark, my old guitar teacher and said “I want to learn this,” and he was like “No, you want to learn that guitar part in the beginning,” and I was like “Yeah.” But the song is classic. Great song, great album it’s on. One of the best bands of all time.

4. The Doors- Peace Frog

I’ve never been a huge Doors fan, but this song I think is near perfect. The way it layers from drums to guitar to bass to keyboard to Morrison’s vocals is awesome. This song is on my mental list of tracks to cover before I die. Also when Morrison says “Blood on the street in the town of New Haven” I always go “Hey! My dad works in New Haven!’

5. Mos Def- Hip Hop

Oh boy, Black on Both Sides is like a perfect hip-hop album. What I think makes Mos Def great (and better than his Black Star partner Talib Kweli) is his charisma. Like he’s not the best rapper alive lyrically, but the way he delivers his words and adds the layers of himself rapping to add emphasis to what he’s saying. It also says a lot about the state of the game when he put this track out 12 years ago.

6. Black Milk- Give the Drummer Sum

I bought Tronic because people kept saying it was the best hip-hop album of 2008. But I remember I never found it when I went to FYE or indie record stores, and then like 8 months later I saw one copy at Best Buy and snatched it up. I really like the snare drum on the beat of this song, I think it drives Black Milk’s flow. I don’t listen to Black Milk enough.

7. The Who- Squeeze Box

There’s an episode of Freaks and Geeks where Lindsay’s Dad is skeptical about whether or not to let her go to a Who concert and he is listening to “Squeeze Box” with this look of horror on his face. I remember like being familiar with the song, but never really loving it until I saw that episode of Freaks and Geeks, I love the chorus’ vocal harmonies. And Mrs. Weir saying “They’re talking about an accordion!” I mean, they are. And there’s a banjo solo.

8. The Cutoff Frequency- As We Move Along

A few former band mates and a few friends make up this band, but that’s not the reason I have it on this playlist. I really like this song, I think the lyrics are really potent, and I think that anyone can relate to a song like this at some point in time. I also like the vocal harmonies a lot. And this version of the song (off their free LP Back to the Underpass) shows how a band can grow from release to release, even with the same material.

9. Tool- Schism

I’ve never been a huge Tool fan, but I feel like any rock fan under the age of 30 has to dig “Schism”. I remember in marching band one of the guys in my section used to play this guitar line all the time and it got me mad because A) I couldn’t play it and B) he wasn’t playing the marching band music. Also, this song really builds into a pretty heavy groove that rocks really hard.

10. Lily Allen- The Fear

I covered this song last year. It’s an awesome song. I like it because while it is a bitter view of fame and selling yourself, Lily kind of bought into a lot of this stuff between her first and second album. So like the line, “It doesn’t matter as long as I’m getting thinner’ is actually pretty resounding because Lily went from being like an average girl to like a super-hot pop star and this song kind of verifies that maybe it’s not all for personal gain.

11. The Kinks- This Time Tomorrow

One of the many songs I love due to a Wes Anderson movie. I remember learning this song on guitar and just playing it and singing along in my dorm. I really like the piano kind of simply going in the background while the guitar and organs are in the foreground. I also like the imagery here. This song kind of makes me feel like I don’t matter at all, but at the same time I am the man.

12. Guns N’ Roses- My Michelle

Dude. This song makes me want to fight someone. Axl Rose is not a great singer, but he is perfect in this song. He’s just like telling you that all of this terrible things are happening to you. Like when I’m listening to this song I imagine Axl pointing at me and telling me my mom does heroin. And I’m not like “My mom is a nice lady, stop that.” I’m like, “Okay Axl. Yes sir.”

13. Atmosphere- God Loves Ugly

The opening line “I wear my scars like the rings on a pimp” is totally awesome. And it’s just the beginning. The beat on this track is so bare and it has this dark quality to it, where the piano paints this slightly off, somewhat creepy plain in which Slug just weaves lyrics. I can’t recommend Atmosphere enough to people that haven’t given them a listen.

14. Billy Joel- Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)

I don’t like Billy Joel at all, but I love this song. And there is one reason. It’s the woodwinds that play in the chorus. Otherwise I’d say enough of this, but I can deal with Joel’s annoying lyrics if it means I get that cool sax line.

15. Chris Brown featuring Swizz Beats and Lil’ Wayne- I Can Transform Ya

This song is just awesome. The beat is awesome. Chris Brown is the worst part. I think this is a real moment in time song. Like everyone was like “Am I allowed to like this song?” and I think that’s why Wayne has two verses, because it’s sort of a pandering track. The easiest way for him to get back into relevance is with Lil’ Wayne. But it’s so damned catchy

16. Raekwon featuring Inpsectach Deck, GZA, Ghostface Killah and Method Man- House of Flying Daggers

From Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...pt 2, this track is like Wu-Tang telling the world that they were still relevant and capable years after entering the game. It’s got that dark beat with the chorus looped in the background and the stringline chugging along. And the video for this song is awesome.

17. Lynrd Skynrd- Gimme Back My Bullets

Jay and Mark Briscoe used to come out to this song. And I remember when I first got really into Ring of Honor I listened to this song like 100 times a day. It’s such a badass, gritty song about southern boys bein’ southern boys. It’s also my ringtone.

18. Lordz of Brooklyn- Saturday Nite Fever

LoB is like an Italian version of House of Pain, which is pretty lame. But this song is cool because the beat is a sample of “American Woman” there is a line where the Everlast wannabe says “This is my pizzeria.” Like this song and this group aren't good by any stretch, but it's catchy.

19. Peter Gabriel- Sledgehammer

Peter Gabriel is a nutcase but this song is pretty incredible. I think the arranging of this is it’s strongest point. Also the tone on the bass is really full and cool. I like the chorus chiming in letting Peter rock around like the middle aged freak he was when he wrote this song. Mike Falzone does a good cover of this song.

20. James A. Johnston- Break The Walls Down

Chris Jericho’s entrance theme is the best entrance song of all time. And I am not ashamed to listen to it. I am ashamed looking at how frequently I listen to it, but not at listening to it. It rocks pretty hard.

That's that. I've been getting some questions about writing about Wrestlemania, so I'll do something for that soon. I've also been SUPER busy on Rate Your Music, doing microreviews a lot, sometimes a few a day. So if you want short music-only stuff catch me over there! Until next time!

WTF TNA part II

2011-02-03T17:29:00.000-05:00

Before I get into this let me just say that Ring of Honor is the best wrestling promotion going today and they are losing their TV deal in April. With that being said...

Total Nonstop Action wrestling is the most upsetting thing in the world. Literally. There is nothing more upsetting to me in the world of wrestling than the current state of TNA. And it’s upsetting for a few reasons, I’ll touch base briefly on a few of them and then go into detail on the more pertinent ones. A little over a year ago Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff “took over” TNA creatively. They took away the trademarked 6 sided ring, inflated the roster with WWE and WCW rejects, and made us all feel like we were in the sinking ship that was WCW 10 years ago. But as the year progressed we had our shares of ups and downs. The ups seemed a bit more logical than the downs, Hogan axed good friends Bubba the Love Sponge and Brian Knobbs & Jerry Sags (The Nasty Boys) among others. We also saw the departure of Scott Hall, Sean “X-Pac” Waltman, Sean “Val Venis” Morely, Shane Douglas, and a slew of others culminating in the departure of Kevin Nash, a wrestler that many fans and critics wanted out of TNA years before he finally decided to leave. The downs were also present,, but forgivable, an attempted ECW reunion that ended up in a half-assed stable of washed up veterans, losing great talent like Christopher Daniels, Homicide, Awesome Kong, ODB, Consequences Creed, Petey Williams, Sojay Dutt and arguably Sting. So at the end of the day, TNA did beef up their roster with WWE rejects and did push a small handful notably the obvious Jeff Hardy, Ken “Mr. Kennedy” Anderson, and the Fairfield CT native Matt “The Blueprint” Morgan. But they weren’t trashy rejects, they were deserving rejects. But the roster problem is one that has plagued TNA for years, it’s really not the roster, it’s how they use it.

And in 2010 we saw TNA make the strangest and most unnecessary alliances in TNA history. One extremely logical and amazing stable formed was Fortune, headed by the legendary Ric Flair and featuring four TNA breakout stars in AJ Styles, Frankie Kazarian, and Beer Money Inc. Robert Roode and James Storm. The group was phenomenal (pun intended) and then they started adding other guys to beef up the ranks. Morgan was in there for a bit, as was the incredibly underutilized Douglas Williams. They are both good performers, but they don’t need Fortune, and the Fortune certainly didn’t need them. Then....on the overhyped 10-10-10 we saw the tides change. A new stable formed that Hogan and Bischoff thought would be like the nWo, a “cool” group of heels that everyone wanted to like. So who do they make it up with? Hogan, Bischoff, the out of shape and never over enough Abyss, Jeff Hardy, Jeff Jarrett AND the entirety of Fortune? Aside from Hardy, none of this absurd stable, called Immortal, was shocking or cool. And from October to last month the stable ran the place, capturing all of the titles in the process (though losing the heavyweight title to Mr. Anderson in the end). However, during that time Hardy got over as a heel (most notably walking down to the ring puffing a cigarette) and Jarrett reinvigorated his career with his MMA spoofing Double J Double M A tournaments, but the rest of the group kind of floundered. The tag titles were an easy win for Beer Money, the X title in Kazarian’s hands was almost a waste, as the X title has been as of late. TNA’s breakout star AJ Styles had no real push, Abyss won the Legends title (that title still exists?) and we were treated to boring TV. Great. Not a surprise. At all.

So then the Amazing Red’s kayfabe brother Crimson comes in telling tales of another “they” coming. He speaks of a group that will put Immortal in their places and restore peace to TNA. And then Kurt Angle brings in Scott Steiner. And we start seeing hints of the return of the Main Event Mafia. Okay where do you start here? Where does one begin to criticize this? Because Immortal is so stagnant and it’s clear they’re being carried by Flair’s Fortune, they want to bring in a group of wrestlers that was never over that tout a youngest member who is 42 and an oldest member who is 51? The entirety of Fortune is 35 and under (sans the manager of Flair) and most of the members of the rest of Immortal are in feuds. How could a feud be believably booked where a bunch of retirees face a bunch of peak wrestlers who are widely considered some of the best in the game? And why would I waste my time watching a retuning Kevin Nash, Booker T, Scott Steiner, Sting and Kurt Angle wrestle Jeff Jarrett, Jeff Hardy and Abyss AGAIN. Who will the crowd get behind? The talented young guys? The overbooked guys? Or the old veterans? Clearly Fortune was the group to highlight and make babyfaces in this instance...but not according to their plan.

And what is perhaps the best part of this plan on TNA’s side is that after teasing the Mafia return, even putting a video together showing the group, they didn’t sign Sting, Booker and Nash to contracts! So when the WWE beefed up their Royal Rumble to 40 stars and wanted a few guys to get nostalgia pops, who would they go for? Kevin Nash and Booker T. So now TNA has re-signed Scott Steiner, booked a major angle, and then lost it all in the blink of an eye because of bad negotiations. The second that idea popped into their heads they should have had Booker, Nash and Sting in Orlando signing papers to ensure it would happen properly. Instead they assumed that these guys would want to wrestle in front of the rabid and unforgiving Impact Zone crowd for another several months, and then hang up their boots and call it a career. Little did they know that Booker and Nash had greater aspirations. So what does TNA do? After making a hype video for the MEM’s return they literally tell you “Anything is possible” and swerve Fortune to be faces. Great. In fact that is fantastic. That means that AJ Styles will go back to being a main event player and Flair can be the man again without Bischoff and Hogan on his side. But at what cost is this good news? TNA looks completely unprofessional, poorly booked, and entirely unbelievable. I am glad Fortune are the good guys, and I am glad that the members will not have to share the spotlight with Abyss and Jeff Jarrett, but I am completely offended as a viewer and as a one time super fan.

So what does the future hold for this company of fools (on the booking and writing side, not in the ring)? Well they have to do something really good to clean up this huge mistake. Turning Fortune face is a good move. But now that we have Scott Steiner under contract does that mean we have to be subjected to his god awful matches? And are Angle and Steiner part of Fortune now? I don’t know. TNA has unlimited potential and perhaps the best roster in the business but these mistakes they keep making are what is making them lose fans that at one time would do anything for them (myself included, I was on a street team for a little while). It is a common and upsetting question, but once again I find myself asking WTF TNA

Best of 2010: Albums #10-1

2011-01-10T15:06:00.002-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen...here it is...very late, as per the trend on this blog...but the top 10 albums of 2010 are here! Let's go!

10. OK Go- Of the Blue Colour of the Sky

OK Go is one of those bands that I wasn’t really sure that I would enjoy. I knew about the treadmills and loved the mousetrap-like video for “This Too Shall Pass” but whenever I’d ask for advice on whether or not they were good beyond their videos, it seemed that none of my friends has actually listened to them, even the hip Long Island friends! So, thanks to the magic of the internet, I acquired Of the Blue Colour of the Sky knowing that I enjoyed “This Too Shall Pass” and hoping that the rest would at least be listenable. And it is a privilege to say that the rest of this album is really listenable. The band definitely meshes together very well, and as an audio junkie, it’s awesome to be able to say that the album is mixed really well. And it’s not just the sound of the record, the songwriting is top notch too, frontman Damian Kulash Jr. has a firm grip on how to craft a catchy, fun pop-rock song. In the age where the music video is dying, it’s great to see a band make such bold videos that compliment equally bold pop rock music. I may have to go listen to their back catalogue now.

Notable Tracks: “WTF?” “I Want You So Bad I Can’t Breathe” “End Love”

9. B.o.B- B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray

I think B.o.B is one of, if not the breakout star of 2010. While I’d heard him a lot during the summer of ‘09 with his song “I’ll Be In The Sky” he seemingly disappeared without making much of a mark by the end of the year. But, The Adventures of Bobby Ray came out only a few months later, and made him a certified music superstar. Having three huge crossover hits with huge crossover collaborators (Bruno Mars, Hayley Williams and Rivers Cuomo) took B.o.B from having that one song that you heard on hip hop radio stations to having all of those songs that people quote on their Facebook statuses. And what I love about B.o.B is that he does it all well. It’s pretty clear that he’s the creative genius behind this album, whereas many rappers get handed beats and spit over them, Bobby Ray is undoubtedly steering the ship that is his musical career. And while he’s not the next Eminem or Jay-Z lyrically, his presence is a lot of fun, and he knows how to deliver catchy songs without making his audience feel like they’re being degraded (I.E. Soulja Boy, New Boyz, and my favorite V.I.C.). And while Mars, Williams and Cuomo appear on his radio friendly hits he has the guts to bring on performers that don’t get frequent radio play like Janelle Monae and Lupe Fiasco to help make some good tunes as well. If this list was based purely on mic skills and things that make classic hip-hop albums classic, this would certainly not be here, but to say that this album is not entertaining and absurdly catchy is a lie. And when an artist does that well without screaming “YOU!” a million times on his track, that deserves applause.

Notable Tracks: “Nothin’ on You” “Past My Shades” “Fame”

8. Elvis Costello- National Ransom

I’ve always liked Elvis Costello, but I’ve never really taken the time to listen to anything other than his epic two disc greatest hits album. So when I saw he had a new album out, I decided to actually give it a spin front to back. And it’s great. One of the most consistent albums of the year without question. Costello is an entirely unique entity in the rock and roll world, both historically and at the moment. While too many rock stars fade into the past making music that sounds like its in the wrong decade, or even going as far as to re-record classic hits, Costello makes tunes that sound fresh yet still retain his trademarked sound. Is this an album that re-defines the aging rock star? No, but it shows that you don’t have to sell out to keep the train going. KISS and AC/DC could learn something from Mr. Costello.

Notable Tracks: “A Slow Drag With Josephine” “Dr. Watson, I Presume” “My Jezibel”

7. LCD Soundsystem- This is Happening

I was in the front seat of my buddies car when he put on “Dance Yrself Clean” the first track on This is Happening, and I just had to listen in awe to the audio bliss that it is. The song just builds and builds and builds to the point where you’re almost done expecting a payoff, sort of like Coldplay’s eternal classic “Viva La Vida” but NO! It kicks, and when it does, my brain just imploded and I had to listen to the rest of the album. And what’s great is that the other songs are just as funky and catchy as track 1. I don’t really know any of LCD Soundsystem’s other albums, nor do I really know much about the dance genre in general, but nonetheless I was super satisfied by this album overall. Not too many albums can be so catchy and still have decent lyrics, especially in a genre like this. So hats off to the Soundsystem, good work gentlemen.

Notable Tracks: “Dance Yrself Clean” “Drunk Girls” “Pow Pow”

6. Wale- More About Nothing

Last year Wale released his major label debut Attention Deficit, which got decent reviews, but was a tame, toned down version of the Wale the world got to know through his mixtapes, the most well known of which was 2008’s The Mixtape About Nothing, which quirkily combined serious issues with sound clips from the TV show Seinfeld. When I heard Wale had released a sequel mixtape, aptly titled More About Nothing, I was torn. Having heard Wale lose his lyrical edge on Attention Deficit made me question whether or not it was worth my time, but thinking it could half as good as the original Mixtape About Nothing, I felt it was my duty to at least give Wale the 70 minutes of my time. And what this piece of work does is show that maybe Wale isn’t a major label kind of guy. While so many signed rappers use mixtapes as a way to bide time between albums, Wale actually says a whole lot on More About Nothing, even making mention that he wasn’t proud of Attention Deficit and the way he was treated by the folks at Interscope. At the core of this mixtape is Wale’s incredibly sharp eye for what to say and when to say it, that eye being the missing link on Attention Deficit, where studio executives placed him next to Lady Gaga instead of any serious political and social issues. So where other rappers would use this format to simply keep fans happy, Wale delivers a socially potent album that once again brings in Seinfeld lines to make light of some of the things he talks about. If the folks at Interscope know how to cultivate Wale into a mainstream artist that can say the things he says the way he says them on More About Nothing, he can become an unstoppable force in hip hop, but if they keep him on a short leash, mixtapes may be his only outlet to truly be himself.

Notable Tracks: “The Soup” “The Eyes of the Tiger” “The Work Workin”

5. Vampire Weekend- Contra

After their 2008 self titled debut, Vampire Weekend took absurdly catchy indie rock to a new level that alienated the hipster folks that helped them gain the attention that made them famous. After touring for a while and gaining a nice mainstream following they released Contra in early 2010, and the album certainly packs the same punch as its predecessor in many ways. The guitars aren’t heavily distorted, the subject matter is similar lyrically, and the music is still for the most part a lot of fun. What’s different this time around is the scope of it all. While on the debut Vampire Weekend is sort of a straightforward guitar, bass, drums, sometimes keyboards, vocals kind of band, on Contra they rely more heavily on the keys, as well as some samples, which in my opinion brings the band down. On the song “Diplomat’s Son” there is a just barely recognizable sample of M.I.A. in the background, which made me scratch my chin and say “Is this necessary?” but for their few missteps the band also charges forward musically. Songs like “Cousins” would fit perfectly on the debut, which is good, but increasing the keyboard presence gives us the poppy “Holiday” and tracks like “Run” and “Giving Up The Gun”. It’s pretty clear that this band knows what they’re trying to do and while there are a few more missteps on this album than on their debut, the goods far outweigh the bads on Contra and it is certainly worth any rock fans time.

Notable Tracks: “Cousins” “Run” “Giving Up The Gun”

4. The Dillinger Escape Plan- Option Paralysis

When presented with The Dillinger Escape Plan a few months ago, I was really perplexed. What on earth was mathcore and why should it be worth my time? However, after listening to their 2007 album Ire Works and their Mike Patton collabo-EP Irony is a Dead Scene I found myself unable to not go out of my way to listen to them. I don’t really like modern metal music for a lot of reasons, but Dillinger just hooks me in. Where a band like the Mars Volta just do things in excess for no apparent reason, everything in the Dillinger Escape Plan has a purpose musically, especially on Option Paralysis. While the vocals may be a bit tedious and obnoxious for those who dislike metal, any musician can appreciate the structures of each song and the musicality of each performer. It’s chaotic and schizophrenic, but it all fits like a glove. While I can guarantee most people reading this would not enjoy listening to the Dillinger Escape Plan, for those that enjoy loud, energetic, and best of all, musical tunes, check out Option Paralysis, it will blow your mind and probably your headphones too,

Notable Tracks: “Gold Teeth on a Bum” “Widower” “Parasitic Twins”

3. Gorillaz- Plastic Beach

In my initial review of this album (link here: ) I said I was upset that the mystique of the cartoon characters that made up Gorillaz was gone and that the music was sub-par in comparison to Demon Days. However, as each day passed and I found myself walking the halls of Hofstra, the streets/subways of New York City, and driving around suburban Connecticut, Plastic Beach always seemed to call my name. It is corny and sometimes the guest spots are a tad too mainstream or off-kilter for their own good, but it’s a perfect summer pop album. And this perfection is attained by one thing, the keyboard lines. While not to say the rest of the music lacks, in fact the rest of the music is above par, it’s just the synth lines are perfect. “Rhinestone Eyes” and “Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach” go from cheesy to incredible thanks to these simple synthesizer chords, and they highlight the great songs on this album too, adding depth to more straightforward hip-hop songs like “Superfast Jellyfish”. While I still stand that it’s not as good as Demon Days, after being drawn to this album time and time again, I can’t deny that it is a fantastically fun, and perfect for those sunny days.

Notable Tracks: “Superfast Jellyfish” “Plastic Beach” “White Flag”

2. Kanye West- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

What is there to say about this album that hasn’t been said already? It’s a work of art. It’s an album that from top to bottom does everything it sets out to do perfectly, never once failing. I remember after buying Graduation, I knew the words to every song within a week, and I said to myself that that’s how I would gauge the greatness of MBDTF. And sure enough, within days I was humming along and rapping through every song with Kanye and his guest list of greats like Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Kid Cudi, John Legend, the RZA, and too many others to count. The one thing keeping this song out of the number one position is the fact that the songs run on a bit too long. I find myself prone to skip tracks after it hits the 4 minute mark. But as an album, MBDTF is incredible top to bottom, it just seems that some songs run on a bit out of the context of this work of art. Is this Kanye’s best album to date? Yes. Can he make a better album following this? I hope.

Notable Tracks: “Dark Fantasy” “So Appalled” “Runaway”

1. Big Boi- Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty

After an undeniably catchy introduction that lasts less than a minute, Big Boi’s first words on Sir Lucious Leftfoot sum things up perfectly, as he says “Damn, and that wasn’t nothin’ but the intro.” The brief and casual show of confidence in his work throw this rollercoaster of an album off the track incredibly well. From top to bottom this an awesomely fun and well put together album. Does it tackle the social issues of The Mixtape About Nothing or does it boast a massive guestlist and grand instrumentals like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? No. But what it does do is deliver infectious song after infectious song with no remorse. Whether he’s rapping about banging girls or kicking someone’s ass, Big Boi always manages to make himself look great, and not just in his lyrics alone, but in his style and presence. While fellow Outkast member Andre 3000 always had an out-of-this-world appeal, Big Boi kept himself rooted in the southern hip-hop landscape that helped make him the star he was in his early career. While not to say that he hasn’t progressed musically, his sound is a bit more ambitious than it was in his Outkast days, he’s not going off the rails quite as much as Andre has been (there’s no cartoon for children that Big Boi is producing, at least not to my knowledge). In this day and age where everything is overanalyzed and hypercriticized, Sir Lucious Leftfoot is an album that indulges in the things that please our ears, catchy beats, simple yet well put together lyrics, and just the notion that we all want to have a damn good time. We should revel in this album, because artists that are still down to have this much fun without being ironic and obnoxious are getting to be hard to find.

Notable Tracks: “Turns Me On” “Shutterbug” “Tangerine”

That's it! Post some comments. I'm going to be posting a little ditty about misc. favorites of 2010 like Wrestler of the Year, Movie of the Year, Song of the Year, color of the year. I don't know what else I can do! CRAZY!

Best of 2010: Albums #20-11

2010-12-30T21:06:00.004-05:00

Okay ladies and gentlemen, here is the first 10 entries in my top 20 of the year! Hope you enjoy!

20. Rob Zombie-Hellbilly Deluxe 2: Noble Jackals, Penny Dreadfuls and the Systematic Dehumanization of Cool

When I was in sixth grade I used to listen to the tracks “Meet the Creeper”, “Dragula” and “Superbeast” several times a day. Then in high school I bought the first Hellbilly Deluxe at one of FYE’s several “Buy 3 get 1 free!” sales and surprisingly enjoyed it beyond a nostalgia level. A few weeks ago, after listening to Rick Ross’s Teflon Don, iTunes automatically put on what was next in the playlist, Rob Zombie’s Hellbilly Deluxe 2. I had every intent to change it, but as soon as it started I felt like that sixth grader walking home from elementary school with my Walkman on full blast. Without as much of an “ehhh” I made it through the entire album and enjoyed myself. While HB2 is not a piece of timeless art, it’s fun, and it’s retro (weird thinking that sounding like a ’98 album is retro) and it never really takes itself too seriously. Not to mention psychobilly prodigy John 5 brings his country flavor to the music, adding a quirky new dimension. For those that publicly or privately enjoy the Zombie in all of his glory, Hellbilly Deluxe 2 is an album for you. If you don’t enjoy the Zombie…then get out of here!

Notable Tracks: “Jesus Frankenstein” “The Man Who Laughs”

19. Devo- Something for Everybody

Aging geeks. That is exactly what Devo are. And on Something for Everybody they make it abundantly clear. While many bands try to retain their heavy credibility into old age (see KISS) or try to turn their music to prove that they have become wise in their years (see Johnny Cash) Devo are the same guys, just 20 years older than the last time we heard something new from them. This album sounds as if they wrote it in the 80’s and re-mastered it now, tweaking some lyrics to be more relevant to today’s audience. The Mothersbaugh’s, the Castle’s and drum god Josh Freese are really in tune to what made Devo great in the day, and allowing fans to pick what songs were on the album certainly made it Something for Everybody. Not the bands best work (I mean, they peaked in the 70’s) but a fun album that knows just how corny it is. If there was only a young band like Devo today.

Notable Tracks: “Don’t Shoot (I’m a Man)” "Please Baby Please" "Step Up"

18. Mark Ronson & The Business Intl.- Record Collection

Record Collection is an album that has me scratching my head every time I listen to it, thinking “Is this really all that good?” I think the fact that it has me so intrigued listen after listen means that Mark and the crew are doing something right. The first two tracks wham off collaborations with hip-hop vets Q-Tip and Ghostface Killah over catchy synthy beats. It’s different than the Dap Kings influenced Version, in a sense that every song is not arranged in the same fashion. And as it keeps going the guest spots get more and more strange, creating quite the interesting vibe. Boy George, Spank Rock, and the London Gay Men’s Chorus all contribute interesting and odd parts to snappy fun tracks, making the listen not only fun but fascinating. I still prefer Version, and the complete wackiness of Here Comes the Fuzz even, but Record Collection is a nice showing that proves that Ronson doesn’t have a formula to fit into.

Notable Tracks: “The Bike Song” “Introducing the Business” “Bang Bang Bang”

17. Weezer- Hurley

Here it is. Soak it up ladies and gentlemen. Weezer has returned. After three consecutive flops and a departure from Geffen, it seemed as though Weezer had 2 options. One was continue making watered down pop rock under an independent record label, and the other was take some time to record a good album that makes people remember why they love Weezer. What they did falls somewhere in the middle. A year after the laughably bad Raditude, Hurley shows a band that may have been held back by the people at Geffen, but also a band that knows how to make fun pop rock. What was lost between the heavy Maladroit and Hurley? Who knows, but there’s no denying that while it’s not classic, it is certainly a FUN POP ROCK album. The bands critics keep saying they’re never going to be as good as Blue Album or Pinkerton, and my response to that is WHO CARES?! Can’t we just enjoy what they’re making? I thoroughly enjoy this new sound, do I like it better than Blue and Pink? No! But I like it! Rivers may have lost his mind with some of his lyrics (“B.o.B is dying to hang out!”) but he can still make a song that gets stuck in your head for days, and that’s a skill that not many rockers have in this day and age.

Notable Tracks: “Memories” “Trainwrecks” “Smart Girls”

16. Infant Sorrow-Get Him To The Greek

The soundtrack to the same named film, the fictional band fronted by off the wagon rock star Aldous Snow does exactly what the film needs it to do, rock. In the beginning of the film, Jonah Hill’s Aaron Green laments that Snow is the last remaining true rock star, and that perhaps the world needs people like him, and the songs on this soundtrack certainly prove that. They are funny and quirky in their lyrical content, but at the end of the day the just straight up rock. What’s the formula to the greatness of these songs? Is it the mix of having actual rock stars like Jarvis Cocker write music and have comedians like Jason Segel and Judd Apatow write lyrics? Maybe. But the point is that in a generation where all of our comedy music comes from geeky self aware comic groups like Tenacious D and Flight of the Conchords (no offense meant to either group) it’s great to see a Spinal Tap-esque fictional band that can not only make you laugh, but make you bang your head and tap your foot.

Notable Tracks: “Furry Walls” “The Clap” “Bangers, Beans and Mash”

15. The Roots- Hot I Got Over

I was not excited for this album. The constant delays, the shameless self promotion that it was “classic” by Questlove, and the fact that the Jimmy Fallon gig may have taken a toll on the bands songwriting skills, really had my thinking this was going to flop, especially following the star-studded and over the top Rising Down, but this album did deliver in an odd and satisfying way. It’s not the same Roots we’ve heard before, it’s a more driven, rock based sound, and it knows how to entertain. While Blackthought may not be spitting his most politically relevant lyrics, nor is Questlove pushing the band to their musical limits, this album is for once positive in its content and fun in its presentation. With such a vast discography, and a changing of the guard from the god of bass Hub to white boy Owen Biddle, it’s no surprise this isn’t their best work, but it shows that they still have plenty of potential to grow even more than they have over the years.

Notable Tracks: “Dear God 2.0” “How I Got Over” “The Fire”

14. Eminem-Recovery

There are a few artists that are so iconic, that you can’t help but root for through thick and thin. Eminem is one of those guys. Defying the odds and transcending race he became the voice of our generation and made all of us cringe and make sure our parents weren’t in the room when his music videos came on TV. But after the disappointments in Encore and Relapse, there was doubt that Slim Shady would return to true form, but Recovery showed that there is still life in the aging Detroit rapper. This isn’t the same, constantly angry at the world Eminem, this is a grown up who has more life experience than 90% of the rap community. And while he may not be as on point as he was in the past, he can still make rhymes and use his unique and intense flow to command respect. Is this as good as the Slim Shady or Marshall Mathers LP’s? No. But we have an album that never quite hits the lows that his prior two have, and we have a new sort of insight. He can still reference obscene things, but at the same time he can go and preach in songs like “Not Afraid” and it doesn’t seem awkward. I enjoy this album a lot, and if Em can hone his skills even more on his next album, he may have another classic in him.

Notable Tracks: “Cold Wind Blows” “On Fire” “Won’t Back Down”

13. The Dead Weather- Sea of Cowards

In his third consecutive year on the list, Jack White’s The Dead Weather put out another great album. The thing about Jack White is that while all of his music is good and entertaining, it seems as if he’s coasting by putting albums out so fast. And that amazes me. Released a year after their debut Horehound, Sea of Cowards packs the same bluesy, hard edged punch that the bands debut had, and it took less than a year to write and record! That’s incredible. This album starts off hard and effective with “Blue Blood Blues” and more or less keeps rocking until it ends. It’s punchiness musically can be handed to bassist Jack Lawrence and the man himself White behind the drum kit, and the vocals of White and Allison Mosshart just fit perfectly in the sleazy blues of the bands music. Jack White seems to be defying the odds in terms of his track record as of the past few years, and after Sea of Cowards I have high hopes for what is next.

Notable Tracks: “Blue Blood Blues” “Hustle and Cuss” “Gasoline”

12. DJ Muggs vs. Ill Bill-Kill Devil Hills

The third album in Cypress Hill DJ Muggs’ “vs.” series sees the California native team up with Brooklyn’s Ill Bill of Non Phixion and La Coka Nostra. The end result is a very nice dose of hardcore hip hop in a time where the hardest rapper on the radio used to be a corrections officer. Bill has a killer delivery and Muggs crafts great beats that both have a vintage vibe, while still hitting hard. Not to mention the guest spots are pretty good. The obvious Cypress Hill and Coka Nostra ones coming from B-Real, Slaine and Everlast, and surprises from Raekwon and Jedi Mind Tricks’ Vinny Paz help break up Bill’s talents. I like the continuity from Bill’s verses on La Coka Nostra’s A Brand You Can Trust to this album, still talking about how fat America is and his own difficult life, while peppering in political themes with government use of LSD and the illuminati. It’s an album that went overlooked by a lot of people, but it’s a nice combination of two similar forces that is a good time overall.

Notable Tracks: “Cult Assassin” “Amputated Saint” “Skull & Guns”

11. NaS & Damian Marley- Distant Relatives

Another album plagued by delays that made me fear what its quality would be bad, but again I am proven wrong. This disc is just a whole dish of odd-defying quality. While their prior collaboration on Jamrock’s “Road To Zion” showed the chemistry between the two men, Distant Relatives takes that chemistry to new and unseen levels. The dread-ed militant Marley combined with the clean cut, bling and fitted wearing NaS literally come together, combining cultures and styles in a hybrid reggae/rap that never gets boring. While it does run a tad long, it mixes things up enough to make it worth the listen. When not working strictly together, they bring in logical collaborators like Stephen Marley and K’Naan, and those sort of bizarre ones like Lil’ Wayne & Joss Stone (together on one track?). If there was one album that should have received a lot more mainstream attention, it is this one without question.

Notable Tracks: “As We Enter” “Nah Mean” “Africa Must Wake Up”

Stay tuned for the top 10! Surprises may ensue!

Best of 2010: The Let Down's and Honorable Mention's

2010-12-29T15:39:00.002-05:00

The end is here...odd to say. Sadly I didn't make it through all 78 albums, but I made it through most of them, and have my list compiled and am working through it. To give you a taste for what may be on it and what definitely won't be, here are this year's let down's and honorable mentions!

The Let Down's:
Every year there are albums that disappoint. These are the albums that disappointed me...

1. Sleigh Bells- Treats: I was promised great things with Sleigh Bells. Noise-pop with an upbeat chick and a one-time metal drummer. I mean how cool of a combination is that? The problem is that the one-time metal drummer’s mixing is ridiculous. Some people like it, a lot of people actually, but by track 3 or 4 my head was about to fall off from the noise and I was not having a good time. I don’t doubt the group can make a great album, I just feel like their current formula is a bit painful to the ears.

2. Nicki Minaj- Pink Friday: Minaj did a lot of boasting this year, gaining the most attention from her showstopping verse on Kanye West’s “Monster” overshadowing West and Jay-Z. However, her album is an odd mix of pop, R&B and hip-hop. There are a few tracks, notably “Roman’s Revenge” with Eminem, that showcase the Minaj that bragged about making a million off of a mixtape. While it’s certainly not bad to rap about diverse things, it’s just when you’re really good at one thing and not so good at other’s, stick to what you’re good at. The song with will.i.am that samples "Video Killed the Radio Star" is near impossible to listen to.

3. M.I.A.- Maya (I’m not going to justify that whole slash thing): M.I.A. had the world on a silver platter following the huge success of Kala, an album that hit #4 on my Best of 2007 list, and its breakout single “Paper Plans”. But what did Maya do? Listened to too much Nine Inch Nails and pretended like she could do whatever she wanted without consequence. Well, the world is paying the price, having wasted 40 minutes listening to Maya.

4. Cee-Lo Green-The Lady Killer: This album is not bad, just not nearly as good as it could’ve been. While I haven’t dived into his prior solo work or the Goodie Mob discography, the two Gnarls Barkley albums are really awesome, and following “Fuck You” everyone expected this album to be a snarky, catchy look at the life of the titular Lady Killer. Instead it’s a run of the mill funky throwback album. “Fuck You” and the bonus track “Love Gun” (NOT a Kiss cover) are the only two that really stood out.

Now to the more positive...
Honorable Mentions:
Those albums that are good, but not quite good enough.

1. Die Antwoord- $O$: I don’t know South African culture, so I don’t know if every rap group over there sounds like Die Antwoord, but the Zef trio to me is one of the most innovative groups of the year. The rapping is strangely diverse, kind of goofy, and at the end of the day really sharp and potent. What brings this album down is just how zany it is. Sometimes the concepts fall flat, so more consistency in a follow-up release is certainly doable.

2. MGMT-Congratulations: Oracular Spectacular took its toll on me. I got really sick of the singles, and the rest of the album kind of fell flat, so I was really skeptical about Congratulations. I was quite surprised when I got around to listen to it, I felt like I was listening to an entirely new band. While a lot of bands have gotten big off of one sound (think how “Fly” by Sugar Ray changed their sound) MGMT opted to do what they wanted to rather than go for the guaranteed paycheck. The album’s not a classic, but it’s a fun listen and it shows guts to do what they did.

3. Johnny Cash- American VI: Ain’t No Grave: Cash’s American series is one of the most interesting and incredible career shifts of all time. Sort of like the Bill Murray of music, Cash changed his direction from the classic country sound to a grim, earthy, heartfelt sound that oftentimes showed awareness that death was looming around the corner. The aptly titled Ain’t No Grave is the last of the recordings done during the American V: A Hundred Highways sessions and while it may be considered a b-sides album, it contains some really good tunes that prove that up until the end Cash was on his game.

4. John Legend and The Roots-Wake Up!: When I saw a poster for this album, I thought it was a joke. Released mere months after the Roots’ How I Got Over, Wake Up! is an odd album to categorize. Legend is a modern R&B crooner and the Roots are a politically aware and highly influential hip-hop band. And when they are put together we get…a funk/soul album of covers of Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye and other classic soul groups? I don’t love this album, but considering the haste in which is was made, promoted and released, I respect the grind put in by Legend and the Roots.

Keep your eyes on your Twitter feed because the list is coming soon!

Hey check this out!

2010-12-20T12:58:00.003-05:00

I'm listening to albums from 2010, and to keep occupied, I'm compiling albums on my Rate Your Music page into lists. Check out this first one, my All Inclusive Look at the man, myth, legend Mike Patton.

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/DWinch/mike_patton__the_all_inclusive_look

Enjoy! And keep checking back!

My Listening of 2010

2010-12-14T20:09:00.004-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in December, and thusly it is time to start reflecting on the year in music. Now, unlike so many respectable blogs, I give myself until the very end of the month to listen, re-listen and pick apart albums. But I like to give the lovely 3 or 4 readers of this blog an idea of what they have to choose from. I thought I didn't have much music from this lovely year, but upon making a playlist on iTunes of 2010 music I found close to 1,100 songs from the year! Here is a full list of albums I have (not all I have listened to 2 or 3 times) so this is what is contributing to my list...

1. Andrew W.K.-Mother of Mankind
2. B.o.B-The Adventures of Bobby Ray
3. B.o.B-May 25th
4. Biffy Clyro-iTunes Festival: London 2010
5. Big Boi-Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
6. The Black Keys-Brothers
7. Brandon Boyd-The Wild Trapeze
8. Broken Bells-Broken Bells
9. Carole King & James Taylor-Live At The Troubadour
10. Cee-Lo Green-The Lady Killer
11. Chris Webby-The Underclassmen
12. The Cool Kids-Tacklebox
13. Cypress Hill-Rise Up
14. Daft Punk-Tron Legacy
15. The Dead Weather-Sea of Cowards
16. Devo-Something for Everybody
17. Die Antwoord- $O$
18. The Dillinger Escape Plan-Option Paralysis
19. DJ Muggs VS Ill Bill-Kill Devil Hills
20. Drake-Thank Me Later
21. El-P-Weareallgoingtoburninhellmegamixxx Vol. 3
22. Elvis Costello-National Ransom
23. Eminem-Recovery
24. Girl Talk-All Day
25. Go Hard Or Go Homeless-Go Hard Or Go Homeless LP
26. Gorillaz-Plastic Beach
27. Infant Sorrow-Get Him To The Greek
28. Janelle Monae-The Archandroid
29. John Legend & The Roots-Wake Up!
30. Johnny Cash-American VI: Ain’t No Grave
31. Kanye West-My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
32. Kanye West-VH1 Storytellers
33. Katy Perry-Teenage Dream
34. Kid Cudi-Man On The Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager
35. Kingfisher-Wizards n’ Stuff
36. LCD Soundsystem-This Is Happening
37. Lil’ Wayne- I Am Not A Human Being
38. Lil’ Wayne-Rebirth
39. Lordi- Babez for Breakfast
40. M.I.A.- /\/\ /\ Y /\
41. Mark Ronson & The Business Intl.-Record Collection
42. Method Man, Ghostface Killah & Raekwon-Wu-Massacre
43. MGMT-Congratulations
44. Mike Falzone-In Between Couch Cushions
45. Mike Patton-Mondo Cane
46. Mumford & Sons- Sigh No More
47. My Chemical Romance-Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys
48. N.E.R.D-Nothing
49. NaS & Damian Marley-Distant Relatives
50. Nicki Minaj-Pink Friday
51. OK Go-Of The Blue Colour of the Sky
52. Primus- June 2010 Rehearsal
53. Rhymfest-El Che
54. Rob Zombie- Hellbilly Deluxe 2
55. Robyn-Body Talk Pt. 2
56. The Roots-How I Got Over
57. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings-I Learned The Hard Way
58. Sleigh Bells-Treats
59. Street Sweeper Social Club-The Ghetto Blaster
60. Streetlight Manifesto-99 Songs of Revolution: Volume 1
61. Tiger Riot-Look Up!
62. Travie McCoy-Lazarus
63. Trey Songz-Passion, Pain and Pleasure
64. Vampire Weekend-Contra
65. Wale-More About Nothing
66. Weezer-Death to False Metal
67. Weezer-Hurley
68. Wiz Khalifa-Kush & Orange Juice
69. Wu-Tang Vs. The Beatles-Enter The Magical Mystery Chambers
70. You Suck-The Mixtape That’s Fun To Listen To
71. You Suck-You Guys Like Hip Hop
72. Various Artists-Crazy Heart
73. Various Artists- HBO Presents: How To Make It In America
74. Various Artists-Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
76. Rick Ross-Teflon Don
77. Arcade Fire-The Suburbs
78. T.I.-No Mercy

So...that's it.

Top 25 Albums of All Time Part V!: #5-1

2010-12-03T18:01:00.003-05:00

I apologize for the extreme lateness of this! I have been a busy little beaver for the past month and I have finally taken the time to finish this up. Enjoy it!

5. Primus- Frizzle Fry

Primus is without question my favorite band of all time. I remember getting into them my freshman year of high school, and I have not stopped loving their music since. This album, to me, is the pinnacle of what Primus is capable of and that’s why it’s so wonderful. Any smart music fan knows the band is an outlet for bass virtuoso Les Claypool to basically bother people with how good he is, and on much of his material he shows off nonstop. But on Frizzle Fry, I love the fact that Larry LaLonde’s awesome guitar licks and Tim “Herb” Alexander’s incredible drums are prominently featured. Tracks like “Spaghetti Western” and the titular “Frizzle Fry” would not pack the same punch without Herb’s drumming and Ler’s guitar writhes in and out of Claypool’s eccentric basslines with ease. I think that any band driven by one person ends up losing credibility because the secondary musicians seem to fall behind the one mans incredible playing (i.e. Van Halen, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Police) but Primus is definitely a full band ordeal that would not be the same without this prime lineup. Their later albums The Brown Album and Antipop are certainly proof of that.

4. Wu-Tang Clan- Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

The greatest hip-hop album ever put together by the greatest hip-hop entity ever put together. The Wu-Tang Clan changed not only the way I looked at hip-hop, but how I looked at music as a whole. This album is a work of art, put together by nine individuals. And not only is it one of those albums that launched careers of its group members (most notably Method Man, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, the RZA and Ghostface Killah) but it’s one of those albums that can stand alone and be enjoyed front to back. It constantly switches from a metaphoric world to one that really exists, the Kung-Fu world of the Wu-Tang representing the urban Staten Island, and then with the snap of a finger we are amidst the Clan in Staten rapping about cash ruling everything around them (cream get the money, dollar dollar bills ya’all). I can rap through this entire album and talk along to the skits between songs. This album laid the groundwork for the greatest hip-hop movement of all time, and in it’s incredibly perfect musical arrangement, it made me come to a whole new appreciation of music.

3. Weezer- Pinkerton

I wrestled with the idea of putting the Blue Album on this list instead of Pinkerton. The thought crossed my mind that I have put Blue Album into my CD player more times than Pinkerton, and that I can sing along to 100% of Blue, while I can only sing about 90% of Pinkerton. But then I thought about something. Rivers Cuomo at one time said he’d never play songs off of this album live because it was so personal to him. Then I thought about the few unfortunate breakups I’ve had to deal with in my life. I didn’t turn to Blue Album at those times, I turned to Pinkerton (and Let it Be, of course). And while it is good that Pinkerton helped me cope with my pubescent loss of girls, it also just rocks. And what makes it rock so hard isn’t distortion or solos, it’s the grit. It’s the emotional attachment to the songs being played. When you listen to Pinkerton you can understand exactly why Rivers was against playing the songs on this album live for so long. I’m one of those people that continues to support Weezer through thick and thin, and this album is one of the reasons why. I know they’ll never make any music on the same level as this, but after giving me Pinkerton and the few other great Weezer albums, I have to respect and support them through high and low. And how many pop rock bands can manage to reference ECW in their tracks, and not only get away with it, but have the song featuring said reference become a CLASSIC. Grunge and New Jack are household names!

2. Mr. Bungle- California

Strange music and I get along very well. But a lot of strange music bothers me. I enjoy listening to it, but there are always qualities that irk me. This album is certainly strange, but absolutely nothing about it irks me. Mike Patton and the Bungle crew have put together the most musically diverse album of undeniably catchy tunes that I have ever heard. There are some albums that never stop getting spun in your car, living room, headphones, and to me this is one of those few albums. Many of the albums on this list get tucked back in the shelf for a few months at a go, but California is one of those albums that constantly perplexes and satisfies me. The music is incredibly performed and written, and the mix is phenomenal. While no one stands out more than Mike Patton, the wide variety of instruments featured covers up any traces of ego that he may have. His vocals mesh perfectly with the music, as he can change his vocal stylings at the drop of a dime, and do it perfectly. What I love about him in Tomahawk is the fact that he can be such a great METAL singer. What I love about Patton in Mr. Bungle, and more specifically this album in general, is that he can be a great singer OVERALL. This is the album that I recommend to any human being. Literally. Anyone. Have you not listened to it? Try it out.

1.Rage Against the Machine- Rage Against the Machine

Is this a surprise number one album? I see no reason as to why that may be the case. This album shaped the way I play both the bass and guitar, and not to mention it acted as a great transition from being a fan of strictly rock and roll, to liking hip-hop as well. It’s perfect in every way. The guitar lines are godly, and the solos are beyond impressive, and the bass is groovy yet still packs a punch harder than many metal bands. And Zack de la Rocha is just incredible on the microphone. While I don’t agree with the politics of the band entirely, I believe that they present their message in a take-no-prisoners method, which has been missing from music since their initial demise. Every song on this album is great in every front. I love this album. I would not be the person that I am had it not been for these 10 songs. And that’s the bottom line.

That's that. What's next? End of the year awards. Hopefully that Hurley/Death To False Metal/Pinkerton Deluxe review I have up my sleeve. Who knows? Me.

Top 25 Albums of All Time Part V: #10-6

2010-10-25T01:17:00.005-04:00

And I return! Sorry this took so long, I have a life to live.

10. Smashing Pumpkins- Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

Apparently there was a summer when my family was on vacation and my father played this CD a lot. I have no recollection of that, but perhaps it was that early influence that made the album stand out to me. It’s epic in ever way. Duration, songwriting, arrangements, music videos, presentation, everything about this album is incredibly epic. But while some pieces of music that are as grand as this fail because the quality of the music gets caught up in the concept, Corgan and crew flourish in it. And the best part is that while it does swoon through emotions with string sections and acoustics, it can just as easily turn around and kick your ass with its rock tracks. And while “1979” and “Tonight, Tonight” are mainstream almost to the point of being played out, they still hit exactly at the right spot sonically every time. While Billy Corgan has sort of lost his writing edge in the post-Zwan era Pumpkins, it’s good to know I can always go back to Mellon Collie and enjoy utter brilliance.

9. Devo- Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

There was a time in my musical life when I would listen to and pretend to enjoy everything that was weird or abnormal. Some of the stuff I actually dug, some of it I bumped because it was different and most of the time had some musical merit. For a little while I thought Devo, and specifically their debut, fell in the latter category. I don’t know when it was when this album went to bizarre to great, but it was a pretty quick change. Maybe it’s because Devo combines some elements of progressive rock with the straightforwardness of punk, or maybe it’s because of the bizarre lyrics and themes but I really do love me some Are We Not Men? This is an album that downright turns a lot of people off to the non “Whip It” sound that Devo had before they got popular, but it certainly has made me appreciate them a lot more.

8. Red Hot Chili Peppers- Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magik

While many of the bands that I have already mentioned on this list and will mention as the post goes on are consideremd my favorites, the Chili Peppers really aren’t. Just like every musician (bass players especially) there is that essential period of time when one falls in love with RHCP, and with some they stick, but with me everything following their breakout is just sort of weak. Their work prior was good, but aside from a few tracks on Mother’s Milk, none of it was particularly memorable. And the stuff after BSSM is good, but it lacks the raw power and vigor that BSSM has. But coming back to the point, Chili Peppers made a great album that change the face of popular music. Hair metal dominated the 80’s and grunge and pop punk prevailed over most of the 90’s but the Chili Peppers really made it acceptable to be weird and funky and still be able to make money. They didn’t play to conventions and they clearly loved what they were doing (or the drugs made them love it). BSSM has some classic tracks like “Suck My Kiss” “Under the Bridge” and “Give It Away” but it also has a lot of great groove based songs that go under the radar like “Mellowship Slinky in B Major” and the title track. Every few months I arbitrarily try and tell myself the Chili Peppers are too mainstream ans sellout for my taste, and then I hear a track off this album and just get schooled. They were awesome. They aren’t so much anymore, but this album makes me wanna pick up my bass and just jam.

7. Beastie Boys- Paul’s Boutique

There are some albums that really mark a radical change in the way music is looked at, and in my opinion, if it wasn’t for Paul’s Boutique, acts like Girl Talk and Super Mash Bros. would be without a job. The Beasties created a sonic atmosphere unlike any other following their one note debut, it shows growth on all fronts by the group. Lyrically it’s good, but the Beasties have never been considered top tier lyricists as much as they have been admired for their creativity. I can rap along with them and just have a good time, and they don’t seem to care about not challenging the world, so why should I? And the beats are just so cool, they sample so much stuff, but it’s not like modern mash-up artists where the samples make the art, here they add a foundation to the crazy lyrics crafted by the Boys. If there was an album that brought me from being a casual hip-hop fan to hardcore one, it is this without question.

6. The Beatles- Let It Be

NOT Sgt. Pepper! NOT Abbey Road! NOT Revolver! Number six on my list? Am I crazy? Yes. Let It Be is one of the first 2 CD’s I ever purchased, and for the first few years of having it, I never really listened to it. I skipped to the title track and “Get Back” and turned it off. Then, in my post puberty classic rock phase I dusted off the disc and popped it in, and it fit. It fit every mood. I remember driving around post breakups during high school with this album and feeling like there was hope for me yet (THERE STILL IS DAVE, HANG IN THERE!) and there were times when I just felt like hearing some great tunes and I’d put this on and get that. While every Beatles album has a resounding effect on me, as they should with most listeners, Let It Be is the one the evaded me in my youth, only to come back ten fold when I gave it a second chance. And did I mention “Get Back” is easily in the top five Beatles songs for me? Dare I say it is the best?!

ONE MORE TO GO! WHAT WILL BE ON THE LIST?! WHO KNOWS?! ME!

Top 25 Albums of All Time Part IV: #15-11

2010-10-01T17:23:00.003-04:00

Guess whose back? No The Eminem Show won't be on this list...

15. Van Halen- Van Halen

My first concert was A Perfect Circle, but the first concert that I got really excited for was Van Halen. I remember having very little experience with the band, aside from what friends had played me, but thanks to a hookup from my father, I got really good floor seat tickets and my dad paid for half of them. With all of that being said, my preparation for the concert was the bands self titled debut and jeez did it prepare me well. I remember driving to the concert in my dad’s truck with the album blasting, and my dad just saying how it never stopped being loud and over the top. And that’s why it’s great. When it does cease on my favorite track “Ice Cream Man” it does so only to build it’s explosion that much more (my dad liked the song up until said explosion). The guitar work is obviously incredible, Lee Roth brings the frontman thing to new levels and Anthony and Alex Van Halen provide for a great backing section. A great pop rock album, regardless of what metalheads may say, it is pop through and through and I love it.

14. System of a Down- Hypnotize

Another album that came along at a great time for me. It was senior year, I was leaving on a plane for California in mere hours and I ran to Target to pick this up, import it onto my iPod and get it loaded and charged for the plane ride ahead. Now the first listen of this noisy chaotic mess of an album I was disappointed. I had listened to it’s prequel Mesmerize a hundred times and had fallen in love with it, but Hypnotize was almost too much. However, after listening to it several times, and having years and years of musical knowledge behind my back now (not to be a braggart, I just know a lot more about music now than I did then), I learned that the collective oddness of Hypnotize is truly the best effort that System of a Down brought to this day. They took a huge risk on a major label album and made a fantastically quirky metal album that does not translate easily to the masses, it’s pure genius in my mind. And while there are a handful of songs I downright dislike, as well as Serj Tankian’s over the top lyrics, I love this album as a whole. No doubt.

13. Queens of the Stone Age- Songs For The Deaf

I think second to Ocean Avenue, this was an album that I caught a lot of flack for listening to in high school, but unlike Ocean Avenue, most of the haters have grown into liking Josh Homme’s heroine induced desert rock wet dream. I got this album after hearing “No One Knows” on MTV2 back in the day and I instantly loved the way the rest of the album diverts from that sound, pretty much every track sounds at least a little bit different from the rest. And compared to much of music (and more than a few albums on this list) that’s a really good thing. Not to mention Dave Grohl behind the kit on this album is just an adrenaline burner, as he brings it hardcore. And this is the last album the Nick Oliveri played on before being kicked out of the band, so it really has a lot to say. To me personally it was the album that made me divert from the norm of the pop punk I’d been listening to almost exclusively up until that point.

12. The Jimi Hendrix Experience- Electric Ladyland

Why Ladyland over Are You Experienced? or even Axis? Simple. Because Ladyland is a mix of both of those two albums. To me Are You Experienced? will always be the Hendrix album that is beaten into every young guitarists head, as well as every classic rock radio station. It has more or less 90% of Jimi’s hits. Axis is a great album in its own right, but it just doesn’t have that zing factor, but Ladyland...it’s perfect. There are some really popular songs in “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” and “All Along The Watchtower” on top of some great jams you’ll never hear on the radio. Jimi brought me into loving the guitar as an instrument, as I’m sure he’s done with countless players, and this album is just a wonderful showing of how great he can play without having that sellout factor that I feel like Are You Experienced? had.

11. Public Enemy- It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back

I was a senior in high school when I bought this album and everyone thought it was sort of a joke. Flavor Flav was at the peak of his fame on VH1 and the only hip-hop I had been listening to was the Beastie Boys. I remember playing this album and just being wowed by Chuck D’s presence. Flav does bring the charisma to the group, but Chuck’s words are tremendously impactful that they made, and to this day still make me feel like I am a black American suffering through the same things that Public Enemy is. Fast forward a few years later to a time when I had sort of put this album and PE on the back burner, and my at the time boss brought them up in conversation, saying “Have you heard ‘Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos’?” And it had been so long I said “I don’t think so,” and when he put that song on it hooked me right back in. Chuck D is my number 2 favorite rapper of all time, and Public Enemy as a whole is my number 3 favorite rap group of all time. And they make you party for your right to fight in a time when people were just fighting for their right to party.

Two more installments and this will all be done!

Top 25 Albums of All Time Part III: #20-16

2010-09-27T01:50:00.002-04:00

And here continues the list...

20. Oysterhead- The Grand Pecking Order

There was a phase in my late-high school early-college musical fandom that I basically bought every CD by my favorite musicians if they were at a decent price. Upon finding Oysterhead’s The Grand Pecking Order used at FYE one day I bought it without question because I knew Primus frontman Les Claypool was in the group. What I didn’t realize was that Phish frontman/god to modern hippies Trey Anastasio was the guitarist and Police drummer Stewart Copeland was behind the skins. Three men that drive their respective bands coming together to form some sort of musical orgy of jam band, metal and 80’s pop rock. The end result is divine. Trey’s free flowing playing alongside Copeland’s offbeat drum hits and Claypool’s over the top bass playing make one of the most surprisingly amazing combinations in my mind. Claypool has a dozen side projects with a dozen great musicians (Buckethead, Bernie Worrell, Warren Haynes and Tom Waits to name a few) but this one stands out as him stepping out of the spotlight to let the talent of the other 2 players take the lead just as frequently as him. And the best part is that the album doesn’t sound like Primus, Phish or The Police, it sounds completely unique and it is highly unlikely we’ll ever see anything from this group again.

19. Tomahawk-Tomahawk

Copy and paste the first sentence from the last issue but replace Les Claypool with Mike Patton and you have the story of me discovering Tomahawk. Mix the Mr. Bungle/Faith No More frontman with the guitar player from The Jesus Lizard, the drummer from Helmet and the bassist from The Melvins and you have this godly metal beast. Their 2001 debut is easily the best album of their trilogy, and it’s tense moodiness really sets up for the nasty breakdowns and scream filled choruses that populate most of the album. Jesus Lizard alum Duane Denison brings his slithery playing to a much heavier zone and the bass/drums compliment it perfectly, giving Patton uniquely insane music to sing/scream/growl over. I’m not a metal expert, in fact I consider myself a novice at best, but I can’t deny this album a spot on this list, as it’s one of those albums that makes any mundane moment that much more exciting.

18. Incubus- S.C.I.E.N.C.E

Funk, at the end of the day, is my favorite kind of music. And early Incubus certainly has its share of funk in it. I came into Incubus the wrong way, starting with the mellow MTV friendly Morning View, going a step back chronologically to the brilliantly commercial Make Yourself and then finally arriving on the schizophrenic, genre jumping S.C.I.E.N.C.E. This album, to me, is Incubus at their best. The grooves between Guitarist Mike Enziger, drummer Jose Pasillas and god of bass Dirk Lance, are so incredibly tight yet retain the grooviness of so many improv-heavy grooves. Add to that the slick turntabling and beautifully chaotic voice of the then dreaded Brandon Boyd and you have one of the coolest albums I’ve ever heard in my life. While I may not bump it so much these days, as a player and a listener, this album deserves all the respect I have to give.

17. The Roots-Game Theory

Prior to this album, my main Roots experience was their 1995 jazz heavy album Do You Want More?!!??! and while I respected that album for what it did musically, I never really loved it. Game Theory however, changed the way I thought about the group for the better. The music is dark, when it’s positive it still feels like something bad can happen, and the raps are honestly some of the best I’ve ever heard. This album made me respect Questlove as more than just a drummer, and it made me realize that Blackthought is my favorite rapper in the game today. While Def Jam didn’t do a great job making this album the commercial success it could’ve been, I kind of appreciate the fact that it’s a tad more cult-ish than the rest of their work.

16. Biffy Clyro- Only Revolutions

The most recent album on the list, and the one I had the hardest time justifying putting on here. While I listened to this albums predecessor Puzzle more than Only Revolutions, something about this album stands out. I listened to it twice upon downloading it and thought it wasn’t as good as Puzzle, but then at the beginning of the summer I started listening to it. Every day. No album has made me put it on every single day since middle school, yet the great songs on this album kept calling me back over and over and even though it’s still freshly classic in my mind there is no doubt that it will stay that way. While it is sort of generic in a sense that it doesn’t change the way rock and roll is looked at, it’s epic. The arrangements, the lyrical content, the energy, and the fact that it’s three guys making the music, really makes this band, and this album, great.

Stay tuned for more!

Top 25 Of All Time Part II: #25-21

2010-09-26T00:44:00.002-04:00

Last entry you got to see the albums that didn't make the final cut to this fine list of my favorite albums of all time. Now, ladies and gentlemen, we march onward with the first 5 entries. Here we go!

25. The Kinks-Lola vs. Powerman and the Moneyground Part I

God The Kinks are a great band, and one that deserves more radio play outside of “You Really Got Me” and titular character of this album “Lola”. Believe it or not, this is the only Kinks album I have outside of their greatest hits and I owe that to Wes Anderson. Three tracks off this album were prominently featured in his film The Darjeeling Limited, and had it not been for that film I wouldn’t have been so driven to start listening to this album. I don’t consider myself a folk fan, but I really dig the overall rawness of this album. Acoustic guitars that sound muddy with wonderful layers of everything else that makes the Kinks great on top of them. It’s not all super punky, the sound that people always say the Kinks helped pioneer, but in that it shows some brains.

24. Yellowcard- Ocean Avenue

I think I have made some enemies by putting this album on this list. But allow me to explain, when my friends talk about going back in time and listening to that one album they expect to grow out of but it’s still just as fun and awesome, they always say Blink 182’s Enema of the State. Now maybe it’s because I feared the wrath of my parents listening to the aforementioned album when I was 14 and grounding me, but Ocean Avenue fills that void for me. It’s glorious pop punk that covers all of the essential bases. I can honestly sing along to this entire album and not get bored or tired of it. If there is ever a moment in time when I want to feel like a teenage girl, I always turn directly to the violin ridden Ocean Avenue and have a great time doing it.

23. Vampire Weekend- Vampire Weekend

One of the most recent albums to make the list, Vampire Weekend did something to me that I never thought would happen, it made me like indie rock again. After getting into hip-hop in the early years of college, my rock pallet mainly consisted of classic rock, nostalgia rock (see Yellowcard) and super heavy modern and experimental rock, but upon the urging of friends and the constant play of “A-Punk” on CT’s Radio 104.1, I gave this self titled album a chance and loved it. It is intricately simple, super quick and note filled riffs that feel like they could be placed into a Ramones song. The fact that these hipster, polo wearing rockers are just so openly suburban about their approach is like Kanye West wearing a polo, it’s a statement that they’re not going to change who they are (cough cough every Long Island band) to make records. Pop those collars Vampire Weekend, I’d have it no other way.

22. House of Pain- House of Pain (Fine Malt Lyrics)

Being the attentive Irish that I am, I used to bump “Jump Around” every Saint Patrick’s Day as an alternative to the overdosing of Flogging Molly, Dropkick Murphy’s and The Pogues. And upon seeing House of Pain’s self titled debut sitting in a discount bin at a reputable record store, I purchased it and after one listen, didn’t think twice about it for a long time. However, one random day two summers ago I started listening again. And again. And again. The combination of DJ Lethal’s muddy beats with Everlast’s boastful lyrics and Danny Boy’s quick in-and-out Eazy-E like presence, I fell in love with the House. The lyrics aren’t deep, the subject matter is somewhat limited, and it’s an album I can easily see 90% of the world passing on, but without question, this album has changed the way I look at hip-hop.

21. Gym Class Heroes- The Papercut Chronicles

Travis McCoy is one of the best rappers alive and the world doesn’t realize it. And I think at this juncture, dropping the “is” and replacing it with “ie” to become Travie, he doesn’t even realize it either. But The Papercut Chronicles is an album that goes all over the map as far as content is concerned. The way the rhythm section grooves over raps about girls, drugs, suicide, fitting in and other such issues is awesome. You don’t hear bands that make songs like “Cupid’s Chokehold” follow them up with song’s like “Pillmatic” and “Faces in the Hall” and that’s what made Gym Class, at this point in their career, so good.

Stay tuned for the rest of the list!

Top 25 Albums of All Time: Part One "Those that didn't make the cut..."

2010-09-24T00:48:00.001-04:00

I return to this blog that a man challenged, a man burdened. “By what?” you may find yourself asking. Is it schoolwork? No. Is it a serious problem? Absolutely not. The other day while on Twitter, I noticed my brother had started making mentions of a list of Top 25 albums of all time. This is something I’ve thought about a lot over the past 5 or 6 years, but never any more than just 9 or 10 albums that defined me. Within the confines of this blog you’ll see best of years lists as well as an assortment of other entries sorting music by some random concept. But a definitive list of albums that define me, David Henry Patrick Winchell, at the ripe age of twenty-two and nearly four months, that became a list that was harder to put together than I thought it would be.

I went about compiling this list during my now frequent insomnia bouts, sitting at my computer thinking and thinking until it dawned on me to simply scroll down my iTunes library and pick out albums that have affected me. Now, this is how my sorting process worked. After rattling off the essential albums that I knew would appear on the list, I started at letter A and went down to Z with the question “Has this album ever been the best album in the world to me?” Whether it be for a week, a few months or a year I pulled every single album that has transcended the two or three listen mark and lined them up. What I will be presenting you all with today is the list of albums that were knocked off the list. Some within moments (you can pretty easily guess which ones) and some that I had to battle with axing.

Before you read this I would like you all to take a few things into the equation. Some of your favorite, as well as my favorite, artists that I grew up with or learned to love were done solely by greatest hits albums. Bands like The Rolling Stones, They Might Be Giants, Simon and Garfunkel, David Bowie...all of these groups I love but don’t consider myself a fan enough of diving down the rabbit hole to learn more than the super expansive 40+ track greatest hits albums I have accumulated. So without further adieu, here are the albums that did not make my top 25. Don’t hate.

1. Peeping Tom-Peeping Tom
2. Andrew W.K.-I Get Wet
3. Aesop Rock-None Shall Pass
4. Beck-Guero
5. Cake-Fashion Nugget
6. The Clash-London Calling
7. Common-Be
8. The Cool Kids-The Bake Sale
9. Eagles of Death Metal-Death By Sexy
10. The Good, The Bad and The Queen-The Good, The Bad and The Queen
11. GZA-Liquid Swords
12. Gorillaz-Demon Days
13. Johnny Cash-Live At San Quentin
14. k-Os-Joyful Rebellion
15. Kanye West-Graduation
16. Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin II
17. Limp Bizkit-Significant Other
18. Mos Def-Black On Both Sides
19. N.W.A-Straight Outta Compton
20. NaS-Illmatic
21. Pitchshiter- www.pitchshifter.com
22. The Postal Service Service-Give Up
23. The Presidents of the United States of America
24. Rob Zombie-Hellbilly Deluxe
25. The Stooges-Raw Power
26. A Tribe Called Quest-The Low End Theory
27. Jackson 5-Diana Ross Presents: The Jackson 5
28. Brother Ali-Us

Look at that list! Now if you thought that this preliminary thing packed a lot of punches, JUST WAIT TO SEE HOW UNPREDICTABLE MY TOP 25 IS!

Ramblings #1

2010-09-19T02:35:00.002-04:00

Hello all. I always have ideas for lengthy posts on this blog, but due to a combination of things (laziness and school) I never post them and they become irrelevant. However, I'd like to get a new thing going that can skim topics that are somewhat important and can be addressed further if interest is shown. So let's go!

Music:
-Listened to Hurley, the new Weezer album yesterday. Going to re-listen maybe tomorrow. A review for that may come. I am certainly motivated to write one for that album in particular.
-Also have the new Lordi album Babez for Breakfast sitting on my desk, along with DJ Muggs and Ill Bill's Kill Devil Hills. I don't know if I'll review those for this publication, but check out my Rate Your Music page for ratings for those albums as I listen to them.

Live Shows:
-Saw Biffy Clyro in the Studio @ Webster Hall in Union Square tonight. Fantastic performance. I've said it on Twitter and Facebook that the Biff is easily my favorite band right now. They are extremely talented, musically diverse and they rock really, hard. I finally picked up a concrete copy of their latest album Only Revolutions, which was my #2 album of last year. I am extremely glad to have made the purchase. Listen to Biffy if you don't, they are incredible.
-Next weekend is Hofstra's Alive at 75 festival which features Lisa Lisa, Sha Na Na, Fountains of Wayne, Trey Songz, Blue Oyster Cult and my #2 favorite rapper of all time Chuck D and Public Enemy. An exciting show.
-The Roots and John Legend are playing at Terminal 5 in a few weeks. I may make my way out to that show, as my roommate does the sound at that venue.

Wrestling:
-Matt Hardy is really digging his own grave, or is he? After being sent home from WWE's European tour, lying about it on Youtube, and sending cryptic tweets every 15 minutes, the man is on thin ice. But say he is released from WWE, what can he do that is really going to make all of this talk of "change" legitimate? A TNA run would basically set him up to be in Jeff's shadow again, an ROH run, while legitimate in the eyes of fans, would make him little money, an OMEGA reunion maybe? I don't know, and frankly I think WWE needs to be the ones to push him. If he leaves WWE for TNA that will not be a positive change. He needs to get in shape and prove to Vince and the suits that he can be the draw that Jeff was.
-Went to Ring of Honor's Glory By Honor IX last weekend and had a blast. I think myself and my good friend Corey Mack Nair had the worst seats in the house, but it was honestly the best ROH show I've been to.
-TNA is bad. I feel sad saying that because I do still support their product, as it is an alternative to WWE (on TV that I have access to until I can get HDNet). But it's really badly booked, the main event slots are interchangeable and mean nothing, and the roster is still way too big for its own good. I'm glad the wrestling is still okay, but I would love to see everything within the company equal out in quality to the wrestling.

Life:
-Life is okay. School is stressful, but it will yield many a reward. I am excited to finish, but a tad frightened of the real world. Not in a sense that I won't find a job, but in a sense that I won't have school to go back to.
-Eh.

Good reads!

2010-09-11T01:15:00.003-04:00

Hey guys, I just wanted to update really quick. I just got on Good Reads! A site that lets you review books and let the world know what your reading. I am not a literary mastermind, but much like I took to movies in high school and music in middle school, I would love to become well read as I am well watched and listened (is that proper?).

So here's my page:

http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4273419-dave-winchell

I'm not going to go on and write reviews like I do on Rate Your Music because I'm not an expert. I'll maybe do a star rating and a sentence, but who am I to analyze the merits of classic novels?

End of the Summer Checklist

2010-08-29T00:15:00.002-04:00

Okay I posted this checklist in the beginning of the summer of my personal goals for the coming months and now with just a few days before classes begin I feel as though it is the best time to go back and see how I fared...

1. Write in this blog more frequently.
Did that. Not as frequently as I may have liked, but I got a few good posts in.

2. Return to E-Fedding (don't know what that is, ask me)
Nope. Too busy.

3. Hike more and outside of Roosevelt
Nope. Stuck to Roosevelt.

4. Spend more time with my extended family
Yup. Circumstances weren't the greatest, but I got a lot of face time.

5. Visit Chicago to see my brother and cousin.
Nope. $$$.

6. Go to Yawgoog.
Nope. Work got in the way.

7. Camp somewhere that's not a 10 foot by 10 foot dirt patch.
Nope. $$$/Work got in the way.

8. Go mountain biking.
Nope. No working bike.

9. Find a legitimately good record store in CT that's not Cutlers.
Sort of, but didn't end up going to it.

10. Shoot a short or two.
Nope. No interest from friends.

11. Go to good concerts (already have 1 lined up).
Yup. Got to two great concerts. Faith No More and Zappa Plays Zappa. Also got to see Between the Buried and Me.

12. Play a gig.
Yup. Played 5 gigs bro!

13. Jam with people I've never jammed with before.
Yup. Did that.

Not too bad. Not great, but I think the ones I got were good ones to get. Onto life I guess!

BATTLE OF THE JAMS: Super-Rap Tracks

2010-08-25T00:36:00.002-04:00

I have a new idea that has been sitting in my head for a long time. It is called BATTLE OF THE JAMS and it is rather simple. Take a series of songs that have some common factor and place them against each other. For what you ask? Nothing. Just sheer pride and the fun of the contest. I'm going to put this week up to a reader "vote" to see whether or not people actually read this blog/care enough to comment. So let's begin.

BATTLE OF THE JAMS #1: Super-Rap Tracks

In rap it seems as though guest verses are common. Many rap albums of today contain more songs with featured guests than without. That is a subject that can be talked about for hours and hours, but the bottom line is that the over use of guest spots takes away from the artist that made the song. However, there are a few tracks over the past few years that tout all star lineups. They feature grand gatherings of some of the greatest rappers alive. And even within this super sub-genre there are differences, and this my friends is where the battle begins.

TRACK ONE:
"Crack a Bottle" Eminem featuring Dr. Dre and 50 Cent

Hook/V1: Eminem
V2: Dr. Dre
V3: 50 Cent

The Pros: This was our first taste of Relapse era Eminem, and this song doesn't have that obnoxious brogue that he takes on for the rest of the album. Dre is a refreshing guest, while he's old, he's still somewhat relevant. 50 brings fun delivery with little depth to what he says, but then again the song doesn't ask for great depth.
The Cons: This is a party track, but the beat isn't that great of a party beat. I love the song, it just seems to work on the wrong level. It's a good song, it just doesn't bounce like the better party tracks.

TRACK TWO:
"Swagga Like Us" Kanye West, Lil' Wayne, Jay-Z, T.I.

Hook: M.I.A. (sampled)
V1: Kanye West
V2: Jay-Z
V3: Lil' Wayne
V4: T.I.

The Pros: This song is epic and blew up the idea of this super-track, spawning so many remixes and tweaks like Diddy's "Swagga Like Puff", but what this track does perfectly is allow all 4 rappers to just tell the world they are the best. When they performed this at the Grammy's they were referred to as The Rap Pack, and this foursome is definitely among the best 4 rappers to get radio play.
The Cons: The hook is so repetitive it's not funny. It's one line over and over with 4 great rappers seemingly sitting in the wings waiting for it to end. Kanye and Wayne having autotune on also takes away from their words, which is a tad disappointing.

TRACK THREE:
"Classic" Kanye West, Rakim, KRS One, NaS

V1: Rakim
V2: Kanye West
V3: NaS
V4: KRS One

The Pros: This is the thinking mans super track. At the time this song came out Kanye's ego was still in check to a certain degree, NaS was still relevant and KRS One and Rakim were where they are now, respected veterans. This is not a party track, but it has a catchier beat than the prior 2 songs. Lyrically it's solid, good verses all around.
The Cons: KRS One's verse urks me. While it's sound lyrically, its subject matter is just kind of boring. The other 3 rap well, but KRS comes in to close the track and has that like "The radio should play more local emcees!" like we haven't heard that a million times before. Also the fact that this track was done for Nike kind of makes it a tad more of a sellout track.

TRACK FOUR:
"Get Buck In Here" DJ Felli Fell, Akon, Diddy, Ludacris, Lil' Jon

Hook: Akon
V1/V3: Diddy
V2: Ludacris
End(?): Lil' Jon

The Pros: This song is a party song. The rappers on this aren't among the greats (aside from Ludacris in some peoples minds) and the subject matter is rather simple. It's incredibly catchy thanks to Akon on the hook, and Luda's verse is nicely put together. The breakdown thing at the end is awesome too, Lil' Jon just comes in and tears it down. Which is awesome.
The Cons: Diddy having two verses. Akon could've taken a verse or someone else more deserving could've followed Ludacris. No need for that much Diddy on the microphone anymore.

TRACK FIVE:
"Forever" Drake, Kanye West, Lil' Wayne, Eminem

Hook/V1: Drake
V2: Kanye West
V3: Lil' Wayne
V4: Eminem

The Pros: This song is intense. It takes what "Swagga Like Us" did and twisted it, making it more of a game of eager emcees rather than a sheer track of basting. Even though three of the four rappers on this track were hugely successful before it came out, they all bring fourth fresh verses that are supremely entertaining. The highlight comes at the final verse when Eminem comes in and just destroys everyone else following the weak Relapse. It showed us he still has what it takes behind the mic.
The Cons: Wayne seems to be coasting to a degree. Aside from that not too much to complain about.

VOTE: Let me know via twitter (@DH_Winchell) or comment on this blog what you think is the best of the five. I'll do the breakdown right now!

Crack A Bottle:
Swagga Like Us: 1
Classic:
Get Buck In Here:
Forever:

"Short Stories: Pheasant Fest Eleven

2010-08-17T23:27:00.002-04:00

People have been whining about too much pro wrestling talk, not enough music, and the fact that my movie reviews are bad. So I've decided after much personal debate and a decision to throw my own self criticism away, that I'll post some of the prose and plays I've written and continue to write. Most of what you'll see over the next few weeks/months is stuff that was written for classes since that has been edited by legitimate writers.

FOREWARD: I wrote the following short story for my Art of Revision class second semester Junior Year. This draft is the 3rd of 4, so there are some minor grammatical issues as well as some brief things I'd like to change.

Pheasant Fest Eleven
I stared out the window onto the setting sun. It cast a nice arch of color onto the town skyline, Fort Royal, North Carolina. My birthplace, my home. Every single time I look out onto the setting sun I think for a second, not about the beauty of the sun setting, not about the science of what makes the sun glow and what makes night and day happen, but about life. It was going by and that sunset meant one more day was ending. One day closer to our deathbeds.
“It’s really that time of year already?” Buck said under his breath, calling my attention span back to the murky ammunition store.
“Damn right it is,” I tell him, “Pheasant-fest is the best night of the year.”
“Well how in the hell do you do Pheasant-fest when your brother moved up to god damn Yankee village three months ago?” Buck asked, unlocking a glass cabinet and removing two boxes of rifle ammunition.
I rub my hand on my chin slowly, stroking the ends of my moustache. “I don’t know. I go out with a gun and shoot me some pheasants.”
“Aw fuck you Harvey, you know what I mean. You think you’re creative enough to come up with Pheasant-fest by your own damn self?”
No, I wasn’t.
“Yeah, I came up with it.”
“No you didn’t you moron, it was in this store Marshall came up with idea when I told him that round this time of year the pheasants always feeding late at night.”
He got me, god damn Marshall coming up with these cool ideas in public places, taking all the credit.
“Well let me tell you something Buck,” I told him, “Tomorrow night when I have eaten a delicious pheasant for dinner and am wrapping up the leftovers, I’ll mail some to my Yankee traitor brother and you can write a love note to him and slip it in the package.”
Buck chuckled under his breath, “Yeah at least I have someone to send love notes too Harv, how long has it been since you had a little,“ he winked at me,.
Jesus man, if there is one time of the week that I always want to seem like my wit is sharper than it is, it’s when this fucker takes a stab at my love life.
“I don’t know, why don’t you ask your sister,” I said.
Wow, I’m funnier than I thought. I walked out of the store before he could come up with something that was worse. Not the first time I’d done it.
And so it always was at Buck’s Ammunition Station, I bought ammo there for huntin’, protectin’ the property and shootin’ cans in the yard. He’d always give me lip about one thing or another, but I think he was just jealous of me. But Pheasant-fest was indeed a special time of year. You see, when my brother was 20 and I was 18, we came up with the idea of it. The pheasants round this part of North Carolina have a three month period of the year when they feed at night, and not like one or two of them went out and grabbed some worms or something like that, but the whole herd, or flock, or whatever it is you call a bunch of birds. Marshall, decided that once a year, me and him would go out into the woods, and hunt as many pheasants as we could in one night and pack ‘em up tight and make ‘em last as long as we could. It went from a basic idea to a ritual, went from being whatever night we felt it should be, to the first full moon of May, you see the full moon makes it so we don’t even need flash lights aside from walking to and from my truck. It went from grabbing a six pack of beer at the truck stop to stashing some Sam Adams Winter Ale in my fridge from December all the way until May. It was pretty much the most bad ass thing that any human could do, aside from maybe stranglin’ a grizzly, which my Uncle Frank claims he did once. Bull shit I say.
Times have changed since the now legendary Pheasant-fest one. As Buck so clearly stated, my brother Marhall got a job in New York. He fixes planes. He used to do that out here, but the pay wasn’t very good and according to him there was no room for “growth.” When your job is tightening screws on the wing of a plane, how much growth can you expect to really have? I dunno, he up and left about three months ago to take a job where he’s being “properly utilized” as he said when he told me he accepted the job. He moved out of the small house we inherited from our grandpa and up to Albany. Now it’s just me. I do plumbing work mainly, a little carpentry when my neighbor needs some help and has a few bucks to toss me. I got a decent life overall, steady income, nice things, so on and so fourth. People keep asking me why I don’t have a wife, especially cause I live in a house that is very facilitating towards family. I say, “When the time comes my door is open.” Porn will keep me occupied until somebody knocks. I mean, who gets married and settles down at 29?
I picked up my cell phone and flipped it open. As I entered my contact list I scrolled down to the M section, right below my boss Mark, was Marshall. I felt like I was standing on Kate Hill’s porch before prom with my little pin-on flower. This is not a feeling I get often. Should I call him? Why hasn’t he called me? He’s the one missing out, so why am I the one holding the phone attempting to call his dumb ass? He couldn’t ask for time off at work or nothing? I closed the phone and put it back in my pocket and the butterflies that were dancing around inside me turned off the music and settled down. His loss.
I walked by the convenience store that I lost my virginity in, and the diner where my Dad got arrested for public drunkenness. The whole town was ageless to me. None of these places were ever gonna go out of business and it seemed like none of the people were going anywhere. Well, except for Marshall that is. I got down the street to where I parked my car, in front of the hardware store. That was my first job.
And out of the blue I saw a familiar face crawl out from the evening shadows dressed in torn jeans and a Fubu t-shirt. Do black people even wear Fubu anymore?
“Harv! Let me come with you, I know you want the company!”
It was the Colonel.
“No Colonel, you can not come to Pheasant-fest. This is a Moss family tradition.”
Colonel’s name wasn’t really Colonel. His name was Joe Sanders, and when we were like 15 someone called him Colonel Sanders and then slowly his god given last name was shaved from the nickname.
“Where’s the rest of your damn family then Moss?” he asked, sounding like a little girl.
“Shut up Colonel, go back to your little closet at the Y, you ain’t got no right askin’ to hang out with me when you can’t even afford to buy a hot meal.”
“Hey man, I’m a veteran! I fought in Afgahnistan! Not my fault people ain’t wanna hire me!”
“You got kicked out cause you kissed a dude.”
“So what?” he started flailing his arms like a queer, “I’m still one of your oldest friends!”
“Yeah okay, I have two rules for friends, rule one is you need to have a job, and rule two is you don’t canoodle with no other men. And if you break one you ain’t my friend, so you broke two so that means you’re doubly ain’t my friend.”
Colonel shook his head at me.
“Can I at least hitch a ride to the parting, it’s only a few miles from the Y, I lost my bus pass.”
I rolled my eyes. The Y was basically on the border of ours and the next town over. The forest was sort of a natural barrier separating our town from theirs and there were a few buildings scattered between the two. We sort of isolated ourselves off from the rest of the state. I never knew why, but there was probably good reason for it.
“Yeah but you ride in the bed, I don’t want no homo trying to interfere with my driving putting on his Pop 109.3 and dancing like you did last time I drove you somewhere.”
I dropped the bed hatch and Colonel hopped in, dangling his legs from the back like a fruit. Figures.
I got in the front door and revved the engine, I started driving and watched the little bitch scamper to the back of the bed and pull up the hatch like a pig runnin’ from the sound of a shotgun, or a pheasant runnin’ from the sound of a rifle. That one makes sense and kind of fits the situation. I’ve been trying to get better with my vocabulary and literary shit.
Seeing Colonel in the back of the bed reminded me of the days when me, him, my brother, and my brother’s friend Jack Evans would all ride in the back of my dad’s truck during the Memorial Day parade with our Native Scout headbands on. I shook my head a bit, shaking out those old times. For some odd reason for the weeks leading up to Marshall’s departure, the Colonel had starting popping up at bars, diners and church when we were there and he’d sit with us. Marshall always tried to stimulate conversation with him and include him. But me, I had no desire to. I mean he broke my rules! Well I only really made those rules because I wanted to keep him out of my face when he would go around asking for a cigarette or a couple of dollars for a milk shake. He wasn’t broke exactly, he just was living off of money his parents left him when they passed. It was enough to survive, but not in any great way. He could probably get out of the Y if he tried, but that homo-shellshock is probably keeping him there. Marshall asked him if he wanted to move into our house once he left, but I remember yelling so loud as soon as those words left his mouth that I was asked to politely leave. Apparently church picnics aren’t supposed to exceed a certain volume.
“Cherokee Hills Forest:” the famous sign said, with the flip-open one below it reading, “Hunting Season: Open.” I smiled and slowed the truck down, rollin’ down the window and stickin’ my head out of it.
“Hey Colonel, the bus stops here.” I hollered.
“Okay Harvey, I appreciate this a lot man. I hope that one day you and me can be friends like we was,” he started saying, “I know you and me don’t agree on certain things, and that I’ve broke your two rules-“
I pulled away before he could finish. He didn’t know I made up the rules for him. I’d never tell him either. My Dad always says that homos can do no good for the world. I don’t know if I really agree with that, but for right now it works.
And so I drove into the parking lot and stopped up at the gate. I turned off the radio and hit the shattered interior light to find that little envelope. “Cherokee Hills Gate Key” there it was. Buck had some connections that could get us in to do this whole pheasant thing, and five years in the guy bypassed Buck’s ammo store and ended up dropping the key off personally to the house. This shit was pretty serious, if you hadn’t gotten that impression by now.
For the first time ever I had to open the gate. This was Pheasant-fest eleven, and for the past ten I drove the truck and Marshall opened the gate. I kept the headlights on as I walked to the gate, stickin’ the key into the small lock and gently pushing open the gate. It swung open slowly, and it made a real eerie creeking sound as it swayed slowly. That was strange. I mean, it was Marshall’s job to open the gate and handle the key. It just started to hit me how different this was without my brother around. I started to tense up a little in my shoulders but figured that I couldn’t stop now because what would Buck and the Colonel and Marshall say if I told ‘em it felt wrong going into the forest. Buck would try and set me up on a date with the Colonel or something as a joke. It wouldn’t be the first time he tried it.
So I got back into the truck and parked in the lot nearby, taking my flashlight, the six pack, and my rifle out of my backseat. My old backpacking framed pack was in the bed, as was the ammo I had just bought. I eagerly yanked the pack out of the bed and loaded everything into the bottom compartment, you see the top was for carrying all the pheasant carcasses. Generally you fill a framed pack with enough shit for you to live off the land for a few days, but me, I preferred to throw in dead birds. I felt up the bottom zip up portion of the pack where I kept my butterfly knife to finish off the pheasants that didn’t quite die with the rifle. It was still there in one piece. Good to know that some things don’t up and leave.
And so I ventured off into the forest, walking slowly, since I knew the pheasants were about a half mile deep in. I popped open a Sam and sipped slowly as I hiked through. The moonlight was shining through the trees onto the path, giving it all a really serene look. The beer was good and the scenery was nice, but I had to admit, going without Marshall was a little bit different. I was starting to doubt whether or not there would be a Pheasant-fest 12.
About ten minutes later I sat down to finish off the beer that I had been idly holding and recycled the bottle back into my pack. I looked around the forest, I’d never really given it the once over, as the only other time of year I came around to Cherokee Hills was for the Fourth of July barbecue. The place really was a beautiful piece of nature, I should jog out here, god knows I was starting to get a beer gut.
Then I heard some slow pit pattering about 250 feet behind me, it seemed like it was on its way towards me. Was it a fox or a bear? Jeez, I didn’t pack any bandages. That was in Marshall’s pack. The steps got closer and closer, and I could hear whatever it was breathing, I retreated a bit into the brush, and I’m not gonna lie, I was a bit scared. The steps got louder as they got really close, I wanted to close my eyes, but I had to see what beast was marching down towards where the pheasants were, had to scope out my competition.

The sound got closer and I started to hear a repetitive clicking, what kinda animal clicks? A bird? Must be one big ass bird. It was well into the night now, probably around 9, and it was pretty dark out in the woods. This thing must be a predator looking for some sleeping squirrels or raccoons. Maybe I was about to see a Bigfoot or something. I held out my rifle as the steps got louder and louder, sweat started dripping into my eyes and I was saying some prayers in my head in case this sasquatch did indeed survive my bullet and come after me. I looked out of the brush and saw the silhouette of a beast. It started making some incoherent noise.
“This lighter sucks.”
I let out a breath loudly and the beast, a.k.a. Colonel jerked his head and nearly jumped out of his second hand boots, seemingly as surprised to see me as I was to see him.
“Harv! I’ve been looking for you!”
“Colonel what in the fuck are you doing out here?” I asked in an angry whisper.
“Harv I know what you’re going through!” he started to say to me.
“First off no you don’t, second don’t be so loud.”
He had a cigarette dangling from his mouth and was flicking his lighter to try and get it lit, it made a click sound as he tried and tried.
“Okay!” he said whispering, “But your brother abandoned you out here in the woods! All of my brothers in the army abandoned me when they heard…about my lifestyle! I can relate, I mean, why not?”
I rolled my eyes at him, but in the dark I doubt he saw my exaggerated gesture.
“Look Sanders, I appreciate the sentiment, but this ain’t workin’. You are a homeless, jobless, homo slob that disgraced our nations army and our graduating class, I mean how can I stand to be around you?”
“Harv, what I did was...bad. Well I mean, I suppose I went about it in the wrong way,” he started getting all sappy on me, “But come on man, we used to be real close. I knew I was gay in like sixth grade but that never stopped us from hanging out then!”
He had a point. While he hadn’t outright said it, in retrospect all of us did hang out with a queer our entire lives. I suppose maybe I had been a bit harsh on him. I mean he hiked all the way out from the parting.
“Okay Colonel, you can walk with me,” I told him. “But you’re only gettin’ one pheasant and I’m not dropping you off at the Y after.”
He grinned, his dirty teeth were in uniform with his unshaven face and long, dirty hair. I didn’t even bother to wait for a reaction, I just set down the trail.
“In the mountains we used to have to stay in groups of four,” he started talking, “One guy would have the 100 pound communication setup, another would have the 75 pound first aid equiptment, and the other two would have rations and ammunition.”
“Really?” I questioned him, to my surprise, “I always figured that everyone carried their own ammo and food.”
He shrugged his shoulders, “Well everyone has like a granola bar and two clips, but the two carriers would have like real meals and a backup weapon or two. But these were only for recon missions when we went looking for the big man himself.”
“What I would do to find that god damn mountain where that fucker is hiding from us, I would skin him faster than I do a chicken when I go to my Uncle’s house.”
“That’s why I enlisted,” he said, getting real serious, “It’s not like I’m some fag who hates America and wants to not have a job.”
I didn’t respond. Some say I am too quick to judge, even when facts are given. Colonel was not my kind of friend these days, but he was starting to appeal to the heart of me. I reached back and tried to pull another Sam from my pack, but I moved them when I put the bottle back before Colonel so pleasantly surprised me. He started unzipping the pack and he handed me a cold one and started to zip it back up.
“Take one.”
He did, and he popped it open and tipped the stem of the glass at me.
“For old times ‘eh?”
“Might as well.”
We sipped on the beers as we walked, he even carried my rifle for about 100 yards. And in front of me I saw it. The very first one, it looked like a small turkey without the long neck. I smiled, like a little girl, and the Colonel held out my rifle.
“No,” I sternly told him, “We let the first one we see keep on keepin’ on. He’s our omen.”
“Kinda grim, ain’t it?”
“No.”
As we approached the bird it fluttered it’s wings as it went pecking around in front of us, the game keeper had spread out some meat on the ground and this fella here had managed to take a hunk and get away from the flock. The smell of raw meat started to come at our nostrils, and I accepted my rifle from my old friend. My old friend? He can’t be my friend, so I guess emphasis on the old.
And then we saw it. Slabs of meat on the ground, there were dozens of pheasants scurrying around, some fluttering a few feet in the air trying to scare others away from their rightful piece of their dinner. I aimed slowly and carefully and then did what I did best.
Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Four shots. The pheasants flew away into the darkness and disappeared. On the ground five lay motionless, and a sixth scampered in a five foot circle trying to get away.
“Morbid,” Colonel started saying to me, “But beautiful.”
“Don’t get all analytical on me now Colonel, the job ain’t done yet.”
I laid down the pack and went to unzip the pouch with my knife, as I did so a small piece of paper fell out. Must’ve been a receipt from last year, for the beer or the ammo or something. I stuffed it into my pocket and went up to the struggling pheasant, swinging open the knife and closing in on my prey.
“Come on,” Colonel said, covering his eyes as I quickly slashed the birds throat, ending its life.
“Man up..” I told him, not even making the connection that he wasn’t a real “man.”
We stuffed the birds into separate garbage bags and tossed them in the backpack, cracking open two more beers as we parted back. Colonel even offered to carry the pack, and since my back was aching a bit, I let him.
“Man, we used to have to spend like seven hours a day crawling around in the sand trying to find a hole or cave where some terrorists were hiding,” Colonel said, “And we’d get nothing. We’d have to crawl back to base and then we would get scolded. All that work and no payoff. You come out here and literally shoot a gun four times and call it a successful outing.”
I chuckled, “Oh so now all of a sudden you’re Mr. Badass.”
This felt strange, I hadn’t actually given him the time of day since he came back from Afghanistan.
“Well clearly not, Mr. Badass wouldn’t get kicked out for putting the moves on his direct superior.”
I gagged and Colonel knew that meant he had to change the subject.
“So how’s Marshall doing these days?” he asked, realizing his own mistake.
“Eh, last I spoke with him he said it’s okay,” I said staring off into the dark, “He says the women in New York are more attractive and there are more of them.”
I was making sure this possibly awkward conversation didn’t go back to homo-ville.
“Yeah, well there are more of them I bet,” he said, “And it’s not like he knows all of them like we do out here. I mean it’s kind of awkward when the only singles club has all of the same people you used to throw sand at on the playground.”
I laughed at that one too, I’d forgotten Colonel’s sense of humor.
“That’s true, of all the girls I’ve been with over the past few years, only one of them didn’t go to school with us.”
“That’s why I chose to explore something else.”
I laughed at that too. Uncontrollably. Colonel smirked and we kept on walking. It was actually a fun walk back, except for the fact that some pheasant blood got on my new jeans.
“So that’s it?” he asked me as we closed in on the truck, “You shoot four times, drink four beers, and hope that you kill as many as you can?”
“Yeah, but with two rifles you end up taking out more than six. Our average was about 14.”
“That’s impressive,” the Colonel started, “So you’re a little under this year?”
“Yeah, but five should feed me,” I told him as we got close to the truck.
“Five?”
“Yeah, ones yours.”
The colonel gave me a look, not like he was in need of money to buy a meal. Not like he knew he was weirding me out. But like we just threw a Tootsie Roll off the side of my Dad’s truck and it hit some bully in the head and he was crying. A look like when I turned from the pitchers mound and saw him catch the fly ball that should’ve been thrown a strike.
And that’s how it ended, Colonel taking his pheasant and giving me his number at the Y, insisting that I take his number and call him if I wanted to go to the bar or needed a “wing-man.” He insisted that he could assist in getting me a date. And then he walked away, awkwardly carrying a dead animal over his shoulder.
I went home and threw the birds in the freezer in my garage. I walked inside and took off my jacket, taking out the game keepers key to give to him the next day and that receipt fell out with it. I opened it up to see how much the rate of ammo, or beer, whatever I had bought, had raised in the past year. But it wasn’t a receipt.
“Harv, If you are getting this note that means you needed to take out your knife because your shot sucks and you couldn’t kill the pheasants with your shooting skills alone. I know it’s gonna be awkward without me, but I guarantee while you are reading this I’m waiting up in my apartment thinking about Pheasant-fest 8, the one where we got 25 of them. I miss it, and I miss home a lot. I hope you don’t mind Colonel coming along with you, I told him to do whatever it took to fix things with you because I know if there’s one guy that can appreciate Pheasant-fest it’s our old buddy. Who cares if he’s gay? Call me tomorrow morning.
-Marsh
Dated February 15”
And slowly I realized that Marshall was the first pheasant of the night. The one that gets away alive. In our little town, no one leaves. We all come back, go to work, or to war in Colonel’s case, and follow our old Fort Royal routine. We were the ones eating the meat the game keeper kept out for us, and Marshall took it and ran. It was simple and it made sense. He knew what he was getting out of, and he tried to make sure life was good for all of us who were stuck in the meat pit. He even did his best to leave me with something to keep me going, a friend.
I took the crumpled “Inter-Faith Volleyball League” flier Colonel had given me out of my wallet and looked at the messy handwriting on the back. I flipped open my cell phone and hit the “New Contact” button.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story and I have a love-hate relationship. I hate it because I had to spend an entire semester whittling away at it. I love it because it's the one story I've written that has been whittled away at to the point where it says something. People in class told me that I had to have grown up down south and gone hunting to have written this way and they were all surprised I was a suburban Connecticutter. I've noticed the inconsistencies in the narrators dumb/smartness and that urks me. But all in all this is one of the better short stories I've written.

Fantasy PW Draft

2010-08-16T00:40:00.003-04:00

So the other day, upon my zaniness of the past 2 weeks, I noticed a video on my Youtube subscription queue (does anyone else actually use that?) from the Wrestling Roundtable, a bunch of guys that sit around and talk wrestling for upwards of 20 minutes a sitting. While doing something monotonous I watched their most recent video about fantasy booking, in which they choose three superstars from each of the major three federations (World Wrestling Entertainment, Total Nonstop Action and Ring of Honor) to make a federation off of. Then a few days later on their radio show (which I also stream off Youtube), I noticed they were taking fan calls with their picks. Now a lot of the picks I thought were respectable, but my main problem came with the way these picks were made.

As I’ve mentioned before, TNA has a 65+ member roster, WWE has more than that, and Ring of Honor has less than 30 wrestlers. So in my mind if you want to do this fairly, you need to level things out, it’s a lot harder to pick three from WWE when there are 100 wrestlers under contract. So I have amended their list to something I feel is a bit more fair, besides, a 9 man wrestling federation is just too small. So here is my breakdown of how I will be picking my fantasy federation…

WWE: 6 Picks
TNA: 4 Picks
ROH: 3 Picks

So that gives us a 13 man roster. But just for the heck of it, let me “draft” three indie wrestlers that aren’t under contract with any of the big 3.

1. Sonjay Dutt-While he is working on and off for Ring of Honor, he is not actually a contracted roster member. And his charisma, in ring ability, and overall look make him a great addition to any roster.
2. Muhammed Hassan-It’s hard to believe that 5 years ago this man caused the ruckus he caused. Portraying a Muslim-American who felt discriminated against in the Post 9/11 America, he just oozed evil. He has disappeared from the scene ever since UPN (pre-CW) said they disagreed with a segment involving masked men choking the Undertaker following his command, and hasn’t been seen wrestling since.
3. Rene Dupree- He made splashed in the WWE both with La Resistance, alongside the highly overrated Kenzo Suzuki, and as a singles performer before being fired for what was thought to be steroid abuse. He’s only 26 years old, and was sure to make it to the top had controversy not knocked him down.

Okay. Now onto the main event. Let’s start small with ROH and work our way to the big guns of the WWE.

ROH: Three Roster Picks

1. Chris Hero

Hero has exceeded all of my expectations. When I first got into ROH, I watched some of his older matches and just couldn’t get into him. Maybe it was the baggy wrestling pants, or the mesh shirt, I don’t know. But over the past year he has been consistent in every aspect of pro-wrestling. His in ring work is phenomenal, especially alongside Claudio Castagnoli, and his promos are believable and very well cut. I pray he’s not too old (30) to truly make his mark, but considering that many of the heavyweight champions of the past 5 years have been over 40, I don’t think so.

2. Kenny King

When people think of Kenny King they automatically dub him as sort of a Shelton Benjamin Jr, but upon even a slightly deeper look, it’s easy to tell King has a lot more lasting power than Benjamin. We all know Shelton is great in the ring, and Kenny is too, however where Shelton may lack that character end of things, Kenny has an overload. He can play to the crowd, and he can just as easily, if not moreso, play the guy whose just too good for his own good. His recent work with Jerry Lynn has proven that King can hang with the greats, and at 28 years old, I think there is a lot of promise in him.

3. El Generico

If there’s one market that loves buying merchandise, it’s kids. If there’s one market wrestling promoters hate to admit effect their product, it’s internet marks who whine about bad wrestlers going over. El Generico can appeal to both of these markets, similar to the way Rey Mysterio Jr. does in WWE. While offending Hispanic people may be an early problem for Generico (the “Generic” Luchador from Canada), his in ring ability and his devotion to such an odd character will surely win over the hearts of all viewers.

TNA: Four Roster Picks

1. Rob Van Dam

An obvious pick. Van Dam may be 40 years old, but he has proven time and time again that he is unstoppable in the ring. And with a few years off from the ring for his body to heal up, he has that much more time to tack onto the end of his career. Not to mention his overuse of marijuana keeps him on a nice relaxed vibe that will keep the stress off him, god knows people like Chris Benoit could’ve benefited from a stress reducing drug.

2. Homicide

If you know me, Homicide is another obvious choice. But beyond my fandom of him, he is great. While his promos are a tad one note (him yelling in Spanish and hitting himself in the chest), his look and his in ring abilities more than make up for that. He can fly, he can grapple (not so well, but he can) and he can go hardcore like no other. Homicide can feud with anyone, high flier, grappler, hardcore wrestler, or giant and put on a good show.

3. “The Pope” D’Angelo Dinero

I was always a fan of Elijah Burke in his stint in ECW a few years back, and you could tell he was just waiting for his moment to really blossom. Unfortunately for him, WWE gave him the ax before he could truly get over. I was weary when TNA signed him because I feared he would fall into the background as much of the TNA roster does, but he has completely changed his previous character and made it a whole lot more awesome. Another guy that can fly, but at the same time is more than comfortable being a grounded wrestler.

4. Ken “Mr.” Anderson

I loved Kennedy and you could tell when he made his one night return to the WWE that they were ready to bring him up to the level he should’ve been at earlier. However, due to a freak injury of both himself and Randy Orton, he was fired immediately, saying he was a liability to both himself and those in the ring with him. He re-emerged in TNA, under his real name and hasn’t injured anyone in the ring yet. And he’s growing as a character better than he ever did in the WWE. If he were given a main event slot, he could prove everyone wrong.

WWE (not including current NXT performers)6 Roster Picks

1. Matt Hardy

This first pick is an odd sort of pick. Matt used to be among my top 5 wrestlers, and to this day I still have a soft spot for him, regardless of the number of times he’s flopped from face to heel to face again. The problem is WWE can never really get their hands around how great he is. He came over on top against his brother at Wrestlemania a few years ago, but since losing the feud overall he has fallen into obscurity and mid card feuds. He has the tools, so a heel main event push could be easy and tangible.

2. Jack Swagger

Some say his quick rise to the main event is dumb, but I love him. He’s a great character with a legitimate wrestling background that not enough pro’s have these days. His big smile makes him that jerk you just need to hate, but I can see him being a great face if he is written for properly.

3. Randy Orton

In the big 3 of the 2000’s (Orton, Cena and Batista) I would have to say that Randy would be my pick (even if Batista was still around) to draft. He’s younger, he’s extremely talented, and it appears as though WWE seems to be holding him back. If he were to be put in an ROH or dare I say TNA ring I think he could step his wrestling game up and take the number of headlocks down drastically. He was so good at being a heel the fans started cheering for him, which says something about his charisma.

4. Mike “The Miz” Mizanin

Chris Jericho is getting old. The Miz is a young Chris Jericho no matter what the marks say. And while Jericho has always operated on his pure talent and abilities, Miz came into a world that scorned him. A group of people, fans and talent, that branded him as a hack have all been silenced over the past few years. Yes, his character is a tad one note and in the same vein as heel Jericho or Christian, but he shows that he can hang with the big guys and he’s got a boatload of potential to boot.

5. CM Punk

A veteran of all 3 major feds of right now, Punk has broken the indy guy in WWE curse and became the top dog. While right now he’s cruising the upper-mid card, he can snap back into main event material without as much of a transition. He is probably my second favorite wrestler ever, my favorite right now, and it’s because he is the complete package. He works as a great face, and clearly right now he is the most interesting thing on Smackdown.

6. Justin Gabriel

I don’t know much about Justin Gabriel and perhaps that’s why I’d want him. He’s cut like a Greek statue, he can do a 450 splash perfectly, and he’s got an accent. When I see the Nexus, I see a handful of mediocre wrestlers and a few good ones. Gabriel is the standout of the group (behind Bryan Danielson of course) and his ability seems to be taking second fiddle to the Nexus angle. If there is someone in Nexus that will turn face it’s easily going to be him. The WWE right now is riding on Evan Bourne’s high flying antics, and perhaps they should shift gears to Gabriel...or at least pair the two together.

That’s it. This sat in my documents folder for a while, but I finally got around to finishing it. I didn’t draft women or managers, you can just pepper them in as needed. There are only a few good managers around, and women’s wrestling is an art of it’s own that needs a draft of its own. So that’s that. Sorry for the lack of posts this summer, keep up with me on http://rateyourmusic.com/dwinch as I post a lot there more frequently than I do on here. Hope your having a great summer and hit me up with some suggestions whether they be related to movies, music, comics, books, wrestling, I’m trying to get into UFC so give me some matches and stuff to watch.

Keep on reading brothers and sisters!

Oh and for those curious here is the link to the Wrestling Roundtable video.

Quick update.

2010-07-01T17:27:00.002-04:00

I've discovered this website called Rate Your Music. It's a simple site that lets you sort your collections, create your own rating systems, and just RATE YOUR MUSIC! Check out my profile, make a page, friend me...it's all good!

http://rateyourmusic.com/~dwinch

R.I.P. Pep Pep

2010-06-09T23:50:00.004-04:00

Comedy lost a great man on the morn of June 4 (my birthday, dangit!). The passings of Gary Coleman, Dennis Hopper, the bassist from Slipknot, the old woman whose not Betty White, and the other lost celebrities pale in comparison to the loss of Richard Dunn. The Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job! regular was the reason I got so hooked on the show. Let us take a look at the best of the great Dicky Dunn...

First, lets enjoy his very last sketch.

In Shot Dunn, we see Richard playing a game of Word Association with a lovely lady. A classic! Also, I love that reggae!

After not appearing on the first few episodes of Season Cinco, Richard made his triumphant return in this classic sketch, where he has to judge the final round of a contest to see whose more handsome, Tim or Eric. His mouth is dirty!

In Dunn-prov, there are several Richard's!

Perhaps, the most well known Dunn clip(s), The Dunngeon. In which Richard speaks with Dave Navarro and two boys from Germany. The real question is whether or not Dave was in on the joke...

And finally, my favorite. Dunn in "Whistle"

R.I.P. Richard. We'll miss you.

My summer checklist!

2010-06-04T01:00:00.002-04:00

I used to do this on Livejournal, but since that's obsolete (shame) I'll do it here. Don't worry, a rather lengthy wrestling related entry is on its way to completion, another few things to write for that as well as finding photos and formatting...I should have it up within a week.

But here is what I do. Make a checklist of things I want to do throughout the summer, and then at the end of the summer go back and check to see how I did...

Last year I got eight out of my eleven checks. So here go my ambitious goals.

1. Write in this blog more frequently.
2. Return to E-Fedding (don't know what that is, ask me)
3. Hike more and outside of Roosevelt
4. Spend more time with my extended family
5. Visit Chicago to see my brother and cousin.
6. Go to Yawgoog.
7. Camp somewhere that's not a 10 foot by 10 foot dirt patch.
8. Go mountain biking.
9. Find a legitimately good record store in CT that's not Cutlers.
10. Shoot a short or two.
11. Go to good concerts (already have 1 lined up).
12. Play a gig.
13. Jam with people I've never jammed with before.

That's it.

My Weekend

2010-05-03T00:07:00.004-04:00

Hello everyone. I don't really post that many bits of information on this blog about my personal life. I obviously editorialize a lot, but I don't really open the doors into what my days consist of etc. etc. but today I wanted to give you a quick rundown of how this past weekend has been for me. Starting with a rough Thursday AM, things really came together and I think that this weekend is a true full representation of who I am...

THURSDAY:
-Went to my Fitness For Life Class and upon final physical evaluation improved in every field (Upper body & ab strength, flexibility) EXCEPT for my 12 minute run, which I blame on terrible shin splints that hit me like 7 minutes in, however I did stay the same as I had the past 2 times. Running has never been my thing, I don't mind.
-Bombed a fine edit for my RTVF class partially because footage was bad and partially because the definition of "fine edit" is impossible to categorize. Luckily I wasn't graded and used the experience to make my final edit great.
-Worked my very last Atrium Table hour with my Freshman "family" Frank Buttafaro, Vinny Pezella, Ryan Sinnott and a slew of other people who aren't worthy enough to be named. I will truly miss those hours of just shooting the breeze with those kids.
-After weeks of talks got Mike Falzone out to Hofstra to perform at our very last Coffeehouse! I was worried it wouldn't end up working as he had to get from Hamden to Hempstead in a very fine cut window of time, and he made it early and performed for a very responsive and surprisingly big crowd. A great way to end the Coffeehouse Series with some fresh 203 flavor.

FRIDAY:
-Worked. Productively.
-Found out towards the middle of the afternoon a certain A-List celebrity might be coming in to talk about getting a reality show. Waited anxiously all day with the other interns, and after waiting an extra 45 minutes after the persons appointment was, left Chelsea Market. Upon getting outside we noticed a security guard waiting by the door, so like all starstruck interns we waited for about 10 minutes before a car pulled up with this A-Lister inside. Paparazzi came out following her and it was one of those things that made me go "Whoa. Followed that up with dinner and drinks with the Oxygen interns, which was awesome. I will miss them when they leave this week and I still have until the end of the month.

SATURDAY:
-Finished setting up Music Fest, as I had missed day 1. Saw Bad Rabbits after listening to them since February, and after the activities of the day I went backstage druing Kevin Devine and the God Damn Bands set. And there 10 feet in front of me was Ghostface Killah of the Wu-Tang Clan. Before Music Fest I had said I was going to forget about professionalism and just go up and ask for a picture, but I was sort of struck with responsibility (that or his 10 man entourage was too much for me to handle). However, when a bass needed autographing for a charity auction, I was lucky enough to ask him to sign it. I swear to god that bass was shaking like crazy when I went up to him. I told him I was a big fan and all of this stuff and he was just really soft spoken just saying "Aight?" and stuff like that. It was underwhelming, mostly because I didn't ask for a picture.
-When I heard Streetlight Manifesto play the opening line of "A Moment of Silence" it brought me back to the moment when I was 17 years old walking into the main hall of the Webster theater with Three Years Accident Free and hearing them sound check to the same tune. For a minute I was just like "Holy moly, I have lived quite a life in these 21 years."

TODAY (SUNDAY):
-Went to sleep at 9 AM after working all night.
-Donated to the Max Kolb Telethon and got a Fantastic Mr. Fox DVD and Poster! Hooray for good things!
-Found out TNA fired Bubba The Love Sponge.

A Brief TNA Talk.

2010-04-30T00:07:00.002-04:00

Hey guys, just wanted to post something that I noticed. I'm listening to the Wrestling Roundtable Radio on Youtube and they are talking about TNA's ratings and such...(don't get me started on the Wrestling Roundtable guys, but they are one of the few wrestling programs I can listen to) I pulled up the TNA roster page and noticed that the roster has over 69 faces on it, granted a small number of those faces are managers, interviewers and announcers, but still...over 55 people on a roster that gets a 2 hour show and one "Explosion" match on Youtube. That's just WAY too many people, and let me tell you who should get cut. There are too many names to give reasons, but I'll explain after.

CUT:
-Bubba The Love Sponge
-Don West
-Mike Tenay
-Hamada
-Jimmy Hart
-Kiyoshi
-Shannon Moore
-Shark Boy
-Suicide
-Tomko

Okay, let me run down this quickly. Four guys on this list are X Division guys, granted Suicide is Kiyoshi/Kazarian/Daniels, but he is a true "character." It's become abundantly clear that TNA has stopped caring about the X Division and it has clearly become nothing more than warm up matches for the likes of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash. And you may notice that I didn't mention either of those names in my list, let's think about this for a minute. Scott Hall, when motivated, can be a great wrestler, even at the ripe age of 50. Nash, while he has rickety knees, is one of the best talkers and can surely transition into a great manager or announcer in a matter of years (the sooner the better). As far as announcers, Mike Tenay sucks plain and simple.This isn't WCW, so why get WCW's Jim Ross on your roster? It does no good. Tazz was a great step forward, but with Hulk Hogan, Eric Bishoff and the aforementioned Kevin Nash on your roster, as well as having free agents in Paul Heyman, John Bradshaw Layfield, and countless others that would probably work for them, there is no reason to stay stuck in the past.

Now let's look at who needs a push, I'll put what division they need the push in.

PUSH:
-Brian Kendrick (Heavyweight)
-Daffney (Knockout)
-Eric Young (Heavyweight)
-Homicide (Heavyweight)
-Jay Lethal (X)
-Jesse Neal (Global)
-Orlando Jordan (Global)
-Raven/Stevie Richards (Tag Team)
-Rhino (Global)

Okay, a brief breakdown here. Kendrick, as I've said before on this blog, is one of the most talented and charismatic little guys in the ring. He can transcend the X Division if he is given the proper time on screen, but unfortunately, with the 69 member roster, he is lumped in the X Division. Jesse Neal and Rhino are two guys I am torn on, Neal is good, and Rhino isn't good enough. Both men need this Global Title to try and make these guys relevant again.

That's all I have to say now. I might review Vampire Weekend's "Contra" because I meant to do that months ago.

Extreme Rules 2010 Predictions

2010-04-23T22:17:00.002-04:00

Okay so I think I got like 2 matches right for Wrestlemania...and I know you people reading probably wanna see me write about something that's NOT wrestling but right now I don't have much time to dedicate to writing reviews and this stuff is easy.

Before I start I'd like to say that I WILL come back with stuff on RVD winning the TNA title and WWE's releasing of Jimmy Wang Yang, Mike Knox, and the rest of them leading up to SHELTON BENJAMIN? Either way, expect stuff within the next few weeks.

So without further adieu, lets see if I can get more than I did last time...

Michelle McCool (c) vs. Beth Phoenix Extreme Makeover Match for the WWE Women's Championship
Winner: Beth Phoenix
Why: Because Beth is supposed to be this dominant woman who doesn't stoop herself to the low of the makeover stuff. These are probably the two best workers in the womens division right now, so they hopefully can actually entertain.

JTG vs. Shad Gaspard in a Strap Match
Winner: Shad Gaspard
Why: Cryme Tyme breaking up was dumb. But if they want to do this right they'll push Shad properly. JTG is a tad too gimmicky, perhaps the reason why CT never truly succeeded was because he was just too over the top. Shad has a bright future, he just needs to stop wrestling in blue jeans and Timberland boots.

Edge vs. Chris Jericho in a Steel Cage Match
Winner: Edge
Why: Jericho won at 'Mania, Edge will win now to give him the hero win. When will they turn him heel? Face Edge just doesn't work.

Triple H vs. Sheamus in a Street Fight
Winner: Sheamus
Why: Before WM, Triple H made some comments about how the guys that beat him at WM go on to become huge superstars and the guys that lose fade into oblivion. Sheamus lost. Triple H is the reason he has made it this far, so hopefully he will get off his throne and help put over this potential champion (who also sports a nice mustache).

Randy Orton vs. Jack Swagger (c) in an Extreme Rules Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Winner: Swagger
Why: Because WWE has invested a lot in this man in such a short amount of time. It would be a true injustice to them as promoters, writers and to Orton and Swagger to have him drop the belt. And this face turn has really changed the way Orton is, he is just so confused when people cheer for him.

Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk, if Punk loses he has to shave his head
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Why: Because CM Punk wants to shave his head. These guys could've stolen the show at WM had they been given more time. Maybe they can prove in this match that they both should never have been demoted from the Main Event.

John Cena (c) vs. Batista for the WWE Championship in a Last Man Standing Match
Winner: John Cena
Why: You know what? At this point in time I don't hate Cena. I don't hate what he stands for. I don't hate him as a performer. I don't hate him at all. It's inevitable he's going to be champion, so why not put him over the equally overrated Dave Batista.

Okay, that's the card thus far, I'll update this if any more matches are added. Also, I have a new feature coming out soon for this blog. Get ready people!

Wrestlemania XXVI Predictions

2010-03-26T00:37:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to come on here and give my reviews for Sunday's Wrestlemania Pay Per View. Usually I try and avoid talking WWE on this blog, as TNA and Ring of Honor seem a bit more okay for a 21 year old male to watch. Granted I don't actually watch WWE regularly, but I still feel as though my opinion is valid. So here are my predictions for the biggest night of wrestling...

**Just added**

Eve Torres, Kelly Kelly, Mickie James, Gail Kim and Beth Phoenix vs. Vickie Guerrero, Maryse, Michelle McCool, Layla and Alicia Fox
Winner: Eve, Kelly, Mickie, Gail, Beth
Reason: They're collectively hotter than the other team.

Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk
Stipulation: If Punk wins, Mysterio is forced to join the Straight Edge Society
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Reason: They would never have Rey join Punk's awesome Straight Edge Society. Punk's bad guy gimmick is so over and they need to have the good guy beat him. This may be match of the night if treated properly.

Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Ted DiBiase
Winner: Ted DiBiase
Reason: Orton doesn't need the victory and Cody isn't over enough. I would love it if Cody won, because I think he has more charisma and in ring ability than Ted, but putting Ted over on this stage could move him to the level he needs to be at.

Triple H vs. Sheamus
Winner: Sheamus
Reason: Triple H only puts over people he likes, and Sheamus is an Irish version of him. It'd be pointless to have Triple H win, I mean it's possible, but I think even the Game himself knows Sheamus needs to get over to seem legitimate.

ShowMiz (c) (Big Show and the Miz) vs. John Morrison and R-Truth
Stipulation: WWE Unified Tag Team Championships on the line.
Winner: ShowMiz
Reason: Morrison and R-Truth were thrown together so they don't have to be in the Money in the Bank match. ShowMiz have potential.

Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon
Stipulation: No hold barred
Winner: Vince McMahon
Reason: I think this is what will happen; Vince screws Bret yet again and wins the match and then all of the good guys will destroy Vince and Bret will get his moment.

Christian vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Kane vs. Matt Hardy vs. Jack Swagger vs. M.V.P. vs. Drew McEntyre vs. Evan Bourne vs. Kofi Kingston
Stipulation: Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Winner: #1 Choice Christian #2 Choice Matt Hardy
Reason: Not many people in this match actually seem to have the legitimacy to gain the victory. Matt and Christian have both proven themselves as ECW Champions and I think are over enough to deserve a shot. If not either of them Kofi Kingston will win. Expect the 10 guys to make this match really spot heavy obviously, but it won't have much time to focus on each man.

Batista (c) vs. John Cena
Stipulation: WWE Championship match
Winner: Cena
Reason: This match will be mad boring. The good guy wins, Batista gets a year older.

The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Stipulation: Taker's streak vs. Michael's career
Winner: HBK
Reason: They won't make him retire. Undertaker is closer to that door than Shawn.

Chris Jericho (c) vs. Edge
Stipulation: WWE Heavyweight Championship match
Winner: Jericho
Reason: Edge is hot off coming back from his injury, but Jericho has never had his "Wrestlemania moment" and this is his chance. Also, I think this feud has the potential to keep going for another few months and this is a good starting point.

That's it.

Review: Gorillaz-Plastic Beach

2010-03-21T01:09:00.003-04:00

Let us take a time machine back some years to 2001. I was in eighth grade and had heard about a cartoon band that played a song called “Clint Eastwood,” At the time I would listen to any rock band I was told to by my peers and the great Total Request Live, so I went on Napster and downloaded the song and liked it. I didn’t understand any of the lyrical content, but it was pretty cool. A few weeks later I went to the mall and bought the self titled album, reveling in the fact that a 13 year old managed to buy a CD with an Explicit Lyrics sticker without getting carded or thrown out of F.Y.E. (I still think that the two F bombs on that album don't warrant a sticker) I listened to “Clint” along with the other single “Rock The House” but never really appreciated the album as a whole; I mean lets look at what was in my CD collection at that juncture. I can literally tell you every CD I owned at that point and I will; I had Let it Be and Magical Mystery Tour, Sum 41’s All Killer No Filler, Weezer’s Green Album, U.K. industrial band Pitchshifter’s www.pitchshifter.com, and Cartoon Network’s Brak Presents the Brak Album Starring Brak. So of course at this point in time I had no idea what I was getting myself into. My young brain couldn’t fathom hip hop or Britpop, so I would skip to “Clint” and “Rock the House” and then eject the CD and carry on with my day. So as the years passed and I learned more about music in general, my appreciation for the Gorillaz as well as Damon Albarn’s other works grew exceedingly. Demon Days has been consistently in my driving only CD book since I’ve had my license and I was lucky enough to see Albarn alongside Paul Simonon and other famous people with The Good, The Bad and The Queen back in my freshman year of college. With all of that in mind, you can imagine the amount of joy I was in when I heard Plastic Beach was coming out...

The "Experience Edition"

The album’s “Orchestral Intro” does for this album what the grim “You are now entering the harmonic room...” did for Demon Days, it opens the door for the audience to enter into the artificially wonderful world of Plastic Beach. The next track, the aptly named “Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach” shows just how uppity and over produced the Beach really is. Toting a prominent guest spot from Snoop Dogg, arguably one of our days most “plastic” rappers who doesn't have the price tag of a Jay-Z or Lil Wayne. To me Snoop’s appearance comes off as a bit forced, Albarn has connections to several great rappers, some of which appear later on the album, but really? Snoop Dogg? How great would it have been to start the album with a returning verse from Del Tha Funky Homosapien? Del’s voice lends itself well to the sound Albarn wants, not to mention the check would be much smaller than that of the multi-platinum Dogg. But Snoop aside, the tracks quirky synths and tweaked vocals from Albarn make for a great introduction.

“White Flag,” the next track, features a smoothly layered beat from The National Orchestra For Arab Music alongside rappers Bashy and Kano, with no lyrical contributions from Albarn himself. The synth-pop drum machine loops compliment the layers of strings and flutes incredibly well. Following “White Flag” is “Rhinestone Eyes,” which may be the best track on the album. Albarn resumes the role of lead singer while punchy drum kicks behind the catchiest synth line I’ve heard in a long time. This track truly encompasses Albarn’s desire to truly innovatively combine hip hop, pop and rock. While it doesn’t tote heavy guitars, rap, or a catchy chorus, the laid back vocals, head nodding musicals and heavy bass get the job done. The next two tracks had been leaked weeks earlier, and feel much more at home and relevant in the context of the album rather than standalone songs. Following “Rhinestone” the 80’s synthesized bass and drums of “Stylo” drone over and over. At first I found the song boring, especially considering the miniscule role Mos Def plays. However, the incredibly abstract Bobby Womack breathes life into the repetitive track. “Superfast Jellyfish” the next track, with “Feel Good Inc.” alums De La Soul reappearing, is another one of the albums highlights. The layers come in gradually and effectively, with Albarn singing a fun hook that is reminiscent of the aforementioned “Feel Good Inc.” and “Clint Eastwood” however talking about eating jellyfish is a tad awkward, even for the Gorillaz standards. “Empire Ants” is a relaxing next track, showing us another more serene side of the Beach. Even when the drums and bass kick two and a half minutes into the song, this track serves as a bit of a cool down, and a really funky one too.

“Glitter Freeze” starts thumping with a Muse-like bass line with jumpy keyboards and keeps on layering them over and over for the mostly instrumental track, which almost acts as a beginning to Act II of the album. “Some Kind of Nature” follows up with the lazy vocals of Lou Reed over happy instrumentals. While I’m not a fan of The Velvet Underground or Reed’s solo work, I must say that his vocals are rather underwhelming. He seems to trot along waiting for Albarn to come in and bring the hook in each chorus. When they finally start trading the vocals back and forth things get more interesting, but just as with Snoop Dogg, I feel as though the guest spot could’ve been shelled out to a more deserving, lesser-known name. The 80’s ballad-esque “On Melancholy Hill” is another fun track, although it is a bit forgettable. It’s a harmless track, but I can’t deny it’s catchy. The next song, “Broken,” is in the same vain. It’s not going to be one of the songs that goes down in the history books as one of Damon’s greatest, but it is good within the context of Plastic Beach.

The Mos Def driven “Sweepstakes” is another one of those tracks I can’t quite wrap my head around. I love the chaotic music, but I think Mos delivers some of the weakest stuff we’ve heard from him. The song pushes in at over 5 minutes, which is a bit of a feat for a rapper, and the constant repetition of the songs title is really off putting, especially at this point of the album. I don’t feel like a winner, regardless of how many times Mos Def says I am. However, following “Sweepstakes” is one of the albums greatest tracks. “Plastic Beach” features former Clash members Mick Jones and Paul Simonon along with Damon delivering cool lyrics. While the musical contributiones don’t scream “THE CLASH WAS HERE!” the thumping bass is certainly reminiscent of The Good, The Bad and The Queen. “To Binge” is another one of those sort of forgettable tracks, good but not great.

“Cloud of Unknowing” brings back Bobby Womack, who seems so genuine when singing along to the slower track that for once doesn’t kick in with drums and bass. It is a truly unique point of the album that Womack more or less gives himself. And the albums closing track “Pirate Jet” contains all the elements that made the rest of the album great, synthesizers layered above dub style bass with Albarn singing harmonies over himself. It is a good closer, it’s a great sendoff to the over produced world of Plastic Beach.

So overall, the album is good. To say it’s as good as Demon Days is an overstatement, but as an album, there is certainly some purpose to what is going on. My problems come in three places here. Number one is the fact that while the synth lines are catchy and fun, they are abused to no end on this album. I understand it’s all part of the concept, but on both prior Gorillaz albums, there is no such repeating musical theme, and that’s what makes them two classic albums! My second complaint is the abundance of guest spots from big musical names. While they don’t entirely detract from the overall product, they don’t do much to add to it. The best guest spots are from prior collaborators and lesser known acts. What I loved about the prior records was the way the Albarn took lesser known people and put them on a pedestal, giving them the most exposure some of them have ever had. Del the Funky Homosapien and MF Doom have never seen such prominent sales numbers as on their Gorillaz tracks and Damon brought De La Soul back into the limelight after they had been underground for several years. I don’t listen to Gorillaz because of the guest stars, I listen because I love Damon Albarn’s songwriting. And while it is certainly very much sound on Plastic Beach, the overflow of big names detracts from the product. And while it can be argued that the guest list is meant to compliment the plastic theme of the album, I think it’s plastic enough musically. My last complaint is that on the prior two albums, I felt as though I was in the world of 2-D, Russel, Murdoch and Noodle, but on this I feel like I am alongside Damon Albarn. I don't feel as swept into the world of these 4 characters as I once did, maybe it's because I'm older and I watched the making of DVD, or maybe it's because the characterization isn't as important as it once was.

All in all Plastic Beach is a good album, and at this point of the year, a contender for the best. But alongside Damon Albarn’s other works with Gorillaz, Blur and other side projects, this album isn’t the greatest.

To Health!

2010-02-21T01:55:00.002-05:00

So I'm taking this class called "Fitness For Life" and it's sort of a pointless easy 2 credits that you get by working out. I've been in the class for 2-3 weeks now and we still haven't filled out our "Fitness Prescriptions" or whatever we are doing, but bottom line is your boy DW needs to get fit.

One thing that struck me right off the bat was my professor saying "Tell people your goals because you'll feel like you have to stick to your word" and I thought of Kanye West's short book of wisdom Thank You and You're Welcome and how in that book he said people dislike him for making outrageous claims, but by making said outrageous claims he has to do all within his power to live up to them. With this in mind, I open this up to the readers of this blog.

I am going to get in shape.

I said I'd stop eating potato chips on twitter at the beginning of the semester and I haven't had them since then. But I found the loophole in Doritos (which do have 10 less calories per serving, but in the long run they are still bad) and for Lent (and hopefully onward) I have given up Doritos. So now, I realize that I want to stick to my word.

SO blog readers, your job is to merely read this. Since I have said it I will now do all in my power to get healthy, and that doesn't mean give up junk food completely, just make it a reward rather than a crutch!

Well at least I have a cool mustache.

THANK YOU FRIENDS AND LETS HOPE I CAN DO THIS!

More TNA Talk

2010-01-29T16:07:00.002-05:00

Okay, I figured there's nothing wrong with these brief rants about things. That's what blogging is about right?

I have one HUGE problem with the new direction TNA has. I don't mind the square ring, I don't mind the fact that the ramp goes right into the ring, whatever that's all fine. My problem with TNA is the fact that they try to put Hogan and Bischoff over as a team, but Hogan is so clearly trying to be a top face and Bischoff is trying to act like a heel. To me it's pretty clear that Hogan should go heel in TNA. He is the reason all of these people no one wants to see are in TNA, why not run with that? He tried to "out-face" the founder Jeff Jarrett on January 4th and failed miserably, maybe he should've thought to himself, "I will sell t-shirts regardless, maybe I could go heel and put all of these originals over!" But no, Hogan continually tries to make it like he's the good guy...

We'll see how this plays out as the weeks go by. I don't like Sean Morely around, nor do I like Orlando Jordan. The Nasty Boys are fat, old pieces of trash, but I do want to see Team 3D beat them, so I'll let them stay. Rumors are Jeff Hardy isn't even sticking around, I'd like Shannon Moore to though. Hardy doesn't have huge drawing power it seems, I feel like the WWE had the resources to really put him over, and TNA has this laundry list of main eventers and they think they can just let Jeff hang on the under card. I think he is a valuable asset, but I also think that he doesn't have what it takes to actually perform to the level of Kurt Angle, Ken Anderson, A.J. Styles, Chris Daniels, Samoa Joe perform at. But if TNA can hook him in, promote the holy hell out of his presence, and keep the heavyweight title off of him I think they should do that.

Oh, and I think that Brian Kendrick and Generation Me (a.k.a. ROH's Young Bucks) are doing great. Look at Kendrick in this clip...

Kendrick has this distinct character yet he still brings a certain ruthlessness to the ring that I really like. He's like 150 pounds and he still manages to come off as somewhat of a threat. It's awesome.

More Kendrick, less Bischoff please.

See You Later, Coco!

2010-01-23T00:52:00.002-05:00

Hello community! Hope you've all had a lovely few days since my last post.

I just wanted to get on here and post my thoughts on the whole Leno/Conan situation. Call me cliche at this juncture, but as a male of Irish descent looking to get into the television industry, you can more or less guess what the following few paragraphs will be.

I remember as far back as high school, probably earlier, when NBC aired Late Night the next evening (I think it was on at 5 PM?) on Comedy Central I would watch Conan O'Brien. Little did I know how involved he was in some of my favorite Simpsons episodes, but all of that aside I began to more or less idolize this fellow after a few episodes.

In second grade I was asked to write down what my dream job would be. I wrote down almost instinctively that I wanted to be a stand up comedian, wrote the entire page paper or however long it was and then realized that no second grade in their right mind should've written something of that nature. My rationale was that I enjoyed making people laugh and I'd love to make a career out of it. It wasn't until I started watching those Conan episodes that I really was finally able to admit that while I was young, that I was correct in my personal assumption. And to this day making people laugh is probably the most fun I can have on my own. It's a bit of a crutch, especially when I'm around people that are hard to please, but I cope.

But me aside, I think Jay Leno acted like a son of a bitch. I watched a video recently from back when he announced his "departure" where he said that he didn't want to be a 60 year old hosting The Tonight Show, and now he's coming back...to me that is absolutely unfair. Conan moved his staff, his family, and his entire life to Los Angeles for what was rightfully his, The Tonight Show and after a rough 7 months the network pulled the plug. Let's not forget how long it took Conan to get over as the host of Late Night...

And now Conan is gone from NBC, a company he thanked tonight, and I can't help but feel like the company I will soon be interning for, a company that I admitted to dreaming about working for my entire life, is really letting one of the funniest people alive leave because a 60 year old man can conjure better ratings (and this is only the short term, can Leno really be expected to last another 10-15 years?)?

I don't know...I can patiently wait until September for Conan to get a new gig together I suppose. I can just not turn on the TV until Fallon starts (I do watch Fallon, don't hate) or I can get in shape by vomiting my insides out watching Jay Leno slide back onto a show he clearly doesn't belong in.

You know what, I do need to get in shape. Leno, thank you for disgusting me!

And I know this is probably riddled with grammar errors, I just wanted to get a few things off of my chest before this subject becomes irrelevant, which by my count should be in about 25 minutes.

WTF TNA?

2010-01-20T18:00:00.003-05:00

I keep starting to write TNA critiques and then Impact comes on and something drastically different happens that makes me have to go back and re-write and so on and so fourth so basically I'm not getting anything done.

But let me just give a few thoughts on TNA's recent actions.

-Getting the 4 sided ring back is dumb. I understand it may be considered more legitimate, but one of the things that made TNA instantly recognizable was the 6 sided ring. The "Six Sides of Steel" made a cage match sound a whole lot more flashy than it actually is.
-Adding The Nasty Boys, Sean "Val Venis" Morely, Orlando Jordan, and The Band (X-Pac, Scott Hall) to the roster only means that TNA has more checks to cash and none of these men will do anything to draw ratings.
-The new Hulk Hogan shirt (http://shoptna.com/hulk-hogan---change.aspx) is awesome.
-Brian Kendrick and Ken "Mr. Kennedy" Anderson are two of the best free agents for TNA to get. The only problem is that putting Kendrick in the X division truly takes him away from being that one little guy with big enough balls to make it in the heavyweight division. Kennedy is just great. Makes me wish Umaga hadn't passed away. He would've been a great addition.
-It's good to see that TNA is pulling some of the "main eventers" who don't deserve their spot down. Bobby Lashley, Samoa Joe, Kevin Nash, Hernandez and Fairfield CT's own Matt Morgan all have their special talents to offer, but the main event is too cluttered as it is, so they will all have their time.
-TNA needs a hardcore division. Stevie Richards, Raven, Rhino, Team 3D, Abyss, and Mick Foley aren't really good enough to get over on their wrestling abilities alone, so making a hardcore title would really stick it to WWE's TVPG rating. Also with a hardcore division they could justify hiring Necro Butcher.
-D'Angelo Dinero annd Desmond Wolfe are two fantastic superstars who work so well with each other. I can see both of them getting their due in the main event within the year.
-It's ridiculous for Hogan to think he can "out-face" anyone in TNA. While Hogan is a name, TNA fans, especially those in attendance at the Impact Zone are very loyal to their originals (A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, Jeff Jarrett etc. etc.) and Hogan simply saying things like "That doesn't cut it!" won't make the fans turn on them. For a man with so much experience in the game it's dumb for him to make these assumptions, especially when he's the man who let in so many aging wrestlers who have nothing to contribute.
-And finally, I wish Eric Bischoff and Dixie Carter would stay off screen. Bischoff is a great booker and writer, let him do that. Dixie...well Dixie is just a waste of time on TV. She used to talk about how she wasn't going to become like Vince McMahon, taking TV time away from wrestlers, but now she seems to be hopping in the spotlight every once and again and it's annoying.

Okay, that's it. I figure that's better than writing something long and drawn out and then finding it irrelevant. More posts soon. Just got the new Vampire Weekend, going to bump it a few more times and then maybe review it!

Top 20 albums of 2009: Pt. 2 10-1

2009-12-29T20:12:00.005-05:00

Okay, the last entry of this blog covered numbers 20-11 of my top 20 albums of 2009, I recommend you check that out before reading this. But also before we begin the countdown, here are a few albums that didn't quite live up to their own hype in 2009...

The letdowns:

Jay-Z-The Blueprint 3- With “Death of Autotune” and “Run This Town” dominating hip-hop radio weeks before the release of this album, it seemed as though Hov was on his way to putting out his best album of the decade. Alas, The Blueprint 3 only furthers Jay-Z’s place as just another rapper who should gracefully leave the limelight to the guys who still spit fire.

Flight of the Conchords-I Told You I Was Freaky- Last year I put FOTC on this portion of the list because their debut album relied so heavily on their HBO show to retain their humor, and in retrospect that’s sort of wrong, their debut is actually a perfectly good comedy album that’s funny on its own. The sequel, I Told You I Was Freaky on the other hand, falls into my original reason for disliking the debut, only this time around, the songs aren’t nearly as funny even with the shows help. While they foray into a few good songs, notably the Police-esque “You Don’t Have To Be A Prostitute,” FOTC have a hard time maintaining their comedy and being original composers.

Clipse-Till The Casket Drops- Clipse have put out two of the best hip-hop albums of the decade, and everyone was excited for them to round it out with another classic. However Till The Casket Drops is a weak attempt by the Virginia duo to become a more radio friendly version of themselves. It’s a let down to the fans as well as hip-hop as a whole.

Owl City-Ocean Eyes- While I was hooked in with the Postal Service sound and undeniably catchy “Fireflies,” I Found that Owl City's full length album had a hard time keeping its momentum up. I talked a lot of good about this album after hearing the first few tracks, but upon a full listen I realized I was only making a fool of others and myself. Just listen to Give Up by the Postal Service or The Listening by Lights if you want the same thing here only a lot better,

Now onto the main event...

10. Mos Def-The Ecstatic

Mos Def went from being an acclaimed rapper to one of the more well like rappers turned actors, but when he underwent that change the “rapper” portion of “rapper turned actor” suffered greatly. After his solo debut Black on Both Sides, Mos more or less sucked as a rapper to be blunt. He tried too hard to be innovative and frequently came out looking like an idiot for even trying. However, with his release of The Ecstatic, we see the classic Mos Def reemerge from the ashes to deliver an album that is downright great. His rhymes are on par with the old Mos, and the beats match as well. Mos Def has truly exceeded all expectations with this album.

Notable Tracks: Twilight Speedball, Auditorium, The Embassy

9. La Coka Nostra-A Brand You Can Trust

House of Pain members Everlast (a.k.a. Whitey Ford), Danny Boy O’Connor and DJ Lethal (also of Limp Bizkit) teamed up with indie rappers Ill Bill and Slaine a few years ago with the intent of making white hip-hop something that was more than just a joke. Opting to get everyone in the same room to record instead of working over mp3’s across coasts, La Coka Nostra ended up taking much longer than they had expected to release their debut album A Brand You Can Trust. However, the wait was entirely worth it. Describing themselves as hardcore hip-hop, the guys from LCN take no prisoners with their lyrics. However, for every line they spit about “totin’ a glock,” they come back with one about how a life of crime isn’t going to do them any good in the long run. Guest appearances from UGK’s Bun B, Snoop Dogg, Sen Dog and B-Real from Cypress Hill, Immortal Technique and others solidify LCN as a credible, and entirely real hip-hop supergroup.

Notable Tracks: “Bloody Sunday” “The Stain” “F*ck Tony Montana”

8. Phoenix- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

I’m one of those guys that have a difficult time buying into the hype of bands I know nothing about. However, after a lot of good hype from both the internet and friends, I finally gave in and listened to Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. And while I wasn’t blown away entirely, I certainly enjoyed their album. It runs a solid 10 tracks, enough to make a mark, and little enough to leave the audience wanting more. While this isn’t technically their debut, for most American fans it’s their first real taste of the band, and it is a delicious first taste indeed. The chemistry between the members is there, as they clearly know how to make fun music, but they still retain their ability to be true musicians. I look forward to getting to know this band more.

Notable Tracks: “Lisztomania” “Fences” “Countdown”

7. K’Naan- Troubadour

After attending this years Rock The Bells festival, I was given an iTunes card that redeemed 25 tracks from artists on the tour. Many of whom I knew, some of the songs I already had, but there was one song out of the 25 that I played to death and that was “I Come Prepared” by K’Naan and Damian Marley. Thinking the album was from 2007 or 2008, I enjoyed listening, but had no rush on getting the album in its entirety. However, upon realizing it was indeed a 2009 release, I freaked out and got a hold of the album as fast as I could. And listening to it based on the one track I got for free made me realize that I had been dwelling too long on “I Come Prepared,” as the album as a whole is just great. K’Naan raps, sings, and strums the guitar in a way that lures you into the horrifying stories of his youth as a child solider in Somalia, as well as other subjects that range from happy to sad to everything in between. The music provides a perfect backdrop for these tales, and his unique voice blends well with everything around him. Guest appearances from Mos Def, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Kirk Hammett and Maroon 5’s Adam Levine only add to K’Naan’s chameleon-like musical versatility.

Notable Tracks: “Bang Bang” “America” “T.I.A.”

6. Dave Matthews Band- Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King

Anyone that knows me knows that I am not a general fan of the Dave Matthews phenomenon. I simply don’t understand all of the hype behind him. I don’t particularly dislike him as an artist, but at the same toll I’d never been really amped to get into his music. However, with Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King I was extremely surprised, not by the quality of the music, but how easy it was for me to get into it. The album starts with the droning saxophone of LeRoi Moore, who passed away in late 2008 after recording his parts on the album, and instantly kicks into what is a truly funky and original record, even for DMB. They manage to take their extensive jams from live shows and translate them into catchy tracks that still hold onto their improv-heavy signature sound. If Dave and company can continue to make albums like this; I may just have to convert to his cult.

Notable Tracks: “Shake Me Like A Monkey” “Funny The Way It Is” “Why I Am”

5. Lily Allen- It’s Not Me, It’s You

Lily Allen has all the makings to be a pop icon, yet at the same time, she still grasps onto the indie kids that were hooked on her debut album Alright, Still. On It’s Not Me, It’s You, Lily takes another stab at making her signature breed of obscene, rude and entirely honest pop music and upon the second time around, she’s done it even better. It’s easy to hum along to tracks like “Not Fair” and then go, “Wait a minute! This woman is singing about her boyfriends lack of libido!” and that is exactly what makes Lily Allen so great. While she hasn’t caught on as much in the states as she may have overseas, it’s pretty clear she doesn’t seem to mind with tracks like “The Fear” mocking the concept of being just another pop diva. Lily is the first woman to crack my top 10 list, and she earned her spot at number 5.

Notable Tracks: “The Fear” “Everyone’s At It” “F*ck You”

4. RX Bandits-Mandala

Don’t you hate it when a band you love kicks out members that helped them define their sound? After the release of their last album ...And The Battle Begun, the RX Bandits lost their sax player. It was unfortunate, but the two horned band charged onward, the trombone covering all of the wind bases. However, fans of the band were shocked to hear that the Bandits had parted ways with the last of its horn players this year for their new album Mandala. This had me scared, how could a band that I admired so much lose the two members that helped give them the signature reggae/progressive/metal sound that had grown on me so much over the past few years? Well, after much inner turmoil, I got around to listening to Mandala and I must say, I was more than pleasantly surprised. Guitarist Steve Choi’s quick keyboard lines accentuate the frantic picking of guitarist/singer Matt Embree, covering the lack of horns very well. The album plays in a way that is both new and logical. One of those situations where you say, “I don’t like the band without the horns, but this is what they should sound like given the change.” Some compare the Bandits’ strange style of music as a more focused Mars Volta, but I must disagree, as the music of RX Bandits is much more calculated, heartfelt and downright awesome in comparison to Volta’s absurdly fast writing and recording style. Mandala is an awesome album by a band that does nothing but move up both in talent, and in quality. Way to surprise me, RX Bandits!

Notable Tracks: “It’s Only Another Parsec” “My Lonesome Only Friend” “Bury It Down Low”

3. Brother Ali-Us

Last year my number one album was Atmosphere’s When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold, and this year, the group’s affiliate Brother Ali has come oh so close to the same mark. For those unaware, Ali is an albino who moved around from state to state his entire life. With that very basic description alone you can assume the man has a whole lot to say. With Atmosphere’s Ant behind the beats, Ali spits pure genius on this album, approaching the “ghetto” checklist that all rappers follow in a completely original and refreshing fashion. While many rappers, even the greats, spend decent amounts of time spitting about their nice cars and the abundance of girls they get, Brother Ali is completely satisfied happily proclaiming that he has enough rent money for the year. And while other rappers talk about killing people in the street, Ali tells us a calculated tale of bad neighbors dealing cocaine one floor below him, and how easy it was to make a few dollars from their idiocy. To be quite simple, Brother Ali is a humble genius, and those that say rap is the weakest form of poetry must take a list to Us to see that.

Notable Tracks: “The Preacher” “Fresh Air” “The Travelers”

2. Biffy Clyro- Only Revolutions

A few years ago I was lucky enough to catch Queens of the Stone Age on their Era Vulgaris tour. What stuck out to me the most about that show, aside from the sheer awesomeness QOTSA put out, was their first opener. A schizophrenic, hairy trio of rockers known as Biffy Clyro, The music they played was loud and dingy, but it had all the qualities that make you love musicians as musicians, proficiency in their playing and originality in their style. After a few months of not thinking about them, I stumbled upon their breakout album Puzzle in a used bin at F.Y.E. I bought it, and found myself having a hard time not listening to it. Two years later, the band has released Only Revolutions, a suitable follow-up to Puzzle. The album hits all the marks it needs to, rocking out like madmen on several of the tracks, however it’s the deviation from their unique sound that really jets this album this high up the list. Instead of playing to their strict ballad/hard rock variety, the band mix things up, playing some undeniably catchy pop rock tracks, some more emotional tracks, all the while keeping their credibility and accessibility intact. While this album isn’t going to change the way the world looks at rock music, it certainly shows that breaking a working formula can sometimes yield good results!

Notable Tracks: “Born On A Horse” “Mountains” “Know Your Quarry”

1.Raekwon-Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...pt. II

Oh boy. I wrote briefly about this in my piece regarding the Wu-Tang Clan as the artist of the year, but allow me to tell you just how good Raekwon’s new album is. . For fans of the Wu, this is gold, for non-fans it's probably platinum. This is the album that takes what made the early Wu-Tang solo albums special and progressively brings it forward to 2009. The original Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, released in 1995, became a blueprint for the true gangster hip-hop album. It combined elements of the mob with those of the street, with skits breaking up brutally honest tales of life in the slums and the horrors of drug dealing. Every rapper who made a true gangster rap album following Cuban Linx was influenced by the album whether or not they’d like to admit it. And now in 2009 we were graced with a sequel. And 14 years later, Raekwon still has a whole lot to say. He doesn’t glorify drug dealing one bit, he doesn’t play to his varying audience and he doesn’t care about what a man his age is supposed to say, his rhymes are intricate, they hit with a resounding impact, and they make you realize that the man has truly grown. The production on the album is near flawless as well. When you have to say that Dr. Dre is the weakest producer on your album, you know that you have something great. The album plays wonderfully, guest spots from all of the living Wu-Tang members only helping in Raekown’s grand return. I said that the Wu-Tang Clan was the artist of the year, but I must hone that statement in and specify that Raekwon the Chef truly is the greatest rapper of the year.

Notable Tracks: “House of Flying Daggers” “Canal Street” “We Will Rob You”

So happy new year! Thank you for reading the blog and keep visiting!

Top 20 albums of 2009: Pt. 1 20-11

2009-12-23T15:34:00.002-05:00

I was going to wait to post this until tomorrow, but it's finished.

But before I start I'd like to part one of my caption awards, this one being...

HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Blakrok-Self Titled
Lights-The Listening
The Lonely Island-Incredibad
Dethklok-The Dethalbum II
Q-Tip-Kamaal The Abstract
The Cool Kids-Gone Fishin'
Wu-Tang Chamber Music

All of these albums are good, don't get me wrong. And there are several other albums that came in 2009 that were good. These ones however would fill my 21-27 slots.

20. Kid Cudi-Man on the Moon: The End of Days

When I first heard “Day N Nite” back in the early part of the year I was a little annoyed. I don’t like that song that much and I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was making it so popular. But as the months passed I got more and more into the way that Cudi crafts his music. He’s a rapper by definition, but the collaborators on this album only prove the fact that he is far from that. While Kanye West and Common show up and deliver decent verses, it’s Ratatat and MGMT that truly bring out the best in Cudi on the tracks “Pursuit of Happiness” and “Alive”. While this album is far from perfect, Cudi’s relaxed flow and spacey beats make it a worthwhile listen.

Notable tracks: “Soundtrack 2 My Life” “Alive” “Pursuit of Happiness”

19. KISS-Sonic Boom

The early reviews for this album were nothing but positive, screaming about how KISS had returned to their greatness. But then again, those reviews were written by Guitar Magazines and members of the KISS Army. The later reviews were in the middle, sure it was vintage KISS, but is vintage KISS even worth listening to? The answer, to put it quite simply, is yes. This album rocks from top to bottom. Gene and Paul still have it, and the “new” faces of Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer mesh in perfectly, never once making me say “I miss Ace and Peter.” The album wreaks of testosterone and alcohol, but isn’t that what we want from KISS? Even at 60 years old, Stanley and Simmons have the act in check, if there’s any event that has more than 2 men, beer, and overall awesomeness, Sonic Boom is the way to turn that awesomeness way up!

Notable tracks: “Modern Day Delilah” “Danger Us” “Yes I Know (Nobody’s Perfect)”

18. Maxwell-BLACKsummers’night

I don’t generally listen to R&B music, especially modern R&B music. I feel like all that you’ll hear on the radio is auto-tuned guys with six packs that croon the women on stage and then go and act like they are thugs once they leave. Maxwell, however, is what an R&B singer should be. His voice is fantastic and the music that is very clearly written by himself and not a team of producers and record executives, follows suit. The single “Pretty Wings,” while overplayed on the radio is a beautifully crafted song with several layers of instrumentals that just make you feel good. A great listen, and proof that there still is hope out there for popular R&B.

Notable tracks: “Pretty Wings” “Phoenix Rise” “Help Somebody”

17. Manchester Orchestra-Mean Everything to Nothing

The rock music this year has been very diverse. Bands like Passion Pit and Mute Math followed the lead of MGMT’s Oracular Spectacular as far as psychedelic indie rock is concerned, but Manchester Orchestra really stood out on their own as a force in the rock scene of 2009. Mean Everything to Nothing, the bands third album, is a collection of really interesting and original rock music that seems to pull its roots from everything from blues to folk to pop rock. In a decade dominated by over the top theatrical bands like Coldplay and wailing vocals of Fall out Boy and Panic at the Disco, it’s good to hear a band rock out without remorse and still manage to get over with critics and fans.

Notable Tracks: “The Only One” “Pride” “Everything to Nothing”

16. Them Crooked Vultures-Self Titled

When the lineup of this band was announced, any true rock and roll fan cried tears of joy. Nirvana and Foo Fighter’s Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age frontman (and best of the year regular) Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones. Let the weight of these three dudes sink in. With expectations so high, and early releases of snippets pumping up the fans, it seemed as though Them Crooked Vultures were going to make an album that topped the charts and lists similar to this before they even released one song. But alas, upon the release of the album the world had to come to terms with the fact that no matter how great the band may have looked on paper, greatness should never be assumed. While all three musicians have distinct styles, the only one who truly shines here is Homme, and while that makes for good bluesy riff rock, with the potential of this band, that’s not enough. The album is certainly worth listening to for fans of any of the three members, but it didn’t quite hit the mark it should’ve and thusly falls far short from number one.

Notable tracks: “No One Loves Me and Neither Do I” “New Fang” “Elephants”

15. John Mayer- Battle Studies

If there is one thing that’s certain about John Mayer’s career it’s that you can’t predict what’s next. After Room For Squares and Heavier Things, who could’ve predicted Mayer’s radical change to the blues with his Trio’s Try! and Continuum. I thought that Mayer would follow suit from Continuum on his newest album Battle Studies and I was proven wrong. While he doesn’t revert back entirely to his acoustic strumming days, he doesn’t truck forward with his Stevie Ray Vaughn blues either. There’s a strange vibe to this album, one that makes the listener question where exactly Mayer is not just as an artist but as an individual. Some say the album was rushed together, and others say it is heavily calculated. Wherever it really is, I don’t know, and honestly I don’t care to. What I can say is that I enjoyed much of this album, and it keeps beckoning me back in for more listens.

Notable tracks: “Heartbreak Warfare” “Perfectly Lonely” “Crossroads”

14. The Dead Weather-Horehound

Another returning list member is Jack White, who never seems to stop making new bands. This year’s The Dead Weather proves yet again why Jack White is one of this generation’s greatest musicians. Dead Weather is a supergroup of sorts, White teaming up with Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence, former Queens of the Stone Age guitar player Dean Fertida and The Kills singer Allison Mosshart. Together they play White’s now signature brand of blues rock, with a little kick of punk flare from Mosshart, whose vocals combined with White’s, flat out rock. Unfortunately, this album may fall into obscurity behind the White Stripes records and the two Raconteurs albums, but if The Dead Weather decide to put out another album half as good as this, it’ll certainly be worth a listen.

Notable Tracks: “I Cut Like a Buffalo” “Hang You From The Heavens” “Rocking Horse”

13. Easy Star All-Stars-Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band

I’ve always liked the concept of Easy Star All-Stars, but they’d never really appealed to me. I’m not a big enough Floyd fan to enjoy Dub Side of the Moon, nor am I a big enough Radiohead fan to enjoy their OK Computer cover album Radiodread, but finally, they have done something that I wanted to hear, a reggae interpretation of The Beatles classic Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band! This cover album is really fun, the All-Stars really have a way with retaining the identity of a song while still transforming it into their own work. All of the background noises anyone who grew up listening to Sgt. Pepper have nitpicked are still in tact, played by the incredibly tight horn section. The vocals seem to be the weakest point in this album, as there is no distinct Paul, John and Ringo voice throughout, but one can let that slide in favor of the overall experience.

Notable Tracks: “When I’m Sixty Four” “Within You Without You” “Lovely Rita”

12. Dylan Connor-Breakaway Republic

Dylan Connor has a way with songwriting that tugs at my heartstrings. His uniquely familiar voice combined with his savvy writing skills make him a force to be reckoned with. On Breakaway Republic, we see him break through the weaknesses of his last album Plug In, to deliver an extremely fun rock album. On his last album Connor seamed to peak with no real crescendo musically, due to the fact that most of the album was just him strumming his guitar and singing. Here we have that same mentality combined with a competent band. His backing band is phenomenal, always tightly locked in a groove, while still making sure that Connor himself is indeed the true focus of the music. Not to say Connor ignores the musicians, as their parts are all intricate and wrap themselves together to make some of the happiest rock songs that don’t sound like every other group around. While it’s not a completely perfect album, it’s a very well put together piece of art that just works, it hits when it’s supposed to hit and during it’s down time you can’t stop tapping your foot.

Notable Tracks: “Breakaway and Burn” “I Want Everybody To Know” “Soundwave Surfer”

11. Chickenfoot-Self Titled

Now when Grohl, Homme and Jones came together to form Them Crooked Vultures, people went “Oh man that is going to be the greatest rock group ever!” and I said, it falls a bit flat. But when Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Chad Smith and Joe Satriani came together to form Chickenfoot, the music world collectively said, “Okay, well that’s going to be something we’ll pass up on,” due to the ungodly amount of cheese present in the lineup alone. But when the album came out, the cheese had the skills to back it up. Chickenfoot straight up rocks. Anthony departs from his root pumping basslines from Van Halen to deliver some groovy jams, complimented perfectly by the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith, who feels like he’s just having a good time. Satriani is amazing as always, shredding through songs and laying down fun chords, and Hagar proves that there is no point of being “too old to rock.” If you like good old fashioned American rock and roll there is absolutely no reason to skip this album. It’s funky, fun, and best of all it’s fresh.

Notable Tracks: “Soap on a Rope” “Sexy Little Thing” “Turnin’ Left”

Stay tuned for number's 10-1, coming your way soon!

Wrestler of the Year: 2009

2009-12-23T09:29:00.002-05:00

To call myself a pro wrestling fan is one of the hardest things I’ve had to come to terms with. When all of my friends grew out of it I didn’t. I’ve explained this before, but I always feel as though it needs to be reiterated. In the past several years the wrestling industry has gone from bad to worse, and as my old TNA pieces pointed out the problems with particular divisions, I had such a difficult time writing the remaining pieces I gave up completely! The company had lost so much credibility that I just couldn’t justify writing critique pieces. It’s like critiquing a third graders art project. It may be terribly painted, but it’s a third graders! In TNA”s case, it may be a terrible wrestling promotion (at this juncture) but it’s people who have no idea what they’re doing! So you have to let it slide.

But all of that being said, in my Best of 2009 series, I’d like to present my wrestler of the year. Before I do so though, I’d like to go over some runner ups.

Jeri-Show. For those that don’t know, the tag team of Chris Jericho and The Big Show. When Y2J brought out Show as his partner at the Night of Champions pay-per-view I was upset. With so many talented undercard performers like Mike “The Miz” Mizanin, Chavo Guerrero, Jack Swagger, and former partner Christian on the roster, why would he “choose” a multi time heavyweight champion instead of putting over a younger guy? The answer came in the following months as the team proved to the world exactly why tag team wrestling is great. The combination of Jericho’s incredible microphone skills and proficient ring work alongside Big Show’s size, strength and vastly underrated ring work, they just dominated. So much so that they brought the tag team titles to the main event of WWE’s TLC pay-per-view.

C.M. Punk. Punk has been a favorite of mine since he debuted a few years ago. The straight edge gimmick that he really lives is great, and can work easily as a face or heel alignment. Punk’s face run was great, becoming the first man to win the infamous Money in the Bank ladder match twice only adding to his credibility. But perhaps the most shocking and awesome move came at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view when Punk cashed in his money in the bank against Jeff Hardy after Hardy had won a grueling ladder match against Edge (fantastic match by the way, great finish). Punk slowly morphed into the manipulative heel that he is now, chastising the beer drinking audiences at live shows and converting the one time “slow” wrestler Festus into Luke Gallows, who claims everyone had him on sedatives to keep him from being himself. Punk has become one of the top heels in the company and he has done it quickly and effectively. While he has left the main event level for now, I have no doubt he’ll return to it.

Alright. To the main event.

Dave Winchell’s wrestler of the year for 2009 is Nigel McGuinness.

The shirt looks like the beer logo!

Wrestling fans shouldn’t be surprised by this call, but those that don’t keep their finger to the pulse of the industry may be a little weary about just what Nigel has accomplished in the past year.

He started the year as the reigning Ring of Honor champion, and he was a fighting champion, with a title length closing in on Samoa Joe’s record. He battled through much of the early year, and upon injuring his shoulder, STILL had a match of the year candidate against KENTA in New York City (I was there, it was fantastic).

Even after dropping the belt to Jerry Lynn, Nigel’s presence in Ring of Honor was felt. He cut promos on video wires, showed up to shows, basically did everything he could to keep his name relevant. He even took the place of Ric Flair in New York City as enforcer of a match after Flair stormed out ( I was there for that too, Nigel was on his game).

Perhaps the biggest shock came to the industry this year as Bryan Danielson signed with WWE, and Nigel followed suit shortly after. Ring of Honor is probably the number 3 federation in the country right now behind WWE and TNA, so losing its two top draws in less than a week was a devastating loss. After the announcement, ROH went on a “Final Countdown” tour that touted Danielson more than Nigel, but ended with an epic bout in New York (I did not attend that one...) between Nigel and Danielson. Ring of Honor gave them the grand finale they both deserved.

And as Bryan Danielson moved into WWE’s “before we put you on TV you’re going to have to adapt to OUR style attitude” Nigel seemed to veer off the radar. Nigel didn’t have the connections that Bryan did (he was Shawn Michaels and William Regal’s star pupil), and as if nothing happened all rumors about him seemed to fall off the face of the rumor sites all of us wrestling fans flock to.

But Nigel just couldn’t sit around, within days of his WWE rumors disappearing he reemerged, in the biggest way possible. The word had barely hit the air when Nigel signed with TNA, under the name Desmond Wolfe. But the signing wasn’t the big deal, it was the instant elevation of him, the fact that he was made a superstar in a matter of minutes after his debut. Against whom? Most big guys start their TNA run against the likes of Scott Steiner, Eric Young, Kevin Nash, anyone that can put them over, but not quite over that rope of title contender-ship. But not Nigel eh-hem, Desmond. He made his debut approaching none other than Kurt Angle and telling him just how much he respected Angle as a competitor, and within moments of shaking his hand he had him knocked out in the ring. Basically, Nigel said, “Hey WWE, you don’t want me? Well how about I go to your top competitor and make myself a star in 5 minutes.” Although he lost two pay-per-view matches to Angle, he still got his name, and his in ring abilities over in less than two months.

Rumors going around are that Nigel wouldn’t sign with WWE because of some qualm he had with the drug testing policy, and what that means about his use of drugs is beyond me, and I don’t care to know. But Nigel in TNA is the best thing for him right now.

Bobby Lashley should stick with unscripted stuff.

So, all of that being said, Nigel McGuinness a.k.a. Desmond Wolfe is easily the most dominant and impressive wrestler of the year. While his win/loss streak isn’t flawless, the fact that he created such waves in the industry is enough to make people aware of his incredible in-ring and microphone abilities.

Artist of the Year: 2009

2009-12-22T09:47:00.003-05:00

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted. I’ve been really busy with classes, filming and editing things. Also, I’ve been tweeting about things that may seem relevant to this blog instantly (follow me @DH_Winchell if you’re not). But I wanted to get on here before the top 10-20 albums of the year to give a little insight onto how I thought the year went musically.

I was thinking for a long while as who the artist of the year would be. Drake, Wale, and Kid Cudi all blew up but they really didn’t leave a huge mark as they should’ve, and honestly radio play downgrades many artists. Lady Gaga had a string of hits and more rumors about her sexuality than Kermit dolls sewed onto that dress she wore, but she didn’t encompass the entire year as a superstar in my opinion. KISS put out a really good new album that happened to come packaged with a greatest hits CD and a live DVD, which although it was only available at Wal-Mart, debuted at #1. They also went out on the most profitable tour of their career and rocked the house. But still, how can someone say that the 60 year old KISS guys are artists of the year? What about Michael Jackson? Dave Matthews Band? Britney Spears? Taylor Swift? No. No. No. After much thought there is a clear artist of the year and I have deducted them with plenty of numbers to back up my claim.

Dave Winchell’s “Artist of the Year” is the Wu-Tang Clan.

Now I see all of you going, “Aw man that’s so dumb, he likes them so he’s picking favorites!” And I would like to make sure that you know that I went into this process with an open mind, listening to bands, looking at tours, and checking out the way fans relate to them.

Let’s start with a little bit of background, there are 8 living “true” members of the Clan (R.I.P. Dirty). This year we’ve seen solo albums from two members (Raekwon, Ghostface Killah), a duet album from Method Man with longtime collaborator Redman and we’ve seen a compilation in Wu-Tang Chamber Music that might as well have played as a full Clan album. And we were treated to another digital only Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture album! Also, we were lucky enough to get the final release from Old Dirty Bastard, while I can’t say I listened to it, nor am I particularly interested to, the fact that it’s available only shows how much Wu there was in 2009.

But five albums from nine people is nothing. Right? It’s not just the number of the albums, it’s the fact that they even got made. In the end of 2007, upon the release of the Wu’s last full group album 8 Diagrams there was a huge fallout between RZA, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah that threatened to split the group in two. And last year, both RZA and GZA released albums that were good, but nothing particularly memorable. And then for the first half of this year the Clan kind of stewed. Could they re-unite after the public beef between the groups core members? They could, and by the looks of their works in 2009 they did.

Let me tell you that Wu-Tang Chamber Music is far from a typical comp. album from any hip-hop group. While their last comp Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture was a decent look at the Clan combining forces with incredibly competent indie rappers like MF Doom, Aesop Rock, and more, Chamber Music is much more a Clan album with their hand picked guests. Five members of the Clan are present on the album, and they choose their guests in more underground rappers like Sean Price, Kool G Rap, Sadat X and a few more.
Another really cool aspect of this album is that RZA had a live band play all of the instrumentals, and yet we still get that signature, kung fu funk that all of the Wu fans love.

"Our album is better than The Blueprint 3!"

And let us not forget Method Man and Redman’s Blackout! 2, a sequel to their 1999 album. This album follows the path of it’s original, showing that even late 30’s men can enjoy the excess of life and still style their words with some originality (take that Snoop Dogg). They also feature fellow Clansmen Raekwon and Ghostface. It was critically acclaimed, and although didn’t top any charts, one must take into consideration it came out against Eminem’s Relapse.

Ghostface Killah also put out the album Ghostdini: Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City and unfortunately I can’t say I’ve listened to the album aside from a few tracks, and honestly I’m not too big of a fan of the concept. Ghostface said he wanted to make a more R&B-centric rap album, and to me that’s a waste of his talent. But a 68 on metacritic as well as several notable guest spots from Kanye West, John Legend, Estelle, Ne-Yo, Lloyd and Fabolos make this a notch in the Wu’s post worth noting.

TRUMP CARD

And then there was Raekwon...apparently the tension between RZA and Raekwon and Ghostface was because Ghost and Rae considered 8 Diagrams not “street” enough for the Wu-Tang fans. From what I’ve heard, RZA had to sit down with Raekwon and let him know that since the Wu is so well known that they can’t afford to be “street” when the whole world appreciates their art. But the words that sealed the deal between RZA and Rae was that while 8 Diagrams wasn’t going to be a ghetto banger, that Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II would be. And thank the lord it was, because that album is phenomenal. At Rock the Bells at Jones Beach they were plastering posters everywhere for the album and I said to my friend Corey McNair, “I’ll hang this poster up in my room if the album is good, but if it’s bad, I’ll take it down.” And surely enough the poster is still hanging proudly on my wall!

And all releases aside, the Wu had a prominent role in the aforementioned Rock the Bells tour this year. While they didn’t headline, RZA, GZA and Raekwon all dominated the second stage, giving credibility to their fellow side-stagers K’Naan and Slaughterhouse by simply appearing on said stage. Also, the group had a pseudo reunion on their New York date, getting the bump from second stage to a main stage set that featured Raekwon, RZA, Method Man, Inpsectah Deck and O.D.B.’s son Boy Jones. Apparently Ghostface was on hand but didn’t get up on stage to perform.

If that isn’t enough, the Wu also saturated themselves even more by appearing as notable guests on some of the albums most highly anticipated and critically acclaimed albums, The Black Keys hip-hop project Blakroc which featured the likes of Mos Def, Jim Jones, Ludacris and more featured fantastic verses from RZA and Raekwon and a sex heaby posthumous track from O.D.B. Also on N.A.S.A.’s star studded album The Spirit of Apollo which featured the likes of Tom Waits, M.I.A., David Bryne, The Cool Kids, DJ AM, and more, Method Man, RZA and Ghostface were given prominent roles opposite several talented individuals.

So all in all, my love for the Clan aside, it’s pretty clear to me at least that these guys deserve the artist of the year. Now you can argue for so many more, and I’d love to hear these arguments. But to me, there’s no denying the work these guys put into maintaining their image, whether or not that image is mainstream I don’t care. And if you don’t think they deserve this honor, you’ve got to at least give them the E for effort!

End of the Year Update

2009-12-17T21:52:00.004-05:00

Hey readers. Sorry for the lack of updates, this semester has been killing me with work. I just wanted to let you know there are a few really cool end of the year updates coming your way. However, before I get to that, I just wanted to give you guys a list of the music I've been listening to this year. That way you can get an idea of what exactly is going into my "Best of 2009" list...so here is the list.

1. Andrew W.K.-55 Cadillac
2. As Tall As Lions-You Can’t Take it With You
3. Biffy Clyro-Only Revolutions
4. Blakroc-Blakroc
5. Brother Ali-Us
6. Bruce Springsteen-Working on a Dream
7. The C-4 Movement-Prepare 4 The C Sons
8. Chickenfoot-Chickenfoot
9. Chris Webby-The White Noise LP
10. Chris Webby-Teenage Mutant Ninja Rapper
11. Clipse- Til The Casket Drops
12. The Cool Kids-Gone Fishin’
13. The Cutoff Frequency-Back to the Underpass
14. Dan Deacon-Bromst
15. Dave Matthews Band-Big Whiskey and the Grogrux King
16. The Dead Weather-Horehound
17. Dethklok-Dethalbum II
18. Dizzee Rascal-Tongue N’ Cheek
19. DOOM-Born Like This
20. Dylan Connor-Almost Green
21. Dylan Connor-Breakaway Republic
22. Easy Star All Stars-Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
23. Eminem-Relapse
24. Flight of the Conchords-I Told You I Was Freaky
25. Franz Ferdinand-Tonight
26. Jay-Z-The Blueprint 3
27. John Mayer-Battle Studies
28. k-Os-Yes!
29. K’Naan-Troubadour
30. Kid Cudi-Man on the Moon: The End of Days
31. KISS-Sonic Boom
32. The Knightsbridge Fiasco-The Nights We Remembered
33. La Coka Nostra-A Brand You Can Trust
34. La Coka Nostra-The Audacity of Coke
35. Lights-The Listening
36. Lily Allen-It’s Not Me, It’s You
37. The Lonely Island-Incredibad
38. Lt. Headtrip- Lt. Headtrip (Raw Dog Version)
39. Lupe Fiasco-Enemy of the State (A Love Story)
40. Manchester Orchestra-Mean Everything to Nothing
41. The Mars Volta-Octahedron
42. Maxwell-BLACKsummers Night
43. Method Man and Redman-Blackout! 2
44. Mike Falzone and the Peppermint Trick-Do it for the Story
45. Mos Def-The Ecstatic
46. Muse-The Renaissance
47. Mute Math-Armistice
48. N.A.S.A.-The Spirit of Apollo
49. Owl City-Ocean Eyes
50. Passion Pit-Manners
51. Q-Tip-Kamaal The Abstract
52. Raekwon-Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Part II
53. RX Bandits-Mandala
54. Say Anything-Say Anything
55. Slaughterhouse-Slaughterhouse
56. Sneep Deepy-Big Move, Tiny Mixtape
57. Spinal Tap-Back from the Grave
58. Sparklehorse-Dark Night of the Soul
59. Street Sweeper Social Club-Street Sweeper Social Club
60. Tempest Edge-The Creation
61. Them Crooked Vultures-Them Crooked Vultures
62. TRV$DJAM-Fix Your Face Vol. 2
63. TV/TV-Not Enough Red
64. Various Artists-Wu-Tang Chamber Music
65. Wale-Attention Deficit
66. Weezer-Raditude
67. Wide Eyed Wanderers-My Baby Left Me/Rear View

There are a few albums I honestly just didn't care to listen to. Snoop Dogg, Ghostface, Ol' Dirty Bastard just to name a few. There were a handful of pop albums I wanted to listen to, just to see how they sounded like Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Adam Lambert and Lady Gaga but I honestly don't care enough to spend the time. So that's what you're getting for now. No clues as to what's best...

Rarity....

2009-10-18T22:24:00.001-04:00

You're never going to see my posting online wrestling critics on this site because I think most of them are geeks with too much free time, moreso than me, which is saying something. But this video by Truthslayer actually rhetorically asks some good questions to the wrestling world. Check it out if you like wrestling, if you don't, leave me alone.

My 2009 Playlist (thus far)

2009-10-15T00:23:00.002-04:00

A lot of people have been asking me, “Dave, what’s the best album of the year?” and I gotta say, if you know me, I don’t judge until the end. I mean, I keep a quiet list in my head of good stuff, but I never really choose until I’m sitting down at my computer writing up the list. In fact, last year Vampire Weekend was my number one album until I sat down in a noisy Subaru dealership and realized just how great Atmosphere’s album was. But all of this aside, I won’t tell you what’s the best, but I will give you an idea of my favorite tracks of the year thus far. This is not in any order, it’s just a list of the songs that have held my attention for several plays...

1. Mos Def ft. Slick Rick-Auditorium
I’ve been talking about this track for the last week or two to people, but it’s been played a whole lot in said week. Up until The Ecstatic came out, I was against Mos, his last two albums were extremely disappointing, and his ego is completely out of whack. I saw him make a fool of himself on Bill Maher and remember just shaking my head in shame. But the new album is straight up classic Mos, and this track in particular shows that he still has a grasp of how to pull some strings to add credibility. Slick Rick hasn’t been “relevant” for a long time, but this track shows that unlike so many rappers that lose their lyrical game with age (Fat Joe, Snoop) he’s still got it and he’s not just glitzy chains and an eye patch. The beat is chill to the point of being haunting and the lyrics are nice.
2. The Cutoff Frequency-Danny pt. 2
Considering I know all of the members of this band very well, this song making the list shows something of its quality. I am a very harsh judge of local music, especially with people I’ve played with, and in the case of the Cutoff Frequency that’s every single member. But something about this song, the harmonies in the chorus, the synth line, it just hits the spot for me. And the mix is really dirty sounding, in a good way.
3. Eminem ft. Dr. Dre-Old Times Sake
Relapse is a lackluster album, if there is one thing I can forewarn you of my list for best of the year, it’s that unless #2 is a classic, Eminem won’t make it. But this song shows how good the album could’ve been. Granted the lyrics are hollow, but it’s Dre and Em showing they’ve still got the rhythm that made them so famous. I think this may be the closest we’ll get to the Eminem we all loved so much.
4. Kid Cudi ft. Ratatat and MGMT-Pursuit of Happiness
The first time I heard this track I thought it was pretentious, as I think Cudi’s ego exceeds his ability (my friend did sound for him and told me some horror stories) but the MGMT and Ratatat combo on this track really makes it. And I don’t dislike Kid Cudi, I like his slow moving delivery, he’s not trying to show you he’s the best lyricist in the game, because I think he’s aware he’s not. He’s more about cranking out decent jams that make you think for a little while. Ratatat’s signature sound just stinks up this track and it’s great.
5. Lily Allen-The Fear
By far the best pop track of the year. Lily is the anti-hero for pop music and that’s why I love her. Not only does she completely buy into the paparazzi, but she makes incredibly catchy, yet credible music. Since this is an early album I think a lot of critics will forget to put it on their lists, but it certainly deserves to be there.
6. Sneep Deepy ft. Mike Falzone-Better Than Me
I like hip-hop music. I like friends from my hometown. So this is a logical choice for this list. Mr. Deepy raps about things that are relevant to any CT townie, but at the same time speaks to people getting dirt from others who have no reason to lay it down. There’s a great line that where speaking on a beer pong game, he coldly taunts his opponent with, “Nice state school sweat shirt. You ain’t better than me.” DAMN!
7. RX Bandits- It’s Only Another Parsec...
Nice Star Wars reference first of all. Secondly this song rocks out hard. I was weary that without the horns RXB would lose their signature sound, but the sick nasty use of keyboards fills that void perfectly in this song. The heavy rocking of the tunes combined with the jam-friendly hands of guitarists Matt Embree and Steve Choi make this track a near perfect one of its genre.
8. Slaughterhouse-The One
Slaughterhouse is a “supergroup” of four underground emcee’s looking to break through to the mainstream, and this track is the one in which they tried the hardest. They spit about celebrities, drugs, alcohol and partying, but do it in a classy old school Slim Shady manner, showing that while they may talk smack, they are doing it intricately enough that you have to respect it. There’s a line where Royce Da 5’9” mentions old school icons Rod Stewart and Ozzy Osbourne, only to follow it up with witty lines about Keri Hilson and Paris Hilton. If only Joe Budden didn’t run his mouth and get knocked out by...
9. Raekwon ft. Inspektah Deck, Ghostface Killah and Method Man
At Rock The Bells in New York they were giving away free posters for Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II and I said to myself, “I’ll hang this up on my wall until the album comes out and if it’s good I’ll keep it up.” Little did I know just how good it would be. This track is reminiscent of classic Wu-Tang, the lyrics on point and the beat as kung fu influenced as you’d expect it to be. Awesome.
10. Mike Falzone & The Peppermint Trick-Leave a Little For the Fallout
I love Stratford CT’s king, Mike Falzone’s music, but in the past, I felt that it wasn’t complete. There was always something missing from it. On his album Fairview, it felt like the hip-hop beats were taking away from his songwriting, and on his next release Fun With Honesty, the music was there, but the band didn’t feel like it was truly a band of it’s own, rather an ensemble gathered to record the EP. On his newest release Do It For the Story, Falzone and new band The Peppermint Trick hit gold. This track is so well put together, it’s a great first track to the EP, and the layering of instruments into an extremely satisfying explosion of sound is awesome. The keyboards especially make me smile.
11. Spinal Tap-Stonehenge
The new Tap album is kind of pointless, a few new tracks and refreshed recordings of the old songs, most of which don’t sound as good as their originals. Stonehenge however, takes the greatness of the classic version and injects some modern ROCK into it. It’s the same song it once was, but it kicks so much harder now.
12. Dylan Connor- Breakaway and Burn
Wow, I love local music. Dylan Connor, the teacher by day, rock star by night, is somewhat comparable to Mike Falzone. On his last album Plug In, his songs were beautiful and well written, but they lacked the kick that would bring them up to classic level. On Breakaway Republic, his live band took to the studio and made this album, but specifically this track great. The way the slap bass smoothly layers in the chorus and the drums move the verse along is beautiful.
13. La Coka Nostra-That’s Coke
La Coka Nostra are a bunch of angry white middle-aged rappers who still grip onto their gangsta personas and pray that the public believes in them. The only catch is that it’s all entirely believable! They come off as scary dudes that seem like they may kill you. Made up of House of Pain (Everlast, DJ Lethal, Danny Boy O’Connor) and Ill Bill and Slaine, LCN are not afraid to scare you, but make you bob your head along for the ride.
14. Miley Cyrus-Party in the USA
If you consider the fact that a group of Disney pop songwriters crafted this song, tracked the instruments and came up with everything and then autotuned the hell out of Miley Cyrus’s voice, it’s really easy to get behind this track. It’s so catchy and the synth line in the chorus is awesome. Just put your hands up!
15. Drake ft. Lil’ Wayne, Kanye West, and Eminem-Forever
Wow, what a lineup. I think this song blew “Swagga Like Us” out of the water. The beat is instantly memorable, the clichéd airhorns adding to the power of it. Lyrically it’s none of these guys’ best verses, but it’s certainly worth listening to. The best part is the beat under Wayne’s verse, it gets so dark. And this also proves how good Relapse could’ve been had Eminem tried.
16. Chickenfoot-Sexy Little Thing
Something about this supergroup made up of Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Chad Smith screams, “Stay away, we’re pure cheese!” but anyone who knows me I will dive head first in! It’s awesome! It’s fun, mindless and catchy.

Now there are other albums I really like, and some of the tracks on this list are parts of a lesser whole, so don’t let this little mixtape give you assumptions of what’s number one or two or three!

My Top 25

2009-10-13T13:25:00.002-04:00

I always think peoples top 25 most played songs playlist on iTunes are some of the most interesting things. It shows you about what they listen to a lot, and if they're your friends you can chastise them for having unpredicted songs ("I Love College" was on one of my friends lists) and it's just a cool way of gauging artists you don't really say you love but you do! So here's my list. Take it for what it is, I think it's a nice look at the diversity of what I listen to, though some artists stack up. Who cares?

1. Andrew W.K.-Party Hard
2. Lordi-Hard Rock Hallelujah
3. Peeping Tom ft. Rahzel & Dan The Automator-Mojo
4. Smashing Pumpkins-Tarantula
5. The Jackson 5-I Want You Back
6. KISS-Strutter
7. Mark Ronson ft. Lily Allen-Oh My God
8. MGMT-Time To Pretend
9. Andrew W.K.-She Is Beautiful
10. The Bar-Kays-Too Hot To Stop
11. Common-Be
12. The Cool Kids-Pennies
13. GZA/The Genius-4th Chamber
14. The Hives-Tick Tick Boom
15. Mr. Bungle-Ars Moriendi
16. Paul McCartney & Wings-Jet
17. Vampire Weekend-A-Punk
18. Vampire Weekend-M79
19. Aesop Rock-None Shall Pass
20. Andrew W.K.-We Want Fun
21. Biffy Clyro-Who's Got a Match?
22. Cake-Wheels
23. Chickenfoot-Soap On a Rope
24. Daft Punk-Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
25. Dylan Connor-Breakaway and Burn

That's it. Cool.

DVD Review: Wu: The Story of the Wu-Tang Clan

2009-10-12T00:02:00.002-04:00

dir: Gerard Barclay

The Wu-Tang Clan is in my top 5 musical groups of all time. I can't tell you why, I can't tell you exactly when, and I can't tell you for what reason, but about two years ago something in my head just clicked and told me, "This group will change the way you look at hip-hop music." I'd had Enter The Wu-Tang on my iTunes for some time, and most of it I'd listened to and liked, but none of it had really sunk in. I saw them on Rock the Bells 2007, co-headlining with Rage Against the Machine, both of whom had re-united for the tour, and I remember when they hit the stage there was a reverence. There was a level of respect between the members on stage and the percentage of the crowd that was into the music that I wish that I had for a group, and sure enough two years later, I have it for them.

With that in mind, I've spent my fair share of money on the Clan. I physically own 15 of their CD's, several from the group, several solo and a small handful of compilation albums, I have 2 t-shirts a hoody, a limited run poster on my wall, and I spent an entire afternoon in Barnes and Noble reading their first book The Wu-Manual (I didn't buy it because the cover was ripped nearly off). So for all I's and P's, I'm a big fan. So when BET went out and said they were airing a documentary to celebrate the group, I was ecstatic. It had been years since the Wu had received mainstream media attention, and with such a strong resumé since their last big commercial success, it was time. Unfortunately due to schedule conflicts (Damn you, Hofstra!) I didn't catch the doc on TV. So, thanks to the lovely people at Netflix, I finally got to watch the documentation of the Clan's career.

To sum it up, this documentary is not for Wu fans. It scratches the surface of their career, paying attention to the highest of highs and the lowest of lows of the CLAN, not of each of the 10 members. It can be more or less broken into five major segments:

1. The Rise
2. Enter the Wu-Tang/National Recognition
3. The fame/Wu-Tang Forever
4. Ol' Dirty Bastard's jailing and death
5. (a very brief look at) Modern Wu.

Now for those that don't know the music of the Clan, this may seem legitimate. But what the documentary skims over is just as, if not more important than some of the topics covered. Director Gerard Barclay chooses to omit the fact that two of the groups spawned solo albums, GZA's Liquid Swords and Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx influenced the hip hop game on comparable levels to their debut Enter the Wu-Tang. I read a review on the Internet Movie Database that said it was forgivable to skip over these because they weren't the entire Clan efforts. Well perhaps that's true, but all of the first round of Wu solo albums were produced by RZA, and all of them featured most of the Clan on several tracks, Raekwon's album "guest starring" Ghostface Killah on over half of the album. But even if these factors weren't involved in the solo albums, the documentary completely leaves out the groups other two albums, The W and Iron Flag the first of which was O.D.B.'s last album with the Clan.

And aside from the discography, the overall production of this documentary is highly flawed. The stock footage is shotty, and the audio is mostly overdubbed during live performances. Not to mention there are only two concerts used, one of which before Enter the Wu was released, the other after their massive success and release of Wu-Tang Forever. The interviews are very limited, mostly RZA and non-members such as Steve Rifkind of Loud Recrods. There are brief stock interviews of several members, and Raekwon, Cappadonna and affiliate Popa Wu are the only ones who were interviewed in 2008 for the documentary. This leaves out GZA, Method Man, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Inspektah Deck and Masta Killa, all of whom surely have stories of the Clan.

Another piece of the documentary that I found to be a bit frustrating was the amount of attention paid to O.D.B. I understand his passing was the moment the Clan re-grouped, but given the amount of time to cover the careers of all 10 members, Dirty's last days are treated as though he was the only important member of the group. There is enough material and footage of Ol' Dirty Bastard to make a documentary just on him, and it would be fascinating, but when I put in The Story of the Wu-Tang I expect to be given views on most of, if not all of the members of the Wu-Tang Clan.

Director/Writer/Narrator Barclay also lacks motivation. When he speaks, it's as if he's reading a written script he's never heard before, lacking any emotion. His edits are weak, his stock footage of New York from the 1990's is non-existent, and his range as a director is incredibly low. I understand how he thought he was the right fit for the job, as he'd been the man behind the camera for a lot of memorable Wu-Tang moments, but his lack of any real filmmaking skill takes away that level of being the right fit.

In his last shots of the documentary, Barclay and his crew manage to spell Masta Killa's name wrong (Masta Killer) as well as the title of 8 Diagrams (calling it Diagram singular). He also summarizes the most famous members with their own frame, lumping the "lower-level" members all on one frame listing them, saying they "are recording new albums." However, it's fine for him to give himself a frame saying "I continue to direct". It's an insulting end to a lackluster documentary by an unqualified director.

I highly recommend the 2006 doc by Denis Hennelly and Casey Suchan Rock the Bells, the documentation of the Wu's first and last reunion before Dirty's death. It's an extremely deep and fascinating look into one concert that covers more about each Wu member than this entire waste of time did about the whole Clan.

Review: Swan Songs by Hollywood Undead

2009-10-06T20:07:00.005-04:00

They were on sale at Sports Authority!

Let me begin by professing my love for nü- metal. I love nü-metal. A lot of people ask me why? I don’t know, it just hits the spot when I need it to, simple as that. Limp Bizkit’s Significant Other was the first CD I remember using my own money to buy, granted it was censored, but I was in the seventh grade.

In the case of the three kings of nü-metal, Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit and Korn, the common factor is the strong musicianship backing up the somewhat lackluster lyricists of Mike Shinoda, Fred Durst, and Jonathon Davis respectively. But in the genre, the lyrics don’t exactly matter, they’re not channeling great MC’s like NaS or Talib Kweli, they’re screaming about driving their cars and doing things their way and telling people to shut up when they talk. But not once, not ever, have I taken these bands seriously. I love the musicians in Limp Bizkit and Korn, and I admit that Linkin Park can hold their own, but I completely understand how some consider the genre to be a skid mark on rock and roll’s history. I don’t, but I understand if you do.

So with my love for the genre in mind, you can imagine that when I heard about California’s Hollywood Undead, I was excited. A new nü-metal band? It seemed too good to be true. I’d seen some critics trash them, but that’s to be expected. Limp Bizkit’s classic Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water got butchered by critics. “Whatever,” I said, “No big deal, I’m sure if they have their heads in the right place, they’ll make fun music.” So with that I dove into their debut LP Swan Songs, excited for the genres regeneration. And to add to Songs’ credibility, Don Gilmore, producer of Linkin Park’s first two album, put his producer stamp on this. A passing of the torch perhaps?

The album starts with the steady rockin’ “Undead” which samples The Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams” while layering gang vocals and mindless rap. What struck me instantly on the first track, is that while the music kicked some serious behind, the lyrics weren’t like that of the great gods of Durst, Shinoda and Davis, but more along the lines of Lil’ John. They were actually trying to rap over the mildly good metal grooves. It took a moment to set in, but I got over the ridiculousness of that. I said to myself, “I can get behind this if it gets better musically throughout the album.”

Slipknot doesn't wear scene clothes!

Little did I know that Hollywood Undead had absolutely no clue what they wanted there sound to be when they made this album. They spend most of the it jumping back and forth between somewhat heavy tracks and goofy party rock tracks. I thought I was going to be listening to a new age Linkin Park, but instead I was getting a stupidly bad-ass LMFAO. The “rappers” Charlie Scene, J-Dog, Johnny 3 Tears, Funny Man and Da Kurlzz have absolutely no idea how to construct lyrics without coming off like complete and utter morons. I said only a few paragraphs up that even the iconic nü-metal singers couldn’t write decent lyrics, but they never went out and tried to make songs that read like real radio rap music. In the albums low point, “Everywhere I Go”, one of the rappers (I can’t tell the difference most of the time) spits the lyric “Gotta get drunk before my mom wakes up / Break-up with my girlfriend so I can bang sluts.” And did I mention that the chorus of the song Charlie Scene makes several references to his “weenie” in the same song?

What also makes “Everywhere” a terrible song is the way it’s rapped. Charlie Scene, or whomever it is, channels Eminem incredibly poorly. Trying to be that Slim Shady-esque character made famous in tracks like “My Name Is” before kicking the chorus with a Fall Out Boy like whine, again, referring to his “weenie” more than once during every chorus.

The band also reminds me of another similar band, Chronic Future, the only difference being that Chronic Future makes pop-punk infused rap music, not heavy metal. There’s some uppity vibe sent out by Chronic Future that makes their happy music generally work, while Hollywood Undead talk about having meaningless sex, drinking and smoking marijuana while trying to layer keyboards and drum machines. My advice; if you want to make this music work, don’t overdo the novelty instruments. In this case, the keys are certainly novelty. Very, very much so. Most of the album is overly layered with this stuff.

And just when they appear to have done everything in their power to make me dislike them, the band goes back into a sad rock song about why life is meaningless, or something along those lines. While the albums most popular single, “Young” does convey a decent amount of competence on the part of the musicians and the singers, that and the first track alone don’t have nearly enough power to keep the album stable.

With that being said, Hollywood Undead is a hopeless cause. Garbed in their hockey masks, but rapping about how everyone knows who they are, talking about how hardcore they are and then singing about taking their clothes off in the club and wearing scene clothes, Hollywood Undead are just a musical contradiction. I don’t recommend this album to anyone, unless you find the masterful work of LMFAO to be not hardcore enough, but on the right track.

Week of updates: Day (cough cough) 7

2009-09-30T22:40:00.001-04:00

Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

Week of updates: Day (cough) Six

2009-09-27T15:58:00.001-04:00

Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

A quote, simple and effective.

"Losers are morons who don't have the balls to cheat."-Kenny Powers

Week of Updates: Day (cough) Five

2009-09-25T17:11:00.002-04:00

Sorry I missed yesterday. Much Say Anything prep.
Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

This video has made me laugh and I've seen it like 100 times.

Week of Updates: Day Four

2009-09-23T18:44:00.001-04:00

Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

This is the website I choose!

http://www.astoundingessays.com/getyourphil/

My brothers web comic! Read it!

Week of Updates: Day Three

2009-09-22T20:20:00.002-04:00

Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

The book is, rather, a play. Called Lobby Hero by Kenneth Lonergan. Read it last night. Really quirky, interesting dialogue. I thoroughly enjoyed and approve. It's an easy read and worth every minute. Some plays are tough to read because they are simply dialogue with basic stage direction, but this one lends itself to that.

Week of Updates: Day Two

2009-09-21T23:59:00.003-04:00

Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

So a photo for today. The original picture I wanted was impossible to find online, from rapper The Game's debut The Documentary's booklet. The picture has game weighing drugs with a pistol in his hand peering through his blinds. The picture transcends the artist, and even music, as it just shows a desperate man trying to survive. Granted, I'm not a drug abuser or dealer, so that could be way above my head, but I find the picture to be very primal and real. But enough of that.

I love this picture. It hangs above my desk. It motivates me. It's funny. It's well painted. It's absurd. It's brilliant. I absolutely love it, and I love that it was an advertising tool so many years ago. When I grow up, I want a framed version for my home.

Week of Updates Day 1.

2009-09-20T16:13:00.003-04:00

I saw this on LJ friends page and I need things to update update.
So we have one week. One post a day.
Day One: A Song
Day Two: A picture
Day Three: A book
Day Four: A site
Day Five: A Youtube clip
Day Six: A quote
Day Seven: Whatever tickles your fancy

So a song...

This song went way over peoples heads a few years ago.

A little note...

2009-09-16T15:07:00.002-04:00

Hey everybody, just wanted to sit down and make a quick update about something pointed out to me recently. This year has been HUGE for hip-hop, while rock has shown some good efforts with Chickenfoot, The Dead Weather and a few others, I've noticed that hip-hop has had a great year thus far...lets just take a look at some of the greats we've had thus far. I won't give any comments, just a brief overview of what good has come of this year.

Method Man & Redman-Blackout! 2
La Coka Nostra-A Brand You Can Trust
Jay-Z-The Blueprint III
Mos Def-The Ecstatic
Wu-Tang Chamber Music
Raekwon-Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II
Kid Cudi-Man on the Moon (haven't heard it yet.)

And there's more on the way! A new Ghostface Killah album, Clipse's "Till The Casket Drops" and who knows...maybe Relapse 2 will be decent. So basically I'm saying that NaS was very wrong when he said hip-hop is dead. It's still alive and well.

The Prototypal Classic

2009-09-11T20:58:00.002-04:00

I have decided to go all out and post my newest film on Facebook and Twitter. People have been whining about my lack of updates, so here is this.

Hailed by Conor Eamonn Ferguson as, "As good as any six minutes of Curb Your Enthusiasm."

And D.Winchell calls it "The most important film of this decade."

SAY ANYTHING IS PLAYING MY SCHOOL

2009-09-11T17:01:00.000-04:00

And this is the flier I made.

javascript:void(0)

Summer Movie On Point INSANITY

2009-09-01T16:15:00.003-04:00

Yeah no updates in mad long. Clearly working full time all summer and being of legal age to attend bars has gotten in the way of my posting. But alas, I am here once again at my computer, sitting in the comforts of my nice new Hofstra University dormitory. People have asked me what I thought of the summer movies, and it's tough because I saw quite a few of them. And I am bored on my last day of summer, so I would love to go and give you ON POINT REVIEWS for all of them!

Star Trek
A re-boot of the classic Sci-Fi franchise. The Lost and Cloverfield icon J.J. Abrams took the helm, and the question was posed; Can you take the geekiest thing in the world and make the world love it?

Pros
-The action was great, sci-fi space battles are a hard thing to make truly unique, but the ship designs really made this a sight to see. The man to man (or man to Vulcan, man to Romulan, you know what I mean) were good too.
-The ensemble was great, Zach Quinto and Chris Pine leading perfectly as Spock and Kirk respectively. John Cho, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana and Anton Yelchin filled out the Enterprise near perfectly as well. Not to mention Eric Bana was near unrecognizable as Captain Nero.
-It was fun, it never took itself too seriously and really made for a great experience.
Cons
-Leonard Nimoy, while a pleasure to have in the film, sort of lingered around. He didn't do much to advance the story after his initial scene, but he just kept coming back to offer more wisdom.
-There wasn't enough time to let the secondary characters bloom. It seemed as though they were brought in for one scene (Sulu's swordfight for instance) and then tossed back for some supporting lines here and there. But since this was the first in what will surely be a franchise, it's forgiveable.

The Hangover
The sleeper hit of the summer, four friends go to Las Vegas for a bachelor party and much chaos ensues.

Pros
-The ensemble worked well together. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifinakis bounced off of each other very well. While Zach clearly stole the show with his awkwardness, Cooper's overexcited schoolteacher was my favorite.
-Visually, the movie was really good. There were some instances where I forgot I was watching a comedy because the shots of Vegas were so good.
-The whole "crazy stuff happens in Vegas" thing worked out to the movies' advantage. It was a bit cliché, but the movie didn't aim to challenge.
-Mike Tyson. Enough said.
Cons
-Galifinakis seemed to constantly push the limit of what he was doing, and several times, his character cracked incredibly dumb jokes, that even in context were just stupid.
-It got a lot of hype to be the next iconic comedy of this generation, and I feel as though it isn't at all. It's a fun, thoughtless comedy that is just around for laughs.
-It teetered between serious and over-the-top too much. Ed Helms falling for the stripper, while Ken Jeong hops out of the trunk of a car naked...two complete opposites that made the pacing a tad awkward.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Robots blow things up, Megan Fox walks around all hot and stuff. Shia Labeof spits out quirky one liners.

Pros
-The first 45 minutes retained the fun over the original Transformers. It was fun, light hearted and didn't take itself seriously.
-The CGI is incredible, truly a sight to see.
-John Turturro, while spitting out terrible dialogue, manages to be funny against all odds.
-Megan Fox is incredible, truly a sight to see.
Cons
-After the first 45 minutes, the movie gets completely random, too hard to follow and downright stupid, and not in a good way like the first one.
-Too many robots! The first one was good because you could keep track of what Autobots and Decepticons were on the front line. The motorcycle trio, the Fallen, the old man...to many!
-Too much pointless action. Now I like things blowing up like any living male, but I'd like there to be a reason. It seemed that every chance Bay was given to blow something up he did.
-Megan Fox can't act. But did you really go to see her act?

Bruno
The guy who grew a dirty mustache to play Borat brings his third Ali G show character to the U.S.A. in this homophobe targeting flick.

Pros
-There is a lot of shock humor in here. Unexpected stuff left and right.
-Bruno really pushes some people to their brink and it's hilarious. A scene when he interviews parents about their babies modeling for him shows just how irrational some people can be.
-Larry Charles (director) has a knack for good timing. He lets the awkwardness settle in when it needs to, and he cuts away to accentuate a joke that doesn't need anything at all.
-The final "real" bit is fantastic, I laughed for a long time.
-One celebrity cameo is so funny that it lingers around the whole film, and at points you find yourself saying "Remember when that famous person made that great line?" and started chuckling again.
-They get the "fashionisto" bits out the way early. Those were his worst parts on the TV show. Putting him out of his element is much funnier than keeping him in it.
Cons
-The staged bits in this weren't as effective as they were in Borat. They seemed to just make too many awkward gay jokes, whereas in Borat, they actually developed the "story."
-While Borat pointed out the racism and ignorance in Americans while they let their guard down around him, Bruno merely pointed out the homophobia in people. While that was certainly funny, it didn't offer that same look at society that Bruno did.
-Male nudity urks me. And there is one scene of excessive male nudity.

Funny People
Judd Apatow directs this flick about a dying comedian who employs a young up-and-comer to help him organize his life.

Pros
-Sandler plays his best dramatic role to date, and perhaps that can be attributed to the fact that he plays a darker version of himself.
-The ensemble cast is good. Schwartsman and Hill especially compliment each other and Rogen. Bit parts from RZA and Aziz Ansari are good too.
-The stand-up comedy is really funny.
-Eric Bana's arrival is great, and he is hysterical.
-The cameos are for the most part great, Eminem, Ray Romano, Sarah Silverman, Dave Attell, Norm MacDonald, James Taylor, Justin Long. It added a little flare to the flick.
Cons
-It was too long and poorly paced. Had it flowed in the optimal way, it could have been his best movie, and an award contender for sure.
-Rogen didn't do much. In Knocked Up he showed us that he could put some heart to his slacker, here he's just a guy who wants to make it.
-Not enough of the bit parts from RZA and Aziz Ansari.
-The relationship between Rogen's character and Aubrey Plaza's was kind of forced. It could have been a real focal point of the movie.
-It was promoted as a comedy when really it was a drama. A bit more comedy couldn't have hurt it, but it was a real bad job on the PR part.

District 9
Aliens who are stuck on earth are treated like dirt.

Pros
-The small budget is used fatastically. The special effects are really good and real looking.
-All of the weapons used by the aliens are awesome and innovative. It's good to see new things in a movie like this.
-Sharlto Coply is a very convincing lead. Considering this was his first acting role, I think he deserves much kudos.
-The fights are great, they are subdued and minimal, but when stuff goes down, it goes down hardcore.
-The plot takes some strange archs, as characters turn their back on each other left and right.
Cons
-The flick segways from a mockumentary to a movie poorly. It keeps going back and forth.
-In the end, the film comes to a bit of a ragtag action ending. While most of the story is logical and proves points socially, the end does nothing more than showboat the CG, which is great.

Inglorious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino kills Hitler.

Pros
-Tarantino's dialogue is great, the first scene in which "The Jew Hunter" interviews a farmer who may or may not be housing Nazi's is superb. He builds tension so well and delivers in the release.
-Pitt plays his best character since Snatch. Aldo Raine is a hilariously brutal individual.
-The brief action sequences are satisfying to no end.
-The interweaving plots are interesting. To see them connect at the end is cool.
-Christopher Waltz was fantastic, he played the manipulative Nazi so well.
Cons
-Not enough of the Basterds. They were on screen for only a brief period of time.
-The pacing was off at times, while not as bad as in Funny People, it could have had a few minutes trimmed and it would have been fine.
-The secondary Basterds weren't given enough time, B.J. Novak and Samm Levine especially. That's just cause I'm a comedy geek.
-Mike Myers served no real purpose, he may have been good, but he didn't do anything.

ALRIGHT that about wraps it up. I'm seeing Up this weekend! Finally!