Sunday, September 30, 2018

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #183

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. New York City Cops, by The Strokes

I know I'm a bit late to the party on this one (as per usual), but I've been checking out The Strokes a bit more recently and have been digging what I have been hearing. This tune in particular is pretty cool because it has that punkish garage rock vibe of the early 2000's in a nutshell. At the same time though, it still kind of reminds me of a bit of early 80's New Wave in certain areas. Regardless, I'm intrigued.



2. Purple Haze, by The Jimi Hendrix Experience

I was listening to this song at work the other day through some head phones and it was actually quite a different experience. Not only was I able to hear subtle details that I hadn't picked up on before, but the way that it was mixed and panned seemed interesting to me. The vocals being panned mostly on one side and the guitars mostly on the other seems strange to me. I'm used to most of that being pretty centered. Regardless, it made for a cool listening experience.



3. Ash Tray Heart, by The White Stripes

This is actually a cover of a Captain Beefheart song, though such a thing was not uncommon to hear from The White Stripes in their early days. They actually did a handful of them, especially live. That said, I like this version better because I love the deep, lo-fi fuzz on the guitar and the driving nature of the song overall. Plus, Jack White's voice is a bit easier on the ears for me personally. That said, both are excellent in their own right.



4. Behind the Wall of Sleep, by Black Sabbath

Over the years this song has grown on me. It's from the band's first album. It showcases a lot of their blues and jazz roots while still giving it that bombastic, gritty, dark heavy metal experience that they were known for. Interestingly enough, I never knew that the one lyric that gets repeated was "Turns your body to a corpse" instead of "Take your body to the cops". I guess even back then Ozzy Osbourne could still be a bit difficult to understand from time to time.



5. Have Love, Will Travel, by The Black Keys

This version is slower and less wild than the one done by The Sonics, but I think overall I like this one better. It has this deep, full sound to it and it has this groove to it that the other one lacks. It has swagger, style, and makes me feel like I'm dancing on a cruise ship or something. Plus, it also has a bit of a Cream vibe to it. Needless to say, it is one of my favorite songs from my absolute favorite Black Keys record.


Sunday, September 23, 2018

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #182



5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Miracle Man, by Ozzy Osbourne

Since I went to go see Ozzy in concert last Friday for the first (and possibly only) time, I decided that this week was going to be Ozzy Week. I can trace a lot of the stuff I have listened to over the past decade back to him, so I feel he deserves it. That said, I feel this tune in particular is an overlooked and under rated gem. It's about a televangelist from the late 80's who got caught with his pants down. The riffs are killer, the soloing fast and melodic, etc. One of Zakk Wylde's best songs from his early career (as this was his first album with Ozzy).



2. Flying High Again, by Ozzy Osbourne

Over the years I have grown to appreciate the Diary of a Madman album a lot more. The Blizzard of Ozz will always be my number one Ozzy album, but this album has some AMAZING material. A lot of it is pretty musically complex upon closer listening. Lots of odd time signatures, classical chord progressions, brilliant melodies, and more. Ozzy might be a party animal clown, but his band (especially when Randy Rhoads was alive) really knew how to write some great stuff. This song in particular was one of Randy's crowning achievements, as he spent two days in the studio with no sleep, food, or water working tirelessly until he could come up with the perfect solo. The final product speaks for itself.



3. No More Tears, by Ozzy Osbourne

For a brief moment at the concert, I honestly thought Ozzy wasn't going to do this song. I was disappointed. However, he came back on for a few encores, with this being one of them. If you haven't heard it by now, you clearly have had your head in the dirt for the past three decades. It's a classic and some of the best song writing Zakk Wylde and the band Ozzy had at the time had ever done. Like I said, Ozzy may be a clown but his band has always had his back with great music.



4. You Can't Kill Rock and Roll, by Ozzy Osbourne

I absolutely LOVE this song. I didn't always care for it, but as I've gotten older I notice more of the complexities of it and can adore the way everything gets put together. The layered vocals that Ozzy does in this are tasty as fuck. The acoustic arpeggios played throughout the verses are a treat to the ear, and the choruses are larger than life. This is a song I always crank whenever I drive past a billboard for the Christian radio station that bought out the local classic rock station.



5. Electric Funeral, by Black Sabbath

And to end this list, a Black Sabbath tune. This has always been one of my favorite Black Sabbath tunes. I don't understand why it doesn't get any radio airplay, as the riff is just as catchy as any of the other songs on Paranoid. It's so evil, monstrous, and foreboding. However, it picks up at certain moments and then seamlessly transitions back into the lumbering, wah-wah evil riff. Definitely a hidden gem for sure.


Thursday, September 20, 2018

Throwback Thursday: St. Anger, by Metallica



Today on Throwback Thursday, we're doing things a little bit differently. Normally when I do these I talk about some album I'm either fond of or at least feel has some level of importance and some admirable qualities. Well that's not what we're doing here today. Today we're briefly ripping an album a new asshole. What album could have possibly spurned such ire from me, might you ask? One of the most infamous albums in all of heavy metal:

Metallica's St. Anger.

To give a bit of background on the album, it was recorded in 2003 during a rather turbulent time in the band's career. Their long time bassist Jason Newsted had left the band because among other reasons, singer and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield was telling him he wasn't allowed to do any side projects. They ended up hiring on current bassist Rob Trujillo, who has also played with the likes of Suicidal Tendencies, Black Label Society, and Ozzy Osbourne.

On top of that, Hetfield was also hitting the wall with his alcoholism and went to treatment to get himself clean. They then were filming a documentary of the whole process while also having a group counselor help them solve their band related issues. Needless to say, it was not a happy time in the band's history.

With that out of the way, this is a Metallica album that I actually not just not care for, but actively dislike (like many Metallica fans). Not only is the production bad, but the song writing in general is far less than stellar. The mix sounds incredibly muddy (ESPECIALLY the guitars due to being tuned so low), there are no guitar solos, and then of course there is the much ridiculed tin bucket snare sound. Honestly, I'm really not sure what they were thinking.

Now I could potentially put some of this stuff aside, but the music itself is just droning and boring. I REALLY tried to give this album a fair chance, but I couldn't even get through to the end of the first song before I had to tap out.

I get that Metallica was trying to do something different. I applaud them for always trying to do something new and boundary pushing. They wouldn't be Metallica if they didn't. That said, I think this is one instance where it severely backfired on them. Needless to say, they got a LOT of fan and critical backlash for the album and they soon tried to bury the album as far in the past as they possibly could.

That said, I am NOT going to give you a track listing or link to the album because you're better off not listening to it unless you really hate yourself.

St. Anger, by Metallica receives 1.5/5 stars.

Sunday, September 9, 2018

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #181

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Watching Over, by Greta Van Fleet

This is the new single that came out last week from the upcoming debut album of Greta Van Fleet. It's a little more interesting than some of the other stuff I have heard them do, but at the end of the day they still sound and look as though they are just trying to be Led Zeppelin. Personally I find the vocals on this to be a bit screechy for my taste, but I'll let you be the judge. That said, you had best believe that when that album does drop next month I will be doing a serious in depth review on it.


2. Good Thing Gone, by Elle King

Pop/soul/rock/country/whatever she wants I guess sensation Elle King also has a new album coming out in the not too distant future. This is another single from it, and honestly I like it better than all of the other songs I have heard her put out lately. It's a laid back, softer blues guitar driven ballad. It's like a 60's pop ballad, but with a bit more soul in the vocals and instrumental flavor. I like that there is still someone like Elle King around there who brings this kind of old school soul, passion, and authenticity to her music.



3. South of Heaven, by Slayer

And now for something completely different. A little bit of thrash metal is always good to get your blood pumping and your head banging. This song is one of their hallmarked classics, and for good reason. It is chocked full of dark, foreboding atmosphere all throughout and you feel like if you look over your shoulder you will see fire and brimstone. I put it on whenever I want to feel spooked or need to get myself pumped up. Also, if you are one of those older folks who get scared of Satan, Slayer is NOT a Satanic band and they do not condone worshiping him. The bassist and singer Tom Araya is actually a devout Catholic.



4. The Ghoul, by Pentagram

If you want a dark heavy metal song with atmosphere though, this is one of the best ones you could possibly go with. No, it's not about Satan worship. None of Pentagram's songs are. With that out of the way, this song is brimming with spooky atmosphere. It is big, heavy, dark doom metal, but played in a way that I have never quite heard before. The riffs are so tasty and intriguing. They are so grinding and crusty that it makes me shiver in delight.



5. Gotten, by Slash feat. Adam Levine

This is a rather chilled out modern Beatles-esque ballad of sorts. Adam's voice is smooth, colorful, yet passionate nonetheless and Slash plays some of the best clean guitar I've ever heard him play. I have a very specific memory attached to this song, though. It was maybe 2 or 3 in the morning and I had just gotten out from a really bad date with a girl I'd had a crush on for a year and a half. I put this song on in my car and somehow everything just clicked. It was one of those perfect moments, even though it was a sad one.


Thursday, September 6, 2018

Throwback Thursday: Eat 'em and Smile, by David Lee Roth



The split of singer David Lee Roth from iconic worldwide rock n' roll sensation Van Halen is still one of the most talked about break-ups in all of rock even 30+ years later. When Roth left the band and they subsequently came out with their 1985 smash hit 5150, he knew he had to come up with a response - and quickly. This resulted in his 1986 solo debut Eat 'em and Smile, which even though it did not make as big of an impact as Van Halen, it is still favored by fans even now.

Eat 'em and Smile maintains a lot of that fun, easygoing, party time atmosphere that a lot of Van Halen's David Lee Roth era stuff had, but not in a way where it sounded exactly like Van Halen with a different set of players. Actually, Roth put together one hell of a band. He got Greg Bissonette on the drums, Billy Sheehan on bass, and the legendary virtuoso Steve Vai on guitar. You can hear the band's energy pulsing through every track. Though each musician aside from Roth was technically proficient as a musician, they used that proficiency in a way that made it one hell of a fun record.

Whenever people talk about Eat 'em and Smile, the first song that usually comes into the conversation is the album's main single "Yankee Rose". It is definitely an arena rocker for sure. Vai does some of his famous "guitar talk" throughout the intro and other parts of the song and overall it is a pulsing, pounding good time. It definitely sounds commercial, but you can still hear the chops in it. Definitely a feat that not many hair bands had back in the day.

The record also includes a cover of the classic "Tobacco Road". It definitely sounds 80's rock radio-ed up, but you can still tell they were having a lot of fun with it and putting some real care and soul into it as well. I would expect nothing less from such a group of passionate musicians, after all. Vai definitely knows how to blend blues with technical proficiency while Sheehan can flex his bass muscles and Bissonette his steady hand on the drums.

Eat 'em and Smile definitely deserves to be given another look by the general public, in my opinion. While it definitely is not as groundbreaking as anything Van Halen did, if you give it a listen while leaving context on the shelf you might be pleasantly surprised. There are some upbeat, fun, and catchy songs on it played by some of the best musicians to ever walk this planet. Like I said, Roth lucked out considering he isn't that great of a singer. Still, it is worth checking out at least once.

Eat 'em and Smile, by David Lee Roth receives 3.25/5 stars.

Track List:

1. Yankee Rose
2. Shyboy
3. I'm Easy
4. Ladies Night in Buffalo?
5. Goin' Crazy!
6. Tobacco Road
7. Elephant Gun
8. Big Trouble
9. Bump and Grind
10. That's Life

Buy the album on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Eat-Smile-David-Lee-Roth/dp/B004X0XXFC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536295011&sr=8-1&keywords=david+lee+roth+eat+em+and+smile+cd

Monday, September 3, 2018

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #180

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Medieval Steel, by Medieval Steel

An American power metal band from Memphis, of all places. They got started in the early 80's. Their history is rather spotty and they never made it into the big time, but they have managed to survive even to this day despite multiple break-ups, hiatuses, etc. People do still attend their shows, and for good reason. In songs like "Medieval Steel" they have towering riffs, thundering shredding solos, and melodic choruses that stick with you despite the fact that they are a tad cheesy.



2. The Sword, by XCaliber

Another FANTASTIC power metal band from the mid-80's that sadly never made it very far. Hailing from Pennsylvania, they only released one album, Warriors of the Night in 1986 and then disbanded the following year. This song in particular from that album is probably my favorite one of all. The lyrics aren't exactly the best, but melodically and sonically it still delivers. It has big riffs, juicy licks, and some ear pleasing melodic vocals that make for a catchy chorus.



3. The Watcher, by Tytan

This NWOBHM band lasted for only two years in the early 80's, but former Angel Witch bassist Kev Riddles still managed to get their only album Rough Justice released in 1985, a couple years after the band's split. This song in particular is kind of what you would get if Dio era Black Sabbath and Paul Di'Anno era Iron Maiden had a baby. It has those big riffs, yet they still groove and move at a decent pace while the singer channels his inner-Dio.



4. On the Run, by Overdrive

This is another NWOBHM band that has had a rather off and on history. They formed in 1977 and initially only put out a demo in 1978, a single in 1981 (which is what we have posted here today), and then nothing until 1989 when they put out another demo. It wasn't until 1990 when they started putting out actual albums. They still play today, but as I mentioned they have broken up and gotten back together a LOT over the years. This song definitely lives up to its name. It drives, packs a punch, and will leave you wanting more.



5. The Voice of the Cult, by Chastain

Oh my god. If you want an American power metal band with insanely shreddy guitars that still flow and make sense in the context of a song with one hell of a powerful, yet still melodic female vocalist, then Chastain is the band for you. They have been at it since 1984, and while technically never having broken up they have gone on hold and through line-up changes quite a few times over the years. Regardless, this tune is a great introduction to them.