Something about Opening Day brings out the kid in everyone. The sweet scent of freshly cut grass, the feel of the creaky metal seats, the sound of the crack of the bat and the whip of a pitcher; the senses evoke feelings of times spent at the ballpark. Opening Day means unparalleled optimism. Everyone is at .500. It is beautiful. For one day, every fan and team is on equal footing. For one day, we can all sit back and just watch some of America’s pastime with no reservations. Baseball means Spring, even when the grip of winter is still powerful. While it may be cold, Summer’s sport always seems to warm the stadium up with cheering fans – unless we are at Citi field which is basically a wind tunnel.
As many know, I am a die-hard Mets fan and while I understand my team’s position, I am optimistic on this day. If you are not hopeful on Opening Day then you should not be a baseball fan. So, lets go Mets and PLAY BALL!
Here is “Centerfield” with an opening clip from my favorite movie “Field of Dreams.”
Sometimes you just need a song that kicks you in the ass. A song that makes you want to run around or lift heavy objects. A work-out song. So what fulfills the qualifications of an exercise song? The song must be upbeat and loud. Those are two musts. The song needs to move constantly. If there is a stop, it must be very short and it must lead directly into what has made you want to put the treadmill at 8.0.
Now, imagine a world where your favorite exercise song also finds its way onto the list of best guitar riffs of all time. Motorhead, the English heavy metal band, accomplished both tasks. They not only lead my extensive list of workout music, but also they perfect metal guitar with “Ace of Spades.” Eddie Clarke‘s hard guitar sound is masterful. It is quick and efficient. The repetitive riff is proof of why the band gave Eddie the nickname of “Fast.”
I must say that Lemmy’s voice is the raspiest kind of 20 packs a day good. He strains himself to crush songs. He sings in a controlled grunt. Clearly, though, the infectious riff carries the song and provides its strength, and for that it holds a spot on our best guitar riffs list.
There is actually an acoustic version of this song. I know, really? Well, Lemmy’s voice is defined more through this version.
Something about Tuesdays has started smelling a lot more psychedelic, and in the nasal orifice of a certain psychedelic band from Los Angeles, psychedelia smells like strawberries. We continue our psychedelic exploration of the 1960s with the genre of psychedelic pop music and one of the bands that mastered this potential corny genre was Strawberry Alarm Clock, who rode the line of bubblegum and psychedelic music like a professional.
So, I guess the first question we have to ask is what exactly is psychedelic pop music and why is music that can be considered “watered down” relevant on our psychedelic trip? The answer to this question is simple. Psychedelic pop, at its finest, is not hackneyed, but rather creative and infectious. Yes, I understand that because the music had to fit under the description of “pop” it usually needed close-knit harmonies and catchy rhythms, but, while it was “mainstream” at the time, these necessities did not take a way from the music’s worth. While the music succumbed to rigid specifications, it was still allowed to venture forth into the world of guitar distortion and zany instruments. Take a listen to this.
In the first 20 seconds the genre is practically described. “Incense and Peppermints” by Strawberry Alarm Clock was released in 1967 and it hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The keyboard mixes beautifully with the reverbed, distorted guitar. The background vocals provide a haunting beginning to the tune. The song’s high-pitched keyboard provides an unmistakable psychedelic presence to the song that is a shining example of why the song is psychedelic.
Can you get the song out of your head? No. I didn’t think so. It fits the pop convention perfectly and this is why it was so popular. I consider this an instrumental work of psychedelic music and I disagree with those who believe that pop’s conforming to the psychedelic phenomenon was a bad thing. It allowed pop bands to create psychedelic pieces (a la Beach Boys) and psychedelic bands to market themselves with pop classics like “Incense and Peppermints.”
The new Mountain Goat’s album drops tomorrow, and I will most certainly be picking it up prior to seeing them this Saturday in Ithaca. Yes, call me a traditionalist, but with artists like The Mountain Goats, I like to listen to the album in full by way of hard copy. It’s just one of my many archaic idiosyncrasies. But, that does not mean reviews have not been written of the album yet (by way of advanced copy or NPR first listen – which was published in late February).
The reviews are positive. Like expected, Darnielle excellent bare singer/songwriter style is bathed lightly with some new studio effects (a trend that has been duplicated on recent albums). The lyrics are hard hitting, though, and while there is no over-arching theme linking songs, each does have a wondrous effect (the Mountain Goat’s effect). I suggest you go out and purchase this album, but if you want some proof, here is two reviews (one written and one YouTubed).
Radiohead Selling Well King of Limbs was released digitally back in February. The ending track, “Separator” has spawned some thought that the digital album was only part of a larger release that would be sent out with their “magazine” release of the album in May.
The tangible album is being shipped out today and the band created such a draw with their rapid digital release, that the physical copy was #2 on the Amazon pre-sale list. And so continues the genius of Thom Yorke. Do you want to sell an album? Hire him to do your marketing.
The men’s college basketball March Madness tournament has reached its Final Four and it is jam-packed with Cinderellas. The Music Court’s 1967 Album March Madness tournament – which is looking for votes on the best album released in 1967 – may go pretty chalk. Here is an update and where you can vote. Remember voting ends this Friday
The #2 seed: The Doors by The Doors is currently avenging its sister’s demise by beating up on the #10 seed:Surrealistic Pillowby Jefferson Airplane 6-1.
I sat at my desk on the 14th floor, typing my masterpiece. Water crawled to my feet and slowly began to accumulate. It’s presence helped coax my thoughts into flowing through my fingers. It rose by the minute, up to my knees by the time I approached completion. I would not give up. At the last moment I hit the period key for the final time and sent the piece onto the internet for all to see. The water then ripped me from my seat and dragged me out to the ocean, where I floated in a sea of calm insignificance.
My regards to all of those affected by the tsunami and the related disasters in Japan. May your nation come out of this stronger than before, and your dead rest peacefully.
******************************************
So as promised here is the second post of the weekend.
In light of the recent happenings in the east, I’ve decided to honor a tremendous Japanese band. Ghost is the name of an absolutely amazing psychedelic acid folk rock experience which was created sometime during the late 1980’s. Their first album came out in 1990, and they have been making great music ever since. In 2004 they released the album entitled Hypnotic Underworld, which is what really put them on the map, especially in the western world.
They have also been described as living a nomadic existence, only playing shows in ruins of ancient temples or
abandoned subway stations. I would do a countless amount of things to be able to attend such an event. Japanese hippies are hands down one of the most intriguing combination of people I can imagine.
The album is half concept album and half chill jam album. The first four songs on the album are entitled Hypnotic Underworld parts 1-4 respectively, and are about the listener’s escape from this Hypnotic Underworld. Basically it is that spacey psychedelic concept vibe you have learned to love, but with an added eastern folk influence. The result is brilliant, giving it almost jazz like qualities.
Part 1, is a sort of introduction to the Hypnotic Underworld. A scratchy horn plays this dreary nonsense, while random instruments clamor in syncopated madness. It builds and builds until it finally gives to part 2, which opens up with an amazing bass line. The horn finds it’s tune finally and a piano complements the both. This jam lasts for quite the while, instruments coming and going, sort of as if one would be just hanging out in a hypnotic underworld I assume.
Parts 3 and 4 are in the youtube video above. Part 3 represents the realization of one’s surrounding and the eventuating escape from the hypnotic underworld. It is a very powerful rock song featuring synths, guitars, drums, and amazing Japanese lyrics. The full works. And then part 4 comes along which is a short, almost heavy-metal, drum solo. The final escape I suppose. Really cool in my opinion.
After this 4 part concept work, the rest of the album is individual songs, and I am not too sure where the concept actually ends because sadly I cannot understand Japanese. But I can assume that the next song continues the story in some sense simply based on the title. You escape the hypnotic underworld to hang out in the hazy paradise!
It is actually a cover of a song by the same name which is by a band named Earth and Fire. It is melodic and beautiful. It begins with guitar fills punctuating an almost heavenly sound which is created by that beautiful riff and the vocal “ooh-aah”‘s. With a short climbing of a scale and the strum of an acoustic guitar, the song moves on to the main verse. The singing is movie-like and the harpsichord reminds me of the 60’s scene ever so slightly. A Japanese psychedelic ballad. Guitar solos spring up ever so often, eventually matched by the harpsichords, creating a build that is simply glory to the ears.
These first 5 tracks already create an astounding musical experience, meanwhile 6 tracks still remain on the album. I will allow you to explore them on your own. And maybe someone out there who speaks Japanese can translate some of the lyrics and tell me if it really is a concept album.
&)
-oko
P.S. Aww hell here is one more song from the album, because it’s that good. I present to you 10 minutes of chill, entitled Ganagmanag!
Something about Opening Day brings out the kid in everyone. The sweet scent of freshly cut grass, the feel of the creaky metal seats, the sound of the crack of the bat and the whip of a pitcher; the senses evoke feelings of times spent at the ballpark. Opening Day means unparalleled optimism. Everyone is at .500. It is beautiful. For one day, every fan and team is on equal footing. For one day, we can all sit back and just watch some of America’s pastime with no reservations. Baseball means Spring, even when the grip of winter is still powerful. While it may be cold, Summer’s sport always seems to warm the stadium up with cheering fans – unless we are at Citi field which is basically a wind tunnel.
The Music Court 