• Type: Single
• Genre: Pop, Alternative
• Released: Mar 13, 2006

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/crazy-single/id129039732

I just wanted to write a quick post about a new band called American Authors. If you’re on the hunt for a new musical fixation check them out; their Facebook page has less than 4,000 likes and their Twitter account less than 2,000. They are the freshest of fresh meat.

Their single “Believer” has had some commercial success; the shout-sung chorus in which they proclaim their optimism (fitting, for such a new group) is fun and has cool harmony. Hopefully this group will “taste fame” soon.

Also check out their cover of Ellie Goulding’s “Lights” on their underviewed YouTube channel.

Drawing you in with the sharp blazing synths that open the album taking you to another galaxy that you didn’t know was the mind of Kelis Rogers, a simple glance into her life facing new challenges of divorce, finding her sound and home while being blessed with the gift and lesson that is motherhood.  Crying out her fears of failure and addiction to something that isn’t good for her while she leaves the reality of her mind, envisioning the 22^nd Century where the world like present time is currently dancing while encouraging us all we are stars so to make us care about of selfishness and our own personal vain. We’re escaping the harsh reality we face and how we just never want to go back to our misery and redundancy. We then find our escape our feeling and guide to being complete making our feelings expand through our spirit and body enwrapping us in a semi religious state, knowing that this moment, for this moment nothing will be greater than this. It is such a state of euphoria that we feel that it’s this simple for which we live for there is nothing greater. We feel like a day of celebration that we should celebrate every moment of this, but every day. Nothing is greater than feeling alive and enjoying every minute without worrying or caring about the negative things in life.

Your place of solace and comfort where you seek tranquility, it’s unity you seek. You need something or someone there to complete it something, testing your need of selflessness. You feel as if your complete but there is something an addiction or abandonment that’s keeping you from feeling like you’re complete. The lights are on because you want to let the world to know you’re complete blindly letting this addiction take control over you.

But then you find this sense of completion realizing that everything around you is artificial without something completing it. It’s lifeless, just living in a state of delusion to escape that fact that they are lonely and incomplete. So they seek this completion in something new, different and unknown to their natural order, or what they know as their natural order. Realizing this dependency has started to feel stagnant that you’re seeking ways  to free yourself from this oppression and false belief that this is what is right. Freeing yourself  becomes your way of life, you understand what you need to be free even through a  trial and error process. You try to express what it is you desire to be a need from life, so you keep trying, you even push hard. You fail, so you must eventually succeed, right? Wrong unless you face what’s stopping you from what you where you want to be.

Stand up to what’s hindering your success. Change the laws and break the rules, there’s nothing worth more to you like your piece and peace of mind. Your worth, everything everyone wants you to be isn’t what you need to be. Nothing is stronger than what feels natural and organic to you. You faced your biggest battle, you understood that what loves you gives you strength and what gives you dependence burdens you. Independence is a tricky son of a bitch!

Once you’ve understood the value of independence you are album to give some of it to others, let them feel more than what they believe they can feel. You are not their safe haven, you’re their guide. Somewhat like an addiction to them but you’re ultimate goal is to teach them their value and their worth through, good and terrible experiences. But inside you want them to understand and believe that they are more than what they are told.

*Disclaimer – this was written by a music loving stoner, who may have gotten completely stoned and drunk and decided to find some kind of meaning in an album that may mean more than what you think. I hereby understand I have the grammar of a five year old but who really gives a fuck eh?  I am by no way speaking for the artist and their personal experience and expression of the album, I am just experiencing it for myself. It’s best to experience this music while listening to it and understand the lyrics. This album probably flopped so please support by downloading it from wherever there is currency exchanged to own this album

Having said that, I’ll definitely give Relient K credit for one thing: they can pull off a darned good cover song. That’s why I do enjoy their latest release, Is for Karaoke. The album consists of 14 songs by other bands, reimagined by Matt Theissen and company quite effectively. I say “reimagined,” but in truth, most of these covers stick pretty closely to the originals. Is for Karaoke spans a decent spectrum of pop music—from 80s classics to 90s rock to modern post-2000 hits.

Of course, my favorite songs are the songs whose original versions I already liked. As a huge Third Eye Blind fan, Relient K’s cover of “Motorcycle Drive By” might be my favorite out of the lot. Also notable are the covers of the Wallflower’s 90s hit “One Headlight,” Chicago’s (slightly cheeky) love ballad “You’re the Inspiration,” and Stone Temple Pilots’ “Interstate Love Song.” And although I think Weezer covers are a dime a dozen these days, the version of “Surf Wax America” here is certainly respectable.

If you like to imagine yourself running away with the circus, this version of They Might Be Giants’ “Doctor Worm” will tickle your fancy. If you’re a club-trotting 17-year-old you may enjoy Cindy Lauper’s “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” If you like modern pop, Relient K includes a cover of Justin Bieber’s “Baby” and Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy.” I barely know who those artists are, especially Barkley. How do you say his first name? Nar-rolls? Nar-whals? And I really think Justin Bieber could pass me on his way to the local Mini-Mart to purchase a cinnamon bun and I wouldn’t recognize him.

The real gem of the album, in my opinion, comes near the end: Theissen and the gang’s reworking of Toto’s “Africa” sounds just about perfect. The harmonies that Theissen and guitarist Matt Hoopes weave in the choruses are quite excellent. Even my mom liked it!

Sure, this album is a bit goofy, a bit tongue-in-cheek, a bit unicorn-y. Just like I think Relient K’s actual records are. But it’s still a fun distraction from your everyday musical routine. Sometimes you need some good ol’ fashioned fun. Give it a listen, but try not to picture that Sunday school pastor with the creepy mustache who smelled vaguely of peanut butter! (I just made that up, that never really happened.)

~J.M.

The Jon Snows – She’s Mine

Hypnotic, compelling and just a little creepy.

Ed Kuepper – Everything I’ve Got Belongs To You

How many songs begin with a line like: ‘I’ve designs on you that come from dirty books’?

Scott Walker – Mathilde

The sheer exuberance of a man anticipating the arrival of his woman – ‘tell them to change the sheets on the bed, Mathilda’s come back to me!’

The Coral – Dreaming Of You

A passionate – if confused – affirmation of falling in love with someone you shouldn’t've.

Gnarls Barkley – Who’s Gonna Save My Soul?

When you would – quite literally – pull your own heart out for someone.

Five anti-Valentine songs:

Dr Feelgood – That’s It, I Quit!

‘You just look dirty, say you’re twenty but you’re thirty’ school of splitting up.

Peter Cook – Bedazzled

Super cool detachment – contains the classic line: ‘You fill me with inertia’!

The Stranglers – Shut Up!

When all’s said and done… why dontcha?

Cud – I’ve Had It With Blondes

It opens with ‘I was a teenage stamp collector, I’d lay on my back and you’d stamp on my face’ and gets even better!

Kelis – I Hate You So Much Right Now

Says it all really.

Happy Valentine’s day!

I listen to St. Elsewhere at work on a fairly regular basis. I would call it music to design by, but I spent most of the day creating links to PDFs on a webpage, which isn’t really design work, but work that I have to do as the designer.

Genre:  Indie Rock, Neo Soul, Funk
Released:  October 13th 2009

The Heavy are an English rock band consisting out of Kelvin Swaby (Vocals), Dan Taylor (Guitar), Spencer Page (Bassguitar) and Chris Ellul (Drums). The band was formed somewhere in 1998 when Kelvin Swaby and Dan Taylor became friends and bonded over their musical taste. However, they weren’t fully active as musicians till 2007 when they started releasing their first singles. The Heavy got recognized as a muscial whizz kid, and even got mentioned in the Rolling Stone Hot List in May 2008. The musicians make use of a wide variation of musical elements such as neo-soul, rock-like instruments, funky horns and very recognizable vocals.

The House That Dirt Built is the second studio-album made by the band that was released in October 2009. After their first album Great Vengeance and Furious Fire (that was released in 2008), the band wanted to explore several other musical directions. Meaning that they wanted to give the 60s soul a more modern twist. The album makes it clear that The Heavy doesn’t stick to one typical genre. The title of their second release is a reference to the nursery ryhme: This Is The House That Jack Built. Some songs on the album were used in several popular media. For example, the song ‘How You Like Me Now?’ (track 3) was used in the trailer of Seth McFarlane’s movie Ted and the game Borderlands 2 in 2012.

The band tries to bring out all these different vibes and genres with The House That Dirt Built, and I have to say that they have succeeded in their attempts. The song ‘Oh! Not You Again!’ (track 2) has all these rock elements combined with some funky sounds and a more energetic rythm. But other songs on the album stick to a more traditional genre. For example, ‘How You Like Me Now’ (track 3) uses all these elements that are used in funk and soul (such as a swingy guitarsound and horns), making it traditional funk . Then on the other hand, songs such as ‘What You Want Me to Do?’ (track 10) make use of the more traditional rock sounds.

The personal sound of The Heavy just can’t be labelled with a specific genre, making the band very diverse and unique. The vocals of Kelvin Swaby remind me of a fusion of Gnarls Barkley and Curtis Mayfield, meaning that he has a mild and pleasant voice in my opinion. And just because these extraordinary vocals are being combined with all these different musical elements, make it very enjoyable to listen to The Heavy.

Tracklist:
1.  Intro  
2.  Oh No! Not You Again!      
3.  How You Like Me Now?
4.  Sixteen
5.  Short Change Hero
6.  No Time
7.  Long Way From Home    
8.  Cause For Alarm  
9.  Love Like That  
10. What You Want Me To Do
11. Stuck

Links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVzvRsl4rEM  (How You Like Me Now by The Heavy)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fbo_pQvU7M  (The official trailer of Ted)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC4rumutsMI  (Oh! Not You Again! by The Heavy)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xIscd4okBE  (What You Want Me to Do? by The Heavy)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLbE6aHjF7g  (Who’s Gonna Save My Soul by Gnarls Barkley)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCDAfa-NI-M  (Pusherman by Curtis Mayfield)

http://theheavy.co.uk/ (The official bandsite)

Official Music Video

Feature in “The Boondocks”

Why this is Enjoyable
This song comes from the St. Elsewhere album full of soul, hip-hop, and alternative rock, and just about every song has some sort of spiritual lyrics. Instead of a slow-paced religious-like gospel that one might expect, this song brings an upbeat, uplifting, and hopeful sounding tune. It’s so short and limited in lyrics, that one might not be able to hear what the song’s about. I know that the sound and some of the lyrics represent a sort of confidence and motivation that leaders might need.

Selected Lyrics

• “If you’re wondering what you look like, look at me”

This is barely heard during a low volume speaking part before the singing starts, but it could have several different interpretations. One could argue the phrase in a negative light, but I see it more as a revelation type of wording. In terms of leadership, a leader could say this to a follower—if the leader is a great one, then it’s most likely that the follower is similar. However, it can also put things into perspective if the leader is a terrible one as well, causing a moment of realization and a desire to change.

• “I’m well on my way
  I’m almost everything”

Here we have a great line for confidence. One could still be learning or changing and have all their goals lined up correctly. Saying, “I’m almost everything,” gives an amazing sense of assurance, coolness, and accomplishment to the speaker. Of course, it could also be taken as a cocky attitude if the circumstances are right. In the end, I think it’s a powerful statement.

• “What you waitin’ on
  I want action, passion, smilin’, laughin’
  Yieldin’, feelin’, helpin’, healin’”

As leader, the actions listen in these lyrics are the types of things I would want to happen within my own organization or group. Honestly, shouldn’t we have this in our everyday life anyway? There’s nothing else to say about these lines—they should be common sense and they should be present almost all of the time no matter where you are at.

Leadership Summary
Be what you want your followers to be, and this should include “being everything”. While achieving that, give everything that’s beneficial to life (or the organization).

Directed by Wendy Morgan and filmed in Jamaica.

Labrinth – Meanest Man (ft. Ed Sheeran, Wretch 32 & Devlin)

John Legend – Who Did That To You (Django Unchained Soundtrack)

Blakroc – Why Can’t I Forget Him (ft. Nicole Wray)

Bruno Mars – Money Make Her Smile (best use of a bass line in R&B since Billie Jean…OH, did she REALLY just say that?!?!)

Bobby Martini – In Your Eyes (Peter Gabriel vs. Gnarls Barkley)

From “Nashville”

The sales numbers for A$AP Rocky’s Long.Live.A$AP have officially surfaced onto the internet. Even after leaking a month prematurely, Rocky’s debut album sold 141,003 units and is at the top of the Billboard charts. Congrats to A$AP Rocky, A$AP Mob, and all the producers who helped create the record. Long.Live.A$AP is in stores now, so go get it.

Sometime last week Pretty Flacko released another original rendition of a classic song, this time even a little more epic than the last. While on BBC Radio 1 Xtra’s Live Lounge, Rocky decided to cover Gnarls Barkley‘s single “Who’s Gonna Save My Soul” and ends the cover with a pretty dope, short freestyle. Listen up;

Rocky appeared on Radio 1Xtra last night to talk about his album and he also covered Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Whos Gonna Save My Soul‘. He even spits a few bars at the end. Go cop his album ‘LongLiveA$AP‘, in stores now!

Friday night playlist time! This is my “just got off of work, stuck in traffic, but I don’t care, it’s the motherf—-ng weekend bitches!” playlist.

50 Cent - Ryder Music
Erykah Badu - Me
Gnarls Barkley - Who’s Gonna Save My Soul
Johnson&Jonson - Half A Knot
Kid Cudi - Is There Any Love? (feat. Wale)
Vacationer - Everyone Knows
T.I. - Bankhead (feat. P$C & Young Dro)
M.I.A. - Bingo

Listen Here:

Wonder what song it was? Crazy, one of the symptoms you suffer from when you have randomism.

Shortly after my brother asked for a pineapple slice, he disappeared to the gaming room. Ten minutes passed my grandmother was still singing Crazy by ceelo green, then she proceeds to open the fridge to find a plate with nothing on it. She yelled “De’marcus why did you leave this plate here” then started to say a line from the song ” Ha ha ha, bless your soul” then walks out the kitchen singing “I remember when, I remember I remember when I lost my mind I remember when I lost my mind”

I never would of thought that a old person would listen to a Ceelo song, oops my bad, let me rephrase.

Adults over 30 would listen to a hip song, but I guess it happens.

Welp thats a Rap. Come back tomorrow. for something random to be posted………… btw i love dots……

Randomtard Nation………. Gnarls Barkley, Crazy. <—– Click the link. 

Be Bless. John 3:16

Not long ago, I stumbled upon a video of Gnarls Barkley singing a down-tempo, mellowed-out version of Crazy.  It was so heartfelt and intimate –  the version showed me a side of the song I hadn’t seen before.  That was when From the Basement first got my attention.  When I discovered the long, impressive list of artists who have already been on the show (Radiohead, The White Stripes, Foster the People, The Raconteurs, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Feist, The Shins, Andrew Bird, Fleet Foxes – I would love to go on), I became a believer.

For music lovers who enjoy live or acoustic versions of songs, there are several different sources producing great versions of our favorite tracks.  NPR has their studio sessions, Big Ugly Yellow Couch provides performances by up-and-coming bands, and so on.  From the Basement started as a podcast, but grew up quickly into a TV show streaming on Crackle and DirecTV’s 3-D channel 3net.

Nigel Godrich, the visionary music producer most famous for his work with Radiohead, takes the helm in this endeavor.  Since its humble beginnings in 2006,  transition into a UK Television show in 2007, and on into the present where season 3 is being broadcast in HD in 2-D and 3-D, Godrich’s intent has been to “authentically document the pulse of music being made today.”  In a recent interview with Entertainment weekly, Godrich says, “I think what happened was MTV came along in the ’80s and destroyed the way that people film music on television.  The performance ended up in the edit, and it wasn’t very direct. It’s a selfish thing, really—as a music fan, I really wanted to see people performing on television, so we went ahead and did it. Musicians hate doing TV because it’s such a different world and a horrible environment for them, so wouldn’t it be cool for me as a music person to do a TV show? Then I could get something out of them that TV shows wouldn’t get.”  To that end, Godrich uses an intimate basement setting with no audience (except a few HD cameras), making the artists as comfortable as possible to get the best, purest performance possible.

It’s like PBS’s Austin City Limits, but better.

The thing I appreciate most about From the Basement is that it displays the great musicianship of the artists in a way that hyper-produced studio recordings and blasting live performances cannot.  You get to hear and see in stunning detail just how soulful a singer Cee-Lo is, or how beautifully blended Fleet Foxes’ harmonies really are.  There’s no Auto-Tune, no backup tracks, and absolutely no lip-syncing – just pure performance chops at work.  From the Basement is quality proof that there are wonderfully talented artists making great music today.

According to TMZ, a woman has stepped forward and filed a police report accusing Green of sexual battery.

However, a report that was released in May to RadarOnline claims that Cee Lo was arrested in 2001 after smashing his and his ex-wife’s Jaguar after a heated argument.

Green admits that he has had a few demons. In an interview with Blender.com, he said, “I was a kleptomaniac, pyromaniac, just a plain maniac. I was enraged without an outlet. I was aggressive and … took pride in that. I was saved because of my association with music. Music truly did calm a savage beast.”

I hope that he has calmed down, because this news is devastating to even think about.