No more music reviews for a few weeks. I’ve found what I’ll be listening to for the foreseeable future. It’s almost too ridiculous to be real and pretty much a rundown of my favourite bands from ages twelve to twenty-four. Dave Grohl, drummer for Nirvana and I guess the Foo Fighters too, John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, probably the single greatest influence I’ve ever had for playing bass (when I was first learning I would play along to Zeppelin I and II to emulate every one of his lines) and Josh Homme, Queens of the Stone Age frontman, Desert Sessions creative mastermind and the best guitarist playing today. That’s Them Crooked Vultures. The super group to end all super groups.

Oh Jesus.

As to be expected, the riffs are gigantic, the drums and bass are heavy as Mac trucks, the lyrics irreverent and the vocal melodies as catchy as anything. Every one of the tracks on Them Crooked Vultures is a straightforward foot stomper, usually broken into massive instrumental climaxes and with each bar packed with as many impressive instrumental licks as possible without completely giving in to total overindulgence (Mind Eraser, No Chaser possibly possessing the highest volume of squealing guitar fills a song is capable of supporting).

It’s difficult to write about only a few outstanding songs but its easy to identify a few tunes as good indications of the album’s sound. The stupidly catchy refrain of New Fang, the disorienting tempo of the most Zeppelinesque track, Elephants and the nearly indescribable quality of the guitar work (from Homme’s always fantastic store of unique tones) on the recurring chorus of Scumbag Blues all serve as great examples of the album’s feel.

There’s enough variety here to make Them Crooked Vultures a consistently interesting listen too. Interlude with Ludes neatly breaks up the album a little after it’s halfway mark, cleansing the palette with its conspicuous absence of massive guitars and pounding drums and bass — before once again breaking into the heavy, broken-glass blues of Warsaw (or the First Breath You Take After You Give Up).

The choice to let the ear breathe is a smart one and is reflected even in the sporadic rests dropped throughout songs. It shows the same understanding that made Queens of the Stone Age’s Songs for the Deaf so great — turn the volume down on your listener for thirty seconds so that the next attack sounds fresh again. Attention to dynamics make a hard or heavy record retain shelf life and ensures that complete album play throughs are actually enjoyable, unlike, say, The Locust, a band that’s interesting but impossible to listen to at full volume for an hour. It’s an effect that Homme has deftly employed on every one of his albums and it’s one of the reasons that this album works as well as it does.

I could gush more but I won’t. If you’re a fan of one of the contributing artists, and most likely you are, then give this one a listen. It’s probably the best straight-up rock album coming out this year and one that is nearly impossible to take out of the CD player (or iTunes playlist for you fancy types).

And I was joking. I’ll stop listening long enough to write more music reviews but I won’t like it.

— Reid

Sebelum aku tukau template blog ni dan tajuk besau blog ni; aku ada buat satu entri yang aku taip bahawa blog aku akan bertambah kurang ajar dan biadap. Jadi, aku tukau template ke warna hitam, aku buboh gambar kepala di lilit bandage. Nah; siap dah semua ciri-ciri blog yang bakal bercerita secara kurang ajar dan biadap… masa tu, aku nekad… yearghhh… sikap rebel pemuda awal 20-an akan kembali aku nyalakan… yearghhh!!!

tetapi…

2 minggu sudah berlalu, masih lagi tiada entri kurang ajar dan biadap. Apa dah jadi? tanya Pak cik S.M Salim. Where did all goes wrong? tanya Liam gallagher. Entah lah; naluri aku menjawap. Mungkin faktor usia; segala rampage dan rage yang berlaku di contain dan di pagari dengan cermat dalam kepala hotak. Aku bukan pemuda rebellious di awal usia 20-an lagi. Aku secara tak sedar atau sedar telah mengawal rage itu setakat di minda dan tidak diterjemahkan ke dalam perbuatan. Saban malam aku duduk depan kompiter; nekad mau taip satu entri paling durjana dalam blog meraban ni… sudahnya sejam kemudian yang terhasil adalah entri yang sopan belaka. Umpama anak bujang yang first time tengok anak dara berjalan sopan menunduk tika melintas depan orang tua.. begitulah gamaknya sopan aku ni.

Mana perginya N.H.M yang dulunya selalu aje melempar henpon ke dinding jika ada perkara yang mencabar kesabarannya? Mana perginya N.H.M yang dulunya selalu cukup tak sabar untuk jack rusuk mamat yang kurang ajar?

Tapi tu lah, ianya umpama sleeping volcano… masih berasap dan sunyi tapi bebila aje boleh meletus. Aku ni semakin baik agaknya; mungkin sebab itulah aku akan upah orang lain untuk buat kerja jahat aku… mueheheheehehehe.

Wokay jabronies; MatBURN mau tido.

And I forget just why I taste
Oh yeah I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard it’s hard to find
Oh well whatever nevermind….. [Nirvana - Smells like teen spirit]

salud!

tk weighs in:

What is the most important band or artist of the decade?

I pondered this question during my entire stroll down Gower Ave. from Sunset to Santa Monica (all 0.5 miles) and here’s what I came up with. These aren’t controversial choices but who needs controversy when there’s a possibility for accuracy?

First of all, let’s address the other decades.
50s- Elvis, hands down
60s- Beatles, hands down
70s- Led Zeppelin (or Pink Floyd)
80s- Michael Jackson
90s- Nirvana

And that brings us to this decade. As of now, I have narrowed it down to these artists:
Radiohead
Animal Collective
Eminem (or Lil Wayne or Jay-Z… consumers of important rap, help me out here)

Thoughts? Ideas? Nuggets of insight?

ck weighs in:

It’s hard for me to go against your selections. Radiohead is definitely up there. In the 2000s, they released the phenomenal Kid A, the incomprehensible Amnesiac (I never really ‘got it’), the return-to-prominence Hail to the Thief, and the overrated (but revolutionary) In Rainbows. Those four albums can stand up against any artist’s production in the last 10 years. Regardless of whether you think they’re the best band of all time or hopelessly overrated, the “pay-what-you-want” marketing campaign for In Rainbows definitely stuck Radiohead in the cultural lexicon for good and symbolized the downfall of the music industry throughout the decade.

Animal Collective is another exciting choice. Their entire discography is in the 2000s. Since the turn of the century, Animal Collective has released studio albums Spirit They’re Gone, Spirit They’ve Vanished (2000), Danse Manatee (2001), Campfire Songs (2003), Here Comes The Indian (2003), Sung Tongs (2004), Feels (2005), Strawberry Jam (2007), and Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009), as well as four EPs, two live albums, and eight singles.

In addition to being prolific, however, Animal Collective has been one of the most creative outfits of the decade. I am admittedly a latter-half AC fan; I hardly listen to anything before Sung Tongs. That being said, even listening to just those four albums shows the width and depth of their creative sound. Who can you possibly compare them to? Who are Animal Collective’s influences? Neutral Milk Hotel, maybe? The Beach Boys? Where does a song like Peacebone come from? Animal Collective’s importance is wrapped in the creativity of their output. They get better and better with each album, as they careen toward accessibility without leaving behind their weirdness.

I’m not sure if I can agree with you on Eminem. Yes, he was huge. Yes, he was culturally relevant. And yes, he was a pretty good rapper. But he was inactive for 3+ years, and he was a shell of his former self on 2008’s Relapse. He was also the “shocking musician” du jour, which can help with publicity, but rarely leads to a lasting legacy. He seems more interested in being controversial than being innovative.

I would, instead, submit for your consideration, one Justin Timberlake.

At the turn of the decade, there was no bigger pop group than ‘N Sync. Their second album, No Strings Attached, dropped in 2000, driven by the success of initial single Bye Bye Bye. 2001 saw the release of disappointing third album Celebrity, and the group went on hiatus in 2002.

Timberlake took this hiatus as an opportunity to conquer the music world on his own, with 2002’s Justified. The album took the world by storm, propelling JT to immediate stardom. Since then, he’s been dating movie stars, hosting Saturday Night Live, causing wardrobe malfunctions, voicing characters in Shrek sequels, and generally living large.

After the death of Michael Jackson (RIP), the world is starving for a superstar musician. I have long believed that Justin Timberlake is that man. I even wrote a column for my college newspaper titled, “Justin Timberlake: The new King of Pop“. His music is ubiquitous and his presence can make even the Black Eyed Peas sound respectable. What more do you need from the MOST IMPORTANT MUSICAL SPECIMEN of the 2000s?

What do YOU think? Register your opinion in the comments.

Con una discográfica prácticamente en la ruina y con dinero prestado de un amigo, 600 dolares en total, tres jóvenes ingresaron al estudio de grabación de Sub Pop para la realización de un cd, algo que habían esperado durante mucho tiempo. La banda se llamaba Nirvana.

En un principio, el álbum se iba a llamar Too many humans (Demasiados Humanos) pero no se lo permitieron. Mientras estaban de gira, Kurt Cobain vio un cartel que le pareció gracioso. Éste tenía como mensaje la prevención contra el SIDA y su inscripción decía: “Bleach your Works” (Blanquea tus actos). Finalmente decidió que Bleach sería el nombre del nuevo disco, y se lo comunicó a los demás. En el bajo estaba Chris Novoselic y, después de mucho buscar,  la batería quedó a cargo de Chad Channing.

Este material fue lo primero que hicieron en aquel formato y, para ese momento, todavía el conjunto no tenía 100 por ciento su estilo definido y, en realidad, tenía alguna que otra influencia de Los Melvins, grupo al que Cobain seguía devotamente. Los temas pertenecían, casi en su totalidad, a Kurt y la canción más significativa de ese disco, About a Girl, estaba dedicada a quien fue su novia, Tracy Marander. La misma estaba inspirada en las primeras composiciones de The Beatles, a quienes él había recurrido para componerla. 

La imagen de la tapa corresponde a una foto que les había sacado Tracy. Anteriormente, Alice Wheeler había sugerido que la portada tenga una foto de Cobain, pero éste se negó y todos optaron por esta fotografía impresa en negativo. En ella aparece también Jason Everman, el benefactor de este proyecto, que también colocaron en los créditos como segundo guitarrista, aunque en realidad no participó.

No obstante, al principio no muchos compraron este compacto. El álbum vendió en total 30.000 copias y  es probable que el número haya incrementado después de la salida de su segundo proyecto, Nevermind, con el que la banda conquistó al mundo. De este modo, el grunge se introducía en la escena musical como un nuevo estilo que, definitivamente, marcaría los ‘90.

 Por otro lado, el sello Warner lanzará a la venta una versión remasterizada de este trabajo que a demás vendrá con un álbum adicional sobre el concierto que brindaron el 9 de febrero de 1990, en Pine Street Theatre en Portland y un libro con 16 páginas de fotos inéditas. La lista de aquella presentación fue: “School”, “Floyd The Barber”, “Dive”, “Love Buzz”, “Spank Thru”, “Molly’s Lips”, “Sappy”, “Scoff”, “About A Girl”, “Been A Son” y “Blew”.  

Samanta Estigarribia

Spin magazine  has compiled a list of rock’s most notorious myths. Everything from whether or not Nirvana killed hair metal  to Marilyn Manson is a puppy killing nazi to whether or not Radiohead  is the greatest band ever! A lot of Spin’s take on these myths will straight up PISS you off, but, that’s the point!  Agree to disagree and have fun with it! Myth or reality?

Click here for the 16 rock myths.

When you say about your marriage

One can feel inside the heart

Glowing with fondness of exotic affection

It’s almost marrying a country,

Their traditions, their values

Which are so alien to you…

Where have gone all the time

The poring over the books

The effort to learn and adopt

To love and be loved

From the corner lands of India

The gullies and chawls

The mud alleyways.. unknown routes

The villages and smiles..

You never seen on any GPS

Trying to find new people.. The forgotten friends…

They say ‘sita’ is great.. She went unquestioningly to forest

With an over dutiful rama..

I feel every woman is great who made

A foreign land her own.. Trying to emulate

Their systems and methods

Just for one thing in return… their LOVE

Wrapping in saree.. salwar… just to be one of them

Oh! Memsaab! You are wrapping all of us

Enticingly forever.. in your charm and love

By just sheer affection!!

Ohh! I feel great just about thinking them

Rebecca’s,philine’s,christina’s of the world…

What’s in a name????????

When your soul is Indian?

The compassion you show towards problems

The effort you put to reach out hearts…

With smiles.. Travelling miles..

So many things you did for us..

For poor souls of love and affection

For people who don’t know how to express themselves

The haves and have not’s!

We may become an memoire..page after page

But we are wafted in your kind aroma of love!

The color of your skin don’t mean anything

Before your kinship for humanity!

We journey forever to see goddesses

A one-way street to attain nirvana..

Why don’t we worship woman who

Made a foreign culture their own..

Trying to learn attire and values..

Blending the best of the both worlds!

Oh! Mem Saab! We agree that

Marrying an Indian is like marrying India..

We feel great that you are our daughter

Just born in a different soil….

You very well know the saying…

A daughter is a daughter ALL HER LIFE!

(Dedicated to all foreign woman who married an Indian and brought their humanity as a DOWRY)

“Não demoreis em fazer o bem e afastai vossas mentes do mal, pois todo aquele que tarda em fazer o bem acaba sendo alcançado pelo mal.

Insistir na maldade provoca sofrimento. Assim, que ninguém atue mal uma e outra vez.

Insistir na bondade produz felicidade. Assim, atua bem uma e outra vez.

Despreocupado vai o malvado enquanto sua má ação não produz frutos. Mas quando ela amadurece, sobre ele cai todo o infortúnio dessa má ação.

Às vezes o homem bom sente dor ao agir bem, mas quando sua boa ação amadurece e produz frutos, então o bondoso recebe a fortuna de sua obra.

Não os descuideis do mal pensando que não os alcançará, pois assim como o cantil se enche gota a gota, assim o malvado vai se enchendo pouco a pouco de maldade.

Não os descuideis do bem pensando que não chegará, pois assim como o cantil se enche gota a gota, assim o sábio vai se enchendo pouco a pouco de bondade.

O mal deve ser evitado com a mesma astúcia que um comerciante rico afasta sua caravana do caminho perigoso, e com o mesmo afinco que o homem que ama a vida evita o veneno.

Assim como o veneno não consegue ferir a mão que o sustenta se não há ferida, assim se livra da maldade aquele que não está enganado.

Como poeira lançada ao vento, volta-se o mal contra o malvado que fere o homem inocente, puro e sem mácula.

Alguns homens nascem de matriz. Outros, os malvados, nascem em estados desgraçados. Outros, os que dominam a si mesmos, nascem em estados benditos. Mas apenas os iluminados alcançam o Nirvana.

Não há lugar algum, nem no céu, nem no meio do oceano, nem em uma caverna perdida nas montanhas, onde um homem possa estar a salvo da morte.”

capítulo X – Castigo

todos os capítulos

Street Art, Curlewis St, Bondi

Artist unknown

Polly

by Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, David Grohl

Polly wants a cracker

I think I should get off her first

I think she wants some water

To put out the blow torch.

Isn’t me, have a seed

Let me clip your dirty wings

Let me take a ride, cut yourself

Want some help, please myself.

Got some rope, you have been told

Promise you, I have been true

Let me take a ride, cut yourself

Want some help, please myself.

Polly wants a cracker

Maybe she would like some food

She asked me to untie her

A chase would be nice for a few.

Isn’t me, have a seed

Let me clip dirty wings

Let me take a ride, cut yourself

Want some help, please myself.

Polly said.

Polly says her back hurts

She’s just as bored as me

She caught me off my guard

Amazes me the will of instinct.

Isn’t me, have a seed

Let me clip dirty wings

Let me take a ride, cut yourself

Want some help, please myself.

When Kurt Cobain swore that he did not have a gun…how may of us fans thought that he was lying?

Nirvana where would they be today?  I was living in West Sac when I heard the news…

What is it that makes me, someone who loathes pretty much every band that was big in the nineties,  like Nirvana so much? A big part of the appeal is Kurt Cobain’s strong personal charisma. I mean, seriously, he was way hotter than Billy Corgan. Then there’s the dramatic appeal of the whole sordid, tragic, short story, compelling precisely because it was short. Cliched as it sounds, it really was the definitive cautionary tale of that era. The music may be nineties grunge to the max,  but there’s a sense that underneath all that feedback and loudness there was some soul.

I’m currently reading a book by Danny Goldberg called Bumping Into Geniuses. It’s a perfect book for me to be reading because, not only does Goldberg have fascinating tales to tell about bumping into and working with some of my favorite geniuses (including the likes of Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and Bonnie Raitt), but his career path is something I’m trying to emulate.

In fact, I’d unknowingly been trying to follow Goldberg’s career path before I even knew who he was. Now, as I read it, the book is validating my seemingly lofty assumption that I can turn my position as a starving journalist with a geeky obsession with music and musicians into a career as a legitimate, successful music industry executive and artists’ advocate. Goldberg went from being a rock critic to doing PR for Led Zeppelin to running Atlantic Records. Who’s to say I can’t do something like that?

The book’s title comes from Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun’s answer to how to make it in the music business: keep walking around until you bump into a genius. He was obviously simplifying things, but a running theme of the book is the absence of a formula when nurturing a career in music. In the beginning of the book, Goldberg quotes the legendary Atlantic Records president Jerry Wexler (who, incidentally, also began his career as a journalist) in reference to music industry secrets. “First of all, there aren’t any secrets. And second of all, if there were any secrets, we wouldn’t tell them.” This was before Goldberg had begun his own admirable career. And, in hindsight, Goldberg himself says, “What few secrets there were could not be of any help to anyone else. But there were stories.”

So, what can I learn from these men? I can glean confidence from their stories and appreciate my own. And I can hope that if I keep walking in the right direction, I’ll eventually position myself at the right place at the right time and bump into a few geniuses myself.

…are these five albums:

1) Disc Two Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ “White Lunar”

2) DJ Shadow’s “The Outsider″

3) Nirvana’s “Sliver: The Best of the Box”

4) Prodigy’s “The Fat of the Land”

5) The White Stripes’ “De Stijl”

And you?

Rocking it,

-Shady

Friends, I’m not going to lie: I had a gingerbread latte this morning, and it has left me a wee bit wired and manic.

It also meant I was in the car a few minutes longer than usual, inching through the drive-thru at Starbucks, and heard a few more gems as part of my scan. Hence, a scattershot entry for a rainy Friday:

1. Do you believe in love? Huey Lewis and the News want to know. Oh, Huey! As documented in these pages, I cannot help loving you. And believing in you. And believing in loving you. I saw you talking to Bonnie Hunt on the teevee the other day, and though I thought you looked old (as do we all), I still found you charming and adorable. So YES: I believe in love. All real-life evidence to the contrary.

2. Fireflies. Hey hey MK: I had never heard that song before you wrote about it yesterday (at least not that I was aware of), but I heard it today. I will now think of your sweet nephew (12??? OLD.) whenever I hear it again.

3. Huh-nuh hah-nah, huh-nuh HAH-nah, etc. Yeah, I’ve got no idea, all these years later, what most of the words to “Smells Like Teen Spirit” are, but I do remember seeing Nirvana on “Saturday Night Live” back in the day. Do today’s kids still discover new bands, or see them for the first time in person, on SNL? I don’t have the slightest idea. I am OLD and out of touch with today’s youth.

4. Holly Jolly Burl Ives Count: 6.

5. Do people in all football cities gather at the hometown stadium when their team is playing an away game, or is that just in my burg? And do deejays talk about these gatherings endlessly everywhere else? I am so clueless about football.

6. Don’t you just love Bonnie Hunt? I find her adorable.

7. Aren’t you just sick to death of all things Twilight? I am.

8. Is it a coincidence that the “Glee” kids sang “Lean on Me” the other night, and that I have heard that song — both the Bill Withers and the Club Nouveau versions — both yesterday and today? I THINK NOT. PS Much as I love the “Glee,” I thought the music was TERRRRible this week. Ah, well. Can’t win ‘em all.

I remember a time, which seems many years ago but was actually not that far back, when I used to sit in my school common room during break time and watch or play on the Gamecube. I remember racing speedily along with zero gravity tracks, sweaty boys, pulses, and the sound of Biffy Clyro’s third album Glitter and Trauma. I remember slashing and hacking and generally button bashing Nintendo characters, and even further back, ducking and sniping the day away to the likes of Nirvana, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Rage Against the Machine, the likes of which were all extremely new (though old to the world) and strange to my ears but eventually came to constitute large amounts of my shelf space and my ongoing musical preferences. I remember a later time, huddled around the TV cheering along to a virtual football mega-tournament including half of the boys in the year, with the song, as titled at the top of this post, adapted to the currently favoured team. “I’m feeling so Iranian like you” has always had a hugely personal feel to it, despite having never consciously met an Iranian person, let alone imagined what it would be like to feel that way. I’m much more inclined towards Bohemia, but somehow it doesn’t feel as close.

All these memories are set to music. I seem to work that way… But today I think my evening formed a memory which will not be set to a soundtrack. This evening, though my Korean friends may not agree, I feel as though I had a very Korean evening. Here’s why:

This morning was unusually warm for Autumn, especially considering my girlfriend had warned me that today would be extra cold. Well, by the time I caught the bus home from school it had gotten unnaturally chilly, and the extra layer I had carried confusedly earlier now made a lot more sense. I, however, was not feeling all too great and was not particularly looking forwards to a quiet evening at home (which I feared would turn into an evening spent canoodling my computer and it’s associated gaming software) in what was now seemingly sub-zero weather. Relatively at least. To explain why I didn’t spend the evening conquering the virtual world, I must take you even further back than this morning.

Last night I stayed up unusually late writing unusually long emails to some of those back home in the UK, having no fear of needing to wake up because the next day was SATs day. This, from what I can gather, is a listening test which happens in High schools one morning every year, and all public offices – such as schools, government buildings etc – are closed until 9 40 so that the students can get to their (very important) tests on time, even if they happen to be running late. Apparently these are so important that if I kid is running late they’re allowed to ask a  policeman for a lift to school, whence they’re whizzed off on the back of a motorbike through the unusually traffic-less roads to their test. At any rate, this meant that I could get up a full hour an a half later this morning. Unfortunately this appears to cause my routine to shake too much, and I awoke at one thirty this morning and ate breakfast, thinking I’d better start getting ready to go. Thankfully I woke up properly halfway through, finished it off and didn’t get in the shower.

I also awoke at seven-thirty, eight, and quarter past eight thinking I was late for school.

When I finally did wake up at the (self-) appointed time of eight thirty, I finished off my cereal and showered and continued to school. This sounds inconsequential, however having eaten two breakfasts this morning, instead of one today and one tomorrow, meant that I needed to go shopping to buy some more this evening or go without breakfast tomorrow, which is, frankly, unacceptable. And so, there was at least one event planned for my evening which might otherwise have been spent neglectfully.

Before I arrived in my apartment, then, I swung by the Hana-ro mart and stocked up on various fruits and goods to restock my cupboards. After this I resisted the urge to buy a cheap and huge tub of ice cream, and instead bought a lovely doughnut from Dunkin’ Donuts! Unfortunately most people don’t realise that the name implies that you should dunk your doughnut in some coffee, however I occasionally fulfil this obligation. This evening, however, I didn’t, and continued they long journey to my room (Dunkin’ is in my apartment block). Before I got to the elevator though, I realised that, rather unlike me, I felt like buying some 떡볶이 (Ddeok-bokgi)!

This is a common snack in Korea and can be bought at roadside tents every fifty metres, and is effectively rice cake in rather spicy sauce. This I bought for the pricy sum of two thousand Won (one pound), and after successfully exchanging a few comments in Korean such as “Do you want it spicy”, “Yes, I like spicy Ddeok-bokgi!”, “Oh, you speak Korean well!” and ”Thanks”, I went up to my room.

Upon walking through my door I realised that the loud drumming and music I had heard outside (but haven’t mentioned until now) was actually across the road from my apartment block, and would continue to be loud and rhythmic for some time to come. You seem to be able to play extremely loud music on the streets occasionally with no consequences… I’m not sure if this is because they got a license or if it’s just the culture, however it provided a particularly Korean backdrop to my dinner, which was eaten whilst I sat cross-legged on my bed watching Power Puff Girls on TV.

Powerpuff Girls? Yes, but not as you know them, in fact, I watched 파워 퍼프 걸Z (Paweoh Peopeuh Geolzeuh), in which the girls were seemingly older than their English counterparts, had strange personal weapons, had as much leg showing as possible along with every other celebrity in this highly conservative culture and, in this episode, were fighting against strange mutant Sushi which had somehow gained consciousness, grown significantly and was devastatingly attacking the local city. After they had been defeated by the doctor’s clever chemical formula (one of which had probably caused the problem in the first place), the girls didn’t hesitate in eating the formerly-deadly fish. They celebrated in an appropriately cute Korean style as I happily munched on my chewy spicy ricey cakes and ignored the ever louder drums.

And when this had finished I flicked over only to find a strangely impressive Gordon Brown giving a speech at the Berlin Wall anniversary celebrations, which, if you missed them, included the domino-like falling of a huge amount of giant dominoes, which I can only assume was meant to symbolise the falling down of something a little more significant. And all this comes just a week before President Obama was due to visit Seoul to discuss a somewhat similar situation involving communists and a nation divided by a big line and political tensions. One couldn’t help but wonder how long it would take for the reunification of the Koreas to manifest itself, if, indeed, it ever does. I think I can hear on the wind that it might be becoming more likely in the near future…

Whilst I pondered these deep and complicated issues I sat and ate a persimmon.

Looking back, it was a completely ordinary day, but ordinary in what struck me as a Korean way. And, I guess, Korean is ordinary for me now. Come visit me, see if you can feel what I mean… And someone tell me how strange it is that being here is normal. I feel like it feels a lot less strange than it should.

톰

‘Smells like teen spirit’ is one of my better songs.

Call me Piper, everyone does. I write songs for a living, you might say. But I get paid more than the usual, and the money’s worth every note.

You might ask what a songwriter of my caliber is doing in a country like this. I like it here: the Boracay sunsets, the white sand, the beautiful women – trust me, Filipinas may be known around the world as domestic helpers, but they take good care of those they’re paid to love. Look at me: I’m pampered like a king.

Unfortunately, when a Filipina goes out with a Caucasian like me, most people here think: she’s a prostitute. And that’s damn unfair. But what can you do? Whether in their own country or abroad, the women of this country get the shit end of the bargain.

But where was I? Ah, yes, you were asking about me. Do you want a drink first? The margaritas here are real good. Me, I love the Pale Pilsen – definitely one of the best beers in the world.

Before anything else, I’d like to congratulate you. Not too many people know about my special relationship with the world music industry. I give you top marks for your reportorial skills. Where does Rolling Stones find you people? And tracking me all the way here? Brava, young woman, brava.

But I’m getting away from your question again, aren’t I?

All right: you know by now that I’ve written some rather popular songs. Kurt Cobain may have written many of his songs but the most popular ones were mine. A few of Elvis Presley’s as well. Michael Jackson, Freddie Mercury, John Lennon, and…

Sorry if I’m name-dropping. I’ll try not to do that.

So where do I start? How about the fact that I’m a lot older than I look? Can you guess? Forty? Fifty? Not even close. But trust me, I look younger than I really am.

Suffice it to say that in ancient days – and I can honestly say that I use that word accurately – I first charmed snakes in the East and then rats in the West with my songs. And when that didn’t pay so well, I sang to children, lured them out of cities, and found out that I did that pretty well. In fact, it worked so well that I started a whole children’s crusade during the Middle Ages.

Don’t understand me? Don’t worry, we can skip that part of my resume and move our timeline a little bit… oh, to the 20th century. By then, I’ve made a living on songs that would get the kids’ feet moving with far more verve than the prospect of sex. By then I was making deals left and right with musicians, making them play my music, instead of playing it myself. Sometimes it was just a tune or the whole song, and sometimes it was the gift of playing.

And when they didn’t pay – well, ask Robert Johnson what happened to him when he tried to avoid his rendezvous at the crossroads. Or Buddy Holly trying to fly away on his little airplane. Really, when you make a deal, you stick by it. And why not? I’m good at what I do. I make the songs that the whole world dances and listens to, so I should be paid what I’m owed, right? 

Why am I doing this? Because I’m looking for certain… requirements for those who want to make a deal with me. Of course, I can give you a fantastic contract that begets you the whole world – but I’m not God. Time and chance can make a singer the next biggest thing, but no one can predict if you’ll last that long or become more popular than Jesus Christ. Hell has nothing on the vagaries of the music industry, and even my good friend Simon Cowell knows that well enough.

So I make these deals with the people, but only a few have managed to match the requisites I need. To be precise, I need four icons of music, four leading figures that have made their mark on history. It’s slow going on the road to fame and sometimes the singer can’t take it. Look at Cobain, Billie Holliday and Janis Joplin. Also, sometimes the level of fame isn’t enough at the end. Look at Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison.

Still, when you’ve lived as long as I have, you get lucky. Right now, I have two: Elvis who became the King of Rock and Roll, and Michael, who was the King of Pop. Once I have all four Kings, well, I will have what I want. I can open the gates of Hell, the voices of these Kings singing like the Cherubim of old and carrying me home finally. That’s not so bad, isn’t it? Unfortunately, once the gates are open, you can’t close them again. But that’s not my problem anymore.

Oh, look. Isn’t the sunset beautiful?

(from Literatunes, September 23, 2009 at www.allmusicjunkies.com)

“If we want our children to respect us, they have to respect
authority first.”
Senator Hubert Webb on the 2016 Youth Patrol Act

“Smells like… teen spirit,” said the female voice acidly.

Surprised, 19-year old Daniel de Quiros said, “What?” As he floated in a gray sea of static, he gestured and the static formed into a computer simulation of the Taft MRT train station around him. Though he knew it was only virtual reality, he felt claustrophobic as digital spectres of people flowed around him.

“This place,” said a disembodied voice from the digital ether, “It stinks of sweat and fart and garbage and…”

Dan laughed. “Welcome to Manila. Should get used to it, we’ll be spending a lot of time here.”

“Not if I can help it. Ah, I see the bastards.”

“I think the correct term is potential delinquents,” he said as he saw a gang of boys – nine of them, their ages ranging from 13 to 17 – dressed in black jeans, torn shirts. The group was horsing around the entrance of the MRT station, causing a jam as they prevented the evening’s rush-hour crowd from entering the turnstiles. The AI finally solidified the virtual simulacrum of 18-year old Charms Vergara beside him. She said, “God, was I ever that rebellious? I feel old. Do you feel old, Bubble Boy?”

“Don’t call me Bubble Boy,” he snapped as he studied the group. He never had friends in his isolation and he envied the boys their camaraderie. “Are you ready?”

“Would I be dressed like this if I weren’t?” she said. Daniel admitted that she looked good in her black cargo pants, sleeveless plaid blouse, and black metal-capped boots.

“Come on, girl, show me what you got,” he said with a half-smile.

Snorting, she slid out a black metal baton that she extended with a flick of a wrist. She added, “Play some music, Bubble Boy.”

He obliged her and waved a hand in front of him, spreading music files like a pack of cards. “Since you mentioned it earlier… how about this?”

The heavy plucking of a bass guitar filled the electronic air and he knew Charms could hear it as well on her wireless earphone: Load up on guns, bring our friends. It’s fun to lose and to pretend…“Shit, is that Nirvana?” she asked as she approached the group.

The nearest boy looked up with a sneer at the pretty girl walking towards him. She gleefully whipped the baton across the boy’s face in a spray of blood and spittle. Flashing her wallet government ID, she shouted, “Hey you! Stop right there!”

Dan floated above the VR scenery so that he could get a better look. He saw the crowd clear as if they sensed the coming fight. The station security guards had already flat-out refused to deal with the kids, especially after the violent raid in a Manila university that created the Childhood Protection Act in 2012.

With the lights out, it’s less dangerous. Here we are now, entertain us…Two of the boys charged at Charms but she sidestepped to the left and rammed the metal butt of the baton against the stomach of one of them. As he bent over in pain, she pirouetted and cracked the baton against his friend’s head. Dan winced as he saw the boy tumble to the floor.

Another boy rushed up and Dan shouted, “Behind you!” She ducked the boy’s grasping arms and swept him off his feet with an outstretched leg.

I’m worse at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed…As the five remaining gang members circled around Charms, she saw a glint of a knife as well as a lead pipe. Meanwhile, Dan checked the nearby close-circuit cameras and saw a police patrol tromping hurriedly towards the station. “Charms, police ETA in five minutes.”

“Late as always,” she replied as she carefully palmed the small Kahr P380 from the holster at her back. “Take out the station lights in a three-two burst. Don’t want to panic the crowd with gunshots.”

Dan accessed the station electrical grid and counted off: “Got it. Three, two, one, go!”

The overhead lights of the station went out for a couple of seconds and caused the watching crowd to scream. But before the blackout could cause a stampede, five successive shots rang out. When the lights came back on, Dan could see Charms had already brought down all five boys with non-fatal wounds.

I found it hard, it’s hard to find. Oh well, whatever never mind… A beeping sound resonated through the VR. “Uh-oh, gotta go. Good job,” Dan said as he keyed off the music. As he exited, he heard Charms say, “Thanks, Bubble Boy.”

Hello hello hell-ooow, hello hello hell-ooow, hello hello hell-oow… Dan opened his eyes to see the familiar clear plastic sphere that was his whole world. He raised himself from the VR pod and saw three people outside the sterile room that served as his command post.

He recognized Doctor Garner who was treating him for his Severe Combined Immunodeficiency—but not the other American, a pale-looking man in a black suit. The liaison chief approached the plastic wall that separated him from the rest of the human race.

“How was it?” Mr. Ortiz asked.

Dan replied, “No problem, sir. The start-up was a bit slow though.”

“Good,” Ortiz said and turned to the American, “Tell your President that Operation Big Brother was successful. I think we can honestly say that the test run for your global phase is feasible.”

The American nodded and walked out of the room.

Dan thought, What the hell am I getting myself into?

(From Literatunes, September 23, 2009 at  www.allmusicjunkes.com)

Seven went to Seattle to visit his Mom. Seattle also birthed an awesome rockband named, Nirvana, who made THIS ALBUM:

I was back home, listening to one of my favorite bands of all time, The Pixies. Who actually influenced Nirvana’s “Nevermind” album. So, I told Seven let’s sample my favorite song of all time.

That song is called, “Hey”, by The Pixies.

I chopped up the sample, sent it to Seven…and…recreated one of my favorite rock songs of all time.

XV – NEVERMIND

But, I didn’t like it as much as some of the other material on “Look What I Can Do“, so…I said…nevermind. And sent it to my people at YNotMyDream for their mixtape.

The End.

1960

Nace Matt Sorum baterista de Velvet Revolver

1970

Nace Justin Chancellor Bajista de Tool

1993

Nirvana graba el MTV unplugged en New York

Here’s the latest batch of Music Musings and Miscellany’s unapologetically subjective selection of the twentieth century’s best 1000 singles.

FAIRPORT CONVENTION – Si Tu Dois Partir / Genesis Hall (Island 6064 1969)
In the period between the end of the sixties and punk, for the serious prog-rock, metal and folk-rock fan, the 45rpm seven inch single became a bit of a joke. Some bands (Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd) didn’t bother with them at all. For others, a hit single and a Top of the Pops appearance was a bit of a lark, not to be taken too seriously. Fairport’s cover of a Dylan song, in French, with chairback and milk bottle percussion (with an accident when one fell off the table and smashed left in the final mix) was a surprise hit. It’s not a comedy record, just light-hearted and gleeful.

LEE MORGAN – The Sidewinder / Part 2 (Blue Note 1911 1964)
Jazz artists, too, weren’t generally interested in singles. Most that were released were edits of album tracks aimed squarely at jukeboxes. The ten minute “The Sidewinder” by jazz trumpeter Lee Morgan has become one of the best known post-bop standards, with its funky rhythm and catchilly repetitive central riff. In some ways, it’s one of the foundation stones of jazz-funk, acid jazz, fusion and the rest.

PRINCE – Sign ө the Times / La La La La He He He He (Paisley Park 28399 1987)
Stepping back from his tales of sex and Corvettes, Prince unleashed this unassuming little song that dug into the underbelly of the brash and flash eighties for which he himself was part of a symbolic triumvirate of pop stars, along with Jacko and Madonna, who came to represent the ‘me’ decade. The flipside – AIDS, poverty, the still real threat of nuclear catastrophe (remember Ronnie “let’s bomb Russia” Reagan was still president) were marked out, almost without comment. It’s still his most forceful and thoughtful song.

STEVIE WONDER – Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours / I’m More Than Happy (Tamla 54196 1970)
“Signed, Sealed, Delivered” represents the end of phase one of Stevie Wonder’s career when he was still just a cog (albeit a vital one) in the Motown hit factory. As his 21st birthday loomed, he held out for a new contract that would give him unprecedented artistic control – something almost unheard of at Motown – and would pave way for his classic period when he would fuse soul, pop, gospel, electronic music and funk into his own unique and brilliant vision.

TORI AMOS – Silent All These Years / Me and a Gun (East West YZ618 1991)
Out of the flood of singer-songwriters who’ve emerged over the last two decades, Tori Amos remains a singular talent, and the two sides of this single go a long way to explaining why. The first, a lush, beautifully orchestrated, literate piano ballad. The second, a chilling a capella recounting a harrowing rape experience.

CARTER FAMILY – Single Girl, Married Girl / Storms are on the Ocean (Victor 20937 1927)
This proto-feminist tune comparing the lots of the wed and unwed woman has become one of the best-loved, and oft-covered Carter Family tunes. With good reason.

NIRVANA – Sliver / Dive (Sub Pop 72 1990)
NIRVANA – Smells Like Teen Spirit / Even In His Youth (Geffen 19050)
Only a year separates these singles. The first a dipped toe into melodic pop rock, albeit with a lyric recalling a pre-school Kurt being shipped off to his grandparents’, and despite TV and ice cream, just wanting to be in his own home. The second a Pixies parody, and last minute addition to Nevermind, that made him a reluctant global icon.

BEACH BOYS – Sloop John B / You’re So Good To Me (Capitol 5602 1966)
Added to Pet Sounds at Capitol’s insistence, “Sloop John B” doesn’t really fit with the rest of the album, but as a single works just fine. A strange choice of song for a 45, it’s actually a Bahamian song about a wild party that took place on the Nassau waterfront the night that the John B was sunk and was originally entitled “The Wreck of the John B”

ULTRAVOX! – Slow Motion / Dislocation (Island 6454 1978)
Another classic from the Foxx era, and an inspiration from everyone from Gary Numan to Duran Duran. Don’t let that put you off, though.

THE UNDISPUTED TRUTH – Smiling Faces Sometimes / You Got the Love I Need (Gordy 7108 1971)
Less a band, more Norman Whitfield’s own experimental lab rats. The man was even more of a control freak than his boss Berry Gordy, and wanting a group a little less combative and more malleable than the Temptations he ended up with the Undisputed Truth. Many songs would be road tested by the Truth before being handed to the Tempts, but they did at least have one major hit they could truly call their own – this dark, paranoid masterpiece.

PLATTERS – Smoke Gets In Your Eyes / No Matter What You Are (Mercury 71383 1958)
SABRES OF PARADISE – Smokebelch II (entry) / Smokebelch II (exit) (Sabres of Paradise 9 1993)
HOWLIN’ WOLF – Smokestack Lightning / You Can’t Be Beat (Chess 1618 1956)
ROBINS – Smokey Joe’s Café / Just Like a Fool (Spark 122 1955)
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the smoking section. The first a 1933 show tune by Jerome Kern and Otto Harbach about blind love, turned into an unparalleled piece of weepy melodrama by the rich tenor of the Platters’ Tony Williams. The Sabres of Paradise’s classic come-down instrumental has graced a million TV soundtracks, but still sounds fresh and sober. Wolf growls and howls his way through a typically apocalyptic blues, whilst the Robins encounter a problem when trying to hit on the girlfriend of a large and borderline psychotic café owner.

More soon

Köp Nirvana – Unplugged in New York.

Ahora que 1990 suena tan lejano, la revista Rolling Stone ha puesto en su version digital una album de fotos de los inicios del mismo con fotos de NIRVANA, SMASHING PUMPKINS,SOUNDGARDEN, HOLE, SONIC YOUTH, ETC. Las fotos son de Michael Lavine y para ver al album completo da click aqui.