Tag: rock music

Oasis – Knebworth 1996 (Album of the Week)

On By bigbadburchIn Album of the Week4 Comments

This Album of the Week will be a deluxe edition. I am going to cover an album, Blu-Ray and documentary. It was a few weeks back that the entire package of the Oasis – Knebworth album and film came to retail shelves and now it’s time to get into the astonishing amount of material within.

Oasis – Live At Knebworth

Released November 19, 2021 via Big Brother Records

My Favorite Tracks – Slide Away, Acquiesce, Columbia

The Album

The official live record compiles the entire setlist of both shows, though this compilation borrows from both shows to make one record. I suppose a completionist might have rather have both shows in full as an audio offering, though this stitched-together effort does a fine job of showcasing the gigs.

The songs are presented in order from the shows, the setlist did not deviate between the two nights. Almost all of the songs are slightly truncated versions of their studio counterparts – the structure is verse-chorus-verse-chorus and close, things were kept simple for the massive concerts. Set opener Columbia loses over a minute from its studio runtime, and everything besides Champagne Supernova has a bit of fluff trimmed off.

The song selection is almost completely spot on – 5 songs from the debut album, 8 from the seminal What’s The Story…, 5 non-album cuts and 2 tracks from the band’s next release Be Here Now. There is only one glaring omission from the chosen set and that’s a point addressed in the documentary – Rock N’ Roll Star is a perfect tune for the energetic festival performance. For some reason the band wasn’t playing it at all during this touring cycle.

For this massive scale performance the band would necessarily leave some nuance behind and put more force behind the musical presentation. Even with that, songs like The Masterplan and Wonderwall get string arrangements to accompany them, and horns join in on Round Are Way (which also sees the chorus of Up In The Sky sneak in at the end). Even the melancholy Cast No Shadow translates well to the stadium-sized performance.

If any one song loses a bit of something to the noise of Knebworth, it’s Don’t Look Back In Anger. Noel simply turns up his guitar and slams through the song. While the rendition is fine, it is a song that could have benefited from an arrangement of some sort. It is not a large disappointment but it is a note to be made out of the set.

Of course, Oasis has no shortage of hard hitting tracks that translate very well on the big stage. Supersonic, Cigarettes And Alcohol, Some Might Say and Morning Glory all stand out in the noise and power of 125,000 people. And the second song Acquiesce, a celebrated B-side that probably suffers from not having a proper album release, is an especially on-fire version of the song. Liam’s snarl through the verses is beautifully matched by Noel’s more delicate delivery of the chorus and the song absolutely stands out in the Knebworth gigs.

One track stands out above the others from Knebworth. It has been long known among Oasis diehards that the Sunday performance of Slide Away is perhaps the definitive version of that song and many consider it the band’s best live offering ever. While I haven’t checked out other landmark gigs enough to make such a determination, I will say that Slide Away absolutely hits on this live set. It is a complete monster performance, that much is certain.

In the end, the choice to piece an official Knebworth album from both nights works well. The diehards who wish to have both nights on audio probably already do digitally or in bootleg form, so it’s not a disservice to the product to patch this set together from both nights. Many celebrated live albums have gone that route in order to deliver the best possible experience.

And it’s nice to finally have one of the band’s historic gigs in official form. Oasis only released one live album during their tenure while Knebworth and other massively-celebrated concerts have been relegated to bootleg or YouTube status. A superfan will of course hope that Earl’s Court, Maine Road and other landmark gigs from this and other tours will get official releases in the future, but whether or not that happens is impossible to say.

The Blu-Ray

The video presentation of Knebworth offers the theatrical documentary as well as both concert sets in full. While we did not get an complete official audio package, the video side does deliver with both nights.

The footage does a good job of joining high definition content with more grainy film from 1996. I didn’t have a problem with how the video played out, it was all put together well. There isn’t a lot else that needs to be said – both shows are here for anyone who wants to get into them.

The Documentary

The centerpiece of the Knebworth package is the documentary filmed earlier this year to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the gigs. It was an historic occasion for Oasis and so Noel chose to honor the memory with this deluxe offering.

The film is very well-done and does not offer a dry run through historical facts, nor is it some hollow puff piece that kisses the band’s ass while not offering anything of real value. The filmmakers chose to let the fans tell the story of Knebworth and it’s a choice that makes this documentary stand out from many other music films.

The film runs through the build up to the concerts – the pain of getting tickets, finding a way to the shows, and getting on the grounds and up front when there. There is no central narrator – most of the story is told by the fans, while Noel and Bonehead also contribute thoughts. Liam only speaks briefly at the end, perhaps owing to how shitfaced he reportedly was on the night between the two shows. Also of note is that no modern-day footage of anyone from the band is shown – everything is from that weekend in 1996 or recreations of fans’ experiences.

I don’t know how well the film would play out for someone who isn’t a fan of Oasis. Some documentaries can be compelling viewing even if a person isn’t a fan of the subject, but Knebworth is very much a fan service film. It doesn’t offer up a lot to someone who doesn’t have a vested interest in the band and isn’t an accounting of facts and figures – it’s the true story of that weekend in August 1996.

The fans tell their stories of that weekend – a young man who found out his girlfriend was pregnant just before arriving at the shows, the requisite group of lads who drove a junk car across the country, and a couple of girls who were able to score tickets early Sunday morning with just enough time to get to the festival grounds. One woman’s story about her brother, told as the band ran through The Masterplan, is especially touching and a standout moment from the film that truly captures the weight of these concerts and Oasis at their peak in 1996.

It is a theme discussed in the film – these shows in August were the end of youth and innocence for many in the crowd. These shows are often looked at as the end of the Britpop movement, though some choose the next year’s release of Be Here Now as that moment. While I wasn’t at the gigs it also was the end of my youth – I turned 19 about a week after these gigs. It was a strange and interesting time where the last vestiges of childhood fell by the wayside. Music and life wouldn’t be the same after this.

The Knebworth film does a great job of showcasing how much weight Oasis and these shows held. The story is told by the fans, for the fans in celebration of that historic weekend in 1996. This film lines up very well just after the Supersonic documentary, as its endpoint was these Knebworth shows. This is likely the end of full-form documentaries about Oasis, as their high points are now covered by these two films. It is a collection of stories – about the band, the 250,000 fans who packed the house those two nights, and the millions of fans around the world.

Smith/Kotzen – Better Days EP

On By bigbadburchIn Reviews2 Comments

Rather than cheap out and make another EP the Album of the Week, I decided to go ahead and give this one its own space. This new record comes to us from Adrian Smith and Richie Kotzen, a perhaps unlikely pairing who offered up a fantastic full-length album earlier in 2021.

Richie Kotzen has been around the block in rock music – over 20 solo albums, many more as a band member, and a slew of guest shots and projects. And Adrian Smith has a handful of various projects over the years, interspersed with his time as a part of Iron Maiden’s celebrated guitar duo/trio. As luck would have it, Kotzen and Smith are neighbors and the pandemic finally gave them a chance to hang out and record some music.

The self-titled debut of Smith/Kotzen was an excellent affair that stood out from the typical “side project” crowd. We’re now offered this 4-song EP as a Black Friday treat. Thankfully this release did not suffer from the secondary market RSD premium and is readily available on wax for normal retail prices. I just couldn’t bear the thought of not having an Iron Maiden-adjacent record in my collection, even if it means financial well-being will elude me.

As there are only 4 songs on this disc, it should be pretty easy to get through a track-by-track look at it.

Smith/Kotzen – Better Days EP

Released November 26, 2021 via BMG

My Favorite Track – Better Days

Better Days

The EP’s title track leads the proceeding. This is a nice rocker that picks up right where the debut album left off. The song brings the well-worn theme of looking at the past with rose-colored lenses while hoping for better days to come, something certainly relevant after the past few years. On highlight is the guitar work, well done but also very fitting for the song and not just a wank fest showcase. Of course both Smith and Kotzen have long plied their trades in that fashion so it’s no surprise.

Got A Hold On Me

This track kicks up the power a notch. It is another example of rock music done in 2021 outside the influence of alternative rock, something that usually takes a bit of digging to find these days. It’s a song that also would have been at home on the full album, driving home the point that this EP is not an exercise in getting rid of leftovers.

Hate And Love

A more mid-tempo affair that sounds like something that could have been a solid hard rock hit from the later 80’s. It does benefit though from the seasoned experience of the players, both in vocal delivery and in the to-the-point groove of the song. The song is fine to listen to for its own merits, and a person almost needs to keep an ear out for the quick guitar flourishes that remind everyone who exactly they’re listening to.

Rise Again

This song brings a different vibe that reminds me at points of Van Halen’s song Judgment Day from the For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge record. It’s a very quick rocker that feels like it’s over almost as soon as it began, but with plenty going on for its duration. This closer keeps things fresh with its variety but also maintains the rocking mood of the EP.

The Better Days EP is another excellent offering from the duo of Adrian Smith and Richie Kotzen. It’s great to have both a full album and this bonus recording from the group. Hopefully they will find time to do more in the future and perhaps have a gig or two. Time will tell, especially as Adrian’s day job is calling again. Whatever the future may hold, it’s nice to have some good rock music in 2021.

Spotify Wrapped 2021

On By bigbadburchIn Favorites1 Comment

I was shuffling around my next few posts a bit and had a bit of a hang-up as I tried to figure out what to do for today. As luck would have it, Spotify would drop some quick and easy content in my lap in the form of their Wrapped end of year data dump.

For those unaware, Spotify provides a rundown of a user’s most-played songs, genres and artists for the year every December. It’s a neat little thing that provides a bit of info and can also be fun and silly. For me and the purposes of this blog, it’s a great way to get some content with just some screenshots and a few words. Let’s have at it.

This is the total minutes I spent listening on Spotify this year. This is by far the most I’ve used the service in a year. For the biggest part of 2021 I had a job where I could play music all day and I’d alternate between Spotify and the digital music collection on my phone. It’s over 450 hours, which is a fair bit of time when considering I didn’t use it all the time.

This tidbit did shock me a little. I don’t really know how Spotify does genres, I haven’t looked at the least how deep they get. I don’t feel like I listened to 35 different genres of music but I’ll take their word for it. If symphonic blackened britpop deathcore counts as 4 separate genres then I can see it. Not sure if I heard any whale sounds in the past year…

Here are the top 5 genres. Shoegaze sticks out a bit on the list but it’s not surprising since I just got into it this year. I did way more exploring of it than I did of anything else. Nothing else is a real shock. I did listen to what I guess is a lot of hard rock this year though I figure some of that might actually be indie rock or some offshoot of that. Again, who knows how Spotify genrefies things.

My most-played song of the year is no surprise at all. I played the ever living shit of this right after I heard it. In truth I’ve played it way more than that because I eventually got a digital copy on my phone and I’ve also played the YouTube video countless times. I’ve probably doubled the Spotify play count. I’ve literally been bitched at for how much I’ve played this song.

One bit of a shocker here. I didn’t realize I’d played Muse that much. I honestly only started listening to them in earnest this year. I wouldn’t have thought they’d rank that high or that Hysteria would be the song that did. The rest are all reasonable – I played LoG a lot because I didn’t own Ashes Of The Wake on any format until a few weeks back. I played the Iron Maiden lead single multiple times a day until Senjutsu released and then I played the CDs or vinyl.

This is absolutely no surprise at all. Emma Ruth Rundle was easily my most-played artist of the year, and I only truly began listening to her about halfway through the year. According to Spotify I spent a total of 3,682 minutes playing her songs in the span of about 5 months. That’s over 61 hours playing the same artist. Yeah, I dig her stuff that much. And this also doesn’t account for when I eventually got her albums on vinyl, which provided digital download copies as well.

Being in the top 0.1% of listeners is really cool, I have never seen that before. I’ll put that on my resume.

Again, Muse is throwing me a bit. I mean, I’m not one to argue with statistics, but still. I would’ve thought Lorna Shore had the number 2 spot in the bag, but I guess I really, really liked Muse earlier in the year. None of the others are huge shocks. I got Rage’s stuff on vinyl about halfway through the year but I was blasting them a lot in the first part of 2021.

I don’t know what the hell this is but I guess I’m bold and wistful, based on my musical tastes of sad indie rock and deathcore. I don’t know, whatever. I’m not really all that bold I don’t think. Wistful is probably right. I don’t how much of my personality I’m going to analyze from a damn music streaming app.

That’s a wrap for the Spotify Wrap 2021. I didn’t listen to Taylor Swift for over 200,000 hours like some people but hey, I did listen to something. We’ll see what the next year brings as Spotify remains more a vehicle for discovery for me instead of what I use to listen to my favorite stuff.

Upcoming Releases – Turkey Day and Beyond

On By bigbadburchIn Upcoming Music2 Comments

It’s time to look at a new batch of preview singles. Most of this stuff is releasing next year but a few are still going to hit in 2021. A few will land in a few days and one is already out. It goes to show how much attention I pay to things.

Scorpions – Peacemaker

The Scorpions are almost eternal at this point – these guys refuse to quit. Not only are they still at it but they’ve offered up a very nice lead track from a new album called Rock Believer due early next year. I’m very impressed with how great this song sounds and I’m very happy to have yet more new music from a band I got into before I could reach the kitchen counter.

Exodus – The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves)

This is one I overlooked awhile back as the song has been around a few months now. This comes from the band’s newest record Persona Non Grata which hits this Friday. The song is a nice, short thrasher that fits right in with Exodus’ now extensive catalog. The video is really damn violent, like I’m kinda surprised it’s being shown on YouTube. It plays like a CIA field guide in how to, uh, get information. (it is age restricted, apparently)

Jack White – Taking Me Back

This song hit a few weeks ago as part of the campaign to launch whatever the hell the new Call Of Duty game is this time. Now Jack has filmed an official video for the song and it is part of two new albums from him due next spring.

I didn’t get all that into the song when I saw the COD preview but now I’m liking it more. I think maybe this one is a different version, I’m not entirely sure about that. It’ll be interesting to hear what Jack has on offer with two new albums coming out. I haven’t followed his post-White Stripes career too closely but he’s one of the more interesting musicians around today.

Slipknot – The Chapeltown Rag

This song is Slipknot’s first preview of new music from an as-yet unannounced album that will presumably see the light of day in 2022. The song was premiered live at the band’s own Knotfest concert a bit over a week ago.

I am not the biggest Slipknot fan in the world. I never was moved to like their stuff that much, though they’ve had songs I liked over the years. This song is fine but it doesn’t compel me to explore them further or anticipate the new album. They have their place and plenty of people are into them, and all that is fine, but it’s not really my cup of tea. It is frenetic and heavy, not something I’d frown upon. But honestly not my cup of tea.

Oasis – Wonderwall Live At Knebworth

Ok so I’m totally cheating here. Obviously Wonderwall isn’t new and Oasis sure as hell isn’t recording new music. This is from the official live release of the historic Knebworth concerts from 1996, which hits record store shelves and streaming platforms this Friday. I like Oasis, in case you haven’t noticed. Here’s just one example from the other day.

As for the Knebworth performances – absolutely the height of their fame, historically important, but also not their best. All of their tracks are on coke here, probably just like the band. Everything from these shows was done at a frentic pace, which I think belies the importance of their more significant work. I do hope they go back and catch Earl’s Court and Maine Road as future official live releases, as those better capture the band when they were firing on all cylinders. But hey, nothing to bitch about with the historic Knebworth gigs being available.

Brand Of Sacrifice – Lifeblood

I’ll be upfront – I know nothing about Brand Of Sacrifice. They are a newer band in the deathcore realm, that is totally all I know.

But if you notice from the video title, this has a bit something different about it – much like Carlos Santana featured the talents of one Rob Thomas in 1999 for the hit smash “Smooth,” Brand Of Sacrifice also brings a guest vocalist in for a turn on their song. Instead of Rob Thomas, BoS thought to ask someone else to guest on their reworked track – new Lorna Shore vocalist Will Ramos, who has made waves this year as the dying Dark Souls boss in To The Hellfire.

Here is the original version of the song, released at the beginning of this fun year. It is a wonderfully serviceable deathcore song, but there is no denying the extra atmosphere added by having Will Ramos drop vocals on your shit.

I have already stated how I feel about Will Ramos and Lorna Shore. I’ll certainly be paying attention to Brand Of Sacrifice going forward – this “symphonic blackened deathcore” movement is gaining steam fast.

Korn – Start The Healing

Here’s one from a band with a long lineage that I’m not particularly into. I went over them a bit when I started this blog, here’s that info drop.

But, I’m not totally against Korn. I might have gotten into their little brother/bastard cousin a bit more, but I can respect what Korn brought to the mid-90’s scene. I don’t keep up with them though so there’s a lot of lost time and music between then and now. This song is from a new album Requiem, which hits early February 2022.

This song is fine. It doesn’t move me to pre-order the album but I’m not mad that I listened to it. At this point in my life, where I’m fighting being middle-aged, I can appreciate that Korn is still going.

Emma Ruth Rundle – The Company

I am totally cheating here because this isn’t an upcoming album. Emma released her new album Engine Of Hell last week on the 5th. I’m kind of not cheating though, because she just released this self-directed video the other day, so it’s like a new release of a new release. It’s also worth note that I might be a bit into her past work…

Not to give away what’s going to be my pick for an album of the week in the extremely near future or anything, but this is in the early running for my favorite song off the stunning new album.

I’ll save the very specific talk about this song and the rest of the album for later, because I’m going to bring it up twice in the next month.

But this song hits home like few others. I’ll never claim to know what she’s talking about, but I know how and where exactly this hits me. And I’ll say this – it isn’t some foregone memory. This song hits right here and now. I don’t really know what else to say, other than all hail the new queen, king and god of music.

That’s all I have for this installment. I’m going to forego this feature next month because acts don’t usually announce shit in the holiday month. If they do I’ll catch up to it next month. Let me know anything I might have missed in the comments below.

A Soundtrack To Geology

On By bigbadburchIn Playlists3 Comments

A few weeks ago I offered up my first playlist. I chose the theme of geography because I’ve got a friend in classes right now and I thought that’s what he was taking. As it turns out he is taking geology. So I guess I’ll take a shot at making a geology-themed playlist.

I myself took geology just a year ago in the fall of 2020. It was honestly one of the most boring classes I ever took. It sounds interesting on the surface – rocks, tectonic plates, volcanoes and stuff. But nah, I was burned out on school and more as it was and I just did not connect with the subject.

But geology offers up an easy way to make a playlist. At its core, geology is about rocks. So, let’s rock.

Usually when I do these I won’t talk about every song on the playlist. But since this list is simple and, let’s face it, pretty dumb, I can go ahead and rip out a line or two about each one.

Kiss – Rock N Roll All Nite

Pretty easy choice for the opener here. It’s Kiss, it’s their signature song, it’s automatic.

I won’t say it’s my favorite Kiss tune – the heavier tunes like War Machine, God Of Thunder and Unholy really get me going. But it’s an all-time classic for a reason, no denying that.

Sammy Hagar – There’s Only One Way To Rock

Sammy posits that there is only one way to rock. Far be it from me to argue with one of rock’s most successful artists, but I’m not sure about that Sammy. I think there might be a few ways to rock.

Twisted Sister – I Wanna Rock

I’m going with the live extended jam of this signature tune from Twisted Sister. They were a band known for their live prowess and the live version of this song is a lot of fun.

Joe Walsh – Rocky Mountain Way

Yeah, this song was on the last playlist and now it’s on this one. I doubt it makes the cut next time but maybe I can shoehorn it in somehow, I don’t know.

Spinal Tap – Rock N Roll Creation

It’s a bit amazing how many kick ass songs a “fake” band put out. This one is certainly about rock, or rocks. I’m sure it’ll help someone pass a geology class.

Motorhead – Doctor Rock

I’ve been at this blog for a bit now and I haven’t had a chance to even mention Motorhead yet. No time like the present. I also need to get to some writing about them, just a massive band.

Night Ranger – (You Can Still) Rock In America

As far as I know, you can, in fact, still rock in America. One of Night Ranger’s signature anthems stands the test of time here. Now, you might want to check your local laws before you do go on still rocking, but if you get busted you should tell the cops that Night Ranger said it was ok.

John Mellencamp – R.O.C.K. In the U.S.A.

Now we have a dilemma on our hands. We have confirmed you can still Rock in America, and now we have updated guidance that you may also R.O.C.K. In the U.S.A. But, can you R.O.C.K. In America, or perhaps Rock in the U.S.A.? This is the kind of stuff that keeps me and geology teachers up at night.

Neil Young – Rockin’ In The Free World

If you’ve still got a list of your freedoms out, here’s another to add to your list. And this isn’t just for America – it’s for the whole free world. Wherever that is…

AC/DC – Rock N Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution

Let’s scale down from country-wide freedoms to municipal ordinances for a moment. Let the masters of rock have their say here. The next time you get upset because your neighbor in the suburb or the trailer park is jamming out, you should cut them some slack. Crack open a cold Busch Light and rock out with them. That’s what it’s all about.

Dio – We Rock

Perhaps the most important lesson in geology is this – we do, in fact, rock. It’s confirmed by the master of rock and tectonics himself, our lord Ronnie James Dio.

Boston – Rock N Roll Band

What a debut record, one of the best ever done as far as my memory serves. And of course, Boston are indeed a rock and roll band. Just perfect for this dumb little exercise here.

Van Halen – And The Cradle Will Rock

We can’t talk about rock without bringing up one of the most important bands to the genre, even if David Crosby disagrees. And this is one of their sneakier good songs, sometimes left out of the overall conversation.

Corrosion Of Conformity – Stonebreaker

So stones and rocks maybe aren’t the same thing but I don’t know because I didn’t pay attention in geology class so here we are. COC are a great band.

Oasis – Rock N Roll Star

I gotta shoehorn an Oasis song onto as many playlists as possible. Easy pick here. This is one I like to play for people who say they don’t like Oasis. They still don’t after I play it but hey, I got to jam out for a bit.

Montrose – Rock Candy

I don’t guess candy is very geologically themed but there is no discussion of rock music without including this Montrose classic. Also I’ll keep cramming Sammy Hagar stuff on here as much as I can. Van Hagar didn’t have a rock-titled song, but Sammy solo had more than one.

Sammy Hagar – Rock Is In My Blood

In the “I’m too lazy to sequence this dumb playlist with any thought to listening quality” department, I’ll just cram the other Hagar song here. It’s two-for-Tuesday with one of rock’s most enduring artists, and a Hagar hat trick.

Huey Lewis And The News – The Heart Of Rock N Roll

I almost didn’t put this on here but I always liked Huey’s stuff so here we go. The song is fine, maybe not his best, but Huey is a cool dude so I’ll jam out for a bit.

Scorpions – Rock You Like A Hurricane

There is no discussion of rock music without Germany’s greatest export. Hell, if you’re taking a geology class and they don’t talk about the Scorpions, you should ask for a refund. I didn’t get through my own geology class without a healthy dose of Love At First Sting.

Ok, so our favorite Teutonic rockers are probably more owing to biology than geology. But if you’re gifted enough in the physical arts, maybe they’ll do your geology homework for you. I don’t know.

Great White – Rock Me

An absolutely fantastic track from a band that maybe doesn’t get their due. They had an awful tragedy and later some lineup drama but they still put out some bona fide classics. I need to get around to picking up their stuff on wax. And we all need to get around to rocking out to this classic cut.

The Rolling Stones – It’s Only Rock N Roll (But I Like It)

I figured I’d let the Stones bring this playlist home. I’m not like a super massive fan of theirs but I do very much like and respect their place in rock and their body of work. This is a really cool song and a nice way to wind things down before we go take our geology finals. Or crack open another cold one and rock out.

Here’s the list. I’ll try to do something with a grain of thought to it next time but hey, this was fun.

Cool Music Videos

On By bigbadburchIn Uncategorized4 Comments

Today I wanted to chill out for a bit and have a look back at a handful of cool music videos. The music video used to define the landscape, MTV was as important in getting people to buy records as radio was. Nowadays more acts than ever can make really good videos, but it takes a lot to get eyeballs on them. They aren’t the way to reel in listeners like they were in the past.

There is no connecting theme here or anything – I’m just pulling up a few videos I remember from way back, or whenever on the timeline they fall.

Dire Straits – Money For Nothing

This video made use of early computer animation in an unlikely and groundbreaking way to put forth a video that took on a life of its own and stood out even beyond Dire Straits’ massively successful Brothers In Arms album. It was the talk of everywhere when it hit.

What’s funny is that I don’t think I’ve seen this video in full since it originally aired on MTV. I never have looked it up on YouTube, until now. The video might seem dated by today’s standards, sure, but I still remember how unreal it was at the time. It probably won’t land with younger audiences much, though I see some love for it in the video’s comment section.

Tool – Prison Sex

This was crazy stuff in the early ’90’s – another kind of animation technique not widely used at the time and in part put together by Tool’s guitarist Adam Jones. The video itself got played fairly regularly on MTV for a bit – until people found it too uncomfortable and yanked it from the airwaves. It got a second life on Beavis and Butthead a bit on down the road.

I’m not entirely sure what the song is about, though plenty of other Tool fans will be happy to slug it out in arguments over the meaning. It’s certainly not a pleasant topic, some form of abuse. The video disturbingly yet also amazingly portrays that theme in its animation.

Journey – Separate Ways

If you would have told me decades ago that I would unironically consider a video of Journey playing air instruments in front a pier-side warehouse one of the best videos of all time, I would have looked at you really funny. Yet here we are and I am offering just that opinion – this video is fantastic.

This is just so unreal and so 1980’s. Journey crafts a wonderful pop rock song and gets zero budget for their video apparently, so this is what we get. And after I reached adulthood and looked back on the video I couldn’t help but smile fondly. It is as goofy as it gets, but damn if it isn’t awesome.

Guns N Roses – Estranged

I went over this song pretty extensively in September when I did my in-depth analysis of the Use Your Illusion albums. I didn’t get too much occasion to discuss the video specifically though.

The song is an absolute masterpiece and the video matches the music blow-for-blow. Video-wise it’s the end of a trilogy that also includes Don’t Cry and November Rain, though I don’t know if the songs themselves play into that (they kinda seem like they do, at least loosely).

The video was clearly big-budget, I would assume more money went into it than many theatrical release movies of the time. It does spell the end of Guns N Roses’ time in the sun, as the band would splinter apart in a few years after this final single from their double album was released.

The video showcases Axl’s eccentricy and self-centerness, sure, but it’s still an honest take of the band at the time and probably goes a long way to painting the picture of this song. The way the song goes into its final movement, one of the most powerful in music, right when Axl jumps off the ship around the 7 minute mark is just perfect timing.

Kiss – Lick It Up

Kiss missed out on the music video format with a lot of their early material. It’s a shame that such a visual, theatrical band didn’t get to shoot music videos for their top-flight 70’s output. Just imagine what we could have gotten out of that.

Instead, we get ’80’s no-makeup Kiss wandering a post-apocalyptic wasteland but with hot women who want to party. It’s like Mad Maxine Beyond Thunderdome, I don’t know. I do know that I really like this video, even if it is honestly kinda cringe.

The song is one of Kiss’ stronger ones from their ’80’s catalog and this video is – well, certainly a video. I can’t help but like it though, this is what I grew up on. It does appear that ¾ of the band is all about the video, while Gene Simmons might have benefited from keeping his demon makeup on.

Muse – Knights Of Cydonia

Let’s wind up with something from this side of the millennium line. This goofy western/sci-fi/kung fu mash up to a sillier than shit song about who knows what somehow winds up being one of the best music videos ever committed to film.

The video is just splendid. It’s a mini feature film, replete with plot and characters. The band only appears as brief hologram projections, I guess that’s fine since they looked like the Gallagher brothers playing alongside James Hetfield anyway. The good kung fu cowboy guy and the girl ride off into the sunset after bad cowboy kung fu guy is digitally vaporized, so I guess everyone goes home happy in the end.

There isn’t a lot more for me to say about it. The video is widely celebrated as one of the best music videos ever made and the song is towards the top of any list of Muse tracks. A pretty good marriage of song and film here.

Guilty Pleasures

On By bigbadburchIn Controversy6 Comments

The “guilty pleasure” is one of music listening’s most odd and sometimes interesting terms. People like something, but people don’t want anyone else to know. It’s embarassing for a 35 year old, burly man to like Britney Spears or whatever, or for some mild-mannered soccer mom to headbang to Suffocation.

Of course the concept of a guilty pleasure is pretty dumb. People should, in an ideal world, just like what they like and not have any expectations or judgments from society attached to it. And in the modern age a lot of people spend so much time ripping dissenting opinions apart that it’s almost a strength to just express one’s own tastes without giving a damn what anyone else thinks of it. Being affected by any negative thoughts others might have of my music taste is not a thing I can really afford to carry around.

I do have a handful of things that could be thought of as guilty pleasures. They aren’t all that deep or shocking, and only one gives me some hesitantcy to admit. And even that I’m past the point of caring about. Here’s a handful of my “guilty” pleasures, which being real, I don’t feel guilty about at all.

Bon Jovi

I’ve mentioned before that Slippery When Wet was the first album I really ever owned. I still very much enjoy Bon Jovi, especially the 80’s output and some of the stuff from the 2000’s. (No, I’m really not into what they did in the 90’s.)

The conflict of interest comes from metalheads who can’t fathom enjoying something as, well, not metal and as popular and mainstream as Bon Jovi. I’ve caught a fair bit of shit for expressing my interest in the band. I don’t know how I’m supposed to care – I did not disavow rock music when I got into heavy metal. I didn’t take a dark oath to only listen to self-released demos from black metal bands recorded on a Fischer-Price tape deck in the lead singer’s bathroom. I will listen to that, but I’ll also listen to You Give Love A Bad Name.

Hall and Oates

This one seems to throw people off a lot. I love Hall and Oates, I always have. Their big hits in the 80’s were in constant rotation as I was exploring music as a youth. They aren’t an act that I chase down every release or anything (there’s a lot and they’ve covered a lot of musical ground) but I still very much enjoy H&O and I feel very not guilty about it.

For some reason I don’t catch much shit from metalheads about this one. It’s because many of them also like Hall and Oates. It’s other people who do like them who wonder what this crusty dude in an Iron Maiden t-shirt is doing browsing through their records in the store. Sorry, I just wanted to see if there were any South American test pressings of Big Bam Boom.

Oasis

I’ve already written extensively about Oasis and I will be again next month when the Knebworth live set is released. And I probably will beyond that too.

I got into them in the mid 90’s when they were one of the biggest bands on the planet and I was just listening to whatever sounded cool to me at the time. I sort of set them aside in the 2000’s when their songwriting magic had worn off and the band eventually imploded. I, like many, found that wave of nostalgia a few years ago and have been back hard on the Oasis train since.

Now who gives me shit for liking Oasis? EVERYBODY. It’s literally anyone who doesn’t like Oasis is like “You like that crap?” Yes, I do. And if I need to have a defiant, snarky attitude towards anyone hating on my tastes, I can’t think of two better role models for that than the brothers Gallagher. Perhaps calling them role models says something about my lack of well-being but hey, it’s 2021, we’re past that sort of thing now.

Black Metal

This is an entire subgenre rather than one band, and for good reason. I personally don’t feel guilty about listening to it at all, but black metal is some absurd music with a ridiculous history and a lot of unsavory characters who happened to record some of the music’s most revered works.

I have a post coming in the near future that gets far more into how I came into black metal so I won’t bloviate about it much here. But I first heard of it when the crazy ass story of Varg Vikernes and Euronymous made the rounds in the 90’s. The music wound up really clicking with me a few years later.

I don’t feel guilty about listening to harsh, misanthropic, anti-religious music. Those themes are likely why I took to it in the first place. I do, like many, try to make sure I’m not accidentally supporting outright Nazis, something that is an unfortunate part of several black metal bands. That’s its own culture war playing out on the battlefields of social media right now. The signals and messages often get mixed up and crossed, which is why I largely stay the hell out of the arguments. There’s nothing to gain and far too much ire and spite to wind up with in all of that shit. But the style as a whole is being called into question, that’s an unavoidable part of being into this shit in 2021.

I personally will keep on listening to who I like, hoping that they aren’t trying to ressurect the Third Reich. Outside of that I don’t really care what these people get up to, and by and large most of them aren’t into any sick stuff like that. The murder and arson and whatever is fine, I guess.

Insane Clown Possee

Here we are – my one true guilty pleasure, the one thing I have long hesitated to admit liking. It’s the one that I’m like “dude, you have an old picture of me in an ICP shirt, please destroy that kthanksbye.” It’s the one group I had every studio album of at one time but later made a beeline to the CD store to trade in for something inoffensive and unembarassing, like black metal.

In 1998 I was exposed to ICP and I thought they had some funny and entertaining stuff. I really got into them in 1999 and the turn of the millenium. I never went so far as to paint my face, drink Faygo or even go see them live, but I was pretty into their stuff.

My thoughts on them started shifting around 2001. Honestly, their music is pretty dumb. I listen to some pretty stupid stuff anyway but man, these guys take the cake. And also them getting obliterated in song by Eminem didn’t help matters. I quietly packed up my juggalo stuff and pretended that my brief era of being down with the clowns didn’t exist.

Today my thoughts have shifted some again. I can look back at what ICP have done and respect their place in things. They built their own subculture and the infrastructure around it and they turned their own passions into a living and a way of life. They’ve also shown they can roll with the punches, like when they got clowned on SNL for the absurdity of their song Miracles. And the community of juggalos seem to be some pretty cool people, despite how maligned they are in popular culture.

I’ll also admit this – I can’t really get back into them. I think they have a few songs that stand out and are pretty good but by and large this isn’t something I want to play again or have in my collection again.

Nine Inch Nails – Broken (Album of the Week)

On By bigbadburchIn Album of the Week3 Comments

This week I’m heading back to the early ’90’s for my AOTW pick. This record, by definition really an EP, was one of the most formative things I’ve ever heard and it’s also a set of songs that I’m very personally connected to after all these years. I’ve talked about a few of my favorite acts in the early stages of this site but now it’s time for my first dive into another of my all-time favorites.

Nine Inch Nails – Broken

Released September 22, 1992 via Nothing Records

Favorite Tracks – Wish, Last, Gave Up

The mini album features two instrumentals – opener Pinion and Help Me I Am In Hell in the middle of the effort. Both are fine and I’m not usually bothered by instrumentals or interlude-style things but certainly they are not the main event on Broken.

The show truly kicks off with Wish – a vicious, heavy as hell trip through self-hatred that wound up winning a Grammy in 1993 for Best Metal Performance. It was my first real introduction to the band as I didn’t remember much of the debut Pretty Hate Machine but I was primed and ready for NIN when Wish hit MTV. It’s easily one of my favorite songs from NIN and just songs overall.

Last is next and is another splendid take on self-dejection and the disposable nature of humanity. The pounding riff is superb and there are some fantastic lyrics in the song – “my lips may promise but my heart is a whore” being chief among them.

Happiness In Slavery hits with some crazy stuff about bondage or whatever. I certainly wasn’t in tune with what the song was talking about when I was 15. Regardless I still dig the track, there’s a shade more melody to it than the rest of the EP while still retaining the depths of heaviness found elsewhere.

The proper portion of Broken ends on another angst-ridden, depressive song that I consider a total masterwork. Gave Up is a sonic pummeling and some of the most messed up lyrics ever to be found in any mainstream music release. Trent Reznor masks some of his vocals in an almost black metal wail but the message of utter hopelessness is still conveyed in full measure.

The EP concludes with two bonus tracks – a cover of Adam Ant’s Physical and a quasi-cover of Pigface’s Suck. Reznor was a member of Pigface when Suck was originally recorded so it’s more of his own rendition of the song than a cover per se.

The physical album release provides some interesting trivia. The original CD release offered Physical and Suck on a 3-inch bonus mini CD. Both original and reissued versions of the vinyl have those songs on a separate 7-inch record. I think I had the normal CD way back when with the two extra songs tacked on after a lot of hidden silent tracks, kind of a thing in ’90’s CD releases.

I won’t get too much into it but there was also a film for Broken that was, let’s just say, flat out disgusting. I never saw the whole thing but bits I did watch were pretty messed up. Most of Wish made it onto MTV but the band apparently had to edit part of the video’s end out. I guess it’s not hard to get a DVD-quality version of the entire film on the ‘Net today but honestly that sort of snuff or whatever isn’t my gig so I don’t mess with it.

The three songs I mentioned as my favorites at the start – Wish, Last and Gave up – do hold pretty high personal connections with me. They are interwoven at multiple points in my life and mean different things depending on specifically what was up. It could be old friends who fell away, exes I should have never messed with in the first place, terrible heartbreak or just good old fashioned self-loathing and lack of worth. A copy of Broken is far cheaper than therapy, but I’m guessing that the album is also not anyone’s definition of self-care. I don’t know, I just roll with it.

Broken was a major shift for Nine Inch Nails in 1992 and would herald the magnum opus that was to come a few years later. But this EP itself is one of the high points of an extensive catalog of masterful recordings. Trent Reznor joined the likes of Ministry and others in a pursuit of dark, industrial metal and crafted an excellent, soul-crushing EP that was perhaps too dark for anyone’s good but would still go on to platinum sales status. It’s been one of the most valued and most important musical works in my life, and it’s definitely on my list of music I’d have to have on desert island.

Iron Maiden – Hallowed Be Thy Name

On By bigbadburchIn S-Tier Songs3 Comments

This post was part of a series that I called S-Tier Songs. I later decided to abandon the series in favor of a simpler Song of the Week format. I am keeping these posts as I wrote them but removing the old page that linked to the list of S-Tier Songs, so that is why these posts might look a bit odd. Enjoy.

Iron Maiden – Hallowed Be Thy Name

From the Beast Over Hammersmith live performance

Iron Maiden hit the scene in 1980 after several years in England’s club circuit but found themselves scratching for a new direction after two albums. They canned singer Paul Di’Anno and replaced him with Samson’s eclectic frontman Bruce Dickinson. The ensuing decade would see them make an indelible stamp on heavy metal, one of the genre’s most defining and influential acts.

Dickinson’s debut with Maiden would come in the form of 1982’s The Number Of The Beast. Songs like the title track and Run To The Hills would be released as singles, but in the end Hallowed Be Thy Name would become a legacy-defining song and a staple of the band’s epic live sets.

Our song today would mark a shift in Iron Maiden’s sound from a punk/metal hybrid to a more epic direction. Dickinson’s trademark “air raid siren” vocals soared above the band’s now signature gallop. The epic would be a direction Maiden would pursue to greater degree, including many much-debated longer treks included in their longest-enduring “reunion” era of the 2000’s.

But back to the point – Hallowed Be Thy Name is a bombastic tale of a condemned man facing his final moments before he’s taken to the gallow’s pole. The narrator reflects on the meaning of life and his final fate, a trope in song found with Queen’s signature Bohemian Rhapsody, among many others. It’s a haunting and tragic tale, told in fine form through the song’s lyrics and Dickinson’s unparalleled delivery.

Live from the Powerslave tour in Long Beach, the definitive Live After Death performance

The song builds quietly with bells to accent the opening verse but then quickly moves into its signature galloping riff. Bruce’s vocal power is on full display as he pleads for his life in the second verse, interchanging with the riff rather than using a conventional chorus. A bridge takes us to the final verse, where the condemned man accepts his fate.

What happens when one accepts the end of their existence? Guitar solos, usually. At least that’s what I’m led to believe, I did grow up in the ’80’s after all. The solos play out then the song builds to its climax, with Bruce delivering the title before an epic finale.

Hallowed Be Thy Name has been played on nearly every Iron Maiden tour since Number‘s release. It was removed from the second leg of the Book Of Souls tour in 2017 after a lawsuit alleging that Steve Harris ripped parts of the song off from a ’70’s work. I’m not a scholar or a journalist so I’m not going to recount the specifics of that lawsuit, I’ll simply mention that the case was settled out of court on more than one occasion between different members of that band.

Did Maiden rip off someone else for this song? I don’t know and I don’t care. Moving on.

Why is this an S-Tier song?

Hallowed Be Thy Name is an epic masterwork that highlights the strengths of what would become Iron Maiden’s most prolific creative era. The song is often considered the very best of the band’s output. It is a stunning, moving tale that is executed in spectacular fashion and showcases the various signature factors that would make Iron Maiden one of metal’s most celebrated acts.

Live footage from the Flight 666 motion picture release

W.A.S.P. (Album of the Week)

On By bigbadburchIn Album of the Week2 Comments

There’s no real huge occasion for this week’s pick other than I recently scored a sweet copy of this on vinyl at my local record shop. Let’s head back to 1984 for one of rock and metal’s best debut albums.

W.A.S.P. – self-titled

Released August 17, 1984 via Capitol Records

Favorite Tracks – I Wanna Be Somebody, The Flame, The Torture Never Stops

WASP weren’t messing around with this collection of sleaze and riffage. The band had already made a name for themselves with raunchy, over-the-top theatrics on stage prior to their debut album drop. The band and album shocked and awed their way to rock stardom in the down and dirty prime of the 1980’s.

The album would court controversy before its release. The intended first single Animal (Fuck Like A Beast) drew the ire of watchdog groups, including the Parent’s Resource Music Center. The infamous PMRC, a collection of senators’ wives who were busybodies with nothing better to do, decided to try and moralize music. Their list of the “Filthy Fifteen” songs included WASP’s first-ever single. As a result, the band’s label decided to drop the song from the album. Of course, as with much that the PMRC lamented back then, both the album and the banned song would become highly sought after. Thank you, PMRC, for letting us know where to look for music.

If you were to pick up this CD in a shop or look this up on Spotify, you will find Animal in its place as the album’s lead track. In 1998 the album was reiussed, both restoring Animal and adding two bonus tracks. I’m personally not a huge fan of bonus tracks on the original portion of a reissued album – I’d rather things be kept separate from the known recording. But in this case I’m happy to have Animal on the reissue and honestly I’m more used to it at this point than I was without it. In contrast, the vinyl I picked up awhile back is an original press and doesn’t have it.

And yes I do like the song Animal. It’s not the best on the album but it’s a cool tune. I think the uproar over it was more funny than anything and was mainly due to the naughty word in the sub-title. It’s a bit of interesting lore and trivia from back when people tried to play morality police with popular music. Even more tidbit trivia – Blackie Lawless refuses to play the song live anymore due to his personal beliefs. Odd, but there’s enough of a WASP back catalog to not need it I suppose.

Animal is just one song though. This album is loaded with killer selections from rock and metal’s prime. Album opener by default I Wanna Be Somebody is a classic, one of the band’s most celebrated tracks. I know I’ve been there and many others likely have after a miserable grind at an unfulfilling job – I wanna freaking be somebody. Alas, we press on, lost to time and without the fame and notoriety of Blackie.

The album’s closer hits on a similar issue – The Torture Never Stops is totally about work. The band’s image from back then might lead a person to think that the song is some dark S&M romp but nah, that shit’s about work. It’s something darker and more hardcore than any sex dungeon could ever be (unless that is your job, I dunno).

Inbetween is a selection of all killer, no filler cuts. And also a lot of spelling things out with periods – L.O.V.E. Machine, B.A.D., hell the band name W.A.S.P. C’mon, this is kind of annoying to type out. But the songs are worth the suffering.

Sleeping (In The Fire) is a nice ballad-like track that sees the band set down the shred and offer some melody while still bringing the power. Tormentor and On Your Knees bring more of the hard and sleazy sound that WASP would become known for. And School Daze knocks the hallowed “class life” that was such a huge thing in America and a natural point of rebellion for many of the nation’s youth.

WASP’s debut album marked the beginning of a legacy that walked lines between hair, glam, shock rock and true heavy metal. Chris Holmes would become a guitar idol even in the midst of a less-than-savory portrayal on film a few years later. And band leader Blackie Lawless has left a very complicated legacy in his wake, but in the context of this debut album there is no disputing the power and prestige.

I did grow up in a semi-sheltered home but honestly my parents never really messed with my music much. But this album was one I kept hidden from plain sight – I knew the reputation WASP had and I wasn’t going to risk having this gem ripped away from me in the name of protecting my fragile psyche from this raw, primal power. Now that I’m all grown up I can freely play Fuck Like A Beast all I want.

WASP’s debut album was a metal classic and would start the band on a path to some unique and rocking albums throughout the ’80’s. The band truly cemented their place as one of hard rock and metal’s defining acts in a crowded era, and they crossed subgenres and defied categorization with an intense, well-executed set of songs that brought rapt attention from an eager fanbase. Blackie Lawless could wear a Skil Saw as a codpiece all he wants, but at the end of the day he and the band brought the tunes to back that brash sort of theatrics off.