with all said and done, it's weird how bills look once you get them in the mail. i guess i need to get used to the awkwardness of how it all looks on print because i'm having a hard time figuring out how much to pay for my cell phone charges. ugh, oh well. it's not a big deal. i know things will work out in the end, so no use worrying over money like it's my life's blood or something. i knew that once i started my own phone line i'd be taking on a responsibility, so there. anyway, i'm currently at home writing this post. i didn't feel good at all this morning, so i stayed home today. i think it stems from yesterdays scramble at work. i got so much stacked up and i did accomplish a lot, but after the day was through, i felt like nothing was done. i went to church and came home feelin' sick. i guess it just carried on to today. oh well, at least i'm blogging again!!!
this coming weekend will be awesome and pretty busy. friday night i'm hangin' out with kristy, then who knows what. on saturday i'm shopping for some furniture with my mom and then taking kristy to the conservatory to watch Red City Radio play at their cd release show. and as for sunday, i'm gettin' together with my family and we're gonna watch the thunder vs. the lakers. after that, i gotta start packin' for my big move next tuesday. overall, it's goin' to be zoppity!!!
so, yesterday during the last hour or so of work, i happened upon an older band in my music collection that i haven't listened to in a long time. i played their music a bit loudly while i worked away the last minutes of my schedule. the band i'm talking about is called, Boris.
boris are a three piece band from tokyo, japan who have been playing their own selections of genres since 1992. they are known for their intense and very loud shows of pure heavy metal. well, not metal like you think, but the more obscure and extreme genres like drone and doom metal. recently they have incorporated other styles like dream-pop/ambient/shoegaze and post-metal. it's easy to say, that if you like thee styles of, say, Isis, Neurosis, Cult of Luna, Earth, Sun O))) and Pelican, then you should like boris. heck, even if you like the shoegaze styles of My Bloody Valentine, then you should like boris. check it...
oh, and before i forget, i'm only posting one of their albums and that album, of course, if called, Pink. it's their most highly acclaimed and my favorite. its what got me into them as well as many many others. it's a masterpiece of music that will challenge you as well as compliment you. dig it...
oh my goodness, oh my GOODNESS!!! what an amazing weekend i've had!!! i can't just sit here and write nonsense words without using my skills to describe how awesome it all was. ok, so friday night started off good with me and mike going to the blue note to watch, The Cancer Bats. oklahoma locals, Over Stars and Gutters, opened the show and they were solid. the cancer bats were crazy awesome and further down below you'll find out about them for this post. heh heh ;)
me and "big" mike in da hood. (seriously...)
saturday began with me going to work to fill in a few hours for all those snow days we had to take. it was nice and relaxing, so i was grateful for the chance to do it. the day went on and i ate pizza at my grandma's then met up at mike's house to gather with the crew. you see, mike's wife, chealsey, had her cousin, john, come up from stillwater to hang for his late b-day party. he chose bricktown, so we ventured out to the strip and hopped around all night. it was a total blast and i'm soooooooo glad i made the effort to go. i don't get out much often, especially with close friends, so this was a real treat. uh, i think the pictures below are enough evidence...
me and mike eating sushi. (he was a noob!!! j/k)
the gang right before the sake bombs exploded...
buffoons fo sho!!!
so anyway, the weekend was a blast (like i already said...) and today was just as great. i got my dad to close our old phone account and now i'm starting to pay for my own service. included in the deal was my new HTC 4G smart phone. it's a touch screen and flippin' awesome. i just spent over two hours foolin' around with the set-up and applications. woo hoo!!!
alright, like i said, me and mike saw the cancer bats, so i think they deserve this nights music banter. uh, so without further adieu, here's The Cancer Bats.
this is a band that hails from toronto, ontario canada. they formed around 2004 or so, with the effort to make straightforward music that combined their love for bands like, Black Flag, Refused, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and probably d-beat, 70's-80's styled punk from england. their music is intense and brutal, but not in a jokingly, "deathcore" kind of way. (nothing against deathcore. to a point...) watching them friday night, i was reminded of some recent acts over the past few years i've seen like, Every Time I Die, The Gallows, The Bronx and perhaps some other artists that haven't been seen yet like, The Melvins and F*cked Up.
if there happens to be a chance to see these guys, go do it. they are totally awesome and put on a great show. they tore up the tiny stage friday night at this bar and there were probably only 30 people there. that's hardcore and it's what music is all about.
for the music, we first start with their self titled ep, then swing on by to their first full length, which is the album, Birthing the Giant. this is an awesome album by the way!!! right, so after that is their second full length, which is titled, Hail Destroyer. and after that is their latest full length titled, Bears, Mayors, Scraps and Bones. (really awesome album artwork there!!!) listen up and listen close. PLAY THIS LOUD!!! dig it...
ugh, i think i'm getting a bug or somethin'. my nose is stopped up and runny and my throat is sore. this stinks because it means i'm a walking disease. no kissing for me!!! eh, oh well, not all is bad though. i'm still here and enjoying my life a lot more than in the past. i can't help but smile right now as i type this!!!
i wanna make this short because i'm meeting kristy in a bit to have dinner. for this post i'm making a mark for a band i totally missed out on last year. they go by the name, Bo Ningen, which is japanese and i think it means, "stick men"...
okay, so pay attention here, because i'm going to have to explain a lot in a short amount of words if i can. bo ningen is a four piece band from london, england and are one of that nations rising talents. they have been highly praised by fellow rockers, The Horrors and by musical press, nme. to describe their sound, take the heaviness of Black Sabbath and Lighting Bolt, mix in the garage rock roughness of, The Sonics and The Mummies, then stir that with the noise punk spasticness of Melt Banana and Arab On Radar, and you might have a close idea of what this band is all about.
actually, what i listed above is only a taste of the craziness this band does. as i was writing the above paragraph, i kept thinking i'm hearing freekin' King Crimson and kraut rock like, Faust, Neu! and Can. it's no wonder they toured with ex-singer, damo suzuki, from can... anyway, this is really bogus and it's keeping me interested to the very end. it's j-pop turned on it's head and farted on. bo ningen are amazing and come highly recommended!!!
for their tunes, in first place is their debut ep titled, Koroshitai Kimochi. and after that is their self titled debut full length. oh, and just for a warning, these songs are all sung in japanese, so don't freak out
back to the grind. the holiday was very nice and welcomed by me. i managed to relax a bit and catch up on some much needed me time. shoot, on black friday i went out and purchased six new video games!!! DUDE!!! six new video games that i now need to beat… here’s the list:
Muramasa: The Demon Blade
Fallout: New Vegas
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle
God of War III
Demon’s Souls
in addition to these, on monday i checked out the cyber space sales and found three more games!!!
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles
Sin & Punishment 2: Star Successor
MadWorld
so, yeppers. i got’s me some new games that will last me a LONG time. these need to be spread out over the upcoming year, so no rush to conquer them all. heck, i still have about ten left from the last few years that are all in the stages of being beaten. (most of them are about 75 to 85% complete…) don’t you hate it when you stop playing a video game and then come back and have to remember the feel of it all over again??? I DO!!!
anyways, back to the weekend. saturday night was an exciting one, what, with OU almost getting beaten by OSU at bedlam. OMG, seriously, it was a close game!!! very close… there were way too many missed plays to remember, but in the end, my team won and my family celebrated by jumping up and down, making the food in our stomachs churn and mix like cement. (mom made spaghetti!!!)
tonight will be my first practice for the upcoming native american christmas pageant. i will need to muster up all the strength i have in order to make this work. i was nicely asked, so i better step up and be a man, or in this case, joseph, the father of jesus…
i want to make this a one album post, so here is a little known band that kills every time i listen to them. they went by the name of, Mare.
mare was a very short lived band that existed from 2004 to 2007. they were from toronto, canada and shared members with the band, The End. aaaaannnnnnnndddddd that’s all i really know about them. how did i come to find them you might ask??? well, i did so by reading up on other bands such as, Isis, Jesu, Godflesh, Neurosis, Keelhaul, Converge, Botch, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Cult of Luna. as you hopefully can tell, mare have a close relation to the style those bands produce/produced. they were always mentioned when i scoped out profiles on that particular doom metal/post-metal/shoegaze style of music. glad i paid attention, because these guys were good. really, REALLY good, and they only released one ep!!! yes, ONE EP!!!
do yourself a favor and check these guys out. they were on the top of their game and remain legends despite their very short career and recorded output. if you like any of the bands i mentioned, this should work for you. dig it...
so sorry to have not made a post in a while again. i guess it's because of Call of Duty: Black Ops. yeah, i've been going crazy with that game, so there!!! nyah nyah!!!
here's something a bit quick and it comes at us very fast courtesy of, Slayer!!!
yeah yeah yeah, this isn't really that nice of music to post here, but heck, i just love their thrashyness. you all should listen to SSSSSLLLLLLAAAAAYYYYYYEEEEEERRRRRR and thrash along. this is, in my opinion, the best of the best when it comes to thrash metal. they are way better than, Megadeth and Metallica combined. yeah, i said it...
ok, so there is one thing to listen to and that is their best album, Reign in Blood. no question...
well, as the title says, this is the day before halloween. i'll post something better tomorrow. for now, i just wanted to do a quick check up and post a video or two...
you like the Deftones right??? well i do!!! anyway, here's their new music video for the song, "you've seen the butcher." quite freeky cheeky beecky leecky!!!
aaaaannnnnnnndddddd here's a little bit of stephen lynch for ya!!! lol
oooooooooo!!! last night i went and watched Paranormal Activity 2 and had a blast. it's not the most perfect movie, but you can't beat a fun movie watching experience. i went with several members of my family and we all got spooked bad. the film has a lot of those jump moments that try and catch you off guard, and for the most part, they work to great effect. i'll never forget how funny it was to hear the audience scream out loud while something happened on the screen. something like a fart under the blankets or a cell phone vibrating...
since it was soooooooooooo scary, i think i'll let you all watch some of Simon's Cat, because he's soooooooooo CUTE!!!
and in other news, today is another OU football game, so i guess i'll be watching that later on with the family. i think that's going to be fun!!! and so, let's get a bit scary again with some DEATHCORE!!! DEATHCORE!!! DDDDDDEEEEAAAAATTTTTHHHHHCCCCCCOOOOORRRRRREEEEEE!!!... seriously, that is the lamest thing ever, but the music is so BROOOOOTAL that it requires all caps people!!! okay, and so with the band then??? yeah, let's talk about the band, who happen be be called, The Red Chord.
the red chord is a band from revere, massachusetts that formed in 1999. they are considered one of the pioneers in the deathcore genre. of course, i honestly thought they were just a metalcore band with heavier growls, but then i noticed the grindcore dynamics, and now it seems to have taken shape and become it's own separate genre called, deathcore. shoot man, it's all just metal to me, but there are those purists out there that beg to differ, so i'm trying my best to list all references in honor of those tight pants wearing scenesters. funny how much i used to like this band back in the early 2000's. i got the chance to see them several times, and each show was bigger and heavier than the last. in my opinion, nothing really tops their debut album simply because it was radically different than most of the metalcore material that came out during that time. but as the years have passed and crab core has raped its way into the young minds of our nations youth, the metal genre's have taken more expansive routes, and thus, have begone to slide around and mix things up a lot more. it's a mish mash of all styles and you really have to dig through the garbage to find something good. the red chord are one of the best and are still around, tearing up the clubs and making the kids mosh. i just wish more people would mention them instead of all the others... and by others, i mean, Suicide Silence, Winds of Plague, Whitechapel, Emmure, Salt the Wound and Bring Me the Horizon. (not that those bands are terrible and such...)
time to rest, but before i go here's the music. first is their debut album called, Fused Together in Revolving Doors. after this is the excellent album, Clients and then, Prey For Eyes. and last is Fed Through the Teeth Machine. check these out and get scary and BROOTAL!!! or just get cutsey!!! aww...
http://www.mediafire.com/?j2zmm2zm5my
http://www.mediafire.com/?nmk0yit5muq
http://www.mediafire.com/?gd5nld5nu2i#
http://www.mediafire.com/?nrfinza3myy
if you have a ghost in your house, listen to a minority...
hey there!!! just for fun, i'd like to post the new music video from the Deftones. the song is called, "sex tape" and it comes form their recent, and wonderful album, Diamond Eyes. if you haven't gotten that yet, you crack me up. oh, and this video is sexy and represents what a lot of the deftones themes and ideas are about/like. i'm totally tripping to the awesomeness and what's even more cool is that this is my favorite tack off the album!!!
i just woke up. i blame the rock star energy drinks. also, it's probably not good to eat tacos real late at night with a large pop as well. anyway, just like my cat joshua, i slept all day and didn't wake up till after my dad came in and smelled of gasoline and rubber tires. the cat is still sleeping, but that's a cat for ya. i wanted to blog, so here's to that i guess...
you know, whenever you do heavy sleep you usually have the opportunity to dream. i'd say nine out of ten times my dreams aren't too good. heck, they're sometimes downright horrible. today's was no exception. anyway, to go alongside the dreaming i thought of some music that really makes the ambiance unsettling. the band who can do just that are called, Swans.
i chose the 1984 era photo above just because it was the year i was born. i do believe that the band had several different lineups, so i'm not sure if this was the initial group, but eh. so yeah, the swans were/are a no-wave/post-punk band from new york city that originally formed in 1982. they were led by lead singer michael gira who is the sole constant member. the band was noted for their intense live shows that often were held with excruciating loud volumes, and because of that, audience members would often vomit or transcend into madness. (probably not the latter...)
now, going back to my dream description, the band can most definitely become the background to your nightmares and fantasy's. this isn't the same post-punk of my faves like Joy Division or The Cure. no, this is brutal, punishing, grinding, metal on metal sounding music. it's the soundtrack to an industrial combustion engine of personal doom. this is a solid definition of what industrial music is and was. swans projected their own personal madness into the faces and ears of every soul who watched them and it was art transcending into substance. you just have to listen to it to understand...
which is why i have music here for ya!!! there is only one album i'm posting from this band and that album is their debut titled, Filth. there is no better word to describe this collection of songs crafted by the underdogs of the early new york music scene. this is where everyone should start and it might be where everyone will end. swans aren't for the faint of heart...
http://www.mediafire.com/?zj3g0gwzrma
buildings falling down, bolts rattle, glass is shattered...
today is the one year anniversary of a wolf at the door. yes, i really have kept this thing going for a solid year. yeah, it amazes me too!!! below, you will hopefully find my first uploaded video describing this momentous occasion. uh, just to warn you, i'm not the best when it comes to self recording and i most likely will come off as a douche bag hipster, but eh. it was sort of fun and who knows, i might try it again in the future. oh, and no music for today. i'm taking a short break. aaaannnnnnnddddd just ignore the tags. i put those there as a joke. dig it...
what a day. i awoke to the sound of my phone vibrating against my window ledge. it was a call from the local IHS. they asked me to come in for an interview around 1:15. this was something that came about from my previous attempt to apply at that location. for that past attempt, i failed to fully included every document in my application. take this as a note. if you are going for a federal job, be sure to read the application thoroughly and included EVERYTHING it asks. oh, so as for the interview.... i nailed it!!! i now have a job with the indian health services and i start this thursday!!! i'm still a bit shocked...
and since i'm shocked i need something spastic. let's listen to Daughters.
daughters were a math-rock/hardcore/screamo/grindcore band from providence, rhode island. they formed after the ashes of the screamo/hardcore band As the Sun Sets in 2001. the band quickly became famous for their intense and acrobatic live shows. the band members style and artistic talents behind their instruments and live setting was always something to behold and be aware of. too bad they called it quits this year after the release, of perhaps, their most accomplished work to date.
for the music you find their entire discography. we first start with the self titled seven inch followed by the excellent album, Canada Songs. we are then met with their Live at CBGB's compilation, (sorry for the rapidshare...) and then the polarizing album, Hell Songs. and finally we have their third and final full length which is also self titled. look into these for a bit and set the pace as fast as you want. this is all micro bursts anyway...
as you can tell, i haven't been here in a couple of days. i just didn't bother with it because other things were going on at the time and, well, blogging isn't that important when it comes to spending time with family. so yeah, anyway the weekend was good and i enjoyed all of it. i went to a powwow in el reno saturday and watched fireworks sunday despite the rain. yes, it rained all weekend and is still going strong, but has moved more up north and to the east. (i could tell by how the leaves blew across the yard and the smell of the clouds. super NATIVE skillz yo!!!) so for today i went shopping and scored some new summer clothes. i grabbed two pairs of shorts and two polo type shirts. they were all faded looking colors and my usual style. i think on wednesday i'll look for some new shoes. maybe some slip-on's...
a little friend of mine mentioned this next band in comparison to a cd i got for her birthday. (White Pony) the band she named dropped was one i'd forgotten for some reason and that's my bad because they were stellar. that band is A Perfect Circle.
a perfect circle was/is the side project of maynard james keenan from Tool and his buddies, drummer josh freese from The Vandals among MANY other projects, and guitarist billiy howerdel who is also in the band Ashes Divide. notable past members include james iha from The Smashing Pumpkins, jeordie white who played with Marilyn Manson and danny lohner who has worked with Nine Inch Nails, Skrew and Killing Joke. so as you can see, it's a music fan's wet dream. the amazing talent contained here made this project excellent and that all lasted for two albums. (let's skip the covers album shall we???)
as of right now, the band is currently on hiatus i think. actually, according to wikipedia they are making a fourth album, so who knows. but anyway, here's the music for ya. two albums worth your time with the titles of Mer De Noms and Thirteenth Step. both are of high quality and showcase a more mellow, yet dramatic side to maynards usual routine of angst and emotional outrage. oh, and they were even more awesome live. i saw them with The Mars Volta back in 2003. good times...
http://www.mediafire.com/?8l12xcnymfc
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=T89DUPZP
Threw you the obvious And you flew with it on your back A name in your recollection Down among a million same
Difficult not to feel a little bit Disappointed and passed over When I look right through, See you naked but oblivious
And you don't see me
But I threw you the obvious Just to see if there's more behind the Eyes of a fallen angel, Eyes of a tragedy
Here I am expecting just a little bit Too much from the wounded But I see, see through it all See through, see you
'Cause I threw you the obvious To see what occurs behind the Eyes of a fallen angel, Eyes of a tragedy
Oh well, oh well Apparently nothing, Apparently nothing at all
time is passing by and i need to grab more of it. i still need a job... if only this blogging thing was a job. well, if this blogging thing was a job i probably wouldn't like it anymore. i guess that's what a lot of artists have to deal with when creating. "when did this become a job???" yeah, the rock and or roll lifestyle has it's perks, but also it's slumps...
getting into overdrive for the melting summer months here in oklahoma, i'm always ready to rock out if need be. this next artist is one of the greats of the 90's and i'm lucky to have gotten the chance to see them live. here is Nine Inch Nails.
nine inch nails is the project of master mind trent reznor. it's a good mix of industrial music and post-punk ala, Joy Division and Bauhaus. the band started in 1988 and rose to fame during the 90's and then to even more fame in the 2000's. drugs and depression were often the source material for the songs trent created, but that became a thing of the past once the guy sobered up and started getting more focused. as of right now, nine inch nails is on permanent hiatus while trent and his wife work on their new project called, How to Destroy Angels, which actually sounds a lot like nine inch nails...
the video for the song "closer" happens to be one of my most favorite video's of all time. this goes back to the days of music videos on MxTxVx and the creative talent behind them. but oh well, things change and blah blah blah. anyway, here's the music!!! i think i got pretty much the bands entire discography (or halos) minus some singles and such. starting off in first place is the amazing debut album, Pretty Hate Machine. this album launched the band into the faces of the mainstream and got people addicted to their industrial metal. the band went on the first ever lollapalooza and blew away the crowds who weren't ready for this type of music yet. good times were had. we follow that with the two ep's titled, Broken and Fixed. next we have my personal favorite NIN album, and that is The Downward Spiral. (fact: the album was recorded in the mansion of actress sharon tate who was brutally murdered by the manson family in the 60's...) after that we have the remix album, Further Down the Spiral, followed by the double album, The Fragile. another remix album called, Things Falling Apart would be released and then the live album, And All That Could Have Been. time would pass until trent gave us some new tunes which would become the stellar comeback album, With Teeth. this is the highest point nine inch nails would get and the material released after this showcases that. following with teeth is the equally amazing album, Year Zero followed by it's remix album, Year Zero Remixed and then the experimental ambient four disc set, Ghosts I-IV. and then in last place is the album titled, The Slip. nine inch nails would do one last tour called, the "Wave Goodbye" tour and that was it. so here you go with some awesome tunes to get you thinking and possibly sleeping. or maybe not...
there's a lot to do today. first is to do this post thing fast then get back to work on my sequin ordeal. then later on tonight there is a powwow going on in midwest city. i think i'll stop by there then after wards, head over to my friend mike's to visit for a bit. this doesn't seem like much, but after waking up from a horrible, sad, and personal dream, anything to break the norm is welcomed by me...
here is one band me and my mother share a common love for. they were one of the best grunge acts of the 90's and are still going strong despite certain tragedy. it is the band, Alice in Chains.
alice in chains formed in seattle, washington in 1987 after founding members jerry cantrell and layne staley met and lived with each other while playing in the band Alice N' Chains. alice n' chains eventually broke up, but the two guys stayed as friends and started a new band called, Diamond Lie. this lineup, featuring drummer sean kinney and bassist mike starr, would morph into the alice in chains we all know and love.
the band quickly rose up through the ranks in the seattle grunge movement and became one of the most successful acts of that time along with their peers, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Tad, Screaming Trees and Nirvana. after many years of touring and recording, the band began to fall apart. layne went on to join the grunge super group, Mad Season, who had a number two single with the song, "river of deceit". they would only release one album as a band. after three years of nothing alice in chains came back in 1995 to release their last album and then played their first live show in three years on the MxTxVx "unplugged" series. like nirvana before them, you could see the seams beginning to break. also in attendance at the show was a newly styled Metallica, with their now short hair... after all this, layne staley became a recluse following the death of his ex-fiancée in 1996. sadly, in 2002 layne was found dead from a heroin and cocaine overdose and possible infection in his seattle condominium.
during the years before and after layne's death, jerry cantrell went on to make two solo albums of which i don't really care for that much. (my mom does though...) and then in 2005, the band reunited for a benefit concert featuring guest musicians. on the song "rooster" the band asked Comes With the Fall vocalist william duvall to sing with them. it was after this that the band toured with willam and eventually recorded a new album called, Black Gives Way to Blue in 2009. it has reached gold status and received good reviews. now, for my own personal sake, the band died after layne died. i know this makes me seem like a turd, but alice in chains were one of my favorites and layne was truly a unique singer. you can't replace him no matter what. i've moved on and i guess i could give them a try again, but it will take some time for sure...
and with that, here's the music. we first start with their debut ep, We Die Young. this was a promotional ep which led their then label to push them into the studio to crank out their debut lp, Facelift. the album became one of the most important releases in the grunge movement, exposing many people to the sound of the north west. after this was the release of the ep, Sap. the band then released their second lp called, Dirt. this became the bands highest selling album to date, spawning five top 30 singles and garnering them rock legend status. time passed until their next release surfaced, which was the ep titled, Jar of Flies. more time passed until their last full length with layne staley was released, which was their self titled effort. following that in last place is Alice in Chains: Unplugged which is my personal favorite album by the band. so there you go. try to enjoy these and if wondering where to start, go with dirt. dig it...
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