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...
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...
currently searching for mcrib locations in oklahoma has proved to be useless since they are nowhere close to me. i could drive all the way to el reno, but eh... today is saturday and i'm feelin' pretty good. i think i'll go down to norman and spend some time at the outlet mall. maybe i could find a new sweater or something. oh, and our beloved oklhoma sooners play today at 6pm, so that's going to be awesome. aw, just a relaxing day. next week will be a bit crazy though, because the new Call of Duty goes on sale tuesday, so i'm going to have to bunker down and sit through yet another midnight release. oh well, it's just the life of a gamer/total NERD.
and one more thing, i'm currently in the process of looking for a place to live. well, i still have my dad's, but what i meant to say was, "i'm looking for my own home." i'd actually like to have a loft, and that's not because i attended art school and look all moody and such. naw, it's just that i totally dig that industrial look and the open space would be awesome. i would probably have enough room to practice my powwow dancing and to have underground boxing matches!!! uh, yeah...
okay, so i want to get this over with quickly because i'm burning daylight. today's music post comes courtesy of HYPE. you know what hype is don't ya??? well, this is something most music buffs consider hype, but whatever. it's pretty cool stuff and it comes from a three piece known as, Salem.
alright, now bare with me because this might blow your mind. or maybe not... so, salem is a band from traverse city, michigan that formed in 2006. they pretty much started an entire genre with their debut ep. this genre is floating around the internets at a rapid pace. it's known as witchhouse, or drag. heck, i've even heard it called, crunk shoegaze, darkwave, industrial and what have you. as you can probably see, i've posted a tone of labels for this band and rightfully so. the thing is, i hate labeling music and arranging it into all these genre's from nowadays. still, this group kinda sorta needs this in order for people to get the point. OK, to make this more simple, i'm going to say it's chopped and screwed post-punk. yes, that's basically what it is. it's gothic and punk, rock and pop. this melting pot of styles makes for an interesting, yet subdued quality that i honestly find addicting. of course, i'm a music geek who loves almost everything, so this is right up my alley. here, listen to the song "dirt" below for a quick taste...
this music had the right amount of drugged out bliss that makes me sleepy, yet intrigued. it's a matter of finding something you like in certain things that let's you explore a bit further. now this type of mentality can make things hard for you, like drugs for instance, so don't use this idea for everything under the sun. i'm mostly referring to the music yo!!!
so, it's time to wrap this up. i think i have their entire disco up to this point so let's get started shall we??? in first place is their debut ep, Yes, I Smoke Crack. this was originally released back in 2008 and quickly gained an underground following. suddenly, tons and tons of independent artists have sprung up doing the same sort of thing. seriously!!! if you don't believe me, type witchhouse on google and see for yourself!!! anyway, after that is the Water ep, followed by their first seven inch single Ohk/Sweat (I). after that is their next seven inch Frost/Legend and then their full length debut, King Night. the debut is awesome stuff and need's to be played loudly and with good bass. so there you go, try this and dig something entirely different.
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
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...
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...
well i finally got to see the series finale of LOSTthe other night. it was a bit overwhelming and emotional for me. you see, this series takes me back to my first year of college in santa fe, new mexico. it reminds me of a lot of things during that short time in my life. to see it all finally come to an end is sad, but also rewarding. i stayed with it all the way to the end just like i did with school. (my last semester almost didn't happen though...) but, like my college graduation, the show's ending left me a bit confused and saddened. after time has passed, i look back on it and see how certain things happened and what i should have done to make other things better. i hope i am more wiser now... and with the show, i look back on it and see how certain events took place and made the ending the way it was. i don't think television will ever be this good again, for a very LONG time. and once again, just like college, there was a time and a place for it...
continuing with my mention in yesterday's post about bands that are, or have toured with Converge this year, i now like to welcome the band, Keelhaul.
keelhaul are a very underrated band in the current scene of metalcore/math rock/post-metal. trust me on this one. if you dig bands like, Neurosis, Jesu, Isis, Pelican, Red Sparrows, Cult of Luna and Botch, you will like keelhaul. this band started back in 1997 and come from cleveland, ohio. they take their time between albums and have just recently released a new lp through hydra head records, which is an awesome label. i suggest you give these dudes a listen and see if you can catch on quickly to whats good in the world of music.
it's a sad day in the rock word. Ronnie James Dio, died yesterday from stomach cancer. you all might know him from his song, "holy diver" which became his biggest and most well known hit. he also sang for this little band called, Black Sabbath, when they booted Ozzy Osbourne. and finally, he is also the originator of the devil horns that everybody uses at rock concerts now. so with that, i salute you dio and hope you are rockin' out still. \m/
it's now time to post on an epic band that i had the pleasure of seeing once, back in 2002. right here on a wolf at the door, it's the band known as, Tool.
there are many out there who think that tool are overrated and stale. many bands go undiscovered and those that get left out are totally amazing and more epic than these guys. still, tool is here and have been since 1990. they are from los angeles, california and make their own style of progressive rock that takes cues from other talents like, Yes, Rush and King Crimson. the band incorporates ambient textures as well as, post-rock styling's and indie rock yelping through thick layers of guitar and bass. the drumming of danny carey compliments the guitars of adam jones and the grooves of bass player justin chancelor. and finally, there is lead singer, maynard james keenan. this guy is held up there in rock legend status with other singers like, thom yorke and bono. yes, the dude is amazing and his low and high notes are the perfect compliment to the intense music. he was also the singer in the band, A Perfect Circle, which i will post on some other time. oh, and both maynard and danny were in the band, Green Jelly, which are of another world themselves.
i don't want to delve too much into this band because many have already. tool have a very large fan base that keeps on growing, so the thoughts and discussion over material and subject matter contained within the music is not something i have the time to write about today. (i gotta go eat dinner with my family soon!!!)
the complete discography is here for you to make sense of. in first place is the demo titled, 72826. it's a raw cassette tape of demo's that were sent to record companies and sold to early fans. next is their famous ep called, Opiate. this contains the awesome song, "hush" which had a music video with the band members walking about totally naked. and following that is their amazing full length debut, Undertow. this is the album that broke the band into the mainstream and garnered them tons of fans. they toured on Lollapalooza to great acclaim and moved from the second stage to the main. the music video for the song, "sober" brought forth their soon to be style of not appearing in any video's or press releases. adam jones does their video's and uses techniques such as stop motion. after this the band took some time off to make their new album which would become, Ænima. this is their most intense and thought provoking album. (in my opinion of course!!!) they won a grammy for best metal performance with this material. they also appeared on the 1998 Ozzfest which they hated. several more years passed until their next releases which was the Salival, box set. this contained their music video's as well as a live album. it's popular for the bands version of the Led Zeppelin song, "no quarter". the following year would they released the album, Lateralus. it was around this time i got to see them live in oklahoma city. what i can recall from the show was that the crowd behaved like zombies, but then morphed into some sort of weird extraterrestrial manifestation before eating each other alive. it also reminded me of the party scene from the movie, Jacob's Ladder. (i was on stuff when i saw them by the way...) and now we come to the last place which is the album, 10,000 Days. okay people, thank you for following this long tripe of a post. i hope you all enjoy the music and take care of yourselves...
right here is a link for everyone to stream the new Deftones album, Diamond Eyes. set to be released may 25, this is the sixth album from the band and it presents a new era for the group. first off, original bassist chi cheng, is not playing with them this time around. the poor soul was involved in a terrible car wreck some years ago, and has been in a coma ever since. for the time being, the band has recruited bassist sergio vega, who is known for playing in the band, Quicksand.
I have always defended the Deftones as not being a stupid nu-metal band (I hate that term) but instead an artistic group that makes amazing music. Some people will most likely say I'm praising them too much and just a fan boy, but seriously, not many musical acts take the risks these guys do and come out still standing.
On first listen, I can safely say that this album is great. It's got the right stuff from the guys I expect, but also some changes too. Deftones are always a band that I look to for great change in musical style and it seems that they've done that this time. The change feels more like a remembrance, and what that means is a step back to their roots. Yeah, I know a lot of bands say things like that, or they present themselves with this idea to try and duplicate their old styles and make similar material, but that usually ends up being complete bollocks. Yes, this album reminds me of moments from their past, (Around the Fur, White Pony) but there is much more going for it than just that.
On the opening song, "Diamond Eyes", singer Chino Moreno, croons softly over the heavy chugging of guitarist Stephan Carpenter which isn't anything new, but what makes it powerful is the emotion and sheer force behind it. This isn't a by-the-numbers song, and neither is the rest of the album. No, what it is, is music that's immediate and brought to the front. There is power here and you can feel it through every note sung and every note played. The Deftones aren't without their trademark psychedelic/dream-pop styles, and you will find this on songs like, "Beauty School" and "Sex Tape". Frank Delgado, with his keyboards and turntables, shines through and thoughts of older tracks like, "Kim Dracula" and "Digital bath" come to mind. This is where the Deftones step aside and let their oozing talents speak directly for them. They don't seem afraid to experiment and I can tell a lot of work went into these mentioned songs. Usually the best stuff is made through confusion and anger. Main songwriter, Chino, usually gets a chance to vent his sleazy side too. First single, "rocket skates" is your best bet for ultimate release. "You're red, soaking red/let's writhe, let me see you trip." The climax is the main chorus which screams "Guns./Razors./Knifes./Fuck with me." I also don't want to forget drummer, Abe Cunningham, who's sound is expanded and pounding like Transformers wrestling. The drums are heavy, and used to great advantage in the overall ambiance.
Not to forget Sergio Vega of Quicksand fame, the new bassist adds great layers to the already dense and dough boy thick songs. His bass thumping grooves along and isn't lost in all that's going on. Speaking of what's going on, there is a lot of it. Over the years the Deftones have garnered the strength to expand their sounds from the rough and tumble early days, and what you get now is a full band going all out and not sitting in the back. There are elements of shoegaze/post-rock/metal/post-hardcore and I'll even go as far as saying emo. (The emo term should be thought of in conjunction with artists who really meant something in that genre and not the usual tripe we all hear today...)
On a final note, I want to mention the cover art. Album artwork use to be a major concentration during the early days, but it seems to be an after thought in our modern society. To sit and ponder on the art is something I like to do (When it's artistic and not stupid...) and looking over the new Deftones album I'm reminded of my native culture. The owl is thought of as a messenger. The message is usually death. It might be you, or someone close. It can go either way. I assume the Deftones didn't pick this through a garbage pile. It was put there for a reason. What can it mean??? Blah blah blah, just a little something to think over.
today was the start of several months of training in order to get my body in tip-top shape. i'm making some huge plans for my life and in order for those to happen, i need to get physically fit. so far, i'm terribly out of shape. i haven't worked like this since high school baseball, and even then i didn't always go all out. still, this is different and it's something i'm not going to quit. i'm nervous, or better yet scared, so i need to build up my confidence and strength and ability to believe in myself. i don't want to look back on this and regret a lot of things like i have been doing for the past year. this is my time and it's starts right now.
i want to mention an awesome band that is under the radar, but very respected amongst those who know. the band is called, Cult of Luna.
this is an awesome post-metal/post-rock/doom metal/ambient band from umea, sweden just like Refused, who i posted on last night. to describe this band without only using genre tags, i guess i'd say you take the metal heavyness of bands like, Isis, Jesu, Neurosis and Pelican, and then mix those with bands like Envy, Between the Buried and Me, Mogwai and the always amazing, Radiohead. the music is epic in a post-rock sort of way and it builds and builds higher and higher. it's amazing and very pretty music that gets interrupted by the ferocity of the lead singer who has a painful sounding growl. trust me once again when i say, this is awesome music and something not to miss.
today i have one album for you all to check out. it's their breakthrough album and the one that got them the attention they deserve in the underground. that album is called, Salvation, and it's a great piece of work. also, the video below contains some of their music alongside clips from the japanese psychological horror film, Suicide Club. enjoy!!!
ugh, i felt sick after eating mexican for lunch today. not that it was bad food, it's just that my stomach, for some odd reason, acted like it couldn't hold the food down. this is a weird situation since i love mexican food and i always have it under control. today all was not well though. maybe it's because i had a hot chocolate this morning and we had lunch around eleven, or maybe it's because of my nerves and stress. regardless, i feel much better now as i type this. let's see how the weekend goes for us. apparently, we are to get another massive snow storm coming this weekend. it's going to hit us saturday morning and drop over ten inches or so. i guess winter wants to mess with us one more time before it finally goes away for the summer. this is completely fine with me. i love winter and hope it can stay for as long as it can!!!
today is a massive post on one band. this one band is very unique and something i'm very grateful for discovering on my own. here today, is the band, Envy.
first off, envy is from japan. all their lyrics are sung in japanese and there is nothing wrong with that. when first listened, it doesn't take long for one to notice the depth and pure emotion that is contained within this music. envy are a hardcore/screamo/post-rock band that has been around since 1992. over the years, their music has greatly evolved from frantic screaming, to almost godly beauty in the form of lush instrumentals, and spoken word vocals. comparisons to bands like, Explosions In the Sky and Mogwai, are frequent and not far off, but that shouldn't pigeonhole them. they are one-of-a-kind in the fact that they pave their own way with their brand of chaotic elegance and graceful unrest. this is music for the sleepy ones who wake from nightmares with angry thoughts or peaceful feelings. there is a mix of all kinds of emotions contained here, that one must contemplate where, and who they are as an individual and a living organism. most seriously, this music can change your life, or change your day depending on your overall attitude and such...
it's been a real pleasure to know this bands music for a few years now. they hardly, if ever, come to american and play shows, so if by chance that opportunity comes along, by golly, TAKE THAT CHANCE, and go see them!!!
right here is their ENTIRE, discography. the only thing i'm leaving off are their early splits and 7inches because those are all compiled in a latter release, so you got it all here anyway. first thing to start with is the album, Breathing and Dying In This Place. take note, that this is an early release and it contains their spastic screamo/skrams style of music and not the post-rock style they would latter be known for. still, it's an interesting place to start, seeing as how the band has evolved so much over the years. next is the album, From Here To Eternity and then the ep, Angel's Curse Whispered In The Edge Of Despair. (you might want to get used to the long album titles, because the song titles can top it!!!) again, these are early releases and chaotic pieces of music. next we have two more ep's, titled, The Eyes Of Single Eared Prophet and Burning Out Memories. following those two we come to the awesome lp, All The Footprints You've Left Behind and the Fear Expected Ahead. this is the start of the bands change in sound and structure. they cut off a lot of the hardcore elements and begin to stretch out the song lengths and flow. check out the song, "chain wondering deeply" for a great example. okay, so with all of those behind us, we now come to what many fans consider the bands best work, the lp titled, A Dead Sinking Story. this is where i first started with the band, and to see them from their past all the way to their current present, i will say this is their final gap between hardcore/screamo to post-rock gods, and perhaps their best work. there is great continuity in this album, and all the slow buildups presented within are some of the best payoffs i've yet heard in music. the ideas behind this album are solid, and it's just really intense and satisfying to hear. now is the album for those hardcore collectors. Compiled Fragments: 1997-2003, is the bands best effort to put all of their hard to find material into one great package. all their early splits with bands such as, Sixpence, Endeavor, Iscariot, This Machine Kills, and Yapheto Kotto, are all contained here along with a few unreleased tracks, some singles, and live tracks. overall, it's worth it for those who are hardcore about all that stuff. following that release we come to the album, Insomniac Doze. this is their album following a dead sinking story and, like many might have thought, it takes the band into the post-rock world and almost leaves behind their hardcore roots. don't take that the wrong way though, because when needed, the band still rips most throats wide open. it's just that this time, it's all a bit restrained and more carefully used in conjunction with the dynamics of the song craft. the song titled, "scene" is probably my favorite track the band has ever done and one to check out below. phew, almost done here!!! okay, now for the last three. next we have the ep called, Abyssal. it's another great album and a short stop in between full lengths. but wait!!! the band hasn't released anymore full lengths yet??? no, no, instead they released two more split ep's with some well known bands in music today. first is the split with metal/shoegaze artist, Jesu. this split is awesome in the fact that envy seem to be doing more experimental approaches to their craft by mixing in some electronic elements. no, they haven't gone techno, but instead have tried out a minimalism idea, and for me, it works. it's great to hear and offers something new and different from the band. and now we come to the last release, which happens to be a split with, now emo legends, Thursday. this is the album that made many people notice envy, and that was entirely the point behind it. thursday are an awesome band, and they know good bands when they see them. they have often spoken highly of envy, and recently borrowed some of their post-rock style for their newest releases. it can most definitely be heard on this little split, and it's once again, totally awesome. envy are on the top of their game, and one band to not miss. give them a look see and lay back to listen to beauty and chaos.
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