Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
I've worked very hard for a very long time to try to make something that is beautiful enough so that I can enjoy it, and other people can enjoy it
"The thing is to find a truth which is true for me, to find the idea for which I can live and die." -Søren Kierkegaard 1835
I came across this short video from Scottish prog-rockers, Mogwai (thank you, Laurie), in which they pay homage to Iggy Pop, splicing a haunting instrumental song with the highlights of an interview conducted with Iggy on a Canadian talk show in 1977. I found it very moving.
Here is the interview in it's entirety;
http://archives.cbc.ca/programs/15-2806/
"I've worked very hard for a very long time to try to make something that is beautiful enough so that I can enjoy it, and other people can enjoy it., and I will continue working at it, because I haven't achieved it yet."-Iggy Pop
It should please you all to take eight minutes of your day and take in what Iggy had to say about "punk rock". He delivers a very heartfelt, poignant elucidation on what it means to be guided by a manic devotion to an energy that affects us so deeply that all we can do is give back to it everything we've got, without compromise, in our endless thirst to create something beautiful and share it with the world.
And here's an equally poignant ode to rock and roll's powerful spell by the almighty Flipper.
The Lights, The Sound, The Rhythm, and The Noise
(from Flipper "Blowin' Chunks" 1983)
The lights and the sound
And the rhythm and the noise
Hit my body like a thousand dances
Everyone knows
Where nothing is something
And our lives flash
Before our very eyes
Cause the lights and the sound
And the rhythm and the noise
Hit my body like a million years
Forever lost
Where the night meets day
And everyone thinks
That they know the proper way
(from Flipper "Blowin' Chunks" 1983)
The lights and the sound
And the rhythm and the noise
Hit my body like a thousand dances
Everyone knows
Where nothing is something
And our lives flash
Before our very eyes
Cause the lights and the sound
And the rhythm and the noise
Hit my body like a million years
Forever lost
Where the night meets day
And everyone thinks
That they know the proper way
Download Flipper link;
Friday, June 26, 2009
A HANGING
I almost let this blog wither away, filed under LOST INSPIRATIONS and INCOMPLETE ARTISTIC ENDEAVORS. It started when my file host, who had boasted to me once about his "virtually unlimited bandwidth" suddenly pulled the plug on access to my hosted uploads, essentially derailing a years worth of tedious construction of PTSD. It was just the kind of shit luck that left me aggravated and found me without the motivation to keep the ball rolling. The only brief moment of blogspiration I've had in this period of inactivity was my homage to Kim Wilde. I really felt like I didn't want to continue PTSD without first going back and fixing all the defunct links from previous entries dating all the way back to my first posting, which took a backseat to my multitude of other interests and hobbies.
Well alot has happened between then and now, both with my own musical endeavors and my continued discovery of artists who are doing it right and compelling me to share my interests in them.
On that note, since last October, I have been playing bass in the New Orleans Punk-Power-Thrash quartet, A Hanging. There's no denying the band has been gaining impressive momentum in the Nola hardcore punk and metal curcuit, in just a few months time having shared stages with the likes of EYEHATEGOD, GOATWHORE, ZOROASTER, EVIL ARMY, DEADBIRD, RITUAL KILLER, HAARP, HAWG JAW, TIREFIRE, THE DEVIL AND THE SEA, FLESH PARADE, and SAINT VITUS.
In January we were filmed alongside Louisiana's heaviest bands for a feature length documentary about the thriving insurgence of heavy music in the south entitled, Slow Southern Steel. The next week we rented a van and headed up to Little Rock, ARK, the hometown of SSS producer "C-T", to play with his band, RWAKE.
In January we self-released our debut cd, "Food For Rats" and have since completely sold out of the first run of 1000.
A Hanging "Food For Rats"
A Hanging "Blood And Spit"
I created a youtube channel under the nom de guerre, Atomicdruid, and there you will find an extensive
video playlist of A Hanging live videos, as well as videos from my past bands, Battalion Of Saints and The Tori Cobras.
Much more to come I promise.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Kim Wilde
A perusal of links to bands associated with providence hardcore legends, DROPDEAD, eventually led me to the myspace profile for Kim Wilde. I was 12 years old when I bought her platinum debut known for the smash-hit, "Kids In America", a joint composure by her brother, Ricky, and father, Marty Wilde. Kim Wilde could quite possibly have been the catalyst for the growth of hair on my balls In those restless nights of post adolescence, her uber-sweet voice would lull me to sleep from the turntable and I would dream of Kim, Debbie Harry, and Joan Jett engaged in a rock n' roll catfight for my affection.
Kim, who resides in London with her husband and their two children, still has a knack for making perfect pop songs and you can listen to her current work at her MySpace page.
Hearing "Kids" again on this youtube clip literally sent goosebumps up my back. Enjoy.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Pop Ear Infection
Even though "pop" is such an ambiguous term, marred by the stigma of it's association with commercialized music, I must admit that I am a sucker for a good pop song. Avril Lavigne is a "pop" singer, and she's horrible. Complete rubbish. But then, there's that London Bridges tune by Fergie that I can't get out of my head. Commercial "pop" music permeates our society at every turn and lulls the insipid consumer with it's homogenized hooks and melodies. Like television, Top 40 pop music has a tranquilizing effect on the public. It is the exact opposite of food for thought.
DON'T THINK! (Rock and Roll, Man!)
But that's that other pop music. Not at all like the melodic zeal of a song like, Do You Remember Rock and Roll Radio? by The Ramones, or the lily-white melodies of The Cardigans. The kind of pop music I'm hooked on is pure, catchy, and un-pretentious. At times, it is the stuff of guilty pleasures. Yes, sometimes these simple songs are so perfect in their formulae that their appeal crosses over to the mainstream, and they truly become popular. It's inevitable, and no matter how betrayed we feel when the little groups we adore break free from the underground, secretly we can't help but root for them in the hopes that one day they might tip the balance of the popular music's vapid state in favor of music with spirit and originality. But seriously, FUCK THE RADIO, and have a taste of the candy my ears have been sucking on;
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Notes From The French Quarter
Once again it's been awhile since I've posted anything. I was in a living situation that wasn't condusive to the kind of relaxed environment I require to work on this thing. But I'm in my own apartment now in the french quarter and I'm happy to be relaxed here and sharing some sounds I'm digging.
The Sess, Agendumb
Single Screen Records
Holy shit this is one powerful work. These guys are not pulling any punches and have given us an album that is a rollercoaster ride of aurally delicious garage hooks, technical twists and turns. This is rock and roll as a weapon. The guitar and bass melodies are jumping out my tiny desktop speakers like an army of bees and wasps. I cannot wait to hear this shit loud on a car stereo or on the sytem at the club. I imagine it sounding like The Who at Pearl Harbor. If the world doesn't blow up in 2012, this record could go down in history as one of the best punk records ever.
The Sess-Sheep City Mp3
The Sess-Mary Mp3
Statutory Triangle, Cajun Moments
Statutory Triangle skullfuck you with fucked up punk ju jitzu that sounds like Marc Almond on meth backed up by an alien with blasts of psych-damaged, freight train electronic drumbeats. These songs are fresh out of Quintron's Spellcaster Studio and I am privileged to be the first kid on the bloggerblock to give you:
Statutory Triangle-Fucking Famous Mp3
Statutory Triangle-Helen Anka Mp3
And I just can't seem to get enough of So What? by the Anti Nowhere League
So fucking what!
Well I've been to Hastings
And I've been to Brighton
I've been to Eastbourne too
So what, so what
Well I've been here
And I've been there
And I've been every fucking where
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you
Well I've sucked sweets
And I've sucked rock
And I've even sucked an old man's cock
So what, so what
Well I've fucked a sheep
And I've fucked a goat
I've had my cock right down its throat
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you
Well I've drunk that
And I've drunk this
And I've spewed up on a pint of piss
So what, so what
And I've had scag
I've had speed
I've jacked up until I bleed
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you
Well I've had crabs
And I've had lice
And I've had the pox and that ain't nice
So what, so what
Well I've fucked this
And I've fucked that
And I've even fucked a schoolgirl's crack
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Who cares, who cares about you
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you...
Anti Nowhere League-So What Mp3
The Sess, Agendumb
Single Screen Records
Holy shit this is one powerful work. These guys are not pulling any punches and have given us an album that is a rollercoaster ride of aurally delicious garage hooks, technical twists and turns. This is rock and roll as a weapon. The guitar and bass melodies are jumping out my tiny desktop speakers like an army of bees and wasps. I cannot wait to hear this shit loud on a car stereo or on the sytem at the club. I imagine it sounding like The Who at Pearl Harbor. If the world doesn't blow up in 2012, this record could go down in history as one of the best punk records ever.
The Sess-Sheep City Mp3
The Sess-Mary Mp3
Statutory Triangle, Cajun Moments
Statutory Triangle skullfuck you with fucked up punk ju jitzu that sounds like Marc Almond on meth backed up by an alien with blasts of psych-damaged, freight train electronic drumbeats. These songs are fresh out of Quintron's Spellcaster Studio and I am privileged to be the first kid on the bloggerblock to give you:
Statutory Triangle-Fucking Famous Mp3
Statutory Triangle-Helen Anka Mp3
And I just can't seem to get enough of So What? by the Anti Nowhere League
So fucking what!
Well I've been to Hastings
And I've been to Brighton
I've been to Eastbourne too
So what, so what
Well I've been here
And I've been there
And I've been every fucking where
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you
Well I've sucked sweets
And I've sucked rock
And I've even sucked an old man's cock
So what, so what
Well I've fucked a sheep
And I've fucked a goat
I've had my cock right down its throat
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you
Well I've drunk that
And I've drunk this
And I've spewed up on a pint of piss
So what, so what
And I've had scag
I've had speed
I've jacked up until I bleed
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Well who cares, who cares what you do
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you
Well I've had crabs
And I've had lice
And I've had the pox and that ain't nice
So what, so what
Well I've fucked this
And I've fucked that
And I've even fucked a schoolgirl's crack
So what, so what
So what, so what you boring little cunt
Who cares, who cares about you
Who cares, who cares about you
You, you, you, you...
Anti Nowhere League-So What Mp3
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
The King Khan & BBQ Show
The King Khan & BBQ Show consists of former Spaceshits, Mark Sultan (of Montreal, Quebec)and King Khan (of Berlin, Germany). They play soulful, unpretentious, humorous, romantic, low-fi garage rock and roll that harkens back to the good old days of boogie woogie rockabilly and punk. I could try and go off on a tangent about them but I really don't have much to write other than they're awesome and I'd like to share their awesomeness with you. If you want to know more, check The King Khan & BBQ Show Myspace.
The King Khan & BBQ Show-I Love You So Mp3
The King Khan & BBQ Show-Fish Fight Mp3
The King Khan & BBQ Show-Take Me Back Mp3
The King Khan & BBQ Show-Pig Pig Mp3
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