I can't think of a title right now. Seriously.

No posts in a while. Hmmm. Everyone's busy "working" I guess. I'm not.

Another trip. More records. You know the drill.

Nirvana (greatest hits). Found it cheap. Got it for original version of "Been A Son" (on Blew EP). The tracklisting is a bit predictable, but hey, it's greatest hits, not best of. Then again, if you want Nirvana's "greatest hits," just buy Nevermind. If you want "best-of" Nirvana, get In Utero. It's just plain sense.

Pod, The Breeders. One of Kurt's favorite albums. Engineered by Steve Albini. Girl from Pixies (Kim Deal) plays guitar and sings. She has a pretty voice. I think Kurt said something about the album long the lines of "it'll never let you forget your ex-girlfriend." Don't quote me on that. I've never had an ex-girfriend. It's probably fun though. Kidding.

Bug, Dinosaur Jr. "Freak Scene" is a masterpiece. Don't care about rest of album yet. Just listening to "Freak Scene." J Mascis is a great guitarist. And I'm not just saying that.

Heart-Shaped Box (Single), Nirvana. Only supposed to be available in Europe. Found it here. Yay. Very collectible.

Bandwagonesque and Grand Prix, both by Teenage Fanclub. They're very good. I'm a teenage fan of... forget it. So far I like Gerald Love's songs the best.

Out of Time, R.E.M. I couldn't find anything else. I heard "Losing My Religion" while I was in the store, so that might have influenced my decision a bit.

2 other CDs. Watch your mailbox.

I'm satisfied. I found everything I was looking for except the albums I wanted the most. Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash (the Mats) and anything that Steve Albini plays on. There was nothing in the Shellac area, and I couldn't even find Big Black or Rapeman (I'm not surprised about the latter though). Apparently a deluxe edition of Quadrophenia is going to be released soon. I might get that, seeing that the album itself is very, very good. It has some songs that I'm pretty sure that Han might even like. Then again, maybe he wouldn't. Y'know, he probably wouldn't. He still listens to Pokemon songs.

Then again, some of those aren't bad. Still listening to "Freak Scene."

WIN

Maybe "our show," rather than "my show," but this is still awesome.

Recorded, not produced

Steve Albini is a genius. That is all. Well, not really. But he is. He produced-wait, sorry, "recorded" In Utero. He's would be awesome for that reason alone. But I also really like listening to his stuff from all his bands; they're mostly noise, but it's really, really good abrasive noise. Steve's three bands are Big Black, Rapeman, and Shellac, and they're all very similar (he plays guitar and sings in all of them). Listening to mostly Big Black, especially songs from their last studio album, like "The Model," "Bad Penny," and "He's A Whore." What? It's a Cheap Trick cover! Don't be so uptight.

Turns out that Shellac has 2 concerts in Oakland this October. And they're both on the weekend. And they have a cellist for the opening act named Helen Money. Shellac is the awesome band with songs like "Squirrel Song," "My Black Ass," and "Steady As She Goes" (not the stupid one with Jack White in it, although I'll admit that one isn't bad either). I really want to go to one of these. And since it's at a small club, it'll be intimate than a big, indulgent arena show. Just hope I can go.

Disappointed with Pandora

Who in the right mind would categorize Chopin with SCARLATTI?! There is a reason why I started my Chopin station separately from my J.S. Bach and if the database is combining a Scarlatti piano sonata with Chopin's piano work, I don't know what to say. Perhaps I'm being overly picky, but I think this is a pretty serious problem. On the "similar composers" part of the description, J.S. Bach is included. I think one should at least be able to tell the musical difference between Romantic and Baroque. It's actually pretty simple, polytonality in Baroque with rather strict time signatures and less rubato. Romantic utilizes the waltz 3/4 feel with much more harmonizing, along with an extensive use of rubato and phrasing. Those two should be fairly easy to spot; I don't understand why Bach even shows up on the similar composers page. I don't know about you, but this made me pretty unhappy.

I guess for other genres of music, Pandora does a rather good job of categorizing most things, but the classical section definitely needs some work.

Acoustic Ballads

According to Tommy, the acoustic ballad that he wanted me to find is one that doesn't include piano, doesn't have any drums, and includes a voice. On top of that, I had to find one that I liked. Eventually, I got it, but that was only after much google searching. I guess I don't enjoy many songs that have only an acoustic guitar and a voice. (This isn't very surprising, if you take into consideration that I my two favorite genres of music are heavy metal and classical) I think it took me 3 days to find one that met all the requirements, sadly, I don't have an eidedic memory like Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation, which explains the "I think" in this sentence. When he (Tommy) asked me to name an acoustic ballad, I said "Laguna Beach" by Black Sabbath, but apparently, that doesn't work because it needs vocals. So, naturally, I picked "About a Girl" by Nirvana, the obvious choice, but he asked for another one, probably because it was the obvious choice. After that point, it just got hard. So if you're interested in the song that I actually did pick, it's "More than words" by Extreme. I do, however, enjoy many ballads that are electric. Here are a couple that I find enjoyable:

-Stairway To Heaven - Led Zeppelin

-A Little Piece of Heaven - A7x (Metal ballads exist)

- I Don't Want to Miss a Thing - Aerosmith

- Soldier of Fortune - Deep Purple

- Dying For Love - Black Sabbath

- Androgynous - The Replacements

- Hey Jude - The Beatles

- The Spirit Carries On - Dream Theater (YES! The new album is coming out in September and after this song, I am DEFINITELY contemplating buying it. Y'all should listen to both the original and the version that a cover band put together internationally, it's called On The Backs of Angels)

That's about it, I guess the last one is kind of borderline, but it's still quite a bit slower than the stuff I usually listen to, so perhaps it works. Wow, psychology is taking over my brain, the second I wrote "borderline" I immediately thought of the borderline personality disorder. Great. Speaking of psychology, did you know that coprophilia, a paraphilia that means sex with feces, was labeled one of the most common paraphilias? Pretty gross, isn't it?

Losing What's Left of My Mental Sanity...

I'm pretty sure that there's something wrong with staying at home all day in pajamas in front of the computer. Just saying. I've been stalking The Strokes for the past few days because I've been regretting not going to see them at Shoreline (Why did I have to study for finals? WHY? The Strokes are so much better. It was a WEEKEND too for goodness sakes....Sometimes I really wonder about how I can be so stupid.) The Strokes....I think I love them even more as everyday passes. The good news is that they have a 5th album in the works so maybe, just maybe, they'll finish by next year and tour again and swing by San Francisco? This is all wishful thinking that I really really really really hope comes true. So far the only thing that has been holding me over until the 5th album comes out is the 4th album, Angles. I love every single song on the album. No joke. And that's rare, really rare. I mean, even on most Green Day albums there is at least one song that I don't like too much. Angles is an AMAZING album that I just can't stop listening to. I swear, I cannot fall asleep until I've listened to the album at least 2 times through. Sigh. So, for all you people who are wondering whether or not to get Angles, do it. You have not lived until you do. When I first started listening to The Strokes, I thought it was just good, you know, nothing amazing. It really doesn't hit you until you think about it and listen carefully that you get all the nuances of their music. I probably sound crazy, but whatever. I've lost what's left of my mental sanity.

Ballads?

When I saw Tommy's post, I could not resist posting my own. Leonard (And yes, it's not pronounce Ba-llaud) ...Ballads are sometimes the most insightful songs because they are so contemplative. Idk, maybe it's because I actually grew up listening to mostly ballad-ish music. See Elton John and Simon & Garfunkel ("Sound of Silence" - good song). Seriously. My parents love Elton John and Phil Collins and my dad had this phase where he was learning guitar and he would play ballads like "Bridge Over Troubled Water". Maybe it's because I was so little and I mainly listened to mainstream at the time, but it really made an impression on me I guess. I mean, apparently, Julian Casablancas listened to stuff like The Doors and Phil Collins inspired music. (See Wikipedia) It's translated into my love of The Strokes and alternative music, and of course, Piano driven ballads (yes it is possible). I think I have a pretty loose definition of a ballad, but mostly, ballads are pretty slow, tell some sort of a story-ish and are not very upbeat. My favorite ballads are probably a little outside some of other peoples definitions of a ballad, but I think in general they are pretty good songs and are not too radically different from what is traditionally considered a ballad.

So, some good ballads:

"Whatsername"- Green Day (This is pretty much a ballad....just listen to it. Probably, one of my favorite songs ever if not my favorite song. It has HUNDREDS of plays on my iPod. Seriously.)

"Bridge Over Troubled Water" - Simon & Garfunkel (Eat your heart out, the piano part is so beautiful)

"Dream On" - Aerosmith (Yes, it is a ballad.)

"Home" - Michael Buble (Yeah, shut up. I like this song.)
"Androgynous" - The Replacements (I KNOW you like this song Leonard. And yes, it is a ballad. For sure.)

"Last Day On Earth" - Green Day (One of their few true ballads. Nice classic love song-ish ballad.)

"Sound of Silence" - Simon & Garfunkel (Leonard , listen to this one. I mean it. It is SUCH a good song. To describe it in familiar terms, it sort of reminds of "Shadowplay". It's sort of iffy as a ballad, but still fantastic)

"A Change Is Gonna Come" - Sam Cooke (haha...A Julian Casablancas interview made me listen to this. And I liked it.)

Unplugged

Chatting with Leonard, and apparently he (cough cough) doesn't like acoustic guitar ballads (except for "About A Girl." But still). Or she can't find any. And by "acoustic guitar ballads" I mean the type with no electric guitars. And the drums can't be too hard. And no piano. Maybe. Well piano works actually, to an extent. But the acoustic guitar and vocals should be the main focus. I'm generalizing here though. I really don't like classifying things. There are types of acoustic ballads with electric guitar, hard drums, and piano. But I'm talking about the other kind. So here are some good examples of those.

"Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)," Green Day. Just kidding. Way overrated.

"If Only You Were Lonely," The Replacements. Better than anything else Paul has recorded in his solo career.

"Skyway," also by The Replacements. Not as good as the above, but still excellent.

"Polly," Nirvana. Sometimes a broken down cheapo acoustic guitar can sound the best. And there's the part where everything else drops out, and it's just the bass.

"Used To Love Her," Guns N' Roses. Stupid premise, but fun. And good acoustic guitar solo.

"Never Grow Up," Taylor Swift. I like this song. Deal with it.

"Thirteen," Big Star. No explanation needed.

EDIT: Side note, updated my "about" page. I was bored, okay?

Taken For A Fool - The Strokes Video

I haven't gone on Youtube for a few days, and this is how it punishes me. The video for "Taken For Fool", one of my favorite songs from Angles (Yes, I like it more than the first single "Under Cover of Darkness") was posted on July 8th. FML moment when I go on Youtube this morning. Anyways, it's a pretty cool video. The Strokes are in this cool computer- ish, pixel-y world and there are 2 Julian Casablancas (and he isn't wearing sunglasses, *gasp*. He's also wearing a flag printed shirt - and ode to July 4th, maybe?) and each of the other band memebers.  It's sort of old videos of The Strokes meets The Modern Age (you see what I did there?) - it's The Strokes perfoming the song and plus a bunch of special effects. Long story short - I love the song and the video.

Pay attention at 3:12. Just do it. I laughed so hard I almost fell off my chair.

Mozart K333

Yes, Maria and Tommy, you both know that Mozart had to come out sooner or later. Sometimes Mozart makes me so frustrated with my technical skill that I wish to cry, but after just a couple days I soon figure out how to perform his fast-paced sixteenth note runs in a fashion that actually makes it sounds as though I know what I'm doing. This particular sonata is that one that I've practiced for about a year. Now that I think about it, that's a hell of a long time for just one song. Usually I play 2 or 3 classical period pieces in a year, but I guess this was a special occasion. Actually, because I've been playing this one for so long, I don't even want to look at the music for it anymore. I guess it's gotten to the point in which I not only memorized each note, but also to the point in which I can just about perform it anywhere. For those of you not exactly familiar with the format of most typical sonatas, it's done in an Exposition, Development, and Recapitulation form, similarly to your typical essay. The thing I like about this particular sonata is that it has the traditional "Mozart feel" with the sonata allegro form and a very strong sense of homophonic texture. i.e. Alberti bass in the left hand while right hand has melody. I've also started preparing Scarlatti's sonata k 113 and Mozart's K 457. For those of you who have actually been reading most of my posts, please don't be shocked, a piano playing nerd can indeed enjoy Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, and Black Sabbath.

The same old thing we did last week

So I'm at the gym one time right? And there's the TVs on the sorta-cycling things right? And I was watching That 70s Show (name of actual show, Leonard). It's not actually that bad. And when I first heard the theme song, I was like "Hey, this sounds familiar... Wait, this is ripped off 'In The Street!'" Turns out it isn't ripped off of the Big Star song, it's just a cover, by Cheap Trick. But it doesn't sound exactly like the original song, so I thought it was a different one. The Cheap Trick version isn't bad, it's actually pretty good, but it's mostly by-the-book modern rock version of a classic. The best version of the song is the single version by Big Star (kinda true rule I made up: single versions are usually better than the album version ONLY if they have been rerecorded, not cut down/butchered to fit acceptable radio time). Also, the main character in the show, Eric, looks very similar to Rivers Cuomo... Blue Album era, without those thick glasses. You don't think so? Yeah right.

Color Me Impressed

Got a weird feeling Maria's last blog title is about me... Anyways, haven't really gotten into anything that new since last posts. But I have been listening to this one Mats bootleg I downloaded a couple of weeks ago (Mats=Placemats=Replacements. I thought we already established this). It's actually rather hard to find live shows by The Replacements on the internet (there were no smartphones that could record video in 1986. Did you know that?) and even harder if you don't know what they are called. Well this one's called Maniac, and although the cover's a bit weird, it's a pretty good show (recorded at Maxwell's, in New Jersey), especially considering that this is a few months before Bob Stinson quit/was fired (end of Tim era). That's not all that is on the bootleg though. There's the soundcheck from the before-mentioned show plus the SNL performances (evidently sourced from the TV broadcast) PLUS a couple of other radio tracks with early versions of Pleased To Meet Me songs (with Bob playing on them!). Some of the highlights on it include "Gary's Got A Boner," "Take Me Down To The Hospital," a great version of "Left Of The Dial" (which falls apart at the end), and especially "I.O.U."

And if you don't like somewhat rough recordings (I love them, sometimes the quality gives the song more bite) I'm adding another link to download Putting On The Ritz, which is a great PTMM show (1987) with a perfect soundboard recording (official release quality). It's actually one of my favorite boots ever, as it contains stuff like "Favorite Thing" (Paul pretty much makes the lyrics up during the song, sounds great), "Little Mascara," and "California Sun." Only the performances are kinda lackluster compared to Maniac's. It just shows how focused the band became after Bob left. That's not necessarily a good thing either. Rock should be spontaneous and fun. The Maniac show is considered to be "professional" by Replacements (1986) standards. And I'm looking for the 12/9/84 show at CBGB (interesting date), which is one of the drunkest shows they ever did. So it's bound to sound good.

More info about the shows here; http://www.22designs.com/foshaytower2/index_net.html

Won't Decide, But He Won't Debate

Haha. The title of this post is a lyric from The Strokes song "When It Started". Anyways, if you know me, you would find this unbearably hilarious because I refer to people who are like this as "pushovers" because I'm such a debate addict. Yeah, I guess I like arguing (or to those who are more sensitive and like asserting their non existent superiority "intellectually discussing a matter") and I guess that means I have quite a pugnacious personality. I'm often described as "too serious" or "too intense". Maybe that contributes to my love of New Wave (which sort of calms me down), Indie (which is pretty mellow) and Punk (you know, to keep me from slapping someone - the angst is already there for me). People tell me to calm down quite alot...they just don't do it in the right way. Just hand me my iPod, geez, it's not that hard. I think I'm addicted to that thing.

Lately I've been kind of getting into the relatively older stuff....you know, like late 90's and early 2000s. Weird, because at that time I was into Britney Spears (yes you read right, I would sing along at the top of my lungs to songs like "Hit Me Baby One More Time".Gosh, I'm so embarrased now. At least my taste in music has improved significantly.) My favorite song this week has to be either "Barely Legal" or "When It Started" (both from Is This It? by The Strokes, well, actually, "Barely Legal" is also on The Modern Age EP). I think I've listened to them at least 10,000 times. I literally walk around all day with my earbuds in my ears.

Just a note - did you notice the super cool Pandora thing on the side bar? I kind of like it - you can see exactly what we're listening to on Pandora. LOL. Borderline stalker-ish. It's a-okay though - I thought it might be sort of interesting, you know, we live by what we preach.

Hey Responsibility! Over Here!

Well today's July 4th and I went to the Giants game today with my family for my grandpa's birthday. I was disgusted by all of the commercialism and greed of all of the big companies and things (maybe I'm reading "Our Band Could Be Your Life" too much. Most of my ideals are starting to be shaped by punk rock). About halfway through the game my sister wanted a Drumstick (which cost $6!!!!) and naturally I had get out of my seat and go fetch it for her. Anyway, high point of the day; really cute girl working at the ice cream stand (and I mean really cute. Asian too, I think). I was so distracted that when I left, she had to remind me to get my change. Kinda embarrassing. Long story short; #1. I would have rather spend money to go to a concert instead of a corporate ballpark. #2. I like it when a cute girl has their ponytail hang through the back hole of a baseball cap, you know what I mean? Ummm yeah... nevermind.

Anyway, grandparents live in the Bay Area, home of bands like Creedence Clearwater Revivial, Grateful Dead... and Green Day. Also hated advertising and business today. So I listened to Green Day's two pre-major label albums. As some of you may know, Kerplunk is what I consider to be their best album (and one of my favorite albums too, along the likes of In Utero, Tim, Pinkerton, ect). Kerplunk contains awesome tunes like "Who Wrote Holden Caulfield" (my favorite Green Day song!), "Christie Road" (also the title thing for this blog) "2000 Light Years Away" (supposedly written after Billie kissed his future wife Adrienne for the first time , great song), and even a joke, "Dominated Love Slave," a cowboy-style song about a guy who likes to be ummm, dominated by his girlfriend.

Green Day's first album 39:Smooth does not get enough credit though. When packaged with the EPs 1000 Hours and Slappy it becomes 1039:Smoothed Out Slappy Hours, a great assortment of poppy indie rock songs (still not really punk, but still good, even though there's a lot of filler). There's "At The Library" (or in my case, "At The Ice Cream Stand" haha. You'll understand when you hear the lyrics), "Disappearing Boy" (very underrated), "409 In Your Coffee Maker" (from Slappy. It was also rerecorded for Dookie with "Welcome To Paradise" from Kerplunk, but 409 didn't make the cut. Too bad. It's a great song that deserved it. Video above), and "Only Of You" (from 1000 Hours. It has one of my favorite verse melodies of all time. The premise is also very relatable). And here's another thing I found. It's kinda hilarious. Anyway, long story short; #1. Kerplunk is great. #2. 1039:Smoothed Out Slappy Hours is severely underrated and is also one of Green Day's best. But Kerplunk is better.

Teenage Fanclub

Kind of a weird name, I'll admit it. I have to wonder; if they have a group that supports their music, and the group is made up of all adolescents, then is it called Teenage Teenage Fanclub Fanclub?

Okay, worst joke ever, I get it (still makes me laugh though). But their music is no laughing matter. If I had to describe their music in the simplest way possible... they're modern Big Star. They very similar to the Alex Chilton-fronted 70s-cult rock band, except... 90s-ish. The cool thing is that Teenage Fanclub has 3 singwriters/songwriters that all sing their own songs (Beatles cough cough). I can't really tell the difference between them yet, but I guess that'll come with time. But yeah, they're good. They never hit mainstream success (yet) but it's kinda hard to see why when some of their songs are so poppy and jangly. I guess it's better that way though. You get to be part of the minority. Good for you.