![]() |
A life unraveled: My musical journey
Hello MB
I decided to start a member's journal even though im not really sure what im doing. And i want to say upfront, i have a cap limit per post so most of what i'll say will be straight to the point and brief. But first a brief summary of me: 1. Ive been playing guitar for 14 yrs or so (here is me playing) Guero (sin letra) Rogelio ft. JoE by Joe Lanza-Granadas on SoundCloud - Hear the world (not plugging my band or anything cause im not in one, just showing the kind of music i make.) 2. Im foreign. (very foreign) This means grammar errors everywhere and just ****ty english in general 3. Im mainly into alternative music. That said, i have no idea how to run a journal so i'll start with a basic theme, my musical beginnings. The first bands that got me into rock, the first cds i luved, ya know, that kinda stuff and while i tell my story i'll give the albums a little review. |
I was born in 83, so im a child of the 90's but for most of my youth i just listened to rap music, but during the 90's MTV was huge (and actually played good music back then) so i was introduced to rock thanx to that whole grunge movement.
The first bands that got me into rock were Nirvana and Korn with these cds Smells like teen spirit - single http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...een_Spirit.jpg Life is peachy http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...feIsPeachy.jpg surprisingly enough, i didn't get into Nirvana through teen spirit, i was never a huge fan of that song, but that single aside from teen spirit had 2 more songs 'Aneurysm' and 'Even in his youth' (the first rock song i liked) Getting into Korn was much harder, i remember the guitars used to hurt my ears i remember when i first heard 'Twist' i thought the guy was having a seizure but 'adidas' was my jam. |
Alternative eh? I'm looking forward to reading this.
|
Great to see you starting a journal, Francis! Looks like it's going to be pretty good! And again, for someone with English not being their first language I find nothing at all wrong with your grammar or spelling; in fact, had you not mentioned it I would have thought you were an English speaker naturally.
If you need ideas or hints, this might help http://www.musicbanter.com/album-rev...c-journal.html or PM me at any time. Best of luck and welcome to Journaltown! :D |
I'd never have thought that Korn, a metal band, helped you find your musical taste, haha. Anyway, this looks promising, so I'm looking forward to reading more! ;)
|
Thnx fo the encouragement peeps :o:
i want to discuss a little those first 2 bands Nirvana This band was very important to me, it was the first band that influenced to be a musician, there was a simplicity in their sound that made me think "maybe i could do this too" So i started playing the drums and idolizing Dave grohl and i got all their cds and became a nirvana fan. Later on i'll give a breakdown of all their cds in more detail Korn luv Korn, i luv the attitude the band has and their music. i remember seeing 'Fanatic' on mtv and saw Jonathan run up to his fan and gave him a hug then later on the interview their fan was praising them like demi-gods and they told him "Don't idolize us that way, we're just regular guys you can do this too" Seeing that kind of humility was a treat for me, that attitude is why i luved the 90's, during the hair metal of the 80's bands seemed larger than life and they acted that way, but in comes the 90's where ppl started calling themselves a loser. |
Quick review on the cds
Smells like teen spirit - Single As stated, this is a 3 track single, aside from teen spirit 'Aneurysm' is on their 4th cd 'incesticide' which is more a compilation of rarities than a new album, but 'Even in his youth' was a true rarity at the time, it was only featured in 2 cds their japan release of nevermind called 'hormoaning' and in this single. (it was later released in their 'lights out' compilation) There is nothing really special in this single aside from the 2 extra songs, 'Aneurysm' is like an instrumental meddley and 'Even in his youth' is basically Nirvana Punk Life is peachy Not their best but still good. Fav songs for me are 'Good god' 'Wicked' (Feat. Chino from the deftones: ice cube cover) 'Ass itch' (my fav) and 'Low rider' (War cover) This cd was my introduction to Nu metal and right away i luved the drums and the bass, the guitars hooks are simple and memorable and the lyrics are full of teenage angst, overall its a decent album. |
Even though Nirvana and Korn were the first bands i liked, i also liked other groups that had popular videos in the 90's
Beck, Sonic youth, Butthole surfers and Nada surf, remember this vid? But i still liked rap, thankfully back then there was also good rap and i liked gangsta rap but it wasn't my favorite (except for Wu tang) i preferred rap that explored a different concept But gradually i was becoming a rocker, so i traded in my basketball for a skate and got into the whole skating culture and 411 movies, and along with the skating culture came punk, and ska punk, and i started to get into the Misfits, Nofx, Joy division (who i thought was punk at the time) and Bad religion back then i wasn't as settled in alternative music as i am now, but i remember seeing a 411 and seeing Arto saari skate with the Sonic youth song Purr and that REALLY got me into Sonic youth |
Sonic youth - Experimental Jet set thrash and no stars
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...hAndNoStar.jpg This is the first SY cd i owned because it had 'Bull in the heather' the first song i ever liked from them because it had that video with Kathleen hanna annoying them though back then i didn't know who she was This cd had 14 tracks but to be honest with you i remember 4 of them at best, i hated this cd, honestly i didn't get it but i decided to give it a shot anyway i would play a videogame and put the cd as background music this actually helped me process SY gradually through repetition, i became familiar with their songs and suddenly all that noise became music. Its hard to get into at first cause songs go from noisy to mellow and some songs are more like spoken poems by Kim gordon than actual songs the 'Doctor's order' track is a good exmpl of this. Overall its not a bad cd but i prefer washing machine |
A little after that SY Cd, i found Pavement and Guided by voices but most importantly, i found the Breeders.
The Breeders - Last splash http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...LastSplash.jpg i knew this band for their iconic 90's song 'Cannonball' if you were alive in the 90's you must've heard of this song, That Cd is amazing Kim deal is such a brilliant musician, melodically she is always on point and she is so frickin charming is hard not to love her. To me the breeders are a mixture of The Pixies and Guided by voices with a twist of originality by the deal sisters, their sound is very simple and approachable by that i mean that as a musician you can pick up a guitar and play their songs in no time. And every song in that cd is a hit, From 'driving on 9' where kim sounds very girly, to 'Hag' where she sounds like a bitch |
As i was saying i got into Skating.
during my skating yrs i experimented with alot genres but not alot of them hit close to heart enough for me to seek these artist, i started to know them for their individual songs not their whole album, i would only buy their cd if i consistently liked them. So this part is for all the miscellaneous bands i liked at the time. As you can tell my skating phase was also my punk phase, Punk was my first rebel yell but at the time i didn't know punk music had a history so i defined it by it's speed, i thought fast paced rock was punk back then i didn't know about The Clash or The Jam, none of them so punk to me felt like a new genre and i imagine that's how it is for anybody who has gone through a punk phase, yea at the time it was great but few ppl are a punk forever, most ppl just like it cause it echoes the rebellion of youth. |
I am enjoying this journal! Kudos and keep it up. I was born in the 80s and well, and as such a child of the 90s, so this takes me back!
I've started following you on Soundcloud. And also your English is better than most native English speakers I've encountered in various parts of the Interwebs so don't stress. Anyway, am really enjoying the nostalgia. |
Thank you Astronomer :)
i was starting to think no one was watching this journal, and i got a whole lot of 90' stuff to cover but sadly i can't cover it all. it's too much stuff! One thing i miss about the 90's is the old shows on MTV, 120 minutes, Alternative Nation, Headbangers ball, MTV raps. They used to cover the diversity in music, but nowadays MTV is mostly horrible reality shows. here are a couple more of vids from that era i hope you like'em And i haven't even covered Beck, Stone temple pilots, Alice in chains, dammit there is too many great 90's videos! Actually, before i fast forward to my punk/skating phase, i should cover 90's R & B, rap and pop because i like that music as well. Yea, i have to cover that before i move on and it will be an ode to my older sister because she was the one who introduced me to that kind of music. |
I have an older sister named Ingrid who's 10 yrs older than me (40) and i gotta say, my sis was cool as hell while other girls her age were crushing over boy bands like New kidz on the block she was braiding her hair to look like Patra
Instead of boy bands she preferred female singers that exuded confidence like Janet or Salt n pepa Growin up, this was the kind of music blasting in my house so i HAD to like it cause she would play that sh*t all day and repetition leads to familiarity and eventually you start liking it. One group we both liked was TLC and their song creep She also liked Mariah and Janet alot she was into R & B and really into the Hip hop fashion, i remember her door having a poster of Mary J Blige looking all cool and when she made this song my sis would play it all day! One thing i learned from my sister, was to not follow fads and find your own kind of music |
Quote:
|
Quote:
But that was when Matt became the official host of the show, before that they would have guest host. this show was like hipster alternative heaven for me, this was before you can download every song ever on the internet aside from articles in magazines this kinda shows was all we had at the time, and i say we because most of my rocker friends here like me grew up watching these shows. it's a little sad MTV has become a reality network that occasionally plays music, they used to cover all the scenes happening in music, Metal, rap, all of them. |
Discovering punk, led me to discover post punk and i heard a couple of bands i liked but the one i like the most was
The Stranglers http://www.londonlee.com/chipshop/ch...stranglers.jpg Loved these guys right away, they had simple catchy new wave post punk hooks, and that keyboardist! Dave greenfield added so much to their signature sound with his elaborated keyboard melodies that surprisingly fit in well with punk the first time i heard hanging around i was so impressed with the transition from the verse to the chorus, all of the sudden the songs builds up and then he hits with that keyboard sucks i have a cap limit cause i could go on about how much i love this band, they are on par with the clash and talking heads. to me, they are THAT good. If some of you saw the snatch film you probably heard their song Golden brown For my taste, this band is very consistent and compared to the clash they are so underrated |
Now i gotta be honest,
i luv this band but the only cd i have from them was Mix cd a friend gave to me. He picked his personal favs and ive gone through the albums and i think he picked the best ones, like this one Later on in life, i somehow ended with a stranglers Dvd that had all their vids, sadly they're copyright protected so i can't show the original vids but if you liked Nuclear device you should checkout the original video for the song. To wrap things up, The stranglers is one of the best post punk bands ive heard, their not fast, they're not angry, they just make catchy songs and seriously listen to the keyboards in their songs, i think its amazing, so if you like that genre seek them out, i doubt you'll be disappointed. On a related note, i once asked Jackhammer for a band that is similar to them, and he delivered with this And with that, i end the punk section of this journal. now on to GBV |
Guided by voices - Human amusements at hourly rates
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...est_Of_GbV.jpg This is a best of cd, GBV has to many songs and albums and most of them aren't worth going into detail but this best of is a good way to get into them seeing it has most of their best songs. This band is one of my biggest influence on playing guitar and singing, they make really simple songs but the vocals bring them to life, to me this band truly lives up to their name, it's not about showing off your musical prowess it's about finding the perfect vocal hook that completes the song. But they make so many songs it's actually hard to find the good ones among all the crappy ones this is why i recommend this cd to get into them. this cd has 32 songs, most of them good, some are classic GBV others are more experimental, the thing about GBV is that their production value changes from CD to CD, some Cd's are low fi others are more professional and better produced. |
I find it's best to measure GBV for the potential in their individual songs, try to hear the rhythm beyond the production value because it's usually a very melodic one.
I'll show you an exmpl of a good song with ****ty production value Track 8 Echos myron Now compare that to Track 2 everywhere with helicopter Sounds way different, no? That's something i like from them, most of their songs vary from each other yet they all fit as a GBV song. i should mention for the most part their music is like very mellow alternative and sometimes the guitars aren't even tuned properly. Track 12 Tractor rape chain Other times they are beautifully tuned Track 6 14 cheerleader cold front imo GBV is one of the best alternative bands ive heard, their songs are easy to learn and they teach you how to find the proper vocals a song needs without having to be the greatest singer |
Discovering Kim deal led me to The Pixies
http://www.thefader.com/wp-content/u.../06/pixies.gif Which i at first hated, i initially didn't like this band but the same guy who introduced me to Nirvana and the Breeders insisted i would love it And he was right, i started to get their sound then all of the sudden i became a fan in a few weeks, their song catalogue is amazing, it's easier to name a bad song from them than a good one, and i think that's why i started to become a fan of them i consistently liked everything they did which is rare for me. usually i like alot of bands but i don't like everything they do, a personal exmpl for me are Sonic youth or David bowie, i luv them but i don't like everything they do There is a part of me that recognises other bands are better than the pixies but they don't speak to me personally as the pixies do And since i love this band i've analysed in full detail what i luv about them and much of it is Charles thompson (Black Francis) |
Black Francis (young)
I think there is a distinction in Black Francis (young) AND Frank Black (old), The pixies were a result of his early compositions which were like abstract poems and snippets made into songs, they were very raw and unrefined but that was the charm of the songs. But as he got older, he started to change his perspective on music, this is why the pixies now can't recreate the spirit they once had, they're not the same ppl they were. Now ofc the pixies is not all his doing, Joey added alot to the pixies with his signature style of guitar playing which is loud and f*ckin awesome.. it's as twisted as Francis lyrics and his solos instead of overshadowing the vocals with technical prowess, merge with the vocals to serve the concept of the song better. And ofc Kim deal brought the melody, Kim has a great sense of melody that added a sweet touch to the pixies, a feminine touch they lacked. |
2 good exmpls of Kim's adding a great bassline is the song 'Hey' and this one 'Mr grieves'
And David lovering is SERIOUSLY an underrated drummer, ppl tend to think good drummers have to be flashy and be charismatic characters not really focusing on what is important which is serving the concept of the song to make it better.. sometimes a simple beat is what the song need, there is no need to show your skills, just let your ego aside and do what is best for the song. David does that, he knows when to keep it simple and when to elaborate, a song that highlights his style of drumming is 'Allison' This song is all about precision in the drums, i think it's a good song for aspiring drummers to practice. All of these dynamics to me made the pixies great, but there is one thing that gets barely mentioned about them, one thing that is crucial to their signature sound. And this thing is.. |
Their 3 chords timing.
Most bands go by the rule of 4 in their timing. their chord's length is based on 4 chords, and if they use 3 chords they prolong the 3rd chord in a timing of 4 idk how to explain this in a better way so i apologise but once i started playing the pixies songs i noticed they chopped off one note. Where most bands go "I, 2, 3, 4," and start the timing all over again the pixies go "1, 2, 3" and start over again, that missing space of the 4th chord is missing creating a different structure, like for exmpl in 'Tame' This little detail makes the rhythm structure confusing, and it makes singing the song more difficult, cause you also have to rearrange your vocals to the 3 chords timing. And most of the time that is why they sound so chaotic, that one note that ties the timing together is missing so they make up for it with the vocals and the attitude of the song.. Crackity jones is also 3 chords looped and all attitude |
After the pixies broke up i followed both Kim and Frank's careers and they've had a respectable one, Frank black keep releasing good albums some better received than others, one that was well received was
'Teenager of the year' Good album, you can still hear traces of the pixies in his music but you can also hear how he was changing to a different style. my absolute fav album of his though is 'Dog in the Sand' http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi.../a4/Dfbits.jpg this album is REALLY GOOD, it took me awhile to fully get into it because it is basically a country album. The vocals are smooth very different from how he sang in the pixies, and musically it's perhaps his best Cd, it has sliding guitars, Banjos, pianos, instruments he never used before. and not just that, the album is consistently good, all the tracks have something that makes them good and different. |
Among all the good tracks in Dog in the sand, my fav has to be 'Bullet'
this song is like a dark pixies country song, almost like Nimrod's son but with a different feel Another fav of mine is 'The swimmer' in it he tells the story of some swimmer i forget who but it's inspired by one of those ppl who swim long distances to prove something, my fav part is when he says "Will you never drown? Will you learn to use some forgotten part?" Honestly i could post the whole cd, cause i like i said, every song has something special. Another good track is 'St francis dam disaster' i luv the banjo and the guitar on that one. And lastly, the depressive ballad 'i'll be blue' This is my go to jam when im depressed, i luv the piano in the song and i really like the chorus of the song. Few other songs worth mentioning are 'Robert onion' and 'Dog in the sand' which features Joey on the guitar |
Just wanted to say, great journal so far man. I'm a pretty big Pixies fan but haven't listened to much of anything by Frank Black before. I almost didn't play the videos from Dog in the Sand as I really don't like country but they are pretty awesome, I should have figured that coming from Frank Black. And I got into a lot of music thanks to skating as well... I'm a bit younger, 24, but back in the day I watched a lot of skate videos that introduced me to all sorts of awesome music since I missed out on most of the good MTV years :/
|
Me too, especially the 411 videos
even though i don't skate anymore, i still love skating vids and the whole skating culture. Fact yesterday i was watching that doc about the zephyr skating team. lol And thnx, im glad you dig the journal and if you like the pixies and Frank black style of music, Give dog in the sand a real shot. it's honestly among his bestwork and it's a pretty relaxing cd it's not heavy. Im not a fan of country either but i luv dat cd Their previous cd with the catholics was more classical rock, i was planning on reviewing it next but honestly Dog in the sand is better. |
Ok, so i did Frank now let's do Kim
since i already covered the breeders, now im gonna cover The Amps http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_--01y_XBnV...The%2BAmps.jpg "The Amps were an American alternative-indie rock group. Formed by Kim Deal in 1995 after her band the Breeders went on hiatus, the group consisted of Deal, vocals and guitars; Luis Lerma, bass; Nate Farley, guitars; and the Breeders' Jim Macpherson, drums. The Breeders' Kelley Deal, Kim's sister, was also briefly involved, but had to leave the band due to drug problems. The group was named when Kim Deal started calling herself Tammy Ampersand for fun, and the band Tammy and the Amps." -wiki If the breeders sounded like Guided by voices, The amps REALLY sounded like GBV, but still that doesn't take away their originality their sound is different than the breeders, more lo-fi like GBV but it's still alternative Kim deal kinda music (God i love her) |
their cd 'Pacer' is full of Catchy Kim deal tunes such as
I have a fond memory of this album, i listened to this album simultaneously with the Beach boys Pet sounds album on my 5 hr flight to Wisconsin They helped me relax cause i was scared going over to live in the USA, especially Wisconsin, i knew nobody there was gonna speak spanish and our cultural customs weren't gonna be the same. Both albums were a stress reliever of sorts for me that's why i actually prefer the amps over the breeders which are better produced, cause they were there with me at a crucial point in my life. if you like Kim deal you'll like the Amps, it has her charm but it's just a little different, it's a side band that i think she shoulda pursued more cause they made good music. |
One thing i have picked up from being on MB is to listen to full albums which i don't usually do but now im getting into it.
i tend to digest music very slowly, more so if i feel the artist has alot of depth, i can't quite explain it but whenever i find a new artist i like i have to starting getting their point of view not just like their songs. Some artist i still have a hard time understanding because their vibe is something im not accustomed yet, like this guy I instantly loved 'limehouse blues' and 'Minor swing' but i still have a hard time understanding jazz cause i never liked it before, the main reason im listening to it is cause i luv Django's guitar playing style, it's the same style i want to play because for some reason i really like gypsy accoustic music idk why. :p: But still, it's not something im familiar with so im getting into it gradually, hopefully with time i'll get to the point where i can actually play it in my guitar. |
Another album im listening to is Blood visions
This album is more up my alley, this one i got right away but it still surprises me, i keep liking songs i initially didn't like, like track 9 Nightmares (14:20) i initially didn't like it but now it's one of my favs. Other tracks i like are 6) Death Is Forming 08:40 10) I See You Standing There 16:33 For now those are my fav but like i said i keep changing my mind the more i listen to the album. It's a simple punk/alternative album so for me it's easier to get into than Django cause im more familiar with punk, also the contrast of the albums just works for me, Jay pumps me up and Django relaxes me. ive also been listening alot to Jay's other Band 'Lost sounds' and i really dig them as well, i don't like the Reatards though, so far i haven't heard anything from them i like. |
I like Jay Reatard, but now I'm inspired to give him a more critical listen.
|
Quote:
But the music echoes his sentiment in a more in-depth way and it grows on you quickly the more you hear it. (at least in my case) |
I want to share my other interest besides music, but my interests are kinda childish i admit, i don't read books so im not well read but i do read graphic novels and love comics and anime (Not manga though)
But apart from music my main interest is videogames and the videogame culture specifically retro games, idk if it is the nostalgia i get from watching the videogames i grew up with or seeing that other retro gamers like me really enjoyed those games as well, there is a whole sub culture for this specific thing putting out web shows on youtube, good shows that rival television shows but have a videogame concept For exmpl i recently discovered 2 shows that basically use the same format as Tv shows but only with videogames This is basically the Vh1 shows 'i love the 80's' but with videogames and a more detailed look on the videogame industry of that yr. the series is currently running, they're up to 84 and it's really entertaining if you're into videogame history. |
Wtf?
This is a strange find, the other day a friend of mine left me a link on my FB cause he knows i luv The Pixies and it was this:
Matthew's Celebrity Pixies Tribute Apparently this matthew guy is a bored Pixies fan who decided to remake pixies style with the iconic style of other artist. Some songs translate better than others but i for one like the Frank Sinatra 'Monkey gone to heaven' one. It's kinda cool how he arranges the songs in other music genres, but still, it's not to be taken seriously, it's just a gimmick for Lolz but the guy went all out. He is not the first guy i hear making fake pixie songs, the first guy i ever heard doing that was Liam lynch the 'united states of whtvr guy' remember him? Well he made a CD of Fake songs, including fake Bjork songs, fake depeche mode, fake Bowie and also a fake pixies one |
http://i539.photobucket.com/albums/f...ps27c1ce33.png
David bowie - Reality [2003] http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._-_Reality.jpg Reality is David Bowie's 23rd album and it shows. The album is good if you're a fan of his work but it is certainly not a good album to get into Bowie for the first time. Track listing: 1. New Killer Star * 2. Pablo Picasso (Modern lovers cover) 3. Never Get Old 4. The Loneliest Guy * 5. Looking for Water 6. She'll Drive the Big Car * 7. Days * 8. Fall Dog Bombs the Moon 9. Try Some, Buy Some (George Harrison cover) 10. Reality * 11. Bring Me the Disco King *I won't mention all the tracks cause some are pretty weak but i'll mention the ones i think make this a decent album. |
New Killer star is a great intro song for this album.
it has a short space like intro that quickly turns into a solid alternative song with great strumming. This song is the most energetic track of the album and it captures Bowie's new sound instead of exploiting his old one. The Loneliest guy has a similar space like vibe but instead it is an introspective ballad that focuses on the feelings of the piece. This one of the strongest tracks in the album and i personally think it's a beautiful song. Looking For water Apart from New killer star this is the only song in the album with an energetic vibe however the drums suck and do nothing more than to set up the tempo. The Bassline and guitar is what makes the song good. this track and the loneliest guy are the best tracks of the album Days Brilliant song with a horrible tempo. Has a great bassline but the studio ver. is too slow. i once saw a live version that was more upbeat and it was way better |
Fall dog bombs the moon good relaxing song.
it has nothing special other than a chill vibe and a cool name. The rest of the tracks are ok but nothing great, the 2 covers are not bad but idk, i don't like them. Pablo Picasso seriously annoys me which really examplifies why im not a hardcore Bowie fan, some songs he plays make me cringe over how much i dislike them and the passive vocals in that song does that to me. Also the album overall lacks energy, most songs have a boring tempo and the drums could very well be replaced by a drum machine cause they practically dont matter. However the album is full of great basslines and guitar riffs. If i had to rate the album i would give it a 6/10 and would only recommend it to Bowie Fans |
Im currently going through a George Harrison phase atm cause i recently the documentary George Harrison: Living in the material world
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...orldposter.jpg Im not a massive Beatles fan cause its pretty obvious how great they are and ive always known John & Paul were talented but George's talent took me a little while to get. i liked his tracks before knowing he even wrote them. for exmpl 'Something' and 'Here comes the sun' are tracks i really like but i thought John or Paul made them but nope, it was George, the underdog beatle. I won't get into much detail about the film to not spoil it, instead i'll provide a link and those of you who are interested can check it out You can find the rest of the film on the guy's YT channel, the audio quality is not that great so i suggest headphones i should also note the film is fairly long and divided in to 2 parts which is divided in to 2 to 3 vids per film |
| All times are GMT -6. The time now is 12:34 AM. |
© 2003-2025 Advameg, Inc.