Metallica is a heavy metal American band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The bands founding members were James Hetfield, who was the vocalist and guitarist, and Lars Ulrich as the drummer. Interesting enough, these two members met when Ulrich put out an advertisement saying he was just looking for someone to jam with and had no intention of becoming a band, let alone Metallica and collect all of the accolades. Their fast tempo was assisted by guitarist Kirk Hammet and Robert Trujilio on the bass as current members, with Rob Mcgovney, Dave Mustaine, Cliff Burton and Jason Newsted. Metallica was one of the founding "big 4" bands of thrash metal and paved the way for other bands in that genre. Metallica won critically acclaimed in their first five albums, with their most notable album "Master Of Puppets" which was released in 1986. This album was very influential in the underground community but failed to reach and appeal to the mainstream music. However, their 5th album, "Metallica" was able to achieve that goal. Master of puppets was the bands first to be certified gold and was platinum six times. In 1986 Metallica's bus crashed, flipping over and killing Cliff Burton. Through discussion and grievance, they decided Burton would want them to carry on and they sought out a replacement.
An interesting part about Metallica is they went to court with napster with regards to their music and the rights of the music. Napster is a file sharing service that specializes in music sharing in an mp3 format. Metallica found out people had been able to download their music via napster for free, without ever seeing a penny in the process. Metallica won the case and incidentally influenced the way music has been bought, downloaded and shared since.
My name is Elena! I “graduated” this past spring, but wanted to take this class before receiving my diploma so that I could tack a music minor onto my degree. I majored in English, and minored in Education (and Music once I complete this course!). I am currently in the MAT program at St. Mike’s so that I can receive my teaching license for teaching English to middle/high school aged students. I am from Bethlehem, New Hampshire-- but now live in Essex. I hope to learn about the origins of rock, as well as what sub-genres may fall under the “rock” label. Some of my favorite musical artists are Johnny Cash, Atmosphere, and Kurt Cobain.
Blog 2:
I actually heard the song “California Girls” by The Beach Boys on the radio just days before the start of this module. Somehow I have lived under a rock enough to never have heard it before. I am slightly ashamed to admit that, while listening, I first noted, “Okay this is The Beach Boys, strange that I’ve never heard it before” and then, “hang on, that Katy Perry song is just like this one… is that the same chord progression? Could I literally sing “California Gurls” on top of… wait”. So then, intrigued by this, I decided to do a YouTube search and found a gem of a video of The Beach Boys commenting on Katy Perry and Snoop Dogg’s rendition of their song:
Blog 3:
The Electric Prunes formed their band in LA in 1965. The band started with James Lowe singing lead vocals and playing harmonica (and other instruments), Mark Tulin on bass, Ken Williams on lead guitar, Michael “Quint” Weakley on drums, and Dick Hargraves on keyboard. Most of their songs were written by Annette Tucker and Nancie Mantz. They are a psychedelic rock band who used fuzz-toned guitars and sound effects to create a unique sound. Their first album had their most popular songs “I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)” and “Get Me to the World on Time” (using a psychedelic twist of some Bo Diddley). They only released two albums until they disbanded in 1968-- due to being unable to record the complex arrangements by David Axelrod. They had hired him in hopes that it would lead them to more success, but they found his arrangements too difficult and time consuming.
What is most interesting about this band is 1. How they had songwriters who did not perform in their band. And 2. The lack of drive they had to perform arrangements, made for them, that may have lead them to great success.
Blog 4:
Since so much of this era was influenced by the Beat poets, I chose a spoken poem by Allen Ginsberg, titled “America”. It was written in 1956-- so it is a prime example of the sort of “Beat Poetry” that would have influenced much of what would follow in the 1960’s. The reading of the poem features (a perhaps slightly intoxicated) Allen Ginsberg discussing his attitudes towards war, America, industrialism, consumerism, the overwhelmingly evil nature of humanity, communism, marijuana, sex, the media, Russians, psychology, and homosexuality. This poem is encompassing of practically everything that is going on culturally in the 1960’s-- written and read in a way that is both depressing and hilarious (because what about the Beat poets is better than their elements of absurdism?).
Some gems from the poem are:
“I can’t stand my own mind. America when will we end the human war? Go fuck yourself with your atom bomb. I don’t feel good don’t bother me.”
“I haven’t read the newspapers for months, everyday somebody goes on trial for murder.”
“America I used to be a communist when I was a kid I’m not sorry. I smoke marijuana every chance I get.”
“When I go to Chinatown I get drunk and never get laid.”
“You should have seen me reading Marx. My psychoanalyst thinks I’m perfectly right.”
“It’s true I don’t want to join the Army or turn lathes in precision parts factories, I’m nearsighted and psychopathic anyway. America I’m putting my queer shoulder to the wheel.”
Blog 5:
The band Kansas was most active between the years of 1973 and 1983. They are an American rock band who released the hit singles “Carry On My Wayward Son” and “Dust in the Wind”. Many of the original band members were no longer apart of the band once they became popular. The most notable of all of the band members during the time of their success were Steve Walsh (lead vocals), Robby Steinhardt (violin and vocals), Dave Hope (bass), Kerry Livgren (guitar), Rich Williams (guitar), and Phil Ehart (drums). Their unique sound was created upon merging American boogie-rock with symphonic arrangements.
Beck is the mononymous name for Beck Hansen, who was born Bek Campbell in LA in 1970. Beck’s music is considered Alternative Rock, but his claim to fame is his ability to blend many music genres such as country, funk, electric, pop, hip hop, and psychedelia. In addition to this, Beck’s lyrics are described as “oblique and ironic”. His creative experimentations brought him great success among critics and the public.
In his teens, Beck performed at small venues such as coffee shops and clubs. In 1989, Beck moved to NYC and became involved in an “anti-folk” movement-- although he was drawn towards folk (as well as hip hop) in his youth. He moved back to LA a few years later, and released his single “Loser” in 1994, which became a hit worldwide. In 1996, his album Odelay was nominated for Album Of The Year, and won 2 Grammys. His 1998 album Mutations had a country sound, and his 1999 album Midnite Vultures had a funk sound.
Beck continued to release albums throughout the 2000's and 2010's-- one of which won album of the year, and another one won Best Alternative Album and Best Engineered album. Beck is scheduled to release his 14th album by the end of 2019.
What I find most interesting about Beck is that after he released “Loser”, he feared that it would become a one hit wonder, and during a music festival in California, Beck changed the lyrics to the song so that no one could sing along to it-- while the drummer set fire to his cymbals, and the guitarist held/played his guitar with the strings facing towards him.
What is also interesting is that Beck’s albums seemed to gain more recognition and praise as years (even decades) passed from his major hit single “Loser”.
Bruce Springsteen is a unique artists. His songs are full of hope and carry messages that still resonate today. His back up band, The E Street Band provides a loud and otherwise unheard of sound. With instruments such as piano, guitar, organs, horns and who can forget the Big MA\an Clarence on the saxophone. In 1975 he released his break through album born to run, produced by the now owner of Interscop records, Jimmy Iovine. Bruce is a world wide superstar and has sold over 135 million records. Some of my favorite songs by him include, Glory days, Born to Run, Waitin on a Sunny Day, Atlantic City, and Aint Good Enough for you. All these songs have a message that makes you think and remember to live in the moment, something that I have a hard time doing sometimes. Springsteen songs really do carry a message which everyone can understand and relate to. His sound is truly unique. He makes people forget their problems and focus on whats going around him. Its loud, its in your face, but you can hear every instrument, which is hard to do seeing that their are so many.
Bruce is also well known for his live performances. He is well known for running around the stage and sweating like he's running a marathon. He constantly loses his voice because of how hard he sings. In fact Bruce was my first concert and I remember it vividly. It was in 2008 in the Meadow Lands stadium before it was torn dow, his last concert there. I'm really grateful I got to see him with Clarence Clemons. When him gone the E street Band will never be the same. Although they still have an amazing sound. He went on for hours and hours and I think he did three or four encores that night. I had to leave after two but to this day my dad regrets we left. The last song he played was Aint Good Enough For you and remains to this day one of my favorite if not my favorite song of all time.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers formed in 1983 and are a pop/rock group. In middle school I remember being obsessed with Dani California. The original members were Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Michael Balzary aka Flea (bass), Hillel Slovak (guitar), and Jack Irons (drummer). The band didn’t always have the original members though, they went through many different drummers and guitarists. They got really popular because of their live performances such as “sox on cox” where they quite literally only wore a long sock on stage.
Their first album to finally hit the charts was The Uplift Mofo Party Plan. After Slovak’s death in 1988, the group released Blood Sugar Sex Magik in 1991. After this and the release of some top hits like Under the Bridge. This was when they cycled through many replacement band members, but most left due to drug addiction. In 1999, they performed at Woodstock, but that led to riot. In the 2000’s, the released their albums By the Way and Stadium Arcadium. Then more recently they performed the halftime show alongside Bruno Mars in 2014.
Attached below is one of the Sox on cox performances. I apologize if its not appropriate, but things are blurred out.
Nick Cave, is a Australian native, who is most famous for being the lead singer of the band Nick Cave and The Bad Seed, however he is also a author, actor, screen writer, and composer. Before the Nick Cave and The Bad Seed, Cave was in a band called The Birthday Party which broke up in 1983, although it actually is known for influencing Gothic Rock! (Kind of cool that he actually had an influence on music before he was big I think). Nick Cave and The Bad Seed formed after the Birthday Party’s break up in 1983. The bands original members where Nick Cave as the singer, Mick Harvy who played multiple instruments, and Blixa Bargeld on the guitar. In total the band has released 16 studio albums in total and threw the years not only the band members have changed but also their sound. Honestly, I would say that one could think of this band as a mix of many different genres of music as they have evolved from post punk rock, to experimental alternative rock, to hard rock. Nick Cave and The Bad Seed are a band that are known for singing songs about loss, death, violence, religion, and love, a example of the darkness of this band can be seen in their single “The Mercy Seat” which tells the story of a man being put to death in a electric chair. “The Mercy Seat” single is actually a hit song that helped the band gain fame because people talked about the darkness of the song. Some of you may be familiar with the song due to the fact that in 2000 Jonny Cash released a rendition of it. Today “The Mercy Seat” is regarded as one of the bands signature songs (a dark song to be remembered for I think). Out of all 16 of the studio albums Nick Cave and The Bad Seed produced, the best-selling and most popular album still to this day is “Murder Ballads” which was released in 1996. Thing songs on this album all have to do with crimes of pashen. What I find to be the most interesting about this band is how dark their songs are, I feel like not many artists have released songs that are even comparable to the darkness that is in Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds songs. Nick Cave and The Bad Seed have won countless musical awards over the years, in 1996 they won the ARIA awards for song of the year, single of the year, and best pop release for their song “Where the Wild Rosses Grow”. More recently in 2013 they won the Aria awards for best independent release and best contemporary album with “Push The Sky Away”. The list goes on and on. I feel like this band is definitely one of a kind and will be remembered for their emotion revoking songs.
When listening to Beck, I hear traces of electronic and alternative music influencing his folk roots, creating a rare listening experience that I find difficult to put into words. His steady guitar playing and synthesized instruments create an ambitious sound which he completes with his own vocals, though this basic sound varies across his long musical career. Some of his newer records (Colors and Morning Phase) retain their folk roots while experimenting with lofi, while older records (Mellow Gold) incorporate a greater emphasis on the indie and funk side. These records retain a rough beauty that I can best compare to hit songs like "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked", preformed by fellow indie group Cage the Elephant (though Beck's collection of lyrics are not as nonsensical as CTE's). His singing isn't his strong suit, so he carries his work in other ways, oftentimes with relatively simple delivery combined with a complex musical melody.
Beck emerged from relative obscurity with his hit single "Loser" from Mellow Bars, a song he reluctantly released in 1994. His mother, a Warhol superstar, and father, who worked as a conductor, pushed him towards LA's diverse music scene, which apparently influenced his love of southern blues. He performed in New York for a time, and despite catching the attention of an indie label, he found himself living in squalor in LA. After a college DJ stumbled upon his work, Beck strove to establish himself as more than just a one-hit-wonder and reached the number 16 spot on the Billboard 200 with Odelay. He began to incorporate lofi into his works in 2002 with the release of Sea Change and won Alternative Album of the Year after releasing Morning Phase. His musical style changes dramatically from his thirteen released albums, showing his mastery of hippie psychedelic style in Midnite Vultures and brings out a darker style of writing in the album Geuro. At 49, Beck is still active in the music scene and continues to play as well as collaborate with other indie artists, with his next album expected to be released later in the year.
The first time I heard "Teenage Riot" it was 3 in the morning. I was maybe 14 or 15, and I couldn't sleep, so I was listing to bootlegs of bands on YouTube. It just sort of popped up in the sidebar. And I clicked on it. Enthralled, I went from "Teenage Riot" to "Incinerate" and then "The Diamond Sea". And the rest was history. I was in love with Sonic Youth.
Taking 10 full years to build up commercial steam the came with the 1990 release of the album Goo (on Geffen records), Sonic Youth were originally champions of the New York Post-Punk scene in the 80's,* creating aggressive, out there, and ultimately awesome noise rock. Often treating their guitars more like machines then instruments, they obtained their sound through sevral nonstandard methods, including shoving objects under guitar strings, tons of nonstandard tunings, and tons and tons of feedback. While the band had a few pretty commercial singles, the meat of their work was really buried in the albums. This, as well as Sonic Youth's more artistic, noise driven approach to music allowed them to enjoy the reputation of a well respected band that absolutely everyone has heard of, of but few people have actually listened to.
Like many others, and basically everyone in punk, Sonic Youth drew their inspiration from the original protopunk icons (The VU, Iggy, Patti Smith, ext). And like many others, it's very easy to hear the Velvet Underground in their playing, in those layers of noise and long jams, and in the energy of the band itself. But Sonic Youth is unique, and for good reason. Moore's guitar playing is truly one of a kind, and really went on to define noise rock and alternative guitar in general. And with the entire band in full swing, churning out noise, sonic youth was truly a force to be reckoned with.
Radiohead was an English rock band that was formed in UK. The band consists of five members who are Tom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Ed O'Brien, Colin Greenwood, and Philip Selway. Personally, I only know Radiohead for one of their most well-known songs, Creep. Radiohead released Creep in 1992 as their debut single and it blew up worldwide. I thought this band was a one-hit-wonder kind of band but turns out they released a couple of other albums and grew a fanbase locally and internationally.
In 1993 Radiohead released their debut album titled Pablo Honey. The only song from this album that grew some popularity was Creep. My Iron Lung and The Bands were two other albums that were shortly released from Radiohead. "High and Dry," "Just" and "Fake Plastic Trees" were three songs that successfully made their way to the charts.
The group did some touring around North America and Europe. In 1997 Radiohead released their third album titled OK Computer and helped the band gain some recognition from Rolling Stone magazine. This album was Radiohead's first number one UK chart debut and brought the band some international success earning Grammys and some other awards.
Radiohead continued to work hard and release new music and some may even argue they brought a new sound to their albums which won them more awards. By 2012, Radiohead gained more success as they worked on more music, movies, and some side gigs. Radiohead is very much so successful to this day. The band was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, again in 2018 and again in 2019. Radiohead took a minute to gain their popularity but overtime got the recognition they've been longing for and deserve.
U2 is an Irish rock band from Dublin, Ireland. The band formed in 1976 when the members were attending the same school, Mount Temple Comprehensive School. The members of U2 are lead singer Bonoe, on lead guitar the Edge, bass guitar played by Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen Jr. on drums. With the release of their second album, War, in 1983 U2 found commercial success. Their songs had a message and showed they cared and worried about the world around them. Examples of these songs include Sunday Bloody Sunday and Pride (In the Name of Love). The group have long been social advocates for charities and social organizations such as Amnesty International, Jubilee 2000, the ONE/DATA campaigns, Product Red, War Child, and Music Rising. These two songs were some of the first I remember my parents playing. U2 became international superstars with release of their 5th album, The Joshua Tree, in 1987. To this day my dad keeps a copy of this album in his car, has it downloaded on his phone, has several CDs of it at home, along with the record he bought when it was first released. My favorite song from this album is Where the Streets Have No Name because of the wild up to the first lyrics. It gets everyones heads bobbing and feet tapping. Its a feel good song. Or at least it is to me.
U2 is also well known for its live performances. Bono is energetic and interacts with the crowd as much as possible. My dad has been to at least 15 of their concerts and he says the best place to see them is in Dublin because they go on for hours. This can be seen in both the music video for Where the Streets Have No Name as well as their live aid performance. U2 has 22 grammy awards and is ranked 22nd on Rolling Stones 100 greatest artists of all time. Below I have provided videos for Where the Streets Have No Name and their Live Aid performance.
Alright, here's to hoping this blog is a little shorter than my last. In 1975, well-known artist Prince started performing. He started off in a band created by the husband of his cousin called 94 East. The band consisted of himself, Pepe Wille (the founder), Marcy Ingvoldstad, Kristy Lazenberry, and Andre Cymone. A year later, Prince created a demo tape that got passed around until it landed with Warner Bros. Records. From here the singer became popular and rose to the top, almost like Michael Jackson did. Some of Prince's best songs are easily recognizable to anyone over the age of 12. Songs like "Purple Rain", "Raspberry Barret", "Let's Go Crazy", and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" did extremely well. He released 39 records in his lifetime, the first of which being For You, and received 32 awards. Prince died from an accidental fentanyl overdose on April 21, 2016.
Prince wasn't always a solo artist. After being a part of 94 East, he made his own band called the Revolution. The band consisted of Lisa Coleman (keyboard), Doctor Fink (keyboard), Bobby Z. (drums), Brown Mark (bass), and Dez Dickerson (guitar). At first, the band was rarely used. This changed though in 1986. Purple Rain, Prince's film, won him an award and made over $164 million in the United States. Some of the most popular songs from this film were "Let's Go Crazy" (my personal favourite), "When Doves Cry", and of course, "Purple Rain". These songs, along with many others, are what made Prince such a recognizable artist. In 2010, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time as well as put into the Grammy Hall of Fame in December of that year. On February of 2016, Prince embarked on his final tour. The Piano and a Microphone tour was a solo tour that went through Australia and New Zealand. It continued onto the United States where it was cut short by his illness and death.
Prince's death was a bit controversial. I remember that I was at the New Hampshire outlets when Twitter gave me a notification that he had been pronounced dead. A lot of investigation went into his passing because it was an accidental overdose rather than a suicide. It is unknown whether he got the fentanyl through a prescription or through other means. The law enforcement agencies were issued two warrants - one for Prince's house and one for the local Walgreens. On April 19 of 2018, it was announced that there would be no criminal charges for Prince's death. The other thing that was brought forward after his death was the fact that there was no will. The saddening part is that over 700 people took advantage of this and claimed to be distant relatives. They did extensive DNA sampling before anything else was done. Various people mourned his passing, including former President Obama. Prince's sales spiked once he was pronounced dead, which is usual for singers and songwriters. The cast of Hamilton paid their respects by singing some of his songs post-show as a memorial, which I never knew about despite loving Hamilton. Along with them, Bruno Mars, the Time, and Morris Day performed a tribute to him at the 59th annual Grammys.
Prince is an icon that will never be forgotten, much like Michael Jackson. It's sad that a talent like him passed at a young age, especially compared to the average death age in America. Although between the awards and inductions he received as well as his amazing music, Prince went down in history. I never listened to him as much as I probably should have, but I really appreciated his music and personality. My favourite song by him is "Let's Go Crazy" due to the fact that when I was in 2nd grade my teacher would play this song during our breaks. I linked that along with Raspberry Baret.
The Wallflowers is a band located out of LA. the group started in the early 90s with Jakob Dylan as the lead singer and Tobi Miller as guitarist. From what I've read, the band member have otherwise changed over time, but Dylan remains consistent. After their inception in the early 90s, their break through came in 1996 with their album "Bringing Down The Horse" which features the song "One Headlight". Most of us would recognize the song, probably from the Subaru car commercials. Other songs on the album are pretty good too. I really like "God Don't Make Lonely Girls". The song "6th Avenue Heartache" was the first single released from the album and really grew in fame from VH1 and MTV. As radio play picked up, so did the record sales.
Stylistically, I would compare the Wallflowers to The Red Hot Chili Peppers, but with a 'twangy' opening riff. When I first listened to them, several of their songs open with a riff that sounds a bit like modern country music, but with a smooth, soothing harmony. Interestingly Jakob Dylan is the son of Bob Dylan and I can see the paternal influence. While his sound lyrically is different, I can make a comparison between the band and musical sound of Bob and Jakob. I think the Wallflowers are a good middle ground for 90s rock, meaning its smooth and relaxing, but musically, it's all there! I've never really listened to this group before, but i've grown to appreciate their work.
Prolific and pioneering within the world of hip-hop and rock
& roll. A star so big, the world simply knew him by his first name: Prince. Born Prince Rogers Nelson in
1958 in Minneapolis, a young-man standing 5’2” played basketball for his high
school. He was a gifted child and was often referred to as skipper by his peers
for his cheerful attitude. It wasn’t long until music called to Prince. Before
he was eight years old, he had already written his first song, and by 19 years
old he had completed his first album. At the age of 21, Prince made his first nationally
televised appearance on American Bandstand.
Prince is
probably best known for his bold performances and outrageous outfits and style.
He admitted in an interview his sense of style and fashion came from overcoming
hardship and bullying in his adolescent years. In an interview with ABC News,
Prince told a reporter that he used to suffer from epileptic seizure as well as
to being teased and bullied in school, and that the flashy outfits were a way
to compensate for those experiences.
However,
what I find most fascinating about Prince is his dexterity as a musician. He
simply was not content with one genre or type of music. To me, that is Prince’s
legacy. His ability to have hit after hit on the Billboard charts, while simultaneously
combining funk, R&B, dance, rock & roll, and pop. Moreover, Prince was
someone who truly loved what he did, and all the hard work that goes into song writing
and producing an album. He completed a total of 39 albums (more albums than
years as an artist), and won seven Grammy awards.
It wasn’t until
his 1984 appearance on television when he played his hit “Purple Rain.” The soundtrack
would go on to win him an Academy Award. His talent as an artist and performer
was unparalleled. Prince was famously known for his ability to play a multitude
of instruments (i.e. guitar, piano, bass), as well as sing all the lyrics on
his albums.
Transcending
racial barriers, gender, and even a name, Prince eventually changed his name to
a symbol (seen here). Ultimately, becoming known as “the artist formerly known
as Prince.” Many people saw this as ‘too much’ and many other believed this new
persona overshadowed the music.
He eventually
went back to the name Prince, and settled down not too far from his home town
in Minneapolis. Even though he passed away at the young age of 57, his music
will live on as a timeless classic.
