parodies by nacrowe
i discovered the music of DONALD GLOVER, a.k.a. CHILDISH GAMBINO, when i was working and living in JAPAN almost a decade ago. a SIGNIFICANT chunk of my life has been spent in UNFAMILIAR environments and CULTURES ranging from NIGERIA and KUWAIT to ALBANIA and VENEZUELA previous to my time in EAST ASIA. as a third culture kid, im pretty well-acquainted with that that UNRESOLVED feeling of being well out-of-my-element in a given situation. arguably that state is my NORMAL, or at least was for a long-time when i was abroad for extended periods of several years.
but JAPAN felt different. in the UNITED STATES people tend to fantasize about and mythologize this island nation and its UNIQUE culture to the point that it renders little of the actual place. out of all the countries i lived in, which included several developing nations and even a few dictatorships, i never felt as ISOLATED and LONELY as i did in JAPAN. which is saying something since they are technologically ADVANCED, administratively EFFICIENT and a DOMINANT and INNOVATIVE generator of GLOBAL CULTURE (MUSIC, ANIME, CONSUMER ELECTRONICS, BASEBALL, CUISINE, VIDEO GAMES, CINEMA, etc). but i feel like i tapped into something there at the heart of that CULTURE. its INTENSITY burns people out and even snuffs out students who feel UNINVOLVED or OSTRACIZED by society with one of the HIGHEST TEEN SUICIDE RATES in the world (along with SOUTH KOREA). it was also a place that i was ENDLESSLY reminded of my status as an OUTSIDER. a PERMANENT OUTSIDER that would always be an OUTSIDER. its FUNNY, because in every other foreign country i lived in that was obviously also the case, but each time NATIVE coworkers and NEIGHBORING friends and families invited you into being a vaunted piece of the COMPLEX social tapestry of the LOCAL COMMUNITY. without fail. except for JAPAN. i felt utterly alone. that was the context of first hearing BECAUSE THE INTERNET (GLASSNOTE, 2013) by CHILDISH GAMBINO, which to my ears thematically spoke of the implications of finding COMMUNITY and COMMON similarities in COMPLETE STRANGERS online. i found his LYRICS on that album to be quite VERBOSE, THOUGHTFUL, OBLIQUE and incredibly AMBITIOUS in its DENSITY and sheer SCALE. it all revolved around how one's relationship to their COMMUNITY and by extension themselves is affected when one has access to seemingly LIMITLESS INFORMATION. suddenly geography no longer matters. you are almost floating above PREVIOUS SOCIAL PRESCRIPTIONS and AFFILIATIONS that tethered you down by HISTORY, CLASS and RACE. just you and this ocean of INFORMATION. that feeling of being effectively UNTETHERED from SOCIETY and by extension MYSELF was my experience living and working outside of TOKYO at an international school in nearby YOKOHAMA where i had no ties or relationship to the LOCAL COMMUNITY. almost by design. being theirs not mine. for whatever reason, walking around HARAJUKU, SHIBUYA or even the VACANT beaches of KAMAKURA at night listening to that record helped me put everything in perspective, if not intellectually than at least on an EMOTIONAL level. and for that i am still GRATEFUL. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating CHILDISH GAMBINO. enjoy!
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parodies by nacrowe
i feel like part of the price of participation in today's DIGITAL SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETPLACE where ATTENTION and eyeballs is at a premium, there is an implicit bias towards CYNICAL, INAUTHENTIC and quite frankly OUTLANDISH behavior. same goes for music and the promotion thereof. each new generation is a wellspring of NEW PERSPECTIVES, CONTEXTS and IDEAS just waiting for the opportunity to shine in public view, but i cant help but think that our social media ecosystem and its decided bent to towards ENRAGEMENT ENGAGEMENT largely snuffs out such PROMOTIONAL EFFORTS effectively before they began.
enter CARPARK RECORDS. this WASHINGTON DC label that specializes in quality EXPERIMENTAL ROCK N ROLL and ELECTRONIC MUSIC of the INDIE variety quietly delivers QUALITY records by EMERGING ARTISTS of note, most decidedly LEFT-OF-CENTER with PERSONALITY but stray far from CONTROVERSY or BRUTISH BEHAVIOR. i discovered them via one of their recent flagship acts, THE BETHS, an INVENTIVE INDIE ROCK band from NEW ZEALAND who specialize in TIGHT SONG-CRAFT with QUIRKY, ANGULAR HOOKS and WARM, INVITING and FRIENDLY yet IDIOSYNCRATIC LYRICAL CONCEITS. i almost think of them as a MODERN-DAY PIXIES or THROWING MUSES. through them i discovered and explored the CARPARK RECORDS catalogue. but i am a music nerd (maybe snob). i love the process of finding out about new talent and UNFAMILIAR sounds, its all a LEARNING EXPERIENCE. i feel like an outlier in that respect. i just wonder how independent record labels like CARPARK go about their business quietly when the INSTITUTIONAL PRESSURE would seemingly favor finding a more OUTSPOKEN and CONTENTIOUS ARTIST that could drive more ATTENTION online. to me the label feels like a WELCOME anachronism to a former dynamic in the MARKETPLACE when LIKE-MINDED music fans supported labels and institutions that mirrored their ETHICS and AESTHETICS. maybe that is still happening and i am too terminally online. probably the latter. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the WASHINGTON DC-based INDIE MUSIC label CARPARK RECORDS. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
like ive said before, i am an ABSOLUTE SUCKER for MELODY. for me there is nothing better than listening to a song that is DIRECT, SIMPLE, HONEST and just slays with KILLER HOOKS.
such was absolutely the case when i came upon BEST COAST's debut CRAZY FOR YOU (MEXICAN SUMMER, 2010) more than a decade ago. every song on that album deserved to be a single, but i recall just being floored the first time listening to "BOYFRIEND" and "CRAZY FOR YOU," which both shared an UNBRIDLED OPTIMISM in its SOUND, PRESENTATION and LYRICS albeit with a twinge of heartbreak on the horizon. there is always that COMPLICATED understanding when things are going absolutely SPECTACULAR that the potential for a DEVASTATING loss is OMNIPRESENT like a SWORD OF DAMOCLES. that the rug might be slipped from right under you. with their debut, SINGER-SONGWRITER BETHANY CONSENTINO's lyrical muse was a BURGEONING relationship with NATHAN WILLIAMS of SAN DIEGO EXPERIMENTAL INDIE ROCK band WAVVES. all of that RISK, WORRY, CONFUSION, FAITH, APPROBATION, SELF-ASSURANCE and JOY that comes with finding a ROMANTIC PARTNER. for me at least CONSENTINO really laid all of that mixed-bag of EMOTIONS on the line with that record with those SUNNY SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MELODIES in the same TRANSCENDENT tradition of the BEACH BOYS, THE MAMAS & THE PAPAS, LOVE, THE BYRDS, FLEETWOOD MAC and THE GO-GO's. the SECRET weapon of BEST COAST is undoubtedly the less PROMINENT and FORWARD-FACING of the duo, MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST and RECORDING ENGINEER BOBB BRUNO. much like with any great pairing, each plays off of the relative STRENGTHS of the other. and with BRUNO there seems to be a PRETERNATURAL ability to find AURAL HOOKS in AUGMENTED waves of SOUND. his background was in much more EXPERIMENTAL and DISSONANT fair, but such a resume allows for some INTRIGUING SONIC DYNAMICS and UNCONVENTIONAL TONES to find their IDIOSYNCRATIC way into these more TRADITIONAL POP songs. for one, he usually plays a BARITONE GUITAR, which is usually associated more with METAL than ALT COUNTRY / SHOEGAZE / INDIE ROCK fair BEST COAST specialize in. for my part, i seek out videos online of BRUNO's regarding his RECORDING PROCESS and INFORMED opinions concerning GEAR, especially ODD, VINTAGE AMPLIFIERS and long-since DISCONTINUED GUITAR PEDALS. that stuff never gets old and its INTERESTING to hear how such seeps into the REMARKABLE SONIC TAPESTRY that is BEST COAST. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the INFECTIOUS LOS ANGELES-based INDIE POP duo BEST COAST. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
although often critically MALIGNED as the more commercially viable offshoot of the PUNK ROCK explosion, NEW WAVE was arguably the vehicle that transformed and influenced CULTURE well beyond its more VOLATILE cousin's notoriously BRIEF late 70s heyday. PUNK was a bit of a PRIMAL SCREAM, a palette cleanser that reset the deck on what was musically VIABLE to its core constituent parts. POST PUNK was the EFFECTIVE YEAR ZERO resetting of those pieces sans the need to pay homage or even acknowledge previous TRADITIONS as NEW TECHNOLOGY both in the recording studio an in the new array of SYNTHETIC SOUNDS available allowed for a permission structure to experiment and create without LIMITATIONS.
my understanding is that NEW WAVE is a bit of both. it utilized these NOVEL TECHNOLOGIES and the FREEDOM they provided while also be conscious of the pre-PUNK TRADITIONS that came before, i.e. the BRITISH INVASION. the amount of bands that are associated with the NEW WAVE tag often have little sonically to do with one another, their association often only being from the same era. and it is that variety of INFLUENCES and SONIC AESTHETICS that make this period such a FRUITFUL and INTRIGUING one to revisit. it should also be mentioned that the advent of MTV and the proliferation of MUSIC VIDEOS similarly added a new mode of EXPRESSION that mainlined FASHION, CHOREOGRAPHY and CINEMATOGRAPHY into the vocabulary of music aficionados on a GLOBAL scale. ive always wondered what the advent of MTV would have been like had the pre-PUNK trajectory of VIRTUOSO musicians and evermore musically SOPHISTICATED (and BORING) catalogues made their way into the world of MUSIC VIDEOS. its INTERESTING to consider, but the diversity of material within the NEW WAVE movement was perfect for its time and place as nearly anything went, for good and bad, and MUSIC CULTURE seemed to be expanding on a MASSIVE scale for the first time, effectively connecting scenes to each other and creating a new promotional vehicle to STARDOM. of course a backlash to such ensued, i.e. the twin concurrent UNDERGROUND HARDCORE and COLLEGE ROCK / INDIE ROCK movements of the 1980s, but such blowback was informed by enormity of NEW WAVE nonetheless. i was born in the 1980s so i am particularly biased in favor of NEW WAVE as it was what i grew up with until my preteens when the related SEATTLE ALTERNATIVE ROCK PHENOMENON exploded. for me those two scenes inform the musical upbringing of my childhood and i hold such dear for completely NOSTALGIC reasons. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating NEW WAVE bands and artists. enjoy! NOTE: unfortunately there was a technical snafu with this episode for the first hour, so make sure to start watching it at the 1:04:00 mark. all apologies!
photo & text by nacrowe
i was aware of LCD SOUNDSYSTEM's second SOUND OF SILVER (DFA, 2007) release, but it wasnt until visiting my cousin [a RECORDING ENGINEER] at his RECORDING STUDIO in GREENPOINT one summer after returning from abroad that i became privy to the idea that their frontman's [JAMES MURPHY] record label, DFA RECORDS, was a major CULTURAL FORCE worth exploring. to me SOUND OF SILVER was the DANCE SOUNDTRACK to dealing with GRIEF, which seems on the face of it like a COMPLETE OXYMORON, but a song like "SOMEONE GREAT" is acutely HEARTBREAKING while being CATHARTIC with a substantial VISCERAL weight. it basically transformed my opinion of the EMOTIONAL possibilities of DANCE MUSIC.
my cousin was a MASSIVE proponent of their SELF-TITLED LCD SOUNDSYSTEM (DFA, 2005) debut and especially the TRACK "LOSING MY EDGE," which was about getting older and feeling like your time has passed you by with all these younger generations of kids creeping up and taking over. to my taste that song lyrically was a bit PRECIOUS and SELF-IMPORTANT about what was an INSULAR MUSIC SCENE, but i took note. if anything, that INTIMATE sense of being part of a NASCENT CULTURAL MOVEMENT and spurring along COLLECTIVE creativity seems to be the MOTIVATING ETHOS of DFA RECORDS. there are so many strong DANCE-inflected EXPERIMENTAL BANDS on their roster over the years including HOLY GHOST!, BLACK DICE, HOT CHIP, THE CRYSTAL ARK, SHIT ROBOT, HERCULES & LOVE AFFAIR, YACHT, GUERRILLA TOSS, THE RAPTURE, FACTORY FLOOR and the aforementioned LCD SOUNDSYSTEM. it seems rather daft that i held such a REDUCTIVE opinion about DANCE MUSIC for so long. i imagine that such was INHERITED and comes from the INTRANSIGENT CULTURAL BAGGAGE associated with the internalization of the DISCO SUCKS movement writ large and the FALSE SUPERIORITY of supposedly "real" ACOUSTIC INSTRUMENTS over their SYNTHETIC brethren. nevermind the AWFUL ANTI-HOMOSEXUAL, ANTI-BLACK, ANTI-LATINO undercurrents that came with that REVANCHIST CULTURAL MOVEMENT which seemed to be clinging to an idealized (and undeniably CAUCASIAN) concept of AMERICA that was already an ANACHRONISM. when i think of DFA RECORDS and similar labels of its ilk, i think of REVOLUTIONARY MUSICIANS that are assisting in shedding the last vestiges of that HORRENDOUS legacy and allowing EMERGING generations to take in EXPERIMENTAL SOUNDS sans PAST CULTURAL BULLSHIT. and for that i thank them. even if it feels like the OVERWHELMING forces of CULTURAL REGRESSION are winning the war at the moment. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating DFA RECORDS. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
back in 7th grade when i was living and going to school in NIGERIA, a classmate's mother of all things had a side hustle where she imported compact discs from EUROPE and sold them out of kiosk at a shopping center. i am almost positive that such was where i took a chance on the DELIVERANCE (COLUMBIA, 1994) album by this band id never heard of called CORROSION OF CONFORMITY. in essence, those WIDE-OPEN, DETUNED POWER CHORDS played over that TEMPO pulled way back was my introduction to SLUDGE METAL and STONER ROCK, given that PEPPER KEENAN is arguably at the origins of both SOUNDALIKE genres.
to my understanding, SLUDGE METAL is a NEW ORLEANS concoction inspired by the likes of the MELVINS and all things DOOM METAL to create a SLOW-COOKED gumbo of DOWN-TEMPO GROOVE by the likes of CROWBAR and EYEHATEGOD. STONER ROCK on the other hand is a FUZZED-OUT PUNK ROCK variant that likewise utilized SLOWER TEMPOS and DETUNED GUITARS to assist in aurally describing the huge expanse of SPACE that was the MOJAVE DESERT at nighttime where bands like KYUSS played generator parties. the difference between SLUDGE METAL and STONER ROCK is nuanced but it is there, yet the sounds have both influenced COUNTLESS modern METAL bands that take that WEIGHTY SONIC TEMPLATE and utilize it to provide HEFT and MASS to their SOUND. this is in direct contrast to what MASTERS OF REALITY main-man CHRIS GOSS (and one of the PALM DESERT SCENE architects of the STONER ROCK sound) derided as "TYPEWRITER METAL" in which METAL bands like MEGADETH and SLAYER played LIGHTNING-FAST SINGLE-NOTE ARPEGGIATED RHYTHMS that galloped their way through a song with little FEEL or GROOVE. in that sense, having the patience in letting the song actually breathe and articulate its feel in good time is the sonic contribution of these two LIKE-MINDED genres. i hear the influence in METALCORE bands like CANCER BATS, ARCHITECTS, CAVE IN, LAMB OF GOD, CODE ORANGE and AVENGED SEVENFOLD as well as POST HARDCORE acts like GLASSJAW, AT THE DRIVE-IN, REFUSED and THRICE, all of whom vary TEMPO, FEEL and GROOVE to SPECTACULAR effect. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating my FAVORITE SLUDGE METAL and STONER ROCK bands. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
like everything, i cam to POST-HARDCORE late. again, my FORMATIVE years were spent abroad in places like NIGERIA and KUWAIT in the mid-to-late 1990s and wasnt even aware of the party until i attended undergrad stateside in the early 2000s. i was at RUTGERS UNIVERSITY and was oddly at the epicenter of a scene that included local bands like THURSDAY and MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE that had either moved on or were currently forming in the area. to my UNINITIATED ears these bands along with other EMERGING national acts like GLASSJAW, AT THE DRIVE-IN, TAKING BACK SUNDAY and THE USED just sounded like the next generation of DISSONANT ROCK N ROLL bands with singing by frontmen who obviously came from the ECLECTIC MIKE PATTON / MORRISSEY / CHINO MORENO / ROBERT SMITH school of EMOTIVE CROONING. less MACHO POSTURING and more CONFESSIONAL lyrics dealing with HEARTACHE, REJECTION and the ADVERSITIES of daily life. as an underclassman in college it was MUSIC seemingly sonically and lyrically tailored made to SOUNDTRACK my very EXISTENCE.
as the name suggests, POST-HARDCORE is what came after the HARDCORE PUNK ROCK movement of the 1980s, which quickly calcified into a rigidly FORMULAIC (with a few exceptions, i.e. MINUTEMEN, BUTTHOLE SURFERS, HUSKER DU, THE MEAT PUPPETS) lyrically and sonically CONFINED template of ANTI-AUTHORITARIAN SCREEDS with quick outbursts of unassailably DISSONANT and aggressively UNRELENTING raw NOISE. SUBTLETY was not the focus here, nor was MUSICIANSHIP. if anything HARDCORE represented this PRIMAL SCREAM of DISAFFECTED suburban youth alienated by the arch conservative policies of REAGAN-era politics and the trite SUPERFICIALITY of their surroundings. to them the AMERICAN DREAM was dead and deserved to be shat on in public. what is INTRIGUING is that what came out of that complete OUTWARD NIHILISTIC WORLDVIEW was a complete 180 turn. POST-HARDCORE turned that lyrical bent INWARD and concocted more INTROSPECTIVE dealing with SELF-COMPLICITY and VULNERABILITY. that new THOUGHTFUL, personally ACCOUNTABLE and CONTEMPLATIVE PERSPECTIVE was supported by more NUANCED and musically DEFT manipulations of the NOISE, CHAOS and AURAL LEXICON of HARDCORE into this HYBRID, EVOLVED APPROACH. what i love about POST-HARDCORE bands like GLASSJAW, AT THE DRIVE-IN, REFUSED, CIRCA SURVIVE, FUGAZI and THE BLOOD BROTHERS is that they all share this sense of barely CONTAINED CHAOS, as if the very song itself is on the verge of UNRAVELING and caving in on itself. the songs just seem to explode and have this UNCANNY sense of PROPULSIVE forward momentum with the band attempting to catch up in the process and harness its ENERGY POTENTIAL. these songs at their best are less TIGHT COMPOSITIONS and more quasi-euphoric COMMUNAL SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES that has more in keeping with ECSTATIC tradition of FREE JAZZ pioneers JOHN COLTRANE and ORNETTE COLEMAN than HARDCORE luddites in ROGER MIRET or VINNIE STIGMA. at least that is how it felt in the crowd watching these POST-HARDCOR bands throughout the 2000s whip up their fans into a state of COLLECTIVE EUPHORIA. i remember seeing GLASSJAW play at CONVENTION HALL in ASBURY PARK and thinking halfway through the set that this is what being in a CULT must be feel like. just that complete dedication of being 100% IN-THE-MOMENT and on the same EMOTIONAL WAVELENGTH as everyone around you. for me that is the DEFINITIVE POST-HARDCORE EXPERIENCE. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating my FAVORITE POST-HARDCORE bands. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
what i appreciate about the BRITISH singer-songwriter PJ HARVEY is how with each successive release she challenges herself and by extension her audience in seeking out NEW SONIC TERRITORY through EXPERIMENTING and incorporating DISPARATE TEXTURES, UNIQUE INSTRUMENTATION and OBSCURE GENRE ELEMENTS into her EVER-EVOLVING SOUND. much like her musical contemporaries in BJORK, MIKE PATTON, BECK, KATE BUSH, JOSH HOMME, DAVID BOWIE and NICK CAVE, each album is its own AURAL EXPERIENTIAL JOURNEY. in her case she has run the artistic gamut in terms of GENRES from DISSONANT NOISE ROCK, DELICATE ENGLISH FOLK MUSIC, CEREBRAL ART ROCK and DOWN-AND-NASTY PUNK BLUES.
my introduction to her work was through her MUSCULAR SONGS FROM THE CITY, SONGS FROM THE SEA (ISLAND, 2000) album that found her PAEAN to all things NEW YORK CITY firmly rooted in the AMERICAN ALTERNATIVE ROCK tradition of recent years. i was living in KUWAIT at the time and was going through my father's record collection when i found this and several other of her albums. this one hit the hardest given the EMOTIONAL POWER of her expressed ROMANTIC longing and INTERNAL CONFUSION on MASSIVE tracks like "BIG EXIT," "KAMIKAZE," "A PLACE CALLED HOME," "THIS IS LOVE" and "GOOD FORTUNE." to me that album is the very soundtrack to own my personal EXPERIENTIAL UNDERSTANDING of the HECTIC ENERGY and CONFUSED BEAUTY of living in the big city. just that one opening line itself off of "THIS IS LOVE" in which HARVEY opines that she "can't believe life is so complex / when i just want to sit here and watch you undress" really hits home at that OPPORTUNISTIC sense of VOYEURISTIC INTIMACY that comes with finding CONNECTION in an ENVIRONMENT so seemingly DISORDERED, FRANTIC and RANDOM. that ENERGY cant help but creep into your very PSYCHE, as if you are watching yourself play out and access aspects of yourself that could never happen in a smaller setting where everyone knows you. my FORMATIVE years were spent running around between literal hemispheres were dramatically DIFFERENT and NOVEL CULTURAL, SOCIAL and GEOGRAPHIC CONTEXTS and PERSPECTIVES were being thrown my way with seeming clockwork regularity. im still recovering form such an EXPERIENCE and gathering my bearings about who i am now, here, in this MOMENT. to me the CREATIVE WORK of HARVEY is the musical accompaniment to what has to be a very PERSONAL JOURNEY to understand aspects of herself and her gift. as a listener i feel PRIVILEGED to be able to glean off of her CRAFT and the hardship that went into its creation. in that sense she is like a beaming lighthouse to those of us perilously drifting off at sea. her CRAFT is a gift that i deeply cherish and very much look forward to each new release. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the catalogue of the SINGULAR ENGLISH SONGWRITER PJ HARVEY. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
even in the MODERN pantheon of TRANSCENDENT SONGWRITERS, that undoubtedly includes the likes of JOHN LENNON / PAUL MACCARTNEY, TRENT REZNOR, MARVIN GAYE, COLE PORTER, NEIL YOUNG, DOLLY PARTON, STEVIE WONDER, MORRISSEY / JOHNNY MARR, Q-TIP, DAVID BOWIE, JOHNNY CASH, RAY CHARLES, CAROL KING, SAM COOKE, PRINCE and BOB DYLAN, in my opinion LOU REED still very much remains unquestionably atop such PROMINENT company. its one thing to be technically PROFICIENT or ever VIRTUOSIC on an instrument, with the required PHYSICAL DEXTERITY and coordination to pull off COMPLICATED sequences. it is another entirely to have the EMOTIONAL CAPACITY and IMAGINATIVE ABILITY to translate musical ideas, BASIC or ADVANCED, into FORMS that touch and heal the soul. for some reason people confuse the two and it is MADDENING.
in my mind, the SONGWRITING of REED is more of a PERSPECTIVE or an EXPERIENCE rather than a catalogue of songs, very much like great ART, CINEMA or LITERATURE transcends its MEDIUM into that of a HIGHER realm of CONCEPTS, MOODS and FEELINGS. undoubtedly part of that urge to create is about the need to ESCAPE, and all of those aforementioned SONGWRITERS did such to one degree or another, but with REED it very much feels he used ESCAPISM as a TOOL to cut deeper and expose in HARSH, COLD, BRUTAL detail the UNSPOKEN, HARROWING aspects of the HUMAN CONDITION. the CRUELTY, the LONELINESS, the very ABSURDITY of life. when i think of REED i think of that. that and NEW YORK CITY. never has a SONGWRITER been so singularly identified with a specific location and representative of the both the SEEDY and CELEBRATED aspects of society therein, from IMPATIENT FIENDS waiting for their heroin connect on a corner in SPANISH HARLEM, to UNDERGROUND ARTISTS and their SYCOPHANTIC underlings in the MEAT PACKING DISTRICT to ASPIRATIONAL TRANSVESTITE ACTRESSES in the LOWER EAST SIDE. it goes on and his eye for detail and EMPATHY is what shines through, even when the subject is coarse and unflinchingly REAL. its that INTEGRITY and AUTHENTICITY of his VOICE and his words that transcend his songs, similarly to DYLAN, from ROCK N ROLL lyrics to VERITABLE POETRY. to my taste DYLAN was more interested in the finer aspects of AMERICAN FOLK MUSIC traditions and his WORLDVIEW is emblematic of such, whereas REED is more about juxtaposing EXPERIMENTAL sounds (of the STRAIGHTFORWARD, DISSONANT, COMPLEX and/or INCOHERENT varieties) with the EMOTIONAL STRUGGLE, SPIRITUAL PLIGHT and EXISTENTIAL DREAD of MODERN URBAN LIFE. i hear aspects of REED in all sorts of HIP HOP, especially with regards to that PALPABLE sense of the STRUGGLE to become something GREATER. the music itself is a collection of found parts that in concert create something more emotionally RESONANT. it is the very MUSICAL EXPRESSION of the LYRICAL CONTENT, which is striving to REINTERPRET, REPURPOSE and RE-CONTEXTUALIZE a DEGRADED, DIMINISHED and societally DISMISSED LIVED EXPERIENCE into that of an ELEVATED CONSCIOUSNESS to help uplift communities. i believe REED was on that tip with his HONESTY and ability to EFFECTIVELY communicate REALITY. he wasnt attempting to inspire through falsehoods, but UNVARNISHED, close-up looks into the mirror of our collective improprieties. REST IN PEACE LOU REED. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the catalogue of the LEGENDARY NEW YORK SONGWRITER LOU REED. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
ever since i spent some extended time firsthand observing my RECORDING ENGINEER cousin and the ARTISTRY and seemingly LIMITLESS production capacities currently available via MODERN DIGITAL RECORDING and PRODUCTION SOFTWARE ranging from PROTOOLS to LOGIC to ABLETON to even FL STUDIO and beyond, it just all got me thinking back to the MENTALITY of making records half a century before when there was much more LIMITED TECHNOLOGY. in the 1950s, 60s and 70s with a FIXED amount of TRACKS available, one had to commit to a PERFORMANCE and a COMPOSITION, production 'mistakes' be damned. it also meant MUSICIANSHIP and CHEMISTRY was at a PREMIUM since the quicker the turnaround was, the less the final bill was for EXPENSIVE professional RECORDING STUDIO time.
such was where a TALENTED specialized new breed of STUDIO MUSICIAN appeared that could quickly surmise and internalize a PRODUCER's COMPOSITION and play such flawlessly under INTENSE pressure and short notice. MUSCLE SHOALS in ALABAMA, the FUNK BROTHERS in DETROIT (who worked exclusively with MOTOWN RECORDS) and most famously THE WRECKING CREW in LOS ANGELES are all examples of loose collectives of STUDIO MUSICIANS that had CHEMISTRY with one another and recorded various NOTEWORTHY TRACKS for TOP-END ARTISTS. when BRIAN WILSON did not want to tour anymore and instead hunker down at home and compose the new album, no problem. such was the case famously with PET SOUNDS (CAPITOL, 1966) which was recorded with THE WRECKING CREW and for which the other BEACH BOYS merely sang on for the most part. the whole topic of SESSION/STUDIO MUSICIANS i perennially find INTRIGUING. just the idea that they as part of their NORMAL course of business will learn what they are being asked to play upon arrival. the MUSICAL RANGE and TECHNICAL VIRTUOSITY required to do such and the DEFT CRAFTSMANSHIP to work and collaborate seamlessly with an UNKNOWN collective just sounds daunting beyond belief. this sort of thing still exists today, but it is often coordinated through direct relationships with PRODUCERS who call in help for specific punch-ins when budgets and timelines are tight. GUITARIST JOHN 5 (MARILYN MANSON, ROB ZOMBIE, MOTLEY CRUE, DAVID LEE ROTH) and DRUMMER JOSH FREESE (A PERFECT CIRCLE, NINE INCH NAILS, DEVO, THE VANDALS, FOO FIGHTERS) are prominent examples of MODERN STUDIO and LIVE TOURING MUSICIANS of the first-order that were so IN-DEMAND that they were offered full-time gigs by multiple ACTS. these days VERSATILITY and AVAILABILITY are key, as well as the ability to vibe well with an ARTIST or PRODUCER. in that way it feels a bit DIFFERENT than past examples like JIMMY PAGE (LED ZEPPELIN, THE YARDBIRDS) and JAMES BURTON (ELVIS PRESLEY, RICKY NELSON, THE EVERLY BROTHERS) did a generation or two ago. today a successful studio musician has to wear several hats and be ready to immediately strike should an opportunity present itself, even at the top of the industry. listening back at the songs performed on record by THE WRECKING CREW presents an NOSTALGIC EXPERIENCE of studio budgets and the luxury of having time to build a UNIQUE CHEMISTRY between PLAYERS over COUNTLESS SESSIONS. that ALCHEMY of CREATIVITY seems to have been squeezed out of RECORDING or at least transmuted to the HIRED GUN game with need for QUALITY PLAYERS for live performances. which is UNFORTUNATE but such is PROGRESS when virtually anyone can produce something DECENT even on the most BASIC of RECORDING SOFTWARE. even GARAGEBAND. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the MAJOR culturally SIGNIFICANT songs recorded by the extended collective of LOS ANGELES STUDIO MUSICIANS now as THE WRECKING CREW. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
HIP HOP CULTURE is a lot of things to a lot of people, but a genre or venue for aging GRACEFULLY is not one of them. in fact, arguably more than its JAZZ, ROCK N ROLL or POP peers and counterparts, HIP HOP in particular is all about YOUTH CULTURE and maintaining an ear to the NOVEL, UNEXPLORED and CUTTING-EDGE. its the LIFEBLOOD of the genre and historically leaves little to no breathing room for so-called LEGACY acts taking up air space as with other genres (examples being AEROSMITH, BILLY JOEL, KISS, PEARL JAM, MADONNA or U2 still drawing ARENA-SIZED crowds despite being culturally RELEVANT literally decades ago). again, you dont see that with HIP HOP. you dont see veteran groups like WU-TANG CLAN, NAS, EPMD, RAKIM or DE LA SOUL selling out MADISON SQUARE GARDEN multiple dates every few years like their DINOSAUR ROCK N ROLL band compatriots.
so for me the BEASTIE BOYS are a complete OUTLIER. right up until their breakup after the TRAGIC PASSING of ADAM 'MCA' YAUCH from PAROTID CANCER in 2012. with each subsequent release they were given the latitude by their fanbase, and more importantly each other, to truly EXPERIMENT and EVOLVE on wax as musicians as well as individuals. case in point was the conscious mid-career choice to ACKNOWLEDGE their previous MISOGYNY on stage and on record and PUBLICLY APOLOGIZE for such. and not only apologize publicly with mere lip service, but meaningfully ADVOCATE on behalf of charities and groups that work in those AFFECTED arenas. in HIP HOP with its OVERWHELMING FETISHIZING of ANTIQUATED cultural concepts like AUTHENTICITY and SELLING OUT, where one is in disincentivized from ACKNOWLEDGING WEAKNESSES and FAULTS out of FEAR of PUBLIC SHAMING and LOSING FACE, the result of such is ironically a lot of bullshit POSTURING and FRAUDULENT claims of personal hardship. over the years of being a HIP HOP fan, the BRAVERY of the BEASTIE BOYS in celebrating their friends and loved ones and getting that FRAT BOY crap they embodied on the first record and tour just comes off as more and more COURAGEOUS and NECESSARY as they transitioned into EMPATHETIC, QUESTIONING, SELF-REFLECTIVE, THOUGHTFUL adults. likewise when MCA became a BUDDHIST and started bringing that perspective into the music, both lyrically and even sonically on tracks like "BODHISATTVA VOW", both ADAM 'AD-ROCK' HOROVITZ and MICHAEL 'MIKE D' DIAMOND went along with it. rather than feeling threatened by this MAJOR LIFE CHANGE, they openly SUPPORTED and CELEBRATED their friend as he continued to EVOLVE on his own PERSONAL journey. ive long wondered why the BEASTIE BOYS were able to carve out this wide lane while their peers and ARTISTIC compatriots have had to largely compete with their younger selves ad infinitum. was it the fact that the BEASTIE BOYS had a large ALTERNATIVE ROCK following unlike peer groups in CYPRESS HILL or RUN-DMC? one would think that given their race in a black-dominated art form they would be even more prone to being culturally pigeon-holed. i dont know the answer. maybe its just because they did it, damn the consequences. either its a pretty COMPELLING narrative, even in retrospect over a decade after their breakup. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the BEASTIE BOYS. enjoy!
parody by nacrowe
AMY WINEHOUSE was such a RAW and POWERFUL SONGWRITER.
her passing was DEVASTATING to me in a way that few CELEBRITY DEATHS have ever been. part of that was just the nature of her MUSIC, which was so brutally HONEST and EMOTIVE yet DELICATE and preternaturally MELODIC. that DICHOTOMY pulled you in as a listener and never let go. when CELEBRITIES PASS AWAY, i try to be mindful of the fact that this person had a FAMILY and circle of FRIENDS that loved and cared for them irrespective of their GIFT. i recognize that my appreciation of them is a REFLECTION of me PROJECTING VALUES, AMBITIONS and IDEALS to their ART and PERSONA that is entirely separate from them as a PERSON. that when they PASS ON, that spark they initiated grows dimmer as well. that being said, i can count the amount of CELEBRITY DEATHS that really effected me on one hand, those being that of CHRIS FARLEY, LAYNE STALEY (ALICE IN CHAINS), OL' DIRTY BASTARD (WU-TANG CLAN) and WINEHOUSE. part of it is undoubtedly that sense of PROJECTING i already described, but beyond that there is a clear SELFISH sense (on my part) that they had UNREALIZED potential and FUTURE ART left on the table to the COLLECTIVE LOSS of EVERYONE. their PAIN and their SUFFERING and their LOSS equated to a diminish of my QUALITY OF LIFE is what it comes down to i guess. again, pretty SHALLOW and SELF-CENTERED but TRUE. most CELEBRITY DEATHS we acknowledge as individuals but dont necessarily grieve. these individuals i honestly can say i did so as their ART deeply resonated with me. FARLEY, STALEY, the ODB and WINEHOUSE all had in common the TRAGIC fact that they were immensely TALENTED ARTISTS, that publicly SUFFERED and senselessly succumbed to their ADDICTIONS in spite of much psychic effort to transcend such by them, their FAMILIES and their LOVED ONES. another thread is that WINEHOUSE was only a few months older than me and her PASSING in a very REAL sense was a STARK and PALPABLE reminder of my own MORTALITY. similar markers of such over the years include watching LEBRON JAMES' prolific basketball career or reading about MARK ZUCKERBERG's rise to power (and the TRAGIC unforeseen societal repercussions of such) or witnessing in REAL-TIME the HORROR that is ELISE STEFANIK's CRAVEN political capitulations to one AGENT ORANGE. all are within a year of my age. i didnt know WINEHOUSE other than her MUSIC. i didnt bear witness to her DREAMS, FLAWS, HOPES, INSECURITIES or AMBITIONS outside of what she choset to present to the world on vinyl, on stage or in interviews. being a fan is a PASSIVE activity at heart. you are the receptacle in an UNRECIPROCATED arrangement that clearly only goes one way. yet somewhat counterintuitively the POWER of ART is one of RESONANCE and SELF-IDENTIFICATION where the viewer/listener completes the circuit so to speak. it makes sense that one feels a sense of LOSS when the other link is denied in that bond through the very real and very human process surrounding MORTALITY. the situation surrounding WINEHOUSE is emblematic of such and permanently colors our opinion of her art in a similar manner to other PERSONALITIES and SONGWRITERS that arguably DIED prematurely at their creative peak like KURT COBAIN (NIRVANA), BUDDY HOLLY, TUPAC SHAKUR, HANK WILLIAMS, IAN CURTIS (JOY DIVISION), JANIS JOPLIN (BIG BROTHER & THE HOLDING COMPANY), THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G., DUANE ALLMAN (THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND, DEREK & THE DOMINOS), PATSY CLINE, BRAD NOWELL (SUBLIME) or JIMI HENDRIX among way too many others. RIP AMY WINEHOUSE embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating THRASH METAL. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
it was my understanding back in middle school that the only type of METAL was THRASH METAL.
end stop. it was the summer of 1996 and my family was stateside in NEW JERSEY visiting after my first year living in NIGERIA. that was the time that METALLICA's LOAD (ELEKTRA, 1996) came out and i can still remember the display at a local record store that had their entire DISCOGRAPHY on discount as a promotion. i liked LOAD so i remember on a whim going back to the store and picking up RIDE THE LIGHTNING (MEGAFORCE, 1984), MASTER OF PUPPETS (ELEKTRA, 1986), ...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL (ELEKTRA, 1988) and METALLICA (ELEKTRA, 1991) in one fell swoop. id later come across KILL 'EM ALL (MEGAFORCE, 1983) from a friend back in AFRICA. not only did those previous ALBUMS, especially the earlier ones, completely blow me away beyond that of LOAD, it made me interested in investigating other THRASH METAL bands within the year including SLAYER, MEGADETH, ANTHRAX, TESTAMENT, SEPULTURA and EXODUS. this was back in the mid 90s before streaming, YOUTUBE or downloading when to get new music you effectively had to either buy PHYSICAL PRODUCT or borrow such from your IMMEDIATE NETWORK OF FRIENDS and buy CASSETTES to create MIXTAPES. for me, THRASH METAL was ground zero when it came to EXTREME MUSIC. from their i went chronologically backwards to NEW WAVE OF BRITISH HEAVY METAL bands like MOTORHEAD, DIAMOND HEAD, IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST and even further to BLACK SABBATH. years later in high school and college id become familiar with DEATH METAL, BLACK METAL and GRINDCORE among other sub-genres, but THRASH was essentially the foundation. to my ears the recipe of THRASH was two parts the TECHNICAL MUSICIANSHIP and FEROCITY of NWOBHM (especially MOTORHEAD and JUDAS PRIEST) with one part the SNARLING ATTITUDE and immediacy of HARDCORE PUNK ROCK (a la THE MISFITS and DISCHARGE). within CLIFF BURTON-era METALLICA there was also this added NEOCLASSICAL ELEMENT that also provided those early string of ALBUMS, especially RIDE THE LIGHTNING and MASTER OF PUPPETS with a COMPOSITIONAL and EMOTIONAL SOPHISTICATION that has not been matched since across all sub-genres, even by the band themselves. and for me personally as much as i love the increased AURAL ASSAULT and OUTRIGHT BRUTALITY of MODERN EXTREME METAL bands like PIG DESTROYER, FULL OF HELL, DEATH, ENTOMBED, NAILS, TERRORIZER and NAPALM DEATH, it still all comes down to those two key METALLICA RECORDS, as well as SLAYER's REIGN IN BLOOD (DEF JAM, 1986) and SOUTH OF HEAVEN (DEF JAM, 1988), SEPULTURA's CHAOS A.D. (ROADRUNNER, 1993) and MEGADETH's RUST IN PEACE (CAPITOL, 1990) as the foundations of my appreciation for the THRASH METAL genre at large. ​embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating THRASH METAL. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
the term INDIE ROCK is a pretty AMORPHOUS marker that encompasses a STRIPPED-BACK strain of ROCK N ROLL from the 1980s and beyond that was (for the most part) released on INDEPENDENT labels with LIMITED distribution and supported with tours that (along with HARDCORE bands of the era) established an ALTERNATIVE circuit of makeshift VENUES across the UNITED STATES. to most acts like R.E.M., PAVEMENT, THE REPLACEMENTS, HUSKER DU, DINOSAUR JR, BUILT TO SPILL, SONIC YOUTH and PIXIES come to immediate mind for many when considering the term, but intriguingly it doesnt really denote a particular style per se and is an umbrella term encompassing other genres of the period like POST PUNK, GOTH ROCK, NOISE ROCK and SHOEGAZE. during the 80s many even referred to it as COLLEGE ROCK, given the propensity for only INDEPENDENT-MINDED DJs on local COLLEGE RADIO STATIONS supporting these ARTISTS, as opposed to MAINSTREAM ROCK N ROLL radio at the time which either had its collective head in the sand back in the 1960s and 70s or even worse, the concurrent wave of FECKLESS and UNORIGINAL HAIR METAL emanating from the SUNSET STRIP out in LOS ANGELES.
INDIE ROCK was essentially music for NERDS and its legacy is that of EXPERIMENTATION, focus on craft and (sadly) CULTURAL ELITISM. just by the BOUTIQUE nature of the INDEPENDENT RECORD LABEL business, these cultural artifacts were relatively unavailable at scale to the buying public, much less promoted through MAINSTREAM MUSIC PUBLICATIONS or supported by ESTABLISHED CLUBS and THEATERS. by the very nature of the business-side of things, INDIE ROCK was inherently UNDERGROUND. the story of the genre is much like the apocryphal narrative surrounding the fact that few PEOPLE witnessed THE VELVET UNDERGROUND play live during their brief existence, but those AUDIENCE MEMBERS went out and started bands and furthered their GOSPEL. with the rise of the more INDIE ROCK and HARDCORE-influenced ALTERNATIVE ROCK explosion from SEATTLE in the early 1990s, many of these bands rose to national visibility on the collective backs of NIRVANA, SOUNDGARDEN, PEARL JAM and ALICE IN CHAINS. the AESTHETIC has likewise continued onward for the last thirty years as the culture caught up to INDIE ROCK to the point that it is currently an almost MEANINGLESS term. what is left of it feels co-opted by MODERN online gatekeepers like PITCHFORK, STEREOGUM and BROOKLYNVEGAN who lionize CHEAP NOVELTY and EXPERIMENTATION as an unto themselves to the point that TUNEFULNESS and attention to ACTUAL CRAFT are DIMINISHED and perceived as a glowing indication of a lack of SOPHISTICATION. its a definite problem with BASELESS ELITISM and the false understanding of what makes something AUTHENTIC and unfortunately has INFILTRATED the mindset of the music-buying public in the last two decades plus. not sure whether to BLAME INDIE ROCK itself, but the COMMUNITY at large let it FESTER and reach a critical mass. its UNFORTUNATE because i grew up on many of these bands and truly enjoy their presence in my life, but shy away from the COMMUNITY itself due to the ARBITRARY PISSING CONTEST that it has all become. just my opinion. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the INDIE ROCK movement of the 1980s and early 1990s. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
POST PUNK to me has long been one of the more EXCITING periods of music to continually explore and re-investigate due to its EXPERIMENTAL nature. for musicians of that generation who witnessed the BRITISH INVASION as kids and then the later more TECHNICALLY ACCOMPLISHED LARGER-THAN-LIFE figures of 70s ROCK N ROLL (i.e. LED ZEPPELIN, QUEEN and PINK FLOYD among others) as well as PROGRESSIVE ROCK (KING CRIMSON, RUSH, GENESIS, YES and EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER), the bar for entry seemed impossibly high.
then PUNK ROCK enters the fray and reframes the whole conversation. the revolution that was the PUNK movement was in part a social reimagining of what it meant to be a musician, that INTENT was as SIGNIFICANT if not more IMPORTANT than RAW TECHNICAL ABILITY. musicians and fans that attended those LEGENDARY late 70s gigs witnessing those FIRST-WAVE PUNK acts like THE RAMONES, THE CLASH, THE SEX PISTOLS, THE DAMNED and THE BUZZCOCKS often left feeling like they could do that as well, maybe even better. POST PUNK is such a VITAL period because you had all of these AMATEURISH musicians playing well outside their comfort zone and creating INTERESTING sonic juxtapositions out of somewhat pure NAIVETE and INSTINCT. many of these bands grew into TECHNICALLY PROFICIENT entities, but it is that explosion of DISPARATE material that served as a big bang of sorts for later iterations and generations of musicians to peruse through for INSPIRATION. to tell you the truth, i never understood why INCREDIBLE POST PUNK bands like GANG OF FOUR, MAGAZINE, PUBLIC IMAGE LTD, THE FALL, BAUHAUS, WIRE, THE POP GROUP and KILLING JOKE didnt amass anything beyond a NOMINAL, LOYAL cult following. yes it is true that acts like THE CURE, JOY DIVISION / NEW ORDER, ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN, THE SMITHS and SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES all had their cultural moment, but collectively it is probably due to the ECLECTIC nature of the music and its lack of a cohesive perspective that made it less marketable and difficult to promote. it is also what makes POST PUNK perpetually INTRIGUING and aesthetically CHALLENGING to take in and digest. for me the somewhat concurrent NO WAVE movement was one step beyond POST PUNK, but taken together those two genres are something i constantly return to when i feel jaded about music in general. inevitably after some digging and investigation something will arise that challenges my tastes and expands my appreciation, which is probably the highest compliment i came present. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the POST PUNK movement. enjoy!
parody by nacrowe
there is a whole litany of SUCCESSFUL second acts in MODERN MUSIC HISTORY, especially of the SOLO ACT variety coming off a massively INFLUENTIAL and commercially LUCRATIVE group project, but i am hard pressed to think of another ROCK N ROLL example other than NOEL GALLAGHER who has been able to match (if not succeed) the quality of output of his former band, i.e. OASIS. JOHN LENNON's post-BEATLES output was rather SPOTTY, albeit with some spellbindingly TRANSCENDENT highlights. dont get me started on the embarrassment that is PAUL MCCARTNEY. the caliber of company i can come up with are SEMINAL SOLO ARTISTS like MORRISSEY (THE SMITHS), IGGY POP (THE STOOGES), OZZY OSBOURNE (BLACK SABBATH), NEIL YOUNG (BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD, CSN & Y) and LOU REED (THE VELVET UNDERGROUND).
what is INTRIGUING about that list is that arguably those ARTISTS were the stars of their former groups. yes they all had FORMIDABLE and LEGENDARY COLLABORATORS and CO-SONGWRITERS with the likes of JOHNNY MARR (THE SMITHS), JAMES WILLIAMSON and the ASHTON BROTHERS (THE STOOGES), TONY IOMMI (BLACK SABBATH), STEPHEN STILLS (BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD, CSN & Y) and JOHN CALE (THE VELVET UNDERGROUND), but in contrast the case of NOEL found him to not be the star, but the sole SONGWRITER and LYRICIST [for the majority of OASIS' career] in CREATIVE and ARTISTIC support of his VOCALIST younger brother, LIAM. so in a very REAL sense, OASIS was NOEL and NOEL was OASIS. cant say that about MORRISSEY, POP, OSBOURNE, YOUNG or REED. or even LENNON or MCCARTNEY. or for that matter STING (THE POLICE), BRYAN FERRY (ROXY MUSIC), RAY DAVIES (THE KINKS) or ROBBIE ROBERTSON (THE BAND). so when he went solo in 2009, NOEL effectively took the CREATIVE BRAINTRUST of OASIS with him, and the intervening years have seen that eye for QUALITY SONG-CRAFT expand into new SONIC TERRAIN with songs that juxtapose his penchant for MEMORABLE MELODIES with AMBIENT and ELECTRONIC TEXTURES as well as DANCE rhythms. such excursions into DANCE CULTURE might seem on the face of it COUNTERINTUITIVE and in stark contrast to the traditional ROCK N ROLL ethos that OASIS represented to many an ALTERNATIVE ROCK and BRITPOP enthusiast, but you have to consider that his FORMATIVE years were spent at the HACIENDA in MANCHESTER during the peak years of the ACID HOUSE explosion of the late 1980s. OASIS and NOEL were children of the MADCHESTER scene so such later EXPERIMENTATION with such is not really that odd when viewed in context. what is COMPELLING is that those SONIC EXPERIMENTS lead to some QUALITY tracks such as "BLACK STAR DANCING," "BLUE MOON RISING," "THIS IS THE PLACE" and "SHE TAUGHT ME HOW TO FLY" that rank up with his best work. and in essence that UNIQUE capacity to INNOVATE and continually EVOLVE his sound in a manner that builds on his FORMIDABLE strengths as a SONGWRITER is what makes NOEL so FASCINATING a CULTURAL FIGURE. he is not dredging up the past or attempting to be something he was back in his 20s. if anything, he is in the moment. THIS MOMENT. and i am forever looking forward to checking out his new material. ​embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the solo work of the ICONIC BRITISH songwriter NOEL GALLAGHER. enjoy!
parodies by nacrowe
i am continually fascinated by the EXPERIMENTAL and highly IDIOSYNCRATIC MUSICIANSHIP of SONGWRITER / GUITARIST WES BORLAND (LIMP BIZKIT, BLACK LIGHT BURNS, BIG DUMB FACE). yes his SIGNATURE double-handed tapping TECHNIQUE is VINTAGE LES CLAYPOOL (PRIMUS) to an extent, but his SYNTHESIS and mastery of various APPROACHES and STYLES into an UNPREDICTABLE sound is pretty INCREDIBLE and the reason i pay attention to each new LIMP BIZKIT release despite my less than enthusiastic toleration of vocalist FRED DURST.
what is UNIQUE about his APPROACH to composing MEMORABLE GUITAR RIFFS is that it is a similar CREATIVE PROCESS to that of how he conceives his PAINTINGS. as a VISUAL ARTIST he will juxtapose FORMS and COLORS until something emerges that is pleasing to him. at that point he may go further or even strip the COMPOSITION back to an earlier SIMPLER FORM, all in the subconscious act of creation with NO DISCERNIBLE OBJECTIVE in sight. such is also his modus operandi as a COMPOSER, whereby through the addition and subtraction of elements he comes across a piece of music that was not premeditated or articulated with a PURPOSE in mind. its just SPONTANEOUS creation through being an OPEN CHANNEL for one's NON-COGNITIVE CREATIVITY to flow through. this process is highly ECCENTRIC and is rooted in INSTINCT and FEEL, which is why BORLAND is responsible for some of the most DISTINCTIVE and absolutely SAVAGE riffs of the past few decades. its a CREATIVE PROCESS that reminds me of how JAZZ musicians often describe being in a state of FLOW where they are reacting to the music as it envelopes and presents itself, their hours upon hours of PRACTICE and DISCIPLINED TECHNIQUE becomes almost an UNCONSCIOUS reflex, an extension of their subconscious. when i listen to some of the more PERSONAL end of BORLAND's material, especially that of his EXPLORATORY ALTERNATIVE METAL band BLACK LIGHT BURNS, i both admire the singularly inventive nature of the guitar-playing involved, but also the decidedly UNSTRUCTURED, somewhat FREE-ASSOCIATIVE PROCESS that birthed it and sparked his CREATIVITY. i am not on that level in any aspect or pursuit in my life, but it is still very much an avenue to consider. ​embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the music of ARTISTIC SOUNDSCAPES of WES BORLAND. enjoy!
photo & text by nacrowe
i feel like JIMI HENDRIX is a bit MISUNDERSTOOD.
he is continually universally LIONIZED (for good reason) for being arguably the GREATEST GUITARIST of all-time having internalized the BLUES LEXICON and driving it way out into INTERSTELLAR space not unlike JOHN COLTRANE with BEBOP and JAZZ. i think oftentimes people get caught up on his TECHNICAL PROWESS on the instrument instead of the SEAMLESS INTUITIVENESS and ENDLESS IMPROVISATIONAL CREATIVITY he displayed with a GUITAR in-hand. like mid-period PICASSO, its not just the ability itself that is INGENIOUS, but the the PROCESS, PRODUCT and INTENTION behind it that continues to ENTRANCE and DELIGHT us. listening to HENDRIX records, as ive done since early childhood, you just get the PALPABLE feeling that he was really just getting started. that we were all denied a career of collaborations and one-off performances that would spellbind us as his MUSICAL DEXTERITY found new avenues and platforms of testing and further expanding that seemingly BOUNDLESS CREATIVITY. i also think HENDRIX is severely UNDERRATED as a SONGWRITING TALENT. what makes his records work is that the actual material is COMPELLING in its SONIC and LYRICAL IDIOSYNCRASIES, which intertwine and create an aural landscape that is comforting and thrilling to step in and at of as a listener. i can remember as a child just turning on "RAINY DAY, DREAM AWAY" and just blissfully zoning out to its ENCHANTED, CAREFREE rhythmically REPETITIVE MANTRA into the OPEN-ENDED lyrics fixated on the dilemma of what to do when the weather outside shifts to that of a downpour. its music from a DEEP, SUBTERRANEAN, almost PRE-CONSCIOUS source that is meant to convey and describe aurally concepts like FREEDOM, SERENITY and the SUBLIME. and yes, the dude could obviously PLAY. but like COLTRANE, he could also WRITE and THINK creatively with the best of them and in the process collectively raised our sense of COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS. or at least some of us. just listen to his catalogue. itll all make sense. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating the BOUNDLESS CREATIVITY of JIMI HENDRIX. enjoy! photo & text by nacrowe
the untimely passing of ANDREW WOOD, the much BELOVED and CELEBRATED MOTHER LOVE BONE / MALFUNKSHUN singer, from a heroin overdose in 1990 was an absolute CULTURAL EARTHQUAKE that rippled throughout the NASCENT ALTERNATIVE ROCK scene in SEATTLE. WOOD was a larger-than-life character whose CHARISMATIC personality and sheer force-of-will was a highlight and point of UNITY in a particularly INTIMATE COMMUNITY of musicians and artists during this pre-fame era. it is TRAGIC and more than a little IRONIC that such a TRANSCENDENT creative figure with naked ARENA ROCK ambitions did not live to see his band, or the scene itself in peer bands like SOUNDGARDEN, TAD, MUDHONEY, ALICE IN CHAINS, SCREAMING TREES, NIRVANA and the post-MOTHER LOVE BONE outfit PEARL JAM, rise to GLOBAL CULTURAL DOMINANCE and POPULARITY.
the TEMPLE OF THE DOG project was meant as a PROPER CELEBRATION and SEND-OFF to WOOD by close friend and fellow singer-songwriter CHRIS CORNELL (SOUNDGARDEN) and surviving MOTHER LOVE BONE guitarist STONE GOSSARD and bassist JEFF AMENT. drummer MATT CAMERON (SOUNDGARDEN), lead guitarist MIKE MCREADY (PEARL JAM) and most crucially EDDIE VEDDER (PEARL JAM) rounded out the group. mind you, this album was recorded months before PEARL JAM entered the studio to begin on their debut TEN (EPIC, 1991), so the TEMPLE OF THE DOG (A&M, 1991) album was the introduction to the world of VEDDER as a vocalist. i believe it is one of the great acts of ROCK N ROLL GENEROSITY that CORNELL chose to duet with VEDDER on "HUNGER STRIKE," effectively warmly embracing and presenting the SAN DIEGAN anew to the SEATTLE COMMUNITY and the listening public. CORNELL is a SINGULAR artist with one of the great ROCK AND ROLL voices of all-time and it should be stated that one that track VEDDER very much held his own. for most people "HUNGER STRIKE" is the obvious STANDOUT moment. "SAY HELLO 2 HEAVEN" likewise is another highlight in that it is a GUT-WRENCHING CORNELL track about saying goodbye to his late friend. CORNELL by definition was an INSULAR, deeply COMPASSIONATE and TALENTED dude, but it was the BRASH and FEARLESS (and sadly RECKLESS) WOOD that brought him out of his shell. that particular song can almost be viewed as a public testimonial to the PROFOUND effect of WOOD had one him and how gaping the hole in his heart was at the time by the loss of such a DEAR friend and CLOSE peer. in a sense, that CORNELL / WOOD relationship is an apt metaphor for the SEATTLE scene itself and how SELF-CONTAINED and mutually SUPPORTIVE it was before it went overground and became a GLOBAL PHENOMENON. in retrospect it feels like CORNELL is as much saying goodbye to his deceased friend as he is to that naive sense of artistic and creative PURITY before the careerist business ambitions inevitably took root in the COMMUNITY. that transformation, which was relatively sudden, changed how these peers viewed themselves, and brought about much CONSTERNATION and GUILT at home relating to the efforts of outsiders to sully pure intents and creative pursuits. it all feels sadly INEVITABLE. TEMPLE OF THE DOG is an ESSENTIAL ALTERNATIVE ROCK album and a UNIQUE look into the underlying of the ETHOS and CAMARADERIE of the SEATTLE scene pre-fame. decades later it is still beyond INTRIGUING to revisit and consider, especially in the wake of the untimely passing of CORNELL himself and PEARL JAM (along with MUDHONEY), being the last band (with original core members) standing.
parodies by nacrowe
i was just at the BROOKLYN MUSEUM today to catch the INCREDIBLE SPIKE LEE: CREATIVE SOURCES exhibit (which i highly recommend and is open through february 4). after taking that WONDERFUL exhibit in, i had a happy accident in noticing from the guide that there was another INTRIGUING exhibit taking place a floor below called COPY MACHINE MANIFESTOS: ARTISTS WHO MAKE ZINES (open through march 31). honestly, in my mind i was just hoping that said exhibit would have examples of those RARE RAYMOND PETTIBON ZINES from the 1980s. oh did they. in fact there was a whole wall of them. beyond COOL. just as COMPELLING, there were also MULTIPLE BIKINI GIRL ZINES from the early 1990s which got me thinking about the MEDIUM in general.
with the ubiquity of EFFICIENT and COST-EFFECTIVE office copy machines in the 1980s (largely due to a lost anti-trust case that saw XEROX bequeath its intellectual property to rivals TOSHIBA, CANON, MINOLTA and SHARP), there was suddenly a mechanism for retail customers to SELF-PUBLISH at scale at a reduced cost. enter SELF-MADE ARTISTS, SOCIAL/POLITICAL ACTIVISTS and MUSIC ENTHUSIASTS who grabbed onto this platform to create MAKESHIFT, LOW-QUALITY publications that expressed a viewpoint by definition outside of the mainstream. the exhibit very dives into the diversity of output from the late 1970s onward and how the format really provided a voice for the voiceless and addressed the needs of COMMUNITY FORGOTTEN or UNRECOGNIZED by the publishing industry at the time. that melding of ART, POLITICS and MUSIC is such an INTERESTING topic and the exhibit showcases the extremities of taste and decency in those often aggressively TRANSGRESSIVE publications. i feel like i understand the niche pre-internet. what i had a harder time understanding was the need for ZINES from the 2000s onward when the internet had provided numerous avenues (FORUMS, SOCIAL MEDIA, BLOGS, WEBSITES, E-MAIL CHAINS, NEWSLETTERS, SUBSTACKS, etc.) for COMMUNITY generation on a MASSIVE global scale. but maybe that limitation is the point. ZINES are by design DISPOSABLE and severely limited in production, thus limiting the COMMUNITY involved and rendering such UNSEARCHABLE in the technological sense. it makes you consider if KATHLEEN HANNA was starting out today in 2023 what messaging vehicle she'd have initiated to get her thoughts transmitted to the PUBLIC. thats what ive been thinking about the rest of the day. embedded below is a recent DEER GOD RADIO episode on nonprofit internet radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC that includes a playlist celebrating RIOT GRRRL bands from throughout 1990s, as well as later female artists that took up the mantle and ran with it thereafter. enjoy! |
NICHOLAS ARCHIVES
May 2024
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