Better Living Through Chemistry (Live) - Queens of the Stone Age

Since 2007, well as long as I've been friends with my buddy Brandon, I've been force-fed Queens of the Stone Age. Can't say I was really into on the first go, I liked tracks like Little Sister and Go With The Flow, but these songs just scratch the surface of where this band has taken music. 

Queens' sound is unreplicatable. 

Queens just played a new song in Brazil this weekend at Lollapalooza, however this post is about a song from a few albums back. Originally featured on their 2000 release Rated R this track has often been played live. 

Queens usually takes this song and elongates and manipulates it. This particular recording at the 2011 Werchter Festival in Belgium proves just that. On the album this track runs 5 minutes even while this version is 8 and a half. 

Like most of their songs, there is no clearcut answer about what the song is completely about, but Josh (lead singer) does mention to an interviewer, "I think lots of the things that deal with drugs in our music are misunderstood. Like, we have a song called Better Living Through Chemistry which is an anti-drug song. It's saying it's okay, [that] the government says it's okay, for you to take Prozac everyday, every single day, to feel better and feel absolutely numb. Don't smoke that joint, though, you! (points finger)." 

This particular version is taken one step further instrumentally and introduces techniques and instrumentation not often seen in live performances. Guitar solos are layered with synth and much more expressive than that studio version. 

However, the most interesting dynamic of this song is fading out of almost all instrumentation all together. At about 4:30 there is only a sprinkling of cymbal splashes over a few strung out guitar notes. 

Josh and company harmonize a verse of "ooooohs" over this simple breakdown. Josh moves his mouth away from the mic to fade his vocals out after each one. After an explosive snare roll, the noisy solo begins right where it left off. 

I feel this track in particular is a great place to start if you are trying to get into Queens.

 Yeah, you could easily just download their studio records and be content, but when it comes to these guys it's completely worth it to invest some time into finding live recordings.

 It's worth the comparison. 

The blue pill opens your eyes
Is there a better way
A new religion prescribed
To those without the faith
The hero holding a knife
And blood is not enough
Is it too late to go back?
Is it too late to go?

Dear Brother - Puscifer

Shockingly enough this is my first Maynard James Keenan post. 

Being that I have two MJK related tattoos, it's safe to say that his music and all around attitude has influenced on one level or another.

 Surprisingly the track I’m linking you guys to is from a project that I do not have on my body (as of yet).

 Puscifer has always seemed to be MJK's least serious band with the greatest creative range. As Maynard himself puts it, "[Puscifer is] Simply a playground for the various voices in my head, it’s a space with no clear or discernible goals. It’s where my Id, Ego, and Anima all come together to exchange cookie recipes.” 

Puscifer's genre has since ranged from alternative, ambient, industrial, progressive, and now even operatic. Since 2007 has put out 7 or 8 releases, sometimes just remix albums; again this isn't taken very seriously. 

This most recently release, Donkey Punch The Night Away has a much more mature and professional feel, even though the first track is a rather impressive yet comical rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody. 

The song that captivated me on this release was by far Dear Brother. This track in particular is tastefully produced blending electronic and live sound. Maynard's voice floats gently over the soothing synths and spacy drums. 

Most importantly are his poetically narrative lyrics. The looped chorus expresses a simple statement: Farewell, dear friend Fare thee well, dear brother. 

A track that manages to say farewell to a fallen friend without being cheesy and overdone. More specifically a friend whose lifestyle seemed to be dangerous, yet the friend felt indestructible. 

This track is worth checking out, and if you enjoy this, Donkey Punch The Night Away is a nice place to get started as far as Puscifer is concerned. 

As for Tool and A Perfect Circle I’m sure I’ll get around to posting about each of them at a later date. 

Remember, take them with a grain of salt, some of the other stuff might not be as accessible and user friendly.

 This glass I raise is heavy, heavy as my heart this day
The reaper slipped right past us, bastard stole your breath away

Lock Your Doors Music Video (No Hands 6) - Death Grips

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So something pretty interesting has been going on this week involving Death Grips.

 Just about any time this group (duo?) updates any of their social media websites the Internet pays close attention. 

Any band will urge you to follow them on facebook or twitter for their latest updates and whatnot, but DG takes that notion to another level. 

Little is known about frontman MC Ride and Flatlander the producer. Their drummer Zach Hill has decent following. In 2011 DG released Exmilitary, a dark experimental hiphop album that gained some talk on the Internet. 

Death Grips quickly worked on The Money Store which reached and even broader audience. They began to tour this album, but realized that this did not provide them with enough time to work on their latest and most controversial album, NO LOVE DEEP WEB. The Money Store was produced and released under EPIC Records, and can be found in just about any Wal-Mart or Best Buy.

 Like I said, following on this band on social media is pretty much where you need to keep updated on these guys now. NO LOVE DEEP WEB was produced by EPIC but because the record wouldn't be released when the band wanted it out, DG deiced to breach contract and release the album on their own for free.

 By the next day their official website had been shut down.

 The reason for todays post has been their DXDG video series. A few days ago DG has posted a series of brief videos containing some footage of flatlander, a POV drum shot, and a death grips toy helicopter. 

Fans have come together to uncover the meaning of these videos and realized that DXDG is in reference to their performance at South By South West music festival. 

It was understood that the band member were going to be wearing POV cameras during their performance at the festival. 

Today the video footage from the performance has been edited to an official video for Lock Your Doors from NLDW. Enjoy the visuals. 

I've got some shit ta say just for the fuck of it

My Favorite Things - John Coltrane

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Here comes something fun.

 Well after some wine, I’m feeling pretty alright. I decided to be really fancy and listen to some jazz while having some cheese and sliced meat tonight.

 I scrolled through my music player and sorted the genre by "jazz." I mean it's only appropriate, right? Well let me be completely honest, I don't know the first thing about fine wine or what defines good jazz, but for some reason I think I'm doing something right. Probably downloaded the album ages ago, but I'm really enjoying it. 

Let's see what I can quickly learn about John Coltrane, or Jazz in general.

 Hey, look at that, he's from Huntington, NY. 

He plays saxophone, which I kind of figured, since it's the leading instrument.

 Seems like this whole Jazz was pretty big in the 50s, and John was a big name due to the controversy that surrounded him. 

John's music defied what most other Jazz musicians wrote, or improvised and because of that wasn't "mainstream." John did have a very cult following because of this trait. Many would refer to his music as "anti-jazz." He is now categorized as avant-garde and free jazz. 

Despite his rather brief career, Coltrane is revered as one of the most influential artists in the genre, and because of this won countless awards. Record companies took advantage of his fame and rereleased many of his records after his death.

 Linked is a familiar track.  

My Favorite Things. 

I can't remember exactly where I know this tune from, but I'm telling you, you know it. 

Oh that's right, The Sound Of Music.  

But yeah, this stuff is pretty incredible. I wish I could say more elequent things about this album, but I think you know where I stand.

 Enjoy if you haven't already.

Put It - Shlohmo

Spent all day ranting and rambling about how I'm truly not enthused that these sold out arena Electronic EDM DJ shows are the zeitgeist and soundtrack of my early adult generation. 

I mean c’mon, I know we'll never get the 60's again, but is this really what we have to tell our children about. It sucks cause I can respect the genre, but can't understand the popularity of these crazy huge shows that require no talent on the live artist but on the stage and lighting director. 

Granted the music is pretty grandiose and suits these elaborate productions, but the fact remains that the way to experience one of these "performances" is to be on some Molly or Ecstasy. I try to not knock the genre as a whole while raving (no, no glowsticks), because there is some tasteful electronic music out there. 

I guess it's just easier for me to appreciate something a little less theatric.

 How fortunate that experimental electronic artist Shlohmo just released his 5-track Laid Out EP this week.  

Shlohmo's music falls on the polar opposite end of the spectrum. His music is far from grandiose. If you're waiting for a filthy drop; don't hold your breath. 21 year old Henry Laufer (Shlohmo) will masterfully sample what you thought would make a horrible sample.

 Seriously, this dude is definitely sampling the hum of an air conditioner or something. 

His glitchy beats are so deliciously snappy, poppy, clickly, and crackly. You can really almost visual the texture of them. The vocal samples, if there are any, are pitched and effected beyond recognition or understanding. The voice becomes another instrument to be manipulated by the computer. 

This EP sounds more like it was made in a studio as apposed to Bad Vibes, which if I'd believe was made in and with anything found on a dorm room desk. These tracks are much more atmospheric due to their nature. 

Most are pretty dark, including the track linked at the top Put It.

 I found a cool quote describing his music: "His tracks swarm from dirty textures, strange sounds and obscured samples. It’s not hip-hop what you hear, but the echoes are clearly there." Well, I think that pretty much sums it up perfectly.

 Give both the EP and the full length a listen, they're both genius and their own respect. I'm excited to hear what this young artist has to say next.

Byron Black - Autopilot Off

Pop-punk? Really? I like pop-punk?! 

Well it seems so.

 First off, I discovered this band about 4 days ago, but hadn't really started listening till yesterday. Please excuse me if I know nothing of this band or genre. 

In the beginning of high school I was going to the local car wash and buying rap mixtapes from the Jamaican dude (5 for 20 bucks). 

Well actually I had my mom drive me, but whatever. 

Needless to say, I never hopped on the blink 182 train, or fall out boy, or all time low, or new found glory, or yellowcard (I don't feel like italicizing or capitalizing all of those). 

I think you get the point. 

Well anyway, I found this band on a share thread and couldn't stop listening to the track over and over. I immediately downloaded the album, and was very happy with what I found. 

Oh Shit, I think I’m going through my pop-punk phase now.  

Autopilot Off never seemed to quite gain the overwhelming popularity of the other bands mentioned, but damn is their stuff catchier. Their music is also classified as skatepunk, which totally makes sense. Brings me back to playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater video games or something. After reading up on these guys, turns out their music was featured in a bunch of early 2000s videogames. 

This four-piece best friend band took a huge hiatus that they technically still are on. However, as of June 20th of this year, they released that they are working on writing and recording new music.

 Autopilot Off has two full lengths and four smaller EPs. The only one I have gotten through is their 2004 Make a Sound, which Byron Black is the 11th track on. 

Every stride
Wears the soul more thin
Until it's slowly worn down to nothing

Prowler - Bohren & der Club of Gore

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Late night drizzling rain in New York City - can anything be more cinematic? Well yeah, a soundtrack to fit the mood. 

Want to feel like you’re throw onto the set of Scorsese's Taxi Driver, check out Bohren & der Club of Gore. 

This atmospheric four piece jazz group from Germany is the perfect soundtrack to falling asleep. Don't hold me responsible for any murder mystery, film noir, deceive dreams that their music formulates. 

I'll leave it to the last.fm tags to describe this group most uniquely: Bohren & der Club of Gore is classified as dark ambient, dark jazz, funeral jazz, or doom jazz. I'd call it night music.

 I never thought I'd find myself enjoying a saxophone so intensely, but that surely seems to be the driving instrument for me. Originally the band featured a guitar instead of a saxophone, being that the group derived from a group of high school friends' original hardcore band. The group set out to make a more unique style of music. They chose the name Bohren which translates to drilling from German. They desribe themselves as an “unholy ambient mixture of slow jazz ballads, Black Sabbath doom and down tuned Autopsy sounds." 

Case and point: this music is eerie, but strangely comforting if you are nice and cozy in you’re bed listening to the rain through your window. On the other hand, I don’t know how comforting this music would be while walking down a dark deserted alleyway in the bowery after some rainfall. 

If you can't get to sleep, don't reach for the nyquil. Load up some Bohren and let the slow atmospheric jazz play you off. 

Since the band has been around since 1992, figuring out where to start in their discography is pretty tricky. I would suggest their 2000-release Sunset Mission.