Though I do love the holidays and everything that comes along with them, there is one thing that really gets on my nerve. Christmas music. It can be so cheesy and groany and it really gets annoying. They are all about the same thing... Gathering under the mistletoe, seeing family, opening presents, gathering around the fire... By the 900th song, I think I get the point that the holidays are all about celebrating. I don't need to hear it 'round the clock until my ears bleed. But there is one band/orchestra that will make me drool. The Trans-Siberian Orchestra is one of the best creations/musical groups/orchestras ever created. They are the one Christmas group that I will blast when they come on the radio. The idea is so creative and original. It brings life to old Christmas tunes that have become boring and drab. I don't care if you are Jewish or Hindu or Islamic or aethist or whatever religion you follow. This band is super talented and you have to listen to a least one of their songs. And maybe it won't be as meaningful to you as it is to someone who would recognize the tunes, you can still appreciate the amount of talent that goes into making these master pieces of art.
My favorite song they play is definently Christmas Canon. I know I was saying how I like how this orchestra brings a newer look on songs and they do on most of the other ones, but this one just is truly a classic. It is so elegant and and the simplicity of it makes it incredible.
No doubt it is an incredible song. The vocal ability of these children is just mind-blowing and they perform the song very well.
Here is Wizards in Winter: This is my FAVORITE of their upbeat songs.
Here is the song again, just with a really neat twist
Here are some other great hits:
Christmas/Sarajevo 12/24
A Mad Russian's Christmas
This band is a great addition to music, even if they are religion specific. I really recommend that you check out all of their songs.
I will admit, I was pleasantly suprised when I listened to Led Zeppelin. I thought they were a cliche screaming band that is talentless and obnoxious. To my suprise, they were actually decent. I think they are still are a bit too over-the-top for me at times - I am still adjusting to the new era of rock 'n' roll, where people do a lot more screaming. As Mr. A said, they are absolutely TALENTLESS when it comes to writing lyrics. It's funny if you think about it. They are really talented musically, especially when it comes to playing instruments. But then they just SUCK at songwriting. It makes me wonder if they are the kind of people who use the right side of their brain more, making them very creative. And then it seems as if they have no ability what-so-ever to activate their left side of their brain to think logically.
Squeeze my lemon till the juice runs down my leg. Squeeze it so hard I fall right outta bed. You gotta...Squeeeeze my lemon...till the juice runs down my leg (I-wonder-if-you-know-what-I'm-talkin-about) Oh the way you squeeze it gal - I know I'll all right outta bed
I mean seriously? Is it really that hard? Even The Band, who had an obsurd way of coming up with lyrics wrote songs that were ten times better than this.
One thing that is a negative is all of their songs blur together in my mind. I remember hearing parts of songs that I really liked and I would have liked to link them down below, but I honestly have no clue as to which songs they were. Plus the fact that the songs are so long. Even if I try and listen to them, I just end up tuning out by the 4th minute.
Overall, I think they are a band I will keep an eye out for as we continue to move on into the 70's. They have good songs and have some killer instrumentalists. They aren't a bad that I think I will ever love, but I can see some potential and hopefully they will continue to improve their lyrics.
I am in love with this women. Her vocals are so good she makes me want to cry. Her voice is so motivating and powerful, it makes me want to get up and run a marathon. Before I say anymore, I really want you to listen to this song:
If you haven't fallen in love with that voice, I am sorry that you are missing out on a such an incredible talent. The way she starts with that powerful intro really sets a great mood for the song. I love it when artists make statements like that. From the very beginning, they give it all they have rather than just slowly climbing to their climax.
Florence + The Machine are a British indie, rock band that consists of Florence Welch and Isabella Summers and a variety of artists are used as their back up music. Her recent album, Ceremonials, is a really emotional and empowering album with tribals sounds and a variety of music influences. In some songs, I see influences from maybe African tribes and in others, I see influences from Egypt and the Middle East. Florence Welch has the same classy sound as Kate Nash, but Nash's sound is much softer, while Welch's is full of energy and anger, which really brings life into her music.
This song is a very good example of how she incorperates different sounds into her songs. What I love about her songs is when the song begins, I feel like it has a set path. Rather than bouncing everywhere and being jumbled, it is very organized and together, building at the right times and softening at others.
Here are some other songs of Florence that I love:
No Light, No Light
Bedroom Hymns
Heartlines
Strangeness and Charm
If you have time, I really urge you to listen to as many of her songs as possible. She is a really talented and inspiring artist and I feel like she has a lot to offer in the world of music!
It is quite a shame, but before this class, I never knew what Woodstock was. It was mentioned from time to time, but I had no clue what it was. Little did I know it was one of the most important musical events in history. It is estimated that 500,000 people (or some call them hippies) showed up for the festival. They only prepared for 50,000, a mere 450,000 less.
As we were watching the documentary on Woodstock, the thing that effected me the most wasn't the acts that were playing; it was the scenery and culture of everyone and everything. I have never seen a documentary that shows the culture during this time period and I thought this movie was really eye-opening. For instance, you can't even compare the way they dress to our fashions today. The way Janice Joplin dressed is just something you don't see everyday.
Plus everyone has this really chill look about them. I realize they were probably all super high and in completely different worlds, but it is good to be shown and exposed to how some people really did live. I am also aware of the fact that these 500,000 people represent a small population of the millions of Americans during this time period. Meaning that just because they dressed this way doesn't mean others did. I just think it looks like a really happy time. It is as if everyone left their cares and worries outside of the fences of Woodstock. Thats not saying I would want to be there. It seemed like a drug crazy, no limits, sex everyday kinda festival. But I do think it shaped our music today. I think it brought new ideas to the world, like the idea of having a multi-day music festival with a large lineup, so that your audience had a variety of artists to hear. It would draw in more crowds, creating large amounts of revenue and it would be advertisment for your city. It is also more appealing for the audience and spectators because instead of paying $50 (more or less) per concert, they could pay $300 (again more or less) to listen to 30+ artists. It was a brilliant idea. Also labor costs would somewhat decrease (maybe) because instead of unsetting and setting the stages everytime a band would perform maybe every other week or something, you could just leave the stage up all the time because there would always be someone playing. Sure you would have to pay for managers and sound people and many more, but I think the revenue brought in would cover that.
Woodstock was a reveloutionary event, that I think has influenced music in a very postive way and it gave a new light to rising and hopeful artists, as well as the experienced well-known ones.
