Lunch of Champions

Under the Sea

Okay. Don’t laugh, but I LOVE this tune!! Haha! In college, I my buddies and I used to engage in late-night renditions of this song! haha!

Mew - “Special”

I was struck by the lighting in this video…simply amazing! …oh, and the song is pretty sweet too!

Pictures Of Shanghai

Pictures Of Shanghai are a nice, little group of gents from Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom. How come Europe has all the cool city names? I grew up in a town called Richmond, moved to a town called Decatur. The only 2-word city I lived in was Los Angeles, and that’s too well-known to be at all interesting.

ANYWAY, this group politely asked me to listen to and review their mySpace tracks, and I’m a sucker for politeness. I Listened to “Oh Tragedy” and “Stand Up and Be Proud”, and the thing that struck me most was the singing abilities of lead singer, Mike Munroe. He can really hit some notes! I’d really like to see what he could do if he pushed himself to be the brink of his abilities. I get the feeling that talented singers could be a lot better if they didn’t settle for doing what they do best but rather attempt to sing at the top of their lungs with intensity…then again, it could just be the studio compression that’s masking the emotion in his voice.

The songs are good, but not great. Fancy, but not gaudy. The best parts are when the whole band chants on “Stand Up and Be Proud”. Overall, I’d say that this band has musical talent, but lacks the songwriting edge that makes bands special. That’s not to say that they can’t get there someday, it just seems to me that they are playing into the hands of commercial interests. Nothing good ever came from people who were trying to be popular. I think all bands should stand up for originality, get rid of compression in the post-production phase of recording and just allow themselves to rock!

The D!!!

I LOVE Tenacious D, but I still haven’t seen the Pick of Destiny movie yet…Is it on DVD yet??? Anyway, this clip is fucking hillarious!!

The Shins Aren’t Good Anymore

The Shins new album, Wincing The Night Away, just isn’t as good as it’s predecessor, Chutes Too Narrow. As you might recall, I LOVED Chutes Too Narrow. I loved it so much that I told all my friends and neighbors about it. I played it for my parents’ dog and for my brother (who thought it sounded just like Cake). I won’t be telling anyone about their new album except to say that it isn’t as good as their old one.

With the mass popularity brought upon by the Shins’ music becoming a subplot in the cult hit, Garden State, I expected something great. But I guess most things that become popular cease to be great, so this should come as no surprise.

Below is the video for the first single off their new album:

For Guys’ Eyes Only

If you’ll recall, Hockey Night’s Keep Guessin’ was my favorite album of 2006 even though, as some smart-ass pointed out, it was actually released in 2005. But I care not for such trivialities!! NoSirEeee! These boys from Minnesota pump out some of the best music this side of the Atlantic!! And since I like them so much, I thought I would post this new video I found of them even though some smart-ass reader of this blog will likely tell me that it was actually produced back in 2006. Enjoy!!

Lauryn Hill Unplugged

About a year ago, I borrowed the Lauryn Hill Unplugged album (2002) from a friend, and have since started listening to it again. It, quite simply, is one of the greatest albums I have ever heard. Full of personal tales of life on the road and also of her own personal religious redemption, Lauryn weaves a narrative through 22 songs on 2 discs that must be heard to be appreciated. If you’ll recall, Lauryn got famous singing “Killing Me Softly” with the Fugees back in 1996 in what might be the one of the the best covers ever done. But I was a fan of neither her nor the Fugees until I heard this album.

New Shins Album, Video

I love the Shins!! Their follow-up to Chutes Too Narrow, one of the best albums of the decade, is coming out on Jan. 23. The album is entitled Wincing the Night Away. While the first single, “Phantom Limb”, leaves something to be desired, the video is a first-rate gem! Seriously. It’s one of the better videos I have ever seen! I mean, who doesn’t like a bunch of kids acting out the story of the grand ‘ol U.S. of A??! Enjoy!

Dial-A-Song is BACK!!!

Check this out!

Minneapoliscast.com is sponsoring a February promotion along the lines of They Might Be Giants’ Dial-A-Song fun. For those that don’t know, They Might Be Giants have a cheap cassette answering machine set up at their Manhattan recording studio that they regularly record new, short songs onto. Anyone with a phone can call in and hear the songs (provided they know the number).

Starting Feb. 1, you will be able to hear new (and old) songs by many local musicians and bands at Minneapoliscast - and many of which will be recording songs specifically for the promotion! In fact, I will be writing a new song specifically for the Feb. 19 slot!! Booyah!! A new song will be posted each day of the month.

Below is a partial list of bands that will be featured in the promotion:

1. Nick Leet from High On Stress
2. Tony Thomas (Minneapoliscast producer and member of Anchorhead)
3. Rich Mattson from Ol’ Yeller
4. Jim Soule also in High On Stress
5. Roe Family Singers
6. Aview
7. The Future
8 . Skipjack
9. Joshua Hill Lemon also from Anchorhead
10. The G Wildens
11. Greg Fall from the Birdy Four
12. Little Man
13. Zion Tribe
14. Xerus
15. Gabriel James
16. 100 Under 60
17. Heise Bros.
18. Charlie Dush
19. Cryns #3