Miscellaneous Mondays: January 2019 Edition

Hello music fans, and welcome back to another Miscellaneous Monday post! I kind of explained what this is all about last time, so I don't feel like I need to do it again. Let's get started!



INTRODUCTION

This month has been kind of boring for me in terms of music. I did go back through the alternative charts over winter break, though, which gave me lots of fresh songs to add to my playlists. And it turns out that six of the seven songs I plan to talk about in this post were ones I discovered from doing that. The other one is one I planned to talk about last month but decided not to for certain reasons. I really just went through my rock playlist and picked out seven songs I don't see myself talking about in future posts, and those are the seven songs I will be discussing. Most of them are from kind of little-known artists because I want to save the bigger artists for possible top 10 posts, but we'll just roll with it and see how that goes. I have these songs ranked in alphabetical order by artist, by the way. So yeah, time to grind!

1. Dashboard Confessional - Hands Down
This is not a song I should be enjoying because of the edgy nature of it, but I do anyway. I remember hearing one of their other songs, "Vindicated", along with some other songs I talked about last month for that rankdown I did on Pulse. I enjoyed that song, and I think that somehow got me to this one. I'm pretty sure it was someone on Discord that told me that this song was better or something like that. So I did listen to this song, just randomly, and I really liked it. I think I prefer it over "Vindicated" actually. I think that the verses sound cool, with the different nature that it has over the chorus. The chorus reminds me a lot of a weird emo song, but that's because it kind of is one. And I don't really mind that. It still sounds really cool. I always felt weird listening to songs like "Vindicated" because of how emo they sounded, but this is more towards my comfort zone and I enjoy that. Really cool song overall, and it's one of the only emo songs I would recommend to anyone who doesn't like emo music.

2. Lifehouse - Spin
I don't really know what to say about my overall thoughts on Lifehouse. I am only familiar with about four of their songs, although I have listened to a few of their albums, which is why I feel hesitant to say I really love them. But I guess I can say that considering how much I love their two hits "First Time" and "Hanging By a Moment". "You and Me" was always good, but not great to me. Those three were the only three Lifehouse songs I was really familiar with, up until about a month ago when I found this. It doesn't nearly blow me away like the former two of those songs do, but it is a nice little listen. The chorus doesn't make it a super awesome banger, but it's not kind of slow and mellow either. It's right in between and I like that. I think I can say the same for the rest of the song. It's showed me some things about Lifehouse that I didn't know before. That's really all I have to say now. Definitely not their best song, but it's good to hear something else from them for a change.

3. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones - The Impression That I Get
Ever thought ska was a cool music genre, but never got a chance to hear what it sounds like? Well, don't say that anymore now that you've read this, because I'm hooking you up right now. This is the perfect example of a great ska song. The only other one I can think of that was in my rock playlist at one point was "Sell Out" by Reel Big Fish, but I prefer this song. I've tried to interpret the lyrics by myself because they sound like they sound be telling an interesting story, but I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter because of how happy the song sounds. It just has all kinds of cool instruments and stuff in it that makes it sound like something extremely uplifting that will make you feel good no matter what occasion it is. I'm pretty sure that might be what ska is all about, so if that's true then I might want to check out more of it. But yeah, there's really nothing bad about this song, other than that it might be a little weird compared to what was popular at the time. This song was in the top five most popular alternative songs of 1997 list compiled by Billboard, along with some legendary songs like "Semi-Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind, "Fly" by Sugar Ray, "Walkin' On The Sun" by Smash Mouth, and "Push" by Matchbox Twenty. I do love all of those songs and still think that the first of those four is the best of them, but this song does play a huge part in making that loaded group of songs as good as it is, which says a lot. And along with "Sell Out" I think there were a couple more good ska songs on that list, so you can check it out if you want to. I think I've said enough now, let's move on.

4. The Offspring - Can't Repeat
Okay, call me a fake stan or whatever you want, but I cannot BELIEVE I didn't know this song existed until about a month ago when going back through the alternative charts. I guess that's what I get for not listening to greatest hits albums ever. I am kind of disappointed that this had to turn out this way, because I'm a month in and I still can't get enough of this song. And if I redid my top 10 Offspring singles list...yeah, this would've been pretty high on it. But I guess I can thank myself for these posts because now I get to talk about it! I think the bass intro is really cool and helps set the stage for the song pretty well. Then the guitars and drums come in and things start getting awesome. I like that guitar riff that comes in after that short build-up, and like I do with pretty much any Offspring song I listen to and find cool, I start playing it on the guitar all the time, and that just gets me closer to the song. I love the lyrics in this song. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the song is just about getting older and moving along in life, and I enjoy how Dexter Holland wrote about this theme very much. The chorus of this song just strikes me so much because of how good it is. It's full of energy and does a great job in showing the theme of the song. It really defines it and helps make it what it is. Everything else throughout the song is amazing, especially the bass that holds it all together. The song is also really fun to play on the bass, at least for me. This is an overall awesome song that doesn't really have any flaws in it, which is always good. I don't really know when I'll finally get enough of it, but I don't see that being soon because of how much I love it. Great job, guys. You really made me happy with this song.

Oh, you thought I was done talking about them in this post! Key word: you THOUGHT.

5. The Offspring - Defy You
So my story with this is very similar to my story with "Can't Repeat": I did not know that this song existed until I heard it when going back through the alternative charts, mainly because this is a greatest hits-exclusive song. However, I just want to put down that no matter how much I praise the song and how good I think or say it is, it is not, and never will be, better than "Can't Repeat". Anyway, this song didn't click with me too much at first. It just didn't sound like a typical great Offspring song to me. But with a few more listens I got into it, especially after paying close attention to the lyrics and understanding what they meant. I have two possible interpretations of it: A. It could be about standing up for what you believe in, like in a political or argumentative situation, or B. It could be about a bully that you're more than tired of dealing with. I like to think of it as situation B because I can relate way more to that one, but regardless, I still think that what the lyrics are talking about is cool. The guitars don't stand out nearly as much as they do in "Can't Repeat", but I still think they're cool. The chorus is the main part of this song that gets me hyped, as it's energetic and more typical Offspring than I thought. I can see myself finally getting enough of this song way sooner than with "Can't Repeat", but for now it's something fun that I will always enjoy listening to.

6. SR-71 - Right Now
This song, to say the very least, is weird. It's definitely on the weird and flashy side of pop punk music rather than the one I'm used to. But that doesn't bring it down. It has just as much of a great pop punk vibe as I hear in a lot of other pop punk songs I enjoy. And I really don't have a personal connection to this song, I just sometimes like hearing the lyrics for the entertainment factor. Mitch Allan has a great voice and it fits well with the style of this song. The guitar riff also sticks out. It gives the song a good amount of energy. And I don't really know about the lyrics or what they mean. They just sound well-written. It's no wonder that Allan was the original songwriter for Bowling For Soup's hit song "1985", because this song proves that he has talent. And looking even more he also co-wrote many hit pop songs, including "Heartbeat Song" by Kelly Clarkson, "Want to Want Me" by Jason Derulo, "Irresistible" by Fall Out Boy, and "Heart Attack" by Demi Lovato, so maybe I should check out more from them. But we'll see. I do enjoy this song quite a bit and was glad it was somewhat popular.

7. Tantric - Breakdown
This is one of two songs called "Breakdown" in my rock playlist at the moment (the other one is by Seether). That's getting to be a common thing for me, as I also have another song in my playlist called "Right Now" (that's by Korn). Then I have two more songs called "Pain"...and stuff like that. But out of the two songs called "Breakdown" that are in my rock playlist, this is easily the more superior one. I like the Seether one, but it has a little something in it that brings it slightly down for me. This one doesn't have that. I enjoy pretty much everything about it. It's kind of a chill song, and that's nice. It has a really cool acoustic guitar riff that sets the song up pretty well. And I don't know why, but something about this song or this band sounded familiar to me when I first heard it about a month ago. So I did some research on this band, and I found out why: It's because this band was formed by three former members of another band I am somewhat familiar with, Days of the New. It didn't have the singer of the band or anything, but it still had something I felt like I knew in there. I can tell from listening to this song that Hugo Ferreira is a pretty talented music artist because he does a great job in this song. I haven't paid attention to the lyrics of this any so we won't talk about those. This isn't a hugely catchy or insanely energetic song, unlike a lot of others I discussed in this post, but that's okay because not every song is like that. Sometimes, something slightly different like this can be good to hear, and I like that.






And with that, we are now done with this post! Thank you to anyone who read this, and don't forget that if you want to suggest an idea for a future post, feel free to do so because I am extremely open to your suggestions. If any of the songs I talked about in this post sounded cool to you and you think you want to give them a listen for yourself, then you can use the YouTube embeds I posted when introducing each song, or just search up the songs on whatever streaming services you use. But yeah, that was this month's post, and I will see you guys next time! Peace out!

Battle of the Music #1: "Dirty Magic" vs. "Dirty Magic"

DISCLAIMER: This may seem like a joke post to some people, but I just want to let you know that it isn't and that this will actually be a good post and series for discussing music.

Hey guys, and welcome to the start of a new series on this blog! It's called Battle of the Music, and it's basically where I put two songs, artists, or albums up against each other and will decide which one is better based on a multitude of things. I feel like this specific battle will be a good way to kick off this series, and I have another artist one planned for another time, so this should be really fun. So let's get into it!

INTRODUCTION

"Dirty Magic" is a song recorded by punk rock band The Offspring. It is the sixth track from their sophomore album Ignition, which was originally released on October 16, 1992. The song was not released as a single, but it is a huge fan favorite. Because it wasn't released a single, I don't know much other information about it other than that it is the only song off of Ignition that frontman Dexter Holland plays lead guitar on.

"Dirty Magic" is also a song by The Offspring, released as the ninth track on their ninth album Days Go By on June 26, 2012. It is basically a re-recorded and remastered version of the 1992 version that appears on Ignition. The band re-recorded this song not only because a lot of older fans had requested them to do it, but also because, as Dexter once said, the original version felt really rushed to him, as it was only recorded in about two hours. He wanted the band to redo it so it could sound like he originally wanted it to sound. So he did.

In this post, I will be comparing these two versions of one song and seeing which one is overall better. I will be taking five different things into consideration when coming up with a verdict, which is really what I will talk about as we go along. So yeah, let's get this started!

PRODUCTION

I think the production of the 1992 version of the song is good at best. Thom Wilson, the album's producer, wasn't the best rock producer out there, but there were some really decent songs that he produced when working with The Offspring. While this is one of them, it certainly doesn't top how well-produced lots of their other songs and albums were. However, I do feel like it's the production that helps give the song sort of a nostalgic feel. But more on that later. Not the best production in the 1992 version because it's not too clear and bright compared to some of the other songs off Ignition such as "We Are One" and "L.A.P.D." But I still enjoy it sort of because of the vibe it helps give.

The 2012 version is a different story. I usually am not able to tell the difference between original versions and remastered versions of songs very well, but this song is an exception. The production of this version, which was handled by Bob Rock, is so different that it sort of makes this feel like a whole different song. It's easier to interpret, for one thing, and it just makes the song feel brighter and more energetic. I really enjoy how this newer version was produced, so much that it tops the production of the 1992 version, at least for me.

Winner: "Dirty Magic" (Days Go By version)

LYRICS

...yeah, there's not too much to be said here because the lyrics in these two songs are pretty much exactly the same. The only real difference I notice is at the beginning of the chorus. In the Ignition version, the first lines of the chorus are, "Pull the shades, razor blades, you're so tragic." But in the Days Go By version, the words "go on" are added right before everything, making it, "Go on and pull the shades, razor blades, you're so tragic." I think this change is good and makes the chorus feel slightly more full. However, what I do think might be even better is if for the first time or two, they sing the chorus without the "go on", and then add it in the second half of the song. That would be cool to me.

But as for the meaning, they are pretty much the same. According to songfacts.com, the song is about self-harm, which kind of makes sense considering some of the lyrics. The 1992 version sounds a lot darker and might help to convey the meaning slightly more than the 2012 version, but that also means that the 2012 version may or may not be one of those songs that sounds kind of energetic and happy but secretly has a dark meaning behind it. But I'm not really taking that into consideration because that has more to do with the production than it does the lyrics. What I will take into consideration is that the 2012 version gave me a great idea for something that would sound really cool in the song, and because it already sort of does, that gives me my verdict here.

Winner: "Dirty Magic" (Days Go By version)

VOCALS

I will try not to spend too much time going over these because my verdict for this is pretty easy. But I really think that the vocals on the Days Go By version are better just because they're more clear and remastered. I am pretty close to the point where I can call the ones on the Ignition version not very good to me just because they don't sound too clear and just kind of messy, not to mention that they don't fit the best with the song. Easy choice here.

Winner: "Dirty Magic" (Days Go By version)

INSTRUMENTS

The two versions of this track have pretty much the same instruments, but for some reason the guitar riff from the Ignition version kind of sticks out to me. It's a really catchy riff that is good no matter what version of the song it's on, but there seem to be slightly different effects on both versions of it. And as an electric guitar player myself I can tell that there's just a little more reverb on the Ignition version than on the Days Go By version. And I don't know why, but I kind of enjoy that reverb. It sounds good with the rest of the song to me and makes the riff a standout one. Also, it was the 1992 version that made me want to learn how to play it on the guitar (which I did), which is good to know for this.

As for other instruments, I think the second guitar that comes in the background didn't really stick out to me until I heard the Ignition version. I really like that guitar, so I have to thank the 1992 version for showing me that. The bass here doesn't really stick out any, unlike a lot of other Offspring songs and other punk songs in general, but I assume it does a good job in doing what it should be doing. Shoutout to Greg K. for that. I like the drums in this song, and for certain reasons I think they're slightly easier to analyze in the 1992 version. I guess that makes my point here clear: I don't really know why but I think the instruments on the 1992 version stick out to me more.

Winner: "Dirty Magic" (Ignition version)

VIBE/FEEL

This is a tough one to decide on. While I didn't praise the production of the 1992 version too terribly much, I think the nostalgic sort of feel it has in it is very cool. It's probably the best thing about the song in my opinion. However, I also really like how the 2012 version feels to me. There are lots of songs off of Days Go By that have just a good rock song sort of feel in them, including "The Future Is Now", "Secrets From The Underground", "Cruising California (Bumpin' In My Trunk)", and "All I Have Left Is You", and I think that that album's version of "Dirty Magic" is no exception. It just has a really good feel to it, although I can't exactly explain what it is. I really don't know whether or not to pick the awesome nostalgic vibe or the amazing Days Go By kind of feel. But if I called this one a tie, it wouldn't do anything to the final verdict, so that's fine.

Winner: TIE

OVERALL VERDICT

I honestly had sort of a feeling that this battle would end out like this. So the winner of this battle, with a score of 3.5 to 1.5 is...

"Dirty Magic" (Days Go By version)

FINAL WORDS

So that's it for this post! I thought it was very fun and I'm looking forward to doing it again. Thank you to anyone who read it, and if you think these songs sound cool, just look them up and listen to them because I'm too lazy to link them this time. I recommend both of them even if I think the Days Go By version is better. But yeah, I have nothing else for now, so I'll see you guys next time!

Awful Album Reviews #8: Green Day - Dookie

Hello music fans, and welcome back to another post! I know I said my next post would be something 2018-related, and that post is currently on the assembly line and should be finished eventually. But it's been two weeks since I last posted anything, so I'm just doing this because I just wanted to leave something in here while I continue working on my 2018 post (and because I love this album). So let's do this!



INTRODUCTION

Dookie is the third studio album by rock band Green Day, released on February 1, 1994, and the album that propelled them to success. This Rob Cavallo-produced record received loads of critical acclaim along with a Grammy, and has sold over twenty million copies around the world, the most for a Green Day album. Five hit singles spawned out of this album, which were, in order, "Longview", a re-recorded version of "Welcome to Paradise" from Kerplunk, "Basket Case", "When I Come Around", and "She". All five of these songs reached the top ten on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, with "Longview", "Basket Case", and "When I Come Around" being number one hits on that chart.



REVIEW

This album is a big portion of why Green Day has come to be one of my favorite bands. When you think of Green Day, you might think of them as being big in the alternative rock scene because of songs like "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", "Wake Me Up When September Ends", and "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)". But when I think of Green Day, one of the first words that pops into my head is punk. I think Green Day is a great punk rock band. They have songs like "Minority" and "American Idiot" that have sort of a cool punk-ish vibe to it, but they don't beat anything on this album. Excluding stuff from The Offspring and maybe Lit and Bad Religion, this is punk music at its best. I can't put it any other way. It's no surprise that this record and The Offspring's Smash played a big part in making punk music go mainstream in the mid-90s, because it's very hard to top.

There's many things that make this album a good punk record. I've listened to enough punk albums to know what punk is supposed to sound like, and I can immediately tell that this is one of them. First of all, not every rock singer can contribute to a good punk album in a good way. But Billie Joe Armstrong is one of them. His vocals are great throughout the whole thing. He is also the only guitarist in Green Day, so I will praise him for the powerful power chords that help shape the songs on this album. This also proves why Mike Dirnt is one of my favorite rock bassists, because his contributions on the bass go along with the album perfectly. Another thing I think makes this album truly punk is the drums, so I will give Tre Cool lots of props for that. I'm not paying attention to the lyrics of this album for every second of it, but what I've heard sounds interesting considering how good of a songwriter Billie Joe is. I mean, he released his first record when he was 5, so you can't really go wrong with him. As for everything else, this album was produced well, so thanks to Rob Cavallo for that. I also like how there aren't any songs over four minutes on this album, and although there are only 15 songs on it it's only 38 minutes long. It's a characteristic of a lot of punk albums that I've come to notice over time. So yeah, I think this really shows the punk side of Green Day in a great way. When you hear an style of album you'd usually hear from a more classic band like Bad Religion or NOFX from a more modern band like Green Day, that's just cool to me. I enjoyed that a lot. Not much else to say, so let's review each track!



TRACK-BY-TRACK REVIEWS

1. "Burnout"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: This song has a good punk feel to it that I'm definitely used to hearing by now. That may sound like a bad thing but it's really not.

2. "Having A Blast"
Rating: 10/10
Comments: I wish Green Day made way more songs like this. This sounds very good. The guitars work well with the song, which I always love hearing.

3. "Chump"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: It could have slightly more to it, but the punk vibes are real here, and I always love punk vibes.

4. "Longview"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: This is one of the weaker singles off the album to me, but I still really enjoy it. The lyrics are interesting, so listening to this song can be like listening to an audio-short story. I enjoy that.

5. "Welcome to Paradise"
Rating: 10/10
Comments: I haven't heard the original version of this song before, but this song is just so good. I'm not sure why it wasn't one of my first Green Day songs because it is in the upper ranks of their best songs. I will never turn down an opportunity to listen to this because every aspect of it is up there in the ranks.

6. "Pulling Teeth"
Rating: 9/10
Comments: This is a little different than the first five tracks on the album, but it's still fun to hear. I wouldn't call it true punk but it is true good music.

7. "Basket Case"
Rating: 10/10
Comments: This is everything I love about punk all in one song. It's so hugely acclaimed by critics for a reason. And if I don't think that this masterpiece is the best song off the album, it has to be on a pretty good one.

8. "She"
Rating: 10/10
Comments: That surging bass at the beginning is a perfect way to slam on the gas pedal and make this song go the way it needs to. I love it. adds to rock playlist

9. "Sassafras Roots"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: There's a lot of energy in this song and I always love to hear that. It goes hard and I love songs that go hard. A score for me.

10. "When I Come Around"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: This is kind of a more chill song than most of what's on the album, but it does work for me. I was pretty into it for a while after I first heard it, and while it's not as good now, I'm still satisfied with how big of a hit it was.

11. "Coming Clean"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: This song is short but every second is useful. Very good punk song here.

12. "Emenius Sleepus"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: Bassist Mike Dirnt wrote this song, which was interesting to listen to. I like his songwriting and want to hear more now.

13. "In the End"
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: This is obviously not better than the Linkin Park song of the same title, but I'm getting some massive Bad Religion vibes from this song, which is fun to hear from a band like Green Day.

14. "F.O.D."
Rating: 9/10
Comments: I had to turn my earbuds up a bit to hear what was going on in the first half, so when it broke in it scared me a little. But when it does break in it sounds great and like the rest of the album.

15. "All By Myself"
Rating: N/A
Comments: Unlike the rest of the album, this song is a hidden track performed by drummer Tre Cool, so it was fun to hear a change. But it's a hidden track on the CD version, so it's not really an actual song that I'll rate.



ALBUM RANKDOWN

Ugh...I really just don't want to do this for this album just because with all of the great songs on it, it would actually be a difficult task. Let's just say that my top 3, in order, are "Welcome to Paradise", "Basket Case", and "Having A Blast".



OVERALL ALBUM SCORE

134/140 = 9.57/10 = 0.957 = 95.7%



FINAL WORDS

I C O N Y. That is this album in one word. Everything about it shines and really shows how great of a band Green Day is. If you are curious to hear what punk music sounds like but have no idea where to begin, this is a perfect place, especially if your taste is more mainstream-oriented. If you like pop music that can often get wild, you will love this album, I promise. If it sounds cool, then you can listen to it on Spotify here or on YouTube here.

So that wraps up this awful album review! Thank you to everyone who read it, and I'll see you next time hopefully with that 2018 post I need to finish!