Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
Bon Iver's Album, "I, I"
I only know about cool music because of Jac, Tim, Randy, Sean, Nate, Spotify, and Brycen. They rarely shoot me in the wrong direction. I hope that I can make your list of people who tell you about good music when you make your blog to promote things that you like. Maybe after reading this, you will fall in love with Bon Iver and make your own post. I don't know, but I bet that you could do it.
Friday, August 31, 2018
License To Trill
Welcome to What's Good, Scott? It's been awhile. Things haven't really been that "Good." But, as most things are cyclical, I have come around to a spot where things are "Good" enough to entertain positive thought. Thank you for your patience and patronage.
With this creative endeavor it is my goal (always has been) to highlight good things and celebrate them in hopes of amusing/inspiring/titillating you, the person who takes the time to read this. Today is one that I have been wanting to write for a long time. Today is special. Today we highlight "Trill."
Trill is loosely defined by Google as:
This is when someone really just goes for it and sings with gusto. Their voice is their instrument and trill is the vocal equivalent of a guitar solo. The vibrato (whether natural or forced) makes the journey from the note that the singer started on to the note that they end on feel exciting and even soulful. Trill can be utilized in a short or long fashion. For instance, most Jazz or R&B singers are barely able to sing without a little trill, so those genres often produces soulful, sexy, intentional compositions dripping with trill. This is short trill. A good example of long trill is Mariah Carey's song "Emotions," a song with a particularly memorable line of trill which she uses to LAUNCH HER VOICE INTO OUTER-FREAKING SPACE. Now, that's what I call trill...volume 2. When done properly, a singer can highlight multiple notes in a run and isolate/boost the best ones with power and control.
Singing clear notes without vibrato is great, but trill lets the listener know that you really mean it. It punches up whatever is sung. The closest non-musical thing that I can compare trill to is a basketball dunk.
So, imagine that there are some basketball teams playing. The conflict has gone back and forth all night with both teams scoring points by way of layups and conventional three pointers...really Larry Bird-esque play. Nothing flashy, just fundamentals. But, the game clock is running down and people have to get points and make statements. You are intently observing as Player A, we will call him Michael Jordan or Lebron James or Muggsy Bogues or James Blake, leaps from what feels like mid-court and comes down with a real strong dunk move, running right into Player B and knocking him down with the sheer force of his dunkitude. These are the hot basketball plays that they make posters out of for children to hang in their rooms. The game has been changed. The statement has been made. The dunk has been executed. The other team knows that they are done for. This is the dunk...slam dunk for the layman.
To me, this is what trill is like. It is a move that you make when/if you can and it has the possibility to change the musical composition and make a statement. Sure, it can be silly. But, it can also be beautiful and that is why it is What's Good....Scott...for today.
The title for this blog post was conceived by Marshal Blessing who would just say "all glory to God" if I thanked him for it publicly, so he doesn't really need this, but I feel compelled to credit him.
With this creative endeavor it is my goal (always has been) to highlight good things and celebrate them in hopes of amusing/inspiring/titillating you, the person who takes the time to read this. Today is one that I have been wanting to write for a long time. Today is special. Today we highlight "Trill."
Trill is loosely defined by Google as:
This is when someone really just goes for it and sings with gusto. Their voice is their instrument and trill is the vocal equivalent of a guitar solo. The vibrato (whether natural or forced) makes the journey from the note that the singer started on to the note that they end on feel exciting and even soulful. Trill can be utilized in a short or long fashion. For instance, most Jazz or R&B singers are barely able to sing without a little trill, so those genres often produces soulful, sexy, intentional compositions dripping with trill. This is short trill. A good example of long trill is Mariah Carey's song "Emotions," a song with a particularly memorable line of trill which she uses to LAUNCH HER VOICE INTO OUTER-FREAKING SPACE. Now, that's what I call trill...volume 2. When done properly, a singer can highlight multiple notes in a run and isolate/boost the best ones with power and control.
Good Trill
Singing clear notes without vibrato is great, but trill lets the listener know that you really mean it. It punches up whatever is sung. The closest non-musical thing that I can compare trill to is a basketball dunk.
So, imagine that there are some basketball teams playing. The conflict has gone back and forth all night with both teams scoring points by way of layups and conventional three pointers...really Larry Bird-esque play. Nothing flashy, just fundamentals. But, the game clock is running down and people have to get points and make statements. You are intently observing as Player A, we will call him Michael Jordan or Lebron James or Muggsy Bogues or James Blake, leaps from what feels like mid-court and comes down with a real strong dunk move, running right into Player B and knocking him down with the sheer force of his dunkitude. These are the hot basketball plays that they make posters out of for children to hang in their rooms. The game has been changed. The statement has been made. The dunk has been executed. The other team knows that they are done for. This is the dunk...slam dunk for the layman.
To me, this is what trill is like. It is a move that you make when/if you can and it has the possibility to change the musical composition and make a statement. Sure, it can be silly. But, it can also be beautiful and that is why it is What's Good....Scott...for today.
The title for this blog post was conceived by Marshal Blessing who would just say "all glory to God" if I thanked him for it publicly, so he doesn't really need this, but I feel compelled to credit him.
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
"Black Rock" by O.A.R.
Hello and welcome to What's Good Scott. "I'll tell you hwhat" (Hank Hill voice) things have been getting really ugly lately. When I stare out into the blackness of night I find that my grim outlook is meeting with the bleak prospects of tomorrow...
-sigh-
Have you ever been to Rockville, Maryland? I haven't, but I want to. Besides being the birthplace of Jamshid Amouzegar, the former Prime Minister of Iran and famed film director Spike Jonze, Rockville also has a "friendship relationship" (one step below being a sister city) with Jiaxing in the People's Republic of China. That's a lot of very strange and intriguing things to be wrapped up in a small city with over 60,000 people. I want to go to Black Rock, but it doesn't even have to be physical...I want to go to "Black Rock" in my mind. Let me explain...
O.A.R., or Of A Revolution, is an American rock band that has delighted fans with their "jam rock" style of music for two decades. There is a casual, yet professional vibe that makes them infectious to me. To expound upon this, I can tell you that while their music sounds effortless, there are many components. You can find the same level of musical mastery in the studio as you find on the stage. I'm rarely left unsatisfied by an O.A.R. jam, but "Black Rock" hits the spot like none other.
When you hear the first version of "Black Rock," recorded on 1997's "The Wanderer," it is somewhat lackluster. A little bit fast, a little unspirited, and a whole lot of potential fill out the undertones of what would become my favorite song.
Sometimes there is blood pouring all over Mark Roberge, but no matter what happens in the midst of the song...no matter where it takes him, he brings it back to his desire for love to be an all-encompassing force in our lives. I have great affection for these live recordings and collected them into Spotify and Youtube playlists to share. I think that you will like them as well.
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-eByGml8oVQ7CsZQ3_i9KTDZ4CwutO9f
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/1250455617/playlist/4MZDCvBF9jmDYGyGcQk9sb
-sigh-
Have you ever been to Rockville, Maryland? I haven't, but I want to. Besides being the birthplace of Jamshid Amouzegar, the former Prime Minister of Iran and famed film director Spike Jonze, Rockville also has a "friendship relationship" (one step below being a sister city) with Jiaxing in the People's Republic of China. That's a lot of very strange and intriguing things to be wrapped up in a small city with over 60,000 people. I want to go to Black Rock, but it doesn't even have to be physical...I want to go to "Black Rock" in my mind. Let me explain...
O.A.R., or Of A Revolution, is an American rock band that has delighted fans with their "jam rock" style of music for two decades. There is a casual, yet professional vibe that makes them infectious to me. To expound upon this, I can tell you that while their music sounds effortless, there are many components. You can find the same level of musical mastery in the studio as you find on the stage. I'm rarely left unsatisfied by an O.A.R. jam, but "Black Rock" hits the spot like none other.
When you hear the first version of "Black Rock," recorded on 1997's "The Wanderer," it is somewhat lackluster. A little bit fast, a little unspirited, and a whole lot of potential fill out the undertones of what would become my favorite song.
But then, as jam bands typically do, they started performing it live and it just got better and better. There are multiple live recordings of "Black Rock." They have some things in common, but every live recording has it's own idiosyncrasies and special bits of white guy, reggae magic. Things in common are as follows:
- There is always the Black Rock
- There is always guitars
- Fighting alone is always the worst damn way that you can fight
- There is always an old man (spoiler alert, his name is Old Man Time)
Sometimes there is blood pouring all over Mark Roberge, but no matter what happens in the midst of the song...no matter where it takes him, he brings it back to his desire for love to be an all-encompassing force in our lives. I have great affection for these live recordings and collected them into Spotify and Youtube playlists to share. I think that you will like them as well.
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-eByGml8oVQ7CsZQ3_i9KTDZ4CwutO9f
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/1250455617/playlist/4MZDCvBF9jmDYGyGcQk9sb
---------------------------------
So, bump one of these playlists in your car with your windows down or in your living room while you dance like no one is watching...because "Black Rock" by O.A.R. is What's Good, Scott.
Friday, September 29, 2017
Rockband
2007 was a magical year for a lot of reasons. Apple released the very first Iphone, revolutionizing how smart our phones could be. Jared Zabransky, Ian Johnson and the 2007 Boise State Broncos upset Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl using trick plays (more on this later). And finally, video game developer, Harmonix created a revolution.
Rockband took the idea of "What if we could play Guitar Hero, but with more instruments?" and made it a reality. Rockband came out in 2007 and featured controllers in the guise of drums, guitars and microphones. It was ingenious because to play the guitar, you would push buttons in sequence, whilst holding the controller like a guitar or banging on the drums in a pattern reflected on the screen. This gave the game the ability to conjure feelings in those who played it. If you always wanted to be in a band, this was your shot (to at least feel like it). The track listing was varied and offered a little something for everyone.
Groups of friends flocked to this as a new way to game together and it got a lot of play in all different age groups and on multiple gaming platforms. Harmonix had created a form of in-home karaoke...and people loved it for many different reasons. You could utilize button pushing skills to feel like you were employing music playing skills and the correlation was strong enough to make even the N00biest basement dweller feel like a rock star. It was wonderfully new.
Fast forward to 2016, nearly 10 years later. I am an old man with an Xbox One and play games like Fallout 4 and Metal Gear Solid 5 frequently. I still like to sing, although not as good at it as I used to be and love music and the celebration of it. All of these things led me to wondering whatever happened to Rockband. In moments of internet searching, I realized that a 4th version had just come out and was available! Now, all I had to do was raise tons of money.
I will sometimes get obsessed with things and pursue them with reckless abandon. My mind became filled with and fixated on the idea of how cool it would be to have Rockband. I crunched numbers and no matter what I did, I could not come up with the scratch. No matter how hard I tried to procure it, Rockband ended up being given to me by our dear friend, Preston as a gift. We had 3 plastic instruments, a usb microphone, and a bottle of tequila...it was on.
Rockband became a regular staple in our Saturday night hang outs and it was as good, if not better than ever. My wife shredded the guitar with the precision that she brings to most puzzle games, Preston tossed a couple of shots and rocked the drums sped up on hard mode, and I piled up 100% song completions with the microphone. It was joyous and not because it was a game or the peripheral controllers were cool....it was because it was simple, interactive fun. Whether we won or lost, whether we were sober or trashed, no matter what it was a mirthful experience had by all.
Not only was Rockband fun, but it was an informative activity for me. I could hear new parts of music stick out and tantalize my ears. Solos that I had never paid much attention to suddenly became physical expressions of how interesting and creative music could be. Bands that I had never heard of found new ways to impress me. I was obsessed with .38 Special for God's sakes...
Anyways, if you are looking for a way to unwind with friends or experience music or spend $300+ then Rockband on the current generation systems (Xbox One/PS4) is What's Good, Scott. Thanks for reading and if you did not read the post before this, know that I am grateful to you for sticking with me. Be well and I will see you soon.
Rockband took the idea of "What if we could play Guitar Hero, but with more instruments?" and made it a reality. Rockband came out in 2007 and featured controllers in the guise of drums, guitars and microphones. It was ingenious because to play the guitar, you would push buttons in sequence, whilst holding the controller like a guitar or banging on the drums in a pattern reflected on the screen. This gave the game the ability to conjure feelings in those who played it. If you always wanted to be in a band, this was your shot (to at least feel like it). The track listing was varied and offered a little something for everyone.
Groups of friends flocked to this as a new way to game together and it got a lot of play in all different age groups and on multiple gaming platforms. Harmonix had created a form of in-home karaoke...and people loved it for many different reasons. You could utilize button pushing skills to feel like you were employing music playing skills and the correlation was strong enough to make even the N00biest basement dweller feel like a rock star. It was wonderfully new.
Fast forward to 2016, nearly 10 years later. I am an old man with an Xbox One and play games like Fallout 4 and Metal Gear Solid 5 frequently. I still like to sing, although not as good at it as I used to be and love music and the celebration of it. All of these things led me to wondering whatever happened to Rockband. In moments of internet searching, I realized that a 4th version had just come out and was available! Now, all I had to do was raise tons of money.
I will sometimes get obsessed with things and pursue them with reckless abandon. My mind became filled with and fixated on the idea of how cool it would be to have Rockband. I crunched numbers and no matter what I did, I could not come up with the scratch. No matter how hard I tried to procure it, Rockband ended up being given to me by our dear friend, Preston as a gift. We had 3 plastic instruments, a usb microphone, and a bottle of tequila...it was on.
Rockband became a regular staple in our Saturday night hang outs and it was as good, if not better than ever. My wife shredded the guitar with the precision that she brings to most puzzle games, Preston tossed a couple of shots and rocked the drums sped up on hard mode, and I piled up 100% song completions with the microphone. It was joyous and not because it was a game or the peripheral controllers were cool....it was because it was simple, interactive fun. Whether we won or lost, whether we were sober or trashed, no matter what it was a mirthful experience had by all.
Not only was Rockband fun, but it was an informative activity for me. I could hear new parts of music stick out and tantalize my ears. Solos that I had never paid much attention to suddenly became physical expressions of how interesting and creative music could be. Bands that I had never heard of found new ways to impress me. I was obsessed with .38 Special for God's sakes...
Anyways, if you are looking for a way to unwind with friends or experience music or spend $300+ then Rockband on the current generation systems (Xbox One/PS4) is What's Good, Scott. Thanks for reading and if you did not read the post before this, know that I am grateful to you for sticking with me. Be well and I will see you soon.
Friday, May 19, 2017
HAIM
Music is a medium that can convey many things and even effect emotion and mood. The right song can bring about feelings that you may have never even experienced, yourself. You may have never been left at the altar, but through the artist's creativity, they can evoke the associated emotions and pull them out of you. The right 70's song can even make kids nostalgic for a time period that they have only seen on TV. Music is powerful and the people/groups that make it can be very influential and achieve fame and fortune. Then, there are some groups that just make music because they are compelled to do so. Music, simply pours from these people and they are important, whether they achieve wild success or not, because they are important to their associated fanbases. One such musical group is HAIM. I am a HAIM fan.
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