Words About Music Blog

[eaglesfan34]

Allow Me To Re-Introduce Myself

One artist that I would like to discuss who has had a large cultural impact on society is Jay-Z, also popularly known as Hov. Jay-Z was born Shawn Carter in New York City. Jay-Z turned hip-hop and rap artist into a businessman and media mogul is widely considered one of the most influential people not only in the industry but in society as well. Jay-Z co-founded the record label Roc-A-Fella records when he was just 26 years old and released his first studio album just a year later. He is also the former CEO of Def Jam Records who has represented artists like Kanye West (another influential individual, but we will save that for another day), Rihanna (another influence), and J.Cole who is probably in my top five artists. 

Jay-Z’s success as a businessman should not go unnoticed either. In 1999, he founded the clothing line Rocawear. In 2003, he also founded a luxury sports bar chain called 40/40 Club. Both of these businesses turned out to be multi-million dollar corporations. This allowed Jay-Z to start an entertainment business. I’m sure you are all familiar with Roc Nation. After Jay-Z started Roc-Nation, he acquired the tech company Aspiro in which he took charge of their media streaming service, Tidal. Just last year, Jay-Z also launched a business called Monogram which is his line of cannabis products. 

Jay-Z has achieved pretty significant success over the years and has brought him a lot of media attention which has given Jay-Z a platform. It has given Jay-Z a big enough platform to get involved in the community philanthropically and politically. Jay-Z has the Shawn Carter Foundation in which he founded with his mother. The mission of Jay-Z’s foundation is to help individuals facing socio-economic hardships further their education. Jay-Z uses his music as well to voice his concerns. In his song “Minority Report,” Jay-Z addresses the government response in regards to the disaster in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Let’s just say, the government’s response was inefficient and inadequate. A paragraph I pulled from an article in regards to the government’s response details the response. “The federal government did not have adequate information concerning the true devastation that the hurricane had caused (White House).  Despite the quantity of government workers in the area, the effects of the hurricane continued to wreak havoc on the city with people still stranded in New Orleans and looters robbing stores left and right.  Firefighters from around the country were called to the region to help with the federal government’s response.  Many of these firefighters were not able to put their skills to use in rescue operations, but instead had to spend time handing out flyers for FEMA to residents of New Orleans (USC Annenberg 2005).  The organizations in charge of search and rescue, the Urban Search and Rescue and the Civil Search and Rescue, did not coordinate their efforts and lacked a strategy for their mission.” (http://web.mit.edu/12.000/www/m2010/finalwebsite/katrina/government/government-response.html) 

Buses are on the way to take those people from New Orleans to Houston

They lyin'

People are dying at the convention center

Their government has failed them

George Bush doesn't care about black people

These were the last lines of Minority Report. Clearly calling out The White House. 

https://youtu.be/fqpyYqU2BiQ

Jay-Z was also heavily involved in politics. In 2008, he was actively trying to increase voter participation and actually helped send voters to polling stations. Jay-Z was an active supporter of Obama and even performed for free in voter-drive concerts. Jay-Z also endorsed Obama in support of same-sex marriage. Obama spoke highly of Jay-Z by saying “Every time I talk to Jay-Z, who is a brilliant talent and a good guy, I enjoy how he thinks. That's somebody who is going to start branching out and can help shape attitudes in a real positive way.” (https://archive.ph/20130202033150/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/13511/73040#selection-853.339-853.344) 

Recently, Jay-Z and Meek Mill launched a criminal justice reform program. Their mission is to “Speak for all people who don’t have a voice.” Meek Mill was actually in prison for violating his probation for a number of months. This sparked a conversation. Meek is signed to Hov’s label so they decided when Meek got out to do something about prison reform. They wanted to change outdated laws and give people hope for a change.

With that being said, three things are certain. Death, taxes, and haters. Not everyone is a fan of Jay-Z. Harry Belafonte, an artist, and civil rights activist have been critical of Hov for his “safe political stance,” and said that they have “turned their back on social responsibility” in an interview with Hollywood Reporter. Dr. Boyce Watkins, a finance professor at Syracuse University also voiced his displeasure with Mr. Jay-Z by saying “Jay-Z's only giving $6,000 to charity after making $63 million in 2012,” and “Likely would never have come out in support of gay marriage had President Obama not first taken the initiative.” (https://web.archive.org/web/20100610072712/http://myweb.whitman.syr.edu/bowatkin/) 

However, in my humble opinion, there is no need to criticize Jay-Z. I think these shots taken at Jay-Z are just an opportunity for his haters to try and snag his spotlight. Jay-Z is trying to do more for communities than the people (the government) who are actually supposed to help communities. From the Katrina response to prison reform, Jay-Z is always looking for ways to use his platform and help. This is why Jay-Z is so well-loved in the industry and this is just one of the many reasons why Jay-Z was so influential and a cultural leader.

[eaglesfan34]

LEGENDS NEVER DIE

An artist that I would like to highlight and discuss is Juice Wrld. Juice Wrld was one and still is one of my favorite artists and an artist that I still listen to. One of the main reasons why I like Juice Wrld so much is because he’s not your typical rapper. He’s got a unique voice and style. His music just stood out to me for whatever reason as compared to other hip hop and rap artists. Another reason why I like Juice Wrld so much is that he was the first artist who I discovered before he blew up and made it mainstream. I heard a snippet of one of his own songs on Instagram I think and I looked in the comments to see if I can learn anything about who the artist was. Next thing you know, I’m listening to his music on his Soundcloud profile. 

Juice Wrld was born Jarad Anthony Higgins in Chicago, Illinois. He attended Homewood-Flossmoor High School from which he graduated in 2017. Which also stood out to me. Juice Wrld was an artist who was taking over the world (pun intended) who was only a year older than me. Realizing that a kid who is about my age with that much fame and success was mind-blowing and it really gives you a whole new perspective. Juice Wrld’s parents divorced when he was just three years old, forcing his mother to raise him and his older brother as a single mother. Juice Wrld’s mother was also very religious and conservative, so Juice was not allowed to listen to hip-hop and rap growing up. Juice Wrld was then introduced to rock and punk, listening to artists such as Billy Idol, Blink-182, Black Sabbath, Fall Out Boy, Megadeath, and Panic! at the Disco. He discovered these artists through video game playlists in the games Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and Guitar Hero. 

What made Juice Wrld so relatable was his public battle with mental health. No one likes to admit it, but we all battle our own demons to an extent. Everyone has something that they are dealing with in their respective lives. Juice Wrld has three total albums out at the moment with one being posthumous. It was also just announced his second posthumous album “Fighting Demons” will be released on December 10th. His first album Goodbye & Good Riddance is a classic. This album also put Juice Wrld on the map. Two of the most famous songs on this album and probably Juice Wrld’s two most famous songs are Lucid Dreams and All Girls Are The Same surpassing over one billion streams on Spotify. Juice Wrld’s second album Death Race For Love is my personal favorite. This album includes songs Empty, Hear Me Calling, and Robbery. These are the most famous songs off of this album. However, this album has my favorite song by Juice Wrld. That song is called Fast. In this song, Juice discusses how his life took off after fame and how fast the world is moving around him. That stood out to me. It made me realize how fast life actually is. It taught me to live each day, one day at a time, and to live in the moment. To appreciate all of the little things. No matter if they were good or bad. Every day is a new lesson. 

https://youtu.be/_bgjyNeN-Vo (Playlist to Goodbye & Good Riddance)

https://youtu.be/lzQpS1rH3zI (Fast)

I was fortunate enough to attend Juice Wrld’s Death Race For Love tour at the Mann Center in West Philly back in May of 2019. I went with a friend from high school. It was such a great experience. One thing I particularly enjoyed about the show was that they used actual instruments. Yeah, I know that sounds idiotic to say if you are at a concert. However, specifically in hip hop and rap concerts, the artist just plays their recorded track on the speakers while he’s partially singing over it on the microphone. Juice Wrld’s inspiration in music came from mostly rock and punk, so I’d be willing to bet that he wanted to give that same type of vibe to his fans at his concerts. 

Unfortunately, that would be the last time I would ever get the chance to see Juice Wrld live. About a little over six months later from that concert, Juice Wrld passed away from a drug overdose in December of 2019 at Chicago Midway Airport. Rumors started swirling of what exactly happened when he died. It was rumored that on the private jet Juice Wrld and his crew were on, that they had guns, pills, and over seventy pounds of weed on the plane. Which is a felony. The pilot had then notified authorities of what was going on and where they were headed. The rumor that had since been debunked is that Juice Wrld swallowed all the pills in an effort to not get caught. Juice Wrld’s photographer, Chris Long, debunked it by saying “J did not swallow a bunch of pills because the police were at the airport. We gave no f*cks about them being there. He could have flushed them down the toilet if he cared.” He also went on to say “J was just hooked bad. The amount he took daily was absurd and he hid how much he really took from mostly everyone. Everyone around him tried really hard to get him to slow down. When he agreed to rehab it was because he wanted to lower his tolerance. He didn’t want to stop.” You can hear the pain in Juice Wrld’s music with his battle against addiction. He couldn’t control it and that was the worst part. 

https://hypebeast.com/2021/5/juice-wrld-photographer-talks-his-final-moments (source)

Juice’s latest album, Legends Never Die is his first posthumous album. Some notable songs on this album include Righteous and Wishing Well. Two beautiful songs. Wishing Well is another favorite of mine. Another song that discusses drug and substance abuse. It has been said that Juice Wrld has over two thousand unreleased songs. That’s how good and efficient Juice Wrld was at making music. In my opinion, Juice Wrld is the best freestyler. He can make a hit over a beat right off the dome. He didn’t even need to write it down. He actually recorded Death Race For Love in a matter of four days by freestyling the whole thing. His talent was unmatched and it is a shame to see an artist die at such a young age with a lot of promise. Be sure to catch his new single Already Dead which is actually out right now, or by the time this blog post is due. Also be on the lookout for his second posthumous album Fighting Demons on December 10th. Long Live Juice Wrld. Legends Never Die. 

https://youtu.be/fSoT13msPe4 (here is Juice Wrld freestyling for nearly an hour straight) 

[eaglesfan34]

Artist Interview

What’s up, guys. The artist I will be interviewing is a friend of mine. I met him my very first semester here at Rutgers playing on the club basketball team. So, without further ado here’s the interview

CR: So Simon, first off, tell me a little bit about yourself. Where are you from? What hobbies do you have? What’s going on in your life currently. 

SY: I’m from Livingston, NJ. Aside from listening and making music, my hobbies include playing basketball and soccer. I’m also currently studying for the MCAT exam to be a doctor. 

CR: Great! So, what made you decide to start making music?

SY: I started making music as a way to express myself and my emotions. I also looked up to Lil Wayne when I was younger. I wanted to be just like him. 

CR: What other influences did you have growing up? Can you name some inside of music and outside of music?

SY: In music, of course, you have Lil Wayne. I also looked up to Drake, Russ, and Chris Brown. Outside of music, I’d have to say Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, and my mom for sure. 

CR: So you’re song “Bad4Me” gives me hip-hop/rap vibes with a mix of R&B. Is this a genre of music that you want to stick with? Or are you planning on experimenting with different styles of music?

SY: I do want to try and tap into a few different genres. I am mainly going to stick with hip-hop and R&B. However, I do want to try some drill and pop styles of music. 

CR: Can you tell me about the process of creating music? Like, how you got the beat, did you write the lyrics, did you freestyle, etc. 

SY: So I have a friend who sends me beats. But, I also find beats off of YouTube and I’d have him edit parts of the beat. I would find a beat first and just vibe to it. Maybe freestyle to it a bit to try and come up with a catchy hook. After that, I’ll freestyle a verse and write down what I like. Lastly, I’ll just finish the verse by freestyling and writing what I like.

CR: What about the studio? How does that work? What’s it like booking a studio?

SY: Booking a studio is actually easy for me. I know an engineer personally who owns a studio so I usually just text him to ask when he has free time during the week and we just go from there. It’s usually $50 an hour for the session. 

CR: That’s dope! So in your music, is there a certain message that you want to convey to your fans? I know “Bad4Me” is kind of like a love song. Do you plan on making different styles of music with that said? 

SY: All of my music definitely will convey a message. From love songs to party songs to heartbreak songs. I want to try to tap into a bit of everything. 

CR: Lastly, is this something that you plan to pursue full time eventually? 

SY: As I said before, I’m studying for the MCAT to become a doctor. But, if my music starts to gain some traction, I would definitely like to do it full time. 

CR: Great! That concludes this interview. Thank you so much for this interview, I appreciate your time. 

SY: Yes sir man, I got you. 

***Below is Simon’s track “Bad4Me” if you’d like to give it a listen***

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTQ66Bc4a40

[eaglesfan34]

The High School Scene

BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey has been a staple in the country music scene since I was in high school and even long before that. Some of the bands that I have seen there have been Florida Georgia Line, Zach Brown Band, Keith Urban, Luke Bryan, etc. I may be missing some but I don’t remember off the top of my head. Sure, BB&T isn’t only country shows. I’ve seen Kings of Leon, Wiz Khalifa, and more artists there too. However, in high school country music at BB&T was all we knew. I was never the biggest country fan growing up. To be honest, it sucked for me. My neighbor who is one of my best friends loves country though. Just from being around him for the last 17 years or so, some of it starts to grow on you. I first got into Florida Georgia Line. Probably because they are not real country. I’d describe it as pop-country. Any who, I was 17 I think when I attended my first show there. 

The country music scene at BB&T is nuts. It usually went like this. First, I want to add a disclaimer: we all probably underage drank as teens so, to no one’s surprise, we would pregame at someone’s house before we went to the venue. Typically, we would leave (WITH A DD) for the venue around 3 pm for a 7 pm show. Mind you, the venue is only about 25-30 minutes away from my hometown. So we would get there around 3:30 pm with a YETI cooler full of alcohol. Camden is not the nicest of towns either, and with a show with thousands of people going, the police presence was ginormous. So another challenge we dumb high schoolers faced was avoiding getting an underage drinking citation. Sometimes, we’d succeed. Other times, we’d fail. Another disclaimer: I never failed. Never got a ticket. After about 3 and a half hours of drinking in a parking lot amongst my peers, it was time to enter the concert. 

Now if you were lucky or had a good fake I.D., you were able to continue drinking. However, if caught underage inside, you were to be put in the “drunk tank” (still to this day have no idea what it looks like, I swear). Quick funny story, my friend got put inside of it and when no one was looking he hopped the fence and ran back into the crowd to find us. And with thousands of people, it’s almost impossible to find him again. The adrenaline rush we got when he came back was insane. Anyway, the show still goes on and we would have a lot of great nights. The concert would usually end between 10:30 and 11 and we’d cram in my friends’ mom’s minivan for the ride back. Every single time we rode home too, it was our ritual to grab Wawa along with many other concertgoers. Then, we’d go home not trying to act like complete idiots in front of our parents. Ah, good times. 

There was a small percentage of people I knew who actually liked country. Looking back, I’m sure the majority of my classmates didn’t go to the country concerts for the music and genre. They went for the ‘scene,’ and boy, what a fun scene it was while it lasted. With that being said, I promised myself I’d never go to BB&T again unless it was someone I really enjoyed because now, we look back on BB&T as a “high school scene.” 

[eaglesfan34]

How it Sounds

The song I’d like to discuss for this week’s blog is Kilby Girl by The Backseat Lovers. The Backseat Lovers are an indie rock band from Utah. They consist of four members. Joshua Harmon is the lead vocalist with some guitar. Jonas Swanson is the lead guitarist with some vocals. KJ Ward is on the bass guitar. Lastly, Juice Welch is the lead drummer and provides some background vocals. The band started when Josh and Juice met, with Josh asking Juice if they wanted to start a band. Later, Josh met Jonas at an open mic. At the open mic, Josh and Jonas ended up never performing. Instead, they performed to each other. And that is how The Backseat Lovers were born. 

For the first 2 and a half minutes of this song you have your typical song. Lyrics, guitar, drums, etc. The lyrics are actually pretty cool in regards to what they mean. It refers to their home state of Utah of Kilby boys and girls. Being known as a ‘kilby’ is basically Utah’s version of being a hippie. People who are super into the alternative, rock, punk, indie style of music. Kilby also refers to “Kilby Court, the iconic Utah venue located in outer Salt Lake City. The venue is owned by the local music entrepreneurs of S&S Presents and has quite the personality of its own.” I think it’s really neat how this band honored their community in this way. The venue is not the most aesthetically pleasing venue. But, to the locals, it’s a “safe-haven of expression, subculture and backgrounds that don’t always fit within Utah’s majority.” 

After those first 2 and a half minutes, the song then continues with straight instrumental. Just a band having a jam sesh. There is a really cool guitar solo in the middle of the jam session too. You can hear the drums as well in the background of the guitar. Then, when it starts to die down you can hear a cool harmonica riff as well. It is not the easiest thing in the world to describe how songs sound. You really need to hear it to understand what I’m saying. You can click to listen below. 

https://usustatesman.com/the-kilby-girl-utahs-local-music-persona/

[eaglesfan34]

Link to Podcast!!!!

https://soundcloud.com/user-970158137/words-about-music-podcast/s-JOYSBxoQjeQ?si=e67ace35859341bc96fe79789bd395e7

[eaglesfan34]

A Playlist to Prepare you for WW3

The playlist I will be discussing is the playlist I listen to when I go to the gym. For the sake of this blog post, I will only be discussing some of my favorites since the playlist is way longer than 5-10 songs as I’ve probably had it since I was in middle school and I’m now a senior in college. Even from middle school to now, all those songs still hit the same. Still, it gives me the same amount of energy from the first time I heard it. Pretty much all of this playlist consists of hip-hop and rap songs. This collection of songs go together because they are all designed to hype me up and give me the burst of energy I need when I go to the gym.

1.) Intro - Meek Mill (Championships album)

In this song, Meek uses a sample of “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins with his own spin to it as well. Meek then starts rapping over the beat. This resonates with me as well because Meek is from Philadelphia which is pretty close to where I’m from. I’m from South Jersey, meaning I’m a huge fan of Philadelphia sports. In fact, Carlos Ruiz a former catch of the Philadelphia Phillies used “In the Air Tonight” as his walkup song during his time with the Phillies, which makes it connect with me more. I took it as Meek paying homage to Ruiz and the rest of Philadelphia when he made this song. 

2.) 0 To 100 / The Catch Up - Drake

This song literally opens up with “Fuck being on some chill shit, we go 0 To 100 real quick.” How does that line not want to make you go through a brick wall. It’s just a “typical braggadocio rap song,” (genius.com) however, it still gives me that energy I need if I’m not feeling it that day. In this song, Drake puts two songs together to make it one song. The second part of it, “The Catch Up,” is more slow. The beat changes and Drake lowers his tone to an extent. To be honest, I always skip this part. It’s just not what I want to listen to in the gym. 

3.) Stupid Again - Tory Lanez

I know I might catch some heat for this, considering the amount of controversy surrounding Tory Lanez. However, this song is a banger. This intro also has you wanting to run through a brick wall. It opens up with Conor McGregor’s post fight interview, right after he beat Eddie Alvaraz at UFC 205, in Madison Square Garden. The exact quote is “I just wanna say from the bottom of me heart / I'd like to take this chance to apologize to absolutely nobody / The double champ does what the fuck he wants!!!!!!!” Then it goes “Bout to go stupid again!” This song makes me feel like I can accomplish anything. The quote from McGregor comes right after he won against Alvarez to become the first fighter ever in the UFC to hold championships simultaneously in two different weigh divisions. Proving once again that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. 

4.) DrIP DrIp Drip - Tory Lanez

I know, I know, I’m sorry. I’m a huge fan of Tory Lanez’ music and I can’t help it. Although this song isn’t much of a hype song that has you wanting to run through a brick wall, it always makes me feel great for the day. The term “Drip” refers to the swagger you have, in the way you look and dress. It gives you that sense of confidence you need not just in the gym, but in your lifestyle as well. I also resonate heavily with Meek Mill’s verse. One of Meek’s lines is “I left prison in a chopper, they like, how?!” This refers to Meek Mill’s cinematic release from prison in 2018. The Eagles had just won the Super Bowl that February (keep in mind, I’m a huge Eagles fan as you can tell from my username). The 76ers had just made the playoffs for the first time since 2012. Meek Mill was in prison for violating his probation around the time everyone was calling for prison reform. During the Sixers playoff run, it was announced that Meek Mill would be released from prison. Before Game 5 of the Sixers-Heat playoff game, Michael Rubin (one of the owners of the sixers) went to go pick up Meek from prison in a helicopter and took him straight to the game to ring the bell (a sixers pregame ritual). Rubin knew this would fire up the crowd as Meek is from Philly and resonated with the ruckus Philly crowd. 

You can watch the Meek Mill video here

5.) No Friends In The Industry - Drake

Drake is one of the best to ever do it. He actually disses the beatles on a feature in one of Meek Mill’s songs by saying “I got more slaps than The Beatles.” Referring to beating The Beatles record of 11 songs on the Billboard Top 100. Drake beat that with 12. On No Friends In The Industry, Drake makes it known that he keeps his circle tight and disregards anyone that is competition. Often times, that’s how I feel in the gym, just locked in. I go with usually two of my friends and we’re just focusing on getting better ourselves. Not competing against anyone but ourselves. That is what Drake is referring to here. Focusing on himself and not viewing anyone else as competition.

[eaglesfan34]

Made in America

A recent live show that I attended was the Made in America music festival that took place in Philadelphia over Labor Day weekend. There were a bunch of performers that were really dope to see. Some of my favorites were A$AP Ferg, Lil Durk, Bobby Shmurda, Baby Keem (unfortunately this was before his album dropped, which in my opinion is a top contender for album of the year), Lil Baby (might be my favorite rap artist at the moment), Young Thug, Roddy Ricch, and Justin Bieber. There were many more artists as well, however, there just wasn’t enough time to see them because some artists play at the same time. There are three stages that are set up so there could be other artists performing at the same time. I had to pick and choose which artists I wanted to see. This was my first festival that I’ve ever attended. I didn’t really know what to expect. 

(Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation / Getty)

I went to this festival with a housemate of mine and we stayed at my cousin’s place (who goes to Temple) in North Philly. The festival took place on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway which is right by the art museum. The main stage was at the art museum and the two other stages were set up in the streets. If there’s one word to describe the entirety of the festival it would be the same word Zach Schonfeld used to describe Spiritualized at Webster Hall… “deafening.” (52) Schonfeld says there were only about 2,500 fans at that show. At Made in America there were tens of thousands of fans there. It was packed. It was all general admission so we had to push and shove for our spots. One of the things I liked the most about the festival and any sort of live music event no matter how big or small is how the artists get the crowds involved. They encourage the fans to sing along as they raise their microphone and point it out towards the crowd. It feels like there’s a sense of togetherness and you feel like world peace has been achieved in that moment of time because everyone is singing along and dancing together, just having a great time. A couple beers and other factors (which may or may not be appropriate to include) definitely contributed to the good time as well. Another thing that makes a show is the pyro and lighting. There were smoke machines, there was fire, there were lasers, and to top it off there were fireworks. Things like that make concerts and festivals so much better because you’re not just listening to live music. You are watching a performance and it gets the crowd involved. In my opinion, getting a crowd involved in the show is the best way to have a successful performance. 

(Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation / Getty)

The artists themselves played their hits. A$AP Ferg played his classics, like Shabba, New Level, Plain Jane, and Work. Everyone was moshing during these songs, in a safe way. I didn’t notice anyone getting hurt during the festival. Bobby Shmurda was really cool to see because there was a lot of hype surrounding his performance. He recently just got released from prison so everyone was going nuts when he came onto the stage. Aside from the headliners (Lil Baby and Justin Bieber), Young Thug and Roddy Ricch were my favorite performances. They really had the crowd rockin’. Lil Baby was really cool to see, he’s probably the rapper I listen to the most. Lastly, the best for last, Justin Bieber put on a hell of a show. I’d never thought I’d say this but he was my favorite performance of the night. On top of his phenomenal voice, the choreography was unreal, there were lasers, there were fireworks, it was insane. I saw girls crying after the performance was over. There was a nice surprise during the festival as well as Meek Mill and Lil Uzi, two Philly natives, came out to perform a couple songs which got the crowd hype. It was all in all a great weekend. The only two downsides to the weekend were my friend losing his phone during the first day, so we had to go get him a new one the morning of day two. The other downside was being on your feet for 8+ hours. It was a ton of fun but it was exhausting to say the least. 

(truehollywoodtalk.com)  

[eaglesfan34]

The Lumineers....by The Lumineers

The Lumineers are an alternative to folk-rock band that formed in Denver, Colorado. The Lumineers are made up of two people. Wesley Schultz, who is the vocalist and the guitarist. The other member is Jeremiah Fraites who plays the drums and the piano. The band actually started writing and performing in Ramsey, New Jersey. Neyla Pekarek was another vocalist and cellist that joined the band in 2010, however, she has since left the band in 2018. 

When I was in high school, I felt obligated to listen to hip-hop and rap a lot. I still listen to hip-hop and rap often, but not as often as I used to. In high school every Friday the topic of discussion amongst my friends would be about sports, new music that dropped, what we’re doing that weekend, etc. Typical points of discussion that high school kids talk about. When we would talk about new music that dropped, it was always about hip-hop and rap albums. That’s just the era we’re in. I’m not complaining about it, because I still listen to it too. I just felt like no one would talk about or listen to other genres of music in high school. As a senior in college now, especially at a giant school like Rutgers, everyone is unique in their own way and everyone listens to different types of music. Coming to Rutgers, joining a fraternity, and living with housemates from different places, opened my eyes to different types of music. Such as alternative music and bands like The Lumineers, Kings of Leon, Vance Joy, Hozier, etc. 

After our discussion about folk-pop music last week, I was inspired to do my album review on The Lumineers. On Apple Music, the album “The Lumineers” by, ironically, The Lumineers is categorized as an alternative album. I heavily got into alternative music over the past six months. The reason why I got into it and like it so much now is that alternative music can make you feel all different types of emotions. 

With “The Lumineers,” listening to that album again made me feel some type of way. I felt all sorts of different feelings listening to it. There were certain ways in which the guitar was rifted that made me feel happy and excited and wanted to sing it at the top of my lungs. Songs like “Ho Hey” and “Stubborn Love” made me feel that way. There were also certain songs that made me feel like I was in my bag. Songs like “Dead Sea” and “Flowers In Your Hair” would put me in sort of a “downer” mood. Hannah Spencer of Contact Music described the song “Dead Sea” as “a flavor of what Kings of Leon may sound like if they went acoustic.” They all are those types of songs that you can sing along to. I understand that the folk-rock scene seems watered down and unoriginal because of the number of writers, science, and engineering that goes into these songs. A user on Sputnik Music says he felt it was “too manufactured, too...artificial.” Which is understandable. A lot of folk-rock songs have similar styles to each other. However, for me, a good album is one that either gets me to sing along, play the air guitar along, or just gets my head bopping. That’s what The Lumineers did for me with their debut album.

Sources:

https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/49046/The-Lumineers-The-Lumineers/

https://www.contactmusic.com/the-lumineers/music/the-lumineers-the-lumineers

[eaglesfan34]

Concert on Fire

Kings of Leon is an American rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They formed in 1999. The band is made up of three brothers, Jared, Caleb, and Nathan Followill. Along with their cousin, Matthew. Kings of Leon has since developed a more alternative sound in the past decade. 

I recently attended one of their shows on their “When You See Yourself” tour at BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey. It was one of my favorite concerts I have ever been to. I only recently started to listen to them obsessively. Typically when I listen to music or different artists, I will obsessively listen to their music for a certain amount of time. Then, once I discover or re-discover something I like, I will obsessively listen to them for a certain amount of time and then the cycle continues. On a July day over this past summer I was working for my virtual internship. Of course, I had some music playing while I was working. The older generation might say that music doesn’t help you concentrate. I beg to differ, music helps me concentrate and keep my spirits up while I’m bored at work. Nonetheless, the song “Sex on Fire” by Kings of Leon came up while I was working. I was bumping it. Nodding my head to it, singing to it, playing air guitar, just jamming. The song is a classic. I thought to myself, “I need to see this song live.” I often think that to myself when I hear a good song. Live music is just substantially better than the studio version. Anyhow, after I heard Sex on Fire I started to take a deep dive into more of their music and started to listen to them more and more while I was working. I then thought to myself if or when they are going to go on tour. I googled it and luckily, they were going on tour in August! I asked a couple friends if they’d like to join me and they ended up tagging along. We shared a few beers at the concert and had a great time! 

The only complaint I have was how it sounded through the speakers throughout the venue. Historically, in my hometown (I live about 20 minutes away from Camden) it is known that BB&T’s sound system is not the best. Also, some say the Kings of Leon concert was a little ‘gray’ as compared to their concerts in the past. There new album “When You See Yourself” was a little bit different. It was a completely different vibe from their hit album, “Only By the Night.” In an article written by Michael Chaiken he describes it as “not putting the emphasis on hooks and riffs.” Chaiken describes “When You See Yourself” as a “groovy” and “moody” album. According to Chaiken, it was clear that Kings of Leon wanted to try a more melodic style rather than their rock ‘n’ roll hit style that most of their fans grew up on and became attracted to. Kings of Leon still played their classics like Sex on Fire, Use Somebody, Supersoaker, Fans, etc. however, it was not as “lit” per se to some. 

Personally, I loved the concert because I enjoyed their recent moody and groovy style album. When their hits came on, I had the “my body left my soul” sensation. That rush that you get when you hear a song you really enjoy live is like no other. It’s one of the greatest feelings in the world. You truly feel free in that moment.