g.e.m @theglasseyemerchant - Tumblr Blog

Week 5

This week I listened to Viet Cong’s self titled EP and Protest the Hero’s Fortress. I don’t have a lot to say about the themes of Viet Cong’s album, because the lyrics are hardly ever at the forefront of the songs. As for Fortress, there’s way too much shit going on to even comprehend what’s going on.

Viet Cong: When I first listened to the album, I immediately texted my friend who recommended it and said “Did Tame Impala, Pink Floyd, and Daughters just fuck”. This album is a total crazy psychedelic trip that got fucked up along the way by some crazed sleeze metal band. The music is a great combination of things, but fell a little short with me. The music is quite good, but the album is pretty short, and I didn’t really walk away with any thoughts. I found the lyrics were either not important, or not very audible. However, i dug the music, and I found it almost reminded me of The Man Who Sold the World. Something that was quite poppy and trippy, but also had some metal elements to it. I have never listened to anything like it, so i definitely enjoyed the album. The other night I enjoyed a Belgian styled Pale Ale. The taste was nice, sweet and smooth like a classic belgian white beer, but had the roughness of an IPA. That’s how I would describe this album. Protest the Hero’s Fortress: I had a conversation with a friend over a month ago and we fought over which album of Protest’s was their best, and he stood beside Fortress. I finally understand why he preferred it over Kezia. Fortress was definitely the peak for PTH. They matured into their sci-fi guitar hooks which can be heard in their newer albums, but they also hit their lyrical peak with this album. The lyrics run deep with mythology and old tales, that fuse perfectly into this theatrical, slaying, metal album. The album opens up with Bloodmeat, which is a tale of brutal slayings, which I believe was a metaphor for their mentality on stage. “Tomorrow they will find us, hide the children free of sin We will meet their blades by morning protected only by our skin Tomorrow we will find them, seek the youngest of their kin We will meet them with our fury, We will crush them all like vermin” To me this reminds me of Protest waiting to get on stage, and watching kids fucking kill each other to their slaying metal. This album runs really deep, which is 100% credited to their old bassist/lyricist Arif. After Fortress, Arif stepped aside from writting the lyrics, and eventually left the band. Since fortress, non of the albums can musically, or lyrically compare to fortress.

Favorite Lines:

VC: “What does deep midnight’s voice contend Deeper than day can comprehend” PTH’s Fortress: “Stuffing corpses full of shit and faith, They bloviate about a future beyond the moon. To bring about another planet's doom To discover peaceful life and beat our war-drum to its tune Unless my prayers are answered Our end is coming soon”

Favorite Tracks

Viet Cong: “Death” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFIxAzf2B1M

Fortress: “The Dissentience” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfgvsHn7Odw

#albumoftheweek #music #writing #vietcong #protestthehero

Week 4

On week 4 I listened to two very big albums. I listened to Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly, and Sun Kil Moon’s Benji. I’ve put off writing this week’s review for over two weeks due to how large they are. K.L’s: To Pimp a Butterfly is such a huge album I had to listen to it in chunks before I could listen to the whole thing at once. I’d listen to the first few songs, and then later I’d listen to the first few songs, and eventually i got into the middle songs. I’d say this one album could have been 3 albums. To me, this is what Pink Floyd’s Wall should have been. This is one of the greatest concept albums I’ve ever listened to, and i think it’s close to the top for best albums of this millenium. The album has some of the common themes that other rap albums have, but also goes past rap. Kendirck & his band fuse jazz, funk, rock, spoken word, and at times I can even taste some metal (the end breakdown of king kunta etc). To me I felt this album was very important because it brought everyone together. It crushed a lot of barriers, and I found was accepting to any race / culture. I’ve jammed this album with little white girls at suburban house parties, or jammed it with my brothers in Toronto. What I really love about this album, and what makes it different, is that Kendrick bashes other rappers in one of the first songs (King Kunta) BUT he backs up why he is so fucking great for the rest of the album without having to say it, or bash other people. I enjoy this because most rappers spit lines about how great they are, but have no lyrics, or anything compelling, to back them up. The ending especially is what makes the album so great. Through out the album we hear snippets of a spoken word piece, which grows in length every few songs. By the end, you hear the whole piece, and then you get to hear Kendrick have an interview with 2PAC. Nearing the end of the piece, a jazz band creeps in, and takes you away.

Sun Kil Moon’s: Benji throws you on a crazy train of consciousness path of stories and truths that throw you in a trance and almost make you believe this is you speaking about your own life. There something strangely familiar listening to this, i almost felt like i wrote and recorded this, and then sent it to a younger version of myself. A lot of this album discusses what it’s like to be middle aged and still be in the music industry for over 2 decades. He sings about loving his mom & dad, tales of his family tree, not being able to fuck for too long, people that lived on his street, and catching up with old musician friends backstage at their shows (Ben Gibbard). I’d never really listened to something that really embraced being middle aged, and brutally told the truth.

Favorite Lines:

TPAB: I couldn’t choose 1 line, so I took nearly a whole verse from King Kunta. “This shit is elementary, I'll probably go to jail If I shoot at your identity and bounce to the left Stuck a flag in my city, everybody's screamin' "Compton!" I should probably run for Mayor when I'm done, to be honest And I put that on my Mama and my baby boo too Twenty million walkin' out the court buildin', woo woo! Ah yeah, fuck the judge, I made it past 25 and there I was A little nappy-headed nigga with the world behind him Life ain't shit but a fat vagina” I chose these lines because it backs up what I was talking about with Kendrick not needing to bash other rappers all the time, along with throwing in some cool outlooks on life in a ... ghetto sort of sense. “Life ain’t shit but a fat vagina” seems vaguely crude and not a line that I’d walk away with, but I am starting to think about it all the time. Benji: Like TPAB I had to pick a verse. I called him after, said I'll skip the backstage hi/bye But thanks for the nice music and all the exercise And we laughed and it was alright And we laughed and it was alright And it was alright There's a fine line between a middle-aged guy with a backstage pass And a guy with a gut hanging around like a jackass Everybody there was twenty years younger than me I'll leave with this, not my fondest memory This verse really sums up the feeling of being a middle aged musician, and showcases the honest truth that Sun Kil Moon conjures in his songs. I can really admire his attitude, and wish I could be as humble as him.

Top Songs: TPAB: i https://youtu.be/JnNzq5Nl-dE?list=PLIen3IPVo_U30dpwJd2RDrPxYVXTplcq7 I chose this song because it has a lot of the themes of the album, is great to dance to, and also showcases the spoken word element at the end.

Benji: Ben’s My Friend https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMuo7GFXa0kn I chose this song because it’s a nice mix of serious and fun. It also shows you to not take things super seriously. The way he sings sports bar shit, or blue crab cakes, made me think of getting over the mundane, and how ridiculous some elements of our lives are.

#albumoftheweek #kendirck lamar #tpab #to pimp a butterfly #music #writting #benji #sunkilmoon

Week 3

This week I listened to Michael Kiwanaku’s album Home Again, and LCD Sound System’s sound of silver.

Michael’s album is a great, crisp and clean, record. Everything is very tidy and well thought out. I usually go for sloppier musicians like Neil Young, but I found comfort in this record. It reminded me an awful lot of my friend Brad, which strangely enough, so did LCD’s album. LCD’s album sound of silver is a very nostalgic album for me since my friends usually play it when we are together. My favourite track from Home Again would have to be I Wont Lie, I love how the orchestra builds every other line, and then stops. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t2KhjyKEus From LCD my favourite song would be Someone Great. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfdVzrUlP7w

Week Two

For this weeks new album I listened to David Bowie’s The Man Who Sold the World. The familiar album I chose was Mac Demarco’s 2.

During the Christmas break I had a brief intro of listening to Bowie’s MWSW and it reminded me slightly of Diamond Dogs, my favourite Bowie album. So I decided to throw it on the list of albums I should listen to this year. Out of random I chose the album for week two. Four days into listening to the album David Bowie passed away. My perspective on the album completely changed, and made this weeks write up a tad more difficult.

The Man Who Sold the World is a stupendous album that crosses genres and tells interesting stories. The album ranges from sounding like a doom metal album, to sounding like a musical, and then swings back to the classic Bowie fun-pop-glam sound. There was definitely a story to the album but I didn’t pay too close attention to all the lyrics.

Mac Demarco’s 2 is a powerhouse album, containing a large amount of Demarco’s known “classics”. The album shares Mac’s outlook on life, taking it easy, falling in love, smoking cigarettes, having fun, and maintaining a relationship.

Favorurite Tracks

The Man Who Sold the World: When I was first listening to the album, I would have said Width of a Circle. However, after Bowies death, the Man Who Sold the World became a very emotional track for me to listen to. I feel like this song really sums up the spirit of Bowie. The Width of a Circle: http://youtu.be/s2L4hL2IvUk The Man Who Sold the World: http://youtu.be/HSH--SJKVQQ

Mac Demarco’s 2: The Star’s Keep On Calling My Name It’s hard to know why this is my favourite right now, but it is. I just love that guitar and simple chorus The Stars Keep On Calling My Name: http://youtu.be/eJLag-ne4FQ

Lines to Live By:

The Man Who Sold the World: I sing with impertinence, shading impermanent chords, with my words I've borrowed your time and I'm sorry I called But the thought just occurred that we're nobody's children At all, after all Live till your rebirth and do what you will, Oh by jingo Forget all I've said, please bear me no ill, Oh by jingo Mac Demarco’s 2 - Getting laid on the lifeline, getting tired, time for bed And there's no use getting worked up

I’d say the common theme of the two albums can be found in both artists. I believe both of them did something innovative, while just doing what they wanted. The success of their originality created genres, or fads. Mac is the master of jizz jazz, and slacker rock. Bowie was the master of glam. When glam got popular, he was already onto the next thing. The same can be seen in Mac with his newest album “Another One”. Another one breaks away from his guitar stoner jams, and he switches to sappy synth love ballads.

#albumoftheweek #yearofmusic #me #davidbowie #macdemarco #themanwhosoldthewold #2

Week One

Hello! This is my first week of my Year of Music. I will be listening to a new album each week, in comparison to an old favourite. I will discuss common themes, and list my favourite lines / words to live by. The blog entries can be found on my blog at theglasseyemerchant.tumblr.com/yearofmusic

This week I listened to Neil Young’s Greendale (2004) and Enter Shikari’s Common Dreads (2009). I’m a huge Neil fan, but I hadn’t really given Greendale a good listen yet. The album is very theatrical, this album is kind of like Neil’s rock opera. It’s a huge live production with a flowing story. The story is not something new to Neil. It deals with the country, staying away from the press, working men, and of course, saving the world. Common Dreads is ES’s magnum opus (in my opinion). The album flows very well musically, and lyrically. ES not only entertains, but they motivate you to work towards a better future. Favorurite Tracks Greendale - “Falling From Above” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xN6oN1771PU Common Dreads: “ Step Up” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isYOqnJMCv4 Lines to Live By:

Greendale: A little love & affection, in everything you do will make the world a better place, with or without you. Common Dreads: We have greatness within us; innovative, giving, determined - it's time for the best in us to come out Together both of these albums have a common theme of working together to build a better world, and to live consciously. They also preach the power of one, and the power of coming together.

#yearofmusic #neilyoung #greendale #entershikari #enter shikari #2016 #me