The time has come, the Walrus said, to speak of many things. Of Shoes and Pips and Basement Tapes, and the best power pop records of the year. Forgive me if I repeat myself, but 2011 was a great year for pop music ALTHOUGH YOU WOULD NEVER KNOW IT FROM THE TRADITIONAL MEDIA!

The first six months saw the release of most of the best albums, while some of my favorites have already recorded next year’s contenders but won’t release them until ‘12. These heavy hitters include The Foreign Films, Explorers Club, and Bryan Scary.

One: Marco Joachim, “Hidden Symphonies.” “Hidden Symphonies” is a pop masterpiece that achieves a Sgt. Pepper-like grandeur through constant melodic and textural invention. “Gramercy Park” is as memorable as anything the Beatles achieved in later years. “Cellophane Sue” is an obvious goof on “Polythene Pam” and a solid hit in its own right. Marco is immeasurably aided by producer/guitarist Jon Gordon whose epic guitar is all over these tracks.

Two: Cirrone: “Uplands Park Road.” These Sicilian brothers (with Ferdinando Piccoli on drums) reinvent the modern pop song drawing on the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Big Star, the Byrds, Crosby, Stills and Nash, the Hollies, the Zombies and every other great power popper, but they have a unique sound built around three-part harmonies and Alessandro’s and Mirko’s thrilling guitar work. Don’t believe perfection is unobtainable. Listen to this record. (more…)

Here we have the entire album “Themes for an Imaginary Film” from Symmetry, yet another project by Italodisco revivalist Johnny Jewel, known for his involvement in Chromatics/Glass Candy/Desire/all of the “Italians Do It Better” music label. Word around the ‘net is that Jewel was originally tapped by Nicolas Winding Refn to score “Drive,” and while several existing tracks from his groups Chromatics and Desire were used, the gig for original music went to Cliff Martinez. Jewel denies that “Themes” is his unused “Drive” music, but it’s already become Internet canon to interpret it as such.

“Themes” is a good listen, but I can surely see why Winding Refn would choose the tracks he did, particularly Kavinsky’s “Night Call” during the opening credits. Jewel’s “Themes” are subtle, a little too cool and laid back for the on-edge tone of the film, and they’re experimental–messing around with  rhythms when a simple kick-snare-kick-snare much better represents the single-minded driving force of Ryan Gosling’s character. Furthermore, the synths are noticeably MIDI instead of analog, which would have made the film seem low-budget and campy.

Still, it’s an interesting listen to think of what may have been, and it’s a reminder that script isn’t everything; style and tone can make or break a film as much as stilted dialogue can. For comparison, here’s the song that was ultimately chosen for “Drive”’s opening sequence–a work with far more grit, aggression, and swagger: (more…)

Candy Claws, “Do You Ever Feel That Way?” (Starflyer 59 Cover)

Of all the contemporary Christian bands in the genre’s mid-to-late ’90s boom period, Starflyer 59 was one of the few respectable acts, as they understood the difference between “Christian rock” and “rock made by Christians.” Skirting the edges of grunge, shoegaze, and emo, the band carved a respectable niche for itself alongside contemporaries like Pedro the Lion, gaining enough industry respect to inspire a covers album after their breakup. The track “Do You Ever Feel That Way?”, re-recorded by sunshiney haze-rockers Candy Claws, adds a noisy, ebullient, wider scope to the original’s lilting melody, and Candy Claws pull off Starflyer singer Jason Martin’s vocal affectations rather uncannily.

For those unfamiliar with Starflyer 59, here’s a track from one of their latter works:

Starflyer 59, “Good Sons”

The New Wave-heavy sound of “Good Sons” eases our transition to another recently unveiled cover song. (more…)

It’s that time of year again–Top 10 music lists are out in force, and everyone’s got their own best and worst songs to showcase their wonderful taste. Well, what if you could do both–have a best worst songs list? Yes, a celebration of guilty pleasures, of songs so bad they’re good–songs you have no excuse for liking and listening to over and over again. As a connoisseur of all things musically trashy and lowbrow, I present to you the 10 Best Terrible Songs of 2011. Read, intrepid audience; read, listen, and weep.

10. Korn (Featuring Skrillex) – “Narcissistic Cannibal”

This is a decision so bad it had to time travel from 1998 to get here. Sure, Korn’s popularity may be lagging, but is that really a good reason to intentionally imitate Nine Inch Nails imitators like Filter or Stabbing Westward? Nu metal and electronica do not mix, especially toothless, uninspired, most-likely-merely-contractually-obligated nu metal and electronica. This one makes the #10 slot on the list because it’s mostly just bad, but since I’m not above tawdry dubstep, I usually at least make it to Skrillex’s breakdown after a few choruses. (more…)

This month’s release of “CD for the Troops V” puts the number of albums provided to service members, veterans, and military families at one million.

“John Ondrasik’s love for our military families and devotion to the welfare of our men and women in uniform comes through again in this fifth album,” said Amy Palmer, Chief Operating Officer for Operation Homefront, a co-producer on the album series, said in a statement. “All of the talented artists who have lent their voices to ‘CD for the Troops V’ have shown their support for our military in an incredible way.”

Service members or their spouses with valid military ID can order, at no cost, the CD at CDfortheTroops.com. The albums are not available for sale to the public.

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There’s nothing less punk rock than changing a smelly diaper.

The new documentary “The Other F Word” shows what happens when some of the biggest punk rockers around are confronted with fatherhood. It’s not what they teach you at Rock School, but being a daddy might just be the best thing that ever happened to the tattooed rockers in this heartfelt feature.

The film only grazes past a few nagging questions, most notably whether becoming a neo-Ward Cleaver debunks those anarchist rock anthems. This “Word” rings true whenever it shows how the parental bonds are even mightier than the need to rock.

“The Other F Word” interviews a wide array of musicians from the punk rock landscape, from ex-Black Flag singer Ron Reyes to Blink 182’s Mark Hoppus. The documentary’s main subject is Pennywise frontman Jim Lindberg, a soft-spoken father of three trying to balance his punk rock duties with the demands of fatherhood.

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The hardest person to shop for on your Christmas list can usually be placated with the right book or CD.

Yes, people still buy those shiny silver disks, especially since it’s hard to wrap up a digital file and stuff it in a stocking. With that in mind, here are some recent book and music releases which could be just the right gift this holiday season.

BOOKS

• “Arguably” by Christopher Hitchens – The great writer may be battling cancer, but his rapier wit remains unchanged. “Arguably” assembles some of his thoughtful essays for easy consumption.
• “Pauline Kael: A Life in the Dark” by Brian Kellow – Conservatives may know Kael best for her infamous quote regarding President Richard Nixon’s re-election vote tally, but for movie buffs Kael’s prose represents a thoughtful, albeit typically left-of-center, voice.

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This has been one of the greatest years in the history of pop music, but you’d never know it if you rely on Rolling Stone, Spin, Billboard, Under the Radar, Mojo, Q, MTV, VH-1 or any of the traditional sources.

Outstanding new voices such as Marco Joachim, Cirrone or The Turnback would have had numerous singles in the top ten thirty years ago.

There are many reasons for the press’s lack of interest including economics, but there is a cultural reason, too. The establishment press long ago became suspicious of art for art’s sake. Beauty and good vibes are so bourgeoisie. It’s got to have an edge, an attitude or sucker punches about the failure of the capitalist system, the hypocrisy of religion, or the need to take public transport.

The movement reached its apotheosis in Spin’s infamous 1993 review of Jellyfish’s ‘Spilt Milk.’  The magazine’s reviewer dismissed the album as mindless ear candy, offering faint praise for one song, the vaguely classist ‘Russian Hill. ‘The reviewer thought it was about the haves versus the have-nots. Music shorn of socio-political content is ‘not relevant.’  It’s even worse if the band voices an opinion contrary to the kultursmog.

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Few musical artists have benefited from FM radio more than Tom Petty.

Can you hit the “scan” button on your car radio and not hear something from the nasal singer’s canon? And bully for that. Petty – with and without the Heartbreakers – has been delivering consistently great rock music for decades. Long may he reign.

But Petty’s recent comments concerning corporate radio weren’t music to our ears.

The band was playing a pledge-drive benefit for KCSN, Cal State Northridge’s public radio outlet. The longtime classical music station switched to a genre-mixing “smart rock” format this year, and its fall pledge drive is aimed at boosting the station power to reach a much wider audience.

Petty mixed in some deep cuts along with standard hits like ‘Refugee.’ But he also sided with public radio versus the model which can’t stop playing his songs.

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Last weekend at New York Comic Con, during a panel on the anime series Robotech, speaker Kevin McKeever played a clip from a new documentary on the making of the groundbreaking show, mostly culled from interviews with the series’ American producers and voice actors. One anecdote that stuck out at me was that the voice actors constantly used pseudonyms in the credits because they were breaking union labor rules–the hours they worked, the pay received, it was all in violation of their actors’ guild’s regulations.

Stories like that always bring a tear to my eye. There’s nothing quite as stifling to art and creativity than arbitrary rules placed on artists by disinterested third parties, and labor unions are a major offender. Thus, it’s heartwarming to see union members rebel against their leaders because of the passion they have for a project–going the extra mile to make it an outstanding product and to make it feasible by charging less than their standard pay.

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That documentary’s story also stuck out to me because a recent Pitchfork interview with Anthony Gonzalez, frontman for the French electronica group M83, revealed a similar story, this time involving his newly-released double album “Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming”:

Pitchfork: When I spoke with you last year, you said you were worried about having enough money to make a double album.

AG: We had a good budget to make a 10-track album with good sound, so we had to find ways [to stretch that out]. It was difficult. But [producer] Justin [Meldal-Johnsen] did an amazing job putting a lot of artists together who worked for no money, just because they were in love with the project. I always wanted to play with strings and brass, and Joseph Trapanese, who did the arrangements for the album, didn’t get paid. We didn’t put the real names of the string and brass players on the album because they’re part of a union, and it’s illegal to work for shitty money. They’re credited, but with fake names. [emphasis added]

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When the story of last month’s raid on the Gibson Guitar factories and offices in Memphis and Nashville broke, the first thought that hit me was…”Were the drawn weapons really necessary?  Is this still America?”  Imagine my complete surprise when I learned Gibson’s Chairman and CEO, Henry Juszkiewicz, is a staunch Republican who does not bow at the altar of Obama; Gibson is the only major guitar manufacturer in a non-blue (read non-union) state; one of his company’s leading competitors, C.F. Martin & Company, uses the same materials in their products with impunity; and Martin’s CEO, Chris Martin IV, is a long-time Democratic supporter.

Sarcasm off.

This incident has vintage guitar owners left wondering…”What next?”  Will the Feds be busting down the doors of musicians, guns drawn, to inspect our guitars to see if we have any contraband they can confiscate?  I have a hunch if that were to happen, they’d target musicians who are openly…dare I say…conservative.

And guess where they would start.

Nathan Picard

It just so happens that our featured artist, conservative singer/songwriter Nathan Picard, makes his own guitars.  Here is what he had to say about the latest display of thuggery by this Administration:

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The artistic community is always ready to stand against censorship – and we know that because it constantly tells us so.  If you want to drape an American flag across a walkway to make a statement by letting goateed hipster art aficionados traipse across it, you’re a bold visionary.  If you want to write a novel about shooting a Republican president, you’re courageously speaking truth to power.  If you want to smear pachyderm dung on a painting of the Virgin Mary, you’re bravely facing down the forces of religious bigotry.

Hell, you not only have a right to do it, but you have a right to have it federally funded through the NEA by the very taxpayers whose collective mind you intend to blow by getting so darn real.   It’s right there in the Constitution, amid the emanations and adjacent to the penumbras.  Oh, but if you accurately depict the acts leading up to the murder of nearly 3000 Americans, you’ve got to be stopped.  After all, the artistic elite can’t let you upset the Krugman-esque party line that 9/11 was really about Bu$Hitler and Company’s wars for oil or something.

The artistic community is anti-censorship right up until the second it decides it wants something censored.  Then it piles on.

A little background.

Steve Reich is a Pulitzer-winning composer who lived a few blocks away from the World Trade Center when the planes hit on September 11, 2001.  He was out of town at the time, but his family was home.  They barely escaped, but the experience was so emotionally traumatic that it was only as the 10th anniversary of this monstrous crime approached that he was able to finally express his feelings through his art.  You would think the artistic community would praise him – well, you would think that if you had not been paying attention and still believe that it possessed the capacity for shame at its own rank hypocrisy.

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“They come from the bright light cities…They come from a one horse town…But if they’re coming for you boy…Ya better know they ain’t messin’ around” ~ Madison Rising

As we gather with loved ones this Labor Day weekend to officially bid farewell to another all-too short summer, we should take a moment to remember those who are serving overseas and unable to be with us to enjoy those BBQs, cold beers, pool parties, and such.   Here to remind us of their sacrifices, with a brand-spankin’ new rock tribute entitled Soldiers of America, is the very hot new conservative rock band, Madison Rising.

YouTube Madison Rising - "Soldiers of America"

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“Madison Rising, named in honor of James Madison, the fourth President of the United States and author of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Federalist Papers, is a new rock band best described as a conservative version of Rage Against The Machine” according to President and CEO of Purple Eagle Entertainment (and fellow BigDawg’er), Richard Mgrdechian, who formed the band.  He further states:

The band provides guitar-centric, pro-American rock music to a market completely devoid of anything similar.  The band expects to become the face of patriotic rock and roll.  Madison Rising is expected to perform at major campaign events, military bases, NASCAR events and other pro-American venues, establishing itself as a major political voice in this country during the 2012 election cycle and beyond.  The band’s first single, Soldiers of America, was released on September 1st, 2011 and the album itself will be available on September 30^th.

BigDawg Music Mafia is honored to introduce the very talented members of Madison Rising:

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You ever have those days where pretty much every single thing you hear coming out of someone’s mouth sounds like a lie?

Call ‘em cynical days – or days of heightened awareness, but I’m totally having one of those days. Or maybe it’s one of those weeks, months, years … because I feel like every single time President Obama opens his mouth, he oozes untruths (healthcare, no new taxes on employer benefits not to mention this fantastic website that has compilation of the top 50 lies Obama’s Told).

Not to mention the foul falsehoods and exaggerations blubbering from Harry Reid (still hung up on the slavery comments from awhile back) Nancy Pelosi  (too many lies to count but thanks for compiling them, Glenn Beck …) and a number of other notable Democrats (check out the Intellectual Conservative for a list of a few …). It just seems to never, ever end.

So in an attempt to unite liars everywhere and to have a little fun at their expense, it is my great pleasure to compile a playlist for those unable to tell the truth.

Because we all know you are, what you listen to …

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“Just look at the Old Testament.  They didn’t go out with the army first.  They sent the musicians out.” ~ Michael W. Smith

One year ago my good friend & songmate, BigDawg, and I decided to launch BigDawg Music Mafia to showcase the many creative ways our fellow patriots are getting engaged in the pop culture revolution, speaking truth to power through their God-given talents (songs, art, blogs, books, photography, poems, radio shows, film, humor, acting, etc).

Today, with 565 members/artists attracting over half a million site hits from around the world in our first year, we have plenty to say and an increasing number of visitors dropping in every day to “hear” us out.  With such a diverse group of artists with a wide range of talent, it is only natural that some of us would find ourselves joining forces on some cool collaborations/projects.

vimeo Get Off The Stage (The BigDawg Patriots Featuring Jana Seantelle)

Our latest project, Get Off the Stage, written by one of our members who goes by the name “Mick”, is described in an electronic press kit he recently released and distributed.  Here are some excerpts:

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“The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don’t wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules.” – Rob, (played by John Cusack) inn ‘High Fidelity,’ (2000)

Rob (from the movie ‘High Fidelity’) is most definitely right. The art of the mix tape is a finely-honed skill.  It requires patience, a clear understanding of the purpose of the mix, and of course a vast music collection.

I remember the first mix tape I ever received. It started with Bon Jovi’s  ‘You Give Love a Bad Name,’ had Journey’s ‘Open Arms’ in the middle and ended with Def Leppard’s  ‘Pour Some Sugar On Me’ … (and when Momma Murray heard this one, she calmly unwound all the tape from the cassette and threw it in the trash … apparently, that song’s not appropriate for a 14-year-old girl. And I’m pretty sure I was grounded from EVER talking to that boy again) …

Don’t know about you, but my iPhone is pretty much permanently attached to me at all times. And my playlists? They’re sacred. I spend hours categorizing my music and making lists I can turn on at a second’s notice. Today, I’d like to share a playlist with ya … and hopefully, my execution will make Rob proud …

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It’s hard to come out of Lt. Dan Band: For the Common Good without a healthy feeling of irony. You’ve just witnessed a prime example of man’s inhumanity and cruelty inspiring a display of man’s greatest virtues–honor, sacrifice, compassion, and unity.  It’s not just a concert film; it’s another illustration of the central thesis of Andrew Breitbart’s Righteous Indignation: that pop culture trumps politics without fail. In the midst of a hopelessly contentious and divisive foreign war, our politicians and pundits have nowhere near the profound effect on troop morale as a simple cover band led by a TV actor. The study of the relationship between civilian and soldier in wartime provides a compelling subject for this expansive documentary.

Director Jonathan Flora frames the film around Gary Sinise, an actor and director with a long, intimate history with soldiers and veterans, though he himself has never served. From his brother-in-law, who was killed in Vietnam, to current bandmate Kimo Williams,  a ‘Nam veteran who started jamming with Sinise after they met on a production of A Streetcar Named Desire in the mid-90s, his career has always seemed to providentially intertwine with the military. Following the jihadist attacks of 9/11, Sinise felt compelled to help those directly affected by the Twin Towers’ destruction, volunteering in campaigns to benefit the FDNY. This spirit of volunteerism, in concert with his ever more frequent band practices with Williams,  materialized into a USO tour in 2003. Despite his diverse résumé, Sinise was universally associated with his Oscar-nominated performance as “Lieutenant Dan” from Forrest Gump, so as the group expanded, Sinise named it the “Lieutenant Dan Band,” and the rest is history. (more…)

Anyone who thinks conservatives can’t rock it out has clearly not come across Jeremy Dodge – a conservative activist with attitude and an abundance of talent.  When Jeremy first joined BigDawg Music Mafia and shared his Tea Party hit I Am American and Stand Up, the fans couldn’t get enough.  The demand from fans for more has Jeremy back in the studio as we “speak” working on some new songs which will, no doubt, be every bit as kickin’ as his others.

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As with the majority of the conservative artists in the Tea Party movement, Jeremy has been traveling around the country performing on his own dime and as many fellow musicians know, studio time costs a pretty penny.  Jeremy has set up a project page where fans can participate in the production of his new songs by helping defray some of his costs, getting a few “thank you” goodies in return, and even a shout-out in his video.

Here’s what Jeremy has to say about how he got started in music and how he ended up using his talents to wake his fellow Americans up:

We’ve already taken a look at the content of this month’s big bestseller, but digital sales of Lady Gaga’s Born this Way have illuminated an important caveat about new music distribution technologies. In an attempt to harness demand for Lady Gaga’s Born This Way and drive more and more customers to adopt their Cloud Drive Player, Amazon overloaded their server capacity and could not deliver the full album to thousands of customers for much of the day. Digital copies of the album sold for just 99 cents on its release date, but since Amazon has made it so mp3s can only be downloaded once they load into users’ Cloud (web-based storage) Drives, incomplete and delayed downloads turned many off from the service.

British singer Adele has sparked debate about British’s public services in an interview with Q magazine, covered brilliantly by James Delingpole. The singer said of her taxes, “I’m mortified to have to pay 50 per cent! [While] I use the NHS, I can’t use public transport any more. Trains are always late, most state schools are ––––, and I’ve gotta give you, like, four million quid – are you having a laugh? When I got my tax bill in from [her album] 19, I was ready to go and buy a gun and randomly open fire.”

In other news, Adele’s albums are currently available wherever music is sold.

Hipster music journalists have fallen head over heels for a shock-mongering rap group known as Odd Future, led by “Tyler, the Creator,” whose first label-released album Goblin has earned accolades hand-in-hand with feeble excuses for its deeply nihilistic, violently misogynistic lyrics. Canadian singer Sara Quin of the indie band Tegan & Sara published an open letter on her blog pushing back against justifications of Tyler’s indefensible bile. Quin cut right to the heart of the issue– fear of the race card:

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So, here it is. It’s no secret that Big Hollywood isn’t a fan of Lady Gaga; I’ve even made my own little snarky putdowns in the past. But when it comes to reviewing music, I have to do my best to remove personal prejudices– address the music itself and the ideas they communicate. On the first count, the album is a major mixed bag; a few enjoyable moments show up on a majority of the songs, and two or three are palatable all the way through. On the second, it’s a total mess–a self-important repackaging of “if it feels good, do it” that tells listeners no one has to validate them while Gaga repeatedly reveals her own insecurity over lacking validation.

MotorGaga

The Lady in question, known at birth as Stefani Germanotta, has progressed beyond wanting recognition or even fame; now she craves Importance, that vain pursuit which has derailed many a talented artist (and you can quibble about putting that label on her, I’m just being polite). And on Born This Way, this attitude goes beyond didactic lyrics; Gaga puts on the airs of a prophet/oracle/Messiah for the courageous, self-endangering causes of same-sex marriage and female empowerment, doing her best to conflate sexual identity with Christianity–not just any religion, but Christianity specifically.

The album has more references to Jesus than the latest Wovenhand record, the inevitable clash of her Catholic-school upbringing and her professed bisexuality. On the aggressive yet perversely endearing “Judas,” she sings, “I wanna love you, but something’s pulling me away from you / Jesus is my virtue, Judas is the demon I cling to.” Throughout the song, “Judas” has been the “Dear Abby” pseudonym for an abusive lover (perfectly appropriate to compare a bad relationship to the betrayal of the Christ), so first she’s Jesus (a “holy fool”) being betrayed by Judas, then Jesus is an external entity from which Judas is pulling her away… I’m instantly regretting the decision to analyze these lyrics. (more…)