[Video Playlist of the Week] Seven Tours in Support of Decade-Old Albums
Recently, more and more bands have been reuniting for the [insert number here] anniversary of their most successful, or most popular, album. In retrospect, everyone always wishes they could’ve been there to see the album played live when it came out, but let’s face it; time travel isn’t a thing, so this is your best bet. Get your credit cards ready: this is a list of upcoming tours in 2015 for bands supporting or reuniting for the 10th anniversary of your favorite record.
Cartel - Chroma [tickets]
[youtube id="hxcVORJ4SB8"]
Without a doubt the band’s best album. The group released a statement saying how they weren’t ashamed to jump on the anniversary band wagon and that’s just the way it should be because this album deserves another tour.
Motion City Soundtrack - Commit This To Memory [tickets]
[youtube id="SY-c-_sZ8LI"]
Lead singer Justin Pierre has rocked the same haircut for more than 10 years, but more importantly, what importance would it have in the scene if no one ever heard Commit This To Memory? Luckily for you, the band is still on tour in support of their decade old, pop-punk staple with William Beckett and Brick and Mortar.
Alkaline Trio - their whole discography [tickets]
[youtube id="FljNILAozts"]
While Crimson is turning 10 this year, it’s not stopping Alkaline Trio from playing their whole discography (eight albums) in eight different cities. Whether this means another Alkaline Trio album is in the works or singer Matt Skiba is leaving indefinitely to join slightly-defunct Blink-182 as Tom DeLonge’s replacement, these shows are must see for Hot Topic regulars from the early 2000s (AKA everyone who listens to Alkaline Trio).
H2o - their entire discography, 20th anniversary shows [tickets]
The grandfathers of PMA have decided to play their entire catalog in their hometown of Brooklyn, New York for three nights as well as the windy city of Chicago. The shows will be small, but so worth the travel to see FTTW and Nothing To Prove played in their entirety. Not to mention, not one, but two albums will be played each night.
Mae - The Everglow [tickets]
[youtube id="88p8YpbPENc"]
Mae were more of an underground, soft pop-punk band from the early 2000s, but their 2005 album The Everglow was one everyone in the scene knew about.
Hawthorne Heights - The Silence In Black And White [tickets]
[youtube id="hUO-sRLotOI"]
No other song in 2004 resonated with such quote-worthy notoriety than Hawthorne Heights’ “Ohio Is For Lovers.” Other than the pretty bleak lyrics, it made teenagers proud to have their heart in Ohio.
Silverstein - Discovering The Waterfront [tickets]
Giving their decade old, post-hardcore sophomore record Discovering The Waterfront a last hoorah that ends in Australia this year. The band just finished their U.S. leg of the tour.
Honorable mentions:
The Wonder Years - Since being a band [albums in their entirety for three nights]
[youtube id="26vKAaj6Ff0"]
The Wonder Years marked their survival of a whole decade filled with old pizza and sappy breakups by playing three shows in their hometown of Philadelphia.
Blink-182 - Untitled [three night show in 2013]
[youtube id="4kMZ23T9VHE"]
In 2013, Blink-182 celebrated their last album before their first hiatus in 2003 by playing the Untitled album for three dates in Los Angeles.
Say Anything - ...Is A Real Boy, Saves The Day - Through Being Cool, Reggie & The Full Effect - Under The Tray [recently wrapped]
[youtube id="I7rYZjv3wNg"]
Say Anything recently wrapped up their 10 year anniversary tour of their flawless record ...ls A Real Boy with Saves The Day supporting the 10-year anniversary of their iconic album Through Being Cool. Oh, and Reggie & The Full Effect opened up for the two by playing Under The Tray in it’s entirety. This tour was like celebrating Christmas three times in one night.
Relient K - Mmhmm [recently wrapped]
Relient K just got off their anniversary tour for their junior record Mmhmm.
Taking Back Sunday - Tell All Your Friends
[youtube id="ap0mqwvf7H0"]
If you were a teenager in the early 2000’s with a Myspace, you had a song from TAYF as your profile song. Props to you if you were able to live out your 8th grade dreams of seeing TBS sing “Cute Without The ‘E’” or “There’s No ‘I’ In Team.”
[Video Playlist of the Week] Weird for the Sake of Weirdness
Header by Rachel Cameron
Over the past couple of years I’ve listened to a number of bands just because I enjoy their weirdness. Meaning, talent, and progression can only keep my attention for so long before I become bored of a band; or at least bored enough to put a record on the backburner for a while. If you’re anything like me, you like some weird shit. If you don’t, have no fear: I’ve compiled a short list of strange songs for you to listen to while you get real weird with it.
BABYMETAL - "Doki Doki Morning"
[youtube id="cirhQ8iLdbw"]
Two years ago, I took a History of Heavy Metal class, and my professor pulled this video up one day. He called it, “the scariest, most disturbing thing” he has ever heard/seen. To my surprise (and my surprise only), I loved it. BABYMETAL consists of three teenage girls who sing K-pop to death metal. They’re like the Aerosmith of Japan, which says a lot about how weird Japan is.
Die Antwoord - "Pitbull Terrier"
[youtube id="JvMXVHVr72A"]
A South African rap-rave duo, Die Antwoord are the definition of weird. Seriously, if this video doesn’t show it, check out their other songs. They’re nuts.
Three Loco - "We Are Farmers"
[youtube id="cb9XTK3_n2Y"]
The trio of Three Loco includes Andy Milonakis, Dirt Nasty, and Riff Raff. If you know who any of those people are then I don’t need to say anything else. Seperately, they’re each a runner for easily being the weirdest people I’ve ever heard about in the media. Together, they make no sense at all.
Lil B - "I’m God"
[youtube id="2pyops3UGr4"]
I’m not sure what it is about Lil B AKA Based God, but almost every music video he puts out is him wandering through some retail store. Like a mini-Kanye, Lil B and his fanbase have either a serious notion or a long-running joke that he is a God.
Tyler, The Creator - "Tamale"
[youtube id="OxlJLz9M8hQ"]
(*NSFW* ever; like anything he does) Tyler, The Creator (one part of OFWGTA) is a weird dude. While he and his counterparts are great musicians, his persona as Tyler, The Creator is off the wall in the best way possible.
Yung Lean - "Kyoto"
[youtube id="2pyops3UGr4"]
A Swedish teenager decided to make alternative, counterculture comedic raps about being a “2001 sad boy.” Yung Lean embodies what Tumblr is: a bunch of adult children reblogging about alt comedy and Arizona Iced Tea.
Outkast - "B.O.B."
[youtube id="fVyVIsvQoaE"]
Outkast are the original hip-hop weirdos.
Mariachi El Bronx - "Wildfires"
[youtube id="6o1cXudCkqA"]
I’m not a mariachi fan, but the alter-ego of post-hardcore/punk outfit The Bronx takes the form of a traditional mariachi band. Every now and again they go on tour and you never know if they’re going to be playing The Bronx songs or Mariachi El Bronx songs. Or both. Either way, I dig their alter egos and the gimmick of having the most “out there” counter-hobby of punk music.
Iwrestledabearonce - "You Know That Ain’t Them Dogs’ Real Voices"
[youtube id="pwgMMtgSTVE"]
If you take grindcore, prog metal, technical death metal, rainbows, and sound bytes from '80s movies, you have Iwrestledabearonce.
Melanie Martinez - "Carousel"
[youtube id="zAB5AC9yhY0"]
The only instance in where I can say something is both sexy and creepy at the same time.
What’s the weirdest thing you listen to?
13 Morbid Songs for Friday the 13th
It’s every goth’s second favorite holiday: Friday the 13th. In honor of the infamous day of moral reckoning, I’ve created a playlist of songs to get blasphemous to.
13. "Killing It" - A Wilhelm Scream
[youtube id="buxn2HJB5Dk"]
If Jason Vorhees could pick a song to listen to while stabbing someone, I feel like this would be it.
12. "Back to Hell" - Alkaline Trio
[youtube id="Yb8fWGPdT3U"]
The dark pop-punk trio created an ode (one of many) to the pits below with lyrics like “send us back to hell/we've had our fill of heaven.”
11. "Bleed Black" - AFI
[youtube id="QTKeYn59V7I"]
The gothic, melodic hardcore have mastered the emotional, heavyhearted sound with their 2003 record Sing The Sorrow. This song as well as every other song off the album would be a perfect fit for a day like Friday the 13th.
10. "Cowboys From Hell" - Pantera
[youtube id="_7EQlfprV9E"]
The groove metal band Pantera are no strangers to being associated to the dark lord, so they embodied the notion with one of their most iconic songs.
9. "The God That Failed" - Metallica
[youtube id="Cgrxgp2Jp94"]
Denouncing the idea of religion/God is pretty much step one in the metal handbook and that’s the most Friday the 13th-y thing you can do.
8. "Your 666" - H.I.M.
[youtube id="Dmhp5lI99xo"]
Throw every last superstition out the window by listening to this song with lyrics like, “I welcome your six six six in my heart/I’m losing my faith in you,” you’re sure to have all of the bad luck today (here’s to hoping).
7. "Hellraiser" - Ozzy Osbourne
[youtube id="4Pbl4x1OKqs"]
Ozzy says he’ll “put a spell on you” with his tribute to rocking in the hardest way possible; raising hell.
6. "Hang ‘Em High" - My Chemical Romance
[youtube id="D750b__didw"]
MCR’s hit album, Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge, made death cool again in the mid-2000’s. My pick for the playlist has everything to do with the eerie, witchy undertones of the lyrics, “climb out from the pine box, well I'm asking you/'cause she's got nothing to say/The angels just cut out her tongue/call her black Mariah, would I lie to you?”
5. "Blood And Thunder" - Mastodon
[youtube id="TsdIO8RHMTc"]
While the song (as well as the entire album) is based off the novel Moby Dick, “Blood and Thunder” starts off with, “I think that someone is trying to kill me/Infecting my blood and destroying my mind;” the most brutal thing said about a whale ever.
4. "Killing In The Name" - Rage Against The Machine
[youtube id="bWXazVhlyxQ"]
Again, while the song (and band) is about “bringing down the man” and all, the lyrics, “some of those that work forces, are the same that burn crosses,” fits into the scheme of Friday the 13th.
3. "Crystal Lake’s Legacy" - Voorhees
[youtube id="YQtaPjh3zXA"]
A U.K. hardcore gimmick band based off the aforementioned, fictional murderer “killed it” with their salute to Vorhees with their 2001 record Crystal Lake’s Legacy.
2. "Running With The Devil" - Van Halen
[youtube id="tpX3NhpRGdE"]
David Lee Roth said in an interview that he always thought the devil was with him; whether it was running (‘living at a pace that kills’), driving, playing music, eating lunch, etc. Ultimately, it sounds like he lives his life like every day is Friday the 13th.
1. "Dead" - Pixies
[youtube id="gvg5-8pwL80"]
Written about the biblical story (2 Samuel, Chapter 11) from the tale of Bathsheba and King David with mixed in lyrics such as, “my heart is dead,” it’s a no-brainer this song is included to the playlist. Also, the horror movie montage trumps all.
Happy Hour: 30 Artists as Cocktails
In Cincinnati, Ohio the music venue, Bogart’s, always has their bar transform songs from the booked band of the night into delicious, 21+ friendly drinks. Have you ever thought of the perfect cocktail to compliment your favorite band? While the website drinkify.org is a simple way to get your buzz on with an artist, I’ve compiled a playlist of songs along with their alcoholic counterparts and then some. Please drink and listen responsibly.
The Taylor Swift Takeover
Photo by Virgil Solis.
1989 is the best pop album to come out within the past five years, and with its release comes the global takeover of Taylor Swift. Swiftmageddon. Taylortopia. T-Swiftpocalyse. It’s here, people. You can’t avoid it anymore. Taylor Swift is taking over the world one catchy hook at a time.
Before 1989, I’ll admit, I was a skeptic. Yeah, I had some T-Swift songs on my iPod, but it was nothing earth shattering. “Fifteen,” “I Knew You Were Trouble,” “22,” “You Belong With Me,” and “Our Song” were the only songs I knew. Honestly, they weren’t anything to be that hyped about. I have friends in the hardcore and punk scenes who wear “TAYLOR SWIFT OR FUCKING DIE” hoodies and “T-Swift forever” shirts, but I never got the appeal with her... until 1989.
When “Shake It Off” dropped mid-summer in 2014, I was captivated by the cheery melody and upbeat lyrics. It was like a fizzy-pop sensation, an '80s-esque dance beat, and a sugary candy-like sound all wrapped into one song. When “Blank Space” premiered not long after, I was consumed. When I finally listened to the full album on an airplane to LA two weeks ago, I became obsessed. This is pure gold, I thought. Taylor Swift has released the catchiest, female pop album since Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream (2010). Every song is a banger with a story and purpose for each word. Her songwriting skills have flourished along with her perfectly cast gang of artists (Imogen Heap and Jack Antonoff) to help produce some of the songs. A musical fairytale of fast love, 1989 makes me want to shout from the rooftop, “I FUCKING LOVE TAYLOR SWIFT!” She has become my best friend. Together, we sing in the car on our way to work, at work, on our way home, at home, before bed, and then again when we wake up. I feel like the fans in the Josie and the Pussycats movie, just liking her because I’m being brainwashed to enjoy it by those corporate big dogs. Maybe, maybe not. Whatever the case may be, I find myself wearing red lipstick every day along with outfits that get more retro by the minute and I’m totally okay with it. Thanks, Tay.
Fans of her early work would tell me, “She’s going pop and she’s going to be terrible at it.” Oh, how wrong you were. If anything, Taylor has been dominating the genre with the release of 1989. Her PR team of media wizards are like the NSA of pop. You can’t stream her album ANYWHERE - SoundCloud, YouTube, Spotify- they’re empty, like the Swiftening never happened. Practically stealing money out of listeners pockets, some still eagerly lined up to own the album in a world where digital music is essentially free. Sure, pirating is easy, but her PR people are so gung-ho about the whole thing that they’ve started to shut down sites that have her album available for downloading. In 2014, with her album being released in full for just three short months, this is some of what she has achieved with 1989:
- Best-selling album of the year (Billboard, iTunes, Cosmopolitan)
- Rolling Stone’s #2 album of the year
- On the cover of TIME
- On the cover of Billboard
- She performed at the Thanksgiving Day Parade in NYC
- On the cover of The Hollywood Reporter
- Snagging multiple guest spots:
- Jimmy Kimmel, SNL, ABC, The Voice, BBC America, The View, The Ellen Degeneres Show, and pretty much every other talk show out there
- She’s named the most powerful woman in U.K. media in 2014
- She’s been nominated for three Grammy’s (and she’ll probably snag ‘em all)
- She performed at the American Music Awards
- She performed at the Victoria Secret Fashion Show
- 1989 sold 1.287 million units in its first week, which hasn’t been done since 2002
Taylor Swift is slaughtering the music biz competition right now and probably will be for the better half of 2015. While some music critics, journalists and artists are calling her pull from Spotify/YouTube absurd, I think it’s a smart move. If you really want to listen to 1989, skip the Chipotle today and just buy the damn record. Don’t hate the player, hate the game. You know what they say, if you can’t beat ‘em, then just pull your catalog from every site and make fans buy your album like a REAL pop sensation. Boom.
10 TV Shows to Avoid in 2015
Continuing from yesterday's list of the top TV shows to watch in 2015, these are my choices for the worst tv shows of the early part of 2015. With some returns, some new, and some scrutiny by me, these are the possible (and definite) stink bombs of the year. Enjoy.
Top 10 TV Shows to Watch in 2015
With the New Year approaching, TV fanatics are getting their recliners ready as January marks the beginning of fresh television. I’ve compiled a list of new seasons of your favorite tv shows with their air times as well as some new shows that may surprise you. Give ‘em a whirl.
We Were Promised Hoverboards
As the New Year chimed in at a crappy bar in Los Angeles, an old colleague of mine and I yelled, “YEAH, HOVERBOARDS!” Since the late 1980’s, people everywhere have been asking, “When are we going to get hoverboards?” Folks, you heard it here first: 2015 is the year of the hoverboard. According to my research (which is honestly the most extensive digging I’ve done since trying to find the world’s best, deliverable pizza dough), hoverboards are coming to a store near you. Or whatever Kickstarter uses as their purchasing system. Maybe PayPal? Whatever, HOVERBOARDS.
Hendo, a company based out of Los Gatos, California, has built the world’s first hoverboard. With more than double their original goal being met in just a short 55 days, backers everywhere are glued to their email inbox to receive their invites to the Hendo hoverboard event on October 15, 2015. Why is the release party almost a year later since it’s invention, you ask? It’s the same date that Marty McFly arrived in the future (could this invention be any cooler?). For just a small lump sum of $10,000 the hoverboard could’ve been (or is) yours. While that’s pretty steep, at least it’s a start. Nerdy websites everywhere are calling it one of the top inventions of the year. What is, in fact in my eyes, the most influential invention since sliced bread, will be on the market in just a short ten months. I could sit here and write about all of the science behind the board and what it actually runs on, but you can do that here instead.
As the year is just getting into full swing, it’s still going to be a grueling 10 months until I am able to enviously watch videos of average Joe’s cruising on their hoverboards via YouTube. There is one more thing though: Hendo has been designing a place for hover-ers to glide, or hover, in. Yeah, A SKATE PARK FOR HOVERBOARDS. A HOVER PARK. THE FUTURE RULES.
[youtube id="plwX5NtF530"]
[youtube id="m5xse0Abulc"]