We have closed the polls and the votes are in. London Calling by The Clash, was voted the best punk album of all time. I can't say that I disagree. There have been so many great punk records over the years, but London Calling was a special record. It was a double LP that blew away any notions of what punk should sound like. Running the gamut from punk to ska to folk and dub, the songwriting was deep and the tunes were classic.
The opening cut was the title track, the plaintive London Calling. This is still a classic. Brand New Cadillac, a psychobilly tune was next. Jimmy Jazz, track 3, was a jazzy little number. Hateful and Rudie Can't Fail are both tuneful tracks to end side 1.
Side 2 featured some nice softer tunes. Spanish Bombs and Lost in the Supermarket are VERY soft from a punk perspective, but are great songs, full of insight. Clampdown is more straight-forward power punk. Then follows the punk classic, Guns of Brixton.
Side 3 boasts rockers Koka Kola, and Death or Glory. Side 4 finishes with my personal theme song of the time I'm Not Down, along with Train in Vain and Revolution Rock. If you don't have this disc, GET IT! I was still in high school when it came out 30 (ugh!) years ago. I graduated in 1981. This was the soundtrack of my youth, alongside other greats such as Black Flag - Damaged. Hope you have enjoyed this tribute to the album Dissident Times fans have voted their favorite all-time punk recording.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Goodbye and God Bless, Ted Kennedy
Saying goodbye to Ted Kennedy this week. An unashamed Liberal (like myself), I always loved the way he got under the skin of the right wingers. They used his name like a curse word, much as they do the word "liberal" itself. I will not go into great discussions about Ted's legacy or body of work. These stand for themselves. A member of the senate for as long as I have been alive. A stalwart liberal through it all. We will miss you Ted. I hope others step up to take up the Liberal cause and fight for the little guy like you always did.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Why I Don't Like Coldplay
I remember the first time I heard a Coldplay cd. I had heard all the buzz and wanted to hear them for myself. I borrowed a disc from a friend and put it in the system. The first track was slow, downtempo and boring. I fast forwarded to the next track. It sounded like a long intro to a song that never arrived. Then it hit me. All of their tunes sound like a long intro waiting for a song to happen. But the song never happens. I wrote it off to my love of in-yer-face SoCal punk that offers instant gratification, hooks that beat you over the head, instant energy. But I asked other friends who weren't fans of Fat Wreck Chords compilations, and they told me the same. Coldplay is simply this: BORING. Like Pink Floyd minus the cleverness and psychedelia. Now they are on 60 Minutes and next I guess it will be Corn Flakes commercials. There is truly a void in the big arena of corporate rock that Coldplay fills I guess. I will stick with my indie and punk roots. Bands that are creative and make music for the sheer joy of making music.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
To all those loudmouths disrupting Town Hall meetings on healthcare...
Sit down. Shut up. Wait your turn. Think for yourselves. Remember, silence is golden but duct tape is silver...
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Hit the Switch! New record is out, and it rocks HARD
Chino, California based Hit the Switch has a new cd out. Hit the Switch mixes SoCal punk, hardcore and thrash that is powerful stuff. I found them a couple of years ago on their cd, Domestic Tranquility and Social Justice. The new disc is called Observing Infinity.I love their low tech, straightforward approach to the music. It sounds raw, energetic and thrashes with a real sense of urgency. Take a stroll to their myspace page here:
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Only in NYC! The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck
I heard about this guy on NPR. He is a professional musician, but in his spare time he earns extra cash with his ice cream truck. He has been roaming NYC for a few months selling his self-described "metro-sexual" menu of plain and fancy ice cream novelties and cone. Ain't America great?!? I hope my old high school friend Mark gets the west coast/ LA franchise of this company.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Louisville Under Water...
August Flood 09
Originally uploaded by tonykeith51
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Funk for a New Generation: Alan Wilkis
Just checked out a new track from Brooklyn artist Alan Wilkis. His music is described as dance/pop/funk for a new generation. That is a pretty good description. I hear shades of Parliament Funkadelic going on there. He has a blog that features free downloads definitely worth a listen. http://wilcassettes.com/blog He is definitely channeling Bernie Worrell on the synthesizers. Bernie was the P Funk and Talking Heads key guru with the distinctive sound. I have been waiting for some new funk for ages. Prince has kept up the funk, and George Clinton as well. But we need the new FONK... Here it is.
PINK AND PURPLE is this new release. Brooklyn-based producer/instrumentalist, Alan Wilkis brings some great tracks on the new material... Hear some of what was good about the 1980s - Vintage synth hooks and a cheerful groove. "6 songs of non-stop electro-pop dynamite."
PINK AND PURPLE is this new release. Brooklyn-based producer/instrumentalist, Alan Wilkis brings some great tracks on the new material... Hear some of what was good about the 1980s - Vintage synth hooks and a cheerful groove. "6 songs of non-stop electro-pop dynamite."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
