It was in the midsummer of 2006 when the advert for Feeder’s brand new compilation “The Singles” started to be shown regularly on the television. If anyone doesn’t know who Feeder are or you’ve never listened to their material, “The Singles” is a good place to start. Even though it is a compilation, it is one filled with 20 tracks of their most popular songs.
Out of the twenty, three new tracks were recorded for exclusive inclusion on the album. “Lost and Found” and “Save Us” were released as singles; “Burn the Bridges” was not, and it still amazes me that it wasn’t.
In the wake of the compilation’s release, Feeder’s official website had a major overhaul in design. It was basically changed so it had the same colour theme as the album cover, but it also let users listen to short samples of the tracks that were included. “Burn the Bridges” was the one which I jumped around to and played my air guitar to all around my living room, but before I knew it the sample was over and I had to start from the beginning all over again.
My cousin bought “The Singles” for me and gave it to me as a present on Christmas Day. I then went ahead and broke my original Playstation 2 just as I inserted the disc into it. That was a bad time for me. That’s a whole different story.
The point is “Burn the Bridges” is one of Feeder’s best. I think it’s great.
I owe a lot to EA Sports and their FIFA series. Not only because they made me more of a football (soccer…) fan, but because the music they had on their soundtracks was amazing! If I wasn’t playing FIFA, I don’t know what music I’d be listening to now. I definitely wouldn’t have my diverse taste that I have in music, if I do say so myself.
It’s going to be ten years since I’ve started listening to Lostprophets, and it’s all because this song was in FIFA 2004. Oh wow. Remember those times when the whole year was in the title instead of the last two numbers? Yep, I have been playing FIFA for that long.
“Burn Burn” was released as the first single from the band’s second album “Start Something”, which is my personal favourite and what I consider to be their best. It was one of the songs on that particular FIFA game that I learned the words to and would sing-along to whenever it came on, just because it was so energy-inducing.
It’s all about rebellion, which ties in with the theme of “getting up and doing something” which is present throughout the album. There’s plenty of “gang vocals” too, and is a good song to yell to whilst on a drunken night out with your mates. I’m not speaking from experience, I’m just saying you may want to do that if you’re into those activities.
Whilst lying in bed after finishing GCSEs, Tyler, the Creator appeared in an interview on Channel 4. I was left perplexed at how he behaved, it was like watching a six year old in an adult’s body. I’d never heard of him before, but I certainly became eager to hear the music he did.
Mostly everyone knows him for “Yonkers” and its video where he eats a live cockroach and proceeds to hang himself. I won’t talk about that anymore though, you can observe that in your own time. This post is dedicated to “Burger”, ‘a pretty cool track’ according to Tyler himself.
It can be found on the extra disc of the deluxe edition of “Goblin”, and probably for good reason. “Goblin” by itself is a clusterfuck of an album where Tyler raps about relationships, killing people, burning shit and fucking school whilst under the watch of his ‘psychiatrist’ Dr. TC. “Burger” does not fit in the album’s concept whatsoever and would have been out of place if included on the original tracklist.
“Burger” is a song which you can sit, relax, and possibly take an illegal substance to as Tyler, with Hodgy Beats in the chorus rhyme about what they do best….. writing down lyrics on paper and busting them out on the microphone.
There’s something about an album in which the songs have a musician playing their acoustic guitar with no other instruments. It’s very bare, vulnerable, naked, and yet so beautiful. It’s lovely to take a break from a continuing barrage of instruments and relax, turn off your mind and float downstream.
“Burden of Tomorrow” is the second track on “The Wild Hunt”, the second album by the Swedish folk artist The Tallest Man on Earth. This song was not the first I’d heard by him, but the track I originally listened to really stayed with me for some time that I had to hear the rest of the album.
I am not able to sing along to it. I do not know the lyrics. I just really admire the music, his voice and the chords he plays. I could only wish to produce something like this. It’s very uplifting.
Take some time out to listen. It was a very short post, I know. I’m sorry.
Jamie.
P.S. As my posts have only just become visible on my profile page, I’d like to say hello and check out my other posts too.
I’m very bored. I’m a bit upset too. I’m currently at home by myself and you would think “what’s the matter with you, surely you could do anything you want?” Yes. I’m not that kind of person though. I have food in here, an eclectic choice of music on my iTunes library and a few games on my PS3. But it’s not enough. The weather isn’t great, and even if I wanted to go out there’s nothing in my area that interests me. I may sound like a grouch, but it’s true. This may be the sign that university will probably be the best thing I could have right now. Only ten more days to go.
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For today’s song, it’s be your own PET again. I didn’t get a lot of views for yesterday’s post. be your own PET haven’t been a band for five years now which may play a part in that. It may have also been the way I outlined the song. There’s a range of possibilities.
“Bunk Trunk Skunk” is the second song on the band’s debut album. My sister had this on her Creative Zen Micro, but did not put it onto the Windows Media Player library that was on our old Windows XP computer. So when I snuck into her bedroom and took the Zen, I made sure that I listened to the song.
I realised why she may not have wanted me to listen to the song. Even though I was eleven at the time. It’s basically about prostitution, or some sort of activity which involves sex. My sis was very much against my knowledge of that subject.
The song is a real rocker. Every instrument is loud, Jemina Pearl shrieks that she is an ‘independent motherfucker with barely any effort. This track is definitely one to freak out to. Not dance. Just swing your arms around and lose control. Structurally, there isn’t really a chorus because everything that is said is repeated more than once, but it’s at the end when the band increase in tempo before not giving a shit what they’re playing. The cacophony of noise ends with a drum roll which collides into the next song. It’s better if you listen to both songs together just for that moment.
Jamie.
ARCTIC MONKEYS – “AM”
Oh, you thought I was finished? Oh, no. It was only the release of Arctic Monkeys’ new album on Monday! (Or yesterday, depending on where you live).
I haven’t bought it yet, but I listened to the exclusive stream on iTunes. I said in my “Brick by Brick” post that I haven’t been very excited for an Arctic Monkeys release for some time, and that was very much the same for “AM” too.
“R U Mine?” was supposed to be the non-album single that wouldn’t appear on another commercial release, but that ended up being the second track. I thought it was OK, when I first heard it. The song really relies on its scaly riff which plays throughout most of the track, and that applies to many other songs on “AM”, including the first proper single “Do I Wanna Know?”
The one thing that annoyed me on this album were the constant high-pitched backing vocals which appear on almost every song but apart from that the rest of the album is very solid. You’ve got more of those observational lyrics that everyone loves to hear from Alex Turner. Most of the tracks are riff oriented as I’ve already said. It’s an album to wear a leather jacket and sunglasses to, and then proceed to nod your head to the beat.
It is clear that these are not the same Arctic Monkeys from 2006. They have evolved into this new thing – I can’t explain it, they’ve developed this new sound. It’s a totally different band. It’s similar to The Strokes. People look to “Whatever People Say I Am” and automatically compare the rest of their work to it. But Arctic Monkeys have grown, Alex Turner’s voice has deepened into a smooth croon sufficient to make any lady weak at the knees. I think they’ve reached their stage of enlightenment.
“I Wanna Be Yours” is my highlight, it incorporates lyrics from a poem by John Cooper Clarke. It has a very dreamlike atmosphere about it. That’s all I say. Get the album if you’re interested.
ARCADE FIRE – REFLEKTOR
Goodness me. Arcade Fire too?
Uh-huh. Arcade Fire release their fourth album “Reflektor” this October, and this is the video for the title track.
One thing to notice is how bloody long it is. It’s almost eight minutes! Don’t let that stop you from listening. A lot of things happen in it. I can’t remember enough to tell you everything, the word “Reflektor” is sung a fair amount of times and the legend that is David Bowie is in there!
It has a relentless disco 4/4 beat, similar to Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) and there may be a lot of fans who hate that. It is produced by James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. I’m not sure but maybe that could have had something to do with it. We’ll just have to wait and see how the rest of the album sounds.
This is a very promising release though. It’s very adventurous.
