Tawmis wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:23 pm
I mean, some went on to do solo careers (Paul from Beetles) and did well. But they have music/lyric writers working for them.
True. I don't know if Paul writes his own music or lyrics, but even he wouldn't get far without a backing band (whether it be musicians or backup singers, or both).
Tawmis wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:23 pm
(And ironically, GnR is back together and touring)
True. I remember GnR as they were in the early-to-mid-90s, though; I haven't followed any of their music since, although I'm aware they'd gone through a whole bunch of other musicians.
Tawmis wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:23 pm
But yes, I despise anyone in a band who's ego gets in front of them.
Which is happening a lot in Heavy Metal. Guys who never did much, because music was their career, and burned all their money; and need to keep making money by living off an old band's name.
Very true. Music is a collaborative pastime (and business). Some egoism is healthy; it's important to be confident in what you do. (If you're not, why should anyone listen to you?) It's only when it goes further, and becomes arrogance - that won't win you any friends. (Then again, that's true in most other things, too).
I suppose fame goes to people's heads. If you're level-headed enough to deal with it, it doesn't become a problem -- e.g. I always respected Slash for not letting fame go to his head. He just keeps his head down and gets on with it.
Bono came across as being a bit of an egoist in the past, but it's a credit to him and to U2 that they stayed together for as long as they have.
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 11:08 pm
by goatmeal
Tawmis wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:23 pm
And yes, Weird Al is awesome, but even 95% of his library is not his own. He's literally parodying other people's music - so he's already got the music sample part down (with some modifications) - and then just creating funny lyrics, by a pre-existing set of lyrics. But again, he has his own originals on every album - which, often times (for me) tend to be the worse of it - with the wild exception of "One More Minute (With You)" which is such an incredible song because of how over the top it is.
Not quite sure about your estimate of "95% of his library" not being his own -- if we're talking about his "popular" stuff, sure.
And while those direct parodies typically require only changing the lyrics to popular songs of the day, it's his songs "in the style of" other artists (musical pastiche or "style parodies") that showcase his (and his band's) talents. Condensing and synthesizing an artist's or band's musical style into a single, wholly-original yet *recognizable* song is a much more difficult a process, especially considering the varied musical genres he's covered...
From the "Dare To Be Stupid (song)" article on Wikipedia:
In an interview on VH1's Behind the Music, Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh stated in reaction to the song that: "I was in shock. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. He sort of re-sculpted that song into something else and... I hate him for it, basically."
Truly high praise from Mothersbaugh, who essentially admitted that Al's "Dare To Be Stupid" was the best Devo song that they never wrote...
Tawmis wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:23 pm
And yes, Weird Al is awesome, but even 95% of his library is not his own. He's literally parodying other people's music - so he's already got the music sample part down (with some modifications) - and then just creating funny lyrics, by a pre-existing set of lyrics. But again, he has his own originals on every album - which, often times (for me) tend to be the worse of it - with the wild exception of "One More Minute (With You)" which is such an incredible song because of how over the top it is.
Not quite sure about your estimate of "95% of his library" not being his own -- if we're talking about his "popular" stuff, sure.
And while those direct parodies typically require only changing the lyrics to popular songs of the day, it's his songs "in the style of" other artists (musical pastiche or "style parodies") that showcase his (and his band's) talents. Condensing and synthesizing an artist's or band's musical style into a single, wholly-original yet *recognizable* song is a much more difficult a process, especially considering the varied musical genres he's covered...
From the "Dare To Be Stupid (song)" article on Wikipedia:
In an interview on VH1's Behind the Music, Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh stated in reaction to the song that: "I was in shock. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. He sort of re-sculpted that song into something else and... I hate him for it, basically."
Truly high praise from Mothersbaugh, who essentially admitted that Al's "Dare To Be Stupid" was the best Devo song that they never wrote...
I am not knocking Weird Al - I own all of his CDs.
I torture my wife ALL the time when we go out to the Drive thru and there's a long line with Trapped in the Drive Thru, which as far as I know is one of his unique songs (not a parody of something).
The lyrics to this song is literally my wife and I...
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2021 9:34 am
by JasefWisener
That one is actually a parody of Trapped in the Closet haha.
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2021 11:14 am
by Tawmis
JasefWisener wrote: ↑Thu Jul 22, 2021 9:34 am
That one is actually a parody of Trapped in the Closet haha.
Is it? The original's title song actually sounds pretty funny!
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2021 12:13 pm
by goatmeal
Tawmis wrote: ↑Thu Jul 22, 2021 2:27 am
I am not knocking Weird Al - I own all of his CDs.
Whew! And here I thought we were gonna have ourselves a tussle on our hands!
Boy, it's nice to see fellow "Weirdos" (my name for the 'Close Personal Friends of Al') here on this board -- I have all the CDs, too, as well his recent Squeezebox set.
And just to show my age, somewhere at my parent's house I still have my 45 rpm of "Eat It" that I bought in 7th grade...
Tawmis wrote: ↑Thu Jul 22, 2021 2:27 am
I am not knocking Weird Al - I own all of his CDs.
Whew! And here I thought we were gonna have ourselves a tussle on our hands!
Boy, it's nice to see fellow "Weirdos" (my name for the 'Close Personal Friends of Al') here on this board -- I have all the CDs, too, as well his recent Squeezebox set.
And just to show my age, somewhere at my parent's house I still have my 45 rpm of "Eat It" that I bought in 7th grade...
DARE TO BE STUPID was the first cassette I bought from Weird Al. I think UHF came out before, and I'd heard it but DTBS was the first one I officially owned. One More Minute With You will always be one of my top favorite songs because it was on that - and I loved the extreme of the lyrics and how he described stuff.
Tawmis wrote: ↑Thu Jul 22, 2021 2:27 am
I am not knocking Weird Al - I own all of his CDs.
Whew! And here I thought we were gonna have ourselves a tussle on our hands!
Boy, it's nice to see fellow "Weirdos" (my name for the 'Close Personal Friends of Al') here on this board -- I have all the CDs, too, as well his recent Squeezebox set.
And just to show my age, somewhere at my parent's house I still have my 45 rpm of "Eat It" that I bought in 7th grade...
DARE TO BE STUPID was the first cassette I bought from Weird Al. I think UHF came out before, and I'd heard it but DTBS was the first one I officially owned. One More Minute With You will always be one of my top favorite songs because it was on that - and I loved the extreme of the lyrics and how he described stuff.
Yes - various euphemisms. Brings the song alive.
I'd rather dive into a swimming pool filled with double-edged razor blades...
Ow! *wince* Ow, ow, ow!
I thought the song shows its age with reference to a Rolodex, but after looking it up - hey, the Rolodex was invented in 1956. Just in time for the "doo-wop" genre, which is what Al and the band are doing. Cool.
Oh, and Tawm - I presume you've seen the music video? Keep an eye on Weird Al's bandmates doing various "doo-wop" back-up band dance moves. They are hilarious.
More recently, I got a big kick out of the music video for "Tacky" (*dies laughing at all the costumes and facial expressions* ), and of course The Hamilton Polka. The entire "Hamilton" show in 5 minutes?
(Speaking of which, I haven't had a chance to see the "Hamilton" show. There's been a lot of hype around it, but they haven't got to my hometown yet. Has anyone else seen it? Is it good? I've read some short biographies of Alexander Hamilton, though, with special reference to his famous duel with Aaron Burr).
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2021 2:46 am
by Tawmis
I am going to assume everyone knows VAN HALEN's song JUMP...
And that awhile ago, Eddie Van Halen, passed away, having lost his battle to Cancer.
Mike Dawes, who I became a fan of when he did a Metallica song (back in 2017)... and made a fan video, with his music to the trailer of PUNISHER (Netflix version), because they'd used the same Metallica song...
My video...
He even commented on my video, which was incredible. (I'd told him I made it)
Well, anyway - he did JUMP, in honor of Eddie's passing.... and... good God, it's so incredible...
And some people react....
Guitar teacher...
And a classical composer...
And both talk about how Mike, somehow weaves all the pieces together....
Both cuss in shock, a few times.
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Mon Jul 26, 2021 10:05 pm
by Tawmis
When I went to Blabbermouth.net to check out some music news... I was not expecting to read:
What's crazy is I have been listening to Mike Howe Metal Church for the last three days...
This is stunning that he's gone. And 55. Barely older than I am.
Man, this was crushing news.
RIP Mike Howe.
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:32 am
by Rath Darkblade
RIP Mike Howe.
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2021 1:58 am
by Tawmis
Tawmis wrote: ↑Mon Jul 26, 2021 10:05 pm
When I went to Blabbermouth.net to check out some music news... I was not expecting to read: Mike Howe, vocalist of Metal Church, dead at 55.
What's crazy is I have been listening to Mike Howe Metal Church for the last three days...
This is stunning that he's gone. And 55. Barely older than I am.
Man, this was crushing news.
RIP Mike Howe.
According to TMZ, neither drugs nor alcohol are believed to be factors in the sudden death of METAL CHURCH frontman Mike Howe.
A spokesperson for the Humboldt County Sheriff's Dept. told the tabloid site that cops got a call Monday morning just after 10 a.m. in Eureka, California reporting an unexpected death at a home. By the time deputies arrived, they found the 55-year-old dead at the scene.
According to police, drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors in the death and no controlled substances or paraphernalia were located at the scene.
Howe, who fronted METAL CHURCH from 1988 until 1994, officially rejoined the band in April 2015.
Prior to joining METAL CHURCH more than three decades ago, Howe spent two years fronting California metal act HERETIC.
The reunion between Mike and METAL CHURCH was put in motion in July of 2014 when Mike started working with guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof on a side project Kurdt was forming with Nigel Glockler from SAXON. Through these initial conversations, Kurdt convinced Mike to ultimately return to METAL CHURCH. The idea was to see if they could recapture some of the magic from the three albums METAL CHURCH released in the late '80s: "The Human Factor", "Blessing In Disguise" and "Hanging In The Balance". Out of those sessions, 2016's "XI" was born and captured the sound that made the band fan favorites in the '80s and mixed it with a new, invigorated sound.
METAL CHURCH's latest release was "From The Vault", which arrived in April 2020 via Rat Pak Records. The effort was a special-edition compilation album that featured 14 previously unreleased songs from the Howe era, including four newly recorded studio tracks, among them a redux of the band's fan favorite classic "Conductor".
Re: The Music Thread.
Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2021 8:40 pm
by Tawmis
Upcoming band A-Z (pronounced "A through Z") - He explains the reason for the name, too! Kind of cool.
Features members from WARLORD (great bad!) and vocalist of FATES WARNING (great vocalist!)
Metal Blade Records has announced the signing of A-Z.
A-Z (pronounced "A through Z") equals Ray Alder (FATES WARNING; vocals) and Mark Zonder (ex-FATES WARNING, WARLORD; drums), and also means "anything is possible" — and with this lineup of musicians, that is no exaggeration. This exciting new band reunites Alder with Zonder, and they're joined by Philip Bynoe (WARLORD, STEVE VAI, NUNO BETTENCOURT) on bass, Joop Wolters (STEVE WALSH, SIMON PHILLIPS) on guitar, and Vivien Lalu (STEVE WALSH, JORDAN RUDESS) on keys.
Zonder comments: "When we were looking for a deal, Metal Blade was number one on the list. First worked with Brian Slagel about 40 years with 'Metal Massacre II' and WARLORD. No question that they do a great job and we are very excited and proud to be back at MB."
Musically, A-Z is melodic and progressive, bringing to mind the classic FATES WARNING-era of albums like "Parallels" and "Pleasant Shade Of Grey", while recalling the hooks of classic 1970s and 1980s hard rock artists. The band's upcoming debut will be the first time Alder and Zonder have recorded together since 2004, and it will surely please both FATES WARNING and melodic hard rock fans alike.
In the meantime, fans can check out a video signing message from A-Z and Metal Blade CEO/founder Brian Slagel below.
A-Z is:
Ray Alder - vocals
Mark Zonder -drums
Philip Bynoe - bass
Joop Wolters - guitar
Vivien Lalu - keys
They had to delete and amend the statement, because idiots took it as an opportunity to stand on their podiums.... rather than just remember the vocalist the (Metal) world lost. https://blabbermouth.net/news/metal-chu ... d-version/
There's been a lot of hype around it, but they haven't got to my hometown yet. Has anyone else seen it? Is it good?