Let It Be

First of all, can I just say what goofballs the beatles look like right now in their scruffy hippie stage. Paul McCartney's beard is HEFTY and everyone has such a mop-top it is ridiculous.

Listening to this album makes me a little sad though, knowing it is the symbol of the end of an era.

Here are my favorite songs off of the album:

"Across the Universe"



This one is super acoustic/ slower, with hints of the sitar and other foreign sounding instruments. I also think the lyrics are dreamy, and they almost foreshaddow the oncoming break up:


Sounds of laughter, shades of life
Are ringing through my opened ears
Inciting and inviting me.
Limitless undying love, which
Shines around me like a million suns,
It calls me on and on across the universe

The lyrics insinuate a call to a new, better world and life. A calling for the
Beatles to drift toward their own destined paths. Life, man.

Of course, "Let it Be"


GET IT bearded Paul. Oh man, Paul is easily my favorite Beatle, I still have such a crush on him in his teen-heart throb days. Once again, this song is a bit somber/ nostalgic, and continues my sadness about their break up.

Finally, "Get Back"



This one features a kind of western sounding guitar, bringing back their sometimes country-sounding theme. There's also some funky keyboard in here I can dig.


In short, while I have much love for this album, it is not my favorite.

Bubbly for the Buble

So, I know Michael Buble is already very well known/ I am not presenting any new information, but I just had a re-discovery of how much I love him and I want the world to know it.

My recent Buble-kick began this december, when I popped his Christmas CD in my car and had a holly -jolly ride to school every morning with Michael serenading me as I sped to make it to class on time. Michael is one of those artists that I think shines so brightly because he is so ridiculously talented/ his voice is so unique and powerful that he doesn't have need to have a synthesized pop beat to accompany his voice. In fact, one of my favorite things about Buble's music besides his melodic voice is his common theme of having an orchestra/ wind-instrument collection playing the music in his tracks. It's usually very trumpet/piano/ bass heavy, and it makes me want to snap my fingers and waggle my finger.

My all time favorite:

Feeling Good:


He is the sexy smooth jazz god. This song also almost has a James Bond theme to it, especially present at 1:35.

Also, I know it's past Christmas so this song is not really one to be played in January, BUT HE IS JUST SO GOOD:



Seriously, while this isn't even really comparable to Mariah Carey's version since they are entirely different both musically and vocally, I prefer this version to hers. And that is saying something, cause Mariah's version is my Christmas jam.

But his voice is almost eerily good, there is a quality to it that I can't quite put my finger on that makes it magical.

And finally, I know this isn't super relevant to Michael's talent, but this seriously never fails to make me laugh. Michael's most popular song "Haven't met you Yet" vs. his very own Bad Lip Reading spoof, "Russian Unicorn"

Childish Gambino (Donald Glover)

Mr. Glover was first introduced to me through one of my favorite TV Shows, Community. And there is no other way to express my admiration for him other than very strong attraction and buckets of love. He and my other love, Justin Timberlake (go ahead, judge me) are like quadruple threats, dancin, singin, actin, and being good looking. Anywhoo, my older brother played Gambino's first album, Culdesac, about 2 years ago without telling me it was Donald Glover, who only knew then from Community, and there was a big ol' jaw drop moment.
My FAVORITE thing by far about Childish Gambino's music is the lyrics. This man is a pun wizard, I actually laugh aloud at some of his lyrics. I will post a few of my favorites:

His most popular song "Freaks and Geeks" is not my favorite song musically, but definitely lyrically. Here are some stand out lines:

I am runnin' this bitch, you are just a dog walker

Took the G out your waffle, all you got left is your ego

..and I wanted to include more but honestly they're a bit profane and I feel awkward posting them here, so that may be left up to individual research.

Aight, now here are my favorite songs and mash-ups,

"Heartbeat" off of his album, Camp. This one is a bit slower at parts, but daaaaaaaaaaaamn is it catchy. The music also has some techno-y keyboard elements, very similar to that of the DJ, Justice.


Here is my favorite mash-up "Try Outs" by Javelin, made from Gambino's original song, "Let Me Dope You". And the best part is, I actually hate the original version of this song, so Javelin turned something horrid into something absolutely beautiful.



And finally, here is my other favorite mash-up, "Turd in the Oven", which is a mash-up with Vampire Weekend's "Diplomat's Son". LOL at the title, originated from the lyric "my shit is hot shit, like a turd in the oven". That sounds like a Mr. A quote if I've ever heard one, except he might go for the sundae route.



Anyways, I have seen Gambino live at Stubbs and I was not disappointed, I loved his show. PLUS, Gambino's music is available for free download on his blogs and what not, which I think is so awesome.

Simon and Garfunkel Round 2

So, I really like Simon and Garfunkel and my parents always give me a very hard time for liking them. Why is this, is it a big joke and everyone actually thinks they're terrible except for me? What is this?

Anyways, I liked their first album that we listened to in class, and I like Bridge Over Troubled Water even more, go figure. Their genre is so hard for me to decipher, I guess it would fall under the big-umbrella of soft-rock, with elements of folk and jazz.

My main jams:

"The Boxer"



Being wildly instrumentally challenged, I have been re-listening over and over to a segment around 0:36  and 2:54 to decipher this old-timey instrument sound that I like. What is that? Anyways, my FAVORITE parts of the song are the "Lie-la-lie" refrain with the sweet drum kick that sounds like whip snap or something. It makes me feel like I'm in a western, and some ish is going down.

"Cecilia"



I feel like this is either in a million movies, or has been in my life is multiple other ways that I can't quite name. But I definitely have this song in my subconscious memory. I love the bongo-sounding drums and clapping as the main method of keeping the beat, very old school. But damn this song is catchy, it reminds me so much of the Beatles too, both lyrically and instrumentally. I also dig the xylophone solo.

In short, I really like Simon and Garfunkel, they are in my top 3 favorite bands to listen to in class. I hope we continue listening to their albums.

Black Sabbath

So, when we first started listening to Black Sabbath's first album, I was like no no nooo, this is not for me. I know how much Mr. A hates when we stereotype music into strict genres and make judgement based upon them, but I just really don't do metal. No. Not for me. And I know that Sabbath isn't even that heavy, I just wasn't having it. It sounded like the track list of Guitar Hero, and without my toy guitar to button push/ rock out on, I was left unsatisfied.

So, for the sake of forced tolerance and learning, I have forced myself to listen to more of their work and find some I like.



I guess I sort of like "Children of the Grave". It's one of those songs that if I was listening to while driving, I would be rapidly speeding or doing something stupid and reckless.

Also, "Wizard" is okay with me.



First of all, harmonica = yes. Any song with harmonica gains an automatic 2 points on a 10 point song scale, for me at least. Also, there are some pretty sweet guitar riffs in this song.

I just can't get into this genre of music. I feel like the only way I would ever really enjoy this music is if I was magically in Freaks and Geeks smoking a joint with James Franco. I just, I can't sing along, hum, or most importantly, wave my hands in the air like I just don't care, Frankly, it just makes me anxious and gives me a lil' bit of a headache.

The Cults

The Cults were an ACL discovery about a year ago, I do believe.

Here is my favorite, "Go Outside"



And here is probably their most popular song, "Never Saw the Point"



I personally find them super catchy and easy to listen to, I find that their music style is comparable to that of black keys or the XX, their music is a bit slow with heavy bass and their is always the presence of a quirky instrument like a xylophone or a funky keyboard.

One thing I wish that Cults would do is give their music a larger sound variety; if I am passively listening to their album, I can barely notice song changes or transitions. One band that I think has incredible versatility is Imagine Dragons, their style ranges from somber Coldplay sounding to almost dubstep-y then super upbeat and pop-like. Seriously, I am obsessed. But this blog post is about Cults, so I'll resist.

Here are some more jams I really like:








OH YEAH and one more cool thing, these guys do vinyl recording. That's pretty rad.

CEO out.