This is a blog where I write words about music and you read them. Feel free to let me know how I'm doing in the comments, Facebook, email (daniel.soskey@gmail.com), or on Twitter @soskwatch (see sidebar).
Before I start today's post, I'd just like to announce this blog has reached over 1000 hits! That's honestly pretty cool, since this project started really as a way for me to just write down some of the crazy music thoughts in my head. I appreciate everyone who helped me out by promoting and even just reading these words. Thank you. Now on to The Griswolds!
Be Impressive. That's a term that's been bouncing around my head for the past few months. After discovering their number one track back in the spring, I highly anticipated The Griswolds' debut album as titled above. At the time they had only released about five tracks. Unfortunately for me, I usually need more content than that to start writing a band. This meant I had to wait to talk about one of the best new bands coming on to the music scene right now. Yes, The Griswolds have been publishing music and playing together for two years now, but it has only been the last six months since they've gained major ground.
With the release of "Beware the Dog" (their current most listened track on Spotify), their popularity exploded and it caught my attention. Once I heard this song, I was convinced that The Griswolds are something special. Pay attention to them in the coming years. Their high energy rhythms backing incredibly deep lyrics position The Griswolds to reach incredible heights very soon. I look forward to what else they can bring to the table musically. Let's take a look at what they've already brought so far:
Beware the Dog (3:21)
Damn this song is catchy. The combination of the playful riff at the beginning and the awesome chorus means that you'll have this song stuck in your head for days. It's what personally got me interested in The Griswolds in the first place and been their most played song by far. Supposedly, behind the upbeat tone hides a sad story of losing a friend to a drug addiction.
Heart of a Lion (2:47)
This is my personal favorite by The Griswolds. It's got everything you love about The Griswolds' sound in its purest form (in my opinion). It's got a great beat, great vocals, and a killer instrumental energy that leaves you wanting to throw it on repeat. If I were to try to cover one song by The Griswolds, this would be it.
Red Tuxedo (2:00)
The last song I'll show you is a much different feel. It's still lighthearted like the rest of The Griswolds' tracks , but it's a lot more mellow. It's a pretty simple song, but it has a sweet message. To me, it's a story about someone's first date ever. Capturing the essence of that in a song so well is truly impressive and the reason why this song was picked.
I'm so glad the first Musician Monday back for Second Session was The Griswolds. What do you think of them?
As in music, some of the most important moments of life are the silences in between the noise. Take a moment yourself today to experience that silence in memorial of those who lost their lives thirteen years ago. To accompany you, I have provided one of John Cage's most famous compositions, 4:33.
WHALE by Yellow Ostrich is my favorite song of all time, and I personally think it is the best song ever made. There, I said it. Blog post over.
Oh, you wanted to know why? Okay, fine.
The title "favorite song" often gets thrown around by listeners from time to time. I'm sure I've said so in my past about one particular song or another. Taking a step back and reflecting on these statements, I realized I truly did not think it was my favorite song ever. People do this kind of thing all the time, saying "Oh my God, XYZ is my favorite artist ever. Nothing can get better than this." Then talk to them in a month and they haven't listened to that artist in three weeks. That's fine. It's understandable that people get excited about new awesome things and claim them to be their favorite. That being said, I am completely, 100% serious when I say that WHALE is my number one, hands down, favorite song of all time. Crazy, right?
Back when I first heard WHALE, I was enthralled. I stumbled upon it while scouring the internet for new, awesome music. I stumbled upon Yellow Ostrich and saw the single-worded title sitting comfortably at the top of the artist's played songs on Spotify. Immediately following the starting tone, it captured me. It started out with a simple, echoing drumbeat that hooked me. A few bars later, there was my siren's call. The harmonized "Oh-Oh"s brought Alex Schaaf's unique vocals to the forefront as he began WHALE's poetic verse. The drums pick up complexity and a tambourine shakes its jangly rings to create a truly awe-inspiring beat. The lead vocals combine with the soft background voices and some well-placed silence to keep my on the edge of my seat. After the single chorus, I was on the edge of my seat. What was this beautiful beast building up to? Only a moment of silence had passed when the whole theme came back with more energy and happiness than before. Never in my life had I felt such a powerful emotion channeling through me like this first encounter with this amazing song. I could tell I had found something special.
Despite my utter enjoyment for the song, I was skeptical. I knew it was good, but by then I had realized that such a bold claim of favorite song was not something I should throw around lightly. I gave it the old Spotify gold star and kept it in my current playlist and on my mind.
A month passed and I was invited to sit in on a new friend's radio show (shout out to Isaac for the invite). He and his co-hosts allowed me to play one song and to talk about it. I chose WHALE, and when I heard it go over the air and saw the look on everyone's face in the studio, that first rush of bliss hit me once more. I couldn't believe this song hadn't been more well-known, especially given that everyone who heard it enjoyed it thoroughly. At this point, WHALE had officially become my spring jam that I wanted to show everyone. Still I was hesitant to put it on the golden pedestal that was "Favorite Song of All Time and Space". I needed more.
I listened to WHALE often during this summer, and I really took it for granted. I always assumed I could rely on its upbeat sound and awesome vocals to cheer my day up after a shitty day of work. I continued to show people, never thinking once I wouldn't be able to enjoy Yellow Ostrich's best song. I even grew to appreciate most of their work on what seemed to be a similar level to WHALE. I didn't realize what this song meant to me until I went without it.
I went overseas to Europe this summer for a week and a half, but those eleven days were all I needed to understand the impact this song had on me. The only electronics I brought to Europe were my Ipod and a camera, and I hadn't updated my Ipod in over two years. This meant I couldn't listen to WHALE or show it off to the many friends I met during my stay in Holland and France. Halfway through I realized I missed listening to WHALE. I literally missed a song more than a lot of people I had left in the states. It felt like I physically depended on it, like it was an addiction. The first thing I listened to when I arrived back in Jersey was WHALE, and its sweet tunes felt like I had just caught up with an old friend. That was the moment I realized I had found the one: my favorite song of all time. And I now am confident that it shall never be overthrown from the spot where it stands.
I'm not too naive to see the potential future where I do, in fact, find a song I like better. So many talented musicians create so many amazing new songs every day, it seems like it's only a matter of time before I hear my new favorite song of all time and this whole post makes me look like an idiot. The crazy thing is, I don't think I will. WHALE has been my number one jam for six months without break. In music terms, that is forever. I have never even had a song that close to being my number one song for that long before, and WHALE still holds that title firmly for me.
Welcome back, everyone, to Season 2 of Soskwatch Sightings! I took a break over the summer because keeping up with the blog on top of my job was leaving me with little time to do what summer is all about: reuniting with old friends and spending time with the family. Now that I am back and fully situated as a Sophomore in college (Holy shit, where has the time gone!?) I will resume the blog. To kick this year off, I wanted to do something special. So unlike normal posts where I share three or four songs with the world, for this post I've decided to share 50! Below is a playlist recapping most of my summer in music as well as a few extra bits that hint towards future posts.
A short disclaimer: I'm using Spotify as the format through which I'll present large playlists. To listen, you'll need to sign up (it's free don't worry). And for those claiming I'm hypocritical for using Spotify, keep this in mind:
I am a poor college student. I can't afford all of the music I want to hear, so until I have the cash flow required to own all of my music, paying for Spotify is the next best thing I can do.
The format for the playlists is a lot more clean than YouTube and the player is easy to implement.
So without further ado, here is my summer in a musical nutshell:
Hey everyone! It's been a while since I posted on here because of Memorial Day and work being more of a full-time job than a part-time one. As it appears that my schedule won't be relenting any time soon, my posts during the summer might be more infrequent. Do not fret! I will post as much as I have the energy to write, so posts will keep coming. Anyway, on to today's musician. Today I'd like to bring to light a slightly older band, having started in the mid 80s. They've had a long and relatively successful career for the last couple decades, and they produced new content as recent as 5 or 6 years ago. Unfortunately for them, they did not receive as much recognition as they deserve, so that's why I'm talking about them today. I am talking about Yo La Tengo.
Spanish for "I have it!", Yo La Tengo is an indie rock trio out of the best state in the US (Jersey obviously) that brings a laid back approach to the very broad indie genre. Their songs are calm and relaxed; I used them to survive my first round of finals because they kept me calm when all hope seemed lost. Every track evokes the classic feel-good emotions that allow the listener to just sit and enjoy the tunes. The members are quite versatile musically as well. Each member contributes to the vocals as well as plays at least two instruments while performing as Yo La Tengo. This allows them to effectively customize each song to have the optimal instrumentation. As stated before, Yo La Tengo never made it to the mainstream despite decades of quality music. Despite this fact, they still enjoy many fans that still support their talents. Here are my picks for this week:
Autumn Sweater (5:18)
Autumn Sweater was the very first song that I heard by Yo La Tengo. It came on while I was listening to Air radio on Pandora (I now am personally against Pandora, more on that later) and I absolutely loved how awesome I felt while listening. The organ mixes well with the awesome drumming and simple vocals to create a true masterpiece.
Leaving Home (2:47)
This instrumental piece is the pinnacle of chill music. It isn't busy and it features a soft, warm guitar lead. The general volume of the piece is quiet and it's got a wandering, dreamy tempo. To me, this is the ideal song to listen to to help you fall asleep. It's quite relaxing.
I'll Be Around (4:47)
This is my favorite Yo La Tengo song by far. It also is the sole reason I didn't blow my brains out while trying to study for both of my Physics finals this year. The full, yet calm background cradles the short verses of lyrics. While brief, these lyrics hold a lot of power in them. To me, this song is saying to the audience, I will always be there for you. Don't worry about your troubles in life, because I will be there for you. I strongly advise you to put everything down for a few minutes, clear your mind, and listen to this track in full. You won't regret it.
What do you think of Yo La Tengo? What other awesome bands don't get the recognition they deserve? Let me know you opinions in the comments, and have a relaxed week.
Hey everyone! Welcome back to Musician Monday, that special time of the week where some awesome bands' sound waves enter your ears. This week we are going international with a Norwegian group that started off in the year 2000. Filled with fast tempo and electronic style, they are upbeat and always drive the energy in the room through the roof. This high energy and their poppish sounds are the perfect background for your next weird Euro dance party. Of course, I'm talking about Datarock.
Datarock's big appeal comes from two major sources, their physical style and their sound. First the style. As seen from above, they look like your stereotypical international hit artists. They dress weird (all in tight red jumpsuits) and act even weirder. Their music videos are super artsy and they come across as too cool for the public. Under this facade is a wacky group of musicians that don't care what people think of them. To me, they are an example of the ultimate bad-asses in this way. Next is their music. Their songwriting is hilarious. All of the songs are super quirky, and a lot of them reference random things like falling in love at computer camp or Maybelline. Backing these often shouted vocals is an even better instrumental section. Featuring heavy synth, the backing is very electronic and evokes the stereotypical European funky pop that you'd expect out of these guys. All in all, Datarock is a group that looks exactly how they should sound, and then they sound even better. Here are some of their songs:
Computer Camp Love (3:08)
Combining a hilarious music video with an even more hilarious story, Computer Camp Love is exactly what I'm talking about when it comes to wacky song lyrics. Despite the weirdness, the song has an awesome beat that catch your attention and won't leave your head for the day.
True Stories (2:50)
This next track off of their second album shows off Datarock's groovy side. It feature's a moving beat and yet another weird and awesome music video. The lyrics sound like they make sense when you listen to them, but look at the actual lyrics and they really say nothing. The whole sound is through their delivery and melodies behind it. One could argue the song is just a reference to older music and its influence as well.
Laurie (4:25)
Lastly, here's my favorite Datarock song. Laurie is full of feel-good sound with its calm, steady melody and upward, driving baseline. Other than that, I don't have much to comment. It's pretty simple otherwise; just give it a listen and enjoy it.
That concludes this brief segment on Datarock. In other news, I still haven't gotten off of my lazy butt to finish up and publish the Spotify article's conclusion, but it's coming. One day when I'm not too tired from work to actually do something valuable I'll put it together and put it up. Until then, let me know what you think of Datarock and of anyone else who you think deserves a mention on here.
Hey everyone, it's your favorite 500 or so words you read every week; Musician Monday! It's finally summer time, and with that I want to talk about one of the musicians I hold in high regard. Many may not know his name because instead of taking center stage, he prefers to have a role more in the background. Behind many famous artists like Cee Lo Green, Beck, The Black Keys, and James Mercer, this man has provided a lot of the catchy beats that you have grown to know and love over this past decade. Of course, I'm talking about Brian Burton, or by his stage name, Danger Mouse.
Danger Mouse is a talented individual, playing guitar, base, keyboard, drums, organ, and synth in varying amounts in each of his collaborations. As stated before, Danger Mouse is not known as a solo artist. Every big project he has produced or been a part of has been in collaboration or a remix of other content. Gaining his first popularity by creating The Grey Album, a full album mash-up of Jay-Z's "The Black Album" and The Beatles' "The White Album", Danger Mouse was after asked to produce with the Gorillaz to create Demon Days. Mouse then formed Gnarls Barkley with now solo artist Cee Lo Green. Being the brains behind the beats of such hits like "Crazy" and "Goin On" in this duo brought them to the top of the charts. After the two split, Mouse then helped produce Beck's Modern Guilt. In a more recent duo, Mouse has been working with James Mercer in one of my favorite groups, Broken Bells (in fact in my Top 10 Artists of All Time and Space). He also created an album with Sparklehorse called Dark Was the Night and an album called Rome with many different lead artists, including Norah Jones and Jack White. Clearly Danger Mouse has done so much for recent music; let's take a look at some of his best stuff:
Going On (2:54)
From Gnarls Barkley's album Odd Couple, "Going On" is my favorite song by the duo. It's so upbeat and got such a great beat, I can't help but want to stop everything I'm doing and start dancing when I hear it. Combining Green's awesome voice and Mouse's amazing instrumentals and production, Gnarls Barkley challenges the likes of The White Stripes and The Black Keys for best duo of the new millennium.
Black (3:32)
Featured in the fourth season finale of hit show Breaking Bad, Black is a song that evokes such a relieved emotion from the audience that a great weight has been lifted. This song comes from the album Rome that Danger Mouse produced with Daniele Luppi, and it's my favorite on the album.
The Ghost Inside (3:18)
While he was in the Broken Bells duo, I first discovered Danger Mouse as his own separate entity from Gnarls Barkley, and this was the song I first heard (shoutout to Jess for showing me this awesome track). Both Mercer and Mouse kill it on this track, making in my favorite until their recent album with "After the Disco" as shown in my Top 10 article.
As can be seen, Danger Mouse has been in the background of many of this decades awesome and iconic indie songs. Where else do you think we'll see him in the future? Let me know in the comments and let me know your opinion on his work. Stay tuned for later in the week when I release the final part of my Spotify article as well!
