Fiercely Me

3 records play in my head. 3 short "first impression" reviews magically appear below. 1 winner. You. 1 ounce of reverb: Not worth your time. Not even if its free streaming. 2 ounces of reverb: Ok, but still a little disappointing. 3 ounces of reverb: Good stuff. You might even want to buy the download. 4 ounces of reverb: People will buzz. You might even star listening to CDs again! 5 ounces of reverb: A modern day classic! 180 gram vinyl is not even good enough! Jim's James "Regions of Light and Sound of God" 2.5 ounces of reverb.  Good but not going to become great.  First off I'm not a huge My Morning Jacket fan.  I get them to a point.  Jim James is the lead singer and driving force behind MMJ and I've always felt their music was missing something.  It can be grandiose.  Sometimes rocking.  Jim's voice is strong.  I've always felt the songs just didn't grab me enough.  I can't remember a time I heard an MMJ song and fe...

So my wife and kids are away at a party (I know I am such a Rockstar with a capital aaaaarrrrr!) That can mean only one thing! (Actually it just means they are at a family party and I get some Fiercely Me time!). Time to crank up the amp and hopefully write a song. To be continued... Yes! The drought is over! "Whiskey Shoppers" the demo is started and finished! It feels so good to be a songwriter again! I haven't decided yet if I will share it with the world. I usually like to listen to a demo 3 or 4 hundred times before I decide if I like it or not. Stay tuned. Or not.

I sat here tonight watching the Packers beat the Vikings in the playoffs and the whole time I wished I was writing a song. Then I thought, "Why not a whole album?" The first song title came to me out of thin air. "Whiskey Shoppers". First thing I should do is Google that and make sure it hasn't been used already. Hold on...BRB. Nope. It hasn't been used. I love when my idea turns out to be free game. Free game? Is that the saying I'm trying to think of? Two pints of Louie's Demise and my brain is already cloudy. So I wrote the first verse and I'm thinking of grabbing a guitar. Problem is my wife is sleeping and I really don't want to wake her. She had a bad day today. Screw it. I'll grab the acoustic and play quietly. No good. Couldn't get the words to do anything cool. No melodies jumped out. So go to bed and wait till tomorrow. Wait...No...Not yet. I've been thinking of writing a song called "Hey Lucia...

I love music more than you love your children.  Oh except for the fact that I'm always looking for something new and it takes a lot to keep the old stuff around.  Just like your children! Not-so-ridiculous record review rating scale: 1 day of beach vacation:  Really?  That's all you got? 2 days of beach vacation:  That's called a weekend.  Meh. 3 days of beach vacation:  Nice.  Almost enough to last a while. 4 days of beach vacation:  Quality time!  Worth the price. 5 days of beach vacation:  The best!  Classic!  Cool!  Conch! Band of Horses "Mirage" 2.5 days of beach vacation.  Simple.  Rock. The first song "Knock Knock" made me hopeful.  It's direct.  To the point.  Rock and roll with simple production.  There are other tunes on this new record that are also pretty cool.  However there is a lack of hooks.  The songs are all just kinda cool.  Nothing is "Knock...

Records spin one time over the Internets (usually).  I come up with some obvious yet slightly weird rating system.  Each record gets a rating and some snarky comments.  Okay maybe not snarky, but probably not very nice.  I don't like very much new music these days. 1 Sack of Jay Cutler - Ehh...most people living in Wisconsin can claim one. 2 Sacks of Jay Cutler - I guess that's pretty good.  But he probably still beat you down field more than 2 times. 3 Sacks of Jay Cutler - Cool.  He's rattled and probably threw at least one interception. 4 Sacks of Jay Cutler - Nice!  You probably beat his team! 5 Sacks of Jay Cutler - You are a BEAST!!!  We need your ring size! Patterson Hood "Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance" 3 Sacks of Jay Cutler.  Pretty cool. Patterson Hood is the main songwriter and vocalist in the band Drive By Truckers.  He is a true storyteller.  The songs on this solo album are not going to surprise you ...

Back at this being a jerk thing.  You know.  Writing about records and telling you that it's all crap. Random rating scale: 1 brand new air conditioner - Yuck. 2 brand new air conditioners - Ok, but it's still pretty uncomfortable in here. 3 brand new air conditioners - Nice.  Better than the Joneses. 4 brand new air conditioners - Now you are just showing off! 5 brand new air conditioners - Opulence! Smashing Pumpkins "Oceania" 2.5 brand new air conditioners.  Okay.  Heading in the right direction. History: I la la loved "Gish"!  Wanted to make my guitar sound just like Billy's guitar.  Wanted my band to sound just like the Punkins.  Then with each record that came out after "Gish" I slowly fell out of love with the band.  This one has flashes but as you will probably hear or read in other places it's not all that.  For me the problem is Billy Corgan is too grandiose in his musical vision.  He is much better when he is...

Rock and Roll ain't noise pollution...at least not when you have your headphones on. Random record review ratings: 1 Grape Ape - Not good.  Not good at all. 2 Grape Apes - Meh. 3 Grape Apes - Good.  But average good. 4 Grape Apes - Cool.  Rock worth your time and moola! 5 Grape Apes - A brand new masterpiece worth your time and your exclamation points!!! King Tuff "King Tuff" 4 Grape Apes.  Tuff stuff! I knew nothing of this band.  I heard some mentions on a podcast.  Only heard the name and had no idea what the music is like.  So this is truly first reaction: Sweet!  I'm a sucker for raw rock riffs with wimpy indie boy vocals.  Reminds me of growing up on Superchunk.  The songs aren't knocking me over but they are fun.  Just enough roll with the rock.  I will be digging into this band more very soon.  Highlights: "Bad Thing" and "Anthem". Rhett Miller "The Dreamer"3 Grape Apes.  Genuine.  Countryi...