A Tribe Called Quest: Can I kick it?

I really like the song Can I Kick It by A Tribe Called Quest. The rhymes are pretty cheesy but catchy. And it seems that the lyrics of the song are full of ideas and intelligent messages, but the way they express their ideas is not serious. Like they’re not preaching their ideas. The lyrics are really original unlike today’s rap which just talks about sex, girls, money and drugs.

A Tribe Called Quest is a hip-hop group from the early 90s, members included Q-tip. I usually don’t like hip-hop or rap but I really like all of that old stuff like Eazy-E, N.W.A., Dre, Ice Cube. Rap today just isn’t like it used to be.

Dang (M. Ward follow up)

So I’m still listening to M. Ward…I’ve tried listening to other stuff lately because I’ve been listening to M. Ward so much but I keep commin’ back. Let’s see since my last post I got another M. Ward album, Post-War, which came out in 2006.

Like I said in my first post reviewing M. Ward, the music is similar from album to album. I played a song from Post-War right before I listened to one of of Hold Time, his newest album, and they sounded like they could be on the same album. But I definetly like the new album Hold Time a lot better. I like Hold Time more than Post-War because I had never heard much M. Ward before and then I just listened through Hold Time and I liked every single song, no joke they were all really good. It’s been about a week or two since I got Post-War and I still haven’t listened to it all the way through. This is probably because I keep going back and listening to Hold Time. Don’t get me wrong Post-War is really good, 2 of my favorite M. Ward songs are off of this album, “Chinese Translation,” and “Poison Cup,” but Hold Time is a lot more catchy, like as I’m writing this I was listening to Post-War in the beginning, and then a song from Hold Time came on and I just smiled and started tapping my foot.

If you haven’t listened to, or even heard of  M. Ward yet I recommend that you check him out. It’s really easy listening music so If you like that check it out.

Post-War

Watch the videos to the right and compare Hold Time and Post-War for yourself.

“Rave On” is from Hold Time

“Chinese Translation” is from Post-War

M. Ward Review

So I just got the new M. Ward album, “Hold Time,” well it’s not really new it came out in February but it’s his latest one. But anyways I got the new album and it’s all I’ve been listening to lately, I’m listening to it right now. I seriously listen to it since I get up till I go to sleep, I fall asleep with my iPod on. I can’t really compare M. Ward to any other band, except She & Him but he’s in that band. I know that he is inspired by oldies like the Beach Boys, but I really can’t compare him to anything, that’s a good thing. I started listening to M. Ward maybe a year ago, but that was only a couple of songs. Then after a while I really got into She & Him, M. Ward is the guitarists and producer in this band with actress Zooey Deschanel. I really liked M. Ward’s guitar work in She & Him so I thought that I should check out his solo work. So I got his latest album and I’ve been listening to it ever since then.

M. Ward tends to focus his music on time, the new album is named “Hold Time,” a song in the album also has the same name. His music is also very timeless it could fit in any generation. My dad was listening to M. Ward the other day and he thought it was something he listened to when he was young (he’s 53).  I’ve watched interviews of M. Ward, and as a musician as well as producer he really strives for a timeless sound, and I think he pulled it off great with this album.

One thing that I hate about artists is when they change their sound from album to album, some people like that and think that they are “growing as a band/musician,” but I really hate it because their new stuff doesn’t sound anything like the old stuff, to me it’s not the same band anymore and I think of them as sell-outs changing their music so the majority can buy it. What I like about M. Ward is that it’s still the same old him from his old albums, sure it’s a little different and every song doesn’t sound the same but it still sounds like him. For example Green Day’s album “American Idiot” was way different from their old stuff, I used to like them but after they released “American Idiot,” I looked at them as sell outs.

Hold Time

1). For Begginers

2.) Never Had Nobody Like You

3.) Jailbird

4.) Hold Time

5.) Rave On

6.) To Save Me

7.) One Hundred Million Years

8.) Stars of Leo

9.) Fisher of Men

10.) Oh Lonesome Me

11.) Epistemology

12.) Blake’s View

13.) Shangri- La

14.) Outro (AKA: I’m a Fool to Want You)

Bob Marley Review

Bob Marley, born Robert Nesta Marley, was born in 1945 and died in 1981 of cancer. Bob Marley is the world’s most widely known reggae artists, and is best known as lead singer and guitarist of the reggae band Bob Marley and the Wailers. Three years after Bob died “Legend,” their greatest hits album, was released and is the best selling reggae album ever. Time magazine also declared Bob Marley and the Wailers’ album “Exodus” as the best album of the 20th century.

In 1977 Bob Marley found out that he had a form of cancer on his big toe, he did not get medical help and refused amputation because it goes against the Rastafari belief that the body should be kept whole. By 1980 Bob Marley’s cancer spread to his brain, liver, lungs, and stomach. After playing a couple of shows on the 1980 Uprising Tour he collapsed. At this time his cancer reached the terminal stage. In 1981, flying home from Germany, he had to land in Miami, Florida for immediate medical attention. He died the morning of May 11 at the age of 36. His last words were “Money can’t buy life.”

Even though Bob Marley died more than 25 years ago his music is still alive today and even more universal. Many people are just now discovering Marley’s music, I’m one of them. I only found out about Bob Marley a couple of years ago, and more recently started heavily listening to him. I like how Bob Marley came from nothing, defeated the odds, survived gun wounds, was arrested, and was still positive about life. He is very inspirational to me both musically, and being a better person. In 1976 two days before playing a free concert, Bob Marley, his wife, and manager were wounded by a gunman in Marley’s home. Injured Bob Marley continued to play the show and said “The people who are trying to make this world worse aren’t taking a day off. How can I?” It’s things he says like that and “Emancipate yourself from mental slavery none but ourselves can free our minds,” (lyric from the song “Redemption Song”) that inspire me and make me want to be better.

I can listen to his music all the time. When I’m working out, doing homework, stressed out, happy, sad, mad, any time is the perfect time to listen to Bob Marley. His music is so soothing and there is so much meaning behind it, whether it be religious or political. Bob Marley was determined to spread love and happiness through his music. “Lighten up the darkness,” –Bob Marley.

Bob Marley

Slightly Stoopid Review

Slightly Stoopid is an acoustic/ rock,/reggae/ blues,/hip-hop band from San Diego, California. They were signed by Bradley Nowell’s, from Sublime, record company Skunk Records when they were still in highschool. Their music talks a lot about smoking weed, their most recent albums “Slightly Not Stoned Enough to Eat Breakfast Yet Stoopid,” (2008) and “Chronchitis,” (2007) are a perfect example of that.

I don’t smoke weed, I never have and never will, but what I like about Slightly Stoopid is that even though they are all stoners and a lot of their music is about smoking weed I still like their music. The fact that I don’t smoke weed doesn’t turn me off from their music, I like that. Their song “Officer,” begins with this line “it all started late on a Saturday night said who’s got the spliffs and who’s got the pint?” I don’t care that this song is talking about partying it is still a really good song.

What I also like about Slightly Stoopid is how they don’t just sing about weed they also sing about love, here are some lyrics from “Mellow Mood” “When all your moneys’ gone where will you be, if your love is strong that’s all you need.”

The guys from Slightly Stoopid are all really talented most of them play more than one instrument. I like how they incorporate a lot of different instruments in their music, for example one song like “2am” has turntables, saxophones, trumpets, piano, and a harp as well as your usual guitar, drums, and bass. A lot of the songs have guitar solos, and complicated finger picking this shows that they know their instruments pretty well. They also incorporate a lot of different genres into their music, so it’s never really the same thing twice. There is a lot of variety like they’ll have a really slow, calm song like “Mellow Mood”, or “Wiseman” that will help me go to sleep, and then they’ll have really cool upbeat music like “Leaving on a Jet plane” or “Collie Man” that i’ll listen to in the car with my friends.

I started listening to Slightly Stoopid about a year ago, I was really into Bob Marley and wanted to listen to other reggae. I went on my friend’s MySpace page and his profile song was by Slightly Stoopid it was called “Leaving on a Jet Plane” I liked it so I went to their page, that night I got some more of their songs and just gradually got more and more into them.

Slightly Stoopid is always on tour, they have come through Portland, Oregon a couple of times but I always miss them. They are currently on their “Blazed and Confused Summer Tour” with Snoop Dogg, and Stephen Marley and it is comming through Portland July 17th. I can’t wait!

Slightly Stoopid's Summer Tour

She and Him review

She and Him is a folk/pop band that consists of singer/song-writer/actress Zooey Deschanel and musician M. Ward. Their music seems timeless, it could have been played in the 1960s or today and fit in just fine. She and Him remind me of artists like The Beach Boys, and The Ronettes. They mix a kind of mo-town sound with folk/country and pull it off just fine.

Their first album is titled Volume One, #11 Album of the year on NPR’s best albums of the year, includes the following songs.

1.) Sentimental Heart

2.) Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?

3.) This Is Not a Test

4.) Change is Hard

5.) I Thought I Saw Your Face Today

6.) Take It Back

7.) I Was Made For You

8.) You Really Got a Hold on Me

9.) Black Hole

10.) Got Me

11.) I Should Have Known Better

12.) Sweet Darlin’

13.) Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

I’m not really sure how I got into She & Him. I do remember watching a movie called Failure to Launch, Zooey Deschannel was in that movie and I thought she was really pretty. Some time later I heard that she was in a band, I thought that was cool but never looked into it. At that time I started listening to M. Ward, somehow I found out that they were in a band together. From there I’m not sure how I heard She & Him but I did and ever since then I’ve been listening to them almost everyday.

She & Him is different from what I usually listen to, but I really enjoy it. I like this album because there is a good balance of poppy up-beat songs and sad slower songs. M. Ward’s guitar playing is amazing and Zooey Deschannel’s voice is very soothing (I like to listen to them before I go to bed). There is also a lot of subtle humor in the album, on the song “This is Not a Test” there is a pursed-lip trumpet solo and a lot of whistling. On some of the songs you can hear Zooey laugh in the background. The first song I heard from She & Him was “Change is Hard,” and it is still my favorite. When I buy an album I usually have to listen to it a few times to like or remember the other songs, but the first time I listened through Volume One I liked all of the songs. So overall She & Him is awesome and Zooey Deschannel is super hot. Go out and buy the album!