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Jacquelinwildingmh2blog.blogspot.com



Jacquelin,

Revolver is one of my favorite albums, and you mentioned things I had not even noticed my self. I did not know that a lot of those songs were influenced by a specific drug. I am going to have to look back and the lyrics and really listen to the songs again. I could not agree more about the Leslie cabinet though. It was an amazing effect to throw on the voice at the time. Lennon originally wanted to be hung by his feet and swung around the microphone. A crazy feat if you ask me. All and all, I thought it was a very stimulating read, and I really enjoyed it.

Comment

Jacquelinwildingmh2blog.blogspot.com


Jacqui,

This was truly a great read. I feel like you captured each question perfectly. I also really like the way it was written. Things followed in a logical order and making it rather easy to follow what you were trying to convey. Also, I found that you covered every aspect around the album and Reed and Cale very well. It included pepperings of their back story throughout the piece. Finally, I like the way you described the album. I thought that you are quite correct in what you are portraying and that much of their lives plays into their music.

Comment

Jacquelinwildingmh2blog.blogspot.com

Jacquelin,

I thought your entry was extremely good. I like that you express your opinion openly and clearly. There is enough flowery language as well to hold my interest. I too am a big fan of the Gorillaz, and find that their mixture of reality and the cartoon realm is quite unique. My only disagreement with the entire entry is that the true identity of the musician is not irrelevant. I believe that is too harsh of a word. Perhaps, not the main focus, or out of the spot light. In the real world, his name is on the checks, not the cartoons. Otherwise, I loved it. Great read.

Podcast 2

http://www.sendspace.com/file/88kqzf

Velvet Underground

“Velvet Underground…what a trip, man!” These words echo in my head whenever I think of anyone who has seen Velvet Underground. Velvet Underground was a very experimental rock group. This was not only with their music, but also with countless numbers of drugs. If you could not tell by the people that they are, the music itself should speak quite clearly. Many different instruments are brought into the group on a number of tracks and all kinds songs driven by drugs. They boasted that their songs also enhanced an adventure. Lou Reed was the guitarist, vocalist, and one of the songwriters for Velvet Underground. As a child he was subjected to series of tests that were meant to “cure” his homosexuality. Eventually people stopped being morons and quit trying to “cure” it. He later went Syracuse College, and even later went on to be a songwriter at a record company. This job found him some success. A band was formulated strictly around him. John Cale, one of the founding members of the Velvet Underground, also a composer and songwriter for them. As a boy, Cale had trouble. He was molested and didn’t have an amazing relationship with his father. However, Cale did have a natural knack for the viola, among other classical instruments, and went to school at the University of London. Here he honed his skills as a composer and eventually moved to the U.S. where he met with Lou Reed. Velvet Underground also had one of the most amazing people to have as a band manager perhaps in the history of band managers, Andy Warhol.  This was an amazing combination from the start. I feel that the band had amazing success and I am a huge fan. But as a professional, these guys weren’t themselves very professional amongst themselves. This didn’t exactly lead to smiles when the band was done and over with.

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson, the greatest pop star to ever live, and perhaps ever will. He was a full package: dance star, singing sensation, bright personality, and he even connected with the audience. Such talents are searched for far and wide in today’s popular culture.  Jackson was simply amazing, and made it seem easy. Michael Jackson has also, unknowingly I assume, set a standard for popular music. This standard is one of class, and at the same time, sheer musical strength. Michael’s voice had the power to move millions, and it did. He would bring grown men to tears if he wanted. His shows were equally as electrifying as his talent. At his shows there would be glorious lights blaring out into the crowd. There would be dozens of dancers pounding the ground to the beat; all of this motion and commotion around the main attraction, Michael Jackson. Michael was born to be a star, he was bred to be a star, and he was a legend. The Jackson 5 was such an immense success with a large portion of that success due to little Michael. Now this isn’t to say that the boys would not have made it by themselves. It is just that Michael definitely helped his brothers out with his amazing ability to be a front man, and huge personality. But the way I see Jackson making a huge impact on the music world in particular is how: Artists want to be him, producers want their talent to sound like him, and I don’t think anyone could ever match him. He had a flare all his own and it really showed through. You can clean up mud all you want, but at the end of the day, it’s still mud.  Michael Jackson was crystal the moment he was born. It’s hard to argue with greatness.

Podcast 2

http://www.sendspace.com/file/jipx27

Kraftwerk

Kraftwerk is a very unique group. This is not only for the music that they have done, but the kind of image they portrayed. There was a minimalist concept always being put forth from the group. Their music used a lot of loops and layering of sounds, gradually, to build the song. Kraftwerk often used very simple lyrics as well, this can be for many reasons, but less means that it’s easier to remember making it easier to sing. The group always seems to be dressed up and looking quite sharp. Their hair never seems to be out of place and when they perform they literally just stand in one place and play. Some could argue that this makes for a very boring show, regardless of what else they could have going on, on stage. However, the group then depends on their music to put on a good show, and is that not how music got started? If it wasn’t for the actually music, why would a person go to a show in the first place? One of the most recognizable albums from Kraftwerk would have to be Autobahn. This was the group’s first concept album. The album featured one song with vocals and the rest of them were purely instrumental.  Also, this album was not entirely electronic. The use of real flutes, guitar, and even violins were also used during the recording. Another of the albums, Computer World, is known as a classic for the group. This was a very unique album, not only for Kraftwerk, but also as an album itself. It was released in multiple languages, as well as having multiple songs in multiple languages. It was also a very political and powerful album for the band. Kraftwerk, as a listener, leaves me wanting more out of them, not as a good thing. I feel that they are too minimalistic. There is too little going on to make it sound like there is truly a lot of musicianship going on. However, as a professional, I find the group to have pioneered and used some crazy types of equipment and MIDI gadgets and have really made some phenomenal songs with them.

Beach Boys Entry

Prior to the Beach Boys releasing Pet Sounds, the band was looked at in a very bubble gum light. All of the members were prim and pristine, and had the gimmick of being from the beach. They played very vocal oriented songs, primarily sing-a-longs for lots of folks. If there ever was an everyman for a band it was Brian Wilson. He was essentially the brain behind all of Pet Sounds. He stayed at home for months writing all of the songs. He would write lyrics and piano riffs, and get everything set up.  Brian had quit touring with the Beach Boys for a while. So while he wasn’t touring he spent all his time composing Pet Sounds. This really helped to put a lot of thought into this album. Seeing as Brian was the brainchild behind the band as it was, it does not seem so farfetched that he would dominate this album as well. The vocal harmonies help to set this album apart from many other recordings in the mid sixties. Each harmony was carefully crafted to fit the song as well as be incredible. The arrangements of the songs were not the common verse, chorus, verse, chorus as was heard before. The songs hand many more breaks and bridges. This made many of the songs seem as though the Beach boys are singing completely improvised and straight to the listener, which is truly an enchanting feeling. As a listener, I found that Pet Sounds really surprised me coming from the Beach Boys. There was not the common, simple sound I was accustomed to hearing. I found myself much more engaged in what I was listening because it was so interesting. From an industry professional’s point of view, to listen to the work of Phil Specter is always something fun to do. He had a very unique way of mixing and recording. This really brought the music to a different place, and I think helped to progress the image that the band had for it.

"Pet Sounds." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 11 Jan. 2011.        
"Brian Wilson Podcast by Chrispyspears on SoundCloud - Create, Record and Share Your Sounds for Free." SoundCloud on SoundCloud - Create, Record and Share Your Sounds for Free. Audible. Web. 11 Jan. 2011. 

Revolver Entry

The Beatles prior to releasing Revolver were much more a static bunch. The audience knew they would get a hit from these suited up hit men. However with the release of Revolver, that all changed. Mind opening drugs like LSD met up with the Beatles. This helped to create some of the crazy ideas behind the whole album. Many of the arrangements are very loose and often hypnotic. The riffs of the music tend to have a lot of effects on them. The vocals, particularly the harmonies really show a lot of this influence. The Beatles use many choir like harmonies, and deep, trippy lines. The lyrics were very deep and unique. Before this time, people didn’t see the Beatles having so much depth to lyrics. It was all very straight forward up beat do-wappy numbers. These songs had so much dynamics and interest to them. The listener could really tell that the boys really put their hearts into this music. The best example of all of the crazy things the Beatles did on the album is Tomorrow Never Knows. The song combines many incredible elements into one. The use of reversing on instruments brings a strange caught in time feel. The songs bring s very circular vibe of coming back to where you were, and traveling with the music. There is also an abundance of doubled vocals and instruments to really bring out instruments. As a listener, Revolver is one of my favorite albums. It brings a lot of different emotions and brings me on many different journeys. It blows me away every time I get a chance to sit down and listen to the album in its entirety. As an industry professional, I feel like this is the gold of it is age in recording. So many techniques were developed that are still used today. I have on more than one occasion asked how to make a sound from the revolver album, trying to recreate it myself.
"PRX » Piece » Everything Was Right: The Beatles' Revolver." Public Radio Exchange. Web. 11 Jan. 2011.

Welcome

Hi, I'm Andrew Mason. I am a student at Full Sail University. I am majoring in Recording Arts and really love what I do. I found that I barely have to try to get good grades, so I must have a passion for what I am doing. I have eclectic tastes when it comes to music, and I'm open about listening to new music. There are of course genres i'm not found of like Pop and Country. Personally, I feel both of the genres lack a lot musical talent. I am a musician and play multiple instruments: drums, guitar, bass, piano, ukulele, and hammered dulcimer. I love each one that I play, and always plan on learning more. When I graduate from Full Sail, I am still unsure of what I want to do. The way I see it, that is in today's society I will take what ever job I can get, and go wherever I'm needed.