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ghostmebangtan-blog · 6 years

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Writer’s Block Playlist

Hi, all you hep-cats and cool chicks (If you get my reference, you’re the sweetest hunk of sugar I’ve ever seen). It’s V here with a little filler post until I update Pink Matter. I’m actually in the process of editing and writing at the moment (3,798 words currently), but I needed a small break to step back before I burn myself out. Melatonin does absolutely nothing so I’m almost 3 hours past my bedtime and writing the entire way through it.

Well, now to talk about what this post is about. So, as you all may know, or not, writer’s block sucks. For me, it is the literal devil. I was supposed to have this chapter up days ago but every single time I sat down to do it I just had no idea what the hell I was doing. Of course, that was before tonight, but this is an exception to the rule my brain has made as of late. As I was editing what I had written a few days ago and listening to a podcast, my internet crashed and I had to open Youtube back up and instead of going back to H3H3, I allowed my fingers to take me to my music playlist. And then I had a spark. As soon as I heard these songs my mind fixed itself and I’ve written 900 words. Now on my break time, I decided to share my favorite songs/albums I listen to when I want to make my brain cooperate with me.

Albums

1. Frank Ocean, channel ORANGE

I absolutely love Frank Ocean. His music is so chill and sexy it would be strange if you don’t like at least one of his songs. For those of you who don’t know who he is, he sings the hit song Thinkin Bout You, or for my fellow memers, ‘A potato flew around my room...’ Channel ORANGE is my favorite album of his but he has also released Blond, Unreleased, Unreleased, MISC., and Nostalgia, ULTRA. My favorite songs off of Channel ORANGE are: - Pink Matter - Thinkin Bout You - Pyramids - Forrest Gump

2. Cigarettes After Sex, Cigarettes After Sex

This band. This damn band. Where do I begin? Holy crow I adore them. They are very minimalistic and have very few variations between songs. They can get vulgar lyrics-wise, but what artist doesn’t? They have a very soft sound and the lead singer’s voice is heavenly. So far they have a few singles and two EPs, both of them are self-titled. I highly recommend them. Here are a few of my favorites: - Young and Dumb - Nothing’s Gonna Hurt You Baby - Sesame Syrup - Sweet

3. Yellow Days, Harmless Melodies

His voice, his voice, his voice; his voice. I love his instrumentals, the guitar, the way he growls, and the overall vibe he gives off is amazing. He has two albums that I know of (Harmless Melodies and Is Everything Okay in Your World?) and they are both quickly becoming my favorite things to listen to. Anything that can make me sway along to the beat usually has me hooked. Definitely check my boy out and here are some of my personal recommendations to peak your interest: - A Little While - Your Hand Holding Mine - Gap in the Clouds - People

4. Daniel Caesar, Freudian

This man could cause world peace with a voice like that. I completely fell in love with him when Billie Eilish (hint hint) made a video talking about songs that would describe her life. The first song I heard was Japanese Denim and after that I was his bitch. This man will take over your life if you drop the mask and look him in his eyes. Okay, a little extreme, but you get my point. Screw a recommendation; listen to his music. Just do it. [ insert Shia LaBeouf ]. - Get You (Feat. Kali Uchis) - Best Part (Feat. H.E.R.) - Blessed - Transform (Feat. Charlotte Day Wilson) Just listen to the entire album.

5. The 1975, I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It

Matt Healy is a god and you can fight me on this if you wish. Must I show you exhibit A, B, and C, or can we both agree that he is perfectly sculpted with a tendency to become self-destructive? Well that last bit got a bit deep, but he is very open about his issues, another thing to add to the list of reasons I love their music. Some of my favorite quotes come from The 1975, but this album, along with their previous album and EPs, hold a place in my heart, and their two new singles that just came out have made me have some realizations about a lot of things concerning myself and other people. I really think you will enjoy these guys: - If I Believe You - She’s American - UGH! - Somebody Else

Songs

1. Noire, He’s My Baby

2. MISSIO, Bottom of the Deep Blue Sea

3. Daniel Caesar, Japanese Denim

4. Troye Sivan, Bloom

5. Billie Eilish, Hostage

6. Rex Orange County, Apricot Princess

7. The 1975, Give Yourself A Try

8. Pierce the Veil, She Makes Dirty Words Sound Pretty

9. Cavetown, It’s U

10. City and Colour, The Girl

11. Dodie, Sick of Loosing Soulmates

12. Ross Copperman, Hunger

13. Oasis, Wonderwall

14. Iron and Wine, Flightless Bird, American Mouth

15. Jaymes Young, Stoned on You

16. Japanese Breakfast, Boyish

17. Goth Babe, Velvet Sheets

18. Jonathan Bree, You’re So Cool

19. Mild Orange, Some Feeling

20. Yung Heazy, Cuz You’re My Girl

I hope you all enjoy. Of course, these are not all of the songs in my playlist, not all of these are my absolute favorite, but I was trying to get some variety instead of a full list of the same artists over and over again. I will definitely do this again and update what I’m listening to currently every other month or so. Happy listening!

.V.B.

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cjostrander · 8 years

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The Offspring: Days Go By

Well today is going to be a decent combo review for today. It tackles both an anniversary review as well as a promotional pick. This is the latest by The Offspring and is on its fifth anniversary this year. Their album Ignition is turning 25 and may of been a better legacy pick for newer fans; but it’s getting to be that time where the newer albums of the year start arriving so i am going to scratch one or two of them before they start releasing. Let’s get started! There is a re-recorded version of the track Dirty Magic from Ignition from that album but i’m going to exclude that track for now so that i can show you guys its original sound when i do that album later on in the year.

The Future is Now: We start off with a serious sounding guitar riff and quickly add some energetic drum beats to turn this opener into a lively first piece. Dexter enters rather smoothly with a direct delivery and his tone does a fine job of expressing the seriousness in his lyrics and getting a strong degree of emotion from them. These lyrics are pretty well done and will carry your focus along nicely while the instrumentals keep up a fast level of balanced energy. It’d be a nice live piece due to its energy and lyrical substance. The key segment towards the end is a very nice element that adds in some complex melody with a sense of beauty and gives the song a fresh moment to space itself out enough before it concludes with another lively chorus. 9/10

Secrets from the Underground: This song picks up from the last one with some electronic effects and a shift into another serious punk driven guitar/drum instrumental. It will do another good job of getting your adrenaline packing before the keys enter to deliver a nice dose of class before Dexter ups the power level in his voice to push forth a very strong chorus. The lyrics prove to be rather strong yet again and demonstrate their ability to still craft some rather solid songs this far into their career. I can only imagine what their upcoming album will sound like. The solo is a nice touch and adds in some good rock melody with a hint of that aggressive side. The bass has a little solo moment that allows the song to decompress before it concludes in a similar format to the previous song. 9/10

Days Go By: This title track is a single and begins with a mainstream cheerful melody that i originally thought was something new from the Foo Fighters at the time. Dexter enters after a nice jam session and smoothly delivers some decent lyrics. His high notes do seem a hair off but you really have to look for it here. The chorus pretty much sounds like a casual verse which will give the song a very easygoing structure in comparison to the previous songs. It was the first song that they released for the album and to me it was a basic offering but still an easy way to show the guitar tone that they would achieve on this album as well as the prominent focus on melodic vocals. 8.5/10

Turning Into You: This is another single and begins with some programmed drum beats and shifts into an energetic but low tone guitar instrumental. It fades once Dexter enters and the bass surfaces to deliver a very soothing hum. Dexter’s voice is flawless and leads this song in a very commanding yet relaxed nature. The chorus is straightforward and relies heavily on the support of the instrumentals and consistently strong lyrics.Other than that you get the idea for this song. 8/10

Hurting As One: This somewhat shorter tune begins with a steady drum beat and some dark yet melodic guitar riffs before sinking into a steady punk flow. It does a decent job of keeping the song feeling mostly full with its minimal instrumental layering. It basically feels like it is just guitar and drum with little production filler that you would expect in this day and age. The interlude segment has a nice sense of harmonic hums from the band and its an effective way to space out the song while introducing a little guitar solo to round it out before the chorus finishes things up. 8/10

Cruising California (Bumpin’ in My Trunk): This is the last single for the album and has a very party beach like vibe with elements of their jokester approach from the older days. The music video is ok but it proves to be a nice break from the more serious nature of the previous tracks. It begins with a poppy sounding keys and leads into a cheerfully powerful opening from Dexter. The drums have a nice beat to them and these key notes provide a very nice timing mechanism for Dexter’s humorous lyrics and lively delivery. It is definitely a nice piece to play outside on a sunny day. I will give this one props due to its experimentation with electronics and the inclusion of female vocals to keep the listener guessing. I remember when this first came out; it got a lot of backlash from their fans. I don’t see why because it is a joke song very reminiscent in theme of their older hits like Pretty Fly and Hit That. I think that it was just mostly newer era fans that had just uncovered their 90′s work like me at the time and were surprised by the polished tone of it and the fear of their electronic party direction on the song. It was still my favorite single till the final track got a music video. That one wast a single but was a nice add on down the road to promote the album and keep it in your heads awhile longer till their new one got done. 9/10

All I Have Left Is You: This one returns to the album’s serious tone and is more in the vein of a somber ballad piece.It begins with a steady drum beat and the fade in of a soothing key note. It has a pretty polished but acoustic tone to it and the bass makes a prominent appearance in the background. Dexter does a fair job opening but is very refrained when first starting out. The guitar melodies softly space it out and give the listener a clear sign of gradual build u towards the chorus. The chorus has a decent level of energy but Dexter still slows it down to focus seriousness on his lyrics. For me it causes it to lose a bit of a punch and can potentially bore a listener as a result. it would be an ok piece for a live show due to its potential for breaking up their more fast paced songs. The solo itself is actually really nice in terms of emotional melody and will due well to turn the ending into a rather pleasant experience. 7.5/10

OC Guns: Now this one i’ve always hated for some reason. Its another joke song with elements of their ska side but for me it doesn’t seem to have a place on the album flow wise and throws the album a bit out of rhythm. It’s basically them tossing out Spanish swears; which will surely get some giggles out of the teens. The instrumentals do have a nice rhythm and the inclusion of brass will be appreciated by the listener due to its freshness on the album. I will say in hindsight that the chorus is actually pretty melodic and catchy; which will make this song rank a bit higher than i lead it to appear during the beginning of my description. I do think at four minutes it does stick around excessively long for my taste and for a listener that gets the point after the two minute mark. 7/10

I Wanna Secret Family (With You): These next few tracks speed the album towards its end due to them being shorter and faster paced. It starts off with some cheery guitar riffs and pounding drum beats. The vocals are very catchy and the lyrics add in some extra humor to the song. The instrumentals provide a steady support for the casual verses and allow them to retain prominent focus from the listener. The chorus gets more push from the guitars and allows the listener to float by with a nice sense of happiness at this stage in the game. 8.5/10

Dividing By Zero: This one begins with darker guitar riffs and a fast punk dose of drumming. Dexter has a more serious tone as expected for this album and delivers a nice level of substance for the lyrics without forcing the listener to endure the same thing over and over. The solo is a nice touch and keeps the momentum going and creating a feeling that this song is actually longer than the 2 and a half minutes it feels. It does it in a pleasant way so no complaining on my part. 8.5/10

Slim Pickens Does the Right Thing and Rides the Bomb to Hell: This final track picks up quickly from the last song and continues with the band’s usual punk jam format and Dexter’s lyrics are straightforward lively and easy to sing along to as well. It would be a decent song to toss into their live shows when they want to freshen up their set lists. The chorus is a prominent fixture and the drums develop a strong level of momentum at times and will add to the charge of the guitar solos so that the ending can end on a strong note. I’ve always liked this one and will note it as a direct way to end this album. Not exactly climatic but still an acceptable finish. 8/10

Overall album rating: 8.3/10

Well a B- is a decent score for them and will position this album as a reviewer’s pick. If you wanted a look at their more serious material; this is an example of it in their later years. I’d say give it a try and pretty soon i will look through my lists to find albums that are both promo and anniversary so that i can widdle down both lists at once. My choices so far are Velvet Revolver’s Libertad (2007), and All America Rejects Kids in the Street (2012). If you would rather one than the other message me and i will hop on it the moment i can. Enjoy your day and be sure to check out this album.

*Reviewer’s Pick*

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