My band's most recent album, 'Storm of Crows', is on Bandcamp. It started out as a concept album but at some point I dropped the idea. I still think it's the best album from the band, though, especially when it comes to the guitar tone and mixing quality. Lyrically, it's maybe not as "complex" as The Art of War. I also think toning down the sarcastic nature of the lyrics was a better choice this time around.
Some of my favorite songs on the album are 'Kara Sells Dreams', 'Weather the Storm', and 'The Raven'. You can download it for free (or name your price) from the links above.
This is one of my favorite songs from my band's most recent album 'Storm of Crows'. There's a weird effect on the lead guitar that I don't remember how exactly it got there. I must have been messing with the effects in Fender Fuse before I started recording and just forgot to reset it. I liked the way it made the song sound "older" though, so I kept it.
'Across the Sky' is the 7th track on our Sci-Fi/Fantasy concept album 'the Art of War'. You can download it from our website here. This song is one of my personal favorites. The guitar solo is one of the best I've ever played, I think.
THE STORY: 'Across the Sky' is a letter written by Backbeat to his wife that tells the story of his impending "death", though his soul is preserved and later transferred over to the mechanical form he's depicted in on the album cover. (that story will be told on another album) The letter is delivered posthumously.
Performing: Scarecrow - guitar, lead vocals Jester - lead guitar, vocals, piano Backbeat - drums, synth Pumpkinhead - bass
ACROSS THE SKY (lyrics)
Stare off into the sky Watching man-made angels fly With their chrome plated metal wings They're not afraid of anything I know you think we're gonna fall Everything is starting to look small And we're so far from home But tonight you're not alone So come on and close your eyes and I will teach you how to fly Sit back and watch the world slowly slip away As we begin to fly... across the sky
The skies are raining blood With soldiers dying in the mud But the shadow's too hard to see Until it's right on top of me I know I told you I'd come home So you don't have to grow old all alone But this battle's catching up to me And I'm about to end this misery So come on and close your eyes and I will teach you how to fly Sit back and watch the world slowly slip away As we begin to fly... across the sky
Wake up to a brand new dawn I'm sorry but I gotta be moving on I know you thought we'd have tomorrow But tomorrow never comes (tomorrow's already gone) Baby please hold these memories They're like falling autumn leaves Maybe they'll remind you of better days Before the day I went away So come on and close your eyes and I will teach you how to fly Sit back and watch the world slowly slip away As we begin to fly... across the sky
The skies are turning red As the sun begins set But I'll fight until I'm dead Baby this war ain't over yet One more time before I go Maybe I just wanted you to know That when I died my mind was clear And I will always be right here So come on and close your eyes and I will teach you how to fly Sit back and watch the world slowly slip away As we begin to fly... across the sky
'Bellview Clocktower' is the instrumental track from my sci-fi concept album the Art of War. It's not the first instrumental song I've ever written, but it's by far the best. I used a bunch of old soundbites from ancient tv and radio shows to paint a picture of a tragic attack in the home town of one of the main characters of the album.
This is the first song off my upcoming album 'The Art of War'. The song is of the same name. It's a pop rock song you can dance to.
Looking back on my first album, Blazing Son, I feel like all of the songs are a little slow. Good, but slow. So when I was writing the music for this album my main focus was making it more upbeat and energetic. This song might exemplify that more than any other track on the album.
I hope everybody enjoys it. (And shares it with their friends!)
I've listened to the new Radiohead album and all I can think is "they could pretty much do whatever they wanted and their fans would eat it up." And that's pretty much what they did.
There are a few decent songs on the album (Little by Little, Give Up the Ghost) but nothing that good really. All but one song on the album run over 4:30 and each song is pretty much the same endless loop for that entire 4 minutes.
The vocals have almost no melody at all. It sounds like a long drawn out drone listening to Yorke wallow incoherently. It does feel like he's emotionally connected to the music, but I'm not. And I didn't come here to stare in awe at his amazing power to become that self-involved. I came to be entertained.
I may not be the right person to ask about new Radiohead music, though, considering I haven't been a big fan since The Bends and OK Computer. But $9 for 8 average songs isn't worth it to me.
Noel isn't the only one in the Gallagher family that can write a great fucking song.
I've been a fan of Liam's song writing for as long as he's been writing songs. His earlier songs with Oasis didn't match his brother Noel's work, but the more he's written the better he's gotten.
That's clearly evident when you start listening to the new Beady Eye album. (You can find every song off the album on youtube from either BeadyEyeMusic or BeadyEyeVEVO) The writing on the album is split pretty evenly between Liam, Andy, and Gem, but so far I'm liking Liam's songs the best. Andy's songs are pretty fucking good too. Especially 'The Beat Goes On'
I was a huge Oasis fan and I fully expected to like this album, so trust me when I say I honestly didn't expect he album to be this good.
I've read a lot of blogs and forums lately where people have described the bass as an instrument that's "main purpose" is to basically aid the drums. These arguments have ranged from "the best thing to keep in mind while playing bass is to only hit notes timed to the drums" to almost cryptic posts like "the purpose of the bass is to emphasize the drums."
Posts like that are idiotic and a major clue that the person telling you this shit probably has no idea what they're talking about and their own music probably sucks. If the Bass was that limited in it's purpose, it wouldn't be such a major part of rock bands.
Imagine 'A Day in the Life' with a simple little bass line that just followed the drums... It wouldn't sound the same because a major part of the song is the incredible bass line. Another great Beatles song that gains a lot from an amazing bass line is 'Rain'. Try to picture that song without the bass line (if it's even possible)
Sometimes it is a good idea to just use a simple bass line that just repeats the root, but if you get into a habit of doing this on every track you're music is gonna start to sound the same on every song. It's just as important to experiment with the bass as any instrument. Don't be afraid to try something different.
I think at the end of the day, the AFC got a lot more credit than it deserved this year. Everybody was praising the Jets, then praising the Patriots and the Steelers ended up being the team to come out of that conference.
On the other hand, I guess the same could be said for the NFC. First it was Vick and the Eagles offense, then the Bears, then the Falcons... But one NFC team beat all three of those teams in the playoffs this year; The Packers have been on a roll this postseason. So that's why I'm picking them.
'Electric Light' was originally written as a remix to 'Revelation Dream' but with a more elaborate chorus in place of 'Revelation Dream's refrain and an organ piano thrown in it took on a live of it's own. I still think the song is a little slow, but it's a great song either way.
'Shattered Mirrors' was an attempt to write a 50s ballad. The music captures an older feeling perfectly. The lyrics are a little more advanced than the typical 50s song, though.
I've been pretty busy lately working on a new rock album for my virtual band The Four Suns. It's a concept album that's a little more ambitious than Blazing Son. On that album, I just used the concept of the virtual band itself be the concept of the album (basically). This time it's a little different.
The title of the album is 'The Art of War' and every song takes place in an alternate reality caught up in World War III. But it's still not a straight up rock opera. It's somewhere in between. I'm also using a lot more electric guitars on this one.
I've completely finished four songs for the album and completed the instrumental arrangements for just about every song. I've got about 30 songs all together, but I'm gonna cut it down to around 14 for the album. Hopefully it'll be finished by the end of February.
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