Artist: Johnathan Larson (Music & Lyrics) Album: Rent: Original Broadway Cast Recording Released: 1996 Even though Rent is directly or indirectly the cause of many things about the current state of musicals that I really don't like (that's for another post), I can't help but love it, and even though it isn't the happiest story, it's a nice thing to play around the holidays. For the record, this is the Broadway soundtrack, which is in almost every possible way superior to the [...]
Artist: Public Enemy Album: It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back Release Date: April 14, 1988 Look, I get that Public Enemy said some things that don't go over well with...well...with just about anyone. But you know, I think Public Enemy might have been on to something, in terms of how they used their music. For Public Enemy, music was about community. It was a rallying cry, a beacon of unity, no clearer one than on It Takes A Nation of Millions [...]
Artist: Sum 41 Album: Chuck Release Date: October 12, 2004 This was the last really good Sum 41 album. It still had a mountain of guts, delivered a ferocious punch of punk rock and quasi-hair metal that packed some punch and had just enough brains as well. "We're All To Blame" isn't the most profound punk rock anti-war song, but it certainly isn't for lack of trying to send a message. And in spite of cracks that the band was taking a turn toward the emo [...]
In the interest of keeping the blog mostly SFW, I'm refraining from posting the album artwork for this album. Artist: Jane's Addiction Album: Nothing's Shocking Release Date: August 23, 1988 I missed the boat on Jane's Addiction when they were popular. This album came out two months before I was born, and their only release since I've been musically conscious was 2003's Strays , best known for the theme from Entourage . Until now I never thought I was missing [...]
Artist: Counting Crows Album: Hard Candy Release Date: July 8, 2002 In the concluding post of Idolator/Village Voice's F2K series, in which Maura Johnston and Christopher Weingarten (two writers for the old Idolator) counted down the 50 worst songs of the decade, Counting Crows' cover of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" was named the worst song of the 2000s. Now, I'm no huge fan of Counting Crows. I think August and Everything After was a great album, and they've been hit-and-miss ever [...]
Artist: Vangelis (composer) Album: Blade Runner Released: 1992 Even though I think the soundtrack to Blade Runner is more than a little trippy, I also think it's a shame that it took a decade for it to get released. I have all 4 versions of the film (I had to write a paper on the movie a year ago), and the film is fantastic, and in the context of the movie Vangelis' score is also great; it's when the soundtrack intersperses bits of the [...]
Artist: Vince Guaraldi Trio Album: A Charlie Brown Christmas Released: 1965 No real post for today, but definitely an album. Happy holidays to all! Vince Guaraldi Trio - Linus and Lucy ( YSI ) ==TJ==
Artist: Bear McCreary (composer) Album: Music From the Television Series Battlestar Galactica, Season 1 Released: 2004 Viva La Mainstream is taking two days off (yesterday and today) from serious blogging for the holidays. There'll be another post marking the Album for today, and then I'll be back sometime on Saturday to finish off Film Score week, and then there's only a week left in the series, if you can believe it. Happy holidays to all, and we'll be back to full strength this weekend. ==TJ==
Artist: James Newton Howard (Composer) Album: Unbreakable: Original Motion Picture Score Release Date: November 21, 2000 As opposed to the soundtracks I've already done this week, I don't think I can really tell you why it is I like this particular soundtrack. The movie was fantastic, and arguably the last really good M. Night Shyamalan film (depending on how you feel about Signs ). But for some reason I was drawn to its score right after I saw the movie a few years ago, and it's [...]
Artist: Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard (Composers) Album: The Dark Knight: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Release Date: July 2008 I have many things I want to say about this film and its soundtrack, but sadly my time is brief, since in a few hours I will be returning home for the holidays. I've seen The Dark Knight three or four times since it came out last July, and I've loved it each time. This is a problem. I refuse to believe that any film [...]
Artist: John Williams (Composer) Album: Star Wars: A New Hope - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Released: 1977 (Re-released 1997) For the record, I listened to the 1997 re-release of the album which coincided with the Special Edition release of the films, which happened to mark the first time ever saw the Star Wars films on a big screen. Kind of a big deal for 9-year-old me (I promise this is the last time I make the majority of my readers feel old for at least [...]
And so begins a week of instrumental film soundtracks on Viva La Mainstream. What with finals and the holidays looming, it seemed like a good time to focus on some more relaxing music. Artist: David Newman (Composer) Album: Serenity: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Release Date: September 27, 2005 If you're a science fiction fan and you've never watched Firefly or Serenity , then you have some serious catching up to do. The easiest way I can think of [...]
Artist: AFI Album: Decemberunderground Release Date: June 6, 2006 In college, a snowstorm like the one pounding the east coast today is like the holidays. It's a time when friends gather together, enjoy each other's company, and celebrate friends, family, lovers, and the times we've all shared. Indeed, while the real world is crippled by the elements, college students see nothing but an opportunity for reflection and celebration of life. What does this have to do with AFI and this album? Absolutely nothing. But all of my friends have gathered in [...]
Artist: Bright Eyes Album: Cassadaga Release Date: April 10, 2007 Every once in awhile I like to go and listen to some "hipster" music, bands liked by people who think they're far cooler than I am because they're, like, so above the processed corporate bullshit that the rest of us are forcefed. I do this just to see what they're doing, and to see if maybe they know about something cool that I don't, so I can either masquerade as one of them for [...]
Artist: Del Amitri Album: Twisted Release Date: February 28, 1995 Unlike L7's Bricks Are Heavy , as covered yesterday, Del Amitri's Twisted should be one of those albums that time forgets swiftly and with little guilt. "Roll to Me" was a solid American hit, and even to this day gets airplay on the adult contemporary front, but the band quickly faded into obscurity after that, memorable only to folks like Matt the Vinyl Addict . So there's no reason to suspect that [...]
Artist: L7 Album: Bricks Are Heavy Release Date: April 14, 1992 When I started listening to Bricks Are Heavy , I was hoping to be surprised. Bands like L7, who generate a single memorable rock hit and then fade away, are generally good for providing diamonds in the rough, the quality album that got lost in the hysteria surrounding a more marketable band. Sadly, though, I walked away feeling largely let down. Not that Bricks Are Heavy is bad, just nothing leaves a [...]
Artist: Dane Cook Album: Harmful If Swallowed Release Date: July 22, 2003 Dane Cook makes me nuts. He's not particularly funny once you get past the first couple of jokes, and he mistakes spastic gestures and movements for genuine comedic delivery. There's also the argument that everything he did as a standup comic, Louis CK did five years earlier and ten times better. I mention this because my roommates and I played Monopoly last night, and as has become the norm since Cook became unkillably popular, [...]
Artist: Muse Album: Black Holes and Revelations Release Date: June 3, 2006 In case you missed it when I reviewed Muse's new album or when I covered Absolution in this series, I love Muse. Unabashedly. Yes, they are over the top, heavy on the cheese at times, and so ridiculously high-concept it makes 30 Seconds to Mars sound straightforward. But I feel that any band willing to shoot for a mark so unbelievably high, as Muse does with each album, deserves high marks just for [...]
Artist: Pink Floyd Album: The Wall Release Date: November 30, 1979 Another album that had been sitting in the queue of albums I wanted to include in this project, but kept putting off time and again. And given that this is generally the most stressful week in the lives of college students everywhere (finals week), The Wall seemed like an appropriate choice. Mind you, I don't know any college students who are feeling so stressed that they are building walls (either of the physical [...]
Artist: Red Hot Chili Peppers Album: Blood Sugar Sex Magik Release Date: September 24, 1991 I like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I do. I just can't for the life of me explain why. Anthony Kiedis sucks as a songwriter; his lyrics are, as a rule, nonsensical or pointless. Their guitarist du jour is OK, but not terrific. The only part of the band that is consistently good is the rhythm section, Flea and Chad Smith. And when they shine, and Kiedis is on [...]
Viva La Mainstream!
![Niki & The Dove - The Fox [OFFICIAL VIDEO]](http://cdn.elbo.ws/youtube/l2f6UbMnlq4_130.jpg)
Download: Lissy Trullie - "It's Only You, Isn't It"
Ugandan Methods – Beneath The Black Arch
‘SNL’ Showcases Karmin, Honors Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston’s Last Performance (Video)
