All posts by Kev Brock

I'm a musician, singer/songwriter, blogger, writer, poet, bodybuilder, movie lover, music lover, video gamer, history/political buff, conservative/republican, etc. I like to do a lot of things.

Musicians hating on other musicians in local music community… is it still a problem??? Yes and always will be…

There was an interesting discussion in FB with local musicians around the Capital Region about musicians hating on other musicians. Apparently, this is still a problem even to this day and the best part about all of this is that I’m definitely not alone. As some of you may or may not know, I have a real problem of getting along with a lot of musicians in the music community. Yes, I have quite a lot of musicians as haters of mine and apparently, there are plenty of other musicians that have a lot of other musicians hating on them too. It’s been a problem for decades and still is even to this day.

Not all musicians hate me, though… there are some that have always been very loyal and supportive of me for years and they still are which is awesome but I still have problems with getting along with many of them. There are many musicians who I once got along with who don’t speak to me anymore. A lot of musicians come and go in my life and I’m okay with that. Let ’em go, ya know? Life goes on.

Some of you may ask… why would musicians hate on each other? Well my view on this is that jealousy and ego for sure. Also, some musicians out there are just gonna be assholes. Sorry but not all of the local music community is gonna be lovable and positive, you will deal with a lot of negativity and drama. You will meet musicians who will be an asshole and arrogant most of the time. You will also meet musicians who are whack jobs and attention whores… you will also meet some who can be very “untrustworthy”.

In my experience, the most hated and the most criticized musician will be the one who can’t really play an instrument or can’t sing well. If you’re untalented, then be ready for a lot of criticism and hate. Believe me, I’ve been there and it ain’t fun. Other musicians that I’ve seen have gone through it too. Becoming an easy target in the scene ’cause they can’t play isn’t fair, in my opinion.

Another way that you’ll become most hated and the most criticized musician is if they feel if you haven’t established yourself in the scene much. For example, if you don’t have much successes in your music and if you don’t gig a lot and haven’t done much for yourself musically, other musicians will make you feel less superior than them. If you haven’t done much in the scene and haven’t established yourself much then they’ll make you feel like you don’t deserve to have a say toward local bands. They’re the ones that can talk local music however they want since they are the ones with more successes.

Yes, when you want to be a musician no matter the level of talent you are you gotta be ready to take a lot of criticism and hate ’cause you will go through a lot of that. Getting hatred and criticism isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. When people end up hating you, it can get you new fans and new opportunities in your music ’cause of it. Getting haters can get you more recognition and get you more exposure so don’t feel bad about it. When you get haters especially when your haters are other musicians, that’s a good thing really ’cause it’s gotta be either jealousy or ego or a mix of both. Maybe other musicians are mad at you ’cause you are doing things with your music? Things like that, ya know? Maybe they’re mad is ’cause they know you’re talented and they’ll never admit it? It kills them that you can play music better than they can. That’s why they lash out.

I also have a problem of getting along in the community over political views too ’cause yeah, I’m more conservative than most and most of the music community is pretty liberal. Most musicians refuse to support me ’cause of my so-called “right-wing” views.

I think the reason I have a tough time getting along with other musicians is ’cause I like to call out their bullshit and they think they can get away with it most of the time. There are so many musician that still like to shit talk me and make fun of me online still… I know who they are all are but I’m not gonna names. There are some that are completely obsessed with me and I can’t understand why but I don’t give a shit, though ’cause my life is good and I just keep on keepin’ on and keep moving forward in life.

The truth is you’re just not gonna get along with everybody and you can’t make everybody happy. That’s just the way it is. The only thing that you should be worried about is yourself and your music. The secret to battling against your haters is not caring about what anyone thinks of you. Just ignore all the hate and criticism. Keep moving forward and concentrate on your music. Let all negativity slide by. That’s what I do. You gotta stop responding to the critics and stop defending yourself ’cause that isn’t good. If you have haters bothering ya don’t be afraid to delete and block.

While I would like it that “everybody should just get along”, it’s never gonna happen. Musicians hating on musicians will always be a problem. It’s even a huge problem in the major label industry too ’cause there are too many famous bands that hate each others guts but they continue to play with each other in bands anyways ’cause most are in it for the money.

I don’t care who likes and dislikes me anymore. I don’t give a shit. I make music for myself anyways and there’s nothing wrong with having that attitude. It’s actually the best attitude to have.

Kev

Just bought a “Big Muff” distortion pedal to add to my pedal collection…

Yesterday afternoon, I went to the Saratoga Guitar shop and picked up a new pedal to add to my growing pedal collection. This time I picked up the “Big Muff” Nano distortion pedal. It had a really cool rock sound to it so I had to get it. Well, the original Big Muff pedal is much larger, squared shape and thicker but with the Nano version, is a tiny version of the Big Muff Distortion. Same exact sound and tone… they just made it a smaller version which I preferred.

I was at the store looking at the pedals through the glass cabinet and I was asking the guy that worked there about the pedal. He described to me the sound of the pedal that it’s a distortion pedal with a really thick sound… so I tried the pedal there real quick and was immediately sold so I bought it. It’s a great sounding pedal for $80.

I already have the Boss DS-1 Distortion pedal but the Big Muff has a different sound. I hear that the Big Muff is very popular in alternative rock and grunge rock. I found out that Billy Corgan used the Big Muff in a lot of earlier Pumpkins records and Kurt Cobain used it a lot too.

That’s the kind of music I want to make really. I want to make tight rock n’ roll… people don’t think I could do it but I really believe I could pull it off ’cause that’s how I’ve always visioned my songs anyways. When I play acoustic, I play it like a rock n’ roll guitar and now I want to focus mostly on electric.

Kev

Finally, leftist Hollywood gets the ultimate verbal ass-kicking that they needed for years… thank you Ricky Gervais!!!!

I didn’t watch the Golden Globes last night but Ricky Gervais made me wished I did. For the past decade or more leftist Hollywood has been using award shows as a political platform where they can ram their leftist opinions down everyone’s throats. It has gotten much worse under Trump as president. Finally, like the title says, Ricky Gervais gives leftist Hollywood the ultimate verbal ass-kicking that they needed for years and they deserved it really.

Yeah, some of you would say Ricky wasn’t being serious ’cause he’s a “comedian” and all but yes, he was being serious. Ricky is just as frustrated as the rest of us. We don’t want Hollywood using award shows for politics.

Hollywood like to claim they are “woke” but they aren’t at all. They are just brainwashed by the media, I think. Not only that Ricky called Hollywood out on their leftist political problem, he also called out the Hollywood pedophile problem which was ballsy.

I’ve been a fan of Ricky Gervais for a long time and I’m now an even more fan of him. I know Ricky is kind of a “leftist” guy himself but I think it’s pretty clear he’s getting red-pilled. Ricky’s waking up of what’s really going on in the real world if you’ve been paying attention to his twitter.

Of course, people are calling Ricky “controversial” ’cause of this. It’s not controversial at all… Ricky is just being a grown up and being completely “sane”. I think he’s definitely grown out of the Democrat plantation and it’s a start really.

I didn’t watch the whole monologue yet but gonna get around to it but what Ricky did was glorious. I’m tired of leftist Hollywood ramming their opinions and views down our throats. None of us think like they do and we don’t have to.

This is what a real comedian looks like, y’all. Bashing President Trump isn’t comedy… sorry but it isn’t.

Celebrities really don’t know anything about the real world just like most liberals in America don’t. Really sad thanks to the leftist media.

Kev

Staying out of the gym ’cause of an illness and injury sucks but gotta do what I gotta to heal up and get better…

I’ve been quiet about the gym online for a long while ’cause it was intentional. I’ve taking a bit of a gym hiatus due to a upper left leg injury that I’ve been trying to get rid of. When I stand for a long time that’s when I’ll start hurting ’cause putting weight on it will make it hurt. The leg injury is almost pretty much gone. I’m pretty sure it is ’cause I’m not feeling much pain after standing for a long time. I don’t seem to be feeling it much anymore so it’s getting better anyways. I’m still gonna get it checked out by a doctor soon ’cause it’s a good idea. I just want the injury gone forever so I can get back into serious lifting and get back into serious deadlifting too ’cause I miss that.

Anyhow, other than the injury I’ve been dealing with, I’ve also dealt with an illness for a few weeks. I’ve got hit with a nasty sinus infection that I’ve been battling during the Holidays. Stayed up 2 nights in a row and couldn’t sleep ’cause I was coughing all night. I’m way better now, though. Good enough to get out of bed ’cause I’ve been bedridden a lot due to being sick over the Holidays which sucked.

It seems that everybody’s been getting it… either the stomach bug or a nasty cold. Take or your pick and I had a little bit of both, haha. I hardly ever complain about Winter but this Winter pretty much sucked.

I’m kind of glad the illness happened ’cause it kept me out of the gym to help heal the leg injury some more and it did. The leg is getting way better now ’cause of it.

I hate staying out of the gym like this but you gotta do what you gotta do to get better when you’re sick or injured or both? Ya know? It’s okay to stay out of the gym when you’re suffering.

Yeah, I may have some lost some muscle and strength just by staying out of the gym but at least, I didn’t lose my muscular physique. I still have that anyways. When I do return to the gym full time, I’ll be training harder and harder than ever before and I’ll get the muscle and strength I lost back pretty quickly. I hardly ever take a break from the gym but this one is for good reason.

I’ll get back to it, though… not until I get the okay from my doctor which who I will see soon about my leg. My leg is getting better but I’m gonna see what the doctor can do to get rid of it quicker. He’ll probably just give me a stretching exercise and that’s about it. We’ll see.

I want to get back to the gym badly.

Kev

Jaliek Rainwalker missing child case gets national attention after A&E’s “Vanished” gets released on FB Watch exclusively…

For 12 years, the Jaliek Rainwalker missing child’s case got some local attention but most of the local news media has been quiet about Jaliek for a long while. Now the case has finally gone national and mainstream thanks to the A&E channel who is doing a series about missing people titled “Vanished” which you can exclusively watch on FB.

I really like how the case has blown up online and now the case has finally caught the attention of national crime shows. A&E is a cable TV network that does a lot of Facebook Watch stuff too. I’m sure this episode will be aired on cable TV as well.

I think the case has now gone somewhat viral almost which is good. The bigger Jaliek’s voice gets, the more pressure it gets put on Stephen and Jocelyn as they are seen and talked about in this video above.

I think most of us came to an agreement that Stephen & Jocelyn both had something to do with Jaliek’s disappearance. I’m not changing my view on that. No proof but watch the video above… everything leads back to them so you can’t help but think they did it.

If they were really “passionate” about finding their son then why would they move to Vermont, lawyer up and not cooperate with police? If they were innocent then they would do everything they can to get the police off their backs by actually cooperating with them. They don’t ask for the public’s help and they don’t talk to anyone looking for Jaliek. They have nothing to hide? They can move on and keep on smiling all they want to but Jaliek will be found and the truth will come out on its own.

Jaliek’s voice is getting huge which is good and it’s what we want… hoping this will help get someone to come forward with additional information.

Some people may look at me as if I’m some sort of hero in all this but how? I’m just a normal person wanting answers like most people. I want Justice for Jaliek like most. I’m not into this for attention, recognition or hero status of any kind. I just want answers and closure like most. I want Jaliek brought home and in his proper burial place where he belongs ’cause this family just threw him away and they continued to act like he never existed after that.

Someday Jaliek will be found and there will be justice. Someday it will be all over but the sooner the better, though. Stephen & Jocelyn think they got away with it but they will get caught somehow. Hopefully 2020 will be the year… we just have to wait I guess.

Kev

The Brock’s Top 10 Albums of 2019…

Another year has gone by for music and 2020 is now here. I purchased more than 10 albums for 2019 but I’m only going to give the 10 best albums that I’ve heard this year. These are just my opinion alone.

Here are 10 great albums that I’ve heard in 2019… enjoy the list…

 

10. Chelsea Wolfe – Birth of Violence
(I’ve discovered the music of Chelsea Wolfe randomly online and I was immediately hooked. She’s very popular in the metal community. I listen to her music and can’t understand why she’s big in the metal industry even though her music isn’t really metal. I hear it as mostly folk music and ambient kind of music but her stuff is really good. Great songwriting and her singing voice sends chills. Loved her latest record “Birth of Violence” and can’t stop listening to it)
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9. Trey Anastasio – Ghosts of the Forest
(Trey Anastasio the man known as the leading member of Phish is back with a new solo record known as his band with TAB or better known as the Trey Anastasio band. I loved this freakin’ album. It’s beautiful stuff and I think it’s Trey’s best work outside of Phish. I’ll have to warn you, though that this album is totally different than his other stuff that he did. It’s way different than Phish. It’s still improvisational music but this album is not the usual jam band and dance stuff he’s known for. This album is focused most on songwriting and I love it so much. This album can’t be left out)
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8. Rival Sons – Feral Roots
(I’ve been wanting to get into Rival Sons for a while and their latest album “Feral Roots” fuckin’ kicks ass. Yup. Rock n’ roll is still alive and well and these guys prove it. Some great guitar work. The band’s singer Jay Buchanan is one of the best rock singers around. This is one 2019 album that I can’t stop listening to all year so I had to include this one)
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7. Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown – Truth and Lies
(Another band that’s been getting a lot of buzz in the industry… another band that’s been trying to keep rock n’ roll alive. This is a kick ass album all the way through. Tyler Bryant is an amazing guitarist and singer. I love Greta Van Fleet but there are other bands trying to keep rock n’ roll alive and Tyler Bryant and the Shakdown is one of them. This album smokes. Love it)
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6. Samantha Fish – Kill or Be Kind
(Thanks to Guitar World magazine, I’ve been wanting to get into Samantha Fish music for a long while so I finally thought, why not I get this album from Itunes so I did. This album blew my fuckin’ mind. Another one I can’t stop listening to. Blues rock is still alive and well. Samantha Fish has the full package. She can shred on guitar, she can write original songs well and she has the hot looks as well. I dig every song on this album and now I’m obsessed with Samantha Fish. This woman is great!)
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5. Opeth – In Cauda Venenum
(Opeth did it again. Took me a few listens to really get into this album and it’s a grower but now I fuckin’ love it. It’s an amazing record all the way through. Mikael akerfeldt did it again. I love Opeth music but I think this is their best new album for sure. Way different than their previous ones too. More melodic and the songs are strong. Check it out)
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4. Dream Theater – Distance Over Time
(Dream Theater never disappoints and I’m a huge fuckin’ fan of this band. They keep getting better and better every album they do. This is John Petrucci’s best guitar work and has James Labrie’s best vocals too. The whole band is great on this record really. It’s definitely different than their previous record, “The Astonishing”. I would have to say “Distance Over Time” is their best new record)
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3. Slipknot – We Are Not Your Kind
(I’m just getting into Slipknot music. I’ve heard every album they’ve done on Spotify and I think “We Are Not Your Kind” is the best record they’ve ever done in their career. It’s better than their previous record “The Gray Chapter”. A lot of Slipknot albums are pretty tight and heavy but “We are Not Your Kind” is the most heaviest album they’ve ever done. This album is pretty sick. Great guitar playing and Corey’s voice is just out of this world. Very strong album. Love it to death)
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2. Black Midi – Schlagenheim
(Another band I’ve recently discovered on the internet not too long ago. They are not too well known but they are more of an indie band than anything. They are a rock band from  the UK, an improvisational rock band. Every song on this record was written out of jamming together. The band’s singer and guitarist, Geordie Greep is one talented young man. Another record I can’t stop listening to so it had to be high on the list)
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1. Tool – Fear Inoculum
(Well, Tool finally returned with a new studio album that kicks hella ass. I’ve listened to all Tool albums and this is the best record they’ve ever done. Adam Jones’s guitar work is crazy and Maynard’s vocals, Wow. Everything about this record from start to finish is so damn good. When you do a top 10 list of 2019 and if the new Tool album isn’t pretty high on it then what is wrong with you? This is the best record of 2019 so of course, I had to pick it as my no 1. choice. It’s a beautiful album. Nice work, guys!)
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Kev

 

Happy New Year, y’all…

Well, I’ve been real sick with the nasty sinus infection again. After when I thought I was all better, the sinus infection returns but I got it much worse than before. Had it for two days straight and stayed up all night for two days straight… couldn’t sleep ’cause I was coughing up a storm all night long. I’m feeling a lot better now, though.

Haven’t coughed too much today and nose is pretty much cleared. Yeah, this is the year where there’s a nasty virus going around. Everybody getting it pretty much. Everybody getting bad colds and bad stomach bugs. I had a stomach bug for one day too admittedly. It’s crazy. I wanted to enjoy Christmas and New Year’s with my family and friends but getting sick for most of it. That’s life, though.

Now to get rid of this left leg injury but that’s almost better too as I know it’s going away on its own. It may take a long time to heal but I know it’s healable. Just gotta stay out of the gym until it’s healed 100%, I guess but I’m gonna get it checked out by a doctor soon anyways.

I tried to go back to the gym last week by doing Chest Day but then the sinus infection returned. Kept me out of the gym again. ugggghhhhh…. this sucks.

I hate being kept out of the gym. You can’t go in the gym when being sick or injured or both.

I’m no longer sick now, I don’t think and now just got to get rid of this damn leg injury so I can return to the gym full time.

So you may ask when will my Best of Lists for best albums of 2019 and best movies of 2019 coming? I think the Best Music albums of 2019 will be coming today but I’m gonna wait for later this month to post the Best of Movies. I still need to see some more 2019 movies I haven’t seen but gonna get to them.

2019 was a good year for me and I’ll be the same old me in 2020 and I’m not going anywhere. Happy New Year, y’all!

Kev

Gonna have to get my left leg injury a look at by a doctor soon, still got it unfortunately…

Welp, I’m gonna have to get my upper left leg injury a look at by my doctor pretty soon as I’ll be having an appointment in a few weeks. After a month off of the gym, I still got the upper left leg injury (or the hip flexor is what they call it).

I’m gonna go get it checked out by a doctor in a few weeks to make sure nothing is torn so hopefully nothing is torn. I’m pretty sure nothing’s torn ’cause if it was torn you would know by seeing some nasty discoloring… I’m not seeing anything like that. I probably just got a nasty muscle pull or something.

I’ve gone back to the gym this week but no lower body lifting and no deadlifting for a long while, unfortunately. Hopefully I won’t be needing surgery on this leg or won’t be walking on crutches or anything like that. If so then so be it, I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get rid of this leg pain forever.

I’m sure the doctor could figure out what it is real quick and hopefully they can give it something to make it go away faster, that’s what I’m hoping the most. My powerlifting training will be on hold as of this moment.

Injury setbacks sucks. I’ve done pretty good staying injury free for the most part until now. I just want this leg pain to go away completely so I can go back to serious powerlifting training ’cause it’s holding back my numbers.

Injuries suck and yes, I do get ’em once in a blue moon. Not very often. I’m always very careful in the gym.

Kev

Just starting Season 7 of “The Walking Dead” and the show is getting real good… Negan best thing to happen on the show? YES, I would say!!!

Man, I’m so glad that I’ve gotten back into watching “The Walking Dead” after bailing on the show after Season 3. Now I wished I never bailed. The show is really great. Probably the best show on cable TV right now.

I’ve gotten back into the show ’cause this character Negan has been catching a lot of internet buzz lately and that’s what drew me back into the show. I’ve gotten so much to catch upon with the “Walking Dead” so I decided to start from the very beginning from Season 1 and make my way all the way up to Season 9 on Netflix. Season 10 isn’t on Netflix yet since it’s currently airing on cable TV still.

I’ve just started “Season 7” this week and this Negan character is just starting to appear. Even though I’ve only seen two episodes with this Negan character in it, I’m already loving the character and now I can see why this character sparked a lot of internet buzz. Why? It’s because the actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays the character so fucking well. Yup, Jeffrey Dean plays the character so amazingly well that I think it’s award worthy for sure. No wonder this character has gotten popular so fast! Even though Negan is a villain, he is entertaining as hell and actually very like-able!

I think the stuff with The Governor was really good as I thought David Morrisey did a good job playing him but I think Negan is the best villain of the show. Toward the end of Season 6 and the start of Season 7, the show “Walking Dead” will start to get very dark and really intense. It’s really insane stuff.

I’ve stopped buying the “Walking Dead” books but I’m gonna have to get back into those too.

My question is how much longer the “Walking Dead” show is gonna go on for AMC? I learned that Andrew Lincoln who plays Rick Grimes finally quit the show after all these years. I think it could go on for a few more seasons, either that or 10 might be the final one, not sure.

The show is real great, though. Negan is the best thing to happen on it… did Jeffrey Dean win an award for that role yet? If not, he really should ’cause that’s an award worthy performance. Man, that’s some damn good acting.

I’m gonna have to take a break from watching “The Walking Dead” for a little while ’cause I have other things to watch this weekend ’cause I’m gonna start “Game of Thrones – Season 8” tonight and I’m planning on starting “The Witcher” on Netflix at some point.

Kev

Hope you all had a great Christmas this week, I sure did even though I was sick for most of the week…

I was meaning to post on Christmas Day but I was too busy spending it with family and plus, I was sick most of the week. I was battling a nasty sinus infection which lasted for over a week and then on Christmas Day, I’ve gotten the stomach bug which only lasted for a day. I’m all better 100% now, though. No colds and no stomach bugs so I’m good now.

Anyway, it was a great Christmas for me. Got some amazing gifts… just got a 43 inch Smart TV, some movies for my bluRay collection (Midsommar, Rambo: Last Blood, Avengers: Endgame, Game of Thrones – Season 8, The Dirty Harry Film Collection), a few video games for the PS4 (“Days Gone” and “Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order”) and a few books to read. Everything else is just clothes and gift cards.

It was a nice Christmas this year. Hope you had a great one too!

Kev