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.
music

Grateful Dead’s “Europe ’72″…. oh my, I’m totally hooked to this live album… been listening to it all week…

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If you’re a music album collector like myself and if you don’t have the Grateful Dead’s “Europe ’72” in it then you’re missing out. I’m glad I bought the Dead’s “Europe ’72” ’cause I can’t stop listening to it. As soon as the album starts, it immediately grabs you and you’ll want to immediately listen to it from start to finish each time you put on the album. This album will do that to you.

I’ve heard quite a few Dead live albums before but I think “Europe ’72” just might be the best one of them all. It’s a beautiful live album. Sound quality is surprisingly good on it. You can hear the band quite well and you can hear all the vocals pretty clearly as well. This album has Jerry Garcia’s best singing too.

This album also has some of the best improvisational jamming you’ll ever hear. When I put this album on and listen to it through the ear phones, a lot of times I can’t help myself but bop my head up and down and sometimes embarrassingly dance a little bit myself. The Grateful Dead is a dance band and this album will do that to you for sure. Put this album on your stereo system at home and you’ll probably get up and dance for no reason. The Dead was that kind of band.

I got this album on my Ipod touch and now I want a copy on vinyl. The vinyl is gonna be a bit pricey but it will be worth it ’cause of the sound quality. Maybe I’ll order the vinyl version off of amazon sometime in the future ’cause I do want to grow my vinyl collection. I do have a vinyl collection but a small one for now.

I’ve always known that this album was an important album in the Dead’s history and now listening to it for myself, I can understand why. It’s a pretty amazing album, all the way through.

Get it whether you’re a Dead fan or not. Even if you’re not a Dead fan at all, this album might turn you into a Deadfan after this.

Kev

music

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees for 2020 are out… my thoughts on each one…

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Well, the nominees for the 2020 Rock Hall of Fame are out. I’ve recently heard that Jann Wenner just retired as chairman from the Rock Hall of Fame which is good riddance, anyways. I never liked that guy being in charge of the Hall of Fame ’cause he was awful. I’m hoping the new chairman would be better than Wenner but I doubt it, though.

Anyhow, the Rock Hall of Fame in Cleveland just released this year’s nominees.

https://www.rockhall.com

The bands/artists that I think deserves to get inducted the most:

Pat Benatar, Judas Priest, Motorhead, The Doobie Brothers, Soundgarden, T. Rex, Todd Rundgren, Depeche Mode and Thin Lizzy. 

Those are the acts that are more deserving, in my opinion.

I love Pat Benatar… even though her songs are more pop/rock, she is still rock n’ roll ’cause her music has a lot of guitar playing and stuff, ya know? I definitely think Judas Priest, Motorhead, Doobie Brothers, T. Rex, Rundgren, Depeche Mode and Thin Lizzy are definitely worthy.

I’m sure some of you thinking which Thin Lizzy the Rock Hall is referring to? There are two Thin Lizzy bands, the one that did the hit “Boys Are Back in Town” and the other with guitarist Gary Moore. I think the “Boys Are Back In Town” Thin Lizzy are the ones who got nominated and they are a great band. I once got the opportunity to see Thin Lizzy live in concert a long time ago and they performed “Boys are Back in Town” of course, that’s a show I’ll never forget. They are totally worthy for the Hall of Fame for sure.

Soundgarden maybe somewhat new ’cause they emerged from the early 90’s but they are still worthy.

As for Whitney Houston, love her but she ain’t rock n’ roll enough to get in the Hall the Fame. The same can be said for Dave Matthews and the Notorious BIG.

As for Kraftwerk and MC5…. I’m familiar with their names but I never bought their records and haven’t heard their music much.

Nine Inch Nails I’ve listened to a lot over the years but I’m not a big fan of them though and think it’s too soon for them to get in.

As for Rufus with Chaka Khan, I’ve never listened too much but I’m familiar with their songs.

I think it’s finally time for more “Rock and roll” acts to be inducted but I really hope that Judas Priest and Motorhead gets in finally, at least. Those two bands should have gotten inducted a long time ago too and long overdue.

I’m trying to get into more Judas Priest music as I only own two albums by them but I’m planning on buying more of their stuff. I think Rob Halford is definitely one of the best singers in rock. I hope they don’t get ignored this time and hope they make it in finally.

Kev

 

music

Turns out Eddie Van Halen might be battling cancer after all but it’s just a rumor for now, though… wait until Eddie confirms the news himself…

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It turns out that Eddie Van Halen might be battling cancer after all but it’s turning out to be throat cancer… however, this news is coming from news reports. Like they all say, you can’t believe everything the news says ’cause they aren’t always accurate so don’t believe it for now. Wait until you hear from Eddie himself or his manager/lawyers/staff and then you can believe it.

https://www.tmz.com/2019/10/13/eddie-van-halen-traveling-germany-cancer-treatment/

If it’s true that Eddie is now battling throat cancer then my heart goes out to him and hope he kicks the cancers ass hard. There was a lot of talk of a Van Halen tour happening but the tour has been plugged and this could explain why. That’s understandable ’cause health should always come first before everything else.

So Eddie maybe battling throat cancer just like Dave Mustaine of Megadeth.

Eddie Van Halen is one of my favorite guitarists for sure and he was one of those responsible for inspiring me to pick up the guitar myself. I wish Eddie the best and praying for him.

Kev

WWE

Thoughts on the wrestling industry so far: Which company do I think is better… WWE or AEW???

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Well, the competition between WWE and AEW is really heating up. I’ve been a lifelong WWE fan for years and still am even to this day. Now that there is a new wrestling company out there called All Elite Wrestling (AEW) which I’ve been watching since their very first ppv called “Double Or Nothing”. Now AEW is on television and they have their own TV show on Wednesday nights titled “Dynamite” which lands on the same night as NXT on USA. Both of those shows are on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m.

The WWE has been sucking a lot lately and now that AEW is here, this has forced WWE to try and get better. You can see that the WWE is trying to improve ’cause they brought in Paul Heyman to run RAW and Eric Bischoff to run Friday Night Smackdown on FOX. Both of those shows are trying to improve but both shows are going downhill and getting bad again. WWE is trying to improve but they can’t.

What is the difference between WWE and AEW? There is a big difference:

WWE: This company is all family-entertainment. They are still in the PG era and the WWE treats their fans like they “marks”. The wrestling term “marks” means fans that think wrestling is real and Vince treats their fans that way. The thing that is missing in WWE is that they don’t focus on true wrestling anymore but mostly focus on “storyline” and soap opera stuff. Vince and the WWE likes to hold their fan favorite superstars down while part timers like Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey getting all the spotlight. They also love to ram Roman Reigns down our throats.

AEW: This company focuses on the actual “wrestling” part of things. They don’t treat their fans like marks and this company actually treats their fans like real “fans” which is a breath of fresh air. This company calls their performers “wrestlers” and not “superstars”. This company brings back “good” wrestling which WWE ignores… good wrestling meaning matches that tell a story and being theatrical like which WWE doesn’t have anymore. AEW brings all that back. AEW does things WWE doesn’t do anymore like hardcore wrestling, chair shots to the head, lots of blood and all that stuff.

With all this being said, you wonder which company I think is better? I’m gonna have to say AEW for sure. AEW makes me excited for pro wrestling lately ’cause I’m with most wrestling fans that WWE has been sucking a lot lately and they aren’t getting any better either.

When it comes to WWE sucking, I don’t blame the performers ’cause they are just doing their job… I blame Vince for sure. Vince is a great business owner and promoter but creatively, he is downright horrible. It’s a shame ’cause WWE used to be really good in the 80’s and 90’s.

AEW is awesome ’cause they have a talent in the roster that actually has character like Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, Adam Hangman Page,  PAC, etc. All those guys are fucking awesome and AEW has a cool women’s division too.

WWE has so many superstars that don’t have any character anymore except for the new Bray Wyatt gimmick aka The Fiend which is why I keep watching the WWE. The Fiend is a cool character and each time the Fiend is on, I watch. The new Bray Wyatt gimmick is captivating stuff for sure.

While I think what AEW is doing is pretty amazing stuff, they still need to improve, though. I think their sound system in arenas is horrible. They need to improve the sound system for the wrestler theme songs and they need to improve the P.A. for when wrestlers give their promos in the ring too. Their TV production is kind of horrible too. I understand AEW is a new company and they got a lot to learn still but they’ll get better with that stuff as time goes along.

With that being said, I think AEW is an amazing company and I love what they’re doing as I think I will be a full time AEW fan, but the question you have to ask is this… “Will I give up WWE?”. No… probably not. I’ll continue to support WWE and will continue to be a WWE fan. I can’t give up WWE so I’ll support both WWE and AEW as I have been watching both.

I’m just a fan of pro wrestling as I love it so much, ya know? AEW is awesome. You should check them out on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. on TNT if you’re curious. They’re doing a good job.

Kev

Politics/war

Apparently, Ellen triggered people on both sides with her defense of hanging with George W. Bush video… which proves her point that America needs to come together and love everybody!

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I’m noticing that Ellen’s segment on telling Americans that it’s okay to be friends with people you disagree with politically is triggering people on both sides of the spectrum… the right and the left. Both sides are losing their minds and calling her out. Not all of them are, though… there are some people on both sides who actually agrees with her.

Yeah, I don’t really like George W. Bush, don’t really like Obama, don’t like Bernie and don’t really like Hillary but if I ever met them in person… I wouldn’t be mean to them and would be kind to them anyway. Some people can have the most insane and crazy ideas when it comes to political views but it’s still possible to treat them like real humans. We are all human and we all have feelings.

We really need to knock off this “right vs. left” crap ’cause it’s getting old and tiresome, ya know? Admittedly, I’ve been pretty harsh and mean to liberals online over the years but I’ve been trying to calm down and have been trying to be “apolitical” more. I think I may as well become “apolitical”… ya know, shut up about politics for good and just focus on music and weightlifting. Admittedly, I haven’t been letting lefties speak their minds when I should.

A lot of conservatives say lefties are “intolerant” but conservatives can be just as bad as the left. The conservative community is pretty divided for that reason. This isn’t how America should be. We need to come together and love each other as a whole. That’s what Ellen trying to say and the more you hate on her, the more it proves her point. The same goes for lefties who are always hating on conservatives and Republican voters.

We really need to unite pretty badly, though and Ellen has a lot of balls for saying it. Give it time… is Ellen about to be blacklisted ’cause she all of a sudden had “center-like” views in politics? I wouldn’t be surprised if she’ll start getting the Roseanne Barr treatment.

Kev

music

Which members of Van Halen are having health problems??? Rumors swirling that it may be Eddie himself…

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There has been a lot of talk that Van Halen maybe possibly reuniting for a tour but it looks like it may never be happening. I’ve been listening to a lot of this stuff on the Eddie Trunk podcast that the tour was gonna happen with Michael Anthony coming back on bass and backing vocals but Michael says the band pulled the plug on the tour for whatever reason.

Later on, David Lee Roth claims Van Halen may be finished for good but there has been no official confirmation from the band themselves yet.

Now Steve Lukather here confirms that some of the members of Van Halen maybe having health issues which is why they aren’t touring or making new records.

https://loudwire.com/van-halen-hiatus-health-issues/

Very strange. People are saying that some of the guys in Van Halen are having health issues and it has been said that Eddie Van Halen himself might be very sick, but the news hasn’t got out yet. It’s just a rumor for right now. People are saying that Van Halen are dealing with health issues but no one is saying anything… probably out of respect for privacy and all, ya know?

I just hope that whatever’s going on behind the scenes that Eddie and the other guys in Van Halen are okay.

I’m a huge Van Halen fan, have been for years. They are one of the greatest rock n’ roll bands of all time… love ’em or hate ’em all you want to. If health reasons is what’s stopping them from touring, that’s understandable.

I just hope Eddie isn’t secretly battling cancer or anything ’cause it must be pretty serious if he’s keeping it private. So far Eddie himself hasn’t confirmed any of this but we’ll wait and see, though. I do hope Van Halen reunites someday still… never say never.

Kev

Politics/war

I’m no fan of Ellen Degeneres but what she did here was really good… for once I agree with her!!!

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I’m no fan of talk show host and comedian Ellen Degeneres at all. I never liked her but for once, I’ll love her for this just for this one time… Ellen goes to an NFL football game that she got invited to and she got special seating at the game. Unexpectedly, she gets a seat next to our former president George W. Bush and his wife, Laura. This sparked an uproar on twitter and here is Ellen brilliantly defending herself on this… clearly shutting down the “outrage” crowd we live in these days.

In this segment on her talk show, she says we should be kind to one another even if we don’t agree with our political views. She says it’s okay to be friends with people even if they have opposing views with each other and I totally agree.

Ya know, I maybe a very conservative guy and I do have some “leftist” friends in my life. I don’t really hate the hardcore left and I’m willing to be friends with “liberals” just as long as they respect my views. I don’t hate liberals like some would think, I respect and LOVE all people. Really I do.

Even if I’m a pretty conservative guy… not only do I have some liberal friends and family members, I also have liberal fans and supporters. When I have liberal fans and supporters, they don’t support me ’cause of my politics, they probably support me ’cause of my bodybuilding/powerlifting and they enjoy my music since I’m a musician. They support me anyways ’cause they are adult enough that it’s okay to support people who you don’t agree with politically. I’m even willing to date a liberal woman if I had to.

We still live in a divided country. I’ve always said for a pretty long time on my blogs that this “right vs. left” battles we keep having constantly is just silly and not good for America. We still need to figure out a way to unite ’cause we need to knock off this “right vs. left” crap.

I’ve had too many liberals over the years attacking me for my political views and I’ve had many leftist people refusing to talk to me only because I’m “conservative”. That’s not how America should be.

I love Ellen for this. We really need to stop hating on each other over politics ’cause once again, it’s not good for America.

It is possible to love someone even if you don’t agree with them politically… you should try it, lefties. It’s not that hard. Shame on the media ’cause the mainstream press is partly responsible for dividing the nation.

Kev

music

Purchased some more music from Itunes this week… check out what I got…

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Now that I got all of Grateful Dead’s studio albums, I’m gonna start getting their live stuff now. So from Itunes, I picked up the Dead’s “Europe 72” and “Saint of Circumstance (Live at Giants Stadium”). I love the Grateful Dead and have been listening to them a lot. While their studio albums are fun to listen to, I’m sure their live albums will be even more fun. I never got to see the Grateful Dead live in concert myself back when Jerry Garcia was alive and that’s why I’m planning to get more of their live stuff.

I got the new Opeth record they just put out titled, “In Cauda Venenum” which is pretty good and listened to it already. Not their best album but I like their earlier stuff more. I’ve been a huge Opeth fan for a long while now and I freakin’ love that band. They are a metal/prog rock band from Sweden. I think Mikael Akerfeldt is a talented man, he’s a great singer and guitar player too. I’m trying to collect all their albums so I got two more of their older albums “Orchid” and “Still Life”. I got 10 Opeth albums so far and only got 3 more to go in order to complete their discography which is my goal. They’re my favorite band right  now.

I also got a couple of more albums by blues rock artist, Samantha Fish who I became obsessed with. She’s my favorite artist and musician right now. Love her so much. She’s a talented guitarist, a great singer, great songwriter and she herself is one HOT looking woman too… she has the full package.

I also got another Dire Straits album, “Making Movies” and trying to get all 6 of their albums as well. I love Mark Knopfler.  He’s one of my favorite guitarists and songwriters.

Also, got the new album by Rival Sons, “Feral Roots” ’cause I’ve been hearing so much about those guys. Read a lot of interviews with them in Guitar World magazine and kept hearing about them on the internet so I got this album out of curiosity. Rival Sons are a pretty hot band in the industry right now and everyone’s talking abut them so I’m finally checking them out for myself.

And lastly… got the latest album by Weyes Blood “Titanic Rising” which is really good shit as well as I talked about in a post before. She’s a really good artist

I’m a proud album addict and not ashamed of it at all. I love music and love supporting bands/artists. That’s what I do.

Kev

music

Music I’ve been listening to lately…

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While I mostly like to listen to old music from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and even the early 90’s… I would do my very best to try to catch up on some new music that is out. It is hard for me to find new music nowadays that is good ’cause most of the new music in the industry is pretty bad.

A lot of times I would buy new albums from my favorite bands and artists. Sometimes I would discover new bands & artists that I never heard before at all that I really like a lot. For example, Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown is a fucking awesome band. They are a rock band that has a classic rock vibe… check out their new album “Truth and Lies”… it’s pretty great shit. Great guitar playing and great songwriting.

I’ve also discovered a metal band that I really like called Born of Osiris. They are a heavy band with screaming and growling but they are actually listenable, though. I’m not into the screaming and growling that much in metal but I can listen to Born of Osiris, though. That record they put out this year “The Simulation” is pretty fucking awesome. Get it if you like metal. I can’t stop listening to that one.

The new Abbath album “Outsrider” is a metal album that I really like and Abbath is a really good band. Love those guys a lot.

Other artists that I discovered are “The Highwomen” which is an all girl group of country singers. They are called a supergroup with 4 iconic singers. I’ve never heard of them ’cause I don’t listen to country too much but this is an awesome album, though. It’s an album that actually sounds like true country not that pop country junk you’ve been hearing nowadays. The Highwomen are a great group and you should still check out that album.

There’s a female blues artist that I recently discovered by the name of Samantha Fish who just put out a killer album called, “Kill or Be Kind”. That album is fucking HOT, trust me. If you want blues rock music that’ll get you to stomp your feet and make you bop your head up and down to, this album will do that. Samantha is a great guitarist and a great singer. This is my favorite new album this year. I’m gonna be listening to this one a lot, I think. I think I’m gonna be buying more Samantha Smith albums ’cause I’m in love with her music and she’s my favorite artist right now.

I’ve also recently discovered a new female artist I never heard before by the name of Weyes Blood. Oh my god, her latest album, “Titanic Rising” is absolutely mind blowing. This album came out this year but it’s got a 70’s vibe to it. The album has a lot of Beatles and George Harrison influence on it, that’s probably why I like it so much… plus Weyes has a singing voice that will send chills down your spine. This is an amazing record and I’d recommend this one to you too. I’ve also been listening to this one a lot. Powerful songwriting. Weyes Blood is an actual artist name, not a band name. She’s very good, though and I’m glad I got this album. I’d love to buy the rest of her albums too.

I like to listen to music at the gym a lot and these are the albums I’ve been listening to.

Kev

True Crime

Adoptive family of Jaliek Rainwalker… they continue to act like their missing kid never existed… why???

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https://twitter.com/Jabb3rDrag0n/status/1179365040408973313

Adoptive Mom of Jaliek Rainwalker posts family photo publicly on social media but she doesn’t mention Jaliek’s name at all. There is no, “We love you Jaliek… we miss you and we wish you were here with us” at all.

Social media activity with adopted family online but they don’t bring up his name at all. None of them asks for the public’s help to find that kid. The other kids are all on social media too… they are full grown adults but they don’t ask for the public’s help to find Jaliek either.

Why? Is it the adoptive parents way of not getting caught? They say they have nothing to hide? Hmmmmm????

This family can go on with their lives and not have a care for Jaliek all they want to but the rest of us will never forget Jaliek. If they won’t find him then we will somehow and someway, justice is coming.

When a family has a missing kid, you don’t move out of state and go on smiling. Most parents in the United States who has a missing kid would do everything under the sun to find him/her but you don’t see this family doing that.

This family cares about Jaliek???? Please… not from what I’m seeing.

Kev