Category Archives: music

music

About Justin Bieber’s foiled murder plot controversy… doesn’t surprise me at all…

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So people are already on the move on trying to kill pop star, Justin Bieber. It doesn’t surprise me at all. Biebs has a lot of haters out there. Yes, he does. The news media is already blaming this on Justin Bieber’s social media like twitter for example. You see, I’m pretty sure Biebs gets hundreds of death threats daily by the haters out there, it’s just that this one has gone a bit too far and those guys actually tried to do it, which failed. I’m sure the fan girls are like “Oh no, what’s wrong with people. Leave Biebs alone, boo hoo”. It is not the internet to blame for all the hate against, Biebs. Who is to blame for all this? Well, Biebs himself, obviously. Look how he’s putting himself out there. For example, him wearing overalls when he went to meet the Prime Minister. That kind of thing. His relationship with Selena Gomez is what’s also causing all of this. On top of this, people are getting sick of him being everywhere in the music industry.

I’m sure, there are many others out there that want to go after, Justin Bieber. Not just these two guys who failed to get him. While part of this is Justin’s fault, the biggest problem is the fame and fortune. It’s not a good time to be rich and famous, nowadays. The bigger you get, the more crazy people will come after you. Yes, Justin is a human being and he doesn’t deserve it like every innocent person, but he should have seen this coming. I’m sure he did.

Hopefully, as he gets older, he’ll learn to grow up and learn to put himself out there better, so the death threats will calm down. The kid is only 18 and as you can see, he still has a lot of growing up to do. If he wants people to take him seriously, he needs to stop making crap pop music no one wants to hear and stop looking like a pretty boy teenager. He’s not the Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson of this generation.

Like I said, what happened was terrible and he probably didn’t deserve it, but he needs to put himself out there a little more responsibly. How about stepping back from his career for a while? He’s been a work horse for the last fucking several years and hasn’t had a break. The industry over hypes the kid, and no wonder he’s getting so many haters. I don’t hate Justin Bieber, but he just needs to look at how he’s promoting himself. I’m not defending his would be murderers, but if he doesn’t want something like this to happen again or worse if he doesn’t want to get murdered, then he has to be more responsible for his well being. Not trying to be mean, but I’ll give it another year or even less, until someone out there actually gets him.

That was only the beginning for Biebs. It won’t end for him unless he stops acting like a spoiled little jackass. I figure you would want to know my thoughts on this news story, so here it is. Enjoy.

Kev

music

The Brock reviews last night’s Sandy Relief concert at MSG…

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Last night’s Sandy Relief concert at MSG in NYC was mostly great last night.  There were just a few negatives about it. I watched it on TV. The whole thing. While Bruce Springsteen played a great set like usual, I didn’t get why him and Jon Bon Jovi were all over each other last night. Sure, I understand they both were from New Jersey and that was probably the point of them collaborating on stage with each other a lot last night, but I thought it was a little gay. On top of that, Bon Jovi is overrated as hell. I can’t stand Bon Jovi. Jon Bon was pretty creepy looking as a matter of fact.

Next here comes Roger Waters. Now, don’t get me wrong, I fucking love Roger Waters but his performance was a little off. Who was that long haired dude, singing the vocals and playing the guitar? That guy was terrible, get him off the stage. Then Eddie Vedder came out and butchered, “Comfortably Numb”, singing the Gilmour parts. I love Eddie Vedder, but singing Pink Floyd songs wasn’t for him. Eddie’s deep singing voice just didn’t fit. I kind of wish David Gilmour was there instead like most people. I do love Pink Floyd but Waters need to make better choices for his back up singers. That “Comfortably Numb” performance last night was pretty bad.

I liked Adam Sandler’s rendition of “Hallelujah”, which was pretty funny. I’m glad Sandler did something different other than his “Hanukah Song”. Other than Sandler’s talent for acting in film, he has a gift for music too as he is a talented singer. Sandler did a good job.

While the Rolling Stones were great last night, they should have played a longer set. In fact, they should have been one of the main headliners. They only played two songs I think? Not sure, why they didn’t get a lot of stage time.

I thought Alicia Keys did an amazing job. Even though I hate R&B music, I can deal with listening to Alicia ’cause she is very talented. I never bought her albums or anything, but her music is good to listen to.

Eric Clapton KILLED IT, last night, like he usually does. It was great to see Eric again. That guy kind of slowed down in music, these days. He hasn’t been touring or releasing albums much, so this must be one of his rare TV appearances. Clapton is still looking really good though. I’ve been a Clapton fan for years, and still am. I loved the Billy Joel set, he killed it too. Even though Billy seems to be retired from making new albums, he still can perform really good. I wish he would come back and make a new album. Billy Joel, is the fucking man. Loved the guy’s music for years too. The Chris Martin set was great too. It was good to see Michael Stipe perform with him. I thought that was cool.

Another negative of last night’s show was having Kanye West be one of the show’s main headliners. What the fuck was that all about? And what was that leather skirt he was wearing? That Kanye West performance sucked and he performed longer than anybody last night. I mean, fuck, dude. The Stones played a short set, while Kanye got the most stage time. I understand that the point of the Sandy Relief was to have a variety of music, something for everyone, sure, but they should have had a better rapper than Kanye. I can deal with Jay-Z or maybe, Dr. Dre more, they would be okay with me. Come on, Kanye? Ridiculous!

I believe my favorite performance last night, was the Who performance. Roger and Pete killed it last night. Their performance was pretty strong and powerful. A lot of emotion between those two guys, you can see it. I loved the Keith Moon tribute they did. That was beautiful and it almost brought tears to my eyes. Roger Daltrey is being wrongly criticized ’cause he was performing on stage with his shirt hanging open. Sorry to say people, but Roger has been performing that way for years, so this is nothing new. Yeah, I’m sure he knew it was a family friendly event, but he couldn’t help it. Why does he perform on stage with an unbuttoned shirt? Because, that’s rock n’ roll, to be fair to him. Performing on stage shirtless or wearing a dress shirt unbuttoned is a pretty normal thing for rock stars. They do these things all the time. When you perform on stage, sometimes you have to ’cause it does get hot and sweaty up there. Roger was sweating like a pig, so give the dude a break. You have to give him props for singing good like that at 68 years old. The dude still has it. Pete is still a great guitar player. I love the Who. They are rock n’ roll genius’s, never forget that.

I did stay up for the Paul McCartney performance, and he rocked it like usual. As for his collaboration with the Nirvana members, that was great. I figure they weren’t going to do any Nirvana songs, ’cause I’m sure they didn’t want to embarrass themselves, that’s why they did a new original song. It was a hard rocking and pretty heavy song  though, as I figured it would be. Paul was able to sing that hard rock song well. I didn’t think Paul would be able to sing that type of hard rock music, but he did it well. I remembered Paul saying he wanted to try writing a hard rock album someday and maybe he will work on an album with those guys? Could be a possibility. Paul McCartney can sing just about any genre. The man is talented, always has been.

It was a pretty good show last night, other than the few minus’s with Kanye West and the “Comfortably Numb” performance. It was a good time watching the show.

I’m surprised they didn’t book Neil Young & Crazy Horse for last night’s event. Would have been cool to see them be part of the lineup, oh well.

Kev

music, Uncategorized

The Brock’s Top 15 Music Albums of 2012…

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As for something fun to do on 12 – 12 – 12, I figure it would be cool, to do my “Top 15 Music Albums of 2012” right now and get it out of the way. The music industry keeps getting worse and worse each year, but I still happen to find some good music still. These were the best albums that came out this year. What is my no. 1 for best record ever made in 2012? Well, some of you may find it surprising, and some you may not find it surprising.

Enjoy the list below, counting backwards to the no. 1 choice.

15. Heart – Fanatic
(This is the 14th album by the legendary classic rockers, Heart, who is still going to this day. I love Heart, and I think this is their best album, they’ve done in a long time. It’s a really rocking album, with great guitar riffs, excellent guitar solos all over, and Nancy Wilson’s vocals, oh my god, KILLER! The Wilson sisters still got it, folks! They still ROCK! Congrats to them on their Hall of Fame induction.)

14. Joe Satriani – Satchurated: Live at Montreal
(The Satch has been my favorite guitarist for years, and this is one of the best live albums ever. Instead of playing his most popular songs, the album is full of obscure stuff we never heard before. Of course, there’s a few songs on it from his iconic, “Surfing with the Alien” album, though. Other than that, this is a pretty sick live album and Satch’s guitar playing was on fire, like usual. I know what it is like to see Satch live, as I saw him in concert once myself. Get this one if you like shred guitar.)

13. Tenacious D – Rize of the Fenix
(Kyle Gass and Jack Black, are back with a third Tenacious D album, and I think this is the best one out of the three they have. While the album is still full of offensive and obscene lyrics that are not suitable for children, there are some very strong and powerful songwriting on this album. They have matured as songwriters and seems to be getting better every album. Kyle’s guitar playing is just sick, and Jack has more emotion with his singing in this one. The songs are hilarious like usual.)

12. Sharon Van Etten – Tramp
(I’m not really much into the indie rock scene, but when I came across, Sharon Van Etten, singer/songwriter from NYC, I fell in love. She’s one of the best singer/songwriters in the Indie rock scene. It’s her amazing voice that draws you to her music. That is what did it to me. There’s something about this woman. Her songwriting is beautiful, and amazing. It’s good folk rock music. You should really check her out.)

11. Smashing Pumpkins – Oceania
(The Smashing Pumpkins has returned with their 9th studio album, and even if they have a completely new lineup of musicians now, they still sound stronger than ever. I know, the last few Smashing Pumpkins records haven’t been that great. There haven’t been a great Pumpkins record since, “Mellie Collie”. Surprisingly enough, “Oceania”, is full of old school sounding Pumpkins songs. This album will bring you back to the “Siamese Dreams” days. Finally, this is a true Pumpkins record that we’ve been wanting to hear for years. There are a mix of heavy songs and mellow songs, but this is an amazing Pumpkins record. Great job, Billy!)

10. Joe Bonamassa – Driving Toward the Daylight
(I’ve been reading a lot about this guy through Guitar World magazine ’cause they like to hype him so much. After listening to this record today in Spotify, I can see why! This guy’s music is phenomenal. His guitar playing is sick and he has blistering guitar solos, all over. He’s a blues rock musician, and he’s a great singer too. Pretty tight songs on this album, I was very impressed with it, and I want my own copy of this album soon!)

9. Mumford & Sons – Babel
(I was late getting into Mumford and Sons. I got into them ’cause everyone was talking about them. So I decided to check them out for myself. When I picked up their album, “Babel”, it wouldn’t leave my CD player. I kept playing it over and over again. I don’t know why. The album just kicks ass. Everyone was right, they are very talented.)

8. Aerosmith – Music From Another Dimension
(Everyone is always wondering when Aerosmith is ever going to go back to their old school rock sound they had back in the 70’s, well, your wish had just came true. People were so tired of Aerosmith writing pop songs all the time, and they finally gave us a rock n’ roll album. Aerosmith hasn’t made a good album since “Get a Grip”, and “Music From Another Dimension” was surprisingly great. So this album deserves to be high in the list. Even though the boys had some personal troubles over the years, they finally got together and made an album. Good job, dudes!)

7. Slash – Apocalyptic Love
(I’m glad Slash finally got rid of the special guest singers, and went with one singer, Myles Kennedy. This is Slash’s best album outside of Guns N’ Roses. It’s his best guitar playing too. Myles singing was also incredible. This is one of those albums that came out this year, that I can’t stop listening to. It’s an addicting album. This album does feel a little Guns N’ Roses sounding, however, but at least, Myles can sing, better than Axl.)

6. ZZ Top – La Futura
(This album by the legendary blues rockers, ZZ Top, is creating a lot of buzz in the industry, so I had to give it a listen myself. I would have to say that this was their best album since, “Eliminator”. It’s a tight rockin’ album all the way, through. Incredible guitar sounds, and the solos are just amazing as well. The dudes in ZZ Top, still have it! Billy Gibbons is a phenomenal guitar player!)

5. Soundgarden – King Animal
(I still don’t understand the mixed reviews on Soundgarden’s new album, “King Animal”. I think it’s a killer record all the way through, and it won’t leave my CD player either! I love Soundgarden’s older music more like most fans, but get over the past! It’s about moving forward, not backwards. I loved it the first time, I heard it. They still sound like Soundgarden, no matter what you think of it. Amazing album.)

4. The Sword – Apocryphon
(I’ve been a fan of, The Sword, for a long while, and this is their best album, out of the four they currently have. They still sound a little Black Sabbathy like they’ve always had, but I like those bands who don’t change their sound. Their songwriting is maturing, however, this is a much stronger album, than their previous albums. I enjoy the Sword ’cause this is the kind of metal I want to hear. Metal with real singing. Not the screaming & growling, death metal type, not my thing. The Sword, rules.)
The Sword_Apo
3. Rush – Clockwork Angels
(Rush, who are now Hall of Fame inductees, has returned with their 19th studio album, this year. This is a concept album that tells a story. The album is full of great guitar riffs by Alex Lifeson and it has full of catchy songs. It’s a heavy rockin’ album too, all the way through. The last several Rush albums haven’t been that great, but this has been the best one they did in years. All musicians played great on it. You learn something new every time you hear the album. Whether you’re a Rush fan or not, you should definitely give this one a listen. Check it out soon.)

2. Van Halen – A Different Kind of Truth
(EVH and David Lee Roth has reunited for a new Van Halen album, minus, Michael Anthony. Still a kick ass album though. Even though this isn’t the original VH lineup that we all wanted, they still rock. This is another album, that I couldn’t stop listening to. They still know how to write songs that will never leave your head and Eddie’s guitar playing is on fire, like usual. This is an old school Van Halen album and this is the way they’re supposed to sound. I know they’ve tried other sounds and styles over the years.)

1. Neil Young – Psychedelic Pill
(Yep, so I find Neil’s newest album, “Psychedelic Pill”, to be the best record released all year. I’ve been a Neil Young fan for years. This is definitely the best album he did with Crazy Horse, ever. This guy wants to make it alright that you can listen to long songs that are between 15-30 minutes. Why does Neil write long songs? It’s called jamming and improvisation. I’m willing to bet that’s how these songs got it’s start. They came out of jamming. Even though the songs are very long on this double album, Neil continues to write catchy songs that never leave your head. Neil’s guitar sound is at it’s best on this album. His guitar solos are out of this world. Great musicianship all around, with all the guys in Crazy Horse. With all the guitar legends and singer/songwriters out there retiring from the music business, Neil is still going. Still doing his thing like he always did. People just need to stop listening to garbage commercial music in the mainstream and listen to Neil Young. His music is better than most stuff out, nowadays.)

Enjoy!

I’ll have the “Best Movies of 2012”, up sometime after Christmas.

Kev

music

Paul McCartney to front Nirvana at MSG tonight, yes, you heard that right!

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Just announced today, as a surprise for 12-12-12, Paul McCartney will be fronting the re-formed Nirvana, with Dave Grohl on drums, Krist Noveselic on bass, and Pat Smear on guitar. They will back Paul McCartney on vocals tonight for the Sandy Benefit at MSG in NYC. This performance is not what you think it is though. I don’t think they will be performing any of Nirvana’s hits. You won’t hear Paul sing, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” or “Come As You Are”, they will be doing a brand new, Nirvana song.

This maybe an odd collaboration but keep in mind, people, that Kurt was a huge Beatles fan. You can hear a lot of Beatles influence in Nirvana songs. I’m 100% sure, Kurt would have wanted this to happen, a Beatle to front Nirvana. If Kurt was still alive to see this, I’m sure he would have loved it. It would have been a dream come true for Kurt, and this is why they’re doing this. Honoring a late rock star.

I can’t wait for this performance to land on youtube. It’ll be interesting!

More on the story, here.

If they do end up playing a few Nirvana hits, anyway, that wouldn’t surprise me.

Kev

music

Spotify

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I didn’t agree with Spotify at first which is why I took it off my computer. I decided to have a change of heart with it, and get it back. Instead of waiting to hear those new albums I want to hear in 2012, I thought I would get Spotify back and listen to those albums there. Listen to them first before buying them. If I like the album enough, I’ll buy it from Itunes or buy the CD from the store. Right now, I’m listening to ZZ Top’s new album, “La Futura” as I type this, and so far, it’s pretty sick. Loving it. I’ll listen to more new albums in Spotify this week, and maybe I’ll write up the “Top 15 Best Music Albums of 2012” this weekend. Spotify is great. Listen to tunes, while you browse the net.

Kev

movies, music

The theme song in “Man of Steel” trailer is not new, folks…

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While the theme song in the new “Man of Steel” trailer, would sound like a new theme song, it’s not. It’s not new music from the movie quite yet. It does sound like music taken from the movie, “Gladiator”, but that’s not it either. The song is performed by Lisa Gerrard & Patrick Cassidy. It is not by Hans Zimmer. In the video below, here’s the original recording of the song from “Man of Steel” trailer #2.

Hans Zimmer must haven’t finished scoring “Man of Steel”, if they’re using music from other trailers. Unless, this is their way of teasing us and giving us hopes, that they could use the John Williams music? I doubt it though, but we can only dream. I still wish they use the John Williams music.

Listen to the song from “Man of Steel” trailer below. The original recording. Enjoy.

Kev

music

Does rap & hip hop belong in the Hall of fame? I’d say yes, absolutely!!!!

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The more rap groups & rap artists get inducted into the Hall of Fame, the more people will complain about it. People will criticize the Hall of Fame, saying they shouldn’t induct rap artists because people think they aren’t rock n’ roll. So the question we’re all wondering, is rap rock n’ roll? Yes it is. The Hall of Fame are doing the right thing and they know how music works better than everyone. With that said, they’re pretty educated with music more than any of us. Pretty much most popular genres are rock n’ roll. Pop, dance, hip hop, R&B, disco, metal, blues, etc. All that stuff is rock n’ roll. If you really think rap isn’t rock n’ roll, then that shows how uneducated people are with music.

Rap originated from rock n’ roll, that’s where it got it’s start. Do some reading on this for the rap & hip hop genre. For example, this little write up, here, did a good job explaining why rap is considered rock n’ roll.

I’ve explained it before guys. Rock n’ roll doesn’t just have to be music with just guitar playing and guitar solos. Rock n’ roll is the roots of all genres of music. That’s why the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts artists of every genre. They’ve been inducting artists of every genre ever since the Hall of Fame started in 1986.

James Brown and Ray Charles may not be strictly rock n’ roll, but they belong in the hall of fame. James Brown may not have been a rap artist but he was pretty close to it, anyway. A lot of Brown’s songs were pretty dancy and hip hop sounding a little bit, but his music had a rock n’ roll feeling. Thing is, you can still write rock n’ roll songs, but in different styles. As I said before, it doesn’t just have to be guitar playing with rock n’ roll songwriting.

With that being said, Public Enemy, is deserving of this induction. They are hip hop legends for sure. They made history. I’m not a big hip hop fan anymore like I used to be when I was a kid but I did hear a few Public Enemy albums. I used to own a few of them. Hip hop is rock n’ roll, just a different style to it.

Before hating on the Hall of Fame on how they do their inductions, you should do a little researching. Educate yourself. Rap and Rock n’ roll do belong together, doesn’t matter what you think of it.

Kev

music

Congratulations go out to Rush, who are the new Rock and Roll Hall of Famers!!!

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Well guys, they finally made it! Rush is finally in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! After years of fans complaining of them not making it in, the Hall of Fame finally heard us and gave us what we want. I agree that Rush deserves this and they should have been inducted ever since the Hall of Fame started, a long time ago. The Hall of Fame have never been progressive rock/metal friendly at all. They are starting to give progressive rock and metal a little more respect, as they inducted Metallica, last year, but they are still falling behind on legendary progressive and metal bands.

Other inductees who made it in 2013 are Heart, Randy Newman, Public Enemy, Donna Summer, Albert King, Lou Adler, and Quincy Jones.

See the link, here.

I’m disappointed that Deep Purple and Joan Jett got the snub, but there’s always next year.

What other progressive rock and metal bands deserve an induction? Well, other than Deep Purple… Megadeth certainly deserves in. Jethro Tull too. Dream Theater, maybe? Iron Maiden, most definitely. Kiss, of course. There are too many that deserves in.

Kev

music

About what I said, putting music first…

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I know my comments about “Putting music first” is going to be quite controversial, but if you think about it for a few minutes. What I said was absolutely true! If you want to seek your dreams in music and become successful. If you want to become a full time touring band, and full time musician all around, this is what you must do. You must take some harsh sacrifices. Even if it means being away from your family and from your hometown most of the year. Why do you think there are so many successful bands & musicians out there? It’s because they put music as their first priority. It is why there are so many famous musicians in the major labels. They put music first.

I mean, if you really think what I said was, crazy, this is probably why you’re still a local musician, and not being successful. The more successful and established musicians, that’s all these guys do is play music. They have nothing else in their lives going on but that. Bands & musicians spend so much time away from their families, yes, even their spouses and children. Why? Because that’s what they do. They’re musicians who play music. Their families are willing to accept who they are and they understand why they must be away from them so much ’cause of their career.

At least this article, here, understands!

This is the truth, guys. When you want to be something in music, this is what you must do. I see music as my first priority ’cause this is all I have. Pretty much, all I do is play guitar and make music. I also have a big passion in listening to other music too. It’s not that I don’t care about everything else in life, of course, I do, but all that stuff is secondary. Music is my first love, always will be.

Kev

music

About the 2012 Music Albums…

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Instead of the usual top 10 for “Best of Music” albums, I think I’m going to move it up to Top 15 this year. I just went through my CD collection to see if I can find albums that were released in 2012, and surprisingly, I found a bunch! I didn’t realize I bought this many albums this year! I also have quite a few 2012 albums in my Itunes library as well. There are still a few other music albums that came out this year, that I want to hear, and I will probably pick those up when ever I get around to starting my Christmas shopping. I’m still holding off on this list. Want to be careful with this one and want to make sure my opinions are going to be worth it. I’ll be going to the mall soon, to see “The Hobbit”, and do my Christmass shopping then. Sometime next week, probably next Monday.

Kev