music

Billy Corgan shows off his “Gish” guitar he just got back and he plays it too…

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Very cool video. So Billy Corgan just got his stolen “Gish” guitar back and in this video, he shows it off to everyone. When I watch this video, I can immediately tell that Billy is totally psyched to have the guitar back. You can tell he’s very happy to have it back. When he played this guitar on this video, it does sound very Smashing Pumpkins-like. After hearing what that guitar sounds like now, I can see why the guitar is very special to Billy.

After Billy records the new Pumpkins album with that guitar, I’m sure he’s gonna go on tour with it too. When he does go on tour with that guitar, I’m sure he’ll keep a much better eye on it so it won’t get stolen again.

I’m not a big fan of Fender Strats but that guitar does sound good. That Strat that Billy has won’t sound like any other Strats at all. It’s gonna be interesting to hear what the Smashing Pumpkins sound like now that Billy has that guitar back.

I know how a lot of people will want to believe that guitars are nothing but they are something. Guitars are really special treasures, they are no joke. I’m a guitar lover myself.

I’m happy for Billy that he got his guitar back.

Kev

Health and Fitness

Wasn’t my best bench day today… it’s my fault but I got it figured out, though…

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https://www.instagram.com/p/BuWtEX3lI04/

I was gonna go for a 1 rep max on bench and I failed. I tried to attempt a 155 lbs. bench today and couldn’t do it. At least I can lift 150 lbs. twice, though. I’m thinking to myself, “Why did I miss the 155 lb. bench when I did it lots of times in the past?” Am I getting weaker? Am I plateauing? The answer is no to all those.

I think I just figured out the problem. It’s because I started off the sets pretty heavy. Doing heavy sets and few reps which made me feel fatigue toward the end. That was like training for strength instead of “maxing out”. I felt fatigued is why I couldn’t lift the 155 lbs. again. I was wasting energy is why it continues to happen.

Man, I really need to learn how to properly warm up for my 1 rep max. I need to learn how to warm up to my P.R.. so I won’t feel fatigue and maybe I WILL be able to bench bigger.

To properly warm up for my 1 rep max, I need to do the first couple of sets doing light weights and do the last few sets heavier and few reps for example something like this:

Warm up: Just the bar for 12 reps

Set 1: light weight for 12 reps

Set 2: A little more weight for 10 reps

Set 3: A little more weight for 8 reps

Set 4: heavy weight for 5 reps

Set 5: A heavy single

Set 6: Then you can do your max out/ pr attempt

I know I’ve gotten 155 lbs. and 160 lbs. bench in the past before and now I just figured out why I haven’t been getting those numbers again.

Lessons learned. Got to learn how to properly warm up to my 1 RPM and I got to do the same for squats and deadlifts if I want to smash my best lifts, ya know?

When you want to test out your “personal record” (pr for short), gotta learn how to properly warm up beforehand so you won’t feel fatigued.

I’m pretty new to powerlifting training and I’m learning. I’m gonna make a lot of mistakes and I’m sure all powerlifters make mistakes too. They all have their bad lifting days too and everyone ends up in a “plateau” at some point ’cause it happens. I don’t think I’m “plateauing” at all like I said. Lifting heavy a lot in a workout will make you feel fatigue and all tired. That’s what you don’t want before doing a 1 RPM. I gotta stop lifting heavy a lot if I want to go for a new “pr”.

Actually, I did have a pretty good bench day today if you think about it ’cause I lifted 150 lbs. twice and did 135 lbs. for 4 reps so that’s pretty damn good.

Maybe next week when I give maxing out on bench another try, I’ll get 155 lbs. or more. Just gotta “properly” warm up. My mistake and my bad. I’ll keep this in mind for when I max out on squat and deadlift this week.

Kev

movies, TV

Yes, I ended up watching the Oscars last night and it was pretty decent… pretty good show actually!!!!

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I’ve stayed away from watching the Oscar awards for the past several years. Why? Simply because they’ve gone too political lately. I’ve been boycotting the Oscars for a long while and decided to watch last night.  I was a little worried that the Oscars would go political again this year. They did go “political” but not as bad as in the past. Spike Lee talked trash about Trump even though he didn’t bring up Trump’s name but the Trump bashing wasn’t that bad last night. It was a pretty calm show for the most part.

I was surprised the Oscars opened the show with Queen performing. That was actually great. I’m a huge fan of Queen but not a huge fan of Adam Lambert fronting them, though. Don’t like Adam’s singing but Queen performed good.

I wanted to watch the Oscars last night ’cause I wanted to see if “Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse” was going to win Best Animated Picture (which it did) and wanted to see if “Green Book” wins Best Picture (and it did). I’m glad Mahershala Ali won for his role in “Green Book” too. I’m also happy for Remi Malek for winning for “Bohemian Rhapsody” as I also loved that film. The winners went to the right people and I was happy how the results turned out to be.

As for the live performances go, I loved Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga performing together. I thought that was really great and I do love the song “Shallow”. I have the “Star Is Born” soundtrack on my Ipod. It’s a great soundtrack.

The Oscars proved last night that they don’t need a host to run a show. While it wasn’t a bad show last night, the fashion on the celebrities seem to be getting worse each year, though.

I haven’t watched the Oscars in a long while and it was interesting to see how the Oscars are now.

I’m just happy that “Green Book” won BEST PICTURE and glad “Black Panther” didn’t get it. That’s the best thing that happened at the Oscars last night. “Green Book” really was a great film and it is Best Picture worthy. I saw that film in theater and loved it. Plan on getting the film on Blu Ray soon ’cause it comes out on Blu Ray next week on March 5th. I’m definitely picking up a copy.

I thought the Oscars was pretty good last night and they’re slowly getting better. Glad I watched.

Kev

Local music

10 Reasons The Local Musicians community isn’t always enjoyable…

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There are some music lovers that want to believe the local music community is wonderful, positive and enjoyable to be a part of but not always. As someone who has been a part of the local musician’s community for a little over a decade, you will experience some negatives and positives. There will always be ups and downs for sure. Knowing from my own experience of being a part of the local musician’s community, I can tell you for sure that it’s not always going to be positive.

Why? I’m about to explain 10 reasons why being a part of the local musicians community/scene is not always a positive experience. Here are those 10 reasons in no particular order, these are just some signs to watch out for:

  • A lot of musicians have massive egos: This is true. Throughout the years of my life as a musician, I’ve seen many other local musicians around here who have massive egos. I’m not gonna name names but you will meet plenty of musicians who think they are bigger and more special than others. You will meet plenty of musicians who will jerk themselves off on their successes and jerk themselves off over their playing ability. You’ll meet plenty of musicians who are arrogant, stuck-up and can act like a bunch of prima-donnas. There will be plenty of those for sure. I know not all musicians are egomaniacs, it’s very rare that you’ll come across someone who is humble and isn’t full of themselves. Many musicians really do think they’re important. Too many musicians around here think they’re rock stars and too many want to chase super stardom which I think is sad.
  • Musicians with unprofessional attitudes: You’ll see musicians with plenty of these too. Ya know, musicians who are always impolite, rude and negative most of the time. You will meet plenty of musicians who aren’t very nice and that’s the way it is.
  • Some musicians will always be critical of you: You’ll see plenty of musicians around the musicians community who think they are a music critic. If they don’t like the way you play and if they don’t like your songwriting, they won’t be afraid to say it out loud. If you’re going to be a part of the local musician’s community, you’ll have to expect some Simon Cowell wannabe critics out there. Be aware of some nasty reviews that are aimed at your playing and your music.
  • Some musicians can be untrustworthy people: You will deal with a lot of backstabbing and drama for sure. A lot of musicians will be using you and will try to ride your coattails and stuff. If you become friendly with a musician, this musician could be a secret hater of you so be careful. You can’t trust anyone in the musician’s community just like you can’t trust anyone anywhere!  You’re definitely not gonna get along with everyone. That’s just the way it is.
  • Many musicians are wild party animals: There are a lot of heavy drinking musicians out there and there might be some drugs going around too. A lot of musicians can be a bunch of drunks at the gigs and it’s always not a good thing. There will be many musicians out there thinking music is all about partying hard and it doesn’t always have to be.
  • Musician’s can be one cliquey community: If you think high schools and colleges can be pretty “cliquey”, the musicians community can be just as bad. Musicians around here will make you feel left out if they feel that you don’t belong. For example, if they feel that if you’re not a professional enough musician, they’ll make you feel like an “amateur” and I’ve definitely gone through this. If you’re not cool enough and not a good musician then be ready to be feel left out ’cause you will feel that a lot.
  • It can be difficult to get recognized as a musician and get your music: heard: Yes, it can be quite a challenge to get recognized as a musician and it’s hard to try and earn respect around here in the musician’s community for sure. You work extremely hard on your music and you’re proud of the music you make. You put it out there and promote it as hard it as possible and all of a sudden, no one cares. I know the feeling and admittedly it hurts. You send your music out to promoters, bloggers and local music websites only to get ignored by most of them. I know the feeling and I’ve gone through this. You also try to get support of your music from other musicians as well. They know that you’re a musician but many of them just don’t seem to care about your music. I know this feeling.
  • Music scene can be too political, most musicians are very “liberal” and they can be a bunch of snowflakes: I’ve had too many musicians and too many promoters refusing to support me and my music ’cause of my conservative views. I can’t count how many times musicians around here refused to add me/follow me in social networking ’cause of my conservative views. The music community like to go around saying, “Support All Local Music” but that’s kind of hard to do when they’re always hating each other over political views. Yeah, I love supporting musicians and bands too. I’m willing to support them even if they are pretty liberal. We really need to keep politics out of music but they’ll never learn.
  • The internet and social media can sometimes be hurtful to musicians: The internet and social media is not always a great thing for musicians. You could get your reputation destroyed if you’re not careful on how to use the internet. I definitely know the feeling. Over the years of my life through the musician’s community, I’ve been a victim of internet trolls, cyberbullies and haters. I still have that problem today but I’ve gotten much better at ignoring the trolls.
  • Be ready to get rejected a lot when you submit your music for reviews, interviews, get some press and even getting some gigs: Another downside of being a part of a musician’s community is that you’re gonna get rejected a lot. When you submit your music to get reviewed, get interviews for radio, get some local press and even get some gigs… you might just get ignored. I’ve been there. When you’re trying to get actual gigs at venues and if you try to get on a slot with other band shows, you gotta get ready whether or not they’ll accept you. I’ve been rejected too many times. It’s pretty tough to get your music some attention in the scene. If you get rejected then you just gotta ignore it, move on and keep moving forward ’cause that’s all you can do.

Well, there you have it, y’all. Hope you enjoy the read. If not, I don’t give a fuck.

Kev

Health and Fitness

Next week will be max out “pr” week on the big three lifts… getting ready for powerlifting meet on March 30th…

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Now that this week is over, next week I’m planning on maxing out on the bench, squat and deadlift so I can find out my latest pr’s on those three lifts. I have a powerlifting meet coming on March 30th at a local gym at Albany Strength XXXL in Albany, N.Y. I sent in my registration and entry fee so I’m all set to compete that day and I’m definitely gonna do it. I’m really stoked to do my third powerlifting meet ’cause my numbers will be slightly bigger than the first two meets.

Next week when I hit the gym, I’m going to practice all 3 attempts for the big three lifts. At powerlifting meets, they make you lift three times for the big three so I gotta choose my numbers carefully and wisely and I will. I want to make sure I get three white lights on everything. When you watch powerlifting meets the lights represents the judges. If you get three white lights on a lift, the lift is perfect. If you get one red light and two white lights, the lift is still good. If you get three red lights then the lift is bad and that number won’t count. That’s how powerlifting goes. The judges makes the decisions on whether or not the lift is good. I love powerlifting meets ’cause they are honest and if you do a bad lift that can teach you a pretty good lesson. That’s what powerlifting is all about, improving your technique.

Earlier today at the gym, it was deadlifting day. While I did not test out my pr today, I did do one heavy single at 285 lbs. which was pretty easy. If I can do an easy 285 lbs., that means I could probably lift way more. I could probably smash a 300 lb. deadlift pretty well and that’s the goal that I hope to achieve on March 30th.

On March 30th, I hope to deliver a pretty good score and maybe I could win an actual trophy, haha. I want March 30th to be my best day and I’m doing all I can. I know I’m getting stronger on the big three lifts so I know I should do well on March 30th. My goal is to not disappoint at all and I won’t. Trust me.

Yes, I will be filming all my attempts that day so you can all see ’cause I’m gonna bring my Ipad to have someone else film me lifting.

I’m pretty sure I can smash a 300 lb. deadlift again ’cause lifting that 285 lb. felt easy and I felt like I could do more. Maybe I can do more than 300 lbs., who knows? I’ll give it a shot next weekend when deadlifting day comes!!! Maybe I can smash a 305 or a 310???

I love deadlifting. I’m beginning to love benching and squats more too. These workouts really are the kings of all workouts. Those who have negative opinions on them just don’t know what they’re talking about.

I hope to thrill the audience on March 30th and it’s going to be a great day. I’m not nervous at all as I know I’m going to do well and go in there and kill it.

Kev

music

Bands & artists releasing music constantly… a good thing??? No absolutely not!

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This blog at ReverbNation came up in my inbox and I decided to give it a read and share it here. There are so many bands & solo artists whether you’re a signed or unsigned artist, releasing music constantly. There are bands and artists releasing a new studio album year after year and there are bands always releasing “singles”.

I have noticed this trend in the musician’s community as of late. Is releasing music on a constant basis a good thing? No. Not really.

I understand that bands & artists need to engage their fanbase and keep their fans by releasing music all the time but it is not always a good thing to do. Read this blog and find out why. This blog brings up some pretty good points that I agree with.

https://blog.reverbnation.com/2019/02/19/putting-music-constantly-hurt-musician/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=putting-music-constantly-hurt-musician

You don’t really need to release new music year after year as I honestly find it annoying when bands do that. Some bands release a new album or a singles EP constantly ’cause they are worried about losing their fanbase if they don’t release anything. Well, don’t worry about losing your fanbase ’cause your fans will stay loyal to you even if you haven’t released music in a long long time. They will still support you no matter what.

I think, always releasing music year after year will make your music much worse and that’s true most of the time. It don’t hurt to take your slow time making an album to make sure it won’t suck, ya know? There’s no need to rush to make new music. Some bands will wait 5 – 7 years to release an album in between and that’s smart, in my opinion.

Some of you may notice that I don’t release new music all the time and I’m okay with that. I used to put out new music all the time in the past but most of my past songs aren’t good. Only release new music when you feel the time is right. Take your time and only release your best work. From now on, I’m only going to release songs that I know that I’m completely happy with 100%.

The article above also brings up other good points that releasing music all the time can hurt some chances of getting some media and press. It can also help turn fans away and doesn’t give you as much success as you would hope to.

In my opinion, bands releasing new music all the time screams “desperation” and it’s kind of arrogant. They just want to stay in the center of your attention and it screams “ego” for sure. Ramming your music down people’s throats isn’t always a good thing so be careful, y’all!

Kev

 

Random/off topic posts

I’m definitely thinking about buying a bass guitar… probably this year…

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For a long while, I’ve contemplated on buying an electric bass guitar and I think I’m actually gonna do it this year. I’m gonna get one this Spring, I think and I’m probably gonna do it. Why do I want to get a bass guitar? Well, when I record electric guitar rock songs, I’m gonna want to create my own bass lines to back up the songs with. Ya know, be a one man band kind of thing. I want to soon start writing full band rock music.

I’ve been teaching myself timing and rhythm. Practicing rhythm with a metronome and stuff. I’ve also been teaching myself digital drums and programming and things like that. With Acoustica Mixcraft DAW, I can easily create drum tracks with that software. With that software I could add MIDI bass tracks to it but I think it’ll sound even better with a real bass guitar, though. This is why I’m gonna buy a real bass guitar.

I’ve never played bass in my life before but you have already been playing guitar for many years then you already know a great deal of bass guitar. Both guitar and bass are pretty much the same thing. When I get my own bass guitar, I can easily create bass lines behind my rock songs. Even though I never played bass before, I can learn how to play it quickly and easily.

When I make my own full band rock music creating a rhythm section for my songs shouldn’t be all that complicated ’cause my music is not all that complex. I’m not gonna be playing complex prog music like Dream Theater or Iron Maiden. I’m gonna be playing just regular hard rock with the likes of Led Zep, Ac/Dc, Sabbath and Metallica. I’ll be writing original rock songs, of course. Playing bass guitar along with my rhythm guitar shouldn’t be that hard so I should do fine. To make a good rhythm section and good groove, the key is you have to lock in the bass with the drums.

I’ve been wanting to make my own full band rock music for years and I just say, “fuck it, just get myself a real bass guitar”. That’s what I’m gonna do. I’m not gonna buy myself a real expensive bass. I’m only going to buy one around $150 – $200 price range. I’m probably gonna buy an Ibanez bass that would cost like $179. Sometime after that, I’ll buy myself a small bass practice amp.

Another reason why I want to get a bass guitar is just for something different, ya know? I just want to play a different instrument just for fun. I’ve always wanted to get into bass anyways. I just like the sound.

I want to make a full band rock n’ roll album and I think getting a real bass guitar would be easier. I’m planning on making an album that really rocks hard. Big riffs, headbanging rhythm, long guitar solos, etc. You get the deal.

Some of you may ask, “Why don’t you just get another musician who plays bass?” I could but there aren’t many bass players out there and I don’t know if there are any bass players out there willing to play on my music. I’m just gonna do it all myself, I think.

Will I bring any of my old songs back into full band versions? I might bring a few of them back ’cause I’ve written a few songs that were meant to be full band rock songs and I probably will end up bringing a few back. I don’t want to bring too much of my old songs back ’cause I really want to be moving forward with new material, ya know? I want to see if I still got it in songwriting and want to see if I can still write new stuff instead of going backwards. I’m planning on getting back into songwriting ’cause I’m itching for new stuff and miss it.

Kev

music

Am I getting too old to like rock and metal? No, absolutely not! I’ll never grow out of those two genres!

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Since I’m in my 40’s now some people would look at my tastes in music and ask, “Kev, aren’t you too old to be listening to rock and metal? That music is for 20 year olds!” Um no. I just love rock and metal music. I just love music with loud electric guitar playing. I’ve always been into rock n’ roll and metal ever since I was a child and still listen to those genres today. Some people would look at me and would think that I listen to country music and bluegrass but then they get all shocked when they find out that I actually like rock n’ roll and metal.

I’ve listened to all kinds of rock n’ roll, jam bands, hard rock and metal bands. Throughout the years of my life. I’ve tried my best to discover everything that’s out there in the industry. I would listen to all the 80’s hair metal through the 80’s and would listen to a lot of new wave rock too. Then when the 90’s exploded in grunge and alternative music, I listen to that stuff as much as I could: Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, etc. I would also listen to all the 90’s alternative bands like the Smashing Pumpkins, Everclear, Oasis, Seven Mary Three, Live, The Foo Fighters, etc. For metal, I would listen to as much of that as possible like Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Van Halen, Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Ac/Dc, etc. Yes, I even tried listening to a lot of death and black metal over the years too.

I still love to listen to a lot of 60’s and 70’s classic rock too like Led Zeppelin, Yes, Creedence, Cream, Rush, The Who, The Beatles, Jethro Tull, etc.

Yeah, I do listen to other genres sometimes like blues, jazz, some country and some bluegrass/folk music but my heart is in rock and metal, though. A lot of people’s taste in music change as they get older yes but my music taste would never change.

Age is just a number. Like whatever you want. If I were to form a band of my own, rock and metal is what I would mostly play.

Kev

Politics/war

Interesting to see when leftists go after Trump and his supporters… their careers get ruined and their lives destroyed… blah blah blah…

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From Kathy Griffin to Jussie Smollett, when Trump haters decide to go after Trump and his supporters it’s funny to watch their careers and their lives get destroyed after. You can also learn from all this from the Covington Students and that Indian controversy. Leftists are in a desperate attempt to make Trump and his supporters look like racists and homophobes but they fail every time. Why? It’s simply because we aren’t racists and homophobes at all. They have no proof that we are racist and homophobes. No evidence to back up their claims with. Another reason they fail miserably is because we Trump supporters actually love all races and we support our lesbians and gays too. Keep in mind that there are a lot of black Trump supporters out there and there are plenty of lesbians and gays who love Trump too. That is a huge part of why they fail at making us look bad.

It’s all entertaining anyway. This Jussie Smollett story is entertaining as hell stuff, though. Liberals are all melting down at the results of this. They were hoping that we would turn out to be racists and homophobes but instead Jussie Smollett orchestrated that attack himself. It turned out to be the biggest hoax we’ve ever seen.

Before deciding to go after Trump and his supporters, trying to make us look bad as possible maybe you should think twice next time, hey? The truth is we aren’t racists and homophobes. Maybe that’s why libs come after us ’cause it bothers them that we support blacks and the gay community just as much as they do. At the Trump rallies, you’ll see supporters holding up “Blacks for Trump” and “LGBT For Trump” all over the place.

The mainstream media and the die-hard left are in a desperate attempt to make Trump supporters look bad but they will not be successful. When they come after us, we fight back and we fight back hard. Don’t let them think they can win. They say they are the party of tolerance but they hate “conservatives” so much, though. I’ve gotten so much negative shit from liberals over the years of my life but that’s okay, I just ignore most of them.

The die-hard left don’t think Trump will win 2020 but believe me he will. Easy re-election coming. The haters know it and that’s why they’re getting all fired up.

Kev

 

WWE

WWE announces their first WWE Hall of Fame inductee… congratulations D-Generation X… all members of D-X including Chyna are now inducted!!!

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So the WWE announced their first WWE Hall of Fame inductee and that is a legendary wrestling stable named D-Generation X. All members of D-X which includes Triple H, Chyna, X-Pac, Billy Gunn and Road Dogg will ALL be included in this induction.

https://www.wwe.com/shows/wwe-hall-of-fame/wwe-hall-of-fame-2019/article/dx-wwe-hall-of-fame-2019-inductee?sf207953039=1

This is a well-deserved inclusion in the Hall of Fame and long overdue. D-X was a pretty big wrestling group in the 90’s during the Attitude Era. They accomplished a lot throughout the wrestling business over the years. D-X still do occasional appearances in WWE from time to time, though.

Fans have been trying to fight for Chyna to get inducted in the Hall of Fame and they finally succeeded. Chyna is finally in the Hall of Fame now which is well-deserved and long overdue as well.  Love her or hate her, Chyna did a lot for the business over the years. While Chyna is now in the Hall of Fame as D-X, this also means there’s a very good chance she’ll be inducted in the Hall of Fame individually someday too. When Chyna went as a solo performer, she was an extremely popular star and won over a lot of fans. She accomplished a lot in the wrestling business and she’s a legend. I’m a huge Chyna fan. Have been for a pretty long time and still am loyal to her today. I was bummed when she passed suddenly, although, it wasn’t a surprise.

The rest of the guys in D-X deserves to be in there too. They are all legends. I’m a lifelong wrestling fan and I’ve watched throughout the Attitude Era in the 90’s so I know all about D-X and what they’ve done.

D-X is what helped Triple H become a huge recognizable star in the business.

Hopefully the Undertaker will get inducted this year ’cause that’s long overdue too.

Kev

The Official Music Website of Kevin Brock – Brocking N' Rolling