It looks like we’ll have to “pass over” this week’s podcast due to absences for the Jewish holiday. But matzo fast! Perhaps you’d like to gefilte through our archives if you get the itch. (They’re quite kosher; don’t be Gentile.)
This week we have quite the mixed bag. For starters, we’re presenting our first-ever “NO pick” review, for Green Day’s third and final installment of their trilogy, ¡Tré! Then we talk a little about the staying power of music on things such as breakups, recoveries, and fond memories — followed by a fun tangent on hipsterism!
It’s finally time to tackle our first EP, an original work by Walk off the Earth called R.E.V.O., which we discuss alongside a selection of self-released covers. This rare combo-review comes courtesy of our guest, the enterprising thespian known as “Joe Rude” of The Kings of Karaoke and of The Society of American Fight Directors. He tells us a bit about Karaoke as a business, and also as a haven for quelling inhibitions, one show at a time. Stick around at the end for a treat performance!
Welcome, welcome… or should I say, “thank ya, thank ya,” because this week we’re traveling to the bygone days of Lawrence Welk with his 1960s compilation album, The Champagne Music of Lawrence Welk. This review is brought to us by today’s guest, the lovely Hazel Honeysuckle, a talented NYC-based burlesque performer who enlightens us with her unique perspective on music as an on-stage tool, as well as a brief history of burlesque and its resurgence as a popular performance art.
This week we dive into a review of Break It Yourself by Andrew Bird. Then we talk a bit about our emotional connections with music, what we seek to gain, and the implications we ascribe to certain styles and genres.
This week, we review Sublime Currency by Abandoned Pools, and then we press on with last week’s discussion of intelligence vs. creativity.
For years, Dropkick Murphys have been able to produce music with a distinctive flair. Probably best described as ‘enthusiastic’, they have succeeded in creating a new tone, Irish-American Rock. Boston has always been at the forefront in their music, and their matter-of-fact lyrics, coupled with a punk discord and splashed with a unique choice of instruments (such as bagpipes, accordions, and mandolins), have always set them apart. With their newest album, Signed and Sealed in Blood, one fact is apparent: they haven’t changed.
This week, our review is Take the Crown by Robbie Williams, followed by an intense discussion on intelligence vs. creativity.
Matt Storm, co-host of the Crash Chords Podcast, once proclaimed on its very first episode, “As long as human beings have creativity, they will think of something different.” That’s a proud and optimistic statement, warm to the touch but nonetheless brimming with Homosapien zealotry. I’d have loved to hop on board, and yet I couldn’t help but ponder the truth of the matter. In this glorious age of information, with genres erupting into existence at breakneck speed—via osmosis, mitosis, metamorphosis—it seems almost unthinkable that there could actually be a limit to what we can create. Indeed, this flourishing scene might sound like an artistic utopia, but the sobering irony is that quite often, the more knowledge we share, the less individuality we bring to the table; the less unique our upbringing, the more ubiquitous our artistry. So, has it come time to question whether this brave new world of ours could one day… plateau?
So you like movies, huh? Well imagine for a second what those movies would be like without music of any kind? Pretty drab and forgettable, I bet. Music, when used right, has a way of bringing a scene to life. It can make it shine and stand out in a big way. From musicals to dramas, comedies to action, documentaries to horror, all of these genres benefit from a memorable soundtrack. Try and imagine Star Wars without John Williams’s score. I bet that movie would not have felt anywhere near as epic or powerful without it. Music plays such an important role in film, there has even been the rare occasion that I’ve bought a soundtrack without having seen the film.
