Notes From The Underground

Hollywood Undead's climb from the underground has been one that I have watched with baited breath. I have never wanted any one group to succeed as much as I've wanted to see this band rise to true fame. They've captivated me with their beats and intricate lyrics, as well as entertained with their obviously stereotypical songs. A lot of people may like some songs but not the rest, but I've loved them all. This is the only band in existence that I can say that I have truly enjoyed everything they've ever made. From the stereotypical "I Must Be Emo," to the partying song, "Everywhere I Go." From the suicidal tendencies, "Bullet," to the obsessing over ex girlfriends, "Another Way Out." They get drunk, get high, party, and fuck. That's their M.O. They're crazy shit talkers who have no censors. They say what they want and can take the repercussions. 

Metal Words of Wisdom

Recently, I've been discussing with various people that I meet that the problem with society today is the fact that popular music has a lot of negative messages, while the unpopular music--such as metal--  actually has all the positive messages. We Came As Romans is a good example of a band that many would pass over just because "I can't understand what they're saying." Well, to be honest, I don't understand what rappers are saying and people still listen to them.

Mid October, Performance Review

While surfing around on ReverbNation, looking for new music and shows in my area to attend, I stumbled upon a band called Mid October. They are a local rock band from Atwater, California. I am a harsh critic on local talent because, honestly, there is a reason that not everyone makes it big time. After listening to a couple songs, though, I really wanted this band to succeed. They have the kind of sound that is, yeah, a little inexperienced, but they are going to sound amazing someday. That little bit of hope was what got me out of the house to go see the next show they were in. It wasn't far, so I grabbed my camera and hoped they were even more amazing live.

Riven, the sequel to Motograter.

There once was a band called Motograter, that was formed in 1995, and went through more band members than I’d like to mention, ever. But one of their most notorious members was, of course, front man Ivan Moody “Ghost” who is now lead singer of Five Finger Death Punch. At any rate, the band split apart, and then reformed with a new singer called Michael Woodruff “Angel.” Then the band added more members and changed the concept of the band, basically getting rid of the body paint that was one of the signatures of the band. (The other signature was the actual instrument that named the band; the motergrater. Which I’m not even a hundred percent sure what it was, it was a machine that had a wheel and some metal chording.) Well, with getting rid of their signature features, the band changed their name to Riven.

MadChild Strikes Back

Long, long ago there was a Canadian rap-super group called Swollen Members who ruled the game, back in the days when MTV actually played music videos. Before the days of youtube and the rise of the Internet frenzy. They rose and rose until the fame hit them like a crash of waves and they fell on their faces, partying too hard with drugs and alcohol. And then the Battle Axe Warriors fell from the graces of angels and had to humble themselves to crawl back up the ranks.

Awakened Album Review

As I Lay Dying recently released the album: Awakened. I've been a fan of this band for quite some time, maybe not since day one, but definitely since I saw them at Ozz Fest in 2005. And then seeing them repeatedly at almost every concert I went to after that, they came to grow on me. I can't really say I'm into a lot of metal, unless it's melodic metal, but this band really pulls it together quite well, to be both heavy and melodic simultaneously.