AHS State Theatre

I went to the State Theatre preformance and really enjoyed it! I couldn't get onstage because they didnt come out. I heard after that some people had snuck into backstage, but they almost got Anderson disqualified so I didn't feel it was a good idea to try to do. I took some pictures and my dad can vouch for me because he took me and Megan Swenson. I'm actually happy that we had to do this because the play was extremely funny and I enjoyed it a lot!

Handlebars

Weird Al has made his living making funny parodys of songs such as Ridin Dirty into White and Nerdy, but he took his career in a more original direction when he made his own song "Handlebars". Many people I know love the song and think it is so great, but I absolutely can not stand it!! He sings the whole song with this same monotone voice, the stanzas are repetitive, and the idea and lyrics of the song are bland and boring. This song literally annoys me so much, but I wonder how others can like it! I guess that is just people's taste in music!

Massive Attack

In class we listened to Massive attack, and I was actually quite refreshingly surprised. First of all, not even taking into consideration the music, I think the dark lights and cool vibrant computer screen really helped. I think it is kind of  the movie theater effect, where being able to really feel the music makes it much easier to really listen to and truly taste it. With that said, I really liked the album! I liked how it changed throughout to kind of give the listener some wake up calls and a change of pace, and I thought they did a good job of playing well the different aspects they tried. I really liked the beginning few songs because the beat really makes the song a little deeper, and I like how the instruments come together.

This Girl is On Fire Cover

I think I first saw this girl on Youtube, but she is another young talented singer that amazes me! All the better, she has a variety of songs, but one includes the EXTREMELY difficult and high pitched song by Alicia Keys "This Girl is On Fire". The song takes so much voice, and is so easy to mess up, I am sure that most of singers today couldn't even reach the notes let alone make it sound good! This girl has such an amazing voice and can really hit all the notes amazingly, I am just super impressed.

ACL Line Up

In class yesterday we talked about the ACL Lineup, and I think that this year is the first year I might go. I always have wanted to, but I finally decide to this year. Even though you don't like festivals, I think that for a person like me who really only knows mainstream music, it is a fun time to get to learn about some new bands and test our likings and genres, while having a great time. That's what I think ACL is more about, kind of the aura of hanging out with a bunch of people on a beautiful day and enjoying some music. I think that is more about being there than particular bands that people listen to. With that said, I think hearing a really cool band makes it all the better. My problem though is that I know you should research and look through the bands coming and plan out who you are going to see, but all of the new bands and all of the chaos overwhelms me. I think (although this is hearsay to true music listeners) I don't know what I like so I will probably just go and see what I hear! Hopefully I will see some new bands that I like, and broaden my music listening!!

Downtown by Lady Antebellum

Last week I posted about Hunter Hays' new song, and so I decided to continue that by posting another song on the poppy country genre that I really like and makes me want to dance. It's by Lady Antebellum and it's called Downtown. I really like it because I feel that it has enough upbeats and energetic parts to make it a song to get me in a good mood and happy, but no so much that it's so high intensity that it's hard to listen to. I really like Lady Antebellum because I love her voice and her backup singers that really make her songs have definition.

Feel free to skip through the super long intro :)

Nirvana

Today in class we listened to Nirvana, and I actually liked it! Although I actually have seen the album cover to their album "Nevermind", I don't think I had ever heard their music or connected it with the name. Originally when I heard the band name was "Nirvana" I was thinking "oh great, another druggy rocker band with scratchy voices and weird songs, but I was surprised. I really actually liked them, partly because  I thought the lead singer's voice was good, and when you said that they modeled themselves after "The Beatles" it made sense why I liked them so much. Another thing I found interesting was the man with the robot band. Although I think it is cool, I don't see that kind of thing becoming as popular in present time with youth because although it's really cool he can do that, with the increasing technology of the world, doing it is getting easier and easier. Never the less, I think it was cool, and if the main singer would have had a good voice I would have really liked it!

Hunter Hays I Want Crazy

You were asking us in class about songs we are listening to, and I forgot to say about Hunter Hay's new album. I LOVE Hunter Hays, and I really like this song! First of all his lyrics actually make sense and are so sweet and bring out the sappy girl in me. Also I think he has the perfect mix of country and pop and the song just kind of makes me happy inside because it's so upbeat and I like how the beat changes throughout the song to keep it interesting.

My Preferences in Rap Music

On Wednesday in class we listened to some Youtube music, and we listened to 3 main rap songs. I agree that first one we listened to was pretty bad, but I had opposite views on the other two as you. I can't remember what was the final song we listened to was, but I didn't like that one at all but I really liked Kendrick Lamar's song "Swimming Pools". I think it has to do with the thing that we look for in music. You were saying how you liked how the last song flowed and wasn't super repetitive, but I found it almost too flowy, it just sounded like this 4 minute sound that didn't really catch my attention at all. I really like rap songs to have a nice beat and a prominent chorus with catchy lyrics. I guess that is why it's so hard to be an artist, because everyone likes something different.

Lennon and Maisy

While doing my usual Youtube searching, I found these two amazing sisters! They, like my other favorite youtube band, sing straight to the computer, so you can hear her pure voice with no changes. The reason that I really like these sisters it because 1) the blond sister is only 8 and she already has a beautiful that can go so high and pure and 2) the older sister has such a beautiful voice that is a little bit unusual as she is able to kind of scoop it and I love it!! Although they have many awesome video's, I really liked their version of Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash because I think that they really give it a newer more upbeat twist!!

Nirvana

In class on Tuesday we watched the movie on the band Nirvana, and I have to say I was extremely underwhelmed. Maybe the instrument playing was good, but I could not stand Kurt Cobain's voice. I know some people find it original or interesting or "different", but to me it just sounded like someone who didn't have any singing talent and had even less training. He seemed to be almost off key the whole time, always singing notes that made me cringe. The thing that bothered me about him was how boring he was in the performance. Maybe it is part of his persona to be a really chill dude, but I think that if people are going to come see a concert, it is the artist's duty to entertain them and pump them up, not act as if you are casually practicing in your room. I think the band would be a lot better if they changed singers, because I feel his drugged up voice doesn't match the melodies and rock beat of the songs. As a choir teacher does his voice bother you or is it just me?

The Issue Over Homosexuality

I know this isn't exactly about music, but I feel that the issue of Gay Rights that we talked about in class was really interesting, and on a more music note, music as a whole has had a big influence in gay culture, as pop songs and many rap and other songs have influenced the public to think of the word "gay" as being an insult, lesser, or bad. My last blog I talked about Macklemore's song same love, and I think that there should be more songs like that that are supportive, because we are in the middle of a rapidly changing world, and people need to adjust to it. Even 50 and 60 years ago it was a "fact" that black people were lesser than white people and the thought of having them marry was completely ridiculous. Now we look back and think that that is crazy, and hopefully in 50 years people will think it is ridiculous that gays couldn't marry. My parents are pretty liberal, and I have been raised to have an open mind, and so I was actually astonished on the number of people in the class that thought that homosexuality was a choice. I think that such idea is crazy, a person can't choose who they love. I didn't think about it till after class, but I remember hearing about scientists finding homosexuality in many animals, and so I did a little research. I found this website:


http://www.news-medical.net/news/2006/10/23/20718.aspx

It is also been found that lab rats injected with extra hormones will become homosexual, and that can be altered by changing the genetic traits of them. I don't why I found it so important to blog about this instead of other music, but I just had to say it.

Industrial Music

Today in class we listened to a few industrial music songs, and although they are a completely different genre than Paul's Boutique, I had the same problems with both pieces of music. I really like the more upbeat rhythm that is popular in the 80th more than just the rock genre of the 70's, but I couldn't come to like the songs because of the singers. For example when I first heard the song Terrible Life, I was excited for a pretty good song, because a really cool and pumpy beat was set up, but as soon as the words started, I didn't like it. To me the voice of the singer has to do a lot with whether or not I like the music, and I really wasn't impressed with the voices in Paul's Boutique or most of the industrial music. Maybe it's because I am used to the poppy songs of today, I almost prefer the "drill the chorus into your head" songs, because I feel that the singing was better. I really don't like the flat voice and lack of range in the notes. For some reason I am ok with rap, but only as long as the words kind of add to the beat, but I feel with a lot of industrial music, the voice actually takes away from the song.

Developing Bands and Singers

In class this week we watched the movie of the U2 band filmed while they were just becoming super popular, and it made me think about music artists' rise to fame. With 7 billion people in the world, there will always be tons of talented singers and performers, but it seems to be always only a small portion of them ever make it to be famous. Throughout the year, I have noticed a trend of people not being truley appreciated and noticed until after they die, and that makes me wonder that maybe in 100 years people will look back on someone that I have never heard of and say "Wow, that is the best musician who ever lived". I think it is interesting how bands like U2 just suddenly become really popular, and I feel like I don't even see the best of the music, and only what has already been "discovered". Now it is in some ways easier and in some ways harder to discover music because we have the internet. On the plus side, it is a lot easier to find music because pretty much everything is online, but it is also harder because pretty much anyone can make/record a song and put it for people to see. I think music is extremely unpredictable, but it makes it exciting that no one ever knows who will be the next big thing.

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis: Same Love

Throughout the years, Rap music has always been criticized for having no meaning, and being pointless with lyrics about strippers, money and drugs. I agree that there still is a fare share of that in current music, but its not all mindless lyrics. Macklemore is popular for his song Thrift Shop which I blogged about in the past, and although it has some sick beats, the lyrics aren't exactly "deep". Through Youtube searching I found another one of his songs called "One Love", and expecting another funny dance party song, I was blown away. The song is not short, its about 6 minutes, but its a rap song completely about gay marriage and his support of it. I thought that the lyrics were very well planned out, and were surprisingly insightful and deep while still remaining on beat. So while some rap songs are just a slur of cuss words and stripper poses, I think that more people should take after Macklemore and make music about the real issues in the world.

Paul Simon Graceland

Honestly, after listening to two days of hair metal, pretty much anything was an improvement to my ears. It's not that I didn't like hair metal, because I can't deny that after about a minute I was singing along to "Jump", but its something I feel is better in small doses. But I REALLY liked Paul Simon Graceland. I felt that he really mixed the upcoming hip hop/ poppy era with the old south roots for his music. Also, although it was a little strange to me his changes of tempo and rhyming scheme, I think it made me pay attention and perk up when he would somehow fit 20 million words into one line. I think my favorite song of the album, although I like many, was "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes". I really like how the song was brought in by a spiritual sounding acapella beat from black men. I also really like Paul's voice, because it is very smooth somehow although it is also upbeat. I like how he incorporates the beginning singers back in to form very nice harmonies. My favorite part is how the song then takes a twist and brings the beat a little jazzier, but continues to have the same smooth and silky voice. I really like his incorporation back to the older black men music, because I really enjoyed that era and want to see more of it in newer music.

Justin Timberlake

Although he has been pretty much off the music radar for the past few years, recently Justin Timberlake came out with a new album. I've only heard one song from it, called "Suit and Tie", and honestly that is all I want to hear. I know many people who like Justin Timberlake, but I have never cared for him. I think it might be because of his voice and his obnoxiously poppy lyrics. Everyone always gives Justin Bieber tons of crap for having a high voice, but at least he sings well and uses it to his advantage, but Justin Timberlake has an even higher voice but it is more raspy and he never seems to hit any of the notes that he sings. Also, to me all of his songs seem to blend into a mesh of repetitive verses and nonsense about how cool he is.  I think he is a good actor, and funny on snl, but none of his hollow pumpy songs have ever appealed to me, and I don't think one will ever.

Slick Rick La Di Da Di

Although I saw a fair share of crazy weird music videos, the one that I really liked was the Slick Rick beatboxing La Di Da Di. I don't know why, but beat boxing has always fascinated me because it amazes me the power people have with just their voice. I liked it because it was different not being able to use autotune or computer generated sounds, and just to be able to make tons of different sounds and keep a very upbeat tune the whole time. Another thing that I really liked about what we listened to in general was the record scratching. I think the skills we can do with computers is cool, but something about the art of twisting and turning the records is really cool! I would really like to see a concert or something live or even learn how to do that, because I think it is really interesting and creates a super good and different sound from just plain records.

Spanish Music

Over spring break I went to Spain, and along with the fabulosity delicious food, antique buildings and different cultures, I saw the similarities and differences of the music. Although I knew it was silly, a little bit of me was expecting to see some chacha dancers and old Spanish folk music, but that is not what I heard at all. Of course I did not get the full the experience because I was living and getting the experience of a fellow teenager and not seeing the true cultural music, but it was still very interesting.  Of course they had their own music from popular singers of Spain, but what I thought was really funny is how much American music the youth listened to. On weekends when we went out to the discos and at teen places, over half if not more of the songs that I heard were songs popular in the US maybe 1 or 2 years ago. It was very interesting because for example one of the students had a sister that was singing a song in english but she didnt even speak it. It just shows the power of music

My Travel Music

So I realized today I may or may not have internet access while in Spain, so I'm going to have to wait until after Spring Break to blog about what I heard there. So this time I'm going to blog about what I plan to listen to on the journey. One of my friends has a habit where she always has to sleep with music playing, so she wears headphones every night. I don't know if it helps the pattern of sleeping, but I have never been able to do that. Music is one of the things that I find very hard to have in the back of my mind while other things are going on. I can even mindlessly watch tv when I do my homework, but something about the changing beats and lyrics of music; I can't really multitask with it unless I block it out completely. For this reason, I will probably not listen to too much music on the plane. However the music that I do listen to needs to have a certain vibe and feel. As I am sitting on a plane and not allowed to move, I could not handle an upbeat album. My travel music is similar to my homework music (if I can even do that) which is calm, soft, and even a little on the dull side. This usually brings me to country. By country I don't really mean the honkey tonk sort of deep Texas country, just a little modernized song with a slow melody and relaxing voices. Here are some of the songs I might include for travel.

Elvis Costello

In class when we looked at the Elvis Costello album cover, I was getting ready to listen to a peppy little nerdy singer with a soft, light voice. The very first song of the album, although very short, blew my expectations. It never ceases to amaze me how people's voices can be so different than expected. I really like the way he sang, and to me it almost seemed like he has a little but of a Texas drawl. He seems to kind of scoop is voice to deeper and more wholesome that gives it a bit more of an punky rock feel. I also like how his songs kind of follow stories and have kind of meanings, so it draws me into wanting to listen more closely to the letters. I also really like how he kind of tricks the listeners by pairing a more calm, lovey sounding beat and instruments with harsher lyrics so you really have to listen in to see what he is really meaning. Other than his voice and more poppy and upbeat songs, my favorite thing is probably how clever his lyrics. He hides what he means so you have to get his references to fully understand the music, and you can see he takes pride in his music. A song that stood out to me was mystery dance because it really sounded like Elvis Presley, and so I wonder if he was his inspiration for naming himself Elvis Costello.

The Police

Today in class we listened to The Police, and I definitely think they are my favorite "punk" band we have listened to. Generally, I don't even really like punk bands, because I feel that the kind of screemo, yelling sounds I think of when I think of punk songs. However although they are classified also in the broad division, I think their music was better, and probably one of my favorite bands we have listened to. The thing that really makes me like them is that although they have the high paced beat and jumpy vibe most punk rock songs have, I didn't feel that they compromised the quality of the music to get it. Sting managed to be able to sing (sometimes quite fast) but still keep it musical and sounding good. I really liked his manipulation of his voice, and along with the amazing talents of the other band members, I thought they were able to put together a very diverse but good group of songs and make a great album! I really liked them!!

Christina Agulara

Although she has had her fair share of psycho, drama queen moments, I can't deny that Christina Agulara has a phenomenal voice and a surprising black woman beat. I had never really heard of her before I watched the movie Burlesque, but when I did I was shocked by how powerful her voice was for such a small girl. Of course you can expect some autotune in Hollywood movies, but you can't fake the true soul she has in her voice. I was most impressed by how high and strong she could creshendo her voice to get. When I heard her other songs, I wasn't let down. Although I wasn't a huge fan of some of her poppy beat and lyrics, the amazing voice always kept me listening. So do I think she is the best artist of this generation? No. But I do think her voice is one that will be remembered.

Why Hiphop Is Poppy

Today in class we talked about hip hop and why its so poppy and rythmic. I think it has to do with the motivation and drive behind the creation of that music. When you look into the pure reason behind the creation of music, it is, or at least it should be, is to do it because you love music and you want to enlighten people with your art. As the motivation of humans began to change to selfishness and doing things for money and power, hip hop was beginning to become very popular. I don't think this is a coincidence. I think that the origin of hip hop was the creation of music for the wants of the people in order to make money, not art. Children began to become rebellious and wanted something to dance to and party to, and so a big industry opened in the music world. The creation of hip hop to me was to make single songs ( kids like thing fast, interesting, and reachable) to make them dance and help them party. So although I like hip hop and rap, I do think that the intentions of it being started were to make money instead of pouring your soul into a beautiful creation.

Thrift Shop

A few weeks ago I discovered the song "Trift Shop" by Macniomore, and I really liked it and thought it showed the really cool things you can do with music now that we have tons of technolohy. If you dont likr rap, you will most likely not like this song, as the majority is fast talking that although is clever, doesnt really have a deep meaning or impact. What i want to focus on is the first 30 seconds. I really like how Macnimore uses different sounds that alone would not sound good, but together builds on eachother to make a really kicken beat. I think it is an example of how people and artists are still very creative and use technology to their advantage.

Kurtis Mayfield

In class on Tuesday we listened to Bobby Wolmack and Kurtis Mayfield. I decently liked Bobby Wolmack, but I definitely liked Kurtis Mayfield more. My favorite part was definitely his Beatles cover. I really liked the Beatles and so originally when I heard there was a cover I wasn't excited to hear it because I didn't think it would do the Beatles justice. After listening to it however, my opinion changed. Although I still like the Beatles more, i throught his take on it was really creative and crafty! I think his voice is really good and I liked what he did with The Beatles songs. I am looking forward to hearing more from him!

Carly Rose Sonoclair

It never fails to impress me the talent that we have in America let alone the world. Although I find the show pretty boring, I really like that American Idol and shows like that are AWEOSME to find young (and old) stars and ordinary people have. I'm even more impressed by how young some of the people are! One of the girls that particularly amazed me was Carly Rose Soneclair. At only 13 she has an amazingly powerful and even more amazingly soulful voice. She sang a very deep and hard song, but she sounded like a older black woman. It never ceazes to amaze me the voice that some small young people have. I think she is fantastic!!

John Lennon: Imagine

Today in class we listened to John Lennon's solo album "Imagine". One thing that I won't deny about Lennon is that he has a gift for writing songs. Excluding the babble that somehow came together from his writings in Magical Mystery Tour, all of his songs sound really deep and meaningful. I'm no musician but the way he arranges the notes and beats, and his creativity of based sound so advanced and awesome. However, I don't really like his album as a whole. Part of it is because I like The Beatles as a group together, all harmonizing and complimenting each others talents. However, I don't really like Lennon's voice alone, as I feel that it sounds kind of flat and dull. I think I would like the voice solo of McCartney, but the writing skills of Lennon. Overall I like them together as a group and wish they would have stayed together for longer to enlighten us with their amazing music.

Justin Timberlake

Although he has been off the radar for god knows how long, Justin Timberlake has recently come back with a new song and is working on an album. Maybe it is because I haven't heard it for awhile, but I forgot how obnoxious and annoying his music is to me. It's not just the super computerized jump tune that I find so annoying, but the main problem I have with him is his voice. I know in music  weirdness is originality, but the ridiculously high pitch in which he sings to me sounds like nails on a chalkboard. People think he has a wonderful talent for how high he consistently sings, but I can't say i think it impresses me. His repetitive, poppy lyrics annoy me and I don't think unless he hits puberty and starts singing like a real man, he wont be on my ipod any time soon.

Joni Mitchell- Blue

Today in class we listened to Joni Mitchel's album, and it was definitely a breath of fresh air from the music we have listened to in the recent past. Although I know some people like it, I am not a big fan of the noisy, metallic punk rock that many people created in the 60's. The first thing I noticed with her music was very eloquent and beautiful background music. To me, backup music isn't as important as the voice and song of an album, but I liked that unlike the rough, I thought unnecessarily noisy crashes of the punk music, it actually added to the song and made it even more complex and pretty. My favorite thing about it was definitely her voice, as I agree that it just seemed effortless for her to make amazingly high notes. I also really like how her voice isn't rich and deep (although I like that too) her voice was really light and refreshing. Lastly, I like how her songs were complex and not
just nonsense or repetition. I really liked the album and will actually probably go look up some of her songs tonight!

My Problem With Disney Singers

Let me start by saying I have always and will always love the songs and movies of the origonal Disney, and I can sing from memory pretty much every song from movies like the lion king and any other princess movies. That said, I have a pretty big problem with most present day Disney Channel stars. Of course, there are exceptions such as Ariana Grande or the girl from Good Luck Charlie (as I have blogged about in the past), I feel like now they take their "actors" and "actresses" and make them sing, regardless of weather they are good or not. Then they just autotune it until it sounds remotely good, and then publsih it all over the place and on kidzbop 700000 or whatever they are at now. Even now they are going as far as re-recording old fairy and princess songs and trying to make them more poppy. I personally think that it is easier for a musician to be transferred to an actor then vice versa, because musicians are used to entertaining a crowd while singing is a talent that pretty much you have or you don't. Above is an example of one of the not even costar but another random actor from Hannah Montana that decided to make a song when I don't think he sounds good or natural at all.

Led Zeplin 4

Even though I am on the fence about whether or not I like Led Zeplin, I actually enjoyed their fourth album. I could do without the high pitched screeching parts, but I felt that the beat of the drums and up beat tune made the music go by surprisingly fast. Also, I liked how the music would get up and really exciting (especially the hint of jazz) and then would calm down then forte up again. I also like how the longs aren't repetitive and boring, but they kind of feel like the link and fit together well. I was most surprised that although some of the songs were long, like Stairway to Heaven were so long, but it didn't drag on the way some songs would if they were that long. Maybe it is because the complex guitar and drums keeps my ears entertained, but I thought it was cool that the album went relatively quickly. I am looking forward to hearing more from him, because he seems to have a lot of different ideas and creative tunes.

Ariana Grande

It never fails to amaze me how many young talented singers are discovered by the Internet and through sites like YouTube. That is how Ariana Grande was discovered. I first saw her in one of Nickolodean shows "Victorious". I definetely don't like the singers that come from Nick and Disney, because I feel they take their so called "Actors" and make them sing and autotune it till it sounds good. However, I think Ariana Grande is an exception, because their are YouTube videos of her just singing on the camera, and she is phenomenal. I really like how powerful and strong her voice is especially for a person that young.

Carrie Underwood Temporary Home

I really like Carrie Underwood, because I really like her mix of pop and country, but one of the things I really like about her is that her songs actually have meaning and are deeper than the latest breakup or the newest clothes. Her songs, and her music videos really get to me and open my eyes to the struggles of life. This song is one of my favorites, not because of the music (because honestly I like the music of anything she sings because her voice is gorgeous) but because the song is so deep and strong. Also, a little confession I totally cried when I watched the music video. Overall, I really love that she sings about real issues and songs from the heart.

Rip Remix Manefesto

Last class we watched the documentary about the struggle between the copyright owners of music and the upcoming generation using old music to make their own. When we finished watching the documentary, if you would have asked me how I felt I would have immediately said that the corporations were being greedy and needed to loosen up and let kids be free and improve on music. However, as the ideas of the video started to sink in, my views started to change. The video was really pervasive and I commend it for that, but I felt that the actual facts that they used so support their ideas weren't exactly good. I think there is a reason for laws to be there, and the reason they used for breaking it are stupid in my opinion. They say that the big corporations take all the artists money and keep it for themselves, and yeah a while ago that happened, but now there are laws to protect that from happening. I understand where the video producer is coming from, but I'm sure a documentary about the artists that hve their music taken away and turning them into broke, people would take that side. Sure the video was persuasive, but I think the facts and the idea behind the documentary isn't true.

Lady Gaga

In class a while ago, we were talking about the appeals that kids had to new artists, and kind of what kind singer is desirable. We started talking about that it was someone who was kind of "different" from the rest of the crowd, and someone a little dangerous. This kind of reminded me of the popular pop singer Lady Gaga. When she first came out with the song "Just Dance" I really liked it, but then I felt her music got pretty boring and repetitive, but she continued to grow in popularity. Why? I think because of her crazy outfits and downright wierd music videos, people liked that she was different. She really played that up, always being the wackiest dressed and having the weirdest songs, but it seemed to work for her. I don't think her music would have made it alone, but her strangeness made her desirable.

Black Sabboth

Today in class we listened to Black Sabboth. I am not, in general, a very big fan of metal rock music because I don't like the harsh sounds and the twisted lyrics, and listening to Black Sabboth didn't really change my mind. I liked at the beginning of the first song ( I think it was a little conceited to name it after themselves but oh well) I liked the rain and other odd sounds, and I likes the beat of the music for a while, but then I felt it just kinda became repetitive and boring. The lyrics were interesting to call the least, and honestly I don't like songs about sadness and death. His voice also kind of bothered me for some reason, I don't know that is probably just a personal preference. I did like how in the middle of the song the beat changed, and the strong guitar solo got me reinterested, but again I feel the song was kind of same. I did however like the strong and powerful ending where it had loud music and then suddenly got quiet. Although I don't really like the instrument that started the second song (I think the harmonica or something) it was a nice change. I definitely liked the second song more, but overall I found them just ok. I like peppier songs like the Beatles, but as metal rock go's, they are pretty good.