I'm a simple soul so sifting through racks upon racks of CD's makes me super happy. I'm not a fan of downloading music (and I'm not talking about illegal downloads - I won't even go there) because for me it defeats the whole purpose, I like having the record in my hand.
I went to New York last year and I found an old-school vinyl store and I spent maybe three hours in there listening to anything from Frank Sinatra to Eminem (yes they had the Marshall Mathers LP in Vinyl - of course I bought it and can only play it round my nan's but just having it is enough for me). Last Friday I was sorting through CD's, not vinyl, but it was still just as fun for me. I think a lot of it boils down to the fact that Art of any kind gets me going, so sifting through studying album covers and trying to analyse and understand them is as exciting a prospect as the sonic experience coming my way via the disc inside.
I bought Rival Schools second album 'Pedals' - only been waiting a few years for this to be released! I took the long route home just so I could jam to it in my car for longer.
Amongst loads of other things I bought Eminem's new album... he's teamed up with Royce Da 5'9 under their aliases Bad and Evil to record Hell: The Sequel. Now anyone who knows me knows Eminem is my boy. I've been listening to him since I was about 6. My mum always tell the story of me rapping some of his most explicit verses at her parties or round my mates houses, and let's just say people never knew whether to laugh or cry. Before I dyed my hair pink and wanted to be a punk rocker, I wanted to be the female Eminem. I won't have a bad word said against him (unless by me) but as much as it hurts me, he's changed. He's not the 'ill rhyme sayer' he once was, he can't go two lines without making a reference to some brain dead celeb or sex now. I was bored listening to his new album and I think I'm going to have to finally admit to myself that he's gone commercial... never thought it would happen, but sadly it has. The Slim Shady that wrote the Marshall Mathers LP would have laughed himself to death at the thought that he would be sharing a stage with Rihanna or Bruno Mars one day. When I listen to his first 3 albums, I feel excited and powerful. He's like my inner strength, but now it's like he's just any other rapper talking about how fat his pockets are and how hard he's gonna stick his dick inside ya. Creativity points: 0.
After listening to it for the fifth time this morning, I cannot reccommend 'Pedals' enough. If you're not familiar with Rival Schools, they were the first ever punk/hardcore supergroup, made up of members from legendary bands Gorilla Biscuits, CIV, Youth of Today and Iceburn (all glorious bands you would not be complete without enjoying). Their first album 'United by Fate' is impressive regardless of your preferred music taste, but a pretty vital addition to your collection if you're a hardcore-punk enthusiast. The guitars build and crash, the drums and bass provide a muscular backdrop, and lead singer Walter Schreifel's vocals are melodic without sounding like he's spent half his life having singing lessons (dare I say he has a touch of the Kurt Cobain about him!) An album full of infectious hooks, dont-overstay-your-welcome brevity and a trace of off-kilterness - get it or regret it, and then and only then are you ready for their new album...
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