Podcast Two
Here is my Podcast Project Two, which is on the subject on the start of punk rock, mainly with The Sex Pistols. Click the Link to listen (directed to soundcloud).
Monday, June 25, 2012
Friday, June 22, 2012
The Sex Pistols (The Start of Punk)
Let’s go back to London, 1975, here we find the Sex Pistols.
Just 4 guys pissed at the world that they live in, and use music to voice their
concern. . The Sex Pistols were composed of Johnny Rotten on vocals, Steve
Jones on Guitar, Paul Cook on Drums and Glen Matlock on the bass. The Sex
Pistols were the start of a movement that would give light to my favorite genre
of music, Punk Rock. When Punk Rock was started, it was just an alternative form
of music that voiced problems in the world. With the way people acted that
listened to Punk Rock, I am not surprised that the image of Punk Rock has not
been a good one. Almost every time there was a Sex Pistols concert, the police
were called, and the concert ended in complete chaos. Add on top of that the
Bill Grundy incident, in which they swore on live television. This event
catapulted them into the media spotlight, making “The Sex Pistols” household
names. Unfortunately, this media attention was good for getting their name out,
but bad for their image. They used this image to draw people to their music,
and that got their message out. In the 1977 single “God Save the Queen,” they
attacked Britain’s conformity to the Crown. This attacked would create the “last
and greatest outbreak of pop-based moral pandemonium.”
The Sex Pistols kick started my favorite genre of music,
Punk. While the Punk today sounds different than it was back then, I believe we
should look back to these guys and keep the main point of the music. Standing
against things that you believe are injustices. Voicing your opinion on things
that matter to you, whether it be things from animal injustice, to telling kids
to stand up for what is right, to bullying, to political issues. Music is here
for us to voice opinions, especially the Punk Genre.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Peer Comments
Week 3
Week 2
Victor, good choice on the background of the band, when I did my Kraftwerk post, I did not think to include background of the band, good idea on picking that up! Interesting that Kraftwerk translates into power station, I should of picked up on that during my research. Good idea to point out that they had themes to their albums, since it was really a part of who made them who they were. I like your idea in your last paragraph about Eno and Bowie rushing out to try and be like them. This can definitely be seen in history, since they tried to grab a part of what they believed was a growing scene.
Week 1
Michael,
Great Info in the First Paragraph! Wish I did more research
like that, lazy me. It is amazing the contrast between their earlier albums and
then Revolver. Isn’t it amazing how
we delve into what we are told not to do and how they influence us? We are
always told not to do drugs, but it is amazing how much it influenced The
Beatles. It amuses me that you can find influence anywhere. Interesting
perspective on the opening of Revolver,
I like how you put it that The Beatles wanted to invite the listeners into the
studio. I really like the part about the Dalai Lama, that’s awesomely funny.
Great Job!
Week 2
Victor, good choice on the background of the band, when I did my Kraftwerk post, I did not think to include background of the band, good idea on picking that up! Interesting that Kraftwerk translates into power station, I should of picked up on that during my research. Good idea to point out that they had themes to their albums, since it was really a part of who made them who they were. I like your idea in your last paragraph about Eno and Bowie rushing out to try and be like them. This can definitely be seen in history, since they tried to grab a part of what they believed was a growing scene.
Week 1
Michael,
Great Info in the First Paragraph! Wish I did more research
like that, lazy me. It is amazing the contrast between their earlier albums and
then Revolver. Isn’t it amazing how
we delve into what we are told not to do and how they influence us? We are
always told not to do drugs, but it is amazing how much it influenced The
Beatles. It amuses me that you can find influence anywhere. Interesting
perspective on the opening of Revolver,
I like how you put it that The Beatles wanted to invite the listeners into the
studio. I really like the part about the Dalai Lama, that’s awesomely funny.
Great Job!
Raymond Scott
Raymond Scott was a pioneer in electronic music. He invented
or helped electronic instruments. He attended Brooklyn Technical High School,
and was also an adventurous sound engineer. While recording in the 30s and 40s,
he was mostly in the control room adjusting acoustics by new and unorthodox
means, which would be used regularly in the future. Gert-Jan Blom and Jeff
Winner wrote about him, saying, “Scott sought to master all aspects of sound
capture and manipulation. His special interesting in the technical aspects of
recording, combined with the state-of-the-art facilities at his disposal,
provided him with enormous hands-on experience as an engineer.” In 1946, Scott
created Manhattan Research, a division of his company, Raymond Scott
Enterprises, Inc. which would design and manufacture electronic music devices. While
creating devices for himself, Scott also sold devices and serviced them “for
the creation of electronic music and musique concrete.” These sales also
included components such as ring modulators; tone, envelope, and wave shifters,
modulators and filters. Relying on his own creations like the Clavivox and the
Electronium, he recorded futuristic compositions for use in radio and
television commercials as well as entire songs for records. Scott made some of
the early devices capable of producing multiple tones automatically in a line.
Due to this, he later credited himself as the inventor of the polyphonic
sequencer. In 1964, Scott released “Soothing Sounds for Baby,” which sounds
familiar to Tangerine Dream’s and Brian Eno’s work from the mid ‘70s.
Raymond Scott influenced the Electronic music era by
creating and pioneering some of the early stuff that would define the genre.
From using the futuristic Sci-Fi sounds for commercials to creating simple
ambient tracks for toddlers, Scott laid the groundwork for this genre. To study
and read about a man who strove after something he loved is an honor. I only
hope to do the same in my studies and hopefully have an impact on this world
that I will help shift and change.
Sources:
Melonball Bounce:
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk’s early music were experimental rock tunes without
the “pop” bits that we associate them with of their later albums. It wasn’t
until 1974 that they made a hit. With “Autobahn,” Kraftwerk made an electronic
album about a single thing, driving. This would be the image and music of the
band that would define them in the world of electronic music. When they began
to tour, they decided to have short haircuts and suits to mimic the way
American bands were looking while they were on tour. In the title track,
“Autobahn,” Kraftwerk tried to mimic The Beach Boys. This can be seen in the
lyrics “fahr’n fahr’n fahr’n, auf der autobahn.” Where “fahr’n” sounds like
“fun,” which, of course, mimics the song “Fun Fun Fun,” by The Beach Boys. This
song also did something not normal for the time frame. It’s in German. Let me
explain this. Kraftwerk were a German band, and songs of that time were
normally not sung in German because songs in German were usually about
political statements and the motherland. So usually songs that were created by
German bands were usually in English for this purpose. After “Autobahn” came
“Radio Activity,” which also had a theme. “Radio Activity” was all about
Nuclear energy and of course, the Radio. In this context, it took a hint of
England during WWII, with people hovering around their radios waiting for
Churchill to make his speeches. Then came “Trans-Europe Express,” this is where
Kraftwerk did something not seen before on their records. This specific record
was all about what they knew and did well, no experimentation, just plain good
electronic music. A lot of their records beforehand had some songs that were
sort of experiments that they decided to put on the records.
Kraftwerk is inspirational. They kind of screw around in the
early years, then when they release “Autobahn,” they blow up into a thing. With
focus on a specific subject, they become better. This shows me that when you
get set on an idea, pursue it, no matter how silly it seems during production,
because it just might cause you to make a hit.
Sources:
Monday, June 11, 2012
What's Going On (Edited from Original)
For
Marvin Gaye, “What’s Going On” was a statement of his beliefs. Beforehand,
Marvin had the typical Motown track listing, which was of the Soul genre.
Marvin sang songs about his beliefs, but never about something serious, like
war or hunger. The main influence for this song was his brother’s stories while
he was in Vietnam. For Gaye, “Vietnam didn’t become real until somebody close
to him was touched by it. I wrote him a few letters, but it wasn’t till I got
back that it really hit him that I had been over there. ‘Wow, man, you were in
the war.’ Then he wanted to know everything. I cried a lot during our talks.
War is hell, believe me.” When Gaye tried to release the song, he was shot down
by Motown head Berry Gordy for over a year. When Gaye started not coming to the
studio and doing his own projects, Gordy gave in a released the single, taking
the top two spots in 3 charts. Soon after the release of the single, it was
re-released in an album of the name on May 21, 1971. For the first time, a Soul
album addressed issues that were prominent of that time. Issues covered in the
album were war, poverty, taxes, drug abuse, and pollution. This is also the
first time that a Motown record went away from the traditional Motown feel.
This album contains a mixture of funk, classical and Latin.
What’s
Going On shows me that any kind of music can make a statement, and if you want
to sing about something, sing about it. If you lose fan base for singing about
something that has struck you deep in your heart, screw it. It’s a good trade,
standing for what you believe, in exchange for losing fans. Since, it is always
better to be different than to go with the crowd.
Sources:
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