This is a list of 12 great bands. None of the 12 bands listed below are new to this blog - there was an existing label for each and every one of them so I have included an appropriate link in the list. I think it's interesting that Motley Crue and Guns-n-Roses have so many pages.
In contrast, when asked, I often will say that Metallica, Bayside, and Count the Stars are my 3 favorite bands. Here's how many labels for each of those bands exist on my blog:
It was on Monday, 6-13-2022, when I discovered the existence of a playlist for their first album. I had never heard that album until Monday, 6-13-2022!
All Them Witches is playing at Gabes in Iowa City on Friday, March 4, 2022, and their schedule is intense. The tour begins on March 1, 2022, and they play concerts March 1 through March 5.
Who is All Them Witches and why do I care? Well, yes, I had never listened to this band until I saw the announcement. I am starting the second tune on their first album and ... I think I may have found a great band!
They are in a genre I've definitely heard previously - they're not groundbreaking and playing some genre that hasn't ever been heard before. The best I can do is compare them to a band called The Atomic Bitchwax, a band I don't often listen to, but when I do, I think I should listen to them on a more regular basis. Don't get me started on all the other bands in that category - bands that I should work into my regular rotation of Bayside, Count the Stars, Metallica, Shinedown, Seether, and several others.
Brief tangent: Yes, Seether has been making it to my ears more and more over the last few weeks. I am disappointed that it looks like I will not see them play at Welcome to Rockville 2022 in May in Daytona, FL. I just don't think that trip is going to happen, VERY unfortunately as it would have been one last opportunity to see KISS in concert, one opportunity to see the Foo Fighters in concert, and, most importantly, the opportunity of a lifetime to go on a trip with my son Alex prior to his wedding day in June 2022.
In my career, I have worked at 5 major employers and during the time I worked for each employer, Sevendust released an album. The same cannot be said for Bayside - they didn't exist when I worked for NDP, for Count the Stars - they also did not exist when I worked for NDP, or even Metallica - they existed when I worked for NDP as Load was released in August 1996, when Megan was born, but then there was an extended time of no new music as Death Magnetic was released when I worked at Quintrex but its follow-up, Hardwired to Self-Destruct, was not released until I had started working for the University of Iowa - they skipped my time two employers:
the Unnamed Hellhole in southern Iowa
Pearson
But not Sevendust! They nailed all 5 employers!
They released Sevendust when I worked at NDP.
They did not release an album in 1998, when I worked at JSI for 7 months.
They released Home, Animosity, Seasons, Next, Alpha, & Chapter VII when I worked at QDS.
They released Cold Day Memory when I worked at the Unnamed Hellhole in southern Iowa.
They released Black Out the Sun, Time Travelers & Bonfires, and Kill the Flaw when I worked at Pearson.
The released All I See is War when I worked at the University of Iowa.
If I come upon other bands that have released new music (that I like!) during my time at my different employers, I will create a post about the band.
I'd never heard Fever 333 until today. I could take the comment by "Rhiannon DJ" below and easily replace "Fever 333" with Bayside... or with Count the Stars ...
I really like knowing that a band can connect with fans.
I have been tasked to choose ten albums that have influenced my taste in music. One album a day for 10 consecutive days. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.
Every day I will nominate someone else. (If you're not interested, not a problem)
Day 10
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
There are SO many more albums that I could have selected for this final spot, but I ultimately went with Riot's "Thundersteel" tune. This is a live version of the cassette that Scott Golden brought to my house in summer 1989. I remember being flabbergasted by the guitars and the double bass drums and then the vocals! It was a gateway band to many other bands in the same genre - I've never forgotten the way it made me feel on that day. The video below is from a 2018 concert.
You remember concerts, right? Sigh....
Day 9
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
Day 8
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
Motley Crue introduced me to the Beatles, thanks to "Shout at the Devil" as crazy as that sounds. In 1984, my parents took my brother & I on a vacation from Iowa to CA. We were in northern CA, when the four of us went into a KMart and emerged with a cassette tape for each of us to play on our Ford Econoline's cassette tape player. Dad got Billy Joel's "An Innocent Man," Mom got ... I think Olivia Newton-John's Greatest Hits, and I don't remember what my brother got. Me? Motley Crue's "Shout at the Devil" and, believe it or not, that album made it into the rotation as we traveled south, first to San Francisco, then to Hollywood, then east to Las Vegas and then CO for a whitewater raft trip down a river.
In the liner notes for my cassette tape, it revealed that the tune "Helter Skelter" was written by someone named "Lennon/McCartney" and I had no idea who that was until I got back home and found out, though in those pre-Internet days, I don't remember exactly how...
Anyways, the song that introduced me to the Beatles!
Day 7
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
My grandma was my biggest supporter of my love for music and I always think about how poetically awesome it is that she bought my first album. We went to the Collins Road KMart in 1980 and I came home with it ... and Mom was NOT happy! Back in the day, a cassette tape was ~$13. She had told Grandma that I could get a 45 record, which was under $5, not a $13 cassette tape. Anyways, this album was popular and, to this day, I have never watched the movie.
This tune is still one of my favorite love songs.
Day 6
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
Before Bayside, there was Count the Stars. Never get tired of hearing this album, even after all these years, at least once a week. I couldn't pick a single tune - I never skip any of these tunes.
Day 5
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
Before Bayside, there was Count the Stars. Never get tired of hearing this album, even after all these years, at least once a week.
Day 4
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
I wish I had tracked how many hours I spent air drumming to this album. I was proud of myself when I could nail the intricate parts in this tune.
Day 3
Note:
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album because I sincerely hope you take a few minutes to hear a band you may not have heard before.
Today's album came into my life in 1997. I was writing music reviews for http://www.dailyvault.com and was starting to receive many promo CDs in the mail. This promo CD for a band actually came in a big Federal Express soft envelope with ~20 other CDs. Somehow, this CD slid under my couch and was probably stuck there for a couple of days before I found it. Bigwig instantly became one of my favorite punk bands because of how raw, under-produced, and short the songs were - the entire album is barely 30 minutes! This is their cover of the theme from "Cheers" to give you a taste of their style.
Day 2
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album. Over the years, I have grown to truly appreciate the way Liberty Devitto contributed to BJ's tunes - I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the drum intro.
Day 1
Note: I have to post *one* of the tunes that was on this album that, as an impressionable 2nd grader, made me want to play drums. Somehow, my family had this album on 8-track tape.
More and more, seeing Five Finger Death Punch with Breaking Benjamin & From Ashes to New on Tuesday, November 27, 2018, is becoming very appealing. I've been on a "modern rock" kick lately. These bands are routinely in my ears (listed in alphabetical order)
in my Windows Media Player playlist. However, that doesn't mean I haven't been dabbling in "the classic rock bands" like (listed in alphabetical order)
AC-DC (the groove on "Givin the Dog a Bone" & "Shake A Leg" specifically have captured my attention)
Judas Priest
KISS
Metallica
Rush
However, that doesn't mean I haven't forgotten my "favorite bands" like (listed in alphabetical order)
Today is Saturday, 12/6/2015. Last night, at the Big Ten Championship game in Indy, the MSU Spartans defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes 16-13 in a devastating loss. The 2015 season was the one during which Iowa was 12-0 going into that game and now, today, they play MSU at Kinnick Stadium. I have zero doubt that last night's game has been hyped as either when Iowa began a magical period of dominance or when they began a slide into mediocrity. All I know is that when 2017 rolls around, the players that played quarterback for MSU and Iowa will not be playing. MSU's quarterback was a 5th year senior and, unless there's been an injury to Iowa's quarterback, C.J. Bertherd graduated in May 2017 and is not playing a 5th year. Sure, the running back that scored the winning touchdown last night is, in 2015, a freshman which probably means he is a junior at MSU today in 2017. I'm sure the fans in Kinnick Stadium will not forget last night's loss and they will make the stadium as difficult to play in as they possibly can today.
The 10 questions the 12/6/2015 version of me wants the 9/30/2017 version of me to answer are:
Are you going to the game today and whether the answer is yes or no, I want to know if Kinnick Stadium is still located where it is in 2015, which is directly across the street from UIHC? Bonus question: is there any talk of relocating Kinnick Stadium or building a larger capacity stadium?
Me in 2017 says:
No, I am not going to a game at Kinnick Stadium today. The game today is at MSU in East Lansing. Kinnick Stadium is still located where it is in 2015, directly across from UIHC and no, there is no talk of relocating Kinnick Stadium or building a larger capacity stadium. There is a brand-new football facility building that is located near the existing Kinnick Stadium and there are multiple projects to enhance Kinnick Stadium that were done during summer 2017 with more planned after the season. Additionally, the Children's Hospital was built overlooking Kinnick Stadium and at the first game of the season, a new tradition began where the fans turn and wave at the kids in the hospital who are watching the game. Kinnick Stadium is likely going nowhere in my lifetime.
I work at Pearson on North Dodge Street in Iowa City. The discussion about my future plans are up in the air, unfortunately. It is unknown if I will be a part of the restructuring, about which I know no details about today. Where did I go to work yesterday (Friday, 9/29/2015) and is that the same employer I will go to work at on Monday, 10/2/2017? My hope is that on this day in 2017, the next line says "Pearson. Duh."
Me in 2017 says:
Well, no. I was laid off from Pearson on Tuesday, January 26, 2016. I am now a Senior Technical Writer at HCIS.
I expect that Karen and I will have been married for 24 years with only 311 days (or 10 months, 1 week, 1 day) until our 25th wedding anniversary. What are you purchasing for her 25th anniversary present?
Me in 2017 says:
For many years, Karen and I talked about going to Hawaii for our 25th wedding anniversary. The reality is that we have both kids in college at UNI, which means college tuition is a focus point for us when it comes to finances. At this point, the joke is that we may make it to Riverside Casino if we do not make it to Hawaii. I have no current plans to go to Hawaii in 2018.
The discussion about our plans for the Tuesday of this week are chaotic. Our agenda includes things like having Lowe's look at our new washer because of a clunking sound we hear when it is running (the washer we have today in our house is the one we purchased at Lowe's in November 2015), getting Karen to Alex's ortho appointment at 4 to ask the orthodontist about what happens if a bracket is damaged during his scheduled oral surgery on 12/23/2015 (17 days away), me teaching Zach Burkle a drum lesson at 5, Alex working at Fareway at 6 PM and Holy Day Mass for the Immaculate Conception also at 6 PM. What are the plans for Tuesday, October 3, 2017?
Me in 2017 says:
First of all, I don't know why I thought the Holy Day Mass for the Immaculate Conception would be on a Tuesday in October - I must have wrote these questions across a period of time because 17 days from September 30 is never going to be 12/23/2015! Secondly, Alex doesn't have braces anymore. I don't teach drum lessons to Zach Burkle. C, Karen and I have an empty nest so we pretty much go by what we want to do. There is a UNI football game on Saturday so I imagine we will be preparing in some way to head north to Cedar Falls.
Alex is a freshman in college. On 12/6/2015, the discussion about his future plans revolved around beginning either a 2 year IT degree at Kirkwood in fall 2017, followed by 2 years of online classes to complete his B.A. degree at UNI or beginning 2 years at UNI to be followed by a 2 year IT degree at Kirkwood. What is he studying in college and which college does he attend?
Me in 2017 says:
The 2 + 2 program that Kirkwood offers was not a good option for him. Alex is a freshman at UNI with a Management Information Systems (MIS) major.
Megan is a junior in college. On 12/6/2015, the discussion about her future plans revolved around completing her degree in elementary education at UNI - tentatively graduating in May 2019. What is she studying in college and which college does she attend?
Me in 2017 says:
Megan is an Elementary Education major with a Mathematics minor. She is a junior. It is still undecided exactly when she will do her student teaching.
Mom passed away on 12/29/2014 so it is now 1006 days (2 years, 9 months, 1 day) since she was breathing in her room at Mercy Hospice in Cedar Rapids. How do I honor her as my mom over 1000 days after her death?
Me in 2017 says:
I honor Mom by trying to be a good person, which I think she tried to be. I also honor Mom by supporting Megan in her pursuit of being a teacher.
When was the last day and time that you saw Dad and Mark? In 2015, I am not using the word "alive" in this question on purpose.
Me in 2017 says:
Dad: MM/DD/YYYY
Mark: MM/DD/YYYY
My 5 favorite bands are:
Bayside - saw them in October 2015 with Chris Motter in Des Moines
Metallica - currently recording an album
Count the Stars - broken up for several years but still adore "Never Be Taken Alive"
Five Finger Death Punch - saw them in October 2015 with Alex in Cedar Rapids
Shinedown - saw them in August 2015 with Alex in Davenport
Me in 2017 says:
There's really not a band that has overtaken the above 5 bands since 2015.
Bayside - touring in support of the 10th anniversary of "The Walking Wounded" as well as released a CD, Vacancy in August 2016.
Metallica - saw them in concert on Friday, June 10th, 2017, in Newton, IA, with Volbeat & Avenged Sevenfold.
Count the Stars - fairly regularly, listen to them.
Five Finger Death Punch - fairly regularly, listen to them.
Shinedown - fairly regularly, listen to them.
I spent some time on 12/6/2015 organizing my 1000ish cassettes into groups for a pending conversion project to MP3. I have not scheduled any dates for this project - when to begin, milestones/goals, or when I hope to be complete. Have I started this project and, if so, when did I begin, what are the milestones/goals I established for it, and when is the target completion date? While the idea of having a page on this blog that is dedicated to this cassette to MP3 project it has not yet been created. If it exists in 2017, this is the link to that page. Otherwise, my answer is:
Me in 2017 says:
Unfortunately, the cassette to MP3 conversion project has been pushed off indefinitely. I am currently converting my 50 spindles x 100 CDs to MP3 because of an April 2016 EHD crash.
This album has been one of my favorites since the first time I heard it in 2003. If this was a cassette instead of a CD, it would be worn out three times due to the number of times I've listened to it. I adore the lyrics, the smart drumming, the arrangements, the vocals, and the riffs. I don't think I left any element out, did I? It is the total package - the best 13 songs on a single album that I've heard. It always pains me when I realize that I feel like I am on an island because they never got the recognition that was deserving of their talent. I don't have a favorite song on this release and I don't have a single song that I cannot listen to "again" or "one more time." This release was on my cell phone for the majority of 2016.
Notes from the Editor:
Including an album in this Top Ten list should not imply an endorsement of the album as being "good" - nothing in the title of these posts states that these are "Ten GOOD Albums I Listened to A Lot in 2016". Pay attention to details.
Also, this is a post in a series of 10 that began being published at 7:30 PM on 12/28. The #1 album was to be posted at 11:59 PM on 12/28, with this schedule, but sometimes "life" takes away plans.
1159 - 1
1129 - 2
1059 - 3
1029 - 4
0959 - 5
0929 - 6
0859 - 7
0829 - 8
0759 - 9
0729 - 10
I was just out at the Meg Fee site and saw her playlist from 8/8/2016 and, realizing I don't know a single one of the 10 bands in that playlist, I decided to capture it here, on my blog, so I remember to listen to each of those 10 tunes later. Perhaps, I will discover a next generation Bayside or Count the Stars or (gasp) Metallica!
I've been listening to Bayside's "Vacancy" release daily - sometimes multiple times - since I was sent the promo, via download, on 8/19. It is an amazing record. I have started a draft of a review of it for dailyvault.com and, like when I reviewed the Count the Stars "Never Be Taken Alive" release a few years back, it's very hard for me to not gush fandom all over the band. I want to have a quick turnaround and get the review submitted to dailyvault.com early this week.
Did you know that there are more bands in this world than I have listed in my (current, as of this moment) list of 8 favorites? This is my list in pretty close to this order:
Metallica
Five Finger Death Punch
Shinedown
Skillet
Count the Stars
Bayside
Rush
Black Sabbath
When I think about the concept that every country in the world has musicians, it frees my mind and now, today, my ears will follow. Matthew sent me the link to the first video as well as an article that introduced me to a singer from Morocco that covers James Brown.
I have the same sensations dripping through all the parts of my mind and ears and eyes! It feels like exactly like when I discovered Bayside, Count the Stars, Bigwig, and Dexter Danger!
My goal is to reach 1000 posts by 12/31/2011. How crazy is that? Only crazy b/c I don't know that I have that much to say. Two self-imposed rules: no single sentence entries - each entry must be long enough that it makes sense so don't expect one word entries just to make a quota. The other rule is that it can't just be a series of youtube videos - I want CONTENT! - so that I can look at this as an accomplishment, not just a way to fill in cyberspace.
That all said, I made a startling discovery. I kept an Excel file that lists all my CDs and DVDs and music and I knew it had been a while since I had updated it. I create a new file for the current year by copying the previous year's file and renaming it to the current year. I just created Tapes11.xls (from Tapes10.xls). Guess what the modified date/time was on Tapes10.xls?
1/1/2010.
I kid you not. I went a year and one month (to the day) without updating my Excel file. I don't know if that is a sign that I shouldn't care what I have or if it means that I will never be able to get caught up. I'll stew about it for a bit. I do know I have 13,000+ MP3s on my external HD and assembling those files into my existing layout will be a challenge. Plus, I have ripped various CDs to MP3 (and onto the external HD) so I can listen to them without physically having the CD. How do I accommodate that? Do I artificially inflate my total count just because I wanted to be able to hear Mothermania, Count the Stars, Bayside, and countless other favorite bands from my external HD and not have to carry a physical CD of it? I'm not sure how the MP3s fit into the paradigm of spindles of CD-Rs. And here's the issue. I want to listen to Lamb of God's "New American Gospel." It is on spindle A20, according to the list I have. Is that really where it is? How outdated was the list when I stopped updating it?
This year was pretty good for me. There were a lot of ups and downs. One of the ups was seeing Rush in May. That rocked. Another up was getting some extra freelance moonlighting technical writing assignments. I am uncertain if they will be repeat customers but I hope they will be in 2009. I also got to mow the neighbor's yard. Of course, one of the downs is that all that extra $ was used for one thing or another. It doesn't really matter. Another sad thing is the disappointing losses Alex's Dudes basketball team went through.
Musically, I am still entrenched in Somehow Hollow, Spitalfield, Ten Foot Pole, and Metallica. Count the Stars also got a lot of listens. I liked the new Offspring and the new Puddle of Mudd. I liked the new Bayside release and I also liked Death Cab for Cutie. I also got a Who DVD and listened to more of their material than I ever have before. I'm not rushing out to buy their releases, but I probably have a deeper understanding as to why Keith Moon is considered such a legendary drummer. On the opposite end, I heard a lot of crappy death bands that couldn't play a decent riff if they were taught it.
2009 looks to be a good year for me. I am hopeful that I will continue to be happy at work and make good decisions there. I am hopeful that I will actually get to do some tech writing the first week of January. I have about 8 weeks stockpiled up and I think my next cut is going to be early February so there's not a lot of time to do a lot of things. I just have to make the best of it.
So with that, and a glasses prescription to be filled tomorrow, I bid farewell to 2008. No crazy plans tomorrow night, which is kind of strange.
