#Rick Astley’s third album Free

[edsonjnovaes]

Cry for Help (Official Video)

Rick Astley – Cry for Help (Official Video) [4K Remaster]. 2009 25 out “Cry For Help” was the first single from Rick Astley’s third album “Free”. It reached number 7 in both the UK and the US meaning Rick was the first male solo artist to have his first 8 singles reach the top 10 in Britain. The ballad was co-written by Rick and Rob Fisher, best known as one half of the duo Climie…

[lovesongbracket]

Reminder: Vote based on the song, not the artist or specific recording! The tracks referenced are the original artist, aside from a few rare cases where a cover is the most widely known.

Lyrics, videos, info, and notable covers under the cut. (Spotify playlist available in pinned post)

Never Gonna Give You Up

Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken & Pete Waterman

Artist: Rick Astley

Released: 1987

“Never Gonna Give You Up” is known as the world famous Rick Roll song. The music video, directed by Simon West, finds Astley singing at various west London locales, including an empty club where he gradually inspires a bartender (played by dancer Clive Clarke of the Top of the Pops dance troupe Zoo) to bust a move. Apparently, Clarke had been nursing a serious hangover when his attempt to do a stunt flip went awry, and he landed on his head. Luckily, he wasn’t injured and nailed the stunt on another take. Rick had not originally wanted to create a music video for this song, but he was eventually forced to by the director. The 1987 video was officially uploaded to YouTube on the 24th of October 2009 and has over one billion views as of 2021. Never Gonna Give You Up sheet music is also available for free.

[Intro] Desert you Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Hurt you [Verse 1] We're no strangers to love You know the rules and so do I A full commitment's what I'm thinking of You wouldn't get this from any other guy [Pre-Chorus] I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling Gotta make you understand [Chorus] Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you [Verse 2] We've known each other for so long Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it Inside, we both know what's been going on We know the game, and we're gonna play it [Pre-Chorus] And if you ask me how I'm feeling Don't tell me you're too blind to see [Chorus] Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you [Post-Chorus] Ooh (Give you up) Ooh-ooh (Give you up) Ooh-ooh Never gonna give, never gonna give (Give you up) Ooh-ooh Never gonna give, never gonna give (Give you up) [Bridge] We've known each other for so long Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it Inside, we both know what's been going on We know the game, and we're gonna play it [Pre-Chorus] I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling Gotta make you understand [Chorus] Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

Mamma Mia

Written By: Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson & Stig Anderson

Artist: ABBA

Released: 1975

“Mamma Mia” is the opening track off of the group’s third album, the self-titled ABBA. The song’s name is derived from Italian, where it is an interjection used in situations of surprise, anguish, or excitement (literally, “My mother”). ABBA’s manager Stig Anderson would often come up with titles that musicians Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson would write lyrics around, and this is an example of that workflow. It would later be the title song of the all-ABBA musical Mamma Mia.

[Verse 1] I've been cheated by you since I don't know when So I made up my mind: it must come to an end Look at me now, will I ever learn? I don't know how, but I suddenly lose control There's a fire within my soul [Pre-Chorus] Just one look and I can hear a bell ring One more look and I forget everything, whoa [Chorus] Mamma mia, here I go again My my, how can I resist you? Mamma mia, does it show again? My my, just how much I've missed you Yes, I've been broken-hearted Blue since the day we parted Why, why did I ever let you go? Mamma mia, now I really know My my, I could never let you go [Verse 2] I've been angry and sad about things that you do I can't count all the times that I've told you we're through And when you go, when you slam the door I think you know that you won't be away too long You know that I'm not that strong [Pre-Chorus] Just one look and I can hear a bell ring One more look and I forget everything, whoa [Chorus] Mamma mia, here I go again My my, how can I resist you? Mamma mia, does it show again My my, just how much I've missed you? Yes, I've been broken-hearted Blue since the day we parted Why, why did I ever let you go? Mamma mia, even if I say "Bye-bye", leave me now or never Mamma mia, it's a game we play "Bye-bye" doesn't mean forever Mamma mia, here I go again My my, how can I resist you? Mamma mia, does it show again My my, just how much I've missed you? Yes, I've been broken-hearted Blue since the day we parted Why, why did I ever let you go? Mamma mia, now I really know My my, I could never let you go

[paulodebargelove]

Rick Astley - Cry for Help (Official Music Video) #RickAstley - Cry For Help (1991)Released as the first single from his third studio album, Free (1991). It was written by Astley and Rob Fisher, formerly one half of the 1980s pop outfits Naked Eyes and Climie Fisher.The song is a ballad, unlike Astley's earlier dance-oriented hit singles.Released as a single on 14 January 1991 by RCA Records, "Cry for Help" reached number seven on both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Astley's last top-10 hit in either country. It also reached number four in Canada and was a number-one hit on both the US and Canadian Adult Contemporary charts.Its accompanying music video received heavy rotation on MTV Europe."Cry for Help" was awarded one of BMI's Pop Awards in 1993, honoring the songwriters, composers and music publishers of the song.

[paulisweeabootrash]

Pokémon 2.B.A. Master

I stumbled across a piece of weeb trash media I had heard of, but neither attempted nor expected to find.  And it’s a bit different.  Today, my friends, we are not doing an anime or manga, or even another novel.  We’re doing a tie-in music album, a American blatant cash-grab based on a Japanese franchise.  Oh no.  Oh yes.

Pokémon 2.B.A. Master (1999)

As a young weeblet, I was a regular watcher of the first two arcs of Pokémon (Kanto and Johto).  It was in both weekday and weekend timeslots, and never seemed to be broadcast in any sensible order, but I nonetheless watched it frequently and enjoyed it no matter how many times WB decided to rerun episodes I’d already seen.  At some point, this CD came out, and I remember seeing ads for it when it was new.  There were even televised music videos for a few of the songs, broadcast as a segment called “Pikachu’s Jukebox”. I never saw a copy of the album in person, and never expected to. Maybe it was one of those that you had to order by calling some number?  I don't remember (or, frankly, care enough to look it up).  Anyway, I recently encountered this in the small music section of a used book store, and I figured "why not?"  And the obvious answer is "most of the contents".

The cover, in addition to using proud and unironic Comic Sans for the subtitle "2.B.A. Master", boasts that the album contains both "Music From The Hit TV Series" and "10 Brand New Songs!"  The former refers obviously to the main theme of the show and every child's favorite mnemonic device, the PokéRap (or “PokéRAP” as it’s spelled for some reason?), but I'm not sure what the third song from the show is.  And again, I don’t care enough to look it up.  The important thing is, John Loeffler wrote all of them, and apparently an absurd number of other Pokémon-related songs.  The "Brand New Songs!" here are mostly new to me, and they’re... a doozy.  Except for the songs from the show, plus “Double Trouble” and maybe “Misty’s Song” if I want to be very generous, I am tempted to suggest you could get a similar musical experience in a shorter time by putting on an episode of Pokémon, playing a mix of Milli Vanilli and Boyz II Men songs over it, and banging your head against a wall.

1. Pokémon Theme

We begin with the extended version of the classic theme, this is a sure dose of nostalgia for anyone who watched the show.  It sounds, considering the release date, a little outdated — I get kind of a "Beat It" vibe, not from the melody, but from the instrumentation, combining 80s-gated drums and searing electric guitar.  But the theme, already one of the few TV themes out there I find enjoyable and not instantly forgettable, extends to a full length surprisingly well, avoiding getting boring or devolving into complete idiocy with lyrics.  I actually like this song as a song, and you can’t convince me otherwise.

2. 2B A Master

The instrumentation in this track is absurdly 90s, and again kind of Michael Jackson-y, but is interesting and varied, especially in the sudden attention-grabbing rhythmic change accompanying the line "the greatest master of Pokémon".  It shows better restraint in its use of things like record scratch noises and basslines running parallel to vocal lines that I find get really old really quickly.  I actually, on the whole, enjoy this song and think the music could have been the basis for something great.  “Could have” being the keyword.  Lest you think I'm going to give a rosy, loving review of this album, no, it quickly gets bad.  Some of the lyrics feel like such forced attempts to get Pokémon references in that I am embarrassed on behalf of the people stuck singing and rapping them, 20 years later.  It’s a waste of what could’ve been a fun funky song.  (Incidentally, why is the title of the song punctuated differently from the title of the album?)

3. Viridian City

The slide downhill continues.  What the hell is this song?  The lyrics are only marginally less stupid than the previous track, the music sounds like a keyboard "dance" preset, and it has a weird rapped/spoken "echoing" of sung lines it’s incredibly hard to imagine anyone ever liked.  Ugh.

4. What Kind of Pokémon Are You?

Third time's the charm, I guess?  After the previous two tracks tried and failed to force Pokémon-related lyrics that just don't work, this one at least manages to fire off a series of type-related puns.  The music, however, turns back towards gratingly boring (and for some reason, the bridge comes thisclose to ripping off "Eye of the Tiger"?).  Actually, no, hahaha, the lyrics remain very stupid, I think I'm just getting "ground down by a Marowak" by how bad the preceding tracks were.

5. My Best Friends

The parts move in unison too closely for my tastes, the lyrics are bland, the vocal arrangement makes it sound downright inappropriately dramatic, and what’s up with the bridge that veers off into doo-wop?  The main thing this song has going for it is the vaguely pleasant piano part in the verses, which really appeals to me (it sounds familiar, although I can’t place what specifically it reminds me of).  The melody of the chorus sounds even more familiar — so familiar in fact I'm starting to wonder if it's a copyright-violation-skirting ripoff of something famous. But otherwise, this is a solid “meh”, sounding like a boy band song that would only briefly have made the charts.

6. Everything Changes

And now we're back to impressions of Michael Jackson.  This one's instrumentation and mood and even bits of the melody are so him that I could almost believe you if you told me this was an outtake that didn't make it onto Bad. (Although the singer sounds less like Jackson the longer the song goes on.) The lyrics, although vaguely applicable to everything, are a welcome change from the previous few tracks by not feeling like Pokémon has been painfully shoehorned in... up until the part where a clip from the show plays during a break between choruses.  Ugh.  Could you really not come up with a better way to make this into a distinctly Pokémon song?

7. The Time Has Come (Pikachu's Goodbye)

Yuck.  The sentimental ballad (I want to call it a “power ballad”, but I’m unsure what exactly counts as one), as a general rule, is a fire hose full of melodrama best used for comedy.  I don't understand how songs like this have ever been taken seriously.  I would expect to hear this as the ending theme to a movie that tries to be a tragedy but can’t quite pull it off.

8. Pokémon (Dance Mix)

I assumed from the title that this was a remix of the theme song, but instead, it's just sort of a filler track...  It makes almost no impression on me at all, although I do enjoy the intro’s use of "backward-sounding" and morphing synths.  Otherwise, this is another track that sounds like it uses keyboard preset backgrounds.

9. Double Trouble (Team Rocket)

Okay, look, I can’t rate this one fairly.  The longest-running fandom-related internal conflict of my life has been whether I'd rather be James or have James as mai hasubando, and I love Team Rocket in general as comedy relief villains.  I used to enthusiastically perform their ridiculous introductory speech with a friend from band camp (I am even more of a geek than you thought).  This song actually bothers to be more specific in terms of its Pokémon subject matter, meaning this is finally a song about Pokémon rather than just a generic pop song with Pokémon flavor, and it uniquely is performed by voice actors from the show, namely those who played Jesse, James, Meowth, and Giovanni.  It really grates on me when the VAs talk over the singers, but unlike some of the other songs, it feels like it builds up and goes somewhere.  We have at least broken free from the boringness of the last few tracks, with almost industrial percussion and chromatic and sometimes dissonant bass and synth lines that really make it a solid villain song, even though it has a hokey “rap written by people who haven’t actually listened to any rap” feel.  And James’s absolutely ludicrous laugh will absolutely alienate who isn’t already a fan of the character, and most people who are, too.

10. Together Forever

The “disappointing imitation of Michael Jackson” theme returns, this time mostly in the voice.  It especially pops out at me with the pronunciation of "friend" as "fraynnnndah!".  Unfortunately, rather than trying to imitate Jackson’s songwriting again, this song seems to want to rip off Stock Aitken Waterman.  And it succeeds at that, too well, as it somehow manages to outcompete a song those writers wrote for Rick Astley to be the worst song with this title.  Also returning here: the use of clips from the show to clumsily force an otherwise generic song to be Pokémon-related.  Hooray.

11. Misty's Song

Huh.  Now this one is interesting.  Buried deep in the album, we get something from a character POV that doesn’t just set trivia or quotes from the show to music.  Yvette Laboy does a believable job filling in as the singing counterpart for Rachel Lillis's speaking voice for Misty, and I just don't find it nearly as ridiculous as the other ballads on the album, for some reason. It even portrays a tsundere as insecure rather than just an obnoxious walking trope!  Sure, it's not great, but it's not bad either, especially after the other attempted ballads on here.  Until you remember that it's a 14-year-old singing a love song to a 10-year-old, which... ick.  It could've been sweet if put in the mouth of another character with a more age-appropriate relationship. Anyone want to rerecord this as “Kaname's Song” or something?

12. PokéRAP

Oh, educational rap.  Why?  It’s just unbearably cheesy and doesn’t seem to have had much thought put into it, as a general rule.  And this song is no exception.  Sure, I guess it has value as a mnemonic exercise (and it does a decent job of that, as anyone who still has large chunks of it memorized can tell you), but no value as music.  It often doesn’t even come close to rhyming where you’d expect it to, and it's obvious that Loeffler et al weren't sure what to do with a few of the names at all — Grimer and Chansey have egregious pauses after them, for example, and Omastar is stretched across space enough for two or three names for no good reason.  It is broken into convenient-sized stanzas that are only somewhat awkwardly forced into the established meter, but that meter has a too-regular feel, bouncing like a musical Superball, that even I, someone with no particular knowledge of nor interest in rap, recognize as being cheesier than Vanilla Ice.  It also hasn’t aged well.  The sung parts have absolutely no dynamic range and stay at MAXIMUM DRAMA LEVEL at all times.  Over the past 20 years, the lyrics have also become obsolete due to the many additional generations of Pokémon media and consequently much longer list of Pokémon to memorize.  Those topics have been covered in excruciating detail by Brian David Gilbert, who is much cleverer than I am, and yes, I do highly recommend sitting through that entire half-hour video.  All I can really add to that is, it's considerably less annoying than certain other mnemonic songs I was exposed to growing up. A bad song, unless you’re viewing it through sheer unfiltered silliness?  Yes.  A surprisingly catchy song that was a good marketing move?  Also yes.  And 20+ years later, I still can't avoid laughing at the way he says "Wartortle".

13. You Can Do It (If You Really Try)

The album could've gone out on that upbeat note, but no, they had to go for another overblown ballad, this time trying far too hard to be inspirational.  The plus side is, it's not yet another generic 80s/90s pop song.  The minus side is, it sounds like something that would be playing on the PA in a church thrift store.  Or a fake ad on an episode of SNL.  I do not feel empowered by this level of unironic encouragement.  I just feel like my eyes are rolling so hard they'll fall out.  Its only saving grace is that it’s somehow not the most irritating inspirational ballad from the late 90s that was used in connection with a geek-magnet TV show.

Overall... Although I want to describe the music as being "generic" — and it is full of the tiredest parts of 80s and 90s music, wandering from orchestra hits to record scratch noises to cutesy synthesizer "dings" to what seem to be several different singers' bad Michael Jackson impressions — some of it is actually interesting!  See, no matter what impression you got from what I said above, I don’t categorically hate this style of music.  I made multiple comparisons to songs from Thriller and Bad because I think most of the songs on those albums are examples of how to do this genre very well.  But 2.B.A. Master doesn’t just lag because I’m comparing it to widely-beloved albums.  Writing this review actually sent me introspecting for quite a while about what music I enjoy and why.  And I realized, many of the cheesiest and most flawed aspects of this album are also present on less-acclaimed albums I enjoy very much, like the niche The Golden Age of Wireless by Thomas Dolby and the virtually-unknown Playgrounds ‘n’ Glass by Urban Blight.  But, while Dolby’s music often has the same cheesy synthesizer voices and lack of dynamics or has weirdly melodramatic moments, it’s also often clearly experimenting with particular effects and techniques, and his lyrics have evocative images or stories that make the songs really engaging.  And, while Urban Blight’s lyrics are often cliche-ridden or downright idiotic, the 80s/90s pop music instrumentation and style elements are varied and used with... for lack of a better term, more discretion, I guess?, which makes me feel like their songs are building to something musically.  Well, except the song “Favorite Flavor”, which is just garbage.

The point is, while neither of those examples is a great album (at least not to my taste, which I freely admit colors this), they are both still good.  Unfortunately, while some songs on 2.B.A. Master approach goodness, they are the exception, not the rule.  Most of the music is simple and predictable and seem to use the more grating tropes of the time like orchestra hits and record-scratch noises just because they can, and most of the lyrics are less "song about Pokémon" and more "attempts at being vaguely inspirational with Pokémon references forced in uncomfortably".  Some of the songs are enjoyable in a "this was an earnest attempt” and/or guilty pleasure sort of way (and I unironically like the B-52s, so believe me, I know "this was an earnest attempt” and/or guilty pleasure music), but there’s very little on here I’d actually call good.  The best track here musically, “2B A Master”, is wasted on blah lyrics, and the one that most accomplishes the goal of being a song about Pokémon, “Double Trouble”, suffers greatly from its speaking-over-the-singers vocal performance.  All I can say is, I’m glad I got this album used.

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W/A/S Scores: 3/0/7

Weeb: The lyrics require some prior specific knowledge of the Pokémon anime to not be completely baffling, but Pokémon is probably the most well-known and well-entrenched Japanese franchise on this side of the Pacific, and other than that, it’s decidedly American, or at least decidedly within the musical cultures of Western Europe and the Anglosphere.

Ass: No.

Shit: AAAAAAAAH.  Okay, okay, no, seriously, there are a few good points, but it’s at best average-quality 90s pop with a veneer of Pokémon over the top.

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Oh Weird: While writing this and hunting down appropriate links, I was surprised to see how many uploads of, and even covers of, songs from this album there are on Youtube.  I assumed this album was a more or less forgotten piece of bad 90s media, but apparently it’s one with a significant fanbase.

Oh Cool: Maddie Blaustein, the original English-language voice actress for Meowth was also a comic editor and writer for both Marvel and DC and the Creative Director for the Weekly World News. Oh, and she was intersex and, according to one of the sources cited by the Wikipedia article, bi.

Oh No: Educational rap is still a thing, and there are resources to make your own.

[davedimartino]

New This Week  03.31.09

Wow! In the past two weeks, I've been all over! First to Austin, then to Miami, then to Las Vegas, then back to Miami, and then, finally, back home to Los Angeles!

And as a result, my critical acumen--my ability to discern which music is good and which music is bad--has never been sharper!

So as I recount this week's best and brightest new releases, realize this: At this very moment I am listening to Andras Schiff's Ludwig Van Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas Vol. V! And as a result, my sensibilities have never been sharper!

Thus, more than ever before, what I say goes!

 Flo Rida: R.O.O.T.S. (Route Of Overcoming The Struggle) (Poe Boy/Atlantic)  As a special tribute to my home state, I'd like begin by mentioning the latest album by Flo Rida, the man who's already sold so many downloads of his singles it's likely no one ever would think to buy his actual album, because they've already got all the good stuff! Cool! As always, I think the man deserves incredible respect for offering us an album cover featuring him shirtless! Plus any record that takes its title from an actual acronym--and uses the "T" in "the"--must by definition be metronomically precise and near-perfect! Featuring a cast of thousands--including Nelly Furtado, Ne-Yo, Wyclef Jean, Akon, and Pleasure P--this album is everything you've imagined and more! I’m glad he's in it for the art instead of the money! I predict he'll be bigger than both Boston and Chicago!  

  Prince: LOtUSFLOW3R (Target) Since coming back to town last night, I watched a few TV shows and noticed I was hearing tracks by Lady Gaga and the Rosebuds in the background! I felt good! I like both those artists, and I'm happy their music is becoming a part of our wonderful collective culture! Then I thought about Prince, who was once so famous but now is making deals with retail chains like Target--the only place you can buy this 3-CD set, two-thirds of which is by him, the last third by singer Bria Valente--and recording songs that, good or not, I can't for the life of me recall ever hearing! Is he good? Is he bad? Is he smart? Is he a genius? Is he amassing a catalog of thousands of songs that most of the world will never hear but years from now will critically dissect as absolute masterworks? I dunno, but check out this cheap AC/DC shirt!

 Gavin DeGraw: Free (J Records)  It might be worth mentioning that this dazzling young singer has joined a worthy fraternity of critical favorites who have opted to record an album and--after careful consideration--decided to title it Free! Among them? Ornette Coleman, Rick Astley, the legendary Bacon Popper, Chico DeBarge, Concrete Blonde, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Deniece Williams, and William Hung! It might also be worth mentioning that despite its title, this album actually costs you money to buy! I plan to listen to it the second I get it!

 PJ Harvey & John Parish: A Woman A Man Walked By (Island) Having just seen this pair performing in Texas two weeks ago, I'm here to tell you that Ms. Harvey and Mr. Parish are a talented pair and that this album is absolutely superb! Well, strictly speaking, I’m actually here to complete this week's blog, but I'm unclear on whether that needs saying! With tracks like "Black Hearted Love," "Passionless, Pointless," and the memorable "Pig Will Not," this disc is one of Harvey's better efforts in a few years and worthy of your immediate purchase! And while you're listening, write down the title and underline the modifiers! Great music should teach you something!  

 Keith Urban: Defying Gravity (Capitol Nashville) One of my favorite contemporary country artists, Mr. Urban is a talented musician who consistently makes excellent records! What's up with that? This, his latest album, features the radio hit "Sweet Thing" and from a pure genre standpoint really straddles an interesting point between straight country music and that whole pop/rock thing that's been in the news lately! In many ways a hero, the Australian-born Urban has also seen fit with this new album to reveal his ability to actually fly--which, when you get right down to it, must not have been an easy decision for him to make! I’m behind him 100% and you should be as well!

 Thenewno2: you are here (Vagrant) Featuring Dhani Harrison--the son of former Beatle George--and musical partner Oli Hecks, this debut album is thoroughly invigorating, melodically captivating, and--even without the family ties--noteworthy in and of itself! We here at Yahoo had the dudes in the studio a while back, and were all uniformly impressed! And that never happens! Though Dhani can't help but recall his father vocally at times--it's that genetics thing--this music sounds thoroughly contemporary and less derivative than that of other sons of former Beatles! But jeez--what are we supposed to call poop now?

 Bruce Cockburn: Slice O Life - Live Solo (Rounder)  Canadian singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn has held a special place in my heart since he released his first album in 1970! Why? Because it has a song on it called "Thirteenth Mountain" that--get this--was the first thing I ever said sounded like Nick Drake that wasn't Nick Drake! Shouldn't I get an award for that? But like that album, this new one--his 15th gazillionith--features Cockburn in a purely acoustic setting, with no window dressing, just playing and singing many of the better songs from his catalog. Twenty-five songs in all, including "Lovers In A Dangerous Time,"  "If A Tree Falls," "Wondering Where The Lions Are" and "If I Had A Rocket Launcher," and I haven't enjoyed his work so much in years! But still…imagine if Timbaland had been involved!

Ian Gillan: One Eye To Morocco (Eagle Rock) I've always found it fascinating when, as years pass, I gradually decide that I may have been wrong about something. Here's what I mean: When I was a kid, I used to really like Deep Purple. And when I say Deep Purple, I mean the original band that recorded "Hush," not the so-called "Mk. II" version who hit the bigtime via "Smoke On The Water" and featured this guy--Ian Gillan--as lead singer. But as time has worn on, slowly but surely, I have come to respect and almost equally admire the music that the second, more famous version of Deep Purple systematically recorded between 1970-1974! Similarly, I have adjusted to not being a famous movie star or a multi-millionaire, and the fact that we're all getting older with each passing year! And that there will always be wars and stuff! Anyway, this is Ian Gillan's new album and it's pretty good! If you like him!

 Peter Bjorn and John: Living Thing (Almost Gold) It seems silly to hold this excellent Swedish trio to a peculiar "pop hit" standard--that is, is there another "Young Folks" on this album?--when song for song, this album is just as strong as its predecessor, 2006's Writer's Block. Likewise, it seems silly to believe that reindeer can fly! I'm inclined to agree with this album's product description, which rhetorically asks whether the group would attempt to repeat their past success, then answers, "In actual fact, what they have done is a bit of both--and neither--all at the same time." Hey, we're always looking for new blog writers at Yahoo!

 Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It's Blitz (Interscope) I'm all for deep and probing moments of artistic introspection, but singer Karen O's deliberately drawing attention to a mistake she made while taking orders at a bakery in the early '90s is enough to make even me embarrassed for her! Get over it, babe!

[popularkidstuff-blog]

A N T I H E R O

Max Robinson and I are very busy people. I’m mostly preoccupied with papers, deciphering Socrates, you know, fun stuff. While I’m off doing my college thing, Max has other things in store. Things that are mysterious, things that are secretive, things that might shock people, or things that might make you laugh. Whatever they may be, It’s refreshing and comforting to see someone who takes so much pride in their work. In between our messy lives, I got the chance to meet with Max over a Skype conversation. He recounted his day to me, about how he did sound monitoring for a comedy event called “Tinder Live” and saw Rick Astley all in one night. It was quite a contrast to my night of sipping an Arizona green tea and frantically finishing drafts of papers. The conversation carried on, with musings of stand up comedians we like, musicians we’ve played with, etc.  The most important part of this conversation was Max’s main project, A N T I H E R O.

Max is a person of many talents, he has so many ideas that he wants to communicate to the world. I’ve known Max for about 7 or 8 years, so it’s no secret to me he has something up his sleeve. The idea is to get down to the main objective. In this great big world, what exactly is Max trying to accomplish? What is this mysterious character he’s created setting out to do?

The story of A N T I H E R O takes off from humble beginnings. Max’s childhood was a mobile one. He recounted to me the different places he’s lived , including Ohio, New Jersey, and Tennessee. After moving around numerous times due to his parents jobs, his family settled in Huntington, Maryland . I continued to ask him about school and his life in Maryland, which yielded some interesting responses. “ A ton of crazy shit happened in my early days.” Max said to me. “In the third grade, I was really sick, so I missed out on a lot of school.” Max attended catholic school at a young age, but claimed that the overall setting and practices of the institution were “too weird” for him. It felt way too organized and pedantic, even at a young age. As a result of this, he was mostly home schooled until middle school.After that, we talked about his high school days and how he started getting into music. Every artist has to start somewhere, and every beginning is different,(albeit some weirder than others.) I asked Max about his first musical endeavors. With a chuckle and an “oh man” he told me about his first project, modestly titled “Max the band” He described it dismissively, detailing how nothing really came of it. “My friend gave a cracked copy of FL studio(a popular music software), and it was basically just me messing with presets within the program. At the time, I thought it was awesome.” “Max the band” eventually turned into what would be known as “Justabit Majestic,” in which he started to release his music publicly. I remember listening to “Justabit Majestic” regularly back in the days of Myspace,(coincidentally how I met Max in the first place.) and reaching out to him. We became really good friends as we were creating similar styles of music and we had a lot in common.

After several years of putting numerous tracks online and playing local shows, Max eventually graduated from Calvert County High School and attended Middle Tennessee State University to study music business. The days attended at MTSU for Max were a pivotal moment in his life. He eventually abandoned the “Justabit Majestic” moniker and started releasing music under his first name, Maximilian. Between studying hard, and playing shows, Max was steadily creating music and building a name for himself in the Murfreesboro music scene. At one point, Max entered in two sweepstakes to open up for mainstream acts such as “Skrillex” and “Korn,” in which he won and opened for these artists. “It was a surreal experience.” he told me “I just came out on stage[for Korn] and I introduced myself as Justin Bieber; they booed my whole set.”. While that was an unexpected experience, Max didn’t regret it whatsoever. Eventually, Max started to gravitate away from the EDM scene, as he felt it started to become “disingenuous.”. His disillusionment began when he started to notice the oversaturation of artists and so-called “rave culture” that tainted the scene and focused on the imagery rather than the art itself. Along with this, he graduated from MTSU with his BA in music business and moved back to Maryland with his family.

At this point in his life, Max found himself self reflecting. He graduated from college, moved away from the Tennessee back to his parents, and started working some not-so-glamorous jobs,  including valet service. He eventually began working at a nightclub doing sound on late nights. In between all of this, Max felt a bit confused about his future for. I remember sometime at the beginning of 2015, I got back in touch with Max year and half hiatus. I was going through a pretty bad breakup and he was in his post-college slump, so it was nice to rekindle an old friendship. In between talking about the current state of our lives and other weird experiences, we started to talk about something we both loved, producing music. He started telling me about a friend he saw perform in Tennessee who utilized a Super Nintendo to produce some weird projections on-stage. Apparently, this is something called “VJ-ing”, and is very popular among the electronic music crowd. It’s essentially the same as DJing, but there’s a visual aspect that accompanies the auditory experience.The music performed by artist is typically synced visuals that one would associate it with. Max was inspired by this innovation of technology, and while he spoke of it briefly, I could tell he was motivated to create his own virtual soundscape. Fast forward to a year later, Max started performing regularly again, but there was something different about the image. He started posting links to new music he was producing on Facebook, along with weird visuals that seemed to accompany said music. Then out of the blue, there was a significant aesthetic change in which he donned a mask and started posting mysterious videos of himself. This is what would be the beginning of A N T I H E R O.

There are many words you can use to describe A N T I H E R O. At first glance, it seems mysterious, surreal, creepy, mystifying. Fortunately for Max, these are some of things he’s trying to accomplish as an artist. Max has many plans he’s concocting as A N T I H E R O that have yet to be unleashed onto the world. “I’m making my own dope Kool Aid, but I’m not letting anybody drink it yet.”, he jokingly described it. According to Max, A N T I H E R O started out immediately after he moved back with his parents. He found a collection of old VHS and cassette tapes and began incorporating them into his music. From there on, he started to experiment with video editing to develop visuals for his sets. As he worked on his craft, Max decided he needed a name for his artistic endeavors. “Initially I was trying to use the name of some company or start a lawsuit to get it popular,” Max told me, “I wanted to see how much of a big deal I could make something out of so little.” Unfortunately, Max didn’t stir up that kind of controversy, and decided to use an idea that he had in college. From then on, he decided A N T I H E R O was the personality he wanted to create.

The aesthetics and musical style of A N T I H E R O are an eclectic blend of sound and imagery that take listener on a journey to a different dimension. A lot of his music borrows elements of old school “boom bap” style hip hop, very much in the vein of notorious acts such as J Dilla and Flying Lotus. But what separates him from the bunch is the incorporation of a visual aspect. “I made a couple beats on a laptop here and there, and wrote a couple of raps.” Max explained, “But I didn’t want it to become a rap project, but I didn’t want it to become that.” Max then went on to tell me what changed the game was when he had access to different mediums, including VHS and old CRT TVs. Utilizing these resources, he repurposed these platforms and created this magnificent spectacle that he uses to create a sense of wonderment among his audience. Most of the shows that he plays usually contain him on stage, donning the signature A N T I H E R O mask and using his different set pieces to control the environment. He plans on turning his brand into more of a performance piece rather than something just strictly musical. Max told me of a time where there was some discrepancies between him and the promoter of a DIY venue. “Sometimes, if I don’t like the promoter, I’ll usually do things my own way. There are some people who get it, and some people don’t. There's supposed to be an element of irony or cheesiness to it that helps me get my point across.”. The irony of Max’s character is that hes essentially mocking these performers who take their alter persona way too seriously to the point where his character and performance borders on surrealism.  In our conversation, he went on to tell me that he released about seven beat tapes last year and has an album written that has yet to be released. A lot of his music is released via different mediums, including VHS tapes. The main idea is to carry them in excess and leave them in certain places for people to enjoy and hopefully become inspired. Funny enough, the last time Max visited me he gave me a free VHS of his music that I still have yet to listen to, mainly because I don’t have a VCR. You can also find some of his music online for free that he releases regularly. Theres an extreme emphasis on accessibility with Max’s music, as he wants people to enjoy and bond over his work. Max continues to release music and do freelance video work for different clients, as well as himself. Whats inspirational about A N T I H E R O is that it’s a reflection of Max’s personality and work ethic.

Further into the conversation, I asked Max what A N T I H E R O meant to him personally. While this question didn’t pose a concrete answer, the response I got satisfied what I was looking to learn. He started talking about how A N T I H E R O is essentially a “personal business endeavor.” Hes looking to remain completely independent as an artist, but at the same time, help conduct business and build a community. He wants to be able to help provide for the different artist’s he plays with and create a name for himself. I asked him if he would ever consider partnering with a label, to which he responded “Right now, I’m just associated with people. I don’t like labels that are exclusive because it feels like you’re signing your rights as an artist over. Labels are cool for getting clout, but I don’t want to do that right now.” An important thing Max also stated about his personal brand is that he’s trying to make it as personal as possible. For a fair majority of 2016, Max was traveling up and down the east coast trying to promote himself and perform his work wherever he could. “ I really don’t give a fuck about making an impression on the internet anymore. I’ll post a picture here and there and promote a show, but when it comes down to it, I’m elsewhere.” Max is looking to travel more and eventually play with bigger acts, but right now hes still trying to build more of a reputation and perform his character wherever he feels is necessary.

As we talked on and on about his work as an artist, Max and I began to enter a different territory within the conversation. I learned that the ideas of the  A N T I H E R O persona contained a little bit of philosophy within itself. Max started talking about the power of being an underground artist and how that influences others. The world we live in today is hectic, especially considering the current political climate. Max however is hopeful that we all can one day achieve some type of unity. He believes that there needs to be a “shift in lifestyle” and “maturity” in order for there to be some type of social change. These ideas that he holds are connected to A N T I H E R O as a whole. He wants to create a sense of collectivism with this character, and most importantly his art. “We are gonna be the generation that stirs up the racket. A lot of people have been singing the same songs, but I think that we are the people who finally heard it and are learning from it.” He proudly boasted to me.  In conjunction to this, I feel that the number one idea that Max wants people to walk away with is the importance of self fulfillment. “For a while I just wanted to do music strictly, but I slowly learned that you need to be able to support yourself as well.” While doing art is important and a way to learn about yourself, you need to be able to sustain yourself under the thriving economic climate. Max was out of work for a while doing A N T I H E R O, but eventually found a way to sustain himself monetarily.

Max and I joked some more about our current situations and started to wrap things up. Within the next coming weeks, I hadn’t heard from him in a little while. I’d check snapchat every now and again, and I would see him at some obscure location enjoying himself. Where Max goes, he is always having a good time in whatever he does. I feel like I learned a lot from Max in our discussion and he continues to inspire me as an artist. Thats what I love about his personality, its so inviting and encouraging. If I were to name someone who has helped me find my footing as a musician, I owe a lot of that to Max. We’ve both been keeping at this whole music thing together and we’ve both grown a lot. Thats the beauty of it; if you keep at something long enough, you eventually get better. It’s also important to hold onto the people that helped you along the way because everybody’s trying to “make their own special brand of Kool-Aid.” While I’m trying to get through school and get my career off the ground, Max is continuing to build a name for himself.  I know one day hes going to hit it big and find all the success in the world. Theres are plenty of tricks that Max has up his sleeves, he’s waiting for the right time to reveal the grand scheme.