Hey guys here we are! Back on the blog that by day is about Asperger's but at night dresses up in a cape and goes out to teach chickens salsa dancing. So another week, another blog!
Before we go to part two lets have a quick rehash of what happened in the world of Tommy K! Work is going lovely, it's great to be getting experience in this field. One day I'll hopefully be getting paid for this! I watched Thor Dark World, which was fantastic! Tom Hiddleston's performance was exceptional as always. I also saw the Hudsucker Proxy and The Lady Killers, two brilliant films by the Coen brothers! Other than that I had a reading of my script 'Aspie Times' which everyone loved. Who knows, I might post it up on here.
You know, music is interesting. Hundreds of years ago we had large orchestras playing 10 to 30 minute pieces that would go from peaceful majestic times to encapsulating thunderous music that would be remembered throughout time. Today we hear songs of a completely different nature. What happened to the ballads? What changed the 'California Girls' into 'All The Single Ladies'? When it comes down to it, it's not just the beat that makes the song together but the lyrics aswell. Who knew a vegetable had a place in music! This time I would like to talk more about genres of music and what they mean to people.
"Rock and Roll" is about me. If I hadn't heard rock and roll on the radio, I would have had no idea there was life on this planet. Which would have been devastating to think that everything, everywhere was like it was where I come from. That would have been profoundly discouraging. Movies didn't do it for me. TV didn't do it for me. It was the radio that did it.
~Lou Reed
Let's start off with a bit of rock. Other than being the gruesome killer of scissors and has a weakness to paper; rock is a genre of music that belts out tunes that make people want to head bang and bang heads. What does make rock music important to them? Well I could say it defines who they are but let's face it, that's for every genre. I can say as someone who has been to a rock concert (yeah I know, an aspie at a rock concert, unbelievable), where you can feel the beat, the guitar or the drums play, you feel it inside of you. Not only that the lyrics to many rock songs make you want to yell and shout. Take ACDC's 'Thunderstruck'
I was caught
In the middle of a railroad track(Thunder)
I look a'round
And I knew there was no turning back (Thunder)
My mind raced
And I thought what could I do (Thunder)
And I knew
And I knew there was no help,no help from you (Thunder)
When these lyrics were combined with the trademark beat that ACDC are known for, the result is a heart pumping, rocking song that is great for most party playlists.
Now it's time for a 'quote' from Jazzy Jerry Mcquire, Show me the music! Okay with that bad pun out for the way we move onto Jazz! Now this is my favourite genre for it's tone and rhythm have a wide range, from relaxing to the dancing feeling and speed of swing. There is the blues which can be said to be jazz's depressed twin. As a man who has passion for these genres, I have to say that I feel like these are the genres of emotion. Nearly every emotion can be played through it's sub genres. There is joy and excitement through swing. Sadness and strong emotions through blues. Jazz can help tell a story like Cab Calloway's 'Minnie the Moocher' or support a fantastic show like Cowboy Bebop or movie like Chicago. The song I listen to when I am sad is called 'Gotta Knock a Little Harder' by the Seatbelts. Check it out! Something I would like to share with you now is a song that has to do with someone invisible.
Suppose you was a woman, wed
And sleepin' in a double bed
Beside one man, for seven years
You'd notice him
A human being's made of more than air
With all that bulk, you're bound to see him there
Unless that human bein' next to you
Is unimpressive, undistinguished you know who
Mister Cellophane from the movie Chicago has to be one of my all time favourite movie songs, up there with 'Professional Pirate'. It's lyrics speak of a humble man who doesn't want the high life and doesn't want to be famous. He just wants to be loved. I have always loved Amos's character cause he is just so adorable and relatable. I like quoting the song in my speeches because back in high school, you could look right through me, walk right by me, and never know I'm there. Unfortunately a good example of different tastes for different people, my father has a different view on Blues and Jazz. He feels Jazz is played by 7 men, each one not knowing what the other is playing. Sad I know. He will only listen to the blues when it is played backwards because he feels that it is when it turns into a happy song. He does need to see a music doctor.
Country will be filled by dad because I just can't do this. My dad really loves to listen to songs about dead cows and broken tractors. Some of you would call it Country music. I don't know how this happened but without thinking I blurted out to him " What do you see in Country music?". Here is his mournful reply.
"There is nothing like a 'Sunday Morning Coming Down' or a 'Ring of Fire' after a hot curry dinner. What other genre can make you feel so in tune with how real people live. No other genre can tell a story like a good ol' Country song." Well thank god thats over, I thought I would be playing a banjo and speaking through buck teeth, by the time he finished.
As a 90s kid, I grew up with all the great pop bands, Backstreet Boys, N'SYNC and the Spice Girls. To be honest, I didn't enjoy them. Or my older brother and dad playing U2 and Bruce Springsteen 24/7. Our second last item, is POP. The nineties were fun, with all that was going around I am pretty sure everyone was basically celebrating the end of the Cold War. Looks like Russia may have the most land and vodka, but they have the least sense in politics. Those guys are great, I love their architecture and mysterious radioactive sites. Anyway back to pop, what makes it important to people? Well it defined a generation, just like classic rock did the 50s and 60s and jazz did the 30s and 40s. It was a style of music that was celebrated for it's up beat tempo and joyful lyrics. Though today you will not hear me listen to S club 7.
Don't stop, never give up
Hold your head high
and reach the top
Let the world see what you have got
Bring it all back to you ( bring it all back)
Eeeerrr. I know there are people out there who enjoy and get inspired by these lyrics. I personally do like the lyrics, but the music is not for me. Look it was great back then but just like a white guy wearing bling. You ask yourself, oh god what were they thinking? They thought that was good? I guess those were simpler times. Don't get me wrong though, I love a lot of pop songs, the Bare Naked Ladies, Billy Joel and Hootie and the Blowfish are all on my iPad and listened to regularly, cause that's 'My Life'!
Lastly we come to Grunge, Heavy Metal and other songs that involve a lot of screaming. Now I'm not a musicist ( against one whole type of music genre[except for country music of course]), so I will try my best to convey what I think this genre means. As I have said before, there is a music genre for everyone, so what makes people like Grunge? Maybe they have been hurt or what to hurt, someone broke their heart or want to break someones heart, so they need to yell and scream to get it out. Through all those experiences we can get songs that people end up loving. Everyone relates to something, it's what makes music the universal bond throughout the centuries.
Remember, people don't have to be broken, angry, weird or anything to like any music, it's music! You can like any genre you want because it suits your tastes! Hell I'm currently listening to Reel Big Fish, a Skar band play a scat version of Frank Sinatra's New York, New York. So I say live and let listen, live and let play, live and let those enjoy!
If you got soul, Jazz it up to get rid of the Blues but Rap it back to Rock and Classically cool it down to Folk so you can watch the grass grow in the Country!
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