One (sorta) Fat Guy blogs about sports, food, health, women, family, being kinda sorta fat, and also some other things not yet really decided upon. Follow me on Instagram @msheezy86 and Twitter @MarkSheehan
To be more honest about it, I do still like to listen to the radio every now and then. I don't know if there is this new Id, if you can call it that. But people now feel obligated to save certain technologies because they are being phased out by other ones. When people heard that tape-decks are no longer going to be put into manufactured cars, I'm guessing that it would seem very hipster to go out and buy a bunch of tapes now. But there in lies a power of something being considered "hipster".
For instance, Beck put out a new album this year. But I bet you haven't heard any of the songs on the radio. Why? Because he released it as sheet music instead of something that can be pirated and bought for $.99 on iTunes. It seems like Beck is being super-hipster in this sense because you have to learn how to play music or have friends that know how to play music in order to hear his new songs.
But with regards to mainstream music, I think that because of so many artists now going into techno-dance beats, they are losing their original touch. I listen to podcasts more often, which I think is what is going to happen to more and more artists who want to get their music out there. Tiesto, Dyro, Pretty Lights, Afrojack and so many other DJ's can put together a solid hour of music in a week and then have millions listen to it through their ipods and smartphones.
I don't think mainstream music, as an industry, will be able to last the way it has. The structure has to dramatically change or else no one will be able to make any money from it.
Going back to what I think will happen with most musicians, I think that we will see a shift in musicians having more control of their product. I also feel like since there is a market out there for people to pirate music, I think we will see more and more people choose between music they want to pirate and music they want to purchase. It's like if you walk into a subway and hear a musician play a song you like, you'll throw in a dollar but if it's not a song you really enjoy, you still will listen for free. May not be a complete theory.
As I was writing that last sentence, I thought of an idea which could be a potential money-maker. It involved music, people, a website, and micro-purchasing of music. It could be worth something. I'll have to talk it over with people that may or may not know something about how to get it started.
Okay here it goes. I won't leave anything out, even if it's embarrassing.
1. Step by Step theme song
This song is the theme song from a TV show I used to watch from ABC's TGIF lineup. This show was on after Family Matters. Usually has a nice stream of orchestra instruments. Plus who doesn't love the idea of a family at an amusement park?
2. Loverboy - Almost Paradise (Ann Wilson & Mike Reno)
This song is a 1980's slow-love duet that seems to only work when there is a lot of heartache and an empty car. When I hear this song I think of some movie. I googled it, and apparently it's from Footloose. Go figure.
3. Elton John - Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues
I first remember buying the Elton John Greatest Hits double album and listening to this song a lot when I worked at the gas station during high school. Classic rock songs about heart ache seemed to dominate those years more than anything. It's a very nice song, with a nice harmonica breakdown that compliments the piano very well.
4. Gene McDaniels - Master Puppeteer
I don't think I've ever heard this song completely. But I do like Gene McDaniels' songs. They have a nice "keep happy while your doing laundry" vibe to them. There is nothing like this out there currently. But then again, most musicians don't have any big bands work with a singer nowadays. No video could be found of this song.
5. Buckethead - Wishing Well
I like Buckethead. Most people don't bother giving him a listen after seeing what he dresses like. But his guitar riffs are just soothing to listen to while doing nothing at all. Most of his solo stuff would be great soundtrack songs for a movie about two former lovers away from each other trying to cope with loneliness. This particular song I haven't listened to in a while, might make me tune into Buckethead while working on my blogging or other writing projects.
6. Lynyrd Skynyrd - That Smell
I was in college when I first heard this song. I might've been in high school but I never tied it to the makers of Sweet Home Alabama before college. Clearly this song is about some crazy 70's partying that went overlooked. I don't know what the exact "smell" is, other than the stench of being a redneck with a ton of drugs. Most of which is probably heroin or whatever people in the 70's used to inject in their arms.
7. CunninLynguists - Brain Cell
I first learned about the CunninLynguists sometime around 2007 when I was listening to Immortal Technique and underground hip-hop. They rap about growing up in projects and trying to make something out of a ghetto lifestyle. This song has a nice trumpet wailing in the background, along with the repeated line "living in the world no different from a cell" which is off of a different song of their's. This sounds a little depressing, but most of their songs do. It's an acquired taste.
8. Eminem - Amityville
Wow. Haven't heard this song in quite a while. This is off of Eminem's second album "The Marshall Mather's LP". This song was part of the album that not only put Eminem into the limelight, but also propelled him into controversy about rapping about homophobia, murder, wife-beating, rape and all that stuff. This song usually goes unnoticed since the rest of the album is so good and is full of hits. I remember listening to this song during my middle school years when lots of stories about hate crimes in middle schools were happening.
9. Rage Against the Machine - Microphone Fiend
Oh hell yes! This song is probably one of my favorite Rage jams. Tom Morello just kills it on the guitar riffs, De La Roche has the lyrical presence of a journeyman rapper, while the bassist and drummer both provide excellent rhythm. All of Rage's endings to their songs are such a great part. Anyone who is either bobbing their head or going all out moshing to this song is a friend of mine. I can see myself listening to this song while bulletting down Rte. 140 in my old SHO to school. Still gets me in the mood after all these years.
10. The Talking Heads - Life During Wartime
This song either reminds me of a 1980's basement party where there's one person dancing like it's Disco. It has a very Disco sound, so that statement makes sense. It also feels like it belongs in a Tarantino movie about someone planning a weird heist. I can't understand a word, but I like the harmonica in it. The world needs more harmonica.
So in this third edition of the 30 day blog post challenge: I am to blog about my top 5 pet peeves. This is assuming I can cut my list down from infinity to 5. I have many problems with many things. I don't know exactly which ones I would rank near the top. Although, I'm guessing that a Pet Peeve is a just a small problem that goes from a bug-bite to an infestation of hives over time, while never being really cured. I won't put these in any order, but I will try to list 5.
One thing that continuously irritates me is when a company or brand comes out and releases something that they think is so fresh and so new, but when it's brought out to the public, it's a piece of crap idea. Netflix's Qwikster idea comes to mind. So does Google Glass and Google Driver. My friend and I figured out that if no one has to drive a car for a person, that person can go drive around with both hands free. Meaning that if a pedophile wanted to stay within the speed limits of a school zone and just masturbate in a car while the car drives itself, we've created a bigger problem than needed. The Google Glass problem is that now we get to see what it's like for a person to see what they are doing. Now imagine if a porn star got a hold of Google Glass and decided to have a guy finish on said glasses. Congrats on making a new POV-style of porn Google. Oh and Google Driver? Thank you for creating a way for pedophiles to enjoy school zones and for creating a new idea for movie: when two computer driven cars collide, killing everyone.
My second pet peeve is when a parent or an elder hears your warning about something, and is totally shocked when that thing actually happens. I don't know if this just happens to me, but I get it a lot. A parent will HEAR you warn about something, and when that thing actually happens, it's a total shock to them. Maybe it means that my parents don't listen to me. But I know that it happens with other people too.
My third pet peeve is when women get the false notion that guys want something other than what we've always wanted. Ladies, when a guy looks at you, he's not looking at your nails, or your earrings, or your bracelets, or anything else that you've burned calories thinking about. There was a time when a lot of girls dyed their blonde hair jet black and caked on the bronzer. You know, to look like Kim Kardashian. Well Kim K is really known for having a huge ass first and foremost. We do not like her because she has tanned skin and black hair. We like her because of her giant round tanned ass.
My fourth pet peeve is when you go out to a friend's and if there isn't music blaring all the time, then there is something wrong with the scene. I enjoy conversations and also enjoy when there is that moment when everyone stops talking simultaneously. This next part can go in 4-b: when one person is hell-bent on controlling the ipod or music throughout the whole party. Whoever's house it is you are at, should control the music. If they have an ipod dock, figure out who has the best playlists and let that person and ONLY that person control the music. I can't stand when I see 8 ipods near one iDock and everyone jumps in to play one or two songs leading to discussions like "Your music sucks" "No you suck" "F*** you" "Eat sh**", etc.
My fifth and final pet peeve, which will probably be a crime in the future first world: when a person working at a coffee place gets a coffee order wrong. The way I see it, when a coffee person, who may or may not have full citizenship in the USA, gets a coffee order wrong, it creates a ripple effect for at least one person. Now, since I live in Mass., Dunkin Donuts has this thing on lockdown in terms of drive-thru and whatnot. Most people around here get Dunkin Donuts and McDonald's coffee. Which is funny when you look at it; you might have trouble figuring out whose breakfast sandwiches are more disgusting. Now it doesn't take a genius to realize that the person working the drive-thru or in the back at a Dunkin Donuts might be from a different country and may not get the order exactly how you wanted it. Usually when this happens, it makes a person's morning difficult and they get upset for the whole day. In the future, when productivity is so important for a person's job, the culprit for most slumps and firings will be blamed on breakfasts and coffee orders. What a day that would be.
