Monday 23 November 2015

Music It Will Set You Free

Music My Saviour

It has been a long time. I have been busy working so I never got the chance to write a new blog in a while. But I have been thinking about writing this one for a while now. I think it came to me while I was being subjected to the worst radio station anyone could hope to never want to listen to. It was the same playlist every hour. I swear you would hear the same songs at least five times a day. And get to hear it all again the next day. Luckily we were allowed to listen to our own iPods or phones (how much music can you fit on a phone? I've been through this before) or any music box you might have.

Play this Playlist as you read:




It was this juxtaposition of my own awesome music compared to the drivel on the radio that gave me the idea to write this blog about music in general. Now I know everyone has different tastes in music and not everyone can be as enlightened as me but since this is my blog I can write what I want. If you don't like it then you can write your own blog and I won't read it.

I came up with some very insightful stuff and amazing analogies to describe music but I forgot to write them down because I thought my enormous brain could store it all but I think it's all gone now. Oh well. If it comes back to me I'll put it in here.

I believe that music can make you feel something. Shit music can make you feel hatred or pity towards the people "singing" it. But REAL music by actual talented artists can make you feel something more within than without. Does that make sense?

One of the things I love to do is to walk through town listening to Amon Amarth. I am alone and an outsider to the people in town but I don't feel alone because I am in my own world. It's the best place to be. To some, music is an outlet or it has helped them through hard times. While I have never really had a hard time to get through I have found that certain music by certain bands have made me feel... INVINCIBLE.


Of course Ash went to the guy with a bigger beard than mine.

Walking through town listening to Amon Amarth I feel this way. Songs about Vikings and their battles makes me feel like one of them. I have no problem singing along as I walk and to hell with anyone who notices. They can't stop me. Lamb of God do it for me too. I think it's because of the emotion and aggression that their songs exude. Take their song "Overlord" for example, You would never think it was Randy Blythe singing but it just shows the talent the man has. After years of growling vocals he comes out with some clean singing. This also gives the heaviness, that the song veers into, even more impact.

But metal doesn't always need to be aggressive. It can be fun. It can have a groove to make you move. Check out "Bricks and Mortar" by Cancer Bats. A song that also has the message to save the record stores. But I guess they've never tried looking for anything decent in a record shop in Ireland. It's no wonder HMV went under. The fucking shit they sell. And they have fun with their videos. "Sabotage" for example has the band looking for The Beastie Boys to be in their video.




Music doesn't have to be serious either. There are so many different genres of metal and they all have their own style which makes it easy to take the piss out of them. Evil Scarecrow are a metal band but they write songs about robots, mutant crabs and going crazy in space. If a pop act tried to satirize metal they would get their ass handed to them. But because Evil Scarecrow are a metal band formed by metal fans they can get away with it and we respect that and we're all in on the joke because it's our lifestyle to make fun of.

Red Fang have some of the best videos. "Prehistoric Dog" is one of my favourite songs and videos from them. And in "Wires" they just drive their car into a bunch of stuff. We are serious about our music but we know how to have fun with it too.




"Darkness Within" by Machine Head is a love song. Not a typical "I miss you and I think you left our love child in my heart" kind of love song. But a love song to music itself. You may lose your faith in a god but music will always be there for you.

"Because god is in these clef and tone
Salvation is found alone
Haunted by its melody
Music it will set you free"


It's all these feelings that music gives us that has made it one of the most shared and argued about forms of art. I do respect other people's taste in music. I mean, I probably would never have listened to Tom Waits if it wasn't for Aishling. But then she may never have gone on a musical journey with Mastodon if it wasn't for me. And this is what music is about. Showing people that there are more forms of this art out there. Giving people another way to feel things. It may not be the same as what we feel but then that is what makes us individuals.


"Yeah, He knows who's drivin'"

I will not, however, acknowledge pop music as an art form. Some may argue that some acts are real "artists" but that's your retarded view to live with. Pop music is just like McDonalds. It's mass produced with nothing of value in it just to be consumed and shit out ready for the next sad excuse of a meal. There's no point in arguing that with me because I am too stubborn to listen. Plus, it's just scientific fact.

If you listened to the playlist I left at the top, and if you read slow enough, then you should be onto Down as I finish this now. I decided to end on Down because out of all the bands I love and listen to only Down has ever made me feel something no other band has been able to do. Or not made me feel. Whenever I am upset, angry, annoyed or whatever, I can listen to Down and I always feel better. I find it impossible to be sad when listening to them. I guess they centre me. Don't ask me why but that's how it is.

I like to ask people that if they could only ever listen to one song for the rest of their lives what would it be? No matter what music you heard anywhere, in a shop, on a radio, you would only ever hear that one song. Stone the Crow by Down is mine. If you want you can comment what yours would be. Maybe you will introduce me to new music in the way that I may have done for you.


"Come on. Leave a comment"