Write sentimental/long-winded posts about music you love

[Diemen]

Thanks for your 19-word contribution.

 

[u2popmofo]

they're guilty of being in utah.

And guilty of being white.

 

[Danny Boy]

And guilty of being white God's chosen people.

Fixed.

 

[u2popmofo]

You ruined my Minor Threat joke.

 

[IWasBored]

And now he's seeing red.

 

[u2popmofo]

And now he's seeing red.

 

[LemonMelon]

So I'm listening to Abbey Road, and I think I've remembered why this is my favorite album of all time.

Is it because it contains the most classic tracks from my favorite band ever? Not necessarily.

Is it because it contains the best second half of any record I've ever heard? Only partially.

I had gotten up to You Never Give Me Your Money and I was digging the album and everything, singing along loudly to every word like I always do. Once it reached that first transition in YNGMYM though, the whole listening experience took on a whole new meaning. I felt like I was 12 years old again, hearing the record for the first time, utterly amazed that anyone could write a movement like that. And then another. And then another. I listen to that song the way someone sees the northern lights and knows precisely why they look the way they do, but it doesn't matter because its sheer beauty is a miracle in and of itself.

But there's more to it. The album rolls over to Sun King, and they get up to the fake Italian bit. I smile. I've always smiled at that part, and I still do because it's simultaneously out of left field and wonderfully in character at the same time. You don't expect something so goofy and off-the-cuff from an all-time classic, heavily lauded record, but there it is. And honestly, the whole medley is like that. Fucking funny, raucous, etc.

You could also praise the medley for ending with that absolutely remarkable trio of songs, whose scope and individual quality shine to a degree that exceeds nearly everything else on the record. And yet, it can't end that way, because the Beatles were never the best by being the best or most serious musicians. No, they thrived on making you feel young and alive. It's why Penny Lane reminds you of your youth whether you relate to it or not; it's a dual situation of the song being with you since you were a child, and the song simply feeling nostalgic. Her Majesty is the one missed stroke, the one crack that takes the album off the shelf and puts it in your hands. It peels off the plastic and makes it something real.

So yeah, Abbey Road sets itself apart by doing everything the Beatles always did so well, but with greater humanity and sense of humor than ever before. It's an album that reaches for the rafters without dumbing itself down. It succeeds in doing that by simply being honest and goofy, but not forgetting the tunes. For all of the chin-stroking that I do these days, I can still recognize She Came In Through The Bathroom Window as an excellent song in its own right, just as I can Come Together or Something.

That's really the greatest thing about the Beatles; they appease you when you want to shut off your brain and appreciate the hooks, and they reward you when you really tune in and pay attention. While I would argue that the sonic leaps they made on Abbey Road were lesser in scale than those of Revolver and Sgt. Pepper, the personality they exhibit and the skill with composition that they display more than make up for it.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

I listen to that song the way someone sees the northern lights and knows precisely why they look the way they do, but it doesn't matter because its sheer beauty is a miracle in and of itself.

I had never even seen a shooting star before.

 

[LemonMelon]

Yeah, but I'm talking about the Beatles, so it's OK

 

[LemonMelon]

My next long-winded post will be about Robert Griffin the Third.

Man, what a handoff.

 

[iron yuppie]

You don't expect something so goofy and off-the-cuff from an all-time classic, heavily lauded record, but there it is. And honestly, the whole medley is like that. Fucking funny, raucous, etc.

I feel this, LM. It really is a comical album at its core, almost tongue-in-cheek, but one can easily forget about that because the musicianship and songwriting are of such high caliber that the thing feels bloody seismic in importance. That juxtaposition is rarely, rarely achieved, regardless of how often other artists have tried.

 

[joyfulgirl]

That's really the greatest thing about the Beatles; they appease you when you want to shut off your brain and appreciate the hooks, and they reward you when you really tune in and pay attention.

That's it right there.

 

[lazarus]

I had gotten up to You Never Give Me Your Money and I was digging the album and everything, singing along loudly to every word like I always do. Once it reached that first transition in YNGMYM though, the whole listening experience took on a whole new meaning.

 

[HeartlandGirl]

Okay, so a long time ago, I had a blog and a lot of free time on my hands. I ranked all the records by one of my favoritest bands, the Manic Street Preachers, and then wrote mini-essays about each record. Here's the one I wrote about my favorite album of theirs, The Holy Bible. If you've never heard it, it's well worth a listen.

.....

"I wanted to rub the human face in its own vomit and force it to look in the mirror." J. G. Ballard

THE HOLY BIBLE (released August 29, 1994)
Favorite tracks: Die in the Summertime; Mausoleum; Archives of Pain; Of Walking Abortion; Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedaysit'sworldwouldfallapart; Revol; Faster


As I finally sit down to write my thoughts about The Holy Bible, I feel more than intimidated. It's not just that this is my favorite Manics album. It is that The Holy Bible is possibly one of the finest rock albums ever recorded, and I do not write that statement lightly.

When I first became a Manic Street Preachers fan, I began to hear tales of The Holy Bible, how it was the one Manics album every person should own, how it put all their other albums to shame, and how brutal of an album it was. When the album was finally released in the United States in the form of the 10th Anniversary Edition, I greedily snatched up a copy at my local shop and listened to it with much anticipation. And as it turns out, everything I had heard about the album was true. It was vicious. It was unapologetic. And it was absolutely brilliant.

The task falls to me now to describe to you why I and so many others hold this record in such high esteem. More than anything, this is one of those rare records where, even though each individual song is fantastic, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Thematically, this record stays on course, with each song leading seamlessly into the next so that the listener, once absorbed into the opening track, never becomes distracted from the message until they are spit out at the other end of the record, wondering what just happened. It is also a record where the music absolutely matches the lyrics, word for word, note for note. The lyrical content of this album is so intelligent and unabashed, equal parts poetry and stream of consciousness. James Dean Bradfield's attempts to match his guitar playing to Richey James's incredible words yields some of the most incredible, impressive music and singing I've ever heard. And speaking of the lyrical content, between the message and the music of this album, the Manics managed to create a piece of art that encapsulates rock music to its core: rebellious, accusatory, and fierce. You can't listen to this album without cranking it up and feeling both empowered and scared to death of what the future holds.

The Holy Bible has so many amazing tracks on it, and there's no way I can talk about each one. The only one I rarely listen to is The Intense Humming of Evil, mostly because it disturbs me so much to listen to the news reporter at the beginning of it speaking about the Nuremberg Trials. But the rest of the album is one I listen to as a whole. Bear with me while I mention a few of my favorite moments, accompanied by Richey's words.

Scratch my leg with a rusty nail, sadly it heals
Colour my hair but the dye grows out
I can't seem to stay a fixed ideal

The hole in my life even stains the soil
My heart shrinks to barely a pulse
A tiny animal curled into a quarter circle
If you really care wash the feet of a beggar

Die in the Summertime is probably my favorite song on the entire record. Nearly three-fourths of the lyrics on the album were written by Richey Edwards (with the other quarter coming from Nicky Wire) only a short time before his disappearance, and when I listen to the lyrics of Die in the Summertime, I feel his desperation and frustration with the world's hypocrisy. I don't think it's just living in Phoenix, where summer temperatures easily top 115 degrees, that makes me love this song. Any time I'm feeling frustration and despair, I can listen to it, and I feel understood for a few moments.

Humanity recovered glittering etiquette
Answers her crime with mausoleum rent

Oh, Mausoleum. Such a powerful little song, packed with brutal guitars and a nasty groove. I've listened to it countless times, and I still can't make out many of the lyrics without looking at the lyrics sheet. A perfect example of James managing to squeeze Richey's urgent lyrics into a space so tiny, I'm not sure when he has time to breathe. Also, one of the few songs I like on the album nearly more for it's music than for its lyrics.

I know I believe in nothing but it is my nothing

The only song from The Holy Bible to make it onto the Greatest Hits collection, Faster was my least favorite song for a long time. But as it were, I would often listen to The Holy Bible on my commute, and always by the time I was arriving home in the afternoon, Faster would come on. And something about listening to that song after a long day of being screwed over and disrespected and overworked was so stunningly refreshing. Richey's bold proclamations seemed to indicate that he was simply misunderstood, that he was far more intelligent than even the most respected scholars, and that he should damn well lament and celebrate life in his own way, according to his own standards. By the time I was pulling into the drive, I would be screaming along with James: So damn easy to cave in, Man kills everything.

Honestly, I could go on and on, quoting brilliant lines from this album and saying what they mean to me. The Holy Bible leaves no important issue ignored. Ifwhiteamerica and its invectives against racism fire me up every time, whereas 4st 7lb simply makes me sad as I listen to lyrics that document Richey's own battle with anorexia. Yes talks about the complicated world of prostitutes and pimps, and Of Walking Abortion speaks to the hopelessness and insecurity that often comes with being a man. Clearly this is not your average rock record.

The last thing I will say about The Holy Bible is that it is an extremely intelligent piece of work that exposes humanity's flaws while expressing both outrage and shameless despair on a personal, individual level. The Holy Bible is so filled with famous quotations and literary allusions, one could spend hours tracking them all down in an attempt to better understand what the Manics were going through and what Richey was feeling when this powerful album was recorded for posterity. It is a record that rages against all of the injustices in the world, and yet acknowledges how it feels to be one of the few people who is outraged enough to say something. While it can be empowering to stand up and fight, it can also be lonely, debilitating, and hopeless. Somehow in the music, the Manic Street Preachers managed to capture all of that and condense it into an amazing work of art, and there can be no doubt as to why many critics consider it to be one of the most important, heaviest records ever made. Like its namesake, The Holy Bible is filled with eternal truths and reflections on the human experience. I have a feeling that it will remain the magnum opus of the Manic Street Preachers for a very long time.

 

[cobl04]

Great post I don't know anything about Manic Street Preachers, but I'm sure Vlad will agree.

 

[LemonMelon]

I'm listening to The Holy Bible now. Heavy stuff, I think it's grown on me. I still prefer Everything Must Go because I'm all about the hooks, but this is a damn solid record too, a lot of energy and anger here.

 

[No spoken words]

^ I downloaded it after reading her post and will likely listen to it tonight......looking forward to it.

 

[U2inUtah]

Holy Bible is definitely my favorite album from them. The lyrics to 4st7lb are haunting, especially because I've known some people that have struggled with anorexia.

 

[Reggo]

Well, that's it. Sigh.

To be fair, I mean, I knew better. But I wanted to believe!

Green Day, I think it's time we broke up.

I know, I know it's a shock. I mean, up until about November of 2009, I was your biggest believer. No one loved you guys as much as I did and no one defended you as fiercely as I did. And then...something shifted. I'm not sure what it was exactly, but something changed while I was listening to 21st Century Breakdown. And not just as background noise while I was working. I really listened. And I was let down a little. I was still at a point where I listened to American Idiot regularly, once a month on average. Did 21st Century Breakdown live up to its predecessor? No, but how could it? American Idiot was a juggernaut that hit at the right place at the right time, and Breakdown wasn't. Maybe, Billie, you were distracted by writing the musical at the same time. And OK, that's forgivable. But I hate this feeling that I'm somehow not a good enough fan by not slobbering all over it.

And now the new stuff. Oh Love is not a particularly bad song. But it's not particularly good either. And the video? Not particularly attention-grabbing until it dawned on me that some of those Suicide-Girl-looking models are young enough to be your daughters. Mike, Tre, I'm looking at you. Stella? Mona? Yeah? Yeah. Creepy. Don't do that. Kill The DJ I've only listened to once, sounds kind of Franz Ferdinand-y. May grow on me, or not. I like Franz Ferdinand, you guys like Franz Ferdinand if you let them tour with you. Maybe. We'll see. Oh Love could just be the Know Your Enemy of Uno.

I should probably judge the new album on the music alone. Let it stand by itself and weigh it as objectively as I can. But in my years as a Green Day fan, I've learned to read your body language, especially Tre's. And maybe I've just got my fangirl-colored glasses on, but all of your body language is confusing. I watched part of the MTV interview, Billie's enthusiasm seemed forced. Mike's hiding behind that long hair that makes him look like a damn Muppet, and Tre was just bored and wanted to get done with it. Tre is Green Day's biggest fan hands down and if even that crazy bastard can't get excited over this, what does that mean for the rest of us? And why a three-album project out of nowhere? Are you trying to fulfill your contract with Reprise or something so you can do something else?

The reason why this is all so depressing for me, guys, is because I literally don't know who I would be without your influence in my life over the past 15 years. And it's not just that I've called myself the Green Day girl for that time, nor that I'm now doubting the tattoo on my shoulder. But your music helped me through some of the hardest times in my life: my parents' divorce when I was 15 and the panic attacks that accompanied me coming to terms with my sexual orientation (and then nearly all of my family and friends' hurtful reactions when I decided to come out with it. Not everyone who claims to be so open-minded really is) and the death of my grandmother.

During the divorce, I was a slave to the radio and MTV, wanting to be cool in high school. You guys were the angriest thing I listened to, and so I raged along with you guys when I needed to. And knowing Billie's struggle with his own sexuality and basically knowing that I wasn't alone and I had something to relate to meant a lot to me. And when my grandmother died, I must've listened to "Wake Me Up When September Ends" a thousand times. It just spoke to how I felt inside. So confused and angry and sad at the same time. It helped me grieve.

But it was also you, you three, that helped. The three of you running around and goofing off, shaving Mike's head, starting a mud war, Tre being... well... Tre. It made me laugh, it made me forget about what's bringing me down when Tre's pulled a 55 gallon trash can over his head because he's bored with an interview and starts running around a locker room before a concert. And, honestly, the biggest way Green Day has enriched my life was "The Saints Are Coming" duet with U2. I never thought much of U2 until I saw that and one of my friends pointed me in the direction of a U2 fan message board. That place is now sort of an Internet "home" and I've met the most amazing people who have become the best friends I've ever had.

I fell down the rabbit hole of punk rock fandom, following Mike to Screeching Weasel, then following Ben Weasel to The Queers, etc., to where 1/4 of my entire music collection is some form or another of punk rock.

For all of this, I can't thank you three enough. I can't thank Frank Sr enough for driving you all over the country in that busted-ass bookmobile to get a big enough fanbase that Warner Brothers started paying attention to you. I can't thank Adrienne enough for enchanting Billie Joe and causing his lovesick 19-year-old heart to write some of his sweetest love songs. In a weird way, I probably should thank Former Governor Bush for fucking up this country enough that you got angry and wrote American Idiot.

But I just feel so torn. I want this love affair to continue. Like I said, I want to believe again. But how can I after Breakdown and Oh Love? What am I supposed to believe when your body language doesn't match what you're saying?

I love you, Green Day. But let's end this before someone gets hurt. Let me remember you as the band I inked myself for. The band that shit on Isabella Rossellini's balcony. The band that did unspeakable things to goldfish on their tour bus. And you can remember me as the one who never doubted you. Who'd walk through fire for you. Who has, admittedly, a stalker-ish crush on your drummer.

I'll still be watching, waiting for you to wow me again. And I hope you do. But for now, good-bye, boys.

Love now and always,
Reggo

P.S. Mikey, cut your damn hair. You really do look like a Muppet, like the love child of Janice and Floyd Pepper from the Electric Mayhem.

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Nice post. Been fortunate enough to not have to do that with any bands I like so far (they've done things I'm not as big a fan of, sure-nobody's perfect, but they've also done more than enough things I love to balance it out), but it's always interesting to hear a fan make statements like this. You argued your case really well. I've heard "Oh Love" a couple times. It's okay. But yeah, not their best.

Also, I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry to hear about all the crap you went through. I'm glad Green Day helped introduce you to this place and you're happy here . It's been nice getting to know you.

 

[The Sad Punk]

I'm sorry to read that, Reggo - breaking up with bands that have been with you through tough times, and in some ways have helped define the person you've become must surely be terrible. The closest I've gone that way is the couple of times I've abandoned U2, only to come back to them, without fail. Each time I've come back to them, it's been from rediscovering things from their back catalogue, not concentrating on what they've become. I suppose that's a fairly obvious thing to consider, but in any case, best wishes in your post-GD life! Enjoy your newfound freedom, and don't let it get you down. Onwards!

I'm also gonna check out The Holy Bible now, having never thought twice about the Manics, other than finding Richey's disappearance to be a particularly interesting and sad episode in modern rock history. I like Jenny Saville, too. Cheers for the post HeartlandGirl, was great.

 

[bono_212]

I don't usually have a ton to say (which is surprising because in person I can talk about music for ever and ever), but I just finished watching Sling Blade for the second time, and I had forgotten that "The Maker" is the closing credits song for that movie. That song invokes quite a strong emotional reaction in me, and it's kind of for a silly reason (to some).

When I first took part in Desert Island, it was the second incarnation, and it was right at the same time as when I was beginning to really explore music in a larger capacity than ever before. The songs from it that I fell in love with have stayed with me to this day and remind me so much of things that were going on in my life at the time. Specifically, my freshman year of college, moving away from home and getting into the whole idea of being an adult.

So, to whoever put The Maker on their DI 2 list (and to all of the other songs from those lists that make me feel the same way, perhaps I shall list them someday), thank you .

Also, I just found a Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds cover of the song and am quite fond.

EDIT: I thought about making a list of all of the songs I loved from DI 2, but it would take too long so browse all you like! http://www.u2interference.com/forums/f287/the-desert-island-part-deux-master-list-172626.html

 

[Vlad n U 2]

<long post about the Holy Bible>

Brilliant post. The Holy Bible is my equal favourite album of all time with Achtung Baby. It (and AB) is the closest to perfection in an album I have heard. Truly amazing. The weakest song for me, being Revol, is still immensely great. That's how good the album is.

Great post I don't know anything about Manic Street Preachers, but I'm sure Vlad will agree.

Goddamn yes I do.

I'm listening to The Holy Bible now. Heavy stuff, I think it's grown on me. I still prefer Everything Must Go because I'm all about the hooks, but this is a damn solid record too, a lot of energy and anger here.

I do also consider Everything Must Go to be quite the masterpiece. Oh man ...

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Looking up the track listing for The Holy Bible right now. Do they really have that unnecessary apostrophe in the title of the second track?

If they do, I gotta say, that's a huge turn off.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

I've always chosen to interpret it as subtly suggesting that the US is the world. In some ways relating to the content of the song's lyrics. Something like that? It doesn't bother me.

 

[cobl04]

Looking up the track listing for The Holy Bible right now. Do they really have that unnecessary apostrophe in the title of the second track?

If they do, I gotta say, that's a huge turn off.

Are you bothered by Lifes Rich Pageant?

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Are you bothered by Lifes Rich Pageant?

No. Stipe did that on purpose. Also, in these two specific cases, I find the lack of punctuation to be far more aesthetically pleasing than the superfluous punctuation. That track title just looks ugly to me.

I guess if it's true that it was deliberately written that way, I'd feel a bit better about it. But it still bugs me when I look at it.

I said it was a "huge" turn off, well, it's honestly not that big of a deal either way. Just kinda irks me.

I'm sure they're a good band. Good band name, definitely.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

For 200 anyone can conceive a god on video

 

[cobl04]

No. Stipe did that on purpose. Also, in these two specific cases, I find the lack of punctuation to be far more aesthetically pleasing than the superfluous punctuation. That track title just looks ugly to me.

I guess if it's true that it was deliberately written that way, I'd feel a bit better about it. But it still bugs me when I look at it.

I said it was a "huge" turn off, well, it's honestly not that big of a deal either way. Just kinda irks me.

I'm sure they're a good band. Good band name, definitely.

I just looked at it myself, and yeah, that's absolutely hideous.

I'd never heard of this Richey dude, but his Wikipedia page suggests he was pretty fucked up. Do you guys think he's dead? (genuine question)

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Well, yeah. He was presumed dead in 2008. The remaining band members don't really believe he's alive.

But then again, his body has never been found, he could be living somewhere unknown for all we know.