Bidding Farewell To An Inspiration

I’ve said before that I started Viva La Mainstream as an escape from the hipster snobbery that permeated much of what constituted music blogs at the time. Among the sites that inspired me and suggested that I could, in fact, write about mainstream music from a genuine fan perspective was Idolator, which at the time was beginning a slow ascent to the top of the music blog world. Well, today writer Maura Johnston, Idolator’s lead writer and primary voice of snark and insight, announced her departure from the site. I initially envisioned VLM as a sort of counterpoint to Idolator, and took several cues from Maura and the sites other (now also departed) writers, though I was and still am too small-time for that to mean much. So seeing Maura depart is kind of like when you’re a young kid who’s into sports, watching his/her favorite player retire. Even though I doubt anyone at Idolator reads these words, I want to take a few minutes and thank Maura for what she did both for her site and (unknowingly) for this one. Best of luck to Maura in her future work.

Led Zeppelin – Thank You [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Fuck Patience, Let’s Dance: Them Crooked Vultures Stream Full Album

Within the last hour or so, subscribers to Them Crooked Vultures’ email newsletters were met with the following image:

And a link to a YouTube playlist featuring all 13 tracks from TCV’s self titled album, in stores November 17th. Aside from the fact that the tagline on that image (Also the title of this entry) is unbelievably cool, getting to hear the album is a huge deal for the band and the thousands of people who have been anxiously awaiting it since Dave Grohl first suggested that a project featuring himself, Josh Homme, and John Paul Jones “wouldn’t suck”. So click the image to quit reading this and go hear Them Crooked Vultures.

==TJ==

Album A Day: Across The Universe (Music From The Motion Picture)

And so marks the beginning of soundtrack week on Viva La Mainstream! Just so we’re clear, this week will not feature film scores; there’ll be a separate week for that. I’m looking specifically at soundtracks featuring rock and pop music for this theme. I’m also open to requests for this one.

Artist: Various Artists
Album: Across the Universe (Music From The Motion Picture)
Release Date: September 14, 2007

I took a film class about a year ago, and at one point as we were discussing film criticism the professor looked at us and apologized, saying that this class would probably ruin just about every film we’d ever see for years. She was right, and Across the Universe was one such film felled by the teachings of that class. At the time Across the Universe was (and in a way, still is) a favorite film of mine. But I watched it a couple months after taking the class, and suddenly all the films flaws were blown wide open. I’m not going to go into the film’s problems here, as this is a music blog, but if you’re so inclined, ask me about them in the comments.

Luckily though, few to none of the movie’s flaws carry over to the soundtrack, which holds up as a beautiful, endearing tribute to the Fab Four’s music. It’s not easy to twist and adapt The Beatles’ music, because everyone has a favorite song, and God help you if you do something that ruins that track. But the soundtrack to Across The Universe keeps the spirit of its 31 source songs alive and well, while giving each its own personality that fits the larger stories needs, be it the gospel choir of “let It Be”, the soulful longing of “I Wanna Hold Your Hand”, or the anthemic swell of “All You Need Is Love” to end the story. Even if you aren’t completely wowed by Across the Universe, you’d be hard pressed to find fault in the soundtrack.

Across the Universe – All You Need Is Love [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Album A Day: Coldplay – Prospekt’s March EP

Artist: Coldplay
Album:Prospekt’s March EP
Release Date: November 21, 2008

Usually I scoff at cash-in EPs like Prospekt’s March, since they exist primarily to get people to repurchase an album they already have. But there’s just enough charm and excitement in this one to make it worth a listen. That, and its short and calming, and perfect to doze off to sleep to. So I hope you’ll forgive me for slacking on my Album A Day duties, but it’s been a long day, and tomorrow starts a long week, so I bid you farewell to the sounds of Chris Martin & gang.

Coldplay – Glass of Water (YSI)

==Tj==

Album A Day: Hole – Live Through This

I’m falling behind on these again…I’ll make it up to you tonight…

Ever find something in your music library and have no idea how or why it’s there? Yeah. That’s how it is with Hole and Live Through This. I hate Courtney Love; I feel as though she brings no positive light into this world, and she is contributing to the diminished legacy of Nirvana (her husband was Kurt Cobain, for those not keeping score). So the fact that I have not just a few tracks by Hole, but an entire album, boggles my mind a bit. If my friend Nicole were here, she’d no doubt be sending some snarky comments about Buzz Ballads fodder my way. But such is life, and all in all I’ve heard far worse albums than Live Through This. But the fact remains that I have no idea how the album came to exist in my collection, nor why it remains there.

Hole – Doll Parts [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Album A Day (11/05): Something Corporate – Leaving Through The Window

I actually listened to this album yesterday, but never found the time to sit down and blog about it.

Artist: Something Corporate
Album: Leaving Through The Window
Release Date: May 7, 2002

Honestly, I don’t have all that much to say about this record. It’s certainly not one of the best in the genre, or for that matter in Andrew McMahon’s output, but the fact remains McMahon is a terrific songwriter, so even when the music backing him is only average, just hearing his words and the delivery of said words is more than enough.

Something Corporate – I Woke Up In A Car [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Album A Day: Jackson United – Harmony and Dissidence

Artist: Jackson United
Album: Harmony and Dissidence
Release Date: April 8, 2008

Jackson United are fronted by Foo Fighters guitarist Chris Shiflett, making Harmony and Dissidence an unfortunate omission from the side project week I did not too long ago. Like fellow Foo Taylor Hawkins, Shiflett’s side project is a far cry from what he’s best known for. Jackson United are probably best described as a ska band who lost their horn section. Harmony and Dissidence has all the bounce and organized cacophony that I usually associate with ska, and its certainly danceably frantic, but there’s also a certain mission behind Jackson United that suggests that they aren’t solely in it to have fun. As a result, Harmony and Dissidence is equal parts fun and intense, making an album that shows a great deal of promise without forcing anything.

Jackson United – 21st Century Fight Song [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Chris Cornell To Get To Scream One More Time?

Before I go into this story, I just feel it needs to be noted that a fan on Chris Cornell’s website offered a similar suggestion to the idea below; he pointed out that two different versions of Shania Twain’s Up! a few years ago, and that a rock and R&B version of Scream could go over well. This guy was flamed pretty nicely for even suggesting that Scream had potential, so I hope whoever he is, wherever he is, he’s laughing right now. On to the story:

The story goes that someone close to Chris Cornell, whose third solo album Scream was either panned or ignored by the music world earlier this year, got his hands on the original masters from the Timbaland-produced album. Then, with a little help, Timbaland’s influence on one track was wiped away, and replaced with a little pseudo-Cornell magic. The result is being billed as “Chris Cornell, De-Timbaland-ized”. You can hear the new version of Scream highlight “Never Far Away” over at Antiquiet. Unsurprisingly, the people who liked or at least tolerated Scream are cool with this, while nearly all those  clamoring for a Soundgarden reunion (and probably never heard the original Scream record to begin with) are once again calling it bullshit. While it appears that this track is just a one-off (for now), the thought of Scream getting a second chance is pretty appealing (maybe cut out some of the goofy segues and let Cornell’s monster of a voice take charge more). But so help me if they mess with the harmonies and back vocals on “Take Me Alive” I will take someone out back behind the woodshed!

Chris Cornell – Never Far Away [iTunes] (YSI)
(this is the original version of the track)

==TJ==

Album A Day: Evanescence – Fallen

Artist: Evanescence
Album: Fallen
Release Date: March 4, 2003

You know, I try to avoid judging a book (or album, in this case) by its cover, but knowing what we know now about how the band known as Evanescence turned out, I think its safe to say that we all should have seen Evanescence’s, and specifically Amy Lee’s, troubles coming. Look at that album cover; just a close-up of Amy Lee’s face. Should we have been that surprised that Ben Moody left mere months after Fallen’s release and all original members of the band are now involved in other projects? I’m not so sure. To that end…

New Rule: “The Axl Rose Rule”. Axl Rose must either a) reunite with the original members of Guns N Roses, b) relinquish the Guns N Roses moniker to Slash and continue making music as a solo artist, or c) retire. This rule also applies to Billy Corgan and Amy Lee

Fallen isn’t really that bad an album. Actually, as much as it sounds like a relic from the angst fueled rap-rock era that was 2003, I still kinda like it. Lee and Moody were a pretty damn good songwriting duo, and there’s more heart and passion in this batch of songs than anything that Lee released post-Moody and more than I expect from We Are The Fallen. It’s a bit ham-handed at times (“Tourniquet”, anyone?), and certainly the band’s Grammy wins from that year feel even more awkward and out-of-touch now that we’ve seen the band’s deconstruction, but the orchestral elements and classical influence were a refreshing touch for a genre that barely managed to come into this world stillborn, and after three years had more than outstayed its welcome. This certainly doesn’t absolve Lee of her egomania and subpar follow-up records, but give credit where credit is due, I suppose.

Evanescence – Bring Me To Life [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==

Album A Day: Journey – Escape

Artist: Journey
Album: Escape
Release Date: July 31, 1981

Not gonna lie; I hate Journey. Except, it’s not really that I hate Journey; it’s more that I hate their name. See, when I was in 3rd grade I was in a spelling bee, and it was down to me and this other girl, and my word was…you guessed it…”Journey”. Now, I swear on every last one of the over 13,000 songs I own that I spelled it correctly. But the officials thought otherwise, claiming that I began the word with “g”. I guess as a result every time I see the word Journey spelled out a small part of me wants to punch something. Not really the band Journey’s fault, but it still stacks the deck against them a bit.

And let’s be real here; Escape is loud and dumb, and if it had come out today Pitchfork would take it out back behind the barn and show it no mercy. With the exception of a few gems like the unkillable “Don’t Stop Believin’” or “Stone In Love”, Escape sounds as processed and scripted as devoid of the organic spontaneity that makes the great music so memorable. Journey aren’t as bad at this game as, say, Nickelback, since they do let their sound wander a bit and take some risks, but it’s not like Journey will ever be accused of having Pink Floyd’s originality.

Journey – Stone In Love [iTunes] (YSI)

==TJ==