I haven’t had a chance to listen through properly yet, but I thought it was worth sharing. Coldplay have a live album up for grabs on their site for free. They’ve labelled it as a thank you to the fans – wonderfully pretentious as always then!
The album is called LeftRightLeftRightLeft and features 9 tracks, mainly from their latest offering Viva la Vida. For this price it’s worth a download even if you’re not a fan!
I just wanted to add my own personal thoughts to the already crippling amount of opinions and good wishes on the net around Michael Jackson’s death. I’m a great fan of his music and am saddened by his death. Here are two random thoughts that sprung to mind while reflecting on his life today…
I did try to get tickets for his dates in London, but didn’t get any sadly (was too slow and couldn’t afford eBay prices!). I was sceptical as to how good the gigs would have been. Clearly physically and mentally time and fame had taken it’s toll on him. Even though many people will obviously be left feeling that they perhaps missed out on a once in a life time show (for example I am too young to have had the chance to see him before now), I think perhaps the hope, anticipation and expectations from the shows are best kept in people’s minds. I had an idea of how I would have liked the gigs to be, and now they will always be a reality in my mind – and I strongly feel (however much I don’t want to) many would have been disappointed with his performances.
On another, slightly more positive note it also occurred to me that it could be highly likely that his record for the most album sales with Thriller may never actually be beaten. The music world had transformed so drastically in recent years that I don’t even think it’s possible to sell anywhere near as many albums now – things just don’t work like that anymore. For the same reasons I also don’t think we will ever see such huge superstars again. The days when record companies could afford to float giant statues down the River Thames to promote a new album launch are behind us. In part I think this is a good thing, when you take a step back and look at the awesome amount of fame attributed to this one man, it is hard to comprehend. Clearly he was affected by it, and so perhaps it’s not right, or safe to have such massive idols.
Whatever your thoughts though I hope you take a moment to enjoy some of his creations and enjoy some true creative genius.
Over the years I have received a lot of stick for liking Limp Bizkit. Despite this, I have always maintained that the Results May Vary album does have some excellent tracks on it. I don’t mean they are good songs for Limp Bizkit, I mean they are just plain good songs. You have to forget some of the embarrassing stuff that they’ve done around them, and take each song on its own and then you can appreciate them for what they are.
One of these songs is Build a Bridge. Still in a nu-metal style there are nice melodies and subtle synths, mixed with louder powerful choruses. It’s nice to hear Fred Durst sticking to singing too. Again, some of the songs in which he raps are good, but this song demonstrates that his talents stretch beyond being able to swear 46 times in a rather messed up rhyme.
Another reason I am a big fan of the band is for Wes Borland’s guitar work. There’s something about his style which I find enthralling. I’ve never seen him play live, so I was tempted to get tickets for their performance at Download Festival this year, but I didn’t really feel comfortable with the idea that they were the reason I was going.
So go on, give it a try, what’s the worst that can happen?
Today’s daily rec comes in the form of a video. Sadly I can’t find any really good quality videos of this, but I think it’s something everyone should be able to experience. I was lucky enough to Daft Punk play on their Alive 2007 tour in Hyde Park, and it was one of the most electric things I have ever seen. I would put this show on the same level as Pink Floyd’s Pulse tours - to give it some perspective!
So here is the, now legendary, encore set from the Bercy, Paris show. I won’t spoil it for those that haven’t seen it already, but I will say make sure you get to at least 4:40.
The audio from the show is available on their album Alive 2007, with the encore only available on the special edition 2 disc version.
Here we have a beautiful acoustic song from the brutal Swedish prog-metallers, Opeth. From their mainly acoustic album Damnation, this soft lullaby is supremely soothing and mellow. For me the first simple notes from the bass guitar are the best part, there’s something elegantly powerful about the simplicity of it.
Aside from it just being a great song, one of the things I like so much about it is that it perfectly demonstrates how effective a close relationship between the bass guitar and drums can be. For years I was in a band and endlessly had to listen to the drummer talking about this, but I never really understood, but the simplicity in this song really bring it out.
If you enjoy this song I recommend the rest of the Damnation album as each song follows a similar style.
I haven’t had a chance to listen through properly yet, but I thought it was worth sharing. Coldplay have a live album up for grabs on their site for free. They’ve labelled it as a thank you to the fans – wonderfully pretentious as always then!
I just wanted to add my own personal thoughts to the already crippling amount of opinions and good wishes on the net around Michael Jackson’s death. I’m a great fan of his music and am saddened by his death. Here are two random thoughts that sprung to mind while reflecting on his life today…
Over the years I have received a lot of stick for liking Limp Bizkit. Despite this, I have always maintained that the Results May Vary album does have some excellent tracks on it. I don’t mean they are good songs for Limp Bizkit, I mean they are just plain good songs. You have to forget some of the embarrassing stuff that they’ve done around them, and take each song on its own and then you can appreciate them for what they are.
Here we have a beautiful acoustic song from the brutal Swedish prog-metallers, Opeth. From their mainly acoustic album Damnation, this soft lullaby is supremely soothing and mellow. For me the first simple notes from the bass guitar are the best part, there’s something elegantly powerful about the simplicity of it.