President's Day

Hey all,
It sure is nice to have this day off of school. That's really the only point to this blogpost, only to say that I'm looking forward to the next month or two. Next month because I'm finally getting to my jazz performances, that'll be nice since we've been practicing since November for these shows. And the month after that because the jazz season will finally be over.
I'm sure I'll have time to reflect when that time comes, but it's crazy to think how much my life changed from the day I chose to go for the extra hours of a jazz band program. Who ever knows if it was the right decision (It's something I think about a lot, if you can't tell).
So, made it past V-Day, thanks captain. And Abdalla made me watch Nascar, as usual it ended with disappointment, now other sport ends their biggest event of the year after only finishing 3/4 of the race.
What better way to end this post than a tribute to our highest office. Please to enjoy...

The Grammys

Slowly but surely, the Grammys are winning me back.
A few years ago, they were unwatchable. Probably, I think, because I can't stand their rules for what songs and albums can win album for the year...
Example: Let's take U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind.
Great album, yes. According to Wikipedia, it was released in October, 2000.
You might remember "Beautiful Day"..

Oh wait, that's not it....Anyways, you know it right? So...
It won:

• Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 2001.
• Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 2001.
• Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal

Yah great! But oh wait, that was just for the one single off the album, apparently...
soooo Next year came along and...

• "All That You Can't Leave Behind" won Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in 2002.
• "Walk On" won Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 2002.
• "Elevation" won Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2002.
• "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" won Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2002.

Now, while you may argue that everything was only nominated once, it's not like a single got recognized twice...but I still think it's ridiculous.

Anyways, I thought the show this year was pretty good. I like that Plant and Krauss won album of the year. And no, it's not because I don't like rap. It's because the Academy is not the People's Choice awards, and for the second straight year they proved it.

Some other thoughts:

• Jennifer Hudson, good stuff.

• MIA looked weird and Kanye is, well, Kanye.
  

• The Jonas Brothers offend me. Can't believe Stevie wasn't in the center of that stage. Dave Grohl got it right when he played drums for Paul. Dave could have picked up a guitar and stood next to Paul and sing his songs. But, no, Grohl was honored to play drums for him. Just like the Jonas brothers should have been honored to play with someone like Stevie Wonder. They didn't need to prance and jump around. Just sayin'

Take a Listen, Take Some Time, Post your Thoughts...

Not an album title

Hey all,

So check it out. Since my jazz program has started, I have had no time to listen and review the RS top 500. So, sorry for that. But, I thought, stuff has been happening in my life, so I'm going to break from my promise to only post albums and their reviews.
Well, a lot has happened since I last posted in December...well, no not really. We had a break from school, I didn't do that much. School started up again, jazz band rehearsals every day. Weekends spent doing this and that.

Anyways, the reason I picked up the proverbial pen was to talk about this audition I had last night. It's for a cover band, if you know me you know what I'm talking about. It was quite interesting, and kind of brought to a head the two parts of my musical life.
It's tough to explain, but let me try by saying that I went through 8 years of concert bands and classical music. 8 years of being told that the drums were too loud, and that I needed to fit my sound into the sound of the band. 8 years of being told not to overplay and to be a compliment to the group.
Well, last night I was told basically the opposite. It was like, umm yeah if you're not playing as loud as humanly possible how will we get the beat. It makes sense when you think about it, but it blew my mind. Can anybody out there relate to this?

But don't fret, I'm getting another shot. Look for a post later on as this situation develops.

Take a moment, take a listen, post your thoughts.