Archive | November, 2013

Pop Culture Reflection: Adam Sandler’s Chanukah Song

27 Nov

My nostalgic mood for reflecting on 1994 has focused on my holiday music favorite,  Adam Sandler’s Chanukah Song.

I remember when I first watched him perform it on Saturday Night Live (SNL) in 1994 and laughing at all of his clever list of jewish celebrities.

The song is close to being 20 years old and I love how it has grown into this holiday tradition.

Of course I like his other comedic songs and more appropriate this week would be his Thanksgiving song. But I think the Chanukah Song has become his best well-known holiday favorite.

I also enjoy how Sandler has added lines and made revisions to his celebrity list throughout the years.

I always look forward to hearing what he has added and this year he added that its Thanksgivukkah, which is referencing how Thanksgiving and the first day of Hanukkah are on the same day.

According to an article in Miami Herald the two holidays will not occur on the same day again for more than 70,000 years.

I have linked a live version from Happy Madison You Tube channel of Sandler’s holiday hit.

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Gem of the Week: Toad the Wet Sprocket

20 Nov
Outside The Show In Royal Oak, MI

Waiting outside of the Royal Oak Music Theatre

Alternative rockers Toad the Wet Sprocket make a strong comeback releasing latest album New Constellation on October 15th, breaking their 16 year hiatus.

The interesting aspect was that the band turned to Kickstarter to finance the new album.

” With a goal to raise $50,000 through Kickstarter, the band members figured it would take a couple of months to raise the funds, but their fans surprised them by donating the entire amount in only 20 hours. ” as stated from an article on TheSpectrum.com.

According to the bands official website, their quirky name came from a Monty Python comedy sketch and even though the band had success in the 90s selling platinum albums they ended up going their separate ways in 1998.

Now that they are back together I couldn’t wait to listen to the new album and I’m impressed with the songs on New Constellation.

The album is a good revival with a more upbeat vibe blended with their classic melodic style.

So far I like the tracks: The Moment and Rare Bird which carry a more melancholy tone and I seem to always be attracted to those tracks first! The last track on the album is Enough, which is my current favorite and I think it is the most catchy ballad.

The band is currently on tour and performed in Detroit this past Thursday at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. I had been looking forward to going to this show because I was really into them in the 90s and I have the albums (1991) Fear and (1994) Dulcinea.

I had a great time at the show and the mood was laid back and mostly acoustic.  The band mixed up the set alternating between playing old and new songs. They even played tracks off Fear which put a big smile on my face. The encore included their big hits Fall Down and Walk on the Ocean.

During my own conversations with people at the show, I would pick up bits of conversations between other fans who chatted about being in their 30s and reminisced about the grunge era.

It was cool to hear that other fans felt the same way I did especially since this show has been a long-awaited reunion.

Going back to reflect on the album Fear, I loved every single track especially: Walk on the Ocean, Hold Her Down and Butterflies. Fear is one of my top favorites in my music collection. I actually like it better than their follow-up album Dulcinea.

Although that album has some gems with Fall Down and Something’s Always Wrong.

In 1994 I watched the cult classic teen drama My So-Called Life and I remember Fall Down was played in one of the episodes. That song always makes me think of 1994 and of the show every time I hear it.

I am happy that I could lend support to the band. I will gladly fork over my money to pay to download their music and to hear them perform live because they are worthy.

 

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Legends of Rock: David Bowie At His Best In 2013

13 Nov

As a huge David Bowie fan I was looking  forward to The Next Day Extra, an expanded collector’s edition released on November 5th.

The extra edition includes a copy of the original album The Next Day (released back in March of this year ) along with a dvd and 10-track bonus cd which includes five unreleased songs.

According to his official website, he had not released a new album in ten years and he surprised fans with his new material in 2013.

I listened through the new stuff from the extended edition and I love the remix of Love is Lost and I also liked God Bless the Girl because the way he sings it reminds me of his hit Let’s Dance.

I also liked The Informer and Born in a UFO which both have that quavery sound in the vain of his well-known hit Space Oddity.

I have always loved Bowie because he is an eclectic singer/song-writer who fuses fashion, style and art into his music. Not to mention he paved the way for glam rock  creating his Ziggy Stardust persona in the 70s.

One of my favorite Bowie albums is his 1977 release Heroes. In fact, the cover artwork for The Next Day uses the Heroes album cover obscured with a white square. An article by Chris Roberts from The Quietus put it best stating,

“He is still fashion, still twitching, as the artwork for The Next Day – papering over the old icons – and the self-referential new videos insinuate. Bowie Fever has, entertainingly, dominated 2013 thus far.”

I remember hearing Bowie songs like China Girl and Fame in 80’s movies and being attracted to his music.

I am also a fan of the 1986 fantasy cult classic movie Labyrinth which starred Bowie as Jareth a Goblin King with a wild maze. I absolutely loved that movie as a kid and I thought Bowie was so cool with his spinning crystal balls.

In the mid 90s he head lined a tour with Nine Inch Nails opening for him and I was dying to go to that show but I was too young.

I am hoping with the new material that he will surprise fans with a possible tour maybe!? (crossing my fingers)

From Bowie’s style to song lyrics, he continues to create music like only a legendary artist of his stature could.

I have included a link from Redsails2008 You Tube channel for Heroes.

 

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Gem of the Week: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

6 Nov

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis pumped up the crowd with a fun and high-energy filled show on Saturday at the Palace of Auburn Hills, MI.

Last year the Seattle-based rapper (Macklemore) and producer/DJ (Lewis) performed at St. Andrews Hall in Detroit to a small group of fans. ( 800+  capacity)  This year at The Palace the Hip-Hop duo performed to over 6,000 fans, quite a jump and I’m happy for their success!

Their popularity has soared with the debut album The Heist producing big hits like Thrift Shop and Can’t Hold Us.

I like The Heist album a lot and the show opened with the song Ten Thousand Words. A few songs into the set he performed Same Love along with vocalist Mary Lambert, who sings on the studio version too.

Macklemore sported a Detroit jersey as fireworks, confetti and wild stories filled the stage. He also incorporated old school elements like beat boxin’ and freestyle rapping into his show.

He kept things interesting in between songs by going into goofy long-winded tales, including more sincere matters like his recovery battling drug addiction.  He definitely has storytelling  ability as he kept myself and the audience engaged each time.

My favorite story was after a few songs he started talking about how he arrived in Detroit early and decided to go to Lake Michigan. He took in the view of the lake and decided to take his clothes off and jump in. While he is in the lake he noticed two guys going through his things who then run off with his clothes. So here he was standing alone and naked in the lake. Now, at this point in the story the crowd and myself knew it was leading into a some type of punch line and we were waiting for it!

He continued saying how he noticed an old lady feeding birds and he went over to her. She told him to get on her back so she could carry him. He hesitated as she was so old but he did it.  As the woman starts carrying him off he asked her where she was taking him. The old woman replied that he had no clothes so she was taking him to the thrift shop. He goes right into performing the hit song and I loved the whole interlude even if it was a goofy way to introduce Thrift Shop.

My appreciation for Macklemore’s humble gestures took a step further when during his encore he took a few minutes to introduce everyone on stage with him.  He started introductions from his back up dancers to his trombone, cello and violin players. He was very sincere in giving recognition to everyone that is part of his live show.

Also, he performed his biggest hit twice! It was awesome and I have not seen an artist do that before. He started telling fans that it was near the end of the tour and he would not be back until next year so he wanted to hear Detroit go crazy one more time and he went into performing Can’t Hold Us again.

I loved the live show and I look forward to the future of Macklemore and wish the duo continued success.

 

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