bands
Rock n' roll, boy bands, jazz trios, and more; the greats, newbies, and forgotten icons who create our favorite groups.
New Listening: Best Alternative Bands
As a huge fan of alternative music, old school rap, and the classics, its hard for me to listen to the radio nowadays, as I feel it is for some of you as well. One can only listen to the same band album from the 90s so many times before wanting to expand your horizons. So I put together a little collection touching down on a few different aspects of alternative music to find what fits your taste. Enjoy.
By Snicker Surpentine8 years ago in Beat
Spice Up Your Life - The Spice Girls Are Officially Reforming!
We always knew that the Spice Girls were going to carry on giving us a zig-a-zig-ah, and now 20 years after "Wannabe" shot them to chart fame, it looks like the famous girl power pop group are reforming. Someone made a phone call and the girls couldn't bear to say "Goodbye" again - this is a big case of "Viva Forever" as the '90s power troupe are back! No, we really aren't joking. After 20 years of loyal fan service, the girls are finally giving us what we really, really, want.
By Tom Chapman8 years ago in Beat
Meet Okilly Dokilly: The Ned Flanders Metal Band
Big fan of The Simpsons, specifically Ned Flanders? Big fan of metal? Well, good news, friend, because there's now a Ned Flanders tribute band called "Okilly Dokilly" out there to fill that need. With songs like "They Warned Me" and "Nothing At All" these guys are really going full force with their Ned Flanders theme. When asked to describe their sound, the frontman had this to say:
By Jay Vergara8 years ago in Beat
New Music Video Featuring Darth Vader And Batman Will Instantly Become Your Favorite
In today's world of music videos we have gotten used to videos that seem to have little to nothing to do with the song itself and lack any kind of heart. Music videos were meant to be a visual representation of an artist's message behind their song, but that is becoming less and less prevalent in the music industry.
By Tyler S. Callaway8 years ago in Beat
Can a Song Emotionally Help Us?
Now music. Music is how the soul moves. It’s how some people communicate, and it’s even sometimes the only thing two people have in common. Cigarettes After Sex is an American ambient pop band from El Paso, Texas, formed in 2008 by Greg Gonzalez. The band's debut was released in 2012 with the singles "Affection" and "K." following in 2015 and 2016. I was gripped, hooked onto both albums, and I must have been living under a rock since 2008—and if I’m honest I think I was. Back in 2009, a friend told me about this group that he really loved-cigarettes after sex. This was the very year my depression, among other things, decided to kick me while I was down, but depression may have taken over my mind, but it didn’t take over my soul, and when I heard Cigarettes After Sex for the first time, my inner goddess rose from her sweet slumber and I began to feel like me again. My mind cleared after a few times listening to the songs in both albums, and I felt free when I heard them. Now I’m not saying music is the answer for everything or for everyone, but it was for me. This post isn’t about what I went through but more of how I got through the things I thought would break me. With my past questionable and my future uncertain, I really thought that right now, in the present I was going to be able to cope. When you find something your passionate about whether it be a hobby, music or even a person, it really does help numb whatever type of pain your in. Now some reading this might sit there and think “but I don’t want to numb my pain, I want to get rid of it,” but here’s the thing about pain: it demands to be felt. When passion takes over your body and kicks your insecurities out the window, you find that you flourish into who the hell you want to be doing, what the hell you what to do, and that, my readers, is a beautiful thing. My idea of music is not what is latest in the chart right now, not the music everyone is listening to, and not the music you say you like to the boy you fancy just because he likes it...music becomes soul freeing and mind numbingly good when you find the type of music your into and I did! Trust me Cigarettes After Sex will not be for everybody, but it is for me and coming back to the point of this post, it helped me. This time last year I didn’t think I would be able to go in with life, with how MY life was heading, but I took depression by the balls and told it who was boss; Cigarettes After Sex helped me with that. But what I will admit is, I don’t always listen to Cigarettes After Sex. Shock, horror, I know, considering I can’t stop blabbing about them, but it’s true. I listen to Nirvana and Pink Floyd a lot of the time, and I love 60s soul. But I only ever listen to Cigarettes After Sex when I can feel a spiral of depression creep up on me. They may have helped me conquer it, but my mental illnesses still fight back, so sometimes, I have a little cry (well more of a long howl of sadness, LOL) binge-watch a series that has five seasons and 20 episodes per season, until I feel like I can get up out of bed and face the day. I may be able to control my illnesses, but I can’t out run them—and if I’m honest with you, I’m OK with that. My life and all the downs that have happened in it have really shaped me into the person I am today, and I don’t think I turned out too bad. And I have not just Cigarettes After Sex to thank for that but all the great artists I listen to. I thank the people who told me about those grey artists, and I thank mother who (thank god) has the same music taste as me.
By Scotch Vaughan8 years ago in Beat
Why Were the Fab Four So Influential on Modern Music?
As a child, The Beatles were not unknown to me. My dad (who is not an avid fan, but in fact prefers the Rolling Stones) owned the 1 Beatles album, and in my unscholarly opinion, music makes the greatest effect on you when you are a child and a certain style imprints on your brain. However, it was many years later that I really started to listen and admire the Fab Four's work.
By Charlie Cowburn8 years ago in Beat
Most Underrated Bands of the 00s
It is all too easy to forget about the music that used to be popular over a decade ago. That's why we're here to remind you of all the gems you used to hoard in your iPod shuffle. Which bands were your favorite in the 2000s? Wonder what they're doing now? Here are the most underrated bands of the 00s.
By Kelsey Lange8 years ago in Beat
Music Breakdown One
Born in 1995, the type of music I know is from the 2000s. Most of the bands that I mention during this music series are bands that I have on my iPod. Primarily, it'll be a breakdown of song lyrics and possible meanings of the song and, as I turn another age, this is more for me than it is for anyone else. Without further ado, as I sit here typing at one thirty seven am on November first with the hopes that someone will read the ramblings of a crazy woman, the first band I would like to introduce is The Academy Is.
By Faith Young8 years ago in Beat
The Visual Culture of Album Covers
The importance of the visual image to the success of a boy band might be overlooked by the general population, but is certainly not underestimated by record labels and PR experts. It is easy to argue that the images produced are just as crucial (if not more) as the music to the overall success of the group. Boy bands like Backstreet Boys and N'Sync were successful in a time when the image of the group could be carefully controlled by marketing experts and PR representatives. Photo shoots and some paparazzi pictures were the main source of image proliferation. In 2010, the producers of X-Factor brought together five boys to create the group One Direction. The success of this group has been major, even during a time when the internet has made fans producers as much as they are consumers. Fan art and fan fiction has created a legacy for this group far out of the reach of their management's marketing experts. The visual images produced by the fans through things such as artwork and cell phone photos have been more influential among fans than any well-crafted photo shoot in a teen magazine. Four is One Direction's fourth studio album. Compared to the previous albums, the image appears less planned, or "constructed." Through affect, genre, and tension, the artists involved in the latest One Direction album cover attempted to recreate the fan created image in order to catch the attention, and cash, of the internet generation.
By Kendra Brea Cooper8 years ago in Beat
Nahko + Medicine for the People: Rock & Roll World Music for Your Heart
Nahko and Medicine for the People are a folk/world music collective that started in 2008. It has recently gone through a few changes in its line up but the head of the group and singer/songwriter Nahko Bear has been a vital part of the band.
By Ayisah Yusuf8 years ago in Beat
5 Artists Every Writer Should Listen To
So I decided to write this article after a period of writer’s block I went through. I tried all the normal things like going away from it, trying not to think about it, searching for real world inspiration but nothing was working. It was only when I was sitting down, making revisions to a screenplay and listening to a random music playlist on Spotify, that the inspiration came to me. I realised it was because of the music playing.
By Jack Lanham8 years ago in Beat
