post sixty-one: bruno mars.

I can't stand Bruno Mars.
All of his songs get way overplayed. Every single one of them. And he's just now having this big comeback. After "Grenade" came out, he seemed to disappear off the face of the earth for two or three years. I was starting to wonder if he actually DID catch a grenade for someone.
But no, turns out he's back with two songs that are both equally bad as, if not worse than, Grenade, Marry You, and Just The Way You Are. Locked out of Heaven and When I Was Your Man are two songs with horrid lyrics, one with degrading lyrics and one with whiny, childish ones.
"Cause your sex takes me to paradise" is repeated over and over again during the chorus of Locked out of Heaven, and When I Was Your Man constantly says things he should have done. Really, it means he didn't please his girl enough, she dumped him, and now he's saying "oh I'm sorry I should've bought you flowers lalala" even though we know very well that he wouldn't have if she hadn't left him.
I don't know, I just really hate Bruno Mars.

post sixty: death and what happens after.

We talked about this in class and I thought it was really interesting. What does happen after we die? Do we go to heaven? Hell? Is there a God or multiple gods in the sky that sit there and go "You're going to heaven, you're going to hell" and condemning us all? Do we turn into nothingness and simply get buried in the ground and stay there, rotting away and eventually forgotten?
Personally, I don't know what to believe. I don't want to think that there's just nothing after we die. I've had too many times where I could feel someone who has passed on with me. That sounds dumb but it's true. There have been times when I've been extremely emotionally unstable and I've almost felt a comforting hand from Ben on my shoulder (Ben being my best friend that died a couple of summers ago). I've felt like I can hear him saying "it's going to be okay", and that's what gives me hope. Ben was a bright, sparkling, warm personality, and I can't believe that he's just gone forever. He can't be.
So that leads me to believe this: I don't know about God, or multiple gods, or a specific heaven or hell. But I do think that there is something after we die. I don't know what it is, but I think that we go on after death.

post fifty-nine: songs that pull me through.

There have been songs that I've been listening to lately when I've been upset. I've been feeling really down lately, and these songs have always made me feel better, no matter what.

This song, Carry On by Fun., is really really great. The lyrics even tell you to keep going and to stay strong. "If you're lost and alone, or you're sinking like a stone, carry on." For some reason, the sound of this song is calming, and the music video is great too. I've included it above.

The next song is "In My Life" by The Beatles. This song is SO special to me. It was my friend Ben's favourite song by them, or at least one of them. Ben was my best friend, and unfortunately in summer of 2011, he was hit and killed by a car. I was devastated, but he wouldn't have wanted me to be upset. So when I'm upset or sad, missing him, feeling like nothing will make me feel better, I listen to that song. Because I know there's always a reason to pull through, even if I have to do it for my friend who is no longer with us. Very emotional song, and I connect to it so well. "All these places had their moments with lovers and friends I still can recall, some are dead and some are living, in my life I loved them all."

"All Things Must Pass" by George Harrison. Brilliant, brilliant song. It always makes me cry because it speaks the truth: "all things must pass away". Some things pass far too soon. People, relationships, fleeting moments you wish you could capture. So you should always treasure things while you have them. "Sunrise doesn't last all morning, the cloudburst doesn't last all day, seems my love is up and has left you with no warning, it's not always gonna be this grey." Things will get better, even if you have to lose some important things to realise it.

post fifty-eight: hip hop.

Hip hop/rap is what we're listening to in class right now. I think when it first started becoming popular, songs with the f word in them were much more risque and shocking, therefore more people wanted to listen to them and pay attention to them. It's a very complicated genre.
In class, Mr A proposed the question, "is hip hop still music?" of course it is. Hip hop is definitely still music, and a very hard genre to get down at that. You have to be very talented in order to pull it off just right, and I think that when it first came out, people were not only surprised by it, but also shocked at the new kind of music they had just heard.
Nowadays, in rap and hip hop songs, most of them include the f word at least once, along with many other vulgarities. It just isn't as respected because there is no shock factor anymore.

post fifty-seven: saturday night live.

What a class that was! I loved watching the SNL skits. I think my favourite one was the one with Joe Cocker and John Belushi. It's actually really interesting to me to watch Joe Cocker move. Maybe that's a rude thing to say but his past has caused that damage to him and watching him handle the neurological damage the way he does is actually kind of remarkable. Here's a video of him doing Come Together in Across The Universe; he has four parts in here I think.

He handles it really well and I think that's something he should be commended on.

Post fifty-six: Paul Simon.

I don't like Paul Simon's music while he's solo. I've heard a lot better from other artists. I'm not sure why, I've just never really enjoyed his solo stuff. It's very very boring.
I agree with the fact that he is a good lyricist but the music is about 25% of the song. When you miss completely with the music (I should say melody), the song is a 75% song. Not very good, below average. So I think that, while Paul Simon appeals to others maybe not among my age group he doesn't really appeal to me and probably won't any time soon.

post fifty-five: hair metal.

I enjoy some kinds of hair metal, but unfortunately those bands are few and far between. I just don't think hair metal is my style of music. I think it all sounds the same and it bothers me that everyone thinks they have to imitate each other in order to get a music revelation going.
I think hair metal is too alike. Why not be yourself and make your own kind of music?