Edenbridge - The Moment is Now

I have been casually listening to Edenbridge for years. They crept into my algorithm a long time ago and they were a welcome addition. Because I have been listening casually to Edenbridge, many of their song titles escape my memory. I know them better for parts of their songs from many a playlist. Only a handful of individual songs have created permanent space in my waking thoughts. Easily “The Moment is Now” stand above the rest, currently, in my thoughts about Edenbridge.

Edenbridge hail from Austria, this is exciting for me, because this is the first time I am rambling about a band from that country. Man, there is so much beauty in the world. The driving force behind Edenbridge appears to be twofold; guitarist and keyboard player Lanvall and trained soprano singer Sabine Edelsbacher. So Edenbridge is tapping into the proud metal tradition of employee a highly trained professional female vocalist to rock the house.

It is a formula that works. As far as I know, it works every time. It worked for Edenbridge; they rock. Edelsbacher is a great singer, and her voice is the flame that burns brightest in an illuminous metal band.

To date, Edenbridge has had eleven studio albums, that averages a new album every other year. A very workman like effort. After producing four albums in five, maybe seven, years, Edenbridge joined the best music producing company in the world Napalm records and recorded their fifth studio album “The Grand Design.” Their 2017 album “The Great Momentum” is the album that holds my favorite track of theirs’ (currently). These two albums pop out to me, for two main reasons. First, “The Grand Design” and “The Great Momentum” are the two albums I am most familiar with by Edenbridge. Second, there is a theme we can project here; just the naming conventions of these two albums share something, “Grand” vs “Great,” but also, perhaps pinnacle moments in the career of the band? As in, with the badass label of Napalm Records a grand design as laid out for what Edenbridge would become going forward? Then eleven years later, the momentum, great that it is, has reached a powerful peak? I do not know, but my mind likes to wander.

Lyrically, “The Moment is Now” is about exactly what the title states, do not wait, act now. Act fast.

“The moment is now for igniting the fire.”

“The moment is now or never.”

Criticism is easy. Creativity is hard. We all struggle with our creative projects, and only the most talented, lucky, and engineered, are professionally successful enough to make their art a career. So, for most of us, through out all time, struggle to find the time and energy. Edenbridge’s “The Moment is Now” is a really good pick up. I relate the artistic side to lack of motivation because the source of the message is from the high art of power metal, so the struggle for them, would be principally creative. Then again, given Edenbridge’s output, I suspect they are masters of finding inspiration.

A reoccurring opinion I see and hear expressed is that Edenbridge is very overlooked. I highly doubt, my little blog on the internet carries any weight, but I agree with the sentiment. To me, Edenbridge, exists in the same vein as Nightwish and Within Temptation. For all I know, Edenbridge is Austria’s answer to those aforementioned bands. A worthy addition to the European power metal scene. A most worthy addition to my playlist. Thank you for existing Edenbridge. Perhaps the album title ties directly into this. Perhaps the great momentum is a surge of creative genius for Edenbridge, and that would ring true at least for a fan like myself.

Now I got to go, I have a bunch of Edenbridge and Dream Evil music I have not listened to yet.

- King of Braves

Dream Evil - The Chosen Ones

I have been busy. Life comes at us hard and I have been up to a lot. Got a new job, and finally bought a car for the first time. Trying to get my finances together after the major purchase and the seven weeks in Europe. I am breathing easier, but all this real-life stuff is getting in the way of my not actually important hobby of blabbing about songs I like into the abyss that is the Internet. I finally have a car. My bank account is growing again. I have finally been to Ireland. I have finally been to Norway. I have finally been to Sweden.

I have finally been to Gothenburg.

Of all the places I visited, Gothenburg was among my favorites. Cork, Limerick, Killarney, and Galway were all great to me, but outside of these locations of my ancient ancestry, Gothenburg was probably my favorite place I visited. The city was beautiful, I loved the zoological and botanical gardens in the massive city park. The bars were great, I found some great little rock and roll places to hang out and meet people. Ah, the people, they are always the best part of traveling, and the people of Gothenburg were beautiful (everyone already knows that Scandinavian people are beautiful), and they rocked, at least the ones I befriended. What a great place. What great people.

Hi Linus.

It is no surprise that Sweden’s second largest city would give us a great number of rock and metal bands. This is my clumsy way of introducing the band of the hour, Dream Evil.

Dream Evil, comes to us from Gothenburg. Started in 1999, when producer and rhythm guitarist Fredrik Nordstrom finally found others to share in his evil dream of a power metal band. A dream worth pursuing.

Perhaps appropriately, I have started listening to Dream Evil via their first album “Dragonslayer,” typically the beginning in the logical place to start. There is no denying that a dark fantasy theme is rife throughout Dream Evil’s music, and certainly in their debut album. The song of theirs that has captured my attention uppermost is “The Chosen Ones.”

“The Chosen Ones” rocks. It is the perfect example of what everyone wants a power metal song to be. Heavy, powerful, bad ass, awesome, fantastic, fantastical, and add your own adjectives as you will. It tells a story, about great warriors, perhaps knights, fighting in many battles and wars, slaying dragons, (as the album title demands) and raising their most noble leader to the seat of king.

“Heroes of the day, legends forever.”

This song would be a-typical, fantasy tropes, which I would never complain about, but Dream Evil lean so hard into the epic nature of their over-the-top tale, it becomes more. More of the same fantasy elements, only intensified to a most satisfying grand journey without end. Sometimes I ponder the lyrics and try to figure out if Nordstrom and his crew are referring to another piece of art telling such a story. I do not know, so like most people I project what I know onto “The Chosen Ones.”

In this complicated life, I have the habit of connecting dots that creatively may have had no influence on each other. It is fun trying to be anthropological with music and arts. And I read a lot. I read a lot of fantasy, and I have recently finished the first three novels in Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson. It is this, that I project onto “The Chosen Ones.”

Early on in the first novel of the Stormlight Archive “The Way of Kings,” one of our protagonists, Dalinar, is described as “The Knight who never lied.” Dalinar was already my favorite character in the book, but this description locked it for me. I too, am a knight, who never lied; or at least the closest equivalent the human species can produce within our current zeitgeist. This is no boast, I mean, it is, but I say it with supreme confidence; I am a knight who never lied, and I would have done a lot of what Dalinar did in those books, should I have his talents and have found myself with his life. Including his dark terrible mistakes.

Barbarian and knight, Colin Kelly, King of Braves; I mean, High Prince Dalinar… no, I mean both.

We can avoid spoilers by having me tell you how Dalinar became a High Prince of Alethkar, since that takes place before the events of “The Way of Kings.” Dalinar’s older brother Gavilar, and his best friend Amaram, decide they are going to unite the ten princedoms of Alethkar, and rule them, in the great honour of what once was the Alethkar empire. And they succeed, with a lot of help from Gavilar’s younger brother Dalinar, who must be the greatest warrior to ever live. Dalinar is a barbarian throughout the conquest, but his heart gentles in time, and since the brute never lied about anything his whole life, and refuses to play the stupid game of politics, he is looked down on after the wars, but everyone respects and fears him. Despite his many flaws, Dalinar, virtue of honesty and courage is the only truly honourable person maybe in the whole damn world.

The point is this, Gavilar, Amaram, and our main man Dalinar, they made it happen.

“No more living in fear it’s time to raise our king,
We made it happen we’re the chosen ones.”

That’s where my brain goes when I hear the chorus. Dalinar helping his brother take over the ten princedoms of Alethkar. For me, and presumably only me, “The Chosen Ones” by Dream Evil is about Dalinar and his brother taking over Alethkar.

We all get different joys from the music we enjoy. Often, I like to dream, and let my imagination drift, when listening to power metal. Reminded of all the fantastic stories I have read and will read in time. Dream Evil has connected to me with that in a big way, and they have a bunch of albums I have not heard any songs from yet, so I got that to look forward too.

I just have to find more time to relax. I am not complaining though, the real world demands my attention sometimes, and while I like to visit fantasy worlds, there is no place I would rather live then reality. We got so much good music in the real world. Sweden, and Gothenburg, are in the real world, and I am a big fan.

Until next time,

Rock on Gothenburg.

Rock on Brandon Sanderson.

Rock on Dream Evil.

- King of Braves

Jimmy Eat World - Sweetness

The second show, and third band I saw on the Coca-Cola Stage during the 2023 Calgary Stampede, was none other than Jimmy Eat World.

Jimmy Eat World is probably best remembered for their song “The Middle” which was used for the hit show “Malcolm in the Middle.”

Not me though. Never me though. I like “The Middle” very good song, but I will always be a “Sweetness” kind of guy.

“Whoa oh-oh-oh-oh.”

I was also always a big fan of “Lucky Denver Mint,” but we can touch on that a little more later.

A whole slew of friends and I attended the double feature that was, Death From Above, and, Tegan and Sara; which is fun to say, no matter how many times I describe it. When I went to see Jimmy Eat World, I was joined by one friend, a great friend, but all of them are. Anyway, my friend was a much bigger Jimmy Eat World fan than I was, he had a t-shirt and everything. I realized quickly that I had only really been paying attention to Jimmy Eat World for a limited period of time, and that I had missed the entire content of the past fifteen years or so. They had multiple albums release in that time, and I knew none of it. My friend knew. He was far better prepared for this kick ass concert then I was.

With one exception. I knew “Lucky Denver Mint” and he had forgotten that one. That made me feel at least useful. You know because I need to be useful while enjoying a rock concert with a friend.

So, it turns out, if you are not paying attention for nearly two decades, a band that does not break up will continue to make music, and if they are as good as Jimmy Eat World, they will produce a lot of great music. As a clown pretended to act like he knows things about music on the internet, this is embarrassing. As an ordinary human being, and fan of good rock and roll, this is the greatest thing of all, as it means I have more great music to listen to that I did not know about.

However, somethings are locked in, and can never be changed. I will forever be a “Sweetness” kind of guy.

“Whoa oh-oh-oh-oh.”

Now, if you remember “Sweetness,” from 2001, you need no explanation why this song is such a highly effective catchy song. When in doubt, don’t use lyrics, use a “whoa oh.” Of all the songs that have ever used “whoa” and “oh” as primary lyrics in their chorus, I dare say “Sweetness” by Jimmy Eat World is probably among the very best ever. In pop music this could be considered a cheap trick, but in the case of Jimmy Eat World, I suspect the creative process was something more organic. It just fits really well.

At a casual listen, “Sweetness,” could come across as an excellent party rock song.

“If you’re listening.”

However, if we pause to consider what the “sweetness” is there is more. An even more casual google search reveals to us, that from interview(s) of Jim Adkins, that “sweetness” is the love of another. The concept of the song being, that is you connect all your hopes of happiness onto other people, you will be chasing happiness forever. This is not just a good idea for a popping song, but also solid life advice. It is an unreasonable thing to place your joy in the hands of someone else, it is an unfair burden to place on someone else. Unrequited love is probably the most common kind of love human beings will ever experience. So in reality, you can be sure that more often then not, “the Sweetness will not be concerned with me.”

Also, great rock and roll energy in “Sweetness.” Just a perfect song to rock out to.

“Whoa oh-oh-oh-oh.”

Until next month, keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

Tegan and Sara - The Cure

One of my very favorite Tegan and Sara songs is “The Cure” from their “Sainthood” album. I have never heard this song live. It is not one of their more well-known songs. But it is probably in my top five favorites of theirs.

“Sainthood” is absolutely Tegan and Sara’s most rock and roll album. Which is why it is my favorite. Which is a crazy thing to say given how near perfect “So Jealous” and “The Con” are. Even, I think I am crazy for liking “Sainthood” more then those two albums.

“The Cure” is a highly emotional song, but saying that, I guess the majority of Tegan and Sara’s songs are deeply emotional. It has a verse that sticks with me as a mantra, as much, or more then “Where Does the Good Go’s” chorus.

“I know the world's been mean to you.
I've got a cure; hold tight.
I know the world's not fair to you.
I've got a cure for its crimes.”

I say this as a mantra all the time. But, for me, the song “The Cure,” is equal parts song and riddle. What is the cure for all the pain Tegan describes in the track?

Like many, maybe even most, Tegan and Sara songs, there are a lot of lyrics implying a broken relationship. Those girls must have had a rough go at love for a long time… no wonder I find their songs so easy to connect with. “The Cure” is loaded with lyrics describing a collapsing relationship. The chorus pretty says exactly that.

“All I dreamed up,
All that seemed like luck,
Seems silly to you now.
All I said to you,
All I did for you,
Seems so silly to me now.”

The songs with the repeating information:

“I’ve got a cure.
I’ve got a cure for you.”

What is the cure? Well I do not believe it is a complicated riddle. The second verse basically tells us:

“I know that bad’s got to fix itself,
Correct over time.
And, I know 'cause I've got the cure.
I've got a cure for your crimes.”

It's time right?

Like, I do not know if that is exactly what Tegan Quin is suggesting in this song, but that is always how I have taken it. The cure for the heartbreak, is time. The cure of all the cruelty and pain is time. The song feels infinitely universally relatable. All our ails, all of them, can be cured in time.

It is the only cure for the world’s crimes.

So, to literally everyone I have ever met, I say to you:

“I know the world's been mean to you.
I've got a cure; hold tight.
I know the world's not fair to you.
I've got a cure for its crimes.”

See why I like that second verse so much?

Stay strong everyone. The cure is time.

Tegan and Sara - Where Does The Good Go

The 2023 Calgary Stampede’s Coca-Cola stage was blessed with a home coming return of our girls, Tegan and Sara. I sure think it was cool of them to do a free show, surely, they are popular enough to have performed at one of the larger venues during the Stampede, this is their hometown, they are popular here. So, a free show is a wonderful gift, and I was very happy to see them again. I believe this was the fifth time I have seen Tegan and Sara live. It was an interesting double feature, Death From Above, and, Tegan and Sara. I can only count four things they have in common, they are both Canadian, duo acts, became established musicians around the same time, and most importantly, both are freaking great.

While I really enjoyed Death From Above, being the more intense fan of Tegan and Sara, I very much enjoyed them. It did not hurt that they played many, perhaps, most, of my favorite songs of theirs. I think it was the second, or perhaps third, song they played was “Where Does the Good Go.”

Sometimes, passage of time, modifies our appreciation of things. Small differences in perspective and memory can cause some songs to become more or less loved in our hearts in time. “Where Does the Good Go” for me, is a song that is endlessly wonderful. This song connected to me when I first heard it, and has only strengthened my appreciation for it.

As it happens sometimes, I will quote a song often enough that the quote becomes part of my casual vernacular, and the line from “Where Does The Good Go” that has accomplished that in my conversation pieces is from the chorus;

“It's love that leaves and breaks,
The seal of always thinking you would be,
Real happy and healthy, strong and calm.
Where does the good go?
Where does the good go?”

It is a good chorus.

Like many before me, on a great number of different songs, I was singing the words to this chorus wrong, in multiple different ways, until I finally figured out the correct lyrics. Mostly, I kept breaking out the adjectives to be applied to two people. As in, you will be happy and healthy, and I will be strong and calm. Perhaps this is my unrelentingly masculine perspective, but a primary goal of any relationship for me is to ensure, that she, is happy and healthy, meanwhile, I must be strong and calm.

“Happy and healthy.”

As a knight, I want to rescue princesses. But, I want to do this, with the hope, the dream, that they will be forever afterward happy and healthy. Drop the metaphor, and a goal I always held in my mind for romantic relationships would be to support my bride to be those two things.

“Strong and calm.”

As a knight, I feel it is extremely important to remain strong and calm. Strong, obviously because dragons need slaying. Calm, because that aids enormously in maintain the honourable codes of chivalry. Again, drop the metaphor, it was always important to me to be those two things. Not just towards woman of my desire, but always professionally, and in everything I do.

Admittedly, I am a lot better at the former than the later. I am always very strong. Sometimes I am a hot head.

That is the linchpin of my perspective, and thus, these two adjectives reoccurring in my verbal expressions. I have re-written, the chorus to where does the good go so many times in my head, that it is funny. We are all guilty of it, singing along to a song with the wrong words. I sang dozens of different versions of this chorus until finally getting it right.

There actually are not many lyrics in “Where Does The Good Go.” The repetition is appropriate, as the statements being made are powerful. Love, and heartbreak, and longing, and wanting, can take things away from us, including the positive characteristics, that make us who we are. We can lose our happiness, and our strengthens. We can lose our kindness.

“Where does the good go?”

As much as plea, as a question.

It has been one of my favorites of Tegan and Sara’s for years. I enjoyed hearing it with an small army of friends.

Thanks again for the free show Tegan and Sara.

- King of Braves

Carolesdaughter - Violent

The misadventures of Colin Kelly continue.

I was on the public transit train and three youths were beginning the early phases of fighting a lone older man. As the vocal threats intensified and the juvenile behavior escalated while the older man repeated his wish to let it go and not resort to fighting, it become apparent to me that this could get ugly without some early intervention, and since I worry a lot about the bystander syndrome, I stepped forward.

Standing between the youths and the older man, I said something to the effect that no one was going to fight on this train. The lead, I guess he was the lead “gang member,” began to threaten me, and on instinct I responded with these exact words:

“Gentlemen, do not make me get violent.”

Trust me, those words were appropriate after what they said to me. Or don’t trust me, I don’t care.

Anyway, my words worked. They silently returned to their seats. Both parties involved exited the train before me, and at different stops, so I can take some comfort in knowing my involvement most likely prevented a physical confrontation.

“Don’t make me get violent.”

I like that. I stole it from a song… because of course I did.

Only now am I beginning to learn much of anything about the identity and existence of Carolesdaughter, all one word, the band, or more probably singer/song writer.

When I randomly happened upon the song “Violent” by Carolesdaughter, it stuck with me. It stuck with me hard.

This earworm, by Carolesdaughter, keeps coming back into my life, and presumably for entirely different reasons then what her lyrics describe. The violence in Carolesdaughter’s “Violent” stems from an escalating fight between former lovers. Diamonds are expensive, so I can respect the extreme importance of sorting out the proper ownership of such a material item. It is a catchy two-minute pop song, with a lot of edge to it. Knowing as little as I do about the young musician, she looks nothing like a pop star. She does not look like anyone other than herself, and I respect that a lot. Art, and music with it, needs outsiders and their perspectives. So, there is some hope that something special is going to come from this young talent.

That fight I stopped on the C-Train, it was not the first time. COVID did something to the City of Calgary, the homeless took over the mass transit centres, because of course they did, they were outside whether they liked it or not, and now all us ordinary people with somewhere to lay our heads and call home, were gone, so they took over. The dark change that happened alongside this was the drug culture intensified. I guess the police just gave up fighting it, but crystal meth, and other drugs I have never even heard of before, begun becoming popular. Try sleeping rough without the assistance of substances? I have never had to, but I easily empathize how that slope could be slipped on. I am not suggesting this has become something as severe as an epidemic or anything, but a problem has arisen.

With the drugs and the painful nature of sleeping rough, fights are breaking out. I don’t watch idol, I intervene. I have no flight mechanism.

Time passes. I am in Europe, and for the first time in fifteen plus years someone decides to get physical with me. I tie him up and set him up for a head and arm throw, once on the ground all I have to do is tighten the headlock and then snap, crackle, pop, and his neck is never the same ever again. I’ve done it before; I can do it again. For all intents and purposes, I tell him, “don’t make me get violent.”

I was rattled by the experience. I knew what to do to. The muscle memory was in full affect, even with alcohol in my veins. Winning that “fight” by destroying that clown’s neck, would have been exciting and satisfying in the moment, but then I would have to live with knowing I wrecked someone permanently, over something stupid; and I do not even fully understand what that something stupid was.

So, like seriously, “don’t make me get violent.”

Once again, I am listening to this song “Violent” by Carolesdaughter. It is such a short simple song, and it is not about hand-to-hand combat, bar fights, or preventing drug fueled hooligans from fighting each other, but it’s chorus really resonates with me.

I try to keep this blog about music, not me, but I have only so much musical insight, so this review is more for me. Sorry Carolesdaughter, you deserve better.

A few facts about me, I grew up fighting any and all bullies who tried anything. I wrestled in high school. My last name is Gaelic for “warrior.” I will be forty years of age in November, when I look back in my life, I can say with absolute certainty that I am a fighter. This is not a brag, but an observation about my personality. If you want to fight, I will fight you, and I will do everything in my power to make you regret it. I am under no illusions that I can win every potential fight in the world, trained combat athletes surely would humble me in a heartbeat, but to the untrained and uninitiated, watch yourselves, you could get yourselves hurt very badly.

I think about it all the time. I overcompensate constantly. I want to be a gentleman, but inside of me is a barbarian. That is never going to change… because I like it. I like the idea of being a violent gentleman. It is my personality.  However... I do not feel very good about hurting people in previous brawls.  Sometimes winning a fight is no victory at all.

So, I am very serious when I say to would be gangsters, and belligerent drunks, “don’t make me get violent.”

I am probably going to die trying to break up a knife fight or something ridiculous.

A variety of intense emotions plague the mind after confrontations like mine, so there is an awful lot on my mind. I mentioned I am a wrestler. I like grappling. I like being in control. That way I can avoid actually hurting someone when I have to fight them. As I right this, I am three days away from attending AEW All In in London. After that silly little “fight” in Copenhagen, I am freaking ready for some professional wrestling, where the goal is to not hurt each other. So, I have a huge massive positive outlet for my current headspace. Looking forward to it.

I am all over the place in this music in review. People do like it when you are topical.

Anyway, thank you Carolesdaughter for the new mantra, “don’t make me get violent.”

- King of Braves

Death From Above - You're a Woman, I'm a Machine

2023 was a good year for the Calgary Stampede Coca-Cola stage. The band line up included several bands I wanted to see, I ended up going three days and seeing four bands.

The first band I saw was Death From Above.

The duo that is Death From Above consists of Jesse F. Keeler on bass and Sebastien Grainger on drums and vocals. My experience with Death From Above is limited to listening to their album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine” on vinyl numerous times at my friends place. He really liked that album. With that I went into their show at the Coca-Cola stage fairly ignorant, but open minded. Sometimes that is the best way to go to a show, because your mind is open to witness whatever comes. It was a very good show. Helped in no small part that I was accompanied by a healthy number of friends. Several times during the show, I was reminded of the drinks, joints, UFC fights and hockey games that I now associate with Death From Above, whenever they played a song that sounds familiar, which, would presumably be from their 2004 debut album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine.”

There are not many bands that consist of only two members. There are even fewer that consist of a bass player and drummer. Conventional wisdom is that a musical group should include four basic components: rhythm, accompaniment, melody, and harmony. Conventionally you would use the following instruments in a rock band to satisfy this setup, drums, bass guitar, lead guitar, and rhythm guitar. However, there are no rules that must be followed, ever, especially in rock and roll.

The use of a base guitar for melody is always a bold approach. The four strings will limit the theoretical variety of notes that can be used, compared to the six strings. Bass guitar is designed to hit heavy and hard, so putting that instrument to the front position of your sound will unavoidably result in final product being a heavy hard hitting rock song. This is not a technique that should be implemented thoughtlessly.

The use of drums for the melody… that is insane, and I think that might be what is going on with Death From Above.

I sure hope I am using the terms, melody, harmony, rhythm and accompaniment correctly.

Operating under a level of ignorance on the subject matter, I dare say that I suspect, that Death From Above is led by the drummer Grainger. I have a stronger suspicion that it is a duo creative effort, it is just that Grainger is on vocals, and that usually implies frontman status. Surely, the vocals are the functioning melody, right?

Here is what I really like about Death From Above, look at how I am struggling to explain their sound. I do not know what I am talking about, and I actually really like that I cannot fit them into any sort of conventional design.

Now the hardest part, picking an individual song to talk about. I am only beginning the process of familiarizing myself with Death From Above’s catalogue of songs. At this time, their songs I know best are the ones from the album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine.” However, my experience with that album being is something of a blur, as I listened to it in it’s entity multiple times, never singling out a single track for dissection. However, I do like the title track.

If nothing else, I like telling me people the name of the album and title track, “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine.” I have been in Europe for the last nineteen days, Norway and Sweden, and everyone I have mentioned to about Death From Above, find the concept of a drummer and bass player duo fascinating, and every time I mention their debut album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine,” I get the same reaction, “dude that sounds fucking awesome.”

They are not wrong.

So let’s start with the title track of Death From Above’s debut album and grow from there, since that is pretty much what I am doing right now.

Keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

Sturgill Simpson - Mercury in Retrograde

Sometimes a set of lyrics start feeling like they apply to yourself in some humorous ways.

“I got a haircut in Norway,
When all the weight started pulling me down.
Smelling like a waterlogged wet dog,
Ain't no way to travel.”

This is the opening lyrics to Sturgill Simpson song “Mercury in Retrograde.” The second last song on his album “Sound and Fury.” I listen to this song a lot, it has a groove to it that actual makes me want to move, not dance, never dance, but sway to the sound, and only a handful of songs have ever had that sort of affect on me.

As I write this paragraph, I have been in Norway eleven days. I have not gotten a hair cut, I got one of those before I left Canada, so that first line does not apply to my situation but the rest a little more so. In my time, many wonderful things have been seen, experienced, and done. The people are great, the sights are great, and everything is great. In addition to everything being great, I also experienced the storm they named “Hans.” Apparently, they name their storms here when they get bad enough. Hans prevented me from visiting Trondhiem, but it also soaked me bad a couple of times. Now on day eleven, I have not been able to do laundry, because I cannot get registered with the app on my phone because they are not sending me the text message to my Canadian phone to get setup. The lack of clean clothes is a problem that is sure to only escalate if I cannot resolve it soon.

Last night, walking around town looking for a karaoke bar to sing at, as I like to do, “Mercury in Retrograde” played on random on my phone. “Smelling like a waterlogged wet dog, ain’t no way to travel.” I laughed at myself, yeah, I am getting to that point.

I hope you enjoyed this largely unimportant anecdote.

Since “Sound and Fury” was probably my favorite album of 2019, and I talked about it at length before. An album as great as “Sound and Fury” lasts in a playlist. Like an evolving organism, the songs of “Sound and Fury” have shifted in mind and ears, changing which songs I appreciate uppermost. I stand by the subject feeling that “Make Art Not Friends” is my favorite song from the album. That song however was the perfect song for COVID, because we could not go out and live. Now, in 2023, in Europe, I have reembraced my surprising talent for making friends. I am definitely all about making friends. So, the upbeat rhythm and lyrics of enduring the dark sides of musical success, just makes me feel like a million bucks. Also, apparently, I am top tier at making friends. A talent my shy, socially incompetent, dumbass, in theory should not have been able to posses, but evidently, I do. Making friends constantly everywhere I go, also makes me feel like a million bucks.

So in that moment in Oslo, Norway, walking the streets at night, slightly drunk, with “Mercury in Retrograde” in my ears, feeling like a million bucks twice over, maybe even three times over, I am a happy drunk, and feeling like a waterlogged wet dog from surviving “The Hans” and my clothes rapidly becoming too unclean to wear, well it felt like a perfectly good moment to blather about to the Internet, and by extension the entire world.

And here we are.

In truth “Mercury In Retrograde” is not a happy song, at least not in lyrical content, but it is one of those songs, that takes very sad subject matter and makes it happy with fun tempo and sound. A lot of “Sound and Fury” is about Simpson’s disenfranchisement with the corporate side of his music career, and questioning those who are there to leech off of, or manipulate, or ruin what he is trying to do creatively. Remember, “Make Art Not Friends.” But to me, there is something so empowering and uplighting about joyfully singing something like;

“Oh the road to Hell is paved with cruel intention,
If it's not nuclear war,
It's gonna be a divine intervention.”

Somehow, I resisted the urge in Norway to sing that out loud in the streets at night. Good thing too, that is considered crazy in Canada, the reserved Norwegians would be very unimpressed, I am sure. That does not mean, I was not tempted.

Anyway, thanks for listening. It is time for the King of Braves to return to form.

- King of Braves

Avantasia - The Moonflower Society

It has been years, but I am stilling riding high from the two times I went to Germany to see Avantasia. Hamburg, Germany, is a fun city, I highly recommend visiting.

Avantasia is my band. It is the only band I have talked about, every single album they have on this blog. Last year, Avantasia unleased their ninth studio album “A Paranormal Evening with the Moonflower Society.” I am not going to lie; I am a little surprised the momentum behind the super group has lasted nine albums now. I have always assumed that a serious amount of time and effort went into each Avantasia album, because how could it be any different? There are so many vocalists, presumably with different schedules, and there are always additional guest singers and other musicians, and several songs are always over eight minutes and all the songs are complicated. I guess what I am trying to say is, I am impressed with Tobias and friends output. I was impressed from the beginning, so things are working out great as far as I am concerned.

There were moments when I was unsure what more I could say about Avantasia, but thankfully Sammet’s choice of song writing is happily perfectly in tune with my personal tastes, so I always have something positive remark to add. This time around, I am very fond the of the principal track, or not quite title tack, “The Moonflower Society.”

Sometimes a song needs no assistance becoming forever memorable in my mind. I really like “The Moonflower Society” the song as it stands alone, but I am also very fond of the music video. I do not believe Sammet ever tells us the actual story behind his metal operas, which I both respect and enjoy. I respect the “show don’t tell” approach to story telling, and when this is done, it allows myself, and others, to use our own observations and imaginations to piece together the story only show, and never told. With the new soft animated visuals, my imagination has been perked a little more, but more so, I think I might be understanding the story a little better than before? Maybe?

In “The Moonflower Society” we meet all of the society I believe, and a good amount of imagination went into each one, each entity is only partially human at best, but all seem to be good natured if not keeping a distance of sorts. The main Sammet like skeleton in a top hat and suit is strongly hinted to be the protagonist himself but from another time, or magic, or something, in the “Kill the Pain Away.”

“Kill the Pain Away” is probably my second favorite song from Avantasia’s newest album, but for now “The Moonflower Society” has Bob Catley and I freaking love that guy. Who knows how my opinion might shift in the years to come. “Kill the Pain Away” just feature Floor Jansen, and I freaking love her. Those two songs are my front runners.

Kill The Pain Away:

Knowing the main circus leader of the Moonflower Society probably is a future or alternate version of the human protagonist, the music video must serve as a introduction of the main character, not only to the society, but also, to himself. That gives us a lot to think about. Also, a smiling moon and a starry dive into the deeps, and awakening back in his carriage, while the Moonflower society temporarily disappear from existence.

So, I like it a lot, song, video, and album.

I have been to Europe twice, and both times I made it an issue to see Avantasia live. I think it is important to have life goals, so I am just waiting for Avantasia to be a major dark of Wacken, or come to Toronto (I can’t imagine they would come to Calgary), or perhaps catch them again on a tour through Europe, visit some metal loving countries I have not been too yet. I am looking at you Sweden. The point is, I feel committed. Tobias Sammet is my guy and his bands Edguy and Avantasia are my jam, it pleases me to see great music continue to be created by him.

- King of Braves

Edguy - Judas at the Opera

I am still riding pretty high from that Jericho Cruise, so how about a wild tangent off of that.

It should be safe to say that “Judas” is Fozzy’s most popular song, Jericho has been using it as his entrance music for a few years now. At some point, I was talking to somebody about this song, and/or other Fozzy/Jericho related items, and when the focus of the conversation landed on “Judas” I brought up my favorite song that includes that name. Despite my deep love of Jesus Christ Superstar and Carl Anderson my favorite song to include the name Judas is easily Edguy’s “Judas at the Opera.”

If memory serves me correctly, and it might not, but as I remember it, after seeing Avantasia in Berlin, and hanging out with two fine Swedish gentlemen, a Dutch gentleman, and an American punk rocker babe, all four agreed that their favorite Edguy song was “Judas at the Opera” I was the lone individual to pick “New Age Messiah.” I stand by my answer, I freaking love “New Age Messiah,” however, every fiber of my being also loves “Judas at the Opera.”

If additional memory serves me correctly, both “Judas at the Opera” and “New Age Messiah” both were never present on any Edguy studio album. Rather both appeared on the compilation album “The Singles.” I double checked just now, and I appear to be correct. When I first started getting into Edguy, I bought the CD of “The Singles” immediately, so my mind often forgets exactly how these songs were released to the public pre-internet.

In many ways, I suspect, that “Judas at the Opera” is a very Edguy song, as in, Edguy’s style, theme, and presentation are well personified here and now in “Judas at the Opera.” By extension and relation, “Judas at the Opera” is also a very Tobias Sammet song. My main man Sammet, is in addition to being my favorite song writer of our generation, is also a smartass. Several Edguy songs have a sense of humour to them, which for me land most of the time. Those Germans are known for having a stiff, and noticeably different sense of humour compared to Western European, and by extension all other Western cultures. Sammet even jokes about his attempts at being a German bloke making a joke in the hilarious song “England.” So, like many Germans, Sammet is self aware. The humour in “Judas at the Opera” is present, but I hardly pay any attention to it, so wrapped up in the hard rock that it deliveries. To be fair, Sammet’s smartass nature runs parallel to my own, so forget our insignificant cultural differences, I think this German bloke is hilarious.

Case in point, the chorus contains a “French fry” metaphor, and I am mostly confident it is a joke. It never gets a laugh at me, but it does get a smirk out of me every time.

“Forever french-frying,
You'd love to see me dying.
Who's let the peacock in,
To rock the house-Opera house?
You want me french-fried and,
You'd love to see me fired and,
Then kill Judas in the Opera house,
Opera house.”

I am smirking even now, typing this out.

The peacock metaphor could also be a joke. It this an actual bird we are talking about, or are we comparing this “Judas” to a show bird? I may never know. It is a weird and highly specific thing to try to google.

It is unlike me, but I never paid much attention to the lyrics of “Judas at the Opera.” Like most cases, I had been singing multiple points incorrectly for years, and only upon this recent revelation do I now know better. Long story somewhat short, the “Judas” in question, may or may not be a person, and the crowd may or may not be engaging in cannibalism. Which is actually a lot to unpack potentially, but for me, I enjoy the rock beat and rhythm on “Judas at the Opera” that I am largely unconcerned either way. And regardless of whatever “Judas at the Opera” is accurately about, it continues to rock the house and be one of the most enjoyable Edguy songs ever.

I certainly understand why those four other Avantasia fans in Berlin picked “Judas at the Opera” as their favorite. There are so many good reasons to feel that way, and I also just talked myself into agreeing with them.

- King of Braves

Quiet Riot - Metal Health (Bang Your Head)

Ah, Quiet Riot. Highly rememberable hard rock band of the eighties. The band that introduced Randy Rhoads to the world. Still touring with zero original members. Somehow still in existence.

I saw Quiet Riot live on the 2023 Jericho Cruise. We could debate whether or not the four gentlemen who performed on the 2023 Jericho Cruise, should call themselves Quiet Riot, but whatever, “names.” The four gentlemen claiming to represent Quiet Riot on that ship, were damn good at playing all the Quiet Riot songs I remember, and I had fun. So, no compliments on my end.

The Quiet Riot songs I remember…. well I might as well be honest, like most people I only meaningfully remember two Quiet Riot songs, “Metal Health (Bang Your Head)” and “Cum on Feel the Noise.” The later of which is a Slade cover, and even though Quiet Riot’s version is probably more famous, it is still a cover, so arguably, I am like most people in that I only meaningfully remember one Quiet Riot song, “Metal Health.”

While I battle the endless war against personal ignorance, I wonder sometimes if casual fans, like myself, remember Quiet Riot as principally important as they are because of their early significance. To be fair to myself, I was not yet born when Quiet Riot began. I had to check the dates, but by the time 1983’s “Metal Health” was released about half a year before my birth, and by that time Randy Rhodes, the only member of the band I ever memorized the name of was already gone. The historical significance of Quiet Riot is important, if for no other reason than, they were the first hard rock, or metal, band to find themselves on the charts. Other then Ozzy Osbourne, it is hard to remember anything metal gaining much in the way of commercial success, ever really.

The eighties hair metal scene blew up after Quiet Riot and it is fair to say they were instrumental in that cultural shift. Casual fans like me remember Quiet Riot for that more than anything. Which is likely why, someone like me is equal part impressed and amused, with everything that happened thereafter. Even now, I am pondering, “did I really see Quiet Riot on the Jericho Cruise, or did I just see one of the most dedicated and talented cover acts of all time.” I am not going to argue or challenge the legal, or artistic continued use of the band name, I am sure that is all good and right, but I still find it amusing that literally zero members of the original Quiet Riot are still present. Like are they still Quiet Riot anymore? I am not sure I care enough to protest, nor am I fully confident that is a fair criticism.

There are other Quiet Riot hits for me to listen to, and appreciate more, and seeing two shows live on a cruise ship is certainly strong motivation. However, I still need to find the time to slip those listen hours into what is already a packed playlist. I promised that guy in the gym I was going to listen to Dream Theatre’s first two albums, and I mean to. Priorities you know. In the in between time I see no reason not to celebrate what I already know and love, and like most people I love “Metal Health.”

The concept of the rock anthem songs, you know what I mean, rock songs that are mostly about being rock songs, can be uninspired and uninteresting sometimes. This is always a gamble when making something as generic as a song about partying and rocking out, however Quiet Riot are different with their song “Metal Health” for a few reasons. First of all, this is metal not rock, and while the distinction blurs infinitely, as all genres do, there is a difference to be noted, and especially for “Metal Health,” for it is among the first metal anthem songs to ever exist and almost certainly the first famous one. Also, “Metal Health” avoids being generic or typical, by being “Metal Health.” In the event I am being too cheeky, “Metal Health” is simply too good of a song to ever have an ordinary fate.

I got to hear Quiet Riot perform “Metal Health” twice on the cruise ship. The first time was the closer for their first show on the first night, Chris Jericho sang with them, and it was great. The second time was less exciting but I did get to enjoy their second show from a hot tub, which sure was a nice experience. Here is the video I recorded on my phone of the former:

Live - 2023 Chris Jericho Cruise - Featuring Chris Jericho:

I have nothing more of importance to share on this subject at this time. I would see this line up of Quiet Riot again, they rocked the boat, and I respect the hell out of that.

Until next month, keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

Fozzy - Sane

I have taken a long enough hiatus. I am ready to shout my casual musical opinion into the internet once more. I took some time off because I was humbled. Humbled deeply by the Internet. What you haven’t been? If staring into a device that possesses all human knowledge did not humble you, you must be an arrogant prick. I passed this litmus test, I am humbled.

I have at no point in time been under any delusions about my own personal knowledge of music. I am not formally educated in music. I have only ever dabbled in the six-string guitar, with no knowledge of any other instruments. I can sing okay, I guess. The other day in the gym I was chatting with a guy wearing a Dream Theatre shirt and he was telling me about the 6-4 measures on the drums and how the 4-4 measures of the guitar somehow match, and I just had to nod along. I do not know what I am doing. The Internet does not need me.

But then I get feedback. Sure, a lot of people justly point out what I already knew, that I barely know what I am talking about and that I unavoidably get objective facts wrong sometimes. However, the positive always outweighs the good, and that is just great.

Then I went on the Chris Jericho cruise. I watched a lot of wrestling and heard a bunch of music, mostly Fozzy and Quiet Riot, since they did two shows each on the cruise. I guess I owe Chris Jericho a direct and indirect thank you. First off, thank you for being Chris Jericho and entertaining me most of my life. Secondly, thank you Chris Jericho for daring to put your crazy professional wrestling and rock and roll cruise ship adventure together, I feel spoiled.

For those who do not know Chris Jericho has been a professional wrestler since the nineties, he was a major player during the Monday Night Wars between WWE’s Raw and WCW’s Nitro. He was trained in Stu Hart’s dungeon, and that’s here, that’s home, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I have been a fan for a long time. Jericho is one of few wrestlers who have managed to remain active and relevant well into his fifties. He also is the vocalist and front man for his rock band Fozzy.

I know far less about Fozzy then I do the man who fronts them, but thanks to osmosis, through wrestling I know a little a more than I would have otherwise. The obvious song to talk about would be “Judas” as that is the song Jericho and his faction the Jericho Appreciation Society (JSA), use it as their entrance music now. On one of the previous Jericho Cruise Ship adventures the crowd was perfect to sing along with “Judas” so naturally they did, and now the crowd always sings along with Jericho’s entrance. So yeah, “Judas” is too obvious.

My own independent listening to Fozzy led me to appreciate “Sane” uppermost, and I mostly still feel that way about Fozzy. I do also really like “Nowhere to Run.” Anyway, “Sane” is a song I liked independently, somewhat, from Chris Jericho’s professional wrestling.  I just noticed now that "Sane came out about a year ago, I assumed it was older and I just missed it until recently.  Shows how much attention I was paying.  Anyway, let us indulge in “Sane.”

While acknowledging my own ignorance, I am under the impression that most of Fozzy’s songs are rather simple rock songs. This fits knowing that Fozzy is in many ways Jericho’s side project, although I assume the other members of Fozzy would, and should, disagree with this sentiment. Following, this thought, “Sane” is also a straightforward, effective rock song. Far from a criticism, a simple rock song is sometimes all I want in life. Even the theme is typical, at least to me, the world is crazy and the only way to cope is to give up on sanity. This is not unlike, “crazy on a ship of fools” if you will, only you know, more rock and roll. The point is, I like it. Always instantly enjoyable.

It does not hurt that Fozzy opened the cruise ship show by playing “Sane.” It was a great song to open the many, many, activities to follow. I was largely sober for Fozzy’s first show, so I took in the music well, I even recorded most of the song. I was taken immediately, and not just because I was half in the bag from Crown Royal, and on a cruise ship, but also, the big screen played clips from one of my favorite childhood anime “Ninja Scroll.” Here is the video:

Sane - Live on the 2023 Jericho Cruise

We will see how my life turns out in 2023, but if things go alright financially, I suspect I will join the ragers next year on the cruise ship to Cozumel, Mexico. Thanks again Chris Jericho, for being Chris Jericho, and also thank you for the wild adventure you put together for the fans. It was a highlight of my life, insofar a the years I have lived thus far.

P.S.

I was wondering why my body had bruises when I returned home from the cruise, then my friend reminded me of the mosh pit for Frankie Kazarian’s band Gutter Candy. Right. That also happened.

Beach House - Myth

For better or worse, I have always enjoyed being dragged into a highly atmospheric haunting music. It is to my fortune that I have recently, very accidently, discovered, Beach House. It is to my great misfortunate; I am only discovering Beach House now.

Casual youtube rabbit hole diving revealed that it is possible that David Letterman was fond of Beach House back in the day, as they have many live performances on his late-night talk show on the tubes. Is this information worth anything? I do not know.

Although it happened fairly recently, I no longer recall which song I heard first by Beach House, I think it was “Space Song,” I like that one a lot. I am not even sure how many times I heard Beach House before I took note of their name and logged it to memory. Many of their videos I have seen are fan made, with footage of classic films, of which I had seen several, evidently there are still many classic French films for me to watch, something else to look forward too I suppose. One film I have seen which I recognized in these fan-made music videos, was “Paris Texas.” A quiet stated emotional film about a man trying to make things rights with his family after what could be considered a past that cannot be amended or repaired. It was a sad movie when I saw it, but the fan made video made me sink a little deeper into the film. The song choice Beach House “Myth,” really made a difference.

The emotion of the sound of “Myth” by Beach House sounds to me like a mix of happiness and sadness. As I often do when faced with cryptic lyrics and deep emotion, I look to other people’s interpretations, and Internet never sleeps, all voices can now be heard. Everything I read for “Myth” was highly personal; a good standard of success for a song is connectivity, and “Myth” clearly accomplishes that, but being open to a wide breadth of human experiences. The predictable experiences of the human condition are abound; lost loved ones, unrequited love, and other various versions of sad songs of love; that mixture of happy and sad working its magic. I like taking bigger steps back than that, and I think of “Myth” as something more versatile than that, and evidently, I am not the only one. A minority of opinions I read expressed the idea that “Myth” is about any sort of denial and acceptance.

Let’s see what Beach House has to say about it, they should know.

https://www.songfacts.com/facts/beach-house/myth

Songfacts.com has proved to be a reliable source of band interview information about songs, and for Beach House’s “Myth,” they report that guitarist Alex Scally explained the was is about “elusiveness.” Interesting. Elusiveness can manifest itself in almost infinite ways, which in turn explains why all the listening fans are able to project many personal experiences onto it. Elusive emotions can be very complicated, as every heart holds contradictory feelings simultaneously at times, and whether we are concerned with loved ones, or hopes and dreams, it can sometimes be difficult to pinpoint what we are exactly feeling.

“Help me to name it.”

However, I like to take big steps back and see the whole picture. Who says the elusiveness in question is not emotional, what if it is philosophical.

“Drifting in and out,
You see the road you're on.
It came rolling down your cheek,
You say just what you mean,
And in between,
It's never as it seems.”



You see the world for what it is, and you say just what you mean, but nothing seems quite right.

“If you built yourself a myth,
You'd know just what to give.
What comes after this?
Momentary bliss.
Consequence,
Of what you do to me.”

If you build yourself a mythology, you should know what you have to give up lying to yourself like that, and you can retreat for a comfortably while, but reality cannot be negotiated with, it simply is, and it makes no compromises. The consequences of denial are unavoidable.

“Help me to name it.”

See it works. This song could be taken as a naturalist world view. It is that versatile. I suspect the emotional aspect is more in line with intention of the art, but great art allows odd balls like me to get needlessly deep. Which is fun to do.

Until next month, keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

July Talk - Let Her Know

The only reason I have gone to the Calgary Stampede in the last twenty years is to see bands on the Coca-Cola stage. This year, the best band by far I saw in the line up was July Talk.

I have seen July Talk live before at the last X-Fest, I have talked about it before. Somehow, July Talk did not manage to impact my memory strongly enough for me to remember them very well at the time, but subsequent listings and reminders made them an eventual stable in my casual, random, music playlist. So, how ever many years later, they stood atop of the list of bands to see on the Coca-Cola stage at The 2022 Calgary Stampede.

I assembled the Avengers, and three of us arrived in time to catch the last fifteen minutes of The Beaches. The Beaches were really good, they did a killer cover of “Maneater” by Nelly Furtado. I will be listening to more of them in the future.

Like any concert experience with a familiar band, there are always certain songs you are hoping to hear. Not being the strongest July Talk fan, my list of hopeful hearings was short and likely contained mostly their more well-known tracks. I do not own any July Talk albums, so fan favorites tracks are presumably outside my knowledge. Case in point, there must have been at least a handful of songs performed where Peter Dreimanis did not sing a word, and Leah Fay performed the vocals alone. This was new to me, because all of the songs I listen to by July Talk feature, and focus on, their contrasting voices.

July Talk’s biggest draw to me is the combo of Peter and Leah. The contrast in their voices is perfect. Intentional or not, they perfectly represent the masculine and feminine. It is not just a man and a woman singing, but the content of many of their songs are about the challenges in relationships, and also, obviously, their tones. I assume Peter is putting on a voice, and that he does not talk like he sings, for he sings with a very deep rough voice. Contrasted by the high feminine tone of Leah. Also, I have eyes, Leah, is a woman, great curves and all. Call me old fashion but I like gender. Ergo, I really like what Peter and Leah are bringing to the forefront of their music. It is such a great sound, and they capture that rough and deep, opposite soft and high.

So, I enter the Stampede grounds with a few songs I am hoping to hear by July Talk; “Push + Pull,” “Picture Love,” and “Guns and Ammunition” live was perfect. Leah commanded the crowd and Peter rocked the house. They did not play “Let Her Know,” but since that song I suspect represents the entire July Talk project perfectly, please allow me to ramble about that one.

I have my own interpretation of “Let Her Know,” but I am not entirely confident that I am not reading into things. “Let Her Know” is definitely about strained communication between lovers, possibly ex-lovers. It is unclear to me if the words are meant to be the feelings held back by someone looking to end their relationship, or if it is someone withholding dark emotions from their lover for fear of driving them away. I prefer the latter, as there are simply less songs in the universe with that focus, but I can imagine either being the artistic intention.

Where I start to read into things perhaps more than is wise, is the outro:

“She's still looking at me.
She's still here.
July talks because of you.
She's still here.”

This is joined with Leah’s backing vocals almost whispering:

“Don’t let her go.”

Leah’s lines strongly suggest to me that the song is about a struggling relationship not a collapsed one, with the final message being, she is still here. Whatever is haunting the male half of this narrative, the female is still with him, and in the game of love that can be a very promising thing. She must still be there for a reason.

The song might be meta however, “July talks because of you.” So, are we to assume this song is about Peter and Leah? “July Talks because of Leah?” Does that make sense? I can easily imagine July Talk is led and held together by Peter and Leah. I can easily imagine Peter given his look, and choice of voice, and lyrical content, being a dark soul. I can easily imagine Leah being the love that empowers him to push through it and create beautiful music. I am not the strongest fan of July Talk, so I do not know if anything in this paragraph is actually accurate. Just a casual wandering thought based on a few sweeping words.

Often times, I will go to lyric sites and go to the comment sections to see what other people see in songs. That did not work this time. So, I do not know what the interpretations of “Let Her Know” are by better fans than I, but this only emboldened me to write something about it. Maybe I am seeing into something, I am sure the internet will let me know if I am wrong. The boys are HQ are really good at that.

- King of Braves

Against Me! - I Was A Teenage Anarchist

Against Me! the band, started their musical adventure in 1997. This date aligns with my memories, because I remember listening to them in various friends’ basements between 1998-2002 when I was in high school. The song “I was a Teenage Anarchist,” would not come out until 2010, long after those youthful days. However, given its subject matter and perhaps the nature of memories melting together over time, I would have thought that I had heard “I was a Teenage Anarchist” when I was a teenager, but evidently that is impossible.

When I was a teenager, I was not an anarchist. At no point in my life have I been anarchist. I do not consider myself a political person, but it hardly takes much intelligence to see the fundamental flaws is allowing chaos to dominate the lands. However, when I was a teenager, I was friends with a handful of teenage anarchists, and not too surprisingly, all of them listened to Against Me!

The anarchist and I had a few things in come. We all deeply treasured personal freedom. I will be honest, we also, all wanted to set the world on fire; you know at least a little.

“Do you remember,
When you were young, and you wanted to set the world on fire?”

I do Grace. I do.

A simple and incomplete analysis of “I was a Teenage Anarchist” could incorrectly conclude this song is a celebration of youthful rebellion. Every verse opens with the title, “I was a Teenage Anarchist,” and the delivery has so much grit and attitude perhaps a casual listener could be forgiven for thinking this is a declaration of passion for lawless chaos. However, it is hard to ignore that “I was a Teenage Anarchist” is written in past tense, so that is the first big hint that this song is a little more complex than a cock/punk rock song.

“I was a teenage anarchist,
Looking for a revolution.”

We all are Grace. We all are.

The second hint is the second verse, when it adds:

“I was a teenage anarchist,
But the politics were too convenient,”

This is a good line, if for no other reason, then the fact it is true.

The third verse digs deeper showing the unavoidable consequence of believing that everyone will just behave if we stop having organized civics.

“I was a teenage anarchist,
But then the scene got too rigid.
It was a mob mentality,
They set their rifle sights on me.
Narrow visions of autonomy,
You want me to surrender my identity.
I was a teenage anarchist,
The revolution was a lie.”

I like the final verse uppermost; it really fleshes out the unavoidable tragic consequence of ill-conceived political conviction.

As it often happens, revolutionaries wish for nothing more than a shift in power in their favour. So often, those who feel oppressed, real or imagined, seek only to shift the target off of them and onto someone they are bigoted against instead. Which is, more or less, the vibe I take away from “I was a Teenage Anarchist.” The fanatics so often becomes the very thing they fight against.

I was ready to enjoy this song forever just based on the energy of the song, the message could have been a juvenile fanfare for the ideologically impractical, and I would have been happy with it. I do not fault people for expressing their hopes and dreams, especially in art, I do not have to agree with someone to enjoy their creativity and passions. The second you think you have it figured out, that’s when I know you are wrong. It is okay to admit you do not know people. It is also okay to admit you were wrong. Every single person who every fancied themselves enlightened, in anything, or in anyway, will face this humbling reality eventually, so long as they are capable of being intellectually honest with themselves and others.

So yeah, it sure is nice when lyrics make sense and invoke thought. Honestly though, I just enjoy a powerful rock song, and Against Me! delivers on that. Much appreciated that a great song was written within it.

Keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

Rancid - Ruby Soho

My most recent roommate and best friend of thirty-two years has exposed me to the circus that is AEW professional wrestling. I pretty much stopped paying attention to professional wrestling the moment Jon Cena became world champion, so I am very out of touch with modern wrestling. Chris Jericho has always been on of our favorites. We met him at a Calgary Comicon and during our brief interaction he was very cool. Jericho was AEW’s first world champion, so that was a big selling point. Anyway, one evening we are watching AEW’s Women’s Casino Battle Royale at All Out and the wild card comes out musically accompanied by Rancid’s “Ruby Soho.” Great song, I dig it, and out comes the competitor with the same name. That’s cool, I can dig that too. I recognize Ruby from a WWE women’s Royal Rumble which the same friend and I watched as well, Ruby Riot she was then. She has an interesting look and I liked her immediately, but that might have had something to due with the entrance music.

Ruby Soho, the wrestler, wins the Casino Battle Royale and will later go on to face Brit Baker the champion. Good times. Afterward, we watched a post conference with Ruby and her new boss Tony Khan, and Ruby was so happy to be there. What I also liked was I could tell from Tony’s body language and expression he was so happy that Ruby was happy. I am routing for AEW, the wrestlers legitimately seem happy there. I wonder how long that will last….

Fairly recently Thunder Rosa finally become World Champion after defeating Britt Baker in a steel cage match. Time has passed, I probably should have written this sooner.

Anyway, this is a music blog, so let’s talk about Rancid.

A lot of my friends listened to a lot of Rancid when I was growing up, which means by extension I listened to a lot of Rancid growing up. Even though Rancid never got their hooks in me back then, but at the same time, I always enjoyed listening to them, and accompanying that, I always enjoyed the company of my friends. The end result is I have many positive nostalgic memories of Rancid, even if they were little more than part of the soundtrack of my life for a short period of time. Further to this point, I could not recall many times I heard Rancid from the days of my youth until recently. The advantage to my aloofness, I get to rediscover some good music.

And so, I did.

I have worked through Rancid’s entire discography. I normally pace myself when absorbing an entire bands work, especially when they have five or more albums. The reason for this gradual approach is I find I pay more attention to individual songs if I give my ear a chance to fully to appreciate the details and nuances of individual songs. When taking in multiple albums at once, the information is a touch too much in quantity for me to process so the songs bleed together. Hardly a serious issue, but when I sit down to talk about why I like Rancid, I have left myself with a single song to anchor too. So, I guess “Ruby Soho” will have to continue to be my focus for the moment.

The Rancid classics of the nineties were several, despite my casual listening and the passage of time, I recall reasonably well tracks like “Time Bomb,” honestly, I think the album “…And Out Come the Wolves” was probably the bulk of my early days listening of Rancid. So it is not too surprising if their great two word hook remains the single strongest memory I have of Rancid.

“Destination unknown.”

It probably did not matter how many years separated my high school house party punk rock sessions and current day, those two words, bellowed out, stayed with me. As I suspect every fan, casual or hardcore of Rancid’s will be unable to forget the sound of Rancid’s guitar section aggressively thrashing and roaring the end point of their punk rock epic. Speed is essential for punk rock, and “Ruby Soho” is just over two and a half minutes. No time wasted. Maximum rocking possible in the time provided. Mathematically a perfect punk rock song, at least by my calculations.

In the arena of punk rock rebellion, there are not many radio-ready moments. While “Ruby Soho” is too punk for the radio of yesteryear, this short explosion of a song is easy to remember, in fact impossible to forget, mostly because it rocks the house, but also because of two how immortal words.

“Destination unknown.”

It also works perfectly as a walk out song; especially if you name yourself after the song. I hope the joy Ruby Soho (the professional wrestler) has many more joyous moments in her current job. I hope this joy runs a perfect parallel with continued mirth enjoyed by Rancid fans, because that would be cool.

Keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves

Clutch - X-Ray Visions

Having seen Clutch threes times I should probably give them a little more love before moving on. After the first two times I saw Clutch live; opening for Black Label Society and then opening for Ozzy Osbourne; the only album of theirs I became familiar with was “Blast Tyrant.” Because of that and television shows like “The Walking Dead” I was naturally familiar with songs like “The Regulator” and “Ghost.” However, in years past, the single Clutch song that I have come to know best must be “X-Ray Visions” from their 2015 album “Psychic Warfare.”

A couple years prior, during a roundtable session, one of my hard rock friends played the music video for “X-Ray Visions” and it was a hit with the room, song and video. This singular event ushered “X-Ray Visions” steadfastly into my algorithm playlists, because I swim with the current in those rivers, the unavoidable ending result is it became the first Clutch song I proper memorized.

The second Clutch song I have properly memorized is “Earth Rocker,” I hope superior Clutch fans approve with my initial happenstance.

What to say about “X-Ray Visions?” Well, my same hard rock friend, has concluded before that Neil Fallon was his favorite lyricist, and it is easy to point to “X-Ray Visions” for supporting argumentation to this point. “X-Ray Visions” appears to be the ramblings of an agent involved in the military’s paranormal efforts. The words are appropriately psychedelic, as it is not entirely clear if this agent is experiencing a drug induced delusion or legitimate physic madness. The chorus tells us the narrator certainly believes it is or real.

“Telekinetic dynamite! Psychic warfare is real!
You better believe me, brother, x-ray vision!
Telekinetic prophetic dynamite! Psychic warfare is real!
I know what you're thinking sister, x-ray vision!”

So that’s fun. Think “The Men Who Stare at Goats” only now as a badass hard rock song. I really enjoyed the movie “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” and I always knew it was based on true events, but I did not realize until just now that the book is one hundred precent non-fiction, which makes me curious the depths of insanity the American Military explored in their efforts to out class the Soviet Union in impossible warfare tactics. Insane or no, it is a very interesting and fun, I would like to know more. Also, great content for a rock song.

Hastily returning to the lyrical strength of Fallon’s, I am very fond of the verse:

“Next thing that I did was tap out Morse code,
With a wooden nickel on the receiver of the phone,
Before I could complete it, I was quickly overtaken,
By the angry spirits of Ronald and Nancy Reagan.”

Who in the world would ever think to include the spirits of the Reagans in a song about the failed attempts at the USA’s physic warfare? Neil Fallon apparently is the answer. As fun, and crafty as that is, I think the adjective that is most appropriate is “bold.” It may not be revolutionary to have a rock superficially about this topic, but this is coming from the same creative brain of a man who has written at least four songs about driving motor vehicles in outer space. Why not? Most people would ask why, but being so bold Fallon does not seem to hesitate.

There is mention of consulting horoscopes in the first verse and this is returned to later during the bridge when Fallon introduces the band by their, presumably real life, astrological symbols. And hey, apparently Fallon and I are both Scorpios, which means nothing. Fun times though.

Go.

I believe my hard rock friends favorite lyric is the final words on the third verse:

“With every day that passes it keeps on getting stranger,
But that really doesn't bother me cause I get off on the danger.”

Hard to argue with that not being the best line in the song “X-Ray Visions.” It might also be the most intensely hard rock lyric ever written in any hard rock song ever. I am not sure. I am not an expert. Just some random dude on the internet rambling about good music (don’t expect too much).

Seeing Clutch live recently was a great way of getting out again after being couped up for so long. Tonight, April 22nd, I am going to go see Beast in Black, so that should help turn things around for me. Perhaps I will find the motivation to get this blog back on it’s old schedule. We will have to wait and see. I guess the point of this final paragraph is to express my gratitude to Clutch for the rocking the house, always, and giving us songs that are nothing but highly imaginative.

- King of Braves