Day 38: High School. Ah, those were the days. They weren't all good days certainly, but time and distance do make the heart grow fonder. I certainly would not want to go back or to relive those days, but the experiences that we had in high school did a lot to carve and shape us into the adults that we all became. For me, music was a big part of that, and I would like to take the next several weeks exploring that era from 1990-1994. In late middle school and much of high school, I was involved in several activities including band, academic games, and science Olympiad. It seems like my friends (but not my only friends) and I would somehow find a way to combine some of these activities with listening to new tapes or CDs on a portable boom box. It was a great way to share and listen to new music and to simply hang out. During my freshman year, They Might Be Giants came out with "a brand new record for 1990" called Flood, and with it I was able to discover a whole new world of geeky musical glory. We listened to it A LOT Freshman year. I like the album so much that I even spent over my usual limit of $10 to buy it (I think that I spent $10.49 at a record store in the Jackson Crossing Mall). A lot of acts try to capture that quirky, funny spirit of TMGB, but no one can really touch them in my mind. I mean, who else can make an accordion work in popular music? No one, that's who. Who can get away with having music videos made by the animaniacs? No one. So today, "not to put too fine a point on it," let's remember that "brand new album for 1990" with "Birdhouse in Your Soul."
11/08/2014
Day 39: At first, I didn't really like Midnight Oil, and Leo couldn't figure out why. In the late middle school and early high school, my friend Leo was easily the biggest influence on my budding tape collection (other than 120, perhaps). Leo had me figured out. One day he passed his copy of Midnight Oil's outstanding album Diesel and Dust, and on first listen, I just didn't like it. "What?" he said, "I don't get it; this is right down your alley." As it turns out, he was right, Midnight Oil slowly grew on, and grew on me... but it took a while. (I just happened to be in a cranky mood when I first heard them). Midnight Oil's 1989 Blue Sky Mining was the album that changed my mind. Much like yesterday's selection, the album seemed to be on heavy rotation for some of our after school activities. Add to that, it seemed to be a favorite of the some of the upperclassman in band class, which certainly gave them credibility. I even remember that Ryan Knott had the CD long box of this album hanging in his locker. So, today I would like to highlight the title track from "Blue Sky Mining," one of the many fine examples of Australia's ultimate eco-rockers anthems to the environment and the working class, hey, hey, hey, hey! That opening sequence of guitar, organ, and signature harmonica bring me right back to Freshman year.
11/09/2014
Day 40: It is said that Jesus spend 40 days in the desert. I have now spent 40 days telling the story of my musical journey. Back in 1991, the band Jesus Jones had roughly 15 minutes of fame. But, oh, they were a good 15 minutes. I am pretty sure that I first heard today's song, the post-cold war anthem "Right Here, Right Now" on 120 Minutes. Despite the major changes that were occurring in geopolitical politics in the early 90s, there seemed to be a scant few songs that seemed to touch on topics such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, etc. I certainly can't think of any that approached the subject with such optimism for the future (please also note that not all the songs I like are depressing). The lyrics are retrospective and uplifting, "I saw the decade in, when it seemed the world could change at the blink of an eye...Right here, right now, there is no other place I wanna be. Right here, right now, watching the world wake up from history." In today's post-911/Tech Bubble, Great Recession era, the Jesus Jones' words almost seem quaint and perhaps even naive. However, the spirit of the song also echoed the sense of wonder that one has as a young person in the early stages of high school, when everything is new and everything seems possible. It really hits a chord with my generation, and hearing the song again is sort of like seeing an old friend for the first time in 25 years.
11/10/2014
Day 41: I have mentioned already that the first album that I every bought was R.E.M.'s Green. When I heard that they were coming out with a new album in 1991. I was… excited. Excited is not really the right word. The release of this album was perhaps the single thing in my life that I have anticipated owning the most in my 39 years. I saved a $10 in my wallet for its purchase for probably close to a year. I had the serial number memorized. I am sadly, not joking. When the fateful day finally arrived, I had a band commitment, so I sent my parents, God bless them, to East Lansing, with the specific $10 bill in hand, to purchase the tape from Wherehouse Records. Now, it was a little anti-climatic by then, because I actually already had a taped-off-the-radio copy of the album as The Impact had played it in it's entirety a few days before. But, it was tremendously satisfying to hold an actual copy of "Out of Time" in my hands. By this time, I had also already heard the 1st single off the album, today's selection, "Losing My Religion," as the now legendary video had debuted on 120 Minutes weeks before. I remember seeing the video and hearing the song for the first time and thinking (and even telling people), "I really like the song, but I just don't think it is going to be that popular or radio-friendly." I guess I just didn't think America was ready for a mandolin solo. As it turns out, this was perhaps the most incorrect thing that I have ever said in my entire life. The song itself is a masterpiece, but the thing that is perhaps the most interesting thing is that a lot of people don't really get the meaning of the song at all. Most notably the TV show Glee, as it circled the drain in a creative sense, had the late Corey Monteith (Finn) sing the song about a crisis of faith. But, the song itself has nothing to do with that. Variations of the phrase "I just about lost my religion" were a favorite of my Mother especially as a way to express extreme frustration. The meaning of the entire song, every single lyric, simply snapped into focus for me one day, like I was momentarily inside Michael Stipe's head. Losing My Religion is an unrequited love song, and perhaps the best one not written by Steven Morrissey. Lines like, "...the distance in your eyes. Oh no, I've said too much; I haven't said enough" speak directly to the frustration of trying to express your true feelings to someone, the fear of rejection, and the emotional rollercoaster of trying to decide the right course of action or inaction. So whether you are in the corner or in the spotlight, this song is all about love (or a lack of it), and it's one of the greatest of all times.
11/11/2014
Day 42: I am willing to bet that so far most of you out there have a least heard of the majority of the bands that I have mentioned so far. But today's selection may be a stumper. That, of course, was one of the joys of alternative music in the early days. Even if you were a geeky, not-terribly-athletic kid who was maybe 120 soaking wet, you at least had the card in your hand to tell someone, "yeah, I'm listening to this new British band right now, but you've probably never heard of them." It seems pretentious now (and probably was then), but that's life, I guess. The Trashcan Sinatras debut album Cake, was another album that comes to mind when I think back to Freshman year. In my early days, I wasn't so interested in some of the harder alternative rock, so their more mellow, British style really appealed to me. It almost seems like alternative bubble gum now, but back then, it was cutting edge. Today's selection is the first single "Only Tongue Can Tell," from that debut album. Even in alternative circles, the Trashcan Sinatras seemed to fade into oblivion shortly after this album, but this track really captures that signature sound of early 90s alternative for me. I hope you enjoy it.
11/12/2014
Day 43: When I first started to listening to new bands in my late middle school days, I really did stick mostly to stuff that was pretty mellow. Slowly but surely, I started to sprinkle in some bands with a little bit more of an edge to them. The band that I am highlighting today, another British band called Ned's Atomic Dustbin was perhaps a "gateway" band to some of the harder portions of my collection that I would collect in later years. Similar to the Trash Can Sinatras, Ned's burned like supernova, shinning brightly in their debut album, "God Fodder" but "obscurity knocked" just a few short months later. Also similar to the Trash Can Sinatras, Ned's signature sound, although somewhat harder, is one that I very closely associate with Freshman year, hanging out with my friend in the band room, the cafeteria, or somebody's house with a boom box. Their songs always had a great bass part, and in many cases the songs feel like they want to be speed metal, but the band is just too polite to really crank it up to 11. For me at the time, the balance was perfect. So, return with me to one of one early high school "Happy" places. If nothing else, the hair and clothes in this video REALLY take me back to 1991.
11/13/2014
Day 44: I imagine that many of you know that Mick Jones was the lead singer for the Clash, but I would guess that fewer of you know that after the Clash broke up, he formed a pseudo alternative dance band called Big Audio Dynamite. In their first incarnation, they even tried to start a new dance craze called "The Bottom Line." (Needless to stay, it was pretty B.A.D.) The second incarnation of the group called Big Audio Dynamite II put out the album "The Globe" in 1991, which contained today's super fun track, "Rush." Now, I am not terribly proud of this but the memory that I most associate with this song actually has to do with the SHS Panther Football team. As a member of the marching band, I attended pretty much every home game. In my day, the Panthers were not particularly good at football. Now the other thing that you need to know is that I really like puns, and I also like to come up with "alternative" lyrics to songs, pretty much to amuse myself. So even though I had a fair amount of school spirit, one Friday night at Stockbridge High mostly like while sitting next to Mark Woolcock and Lissa Steffey, I came up with the following, "situation no-win. Rush for the locker room. We cannot win, so let's give in. Gotta get ourselves right out of here." Sorry Panthers, I do feel bad, but "If I had my time again. I would do it all the same. And not change a single thing. Even when I was to blame."
11/14/2014
Day 45: In the spring time of 1992 (sophomore year) I had the opportunity to take a trip with the high school concert band to Toronto. It was really the first time that I was able to go on what was essentially a road trip with many of my closest friends (albeit a chaperoned one), and we had a great time. We went to the zoo, the CN Tower, a Bluejays game, and even found time for some shenanigans like when Mark, Eric, and I "broke into" Larry Thompson's car, took photos of ourselves behind the wheel and turned the radio and wipers on full blast (I think Larry learned to lock his car after that.) I suppose the band performed a few times as well. But, also during that week, The Cure released what would in all honesty be their last truly great album, "Wish." One of our outings on that trip was to a downtown shopping area, where several of my friends and I wound up in a record store. I remember posters on the wall saying "April 21, 1992: the day your Wish comes true." And it was. R.E.M.'s Out of Town was my most anticipated album release, but Wish was a close 2nd. That feeling of being in a big city record store just a few days after the release of one of your favorite band's best albums was a special kind of cool. The store was playing the record, and I am pretty sure it was the first time I ever heard "Friday, I'm In Love." Only Leo actually bought the album that day, but soon, we all had a copy. So, today, I would like to feature, "From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea," a 7:44 slow-burn Hidden Gem. This is a classic Cure track with an awesome intro and slightly dark, brooding lyrics about lost love. It's simply delicious.
11/15/2014
Day 46: There are two other things that you need to know about me. First, I am a trombone player, so I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the bass line. Second, I come from a family of very strong women, whether it is my mom, sisters, my Aunt Rose and Aunt Louise, or even my cousins Tricia, Nikki, and Sarah. So, I have also had a soft spot for high energy music with female lead singers. One day in 1992, while watching 120 minutes, I can across a song that checked both boxes. That song was today's selection, "Sheela Na Gig" from PJ Harvey. This song was like nothing I had ever heard before. It starts with a call little guitar riff, then Polly Jean's sweet voices comes in, and then that grungy, awesome bass line that transitions into a very energetic chorus. Listening to it was like taking a musical shot of espresso. I was hooked. The lyrics are somehow dark and funny at the same time: "Look at these my child-bearing hips... I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair; I'm gonna take my hips to a man who cares (turn the corner, another one there.)" The song was an underground hit such that at some point a few years later PJ Harvey essentially refused to play the song live anymore. To this day, if I every need a music pick-me-up, I usually tune my iPod to PJ Harvey.
11/16/2014
Day 47: Bands fronted by women don't always have to sound a little angry for them to make my play list. In many ways today's band the 10,000 Maniacs are the mellow counterpoint to yesterday's selection. My sister Dawn was also a fan of 10,000 Maniacs and I may have already owned copies of their previous albums "In My Tribe" and "Blind Man's Zoo" in 1992 when the album "Our Time in Eden" came out. It was a real game-changer. This was right around the time when alternative music was starting to break into the mainstream, and this Natalie Merchant led act was one of the main catalysts. They were already a well-established college radio favorite, and the new record was just a notch more accessible to an audience that was craving something different. Today's song, "These Are Days" became a bit of an anthem for my generation. It was the type of song the Senior classes used in montages summarizing their high school years. I think Tricia even used it in a photo-video montage for Jen and my wedding shower. Looking back now, I don't think the 10,000 Maniacs have aged quite as well as some other bands, but it does make my smile to hear this song again. After all, the song seems to be about living in the moment and reliving that you "are blesses and lucky." It can be a tough world out there, and maybe we all could use a reminder that life is pretty good after all.
11/17/2014
Day 48: One of the fun things about my high school days was the chance to get to know some of the older (and younger students) through extra circular activities. During my first few years of high school, some of the older kids also would wind up influencing some of my musical tastes. Today's selection, "I Wanna be Sedated" from the classic punk rock act The Ramones was a track that Susan Charlevoix first introduced me to. Susan was a bit of a big sister type of influence on me I suppose, as she was one of the chemistry specialists in Science Olympiad, our band Drum Major, and also my predecessor as Quiz Bowl Team Captain. I cannot remember the exact event the prompted my introduction to this track (were we being rowdy one afternoon in band?) But I do remember that for one year at the State Science Olympiad State Finals up at MSU, this song got stuck in my head and became at least my theme song for the event. As a type of tribute to Susan, I went so far as to request the song be played by the Impact while we were killing time somewhere in Well's Hall between events. If wasn't until many years later that I actually bought a Ramones best-of CD (likely just after the death of one of the band members). They may always use the same 3-4 chords in their songs, but the Ramones always got me moving and put a smile on my face. So thanks, Susan, and I hope this picks up everyone's Monday morning.
11/18/2014
Day 49: As my friends and I started to transition from underclassmen to upperclassmen, it certainly did feel like the musical landscape was changing around us. We would still often be the first ones to discover new bands, but some bands, like The Counting Crows seem to spark and catch fire almost immediately. Their debut album "August and Everything After" seemed to be everywhere, especially their debut single "Mr. Jones." The song was so ubiquitous that I think the band itself even got tired of playing it in concerts. But, even though that particular song suffered from over saturation, the brilliance of the entire album cannot be understated. By the time this album came out, my friends and I could all drive, and to this day when I think back to driving around Stockbridge with Leo, I imagine / remember this album paying on the tape deck. I have never been blown away be anything the Counting Crows have done since, but this album remains a mainstay of my playlist. Today I would like to highlight the opening track from that great album, "Round Here," another slow burn gem that hooks me from the opening guitar progression. For me, this song has always evoked thoughts of growing up in a small town and both the wonder and fear of discovering what lies beyond the boundaries of the shire. As I read through the lyrics, I don't think that is what Adam Duritzz meant at all, so maybe I was projecting the feelings of my own 17-yr old self on the song. That's OK, though and perhaps more that is the beautiful thing about music. Each person experiences it a little different, and even if it is "wrong" it is still meaningful. Round here, that is all the matters.
11/19/2014
Day 50: As I have mentioned, extra curricular were an important part of high school for me, and band was one of the more important one. I was very fortunate to have had the chance to attend Band Camp up on MSU's campus both my Freshman and Senior years. The contrast in the experience when one is 14 and when one is 17 is quite stark. When I was a freshman, all I remember was almost losing my contact lens in the sink and having a Senior boy named Darren bail me out. I also remember impressing Senior girl Alexis Dyer by having the order of the tracks on an R.E.M album memorized. By the time we were Seniors, we were the ones pulling pranks but also the ones making sure the Freshman were getting lined up properly and had the correct technique for marking time. But both times, I remember the fun on hanging out in Akers Hall cranking out tunes on someone's boom box. Senior year, I believe that I roomed with Mark, Bob, and Eric, and Mark introduced me to a band like nothing I had heard before: Rage Against the Machine. As I remember, even as a senior I didn't care for it much, but over time, it certainly grew on me. Getting the chance to battle with Tom Morello on Guitar Hero certainly didn't hurt. When I think back to that week, today's song "Killing in the Name" is the one that always comes to mind. The energy of this song as at an 11, and the shear defiance of the ending of the song (sorry about the language) struck a chord with us Seniors to be, so close to "adulthood" but yet 9 or so very long months away. It was an awesome time.
11/20/2014
Day 51: I imagine that there are some of you out there that will see this song and know exactly the story that I am about to tell. Sometime during our Senior year, the school held a lip synch contest ("Mock Rock"?) They year before, a group had attempted the Primus song "Tommy the Cat," which made quite a splash, and this emboldened some of my friends and I to also attempt a performance. It took a while to figure out which song to do, and after some debate we settled on today's song "Cannonball" from the Breeders. There was only one problem: the lead singer for the Breeders is Kim Deal, a women, and we did not have any girls that were part of our little conspiracy. So, I volunteered to dress as a women for the performance. I managed to find a wig, a skirt, and a couple of inflated balloons, and I was able to barrow a bass guitar from one of my friends, and bingo our fake band "Gerbil Theory" was ready to go. (I believe the name was something that I misheard someone say in Van McWilliams physics class.) When the day finally came for the performance, I found myself up on stage with Alvan, and I believe his brother David and Eric. I have never been prone to stage fright, but as the song started, I did feel a bit of panic set in. I inched over to Alvan next to me and shouted my concern in a freaked out tone, "I can't hear the song! I don't know when to come in!" Alvan replied, "It will be OK, JUST KEEP GOING!" And.. it was! Once I got my footing on the sound, I found the intro, and we plowed through the track with bravado. Alvan gave me perhaps the biggest high five of my life after we finished. I will always remember those words of encouragement from a friend at just the right time. It made all the difference. I believe that Gerbil Theory banded together one additional time for a performance at some band event at the end of the year (which allowed my parents to confirm in person that I apparently resembled my sister Dawn while in costume), but I never felt that we could create the same magic as that first performance. As for the song itself, I never really felt the Breeder were anything close to as good as some of the bands from which the members derived (The Pixies and The Throwing Muses, specifically) but this song is pure, mindless fun. If that opening bass line doesn't put a smile on your face, well, I can't help you.
11/21/2014
Day 52: One of my favorite extra curricular activities in high school was quiz bowl. I have always enjoyed trivia, and my official competitive career started in middle school in 4-H with "Dairy Quiz Bowl" along with the likes of Tricia, Aaron Graf, and Jamie Snow. The beautiful thing about Dairy Quiz Bowl was that all 900 or so of the questions for the county and state competitions were printed out in a binder and distributed to each team ahead of time. Now, I have never been an expert in the fine details of farming, but I have a good reaction time and I always been good at memorizing things. As a result my team was able to tear through competition and earn a spot in the National competition in Louisville (where we were defeated easily in 2 matches). But, we interest was piqued and once I entered High School, I immediately joined the Van McWilliam's Quiz Bowl Team. As the years went on, I eventually became team captain, and the team got better and better. By my Senior year, we were pretty good, thank you very much. All four years we competed in WKAR's Quiz Busters program, and my Senior year we made it all the way to the "Final Four" before losing in what I consider to be an upset to Potterville (I still hold a grudge against the town, incidentally :)). But, our team's ultimate achievement came in the official state of Michigan finals that were held that year in Port Huron. It was a fun road trip up I-69, and today's song "Spoonman" from Soundgarden was our unofficial theme song for the trip. I have never been a huge Soundgarden fan, but this track was one of those fun, high energy ditties that really gets your foot tapping (or your head banging, perhaps). Plus, there is an actual spoon solo (how cool is that?) It pumped us up as we prepared to go into battle. Oh, and battle we did. The group of Josh Matthews, Josh Gerhard, Ryan Bentley, and I burned through the competition, making it all the way to the Final match against are arch nemesis, Haslett. We eventually lost and had to settle for the title of runner up, but run in Port Huron was perhaps my proudest moment as a Panther. I can't hear a spoon solo without thinking of it!
11/22/2014
Day 53: I think that it is natural to begin to get a little retrospective once you start to near the end of a major period of life. As I approached graduation day, I certainly got that way. For some reason, today's song, "Regret" from New Order is the song that comes to mind when I recall those days. New Order is another one of those more electronic acts that I like. They have phenomenal singles, yet strangely average albums (Just buy their best-of CD, trust me). But, somewhere along the lines I acquired their 1993 album Republic and listened to it a lot my Senior year. I mentioned a few days ago that I don't really believe in regrets. I believe that is our life experiences, both negative and positive, that shape who we are. To look back and regret is partially to deny ourselves of the experiences that define us. There can be no comedy without tragedy. I think that this song helped me to understand that about myself. The song itself is kind of hard to figure out (it seems to be somehow about finding love and losing love simultaneously), but there are several of the lyrics that I really like, such as the opening: "Maybe I've forgotten the name and the address, of everyone I've ever known, It's nothing I regret." Or in the middle: "You may think that I'm out of hand, That I'm naive, I'll understand. On this occasion, it's not true. Look at me, I'm not you" Or towards the end: "I would like a place I could call my own... Just wait till tomorrow. I guess that's what they all say." It is a song that spoke of both no regrets and the desire the move on, but not quite being able to yet. To the 19-year old version of myself, it really rung true.
11/23/2014
Day 54: As I draw to a close this almost 3-week long journal through my High School years, there is one band and one song that still bears mention. When MTV or VH1 or Rolling Stone do some of their count-downs of things like "the best song of the 90s," and so on, the song at the top is usually today's selection: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from Nirvana. I cannot deny today that I like Nirvana and that the album Nevermind was one of the milestone albums of the 1990s. But, I really did not care for them when I was in High School. I just sort of tolerated them. I remember seeing the video on 120 Minutes for the first time and thinking the cheerleaders with the anarchy symbols was a clever idea, but otherwise the song was just noise. But there was one incident that really sticks in my head about this song. The time was Lissa Steffey's 16th birthday, and she had invited several of us over to her house for a party. Towards the end of the evening, we all staged a sort of dance party in the basement and some of my friends decided to unleash this new track on the group to see how it went over. I am sure it was the first time most people in the group had heard the song. It did not go over particularly well. "That just sounds like heavy metal," someone said. Some of us just weren't ready yet. But a few years later, most of us probably remember when they heard the news that Kurt Cobain had committed suicide (I was driving in East Lansing with Jovon), and most of us probably recognize that the song became the anthem of our generation. So, with that I would like to close this chapter of my story on High School days.
Tomorrow, much as I did in 1994, I would like to move on the next chapter of my life, one with a much more green and white color scheme.
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