Wake up Mr. West, Mr. West, Mr. West

I can sit here all day and tell you about all sorts of things like why I love Rage Against the Machine, or why watching sports isn't as fun as it used to be, and so on. OK, not all day, but you catch my drift. Too many things to talk about, and to be honest, I don't want to clutter this blog with posts-after-posts of utter crap or unimportant stuff. Then again, I probably already do. But at least I'm limiting it, right?

Alright, without further ado I present to you my choice of Best Album of 2010: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West. If you ask me (which you probably are), Kanye West is an underrated artist. Sure he has said and done a lot of dumb things while being in the limelight, but his music talents (vision, producing music, rapping, etc) should not be brushed aside. We all know about the whole Taylor Swift incident: Kanye interrupting Swift's one true moment of "honor" by saying Beyonce should have won the award. Immature? Yes. Was he right about America turning a blind eye to real/true art and culture? Of course he was. Hate him all you want, but Kanye never tries to be someone he's not. It's like watching a Guns N' Roses concert live: Axl Rose will come on stage late - always has, and always will - don't expect him to perform on time. Kanye West is, well, Kanye West. Talented, big ego (oh, does he ever), says what he feels when he feels like it, and so on. He admits it himself.

Despite doing some dumb things, Kanye West is a great artist who goes beyond the limits in the musical world, and isn't afraid to deliver a different style of music. In other words, Kanye West invests heavily in the art of music.

Enough of my rambling. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy gives off the impression of an egotistic maniac trying to do so many things in a short amount of time. Add the sexual fantasies, twisted humor, insanely good flow in both the beat and the singers/rappers, and a bit of almost every genre, and you've got My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Sounds a lot and all over the place, and in a way it is - but in a very good, yet complex way. Sort of a big sound. Kanye, again, trying to deliver something different from his other albums. Mission accomplished.

I will admit it. The first two, three times I heard the new album, I said to myself, "Different. Seems loud (rhythm, layers, etc), and it's missing something." It was missing something alright: my deep attention. I expected something more akin to Late Registration or Graduation, but what I got was something totally different - something that tested the waters and was different than any rap album. Kanye did it again.

Song list:
1. Dark Fantasy
2. Gorgeous
3. Power
4. All of the Lights (Interlude)
5. All of the Lights
6. Monster
7. So Appalled
8. Devil in a New Dress
9. Runaway
10. Hell of a Life
11. Blame Game
12. Lost in the World
12. Who will Save America

Ones in bold are my favorite. The first half of the album is in-your-face, heavy rhtym and vocals; the second half is more light, and artsy. Runaway is a perfect example of Kanye breaching the limits and delivering Art.

Guns N' Roses Concert: Axl Leaves a Longlasting Memory

Going to make this short and sweet. The Guns N' Roses concert was electrifying and an additional boost of adrenaline throughout the body. The two opening bands (Danko Jones & Sebastian Bach) provided energy (as if there really needed to be with Guns N' Roses playing later that night) and an extra dose of anxiousness (if that is even possible) for Guns N' Roses. By the time both musicians finished it was almost 9:30pm. If there was any flaw that came with Guns N' Roses it was waiting. Then again, waiting/delaying the concert has been part of Axl Rose since he began thrashing and rocking the music business in the early 1980s.
The concert was indeed electrifying; numerous explosions and effects. Fire! You name it. One song after another for 2 hours and 40 minutes. Well, of courses in between some songs Axl Rose spoke to the audience (you can read some of his quotes in the previous blog post. Right under this one). And for those who called (and still do!) Axl fat, let me just say that he was running (as usual) around the stage throughout the concert. Sure he has gained weight. Fuck, he's 48 years old!! He's bound to put on some weight. However, I would not say he is "fat." I would say he is bigger, but more in shape than "fat," if you know what I mean. As for his voice, it was remarkable. Almost as good as he sounded in the early 90s - and that is saying a lot. Sure he is older and his voice is different, which is common. But he still sounds phenomenal and breathtaking. If there truly is a heaven, then this was it. The best night of my life.
A scarf was thrown at him at the beginning of the concert, followed by a bra in the latter part, and finally a Quebec flag during the last song of the concert (Paradise City). Yes, he did take the Quebec flag and wrapped it around himself while singing the last part of Paradise City. He ended the concert with a bang (no, not by having sex on stage). He tossed his beloved microphone into the crowd (those on the floor), was encountered by two lovely women who brought a handful of shots (not sure what alcohol); he then shared the shots to several people in the crowd, the women and himself ... and well, you guessed it - he saluted the fans, the city and drank. His last words were:

"You deserve the truth, but not tonight."

-referring to the decade-long controversy with former GNR member, Slash.

*Keep in mind that I might write more on this in the future.*

A Small Preview: Review of GNR Concert Underway (posted later this week)

I think I recognize some of you ... That's right!!!

- Axl Rose referring to the riot 17 years ago - the last time GNR were in Montreal.

I remember a few years back we did the MTV awards and people said I was out of breath!"

- Axl proceeds to tell the story of how he ran from the cops to be on stage for the VMA's (MTV).

They thought I was Kid Rock!

- Axl Rose referring to the people he "ran" by while being "chased" by the cops.

January 27, 2010

I am debating if I should write some sort of review next week on the upcoming Guns N' Roses concert. The reason I am debating is based on time, which I may not have in the next few weeks, lack of memory of the songs played (yes! It is important if I am going to be expressing vocals/riffs of certain songs, and so on.), etc. Editing, too. But I guess I can list some songs I wish to hear next week.
The songs that will certainly be sung are: Welcome to the Jungle, Paradise City, November Rain, Chinese Democracy, Better and You Could Be Mine. 100% certain. However, these are the songs (not always sung, if ever) I would like to hear as well:
Estranged (it would leave me breathless!)
Prostitute (from new album, but only played 2-3 times live during this tour)
There Was A Time (same as Prostitute)
Locomotive (would be fucking intense)
Garden Of Eden (I HIGHLY doubt this will ever be played live again. Hard to imagine Axl pulling it off live anyways)
Breakdown (same as Estranged)

I shall see ...

Two More Weeks

Two weeks until I lose most of my voice. Yup. Guns N' Roses is coming to the city !!! And I will be singing all night loooooooong. I have been filled with adrenaline and excitement ever since I got my tickets early November. I have been listening nothing but Guns N' Roses lately. To those who I haven't bugged yet (about GNR), you're about to be bugged and hear nothing but Guns N' Roses. :P

The Bandanna is Back: I am psyched

I am fucking ecstatic! Fucking "A." Seriously. I know I should be studying Italian for my upcoming and only exam this Friday, but it is really hard. I just saw plenty of footage on the Guns n' Roses live concert in Taipei, which was December 11 - the start of their Chinese Democracy tour. Holy Shit. Damn. I heard and saw Axl Rose sing live in 2006 (on youtube of course) and I thought he still had some considering not singing live in many, many years. And the fact that at the time he was 44 years old, but let's not forget how he still has a voice after all the yelling in the late 80s and early 90s.
Anyways, I saw a shitload of their live songs in Taipai and I've been blown away. Fuck, Axl Rose still has it. Even BETTER than his voice in 2006. You already know, but I will say it again because I am too excited - I am going to watch Guns n' Roses live in January! :D

Welcome To The Jungle live in Taipei, 2009

Paradise City live in Taipei, 2009

OH, another thing ..... the BANDANNA IS BACK!!! w000000000000000000t