A Blast from the Past

Well I guess a lot of you won't be expecting this at all. For those of you who do not know about this band let me give you the lowdown. Kidd Video is band that came from the cartoon series of the same name back in the mid 80's. The synopsis of the series was that the band gets together to practice their music and end up being sucked into a land known as the Flipside by the villain known as Master Blaster and they are rescued by a fairy named Glitter. Most of the episodes deal with the band trying to find a way home and their encounters in the strange world they find themselves in.

Viewers were drawn to the show because it also featured popular music and music videos that were played during the series original run. The band even showcased their own music videos. And to top it off our beloved characters from the cartoon were so popular that they made an album which was only available in Israel. Which brings me to the point of my blog, the Kidd Video Album. No, I do not own a copy but I do have all the songs from someone online.

Why am I blogging about a stupid cheesy fake 80's Band you ask? Because as cheesy as they are, they make me smile and laugh at the times when I thought the songs were cool, being only 4 or 5 when I watched the cartoon.

So to begin I have to say that this album is not bad but it is dated and they lyrics speak for themselves. The album cover features the cast in their cartoon selves and real counterparts. Robbie Rist, Bryan Scott, Gabriele Bennett-Rozzi and Steve Alterman are the cast/band. Yes, Robbie Rist is also known as Cousin Oliver on the Brady Bunch, but here he is known as Whiz the Whiz. :P

Most of the songs are of the men singing, but there are 2 songs which feature Gabriele on lead vocals which are Turn Me Up and It's Over When the Phone Stops Ringing. Interesting note, the song It's Over When The Phone Stops Ringing, was written by Bernie Taupin - friend and co writer of Elton John and Holly Knight who has written numerous hit songs such as "Better Be Good To Me" for Tina Turner and "Ragdoll" for Aerosmith.

There are a couple songs on the album that could have been radio friendly such as the ever popular "Where Did Our Love Go" which Diana Ross and the Supremes did originally. "A Little TLC" and of course the main theme music "Video To Radio" would have been good choices for radio tunes. But the album lacks strong songs to keep it more accessible and more popular. Had there been another song by Holly Knight that they could have covered, this so called band could have made a bigger impact on American audiences.

Overall the album is a classic in its own right, just for a younger crowd and for those die hard fans that need to cover every inch of the 80's. I think its a fun concept and by listening to the music you can tell what songs were inspired by famous stars of that time. Don't take the music seriously folks, its just good fun music to laugh or sing along to. To check out some tunes from the album go to:

http://www.kvflipside.org/

I haven't visited the site in a long time but I think they should have some of the songs posted and some maybe available for download. Since I am on a slow connection I am not able to open the site to tell you.

Enjoy!

Spoon Song Review

At first I wasn't a huge Spoon fan but now they have me wondering what other gems are they hiding. "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" by Spoon, is one very catchy song. I found myself tapping along to the beat and doing a little office chair dance. Silly as it may seem, I am liking this song the more I listen to it.

What is so appealing to me is the the song layout. It sounds like a Motown revival song. If I listen to just the music and shut out the man singing, I can almost picture Stevie Wonder singing the song and playing along with piano at hand.
The kicker in the song? The awesome xylophone or vibraphone playing during the whole song. Only Spoon can pull that off. :)

Yes, the song is that cool! Cool enough to be ranked #16 by Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. Way to go Spoon!

A Strange Education

I am a little late to pick up this band, as they started around 2003 and their first album out in 2007, which is the one I have been listening to recently.
I have found myself in love with those bands that are punk rock influenced and this is one of them. The Cinematics are an original band hailing from Scotland. Yahoo! I love bands from Europe. They seem to be more unique than those from the US. Sorry to those who are offended, I am just voicing my opinion.

Now yes they may seem just like your average band that throws out a good tune but when you listen to tracks like "Race to the City" "Break" and "Alright" you quickly forget that and are lost in the beats, rhythmic bass lines and interesting arrangements. They also do a good job of covering Beck's song "Sunday Sun" from his Sea Change album. A Strange Education is a nice collection of songs to keep the mood up and in forward motion.

Think of an upbeat version of Interpol without the droning vocals. The singer Scott Rinning is in control of his voice and at times he reminds me of Adam Ant when singing higher notes. With Scott at the helm and infectious tunes to rock out to, I hope their sophomore effort is as good as this one. Now if more US newbies were more indivdualistic as this group is, I would be listening to the radio more often. But then again I don't think the Alaska is up to date with the rest of the continental US or the rest of the world.

If you are a fan of Bloc Party, Shiny Toy Guns, Interpol or The Bravery, you just might like this group.

In Memory of Michael Jackson

No words can express how I felt when I heard the King of Pop had died. I felt sad for his family and close friends. I also felt a little happy that he is in a place now that he can be happy and without harsh words. But in reality they are still there. The negative comments and people wanting to tear him apart. But I won't listen to those people.

Michael was a human being with a heart. A heart that felt happiness and sadness as much as the next person and I think people forgot that along his journey here.
I want to remember him as a musician, someone people adored and looked up to with wide eyes wondering if they could have a chance in the spotlight like him.

I want to sit back in my car with "Beat It" blaring through the speakers and singing along with MJ. I want to sing along to "Black or White" when some one is talking trash about Jewish, African American or any other discriminated ethnic groups.

Michael gave us music to think on and hope for a better future and I don't think people see that. I think people misread his thoughts and say what they want about the music. I hope that people will see beyond that.

I really can't put words down as for what I really wish to say cause they just aren't there. All I can say for myself and any others who feel the same way:
Please let Michael go. Let his music and memories stay good and without bad intent.
Love him, let his family grieve, remember the wonderful moments that he put in our minds and hearts. Let us all stop being monsters and creatures of a dark night that should be forgotten. People will always wonder and ask why.
All those words, careless memories and cold hearts will still be there the next day, but in the end "it's just human nature".

I have a lot of Eric Clapton and sometimes I don't listen to a lot of it. So today two Clapton songs came up on my ipod while having it on shuffle, song one was his version of "I Shot The Sheriff". When I was little I hated this song, both Marley and Clapton's versions. So I am supposed to be scanning and I decided not to skip it when the song came on. Soon I realized I am bopping back and forth to the beat of the song and actually listening to the lyrics. I found myself intrigued by the lyrics and the groove of the song. Soon I stopped scanning completely to listen to the song twice in a row: Once through just for the lyrics and then the second time for the music. I think I have a new respect for the song. I loved the piano and organ bits, the drumming is very slick and organized, the bass groove and the guitar riffs that are simple and timely. And the girls singing wasn't annoying me anymore. I have always loved Marcy Levy since hearing her on Clapton's Behind the Sun album. She is Clapton's most recognized backing vocalist since joining him in 1974 after singing with Bob Seger. She has written a few songs with Clapton as well, most notably "Lay Down Sally".

So that was song one that I found a new appreciation for. Song two was a song not written by Clapton, but on his August album called "Grand Illusion", which I though i never liked. Boy was I wrong. I have never even listened to the dang song since today. WTF. Sooooo, once again I had to stop and listen to the song twice through for the lyrics and then for the music. A dark somber song that I recognized the drumming and the drummer behind the kit. Yes, Phil Collins. If Eric Clapton hadn't started singing, I could have sworn it was a b-side of Collins that could have filled his "No Jacket Required" album. Simple lyrics but still very powerful. I love the bridge into the chours where the thumping of the drums ask you for attention. The best line in the song in my opinion:

"I used to chase the moments of desire
Back to when my young heart burned like a fire."

Ladyhawke

Just when I think I have heard all the best stuff from 2008, my friend Brandi tells me about this gem. All she said to me was, "I know you love 80's music, so just go buy this album, Ladyhawke. I guarantee you will love the whole album. Please just go out and buy it." Well, I couldn't cause its a rule that during December no one in the family gets their selves gifts. So I told her I'd have to wait and see if Santa brings it to me. My sister gave me the cd for x-mas and all I can say is WOW!

First off I have to say it again with previous albums I've reviewed, my own words won't fully give the best description but I DO try. If you love 80's tunes and the memories/feelings it invokes, this is a must have. Some songs invoke different 80's artists and I will tell you which songs I think have a similar feeling. Phillipa Brown/ Pip Brown (aka Ladyhawke) is a bit of everything you can imagine. Another cool aspect of Ladyhawke, she plays just about every instrument on the album from guitar, bass drums and synths. So without further ado, onto the album.

Magic, the opening track makes me think of lots of different 80's things. To me it makes me think of riding on the back of Falcor from The Neverending Story and the next I feel like I am Sarah running through the Labyrinth.

Manipulating Woman reminds me of a 'Til Tuesday song, Ladyhawke sounds a lot like Aimee Mann with the chorus of "ooh ooh's" in the background. I love the beat as its eerily cheerful as well as those 'oh oh's' being sung.

My Delirium is my absolute favorite as i feel as its Pat Benatar inspired, I love Pat Benatar and I can easily see her singing this song. I can also picture Missing Persons doing this as well, when Dale Bozzio isn't doing so much of her 'poppy voice' like in the song "Words" . I see it in a similar vein as "Noticeable One" It's the drums and the bass that places the song into my Driving Music playlist on my ipod and way before I saw the music video for the song. The music video features a water colored Ladyhawke in a car driving down a desert highway, which I think was inspired by a-ha's "Take On Me" video. This song was also chosen to be a single.

Better Than Sunday is another Aimee Mann sound alike. Her voice sounds a bit synthesized during the verses and the lyrics for the chorus makes me think of "Everyday Is Like Sunday" by Morrissey.

Another Runaway is a bit of all sorts of 80's artists. "Oh Oh Oh I don't believe it" makes me think of the Buggles 'Video Killed the Radio Star" while the rest of the chorus makes me think of Chrissy Hynde. I know you're thinking what kind of combo is that, but you just have to go and listen for yourself and figure out which songs remind you of 80's people/bands.

Love Don't Live Here Anymore sounds like the early eighties in this song, ranging from Quarterflash to Pat Benatar to Loverboy's "Turn Me Loose". It's the quality of the sound. Like it was recorded back then.

Back Of The Van is another favorite and so reminds me of Kim Carnes's "You Make My Heart Beat Faster" I also think of this song being a counterpart to Icehouse's song "Not My Kind". The video to this song is so neat as its dedicated to stylized 80's videos: Her hair, the back drops, the dancers, all of it is pure 80's in its best form. Some might think its cheesy, but I love it. Also I like the little things of songs like when Ladyhawke is singing the "You set me on" during the chorus and she goes up a note on the word 'You' make the song better in my opinion.

Paris Is Burning reminds me of Bananarama with the verse's percussion and Gary Newman's song "Cars". Easy to sing along to and it's her main single from the album.

Professional Suicide, another Gary Numan sounding song. With all the synths I also think of Human League and other heavy synth bands during the early eighties.

Dusk Till Dawn is a great dance song with feelings of Survivor's drum beat of "Eye Of The Tiger" and sounds like it could have made the cut on Duran Duran's first album, the tone of the album and a side song to "Friends Of Mine" I could also see Laura Branigan making this song a classic hit for her self.

Crazy World is something Cyndi Lauper or Belinda Carlisle would have splashed on either their first or second albums. The thing about Ladyhawk's singing is that you hear her but you can't help but picture all these amazing artists who inspired her to make this and other songs. It's like putting together a puzzle of your past.

and last but not least the album closes with a song to wind down with Morning Dreams. This makes me think of Eric Clapton's "Never Meant to Make You Cry" and "It All Depends" from his 'Behind the Sun' album.

So as you can see, Ladyhawke is just about anything you can remember from your childhood in the eighties. Writing all her music and playing it is a hard thing to do but she goes out of the way to make her songs her own. All of the eighties wasn't bad. She reminds us of that.

Not Another Broken Heart

There comes a time when you buy an album and after 5 spins on the cd player, mp3 player or what ever listening device you have, you finally see why the album was popular at the time of its release and why that album will stand the test of time. First off, I want to set the record straight: I didn't know what I was getting into when I bought this album and didn't know what to expect. I also want to say I never really cared for the band Yes. That was until I heard a song at work called "I've Seen All Good People", I instantly loved the jingle jangle guitar work and the layered vocals. I had to know who was the band/singer of the song and found it to be the band Yes. I wanted to hear more of the layered vocals and odd instrumentation. Because of this I pulled their "90125" album out again to hear what I found I liked about this rock band.

"90125" is/was the start of a new beginning for the group and the return of former vocalist Jon Anderson, who quit back in 1979 and the introduction of new member Trevor Rabin on guitars/vocals/keys. This was also their turn to use the synths and keyboards to the best of their knowledge and combine it with their rock roots to make an album that was radio friendly and a hit with fans and with new listeners.

Of course everyone loved "Owner Of A Broken Heart" which I think gets a bit repetitive. Don't get me wrong! I like the song but there is only so much of it I can take. The other songs that made it to radio and on the charts are "Hold On" which plays like a down trodden track that you should listen to when you need a good friend to pick you up. This is one of my favorites on this album. "It Can Happen" leaves an oriental image in my head with the oriental sound in the intro of the song. I like this song as it is a message for you to open your eyes to what could be and what is happening to your life. "Changes" I remember hearing on the radio when I was little and has an eerie feeling to it. The song is about how you take the changes in your life and how the things you do can affect not only you but others around you. "Leave It" is a fun song full of the stuff that everyone can recognize as being "80's" I think everyone can figure out what this song talks about, taking what you can and leave the rest behind. Funny thing about this song, the first time I heard it brought back a memory. I remember hearing this song on the radio, the tv being on and seeing Gumby on the screen. So now whenever i hear it I think of the fun toys the 80's brought us. Also as a bit of trivia, this song had a video for it as that was the popular thing to do as a musician/band in the '80's. Actually this song has 15 videos made by Godley and Cream who were responsible for a lot of popular videos back then.

The other songs on this album are classics as well in their own right. "City of Love" is awesome as it sounds like it is a slowed down cousin song of Starship's "We Built This City" as the guitars take precedence over the keys and synths. When the keys come in the song, they aren't over the top. The cool deepness to the guitars and the cheeriness of the keys are a good combo. The vocals are strong and tight and I like that. One of the best songs on this album.
The track "Hearts" closes the album on a tender note, may it be considered the 'ballad' on the album since there really are no ballads. Also "Cinema" is the only instrumental song on the album.

Overall the album is a 4 out of 5 stars for me. All the songs are great, but 2 that are not standouts like others. I think the band faired very well with Jon Anderson returning and getting ex-Buggle/Art of Noise member Trevor Horn to join the band and produce the album to make it an album from the eighties well worth having in your collection.