We Humans Can Be Real Suckers

The battle versus style and substance is no real battle at all.  However, we can be easily fooled and often we are.  Two things have my mind on this very thought.  The release of the wholly unnecessary 4th installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series and the greatly anticipated 3rd album from her holiness Lady Gaga ‘Born This Way’.

First and foremost, we have been utterly duped by Disney who got extremely lucky that Johnny Depp had a moment of artistic genius when he conjured up Captain Jack Sparrow in his, I’m sure partially insane (have you seen Fear and Loathing?), mind.  His character has lured us right into what is a far less substantive experience.   Jack Sparrow has mesmerized movie goers and pop culture so significantly that we have made preposterously plotted movies into one of the highest grossing movie franchises of all-time.  Other comparable franchises by numbers: Harry Potter, Star Wars, and the Lord of the Rings.  I don’t think there is much debate that Pirates is nowhere near on par with these other 3 franchises….not including the prequels to Star Wars, but the box office numbers wouldn’t suggest this.  We can be mad at the industry all we want, but what does it say about us as humans who are continually shown to be complete suckers.

I believe there is a similar effect with Lady Gaga.  I’ll go more into her music later, but if it weren’t for her iconic fashion and pop culture status, I do not believe the music would stand on its own.  This is also the case with the latest album, which I heard from front to back this afternoon.  But this does not change the fact that if I saw her outside of a concert hall I wouldn’t know whether I should drop to one knee and kiss her hand, ask for an autograph, or start laughing at the device that protruded 3 feet in all directions off of her head.  I would likely do all 3.  Now I’m not saying Lady Gaga is the equivalent to POC for the music industry, so let me set Gaga lovers minds at ease.  She’s more like the super hero movie of the music industry.  Occasional head scratchers, wearing meat and Madonna rip-offs (Fantastic Four, Elektra, Daredevil) but than a healthy # of home runs, Bad Romance and her human rights influence (Robert Downey as Iron Man, Toby as Spidey).

Now as far as my actual review of ‘Born This Way’, here is my 2 cents.  The album is dense, as in, loud and a lot going on.  The 80′s influences are beaten to death here, and perhaps this was her intent.  A tribute of some kind.  What I did enjoy was how the album closes out.  Some darker tracks with sick guitar riffs and solo’s mixed into the synth pop layerings.  But essentially what we have here is one dance floor and self esteem anthem after another.  Mantra’s like “I was born this way” and “I will be strong”.  There isn’t anything wrong with this in essence, but it does grow tired over 14-17 tracks, depending on which version of the album you get.  There are a lot of religious allusions and foreign flavors (German, Spanish, etc.) that give a facade of sophistication, but I really thought these were forced.  If I’m not mistaken there were at least 3 or 4 references to Jesus somewhere on this album which is fine, but I can just here the controversy coming already, as there has been with her single ‘Judas’.  Overall, I can say I’d give the album a solid 7/10 with the highlight being ‘Highway Unicorn’ for its rock/metal touches.

2 WOOTS for Truth!

I have an inspiration playlist.  Mostly stuff that sparks pondering, nothing too heavy but generally not overly light.  If I get too amped up writing I tend to get kind of aggressive with my prose and think my ideas are more urgent to express then necessary….or rather more urgent a tone than most people are willing to digest (and I don’t blame them, I can get intense).  Heavy music can do that to me, and no doubt it’s a therapeutic mode and there ain’t nothing wrong with that mindset, but it’s best utilized in some stream of consciousness super intense journal entries.  If the music is too light, it becomes relaxation mode, I don’t ponder so much to say Explosions in the Sky.  I more so just straight listen to that kind of music, or it can be very good background noise for studying.  Now, on the other hand, you get some Kid Cudi with a ponderous beat and introspective lyrics, some intellection wants to become words.  Or perhaps Russian Circles, ponderous, heavy at times, progressive, and instrumental.  The kind of stuff that makes you feel like your flying over landscapes, observing the world, and pondering how to solve it’s problems or exactly what your place on this space rock really is.

Some artists on my ponderous playlist
Arcade Fire
Kasabian
Radiohead (no brainer)
El-P instrumentals
select Mastodon and Tool tracks
etc.

You like how I sneak in some choice artists and bands without outright suggesting, it’s all in the flow.  But now I just outed my covert strategy.  Whatever.  And by the way, the new Explosions in the Sky: Take Care Take Care Take Care, is a most excellent piece of listening.

I cleaned my room today, put a bookshelf in there as my book and blu ray selection is getting rather robust.  I take careful consideration as to what will be the top shelf books and what will get ostracized to the foot level resting place.  I clean my room but once a month, I swear.  I’m a perfectionist and so I usually end up not doing things because I don’t want to half-ass it.  It’s not the best way to live life, and I recall my brother explaining to me how many things cleared up for him personally and professionally when he tackled that beast of perfectionism.  I’ll need to look into some material.  Perhaps I’ve beaten the mental health, philosophy, and brain health topics to a bloody pulp and moving to some new non-fic topics would be good.

So much focus on the self, being in the mind all the time.  And it doesn’t help that so much of my reading involves Psychology.  I was already a heavy thinker all through life, now that I’ve learned the curious nature of mood and motivation, I almost wonder if ignorance was a better option.  Too late now, but truth and knowledge I feel win out eventually and is the best medicine for any wounds: physical, spiritual, emotional, and whatever else you can think of.  2 WOOTS! for truth.

I leave you with this small window into the mind of Mike.  Thanks all who read and comment and subscribe please…PEACE!

Music is Love

I think I’m terrible at giving gifts in the traditional sense.  I always want to buy people something I would want and just hope that they will like it as well.  Every now and again I’m really in touch with what the person enjoys or wants or needs and I get satisfaction out of making em happy that way.  But in the past when I’ve gotten to know people I’ve always had this tendency to burn them CD’s.  There are the rare grip of people who actually appreciate this.  But the general tendency of humans,  I’ve noticed, is to not care that much for something unless it was their idea.  I’ve learned over time that to dodge disappointment required me not suggesting movies, music, and books very often.  3 of the things that I am voracious for.  I know this sounds like accepting defeat or being pessimistic, but I’ve begun to value my opinion about these things and feel similarly that giving it out is only worth it if I know the individual will equally value the suggestion.

It was a Christmas (2008 I believe) and I gave my girlfriend some 10,000 songs on her Ipod…this is an estimate.  She deleted them after we broke up, along with all the great pictures we took…bummer.  I feel I can say this because I’m more than positive she doesn’t read this blog.  And it’s not vindictive in anyway.  It’s just to say that I’ve used music as love my whole life.  When I love someone, I often want to give them music, watch great movies, or suggest fabulous books that I’ve read.

So let me put it this way.  If I ever suggest artists or better yet want to make you a burned CD…it means love.