Sonorant

I promised posts, so here's some more free music. Introducing Sonorant (AKA Chris Catharsis), a Georgia-based metal guitarist well worth keeping an eye on. These days, metal bands can often be divided into either melodic or rhythm-focused groups in terms of their instrumentals. The more melody-based metal acts (Bullet For My Valentine, Avenged Sevenfold, etc.) tend to have a wider appeal than, say, rhythm-centric (and, in my personal opinion, fascinating) groups in the vein of Meshuggah. This is arguably all the more reason to appreciate acts like Sonorant which manage to strike an even balance of melodic and rhythmic craziness. Not only displaying a keen ear for melody, Sonorant appears to be heavily influenced by none other than the mighty Meshuggah, as evidenced by the cover of Meshuggah's song Sane on the band's Myspace page. For those of you unfamiliar with Meshuggah, they are essentially the masters of rhythmic displacement, polyrhythms, polymeters, and inordinately heavy guitar grooves. As Meshuggah guitarist Fredrik Thorendal once told Guitar World magazine (quoted from the September 2012 issue), "I understand why people hear odd meters in our songs, because we group our notes in different ways. But just about all of them are 4/4." The band's tracks tend to focus more on creating a groove than a melody. Sonorant's songs, however, combine the interesting rhythmic elements of bands like Meshuggah with some fantastic melodies. As an added bonus, Sonorant's songs don't have vocal tracks, allowing them to appeal to those who would be repulsed by the menacing barks, snarls and growls of Meshuggah's singer. As usual, more of Sonorant's tracks can be found for free at their Jamendo page. Enjoy.

Soon...

Well, it's time for finals. I'll be done with finals late on the 16th, and will be back home on the 18th. In other words, I'll be able to start posting again quite soon. I have a bit of a backlog of stuff to share with you, so I'll be posting quite a bit this Christmas break. See you then! Guitarman

Hot Fiction, and a status update

Well, it's been about a month since I've posted. Between writing essays and reading school texts, I haven't had much time to breathe. Anyways, it's been too long since I've been able to post some free music, so here we go! Hot Fiction is a London-based alt-rock and blues outfit that's caught my attention lately. Their music somehow has a strong groove while remaining loose and open. It's a fairly minimalist sound, which works quite well for their style of the blues. Naturally, their primal sound and two-man lineup will draw forth the inevitable Black Keys comparisons, but Hot Fiction definitely has their own distinct feel. For more information, you can find the band's bio here. I'm a sucker for heavy blues, so they drew me straight in. I'm hoping that they might do the same for you. As usual, you can find their music for free. Enjoy. (By the way, the reason the formatting for this post is a little odd is because www.blogger.com is being weird right now. I'm actually typing this into the html editor, because the normal text input will only let me type while I hold the left mouse button for some odd reason...)

Life. It happens.

It seems I wasn't able to get a post out this weekend. Well, such is the life of a college student I suppose. Judging by the current state of my calendar, I won't be making regular posts for a little while. Also, the campus internet is a little spotty, preventing me from spending too much time looking around for interesting music. Once I get those two issues sorted out, I'll return to a more regular schedule. Until then!

A Feast for the ears (part 1)

Hello there. Ever heard of a band named Annihilator? If not, then I'm not too surprised. Despite being a highly influential metal band, the Canadian thrash group Annihilator never quite gets the acclaim it should. Hopefully, their latest album Feast will change that somewhat. A powerful album in its own right, Feast really shines with its bonus tracks. In fact, Feast has more bonus tracks (fifteen) than standard tracks (nine). Why so many bonus tracks? The bonus, second disk to Feast is actually a collection of re-recorded Annihilator classics. Furthermore, some of those re-recordings are actually improvements over the original songs. In any event, this blog post wasn't intended as a review of the album. I'll do that soon. Instead, I have here some interviews with Jeff Waters, one of Annihilator's founding members and a truly phenomenal muisician. Furthermore, he makes for a highly entertaining and informative interviewee. I think these interviews, one concerning the current state of the metal genre and one about Feast, should be interesting even for non-metalheads. Enjoy.

Just checking in

Now that I've settled in to my new dorm, I should be able to return to a regular posting schedule. I plan to post every Saturday around noon US central time. While I may post more than this, keep in mind that I am a college student now. Let's not expect any miracles. :p

Status update

Well, things have been hectic for me lately. Mid-august, I will be going off to college out-of-state. As a result, I've been frantically making preparations and haven't had much time for blog posts. Until I'm settled in my new dorm, I will probably not be posting regularly. I intend to return to a regular schedule by the start of September at the latest. I may post occasionally before then, but most likely not once-per-week. Until then, have a nice summer!

A change of pace

Well, summer camp put a large dent in my scheduling plans. Fear not, I intend to return to my weekly routine. In any event, today's post is not going to include more free music. I've been doing more than enough of that lately. Instead, I'm going to list a few of my favorite albums. For the record, this is a highly subjective and inconclusive list. I'm not making a list of "best" albums. Those lists irritate me. Judging music's worth through a rigid ranking system just doesn't sit well with me. Anyways, I didn't want to start a rant: on with the list!


Black Sabbath: "Black Sabbath" + "13"





I am a huge fan of Tony Iommi, guitarist of Black Sabbath. He's shown absolutely mind-blowing versatility over his career. I, for one, am the proud owner of a Tony Iommi signature Epiphone sg. I may be a metal-head, but I have blues-man's heart. As such, I'm drawn towards the sinister blues of Sabbath's self-titled debut album and the crushing bluesy grooves of their latest work, "13." My favorite tracks? That's like asking me which of my children I like the most...They're all amazing in my opinion.


Trouble: "Manic Frustration"



Now HERE'S a feast for the ears! The album is a legendary doom metal band's fantastic take on psychedelic rock. This is hands down one of my favorite albums. It's hard hitting, but is ultimately more reminiscent of Hendrix than it is of, say, Sabbath. I'd have to say that Hello Strawberry Skies is one of my favorite hard-rock songs period. You really don't need to be a metal-head like me to enjoy this one.


Slash: "Slash"



This solo album by Slash, guitarist of Guns and Roses fame, features a nonsensical collection of vocalists. Never had I expected to see Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy Kilmeister, Adam Levine, and Fergie co-star on the same album. The album, naturally, is not the most coherent of compilations. Frankly, I see that as a good thing. It keeps the listener on their toes. Slash masterfully juggles a variety of styles, from glam-infused-alt-rock to traditional hard-rock, from haunting ballads to airtight modern metal. With thirteen different singers, the album's eclectic nature keeps me coming back for more. There's really something for everyone there.


Well, that's it for today's post. I'll be back later with more of my favorite albums.

Oleg Serkov

Well, I'm a little behind schedule, but life happens. Anyways, I'm just going to cut to the chase and bring out the music!

Catalogue professionnel de musique libre

Oleg Serkov is a Russian guitarist and songwriter with a sizeable collection of free singles and extended plays for your perusal. He's a fantastic musician, but an even better composer. His songs are rife with poignant melodies, diverse interludes, and dramatic tension. Coupled with fantastic production values and stellar musicianship, he's worth a listen.

Edit: Once again, I don't know why the Jamendo player is being so weird lately. Gah.

3 Leg Torso

Hello, again. This time, it looks like I've actually made my schedule for once. I'll make more of an effort on that front in the future. Anyways, on to the music. It's not free this time around, but it's worth it.



3 Leg Torso is a fairly peculiar chamber music group from Portland, Oregon. While their studio albums are (comparatively, at least) normal, their live performances are interspersed with comedic acts. These segments sometimes serve to "explain" the significance of certain songs, or even simply to add a spontaneous flair to the night's music. I went to a 3 Leg Torso concert about a month ago without any prior knowledge of the band (the concert was a surprise addition to my school-planned senior trip). During the intermission, I bought three albums: one on cd and two on download vouchers (which, for the record, did not actually work, much to my chagrin). Yes, the band is just that good. But hey, don't take my word for it. Go give them a listen. With a repertoire of emotions ranging from frivolous to haunting, I guarantee that you will find something to like from them.

Recognition!

Hello again. No this is NOT the post I promised. This is just something I've been meaning to post for a while now. Remember Maldia? Well, it seems that we'll be hearing from them again. A while ago, I received an email from Jesus (sorry friend, but my computer doesn't seem to want to accent the "u" today), the guitarist of Maldia. According to him, the band is currently working on some new material with more of a modern vibe (in his words, "trying to be less classic but keeping the good stuff"). I personally have no problem with classic metal, but I'm going trust his decision on this. Considering their impressive debut, we can expect great things from Maldia's upcoming work. In the meantime, here's the music video for their debut's first track "Bajo Mi Cama" ("under my bed") for your enjoyment.

Well then...

It would seem that my internet hates me. I had intended to write this post yesterday and schedule it for release today. Sadly, I have not been able to access the internet at my house since lunchtime yesterday. As a result, I'm writing this in the backroom of a local coffee shop. Furthermore, as you may have noticed, I am several hours late in doing so. To prevent a repeat issue, I will be queuing an additional blog post that will be released next week on schedule. Without further ado, let's hear some music.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Drop Alive is a two-man hard rock outfit from Pavia, Italy. I say hard rock, but Drop Alive's eponymous debut opens with a pulverizing wall of rhythm guitar that reminded me of the works of Canadian thrash metal giant Annihilator. The album is a bit short, at some thirty-odd minutes in length, but it hits hard and fast from start to finish. Interestingly enough, the band's frontman, Simon, was responsible for all instruments (except the drums) and songwriting for the album. Drop Alive isn't quite a one-man-band like Brad Sucks, but there is still a tremendous sense of unified artistic vision on the album. I could go on, but I think the music speaks for itself. It's amazing, and it's free. Honestly, what more could you want?

Some belated music

Well, so much for consistent posts...For the record, my internet access is a bit inconstant. I'll shoot for Fridays at 9AM pacific time, but I will occasionally by unable to meet that posting goal. Anyways, here's some music.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Daniel Bautista is a prolific guitarist hailing from Las Palmas de G.C., Spain. His repertoire spans from classic metal to metal versions of the classics, as well as other less metal-based styles. Daniel offers an impressive discography of free albums: twenty years of free works! For delivering both quantity and undeniable quality, Bautista deserves a look. For more information (and the aforementioned free music), visit his website at http://www.danielbautista.com. Cheers.

More music, and a new schedule

Greetings. Now that I've graduated, and had a short celebratory break, I can continue posting to ROTGM. In fact, I have good news. For the rest of the summer, you can expect new posts every Friday at 9AM Pacific Daylight Time. For the sake of consistency, I will be writing the posts before Friday and then setting them to release on schedule. I'm looking forward to this. So, without further ado, here's some music.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Dead Relic is an alt-metal band that hails from La Laguna, Spain. This eponymous EP is a feast for the ears. The production is crisp, the vocals are articulated well, the instrumentals are flawless. The mood of the recording turns on a dime, and the band creates some satisfying contrasts between song segments. I really enjoyed the layering of guitar parts. There's some interesting combinations of clean and crunch here. It's not particularly heavy in the grand scheme of things, and it has some great melodies. You owe it to yourself to give it a listen!

Home Sweet Home

Well, I just got back yesterday from a week-long mission trip to Guatemala. Since today is the last day I can squeeze out of my spring break, I've decided that I'm long overdue for a blog post. Here's my latest free music find:

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Introducing Florian "Flo" Fusade, a French blues guitarist who has truly caught my attention. I don't think I need to elaborate much on this one. His wailing guitar speaks for him. Anyways, he has two albums (both fairly short) that you can pick up here: http://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/6125/flo. Give it a listen, why don't ya.

Guess Who's Back?

It's about time. Punk/electronica/indie badass Brad Turcott, the frontman (also the onlyman) of the band Brad Sucks, is back. His latest record, Guess Who's a Mess, maintains the electronic vibe of his sophomore effort Out of It. I, for one, kind of miss the raw punk intensity of his first work. Sure, the high-gain distorted guitars gave me a headache when played from my car speakers, but it was worth it. Even though the album lacks the raw guitars Brad Sucks first had, Guess Who's a Mess still rocks. Brad's lyrics are, as usual, the main focus. Sardonic wit and sweet grooves fill the album. Enough talk. It's free, so download it already.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Absence explained

It's been a while since I've posted anything, and I believe I owe all of you an explanation. Here it is.

I've been rather busy lately completing my Eagle project and filling out pile after pile of paperwork. Today, however, marks the beginning of the end. My paperwork is complete and has been sent off to be reviewed. I put the last four nails and four screws in my project to hold up the plaques you see here. The next step for me is to schedule a board of review, plan my court of honor, and receive the rank of Eagle scout. It's all smooth sailing from here.

For my Eagle project, I remodeled a community bulletin board and installed a rock garden for the Tracyton Community Library. The existing bulletin board had no form of weather protection, causing everything posted on it to fade from exposure to the elements. Also, the board itself had a hard surface that was extremely difficult to put papers on. I added a layer of cork to make it easier to use, as well as a weatherproof frame. As for the rock garden, I installed it to replace a planter box filled completely with overgrown vines and weeds. The project took a combined 165 hours of labor and about $290, but I must say it looks fantastic! I have plenty of other pictures of before, during, and after the project which might interest you.

Here's how the garden looked before the project. Simply put, the Tracyton Community Library just didn't have the time needed to maintain it. Those weeds did NOT come out easily!

Here's the bulletin board. It was actually someone else's Eagle project, but it was in need of some upgrading which I was happy to provide.

Here's a closeup shot of the bulletin board. Let me tell you, those staples were a royal pain to remove. Not only were there staples, we even found that nails had been used to put up flyers. Nails!

The actual construction of the wood and acrylic frame used to renovate the bulletin board took place in my garage. My dad and I both killed our knees working on it, but it was worth it in the end.

This was taken on December 29th, project day. Here we have people removing the existing plants from the planter box.

On the day of the project, I had more volunteers than I knew what to do with. In addition to filling every inch of available space in this photo, there is also a group of scouts around the corner of the building who weren't even doing anything because we had more people than jobs. It was amazing. This picture was of scouts moving the rock into the garden itself.

Too many friggin' staples. This group of scouts was tasked with removing anything sharp from the board so we could put a layer of cork up. It was tedious work.

Here we have way more people than were actually needed helping to attach the wood and acrylic frame to the existing bulletin board. By this point, we had already put up the cork.

Here I am next to the completed project. We finished far faster than I had anticipated. As a result, I didn't even need to provide lunch.

So many volunteers!

Thanks for indulging me as I rambled on and on about the project. It's just kind of hard to stop myself when I get started! XD

Oh, and I should have a music related post up before the end of the month.