Last week I was able to recreate and re-add all of the AbsolutePunk.net end of the year lists into our database from 2005 onward. This hit of nostalgia was paired with me shaking my head at not only the outcome of the staff lists but trying to figure out just what I was thinking on my lists as well. For the next few weeks, I’d like to deconstruct some of these lists and add some of the context and memories I have from this era of the music scene. And this week, I’m starting with what could arguably be one of the most significant years in our little emo-pop-punk world: 2005. 2005 was absolutely stacked with albums that have gone on to be regarded as scene classics. Albums that I still listen to and albums that helped define the music scene for years to come.
Now that we’ve had some time to digest the latest album from The 1975, I thought it was about time that we started the discussion on everything that makes up Notes on a Conditional Form. I’ve seen several posts online about the album being too long, and at 22 tracks, it’s a warranted argument. Some people have even gone as far as cherry-picking individual songs from the album to make their playlist that better fits their tastes and listening preferences. While I am usually against the idea of skipping tracks during the listening experience that the artist intended, I found myself just as guilty as everyone else with navigating around some of the songs that didn’t seem to flow in the full album. Typically when there is an album that invites so much dissecting to enjoy the material, it’s a clear sign of an imperfect record. The 1975 had a lot going for them leading up to this LP, having already released three bona fide classic records before NOACF. This album is arguably their most polarizing to date, and while some may write off this record as a rare miss, the good far outweighs the bad in their latest artistic statement.
Jason Camacho of Audio Karate is on this weeks Power Chord Hour talking about recording Lady Melody. There is also a premiere of the unreleased Lady Melody b-side called “Care Carelessly.” (Overcast link.)
I understand that the Avenged Sevenfold fanbase is made up of very few black Americans. That is why I feel more compelled than ever to write this to you. We can be the ones — the rock and metal community — to reach out and show the compassion that I know is in us all to help raise up our fellow humans. I, for one, enjoy black American culture. The music, art, films, clothing, sports, food. All of it has made my life better. I have no doubt we are a better country because of the black American influence. Hell, Chuck Berry was the Father of Rock & Roll! Standing against inequality and systemic racism is the very least we can all do.
Sign up for a free weekly newsletter, delivered each Friday, full of thoughts on music, entertainment, technology, and other cool stuff. Your email address stays completely private.
You may be noticing a lot of black boxes on your social network feeds today.1 Music industry executives Jamila Thomas and Brianna Agyemang launched “Blackout Tuesday” to encourage everyone to take “an urgent step of action to provoke accountability and change.” Anyone that’s read this website for any amount of time probably knows my politics, I’m not shy about them. Black lives matter.
Like last year, in celebration of Pride Month, I have put the “pride” version of the Chorus.fm merch into our store for the month of June. This year sees the addition of stickers, buttons, and magnets featuring the logo as well. I will be donating all of the proceeds from all merchandise sold in June to various charities at the end of the month.
If you’re curious about materials and sizing: this is a good starter on shirts, and this is good for fit.
“Halloween” is a twisted holiday song, where she playfully sings, “But I count on you to tell me the truth/When you’ve been drinking and you’re wearing a mask,” backed by an upright bass and subtle synths. Her vocals sail through the octaves, producing a chilling effect. “I love how sad it is to throw depression into a holiday,” she says. “I don’t want to do Christmas, because that’s overdone. But I had a voice memo on my phone, because I was trying to get stuff to sample on Halloween one year where I was totally by myself, and it’s children laughing in the background. It’s just so fucked up and weird to me.”
There aren’t many bands like The Injured List anymore. The Michigan two-piece’s style of pop rock is nearly totally alien in 2020; a listen through the band’s third LP The Difference Between Giving Up & Losing calls to mind giants of yesteryear like The Audition or Valencia (or even the original incarnation of The Injured List themselves). Perhaps that’s the quality that makes it so replayable.
