I recently put up a post on Stone Temple Pilots in anticipation of their most recent album after a 6 year hiatus with reserved excitement and optimism. Since then STP has been garnering the expected amount of press and magazine articles that one can expect from a multi-platinum record selling band reuniting during a time when the musical landscape has since moved on from alternative rock and grunge. Being the huge fan of the group back in the day, I've read as much as I can find and I can only conclude that Scott Weiland is an absolute mess.
After the first bit of excitement over hearing of an STP reunion there were immediate signs that I shouldn't get too worked up over it. Amidst the gushing of band members about how great it was to work together again there was the confession that, while the DeLeo brothers and Kretz were recording together, Weiland had his own separate recording studio and was recording the vocal tracks by himself. Doesn't exactly speak of a glorious return to comradery, does it.
While reading through the track by track story on the Wikipedia page you see again and again how Dean DeLeo is impressed with how well Scott sang on the tunes. However, accompanying all the praise are remarks like "Scott is in a dark place". Songs that are to sound kind of happy and poppy are subject to the dark depression and drug influenced lyrics of the singer.
If you supplement these notes with articles like what was written in SPIN you can really only conclude that this reunion tour might not be very long-lived. Weiland simply sounds like a mess. He doesn't show up until the very last minute before concerts, has his own bus which he retreats to the second a show is over, needs an assistant to bring him food, chain smokes and drinks like crazy, pops pills but considers himself "clean" because he is no longer doing smack and is obsessed over ex-flames. It really sounds like he hates his current gig of "talented millionaire front man", which is a shame.
I recently gotten my hands on the newest cd and the first listen wasn't too bad. From what I have heard so far it isn't as hard as previous albums but it is definitely catchy. Without listening to lyrics it does sound like a happy album... but paying attention really exposes the current state that Weiland is in. The dude, quite frankly, sounds like he's one bad trip from suicide.
It must be frustrating as well for the other members of the band. They are talented as all hell but really have not amounted to much without Scott in front of the band. It would have been nice to see them continue the Army of Anyone project with Filter front man Patrick because the cd they did release was actually pretty good. It seems, however, that they really don't shine unless they have Weiland, and to have their success tied to such an erratic and unhealthy person can not be pleasant.
You'd think this wouldn't bother me as much as it does. The band has basically been dead for years and everything else they release is pretty much a bonus but just knowing that they are capable of much more pisses me off. I'll never be able to understand rock stars. You take a god given gift that is capable of getting you hordes of admirers and a shit ton of cash and yet it's not good enough. Ruin it all with drugs and self-loathing. Awesome. Have fun with that. I suppose the over-exposure of media is to blame as I could simply just listen to the cds and ignore the story.
Anyway, I'm hoping to take advantage of the long memorial day weekend by giving this new cd as well as the new release by the Deftones a good listen. I also plan on getting drunk at least once. There's a new bottle of brandy with my name on it. Have a good weekend kids.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Rand Paul is an effing coward
So in the aftermath of Rand Paul's inability to answer a question about Civil Rights, he has resorted to some rather childish damage control today. Taking a page out of the Sarah Palin book of zero personal responsibility, his statements are now all Rachel Maddow's fault.
"It was a poor political decision and probably won't be happening anytime in the near future," the Tea Party endorsed Senate candidate said on the Laura Ingraham show on Thursday morning. "Because, yeah, they can play things and want to say, 'Oh you believed in beating up people that were trying to sit in restaurants in the 1960s.' And that is such a ridiculous notion and something that no rational person is in favor of. [But] she went on and on about that.
These are settled issues in the Civil Rights Act," he said. "I have no intention of bringing up anything related to the Civil Rights Act... I think [segregation] is sort of a stain and blight on our history -- so, no, I have never really favored any change in the Civil Rights Act or any of that. But they have seemed to unleash the loony left on me."
To his credit, he did issue a full a full statement which you can read if you follow the above link.
I'm sure the right wing blogosphere is currently vilifying Maddow and accusing her of gotcha politics. I bet there might even be people referring to her being a lesbian. The truth is that Rand took the cowards way out of this situation. Perhaps it was unwise of him to go on her program, but Rachel did not force him to say the things he said.
I think the Tea Party needs to find themselves a new hero.
"It was a poor political decision and probably won't be happening anytime in the near future," the Tea Party endorsed Senate candidate said on the Laura Ingraham show on Thursday morning. "Because, yeah, they can play things and want to say, 'Oh you believed in beating up people that were trying to sit in restaurants in the 1960s.' And that is such a ridiculous notion and something that no rational person is in favor of. [But] she went on and on about that.
These are settled issues in the Civil Rights Act," he said. "I have no intention of bringing up anything related to the Civil Rights Act... I think [segregation] is sort of a stain and blight on our history -- so, no, I have never really favored any change in the Civil Rights Act or any of that. But they have seemed to unleash the loony left on me."
To his credit, he did issue a full a full statement which you can read if you follow the above link.
I'm sure the right wing blogosphere is currently vilifying Maddow and accusing her of gotcha politics. I bet there might even be people referring to her being a lesbian. The truth is that Rand took the cowards way out of this situation. Perhaps it was unwise of him to go on her program, but Rachel did not force him to say the things he said.
I think the Tea Party needs to find themselves a new hero.
She turned me in to a newt!
... apparently he didn't get better, though.
My last post inspired me to attempt to recall all the political douchebaggery that has been going on.
First of all we have Newt Gingrich. I need to remind you all that Newt was made famous by conducting a witch hunt on Bill Clinton's extra marital activities while Newt himself was busy being a less than perfect husband. This by no means clears Bill's name, but it certainly does leave quite a shit stain on his own.
So in case you didn't hear, Obama recently nominated some lady to the Supreme Court. There isn't a lot of history on this lady but opponents have been doing their best to find issues and fucking run with them.
If there's one thing that conservatives can agree upon is that, despite their own Ivy League educations, they hate fancy pants faggy elitist Ivy League Schools. Harvard qualifies. So this Kagan lady at one point worked at Harvard. So here's what Newt comes up with:
"On the one hand, Harvard accepts money from Saudis. Saudi Arabia, by the way, executes homosexuals. Saudi Arabia represses women. Saudi Arabia does not allow Christians or Jews to practice their religion, but Saudi money is fine."
The irony? Newt was on Fox news at the time. He's a paid contributor. Fox news happens to be partially owned by a Saudi prince. That, my friends, is too good to be true.
On top of that, her lack of experience in court was a bad bad thing, says Newt & Co. However, similar lack of experience was ok with John Roberts. Why? Because Roberts was conservative.
So it's just political hypocrisy as usual. But whatever, let's burn the bitch anyways.
This is actually the only thing I'm going to get to for now. I should really get some effing work done.
My last post inspired me to attempt to recall all the political douchebaggery that has been going on.
First of all we have Newt Gingrich. I need to remind you all that Newt was made famous by conducting a witch hunt on Bill Clinton's extra marital activities while Newt himself was busy being a less than perfect husband. This by no means clears Bill's name, but it certainly does leave quite a shit stain on his own.
So in case you didn't hear, Obama recently nominated some lady to the Supreme Court. There isn't a lot of history on this lady but opponents have been doing their best to find issues and fucking run with them.
If there's one thing that conservatives can agree upon is that, despite their own Ivy League educations, they hate fancy pants faggy elitist Ivy League Schools. Harvard qualifies. So this Kagan lady at one point worked at Harvard. So here's what Newt comes up with:
"On the one hand, Harvard accepts money from Saudis. Saudi Arabia, by the way, executes homosexuals. Saudi Arabia represses women. Saudi Arabia does not allow Christians or Jews to practice their religion, but Saudi money is fine."
The irony? Newt was on Fox news at the time. He's a paid contributor. Fox news happens to be partially owned by a Saudi prince. That, my friends, is too good to be true.
On top of that, her lack of experience in court was a bad bad thing, says Newt & Co. However, similar lack of experience was ok with John Roberts. Why? Because Roberts was conservative.
So it's just political hypocrisy as usual. But whatever, let's burn the bitch anyways.
This is actually the only thing I'm going to get to for now. I should really get some effing work done.
Is this the face of the Tea Party?
There's been so much retarded business lately in politics that I haven't been able to pick which to blog about. However, in the wake of recent elections (the only things that really matter, I guess) this story was too good to pass up.
All too often politicians do not go on to talking head shows hosted by pundits with opposite leanings. It's much easier to stay within your bubble and get lobbed softballs from the likes of Hannity or Olbermann. I give Rachel Maddow a shit ton of credit as she often invites "the enemy" and gives a great interview.
Last night, Rand Paul discovered why it is good political strategy to remain safely within that bubble:
That is really not going to help his cause. Even Joe Scarborough was a bit taken aback by this saying that if Paul didn't come out with a fix soon it was going to turn in to racism battle much like what is happening in Arizona.
So here you have the most high profile victory for the Tea Party. In the brief time between yesterday morning and when the Maddow interview aired it has been reported again and again that Paul stands for all the values that the Tea Party holds sacred. Come to find out that also involves segregation. He couldn't come out and give a clear answer on whether or not minorities should be allowed to make a purchase in the same place as whites. It completely baffles me.
And yet we get told again and again that the evil liberal media is somehow causing the Tea Party to appear racist. No matter how many racist signs are held up at rallies or no matter what idiot statement comes out of their mouths it's always the fault of the liberal media.
I had a conversation with a conservative friend of mine recently discussing the Tea Party. The things they say they are for I am also for. Less taxes sounds good to me. Less spending is also good. My problem stems from the reality of the movement, rather than what they perceive themselves to be. It is not a non-partisan group. It is not a diverse group. Those are the facts. If there had even been a hint of this movement gathering momentum during the Bush years it would be much easier to believe. Instead, the Tea Party reared it's ugly head only after Obama's election as part of this massive wave of faux outrage over imagined insults.
Illegal wiretapping. That's cool.
Shady government actions and no attempts at transparency. Fine with me!
Fabricated intelligence as cause for war. No problem.
Taking the first surplus in years and turning it in to a deficit. Why not?
Health Care Reform... FUCK NO!
It makes no sense.
As I always do I've gotten completely off track. The point is that hopefully the voters will understand they have the power to not elect a man who opposes the Civil Rights Act. Hopefully they make the right choice.
All too often politicians do not go on to talking head shows hosted by pundits with opposite leanings. It's much easier to stay within your bubble and get lobbed softballs from the likes of Hannity or Olbermann. I give Rachel Maddow a shit ton of credit as she often invites "the enemy" and gives a great interview.
Last night, Rand Paul discovered why it is good political strategy to remain safely within that bubble:
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
That is really not going to help his cause. Even Joe Scarborough was a bit taken aback by this saying that if Paul didn't come out with a fix soon it was going to turn in to racism battle much like what is happening in Arizona.
So here you have the most high profile victory for the Tea Party. In the brief time between yesterday morning and when the Maddow interview aired it has been reported again and again that Paul stands for all the values that the Tea Party holds sacred. Come to find out that also involves segregation. He couldn't come out and give a clear answer on whether or not minorities should be allowed to make a purchase in the same place as whites. It completely baffles me.
And yet we get told again and again that the evil liberal media is somehow causing the Tea Party to appear racist. No matter how many racist signs are held up at rallies or no matter what idiot statement comes out of their mouths it's always the fault of the liberal media.
I had a conversation with a conservative friend of mine recently discussing the Tea Party. The things they say they are for I am also for. Less taxes sounds good to me. Less spending is also good. My problem stems from the reality of the movement, rather than what they perceive themselves to be. It is not a non-partisan group. It is not a diverse group. Those are the facts. If there had even been a hint of this movement gathering momentum during the Bush years it would be much easier to believe. Instead, the Tea Party reared it's ugly head only after Obama's election as part of this massive wave of faux outrage over imagined insults.
Illegal wiretapping. That's cool.
Shady government actions and no attempts at transparency. Fine with me!
Fabricated intelligence as cause for war. No problem.
Taking the first surplus in years and turning it in to a deficit. Why not?
Health Care Reform... FUCK NO!
It makes no sense.
As I always do I've gotten completely off track. The point is that hopefully the voters will understand they have the power to not elect a man who opposes the Civil Rights Act. Hopefully they make the right choice.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Fantasy baseball 1st quarter in review
Ugh...
It has not been pretty. So we have about 1/4 of the games out of the way and Logjammin is tied for 10th out of 12. My roster reads like an all-star list of what players are mysteriously slumping hardcore. People in my league are not biting on any but the most marginal trades. To add insult to injury I am saddled with three Red Sox.
Not good.
So here's the rundown...
My catchers thus far have been a disaster. My original draft pick of Mike Napoli has not worked out at all and he has since been dropped in favor of the Pirates Ryan Doumit... who is also slumping. I have no idea what happened here. Napoli has shown 20 homer power over the past couple seasons and absolutely mashed in spring training. The Angels promptly sat him down as soon as the season started and played defensive catcher Jeff Mathis instead. Mathis eventually was injured giving Napoli the full time at bats he needed. Napoli took advantage of that by batting about .230 and may lose the job again as soon as Mathis comes back.
At first my plan was to draft a DLed Berkman and use Konerko to fill in. That actually has been something of a success as Paul went on to be the early home run leader. He has since stopped mashing but is still hitting. It's nothing more than a stat correction as he was extremely lucky in his HR/FB ratio and unlucky in his BABIP. Yeah, I'm a stats nerd. And despite a slow start from Berkman he appears to be hitting his stride.
Second base was a complete failure. Rookie phenom Gordon Beckham appears to be experiencing something of a sophomore slump as he hasn't even sniffed .200 in some time despite a lot of patience from Ozzie Guillen. I recently gave in and benched him in favor for Orlando Hudson who was about the only decent available 2B on the waiver wire. It could work out as Hudson is a good AVE/OBP guy who bats in front of Morneau and Mauer. If Beckham is still this awful I may have to consider cutting him altogether.
Third has been ok with A-Rod. He isn't mashing taters the way I expected but he is hitting well and piling up the RBIs. Yet another slugger who's power dropped off in the wake of steroid scandal? hmmmm...
Short has been a mixed bag with dreamy Derek Jeter. He started off the season on fire but has since cooled off. I'm not looking for a replacement as there really isn't one and I expect that Jeter will heat up again soon.
The outfield oddly enough has been the strongest part of my team. Unfortunately this isn't saying much. First of all fucking Jacoby Ellsbury has been DLed most of the season but should be returning soon... possibly tonight. So there goes my assumed source of Rs, SBs, and AVE. Abreu and Span are doing what I wanted them to do by scoring runs, stealing a couple bases, and hitting the occasional dinger. However, they too, like every single other friggin guy on my team is hitting horribly. I recently picked up hot rookie Boesch of the Tigers to fill in for Ellsbury but he will most likely be cut as soon as the Jacoby comes off the DL. I also grabbed Luke Scott for his super streakiness although, with the way the rest of the season has gone, he will probably cool off now that I have him.
Again I must remind you that my team was built around getting on base and scoring runs. The fact that almost every single guy that I drafted is at least 20-40 points below their career batting averages is unbelievable. I have never dealt with this level of suck in all my team playing this silly game.
My pitchers are not much better, if not worse. My two "aces" Beckett and Haren have both started off extremely poorly. It kind of makes me want to punch myself. Nolasco and Liriano have been solid, probably my best two at this point. Gavin Floyd and Ted Lilly are kind of chancy and each time I throw them out there I'm basically rolling the dice. I got a bit lucky early on by picking up Brad Penny and Jaime Garcia but I immediately traded them off, along with Tim Hudson, for Jon Lester and Javier Vazquez. Those three are great pitchers and I may have gotten fleeced but there was little strikeout potential like I have with Lester/Vazquez and I needed to clear out some roster space. Lester is up there with Nolasco and Liriano to give me a solid core but Vazquez is a train wreck. If he can finally get himself settled down then he could also help out big time with Ws and Ks.
My closers are shit. Bailey, Franklin, and Qualls have been much less than I expected. I have to lay the blame of two of my losing weeks squarely at their feet. This past week all three of them finished with ERAs over 5, no saves, and 3 losses. The other guy beat my three closers with only Leo Nunez. Awesome.
I recently sent a twitter message of my roster to FOX analyst John Halpin asking if he had any suggestions on what I should do. All he said was "Cry, and hang on. Gotta get better."
That's really encouraging.
It's really all I can do, however. People in my league are not trading and there's no quick fix as a free agent. All I can do is think of last year, when I was in last place around the mid way point and managed to come in first place (pre-playoffs of course). Unfortunately, I had a lot more to work with then. Now, not so much.
Maybe I should pay more attention to wedding plans instead...
It has not been pretty. So we have about 1/4 of the games out of the way and Logjammin is tied for 10th out of 12. My roster reads like an all-star list of what players are mysteriously slumping hardcore. People in my league are not biting on any but the most marginal trades. To add insult to injury I am saddled with three Red Sox.
Not good.
So here's the rundown...
My catchers thus far have been a disaster. My original draft pick of Mike Napoli has not worked out at all and he has since been dropped in favor of the Pirates Ryan Doumit... who is also slumping. I have no idea what happened here. Napoli has shown 20 homer power over the past couple seasons and absolutely mashed in spring training. The Angels promptly sat him down as soon as the season started and played defensive catcher Jeff Mathis instead. Mathis eventually was injured giving Napoli the full time at bats he needed. Napoli took advantage of that by batting about .230 and may lose the job again as soon as Mathis comes back.
At first my plan was to draft a DLed Berkman and use Konerko to fill in. That actually has been something of a success as Paul went on to be the early home run leader. He has since stopped mashing but is still hitting. It's nothing more than a stat correction as he was extremely lucky in his HR/FB ratio and unlucky in his BABIP. Yeah, I'm a stats nerd. And despite a slow start from Berkman he appears to be hitting his stride.
Second base was a complete failure. Rookie phenom Gordon Beckham appears to be experiencing something of a sophomore slump as he hasn't even sniffed .200 in some time despite a lot of patience from Ozzie Guillen. I recently gave in and benched him in favor for Orlando Hudson who was about the only decent available 2B on the waiver wire. It could work out as Hudson is a good AVE/OBP guy who bats in front of Morneau and Mauer. If Beckham is still this awful I may have to consider cutting him altogether.
Third has been ok with A-Rod. He isn't mashing taters the way I expected but he is hitting well and piling up the RBIs. Yet another slugger who's power dropped off in the wake of steroid scandal? hmmmm...
Short has been a mixed bag with dreamy Derek Jeter. He started off the season on fire but has since cooled off. I'm not looking for a replacement as there really isn't one and I expect that Jeter will heat up again soon.
The outfield oddly enough has been the strongest part of my team. Unfortunately this isn't saying much. First of all fucking Jacoby Ellsbury has been DLed most of the season but should be returning soon... possibly tonight. So there goes my assumed source of Rs, SBs, and AVE. Abreu and Span are doing what I wanted them to do by scoring runs, stealing a couple bases, and hitting the occasional dinger. However, they too, like every single other friggin guy on my team is hitting horribly. I recently picked up hot rookie Boesch of the Tigers to fill in for Ellsbury but he will most likely be cut as soon as the Jacoby comes off the DL. I also grabbed Luke Scott for his super streakiness although, with the way the rest of the season has gone, he will probably cool off now that I have him.
Again I must remind you that my team was built around getting on base and scoring runs. The fact that almost every single guy that I drafted is at least 20-40 points below their career batting averages is unbelievable. I have never dealt with this level of suck in all my team playing this silly game.
My pitchers are not much better, if not worse. My two "aces" Beckett and Haren have both started off extremely poorly. It kind of makes me want to punch myself. Nolasco and Liriano have been solid, probably my best two at this point. Gavin Floyd and Ted Lilly are kind of chancy and each time I throw them out there I'm basically rolling the dice. I got a bit lucky early on by picking up Brad Penny and Jaime Garcia but I immediately traded them off, along with Tim Hudson, for Jon Lester and Javier Vazquez. Those three are great pitchers and I may have gotten fleeced but there was little strikeout potential like I have with Lester/Vazquez and I needed to clear out some roster space. Lester is up there with Nolasco and Liriano to give me a solid core but Vazquez is a train wreck. If he can finally get himself settled down then he could also help out big time with Ws and Ks.
My closers are shit. Bailey, Franklin, and Qualls have been much less than I expected. I have to lay the blame of two of my losing weeks squarely at their feet. This past week all three of them finished with ERAs over 5, no saves, and 3 losses. The other guy beat my three closers with only Leo Nunez. Awesome.
I recently sent a twitter message of my roster to FOX analyst John Halpin asking if he had any suggestions on what I should do. All he said was "Cry, and hang on. Gotta get better."
That's really encouraging.
It's really all I can do, however. People in my league are not trading and there's no quick fix as a free agent. All I can do is think of last year, when I was in last place around the mid way point and managed to come in first place (pre-playoffs of course). Unfortunately, I had a lot more to work with then. Now, not so much.
Maybe I should pay more attention to wedding plans instead...
Friday, May 7, 2010
Set Adrift on Memories of Lists
So lately I've had entirely too little time to devote to blogging. Quick and easy solution? Lists! Everyone likes lists. Lists are American. The only people who hate lists are terrorists, communists, and that Bieber kid. I'm on to you little boy.
Seeing as how I've been on an STP kick lately I figured I'd start there. I was recently trying to figure out a new iPod and going through my tunes I was reminded that STP did in fact come out with other albums than Core and Purple. They were just mostly forgettable.
Anywho, what can be more exciting than lists associated with the Stone Temple Pilots? Tons of shit. But that's what I'm doing.
Top 5 STP Albums (because there are only 5... until May 27th that is)
#5 - Shangri-La Dee Da
Oddly enough, my rankings are almost in the same order that these albums were released. There are very few stand out songs from Shangri blah blah blah. "Coma" is a pretty nice tune with a heavy riff that I enjoy. Others, not so much. "Song for Sleeping" is another song giving Weiland the opportunity to croon. The two singles were "Days of the Week" and "Hollywood Bitch", both of which were very pop-rock and neither impressing me too much.
#4 - No. 4
This cd was supposed to be their "return to Core-esque sound". There are a couple songs that are kind of awesome but they sound nothing like anything from Core. "Down" and "Heaven and Hotrods" are nice and loud. "Sour Girl" is one of their most popular songs and had an extra trippy video as well. Unfortunately, this cd continued a trend that Tiny Music started and Shangri perfected: too many filler songs.
#3 - Tiny Music
This was, unfortunately, the beginning of STP getting weird. At the time it was kind of cool because it looked like they were branching out (a la Pearl Jam's No Code) but after seeing where they ended up it's evident that they lost the ability to write some great songs that they exhibited early on. This is also when Weiland's voice was noticeably breaking down. On their first two albums he sang strong, man. Anyway, standouts were "Ride the Cliche" and "Big Bang Baby". The rest of the album was tolerable. "Lady Picture Show", "Tumble in the Rough", "Pop's Love Suicide" were ok as well but it's a bad sign when instrumentals like "Press Play" and "Daisy" were two of my favorites. My main take on STP has always been this: Weiland may have been the star but the talent contained by Eric Kretz on drums and the DeLeo brothers on guitar & bass put him to shame.
#2 - Core
Alright alright. From the first shouted verse of "Dead and Bloated" by a Weiland who had not yet destroyed his voice through drugs and alcohol I knew that I was going to love this band. STP was the first real "alternative rock" group that I really got in to. At that point I think my favorites were MC Hammer and Def Leppard and had not yet become the music snob that I am now. Core changed everything for me. Their first four singles of "Wicked Garden", "Sex Type Thing", "Creep", and their anthem "Plush" were so amazing that they really overshadowed that there was another half of the album that were nearly as strong. "Crackerman" remains one of my favorite songs ever and the nearly 8 minute segment of "No Memory" and "Sin" touch on an incredibly unique bit of song writing that they never again touched. To this day I still do not understand the criticism that STP came under upon releasing this album. If you have read my blog at all you know my take on the douches who review music albums. They can suck it.
#1 - Purple
I still remember the day that I went out and bought the this tape. I was literally counting down the days until it came out and then begged my mother to take me to Riverside Mall. Purple remains one of my favorite albums of all time as it is one of those rare albums I can listen to from start to finish with no weak spots.
"Meatplow" is kind of cheesy but I love the fact that I kicked off two albums with completely heavy meathead sort of songs. I want to get a kick in the pants when I throw a cd in. Give it to me! Give it to me HARD!
"Vasoline" is so simple it's awesome. 'nuff said.
"Lounge Fly" remains an odd favorite for me. It's great to sing to and touched on a weird sort of brilliance without alienation.
"Interstate Love Song" one of the best songs ever written, in my opinion. I remember spending days trying to perfect the bass line and it remains one of my favorites. If there's one other thing I can say about Purple is that it is chock full of sweet bass lines. Great to play along to.
"Still Remains" I really like this song. It served as a great change of pace tune and to this day I am still trying to figure out if he's telling ladies he wants a threesome.
"Pretty Penny" love this song. Absolutely 100%. There really isn't much else to say.
"Silvergun Superman" Yaaaawww! Not only was it awesome to get a kick in the pants at the start it's even more awesome to get an even great pants kickin in the second half. This song is yet another reminder that at one point Weiland did not sound like a drugged out coked out smoked out dranked out has been singer.
"Big Empty" another all time favorite and another sweet bass play-along. That little bass interlude remains one of my favorite licks of all time. The song itself is positively epic.
"Unglued" again, one of my all time favorite songs. Very simple, very fast, very short. VERY AWESOME.
"Army Ants" Yes! That drum fill leading in to the guitar solo is one of the reasons the Good Lord invented music.
"Kitchenware & Candybars" a perfect ending. Well played boys.
So there you have it. I can only hope that the new STP joint coming out this month is a return to the early 90s stuff.
Have a great weekend boners!
Seeing as how I've been on an STP kick lately I figured I'd start there. I was recently trying to figure out a new iPod and going through my tunes I was reminded that STP did in fact come out with other albums than Core and Purple. They were just mostly forgettable.
Anywho, what can be more exciting than lists associated with the Stone Temple Pilots? Tons of shit. But that's what I'm doing.
Top 5 STP Albums (because there are only 5... until May 27th that is)
#5 - Shangri-La Dee Da
Oddly enough, my rankings are almost in the same order that these albums were released. There are very few stand out songs from Shangri blah blah blah. "Coma" is a pretty nice tune with a heavy riff that I enjoy. Others, not so much. "Song for Sleeping" is another song giving Weiland the opportunity to croon. The two singles were "Days of the Week" and "Hollywood Bitch", both of which were very pop-rock and neither impressing me too much.
#4 - No. 4
This cd was supposed to be their "return to Core-esque sound". There are a couple songs that are kind of awesome but they sound nothing like anything from Core. "Down" and "Heaven and Hotrods" are nice and loud. "Sour Girl" is one of their most popular songs and had an extra trippy video as well. Unfortunately, this cd continued a trend that Tiny Music started and Shangri perfected: too many filler songs.
#3 - Tiny Music
This was, unfortunately, the beginning of STP getting weird. At the time it was kind of cool because it looked like they were branching out (a la Pearl Jam's No Code) but after seeing where they ended up it's evident that they lost the ability to write some great songs that they exhibited early on. This is also when Weiland's voice was noticeably breaking down. On their first two albums he sang strong, man. Anyway, standouts were "Ride the Cliche" and "Big Bang Baby". The rest of the album was tolerable. "Lady Picture Show", "Tumble in the Rough", "Pop's Love Suicide" were ok as well but it's a bad sign when instrumentals like "Press Play" and "Daisy" were two of my favorites. My main take on STP has always been this: Weiland may have been the star but the talent contained by Eric Kretz on drums and the DeLeo brothers on guitar & bass put him to shame.
#2 - Core
Alright alright. From the first shouted verse of "Dead and Bloated" by a Weiland who had not yet destroyed his voice through drugs and alcohol I knew that I was going to love this band. STP was the first real "alternative rock" group that I really got in to. At that point I think my favorites were MC Hammer and Def Leppard and had not yet become the music snob that I am now. Core changed everything for me. Their first four singles of "Wicked Garden", "Sex Type Thing", "Creep", and their anthem "Plush" were so amazing that they really overshadowed that there was another half of the album that were nearly as strong. "Crackerman" remains one of my favorite songs ever and the nearly 8 minute segment of "No Memory" and "Sin" touch on an incredibly unique bit of song writing that they never again touched. To this day I still do not understand the criticism that STP came under upon releasing this album. If you have read my blog at all you know my take on the douches who review music albums. They can suck it.
#1 - Purple
I still remember the day that I went out and bought the this tape. I was literally counting down the days until it came out and then begged my mother to take me to Riverside Mall. Purple remains one of my favorite albums of all time as it is one of those rare albums I can listen to from start to finish with no weak spots.
"Meatplow" is kind of cheesy but I love the fact that I kicked off two albums with completely heavy meathead sort of songs. I want to get a kick in the pants when I throw a cd in. Give it to me! Give it to me HARD!
"Vasoline" is so simple it's awesome. 'nuff said.
"Lounge Fly" remains an odd favorite for me. It's great to sing to and touched on a weird sort of brilliance without alienation.
"Interstate Love Song" one of the best songs ever written, in my opinion. I remember spending days trying to perfect the bass line and it remains one of my favorites. If there's one other thing I can say about Purple is that it is chock full of sweet bass lines. Great to play along to.
"Still Remains" I really like this song. It served as a great change of pace tune and to this day I am still trying to figure out if he's telling ladies he wants a threesome.
"Pretty Penny" love this song. Absolutely 100%. There really isn't much else to say.
"Silvergun Superman" Yaaaawww! Not only was it awesome to get a kick in the pants at the start it's even more awesome to get an even great pants kickin in the second half. This song is yet another reminder that at one point Weiland did not sound like a drugged out coked out smoked out dranked out has been singer.
"Big Empty" another all time favorite and another sweet bass play-along. That little bass interlude remains one of my favorite licks of all time. The song itself is positively epic.
"Unglued" again, one of my all time favorite songs. Very simple, very fast, very short. VERY AWESOME.
"Army Ants" Yes! That drum fill leading in to the guitar solo is one of the reasons the Good Lord invented music.
"Kitchenware & Candybars" a perfect ending. Well played boys.
So there you have it. I can only hope that the new STP joint coming out this month is a return to the early 90s stuff.
Have a great weekend boners!
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