Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield

I suppose it's nostalgia. Or maybe it's the fact that my son will never possess a mix tape the way technology is changing the way we listen to music – as I type this, I'm currently using my Pandora One account. Whatever the reason, however, there's something that tugs on the heartstrings between the lines of Rob Sheffield's writing.

Much like Sheffield, I spent the better part of my youth making mix tapes. Mix tapes for the girls I had crushes on. Mix tapes for my friends. Mix tapes for people I was getting to know. Mix tapes for my friends' sexual activities. Mix tapes to play while I was writing bad poetry and shitty short stories. Christmas jams 1999. Summer of Love '97. Songs to Kill Yourself To. Songs to be Reborn To. Life's soundtrack on tiny spools of magnetic tape. When CDRs came about, I segued in that direction. The latest shared playlists I made were on Second Life, back when I DJ'ed as Blaspheme Baxton. Nothing, however, can amount to the sweat and blood poured into the mix cassette tape.

And every mix tape tells a story, or part of one. It maps the path of good times and bad ones. It shows us that everything has its time, everything will pass. And isn't that what Sheffield is telling us? Each song brings him closer to his wife, while aiding him through the world without her.

One can only wish to possess Sheffield's musical insights, and his ability to write about experiences so beautifully. If not for responsibilities, I would have allowed the book to suck me in and not resurface until it was finished with me. If you haven't read it, I suggest you put down that current bestseller and pick up a copy of this baby.

Extra thanks to Angela, who loaned it to me. She's lucky that I'm willing to give it back to her.

Pick up your copy at Amazon, or for your Kindle. Until next time, happy huntin'.

Tunes You Should Ignore

Somewhere there's a high school version of the Book Hunter cringing to the verge of tears as the present me listens to The Path of Totality, the latest from the Korn. The first sign that something was south of wrong: Skrillex is featured in three tracts.

It seems that the nu metal band has infused two music genres that were best left in the grave. Combining dubstep and bag pipes, what were you thinking Jon Davis? There something sacrilegious about the idea. Still, Korn attempts to keep their street cred by transitioning into the latest and greatest fad - didn't they start rapping when rap core was at its peak? Still, Korn has always mixed funk with their music - rapping was just the next step. What we have with this album is pure bred selling out. 

They hope to pull in the current generation of disenfranchised youth with the same old boring, unimaginative lyrics and hooks - no one understands you? wow. you must be deep. 

Maybe it's time to retire, boys. Or find Jesus like former band mates have. 

As for listeners, it's better if you stick to their albums prior Brian "Head" Welch dropped out. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Check it out for yourself:

 

Tunes You Need to Listen To

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Earlier this year, Skold released the first single off Anomie, his long awaited follow up to his self-titled debut album. I couldn't contain my excitement when I first listened to Suck single. And when Anomie hit, that excitement exploded ten-fold. 2011 was set to become a great year for industrial music with new releases from Oghr and KMFDM along side with many others. It was Tim Skold, however, that ushered in the new year for me.

Now the former collaborator of acts like from KMFDM to Marilyn Manson is ushering the year out by dropping the second single to Anomie, Tonight. The single features the album version of "Tonight" as well as remixes from The Birthday Massacre, Aesthetic Perfection, Pull Out Kings and others. Available on both CD and MP3 format, the album is a must have for Skold fans. The CD includes two tracks not available on the digital copy- "Polka Dot Dress" and "Deserve". These two tracks were featured in the deluxe edition of Anomie's digital download and were previously unreleased on CD.

My two favorites off the single are the remix by The Birthday Massacre and the one by Aesthetic Perfection. But don't take my word for it, check them out yourself. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Sample Skold:

Just in time for the Holidays, BetterWorldBooks is having a Black Friday Sale. Received 15% any order of 3 or more books! What are you waiting for? Start shopping!!!

Money Well Spent

So that kid from Angels in the Outfield actually grew up into a somebody worth watching. Who would've thought it, hu? Rather than falling into obscurity as it was for most child stars, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has gone from being an alien elder to being Cobra commander to being the guy to have his heart broken by Zooey Deschanel. So is there anything he can't do?

Than answer, it would appear, is no. Well, in the logical, believable area, anyway. Though, I'm sure he could just zip off into the air if he really wanted to.

Here's the story: Five years ago, Joseph Gordon-Levitt - a man who, apparently, I cannot go without saying/typing his entire name whenever mentioning him - started a pet project called HitRECord, which, as of last year became a production company. He goes on to say:

We create and develop art and media collaboratively here on our site. Even this introductory video is the remixed result of a great many contributions. So rather than just exhibiting and admiring each other's work as isolated individuals, we gather here to collectively work on projects together. Videos, writing, photography, music, anything -- we call them all RECords. Now and then, when I think something we've made has come out especially well, I approach the traditional entertainment industry to turn our work into money-making productions; and then we share any profits with the contributing artists.

This project later gave birth to it's first collection, RECollection Vol. 1 - on sale today! I opted to pre-order the set - which included the limited edition record you see next to the book - sometime in the summer. I all but nearly forgot about it until it arrived at my doorstep this morning - hand delivered by the wonderful postal worker himself - Note to self: Bake this man some cookies.

I couldn't wait to rip the package open and devour it entirely. Of course, I was just starting my day of jobless anticipation - I've been answering every phone call in hopes it's an opportunity, but only get bill collectors (which I have half the mind to ask if their hiring). I put it on hold. Snapped the above photo and started off with the DVD which features short films, tiny stories, music videos - my favorite was "They Can't Turn the Lights Off" - and live records. I followed this by reading the book in one sitting - it wasn't that hard, but to digest the magnificent beauty of the images presented upon the pages, mixed in with the words was an overwhelming sensation that I do not think I can fully describe. My personal favorites, oddly, are the first and last features in the book. 

The book itself, actually, reminds of me the children's stories I used to read when I was a kid. The way they were written. It's as if the book is for adults who never stopped being children, as well as, those who forgot how to play. And, while the tales might be a little sketchy, I do plan on reading the first and last entries to my child when s/he is born.

Sadly, however, I cannot review - if that's what I'm doing, anyway - the CD that includes 17 original songs because I haven't gotten that far. But the book is amazing. It's more than amazing. It's probably the best collaborative work I've seen in a long time. 

Morgan M. Morgansen's Date With Destiny, as featured in HitRECord: RECollection Vol. 1

Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Tunes You Need to Listen To

Industrial music fans can sleep safe tonight, their savior has risen after a 15 year - though not really - hiatus. Tim Skold - who has worked musical acts such as Shotgun Messiah, KMFDM and Marilyn Manson - has returned with his second solo album, the first since the 1996 self-titled LP, Anomie. And he does not disappoint.

After the release of the first single, Suck, in April, I've been on edge waiting for the album's release. It dropped Tuesday and I've been playing it since I got home from work. The sounds of raw guitars mixed with his - indescribable - voice leaves me shuddering with a musical orgasm - that's right, I said orgasm on a book blog, wanna fight about it? Then I just hit play again and I'm ready for more. 

Jyg asked me to figure out three songs that I favor the most from the album, but where do I start? As cliche as it sounds, I love them all. The moment "(This Is My) Elephant" blasts in my ear to last garbled fade out of "Deserve" (available in the Deluxe edition), I'm in the throes of his majesty. Of course, there are songs that stand out, that get me moving feeling. "Suck," of course, is one of them. Then there's "Tonight," which would be perfect for the goth club - even though I've never set foot inside it - with its lyrics like, "It's too late for suicide, we've been dead for quite a while" and "Dance with me, strip away the pain/You know the world is ending here tonight/So dance with me, strip away the pain/Don't you let me die alone tonight." 

Of course, my personal favorite is "What You See Is What You Get." With a melancholy tone and lyrics that hint at rage, it's just the perfect combination of the two and the perfect song to end an album on. That is, unless, you got the deluxe edition, which offers two extra songs - "Polka dot Dress" and "Deserve."

Anomie is the best album to start the summer and coupled with KMFDM's WTF?! and Ohgr's unDeveloped, it seems that 2011 is the year of industrial.

Tunes You Need to Listen To

Sometime during high school, I was introduced to this little industrial - for lack of a better label - band called KMFDM. I wasn't much impressed - forgive me, I was a stupid teenager who thought Korn was the future of music (sadly, I wasn't wrong about this - we all remember rap-core, right?). After graduation, I was reintroduced to KMFDM and couldn't for the life of me remember why I didn't like them before. It went from "meh, let's play something else" to "holy shit, this is awesome!"

It was that path that led me to the music of Tim Skold - simply known as Skold. Some of you might remember him from Marilyn Manson, after Twiggy Ramirez left the band. With Skold in the band, Marilyn Manson released one of their greatest albums since Antichrist Superstar. He's known for his work in Shotgun Messiah, Skold vs. KMFDM and MDFMK. 

After the release of his first solo album - self-titled - Skold worked with the various aforementioned bands/projects. Mixed in these jobs, he worked on his own music - recording Disrupting the Orderly Routine of Institution demo, which was leaked onto the Internet as the Dead God EP without Skold's permission. And in December 2009, he released three songs on iTunes and Amazon, promising a new album in 2010. Well, 2010 came and left without any sign of a new album. 

On 12 April 2011, Skold dropped Suck, the first single to his long awaited album, Anomie. The single - available in both digital and CD format - features the title track plus four remixes by 16Volt, Combichrist, Front Line Assembly and Bitteren Ende, as well as, the three songs released in 2009 - "I Will Not Forget," "A Dark Star," and "Bullets Ricochet."

After listening to the single, it's hard to control my excitement. I'm shuddering from the complete orgasmic sensation that comes with listening to Skold's music. It's all I can do from going into a complete epileptic seizure from the goddamn awesomeness. 

Anomie drops 10 May 2011 and will be available in both digital and CD formats. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Tunes You Need to Listen To

I might be going a tad too far when saying Jason Walsh's album, Pericardium, reminds me of the year I learned to appreciated Bob Dylan and music in general. And while the music infuses fond memories of both Bob Dylan and son Jakob Dylan, Jason Walsh's lyrics are so emotionally filled with a sort of sorrow I haven't heard in a while that I feel it as a betrayal to compare them to anything. 

"I used to dream about you/now I can barely speak your name/used to think that I would die without you/now it happens everyday," he sings in "The Small Death," the opening track to the seven-song digital album available for purchase on his BandCamp webpage. And in "Blood in My Eyes," Walsh relents, "I can't get to Heaven, no matter how hard I try/Cos I can't see the light with that blood in my eye," which recalls to the listener of the folk singers of old that have been erased by the popularity of commercial music brought on by the Lady Gagas and Justin Biebers of the world. No, this Canadian folk singer/songwriter reminds us that there should be purpose to the music we listen other than just white noise. I haven't been this excited about an independent folk artist since I heard David Jackson Project playing overhead during one visit to Hastings several years ago.

The album contains four original recordings - "The Small Death," "Blood in My Eyes," Birmingham," and "Ships" - plus three live performances of the first three tracks. For more information on Jason Walsh and his music, you may follow him on Tumblr as Blinddog or visit his Facebook Fan Page. You can purchase Pericardium at BandCamp for the low price of $2.99 CAD ($3.09 USD) or more, if you'd like.