The performance is monumental and triumphant!  It’s a cruel irony that Williams himself died at age 35 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  He had been experiencing marital problems at the time, and struggled his whole life with Sickle-Cell Disease.

Although the “Mother of all Funk Chords” video hits way closer to home in content, I’m going to feature this one because I CAN’T STOP LOVING the groove.

This is truly some virtuosic film and audio editing, but it starts from a fantastic idea. As far as I can tell, the constituent videos’ authors have made their initial recordings with no intention of having them used thusly; we can thank the producer for bringing them together. 

The two things that strike me most about this:

How effective the production is even though it is for the most part recorded through terrible on computer microphones. It’s safe to assume Kutiman has done some serious crunching and EQing, but even so… as much of an audiophile as I am I have to admit not being to bothered by the poor quality of some of the samples. It even gives it a somewhat rugged authenticity.

and:

What this type of thing means for collaborative production. Everybody remembers the Postal Service, but soon and very soon distance will simply NOT be a barrier anymore, in any way. I imagine this will result in a lot more and a lot better music and art in general, or at least I would hope this to be the case. It will be an enlightening time for those who choose to utilize it.

I wonder what tunes TC would write. Probably the sequel to "I'm On A Boat," titled "I'm On a Plane."

A little while back, Public Radio did an excellent series of programs on American Music, called “American Mavericks.” Fortunately for us, you can read and listen to the great stuff online, even if you missed the radio broadcast (as many of you probably did).

Ironically enough, many of these programs were used in my American Music History class. Now I’m actually doing the readings…

~How would you write out parts for someone who doesn’t read music?

~How do you teach an Alto2 if they don’t understand how quarter notes work?

~How do you put together an a cappella arrangement without writing down any notes?

Ponder that while I’m on a boat.

Try to imitate drums in heavy metal songs. Let out your secret love for Linkin’ Park and Metallica, and just give your mouth a go. Put on some Emperor and see what noises you can make in an acoustically delicious shower. Let people stare while you rock out to System of a Down and make goofy mouth noises.

Also, heavy metal is underappreciated by a cappella dorks, as is punk rock. Builds character.

“Punk rock isn’t dead: it’s only comatose.”

The pants may be the secret.

If you don’t already know, the first track on Van Halen’s first album features a thrilling vocal performance by lead singer David Lee Roth. In fact, the first sound you hear from David Lee Roth in the entire Van Halen catalog is his opening multi-tonal wailing in “Runnin’ With the Devil.”

Through the good fortune of the Internet, now you can have the isolated lead vocal track from this song. It is really worth a listen even if you’re not familiar with the song itself. David Lee Roth’s voice is, quite simply, courageously inspiring.

Moreover, an individual named Tyser has created a soundboard out of this vocal track. Now you can have this vocal performance at the push of a button!

What a fantastically talented guy — comedian, singer, author, asshole.  And now, Senator!

I often measure a group’s true talent by how they sound live versus how they sound in the studio. Going on the assumption that bands have a substantial amount of time and resources to perfect their pieces in the studio, I look at it like this: If their live performances are on par with their studio recordings, they’re a good band. If their live performances far exceed their recordings in quality, they’re a great band. And Rush even takes it a step further – they’re still finding ways of making old music sound new more than 25 years after it has been released. See below for reference.

Rush was, in my mind, one of the great pioneers of the synthesizer as a “lead” instrument. It’s so seamlessly integrated into this song; the synth melody tag-teams the guitar riffs with such impeccable grace. The way I see it, they were able to incorporate electronic music into their songs in ways that few others have. The sounds are not gimmicky, and they don’t feel tacked on. They’re part of the song. And man, also, Alex Lifeson (guitarist) can shred.

The other thing about Rush that really stands out to me (and that is evident in this video) is their ability to write material that feels satisfyingly theatrical. Not like Queen theatrical; I’m thinking more like Aerosmith theatrical. In your face, passionate, and meaningful. Meat and potatoes. And oh so delicious!

Bonus: I’ve always admired lead singer Geddy Lee’s unique vocals. He might be one of the most underrated lead singers of 20th century rock. But did you know that his name is actually Gary? Turns out, his mother had some kind of zany accent and pronounced his name “Geddy”. And it kind of stuck. Awesome.