Top 10 Thursday: Top 10 Rock n' Roll Drummers

Let's rock and roll with a list not posted late at night this time! Let's count down the Top 10 Rock and Roll Drummers!

10. Kurt Dahle (The New Pornographers)

Okay, I know what you're all thinking: "The Who Pornographers"? Well, The New Pornographers are a Canadian indie rock band formed in 1999, and a lot of their appeal, I think, comes from the drummer, who just adds a whole new level of energy to the group. Listen to the drum solo at the beginning of this song pull you in. Without Kurt Dahle, The Pornographers might have just been an okay indie group. But I think Dahle's drumming exceeds them past that level.

9. Joey Kramer (Aerosmith)

Aerosmith are seriously one of my favourite bands of all time, and part of that notoriety (if you choose to call it that, which I do) can be attributed to their wonderful drummer, Joey Kramer. He does what a drummer needs to do: he keeps a steady rhythm throughout the song, then when it's time, he unleashes a drum solo. Good on ya, Joey. Good on ya.

8. Tre Cool (Green Day)

Another one of my favourite bands of all time, go figure. I can't think of anyone who could back up Billie Joe better than Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool. They keep the rhythm in the background like no others, but they really do deserve to be showcased in the foreground more often. Especially Tre, who hides his blistering drum techniques in the midst of the chorus and verses in each Green Day song. And who can forget the pounding intro to "Longview"? Masturbation may lose its fun, but Green Day and Tre Cool's drumming won't.

7. Vinnie Colaiuta (Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention)

Joe's Garage was an album initially released to slightly mixed reviews, but has since been hailed as a masterpiece. Part of that masterpiece was Vinnie Colaiuta, whose work on this album cemented him as one of the greatest drummers ever in the business. Modern Drummer magazine named him "the most technically advanced drummer ever", and his variety and rhythm throughout this song and many others reinforce that opinion.

6. Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater)

There is no disputing Mike Portnoy's placement on this list after watching the video, except you may think he's too low. Well, despite his obvious talent, it's easy to see where his influence came from (more on him later) and I gotta go with who did it first and best. But that's not knocking Portnoy in any way. His drum solos are kickass, and he meshes with the band really well. He's an excellent drummer, but there's just five I like more.

5. Carl Palmer (ELP)

What can I even say, people? Just let the solo speak for itself.

4. Stewart Copeland (The Police)

The Police were one of the creepiest and cleverest rock bands of their time. And always there to guide them through creepy teacher/student relationships or creepy stalking or RAAAAAWWWWWWXAAAAAANE was Stewart Copeland, the faithful drummer of the group. He could do awesome solos, he could do creepy lead-ins, he could do tight rhythm, he could do it all.

3. Keith Moon (The Who)

YEEEEEEAAAAAH! While The Who is just an all-around excellent band, it's Keith Moon's drumming that will be singled out for this list. Whether he's playing small songs like "Happy Jack" or big grandiose productions like "Won't Get Fooled Again", Moon always gave it his all. In some Who songs, it's the drumming that really makes it click, because Keith would never settle the fuck down, and he always sounded awesome as a result. And of course, we have to bring up his hard rockin' lifestyle, which sometimes overshadows his drumming, which I think is a damn shame, because he was a fantastic drummer. Thirty-five-odd years after his passing, people still say it's true. One of those people is me.

2. John Bonham (Led Zeppelin)

If it's been a long time since you've rock and rolled, go listen to some John Bonham and Led Zeppelin to get you back into the mood. This guy is consistently hailed as one of the best drummers of all time, and it's easy to see (or rather, hear) why just by listening to a Zeppelin song. The energy. The rhythm. The solos. The lead-ins. Led Zeppelin was an awesome band all around, but they really lost a great when they lost Bonham.

1. Neil Peart (Rush)

What, were you expecting the drummer from Nickelback? Yeah, Neil Peart's an obvious #1 choice for this list, but he damn well should be: he is, in my opinion, the greatest drummer in rock n' roll. Not only does he have fantastic rhythm skills, fast playing, and great fills and solos, but he also writes the lyrics for Rush. So the next time you're scratching your head over "Tom Sawyer", blame Peart. But don't blame him. Love him. Love him as the greatest, or at least most obviously great, drummer of all time.

Watch-for-it Wednesday: "Habits (Stay High)" - Tove Lo

Sometimes, believe it or not, there's a dark side to the "party hard" lifestyle. Sometimes it's not just something fun you do. Sometimes it's an escape from the real world. Here to illustrate that point is a new artist named Tove Lo.

This is... a slightly disturbing song, and I think I like it. A lot.

It's great to see an artist showing another side to a common theme in music; that is, partying and doing so with high frequency. It's almost a bluesy party song.

It doesn't make me nervous
If anything I'm restless
Yeah, I've been around and I've seen it all

Right off the bat, this is not a happy song. She's not excited to be living her life this way; she's "seen it all".

I get home, I got the munchies
Binge on all my Twinkies

Now "binge" is a word with a strong negative connotation that you definitely don't hear in many party-themed songs. And as we get to the chorus, it's apparent why she still chooses to act this way, despite feeling nothing inside:

You're gone and I gotta stay high all the time
To keep you off my mind

Wow.

That's what I like about this song: it's different, it's fresh, it's new. We had quite a few hits last year that criticized modern themes in pop music, or turned those themes around in some way, but this is the first one that I think is going that extra mile this year.

She's not getting high because "fuck everything, let's get high". She's getting high because it's the only way she can cope with her broken heart. That right there is some powerful stuff. And it plays out immaculately, almost sounding like a legitimate party song at parts but then sounding flat-out depressing at other parts. Excellent song, and I hope to hear more from Tove Lo.

Hot 100 Success:

Will she have it?

Unfortunately, I think that Tove Lo's song jumped on the train of twisting modern themes a little too late. I don't know if people are ready to embrace another anti-party song.

Should she have it?

This is probably the most intelligent song I've heard so far this year, including Lorde, who sounds just a little too one-note for my tastes. Tove Lo needs to bring some of this party music back down to Earth.

CanTunes Tuesday: "Seeya" - deadmau5 ft. Colleen D'Agostino

Let's talk about dead mice.

Guys, I know that mice are one of the most notorious household pests. But that's no reason to kill them off like they're completely worthless. Mice have provided us with hours of entertainment, from Jerry from Tom & Jerry to Itchy from Itchy and Scratchy, to that lovable duo Pinky and the Brain. Remember that as you set your mousetrap.

And on a similar-sounding note, let's talk about deadmau5.

Now I like deadmau5. I sometimes rag on electronic music for being boring, and relying on the guest singer to become un-boring, but deadmau5 is different. Instead of being Canada's answer to David Guetta, he's more like Canada's answer to Daft Punk. (Who are, coincidentally, both French. Huh.)

Now deadmau5 has a new album coming out, and I'm excited to hear his latest single, "Seeya". Let's listen in.

This is totally awesome!

Man, I love it when I can represent the good side of Canadian music. You know how I said that I think electronic music sometimes relies on the guest singer too much to make things interesting? Well, the two components work in perfect harmony here. Colleen's voice is sexy as hell, and complements the throbbing Daft Punk-like beat perfectly. Of course, it's not quite on the same level as a fantastic song like "Get Lucky", as I have heard this formula before, but it gets the job done in a great way. The lyrics evoke this dreamlike quality:

Don't wake me up, I'm winning wars inside my head

Perhaps a little on the nose, but it's still a great song. She talks about winning wars inside her head and her vocals during the chorus definitely sell this idea.

IIIIIIIII, I feel it in my bones

Yeah, exactly that. You believe that as well.

The only downside to speaking about good songs, as I think I've stated before, is that there's really not much to talk about once you've complimented every single aspect of the song. Whatever. deadmau5 is awesome, and so is this song. Best Canadian hit of the year so far. Hope to hear more.

Monday Musings: How Important is Image?

Hello there. So, it's apparent these days that talent is no longer what you need to survive in the music industry.

Wow, if I have to give "Talk Dirty" one thing, it's that I can insult it again and again. But I digress. Something that's become more important in the music industry is image, and how you present yourself. Or has it?  By which I mean to say, hasn't image always been important in the music industry?

Here's The Beatles performing at The Ed Sullivan Show. Would you believe that they got scathing reviews back then? And those reviews not only commented on their music, but on their appearances, commenting on their "sheepdog" haircuts. The Rolling Stones were told to get rid of their singer "with the tire-tread lips". How shallow! How judgmental! How... strangely familiar-sounding.

It's true: this world cares a lot about appearance, and unfortunately this vanity translates into the world of music, too.There's been a sort of backlash as of late, actually, as we learn to accept people of all shapes and sizes and give them equal representation in the media. Believe it or not, we are in fact becoming more tolerant as a society. I think it's called "progression".

There's also the sense of "image" in the sense that your image matches your musical genre. Either that, or your image overshadows your music. For example, KISS. I definitely know KISS better by their image than their music.

Clockwise from top left: Paul, Peter, Ace, Gene. BOOM. Now I'm not saying that KISS's music wasn't good, but they were more of a doll collection than a band. And who might I use as an example in music today?

Oh yeah, The One Who Wears The Dress of Meat.

Say what you will about Lady Gaga's music, but it definitely plays second fiddle to her image. It's definitely what SHE cares more about. So, my answer to the overall question: How important is image, is this: How you present yourself is very important for a performer, whether they realize it or not. I'd also argue that music is a part of maintaining image, rather than the two topics being completely separate entities. Even the ones who are like "I'm all about the music" are, ironically, creating an image for themselves that they are all about the music.

Like it or not, the focus on one's image is here to stay. Which is why I stay hidden behind a computer screen.

"Summer" - Calvin Harris

You know, when trying to find a summer anthem for this year, you'd think that the one titled "Summer" would be the obvious choice. But then you realize Calvin Harris does the song, and you lose all hope.

Christ on a cracker, this is boring. It's just one set of lyrics and then audio that David Guetta rejected for being too generic. The lyrics, as few as there are, don't even make sense:

When I met you in the summer
To my heartbeat sound
We fell in love
As the leaves turned brown

It took you until the leaves changed colour to fall in love with her and you met her in the summer? Not exactly passionate.

That's my main problem with this song: Where's the passion? I mean, I should probably commend Calvin Harris for singing his own songs on occasion, but... he only serves as an example as to why DJs shouldn't sing their own songs. His voice is as boring as his music, and that's definitely why a song like "Sweet Nothing" works for me and this doesn't. I like Florence Welch's voice a hell of a lot better than Calvin Harris's.

So he doesn't have passionate lyrics or a passionate voice, so I can hear him trying to make up for it all with passionate... electro house music.

Yeah, I'm starting to grow real weary of EDM. It's all very same-sounding, and when EDM songs can get by in my books (the most important kind of books, of course), it's usually on the strength of their ever-rotating singer. Florence Welch? Fine. Foxes? Great! Calvin Harris... eugh. It's this song in particular that has helped me to realize how generic a genre it really is. Over and over again, it's the the same four-second beat. Da dada dada dada DADA DADA DADA DAAAA over and over. It's enough to make you pray for a second winter.

Despite the title, nothing about this conveys a summer anthem. Calvin Harris just doesn't have the emotional depth on his own to convey an emotion other than "PARTYYYYY! PAAARRRRTTTTYYYY!" And again, I find it a boring song, so I can't even party to this. "Summertime Sadness", while dark, was a way better summer anthem than this! (Remix with Cedric Gervais that actually became popular notwithstanding.)

Weekend Wrap-Up (Jun. 8-14 2014): Kim, Iggy, and Outkast

It's Weekend Wrap-Up time! What have we got today?

Cali Swag District member Jayare died last week. He was only 25 years old. Regardless of what you think of Cali Swag district, 25 is still far, far too young an age to go. RIP, and my condolences to his family and Cali Swag district.

Lil' Kim is a new mom! Her new baby daughter's name is Royal Reign, entering this world last week at 9:58 AM, weighing 6 pounds, 5 ounces. The father is rumoured to be a gentleman named Mr. Papers.

Iggy Azalea and Paramore have scored their first-ever pop radio #1s recently; Iggy with "Fancy" and Paramore with "Ain't It Fun". Ain't it fun to have a chart-topping hit?

Two people have been charged with burglarizing Miley Cyrus's home, as well as car theft. 1-year-old Tylor Scott and 21-year-old Naomi Charles pled not guilty to the charges, and are due back in court June 18th.

The opening ceremony of FIFA has gone underway, with Pitbull and Jennifer Lopez performing the official song, "We Are One". You can see the video here.

Outkast has announced a homecoming show in Atlanta, happening September 27 at the Centennial Olympic Park. Tickets will go on sale June 18th, at 10AM EST.

Finally, IU, a K-Pop solo act who has risen to superstardom in the genre, will be joining Girls' Generation, CNBLUE, and more in America's largest K-Pop Convention, KCON, held in Los Angeles. IU is the K-Pop Hot 100's all-time chart leader, so this should be very exciting for fans.

That's all for today! Seeya tomorrow with another song.

Flashback Friday: "Big Love" - Fleetwood Mac (1987)

Oh, yeah, Fleetwood Mac. One of the biggest groups of the 70's, and it's not hard to see why. They had their own sound, sounding folksy yet surprisingly dark at times. Their 1977 release Rumours was the fourth greatest-selling album of all time.

And then... the 80's happened.

While the 80's weren't bad for Fleetwood Mac, musically or commercially, but they weren't really sounding like themselves. This song sounds nothing like the Fleetwood Mac I know and love. It was remixed into a dance song, for cryin' out loud.

That said, I still like the song well enough. It has this pulsating guitar riff throughout the song that really merits a dance remix. And Lindsey Buckingham's vocals here are great too, practically wailing for love. And I suppose I have to commend Fleetwood Mac for working through the changing times of music. And even though I said this doesn't sound anything like Fleetwood Mac, you can still hear a couple of small touches in there that make it recognizable.

So while I vastly prefer 70's Fleetwood Mac, I can still find a spot in my music heart for this.

Top 10 Thursday: Top 10 Weird Al Songs

(Apologies for the late entry, but it's still Thursday in my time zone!)

It's polka time!

How can you not love Weird Al? He's funny, quirky, clever, and best of all, plays a mean accordion. As such, ten songs seems a little skimpy when making a list of great Weird Al songs. But I've scrounged through polka, parodies and all-around perplexity of the great man Yankovic. And here's my Top Ten.

10. "Couch Potato"

When "Lose Yourself" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, nobody dared to parody it. Nobody, that is, except Weird Al. When he pitched the idea to Eminem, Eminem requested that he hold off on the promotion of the single, as he feared it may hurt his career. So "Couch Potato" stands video-less, but loses none of its charm. Name-dropping just about every TV show, channel, and star in the book, "Couch Potato" will make you just want to get up and... sit back down and watch some more TV.

9. "Dare to Be Stupid"

While not a direct parody of any of Devo's songs, it's quite obvious by the song and the video as to who is getting the Weird Al treatment here. However, this is an original Weird Al song, commanding us all to dare to be stupid in all sorts of ways.

You better squeeze all the Charmin you can while Mr. Wimpole's not around
Stick your head in the microwave and get yourself a tan

Yes, such as those. When asked about the song, Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh said it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard. For me, it only ranks at #9, but I can see where he's coming from.

8. "Yoda"

Okay, even if the parody wasn't that funny (which it is), I love The Kinks so much that Weird Al's parody of them had to make the list. Anyway, this song is hilarious. It's one thing to replace "Lola" with "Yoda", but it's quite another to twist the entire song into a Star Wars parody. Such brilliant lines in this one.

7. "The Saga Begins"

One good Star Wars song deserves another, I say. This one gets the nod over "Yoda" because parodying "Lola" with Star Wars is doable once you replace "Lola" with "Yoda", but the idea to make a Star Wars-themed "American Pie" is just insane. Much like the man himself. And of course, the parody is dead-on, right down to the acoustic guitar solos.

6. "Like a Surgeon"

Okay, come on. If Weird Al doing a Madonna-like "Hey!" isn't enough to get you rolling in the aisles, then you need to check your laugh box and make sure it's still there. This song is absolutely hilarious. Who but Weird Al could have turned "Like a Virgin" into a song about a grossly incompetent surgeon, cuttin' for the very first time?

5. "Everything You Know is Wrong"

While Weird Al is no doubt the most famous for his parodies, I think his original songs deserve some merit. And this is the best of his original work. It's catchy, it's absolutely ridiculous, and it pretty much sums up Weird Al: forget what you know about music, because everything you know is wrong. Also, the song wouldn't be complete without an accordion solo, of course. (Warning for photosensitive epileptics: the video gets pretty flashy.)

4. "Perform This Way"

Obviously, the one artist that Weird Al has to parody in this day and age is Lady Gaga. Actually, fun fact: This is one of the few songs that is technically a parody, in that it makes fun of Lady Gaga with a Lady Gaga song. This is just chock-full of great gags (I particularly like the Madonna reference). Unfortunately, it was a bitch and a half for Weird al to actually release, because he had to get through the dreaded record label. Gaga loved the song, however, and so do I. Weird Al can perform any way he wants to.

3. "Trapped in the Drive-Thru"

This song is why I absolutely love Weird Al: Before this song, "Trapped in the Closet" looked like the ultimate un-parodyable song. But then Weird Al came along and whipped up something even funnier and more pointless than the original. Weird Al loves his food, and I think this was his best food-themed parody ever. It is so ridiculous, and so is the original. I think these two songs could be best friends.

2. "Amish Paradise"

There is absolutely NO ONE that finds this song unfunny. NO ONE. Except maybe Coolio.

While this is one of Weird Al's best parodies, this is also one of his most controversial, because Coolio was disgusted with the parody of his song "Gangsta's Paradise", and stated that he had never given permission for the song, something that Weird Al always gets before he makes the parody. Weird al has since written a letter of apology to Coolio, and has stated that he and Coolio are on good terms again. Probably because both are awesome songs. "Gangsta's Paradise" for its edge, and "Amish Paradise" for its humour. Now can we all just get along?

1. "A Complicated Song"

Throughout this list, there have been many parodies of many songs. But this song is different. This song is three parodies of the same song, one for each verse and chorus. That is just freakin' awesome. Constipation, incest, and decapitation all in a cutesy Avril Lavigne package. My hat's all to you, Weird Al. Brilliant. If you've never heard of Weird Al, then this list will make you an instant fan.

Watch-for-it Wednesday: "Cut Her Off" - K Camp ft. 2 Chainz

You know how I mentioned that rap's gotten stupid as of late? Well, in addition to that stupidity, there's also a controversy that plagues rap music every now and again: misogyny. So let's consult our apparent new expert in the subject, K Camp.

It ain't nothing to cut that bitch off

Yep! Just cut that bitch off! Or, hoe! Cunt, if you prefer. Anyway, bros before hoes, right? Hahaha... shoot me. So, I guess this guy's going to be big in the rap industry now. Shoot me twice.

I don't know, maybe if he sounded angry, like Eminem does when he's insulting women. Then maybe you could at least relate to his raw emotion. But no, this guy sounds so blasé, like he's going to the store. This makes the song a lot more troubling to me. Haha, good thing you didn't invest any emotion in this woman! It makes it a lot easier to bury the body.

Okay, no, this song doesn't go that far. But his attitude, or lack thereof, does get pretty irritating:

So what you saying, hoe?
You know I'm the man, hoe?

Are you using the word "I" in a general context, or are you actually referring to yourself as "the man"? Normally I wouldn't have to ask, but your presence is so pathetic I had to.

Yeah, that's another problem with this song: Even if I was a misogynistic prick who could fully understand the song's message of "cutting that bitch off", this song makes these pricks sound whiny. So I'm not even sure this song is for them. So, who is it for?

2 CHAIIIIINZ

Oh, that's it! It's for 2 Chainz to make another worthless guest verse.

You know that ain't a real bad bitch, that's a KNOCK OFF

WHY ARE YOU YELLING?

When I get that work I get jerkin' like hot sauce

Okay, ew. Just... ew. I won't be eating anything with hot sauce for a while.

As expected, 2 Chainz' verse is absolutely worthless, and I'm starting to think that people just have him on their songs because they feel sorry for him. Guys, just let him die and be buried in the Gucci store.

Not that this song isn't worthless as a whole, but 2 Chainz' verse is especially so. It's like he only heard the title of the song and just wrote a verse around that. Believe it or not, this song shows a lot more than meets the eye:

Baby, I'm ashamed, why you acting this way?

It's not just about cutting bitches off. It's also about feeling shame in your significant othe... WAIT A MINUTE!

If it "ain't nothing" to cut this bitch off, why is any emotion attached to this at all? Oh, no. You don't get to do this. You played misogynistic douchebag in the chorus; you don't get to play around with the idea that you have enough pride to be ashamed of somebody.

Never mind what this hoe's saying, I'll say what's on my mind: You suck, K Camp.

Hot 100 Success:

Will he have it?

Unfortunately, this is exactly the type of tripe that does get popular, and he sealed the deal by having 2 Chainz on the track. This will be a hit; we'll see about the rest of him.

Should he have it?

No talent, no charisma, nothing. No, he should not have success. *sigh*

CanTunes Tuesday: "Hideaway" - Kiesza

Yep, it's time to get our dance on!

Here we are with a brand-new artist on the scene: Kiesza. This is her debut single, "Hideaway". Released April of this year, it's set to become one of the biggest hits of the summer!

...That is, if it would ever chart in the States.

Yes, despite charting here, the UK, Scotland, Belgium, Australia, and Munchkinland, it still has yet to make it on the Hot 100. Hell, it's not even on the Heatseekers Chart. So what's keeping America from this song?

Well, it might be its length.

That's not meant as an insult to Americans' attention spans; I think that this song is too long as well. It basically consists of two different parts: the chorus and the oohing and aahing. It's over four minutes long, and normally that wouldn't be too long, but it is pretty repetitive to merit that much time.

I don't think this song offers much variety, either. She sings in a higher octave at the end of the chorus, but that's about it. It is pretty catchy overall, though. But the problems associated with it prevent me from calling this one a favourite of the year. There's just not much to take in. I wish there was a little more variety in the song's makeup, or that it was a little shorter. As it is, it's just okay for me. Not something I would hide away from, but not something I would actively go out and listen to either.