Zeke’s 2013 Year in Review – Music

Zeke’s 2013 Year in Review – Music

I’m far from a music junkie. While others are out there discovery new bands and albums, I’m marathoning Flogging Molly and Beastie Boys. So unlike last year, this year I didn’t discover QUITE as much as before. But there was still a lot going on in music, so let’s get started!

2013 Song of the Year – Let It Go (Frozen Soundtrack)

Sorry, but I couldn’t not pick this. Frozen was far and away my favorite movie, and this song went a long way to making it have the impact that it did on me. This song shows the feelings and emotions that go through the mind of someone who has spent their entire life hiding just who they truly are. It’s something that I related to, and it was such a powerful song. I felt myself not only humming it out, but belting it out as well…when I was sure that there weren’t any prying ears around to hear my tone-deaf voice. This was was just pure magic, and for me, there’s no song that matched it in 2013.

2013 Album of the Year – Daft Punk: Random Access Memories

While it may not be the best album from Daft Punk, Random Access Memories was catchy, fun, and quite enjoyable. There were a lot of great songs in 2013, and a ton of amazing albums (including the Frozen soundtrack, which almost made this list, if not for the fact that I didn’t need to gush aout Frozen any more than I already have). This album is definitely worth a listen. And you’ll find yourself humming Get Lucky for days.
Come back tomorrow, when I’ll discuss Gaming! What’s my Game of the Year? Tune in to find out!

Zeke’s Year In Review – Music

Zeke’s Year in Review – Music

When it comes to music, I have to admit that I’m rather plain-jane. I typically listen to whatever comes on the radio, and if I like the song I’ll check out the album. That means that I don’t typically “discover” music, rather I enjoy what others have discovered. That being said, there was a lot of big stuff happening in music, and I have for you my 2012 Song of the Year and Album of the Year!

2012 Song of the Year – PSY: Gangnam Style

Cliche? Predictable? Uninspiring? Maybe. But there’s no denying that this song took the country, hell even the world by storm. Whether it was it’s catchy beat, it’s unforgettable (even if incomprehensible) lyrics, or it’s crazy music video, Gangnam Style was a musical anc cultural sensation, ranging from podcasts to stage shows to even the amazing performance with MC Hammer at the American Music Awards. I know a lot of people absolutely can’t stand the song, but despite it’s questionably overplayed status, I can’t help but hear it singing in my head, and doing the horsey dance down the halls of conventions, my apartment, and even at work. From the countless parodies to the classic original, Gangnam Style is without a doubt the Song of the Year.

2012 Album of the Year – Muse: The 2nd Law

2012 was a great year for music, but I’m going to have to go with a personal favorite here. Ever since I first heard Knights of Cydonia, I was a Muse fan. Each new single and album release gave me more and more reasons to love them, and to me they are one of the greatest rock bands out there today. Their blend of rock and electronica is haunting and mysterious, intriguing and passionate. While a lot of their songs share similar musical blendings, each one is unique and powerful. This is another one of those albums where I can’t seem to find the “skip” button no matter what song comes on. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely great, and it earns my 2012 Song of the Year.
Come back tomorrow, when I’ll discuss Gaming! What’s my Game of the Year? Tune in to find out!

Rediscovering Old Music

Now that my desktop is back in my possession, I decided to scour my often overlooked music folder.  I don’t have a huge music collection, but it does stretch back to my highschool days in some places.  With my MP3 player now being 16 gigs instead of 4gb, it was time to update the music on it.  (When I first got it a couple months ago I just transfered everything from the old one to the new one).

One little treasure that I rediscovered buried deep in the music folder was the Black and Blue album.  Not just any Black and Blue album though, a very specific one.  One that wasn’t released in stores.  Let me give some backstory.

Back in 2003 when Jay-Z released his Black Album, he also released a vocals-only version of it, to encourage mixes and mashups with his lyrics.  One of the more popular mashups to come out of this movement was The Grey Album, which put Jay Z rapping over The Beatles.  MTV would later “mash up” Jay Z and Linkin Park, but both bands had a hand in that one, while most of the others were done independently of either of the utilized talent.

The Black and Blue album combined Jay Z’s “The Black Album” with Weezer’s Self-Titled CD, often called “The Blue Album”.  Most wouldn’t think that either of these artists would make a good collaboration, and indeed some of the songs don’t fit together very well.  But when they do, which ends up being a majority of the songs, then it’s just audible awesomeness.

My personal favorite is the track “Encore for Wayne”.  When I first discovered this, I used to play it over and over to drive my buddy Cliff batshit insane, because he was such a huge Weezer fan and hated to hear it “ruined by Jay-Z”.  Bah I say!  It sounds awesome and I don’t care!

If you are a fan of either Jay-Z or Weezer, and even better both, then go check it out!  The “band” who makes the album is called Jay-Zeezer, and you can find the album, which was made by the “DJ” who goes by Mike, and by the DJ name “Uh…Mike”, over at http://www.jay-zeezer.com/ It really is awesome, and Mike goes into what went behind creating the album (or as he puts it, “The Story of How an Indie Rocker Learned to Love Like Rap Music”).

I’m sure as I dig deeper into this collection I’ll find more and more gems from the way-back machine.  Until next time!

-Zeke