Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Assssssignment numbero 2


Top 5 Most AMAZING Bands According to me


5. The Pixies- This band came out of Boston Massachusetts in the year 1986. It is consisted of four members Black Francis, Joey Santiago, Kim Deal and David Lovering. Most of there popularity came from Europe, although they were never considered mainstream. There music is influenced by punk and some surf rock. Punk rock singers such as Black Flag, David Bowie and Iggy Pop. After there career there music went on to influence many successfull bands, most notably Nirvana. I chose this as my number 5 most amazing band because of there lyrics. The songs that best demonstrate this are Where is My Mind, and Wave of Mutilation. I also think the band is so good because of there lead man Black Francis who is the guatarist, vocalist, and song writer.


4. Bad Brains- One of the earliest, and most respected raggae/ punk bands. They were formed in 1977 in Washington D.C. The band are followers of the Rastafarian movement, and were originally called Mind Power. Many of there songs have to do with the Rastafara religion such as " Jah Love" and "Leaving Babylon". They were influenced by bands such as Black Sabbath, The Sex Pistols, and The Ramones. Bands they had a big influence on are Beastie Boys, Sublime, and Black Flag. Bad Brains is my number 4 favourite band because there music was so original and advanced compared to the other music groups of there time. They blend several types of music including funk, raggae, punk, and metal in a way no other band before or after them has accomplished. A song that best shows this is House of Suffering.

3. Elliot Smith- Originally born Steve Smith, changing his name to Elliot in highschool was a musical genious he was able to play guitaur, bass, clarinet, drums, harmonica, and sing. . His first record came out in 1994, at a time when grunge was hugely populaur. Smiths' music was opposite of this heavy music, his voice was raspy, almost whispery and most of his songs were accoustic. Also, the first of his music seemed very dark,a nd almost depressing however as he grew as a musician the moods of his music began to show variety. Elliot began reaching success in 1997, and after this he fell into depression making suicide attempts frequently and also batteled with drug and alchol abuse. On October 21, 2003 Elliot Smith died, some saying the reason was suicide, and other's believe it was homicide. Influences of Smith's were The beatles. U2, Modest Mouse and Scorpions. Elliot Smith is my number the favourite musical artist becaus e of his voice. It is clear, yet raspy at the same time. Also, he layers his music to make it sound more complex and interesting. A song you should check out that shows these qualities is Say Yes and Dont Fear the Reaper.
2. Red Hot Chili Peppers- Formed In 1983 in Los Angelos California. The band members include Anthony Kiedis, John Frusciante, Flea, and Chad Smith. The Red Hot Chili Peppers were an underground band until here fourth album Blood Sugar Sex Magik. This album sold thirteen million copies,a nd threw them into mainstream. The band released three albums after this Californication (1999), By the Way (2002), and Stadium Arcadium in 2006. Today they have sold over 50 million albums all over the world. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are my second favourite band because there music is so unique, they combine ounk, rock , and funk to make masterpeices. They have been around for over two decades and are still producing legendary hits, and still managing to grow. A song you hould check out is Parallel Universe.

1. Bob Dylan- I believe that Bob Dylan is the most influencial artist of all time, five decades later and he is still influencing music. He was born Robert Allen Zimmerman on May 24, 1941. He was most populaur around the 1960's and known for his songs about Civil Rights. He used various musical styles such as gospel, folk, blues, and rock and roll. No other musician after him was ever the same and by mixing lyrics with poetry he made them mean something.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Media- Assignment 1

Media has a huge impact on my life, almost every moment of the day I am being influenced. Whether it is by listening to my ipod, reading a magazine, or watching t.v media is all around me. As a 16 year old girl I am a main target to marketers and corporations, they are trying to sell me anything they can put a price tag on. There are millions of products out there that are all being pushed on people like me, and it is my job to decide what I should spend my time and money on. The following shows how the media effects me.





Music- My favourite band is The Red Hot Chili Peppers. I love this band because I think the way the mix funk, rock, and punk is amazing. They have such an original sound, that no other band has yet to master. The band has been together, successful and playing music for nearly three decades, which in the music business is almost unheard of in the music industry.


My favourite singer is Jack Johnson, I saw him live at Burl's Creek this summer, and it was the best concert I have ever seen. He sounded the exact same he did on his albums and came back and played an hour encore.
Some of my other favourite music includes, The Submarines, Dandy Warhols, Streetlight Manifesto, Pink Floyd, Sam Roberts, Slightly Stoopid, Sublime, Radiohead, and Bedouin Soundclash. Music is probably the biggest way the media effects me because I am constantly downloading, and listening to music.


Movies- My favourite movie is Forrest Gump. I love this movie because it shows how a simple person can do amazing things. As a child Forrest was always described as slow, and had trouble learning no one expected him to do anything with himself but he achieved great things with his life. Forest went to Vietnam and won a purple heart, played in a national ping-pong league, and fell in love. This is a movie that anyone can relate to in some way.

Another favourite movie of mine is The Breakfast Club. I like this movie because it is such a classic, it gives a pretty accurate view of all teenage groups. It shows how people judge people by which groups they are in, and what they have heard about the person rather getting to know them yourself. Other favourite movies of mine include Super Troopers, Dazed and Confused, Detroit Rock City, and Pulp Fiction.

My favourite novel is Scar Tissue by Anthony Keides. What first interested me about this novel was that it was about my favourite band The Red Hot Chili Peppers, but after reading it I liked it for so many other reasons. It was one of the only books that I have read that kept me untested the whole way through, without leaving anything out. I have reread this book so many times I have lost count, and I am still not board with it.

As you can see media has a huge impact on my life, and influences many of the decisions I make and things that I do.