Nick Adams's blog

I tend to change my 'favorites' fairly often. The best band ever is quickly replaced by the next best band ever and so on. I'm going to have to go with Whitman and blame it on an inner barbaric yawp. There is just so much great stuff out there you can't stick with one thing for too long.

Every once in a while though, a 'category-killer' comes along, something so perfect in its own way that it captures a particular place in the heart for all time. "the boy least likely to" is one of these bands, occupying for me anyway the best spirited band ever. I have been giving my friends that have babies their album "the best party ever" as this is the kind of music that you know growing up listening to will turn you into a good human being.
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As this is supposed to be a music blog, you may be wondering why I am writing a movie review. The Science of Sleep has a great soundtrack. There, got the music bit out the way.

The real reason I am writing this review is that the Science of Sleep is an amazing, mind-bending film that should inspire artists of all types (musicians included). I loved this movie and am shuttling everyone I know to the theater to see it right away.

For those of you that haven't heard of it, the Science of Sleep was written and directed by Michel Gondry, who co-wrote and directed the popular film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
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One of my all time favorite bands is New Order, formed from the group Joy Division after the death by suicide of their singer Ian Curtis. Lately I have pulled all the albums out of retirement to go back through their material, and I am struck by the variety of their past work. I think many people are probably unaware of some of the best material they did in the early days, so this entry is an attempt to help unearth some of the New Order goodies you might not know of.

The album most people have probably heard is Power, Corruption, and Lies, which contains their biggest hits like Everything's Gone Green and Blue Monday. No doubt, this is a great album, and a good starting point for anyone new to New Order. All the songs on that album are great, and signal a real shift from the earlier Joy Division dark sound to a more upbeat but still thoughtful place.
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I am a junkie for the Post-Punk revival bands like Interpol, so it was with great anticipation that I put in the Editors' latest album, "The Back Room" today on the way to work. I wouldn't say I was disappointed, but I certainly look forward to the Editors' next album where hopefully they'll achieve their obviously great potential more fully.

While the music on many of the tracks was strong, with a nice layering of minimal synths alongside powerful drumming and catchy guitar riffs, there were no really memorable tracks and the words to the songs were weak. The singer has a strong and fittingly deep, dark voice, but the words were just too empty for my taste. One of the hallmarks of Post-Punk bands like Gang of Four and Joy Division were great, thoughtful lyrics that pushed you to actually think about things. After all, why get in a dark moody place if you're not going to at least turn it into a thoughtful experience?
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MTV is currently celebrating its 25th birthday, and what started out as a cute, youthful music revolution has grown into a three-headed, fire-spitting monster out to destroy all that is good in music.

Led Zeppelin officially disbanded in September of 1980 after the death of drummer John Bonham. A few months later, in August of 1981, MTV launched its first ever music video, The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star”. It’s unfortunate that the band that many consider the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band of all time never had a chance to weigh in on what became the future of music.

It started out as a unique and entertaining concept, a non-stop music video channel. For most of the 1980s MTV remained an outlet for performers to simply get their new music noticed and attract new fans with creative videos. Though they would expand their programming to include shows such as “The Headbangers Ball,” all MTV original shows still centered around music.
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Appearance is as important as sound these days. Take me, for instance. You wouldn't listen to what my friend James Plankton has to say about music, because you can see that he's clearly not hip. I make it my business to stay on top of the latest fashions and trends so I can tell you what's up-and-coming.

In America, youth is beauty. Today's music icons are getting younger and hotter all the time. Here's a quick rundown of the next generations of stars you should start paying attention to.

Arctic Monkeys - The four-piece indie band took England and America by storm with their first two singles, "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor" and "When The Sun Goes Down". They have since changed around some band members and achieved a great deal of noteriety while still remaining comfortably outside the mainstream.
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It's hard to tell what will be hot and what will not in music. Some artists hit and some artists miss. Here are 3 Good and 3 Bad For The Next 3 Months.

3 Good

Man Man

Like Bukowski growling alongside a barroom piano.

Power-pop fuzzy goodness may burn brightest on the musical radar these days, but there’s a thriving parallel movement that runs through darker soundscapes. Man Man embodies that genre of black melodies with strong edges. Hailing from Philidelphia, the band is led by singer “Honus Honus” and features a supporting cast of other colorful characters. “Feathers”, the bands most accessible piece, takes a simple-sounding piano waltz and infuses it with plenty of feeling. They are quickly gaining a reputation for original music and high-energy shows. Expect them to get even bigger, faster.
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At some point in your life, you'll be listening to an 'Oldies' station, and you'll hear a song from your youth. This can be a depressing or comforting feeling, depending on your philosophical outlook on life. It first happened to me about a year ago when I heard New Order's Blue Monday on the radio while driving to work. I was shocked to find something so avant-garde for its time relegated to the retro bin of 60's, 70's and 80's hits. Upon further reflection though, I was pleased, as New Order had managed to remain relevant 20 years after the song's release. In many ways we've been blessed in the last couple of decades by quality music acts that have managed to survive well beyond the average band's 'life' expectancy. Think of U2 for example, which have been releasing massively successful albums and tours for over 20 years. There are lots of acts like this out there, such as Elton John, Paul McCartney, or the absolute kings of survival, the Rolling Stones. What I wonder about though, is what artists from the contemporary music scene will have this kind of staying power? Who is popular right now that will still be around in 20 years?
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Festivals of Learning

In our busy modern lives, it is hard to keep up with all the new bands and musical styles that come out each year. Unless you have satellite radio or spend some serious time wading through CMJ and other music resources, you may fall dangerously behind in your understand of the new trends and artists. Sadly, too often research time keeping up with the cool can be spent unwisely. Look at all those poor people, for example, that spend almost a hundred hours a year to learn who the latest American Idol will be. Is there no solution for keeping in touch with the in-crowd?
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