So, here we are again. Feels like it's been forever. Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. This was initially slated to be my second AAA review, and honestly it very well might have been my first. This was certainly the first band I listened to enough to be able to write about them as much as I will here, and I could probably have written this review when I was twelve, excluding the last several albums. 
Friends and acquaintances John Linnell and John Flansburgh (The Johns) graduated to bandmates in 1982 and performed around New York City, playing guitar and accordion to a drum machine. Eventually they recorded some demos and after four years they released their first album. We take you there now...

Starting off as The Pendletones, a band centered around three brothers; Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, changed their name to The Beach Boys after sole surfer Dennis' insistence that they explore surfing and beach motifs. This became the primary focus of their output, recorded with the help of cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine (among others), until 1966 when main writer Brian wrote and recorded Pet Sounds, with the help of a huge roster of talented studio musicians, and not much help from the other Beach Boys. It was one of the first "concept albums": focused on the pain of growing up and navigating love, funnily enough drawing more inspiration from the "Boys" part of their name than the "Beach" part.

The album was a critical success but underperformed commercially. However, it was clear this was the direction Brian wanted to take the band, which didn't sit well with Mike Love. While the other members were more divided on the issue, none of the rest of their work would ever quite live up to the expectations of either the older fans who enjoyed the surfing music or those of the critics and newer fans who viewed Pet Sounds as the best album ever put to vinyl. But while there are only a few moments which recaptured that type of genius, there are many gems hidden throughout the recorded history of a band that was just as inventive as The Beatles with a career five times as long. 

For those who know only the uptempo beach music, the fact that the group even recorded anything else can come as a surprise. For those who have heard Pet Sounds, oftentimes the music might as well have ended there. But for those who judge each Beach Boys album on it's own merits, going through their discography is an exciting adventure where the genius of Brian and at times other members struggles to stand out against group infighting that threatens to bring out the worst of everyone. Beyond the sixties, the group can hardly be called consistent. Which makes it even more fun to go through their work and see what hit the mark. With no further ado, THE BEACH BOYS:

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Surfin Safari (1962): This one has the Beach Boys' first two singles: "Surfin" and "Surfin' Safari", only the latter of which is particularly good. "Surfin" was the first song they ever recorded and while it certainly had pure novelty appeal at the time, it does not stand up against the Boys' later work. Similarly, most of the songs here like "County Fair", "Ten Little Indians" and "Cuckoo Clock" are novelty songs and filler, far more filler than on later releases. The two great songs here are "Surfin' Safari" and "409" which almost save the album. Anyone can skip this album and just listen to those two and be none the worse for it. Though "Safari" hints at Brian's later genius he clearly hadn't matured as a songwriter at 20 (haha I'm 20). Mostly pretty bad.

Surfin' USA (1963): This sophomore attempt is miles ahead of their first one. Perhaps an OCEAN ahead. Yes, this one is more focused on surfing, not Indians or fairs or clocks. There's even a cover of Dick Dale's "Misirlou". The eponymous single is a cover of a Chuck Berry song with new lyrics, played beautifully with a killer organ solo by Brian. But for me the highlight here is "Farmer's Daughter", with a slower tempo which shows us the beginnings of what's to come on Surfer Girl with an absolutely beautiful choirboy delivery against a perfectly bouncy surf groove. The rest of the tracks hold their own for the most part and this is a great starting point for this band.

Surfer Girl (1963): The band's first masterpiece. Here the speedier surf rockers are set nicely against smooth ballads like "Surfer Girl" and "In My Room", the latter of which deserves a spot on Pet Sounds as much as anything, as Brian's first exploration of adolescent stress and loneliness. But even "Hawaii" is as well done as a surfing song can be with the backing vocals designed perfectly for each part. "Catch A Wave" is similarly well-crafted. It's at the level of their later output even if it's not their best album. Though if surfing really IS your bag, baby, this may be the best album you'll ever come accross. The only thing that stops it from being a 10 is the instrumental "Boogie Woodie" which while not terrible is an unnecessary distraction from the other tracks.

Little Deuce Coupe (1963): Three albums in one year. Yes, they were that prolific, creating music faster than anyone today. However, the creative juices might have been wearing off as for perhaps the only time the band reused FOUR songs including "409" and "Shut Down". This makes some sense as the concept for the album was to create some sort of compilation of the songs the band had made about cars, with new material recorded as well. "409" is the only good car song the band ever made besides "This Car of Mine" from the next record, and the new material especially fails to impress. The only great on the album is "Be True to Your School" which is a lovely if kitschy earworm. Even that isn't really unskippable and the car theme really relegates the whole thing to a dead end of an idea that never went anywhere (thank god they never released another car album). I'd say don't come back to this until you've heard every other Beach Boys song, every one of which is undoubtedly more worthy of your time.

Shut Down, Volume 2 (1964): No, I'm not reviewing Volume 1 here. Shut Down, Volume 1 was a compilation album from Capitol Records which featured that song. So it's possible Murray Wilson, the band's then-manager, father to three of them and infamous arsehole suggested this name 8 months after to capitalize on that record's success. He also caused David Marks to quit the band, Marks being a friend and member to the boys I didn't mention earlier because he quit in '64. Thanks Murray. To get to the actual album, there are two great tracks here, "Fun, Fun, Fun" and "Don't Worry Baby" and the rest is pure filler. OBVIOUS filler. "Denny's Drums" is a drum solo track that my friend Mridul and I used to mock often for it's inclusion here. There are skits, there are covers, and there are instrumentals like the eponymous track which doesn't do anything to stand out. "The Warmth of the Sun" is good but crosses the line from heavenly to sleepy. The obvious recommendation to make here is to skip everything but the songs I mentioned and maybe "This Car of Mine". But it is almost worth listening to the whole thing for the filler, most of which isn't bad and some of which is just funny that they included it. Like the song "Fun, Fun, Fun", suggests, this album is good for some if you're in the right mood.

All Summer Long (1964): The Boys were well-established at this point, and there may have been a bit of coasting involved here. On material they'd definitely covered before like "Little Honda" and "Girls on the Beach", they're clearly trying and even producing some of the better material about those topics, but it's easy to imagine Brian playing these songs, many of which Mike Love helped contribute, and starting to get tired of these types of tracks. But Love does flourish with this material, which he clearly had an aptitude for, with his solo contributions like "All Summer Long" being fun and pretty if a little shallow even for an early Beach Boys song. Carl does actually prove himself on "Carl's Big Chance", showing he could crank out a neat solo even if the opportunities to do so were rare. There is one track here, "Our Favorite Recording Sessions", which consists of sessions where the boys messed up or goofed around in a cute wholesome way. I can imagine teen girl fans of the time finding it charming but not too much of the charm survives. Similarly, the charming nature of this album is a little worn at this point and it's the first one without any true highlights to pull it out of the recesses of their catalog. "Little Honda" is nice but only performs well in the chorus. You might find something to hold on to here, but that's more of a testament to your tenacity than the band's.

Here's an old segment I did once before forever ago: All Artist's Albums. Normally I would run through an artist's studio output chronologically, giving a brief summary of my thoughts on each release. Here, I'll be a little more in-depth, because we are discussing one of the least prolific (yet most prolific) but also most influential (yet somehow least) of the early psychadellic "beat" music groups of the mid-sixties. 

Started in 1964 by five American G.I.s in Germany, The Monks experimented constantly for a year to find the perfect sound, one which found little popularity in Germany at the time. While their beloved contemporaries, The Beatles, sported two guitarists, The Monks replaced the extra guitar with a six-string banjo and added an organ. Additionally, their drummer Roger Johnston employed a hypnotic sense of rhythm to simple primitive beats with complex tempo changes. The lyrics are almost unnecessary and feature a simplicity that would make Joey Ramone moan in protest, but the rawness of the delivery set against contrasting harmonies was original and entrancing.

Only after the world forgot about The Monks did people start to stumble upon their single studio album, Black Monk Time and realize that they had veered at times into the sounds of punk, garage, even post-punk. And yet, these labels don't fit the band much more than the then-labels of beat and early-psychadelic music. The Monks are so much something else entirely that they could have formed at any point from 1960 to now and still been just as relevant yet just as different. Their most amazing accomplishment is sounding like they had no real concept of genre. And now, their first and last album, Black Monk Time:

​(1966) Black Monk Time: This might as well be the first punk rock album. It makes as much sense as anything else, unless you go all the way to Bollocks or something, which is obviously too late. It's certainly proto-punk, it's certainly garage, but it's something more. So to help us understand that, let's go through it song by song. For this part, I recommend either looking up Black Monk Time on Spotify or YouTube or simply playing it if you have the CD. 

SIDE A
(1) Monk Time: A very deliberate choice for a first track both lyrically (Gary mentions the members by name as Monks) and musically, as it features a straightforward version of the hypnotic pulsing rhythm with bass and banjo on the on and off beats respectively, with the organ coming in later. A very solid Monk track if a bit plain. The most noteworthy thing besides the cynical but fun 'Nam lyrics is the little repeating guitar riff in the intro, which sounds a bit like classic heavy metal. A great track, just not the most inventive The Monks have made.

(2) Shut Up: Quite a negative and depressing song, with a chord progression to match. However, the addition of this minor progression as opposed to the usual I-IV major stuff helps to see the parallels with sophisticated acts like The Cure which came later. The organ solo halfway through sounds like a more chaotic version of that from "The House of the Rising Sun" by The Animals, which debuted the same year. Overall this song is just a little more depressing than what one usually comes to The Monks for, but it's nice to have for variety.

(3) Boys Are Boys and Girls Are Choice: The first song on the album where that distorted bass sound is front and center, along with that impossible-to-ignore low rhythmic drum pounding. It comes off as a little more of a "jam" song than most of this stuff- but it's so very condensed and ends so strongly that's it's impossible not to love. An album highlight to be sure.

(4) Higgle-Dy - Piggle-Dy: I have to say I love it when these guys bust out something like the yodeled verses on this track. If your afraid to have your music be weird, why listen to The Monks in the first place? The music's solid as always, with "Boys" and this both making fine use of the organist Larry Clark's considerable skills. The combination of yodeling and psychadelic blues almost put to my mind something like "Focus Pocus" by Hocus and the guitar solo is certainly the most metal thing produced in 1966. Maybe not a great first Monks song but coming back to it after getting used to these guys, this track is everything you could want.

(5) I Hate You: At 3:33 it's long for a Monks track and certainly takes it's time, going a lot more for "cool and soulful" than "pounding you into submission with raw uptempo speed". The backing vocals sound nice and phantomly as always and Gary seems to tear his throat open in just that perfect way, especially on lines like "Well I hate you baby with a passion, yeah you know I do", where he sings a single note in a grating crow-like style. With such a primitive style and animalistic vocals, perhaps The Monks and The Monkees should have traded names. It's a terrific song but I almost dislike even having a slight reprieve from that fast beat.

(6) Oh How To Do Now: A perfectly respectable song that nonetheless doesn't particularly define itself against the rest of the catalog besides by repeating the title as well as the chorus more than usual. That broken record repetitiveness is such a part of their charm though, and really lets you appreciate every part of the piece. The guitar riffs in the second part are especially Hendrix-esque, if not as sustained or genius. Overall it may be a middle-of-the-road song but the funnel-like song structure in which an idea for a song is presented, restated, evolved, then abandoned, restated again, and altered in a way that progressively trims the fat of the central concept is in such fine form here that there's no way to find real fault in anything.

SIDE B

(1) Complication: Strangely enough, the first and most successful single of the album (that is to say, it was not successful in any regard). The pre-chorus (before the 'ba ba ba' wordless chorus) here is I have to say inferior to the way it was performed later live like here. Gary decided after this to change the monotone lyrics over the harmonies at that section to something a lot more lively and catchy. The one-note stuff works very well in other songs and is fine here but live it makes this song more interesting. The organ solo here isn't quite the best so I'd say this is not a high point on the album, though the song is great and a lot of fun live. 

(2) We Do Wie Du: Wow, a bit of German in the title of a technically German band's song! Anyways, back to a bit of slowness, but this time a lot more sweet and effortless than "I Hate You". It's nice to hear a real guitar solo again instead of an organ one, too. In fact, I don't think there's any organ on this one, though it might just be subtle. That nice surf groove, too, creates a mood that just makes you want to hold your lover and sidle around the smelly hot garage. Those "Heys" by Gary are so endearing too. One of the best tracks here. 

(3) Drunken Maria: You know, this string of 4 songs on side two is my favorite part of the album. This track is just so peppy and allows so much of itself (a full half) to pass before the first lyric that it's absolutely infectious when you get there. Especially with the first chorus, where the band gets extremely experimental with the reverb on the single distorted chords that would become such a distinctive sound later for bands like U2. I'll be damned if every part of this song isn't fully formed musical genius and of course the way it progresses seems like the band just knew what came next, caring not which part was chorus, verse, or bridge.

(4) Love Came Tumblin' Down: The first Monks song I ever heard and my favorite. I think this one is underrated, as I don't hear it brought up much and it wasn't covered on the tribute album Silver Monk Time. This song is so fucking amazing. It doesn't stray from the original progression until much later but everything it does with it, from the lyrics, to the organ solo, to the unbelievably inventive guitar riffs that sound like some out-of-this-world Ween shit, everything leads up to the Western-style verse lyrics that just project you to that other world. If The Monks are indeed monks, they are monks from another planet where horses are the primary form of transportation but there are distortion pedals attached to everything. If I ever need inspiration I can turn to this song. I can see how it's just a little different enough to be weird for most fans but it's definitely worth repeated listening.

(5) Blast Off!: Sigh. Shame to get to this track, this could be the most positive review ever if not for it. The 12-bar progression with the neverending organ riff is just annoying to me, where I know it should be hypnotic. This track certainly marks the low point of the album for me, and it's such a shock that they included it when later-released B-Sides were so so much better (some of them might even be better than anything on the album). I may get to those some other day, but for now I have to say that the whole "classic rock instrumental about space" was done better by The Tornados with "Telstar" 4 years before this. It's just a lot less inventive than what I've come to expect, especially from the lack of lyrics (besides the counting) and the almost incessant organ riff. A low point and probably worth skipping.

(6) That's My Girl: Most of this song sounds a little bit too much like "Drunken Maria" for me, though The Monks certainly aren't known for too much variety (though there is more on their unreleased B-Sides). However, I do like the vocal portions, the middle is just a tad boring for me. I personally think there would be stronger ending tracks for this album. Still, not a terrible song, maybe a bad one by their high standards though.

Well, that's it for now. Thank you so much for reading. Sometimes I need to get inspired by something to return to a writing form like this, hopefully I do actually do another one of these in less than 4 years this time. There's still a whole ton of bands out there (yep there's more than 2) and many of them have more than one album, even! See ya then.

...
So, Ben's not really in Heat Death anymore. It seems his focus is more appropriated towards less rewarding, but more addictive activities, such as the browsing of the infernet. Y'see, I NEVER browse the interwebs. Don't even know what they are. Don't look at me like that. I'm a hipster, mmkay? I'm WITH IT! I'M COOL! I spout references like it's nobody's business! I TOLD YOU ABOUT THE STAIRS, MAN!
In any case, the band is now myself on guitar, vocals, handling of the drum machine, songwriting and helping Mridul play bass better, since he's more of a drum man, and Mridul on bass and backup vocals.
It's better in some ways, worse in others. It's easier to make music for just 2 instruments (though I do program the drum machine, as said before), but also somewhat less fun.
Unfortunately, the majority of my friends either don't play instruments or are far too busy to be in my humble little four hours (SEVEN hours last time) a week practice sessions.
However, the current incarnation of Heat Death's first gig will be announced soon, although it is only at our school, you can still attend if you... go there... yes. Benefit Concert for... something. Probably poverty or disease. We will play a... what, 5 minute gig? Are you serious?
In any case, the Seattle Teen Music lady hasn't hit me back and it's been like two weeks. I guess she didn't like the demo...? Okay, the drums on that one are bad, but the new drumbeats I made sound great! If you know this woman, I believe her name is Megan, could you please tell her to give us a gig?
We need a gig.
A guy I know... he gets gigs. ALL THE TIME.
Riese out.

    One of you guys suggested to me that I write more posts on "the music scene" that's kinda' vague... but I will deliver! And what's a hotter topic in the music scene right now than rap? Oh right, Dubstep... well, maybe I'll tackle that later.
    Rap is still seeing a lot of hate after all these years. Mostly from the white community. You know why? Because white people don't listen to nearly enough rap. I should know. It's a typical "fear of the unknown" deal. These people haven't seen the wide varitey of enjoyment rap has to offer, and so assume it's all like, I dunno, N.W.A. or something. Some of Kanye West's stuff is kinda messed up. You get the idea. Shooting people, doing/dealing drugs, the like. Well, in the first place, people should be able to write about whatever they want. But I don't think I would be interested if that was the true message of all rap and hip-hop. It is so much more of an array. There is a rap about almost any topic you can think of.
    I used to see rap as just another thing self-obsessed jerks could wave in my face, like some kind of proof that they were arrogant jerks, just like what I saw rappers as. But now I know there are very few rappers like that. And even then, it's a release, it dosen't neccessarily mean you're like that.
    Now to talk about the first rapper I liked. A gateway rapper, if you will. MC Frontalot. The first nerdy rapper to rap about the nerdiest of topics, from RPGs to old-school video games to goth girls to Penny Arcade. Stuff that, realistically, his audience can actually connect to. All things I'm interested in. So, lots of fun. And that's how I learned about MF Doom, the closest thing to Frontalot, only black. He's rapped about video games, comics, and made entire albums about the adult swim cartoons. Like Aqua Teen Hunger Force, which is so so awesome. I friggin' love this guy. He makes nerdy stuff cool. And he's very self-aware (by the way thats him in the picture, he wears that mask all the time: Dr. Doom from fantastic four homage). He realizes the stereotypes associated with rappers and critiscizes them for it. So cool. So yeah, I love him. Uh... as they say in the hood, "No homo!"
    Now I can actually appreciate rappers like Snoop Dogg (Well, Snoop Lion now, he's still not completely done with rapping though), Ghostface Killah, and even Insane Clown Posse... kinda. 
    My advice for anyone who still views rap as I once did: look for your way in. Find someone who raps about something you like. You could get used to it, And trust me, it's a lot more fun to like music the more genres you can respect.

    In a recent e-mail with a friend, I found myself discussing every single album by one of my favorite bands of all time: Ween.
"Wow," I thought to myself, "I sure do offer a comprehensive beginner's look at all of this band's albums! Why not share this with the rest of the world, for the sake of the children?" And so I provide to you the first of what I hope will be a vast series of tours through the works of my favorite artists. Today we have the absurd experimental musical duo, Gene and Dean Ween.

(1990) GodWeenSatan: The Oneness: Ween’s first official album (they released their first album at the age of 15, all by themselves) and possibly the most wide-ranging. Contains about 30 songs, in a seemingly random order of really poppy tunes, folk, hard rock, and more. This was more of a novelty record  than most of their other stuff, but it’s still good. I recommend “Don’t Laugh (I Love You)” and “L.M.L.Y.P”

(1991) The Pod: This is the one with the really slow tempos. This is the fan favorite, Ween’s version of They Might Be Giant’s Apollo 18, where they made some of their craziest songs. I would recommend not starting with this one unless you have very high patience and/or tolerance for Ween’s style. Seriously, some of these songs can give you a headache or make you feel nauseous at a first listen. The whole thing sounds like it was recorded underwater. I recommend “Dr. Rock”, “Captain Fantasy”, and “Pork Roll Egg and Cheese”.

(1992) Pure Guava: This was Ween’s first truly successful album, getting them signed with Elektra records and a stint on Beavis and Butthead. Probably Ween’s most poppy early record, it still has plenty of “Ween-style” songs. I recommend “Push th’ little daisies” and “Don’t Get 2 Close (2 My Fantasy)”

(1994) Chocolate & Cheese: Widely considered by most non-hardore fans to be Ween’s greatest album, it was the first to be recorded in a studio, and you can really hear the difference. Every song on this album is gold, it dosen’t miss a beat. I would compare it to TMBG’s “John Henry” album, for making their sound much more concise. Or “Demon Days” by Gorillaz. I recommend the song “Freedom of ‘76”, “Roses Are Free”, “Voodoo Lady” and “What Deaner Was Talking About”

(1996) 12 Golden Country Hits: Ween’s one and only one-genre album. And guess what that genre is? Yup, country. Seriously, you will not enjoy this album unless you like hard-core country or really really like Ween. The subject matter is typical country stuff with a dash of Ween. This album basically proves that when Ween want to do something well, they can really deliver. They’re not just goofballs. I would recommend “Mister Richard Smoker”, and “Help Me Scrape The Mucus Off My Brain” which is surprisingly good.

(1997) The Mollusk: This marks Ween’s second most successful attempt at creating an album that has one distinct sound, and in this case it is the sound of the ocean, or rather, art rock/pop with nautical themes. This album sprawled their most well-known song ever (because it was the one that played in the credits of Spongebob: The Movie), “Ocean Man”. From an artistic standpoint, this may be Ween’s greatest work: a semi-concise and well-thought-out album that can stand on it’s own. The best songs include “Ocean Man”, “Waving My D*** In The Wind”, “The Mollusk”, and “Buckingham Green”

(2000) White Pepper: Ween’s most accessible album. There is very little profanity in this one compared to the old records, as it is the transition record to the new Ween. This is undoubtedly their most poppy album, and their 3rd highest selling. Anyone who likes the Beatles can enjoy this. I would recommend  “Exactly Where I’m At”, “Flutes Of Chi”, “Even If You Don’t”, and “Falling Out”.

(2003) Quebec: This album is like a combination of the more mature, sedate new Ween of White Pepper and the old-school charm of Chocolate & Cheese. 
Whereas the first few Ween albums were absolute madness, and the next few sounded a bit like typical song lyrics made to mimic certain genres, This album feels like Ween really thought about each and every lyric. This includes some of Dean’s finest guitar work and Gene’s finest vocalization. Ween dosen’t lose themselves within this album, like in White Pepper, they just try a new approach. Every song on this album is of the utmost quality and therefore it is impossible to choose the best, but some good ones to start with are “Chocolate Town, “If You Could Save Yourself (You’d Save Us All)”, “Among His Tribe”, and “Transdermal Celebration”.

(2005) Shinola (Vol. 1): [Note: currently there is no Shinola (Vol. 2]. This is not technically a studio album, it is a collection of B-sides that go remarkably well together, but as it contains previously unreleased material I will still cover it. This is the full tour of Ween’s styles, and the closest thing fans have to another Chocolate & Cheese. Here Ween is at their most Weenish once again, with songs about messed-up love, religion, and foodstuffs.“Gabrielle” is the highlight of this album and it’s only single, with a selfish narrator and a funky tune. Whereas the album also contains songs like “Israel” that is some Jewish guy reading the Torah set to music. I would recommend the aforementioned “Gabrielle”, “Transitions”, and “Boys Club”.

(2007) La Cucaracha: Ween’s most recent album, it’s a little short after all this wait but it’s definitely a step back from whatever direction Quebec was heading, which is probably good for Ween’s fanbase (and Ween themselves). It has some old-school Ween charm in “Shamemaker” but is also reminiscent of their more recent style in “Lullaby” and “Your Party”. Speaking of parties, this albums associated EP, The Friends EP as well as some songs such as “Fiesta” and “Friends” show us a new side of Ween: the party side. It may or may not be the right direction for them, but the new party songs are
very catchy and better yet, one can actually play them at a party. I would recommend “Learnin’ To Love”, “Your Party”, and “Sweetheart”.

Well, that's it for today! And if you don't know who "They Might Be Giants (aka TMBG) are, don't worry. I'll cover them next.
THIS HAS BEEN: THE AAA MUSIC REVIEW TOUR SHOW (ACTUALLY JUST A BLOG THINGY)! TUNING OUT!