Saturday, January 14, 2012

"Rock & roll is dying...

because people became OK with Nickelback being the biggest band in the world, So they became OK with the idea that the biggest rock band in the world is always going to be [trash] – therefore you should never try to be the biggest rock band in the world. F[orget] that! Rock & roll is the music I feel the most passionately about, and I don't like to see it f[rea]king ruined and spoon-fed down our throats in this watered-down, post-grunge crap, horrendous [trash]."
Patrick Carney; drummer, The Black Keys

a) "Some of Nickelback's songs are really good!" Are you kidding me?! Every song is virtually identical, they just change the tempo, and rearrange the lyrics! "Well, obviously, people listen to them for their lyrics." You're not understanding me. Almost every song is about the same thing: drugs, sex, drinking, and being a superstar. They just re-state how awesome they are because they get laid, get free booze, and are given free drugs simply because they're rock stars. Occasionally they toss in a song about world peace or something, just for some variety.


b) Beck uses widely various influences in his music, and very few of his songs ever sound the same, or are the same style, but I haven't heard a single song that sounds anything like The Offspring – especially not the song Loser.

c) There is not much rap-rock that I enjoy, and to be perfectly honest, Rage Against the Machine is no exception. But that's really a matter of preference, not a matter of quality of music. In fact, I think RAtM is made up of outstanding musicians, and I think Tom Morello is one of the most unbelievable guitarists I've ever heard, and I love the music. I just don't like the rap part of "Rage."
That being said, "Hollywood Undead is a lot like Rage Against the Machine" is an unacceptable statement. Stylistically, sure, they both perform rock music with rap vocals, but that's like saying that Nickelback and Led Zeppelin are alike, or that Green Day and the Ramones are alike, or that the Black Eyed Peas and the Wu-Tang Clan are alike, or that John Mayer and Eric Clapton are alike. They just aren't.

d) It's "Smashing Pumpkins," not "The Smashing Pumpkins." And "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" is not their only album.

e) Eddie Vedder rocks. Yeah, in the '90s, he sang using the some of the most ridiculous grunge vocals of any grunge singer, but his lyrics are outstanding, Pearl Jam's music is awesome, and his solo work is amazing (partially because he toned down the grunginess in his vocals). Even in PJ's latest album "Backspacer," the grunge factor was significantly reduced.

f) Please stop trying to convince me to like Foo Fighters, or Green Day. I recognize their music shares many similarities with the stuff I do enjoy, but they both just irritate me.

g) Stop calling yourself a fan if you do not own two or more of a given artist's albums (unless they only have one so far). This is not a statement of purchase vs. bootleg. I don't really care how it is acquired, but you're not a fan of an artist if you only listen to, or enjoy one album. You can say "I really like them," or maybe even "I love them," but if you only like/listen to/know one album, you can call yourself a fan of that album. But a fan of that artist, you are not.

h) Folk/bluegrass music and country music are not the same. There are many differences, but the biggest is content. The only people I've ever met who really think they're the same, are people who don't listen to either. You can't say to a bluegrass fan "Hey, you would really like Carrie Underwood, because you like bluegrass," and you can't say to a country fan "Hey, you would really like Old Crow Medicine Show, because you like country." It just doesn't work that way.

i) Electronica is a legitimate form of music. Simply because you've heard nothing but obnoxious, repetitive, dance-club techno, doesn't mean that's all there is. Really. Give it a chance.

j) "Indie" is not a genre. "Indie" is short for independent. "Indie" artists, are either self recorded and unsigned, or are signed to an independent record label. "Indie" can refer to any genre, whether it be rock, hip-hop, folk, blues, metal, or even country. "Indie" does not even refer to the popularity of an artist; an artist can be "indie" no matter the popularity, as long as they are unsigned, or signed to an independent label.

k) I know I tease people pretty severely about their musical taste, but mostly it's just teasing, and I recognize that people's taste is mostly a matter of preference, and I'm rarely serious when I say that a person's tastes destroy their musical credibility – yes, even my friends who like Owl City, Foo Fighters, Green Day, Tom Petty, or even country music, are still my friends, and good people in spite of their terrible taste (again: joking... sort of) – unless I'm referring to Nickelback, Katy Perry, or some other horrendous, shallow drivel.

*Deep breath*

Oh! One more thing: the vinyl format is not obsolete.

Musical rant ended (for now).

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Polska Bigos

I really like polish food.

A couple of years ago, as part of a graphic design project, I discovered that I like polish food, and I found this recipe for "Bigos," or Hunter's stew.
Several weeks ago (perhaps even a couple of months, or so), it was suggested that we have a "Russian potluck" for our New Year's eve celebration. I mentioned that I have a Polish stew recipe, so it became more of a Slavic themed meal (Rob made borscht, and it was delicious).


The recipe I found online is as follows:        

  • One 33 ounce jar of Sauerkraut
  • One Savoy Cabbage
  • Two pounds beef
  • Two pounds pork
  • One pound of breakfast sausage
  • ½ pound smoked bacon
  • One pound Kielbasa
  • One onion
  • One SMALL can of Tomato paste or sauce*
  • 3 to 5 Bay Leaves
  • salt, pepper, oil
I modified it a little, and this is what I put in the pot in the end:

  • 12 ounces smoked, thick sliced bacon
  • 28 ounces kielbasa
  • Two pounds beef
  • Two pounds pork
  • One 32 ounce jar of sauerkraut
  • One cabbage
  • Three onions
  • Two potatoes
  • Two cups pearled barley
  • 3 to 5 Bay Leaves
  • 2-3 cups Vodka

I eyeballed how much water I would need (sorry, didn't think to take a pic of that), added the vodka, brought it to a boil, and threw in the potatoes. After trimming as much of the fat as I could from the beef and pork (I made sure I bought enough that it would still be around two pounds of meat after trimming), I browned all the meat (browning the kielbasa is very important; without this the slices would dissolve into the stew), seasoning the pork and beef with sea salt, black pepper, dill weed (lots of this), rosemary, and a little basil. Then I sautéed the onions in the leftover grease from the meats, seasoning it in the same way, and threw it all in the pot, with the cabbage and sauerkraut.

Kielbasa
Beef  [Sorry, I forgot to take shots of the pork and bacon]
Onion
I put about a teaspoon of fennel seeds in a tea ball, and tossed that too. Then I threw in the barley, and let it simmer on the lowest heat possible for six to seven hours.

Bigos

Bigos should be served with a dollop of sour cream. I apologize for not getting a photo of the presentation, but I was a little too busy eating this delicious meal.


*The absence of tomato paste in my recipe was entirely accidental, and I would have added it right after the onions, if I had remembered. Next time I try it, I'll have to remember to add the tomato paste, and let you know how it turns out.

Fourth Season


Mamiya/Sekor 500DTL, with original
Mamiya/Sekor 50mm 1:2 lens, Tamron Adaptall
80-210mm 1:3.8 tele/macro lens, Asahi Pentax
accessory shoe, and Minolta Auto 28 flash

All of the photos in this album were taken using the Mamiya/Sekor 500DTL and accessories pictured. With this batch, I started experimenting with lower speed film. Some of the shots taken with 200ASA film are fairly obvious, and I believe for the time being, I'm going to return to 400-800ASA, because most of the photos I take are either lower light, or action, and a higher ASA is needed.
Despite the grainier quality in many of these, I think this is my favourite batch of film yet, including the album, "Emery's First."
Please view the full albums below. I'd love to hear your feeback.


































Also, please take a look at my other albums, and tell me what you think: