All Entries in the "Music" Category
Drexelist July 4th Playlist
By Sarah Glorioso: The 4th of July weekend is nothing without some essential patriotic songs playing on the stereo. We here at The Drexelist have compiled a must-play list for your Independence Day celebrations. So, here’s some tunes to accompany your BBQs, fireworks, and “USA” chants!
Miley Cyrus – Can’t Be Tamed – 6/18/10
Miley Cyrus releases “Can’t Be Tamed” on June 18th and assures the world that she totally doesn’t have a bedtime okay!? Read more about the surprising direction that Hannah Montana has taken on this new release.
New M.I.A. Song “Teqkilla”: Mixes Binge-Drinking and Annoying Computer Sounds
New M.I.A. track avoids controversy but still confuses. Will her July 13th release entitled /\/\Y/\ hold more of this experimentation?
Rock Band 3: Now More Like an Actual Rock Band!
Have you ever wanted to learn to play a musical instrument but settled for owning your friends at Rock Band instead? Well now you may be able to throw a stone at both of those birds. With new instruments and game-play components announced by Harmonix, you may actually be able to gain some musical ability while you rock out to Foghat or Tom Petty on Rock Band 3. The third installment in the popular video game series will now include a Pro Mode that will accurately map individual notes and chords for each instrument, providing some real-life benefits as opposed to just being really good at hammering on plastic toys.
Free Energy Concert Review
Yet Free Energy is able to walk this line without collapsing into either side, creating a very much universally appealing sound that appeals to not only different genres, but also different generations entirely. A throwback to a time when rock and pop seemed to be inseparable, Free Energy’s set then was full of a showmanship that has long been missing from live shows, with the front man, Paul Sprangers, pacing the stage and pointing out towards girls in the audience.
Dr. Dog @ The Electric Factory, 5/13/10
Sarah Glorioso writes of her sixth live experience with Philly’s own Dr. Dog and her third of her freshmen year at Drexel!
Airbourne, w/ High Council, @ North Star Bar 5/1/10
With the crowd’s rock-o-meter (which normally goes from 0 to 11) running on empty, Airbourne took the stage just in time to overflow the tank. Whereas the first two bands were local acts, Airbourne recently released their second album, “No Guts, No Glory”, on Roadrunner Records and are becoming better known by the day. They have gained popularity in recent years by having their music featured on the soundtracks to various video games including Madden NFL 08, NHL 08, and Rock Band, with such tracks as “Stand Up For Rock and Roll” and “Runnin’ Wild”. Airbourne hit the stage like a wrecking ball and by the end of the night left the North Star Bar in shambles. With guitars blaring, drums pounding, and soaring vocals, Airbourne delivered the rock. The band has an old school, raw, driving sound reminiscent of Jet, Philly’s own Silvertide, or a young AC/DC that can be heard in the music and the lyrics. Singer Joel O’Keefe’s shrieking vocals could easily pass for Brian Johnson.
For much of the night, Airbourne seemed to be taking care of the crowd’s needs. Too hot? No problem – bassist Justin Street and rhythm guitarist David Roads poured entire water bottles on their heads and persisted to head bang, soaking the crowd in the process. Maybe you are thirsty, lead singer/guitarist Joel O’Keefe would take a sip of a beer and then pass it off into the crowd between songs. Now that is what I call a band of the people!
The Dead Weather – Sea of Cowards
Jack White’s The Dead Weather releases their second album in under a year. Read the full story to see whether or not Jack and his supergroup buddies managed to deliver the second time around.
Yeasayer, w/ Sleigh Bells, @ The Troc, 5/5/10
Now that you have some background, let me try to explain Sleigh Bells sound to you. It’s not the easiest thing in the world to do. Okay… so start with all of your conceptions of pop music. Alright. Now throw them out the window. Shatter the window. Now you’re one step closer to understanding Sleigh Bells. Go over to their Myspace and listen to “Infinity Guitars” or “Crown on the Ground” to see what I mean because I couldn’t find an mp3 to stream.
What you’re hearing is a production style in the same ballpark as the lo-fi movement that has been going on for a couple years now in indie music. M.I.A. exhibits this tendency but essentially what it comprises of is pushing down the overall mix of the vocals to the point where they seem to be drowning in the rest of the song. Instead of emphasizing the vocals the production works to emphasize the guitar, synths, and drums – something that is usually the first no-no you learn as a producer. Yet, despite sounding wrong and unorthodox, there is some undeniable beauty to this sound. And, no one does it better than Sleigh Bells.
Drexel’s Best Dance Crew Recap
Friday night in the Main Auditorium, as part of CAB’s Spring Jam events,aspiring dance crews gathered together to compete for the title of Drexel’s Best Dance Crew. Along with the treacherous competition, MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew season four winners, We Are Heroes, visited and performed for the audience and competing dance crews.
