Hey! There is More Music Than Just What is on the Radio Out There!

Maybe it is just my addiction to heavier music but I find that radio does not fully satisfy my thirst for alternative forms of musical findings. Strangely enough through my adventures in searching for new sounds I have found more than one group that deserves to be on the radio but never seem to have managed to get their tracks noticed. Due to the products of my search I have found myself listening more and more to great artists that normally I would never have noticed.

The reason for this particular article is to highlight sources for you to begin your own search for good music not played on the airwaves. Expand your audio horizons and check out these digital worlds of sound. As I said before I have a penchant for heavy music: gridcore; prog; death; white; black; thrash; industrial and a lot of other metal based sounds. Due to this fixation we will begin this with some excellent stores of molten metal:

I subscribe to Relapse Records electronic email. Why, because I find out about what brutal metal bands like Abysmal Dawn, Pig Destroyer, and Black Tusk are up to. Everything from what they are working on in the studio to where they are touring.

Relapse informs me on new and interesting projects that give unique perspectives on the metal genre; such as the one woman black metal enterprise MYRKUR. It also offers some damn cool merch from bands such as Death, EXHUMED, and Mastodon.

If you are as much as a fan of metal as I am you need to check out Decibel! It is incredible! They give great reviews on everything from the most popular metal to those new outfits that are attempting to claw their name into The Book Of Heavy Metal.

Not only do they enlighten their readers on the lay of the metal landscape but in each magazine they give away a Flexi Series mini LP! Yes, there is a mini record in each and every magazine... OOOOh, excuse me, I love vinyl.

Decibel has quickly become my favorite printed resource for finding info on metal acts.


Exclaim claims to be Canada's music authority, and they just might be. I adore this paper. I always search for it whenever I am in Toronto.

Apart from it being free, they cover everything! Pretty much every style of music playing out they have reviews on and opinion articles on. They cover metal, punk, electronica, pop, and etc.

Within one issue of this paper they have more album reviews than on any web site that I have ever seen on music! Some of my favorite memories of times in Toronto have been relaxing in a quirky coffee shop reading an exclaim.

If like me you can not get to the city of Toronto that often you can check 'em out on the web.

Next of the list is Loudwire, it is what I use for a digital outlet for my rock and roll news. They give me the latest information on everything from Slipknots new masks to how AC/DC is doing due to the revelation of Malcolm Young's condition.

Along with news Loudwire has a good stock of videos, reviews, and contests to check out. So if you like to keep up with your rock and roll drop by Loudwire.com

Revolver is the home of the Golden Gods Awards. A real music awards show for those of us who know that Soundgarden is a great rock band and not metal, Grammy's take note! If you like your music heavy the Golden Gods is the awards to watch. This years show so far has acts such as the classic Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, the immortal Zakk Wylde, and new comers The Pretty Reckless.

Just like the before mentioned Loudwire, Revolver is a great place to get news on the state of rock 'n' roll and metal today. 

To end this list I have left the one source that requires some work on your part to root through but has an almost un-exhaustible storage of free music. Check out the audio section on this bad boy and you can find downloadable live concerts by well known bands such as the Smashing Pumpkins and the Grateful Dead just to mention some.

There are studio, demo, and other tracks from styles of music that you may not even knew that exist. As of late I have been exploring Irish metal groups, and Finnish death metal groups on the site.

If you have some hours to get lost exploring go to the Internet Archive.

I have many more sources that I browse through to see what I can find to enlighten myself on the sounds that are out there including just using twitter but I am sure that these will keep you busy enough for now.

Thanks for reading.

  Kevin Sweeney

Update on our most Popular Blogged Artists

I have reviewed our most read blogs to see who seems to be the most popular blogged artists that I have had the pleasure to write about and below are the artists that have gathered the most readers so far... This is in no particular order and no musicians were harmed in this assessment.

Partially due to the high numbers of readers and also due to being a home town Kingston up and coming Rock Star I figured I would begin with...

Greg Ball has been busy with live shows, The Campfire Liars Club, and his upcoming third studio release. He has said that this new album, Alter Ego, has more... how did he say it again? Yes, balls, that is what he said. Expect this new CD to have more balls. 

The Bathouse Recording Studio

We are crossing our fingers that we can get the new offering in our greasy little hands by Christmas. Hopefully it will be an even bigger hit for Ching Music than his last album "Mr. Rightplace." 

If you can not wait to have a taste of the new stuff, you can hear a new song of his titled "Pavement" on Soundcloud or on his Facebook page. If audio is not enough for you he has also temped us with a video teaser on YouTube that gives a humorous look at him and the band at the Bathouse Studio.

For those of you who are in the Kingston area Greg will be performing live in Kingston this Wednesday 24th of Sept at the Mansion and the tickets are just $10. A not bad price for a chance at seeing and hearing a damn good singer.

Alter Ego Teaser       Greg Ball Facebook    Ching Music     The Bathouse       The Mansion

Next up in our little love fest here is the Finnish Guitar Virtuoso Elmo Karjalainen...

Even if you do not take into consideration his great personality and excellent choice in guitars - he will actually email you back, not kidding - it is impossible to overlook the accolades and praise he gets for his skill with the six string axe. All you have to do is take a listen to "Raging on a Sunday Afternoon" to be hear what I am talking about.

Raging on a Sunday Afternoon

Part of what I really like about this Finnish guitarist is that he is willing to let his fans know all the ins and outs of his process; from detailing what gear he uses, to his origins for songs. It also does not hurt that he regularly produces videos on YouTube covering what he is working on. 

As of late he has began mastering his newest album which he has stated "promises to be a cracker." It is going to be an eight track CD, but it may take a little extra time to produce due to an arrival of a new member to the Karjalainen family expected soon. In the meantime he is offering two free songs to anyone who wants them on his website.

2 Free Songs                     YouTube                   Elmo's Guitar Blog                     Facebook

  
We now move from one guitar master to another...

There is one hell of a great video of a bit of his Guitar Mania concert at the new Berklee Caf that I have linked below, click on it and let Alek's magic fingers boogie your blues away.

His album "Panopiticon" has been gaining great reviews. If you enjoy an effortless delivery of quality prog/metal I highly advise you to check out his CD. While you are at that you can also check out his YouTube videos that give you a glimpse into his process of making music.

Aside from checking out his skill on the guitar you have to go to his website to see his gorgeous custom made guitars he calls his girls. They are immaculate works of art that look every bit as beautiful as they sound.  

If you are in the Dunellen, NJ area on Oct 11 you can see Alek in all his glory live during the NJ Proghouse Concert, at Roxy and Dukes.

Facebook                                           alekdarson.com                              Roxy and Dukes     

Well that leaves me with just one group left... Well, it is a little misleading to say group, because it is not just one group but rather the music of a city. Yes, I said city. The city of...

Detroit is damn determined to hold on to its Rock and Roll legacy. Artists such as Fifth Way, and Ty Stone are proving that music is not dead in the motor city. 

In fact it seems as if the entire arts community in Detroit is enjoying a Renaissance. Everything from the graffiti artists to the Detroit School of Arts has been enjoying a renewed enthusiasm that may lead the metropolis into being the next artistic mecca for the US.

Fifth Way has been winning over new fans with their hard rock sound and hard working attitude. You can see by the comments and pictures on their twitter page that they take to heart the blue collar roots of their home. In their music you can hear the rage and anger inherent in a community sick and tired of being beaten down in order to make others rich.

Fifth Way Twitter

Where Fifth Way is embodying the angst and anger of the Rock City, Ty Stone is taking more of a John Cougar Mellencamp stance by engaging in local Detroit charities and producing a more classic rock sound. Both of them have been active in the fight to keep the city of Detroit relevant in the incredibly difficult times that the community is facing. Their efforts truly remind us that Rock and Roll was and is the music of the people.

Ty Stone Twitter

So, these have been the stories and people who have garnered the most attention so far within this small blog. Here is to their further success, Cheers one and all.

Revolution Calling

I find it quite interesting that at this time in our world history that the Canadian Rock band Nickleback has released a single such as "Edge of a Revolution." Why, you ask; because they are correct. We are standing on the edge of a revolution, and one that if any of us want change needs to have it's day in the sunlight. There are far too many examples of how North American society has left the paths of a democracy. The American dream is dead, it is now a Vegas Casino reality, rigged to eliminate the chances of the middle class or poor from having any chance to attain escape from debt slavery.

Nickelback

But enough preaching from me... Is this the next path for Rock and Roll /Metal today? It is not a new foray for Rock and Roll, in fact it already has a great linage of bands that have railed against the status quo of society. Bands such as Rage Against The Machine have been calling for a change in governance and social acceptance for a long time. If you know there music you can attest that while other heavy bands were boasting about how cool or tough they were and pop groups kept singing about how sex equals love, these guys were attacking injustices of our society in their lyrics. 

                                                                                    Rage Against the Machine

Other amazing bands such as Megadeth and Disturbed have also endeavored to urge their listeners to reach beyond the music and embrace notions of change. Songs such as Disturbed's "Another Way To Die" rage against the way we ignore the state of the very world we live in, while Megadeth's whole album "The System Has Failed" was a treatise on the fall of the American Empire.

Megadeth

Disturbed

The problem that we deal with here in North America with Revolutionary ideas is apathy: we hear the song; buy it on iTunes; and rock along to it until the next new hit comes along. The intent of these songs is lost. They were not intended to be chart toppers they were meant to be anthems, and torches to ignite real change. Their popularity shows that there is a thirst for a better way of life but many times it does not go any further than bringing fans to a show and selling records. A Rock and Roll revolution becomes a consumerism trend, just like the fashion designer Jeremy Scott took the idea of the Arab Spring and changed it from a peoples call for change to a haute couture clothing line. 

So, is the popularity of "Edge of a Revolution" glimpses of a North American Spring, or just another advertising masterpiece that will make some people who are already rich richer? The answer to that question ultimately lies with us listeners. In the meantime I have to say that even if this becomes no more than a passing fad. I whole heartedly embrace the idea of Rock and Roll returning to it's revolutionary roots. It has always been and should always be the music of the people.

If you want to hear more examples of Rock and Roll revolutionaries research the following:

Woodstock

 Protest and Rock n' Roll During the Vietnam War

Rock and Roll Is a Weapon of Cultural Revolution

CCR - Fortunate Son

System of a Down

Sepultura

Lamb of God