The C's Complete

So as promised, this post for the C's is coming sooner than my previous post for the B's. I started listening to the C's as soon as I finished with the B's, despite not having written anything up for the B's yet. This allowed me to get a head start on the C's and cut down the time that it took me to write up a new post for this blog of mine. The C's were full of variety in spots, but were largely dominated by two bands. These two bands, Coheed & Cambria and The Clash, together took up 220 of the 510 songs on this list. These 220 songs amounted to 16.2 hours of the 1.3 days worth of music contained in the C's. So once I got through those two bands, there wasn't a whole lot else to get through. Since two bands dominated this playlist and because there were fewer artists and tracks in the C's (35 artists, 511 tracks) than the B's (51 artists, 661 tracks), this post looks to be a might shorter than the B's(Shiny!). Now that I've cleared that up, we'll get the ball rolling on the C's.

To lead off the C's we have CAKE. CAKE is an alternative rock band that has enjoyed moderate success over their almost twenty year long career. Their most successful single by has been "The Distance," which can still be heard on rock radio more than a decade after its release. The album listened to here was their last studio release Pressure Chief. Pressure Chief is a good album full of some really fun songs which are full of guitars mixed with synthesizers and trumpet. What make the band interesting is that the songs can be pretty ridiculous in subject matter, but they sound completely serious because of singer John McCrea very droll monotone voice. The single that enjoyed moderate radio play upon the albums 2004 release is "No Phone." A whole song about not wanting to be contacted, basically Lady GaGa's "Telephone," six years earlier. CAKE is a band that I looked into back in 2004 because of the single "No Phone," and ended up listening to the entire album. I enjoyed the rest of the tracks as well. I still enjoy this album six years later, it's good light listening. Something I would definitely recommend.

CAKE "No Phone"


Next comes the band Camper Van Beethoven. Camper Van Beethoven is an interesting/odd 80's rock band. They are very musically talented, infusing their music with a plethora of different musical styles to create a really interesting mix of music. Their songs have some very odd topics which, very likely, could be imagery but I'm not sure about that one. With song titles such as "The Day That Lassie Went to the Moon," and "Take the Skinheads Bowling." "Take the Skinheads Bowling," is an indie rock classic from their first album in the early 80's, that is still used in movies and played on college radio to this day. If you aren't familiar with the band, you might have heard them and not known it. If you ever saw Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine, then you've heard Camper Van Beethoven. "Take The Skinheads Bowling," is featured in the opening credits of the movie. I've really enjoyed "Take the Skinheads Bowling," over the past several years, but I hadn't explored much further until my younger brother gave me one of their albums this year. After listening to the album, I really like Camper Van Beethoven, to me they seem to be in a similar vein to The Dead Milkmen.I will definitely keep listening to Camper Van Beethoven in the foreseeable future.

Cansei De Ser Sexy (CSS) is a band out of Brazil who I discovered a few years ago. According to Wikipedia the name Cansei De Ser Sexy literally translates to "I'm Tired of Being Sexy." The band's name fits perfectly with their style, they play really fun songs full of synthesizers and other various computer generated noises and melodies. The songs are just fun songs about "Meeting Paris Hilton," and others make declarations like "Music is My Hot Hot Sex." The songs can be very amusing,in "Let's Make Love and Listen Death From Above" includes singer Lovefoxxx declaring that she "know how you're doing by looking in your pants, and this is how we call it a comeback!" "Meeting Paris Hilton" asks "do you like the bitch, bitch?" playing off of Paris Hilton's tendency to call her female "friends" bitch. Another thing that makes this band really interesting is the fact that they switch back and forth between Portuguese and English. Some of their songs are strictly in Portuguese, where as others are completely in English. I really like the mix between the two languages, it's something that makes this band even more interesting than other bands of a similar style. I prefer their first international release Cansei De Ser Sexy over their second release Donkey. Both albums are really good, but Donkey unfortunately completely did away with the mix of Portuguese and English and was done entirely in English. Donkey is still a good and really fun album, but just not quite as good as Cansei De Ser Sexy. If you're looking for something new and interesting that is fun and easy to dance to, then I would recommend Cansei De Ser Sexy. I first heard this band back in 2006, and I still really enjoy Cansei De Ser Sexy.

Cansei de Ser Sexy


Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band are a one and done artist, who appear on this playlist with their cover of Bo Diddley's "Diddy Whah Diddy." The song is one that I've been enjoy for years, and this version is actually the one that I am more familiar with. It's got that classic blues rock sound, but slightly updated for the 60's when this version was recorded. The guitars have a bit more fuzz on them, and they have that classic 60's keyboard playing in the back ground. Captain Beefheart's voice is just a really baritone, powerful voice that helps to make this version of the song so much fun. I have liked this version ever since my older brother introduced me to it years ago, and I still do.

Next up, is another song off of the dreaded and much regretted The Blackest Album: An Industrial Tribute to Metallica. This time it's Carbon 12 covering "The Thing That Should Not Be." It's just more digital back beats over fuzzy guitars, and could have easily have been done by one of the other bands on this album who's songs sound exactly the same. I will reiterate my previous statement from the A's, this is a horrible cover of a great song. Steer clear of this album.

"Blue Suede Shoes" is up next on the playlist. A lot of people may know this song and be thinking, why is this song in the C's? Elvis did this song. This is true, Elvis did do this song, but it was a cover of Carl Perkins' original. Carl Perkins was in the same musical era and scene as Elvis, playing rockabilly music and recording in Memphis' Sun Studios. Elvis would later cover the song and make it famous, his version is probably the better known of the two. I really like this song, it's classic rockabilly at its best. If you're really interested in the roots of your favorite contemporary rock musician then you should definitely give this a listen.

Up next is one of the most popular bands of the 70's, The Carpenters. The Carpenters are very pleasing soft rock, something that is easily digestible. That's not to say that they don't make good music, because they do. I really enjoy the two songs that I have "Yesterday Once More," and "Love Will Keep Us Apart." "Yesterday Once More," is a very sweet song about recalling a past love lost. Karen Carpenter's voice is very soft, beautiful, and melodic and makes for a very sweet song. "Love Will Keep Us Apart," is a song that was more familiar to me when I first heard The Carpenters, the instrumental portion especially. The instrumental seems to me to have been possibly used as a sample in another song or as backing music to a movie scene. I can't put my finger on why, but it is very familiar to me. I enjoy these two songs quite a bit, just as much as I did a few years ago when my older brother put them on my computer.

The Cars are another classic 80's, late 70's, band that most people have probably heard before even if they didn't realize who the artist was. Their hits such as "Just What I Needed," "Best Friend's Girl," and "Good Times Roll," They have a great mix of rock with synthesizers/keyboards interspersed throughout the music. They have that classic style of rock and roll that is really catchy and fun to sing along to. Their songs have worked their way into the consciousness of modern America and its popular culture. All three of the songs I listed above have seen heavy use in movies, television, and popular music. The synthesizer line on "Just What I Needed," is one of the most well known syth lines in rock and roll. The Cars are a band that I grew up hearing from time to time, my dad being a fan. The Cars are a band that I've liked since I was a little kid, and I still like them.

The Cars "Just What I Needed"


Next up is another Metallica tribute, this time off of Overload: A Tribute to Metallica. This cover isn't particularly good, but it's better than a lot of the covers off of the industrial tribute. This time, Castle of Pain is the band giving tribute. They cover Metallica's "King Nothing," and as I said before the cover isn't particularly good, but it's alright. They try to do it justice by keeping the loud metal style guitars, and the guttural vocals, but the keyboard lines in the background ruin this cover for me. They just seem unnecessary, and out of place. It downgrades the quality of this cover for me from OK to meh.

Catch 22 is a band that I started listening to a few years back when I got really into 3rd Wave Ska. They have the standard punk style guitars mixed in with a horn section. 3rd Wave Ska has a very recognizable guitar style with its fast sticcato notes on the up beats of the song (Thank You Andrew for that description). The horns come in usually over the louder sections that usually come around the chorus of the song. The songs are more often than not, fast paced up beat songs. Catch 22 is a great example of 3rd Wave Ska done right, their songs are fun to listen to and fun to dance to (ska dancing is called "skanking"). I don't enjoy 3rd Wave as much as I did a few year ago when I was really big into it, but it's still something enjoyable to listen to from time to time.

Next is the worst band that has ever had the displeasure of passing through my ears. The Cause are terrible... just kidding little brother. The Cause is actually a good band that is a good example of pop punk music. Their songs are very much in the vein of Blink 182 and early Green Day. This album Five Year Diary is a culmination of all of the hard work they had put in to their music over the five years that they had been playing together. The band consists of my younger brother on bass, and two good friends (and brothers) on guitar and drums. The band briefly had a rhythm guitarist/vocalist but he was kicked out due to lack of commitment. The songs are written by teenagers, and reflect the sentiments of a teenager who has just lost a long term relationship. Several of the songs focus around these themes of girls and relationships. Three of their four official shows were at my home, and were fun events for friends and family. They played a full set full of originals mixed with covers both serious and amusing ("Highway to the Dangerzone"). They were good together, and still play together from time to time but less often now due to being spread out over three different Universities.

The Cells are a band that I don’t know really know anything about besides the fact that this song came with Windows. It’s a very much 90’s alternative rock song, with the nasally lead singer and the guitar tone that is definitely very 90’s. It just feels like something MTV might have played back in the 90’s. It’s just not a particularly memorable song, it’s just something middle of the pack. The song isn’t awful, but it isn’t spectacular either. It’s a solid example of 90’s rock done ok.

After the Cells comes The Chameleons. This song is taken off of the compilation box set Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the 80’s Underground. I like the way this song opens with a very eerie guitar sound over eerie synth lines. It’s a song that very easily could have been done by The Cure. It’s got the same new wave gothic vibe as The Cure made famous in the 80’s. I wasn’t familiar with this band before I received this box set as a present, and after listening to the compilation the first time this song didn’t stand out. That isn’t to say it isn’t good, there were just a lot of songs on that box set. Upon another listen, I have a good impression of this song. It’s a nice song, I like the Cure, but it sounds a lot like something Robert Smith would write.

Charlie Robinson is the artist to follow The Chameleons on this play list. This is another artist that I’m not particularly familiar with and not really sure how it came to be in my iTunes. This song is a pretty country song. The song sounds very country music in its tone, and Charlie Robinson’s vocals are very much in the style of country music. The last ninety seconds of the song are interesting because several of the band members take a solo on their respective instruments. There’s a guitar solo, a piano solo, and a mandolin solo. It’s not depression country; the whole song is about having a good time. Charlie Robinson urges you to bring some supplies and make it a party. It’s a good alt country song, but not something I would listen to on a consistent basis.

Next is a band whose fan base is spread among several different groups of music fans. Cheap Trick seems to have fans all over the music world, from punk rockers to baby boomers. Their songs are well known through out popular culture and have been covered many times over by popular musicians. Songs like “Surrender,” and “I Want You to Want Me,” have pervaded the minds of most anyone who has paid any attention to popular culture in the past three decades. I have known the choruses to these two songs for at least the past 13 years. I have heard these songs over and over in various places over the years, movies, TV, and popular music covers. Cheap Trick are a great example of classic rock at its height, they made some great popular rock and roll music. They were very good at making a memorable hook for their songs that instantly draws in their audience. I have been enjoying Cheap Trick as a casual fan, always enjoying their songs when they came on over the speakers. I will continue to enjoy Cheap Trick casually, I don’t think I’ll explore any deeper into their catalogue then I already have. They’re definitely a must have for anyone who calls themselves a fan of classic rock.

Cheap Trick "I Want You to Want Me"


Chixdiggit is a pop punk band on NOFX’s Fat Mike’s label Fat Wreck Chords. The band has been around for a while, but I only heard this song “I Remember You,” a few years ago as a part of a Fat Wreck Chords compilation called Rock Against Floyd. It’s a really fun song with some amusing lyrics. The song is about what the vast majority of songs in rock and roll have been about, a girl/past relationship. The song is something fun to listen to, but I'm not sure that I would really pursue this band much further based on this song. Still as enjoyable as it was a few years ago, and I imagine it will continue to be.

The Church's "Under the Milky Way" is up next, taken from the compilation box set Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the 80's Underground. This song is just a very pretty song, it's a slower song with an acoustic guitar as the lead instrument. The song feels like it would be at home in one of the new Lincoln car ads that all feature songs about space. The song is just a very nice and sparse. It's not overly produced, and the backing instrumentation just adds to the lonely nature of the song. I wasn't familiar with this song before the box set, and hadn't listened to it again since listening to the box set. It is something that I am glad I listened to again.

Next up is some classic R&B/Rockabilly music in Clarence "Frogman" Henry's "Ain't Got No Home." This song is just plain fun to listen to. The song is as the title states about not having a place to call home, and not having anyone to share your life with. The song is sung from the perspectives of different things, including a frog. Henry croaks "I'm a lonely frog, I ain't got a home," and the croak is a great addition to this song that just makes it even more fun that your standard R&B tune. This is a song that I've enjoyed listening to since I first heard it courtesy of my older brother many years ago. I still really like this song, and have clicked on it from time to time over the years.

Clarence "Frogman" Henry


This paragraph is going to be a bit longer than its predecessors, because The Clash take up a larger portion of the C's than the previous artists. The Clash are a classic British punk band from the 1970's, and are one of the most well known rock and roll artists of the past forty years. A lot of rock and roll fans can probably name at least one band member from The Clash, usually that's Joe Strummer, but Paul Simenon and Mick Jones aren't far behind in notoriety. The Clash were just awash with musical styles, frequently incorporating dub and reggae into their music. The album Sandinista is two discs full of more reggae styled songs. Their politically charged, and socially conscious music set the precedent for punk bands to follow. The Clash just made good music. It's not overly complicated, in fact some of their early stuff is just downright simple, but it is done so well that it doesn't even seem to matter. The Clash being just a group of working class boys were very much in touch with the issues and concerns of those in the working and lower classes of British society. They also seemed very much in touch with the minority community singing songs against racism, and encouraging underprivileged white youth to take an example from the minority community and stand up and organize. London Calling is a classic and probably the band's most well known release with the title track appearing all over pop culture in the 80's, 90's, and 00's. Their lyrics made them controversial and so did their music, the fact that they put out a 3 Vinyl LPs album full of Reggae and Dub at the height of their career just speaks to the rebellious spirit of this band. My younger brother became a big fan of the Clash after being introduced to them by my older brother who was a long time fan. I wasn't huge on the Clash at first, but as my musical tastes evolved and I began to enjoy punk music more, I became a bigger fan of The Clash. They put out a lot of good music over their career, most of which I enjoy, but I could have done with a shortened Sandinista. There are just too many tracks, thirty six, it just feels redundant after awhile. I could have done with maybe half as many tracks. Other than this The Clash are a band I enjoy and respect more and more with each passing year, and something every rock fan should have in their collection.

The Clash "The Magnificent Seven"


Next up is an interesting band, Clinic. Clinic is a band that I was introduced to many year ago due to my father's interest in the band. They have a very haunting sound, the mix of keyboards, and minor notes makes for a haunting sound that distinguishes Clinic from their Post-Punk Revival counterparts. The mix of instruments in the songs makes for some truly eclectic and haunting fast paced songs. I had listened to Clinic through my father previously and through repeat listens had come to enjoy Walking With Thee. I still like Walking With Thee and all its haunting melodies, more than their newer effort Do It!. Definitely something worth checking out if you're a fan of post punk and enjoy eerie haunting music.

Clinic "Come Into Our Room"


Another artist from Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the 80's Underground, The Cocteau Twins, is up next. This song "Pearly Dewdrops' Drops," is an interesting song. It sounds like it could have easily been a pop song in the 80's, but it might not have been due to the slower pace of the song. It's not particularly up tempo, but it's not slow and down tempo at the same time. It's just a nice little song. I don't know much about it beyond that, it was a song that had stood out upon my first listen to the compilation, but one I hadn't heard in awhile before this blog's inception. A good song worth hearing from time to time.

This is going to be another long paragraph due to the fact that Coheed & Cambria take up a large chunk of the C's, and also due to the fact that the band is currently my favorite band and has been for several years now. Coheed & Cambria are a great combination of unique mixed in with classic style rock and roll. Coheed & Cambria are all about the concept, there have been bands in the past who have incorporated a concept into their album that permeates throughout, but none that have taken this concept and spread it over five albums. I'm going to quickly attempt to give a summary of the story/concept that goes through the albums for those who aren't familiar with the band or are just casual fans not familiar with the story. The story is set in a universe where 78 planets are grouped together in a formation known as "Heaven's Fence." The 78 planets in "Heaven's Fence" are held together by "the keywork" which is a massive energy source connecting all of the planets to "the Stars of Sirius," the energy source for "the keywork." "Heaven's Fence" is inhabited by Man "designated to maintain and harvest the planets while living safely under the rule of the more superior inhabitants." (The Amory Wars Issue 1 p6, Claudio Sanchez). The Mage, 12 Mages to rule over the 12 sectors of "Heaven's Fence." The Prise, who guard against any threat to the "Keywork" from on their place on high, and await the return of God to change the face of The Universe. One Mage seeking power, Wilhelm Ryan, started "The Mage Wars" and conquered the other 11 mages and became "The Supreme Tri-Mage." In response to this Coheed, Cambria, and Inferno were created to stop Ryan. The albums continue along this story line, mainly following the son of Coheed & Cambria, Apollo. The story is wonderfully intricate, and draws heavily on personal experiences of author and lead singer Claudio Sanchez. Apollo's girl friend, Newo Ikkin, is named after an ex-girlfriend Nikki Owens. Now that you know the basis of the story I'll go into the music. The mix of elements of punk, indie, folk, and hard rock make for a spectacular combination accentuated by lead singer Claudio Sanchez's falsetto. The lyrics can be violent, but the story itself is very violent. The whole combination of music and concept is what makes the band so amazing. I became a fan after hearing "A Favor House Atlantic," on the radio back in 2003, and I haven't looked back since. Not long after purchasing In Keeping Secrets of a Silent Earth: 3 which featured "A Favor House Atlantic," Coheed & Cambria became one of my favorite bands. They took over the top spot a few year ago as I began to lose some interest in some of my other favorites. Coheed & Cambria's excellent mix of musical styles coupled with the story concept just make for great music. The story is now being published in a comic book series called The Amory Wars and the newest album Year of the Black Rainbow included a novel with the special edition version. I am going to be enjoying this band for years to come, and look forward to what is next now that the story is finished.

Coheed & Cambria "A Favor House Atlantic"


After Coheed & Cambria is a one and done artist in Concrete Blond, and this particular song was taken from the compilation box set Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the 80's Underground. "Still in Hollywood" has a very punk feeling to it, and it makes for a good song. Concrete Blond is a band that I seem to read about a lot lately, a lot of bands are referencing them as an influence and celebrities are trying to establish music credibility by name dropping Concrete Blond as one of their favorites. I like this song, the punk feeling and the female vocals mesh well. I have enjoyed female rock singers for awhile now and I don't hear enough of them. Concrete Blond was definitely an influential 80's band, and I like this song just as much as I did when I first listened to this box set a few years back.

The Constantines follow Concrete Blond in the C's. The Constantines have a sound that, to me, sounds like Bruce Springsteen mixed with punk. The singer Steve Lambke's voice reminds me of Bruce, but their music is more punk in most areas. They present an interesting mix that works well. I first heard this band a few years ago on a mix CD my older brother made, and really liked the two songs that he had put onto the mix CD for me. I then received this album, Kensington Heights, from my younger brother. I just recently received this album so my previous impression of them was based on the two songs I had heard. After listening to an entire album, I still enjoy their music. They also mix in country as well in their slow ballad songs. This is a band who's two songs I enjoyed for several years, and still enjoy, and whose full length album I now enjoy as well.

The Constantines "Hard Feelings"


A classic Soul/R&B group is up next in The Contours. This is a classic group whose name might not be as well known as some of their contemporaries such as The Temptations, but who's hit song is just as well known as any of those from the Temptations. "Do You Love Me," is a classic Soul song about trying to win the affections of a girl by proving that he wouldn't embarrass her on the dance floor. Declaring that he can do the "mashed potato," and do the "twist." The chorus repeatedly asks the women of his affections if she loves him now that he can dance. This song is classic 60's Soul/R&B at its best, that classic Motown sound. I have enjoyed artists such as The Contours for years, growing up listening to The Temptations, Gladys Knight, ect. I still enjoy the classic Soul songs from the 60's and I think I will continue to do so for some time to come.

The Cramps are up next and are a band who are considered to have helped invent a new genre of music called Psychobilly. Psychobilly is a mix of the classic rockabilly sound that you heard from artists such as Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly, and Punk rock and horror/sci-fi themes. The Cramps didn't just write songs about relationships, in fact they rarely did, most of their songs were of a sci-fi/horror theme. Classic songs like "Human Fly," and "Goo Goo Muck," are some of the best examples. I really like the Garage Rock/Rockabilly/Punk sound of The Cramps, and I have for a few years now. I've enjoyed The Cramps songs I mentioned earlier since hearing them from my brother a few years ago, but I hadn't explored deeper until I got their greatest hits and Bad Music for Bad People. I think The Cramps are a band that is a good introduction to different musical genres, if you are a rockabilly fan looking to explore a new style of music then The Cramps are a good transition to garage rock/punk. I enjoy this band even more now that I've heard more than two songs and I definitely will explore further into their back catalog.

The Cramps "Human Fly"


The Creation are a band I don't know a whole lot about besides the fact that this particular song was put onto my computer for my older brother's wedding reception party. The song itself is a fun song, very much a 60's rock song. It has a similar sound to The Kinks and similar bands of that era. It's very much got that British rock sound. The song asks why we have to carry on singing the same song. "Makin' Time" is about having fun, and acting a fool. It's a good song, and a good example of the era, but not a song I had listened to much in the past. I seem to remember liking this song when I first heard it a few years ago, and I still enjoy the song today. I can't say much on it besides that.

Next up is one of the most mentioned and well known American rock bands of the 60's in Creedence Clear Water Revival. Their songs sound very much like Southern Rock, similar in sound to Lynyrd Skynyrd, despite the fact that the band is actually from California. Their songs are all over popular culture, in movies, on TV shows, and still being played on classic rock radio. Some of their most well known songs are "Lookin' Out My Backdoor," and "Down on the Corner." The song "Lookin' Out My Backdoor," has a very odd imagery of flying spoons and elephants, and a parade. It very much seems like a song about a drug trip lead singer John Fogerty had once. According to the Wikipedia article on the song Fogerty in an interview said the song was written for this 3 year old son and inspired by Dr. Seuss. The songs are just classic, swampy, southern sounding rock and great songs. I've been enjoying "Lookin' Out My Backdoor," for years and I still do enjoy that song whenever I hear it come on the radio or if it comes up when I put my iPod on shuffle.

Next up is a song put on my computer for my brother's wedding party called "Shake It Up (Ain't it Time)." The band who performed this song is The Cryers, I don't know much about this song or the band since I wasn't able to find any reference to them on Wikipedia or Amazon.com. The only thing I've been able to find is a blog post (which is not cited), and an answers.com post about a power pop compilation. The Cryers were apparently a Mississippi rock band formed my Lowry Hamner. Beyond that, I don't know anything about the band. The song itself is a fun little song, and like the fact that it's on a power pop compilation says, it is a very poppy song. Lowry Hamner has a bit of a higher voice, especially when singing the chorus. The song itself seems to be about shaking of the old world order and doing your own thing, shaking it up if you will. I can't say I have much of a recollection about this song, so I can't say if my impressions have changed. It's a good song, when power pop still involved rock and roll. This is a good example of the best era of power pop music.

Up next is a very interesting band from Toronto, Canada that started getting buzz as soon as they released their first album back in 2008. The music is electronic, with synthesizers and other computerized sounds all mixed together. It is considered very hip to like this band, but I'm not so sure about that. I enjoy their songs because of the oddness and the abrasive quality that seems to flow from the music and the band. The albums are loud with irritating noises mixed in. The songs usually feature Alice Glass singing/yelling her vocals. This description I took off of their Wikipedia article is a pretty apt description of their music, "ferocious, asphyxiating sheets of warped two-dimensional Gameboy glitches and bruising drum bombast that pierces your skull with their sheer shrill force, burrowing deep into the brain like a fever" (Shankly, Jack "Underage Festival: Wait a minute these people are all children!," 2007). The music just comes at you with sheer force, and that is part of the appeal and why their second album doesn't let down. They could have been influenced by their sudden popularity, but they went more abrasive more in your face. I've been enjoying this band ever since picking up their debut full length on curiosity. Their second full length just came out this year and I am enjoying that album just as much if not more than the first.

Crystal Castles "Doe Deer"


The electronic dance music continues on this playlist with The Crystal Method following Crystal Castles. The Crystal Method's electronic dance music is a lot more straight forward then Crystal Castles, meant to be more accessible to the general public and casual electronic dance music fans. The Crystal Method use a lot of programmed beats mixed with samples and guest musician appearances. They've had guest spots from Tom Morello, Wes Borland, Mila Jovovich, and Scott Weiland. Their songs have been all over popular television and movies for the past 15 years, and have been featured in video games as well. Songs like "Born to Slow," which was featured in Need for Speed: Undergroun, and "Name of the Game" was featured in a series of Powerade commercials in the early 2000's. I believe this is where I first heard The Crystal Method, but I can't say for certain. I got really into their music for a while but didn't really explore the genre much beyond the Crystal Method and The Chemical Brothers. I'm not as much into their music as I was back in High School, but it's still enjoyable. It's fast paced dance music, so it's hard not to enjoy yourself when you just want something simple and fun. The Chrystal Method are a good introduction to electronic dance music, a good bridge to the more underground sound.

Next up is The Cure, the band who made it cool to be Goth. The Cure were known, and still are, for their new wave gothic style. Most of Robert Smith's lyrics are dark and depressing tales of love lost and pain. The band resonated with millions of listeners and The Cure's fans started to imitate Robert Smith's trademark pasty white face, teased long black hair, and dark lipstick. The band actually experienced fan back lash when Robert Smith actually put out songs that were more optimistic, since they weren't the dark depressing anthems to loss the fans had come to expect. The band had a total of 19 hit songs that have appeared all over popular culture, in movie sound tracks, in television, on the radio, and even influencing the titles of a few popular movies. They were the fathers of the modern "scene" or "emo" movement in music. Bands like My Chemical Romance are heavily influenced by The Cure. I have been enjoying The Cure's singles, hits, for a long time now but I hadn't really explored their full albums until receiving several from my younger brother. Now that I have heard full albums I can see why this band was so popular, they're great alternative rock albums. I still enjoy The Cure, and will continue to do so.

The Cure "Just Like Heaven"


Another classic Soul/R&B artist is up next in Curtis Mayfield & The Impressions. Curtis Mayfield has that classic 60's Soul feel to his music and his singing with the beginning elements of Funk mixed in. Curtis Mayfield isn't as well known as some of his contemporaries such as Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, but he's just as talented. He wrote socially conscious lyrics that denounced the glorification of the "ghetto lifestyle" in blaxploitation films and music. I wasn't familiar with this song "Rollin' On" before it was put on my computer for my older brother's wedding party. I am still not very familiar with this song as I hadn't listened to it since the part 3 years ago. It's a good classic Soul song, but I just don't listen to Soul often enough to remember it.

The Customs are up next, and are a Cincinnati band I have a personal connection with. The Customs were a Garage Rock band based out of Cincinnati who formed in 1978, influenced by such punk heroes as The Sonics. With plenty of reverb, lead singer Thom Heil sings about what most musicians sing about, women, past relationships, and fancy cars. This is classic garage rock at its best, made for the purpose of making what they considered the best music possible. The Customs never got far out of The Cincinnati scene and broke up after the release of their second album on the local label Shake It Records. The band has become a Cincinnati legend to younger punk and garage bands that followed and reunited occasionally for a one time only reunion performances at Newport, KY's The Southgate House (Birthplace of the Tommy Gun, just fyi). The last being in 2009. I am friends with lead singer Thom Heil, but hadn't really heard much of The Customs music before the reunion back in 2008. After hearing the album again, I like what I hear. They've got that great DIY garage rock sound of the 70's, and made some good music before they disbanded.

The Customs "Long Gone"


At the end of the C's in Cyndi Lauper and probably her most well known song in "Time After Time." Not sure why this song is on my iTunes. The most likely answer is that my older brother put it on my computer for his wedding party. It's not that I hate this song, it's just that I'm not such a Cyndi Lauper fan that I would put this song on my iTunes. It's your classic hokey 80's love song. She declares that if you fall she will catch you time after time. It's a love song pure and simple. I thought it was kind of a cheesy song when I first heard it, and I still do.

That brings The C's to a close, a week later than I expected but still faster than the B's. The C's featured a lot of great bands, including my favorite, and a lot of other bands that I'm really high on. The C's were fun to listen to, and not a trial to get through at all, it just takes a while to write this all out. I hope you enjoyed the C's and will stick around for the D's.