Coolest choices : John Coltrane – My Favorite Things, Miles Davis – Flamenco Sketches, Howlin’ Wolf – Wang Dang Doodle, Sly and The Family Stone – Hot Fun In The Summertime
Coolest choices that I would have never expected : Bob Dylan – Tombstone Blues (Tombstone Blues?!), and Leonard Cohen – Suzanne
Classic Rock bones : Rolling Stones – Gimme Shelter, Van Morrison – Moondance
Obligatory, but not obvious, Bob Marley choice : So Much Trouble In The World
How can you go wrong with choices : Nina Simone, Otis Redding, Billie Holliday, Al Green, The Temptations, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Isley Brothers, Aretha Franklin
Give it up for post Native Tongues Hip-Hop choices : Mos Def – Umi Says, Nappy Roots – Good Day, Talib Kweli & Hi Tek – Memories Live
On the modernish R&B/Soul tip : Mary J Blige, Beyonce, John Legend, Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Justin Timberlake
Most WTF, I can’t back you on this choice : Okkervil River – (doesn’t matter what song)
Most likely to be pissed that he’s not included (and tweet about why he wasn’t) – KANYE WEST
And others that may, or may not, fit into these categories
First off, let me say thank you to everyone for visiting the site, particularly my occasional commenters. I started this blog because I had an excess of free time, and opinions, and the need for some vaguely creative outlet to help maintain my sanity. To that end, I’m still here and not in Arkham, so at the least, it’s not hurting. But seriously, it’s been a gratifying experience and I consider myself fortunate to have received such welcoming feedback, and a continually growing number of visitors. I know that my interests cut a wide swath and often can be difficult when looking for a driving aesthetic here, but what can I say, I’m an admirer of the rich variety of life.
Some of the things I have learned while doing BHSI, in no particular order:
-The most popular posts, by far, have featured pics of Grace Jones and Bettie Page
-Getting to the front page of a google search on some new tidbit of info shoots your views through the roof.
-The mention of porn star Stoya, also sends ratings through the roof (unless, of course, Adan Jodorowsky is just way more popular than his dad).
-Despite the fact that Music related posts dominate the blog, Fashion and Photography almost always receive more views/likes.
– Somehow when I was out of town and not posting regularly, I received triple the single day views that I had received to that point, proving, I’m not sure what.
-Apparently alotta other people are obsessed with Cheap Trick’s transitional early 80’s phase, and/or their temporary bassist of the time, Pete Comita.
-Certain foreign Kiss fan sites, love any Kiss post, and also blow your viewings out.
-Bonnie Hayes, of Bonnie Hayes and The Wild Combo, is apparently a lovely and charming person.
-It’s a wise decision to check Dangerous Minds to make sure that they have not already posted on something on which you’re working, because damn if I don’t wanna repost pretty much everything they do.
-There is an amazing amount of international traffic on the blog, which I find inspirational.
-These words get a whole lotta blog use: legend, icon/iconoclast, recordings, performances
-Researching pieces has been tremendously educational, both on topics of which I thought I knew much, and obviously on things of which I have only a perfunctory education and wished to learn more, but without the blog, probably would not have.
-Finding people on the internet, as in life, with whom you have common interests is awesome!
As for year two? Well, despite occasionally missing some birth dates (just yesterday I didn’t post on Buck Owens, Porter Wagoner or Sparks’, Ron Mael, all of whom share spots in my heart), I’ve largely exhausted the birthday trope as a means of sparking a thread, so there’ll be decidedly less videos and fewer posts per day, but probably more writing, and hopefully, some more intensely researched pieces that I’ve been meaning to get into. Until then, thank you falettinme be mice elf.
Just some random thoughts from someone who wants to keep loving Hip-Hop:
Done with…
1. the Migos flow (I loved Das Efx, but could you imagine if every song back then had the Das flow on it?)
http://www.complex.com/music/2014/03/tracing-the-lineage-of-the-migos-flow
2. the pubescent, whiny flow, often used in combination with #1
3. calling any impromptu rapping a “freestyle”. 95% of that shit was clearly written in advance.
4. the continued and almost Tourette’s like use of “bitch”, “ho”, “nigga”, etc.
5. the continued glorification of the gangsta lifestyle
6. Completely idiotic beefs from people trying to get some twitter action (among the many, how is a credited lyricist, a ghostwriter?).
7. The dubstep-like, painfully irritating use of belching electronic noise that punctuates any trap remix.
Keep on keepin’ on…
1. Embracing homosexual and international rappers. A little diversity helps shake things up.
2. Rappers getting involved in politics, particularly well versed dudes, like Killer Mike.
3. Using producers from other genres, again for diversity (even if alotta these tracks are horrible).
Seriously? You mean he channeled the sound of 2010? Wow. Color me impressed. The golden age of Moombahton. Sheesus. Currently I’m channeling the golden age of Power Violence (and yeah, believe it or not, that’s a genre). Oh, they also have a piece on a band called Bring Me The Horizon (a band name which immediately equals me never listening to your band), and how they ditched Metalcore “for poppy positive new LP”, which, though I’m not going to post it here, features one of the most tragic band promo photos of all time. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect Rolling Stone to be doing anything but shilling for dollars, but this is a particularly sad state of affairs
blog hit sally inside 