I don't talk about music on here very often, because I suspect that nobody cares a whole lot about what I have to say on the subject. All I can do is pass on my opinions about music that appeals to my own personal tastes. There's precious few people who even look at my blog, and of those people, I don't think many share musical tastes with me. Even Rish, my co-host for years and years, tends to like very different stuff from me.
Nonetheless, I'm going to talk about my favorite band right now. But first, allow me to indulge in a sort of a tangent. Years ago, someone introduced me to Paramore, and I absolutely fell in love.
They gave me the album, Riot! and I listened to that until it melted in my CD player. The first time I ever realized that you could sort your songs in iTunes by number of plays, I clicked it, and the entire album arranged itself at the top, with dozens more plays than any other files I had on my hard drive. This song was the one that I'd played most of all of them by a couple of spins.
I realized that I loved rock bands with female lead singers, and started looking for others that might scratch the same itch that Paramore did. I found several bands that were pretty good, but it wasn't until I got served a targeted add that suggested I check out a band called Cherri Bomb that I really found one that appealed to me as much as Paramore did. I think this was the first video of theirs that I saw.
I loved their harmonies, their look, and their heaviness. What I thought was crazy was that this was a girl band...and I don't mean it was crazy that it was made up of all girls, that's fine. Totally cool with me. Don't give a shit who is in the band, only if their music is good. I mean that these were not adults. They were girls. I think the oldest one was sixteen, and the bass player was something like fourteen or maybe even thirteen.
I was kind of blown away by that, and the idea of it enchanted me. I imagined what I would have done as a young man if I'd been talented and been a part of a band that was heading toward the big time when I was just fourteen...or even sixteen. It felt like a real life movie to me. Josie and the Pussycats or something come to life.
I was ready to support them through their entire meteoric rise. I never pay for music. I find ways around that, but with them, I did. I figured that they needed it, and I should support them so that they could reach the heights I hoped they would. I bought their first full-length album, and I loved it, and listened to it for weeks straight.
I was planning on going to see them live as soon as they had a concert near me, but the next thing you know, they announced that they were breaking up. What the hell? I was pissed. What happened?
They never did really explain themselves, so I had to read between the lines of what they did say, and I'm pretty sure that parents had certain expectations, and they weren't being met. Like what often happens on a youth soccer team or something, the parents were mad that their child wasn't getting enough playing time, and they rebelled.
The band decided to kick their lead singer out. They claimed in their press release that the split had been because of creative differences. They had been managed by Samantha Maloney, who had been the drummer for Hole. Without the lead singer, she wasn't interested in the job anymore, though, so she dropped them. Then they were dropped by their record label as well. All the work they'd done up until that point they'd suddenly flushed down the toilet.
The band replaced the singer/guitarist with a guitarist. Then they changed their name to Hey, Violet...which is a freaking shitty name if you ask me, especially when compared to Cherri Bomb. They put out their first few songs as Hey, Violet, and I hated them. I apparently had creative differences with the band as well. Their new stuff was crappy and soft and much more poppy than what I enjoy. So, I forgot about Hey, Violet, and moved on with my life.
Every now and then, though, I would remember Cherri Bomb, and think about what could have been. They were so good so young. What could have happened by the time the girls reached twenty years old? Well, that brings us to the point of this huge rambling post.
Back to my favorite band right now. They're called The Warning. They are a band of three sisters from Monterrey, Mexico that play some great rock and roll music. I started hearing about them a while ago, and the more I looked into them, the more I liked their stuff.
They first caught the attention of the world with this video of a cover they made of Metallica's "Enter Sandman." Check it out:
That's right. They started out as little kids as well. Look at how small the bass player, Alejandra, is! The bass dwarfs the poor girl. They better not need any really low notes, because I don't think she could even reach the end of the neck. She was only nine years old when they put out that video.
That video went viral, and the next thing you know, they were on the Ellen Degeneres show getting interviewed about being cute little girls who rock. Well, once this happened, they realized they could do a lot more with their little band than they originally thought. Up until now, it was just to have fun and make some songs that they could post on their YouTube channel for Grandma and Grandpa to watch. But now that millions of people knew then and had subscribed, it was time to kick it up a notch.
So they did. Not too long after that, they started writing their own songs. They did some shows here and there to promote things. They posted their original songs on their YouTube channel. Soon, they were signed by an independent record label, and they made their first album. This is the title track, "XXI Century Blood."
The song is pretty badass. The funniest thing about the video, I think, is still looking at Alejandra. She's still so tiny. This was years after that "Enter Sandman" cover, but she still looks like such a baby.
They kept plugging away from there. They made a second album with their independent label, and then got signed to a big label and made an album with them. Now, ten years after that first video, they are putting out their fourth album...second with the major label...and they are huge. Here's a video of them performing at the MTV Video Music Awards last year. This performance is so fugging heavy and kickass, too. It blows me away every time I watch it. Especially when the drummer, Paulina (or Pau), lets out that primal scream in the middle. Holy crap!
With Cherri Bomb, I often thought about what could have been. Well, these girls are now what Cherri Bomb could have been if they hadn't imploded. Every now and then, I'm sad to think about it, but at least these guys made it. I didn't follow them from the beginning like I did with Cherri Bomb, but after going back through their history, I almost feel like I did.
The new album came out a few weeks ago, and I love every song on it. I listen to it constantly, and love it like a sister. I guess, I'd like to recommend it to you. Check it out. Here's my favorite song from the album, and I'll see y'all here tomorrow for another inspiring Big Anklevich post.
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