What Sensationalist Titles are Doing to the Internet and What You Can Do to Stop It.

Social media is hype-driven. But social media is only the vehicle. The driver is far more to blame and people with their overly-socialized fingers are the driving force behind this stupid problem. The solution for this is simple and kind of a letdown I'm sure (isn't that how this is supposed to go?)

Stop falling for it.

-De

Not Another Random How To: How to Dress Like a Gangsta

I was going to just post this on MoT nation or the ReMusings page, then I thought (actual internal dialogue), "No, this is worth posting to the site".

So, in case you were looking for it, I found the whitest article on the internet. The clincher is the "Warning" section:

http://www.wikihow.com/Dress-Like-a-Gangsta

Assuming you've read and possibly laughed your way through the above, I have two bits of insight to share. If you are searching the internet for "how to dress like a gangsta" 1) you're not a gangster and 2) it's too late for you to become one.

Lack of an apostrophe
That's pretty gangsta

Now you may be wondering, "How might De have come upon this article? Does he perhaps aspire to be a gangster?"

Wow. Ridiculous questions.

For further entertainment, imagine the above article in the voice of Herbert the Pervert. Also, consider reading:

"How to Dress Like a Puerto Rican Gangsta"

This article actually suggests not listening to others, rendering all practical use for this article impossible.  

-De

The MoT Top 10: The Twenty-Ninth

Top 10 Things that De Doesn't Like

As difficult as it was, I did my best to rank these from least to most disliked:

10) Bad puns (sorry Mi). Although almost completely arbitrary, my system for distinguishing good puns from bad employs one rule that has proven true: no pun that includes the word "pun" is worth saying. 

9) Liking/favoriting your own posts

A-Rod's true love

8) Hashtags in texts. Those who participate in this reprehensible activity clearly don't understand the hashtag's function. The occasional hashtag in a text as a joke, alright, but meaningless hashtagging has got to stop. Unfortunately, it may be too late; the hashtag disease has spread to spoken communication:

7) Selfies in which you can see the camera.

The real joke is on whoever made this. This is clearly an iPhone 4 or newer, which has a front-facing camera. 

6) Really bad/non-segues in a comedy routine:

"And I told my buddy, 'The aliens will never come back if you don't stop making up abduction stories........So I was chatting up this old lady at a Megadeth concert the other day'"

5) This might hurt to type: irregardless. It bothers me that Blogger didn't want to spell-check that. If you Google this nonword (that it spell-checks.....), the first definition you will see is "regardless". While I enjoy the hopefully satirical intent behind such a definition, I would prefer something along the lines of:

Your search - irregardless - did not match any documents.

Suggestions:

• Try regardless
• Try regardless
• Try fucking yourself

4) Things that can't be organized in a list format. Nice job idealized Google^.

3) Vanilla ice cream. What is so great about vanilla ice cream? Nothing, it's vanilla. By definition it has no special qualities; lacks distinction and is ordinary. Next.

2) "Expresso". This abomination ranks highly due to my recent hiring at Starbucks. It's astonishing how often "espresso" is mispronounced by customers and even partners.

1) The Oxford (serial) comma. Having a comma precede a linking word in series is annoying, redundant and useless. If you ever witness an oxford comma in a De-approved sentence.......I can't think of a punishment appropriately unpleasant enough for such a crime. Perhaps a lifetime sentence of oxford comma use ;)

-De

The MoT Top 10: The Twenty-Eighth

General Hospital is the longest running American soap opera still in production and the third-longest running American drama. Wow, what interesting facts DeMi! (sarcastic excitement). Before we continue, it should be made clear that this Top 10 is not entirely about General Hospital. More fun facts: 12,987 episodes at 42 minutes each. It would take 376 days to watch every episode; longer still since it's still running. The point of this killer intro is if the writers of GH can continually recycle plot lines and revive deceased characters for over a year's worth of material, surely DeMi can bring back the Top 10.

Here are the Top 10 Things Younger Than General Hospital:

10) The Beatles in America

9) The NASDAQ exchange

8) Assassination of John F. Kennedy

7) MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech

6) The nanosecond - You couldn't have watched GH in nanoseconds, because you wouldn't have known what a nanosecond was

5) Our moms

4) The Clean Air Act

3) Women in space

2) Zip codes

1) Hepatitis-B vaccine - If a patient at General Hospital were diagnosed with Hep-B before 1980, they would be SOL.


Just Missed the Cut
Here are a few things that have been around slightly longer than GH:

Michael Jordan

Valium

Obama

The smiley face

This is the first smiley face design introduced to popular culture. That's right, the first fucking smiley. We only have content of the highest quality here at MoT.

-DeMi

De's San Diego Vacation

Because of my extended absence from the blogospehere, I have returned with a Superblog! detailing my summer vacation (as you can see, we haven't had one of those in a while^). Sadly, this isn't your typical Superblog! with multiple authors, as Mi has been abducted by aliens and Ho's blogging career remains in a state of retirement.  

 My view from the plane

It had been far too long since my last vacation and longer still since I had been to California. My parents actually had the awesome idea of going to San Diego for a post-graduation, last family vacation. I saw this as an opportunity to explore some blink-182 past and present, as well as some other more touristy places. For those unaware, blink-182 was formed in Poway, CA, a suburb just outside of San Diego, the hometown of co-frontman Tom DeLonge and luckily enough, where my dad booked our hotel.

Sombrero Mexican Restaurant

Sombrero at 11040 Rancho Carmel Drive, San Diego

One of the spots I had to hit was a Mexican restaurant called Sombrero, made famous by the blink song "Josie". Mark and Tom of blink-182 used to frequent Sombrero between recording sessions and would often receive fan mail there. So, thanks to Yelp and this particular location's proximity to Poway, I determined this was the place. I asked an employee at the counter if they still receive blink fan mail, to which he replied, "Yeah, every once in a while". Nice.

The video below is part 3 of an MTV series called "The Road Home" which shows one of Tom and Mark's visits to Sombrero (sorry, the video will only play on YouTube through the title link). 

My California Burrito

Carne asada, cheese, pico de gallo, fries and yes, it's as good as it looks.

This location has clearly undergone some expansion over the last decade, but the blink-182 tribute in the bathroom (pictured below) cleared any confusion.

Fans' tribute to blink-182 in the bathroom

top half

bottom half

I wish I could say I had written something on the board, but I was sadly without a marker. Damn, I guess I'll have to go back.....

Sea World

Dolphin Encounter

One Shamu

Two Shamu

Mostly, Sea World blew. It wasn't at all as I remembered. Apart from being inanely overpriced, it was super crowded for a week day. Also, the Shamu "One World" propaganda show was really short and melodramatic. I felt like the orcae weren't the focus at all.

Macbeth Flagship Boutique

Macbeth store in Encinitas, CA

Tom DeLonge sat here

They don't call Macbeth a boutique to be fancy. This store is fucking small. I honestly believe they rented out the storage area of the adjacent store to create room for this one. But, since it is Macbeth's only physical store in the U.S., I had to check it out. Macbeth is a footwear, apparel and accessories company founded by Tom and Mark in 2002 (Mark later sold his stake in the company). Only a week before I arrived, the Macbeth Boutique hosted a party with a fan signing by Tom DeLonge and David Kennedy (Angels & Airwaves) as well as live performances by David Kennedy and Night Riots. I asked the one employee at the store about the party and in his words, "It was crazy". What sucks is the original plan was to leave the week before, meaning I would have party anecdotes to share. I know, I'm disappointed in me too. Please don't be mad. Here, look at some pretty pictures:

San Diego Safari Park

Lion and lioness (in truck)

Mission Beach, San Diego

Dem waves

Overall, it was one of the best trips I've had, despite the usual tension that goes along with family vacations. The weather was perfect every day. Also, it was really cool my aunt and cousin were able to drive down from L.A. and stay in the hotel with us for a few days. I hope to return to San Diego soon and on a much more permanent basis. I leave you with these incandescent words of wisdom:

"Everyone else but me surfs, I grew up skateboarding, but I don't even do that anymore. I'll get hurt and die.....but if I die, I'll sell more records. We're thinking of doing that. Actually dying." (Tom DeLonge)


-De

The MoT Top 10: The Twenty-Fifth

Top 10 Best Ways to Die

Don't get too excited......The MoT Top 10 has returned!!

Hopefully unnecessary disclaimer: Please don't interpret this as a list of suggestions.


10) After defeating your mortal enemy

9) While saving someone else. It's the circle of life, it's circular, like a circle. Simba. Magic. Beautiful. All good things.

8) In a magic trick gone wrong; at least you had an audience/witnesses

7) In Call of Duty, revenge is only a respawn away

6) By firing squad, it doesn't take 7 rifles to kill one person, but it still looks badass

5) In a soap opera, you'll get to come back as your own long lost twin

4) Down with the ship. The Black Pearl

3) With a chilling catchphrase like, "I'll be back", but you won't.

2) After everyone else, you have just won life

1) Hard, and not from a Viagra overdose

-DeMi  

The MoT Top 10: The Twenty-Fourth

A little back-story. One year ago today, DeMi was coming up with this Top 10, and my roommate, Frank, overheard our list. Halfway through the list we realized that April 1st was the next day and we decided that we could not miss out on an April Fool's themed blog. So Frank asked what happened to this Top 10, and we told him it didn't exist, and half-asleep he tried to come to terms with our....LIE!

HERE IT IS FRANK, APRIL FOOLS! ONE YEAR LATER!

Top 10 Ways to Get Your Money's Worth

10) Pick a restaurant, grab a plate and make the kitchen your buffet.

9) Hire a prostitute and shoot video of your fun together. Sell it as porno.

8) Always take a penny; never leave a penny.

7)  Buy some skittles. Taste the rainbow. Follow the rainbow. Make the leprechaun your bitch.

6) With your gym membership, make it a point to touch every machine in the gym, even the ones that somebody maybe using. Maybe with a wink.

5) Always extend the hose of the gas dispenser and shake it vigorously for 5 minutes to get "every last drop"

4) Double bag all your groceries at the self check-out. Make accessories from these bags, and fail at starting a new fashion trend.

3) Stay 3 hours after you're done with a meal to continue getting water refills. Go to the bathroom when they're not looking to make them think you have a bladder of steel.

2) Rock a temporary or real tattoo of your foes telephone number on your forehead while sitting in the front row at a big sports venue.

1) Buy North Korea, resurrect Kim Jong Il and hence resurrect all that was right about the country.

-DeMi

The MoT Top 10: The Twenty-Third - Easter

Top 10 Places to Hide Your Eggs

10) On the far side of anything: moon, mountain, magic carpet ride, comic.

9) In a carton labeled "Not Eggs"

8) In a yolk

7) In an omelette

6) In a vegan's fridge

5) Auntie's bonnet

4) In a nest

3) In the grocery store

2) In the past

1) Ovaries

-DeMi

blink-182 EP "Dogs Eating Dogs" - De's Review

"I think people really need to prepare for the return of blink-182." A bold, yet intriguing statement from blink-182 guitarist, vocalist and co-frontman Tom DeLonge.

Mostly, I love this EP. I don't think the members of blink-182 will be recording any more albums apart from each other. Don't get me wrong, Neighborhoods has its hits, but even the hits seem to be missing a certain level of cohesion. After listening to the new EP for the last few months, I've determined that despite "Boxing Day" and "Pretty Little Girl" it is better than Neighborhoods on the whole. I like the idea behind "Boxing Day" and blink definitely needed a new ballad, considering it had been over 9 years since the release of "I Miss You". But some of Tom's lyrics for this song need to be explained to me, because they come off as extremely corny and nonsensical . "Pretty Little Girl" would have been a solid song, but Yelawolf hi-jacked the track and vomited all over it. I'm very in favor of blink occasionally having rap in their songs, but this doesn't mean they can just take a song that's basically a finished product and throw in any rapper. The remaining three songs on the EP; "Disaster", "Dogs Eating Dogs" and "When I Was Young" are all hits in my opinion. They maintain blink's lyrical edge and sophistication and have a great deal more energy than anything on the last record.

Some purist blink fans may shun me for this, but I decided to rewrite "Boxing Day". I'm still doing some work on it and my singing voice is far from healthy, but here is a clip of "Resolution Day".



My favorite song off of the EP is the title track "Dogs Eating Dogs". It has a little bit of Angels & Airwaves, a little bit of "Feeling This" and a little bit more of "Lycanthrope". I've heard many complaints about how blink's new music just sounds like a remix of their old hits. What I don't think people understand is blink has a very specific style, almost a formula for their songs and it gets more and more difficult to create something new without it having some qualities of another song or sounding too different and outside of their stylistic comfort zone.

First of all, this song is sad. Not so sad that it's off-putting, but very sad nonetheless. Throughout the song, Mark seems to be experiencing the past in the present while Tom sings a chorus filled with cloudy, all-encompassing declarations. I will try my best to interpret these lyrics and hopefully someone will notice some things I've overlooked or offer different interpretations.

Dogs Eating Dogs

Verse 1:

I've got a feeling, I've got a feeling
     (I love how this song starts; the line above is like a double pickup to the start of the verse and it's the change of pace that is representative of this album.)
These broken nights and bitter ends
     (See. Sad)
We will always starve and devour
     (I like songs that begin to explain the title early; a clear reference to "Dogs Eating Dogs".)
Our closest friends, my beautiful friends
Paranoia, my paranoia
     (Mark is probably talking about blink's hiatus or perhaps just before, when Tom's side project "Box Car Racer" created distance between him and Mark. Tom said in a personal interview for the AVA documentary film "Start the Machine" that Box Car Racer was not anything against Mark or Travis, but he also said things were never the same between Mark and him since its creation. This very well could be reading way too much into Mark's "paranoia", but I think he's reliving the bitterness of the past or is perhaps worried it will happen again.)
Can't let it go, it never lets me go
What am I feeling, why am I feeling?
     (Mark is trying to move on by ignoring his feelings, but he may have reached a point where he no longer feels he is in control.)
Forecast into the freezing cold
     (This is perhaps the best evidence for determining whether Mark is just reliving the past or is concerned about the future as well. He could have said "Cast into the freezing cold" and remained ambiguous, but he chose to go with "forecast", which I believe means these feelings of his are a foreshadowing or even a prediction. Being cast out into the cold has a connotation of loneliness, even isolation.)

Prechorus:
Dogs eating dogs, dogs eating dogs, dogs eating dogs
Dogs eating dogs, dogs eating dogs, dogs eating dogs
     (Dogs eating dogs is a classic metaphor of the cannibalization of mankind and the selfishness of his nature.)

Chorus:
I'm the last and the first in a very sad set of eyes
     (I'm usually pretty good at figuring out Tom's lyrics, which a fan of any of his music know is difficult at times, but these lyrics took some imagination to understand. Perhaps the easiest line to cipher is the first. It is quite common for Tom to use biblical references in his songs and he does again here. "I'm the last and the first" is a paraphrasing of Revelation 22:13, which reads, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last". Mi will likely rebut this, but Tom DeLonge does not believe he is Jesus. He is just aware of how beautifully the Bible is written and likes to use it in his songs.)
To the bone, to the knees, to the factory line
I am numb to the shot, I have a crippling fear of heights
'Cause the fall sounds a lot like a symphony of cries
     (The chorus was probably the most difficult portion for me to interpret, because it's almost pure symbolism. I believe Tom is saying he used to, even numb to personal attack, but he's still afraid of the fall. The "symphony of cries" could be referring all the artists who have succumb to the attacks of the music business and have fallen out of relevancy as a result.)

Verse 2:
Your only hope is burning down the chapel
All getting washed out with the tide
     (These first two lines are about to be explained by the end of this verse.)
We need to find some middle ground
It's always sex or suicide
     (This is about finding balance in life and probably is alluding to those with celebrity status. Mark is saying we shouldn't only live for the highs (sex) and abandon all hope (suicide) when we don't get what we want. But according to the first two lines, the subject of this verse is not listening to him. I'm choosing to take the chapel as a sign of hope and a foundation of the past, which the subject of the verse has burned down and left for ruin, because he or she has chosen a path of despair.)


I think as far as a complete idea, this song is about how our relationships can tear us apart and the crazy thoughts that will go though our heads when we think we're going to lose everything. A bolder and more specific interpretation is this song is a metaphor for how the music business can take over a band and destroy it from the inside out.

-De

New Music News

What the hell is going on 2012? I've been really disappointed in your music so far. I mean, we all have five weeks left to live and yet at this moment, Justin Bieber, Ke$ha, Taylor Swift and the Gangnam style guy are all in the top 15 of the Billboard Hot 100 Songs. Actually, I can't hate on Taylor Swift this time, but I can hate myself. Her new single "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is super catchy and I hate myself because I don't shut it off when it comes on the radio.

But I have come today bringing good tidings of great music, because there are some awesome things in the making:

Eminem:

If you don't like Eminem, it's not him, it's you. He may say some things that offend you, but you have to respect his talent. Unfortunately for hip-hop, his talent hasn't been around much lately, as his last release was two and half years ago.

On 11/19, Rihanna's new album, Unapologetic will be released and with it, Eminem resurfaces as a featured artist on the song "Numb". However, Mr. Marshall is not the biggest story here; Chris Brown, yup that Chris Brown, is also featured on the album. I really hope he was very careful choosing his words for this song. If not, critics and fans will come up with some very mean, albeit very clever things to say.

On 12/11, Eminem will again be featured, this time on a single by Wisconsin's own Skylar Grey, titled, "C'mon Let Me Ride". Eminem is also an executive producer for the album that will follow this single.

Kid Cudi:

Staying within the rap genre, Kid Cudi is going to release the album Indicud in early 2013. One song I've heard from this album, "King Wizard", is a huge step in the right direction for him and I hope to hear more like it on the rest of Indicud. Cudi has always had an unmistakable rapper's voice, yet his voice is really unique and distinguishable. Also his lyrics are above average and his cadences are refreshing. Still, I've always felt like Cudi's hooks needed some developing and I think the hook in "King Wizard" shows a good deal artistic maturity. Hype aside, the album should be unprecedented and a departure from his previous work.

blink-182:

After news broke that blink-182 had split with their label to go the independent route (pretty badass move I think), they surprised fans with the news of a new album, through various tweets from the band about recording in February of next year. It's such a big surprise because it's only been a little over a year since the release of their sixth studio album Neighborhoods. But, the band claims it has a new found agility after leaving Interscope, so hopefully this leads to a faster, more energetic album with perhaps a less melancholic tone than Neighborhoods or self-titled, while still maintaining the lyrical progress they've made since the days of Take Off Your Pants and Jacket. Then they announced, again via twitter (which is becoming their official press release), they were recording this month and releasing an EP before the end of the year as a Christmas present to blink fans everywhere.

Here are some of last week's photos of the band's most recent recording sessions:

(A prize will be awarded to anyone who can tell me what these lyrics are before the EP's release)

^DeMi is just a little pumped for this EP.

Here is the most recent article with news about the EP, set to be released December 18th.
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1697322/blink-182-mark-hoppus-new-ep.jhtml

Angels & Airwaves:

Tom DeLonge is the busiest dude alive. Shortly after blink's announcement of a new EP, Tom tweeted about a new music video for a new song "Diary", dedicated to Critter. The one and only Jeff "Critter" Newell was Tom's former sound engineer, who died on New Year's Eve last year at the young age of 45. He is often credited with helping Angels & Airwaves find their unique sound and because of this, the band thinks of him as their fifth member. His very next tweet announced an upcoming double EP for AVA, named Stomping the Phantom Brake Pedal, also coming out December 18th.

Information about the double EP, including bundle contents, track list and prices can be found here:
http://www.angelsandairwaves.com/

Diary Official Music Video

-De

Taxing the Rich

With this year's presidential debate heating up, there is often talk about economic and fiscal policy. Naturally, there are arguments about whether there should be higher taxes, lower taxes, or a different tax structure altogether. The conservatives arguing on the side of lower taxes, and the democrats arguing for higher taxes on the rich.

The argument against taxing the rich is flawed. Yes, in theory it would be beneficial to the economy if they ponied up 35% of their wages to the IRS. However, the wealthy do not simply have an income. They do not have one number that can be pointed to objectively as taxable income. The fact is, their wealth is distributed across a multitude of investments all over the world. The majority of it is probably here in the United States, but even then it's impossible to keep track of. 

It goes like this. A man with a million dollars owns a small business. He can harbor the money in the small business; he can harbor the money in many small businesses. These businesses don't necessarily have to be money laundering joints either. But with this business, the man can now report less and less income. Essentially he chooses his own "wage". And it follows that the lower wages he reports, the lower taxes he pays. 

So what happens when the rich are taxed more? Do they finally fork over that money to the IRS? No. They pass the burden of the hire taxes on to other people by imposing higher prices, stagnating salaries, or not hiring more people. Companies and people behave to maximize their utility. Period. If their utility is increased by being philanthropic, they will go ahead and do that, but not because the government imposes taxes on them. James, an avid reader, says, "The government thinks that they can take earnings from investors or companies and redistribute that wealth in other areas of the economy to stimulate economic growth more efficiently and faster than that investor or business can reinvest their own capital to contribute to economic growth through their own business."

My point is people throw around the notion that taxing the rich will generate more revenue for the country, but they also don't have a concrete plan to execute. "Close all the loopholes", they say. While I agree there needs to be regulations put in place so that there can't be huge tax write-offs on "gift ponies", loopholes or other means to divert money will exist.

Solution? A national sales tax that is closely monitored on the suppliers' side for all goods and services, except for food. You're able to buy a lot of clothes, yachts and electronics? Well that 40% sales tax sure does pave nice roads. The rich people might start importing their goods from overseas, but even then they would be creating jobs for the increased number of warehouse employees.


I believe it would be ideal to live in complete anarchy, if everyone was rational and didn't infringe on the rights of others. But one can dream.

-Mi

Catch by Transitive Property of Possession?

I don't want to talk about the play. I have to talk about the play and I've finally calmed down enough to do so. When I sat down to write this, my plan was to only write about the residual effects of the call, but there has been so much false information floating out there, I have to sort some things out in writing to at least clear my own head.

First of all, there is no controversy about whether it was a touchdown or not. I don't want to go through the play frame by frame, because I know the large majority of you either watched it or heard a hundred different renditions of what happened. It is painfully clear a touchdown should not have been called, especially now that the rules allow for all scoring plays to be reviewed. If you would like a more detailed account and analysis of the play, this edition of Sports Science is one of the best I've seen.

Sorry about the awful quality, this is only complete version I could find:

"After further review, it was a fucking interception!" A catch in the NFL requires three things: (1) Secure control of the ball. (2) Touch the ground in-bounds with both feet or any part of the body. (3) Maintain control of the ball throughout the catch. As the video explains, Jennings was the first to establish two points of contact on the ball with control; the basic definition of possession. Additionally, Jennings sustained possession by following through with the catch all the way to the ground by maintaining control and keeping two feet in bounds. It is not a simultaneous catch, because Tate doesn't establish a second point of contact on the ball (no is sure if he ever did) until after Jennings had possession. Therefore, there is no tie and Tate cannot be awarded the touchdown. 

People keep bringing up the offensive pass interference on the last play. While the interference did occur, it's not reviewable. Also, I've heard the argument that the precedent is to not call pass interference on Hail Mary plays at the end of games, so the refs were correct in not throwing a flag. The first part is actually true; however, the precedent (assuming the new refs even knew of it) is only in place because there are usually multiple instances of pass interference on such plays and a clear call is difficult to make.  This was not at all the case here. The defense played clean coverage until first contact with the ball was made; there was a single, clear-cut instance of offensive pass interference on the play. It should have been called, but the interference had nothing to do with the eventual ignorant interpretation of the rules.

This is probably the most trivial of all my points, but the second official did not signal incomplete, interception or to stop the clock. As far as I know, there is no signal for interception in the NFL, only a signal for a touchdown and a catch. The signal he gave was for a touchback, for which the only logical conclusion is an interception in this instance.

At this point, unfortunately, the facts don't make a difference. The league is firm in its decision to uphold the Seahawks victory and all the petitions and threatening phone calls to the commissioner's office aren't going to change anything.

But as I wrap this up, the real NFL season is now underway. The veteran refs are back and the replacement refs are back in their mothers' basements and their Lingerie League jobs. And as the Browns prepare to lose to the Ravens, I would like to point out that the first penalty called in this game was against the Browns defense in Baltimore. Good call refs. I guess the standing ovation before kickoff wasn't enough; way to set yourselves up for another round of cheers.

It thoroughly sucks that the integrity of the NFL demanded a Packers loss as a price, but the return of the refs is a huge relief for everyone and I'm thrilled it got done. One last awesome thing to come out of this debacle is all the memes. There are some really clever ones out there and I was inspired to make a couple myself:

-De

Why Music is the Universal Language

What's good MoT Nation and casual MoT readers? I hope you all are schooling responsibly.

During one of my slower nights, in between watching 30 Rock and editing vocals for a song, something pretty cool came to me. Maybe it's obvious to everyone else, but I've often wondered why music traverses across every culture of every continent on earth. Why does the need for music seem so fundamental and universally understood?

My first thought was the majority of music is the same. Even comparing eastern and western music styles, there are obvious similarities, similarities that make music identifiable as music. We're about to get really basic for a minute, but I promise this is going somewhere. All music has tempo and rhythm. Tempo is the thing that keeps the sound in time and rhythm is the subdivision and repetition of that tempo. Tempo is the first thing that separates music from noise. Now to anyone with a background in western music history, I'm aware that things such as rhythm and tempo weren't denoted in early notation, such as Gregorian chant. But the tempo and rhythm of a chant was still inherent in the aural tradition of the piece. Also, I'm not suggesting that all music has a constant rhythm or tempo. In modern terms, if you take a phrase such as, "It would be awesome if the Yankees don't make the playoffs this year", it's only a phrase until a tempo and rhythms are assigned, then it becomes rap. The next step is to assign melodies, both to the phrase and to an accompaniment. There can be other things like chords, form, dynamics and so on, but I feel like I've gone into way too much detail to explain my original point; music has a foundation that ties together all the different genres.

I would argue parallels can be drawn to the similarities between people. Music and people are 99% the same (don't do the math). Like music, there is a basic foundation that ties all people together. DNA, emotions, instinct and so on. This is why music is so basic across every culture and is such a need in our world. People "get" music. Regardless of language, music education and the era the music was written in, a song will provoke an emotional response in a person and it is often the common response. I believe without music, some paramount ideas that bring us together as a race would never be discovered. And now for one of my favorite quotes, take it away Victor Hugo:

"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and cannot remain silent"

Well said Victor, well said.

-De (and Victor Hugo)

Welcome!

Welcome one and all to Musings on Tap! Our doctrine is that all thought is free thought (we even share tea ;) ). Download at your leisure and be comforted that ideas will never die. The purpose is to incite thought and revolutionize ideas. We, the authors, share different perspectives on life and so this blog will indeed be 3 dimensional. Topics will be humorous and perhaps even silly. Topics will be serious and perhaps even morbid. Sentences will even contain parallel structure never experienced before. Oh and we cater :).