A Quick Experience...#2

Is it such a natural feeling for us to want to empower ourselves over another individual? I find it so bizarre that it is built within us to be better than the other. Sort of seems like we really are greedy overall.

This experience occurred on the World Wide Web, on the social website and file sharing phenomenon of Facebook. A website that has attracted millions of personal from around the world to communicate and meet new people from around the world, but of course everybody pretty much knows this by now. However, it has become a war zone of the mind. A place where people can take information shared from other people and use it against them to better themselves. Political debates exist there, but more prominently are the social arguments over topics that should probably be kept personal. What people forget is that the internet is an infinite realm of information where everything written, recorded and clicked on is recorded somewhere and can be used. Facebook and other similar sites make this easier to do, and that is for accessibility (to transport information around quickly).

The argument was about a particular person’s opinion on the issue of musical taste. The other rejected their musical taste, and the argument reigned on. It always disgusts me when people try to make their musical taste superior to the other, because music is one medium in the world where things are all equal. Music is music collectively, and every song and note ever written is equal to the other. It’s so subjective.

However, the over-arching issue that struck me was how people fight for democracy and freedom yet still try to better themselves over other people. That isn’t democracy or egalitarianism, it is a call of dictatorship to spill your ideas over everyone else’s. So to this I question what people really want in the world. Do you want an equal society, or one that is based on your ideas alone? That is communism, corruption and also facism.  

What do we want as a species? The equal society we all speak and pray to have? Or do we just want the world to revolve around us all?

My Music

Live at the Indi Bar, Perth. June 2011

I have been writing music for 5 years to this day now. I will never forget the first song I had ever written, and it was done before I even knew what a guitar was. Was a very short piece of poetry that was inspired by the arrival of my teenage years, and the change of perspective on the world. That sort of set the beginnings to what my songs are all about now, and why I write.

Writing with purpose is always the top priority for me. I don’t write if I have nothing to say, because there isn’t a point or a purpose. If I have nothing to express, then I don’t see a reason for why a song has to be written. I know this differs for each musician or songwriter, as I know a lot who write upon impulse about anything they see. That is something I tried to do and got a bit lost as a result.

As of today (27/11/11) I have written over 80 songs and recorded just under half of those at my homemade studio. Studio is just a fancy word for a small room with an electric drum kit, a keyboard, piano, two guitars and an 8 track mixer crammed into it. I haven’t bought any new equipment since I began writing music properly and learning instruments. I always feel incredibly grateful for having such equipment, and the ability to make my ideas a reality. To me it’s a gift that was given out of nowhere, and something I hope everybody in the world is able to do some day.

I write songs about the world, society and depressions that occur. Whatever affects this world in a way that I see as chaotic and crucial I intend to write about because it affects me directly. I have no interest in writing about something positive in my life because it only occurs after a long period of depression in hard work. Why right about the success when the hard work was the backbone to it all, it’s something people always forget.

This post is a bit out of nowhere, but there isn’t much known of me on this blog and I don’t want to become an invisible writer to people who read this. My music can be located at: www.reverbnation.com/jerrodlew

Thank you.

The Bath in the Sky

Solitude and Clarity: a bath in the sky?

The sense of pure calmness has become more elusive as the years flow by. That emotion of pure peace where our thoughts become physical words that we can speak and share with ourselves and ourselves only. Where can we cleanse our mind, and where does this peace of isolation exist? It’s up in the skies…literally.

The idea of a Japanese Onsen (Hot Springs) brings confusion to a lot of people unaware of the culture. It is a public bath where facilities for showering are available as well as a variety of hot baths to suit different needs. High up on the prefectures of Gunma and Nagano in Japan, the Manza Onsen has been officially declared as the highest Onsen in the whole of Japan. The area attracts tourists mainly in the winter months due to its powder snow and ski slopes surrounding the area. Traditionally, the Onsen is used to relax and to cleanse the mind. 27 different origins of water enter the hot springs, and many have claimed that certain physical afflictions and problems get cured as a result. It’s a place of peace, solitude and quiet high up in the mountains.

I was fortunate enough to Journey to the Manza Onspring when I was only 15 years old. A school trip led us trekking up the mountains before finally resting at the Hot Springs to ease our aching bodies. The quaint and quietness of the area was what surprised me away from my home in Central Tokyo. The noise disappeared and the wind took over all the sounds around me. The place was miraculously clean and ready for use, and the owners were pleased to see travellers. We were treated as guests of honour with food and drinks all provided to us before and after our baths.

It may be off the beaten path, and high up in the sky. But could Manza Onsen be the place to bring solitude to our lives, and a sense of self back? It’s an experience I will never forget, and I hope to revisit soon.

Pressure

Rafati's suicide attempt: the future of sport?

Respect is a virtue. Something we have to give to people when then clearly deserve it, and also when they don’t. It’s a sign of acceptance, that we must learn to improve ourselves in life.

Not long ago, a German football Referee under the name of Babak Rafati attempted suicide at a hotel room before a scheduled Bundesliga fixture. He was found in his bath tub, with his wrists slashed, by the linesman of the fixtures. There is no evidence or reasoning behind his actions, but is most likely to be for reasons outside the game and something that’s personalised. But this is a prime example of how pressure and a lack of respect can lead to dreadful results that sends perspective to the world. It is known that this referee was not the most popular of the German leagues, and his reception was not something was well happily received to any standard. But you hear these stories everyday of players and managers of a variety of different sports complaining about officials and their influence on the game. They are human, and they do their best to create fairness as best they can.

Rafati’s attempted suicide, personally, was something that needed more attention than what was given originally. Even though his actions were most likely caused by something outside the game and his job, it is still an indication that referees need to have more respect guided towards their way. I am a fan of football, so my article is based mainly around this area. Referees don’t have to explain decisions they make during games, and this is to protect their perspectives and reputations at the highest level. This is also done in a variety of sports where players are protected equally to defend their ideas and opinions on why things were done. Officiating is a very difficult task, and something that requires years of experience to gain fluency. It’s a job that is hard to get respected at. I personally was very upset at the news of the attempted suicide, but it should be a large warning shot towards all sports around the world of what outcomes we possess.

We don’t want sports and entertainment being placed into the lines of purposeful death. We have to start remembering that sport is only an entertainment factor that the world enjoys thoroughly and loves endlessly. But away from that reality does not change. Away from it all the world keeps moving and what we believe affects individuals in certain ways may not be anywhere close to what is really occurring. 

Noel Gallagher: High Flying Birds

 

Noel Gallagher Returns

There is no need for an introduction for this musician. He has done it all. Sold millions of records, hit number one in the charts repeatedly, dozens of professional interviews and an awards cabinet many would dream of. Noel Gallagher was the back-bone to the Oasis success, the band that has sold over 50 million albums from 1994-2009 and known as one of the most influential bands of the past 20 years.

High Flying Birds was announced in August 2011 as Noel’s solo project after high anticipation since the 2009 breakup of Oasis. The album released in mid-October contains 10 completely original tracks written and recorded by Noel alone with a handful of new musicians in the process. After the video of “The Death of You And Me” reaching 1 million hits within hours of release on Youtube, the suspense and anticipation rose considerably for the release. Noel has nothing else to prove to the music world, and any doubters to his ability to craft masterpieces of music have been proven wrong again. High Flying Birds is his strongest release since the early Definitely Maybe/Morning Glory era.

Opening with the epic-sounding string set of Everybody’s On The Run, Noel leaves everybody in awe with its anthem sound and choir working to create an atmosphere of pure dreamland and astonishment. Dream On then follows with a “Roll With It” twist with a pumping verse breaking into the night sky for the chorus. If I Had a Gun returns long remaining Oasis fans to the days of Wonderwall. Starting with a quiet acoustic melody before guitars pump in for the chorus with the drums cracking the fills between lines. The song soars higher and higher before breaking cleanly through the ice into an acoustic finish; fantastic tune!

The Death of You And Me reaches the album to newer heights that seemed unreachable. Containing a horn and brass solo over the usual guitars, and bringing out a chorus that is uplifting. This is the furthest Noel reaches out on the album, and a personal favourite. Record Machine is one of the two former Oasis demos that appeared on the internet, highly anticipated and Noel does not let it rest. An acoustic guitar with delayed Noel Gallagher lyric wafts over the top of a soothing choir before breaking out into an anthem. A guitar solo picks up the tempo and guides the vocals to stardom in a state of melancholy that only a songwriter of this calibre could reach with such ease. This tune is one not to be missed.

AKA…What A Life is the real revelation of Noel’s latest accomplishments. An unlikely song due to his back ground with a purposeful bass drums dominating the sound, with Noel’s insanely catchy vocals over pianos, guitars and synthesizers. A new step out for Noel, and a song that could easily have follows the Standing On the Shoulders Of Giant’s era with Go Let It Out a landmark. Then album then takes another turn to a new place through Soldier Boys And Jesus Freaks. Lyrics about religious dwellings of war and inequality dominate a fast paced trumpet section over guitars. AKA…Broken Arrow continues the trend with a new flavour of bongo drums and more guitars. Catchy chord progressions lead to another anthem like chorus with drums filling in the blanks well.

(Stranded On) The Wrong Beach sends the record back down to Earth after its rising altitude of hysteria and aptitude for cleanliness. Similar sounds that were heard off Dig Out Your Soul return, and brings a raw based rock-song that makes you question where will the record turn to next. Chorus again brings a sense of hope, with Noel’s vocals over a raw guitar riff that dominates the track from start to end. Peace then arrives at a place of a well-known Oasis demo. Stop The Clocks was first heard in Liverpool back in 2002, and the want and popularity of the tune led to its final release at the end of an album of dreams. The song is Oasis-esque at the very best, with a killer guitar solo at the end that puts it to rest.

Perhaps the lack of guitar solos came as a surprise to many fans of Oasis and Noel’s previous work, but in return he brings back catchy songs that could inspire yet another generation. This album has Noel Gallagher written all over it. He has returned, but in retrospect…he had never really left.

What is the 'best'?

Dedicating our lives to becoming the ‘best’ can be something addictive, incredibly competitive and also dangerous when that dream is placed into the wrong hands.

Becoming the best at something constitutes of a goal that is almost nearly impossible. It is hard to illustrate the best human, in fact its nearly impossible. This is because the term ‘best’ is so incredibly subjective and opinionated that I don’t understand why the word was even created. It is simply a measure of quantity to put yourself over another person, and that in itself is already segregation and inequality. It is fine to be better at something than someone else, its natural. Some people have certain qualities that allow them to excel faster or better at certain tasks or skills, but that doesn’t necessarily make you the best person for the job because you might lack in some other area where another succeeds in.

If we believe truly in some sort of biological ‘best’ gene that is within one of our species, we are very much firing shots in darkness and hurting ourselves in the process. If there was a perfect gene then evolution, life and everything we strive for as a species would be worthless. Why would we continue to push forward if the perfect gene is out there. It isn’t, and it never has been. Evolution is based on the fact that no gene is immune to everything, and that a weakness is always evident no matter what the cause. We breed as a species randomly to hopefully find a gene that will cover a certain weakness, and to create newer genes into the massive population so we can improve ourselves but not individually become the best.

The search for the perfect or best aspect is one with no end, but yet we are obsessed with it naturally. That comes with the will for us to improve as a species or race, to continue overcoming the challenges that our world persists over every second of our lives on Earth. 

Radiohead: The Albums (90s)

Pablo Honey

I heard this album late on in the system of things as the first records I ever picked up from Radiohead was Amnesiac and Kid A, but when I finally found a copy of Pablo Honey it answered a lot of questions I had about the band. For me the album was full of anger, rage and youth. The combination that any teenager has when they write music at the very start I think. Just that place to release everything you’ve ever hated or loved into one beautiful crafted piece of music. Pablo Honey is nowhere near just an ordinary album, but yet something that edges the beginnings of one of the greatest bands in the world’s history. It’s a timeless album that flashes by quickly at the start, and slows down in suspense only to hit you hard again on the next track. Its anthemic at times, and catapulted by the hit single Creep to an album that is outstanding. But you must look at the other tracks past the main single, such as You and Blowout, to really understand what Radiohead is all about. For me this is an album that was a fantastic beginning to what Radiohead would develop into towards the end of the 90s.

The Bends

Complete, confident and full of a variety of different songs. Ranging from the powerful Planet Telex to the ballad of Street Spirit, The Bends catapults the band to a place where not many others could reach at the time. It’s brilliance, I think, was only witnessed much later on the 2000s where many looked back on the bands history. The 90s was amazing for British music, and this album continued that tide it seemed. I find it very hard to review Radiohead’s 90’s era of music because of the fact that I wasn’t really around listening to music in that much detail (I was 2 when this album came out). But from my perspective now, I think The Bends is probably the most complete album of Radiohead out of their 8 released now, and has several hit tracks. The album has no filler tracks either, its full of execellently written songs that are ballad like and also anthemic.

OK Computer

This album deserves a lot more success than what it has already achieved. It is ground-breaking. Thom Yorke’s falsetto and Jonny Greenwood’s guitar work create the basis of one of the greatest records ever to be created for mankind to listen to. Paranoid Android is so very hard to describe, but is still the most unique track I have ever listened to. Contained within is such a variety of different genres of music all masterfully put together and composed by the band. I listen to this song every morning, it’s an anthem. A very brilliant song, words cannot describe how amazing it is. But the album continues and once again no filler tracks at all, every single song hits you hard from every angle alerting you to how incredible Radiohead have become in the scheme of music. Even the twisted Electioneering creates a well deserved but interesting turn on the album, twisting it away from what we expect to hear from the band. Full of guitar work, fantastically played instruments and composition of the songs. It is simply astonishing and life changing. From Pablo Honey to OK Computer is one complex journey that just seemed inevitable, but still so complex and unexpected.