The Pretender - Foo Fighters

Song of The Month!

The Pretender

by Foo Fighters

I know I haven't posted anything else this month, so I apologize for that. I'll officially be done with school this year in three days, which means I'll be back to making scheduled posts after that. Since next month will be Christmas, I'll try to post as often as possible, but I'm not sure how busy I'll be and therefore I'm not sure how much I'll be able to post.

In any case, I decided to put The Pretender as the Song of The Month for several reasons. The first simply being that it's by Foo Fighters. They are an amazing band, which I've been a fan of since I was young because my mother always loved them, so I figured it was about time I put up something about them. Another reason I love the band is because when it came to Dave Grohl it sort of became a way to see how he dealt with everything after Nirvana and how he's grown and changed. 

I chose The Pretender specifically because I remember quite vividly when it first came out. My mother and I watched the music video on MTV, watching as everything exploded and just came to life, red splattering everywhere. I don't really know why that is something I remember, but I always loved this video for some reason. It was a relevant song then and it's a relevant song now, so I figured why not?

Besides, The Pretender is no. 1 on Kerrang!'s 101 Most Definitive Party Classics, so it's only appropriate to share it with more people. I think everyone should hear this song at least once in their lives, so if you haven't already, you should listen to this great song!

~The Elf

Bloodstream - Stateless

Song of The Month!

Bloodstream

by Stateless

I just really like this song a the moment. There is literally no other reason.

*shrug*

You've probably heard it before, but if you haven't just check it out! It's a great song, which I think a lot of people already like and if you listen to it, you'll understand why.

It's not exactly a new song, but it's good, so you should listen to it!

~The Elf

Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday!

Friday the 13th (1980)

In the spirit of Halloween, I felt I should probably write up something about a scary movie. I couldn't decide on one for a while, but then I figured it should be a classic. That's how I ended up writing about Friday the 13th, the 1980 film.

Movie Information:

"Crystal Lake's history of murder doesn't deter counselors from setting up a summer camp in the woodsy area. Superstitious locals warn against it, but the fresh-faced young people -- Jack (Kevin Bacon), Alice (Adrienne King), Bill (Harry Crosby), Marcie (Jeannine Taylor) and Ned (Mark Nelson) -- pay little heed to the old-timers. Then they find themselves stalked by a brutal killer. As they're slashed, shot and stabbed, the counselors struggle to stay alive against a merciless opponent." - Google

My Review:

This movie is pretty shoddy compared to most movies that are out today, but it's a cult classic and definitely a must-see in the world of horror movies. This movie is one of the ones that you have to watch if you want to understand pop-culture references. Plus, it does have some really good moments in it and it inspire a lot of other awesome movies.

I would recommend it to everyone looking for a scary movie!

~The Elf

Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday!

I haven't done a book review in a while, but I decided to do another classic. This one is even older than the last, having been published in 1877. It was written by Anna Sewell and was published only five months before her death, but quickly became a best seller and is still one of the best selling books of all time.

Summary of the story:

"The story is narrated in the first person as an autobiographical memoir told by the titular horse named Black Beauty—beginning with his carefree days as a colt on an English farm with his mother, to his difficult life pulling cabs in London, to his happy retirement in the country. Along the way, he meets with many hardships and recounts many tales of cruelty and kindness. Each short chapter recounts an incident in Black Beauty's life containing a lesson or moral typically related to the kindness, sympathy, and understanding treatment of horses, with Sewell's detailed observations and extensive descriptions of horse behaviour lending the novel a good deal of verisimilitude.

The book describes conditions among London horse-drawn taxicab drivers, including the financial hardship caused to them by high licence fees and low, legally fixed fares. A page footnote in some editions says that soon after the book was published, the difference between 6-day taxicab licences (not allowed to trade on Sundays) and 7-day taxicab licences (allowed to trade on Sundays) was abolished and the taxicab licence fee was much reduced." - Wikipedia

My review:

The whole point of the book was to "to induce kindness, sympathy, and an understanding treatment of horses," which I think it does pretty well. I read this book when I was fairly young, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a brilliantly written novel that invokes a lot of sympathy in the reader, especially when it comes to some scenes where they describe animal cruelty towards Black Beauty and other horses. This book was a very influential part in the anti-cruelty campaigns going on at the time, and even to this day is often referenced when it comes to cruelty towards horses. I think this is an amazing book that everyone should read, whether or not you like reading, care about horses or about animals in general, I think everyone should read it. It's not overly complicated and it paints a vivid image in your mind, which I think is one of the many things that make this book so amazing to read.

If you haven't read Black Beauty already, I really think you should! Are there any other classic fans out there?

~The Elf 

Hollywood Undead (2005)

From left to right; Funny Man, Charlie Scene, J-Dog, Danny, Da Kurlzz and Johnny 3 Tears.

Hollywood Undead

Hollywood Undead are one of my favourite bands and the band that all of my friends and I fan over. My siblings and I all love their music and are always listening to them. They are an American rap rock band from Los Angeles, California that formed in 2005. They have six members who all go by stage names, although you can easily find out their real names online, each wearing their own unique mask. They change their masks every few years, usually when a new album comes out, but it's just a variation of the previous mask, so it's not hard to tell who is who after you learn what their mask is.

In any case, my friends and I all love Hollywood Undead, so since I posted one of their songs as the song of the month, I figured I should do a band review. Although I love the band, I'm aware not everyone does and some of their songs are quite explicit or can be offensive, so you can check them out at your own risk.

Studio Albums;

Swan Songs (2008)

1. "Undead" - 4:25

2. "Sell Your Soul" - 3:14

3. "Everywhere I Go" - 3:30

4. "No Other Place" - 3:16

5. "No. 5" - 3:05

6. "Young" - 3:16

7. "Black Dahlia" - 3:46

8. "This Love, This Hate" - 3:57

9. "Bottle and a Gun" - 3:22

10. "California" - 3:17

11. "City" - 3:34

12. "The Diary" - 4:35

13. "Pimpin'" - 3:07

14. "Paradise Lost" - 3:11

In some of the other editions of the album, you could also get;

15. "Pain" - 2:41

16. "The Natives" - 3:40

17. "Knife Called Lust" - 2:59

18. "The Loss" - 3:15

19. "Bitches" - 3:30

20. "The Kids" - 3:01

21. "Circles" - 3:33

American Tragedy (2011)

1. "Been to Hell" - 3:23

2. "Apologize" - 3:27

3. "Comin' in Hot" - 3:43

4. "My Town" - 3:36

5. "I Don't Wanna Die" - 3:59

6. "Hear Me Now" - 3:34

7. "Gangsta Sexy" - 3:54

8. "Glory" - 3:34

9. "Lights Out" - 3:51

10. "Coming Back Down" - 3:23

11. "Bullet" - 3:18

12. "Levitate" - 3:24

13. "Pour Me" - 4:03

14. "Tendencies" - 3:32

In the deluxe edition there were four extra tracks;

15. "Mother Murder" - 4:10

16. "Lump Your Head" - 3:37

17. "Le Deux" - 3:45

18. "S.C.A.V.A." - 4:04

iTunes also had a bonus track;

19. "Street Dreams" - 4:04

Notes from the Underground (2013)

1. "Dead Bite" - 3:38

2. "From the Ground" - 3:45

3. "Another Way Out" - 2:47

4. "Lion" - 3:54

5. "We Are" - 4:34

6. "Pigskin" - 2:41

7. "Rain" - 3:41

8. "Kill Everyone" - 2:52

9. "Believe" - 4:14

10. "Up In Smoke" - 3:38

11. "Outside" - 4:43

In some of the other editions of the album, you could also get;

12. "Medicine" - 3:26

13. "One More Bottle" - 3:40

14. "Delish" - 3:07

15. "I Am" - 3:23

16. "New Day" - 3:50

Day of the Dead (2015)

1. "Usual Suspects" - 3:44

2. "How We Roll" - 4:45

3. "Day of the Dead" - 3:55

4. "War Child" - 3:58

5. "Dark Places" - 4:39

6. "Take Me Home" - 3:48

7. "Gravity" - 3:19

8. "Does Everybody in the World Have to Die" - 3:17

9. "Disease" - 3:31

10. "Party by Myself" - 4:10

11. "Live Forever" - 3:40

12. "Save Me" - 3:27

In some of the other editions of the album, you could also get;

13. "Guzzle, Guzzle" - 3:39

14. "I'll Be There" - 4:01

15. "Let Go" - 4:16

16. "Ghost" - 3:21

17. "Sing" - 4:05

18. "Fuck the World" - 4:09

They are an amazing band, though not for everyone, but I'd still recommend checking them out! The band's sound has changed a lot over the years, but they still have a lot of unbelievably good songs with deep meaning, as well as songs that easily energize you and get you moving. They have an amazing sound and brilliant voices to go with it, so you should check them out and see what you think!

~The Elf

Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday!

Clueless (1995)

Movie Information:

"Cher Horowitz and her friend Dionne, two of the most popular sophomores in school, play matchmakers for two teachers. Inspired by their success, Cher takes under her wing Tai, a "clueless" transfer student. While trying to make an advantageous match for Tai, Cher attempts to find a boyfriend of her own. Several misfires take place, due to poor communication, before she finds the Baldwin of her dreams." - Written by James Meek

My Review:

Honestly, I only recently watched this movie. I know, shocker. Seriously though, as I've stated in previous reviews, I'm not really into all the cliche chick flicks, so I never saw the point. I did however have a really boring holiday a few months ago and decided I might as well see what the fuss is about.

To my surprise the movie wasn't as terrible as I thought it was going to be. It ended up being pretty good, which is a great feat if you ask me. At first it all seems very cotton-candy and bubbly, but there's an underlying message in the movie that gives it a much deeper meaning. Besides, it's got a heavy dose of comedy in there too, so what's not to like?

Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of this movie, but I definitely understand why it became such a cult-classic. I would definitely recommend it to anyone that doesn't mind a fluffy, high school drama, or a laugh.

~The Elf

Kiss It All Better - He Is We

Song of The Month!

Kiss It All Better

By He Is We

This month has been another shitty one for the blog, but I'm trying to fix that this week and next week. Anyway, I should probably warn you that this song is really sad. The meaning is pretty obvious once you hear it; it's about a man who is sitting in his jail cell, remembering the night a man shot the love of his life and dropped the gun. He then picked up the gun and shot the guy who killed his love.

It's really sad, but it's also beautiful.

In any case, as usual, I encourage you to listen to the song and check out He Is We, since a lot of their stuff is really good. I hope you like the song, it's really quite fantastic and emotional.

~The Elf

Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday

Guilty Conscience

by Eminem ft. Dr Dre

In this song, written by Eminem and Dr Dre, tells the story of three men who are all going to commit violent or sexual crimes or are doing things that calls their morels into action. Eminem plays the bad side of the Conscience where as Dr Dre plays the good side. The song runs through the three stories where Eminem and Dr Dre are trying to convince the three what is the right thing to do.

During the first verse, a man is going to rob a store to help pay for his family; Dr Dre tries to convince the man that this was not the right thing to do, where as Eminem tries to convince the man that he can get away with the crime. The man chooses the right thing to do and does not rob the store - instead he leaves.

In the second verse a young man finds a fifteen year old girl, drunk at a party; Eminem tries to convince they man that if he slips something into her drink, he will get away with doing what he likes with her, where as Dr Dre tries to convince him that it was not right to take advantage of this young woman, that he would go to jail and ruin this girl's life. The man decides that the right thing to do is take advantage of the girl.

The third and final verse is about a man who comes home from a long day to find his wife with another man; Eminem tells the man that he should kill both his wife and the man and then take the child and leave, while Dr Dre begins to try and calm the man down, saying that there could be a reasonable explanation for what is going on, but Eminem antagonizes him and Dr Dre eventually agrees with Eminem that the moral thing to do is kill both of the wife and he lover.

<Merlin>

Update!!

Hey everyone! 

Well, I'm going to have to start this out with another apology. The Elder was supposed to do a Flashback Friday this week, but he only now told me that he hasn't, so I don't have time to do one. Thankfully, my exams are finally over, so I'm going to spend the next three weeks writing up posts and putting them in the schedule thing. Probably should've done that a long time ago, but... oh well.

Sorry about not posting today, but I'll make sure to post next week.

~The Elf

Dance with the Devil - Breaking Benjamin

Song of The Month!

Dance with the Devil

By Breaking Benjamin

First of all, I think I should start out by apologizing to everyone who were hoping for something non-fandom related. I've been watching the Vampire Diaries again, as of late and I've always loved this song. Me being the total fangirl I am, listened to plenty of playlists online about the Vampire Diaries, their characters and relationships in the show. I came across this video, which I think was done very well, about Damon and Elena, and Klaus and Caroline. If you're into the Vampire Diaries, you'll probably love the video, because it was done really well. If you don't like the Vampire Diaries, I'd still at least listen to the video, because this song on it's own is brilliant.

I've always loved Breaking Benjamin and their music, but I haven't been as drawn in by their music lately, until I heard some of their songs on playlists. I honestly love their music and it can usually be interpreted in a number of ways, but they're always good to listen to.

Anyway, check out the song! And if you like it, you should check out Breaking Benjamin's other music!

~The Elf