50 Greatest Albums Of All Time - Part 1 of 10

So yeah, I have finally broken down and decided to do this. I know I know, there are millions of these stupid lists out there, but I have problems with every single one of them. Most are comprised of bands that A, have not been around for 30 years, B, include bands that I absolutely despise, C, only judge bands based on Grammy Awards and sales, and D, don't include Radiohead. So I guess you could say this is basically my favorite 100 albums of all time, and not necessarily the greatest (spoiler alert! I am not going to start my list with Sgt. Pepper). It will include none of the following; Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Prince, and no mother-fucking Nirvana. Sure, they all might have had good albums, but I don't listen to them on a regular basis. If you don't like my taste in music, comment and tell me, but don't tell me I shouldn't include bands from the 90s and 00s because not enough time has passed. Remember, I was born in 1989 asshole! I didn't grow up listening to fucking Joni Mitchell and Boston, so keep your trap shut.

Also, these are in on particular order.

Shall we begin?

1. Refused - The Shape of Punk to Come
Saw that coming didn't you? Yeah, anyone who has known me for a while knows that in my eyes, no band will ever compare to Refused. This album changed the face of modern hardcore music. It can be argued that it wasn't the first of its kind, but it sure as hell is one of the best known. It blends the chaos of hardcore-punk with metal riffs perfectly, creating something that other artists can only dream of accomplishing. This album turned me on to hardcore.

2. Radiohead - Ok Computer, Kid A, Amnesiac, Hail To The Thief, In Rainbows
I figured I wouldn't waste space on this list by listing all these albums seperately. You already knew this was coming at some point, and if you didn't, well then you obviously did not read my intro. I did not include all the Radiohead albums for a reason; Pablo Honey and The Bends were decent albums, but they were not game-changers. Once Ok Computer came out, the whole world of alternative music changed for good. From then on, Radiohead continually has made breath-taking albums, each one incredibly unique and unlike the last. I am always suprised that Kid A and Amnesiac were recorded at the same time, as they are both so very different. Without these albums, we would be missing a whole genre (Chris Martin {front man for Coldplay} credits Radiohead for making it possible to play the music he plays).

3. KMD - Mr. Hood
Whether you like it or not, KMD is monumental (Before bashing me for putting this before Wu-Tang or N.W.A. remember, this list is in no particular order). KMD effectively introduced us to MF Doom (aka DOOM, Viktor Vaughn, Daniel Dumile, etc.), who would later become, and still is, one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time. It really is a shame that this band's career was cut so short (I won't go into all that here, just wikipedia it).

4. Madvillain - Madvillainy
I couldn't mention KMD without immediately mentioning Madvillain. Madvillain is the genius collaboration of MF Doom and Madlib. This album in the greatest hip-hop album of all time (if you disagree you can go fuck yourself). Hailed by Thom Yorke as one of his biggest lyrical inspirations in recent time, it changed my views of hip-hop. From Meatgrinder all the way to Americas Most Blunted, Madvillainy suprises at every turn.

5. Thrice - Vehissu
Okay yes, this is not Thrice's best album ever, but it did prove once and for all that the whole "emo-core" generation could play music other than sad sappy shit. Dustin Kensrue has one of the most beautiful voices on the planet, a voice that until this album was never fully heard or used to its full potential. This album also marked a change in Thrice's career, and prepared us for what was to come. If you forget that this album was ever made and listen to The Artist in the Ambulance, and then listen to any of the four Alchemy Indexes, you can not even tell it is the same band. It is almost like this was a coming of age for the members in the band. You can tell that each memeber threw in every little bit of talent they possessed into this thing. Simply amazing.

Well, thats it for now. I hope to post one of these every day for the next 10 days. Hopefully after that I will be used to updating this thing daily again, and we won't see another 2 week break like before.

-Duke-

Why do I do It?

So it is official; I am once again addicted to the wonderful World of Warcraft. In all reality, I knew this would happen eventually, I just didn't know when. Well, I guess there is nothing I can really do about it. WoW is more addictive than crack cocaine, and once it has you in it's grasp, there is no escaping. It is sad how every day I sit at work and think, "wow, tonight would be a great day for a bike ride," but instead I go home and sit on my computer until 10:30-11 and then fall asleep. If you hadn't noticed, this blog has not even been updated in at least two weeks. That is probably directly connected to me playing WoW all the time and spending all my downtime at work reading about how I can get better at playing WoW.

But anyways, a few interesting things did come out of the few hours this weekend I was able to pry myself away from the computer. The boys from Arto threw a pretty impressive DIY show in Jamie's basement, which included Palmer and some band who's name I can not remember for the life of me. After that, Justin Baker threw a book burning party in his front yard, which attracted way more people than I thought it would. This ended with me drinking a lot of PBR and Johnny Blood Red Ale, and a wicked hangover in the morning. Julian also burnt a copy of Chickensoup for the Teenage Soul, which made me immensely happy. I remember when my parents had me read that book, and if I still had my copy I would have gladly thrown it in the fire.

But anyways, my break at work is done, so I should probably start doing something productive. I hope to start updating this more. Seeing as how I spend most of my time on the computer, this may just mean stories of my adventures in Northrend (chuckle), so be prepared for ub3r nerdiness LOLOLOL!!!!!1!!!!11!!!!!!

-Duke-

New Pushmi-Pullyu sweet(er than a fat man being milked)

This past weekend I had the great pleasure of being able to attend the last ever Mills House show ever. For those who do not know much about the Mills House, it is the residence of Madison musician John [praw] and a few other students at UW Madison. John is the driving force behind the group Pushmi-Pullyu, as well as his solo project, [praw], also runs a small record label named mineallmine! records, and djs quit frequently on the 97.1 WSUM radio station. For the last 6 months or so, John has been hosting shows in his basement, showcasing the best in local talent, as well as some national and international acts, such as Nuclear Woods, Arto, and The Enright House, to name a few. These DIY style shows are usually also accompanied by the legendary death wap, something I have had the great pleasure of helping prepare a few times. Two cups and you are down for the count. This last one was fairly special, as not only was it the last Mills House show, but it was also John's last show in the states for the next 10 months, as on August 15th he is moving to Norway to continue his studies. This was his last chance to release some new material for all his fans. He did this in the form of the new South Africa album from Pushmi-Pullyu.

Pushmi-Pullyu is the creative minds of [praw], K. Wilhelm (another Madison musician), and Myles Coyne, of Arto. I have always liked the cool, calming, ambience of Pushmi-Pullyu, and South Africa I have to say is my favorite release to date. It showcases all facates of the band, and no two songs are the same. From the first track "A Pretty A Day," to the Bon Iver-like vocals on the genius cover of MGMT's "Kids," to the haunting intro of "Welcome To The Ridge," and the finishing touch of an acoustic version of the title track, the whole album suprises at every turn. After listening to the whole album three times through from start to finish, I can honestly say that there is not a single song that I do not like. Absolutely amazing.

While only 62 copies of the album are currently available, all unique and handmade, I would guess that the album will soon be available on your finer torrent sites (lol).

My hats off to you, gentlemen, for another album well done.

And to you, John, thank you for sharing the last six months of your life with me, and a couch now and then.

-Duke-

P.S. New K. Wilhelm album was also handed out at the August 1st show, and I will be discussing that at a future time.

What a Weekend

Wow, what an amazing weekend. Friday night was a little iffy, but Saturday was absolutely ridiculous. I was able to drive to Madison in just over 2 hours. How this is possible, I have no idea. Drank a few drinks, watched a few bands, and decided not to drink for the remainder of the night. Well, that only lasted for a few hours, and then it was time to give the wap another go. Bad idea. Witnessed quit a few strange things, such as Wolfgang trying to climb a tree with a broken/sprained foot, D-Knapp refusing to wake up, a homeless man named Dwayne, who said he coined the phrase "right tighty lefty loosey," Gordy stripping down to his boxers, and random people cuddling that I didn't expect to see cuddling. Waking up on a kitchen floor realizing that I was sleeping without a blanket was interesting, as well as finding my sandals 25 feet from where i remember leaving them. And oh yeah, getting home and forgetting that I had a giant cock drawn on one hand and a hairy ass hole on the other and then having to explain that to my mother was quit weird. Oh well.

Anyways, it was fun, at some moments stressful, but for the most part fun.

Too bad now that John is moving to Norway, there will not be anymore Madison adventures to this magnitude.

Hope to steal some videos of a few of the bands playing from Josh once he has posted them.

-Duke-