Regicide Can be Great!

Welcome back once again to the Skull n Bones!  Where we have declared war on the mundane.  Damn you mundane and your bore-itude.

                NEWS IN HIPSTERDOM!

  Duct Tape From the Seventies has begun work on their first music video, they actually seem to have wrangled up a producer for it, holding high hopes right here, we’ll see what happens.  The Hangers On are gearing up for their first big Flint show of the season.  They’ll be opening for Blackstone Cherry when they come into town.  I’ll make sure to devote an entire post to this. 

                Anyway, today I’d like to introduce you all to a really cool pop-punk-rock-indy band called No More Kings.  I came across this music on Pandora one day and I instantly fell in love with it.  Believe it or not, I think they came up on my JoCo station, whom I will have to do a post about later on this week. 

                The best way to describe this music is Nerd-Rock and it’s just plain amazing!  Lyrically these guys are really with it.  They’re one of those bands that you can really connect with just because their lyrics are so hip.  They incorporate lots of pop culture into what they do.  One of their best songs Sweep The Leg is, as you might have guessed, about a certain eighties film so many of us enjoy.  Another song called Leaving Lilliput takes place in the world of Gulliver's Travels.  They have songs about zombies, superheroes, or at least people who think that they’re superheroes, and even video games.  They really personify the whole cool-geeky culture that’s blossomed in the late 2000s.  Having said that, I’ve read a few reviews of their albums and what generally gets swept under the rug is the guitar work.  There’s this REALLY awesome riff on Obey the Groove that gets stuck in my head all the time.

                It’s music that does what music is supposed to: put a smile on your face.  These guys just personify that feeling inside of you when you just want to jump up, start dancing, and pet puppies. (Insert happy face here)  If you’re just getting into them, they’ve got two albums.  The first one is GOLDEN, it’s just titled No More Kings and I highly recommend picking it up or downloading it, or whatever your thing is.  (At the very least check out the videos that I have posted at the end of this)  I’m going to be totally honest when I say that I actually haven’t heard enough about their most recent album  And the Flying Boom Box to say whether it’s any good or not.  I will say that I heard a track from it called Obey the Groove and it was swell.

                My only issue with these guys is that to my knowledge they’ve never made it out to Michigan to do a show.  I’ve heard that they’re actually very fun to see live.  Seems like California gets all the cool music sometimes.

                Now if you’ll excuse me, I have exam studying to procrastinate.

                                -Costello    

P.S.  That little button that says Follow?  It’s totes beckoning to you.

P.P.S.  OBEY THE BUTTON!

P.P.P.S  LINKS!  

                     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp6o5I99Idw

                            (Video for a great song by No More Kings called Jump In)

                    http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/nomorekingsmusic

                             (No More Kings Facebook Page)

Your days are numbered, Ape Man.

                So I have a new life goal.  I want to shoot a Bigfoot.  Yeah.  You read that right.  The Skull and Bones has officially decided that your days are numbered, Ape Man. 

                So why?  I’m sure you’re all itching to know why.  Well, there are two parts to that answer.  1-I’m tired of all the fighting.  I’m tired of all the “crazy people” that see this monster and I’m tired of all the folks that are completely adamant that it does not exist.  Why all the hate, guys?  I’m guessing that after I go out there with a pith helmet and some elephant tranquilizers and tag n bag it there won’t be too much fighting about whether it does or does not exist.

                What about all those guys that already do this crap on TV? 

                Have you seen them?  They go out there with about four people, set up cameras, play recordings, all that jazz.  My guys aren’t going to do that.  No sir.  We’re not going to bog ourselves down with fancy equipment.  We’re going to go out there with a crap load of elephant guns and spotlights.  Not just four of us.  No sir.  There’s gonna be about fifty of us circling through the forrest with some headsets.  Once one of us finds it, we radio the others, and they come to that location. 

                 Know what?  I don’t even care if it’s ME that shoots it, just as long as I get to be interviewed by CNN and the BBC.  Why?  Because I want to be the one to say “YEAH!  You see this bad boy here?  THIS is a big giant SCREW YOU from all the people who have been made fun of for taking out of focus photos!”  Plus, it WAS my idea.  Having said that, I’m not taking you “bigfoot fans” with me.  No.  These are going to be like ex-marines, and factory workers looking to make a buck.  Maybe a few big game hunters.  I’m sorry guys.  You’ve tried it.  You’ve failed.  It’s our turn now.  We're hipsters.  We've seen Evil Dead, and we all want to use our Boom Sticks.

               

                Hunting something that hurls boulders at you?  That’s sexy.

-Costello

LONG LIVE THE PARLOR MOB!

Hey all!  Welcome back to the bones where we attempt to inject a little badass into bloggery every day.  (Trust me, it’s difficult even for our leading scientists!)

A while back, probably about a year now, an awesome band from New Jersey managed to make their way to the Machine Shop.  The band was called The Parlor Mob and I haven’t heard about them since.  If you get the chance to see them, jump on it!  The band just echoes Led Zep, and unlike a lot of other bands, they do it well.  I’m not talking about cover songs or anything crazy like that, I mean that this band has some amazing vibes.  The lead singer actually sounds a lot like Robert Plant.  One of the best draws to this band, apart from the singer whom I could go on and on about, is actually their drummer.  Right?  A band with an impressive drummer?  How cool.  When I saw them they opened for Theory of a Deadman and these guys blew the pants off of the band that they were opening for.  Yeah, I’ve spoken to a lot of Theory fans and I know how tenacious they are, but I kid you not, had they been there even they would have admitted that The Parlor Mob put on a way better show than Theory this time around.  It’s a pleasure to watch this group and I’d love to see them around Michigan again!  Do yourselves a favor and give them a listen!

I’d also like to take a couple of seconds to thank all of you who messaged me about that annoying man on the CMU campus that I talked about yesterday.  Brought a smile to my face to know that I’m not the only one ranting about him.

                I’m Costello VonHumbolt III.

                                You stay classy, Internet.

That freaking bible thumper.

Today while walking to the library I noticed a man on campus ranting and raving about how those who masturbate and watch porn will go to hell.  On a sign held by one of his cohorts it was basically spelled out that their god loved me and that bad people go to their hell. 

The man would yell at people as they walked by attempting to convert them into his own beliefs.  What rang out to me was the whole "Jesus can save you." Line that he was perpetuating.  Do people with different views than yours scare you?  Enjoying a Playboy doesn't make me an "evil" person and my lack of belief in your diety doesn't make me any more so. 

America is a country full of a whole lot of gods that are vastly different than that whose banner you have chosen to fly on my campus.  Look at yourself for a moment, waving your bible around at people.  I kid you not, the man was physically waving it at people who walked by.  Are you any better than those you're attempting to rally against? 

Horrible as it sounds, I would LOVE to see someone deck this guy, however that goes against what I believe in.  So the day I see a group out there with a banner of peace across from him, I'll sit with them all day until he leaves.  I don't care how many people think he's funny, I don't care how many people think he's clever.  I think he's what's wrong with this country today.

I am me.  You are you.  We are different.  Get over it.

-Costello

Clever Post Title About A Cool Band.

                Loyal followers!  COME!  GATHER ROUND!  Let papa Costello tell you about some new sounds.  Guaranteed to blow your mind so high they won’t come down!  (Huh?  Seventies Reference?  YEAH :D )  The Bones is gearing up for the new season, so c’mon down, let’s have some fun!

                Well summer is nigh upon us and with it the summer concert season!  I figured today I’d give a shout out to a band that I’ve been following for the past year or so. 

                It’s not every day that you can find a local band that actually has a halfway decent sound to them, but hey, here they are.  The Hangers On are a small band from out of the Flint area with a powerful sound.  If Wolfmother had some sort of illegitimate love child somewhere, these guys would be it.  They have a pretty heavy seventies/eighties sound to them with a modern day flair.  They’re pulling the whole bassist is the lead singer thing that a few bands of note have been doing lately and honestly it works for them. 

                Honestly, the thing that I really like most about these guys is they, and by they I largely mean their guitarist, actually strive to put on a real SHOW.  It’s not every day you can go to a concert and see a band actually actively try to make it worth what you paid.  The Hangers On actually deliver on that.  So in all seriousness, half your ticket goes to music and half of it goes to watching these guys be fskin crazy!  (In a good way)

                I generally catch their shows at a place called The Machine Shop.  (GREAT place to catch smaller to upper midsize bands)  The venue is pretty small and when it gets packed with people it’s actually a really good time.  Lots of fans, lots of booze, lots of fun.  Speaking of fun, their fans are pretty fanatical.  I’ve actually wormed my way into the tight group of people that follow these guys pretty religiously and they’re pretty out of sight.  It doesn’t really matter how small of a turnout there is, these fans will get up and jump around.  Literally.  I’ve seen people pogo at these shows before.  It’s pretty freaking sweet.

                On the subject of fans, this band is actually still small enough to care about who follows them.  It’s not uncommon for them to actually be on speaking terms with a lot of them.  It’s cool to see a group that hasn’t really let it go to their head that they’ve made that first step out of the garage.

                Tickets for the shows that they play usually max out at like ten bucks.  What do you have to lose?  Give these dudes a listen, you will thank me for it later.

                That’s it for me tonight, hope I turned a few of you onto some good music.

                PEACE!

                                -Costello

What's that daddy? Why that's what we call a dill weed, son!

Hey all and welcome back to The Bones! 

               

                You ever see that long haired guy with the well trimmed beard sitting at a picnic table when it gets really nice out.  He’ll just be sitting there with an acoustic guitar in the sun.  Doesn’t matter how hot it is, he’s going to have some sort of fake Vietnam jacket on or maybe a scarf.  Just sittin there, chillin with his “axe.”  Then all of the sudden his doosh senses start tingling and he starts to play one of three songs that he knows:  Sweet Home Alabama, House of the Rising Sun, or a Nirvana song of his choosing.  (He feels that Kurt Cobain properly understands the torment in his soul that his parents just can’t fathom.)  So what set his Doosh Sense off?  Why a hot girl began walking up.

                Now music has been used to pick up chicks for many a year, but come on, sir.  Really?  Way to mainstream the one pickup line that most of us music nerds, hipsters, and hippies have.  “I may be twenty years old, in debt twenty grand in student loans and live in a cramped dorm room with three other guys, but I have a kick ass guitar!”  Now the stylish folk are taking that from us too? 

                Well two can play at that game.  Why don’t we just go out, get a gaudy kanji tattoo and buy some skin-tight tshirts of bands that we have never heard of.

                That’s another thing.  People that wear band tshirts.  Oh wow.  You like Dark Side of the Moon?  What’s your favorite track?  “Uhh… Dark Side of the Moon?”  Great, yeah.  That’s wonderful. 

The other day I actually struck up a convo with a really nice chick that had a Theory of a Deadman Tshirt on.  Woman actually knew what she was talking about.  Props to her.  From now on, we’re going by the Theory Girl rule.  If you can name five songs you like or have been to at least one concert, AND (And this is a big AND) can name at least ONE of the band members.  You’re golden.  Wear your apparel with pride.  You deserve it!

                Oh wow.  That feels WONDERFUL to get off my chest! 

                I think we should all try to be a judgeasaurus rex from time to time.   How else will we keep the doosh population down?

                Coincidentally yours,

                                -Costello

P.S.  Best Kurt Cobain joke of the week goes to Blondie!

P.P.S.  You know the drill by now!  Follow me!  Share me!  THE WORLD NEEDS TO SEE THESE WORDS! 

 

Stick this in your earholes!

              Wow, already twenty followers.  How cool is this!  For those of you just joining, welcome to The Bones, where we still have chips on our shoulders about having Kurt Cobain taken from us.  Yes.  We hold grudges here. 

                Anyway, I wanted to take a little bit of time to say thanks to everyone who is already following, it’s awesome to know that people are actually reading what’s up here!  I’d also like to say, let’s not stop at twenty!  Spread this mother around like butter! 

                So today I thought that I would talk about something that everyone dreads:  The death of bands.  Whether it’s because a band member died, or just because there were differences that just couldn’t be solved, bands break up all the time.  It’s a crying shame but it’s true.  So c’mon down and we’ll take a look at a couple bands that just couldn’t quite last.  (At least their music did!)

                Band number one, a personal favorite of mine, The Fratellis.  Imagine if the Beatles stuck around long enough to get into punk rock and then listened to a little Chili Peppers.  I like to think that that’s what The Fratellis sound like.  These guys are a band out of Glasgow that just sound so marvelous.  I highly recommend you check them out.  Their music videos remind me a lot of something that the White Stripes would come up with.  In fact, in their video for Chelsea Dagger Jon Fratelli, their vocalist, actually looks strangely similar to Jack White.

                Speaking of The White Stripes, let’s throw them up here!  Great band.  It’s very hard to say anything bad about them.  Maybe some could complain about Megs drumming, but hell that sound works for them.  The White stripes lasted from the late nineties all the way up to 2011.  Their last albums, Get Behind Me Satan and Icky Thump, were phenomenal to say the least.  They really did go out with a bang.  Music doesn’t always have to be complicated to be awesome.  The White Stripes proved that.  Check them out.

                Seriously, stick these two into your ear holes.  You’ll be ever so happy!  In a world where many groups survive on about three hits that they belt out over and over again, it’s sometimes refreshing to look at the ones that decided to stop while they were ahead. 

                Keep on Rockin Me Baby,

                                -Costello

P.S.  See that button over there, that says follow?  Yeah.  Click that!

P.P.S .  See that URL up top?  Show it to people!

Kay Thanks Bye!