Oddly enough, I was actually invited by my step-mom to be an “escort” (nothing sexual, get your mind out of the gutter) at the musical “event” of the year, The Grammys. Having no idea what to expect, I said sure –  what did I have to lose other than the time I was volunteering? At the end of the day, I had a blast; and I would recommend that if you ever have a chance to do something like this, take the opportunity.

Without getting into the overly tedious details of how HUGE of a production it was, I will highlight the humorous portions:

- Watching Jay-Z and Chris Martin (Coldplay) rehearse in front of 300 people including myself was amazing. They seem like true friends and nice guys.

- The production is the smoothest running thing I have ever witnessed. Even with all of the chaos and everything that can go wrong, The production behind The Grammys stays on track.

- Fellow escorts could be defined as “delusional” for thinking that this would be their chance to break into the industry.

- I escorted Kenny Chesney’s band and they were the nicest bunch of guys. Highest grossing ticket seller of last year and travels with 17 buses and 12 semis. Yep, he’s huge.

In conclusion, even though I personally don’t pay attention to these awards (I hadn’t seen a Grammy Awards show in years), it was a really entertaining time ,and people work tirelessly to bring this into a reality. 

This past week at my place of work, we heard that two staples of the metal press - Metal Edge and Metal Maniacs – are shuttering their doors. While many magazines continue to post lower and lower subscription numbers (with the exception of a few) while raising advertising rates (you know those things cost around $2,500-$3,500 for a full page advertisement?), I ask myself: is it worth it? From a record label standpoint, the logical connection between a kid seeing an ad in a magazine and them going out immediately to buy a record is basically non-existent. (Correct me if I am wrong, people). Accordingly, we have curbed many of our budgets to reflect that.

Also for the sake of discussion: does press/good reviews/bad reviews even matter? Most music critics slam some of the most popular music within the punk/metal/hardcore/emo scene, and yet kids continue to buy that stuff in droves. If memory serves me, I saw a study that showed a large majority of people do not even pay attention to music reviews.

So, where do you all stand with it? I know everyone’s opinion will differ; but with everyone having a voice on their own music blog or review site, does press even matter?

Working at an independent record label has its perks, and one of them is being able to see how other bands tour and manage their expenses. Sometimes you are so deeply involved that you know how much the band is making on any given night of a tour – because of the almighty “perk” that happens when you sign to a label: TOUR SUPPORT!

What most bands do not think of when taking this is that it gets charged back to them; this means that whatever they are taking from the label, they will have to pay back through sales. Now granted most bands do not see any payments from the label because they are deep in debt due to all of the expenses of putting out records.

The point of this blog is to illustrate that tour support is just a temporary fix. A band should really keep their hands out of their label’s wallet; it will help them in the long run, and generate better returns as the years go along. The more independent you keep it, the better you will do.

I will break away from my usual blog format and speak it from the mountain of  the Issue Oriented blog to inform everyone about my favortie records (and a few movies) of this past year. I have decided to keep it exciting and put this in NON-numerical order just for kicks.

The Gaslight Anthem – The 59′ Sound

It’s on everyone’s list for a good reason. Honest, catchy and filled with soul, this record was released at the right time; people were starving for just this record. What’s even cooler? This is only the tip of the iceberg for this band.

Thrice – The Alchemy Index Vol 3 & 4

Watching this band grow and develop into something that they always have wanted to be is extremely gratifying, and worth every penny invested into the band.  This and the Volume 1 & 2 releases will be timeless and keep people interested in the band for years to come.

Blacklisted – Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God

Everything intelligent hardcore should be in 2008. It is very clear that more bands should take a hint that listening to music beyond what is considered “hardcore” will broaden your horizons and help you hone your craft even more. Viva la Blacklisted.

North – What You Were

If you have seen any of my musical picks over the past few years it is clear that my love for bands like Neurosis and Isis is something that continues to grow. Fortunately this style of music has grown more popular and more bands have followed suit. Unfortunately this also means there are a lot of bands that simply suck doing this “thing”. Not the case for North. They do this genre justice and keep you wanting more.

Torche – Meanderthal

Pop metal at it’s finest. When I hear mainstream media (Spin and other huge outlets) praising this band, it makes me have faith in the musical community. This has everything a fan of Queens of the Stone Age or Foo Fighters could want. It’s about time they blow up.

Polar Bear Club – Sometimes Things Just Disappear

Easily the feel good record of my year. Any mood can be augmented by listening to this record. I hope this band follows in the footsteps of a band like The Gaslight Anthem on their way to the top. Fans of Hot Water Music, Small Brown Bike and anything good take note.

Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs

If Death Cab releases a record, it will most likely be in my year end list. This record took a while to grow on me, but it is now easily one of my favorites that they have ever done. Beautiful, haunting and eloquent. All that DCFC is known to be.

ASG - Win Us Over

My surprise of the year. This band came out of nowhere (North Carolina to be exact) and blew me away. Heavy stoner-type rock that is just a pleasure to listen to. Nothing complicated about it.

These Arms Are Snakes - Tail Swallower and Dove

While I tend to like this band live less and less, their records keep getting better and better. A weird combination of Fugazi, Frodus and Ink and Dagger this record pushes all of their limits even further and shows you can be both heavy and intelligent.

The Gutter Twins – Saturnalia

Uhhh…it’s Mark Lanegan. Yea, and his good friend Greg Dulli playing the most somber music you can hear. Golden.            

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MOVIES:

The Dark Knight
Plain and simple, one of the most stark and realistic representations of Batman.

Wall-E
Like the cartoon version of Idocracy.

Let The Right One In
Best take on the vampire movie I have seen since The Monster Squad.

Rambo
They threw a baby into a fire. Then John Rambo killed them all. ‘Nuff said.

Step Brothers
These two gentlemen should make movies together for the rest of their lives.

I hear many complaints about the Guitar Hero and Rock Band video games – for example, that if kids are putting so much time into something like a video game which simulates playing guitar, they should be picking up a real guitar and learning that instead. But not everyone wants to play guitar. I have been playing in bands for over ten years and have tried my damndest to learn guitar; I even took classes at a local community college. The plain reality is that I suck.

I think and hope everyone can agree on this: these games are some of the most mainstream gateways through which those with mild interest in music can make that leap into more alternative styles. There are artists on this new Guitar Hero: World Tour that I would never have imagined could wind up on there, like Dinosaur Jr, Wayne Kramer and one of my favorite Swedish bands, Kent. Granted, people are already familiar with much of the music found on these games, but there are still enough “fringe” bands to get kids interested. I know from working at a record label and seeing the songs we’ve gotten exposed this way that it can generate a lot of interest in lesser-known artists. 

I am all for any way that a kid can get into music that actually has some “merit.”