Song Of The Week: 7/29/18

Song: "Die Like This"

Artist: Fuel

Album: "Natural Selection"

Year: 2003

Place Of Origin: Kenton, Tennessee

Years Active: 1994 - present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"Die Like This" appears to be a song about a break-up. It seems that the relationship between the vocalist and the woman was deep and meaningful but something changed for her. For whatever reason, she chose to end the relationship with the vocalist and all he's left with is a broken heart and broken dreams that he had for both of them in the future. And now, he has to survive and move on while dealing with the hurt and pain.

FUEL DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

1998 - Sunburn (Epic Records)
2000 - Something Like Human (Epic Records)
2003 - Natural Selection (Epic Records)
2007 - Angels & Devils (Epic Records)
2014 - Puppet Strings (Megaforce Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF FUEL:

The beginnings of Fuel take place in Tennessee back in 1994 when guitarist Carl Bell and bassist Jeff Abercrombie decided to form a band. Drummer Jody Abbott and vocalist/guitarist Brett Scallions soon rounded out the band. The band soon moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and began playing bars and small clubs and eventually released their first EP under the moniker, Small The Joy, in 1994. In 1996, the band, now called Fuel, dropped their third EP, "Porcelain". This EP featured the song "Shimmer". "Shimmer" started getting radio play in Pennsylvania and eventually caught the ear of Epic Records who promptly signed the band. In 1998, the band released their debut full length studio album called "Sunburn". The first single, "Shimmer", reached #2 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart and the album was eventually certified platinum. The band's sophomore effort, 2000's "Something Like Human", exploded on the charts, peaking at #17 on the Billboard 200 and being certified double platinum by 2001. The lead single, "Hemorrhage (In My Hands)" was #1 for 12 weeks on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and was declared Billboard's #5 Rock song of the decade. While never attaining the success of "Something Like Human", Fuel's third album, "Natural Selection", was also successful, even nominated for a Grammy. In 2006, vocalist Brett Scallions left the band. Rumors were rampant that it had to do with his voice but Scallions quickly denied that and said it was really just a lack of passion for continuing with the project. The band would settle on Toryn Green to become the new lead singer for Fuel in 2007 and the band dropped a new record, "Angels & Devils" in that same year. Green's vocals were very similar to that of Scallions. It's tough for a band to totally change their sound after years of success so that probably went into the process of settling on a new singer. I'm sure they wanted to still sound like Fuel. Green was like Brett Scallions-lite in my mind however. Something was missing. "Angels & Devils" did reach #42 on the Billboard 200 charts however sales dropped off after the first month of it's release. The band basically broke up after this album. In 2010, former vocalist Brett Scallions announced that he was re-forming Fuel, albeit with all new members. Word is that he tried to get Abercrombie, Bell and Abbott back together to reform the original line-up but all of them declined. The band in it's current state has been sort of a revolving door of band members, Scallions being the only constant, but they eventually released a new album in 2014, "Puppet Strings". In 2016, Scallions announced that he was working on new material for a brand new Fuel record that he hoped would be released in 2017, but here we are in 2018 and no new Fuel album yet. Fuel is currently touring the United States for what is the 20th anniversary of their debut album "Sunburn". Scallions has said that the band intends to play the record in it's entirety to celebrate the anniversary. Fuel is your typical post-grunge, mainstream rock band of the late 90's and early 2000's. Their sound doesn't reinvent the wheel, but they are definitely at the forefront of popular rock radio. If you like bands like Oleander, Puddle Of Mudd, Finger Eleven, Trapt or Candlebox, then you most likely would enjoy Fuel. Carl Bell wrote some great songs for this band and Brett Scallions' vocals brought them to life. Scallions is a really good vocalist and really stood out from his contemporaries. His cover of Elton John's "Daniel" is epic, especially if you've heard the live version. Their new album, "Puppet Strings", is good, but Scallions clearly isn't the songwriter that Bell is. It would be magic if the two of them can eventually get back on the same page and get the real Fuel back together. That doesn't seem like it's in the cards however as Bell is focused on working with other artists, as well as a solo country career.

TEN FUEL SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Shimmer
2. Hemorrhage (In My Hands)
3. Bittersweet
4. Daniel
5. Bad Day
6. Falls On Me
7. Sunburn
8. Innocent
9. Soul To Preach To
10. Million Miles

Song Of The Week: 7/22/18

Song: "Continental"

Artist: Alkaline Trio

Album: "Good Mourning"

Year: 2003

Place Of Origin: McHenry, Illinois

Years Active: 1996 - present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"Continental" appears to be about a heroin addict who went to the well one too many times and it cost him his life. The vocalist was the addict's friend and he often wonders himself what the high must be like. It seems that the vocalist doesn't give into his own urge however. He does take his friend to get what would be his last hit. Not only does the vocalist have to live with that, he also has to be the one to notify the addict's family that he has OD'd and died. You get a sense that the vocalist saw this coming, that his friend's life was like a train gone off the rails and about to come to a crashing halt.

ALKALINE TRIO DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

1998 - Goddamnit (Asian Man Records)
2000 - Alkaline Trio (Asian Man Records)
2000 - Maybe I'll Catch Fire (Asian Man Records)
2001 - From Here To Infirmary (Vagrant Records)
2003 - Good Mourning (Vagrant Records)
2005 - Crimson (Vagrant Records)
2007 - Remains (Vagrant Records)
2008 - Agony & Irony (Epic Records)
2010 - This Addiction (Epitaph Records)
2011 - Damnesia (Epitaph Records)
2013 - My Shame Is True (Epitaph Records)

CURRENT STATUS OF ALKALINE TRIO:

Alkaline Trio formed as a band back in 1996, hailing from Illinois. Matt Skiba, guitarist and lyricist, would be joined by bassist and lyricist Dan Andriano in 1997, giving Alkaline Trio a two-headed monster when it came to writing songs and contributing vocals. After dropping a few albums as well as some EP's, it was 2001's "From Here To Infirmary" that began giving Alkaline Trio more success outside of their Chicago punk scene. Thanks to the singles "Private Eye" and "Stupid Kid", Alkaline Trio officially broke into the Billboard 200, hitting #199. The next five full length studio albums all entered the Billboard 200 as well, the lowest being 2005's "Crimson" which peaked at #25 and the highest being 2010's "This Addiction" whice topped out at #11. After a very successful run on the Vagrant Records label and one release through major label Epic Records (2008's "Agony & Irony), Alkaline Trio forged on creating their own label, Heart & Skull Records, which is connected with famed punk label Epitaph Records. "This Addiction" was the band's first album to appear on this label. In 2011, the band released "Damnesia" which features re-worked, acoustic renditions of some of their songs. 2013 saw the most recent release that the band put out, "My Shame Is True". After this release, Matt Skiba joined up with Blink 182 to replace Tom Delonge for a tour and a new album. Dan Andriano also focused on his side project The Emergency Room and well as releasing new music with punk supergroup The Falcon. There was some uncertainty on when Alkaline Trio were gonna get back together, if at all, but those fears were alleviated when it was announced that the band will be dropping a new album in August of 2018 called "Is This Thing Cursed". A new single from that album called "Blackbird" has already been released. Alkaline Trio seems to take qualities of bands like the Misfits and Jawbreaker and blend them together to create their own style and sound. Their sound definitely has a pop punk feel but their themes are often dark and almost goth-like. There's definitely a lot of sorrow, addiction, depression, failed relationships and self-loathing in their songs. Skiba and Andriano have a real gift lyrically though. They often can paint something that's so dark and ugly and somehow make it sound beautiful. This inherently makes them stand out from their peers in music. If you like bands like The Lawrence Arms, Bayside, The Bouncing Souls, The Menzingers and AFI, then you would most likely love Alkaline Trio as well. This band is an alpha dog in punk music or in any genre as far as i'm concerned.

TEN ALKALINE TRIO SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. This Addiction
2. Radio
3. Mercy Me
4. Time To Waste
5. Private Eye
6. We've Had Enough
7. Clavicle
8. I Wanna Be A Warhol
9. Calling All Skeletons
10. Sorry About That

Song Of The Week: 7/15/18

Song: "Given To Fly"

Artist: Pearl Jam

Album: "Mansfield, MA 7/11/03" bootleg

Year: 2003

Place Of Origin: Seattle, Washington

Years Active: 1990 - present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

Here is what the writer of the song himself, Eddie Vedder, had to say about "Given To Fly", "[I imagined the song as] a 20-page cardboard (children's) book with a line on each page and a picture to go with it. It's a fable, that's all. The music almost gives you this feeling of flight, and I really love singing the part at the end, which is all about rising above anybody's comments about what you do and still giving your love away. You know? Not becoming bitter and reclusive, not condemning the whole world because of the actions of a few." The origninal version of "Given To Fly" appears on Pearl Jam's 1998 record "Yield". The version I chose for my song of the week is taken from the live bootleg of Pearl Jam's concert in Mansfield, MA on July 11, 2003. I was there!! Yippeee!! ;)

PEARL JAM DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

1991 - Ten (Epic Records)
1993 - VS (Epic Records)
1994 - Vitalogy (Epic Records)
1996 - No Code (Epic Records)
1998 - Yield (Epic Records)
1998 - Live On Two Legs (Epic Records)
2000 - Binaural (Epic Records)
2002 - Riot Act (Epic Records)
2003 - Lost Dogs (Epic Records)
2004 - Live At Benaroya Hall (BMG Records)
2006 - Pearl Jam (J Records)
2009 - Backspacer (Monkeywrench/Universal Music Group)
2011 - Live On Ten Legs (Universal Music Group)
2013 - Lightning Bolt (Monkeywrench Records)
2017 - Let's Play Two (Republic Records)

* Since 2000, Pearl Jam has started releasing official live bootlegs of their tours through their website. These are made available after every major tour that the band embarked on since the Binaural Tour. There are way too many for me to list here but you can check them out at pearljam.com and either purchase a hard cd or a digital download.

CURRENT STATUS OF PEARL JAM:

Pearl Jam came from the ashes of Mother Love Bone and exploded on the Seattle music scene in 1990. The band's debut album "Ten" is a landmark album which has been certified diamond. What does that mean? It means that album has sold massively worldwide! It also propelled the band to superstardom, almost before they knew what had hit them. At the forefront of the grunge explosion of the early 90's, along with bands like Nirvana, Alice In Chains and Soundgarden, Pearl Jam kept the heat on with their next two releases, 1993's "VS" and 1994's "Vitalogy". The pressures of being that big, that fast began to weigh on the band, especially vocalist Eddie Vedder and the band made a conscious effort to start pulling back the reigns. No more videos and less media obligations. They also did a 180 on their next album, "No Code". This was a much softer, more experimental side of the band and really an effort to change it up musically. Battles with Ticketmaster and going into a shell of sorts began to alienate the band from some of it's fans. The band itself was having some inner struggles and wondering if they were even going to co-exist much longer. Luckily, 1998's "Yield" was a return to form for the band. It also marked a full band collaboration whereas Vedder really took over creative reigns on "Vitalogy" and "No Code". From this album on, every band member would contribute to all future Pearl Jam releases. The early 2000's were a bit of a weird time for the band. "Binaural" and "Riot Act" were both good albums but seemed to be lacking something. The band also began offerering their bootlegs from every show available at this time, beginning with the "Binaural" world tour. Their bootlegs continue to be offered through their website to this day. This period also marked the biggest tragedy that the band was a part of, the 2000 Roskilde tragedy where 9 of their fans were trampled to death during their performance. In 2006, the country was becoming more and more split over the actions of the Bush administration post-9/11. The scene was ripe for a band like Pearl Jam to get their creative juices flowing and write what is perhaps their most political album yet, the self-titled "Pearl Jam", sometimes referred to as "Avocado". This album was a breath of fresh air to me. Urgent and hard hitting, an album with a definitive purpose. 2009's "Backspacer" is probably the band's most positive and fun album. The band's most recent effort was 2013's "Lightning Bolt". This album proved that Pearl Jam is still relevant in an ever-evolving music scene. The band also released a live album/dvd in the fall of 2017 called "Let's Play Two", which chronicles the band's two performances at historic Wrigley Field in Chicago in 2016. More good news out of the Pearl Jam camp in 2018 is along with a tour of South America and some stadium dates in the United States, the band also released a brand new single in March titled "Can't Deny Me". The song is said to be part of a brand spankin' new studio album that could be released later this year! Pearl Jam's sound is a culmination of a slew of influences from The Who, The Ramones, Kiss, Neil Young, Dead Kennedys, Pink Floyd and many, many more! Of the 4 major grunge bands to emerge from the early 90's, Pearl Jam's sound always commanded arena crowds. Their music is powerful. Their lyrics personal and emotional. They have influenced hundreds of rock bands who came after them. They are equally comfortable playing arena anthems ("Alive"), acoustic ballads ("Elderly Woman"), punk influenced hardcore ("Mind Your Manners") and groove laced stompers ("Evenflow"). The band takes more time between albums as they tend to focus more time on their growing families as well as keeping busy with solo and side projects, but they always get back together to tour all over the world and their shows are always epic and must see performances that rival Springsteen and the Grateful Dead. I'd say they are overdue for a new album. Perhaps the band will be inspired by their induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017 or the current political turmoil in the United States and drop another aggressive album with a purpose!

TEN PEARL JAM SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Alive
2. Release
3. Yellow Ledbetter
4. Corduroy
5. Rearviewmirror
6. Go
7. Given To Fly
8. Not For You
9. Do The Evolution
10. Light Years

Song Of The Week: 7/8/18

Song: "Dirty Frank"

Artist: Pearl Jam

Album: "Even Flow" cd single

Year: 1992

Place Of Origin: Seattle, Washington

Years Active: 1990 - present



WHAT I THINK THE SONG IS ABOUT:

"Dirty Frank" is a tongue-in-cheek song written about Pearl Jam's tour bus driver back when they were opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers in the early 90's. The running joke between the band members was that their bus driver, Frank, looked like a psycho serial killer. Thus, "Dirty Frank" was formed with it's funky guitars and lyrics that made their tour bus driver seem like Jeffrey Dahmer! "Dirty Frank" never made it to a proper studio album, although a slightly different version did appear on the band's 2003 b-side compilation "Lost Dogs". This version I chose for my song of the week appears on the 1992 "Even Flow" cd single.

PEARL JAM DISCOGRAPHY (Full length albums only):

1991 - Ten (Epic Records)
1993 - VS (Epic Records)
1994 - Vitalogy (Epic Records)
1996 - No Code (Epic Records)
1998 - Yield (Epic Records)
1998 - Live On Two Legs (Epic Records)
2000 - Binaural (Epic Records)
2002 - Riot Act (Epic Records)
2003 - Lost Dogs (Epic Records)
2004 - Live At Benaroya Hall (BMG Records)
2006 - Pearl Jam (J Records)
2009 - Backspacer (Monkeywrench/Universal Music Group)
2011 - Live On Ten Legs (Universal Music Group)
2013 - Lightning Bolt (Monkeywrench Records)
2017 - Let's Play Two (Republic Records)

* Since 2000, Pearl Jam has started releasing official live bootlegs of their tours through their website. These are made available after every major tour that the band embarked on since the Binaural Tour. There are way too many for me to list here but you can check them out at pearljam.com and either purchase a hard cd or a digital download.

CURRENT STATUS OF PEARL JAM:

Pearl Jam came from the ashes of Mother Love Bone and exploded on the Seattle music scene in 1990. The band's debut album "Ten" is a landmark album which has been certified diamond. What does that mean? It means that album has sold massively worldwide! It also propelled the band to superstardom, almost before they knew what had hit them. At the forefront of the grunge explosion of the early 90's, along with bands like Nirvana, Alice In Chains and Soundgarden, Pearl Jam kept the heat on with their next two releases, 1993's "VS" and 1994's "Vitalogy". The pressures of being that big, that fast began to weigh on the band, especially vocalist Eddie Vedder and the band made a conscious effort to start pulling back the reigns. No more videos and less media obligations. They also did a 180 on their next album, "No Code". This was a much softer, more experimental side of the band and really an effort to change it up musically. Battles with Ticketmaster and going into a shell of sorts began to alienate the band from some of it's fans. The band itself was having some inner struggles and wondering if they were even going to co-exist much longer. Luckily, 1998's "Yield" was a return to form for the band. It also marked a full band collaboration whereas Vedder really took over creative reigns on "Vitalogy" and "No Code". From this album on, every band member would contribute to all future Pearl Jam releases. The early 2000's were a bit of a weird time for the band. "Binaural" and "Riot Act" were both good albums but seemed to be lacking something. The band also began offerering their bootlegs from every show available at this time, beginning with the "Binaural" world tour. Their bootlegs continue to be offered through their website to this day. This period also marked the biggest tragedy that the band was a part of, the 2000 Roskilde tragedy where 9 of their fans were trampled to death during their performance. In 2006, the country was becoming more and more split over the actions of the Bush administration post-9/11. The scene was ripe for a band like Pearl Jam to get their creative juices flowing and write what is perhaps their most political album yet, the self-titled "Pearl Jam", sometimes referred to as "Avocado". This album was a breath of fresh air to me. Urgent and hard hitting, an album with a definitive purpose. 2009's "Backspacer" is probably the band's most positive and fun album. The band's most recent effort was 2013's "Lightning Bolt". This album proved that Pearl Jam is still relevant in an ever-evolving music scene. The band also released a live album/dvd in the fall of 2017 called "Let's Play Two", which chronicles the band's two performances at historic Wrigley Field in Chicago in 2016. More good news out of the Pearl Jam camp in 2018 is along with a tour of South America and some stadium dates in the United States, the band also released a brand new single in March titled "Can't Deny Me". The song is said to be part of a brand spankin' new studio album that could be released later this year! Pearl Jam's sound is a culmination of a slew of influences from The Who, The Ramones, Kiss, Neil Young, Dead Kennedys, Pink Floyd and many, many more! Of the 4 major grunge bands to emerge from the early 90's, Pearl Jam's sound always commanded arena crowds. Their music is powerful. Their lyrics personal and emotional. They have influenced hundreds of rock bands who came after them. They are equally comfortable playing arena anthems ("Alive"), acoustic ballads ("Elderly Woman"), punk influenced hardcore ("Mind Your Manners") and groove laced stompers ("Evenflow"). The band takes more time between albums as they tend to focus more time on their growing families as well as keeping busy with solo and side projects, but they always get back together to tour all over the world and their shows are always epic and must see performances that rival Springsteen and the Grateful Dead. I'd say they are overdue for a new album. Perhaps the band will be inspired by their induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017 or the current political turmoil in the United States and drop another aggressive album with a purpose!

TEN PEARL JAM SONGS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

1. Alive
2. Release
3. Yellow Ledbetter
4. Corduroy
5. Rearviewmirror
6. Go
7. Given To Fly
8. Not For You
9. Do The Evolution
10. Light Years