Linkin Park- 2010 VMA's

Last night I finally got the chance to watch the 2010 VMA's. I thought it was a great night and congrajulate Lady Gaga on her wins!

I loved all of the performances by Eminem, Paramore, and Linkin Park. I have to say that Linkin Park was my favorite out of those three. They performed their song called "The Catalyst."

Lead singer, Chester Bennington, gave his all. As I was watching him, as the song progressed, he was singing his heart out. You could see the veins in his neck and face popping out.

He sounds the same as he does when he records songs. I like to see that in an artist. It means that their voices don't have to be fixed up very much. This is always a good thing.

If you haven't watched the 2010 VMA's yet, I suggest that you at least go onto youtube and watch a video of Linkin Park's performance, they were fantastic. <3

Forever The Sickest Kids

Forever The Sickest Kids is by far one of my favorite bands. You will hear me say that about a lot of bands, but FTSK is up there in the top five. The first song I ever heard by them is called Whoa Oh! (Me Vs. Everyone). I heard about this band on iTunes, it was a band that was recommended for me.

Forever The Sickesr Kids is classified as a pop band. There music, for the most part, is upbeat and a lot of their songs have catchy beats and lyrics. That is the main reason why I like them as much as I do.

This summer I was lucky enough to be able to see Forever The Sickest Kids perform at Bamboozle at Six Flags. They were better live than I expected them to be. It was definately one of the best performances I have ever seen live. I would do anything to be able to see them again because they were fantastic. They also have a somewhat new album out called The Weekend: Friday.

In total, FTSK has seven albums out. They are also a part of the Pop Goes Crunk album, Punk Goes Classic Rock, and the Bring It On: Fight To The Finish Soundtrack. On The Pop Goes Crunk CD they played Men In Black. In Punk Goes Classic Rock they played Crazy Train. On the Bring It On soundtrack they played Whoa Oh! (Me Vs. Everyone).

I recommend this band to anyone who enjoys listening to bands such as A Rocket To The Moon, Mayday Parade, Every Avenue, and The Maine. I hope you enjoy their music if you listen to it. If you have any bands you like that you want me to write about on my blog email me at stardancer528@comcast.net Thank you! :)

Prince Poppycock

This season of America's Got Talent has seen many different talents, each extremely unlike the other. There is the group of college guys who call themselves Defying Gravity, and there is no way to describe them other than gravity defying boys. There is Jackie Evancho, a ten year old girl from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania that has an exquisite voice. There are dancers, magicians, and singers. The one contestant that, to me, stands out the most is Prince Poppycock.

First off, let me give you a background on him. His name is John Andrew Quale. Before John got put on America's Got Talent, he worked as a store clerk and he is originally from Virginia.

John has been singing ever since he was little and ever since he has been becoming a major success. He has been in plays and he already has an album out under the name John Quale not Prince Poppycock. I am happy to say that this album is available on iTunes!

Prince Poppycock is a very original character and a fantastic artiste. John is able to keep this character alive by creating his own costumes and stage sets for America's Got Talent. Every time I have seen Prince Poppycock perform on this show he has given me chills. I must admit when I first saw him walk onto the stage for auditions, I didn't expect him to be very good. Though, he proved me very wrong and he is now my favorite contestant on the show.

Up until now he has performed songs such as Largo al factotum, La Donna è mobile, Vesti la giubba, Bohemian Rhapsody, and made his own mix of The Star Spangled Banner, Yankee Doodle Boy, and Columbia, the Gem of The Ocean.

My favorite performances by Prince Poppycock were Large al Factotum and Bohemian Rhapsody. His audition for America's Got Talent was the first time I had ever seen or heard of him. I was BLOWN AWAY by it and I had to watch it twice. It was as if someone pulled him right out of an old opera house. Everything from his voice, to his character, to his costumes and makeup were unbelievable.

He was just yesterday voted into the top four of America's Got Talent. None of the other acts scream out Las Vegas as much as John Quale, Prince Poppycock. If you have not yet seen him perform, you have to go onto YouTube and see some of his acts. Those of you, who are fans, please vote for him on America's Got Talent. It is coming down to the finale and he will need your votes to make it to the very top. GOOD LUCK PRINCE POPPYCOCK!

Silversun Pickups

Every band creates their own sound and their own style. One band that definately has their own sound is Silversun Pickups. They have a hint of a haunted sound to their music and they use distorted guitar sounds. They fall under alternative rock, Indie rock, Dream pop, and Shoegaze.

Silversun Pickups is a Los-Angeles band. They currently have two albums, four EP's, three singles, and six music videos. Their albums are called Carnavas and Swoon. Their most popular song on Carnavas is called Lazy Eye. On Swoon, their most popular song is called, Panic Switch. Personally, Panic Switch is my favorite song by Silversun Pickups. I love the vocals and the guitar, it creates an epic sound that you don't really hear in other artists' music.

Silversun Pickups has four members:
Brian Aubert - guitarist and lead vocals
Nikki Monninger - basssist and vocals
Chris Guanlao - drummer
Joe Lester - keyboard and sound manipulation

They are currently touring. Their tour will end on October 9, 2010 in Austin Texas. I was not fortunate enough to purchase tickets for this tour. Hopefully next time they go on tour I will be able to go see them.

I recommend Silversun Pickups to those who like music by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Arcade Fire, Broken Bells, or The Dead Weather.

Southern Voice Tour

Ever since I was very young, I listened to Tim McGraw. He is one of the artists who got me hooked on country music. He had upbeat songs and great lyrics that held true meaning. This summer I was lucky enough to be able to attend one of his performances of his Southern Voice Tour.

On July 15th, 2010, my parents, two aunts, and my cousinc, Christina, saw Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum, and Love and Theft perform. This concert was held at the PNC Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey. Before the concert started we sat in the parking lot and tailgated. We had chips, sodas, and sandwiches. I was wearing mt cowboy hat and boots and was ready to see some of my favorite artists live.

While we walked from the parking lot over to our seats, my aunt bought two cowboy hats, one for her and one for Christina. We finally found our seats which were not too far away but not too close. Though, We still had a great view of the stage!

The opening act of this concert was the up and coming band named Love and Theft. At the time, I wasn't too familiar with their music though i did know thei song called Runaway. They were great live and ever since I saw them in concert I have been listening to more of their music.

Next up was Lady Antebellum who has been taking the country music world by storm. This band has three members. Hillary Scott is a lead vocalist, Charles Kelley is a lead and backup vocalist, and Dave Haywood is a backup vocalist. Dave also plays the guitar, piano, and mandolin for the band. Their most popular song is Need You Now which is played very frequently on the radio. Some other great songs by Lady A are American Honey, I Run to You , Lookin' For a Good Time, and Love Don't Live Here Anymore.

Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley have voices that mesh perfectly together. This band has an amazing sound. They also have songs that many people can relate to. If you like country music i can garuntee that you will love Lady Antebellum. If you already know this band, you would LOVE seeing them in concert. They were beyond fantastic live. If you showed me a song that was performed live or recorded by them i wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

Last but not least was the great, Tim McGraw! The crowd went absolutely crazy when he walked on stage. His first song, of course, was Southern Voice. The crowd was instantly on their feet singing along and flashing pictures of him. Tim McGraw has a fantastic stage presence and was very lively. You could tell that he was having a great time up on stage. He sang all of his classic songs and I am proud to say that i could sing along with all of his songs. He also sang my favorites which include Live Like You Were Dying, Something Like That, Indian OUtlaw, Please Remember Me, and Just to make you smile.

I would definately say that this is one of the best concerts I have ever seen. If I had the choce to see it all over again i would do it in a heartbeat. I know some people don't liek country, but if those people were to listen to one country artist it should be Tim McGraw.

Five Star Music Insider

This week school is starting again for me, so a couple of days ago i had to get my school supplies. (notebooks, pencils, pens...) When I got home i looked through everything i purchased. In all of my notebooks were pages that said Become a Five Star Music Insider... These pages said to go onto FiveStarMusicInsider.com and vote for new and upcoming bands and also get free songs by these bands.

As you know, I have a strong love and need for music. So, I immediately went onto this website. On one page gave pictures, previoews of their music, and information about each band and artist your could vote for. On the next page you can type in the codes found on the pages from you rnew notebooks and it would tell you how many songs you could get for free. There is a list of the artists and bands and s couple of their songs, and you could decide which ones you would like to get.

The bands included in this are Eleventyseven, Visqueen, Morgan Mallory, The Steps, IJ Quinn, Caitlin Crosby, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour, Rabbit!, Veronica Ballestrini, and We the Living. Each different band and artist has their own distinct style and sound of music. My two favorite bands are We The Living and Eleventyseven. They, in my opinion, had the best lyrics and the best style.

Eleventyseven is a three man band. In this band Matt Langston is the lead vocalist and guitarist, Jonathan Stephens is the drummer and backup vocalist, and Davey Davenport is the bassist. This band falls under multiple genres of music including Power Pop, Electronic, and Pop Punk. They are from South Carolina and they have been together since 2002.

We The Living is from Wisconsin. The band consists of four members. John Paul Roney is the lead vocalist, Benjamin Schaefer is the drummer, Matthew Holmen is the guitarist, and Brian Holl is the bassist. We The Living fall under Acoustic Rock, Alternative, and Indie Rock. The were formerly known as The Profits on college, then they changed their name to We The Living. They have four albums and have performed in concerts with Dashboard Confessional, Katy Perry, We The Kings,, Jack's Mannequin, Relient K, and many more.

If you love music as much as i do, you should go out and find the notebooks that have Five Star Music Insider codes so you can vote for your favorite new and upcoming band and get the chance to win $25,000. If you are unable to get the codes, you can still go onto FiveStarMusicInsider.com and check out these bands. Enjoy!

The Ready Set

The Ready Set is a single man band. The one member, singer, is Jordan Witzigreuter. When playing live Andy Snyder is the bassist, Keegan Weckler is the guitarist, and Travis Rountree is the drummer.

The ready set currently has two EP's, two singles, and three full albums. Jordan's most recent album, I'm Aliva, I'm Dreaming, was released on June 14, 2010. The hit song, Love Like Woe, is included in this album. There are a total of eight songs on this album. The other songs are called More Than Alive, Limits, Stays Four The Same, There Are Days, Spinnin', Melody's Song, and Upsets and Downfalls. It is one of my favorite songs from the iTunes top Songs list. It is currently ranked number 65 on that list.

I believe that The Ready Set is at the beginning of their rise to greatness. They have released their first hit song and I have no doubt in my mind that they will come out with yet another in the future.

I would like to recommend their new album to anyone who like rock, pop, and electronic music. They have a little bit of each of these genres mixed in their music. They are a good band for people of any age to listen to. I encourage you to go out and either listen to or buy their music. I garuntee that you will enjoy it.