A tour of Japanese rap - Kyou no Koe

Japanese rap is real talk. Lyrics that blow your mind with truth bombs. Soundbites that sink their teeth into the harshness of reality. Here's an exquisite sample, selected to expand your mind. Ready to jump in?

Wings of change - Indigenous beats

Change is in the air. After decades of being overlooked, ignored or swept under the rug, Indigenous matters are coming out under the public eye and are taking center stage in social discussions. Everywhere around the globe, the word Indigenous has become synonymous to resilience. Surviving and preserving their culture and language. Today, these communities are bubbling with youthful energy and Indigenous now also means hope and success. For instance, Indigenous music has adapted marvellously, drawing inspiration from ancestral roots and seeking out avant-garde forms of expression—it hasn’t just broken the Wall of isolation, it is thriving.

Let’s listen to what the winds whisper, on the 🦅 wings of change!

OTYKEN (ОТУКЕН)

Otyken is an Indigenous band from the Siberian Steppes. The band sings in their tribal tongue, Khakas, and in Russian. They’ve grabbed international attention through their presence on TikTok. Get ready for an intense dive into Earth music. Grab your headsets  🎧 and enjoy 🎶.

“Coup de coeur” - 2020 - personal favs

2020, what a year! Good or bad, it was unmistakably tremendous! With so much happening worldwide on the pandemic and social unrest front, art kinda went under the radar. But there were cool things happening too in 2020. Here are some of my personal favorites that helped pass the time during the various stages of lockdown.

The Boys, season 2, an Amazon Original

Season 2 of The Boys did not disappoint and took the effed-up super-hero series to cult level thanks to the inlaid social commentary on boiling contemporary issues in North America such as race, immigration, harassment, foreign policy, mass persuasion and skewed (or screwed-up) politics. In essence, the show asks how people with superpowers would fit today’s society, how they’d be marketed, weaponized and exploited or how they’d exploit their advantage, either way exploring the darker sides of human nature. It’s gore-a-plenty, not at all watered down to flow mainstream. But beyond all the blood, bone and brain, it's an incredibly intelligent and tongue-in-cheek show.

Watch a vast collection of original TV shows and movies on Amazon Prime.
Enjoy Amazon Originals, new releases or old-school classics.

Don’t cover your ears

Greetings to ya’ll! How’s it hanging?

Well, as the planet coughs and puffs, I thought some music might help feed and heal the soul. This blogpost will cover the much loved and equally much hated category of song covers.

Yeah, covers. If they don’t sublime the original track, they chainsaw massacre it. Ain’t no two ways about it.

So, I hopped on a quest to share some golden finds. Don’t cover your ears, you’ll want to take a listen.

“Oh wah ah ah ah!!!”. If you are remotely familiar with metal music, you know the vocal gimmicks of David Michael Draiman—the lead “screamer” of Disturbed. But here’s the thing, Draiman is an awesome singer with or without screams and shouts.

Here are the covers of two very deep and well-known songs. These covers, both performed by Disturbed, will make you think twice before dissing the voice of metal.

Disturbed - The Sound of silence
Original by Simon & Garfunkel

Disturbed – Land of confusion
Original by Genesis

And now a little twist on how to cook up a great cover. You can stick to the recipe and follow the original vibe or—like the British black metal band, Cradle of Filth—you can make it your own thing. Whichever way you go, the secret is to respect the essence of the original track.  

Cradle of Filth – Hallowed be thy name

Original by Iron Maiden

I know black metal music might not be everybody’s cup of tea. So, bye, bye darkness my old friend. Let’s lighten the mood with covers of one of my favorite songs of all time, You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) by the great Sir Pete Burns, lead singer of Dead or Alive. RIP Sir!

Jessica Simpson’s take on this world-famous hit really gets down and dirty. She got the sexual energy down. It oozes out of the vibes, no question about it. Give your ears a treat and give it a listen.

It’s always been a flirty song. A song for the nightlife. A song that Danzel made his own by surfing that wave.

Into more aggressive mating rituals? Dope also caught on to the forwardness of the song and applied it to their stroke.

 

There are literally hundreds of versions of this song. But, once again, what essentially makes a good cover is simply how the soul of the song is grasped and rendered back in a new form. 

To end this musical adventure into the world of covers, here’s a pretty good take on one of the hardest songs to cover (and another personal favorite), Dolly Parton's Jolene. Hats off to IMY2 for such an incredible rendering!

Explore more about Dolly Parton on Amazon

The 4 horsemen of Drowning Pool

Little known fact 

Did you know?

The first singer of Drowning Pool, Dave Williams, was found dead in his tour bus, reputedly in a pool of his own vomit. At least that was the version back in the days. An ill-fated band name perhaps, but a very metal way of signing off. RIP.

(2001-2002) With Dave at the helm, Drowning Pool achieved worldwide fame. His most (in)famous song? Bodies. Of course...

(2003-2005) Then Jason Jones stepped up. But he didn't quite get along with the other dudes.

(2005-2011) Ryan McCombs was the prodigal son who kept Drowning Pool afloat. And his song Feel Like I Do is the reason why I'm writing this post. Somehow this gem went under the radar and the world of Metal missed something. A little known fact that needs to get out there.

Feel like I do

Though he was a perfect fit, Ryan eventually rejoined his earlier band, SOiL. The fourth horseman and current lead singer of Drowning Pool is Jasen Moreno, only one finger and a fist away from the greats.