7/22/2016

I am an old man who likes dancing, kind words, and pretty songs.

I feel this year has been the year of constant negatives. Shootings left in right in the news, crazy politicians and constant bickering/trash talking between their followers, hate towards people who are different than us, but just trying to live their lives and make it by the same as us, constant construction (at least where I am). It seems like everyone is angry, or depressed, or sad. It's fucking insane. I heard this song last night while listening to an old podcast of Loveline with Dr. Drew and Adam Carolla. It's the title track off the 1994 album Question The Answers by a band called the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. The whole song is great, but here are the lyrics to the chorus...

Kinder words here we could pick
A kind approach might do the trick
Hurt you, hurt me, well that needs to stop
Kinder words here we could choose
We've kind of got a lot to lose
The temperature we need that to drop

I really wish this song would come back into rotation because I think we all could benefit from the wise words this song has to offer. This world is dark enough without us adding more negativity. Maybe it's just me wishing to see things through rose colored glasses, or maybe it's the due to the advancement of technology that we all have a platform to stand on and news that we'd never normally hear about is getting to us faster than ever. I don't know. What I do know is right now there is way to much negativity in this world and we all need to do our part to change that. We are all humans and we all deserve a break, regardless of what we believe to be right. Everyone fucks up, no one is perfect. Cut a little slack. Think about that the next time you get on your soapbox or rage. Be peaceful, be caring, be kind, be open minded, take care of yourself and each other my friends.
 The Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Kinder Words
 
Quite sometime ago I woke up from a night of hard partying and said to myself, "Man, I am to old for this shit." To old to spend the day recovering fron the night before. To tired to stay up until 4AM. I can no longer wake up foggy headed trying to piece the night together. Don't get me wrong, I had some epic fun times and there are days where I miss having that sort of crazy fun with my friends, but there is that point when you realize that there is more to life and slowing your roll is needed. I think this song captures that moment perfectly. The addition of Chance The Rapper makes this song even more epic.
Snakehips - All My Friends (Feat. Tinashe, Chance The Rapper)


I found this gem on a Reddit post. Rips is from Beantown (Boston), MA. The first time I heard them I seriously got out of my chair and started dancing. I would call their sound modern funk, with a twist of psychedelic chilled out soul. They haven't really been around long, they only have a few E.P.s out, but they play tighter than a wet jelly jar on a muggy afternoon. This particular song is super addictive and has a ska-like vibe to it. If you know anything about me you know I am a sucker for a killer horn section. The tempo changes are masterfully done, and super clean. The lyrics are pretty solid and fun to sing with. The vocalist reminds me a bit of John Popper of the band Blues Traveler, which is definitely a compliment. Every song I have head by them is totally dance-able. Keep an eye out for these cats, as they are currently touring and in the process of making a full length album! If they don't make it big it would be a crying shame. 
Ripe - Talk To The Moon

Waves of blue, wet mist, hot sun. Cool breeze, hissing silent crash, toes sinking into the sand. Row, row row, your float, gently to a shore, merrily, barely coasting along, out here life seems like a dream.
Kidstreet - Song (studio version)
Sky of blue, endless space, golden rays. Dry air, roaring wiping wind, freedom like the birds. Fly, fly, fly away into the horizon. Your worries shed and dissipate behind you, scattered and falling to the earth below.
Kidstreet - Song (string version)

7/19/2016

A public service announcement from your local music nerd...



If you are new or just coming back to this blog just a heads up, it's a mess. A lot of the more "recent" posts still have broken links. If you delve deeper into the archives (on the lower right hand side) most of the song titles will lead to the youtube video. You might have to go back quite a bit. I will be working like mad to get it all sorted out but it's gonna take a while (probably a long while as I have over 150 posts to fix). I will work from most recent to oldest. Your best bet is to wait a few week or two and come back and you should see some changes. Sorry for any frustration (believe me it's frustration on my end too).

7/18/2016

Cover This

So it's been a while (You should read that in the voice of Arron Lewis from the band Staind...you know the song) since I have posted here. Damn near 3 years, maybe more I didn't pay close attention to the date before starting this post. I'd like to say I am back at it, but you know how that works around here, so I am not going to make any promises I can't keep. Would I like to continue bringing you great music? Hell yes! Am I lazy and forgetful? That also is a resounding "Hell yes!" I will say though that this recent bout of music fever that hit me has been lots of fun. that being said I will do my best to keep this trend going.

Firs of all I want to make you aware that the format here is going to change. Before I would link to a song that you could download. Unfortunately, the service I used to provide the downloads is no longer around. This sucks, but it is also a good thing. I no longer have to worry about providing links to songs and feeling bad about ripping the bands off in a sense. In the last 3 years technology has came a long way. We now have things like Spotify, and YouTube, and the good ol' Googler if you really want to find the music. So what is the format change you ask?   Nothing too crazy. Instead of posting the download files I am just going to make YouTube playlists (RopBopBlog actually has a YouTube channel now! That you can subscribe to! Wowee!)  I figure I'll still write blurbs and pick songs like I used to but I will link to the YouTube videos. Every few weeks I will make a playlist of the best of the best songs that I have posted. That way if you don't like to read my rambling, you don't have to. Of course I will be picking the songs for the playlists, however if you like a song a lot, make a comment on the post. I'll be sure to put it on the playlist. At some point, I will try my hand once again at making a RopBop Podcast, but it's on the back burner for the time being. As always I will be willing to take any suggestions you have for songs, and if you feel so inclined, write a little about the song and what/why you like it. I'll put it up (unless it's extremely crossing the line offensive). I don't want this blog to be all about my tastes in music. There are various ways you can get in contact with me. Leave a comment on this very blog, Send me an e-mail (link in sidebar) or if you know me facebook,text, or talk directly to my face (I mean if you want to talk to my feet you can do that too, but I would be really weirded out by that). That being said...let's get down to business!

I recently created a playlist of cover songs I had laying around. I love a good cover song! Some of these you may know, and some you may not. I would implore you to go and seek out the originals if you don't know a song. It just might lead you to discovering a new jam!

Cover This: A RopBop Cover Mix





I will post the playlist with links to the original songs below.

1. Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly - D.A.N.C.E. (Justice Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCnBrrnOefs

2. Foo Fighters - Kiss The Bottle (Jawbreaker Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZTvqUvgYCI

3. Little Richard - I Feel Pretty
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7BQRGXFLJs

4. Kepi Ghoulie - Kiss The Girl (Little Mermaid Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXmLRHnoSAs

5. Joeseph Gordon-Levitt - I Don't Want To Live On The Moon (Seasme Street Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIq8jLj5TzU

6. Post Modern Jukebox - Creep feat. Haley Reinhart (Radiohead Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFkzRNyygfk

7. Antoine Dufour - Hide And Seek (Imogen Heap Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4OLQB7ON9w

8. Regina Spektor - Chelsea Hotel No. 2 (Leonard Cohen Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pekuZglq-Sg

9.Ellie Goulding - Tessalate (Alt-J Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg6BwvDcANg

10. Lauren O'Connell - Graceland (Paul Simon Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDXzLeFUkpc

11. The Gits - A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x31YyQqf2ys

12.Paramore - Use Somebody (Kings Of Leon Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnhXHvRoUd0

13. The Protomen - I Drove All Night (Cindy Lauper Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y1TZXc5DiY

14. Metric - Don't Think Twice It's Aright (Bob Dylan Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-Y3KfJs6T0

15. M. Ward - Rave On (Buddy Holly Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IUV-QxwlRM

16. Schneider TM & Kptmichigan - The Light 3000 (The Smiths Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-cD4oLk_D0

17. Seu Jorge - Life On Mars (David Bowie Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v--IqqusnNQ

18. Taylor Swift - Riptide (Vance Joy Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ_1HMAGb4k

19. Wye Oak - Mother (Danzig Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gq8LeKfuiM

20. Miley Cyrus - Summertime Sadness (Lana Del Rey Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVjsGKrE6E8

21. Lissie - Ship Song (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4VWKbZkIcM