'Cause We Have Had Enough

Between drowning in coursework, not feeling 100% and just generally struggling with motivation, I haven't posted in a couple weeks. And I had no intention on saying anything about recent tragedies, but some of the comments I've read lately, I feel the need to write this.

Last night (or early hours of this morning...) Papa Roach announced they were pulling out of the remaining dates on their European tour with Five Finger Death Punch, who were still continuing with it. While most of the comments were understanding there was still the usual asshole talking shit about it. Questioning why they were pulling out, why other bands were continuing and not them. Go fuck yourselves, seriously. In light of all the shit that's been going on lately is not seeing a band really that much of a disaster?! And if a band feels it isn't safe to continue please remember it's not just them they're thinking about. It's their crew, their family, their fans. 

With all the shit that's going on in the world this is a time to stick together, not a time to single out bands or artists, or to question motives. If a someone doesn't feel the security is up to scratch, or it can't be secured then cancelling is the best way forward. The world doesn't need another massacre on it's hands. And no band, artist, event planner etc should be left to feel the weight of this on their shoulders. 

Life will always be full of "what if's?" but "what if we hadn't played the show?" isn't something anyone should be left with.

And if this shit isn't already real enough for you then try reading this, watching the interview and tell me you don't feel anything, and that your still pissed you favourite band is doubting doing a tour.

Hanging Over From Another Good Time - Papa Roach @ Barrowlands, Glasgow

Words literally can not describe how amazing Papa Roach were on Saturday night. The set list was brilliant, the crowd was decent and the atmosphere was just something else. I may be biased seen as how I am pretty obsessed with the band but fuck me, it was just something else.

The whole night was just incredible, from the opening of "Face Everything and Rise", to the encore featuring "Last Resort", "Scars" and "...To Be Loved." And since I feel like if I keep attempting to use actual words it will just end up being a repeat of "Papa Roach are amazing," and "they are so beautiful," or "I am in love with Jacoby Shaddix," I will stop talking and just post some pictures, some I took at the gig (I am a shit photographer and these pictures show this) and some from Papa Roach's social media. 

Jacoby with a Scotland flag

How beautiful is he....

I feel like it is blatantly obvious which photo's I took and which ones are from social media. But how beautiful is the whole band? It is obvious from their live performances and from the content on their social media they are so grateful and appreciative of their fans. And the Scottish flag Jacoby was carrying about and the Celtic football top (which may have pissed off some people) shows just how much love they have.

So thanks for one of the best nights of my life, can't wait for the next time!

Face Everything And Rise

So Papa Roach released the video for their new track "Face Everything And Rise" a couple days ago and already has over 250,000 hits on YouTube, and already I'm obsessed and listening to it on repeat on YouTube... Not only is the song incredible and very inspirational the video is amazing. 

"I will face everything and rise, never gonna quit until I die. Angels keep falling from the sky, I'll take their broken wings and learn how to fly," has to be one of my new favourite lyrics, poetic as usual from the guys. 

As I've mentioned in previous posts Papa Roach are one of my favourite bands, and I am pretty much hooked on every song they have. But here are my five favourite videos, in no particular order because only being able to actually pick five was hard enough without putting them in an order.

• Last Resort (2000)

"Last Resort" was the first single to be released from Papa Roach's second album "Infest," and is the song that threw them into stardom. Both the lyrics and the video is about depression, trying to show people that music is the salvation they've been looking for, that when it's all gone to shit music will be there for you unconditionally, music will help and make it better. I know when I'm pissed off singing (very badly...) along to this helps. The video is simple but effective, and while sometimes having an over the top dramatic video will help a song, it should still be about the music and what it's trying to say, and Papa Roach nailed it with this one. 

• Between Angels and Insects (2001)

"Between Angels And Insects" was the third single from "Infest," and had it come out earlier it could have been the soundtrack to "Fight Club." With almost direct quotes to Tyler Durden, "Working jobs that you hate, for that shit you don't need," the song shouts (sings?) the same message, a comparison which helped me get an A for my post modern culture exam, thanks guys! With the anti-consumerism theme of the song, the video is perfect. The band playing in a stripped back setting, an empty garage, they still rock the shit out of it like it was a full on stage show. And the video has the right amount of creepiness and freakiness to keep with the "Fight Club" parody. The whole thing with the camera going through eyes and walls and insects is just weird, but great cinematography. And the song has one of my all time favourite (and possibly next tattoo) lyrical lines in it, "This reality is really just a fucked up dream."

• Hollywood Whore (2008)

First released as just the music video, later as a download version, "Hollywood Whore," was the first single from their sixth album "Metamorphosis." A kind of fuck you to Hollywood and the entertainment industry, this song has a total Motley Crue vibe to it, and has similar themes to The Subways 2011 single "Celebrity." As the opening guitar sounds, the 'Hollywood Whore' starts to wake from where she is passed out on the floor, pretty much mimicking the lyrics. As the video goes on the 'Whore' tries to put herself back to together before completely disintegrating, covering the band in blood and other shit. The video also shows a lot of close ups of the band, particularly Jacoby, which is great 'cause not going to lie he is a total babe. Again like with "Between Angels and Insects," the video portrays what is in the lyrics, the 'Whore' is a metaphor for the Hollywood, and her destruction is what the band are saying, corruption will fuck you over.

• I Almost Told You That I Loved You (2008)

"I Almost Told You That I Loved You," was the third single from "Metamorphosis." I feel like one of the reasons I love both the song and the video is because of how sleazy they both are. Throughout the majority of the video, set in a brothel, the band look completely oblivious to the fucked up debauchery going on around them. There's not really much to say with this one, the song is about sleaze, the video is sleaze, and I fucking love it. 

• One Track Mind (2010)

The only song on the list that wasn't actually released as a single, "One Track Mind" features on "Time for Annihilation." Another sleazy song, more about a love hate relationship, a masochistic love. There isn't an "official music video" for this song, rather just a live performance that sums up Papa Roach. Jumping about, rocking out, crowd going wild, looking beautiful and sounding amazing. What's not to love. 

I could actually sit here all day babbling shit about Papa Roach, or just how Jacoby is a babe... But I won't bore anyone with that. And I have housework to do.. Or Netflix to watch...

Papa Roach's new album, F.E.A.R. will be out January 27th 2015. A US tour with Seether has just been announced, which hopefully means they'll come to the UK... Pretty please :)

And Just Maybe, I'm To Blame For All I've Heard - Top 10 Bands, Part 1

My last post has got me thinking, if I was to try and list my favourite bands I would be here all day, and constantly changing it depending on my mood, and my latest addiction of the week. I can get really obsessive when it comes to music, be it a band on repeat for weeks, sometimes an album that I just can't get enough of, or even sometimes just one song, over and over and over. Then I start to sing along, which my flatmate will tell you is not something you want to be hearing. But this is my attempt at picking out my top ten bands, in no particular order, because that would just be impossible!

1. Nirvana - As I mentioned before, one of my biggest regrets in life is that I never had the opportunity to see Nirvana live, but they still continue to be one of my favourite bands. My favourite song would probably be Lithium, but ask me this next week and I'll have a different answer for you. From the (often weird and nonsensical) lyrics to the guitar riffs, there is something magical about them. RIP Kurt Cobain.
2. Papa Roach - As you may have already guessed from previous posts, Papa Roach are a favourite of mine. As long as giving me the motivation to get on with uni work, they have a song for every mood, whether it's questioning life and society, a broken heart or feeling like giving up, I can put on Papa Roach and it all feels better. That's one of the key qualities music has to have in my book, the power to change your perspective.
3. Aiden - Like with Papa Roach, the first time I saw Aiden live was another of the best nights of my life. Meeting them before hand in One Up Records then being right at the front of the stage at Moshulu (totally showing my age here!) was just indescribable. Especially when Wil Francis took a "selfie" (back before it was cool) with the crowd in the background with my camera. I almost died. I was just searching through my external hard drive for the photos from that night, and of course I didn't back them up after transferring them to my old laptop, which is fucked! So unless I can get them off of there they may be lost forever. Aiden were just as good the second time around, as was the trip to Glasgow to see them. Aiden are a teenage favourite that may become forgotten in years to come by the music fans of today, but they will always have a place in my heart.
4. HIM - I started listening to HIM after Dark Light was released, and have never looked back since. There is just something about the sound of Ville Valo's voice that transcends into an experience of listening that no other has replicated, and it doesn't matter what he looks like (although I do think he's hot, I have a thing for tattoos!) you can't help but fall a little bit in love with him. HIM is a band that you constantly go back to and rediscover the enchantment of the music, as I discovered last year with the release of their latest album, "Tears on Tape", an amazing birthday gift from my dad who shares my love of music. 
5. Sixx AM - The band originally formed to provide the harrowing and emotional soundtrack to Nikki Sixx's book "The Heroin Diaries," but have now (according to Sixx's twitter) recorded their third album, a release that I can't wait for. I first heard them when the Life Is Beautiful video played on Kerrang! and instantly fell for the band. Years later and The Heroin Diaries is still one of my most played DVD's, and I know the book nearly word for word having read it so many times. Their second album, "This Is Gunna Hurt" is just as good, as is the book that accompanies it. I have no doubts what so ever that the next album will be great, especially after Sixx tweeted "I think we're topping ourselves..."

The second half will be up soon, apparently I have too much to say about each band, this is just scratching the surface of my very opinionated views.

One Track Mind

I am so beyond excited right now. Jacoby Shaddix instagrammed a photo of himself back in the studio recording Papa Roach's 8th album! Ahhhhhh!

Papa Roach are one of my favourite bands, and have been for many years. Their lyrics are so inspirational, their music is just amazing, and I have no doubt that the next one will be just as good.

One of the best nights of last year was going to see them live at Glasgow Barrowlands, and it honestly can't describe how good it was. My best friend, Frances, who was with me said she actually hasn't seen me so happy before, as I stood staring at the stage with a huge grin on my face, repeating "He's just such a total babe" about Jacoby. Despite my bag being stolen afterwards it was still one of the highlights of last year, and of course being me I was more upset about the t-shirt I'd just bought being in the bag, and of course the first thing I did when I got my bank card replaced I bought a new t-shirt, then replaced my ID, cause you know that's the logical thing.