Many, many changes made. I decided to cut out all of the proto-punk bands; MC5, the New York Dolls, the Dictators, and others. I really like the Dictators, so it was hard to make that decision. The resulting radio station sounds better (more punk) so it was definitely the right decision. Those bands still get played occasionally - a result of Pandora's heuristics of playing similar music. Bonus for me.
I do like Faith No More, and I consider them to be punk. Many bands, unfortunately, evolve to different musical styles and genres during their lifetimes. Pink Flag, the Mekons, X, Glenn Danzig over his career, and I have to include FNM. Pandora kept playing cuts from the Angel Dust album, which I found very disappointing. So they had to go. Can't have that crap on my punk radio station.
Also dropped The Donnas. They aren't a bad band, and I sorta like them. While their names are inspired by the Ramones (their 'band' names are all 'Donna' ) they mostly play party-themed Glam Rock. They're more like Kiss than the Ramones. Out they go.
I've added a number of excellent bands in their places. Bands that I had never heard of, like the Adverts, the Black Halos, the Briefs, the Drones, the Queers, and the Ruts by a suggestion from Jim Zito. Best of all I've added a few Riot Grrrrl bands, or just female punk bands. Bikini Kill, Bratmobile, Jack Killed Jill... , Red Aunts, and the Hedrons. I am *very* impressed by the Hedrons. This is why I love Pandora radio - there is a shocking amount of great talent out there that are getting zero recognition, and you just never hear of them through mainstream outlets.
Another band that I intentionally added was the New York Hardcore band Agnostic Front. Naturally, Pandora is playing more hardcore along with AF and the Exploited. I am trying to limit how much hardcore is being played. I think its important to have hardcore, especially some of the early groups that were hardcore innovators, but I also don't want to lose the focus on punk rock.
As always, comments and suggestions are welcome. Until then, pogo 'til ya puke!
Friday, December 18, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
UnCramped
Got rid of The Cramps. Inserting them at all was an error on my part, but I will seed the Meat Puppets in their place. Un-thumbed down The Clash and The Jam. I didn't like to eliminate them in the first place but I could not control their air time. I put them back in because of all the other bands I added; I want to see what the complete 'mix' sounds like.
I'm concerned about the Proto-Punk bands that are seeded. I rather like having MC5 and the New York Dolls in the mix, but they cause Pandora to include other rock and roll bands. Apparently nobody told Pandora they were Proto-Punk. The 'Dolls in particular cause Pandora to include Johnny Thunders' post-'Dolls solo stuff. Its sloppy 3-chord Rock and Roll which is fine - but its less punk than the Dolls. So I may ultimately decide to lose the Proto-Punk bands. And the Donnas. They were inspired by the Ramones and others, but their music has mostly followed the others into a Party Hard Rock. More in common with Johnny Thunders than the Ramones. I'll decide over the next week or so.
I'm concerned about the Proto-Punk bands that are seeded. I rather like having MC5 and the New York Dolls in the mix, but they cause Pandora to include other rock and roll bands. Apparently nobody told Pandora they were Proto-Punk. The 'Dolls in particular cause Pandora to include Johnny Thunders' post-'Dolls solo stuff. Its sloppy 3-chord Rock and Roll which is fine - but its less punk than the Dolls. So I may ultimately decide to lose the Proto-Punk bands. And the Donnas. They were inspired by the Ramones and others, but their music has mostly followed the others into a Party Hard Rock. More in common with Johnny Thunders than the Ramones. I'll decide over the next week or so.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
What is Punk Rock?
To use a bizarre allegory; equating musical styles as family members, punk rock is something like this. Garage rockers are the great-grandparents. Iggy Pop is the Godfather. The Ramones are the Patriarch. Velvet Underground is an uncle. Offspring, cousins, nephews and neices include Art Rock, Indie Rock, Heavy Metal, New Wave, Power Pop, Grunge, Goth, Thrash, and eventually 'Alternative' music - whatever that is. All of the above, including 'punk' are labels that have been variously ill-conceived or misapplied by people that just wanted to label something that they did not understand.
Edit: I apologize for the above paragraph. Sometimes I'm creative in a stupid way. -K 10/18/2010
In the early 1970s it seemed like Rock'n'Roll had gone horribly wrong, and the developing sound has been described as a natural rebellion. Growing out of the popularity of garage rock and underground rock bands, punk rock appeared in the mid-1970s in the form of The Ramones. It should be noted that they were wildly popular in England, but couldn't sell out even tiny venues in the U.S. Initially, very few record labels were willing to sign punk bands, they just didn't see any market-ability in the strange noise. The only way to become popular was an extensive touring schedule featuring many small venues - which was previously unheard of; many bands would play New York, L.A., and maybe Chicago or Cleveland - and that was it.
At first, hallmarks of punk were a bare-bones sound, limited musical ability (3 chords were enough), fast-paced and brief songs, an anti-establishment attitude, and antagonizing the audience (largely discarded in the interest of record sales). The Sex Pistols undeniably hold the record for thumbing their nose at the establishment. Their first *released* single "Anarchy in the U.K." caused such a indignant reaction in England that their record label dropped them - before releasing the rest of the recorded album! Shortly therafter, their bass player left the band. A replacement was eventually found in the drummer of Siouxie and the Banshees (who were all great fans of the Pistols). This lineup change presaged the tumultuous nature of all future punk bands. The drummer's name was Sid Viscious, and he couldn't play bass.
Edit: I apologize for the above paragraph. Sometimes I'm creative in a stupid way. -K 10/18/2010
In the early 1970s it seemed like Rock'n'Roll had gone horribly wrong, and the developing sound has been described as a natural rebellion. Growing out of the popularity of garage rock and underground rock bands, punk rock appeared in the mid-1970s in the form of The Ramones. It should be noted that they were wildly popular in England, but couldn't sell out even tiny venues in the U.S. Initially, very few record labels were willing to sign punk bands, they just didn't see any market-ability in the strange noise. The only way to become popular was an extensive touring schedule featuring many small venues - which was previously unheard of; many bands would play New York, L.A., and maybe Chicago or Cleveland - and that was it.
At first, hallmarks of punk were a bare-bones sound, limited musical ability (3 chords were enough), fast-paced and brief songs, an anti-establishment attitude, and antagonizing the audience (largely discarded in the interest of record sales). The Sex Pistols undeniably hold the record for thumbing their nose at the establishment. Their first *released* single "Anarchy in the U.K." caused such a indignant reaction in England that their record label dropped them - before releasing the rest of the recorded album! Shortly therafter, their bass player left the band. A replacement was eventually found in the drummer of Siouxie and the Banshees (who were all great fans of the Pistols). This lineup change presaged the tumultuous nature of all future punk bands. The drummer's name was Sid Viscious, and he couldn't play bass.
Re Fine
Added Faith No More but I may change my mind depending how they change the mix. Gave thumbs down to Jimi Hendrix, The Kinks, Alice in Chains, Johnny Lives! and Reverend Horton Heat. I hated to do it, but there is already too much diversity. Thumbs up to TOOL, Iggy Pop and Jack Killed Jill...
I've made significant adjustments to the blog template. It looks a lot better now. I have also added ads. I generally hate ads. Its not their content, or even their distraction that I do not like. I don't like ads because most ads are loaded onto the page from a noticeably different location. That can screw up page load times like you wouldn't believe.
I've made significant adjustments to the blog template. It looks a lot better now. I have also added ads. I generally hate ads. Its not their content, or even their distraction that I do not like. I don't like ads because most ads are loaded onto the page from a noticeably different location. That can screw up page load times like you wouldn't believe.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Edits
Added Linoleum, MC5, the Dollyrots, the Boys, and the Cramps. Gave a 'thumbs up' to "Dead and Gone" by the Ettes (which means I want Pandora to play more songs like that).
I gave thumbs down to songs by Johhny Thunders, Discharge, the Jam, the Fastbacks, New Order, Carina Round, Marion Raven, and Upwell.
I actually like the Jam. They sound like... well... maybe a 1960's Dire Straits? But they aren't really punk in any way that I can tell, and they were getting way too much airtime. Discharge was a little too thrash metal for me. The Fastbacks are all right, but that song "Don't Eat That Its Poison" was just God Damned Annoying. The other thumb downs are pretty much self-explanatory. Or feel free to ask why if you think I gave them a raw deal.
'The Boys' are the very first 'power pop' band, but they never got the attention that they deserved. At Christmas they turned into 'the Yobs' and they released some very rude Christmas songs. You've probably heard "Run Rudolph Run". The Dollyrots are just damn good. Joan Jett gave them a contract the first time she heard them. Linoleum has a sound that is more new wave, mostly I want to see what Pandora throws into the mix.
The Cramps is a band name that I remember, but I never heard anything of theirs that I can remember. Pandora played some interesting things around the Cramps - like 'Surfin' Bird'. I like Surfin' Bird, but I may have to boot the Cramps if I get many more like that in the mix.
I'm thinking that I need more bands that are fundamentally punk. I'm not coming up with much of anything on my own. Many of my good ideas were Pandora reminding me of killer bands that I'd forgotten about. As always, hit me with your suggestions.
I gave thumbs down to songs by Johhny Thunders, Discharge, the Jam, the Fastbacks, New Order, Carina Round, Marion Raven, and Upwell.
I actually like the Jam. They sound like... well... maybe a 1960's Dire Straits? But they aren't really punk in any way that I can tell, and they were getting way too much airtime. Discharge was a little too thrash metal for me. The Fastbacks are all right, but that song "Don't Eat That Its Poison" was just God Damned Annoying. The other thumb downs are pretty much self-explanatory. Or feel free to ask why if you think I gave them a raw deal.
'The Boys' are the very first 'power pop' band, but they never got the attention that they deserved. At Christmas they turned into 'the Yobs' and they released some very rude Christmas songs. You've probably heard "Run Rudolph Run". The Dollyrots are just damn good. Joan Jett gave them a contract the first time she heard them. Linoleum has a sound that is more new wave, mostly I want to see what Pandora throws into the mix.
The Cramps is a band name that I remember, but I never heard anything of theirs that I can remember. Pandora played some interesting things around the Cramps - like 'Surfin' Bird'. I like Surfin' Bird, but I may have to boot the Cramps if I get many more like that in the mix.
I'm thinking that I need more bands that are fundamentally punk. I'm not coming up with much of anything on my own. Many of my good ideas were Pandora reminding me of killer bands that I'd forgotten about. As always, hit me with your suggestions.
What the Sam Hain?
I started out by selecting a generic "punk" station that was already available on Pandora. That ended up driving me nuts. I seeded bands that needed to be added or just didnt get enough play time. That was better, but it didnt solve the problem. Some bands were getting excessive play time regardless of what I did. The basic problem was Pandora itself.
The generic punk station played Iggy Pop, the Ramones, the Clash, and some other bands. Thats a decent mix to start with. What was driving me apeshit was that Pandora seems to treat bands based on how large their discography is. AND Pandora was treating a band's live recordings as if the live band was a separate entity from the studio band. The Clash have a large discography and a great volume of live recording, and they were getting about four times the airplay of bands like Black Flag who deserve more air time, not less. I do like the Clash, but I've gotten so overloaded by hearing them 4 times an hour.
I tried to wrestle with Pandora to get the mix under control, but I eventually gave up and started from scratch. This time I started with the fundamentals; Iggy Pop, the New York Dolls, the Buzzcocks, and the Damned. Then I added my favorites; the Anti-Heroes, the Exploited, Naked Raygun, Black Flag, Bad Religion, Mission of Burma, Social Distortion, Monkeystrikes, Stiff Little Fingers, Go Betty Go, Reagan Youth, and the Dictators. Those were the important ones that I could remember at the time.
Pandora did a good job of filling in with other bands that I not explicitly add, and like the Sex Pistols they get played at about the right frequency. I've intentionally seeded some bands that Pandora casually threw into the mix. That way they get more airplay. I have removed others like Joy Division - 'nuff said. There are still a few bands that I haven't decided yet whether to keep or kick. I'll probably lose Johnny Thunders; he's not bad, but he's not really punk either. I think its a good idea to have girl bands like the Donnas, so they'll probably stay, though they are mostly rock and roll. Generation X may also be 'on the bubble'. I like them fine, but what seems to get played most is 'The Ballad of Phil Silvers' - or whatever that guys name is. Not quite the sort of song I'm looking for.
I'll keep a list of the seeded bands listed on the right. Let me know if somebody is missing from the list.
The generic punk station played Iggy Pop, the Ramones, the Clash, and some other bands. Thats a decent mix to start with. What was driving me apeshit was that Pandora seems to treat bands based on how large their discography is. AND Pandora was treating a band's live recordings as if the live band was a separate entity from the studio band. The Clash have a large discography and a great volume of live recording, and they were getting about four times the airplay of bands like Black Flag who deserve more air time, not less. I do like the Clash, but I've gotten so overloaded by hearing them 4 times an hour.
I tried to wrestle with Pandora to get the mix under control, but I eventually gave up and started from scratch. This time I started with the fundamentals; Iggy Pop, the New York Dolls, the Buzzcocks, and the Damned. Then I added my favorites; the Anti-Heroes, the Exploited, Naked Raygun, Black Flag, Bad Religion, Mission of Burma, Social Distortion, Monkeystrikes, Stiff Little Fingers, Go Betty Go, Reagan Youth, and the Dictators. Those were the important ones that I could remember at the time.
Pandora did a good job of filling in with other bands that I not explicitly add, and like the Sex Pistols they get played at about the right frequency. I've intentionally seeded some bands that Pandora casually threw into the mix. That way they get more airplay. I have removed others like Joy Division - 'nuff said. There are still a few bands that I haven't decided yet whether to keep or kick. I'll probably lose Johnny Thunders; he's not bad, but he's not really punk either. I think its a good idea to have girl bands like the Donnas, so they'll probably stay, though they are mostly rock and roll. Generation X may also be 'on the bubble'. I like them fine, but what seems to get played most is 'The Ballad of Phil Silvers' - or whatever that guys name is. Not quite the sort of song I'm looking for.
I'll keep a list of the seeded bands listed on the right. Let me know if somebody is missing from the list.
Afterbirth!
Welcome to MonsterPunk Radio.
Pandora Radio is GREAT for punk rock because nobody really ever gave proper airtime to punk rock with the exception of a few bands that were so close to pop music, or popular enough to count as pop music. Pandora can't decide to NOT play punk rock, but they are limited to what is in their library.
The guidelines for this radio station are:
1) Must be punk or punk-related. This means a large pool of talent to draw from.
2) I will give preference to bands that are obscure or got less exposure over their lifetime.
3) The opposite of (2) applies. You will not hear The Clash and probably one or two other punk bands just because I've been over-exposed to them.
The consequences of these guidelines are that you'll hear some things that you don't think are punk. I will try to weed out stuff that does not belong, but I would prefer to err on the side of having too broad a playlist. But I'll be nice and give you a say in what gets played. Like the Clash? Well... I might even consider adding them again, but they were seriously getting way too much air time.
I'm describing the radio content (or at least the bands that I have *intentionally* seeded or removed) so that you can see how this radio station is a work in progress. Bottom line, just relax or rock out.
If you have ideas for other bands to add to the mix, I'd like to hear them.
Pandora Radio is GREAT for punk rock because nobody really ever gave proper airtime to punk rock with the exception of a few bands that were so close to pop music, or popular enough to count as pop music. Pandora can't decide to NOT play punk rock, but they are limited to what is in their library.
The guidelines for this radio station are:
1) Must be punk or punk-related. This means a large pool of talent to draw from.
2) I will give preference to bands that are obscure or got less exposure over their lifetime.
3) The opposite of (2) applies. You will not hear The Clash and probably one or two other punk bands just because I've been over-exposed to them.
The consequences of these guidelines are that you'll hear some things that you don't think are punk. I will try to weed out stuff that does not belong, but I would prefer to err on the side of having too broad a playlist. But I'll be nice and give you a say in what gets played. Like the Clash? Well... I might even consider adding them again, but they were seriously getting way too much air time.
I'm describing the radio content (or at least the bands that I have *intentionally* seeded or removed) so that you can see how this radio station is a work in progress. Bottom line, just relax or rock out.
If you have ideas for other bands to add to the mix, I'd like to hear them.
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