Comment on Drake Stachler's Post

I was reading Drake Stachler's final post on his blogspot. He was talking about music videos, specifically mentioning the band Muse's music video for their hit song "Knights of Cydonia".


This video tells a story. The band Muse is known for their master musicianship, but their lyrics also speak on political levels. It is an interesting music video, and it reminded me of one of my favorite videos: "Californication" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. To this day I have no idea what the song is about, I think alot of lead singer Anthony Kiedis' lyrics are just poetry thrown together. This music video is by far thee coolest video ever. After I first saw this video (sometime when I was in gade school) I wrote a fan letter to the band imploring them to create a pointless video game starring the band members. They must not have received the letter, because it would've been a good idea. Even if the game had no intention, and no plot whatsoever I'd still play it on a nearly constant basis. In my letter I told them the soundtrack should include all of their previous music. Is this not a great idea? Everytime I view this video (which, sadly, is quite frequently) I wonder what the characters are doing in their setting. The point, i believe, is for them to reach the "Red Hot Chili Pepper" symbol. Upon doing so they are warped back to reality, where they are performing the song in the middle of the sky. I ponder the possibilities of such a pointless and aimless video game...my word it would be glorious.
I have yet to view a video as cool as this one. It's not the most prolific or inspiring video out there, but there is no question that it is absolutely attention grabbing. If I grow up, and for some reason become a big video game designer, I will waste all of my money on designer a game starring the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I figure it would sell relatively well, based on the large fan base that the band has acquired over it's twenty-plus years of existence. Even if the game flopped, though, I would play it everyday. Yes, it would be a huge waste of time and I would be accomplishing absolutely nothing, but I have the sneaking suspicion that it would be worth my while.

This is a filler post. Incubus is pretty dope.

I love Incubus. This video is a clip of their song "Here In My Room," performed live at Red Rocks. Mike Einziger is playing the electric piano, which is the backbone of the song. The eerie vibe the song transmits is enticing, and the lyrics tell an illustrated story: a young man finding unexpected "love" at a boring party. Brandon Boyd's unique voice carries the tune, his tone is strong but still very mellow, and his use of vibrato is expert. Jose can play the drums like a champion, although his talent is not emphasized in this specific number. What is truly impressive about this performance is that Mike E doubles up and plays the guitar along with the piano, which is no easy feat when executed flawlessly. His guitar solo (about one minute and forty seconds into the song) is absolutely brilliant. Unfortunately, DJ Kilmore is not known as an awesome "Tableist" and this song subtly exemplifies the difficulties of being a disk jockey as well as the talent required to perform well. In this clip, Kilmore can be seen moving around quite a bit, simply to put small, almost unnoticeable aspects of the song into play.

The primary reason I enjoy Incubus so much is the fact that they have a broad style of play. They can virtually encompass any rock genre while creating respectably enjoyable music. The band has been playing for a very long time (Brandon Boyd, Mike Einziger and Jose Pasillas all went to high school together). The very first live concert they performed was during their high school careers. They played under the name "Kansas City Shuffle", and were booed off of the stage. It's inspiring to see how far they've come since then. The band's connection with each other can be seen and felt with their electrifying stage presence. Incubus has been one of the most influential bands in my life, and whenever I play music, I strive to reach the bar Incubus has set.

Quotation from Atwan02

"The essay is, and has been, all over the map. There's nothing you cannot do with it; no subject matter is forbidden, no structure is proscribed. You get to make up your own structure every time, a structure that arises from the materials and best contains them." ~Annie Dillard.


My primary incentive for selecting this quote is I completely agree with every last word. Specifically, the second sentence stands out for me. When writing an essay, there are no rules (content wise), you can voice your opinion and incorporate your feelings about a certain subject matter. I don't believe anyone can be instructed to write about something they don't believe or agree with, and still make it heartfelt and honest. What I really admire about Dillard's quote is that she openly states that there are no boundaries when confronting an issue within an essay. You can write how you feel and there's no one looking over your shoulder telling you what you have to write about. A writer is free to include whatever information they feel best partains to their subject. People have been writing essays for years and years, and the idea of voicing any contoversial material may be shocking, but it's accepted (or at the very least tolerated). What she's getting at in this excerp is we have the right to write and create whatever we feel in an essay, and there isn't anyone holding us back. No subject is too controversial, as long as what we include in our essay is meaningful to us. This quote applies to me because up until my senior year of high school I'd been told what to write about, and how to write it. It wasn't what I truly wanted to do, and I was never sure how to approach the assignment. This quote supports breaking down the walls that incarcerate us to strictly writing a certain way. It opens up the doors allowing us as writers to follow our own rules, and build our own essays whichever ways we please. We aren't restricted in our essays, and we can't be penalized for writing outside of the box.

Quotation from Atwan02

"The essay is, and has been, all over the map. There's nothing you cannot do with it; no subject matter is forbidden, no structure is proscribed. You get to make up your own structure every time, a structure that arises from the materials and best contains them." ~Annie Dillard.