Continue reading 5 Spins Around the Record Shop – This Week in Music
Category Archives: POP CULTURE
“Fahrenheit 451” Author Ray Bradbury Dies At Age 91
Iconic author Ray Bradbury, known mostly for his legendary novel Fahrenheit 451, has passed away at the age of 91. Bradbury’s death was confirmed Wednesday morning by his daughter, who stated that he passed Tuesday night of a lengthy illness. Bradbury has published over 27 novels and a whopping 600 short stories. He is almost entirely responsible for the revitalization of the sci-fi genre, which previously had a reputation that was not as glowing as other genres of literature. But despite his known work as a science fiction writer, he often rejected that claim, not because he didn’t like or appreciate the genre, but because he felt it was inaccurate when it came to most of his work.
He’s often quoted as saying, “I’m not a science fiction writer. I’ve written only one book of science fiction [“Fahrenheit 451”]. All the others are fantasy. Fantasies are things that can’t happen, and science fiction is about things that can happen.” Regardless of what genre he’s most identifiable in, his writing forever changed the fictional and fantastical, paving the way for generations of readers and writers to come.
My first encounter with Bradbury came in the form of a 9th grade reading project. Our class was assigned to read and analyze Fahrenheit 451, a novel that, up to that point, I had only heard about and never read. I was almost sure I was going to hate it. I was still in that “I’m too cool for school reading” phase, but that quickly faded as soon as I started reading. The dystopian society portrayed in Bradbury’s novel is so poetically portrayed that it’s almost impossible to put down.
Losing Bradbury is almost as tough as losing JD Salinger, my favorite author, who passed away a couple of years ago. What they had in common was the way they revolutionized modern literature for the better. Science fiction and fantasy were never the same after Bradbury stepped on the scene, and they’ll never be the same again.
Check out a video of Ray Bradbury and Hugh Hefner talking about the origins of “Fahrenheit 451”:
5 Spins Around the Record Shop – This Week in Music
5 Spins Around the Record Shop – This Week in Music
Here are the top five pieces of important musical information I feel you need to know:
1. Jack White’s debut solo album:
Blunderbuss, is #1 on the Billboard Top 200 albums, and deservedly so. I have been a fan of Jack White since… well… since I can remember. In my opinion, although there are those who disagree, this is his best work. I think that Blunderbuss is exactly what Jack White has always wanted to do, and he is showing a large amount of confidence and an insane amount of talent.Everything Jack White touches seems to turn to gold. I am glad to see he is getting recognition for his work. I will be attending his concert on May 24th. I will definitely let you know how that goes.
2. Andre 3000 to Play Jimi Hendrix
According to Rolling Stone, Andre 3000 from Outkast will be starring as Jimi Hendrix in an upcoming biopic. All Is By My Side is currently in pre-production and is being filmed in Ireland. The film will be about Hendrix in 1966 & 1967. The film will be Written and directed by John Ridley.
3. NO DOUBT’s New Album
No Doubt, one of my personal favorite bands, has a new album dropping this fall! According to the Hollywood Reporter, September 25th is the magical day! This will be No Doubt’s first album since 2001. After Gwen Stefani’s God-awful solo career, I can only hope she will not have much creative input for this CD.
4. 6 year old LMFAO Fan Suspended…for Sexual Harassment
“I’m Sexy and I Know It”. Pure poetry. The LMFAO song is all over the radio, TV, and the internet. Fun fact, there is a Sesame Street parody that my little nieces love! Is the title lyric alright to say in school, though? According to Guyism, a six-year-old little boy was suspended from school for quoting the tune. The Colorado boy D’Avonte Meadows was in the lunch line at school when he said “I’m sexy and I know it” to a girl in line, which according to the school is an unwelcome sexual advance. Should this little boy be looked at like a perverted monster if he is simply repeating what he heard? Do they think that he even knows what it means? The moral of the story is, if you are going to say you are sexy, take the stick out of your principal’s ass first.
5. Rihanna on SNL
And finally, so unimportant you are probably asking yourself why it is on the music news page, current pop slut Rihanna was recently the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Her elaborate set involved a giant-ass spider-web and lasers. Is she a good enough artist to demand lasers? Regardless, here is a photo:
That’s it for this week’s music news. Join me next week for more melodic shenanigans.
RIP MCA – Beastie Boy’s Adam Yauch: 1964-2012
Born in 1964, Adam Yauch (MCA) had reportedly been suffering from cancer for three years before he passed away yesterday, May 4th. Yauch was a founding member of the Beastie Boys back in 1981.
Paving the way for a whole new genre of music, the Beastie Boys began their career in 1981. Since then, they have had their fair share of impressive musical milestones. The most recent, last month, the Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Yauch was not there, leaving Mike D and Adrock to read the acceptance speech. The Beastie Boys have had four #1 albums. One of those four, Licensed To Ill, was the first hip hop album ever to top the Billboard 200. The 1986 hit album won three Grammys, and the MTV Video Vanguard Lifetime Achievement award.
Adam Yauch was an extremely talented person. Along with teaching himself to play the bass guitar, he directed famous music videos for the Beastie Boys such as “So Whatcha Want” and “Intergalactic“. He did this under an alias- Nathanial Hörnblowér.
“Fight for Your Right – Revisited” was directed by Yauch under his own name, which included several hilarious celebrity cameos.
The music world was a better place for having Adam Yauch. Although his life was cut far too short, he managed to make a giant impact on the world in his 47 years. Between his musical influence, his directing abilities, and his non-profit organizations and events, he made the world a better place.
Adam Yauch will be sorely missed.
Ballin’
Jack White + Gary Oldman = Awesome Sauce
We at Grizzly Bomb have a collected affinity for one Mr. Jack White. Creative force behind acts such as The Upholsterers, The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, and The Dead Weather. He has also worked in some capacity with other musicians like Alicia Keys, The Electric Six, and Insane Clown Posse. That doesn’t even begin to describe his collaborative works industry wide such producing records for country icon Loretta Lynn. So it should come as no surprise when he teams up with someone awesome, but this one takes the cake. This time around Jack is hanging with the one and only Commissioner James Gordon.
White asked Oldman to direct his streaming concert (which happened a couple days ago) and the two seemed to really hit it off. White’s introduction to the famous JFK/Dark Knight/Dracula/Tinker Talior star wasn’t what you’d call conventional, but they both seemed in good spirits after and the result is pretty interesting. Check it out.
Grizzly Bomb 