Sooty's 2011 Year In Review Countdownmania

[Soot and Stars]

#43
Ryan Adams-Lucky Now



I don’t remember were we wild and young
All that faded into memory
I feel like somebody I don’t know
Are we really who we used to be
Am I really who I was

The lights will draw you in
And the dark will bring you down
And the night will break your heart
But only if you’re lucky now

Waiting outside while you find your keys
Like bags of trash in the blackening snow
City of neon and toes that freeze
We’ve got nothing and nowhere to go
We’ve got nothing and nowhere

And the lights will draw you in
And the dark will take you down
The night will break your heart
But only if you’re lucky now

And if the lights draw you in
And the dark can take you down
And love can mend your heart
But only if you’re lucky now

I don’t remember were we wild and young
All that’s faded into memory
I feel like somebody I don't know
Are we really who we used to be
Am I really who I was


This song is the single off of Ryan Adams 13th album and first on a major label. This is Ryan's most positive album in tone and writing and who can blame him. He landed Mandy Moore as a wife. That would cheer anyone up. This single may be the most reflective on the album though as it started as a tribute to ex-Cardinal bandmate after he died. The song has a similar melody to Audioslaves "Doesn't Remind Me" which is a great melody to use anyway. Add a Bruce Hornsbyish style folk storytelling to it and you have quite a gem. Surprise guys, there was a beautiful reflective ballad at the end positively paying tribute to Mandy and I sidestepped it for the more upbeat track!

Bonus Countdown: Top 5 So Bad They're Good Songs of 2011

#3
Will.I.Am-T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)



This is a last minute write-in and I looked it up. It's a 2011 release so I HAVE to include this. I've enjoyed the dumb fun of Black Eyed Peas since well they stopped taking themselves seriously and got retarded (pun intended )!!! They were what pop artist are supposed to be. Anyway, my first real disappointment was "The Time" which may be the lamest sample ever. Quality wise that may actually beat this track BUT entertainment wise this is so awesomely bad that it's the better of the too. Let me just say the first fail is that nothing in this video is hard. Not the beat as Will.I.AM tries to claim. In fact the music literally sounds like one drawn out juicy fart. SERIOUSLY!!!! Will.I.Am isn't hard!, J Lo isn't hard! and Mick Jagger hasn't been able to get hard on his own for a couple decades! Seriously, the most interesting and somewhat salvageable part of the song is Mick Jaggers but seriously it cracked me up the most. It was like he was told "Play a caricature of yourself and turn it up to 1,000!!!! I loved it and lines like "I'm going in!" just add to the beauty of it all! The only thing better would've been Kieth Richards in the awkward cameo instead! ​

 

[Soot and Stars]

Oh god! It's been so long since I saw "So Cold In The D". Someone showed that to me like two years ago or something and I practically peed myself.

There's a song on my countdown I got off of the new Beavis & Butt-head. It's as good as it's ever been, so frickin' funny.

Still going through the thread and listening to stuff but letting you know that I'm finally here now.

Cool reminders for me on Christina Perri and Eisley.

I also have Angels & Airwaves 1 & 2. I did buy the one with the movie but had to go through Amazon and order it. You can still get it man.

I also have the new Blink 182 and Evanescence and really like both of them alot. Well back to listening.

Cosmic, I didn't know it was an older vid but I guess Beavis and Butthead made it relevant to this year!

AAG, I haven't seen the new episodes yet but I want to know seeing they may be better than ever in the viral age.

Metal, glad you stopped in and I think I'll try to go back and find the Angels and Airwaves for sure! There'll be a couple more favs from your taste on my list for sure!

 

[Soot and Stars]

#42
Journey-To Whom It may Concern



Man is love man is animal
A warrior an intellectual
He's the face of original sin
He's the devil and the poet within
Our father's have embraced the messian
Made the peace with Allah
Even sought to be like Buddha
To follow the old ways of Krishna

Pretending prophets come to rule this age
Turn the faith to fuel the wars they stage
Well something has to change to go beyond the pain
And somehow turn the page

To whom it may concern I'm sending out a prayer
The world finds peace in my lifetime
To whom it may concern are you listening
Are you There? I'll keep my hopes for paradise alive
To whom it may concern

We simply want to live it free
So happy and in harmony
No guilt, no fear, no hell to burn

To whom it may concern I'm sending out a prayer
The world finds peace in my lifetime
To whom it may concern are you listening
Are you There? I'll keep my hopes for paradise alive
I close my eyes

To whom this may concern
We care you'll see we aren't cold
When flesh and bones our live is lord
And now we meet the gods who rule this age
Well nothing much has changed
Politicians, Landlords crowd our age
We simply want to live it free
So happy and in harmony
No guilt, no soul, no hell to burn

(Repeat chorus)


I believe that this is the only song that Cosmic and I'll share on our list and she posted it first. I think she made a great summation of it so I'll crib her statement (you really should be following these guys ) as it says it better than I could:

"To Whom It May Concern" has all of the creamy goodness that fans want out of their Journey ballads only with more lyrical substance. Unlike lovably sappy smashes like "Open Arms", this particular song isn't about romance. It yearns for a better tomorrow and hoping that "the world finds peace in my lifetime" is a sentiment that I can very much relate to. Musically my favorite part of the song is the harmonized synth and guitar melody that they play through much of the song and then later on the album in the song "Venus".

Personal notes from me is that the songwriting wasn't one one that caught me. I usually don't care for hippy, make the world ideals in song. It's a cliche that cause me to cringe like cliche love songs make others do. What's great is the vocals and music hear as well as the vibe. 2011 was the year that I really got into Journey and the surprise was digging the early Journey with Rolie that I never knew existed. That's when the instrumental part of the band shone through and after time I liked a lot of that stuff as much if not better than Perry's material. Here the music catches up to a vocalist that REALLY holds his own after the daunting task of replacing Perry. The ballad feels like a Bon Jovi ballad turned epic! Great stuff and even better for making me enjoy a new album by a group from the Classic Rock era!

Bonus Countdown: Top 5 So Bad They're Good Songs of 2011

#2
Worst Band Ever-Comfortably Numb



This could've easily been my number 1 and I bet the world agrees that it should be seeing as I saw it pop up on my humor sites, friends Facebook pages and even here on CRF all around the same time. My number one pick goes out to an equally bad but more fun, sentimental favorite though. Anyway, my friends and I still keep replaying this as it never gets old. It is second to second a cross between a car crash and a masterful work of art. It's like the Gods all came together to create this musical apocalypse. Listening to it with musician friends to describe the badness is an even more enlightening experience. Here are my favorite elements at work here:

. I love how the singer makes himself look like Nick Nolte before he's cleaned up!

. I love feel bad that this band was actually hired to raise money for breast cancer!

. O.K., it's not even a statement to say that the band is bad, out of tune, off rhythm, off time with each other and the song, etc. Ugh duuurrrrrr.... But what I love is when the singer gets mad at the bassist at 2:34 like he's to blame for all this. I mean the singing style was more uncomfortably numb with that vocal. It's like he just had his wisdom teeth removed and the effects from the anesthesia wore off which would explain....

. The few hysterical moments of self awareness where he became self aware and gave the best cringing faces. See 1:56 (disgusted head shake), grimace at 2:07, 2:43 (angry head shake) and 3:28 (My favorite! Nothing says "God, I suck like that reaction", it seemed like he caused himself pain ) And don't forget the bassist and his permanent sad dog look throughout. I thought he definitely was going to cry. Surprisingly there was no suicide attempt following the performance.

. The cross between a banshee and a hoirny cat at 2:53!!!

. They performed in front of a "music" store!

. They are AWESOMELY BAD!!!!!!!​

 

[LG]

You must be burning the midnight oil on this Opus Sooty...

I applaud the massive effort you are putting into this thread.

Having said that...I am not a big fan of most of the bands so far, due as much to time limitations on my part as anything else. And you know I spend a lot more time on the hard rock/metal bands when it comes to new music anyway.

I will be back to check up on things as you go, when you do post a band I am familiar with I'll have something to add.

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

I believe that this is the only song that Cosmic and I'll share on our list and she posted it first. I think she made a great summation of it so I'll crib her statement (you really should be following these guys ) as it says it better than I could:

Really Soot? I think you have little faith. I have a couple artists left on my countdown that I know for a fact you love. It's just a matter if we picked the same songs.

 

[Sox]

I have to say Soot I really admire the input in this thread, I have only picked up a handful of 2011 releases and all are in the heavy Rock/Metal end of the musical spectrum. All in all though I think 2011 was a good year for music no matter where your tastes lie.

 

[Soot and Stars]

You must be burning the midnight oil on this Opus Sooty...

I applaud the massive effort you are putting into this thread.

Having said that...I am not a big fan of most of the bands so far, due as much to time limitations on my part as anything else. And you know I spend a lot more time on the hard rock/metal bands when it comes to new music anyway.

I will be back to check up on things as you go, when you do post a band I am familiar with I'll have something to add.

Really Soot? I think you have little faith. I have a couple artists left on my countdown that I know for a fact you love. It's just a matter if we picked the same songs.

I have to say Soot I really admire the input in this thread, I have only picked up a handful of 2011 releases and all are in the heavy Rock/Metal end of the musical spectrum. All in all though I think 2011 was a good year for music no matter where your tastes lie.

Well LG and Sox there are picks on my countdown that delve in hard rock, metal, progressive, folk, soul, etc. so you are bound to discover something. This is more of a discovery thread than anything because well when you've guys already covered the metal groups of 2011 what's the fun in repetition. I mean I've been listening to Cosmics thread because they are tracks I haven't heard. New sounds are just a click away. I mean LG as a self professed ABBA fan those pop tracks should be on your radar as well. I appreciate the visit and compliments guys!

Cosmic, I just remembered another song I KNOW will be on both our list. I think it's cool we have different picks for the same artist though!

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

I think with all of the sunny, poppy indie music that found it's way onto my list it'd be quite the treat for a self professed ABBA fan. Just saying.......

And I'm not sure exactly which song you're talking about Sooty because I see a few artists coming up on my list that I know will make yours too. If I had to take a guess though I'd think you're referring to Felix.

 

[Soot and Stars]

I think with all of the sunny, poppy indie music that found it's way onto my list it'd be quite the treat for a self professed ABBA fan. Just saying.......

And I'm not sure exactly which song you're talking about Sooty because I see a few artists coming up on my list that I know will make yours too. If I had to take a guess though I'd think you're referring to Felix.

I'm not saying!

I mean song matches! Artist matches are to be expected between members with equally good and expansive taste!

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

I am talking about a song match. As far as I know you've only heard one song from Felix so you know exactly which one I'm talking about.