The Savage Animal 03.10.10: Silence of The Jams

Posted by Mikey MiGo on 03.10.2010

In this edition of The Savage Animal, 411’s Mikey MiGo takes a look at some of the biggest songs and albums that have never been released.


Talk about a long week. Early in the week, my no-budget production company did our first real tests with green screen. We have a ways to go in mastering it, but the first efforts were fun and we got to unleash "Steven Thomas Darrell" unto the world. We'll be doing a 1980's talk show format web series titled "Nocturnal Emissions with Steven Thomas Darrell". The first season is currently in preproduction, but we did manage to get a short demo reel put together. So the first time ever, Digital Lizard Productions exclusively presents Keith Evans as "Steven Thomas Darrell":

Nocturnal Emissions : May 81 Demo Reel
***NOT SAFE FOR WORK***
EXPLICIT CONTENT/VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED
CLICK HERE!

Come Friday, I found myself on a short road trip to Shipshewana, Indiana. For the many who haven't heard of this place, it's an Amish town. There were Amish people everywhere! (as expected for an Amish town). It was great times, great company, and overall a very much needed break from the hustle and rush of my normal life. Being away from my keyboard, phone, and television for that long was very welcoming for me. Sadly, a damper would be placed on the experience as the car took a dump and the transmission shift cylanoid was messed up. We had to stay over at a very uncomfortable hotel in wait for a shop to be open. Push came to shove and we ended up driving about 50 mph for about 120 miles. It was a pretty stressful and tense situation for someone who slept like shit and woke up with sore ribs from the hotel bed.

I was dropped off just in time to prepare for the night's concert in Illinois. As always, the Digital Lizard crew made their way out to film the latest Fashion Bomb show. This was a smaller show at a small bar, but the crowd was loud and very much into their music. As the band continues their rise it's kind of fun to see them play these scaled back bar shows every so often. Our three man crew only had two cameras between us so for the first time in a few years I got to watch the show without a little screen in front of me. Maybe it's that biasness, but I have to put up there in my top five Fashion Bomb performances. Sadly, I felt like shit from the car fiasco earlier in the day and just being sick in general so we didn't get to stay for the rest of the bands. None the less, what we did see rocked. Here is just a taste…

"Sick One" by Fashion Bomb (3/6/10 | Crest Hill, IL)



I took advantage of Sunday and played it lazy. I did a little cleaning up and took care of some tasks, but ultimately it was all about hanging out in my PJs trying to recuperate from the long weekend. I kicked back and watched the Oscars. Overall, I'm satisfied. I thought Precious and The Blind Side were not "Oscar worthy" at all and I rooted against them. The people involved with both movies seemed genuinely honored to be there, but the movies themselves were flat. Sandra Bullock played a southern female version of "Mr. Drummond" and Precious, while well acted, was a big ol' pile of urban struggle stereotypes. It was like one drive by away from covering them all. Despite my opinion they still won, good for them, but neither movie was my cup of tea on any level. My satisfaction comes in the form of The Hurt Locker. Not so much for the movie, I've still not gotten to see it, but because it bitch slapped Jimmy Cameron's Avatar. That movie was like being drunk in front of your own vomit while admiring the pretty vomit colors. Enough negativity though. I was thrilled to see Jeff Bridges win the Oscar. I've always been a fan of his work and his little gold guy is well earned and deserved. "The Dude" definitely abides. I was happy to see Star Trek get SOMETHING. I've never been a Trek fan at all, but I thought the recent film should have been in the 10 Best Picture Nominations. I think the highlight for most nerds was seeing Christoph Waltz walk away with Best Supporting Actor. He owned that movie and was one of the vilest characters to appear on screen in many years. None the less, the show didn't feel all that long and was pretty entertaining. Congrats to all, winners and not winners. Sometimes you forget just how much quality is still being put out there each and every year.

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SILENCE OF THE JAMS
Hannibal Lectors of The Musical Experience
It's out there. It may be locked in a safe, on a shelf or decomposing in a trash yard somewhere but some of the most loved, respected, and acclaimed artists of all time have abandoned projects that have never seen the light of day. For whatever reason, these songs or even albums were left to the wayside and never heard denying the ears of their fans more music.

The most common case of this is sadly death. When an artist dies in their creative prime and while recording there's a great chance there are unreleased b-sides or even an unreleased album or two that was never released. Of course we do see a lot of posthumous releases. 2Pac and Biggie have released like three times as many albums in the afterlife than while alive. Some of the stuff was legitimate finished products and some stuff was remixed or reworked for more financial gain, but this is a prime example of how unreleased work can be in high demand. There is no creative crime in this. Life is something that a release date can't control. Beatles did it with "Free as a Bird", Nirvana with "You Know You're Right", and many respectable others have given us the last drops of noise they created. But still, there's more! There is some work out there that would have been a great experience for music fans. Pink Floyd was to release "Household Objects" as their follow up to "Darkside of the Moon". I don't know what drugs they were on, but I'm sure they were involved, as the entire album was to be recorded of them using homemade instruments made out of random items like cardboard and rubber bands. They snapped out of this crazy idea and moved on to something a little more feasible. None of this was ever heard. In the history of music there are tons of stories like this.

These projects or at least what was finished of them might see the light of day once those in control of the property sees fit. We don't know the reasons and we should respect the artist memory and intended vision. Still, the greedy ears of the diehard fans would love to have a crack at these unheard gems.

Then there are the Hannibal Lector types that savagely deny us the experience of listening to their work. The bands and artists that are still out there right now releasing albums have held back on is. Maybe the band didn't like it, couldn't agree on it, or just have a built up vault of work in wait of the apocalypse. If it sucked, it sucked. So what? These are artists that can easily live on with million album sales if one album flops. It's denying the fans of a piece of the evolution of the band. If you're that hesitant about sharing your art, remember that art is subjective to begin with. Obviously at one point there was inspiration for the work, why not share it. Enough of my soap boxing. Let's take a look at some of the currently active artists that have withheld musical experience from us…

THE ARTIST: U2
THE HOLD-BACK: The Rick Rubin version of "No Line on the Horizon"
THE 411: I'm a big fan of U2's latest album. It's easily their best since "All That You Can't…" and it may even be better than that one. U2, even at their worse, is still better than 95% of artists of the same genre. Yeah, that's right. I'm saying the "Pop Mart" stuff was good. It's different, but good. While it might not be on the epic level as other U2 albums I'd rather have it in my collection than not. So this irks me. In 2006, the band began writing and recording "No Line on the Horizon" with iconic producer Rick Rubin at the Abbey Road Studio. Rubin and the band respectfully split ways as they had different visions. There was still material written and recorded though. Rubin's idea was for a more stripped down "back to basics" style which sounds cool. Even if it wasn't done they could have put it on an EP or something.


THE ARTIST: Green Day
THE HOLD-BACK: "Cigarettes and Valentines"
THE 411: In 2003, Green Day recorded twenty new tracks for their follow up to "Warning". Somehow the master tapes were stolen from the studio. This resulted in the band being so upset they decided not to recreate that album, but rather top it. This album ended up being their super hit "American Idiot". At the time the band was having personal issues and the "stolen album" was rumored to be and denied that it was released under a fake band name. I just have a hard time being convinced that these masters were up and stolen from the studio. I could almost bite the bait if it were a lesser famed band, but this is Green Day. Are you telling me there are not security guards AND cameras at their chosen studio? I'm leaning towards the idea that the album wasn't up to their standards and they just either scrapped it for parts or put it under the bed somewhere. The creative leap from "Warning" to "American Idiot" is just too drastic for there not to be something hidden in between.


THE ARTIST: Guns N' Roses
THE HOLD-BACK: Chinese Democracy
THE 411: Joke to use before 2010.


THE ARTIST: Zack De La Rocha
THE HOLD-BACK: Post-RAGE Solo Material
THE 411: Once Rage Against The Machine broke up, the band went the "Audioslave" route while Zack pretty much did nothing. Most people I knew at the time were in pretty big anticipation for the De La Rocha solo stuff, but it never really came. Outside of a few guest appearances and one track on a "Fahrenheit 9/11" inspired soundtrack, there hasn't really been any of this material released. All we know is that he and Trent Reznor had worked on about twenty tracks and that he worked with the likes of DJ Shadow, EL-P, and The Root's Questlove on tracks. It's a little bit of a bummer to know this is sitting somewhere and not in my own collection. While it may not have been on par with his RAGE work, I'm sure it's with tons of merit and rockness. I'm sure the pressure of creating a personal identity after that much time and success with the band was high, but it's a in the least a step towards something more defining. De La Rocha's voice is strong enough to carry even the worse of albums so I don't see why this potentially awesome work hasn't seen light.


THE ARTIST: Prince
THE HOLD-BACK: Apparently, a lot.
THE 411: It's always been known that Prince is constantly creating music and has some unreleased music that he's not yet put out. But from the story filmmaker Kevin Smith told in one of his "Evening With" DVDs Prince has an entire vault of unreleased albums, yes ALBUMS and a few dozen, yes DOZENS of music videos just sitting there. I'm sure there's some gems hidden in there. I suppose it's easy to have this kind of surplus when you're entire home is wired to record audio. So, I'm pretty sure that at least one of these hidden gems was recorded while Prince was taking a dump. That's some shit I'd like to hear.


So I ask, do YOU prefer an artist to only present their preferences to us or an unabridged body of artistic evolution? What are your thoughts?

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RANDOM VIDEO OF THE WEEK
I've heard this song a million times, but never the video…
"No Excuses" by Alice In Chains

The 411: It's hard to believe this song is going on 15 years old. It's one of those songs that I hear and instantly think of weekend afternoon directionless cruises around the region. I really don't remember this video. It's dark and creepy. There's a lot going on here. It's almost like a cleaner and more theatric version of NIN's "Closer". To me "Closer" is one of the best videos ever made so the comparison isn't without praise and merit. The video does look cool, but without ever seeing this clip it's something I'd not of expected. The song is mellow and chill, but the video is eerie and a bit uncomfortable. In this case I have to sadly say, even though I love the band, the video takes away from the beautiful track. That's rare.

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RANDOM MOVIE REVIEW IN 411 WORDS OR LESS
"DAYBREAKERS"

The 411: The trailers made this look sorta lame, but I'm a sucker for an R-Rated vampire movie so I gave in. The concept here is pretty cool. By 2019, the world's population is mostly made up of vampires. They live normal lives at night and hide from the day. For society to survive they need blood and with the human population near extinct the demand starts to outweigh the supply. So with people "starving" and the price of blood going up due to the lack of it the vampires start rioting and turning into savages. Enter Ethan Hawke. His character plays a vampire scientist who is looking for not only a cure, but in the least a blood substitute. He's a good guy vampire and eventually hooks up with a group of surviving humans. He meets Willem Dafoe, a man turned vampire turned man and things get crazy. I won't spoil the rest, but all in all it wasn't as lame as I thought it'd be. This movie didn't blow me away, but I'd watch a sequel if they made it. The story is interesting enough to want to know what happens next. There are cheesy lines that made me cringe, but this movie is no worse than an "Underworld", "Blade", or any other low art vampire fun fest. If you're looking for something "great" then you'll be disappointed. If you're looking for a 98 minute vampire movie with a unique twist then I say why not. Go into this movie knowing there are some moments that'll make you eye-roll and you'll come out of it with time not wasted. Mild Recommendation.

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WRESTLING WITH PILLOWS
Looking Out From the Inside.
I've been a fan of Criss Angel's "Mindfreak" for awhile. The show gradually got worse and he was smart to end it. I always thought his over the top persona would be great to mix in with a wrestling show. Sadly, the dude didn't look like he was having fun or really enjoying the experience. To me, he came off smug and "above" his surroundings. Sure his segments were lame, but he came off so lackadaisical and bored that it was kind of insulting. I guess Criss Angel is "too circus for the carnies".

RAW in general sucked in comparison to the quality Mania-hype shows they've put out recently. Everything was predictable and felt like Vince shifted the company into cruise control. There is really nothing new to talk about outside of Evan Bourne being the last person added to the MITB match. There! Are YOU happy now, high spot smark boys? I like Bourne and look forward to his high spots and bump taking in the match for sure. It's just when someone loses virtually every match they're in, outside of a 6 man tag with a storyline fall out, then it's not believable they'll win. The other seven, as much of a stretch as a few are, are believable to win it. Maybe I'm just bitter than neither Kofi nor Morrison is in the match. What the eff, yo?

What the hell is up with Wrestmania promos? It's like the writers gave the same promo notes to EVERYONE as they did Michaels and Taker. Can we not just have a big match on the show where two people just don't like each other and don't care about their past accomplishments? These things are sternly voiced Friars Club Roast speeches. Here's how a promo for Wrestlemania goes:

"(Place name here), you've been champ 38 times. You've beaten everyone, including Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Bret Hart, (Place more big names here). I know what you can do. You're fucking great! When my children grow up I want them to be just like you…*wipes tear away*…so when I beat you at Wrestlemania I'll know what it's like to beat the adult version of my kin. Yeah, I know it sounds like I'm trying to induct you into the Hall of Fame but um…. I'm going to win! Yeah! (Place slogan here)"

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That's all for this edition of The Savage Animal. Next week I'm thinking will be another chapter in the "First Impressions" series. I'm not quite sure what band I'll be checking out, but I do have a few ideas and suggestions that could easily end up being the band I dedicate hours listening to their discog of. From there will be my obligatory wrestling themed column in honor of Wrestlemania. So at least the next few weeks are booked and should be somewhat well thought out. Then again, we'll see. Until next time… Have a Great Week!