New Home Theatre Addition

Not long ago, I inherited from a good friend his old 50-inch television. He was upgrading to a modern 65-inch, so he just wanted his old unit out of the way. I was the lucky recipient of the TV... for free! But I'll reciprocate with a gift of some sort in the near future.

This Toshiba is a fifteen year old DLP rear-projection model, still fully functional, with some life left in it. It takes up a bit of space in my one-bedroom apartment's wee living room, but hey, my whole place centres around home entertainment, so what's the big deal? TheTV has always been the focal point of my living room,with the audio system and shelves of media arranged around that. Fine by me.

After delivery of the new unit, I spent the expected amount of time fussing with cables behind the scenes, TV picture settings, then I turned to the re-arrangement of furniture in the room. I actually ditched a big, old, unlikable couch in favour of a few more comfy single-seater chairs. This opened up the room a lot, so even though my TV monitor had grown exponentially from my existing 37-inch, I found myself with a more spacious set-up. Nice. 

Naturally, I set out to test drive the new TV with a sampling of prime film moments to get a look at the picture's capabilities. I first put on the first twenty or so minutes of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Yep, very cool, though that was a slightly rough un-doctored original theatrical version on DVD (no Lucas blasphemous re-touches for me). Then on to a bit of Gravity, with its mindboggling outer space visuals and more pristine definition. Next, I popped in a full movie... Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. A popcorn flick, pure and simple. Fun, perhaps dopey, but eye-candy all the same. The picture was poppin', looking terrific on my bigger screen. Dinosaurs in my living room.

A few days later, I viewed some concert videos on Blu-ray on the new set. Wow. First up was the live Heaven and Hell performance at Radio City Music Hall in New York. This show was filmed on the same tour I saw the band here in my home city. So the stage looked just like what I saw... and I was transported back to 2007 watching Dio, Iommi, Butler and Appice delivering a memorable set of timeless, top-tier heavy metal. This time I was front row centre.

After that, I popped in my Blu-ray of Kylie Minogue's live show filmed during her 2011 Aphrodite: Les Folies tour, this particular performance at the London concert. Whoa... talk about a spectacle! Part theatre, part carnival, part cabaret... a classy pop extravaganza, I guess you could call it. Again, a prime seat at the event.

Another true test of my TV upgrade was checking out some sports, so I got some NHL hockey going, and that was yet another satisfying experience. Better than being there. All the action crystal clear, the arena sounds projecting all around me. 

What else? Not a whole lot other than Netflix shows and the odd movie, and YouTube videos. All looks great. Very happy with this new addition to my apartment-sized man-cave. Cheers!

Overplayed Rock Radio Songs I Still Like

For most of my life, I found a nice balance between listening to music on the radio and on my physical media players, like record turntable, cassette tape deck, CD player, tape and CD walkman, and car tape player. After all, it was via the radio that I (and everyone else) learned about new (and old) music that I'd never heard before. Then I could decide what was essential to buy for my home music collection. Pre-internet, this was the way.

But ever since about the year 2000, I have not made any effort to listen to radio at all. Zero interest. Yet there are times when I'm subjected to a grocery store's satellite radio playlist while I'm shopping, or must endure someone else's home or car stereo. More often than not, I hear all the same classic rock and some pop of decades past. Not necessarily a bad thing, but you know how a certain bunch of classics are played and re-played ad nauseum all day, every day. It can be very hard on the brain.

Some hold up very well and some now drive me to distraction. I'd say the ones I can still get into are the those that excel at tapping into personal emotions, memories, just plain old nostalgia. There's got to be something there that makes a tune more than just bearable after hundreds or even thousands of listens. Somehow, certain songs trigger that magical chemical in the brain (serotonin) that makes you feel pretty darned good. Happy, even.

While I've grown sick and tired of a lot of those songs that appear on every freakin' playlist out there, there are some that I still enjoy - even continue to love - despite their constant presence over sound systems everywhere. You may shake your head at my musical choices here, but these songs are just so damned good that they endure and continue to lift my spirits despite their inclusion on playlists the world over. 

So, in no particular order:

Don't Fear the Reaper, by Blue Oyster Cult

Hotel California, by The Eagles

Boys of Summer, by Don Henley

Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Pat Benatar

Rock You Like a Hurricane, Scorpions

More Than a Feeling, Boston

Don't Stop Believin', Journey

Free Fallin', Tom Petty

Jump, Van Halen

Photograph, Def Leppard

Feels Like the First Time, Foreigner

Love Me Two Times, The Doors

Roundabout, Yes

Radar Love, Golden Earring

La Grange, ZZ Top

Go Your Own Way, Fleetwood Mac

Yesterday, The Beatles

Logical Song, Supertramp

Lay It Down, Ratt

Feel free to chime in with your own overplayed-but-still-love-em radio songs in the Comments below. Cheers!

Solo Albums By Rush Pickers 2 - My Favourite Headache, by Geddy Lee

The year 2000 saw the release of Geddy Lee's first and only solo album, My Favorite Headache. Lee's work in Rush brought his name and reputation as a (or the) top rock bassist to the world. On this solo project, Geddy shows us just how much of a melodic composer he can be... not that Rush hasn't been responsible for great tuneful songs over the years, but out on his own, Lee demonstrates a knack for catchy music without all the progressive trappings. A simpler approach in a straight-forward rock vein.

On this debut solo outing, Geddy shows a flair for both the technical and musical sides of recording. Not only did he co-produce and co-engineer the album with Ben Mink (of that other Canuck prog band FM), he also co-wrote all the songs therein with Mink. So ol' Ged expressed his talents in both the studio proper and the control room. 

The title track kicks off the album with a splash... a lone heavy bass chugs through the intro, then is joined by a nasty gnarly guitar rhythm, aggressive drums, all accented by a spiraling guitar lead. Pleasant, lighter segments are achieved through Ged's piano, though he focuses more on the gritty and crashing sounds. 

The Present Tense has a Lifeson-esque guitar sense throughout, and it's a solid rockin' affair. Window to the World isn't unlike that, too. Working at Perfekt is a heavier hitter with big, dense guitars and multi-tracked bass, though don't overlook the orchestral strings that add a dramatic flourish. Runaway Train is a busy and energetic exercise, layers of guitars and programming adding to the overall effect of a rocker with heart.

The Angels' Share is a slow-tempo track that, while intricate and layered, sort of plods along without much of interest for me. Not bad, just not great. Next tune Moving to Bohemia is bursting with bass riffage that rivals some old Rush faves. But again, there's a sameness to most of these songs. Not terrible, just not nearly as adventurous as listeners have come to expect of Rush... and even witnessed on guitarist Alex Lifeson's 1996 solo venture. Home On the Strange is a funky piece, a catchy shuffle bearing some entertaining lyrics. This just might be my favourite tune on the album.

Next track Slipping proceeds slowly yet with intention, a sort of ballad, if I may say so. S'okay. Then the following track Still continues that quieter, calmer mood. Again, s'okay. Grace To Grace engages the listener from note one... a forceful riff and drum tempo drive the verses nicely, and the contrast against the ethereal chorus creates a fun and inventive rock song. All right, maybe this is my fave song on Headache, with Home On the Strange a close second.

Overall, I feel this is a fairly solid recording. A couple of outstanding tracks plus a few more good ones anchor an otherwise unexceptional album of "okay" music. Lee has a lot to offer in the context of Rush, but on his own, or with Mr. Mink in the co-captain's chair, his songwriting is competent but a bit too "safe". There are moments of brilliance yet I hate to say there is a sameness that carries from one track to the next... with those few notable exceptions.

Sure, Geddy is the voice of Rush, but I'd say the band's democratic process tempered any one contributor's ideas with an evenness that avoided too much of any one thing. I'll concede that the introduction of keyboards in the 80's at first tamped down Alex's guitar, but in short order, Al evolved his sound and style to fit his six-string voice into the mix effectively. Here on Headache, though, Geddy locks himself into a mostly mid-tempo, plain Jane rock mode. Not terrible, just not all that exciting. Not the way Rush in their prime was. I think Lee's co-songwriter 'ought to have brought something more inspired and stimulating to the table, to bring a little more life to the party. Maybe next time?

Solo Albums By Rush Pickers 1 - Victor, by Alex Lifeson

Here's something a little different.... I'll take a look at the solo albums, just one apiece, by the two axe-wielding members of Canadian progressive rock trio Rush, guitarist Alex Lifeson and bassist Geddy Lee.

In today's instalment, I'll look at Lifeson's one and only solo release, from 1996, Victor. This recording doesn't sound at all like Rush music, instead giving us a peek into our beloved six-stringer's hidden arsenal of songs and sounds. We've got near-metal noise (Don't Care), melodic rock (Promise), experimental oddity (At the End), and an assortment of other genre dabbling.

He chose a number of cool collaborators to accompany him as a band and to front the proceedings on vocals. Take for example the song Start Today, which features female singer Lisa Dal Bello. She's got the high wailing prowess of ol' Geddy in his early days. Amid the jumpin' riffing and trademark arpeggios, there is pretty acoustic strumming and an absolutely ripping solo. Yep, leave it to Al.

There is some definite weirdness here, too, as demonstrated on the instrumental entitled Mr. X. There's a bit of a Joe Satriani feel, though with a bit of a demented jolting quality that screams Alex. At the End is a spoken word piece (Alex on the mic!) backed at first by an eerie synth, then building textures of percussion and guitar. Odd yet beautiful in its way. Sending Out a Warning is less pretty, but nicely contrasts chiming verses and abrasive choruses. Speaking of abrasive, how about Shut Up Shuttin' Up (a line from an old Bugs Bunny cartoon)? Alex's playing is weird and wonderful, unlike the vocals, which are two women (one was his wife) yapping away mindlessly. Kinda funny, but not what I want to hear very often. Very Zappa-esque.

Strip and Go Naked is a front porch foot-stomping acoustic dream, overlaid with tasteful and ethereal licks and soloing. Just a little noise thrown in for good measure, and you've got yourself a wonky and fun instrumental.

The Big Dance steps and shuffles around moods and rhythms, some smooth and some gritty. Funny that title track Victor is so rife with synthetic programming, electro percussion and accents in abundance, spoken word story again by Alex on the main mic. There is an analogue horn, though! Unusual and creative, so I can enjoy it on a certain level.

Wrapping up the album is rocker I Am the Spirit, with singer Edwin (of I Mother Earth) hollering against the wall of guitars and drums. You might consider banging your head to this one.

Lifeson's distinctive guitar sound and style make this album a treat for fans of his axe-work with Rush. I think most Rush fans are open-minded enough to appreciate at least something in this smorgasbord of sonics and song structures. I don't love it all, but there are some very cool things going on here. I admire Alex's boldness to go way beyond the constraints of a Rush song on Victor. He takes risks, not always entirely successful, but does show us there's more to this guy than we ever knew before.