"Duran Duran"... aka "The Wedding Album"

Yes, folks, another post about Duran Duran.

This is a great friggin' album. I've been jamming to it all week. And it just so happens, that today marks the 20th Anniversary of its release. Yep, this album is 20 years old. Duran Duran's seventh studio album and second self-titled album, Duran Duran (more commonly known as The Wedding Album), was released on February 23, 1993. The cover art features wedding photos from the parents of the four band members (Nick Rhodes, Simon Le Bon, John Taylor, and Warren Cuccurullo).

This is the album that saved Duran Duran. 

The Wedding Album helped pave the way for the band's success in the 1990's and beyond.

Instead of giving a track-by-track analysis, I'm just going to post the full album.

I will say this, though: This is a brilliant album. I think this is one of their best... and definitely one of my favorites. It's versatile, jazzy, emotional, and funky. A few of the songs also display some sass/lyrical aggression. It's full of upbeat, dance-oriented songs... the drums are clean, and the bass lines are fabulous. Warren Cuccurullo's guitar playing on this album rocks. Simon Le Bon's vocals are superb and not overdone. Nick Rhodes is still a synth God. The two ballads, "Ordinary World" and "Come Undone" are the two break-out singles on this album. Both beautiful and emotional... yet haunting. Both songs are fully equipped with great hooks and amazing choruses. Also, "Ordinary World" is the song that revived Duran Duran's career in the 90s. (It's also one of my all-time fave D2 songs.) D2 also does a cover of The Velvet Underground's/Lou Reed's "Femme Fatale"... and it's absolutely amazing!

There is not a bad song on this album... even the worst song isn't bad. Each track is unique, both musically and lyrically.

Tracklisting:

*01) "Too Much Information" 00:00 *02) "Ordinary World" 04:56 03) "Love Voodoo" 10:36 04) "Drowning Man" 15:34 05) "Shotgun" 20:49 *06) "Come Undone" 21:42 07) "Breath After Breath" 26:21 08) "UMF" 31:19 9) "Femme Fatale" 36:51 10) "None of the Above" 41:13 11) "Shelter" 46:31 12) "To Whom It May Concern" 50:55 13) "Sin of the City" 55:19

(*Album's 1st single, *Albums's 2nd single, *Album's 3rd single) 

(A fun little tidbit: John Taylor didn't play bass on "Come Undone", and that's something he still regrets to this day! Source: "In The Pleasure Groove" - John's book)

If you do not own this album... you need to go buy it. NOW!

Peace, Love, & Duran Duran,

~Lizzy Lepp

Def Leppard to play at Hellfest Open Air Festival!

This June, Def Leppard will be playing France for the first time in nearly 17 years!!!

Def Leppard will be playing at the Hellfest Open Air Festival on Friday, June 21, 2013.  (Main stage 1)

For more information, visit the Hellfest website: http://www.hellfest.fr/ 

Get your tickets here: http://www.hellfest.fr/tickets

 

 

 Peace, Love, & Def Leppard, 

~Lizzy Lepp 

 

Today is my Bass God's birthday!!!!

My Bass God is Rachel Bolan.

Birth name: James Richard Southworth

Rachel Bolan is the bassist and main songwriter for Skid Row. He's also the co-founder of Skid Row. Rachel is also a music producer. He's also my favorite bassist of all-time. Yep, he's my Bass God! Rachel has dabbled with a few side projects as well (Prunella Scales and The Quazimotors). He's a damn good singer, too!

Rachel Bolan is the reason why I have a handful of bass guitars. He's also the reason why I got my nose pierced... it's all about that nose ring chain. Ohhhhh yes! I find him to be very inspiring; Music-wise and image-wise. I've been listening to Skid Row since I was a kid, but the massive love I have for them didn't fully occur until I was in high school. Yeah, the obsession pretty much started there. I had always been drawn to Rachel; The nose ring chain, the way he dressed... and the fact that he sometimes looked as if he had just crawled out of a sewer somewhere (same goes with the rest of the late 80s/early 90s Skid Row lineup) but still managed to look unbelievably hot. He fascinated me. That's a rockstar!  I liked his attitude. I liked that he didn't give two f*cks about what anyone else thought of him. I'm a big fan of that. But it wasn't until high school that I could fully appreciate all of those qualities. I decided to Google him one day... and boy, was I in love! Everything I read was perfect. Absolutely perfect. Aquarius (me too!) Loves classic punk rock (me too!) LOVES The Ramones (ME TOO!) Yankees fan (me too! Well, I was... not so much anymore, but I still root for them.) He digs T. Rex/Marc Bolan (ME TOO!) (hence where he got his last name from). Similar personality traits... the more I kept reading, the more I kept saying to myself, "Dude... we're like the same person..." He's a tad crazier than I am... drinks/parties more than I do... and loves racing cars... among other stuff... but other than that, we are almost the same person (different genders, of course!). I thought to myself, "Finally... someone on this planet who speaks my language!" 

 (Photo taken by me! Santa Clara, 2011)

Also, the music he helps create and the lyrics he writes are amazing. A lot of Skid Row songs have helped get me through some things and I will forever be grateful for that. It's really hard to try and articulate the admiration I have for this man... you just have to know me, to fully understand. I think Rachel Bolan is one of the coolest people on this planet... and one bad ass mofo! Also, he's friggin' gorgeous. So gorgeous.

(My favorite tattoo ♥)

I've heard that you should never meet your idols/heroes (and blah, blah, blah), but when I met Rachel (and the rest of the Skids) a few years ago, it was the greatest night of my life. I was absolutely terrified. I had heard of some not-so-nice "fan encounters" with Rachel, and I didn't want to piss him off. But then I realized, I've got this. Treat him how I'd like to be treated... if you bug him during dinner (etc), of course he's going to be in a bitchy mood. Let him do his thing, and when he's ready to mingle or whatever, then make your move. It's all about respect... he IS human, you know! Anyway, he was absolutely precious. PRECIOUS! And he approached me. Yeah, that's right... and that rarely ever happens. Apparently, word got around that I was dying to meet him (or something?)... yeah, I was speechless. After he was finished eating, he came  back and went straight to moi for a picture. I got a picture, a hug, an autograph, and I got to tell him everything I've ever wanted to tell him. And I did it all in a professional manner. Shocking. However, 2 minutes later, I found myself in tears. It was stupid. But I couldn't help it. I met one of my idols. 

That was also the night I realized that I wanted to be a music journalist. Talking to the Skid Row guys came so easily to me. They were no longer idols or heroes... they became people you could hang with or have a beer with. (I wrote an entire essay on this night and about RB/SR for an English class a few years back *I got an A+*... if I get enough nudges I might blog it.)

 (Rachel, me, and Scotti- 2008) I almost lost it right here...

Tuneage? Okay!

( Bolan, Sabo)

 ♥

 (Bolan)

(Bolan, Sabo)

(Ramones cover- Rachel on vocals)

 (Bach, Bolan, Sabo)

(Bolan, Sabo)

So yeah, I love Rachel Bolan. That is all.

Happy Birthday, Rachel... aka "Mr. Bass God" !!!! \m/ ♥♥♥

Peace, Love, & Bolan,

~Lizzy Lepp

The Beatles - The Ed Sullivan Show - Feb 9, 1964

The Beatles made their debut on The Ed Sullivan Show 49 years ago, today! Watch and enjoy! :)

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Peace, Love, & Music,

~Lizzy Lepp

Pearl Jam Announces Two Shows in July 2013

There's been a few hints/speculation that Pearl Jam would be playing at Wrigley Field sometime this year... well, now it's official!!

They posted this picture this morning :)

But that's not all!! They've also added a tour date for July 16th, in London Ontario!

The official press release (found at pearljam.com):

 January 23 2013

We are excited to announce two special Pearl Jam live performances to take place in London, Ontario and at Chicago’s Wrigley Field in July 2013. Both evenings will be An Evening with Pearl Jam; there will not be an opening band for either performance date.
 
 

The two show dates are:
 

Tues, July 16 - London, Ontario Budweiser Gardens
Fri, July 19 - Chicago, Illinois at Wrigley Field

*Fall Tour dates in the US will be announced in the coming months. (YES!!!!)

Fan Club members active as of Tues, Jan 22 are eligible for the Fan Club ticket drawing pre-sale.  Memberships or renewals purchased after that deadline are not eligible for the ticket drawing pre-sale.   

The full announcement is viewable to Ten Club members at this link:

http://pearljam.com/tenclub/events/1/21611/pearl_jam_announces_2_july_2013_shows

  

Public Sale tickets:
 

Chicago IL – Sat, Feb 9th 10am local time at www.tickets.com

London, ON – Sat, Feb 9th 10am local time at www.budweisergardens.com/events, by phone at 1.866.455.2849, or in person at the Box Office or Ticket Outlets.

Peace, Love, & Pearl Jam,

~Lizzy Lepp 

Happy 53rd Birthday, Hutch!!

Today would've been Michael Hutchence's 53rd birthday! 

(In America, that is... his Australian (actual) birthday was yesterday. Massive time difference! 18 hours, I think?!)

I'm not going to get all mushy... I went on full mushy mode 2 months ago in a previous post (Remembering Michael Hutchence) This post will be short and simple: a few picture, some music/videos, and maybe a few words.

My Aquarian brother ♥

 Pure perfection, indeed...

♥♥♥♥

My Mother wanted to contribute a few things to this blog, as she has taken a temporary break from the internet:

"R.I.P. Michael Hutchence... you are truly missed!"

Happy 53rd Birthday, Michael... we INXS fans miss you dearly ♥

Peace, Love, & Michael Hutchence,

~Lizzy Lepp 

The 30th Anniversary of Def Leppard's "Pyromania" !!!

Yes, another post about Def Leppard and their awesomeness.  
I'm sorry, I can't help it.

Def Leppard released their third studio album, Pyromania, on January 20th, 1983. This album was produced by "Mutt" Lange (the production on this album is damn near perfect) and is the first Def Leppard album to feature Phil Collen. It's also the last Def Leppard album to feature Pete Willis on guitar. Pete was fired midway through the recording of this album, however his rhythm guitar tracks were still used on all of the songs. Phil came in and completed the solos and whatever guitar parts that Pete wasn't able to finish. Steve Clark, Pete Willis, AND Phil Collen playing on this album definitely contributes to the badassness of this album. Oh, and Thomas Dolby played the keyboard on this album! Pyromania achieved huge success. Between the melodic hooks, the perfect harmonies, and heavy MTV exposure, this album was massive! It has sold over 10 million copies here in the US, and is certified diamond.

This album is brilliant. This album is absolutely badass. Pyromania is one of the greatest albums of all-time. If (for some reason?) you do not own this album, I highly suggest you go out and buy it. Everyone NEEDS to have this in their record collection. I'm not bias, either... everyone seriously needs to own this album. 

There is not a bad song on this album. Pyromania is absolute perfection.

The tunes:

Track 1: "Rock! Rock! (Til You Drop)" - The album's opener. This is a fabulous album opener. The song has a semi-slow start but it picks up at about 30 seconds in. This is a classic rock anthem... an underrated, classic rock athem. The riff is killer and the drumming is absolutely perfect; which are two things that remain consistent throughout the album. 

 Track 2: "Photograph" - Hands down, one of the greatest songs ever written. Musically and lyrically. This song is absolute perfection. The song starts off with that iconic riff... a riff that still causes many goosebumps. The song is catchy as hell and the solo is luscious... luscious but just a tad short. Joe's vocals on this song are superb. This song was the album's first single... and the video/song was a huge hit on MTV.

Track 3: "Stagefright" - Another fabulously underrated song. The song has it's hard rock moments fully equipped with a fast paced... but rolls into some great pop/metal once it reaches the chorus. The solo is great and of good length... the guitar playing in this song is just great overall. The chorus is super catchy, too.

Track 4: "Too Late For Love": - This song is a rockin' slow song, but it is not a ballad. This song was another hit. This song is haunting... absolutely haunting. The song starts off slow and quiet for about a minute, and from then on, it's full-on rock. Great guitar playing, great lyrics, great drumming, great solo... great everything. This served as the album's fourth and final single.

Track 5: "Die Hard the Hunter" - Perhaps the most painfully underrated song on this album. It's one of the best songs on this album. It's also the longest song on the album (6:17). "Die Hard the Hunter" is superb. Absolutely superb. Everything about this song is superb: guitars... the riff... the solo (which is nice and long, btw! I believe it clocks in around 2 minutes long?), the drums, the bass, the lyrics, the vocals, the production. Everything is superb. Also, it's one of the album's more harder songs.

Track 6: "Foolin'" - The album's third single, which was also an MTV favorite. This song kind of has the same vibe as "Too Late For Love", as it starts out slow and quiet but gradually grows into a heavy rockin' tune. "Foolin" starts off with an acoustic guitar followed by Joe's quiet vocals... then the next thing you know, the song starts rocking your face off. It's a hard rock song, the lyrics are great... and catchy. Seriously, I'm not "f-f-f-foolin" (You totally saw that coming).

Track 7: "Rock of Ages" - "Gunter glieben glauchen globen..." This is the heaviest song on the album. This is the most badass song on the album. Most arguably the biggest hit on the album. This was the album's 2nd single... and was another huge hit on MTV. This song is just incredibly badass. That's all I can say. Everything about this song is loud and heavy. The drums are badass. The guitars are badass (the riff and solo are badass). The bass is badass. The vocals are badass. The lyrics are fun... and a bit repetitive... but it's still friggin' fabulous. 

Track 8: "Comin' Under Fire" - Yet another underrated tune... as well as another hard tune. The lyrics are catchy, more so the chorus. More great guitar playing, as well as more great drumming from Mr. Rick Allen.

Track 9: "Action! Not Words" - Sounds like a song that could've been put on the Hysteria album. Pop/Rock at its finest. It's not my favorite song off the album, but in no way is it a bad song. The riff is super catchy and so is the chorus!

 Track 10: "Billy's Got a Gun" - This tune is another hard rocker. The drums shine on this one! The lyrics are great, the guitar playing is great, and I dig the bass line. However, I think the lead vocals are a bit flat. The backing vocals are amazing, though. Overall, this is great song, and a great album closer.

 

So yeah, this album is absolutely superb. Pure perfection. From start to finish, this album is amazing. Pyromania is truly a classic album. A pure hard rock album. Not only is it one of Def Leppard's greatest albums but it's also one of the greatest albums of the '80s... not to mention, one of the greatest albums of all-time. ♥

Peace, Love, & Def Leppard,

~ Lizzy Lepp

Remembering Steve Clark

Stephen Maynard Clark

(April 23, 1960 - January 8, 1991)

I hate January 8th. I really do. I didn't even want to blog about this... I usually sulk quietly. I'll say a few words, play a few songs, then sulk... quietly. Many of my music heroes/idols/inspirations are deceased... but Steve Clark... the death of Steve Clark pains me the most. It makes my heart hurt... it truly does. Today marks 22 years since he's been gone, but it still hurts. It hurt when I was 4... and still hurts at 26. This one still rattles me. I have massive love for Def Leppard (hence my blogging name)... I've loved them since I was 2 years old. Steve is my favorite guitarist of all-time.

Steamin' Steve Clark is one of the most underrated guitarists of all-time, if not the most underrated guitarist. He wasn't a technical guitarist (Phil Collen's the technical one)... Steve was the creative one. He didn't care about technical perfection, he played from the soul... he played from the heart. He always wore his guitar a few notches too low, which made people think he was sloppy. Steve Clark was not sloppy. Steve wasn't and still isn't like any other guitarist. He did his own thing. He had his own style. He was a damn good guitarist and a damn good songwriter. They didn't call him "the riffmaster" for nothin'. He was brilliant. He was crazy. He was brilliantly crazy. Steve Clark was the heart and soul of Def Leppard. 

He is greatly missed. Dearly missed. Steve, it's not the same without you :(

Rest In Peace, White Lightning ♥

Tuneage!

 This will forever give me the chills ♥

 They wrote this song about him...

 Peace, Love, & Music,

~Lizzy Lepp

Happy Birthday, Eddie Vedder!!

I looooooooooooooooooooooooooove Eddie Vedder.

Love, love, love, looooooooove. He is one of my idols.

There are very few people on this Earth that I love more than Eddie Vedder. No shame.

 He is a 90's alternative/hard rock icon. He is my 90's alt/rock God.  I have always been on Team Pearl Jam and Team Eddie Vedder... and that's something that will never change. He inspires me. His lyrics can be somewhat dark... very personal... often bizarre, and sometimes don't make any sense... they can be a bit political at times... but they are beautiful. And wonderful. And often thought-provoking. His lyrics are meaningful. I think he is a lyrical genius. I love that he is not afraid to speak his mind (even if I sometimes don't agree with what he has to say). I admire his charitable work and the fact that he supports a lot of causes. I think his voice is amazing and the music he creates (and helps create) is superb (yes, even his ukulele album!). He's just one of my favorite people... one of my favorite people of all-time. I admire him as a musician and I admire him as a person. 

Yes, I am an Eddie Vedder fangirl... again, NO SHAME!! ♥

Happy 48th Birthday, Eddie!! ♥

Peace, Love, & Vedder,

~Lizzy Lepp