Twenty Fourth Podcast

The twenty fourth podcast is up. Thanks to freemidi.org for the audio files. Eric and Matthew talk about the 1971 World Series.

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The Freakin' Weekend (1971)

Two things ...

One, Game 7 of the World Series is today (Sunday, Oct. 17) 1971:

And, two, the 1971-72 seasons of professional basketball are underway:

Comments flow ...

In the News: The Anthem Controversy

It is hard not to think about the anthem controversy these days it is everywhere in the news and so it is hard to escape.  My ignorance on how I feel about the whole controversy is quite great, but I had a realization this week that helped me to understand why the gap between the two sides might be so great.

Here is the primary question, what does the anthem stand for?  In other words when it is played at a sporting event before a game what should you be thinking about?

I should probably research what was said in congress and by the petitioners to make the "Star Spangled Banner" the official United States anthem back in 1931 if I want to get an idea of what they were thinking was the importance, but I can tell you from what I've been reading and hearing from people I talk to there are basically two different thoughts.

The first thought is that when the anthem is played at something like a sporting event it is a time for us to reflect on all those that have sacrificed so much for this country.  We stand at attention not for the country or for the flag, but out of respect and in remembrance of those who died and gave so much for our country.

The second thought is that when the anthem is played at something like a sporting event it is a time for us to think about our country.  Our history, who we are as a people, as a country.  What we've been and what we want to be.

OK this is where my revelation came this week.  I have always been in camp two on this way of thinking and so to me the idea of kneeling or holding a fist up is in some ways just as respectful as standing at attention, because it means that you are giving deep thought to the anthem and its meaning and in fact you are showing reverence to what it stands for and represents.

But let's be honest, if you are in camp one you will never ever see it this way.  If you are in camp one using the anthem as a platform for protest is simply a slap in the face to what you should be doing which is showing respect to those who died.  

I must admit my ignorance in not quite understanding the big difference in how people are coming at this sooner.

As I've said before I'm not trying to be political.  I'm not even trying to say what is right or what is wrong, I'm simply trying to understand why something like this can be so incredibly divisive.  There is so much already dividing us in this country.  If you have something like this where the way we look at it is so completely different from one person to the next it almost seems impossible for this not to be a big conflict.

In the end I'm not sure what the solution is, but I do think the group in camp two will have to come around to understanding the group in camp one and it will mean an end to the protests during the anthem.  I'm just not sure how we get there.  

Album Review: Fifth Harmony by Fifth Harmony

This is a group I had never heard of. They formed in 2012 during the X-Factor. They had all auditioned independently but were talked into forming a group and after the season ended signed a record deal. They were very young at the time the oldest being 19, two of them being 15. They have come out with an album a year for the past three years all doing quite well. One of the members left the band after their 2016 release and so this album is their first with just four members.

So now the women range in age from 24 to 20 and as they have aged over the past five years so to have their fans and so from what I've been reading this is their most mature album. It's funny but when I listened to this, saw the video, and read their story I assumed they probably ranged in age from 29 to 25 not 24 to 20. Even going back and watching their old performance on X-Factor it's hard to believe they were that young.

The album is at its worst when they are being too mature, like on the song "He Like That" or "Sauced Up."  It just doesn't work.  The album is at its best when it feels more natural like on "Make You Mad" or "Deliver." The best thing about the album is that it is short and full of catchy songs. The worst part is that the songs sound like the same song over and over after a bit. This happens because they structure the songs to try and feature all four singers on each song, and there are really only a few ways you can do this.

Still all in all its not bad and if you are making a workout mix you could throw this whole album on there. Following the Rhapsody rating method I give it 2 out of 5 stars for Not Bad.

Album Review: Poppy.Computer by Poppy

In 2014 Poppy began posting videos on youtube as a way to build a brand for herself in pursuit of a musical career. The videos were oddly abstract. Her first video was her eating cotton candy that was less than two minutes long. Soon she started incorporating music into the videos like in the one below.

At the time she was 20 years old. This eventually lead to an actual album getting released and now a tour. But by this point Poppy had millions of followers on youtube, so an audience ready for her album.

Now who knows what success the album will have or if she can build on it. I just find it interesting how she got to this point.

It got me to thinking about Uffie. Uffie hit the scene back around 2007 or so and put out an album in 2010 after much delay. Uffie, similar to Poppy, built her audience through the internet. Uffie though had an edge to her that Poppy is missing, still it's hard for me not to compare the two. Similar in age, similar building on a brand through the internet. Poppy I would say is the bubblegum pop version of Uffie. Still nothing says Los Angeles 2010 more than the video for "Pop the Glock" from Uffie.

Adult Language

Here is the thing though that was it for Uffie. She went on to have kids and quit being Uffie.

Let's get back to Poppy. Can Poppy be more than just what she is now. A persona that was created and built an audience on youtube, then turned into an actual act with an actual album. I'm not sure it's possible. Maybe we'll see.

Here is the biggest problem with Poppy.Computer, there is nothing memorable on this album. In seven years time I don't think I'll be listening to something else and think "My Microphone" by Poppy the way I thought today "MCs Can Kiss" by Uffie. Following the Rhapsody rating method I give the album 1 out of 5 stars for Just OK.