3/31/11- Wesley Willis- "Alanis Morissette"

On this day, 15 years ago today, March 31st, 1996, Alanis Morissette was enjoying her 3rd week at #1 with "Ironic" on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart. (Back in the good ol' days... when Tori Amos and Stabbing Westward were both on the same chart.) I figured I'd celebrate.

But not with "Ironic."

And not with Alanis Morissette either.

Instead, I'll celebrate with Wesley Willis.

Wesley Willis hailed from Chicago, and was a diagnosed schizophrenic. He took to art, doing paintings and writing, and in the 90's, gained a cult following with his simple, yet unique songs. This song actually had a music video made for it and played on MTV. The video consists of Wesley parodying every Alanis Morissette music video made to that point.

Sadly, Wesley passed away in 2003 of complications from chronic myelogenous leukemia.

So today, enjoy "Alanis Morrisette" by Wesley Willis.

3/30/11- Tin Star- "Head"

Anyone remember Tin Star? Probably not. They came and went pretty quickly. Even more impressive, their song "Head" hit the Top 10 before they faded away to nothing.

Formed in Britain in 1996, they released their debut album "The Thrill Kisser" in 1999, which spawned "Head" and had them hitting the Top 10. They failed to follow up with any other single, or with their 2001 album "Dirty Bird," and they disbanded.

It might be the first time you've heard it. Enjoy "Head" by Tin Star

3/29/11- Dave Matthews Band- "I Did It"

There are some days in which I wake up, and the most God-awful song is stuck in my head for NO reason. I haven't heard it in forever, so it's not like it was even part of my consciousness. Yet I'm starting my day singing it.

Today was one of those days.

I couldn't tell you the last time I heard the crap-tastic "I Did It" by the Dave Matthews Band. It goes down in history as probably the worst song they ever recorded.

But since it's stuck in my head. It's now stuck in your head. And hey! Enjoy the equally crappy video!

3/28/11- Our Lady Peace- "Life"

Our Lady Peace has been rocking since 1992, and in their long career, they have released 7 studio albums and one live album. While they're huge back in their homeland of Canada, they have made quite a name for themselves in the US, hitting the charts with singles like "Clumsy" "Somewhere Out There" and "Superman's Dead."

The single "Life" came off their 2000 "conceptual album" "Spiritual Machines." It's actually a solid album, my only gripe with it is that they threw short movie clips between the songs, so the album was only really 10 tracks long.

But back in 2000, this song was all over Philadelphia radio. Enjoy "Life" by Our Lady Peace"

3/27/11- Against Me!- "I Was a Teenage Anarchist"

It's been a busy Sunday, so for today, I threw the iPod on random and took the first song that came up that had a music video. For today, it was Against Me!

They formed in Gainsville, Florida in 1997, and are currently out in support of their 5th studio album "White Crosses." This was the first single from the album and was a minor hit at Modern Rock radio. It's "I Was a Teenage Anarchist."

3/26/11- Say Anything- "Wow, I Can Get Sexual, Too"

This video can be summed up in two words.

The Fonz.

That is all.

Say Anything
Tags:
Say Anything, MTVHive

3/25/11- Toad The Wet Sprocket- "Good Intentions"

Oh the 90s. I miss that decade. It was such a clusterfuck of music, but it was the clusterfuck of music that I grew up with and that I listed to in my late elementary to high school years. One of the bands that I loved, yet somehow never bought any of their albums (I need to go remedy that) is Toad the Wet Sprocket.

TTWS formed back in 1986, but didn't break through to the mainstream until 1991, when their third album "Fear" spawned the Alternative hits "Walk on the Ocean" and "All I Want." This success was part of what helped them land a track on the "Friends" soundtrack in 1995.

The song appears on the "Friends" soundtrack, and has Courtney Cox appearing in her second music video, the first of course being Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark." Enjoy "Good Intentions" by Toad the Wet Sprocket!

3/24/11- Elvis Costello- "Veronica"

This song came up on my iPod a day or two ago, and I realized that I had never seen the music video for it, let alone really figured out what the lyrics were. God bless the internet for providing me with both.

"Veronica" was co-written with Paul McCartney, and is a story of an old woman suffering severe memory loss, but will occasionally have a lucid moment. It was inspired by Costello's own grandmother. The music video was nominated for an MTV VMA for Best Male Video... back when the award actually meant something.

For today, enjoy "Veronica" by Elvis Costello!

3/23/11- Mat Kearney- "Undeniable"

A few years ago, I was introduced to the music of Mat Kearney. He's a Christian artist, but not a "beat you over the head with Jesus" Christian artist, in that, if you weren't told, or if you aren't tearing apart the lyrics for deeper meanings, you would never know.

He combines singer-songwriter sounds with a little bit of spoken word mixed in, as evidenced in today's music video. This song didn't do much on the charts, although I wish it had.

Enjoy "Undeniable" by Mat Kearney!

3/22/11- Vampire Weekend- "Giving Up The Gun"

I TRY not to be a major music snob, and I'll try to listen to anything once with an open ear. But there is ONE band that I just don't understand. Vampire Weekend. The first time I heard "A-Punk," I thought "this is utter crap." The first time I heard "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," I wanted to find what record label executive signed them and beat him with his own shoe. So when Vampire Weekend's latest album came out, I tried to avoid it like the plague.

But like any good trainwreck, I had to see what it was like. So I listened to some of the songs. They blew. EXCEPT for one. One song that sounded like what a hipster indie would write if they wanted ONE crossover pop-hit. And it wasn't bad!

The video is amusing, with some interesting cameos from Lil Jon, Joe Jonas, and Jake Gyllenhaal.

So enjoy the one song I like from a band I hate. "Giving Up The Gun" by Vampire Weekend.

3/21/11- Better Than Ezra- "King of New Orleans"

How have I gone this long without posting a video from my favorite band? I'm not sure, but it's time for one.

Better Than Ezra broke onto the scene in 1995 with their major label debut album "Deluxe" which spawned the #1 hit "Good" as well as "In the Blood" and "Rosealia." They quickly followed it up in 1996 with their sophomore album "Friction, Baby." They took to radio with the first single "King of New Orleans," which climbed all the way to #5 on the Modern Rock chart, and the video they made looked pure 90's rock music video. Abandoned building. Punk looking kids acting sketchy. Blue tint. But it fit the song perfectly, and to this day, it remains my favorite Better Than Ezra video.

Enjoy "King of New Orleans" by Better Than Ezra!

Better Than Ezra |MTV Music

3/19/11- Splender- "I Think God Can Explain"

Back in 1999, Splender broke onto the scene with their debut album "Halfway Down the Sky." It was a DAMN good rock record that still to this day, I can throw in the CD player (yes, I still listen to actual CDs sometimes)and go through start to finish without skipping a song.

But their course of fame changed when they released "I Think God Can Explain" which became a mid-level Pop hit. With the success of this song, their second album "To Whom it May Concern" tried to build on it, and it was a MUCH more pop-sounding album. It was still good, but nowhere near what "Halfway Down the Sky" was.

For today's video, we dig up the song that pushed them to the pop side. It's "I Think God Can Explain."

3/18/11- Good Charlotte- "Last Night"

First, I'm upset that this video is only on Funny or Die at the moment, because I refuse to support ANYTHING that the no-talent assclown Will Ferrell has a hand in. Either way, it's the only way to see this ridiculous video today.

Good Charlotte. Remember them? The guys who you are proud to own their first album, and proud to NOT own any of the rest of their albums? Their latest album, "Cardiology," was released back in November, but it's the video for their single "Last Night" that is gathering attention. Why? Because they recreated the set of Family Double Dare. PERFECTLY. AND they got Marc Summers to be in the video too. It's amazing, even if the song is merely...meh.

So enjoy a trip down memory lane today, on mute is probably best... with Good Charlotte's "Last Night"

Good Charlotte "Last Night" at Double Dare from Good Charlotte

3/17/11- Flogging Molly- "Drunken Lullabies"

It's Saint Patrick's Day! Are you drunk? Probably. So I'll keep today's blog short.

Enjoy an Irish drinking song! It's "Drunken Lullabies" by Flogging Molly!

3/16/11- Switchfoot- "Awakening"

Switchfoot blew up onto the rock scene in 2003 with their album "The Beautiful Letdown" and since then, their star may have faded a bit in the pop music world, but they have been plugging away strong as ever. In 2007, they released their 6th album "Oh! Gravity" and presented us with the song "Awakening." The video for the song was paid for completely out of pocket by the band, and stars Tony Hale (Buster from Arrested Development) and Adam Campbell (from Epic Movie and Date Movie.) The video features a lot of "papermation" (think Claymation, but with paper) which was probably their clever way of getting around copyright for using Guitar Hero in the vid.

Enjoy "Awakening" by Switchfoot!

3/15/11- The Zutons- "Pressure Point"

I'm back at work after a week off in paradise, and well, nothing's working. Literally. The company that I work for changed over to a new internal program that's supposed to be smoother and quicker, and it flat out doesn't work. It's a mess, and as I sit here and click my mouse furiously, I feel the pressure in my head building and undoing a week's relaxation. So for today's music video, how about some pressure?

The Zutons formed back in 2001, and broke onto the scene with their 2004 Major Label Debut "Who Killed...The Zutons?" (which included the oh-so vain song "Zuton Fever"). This song made a minor splash at Modern Rock radio, and actually had two different music videos made for it. I think this one was the "British" version.

Enjoy "Pressure Point" by the Zutons!

3/14/11- Dave Matthews Band- "Don't Drink The Water"

I have returned from a week's vacation down in Mexico. It was my first time there, and I returned without suffering any Mexican flu or stomach virus, mainly because I followed one piece of advice. Don't Drink the Water.

So for today's Music Video, I take the advice of the Dave Matthews Band. Enjoy "Don't Drink the Water"

3/4/11- Fountains of Wayne- "Mexican Wine" and Wall of Voodoo- "Mexican Radio"

After today, I'm on vacation for a week. It's my first REAL vacation in about a decade. I'm headed down to Mexico for a week of sand and sun, and it's going to be AWESOME.

Instead of doing the cliche "Vacation" by the Go-Gos for a video, I'll do a Mexican double-feature.

First, we have "Mexican Wine" by Fountains of Wayne, the follow-up single to the awesome "Stacy's Mom."




Second, how about we listen to some "Mexican Radio" by Wall of Voodoo?




I'll catch y'all in a week :)

3/3/11- The Offspring- "Gotta Get Away"

So I'm getting ready to go on vacation, my first real vacation in nearly decade. While I'm happy in life with work and more right now, I'm not going to lie, it's going to be good to get away for a while. That made me think of today's music video.

Going back to their album "Smash" for a very stereotypical 90s looking video, it's the Offspring with "Gotta Get Away"

Sadly, the Offspring don't allow embedding of their videos... So you'll have to CLICK HERE to watch it.

3/2/11- Alpha Rev- "New Morning"

Whew. Busy day. I almost forgot to put up a music video today. Since I'm in a rush, today I just took the iPod, put it on shuffle, and pulled the first song that had a music video made for it.

Alpha Rev is a fairly new band, formed in 2005 in Austin, TX. They released their major label debut album "New Morning" back in 2010, and had a minor hit with the title track. Here it is. Enjoy "New Morning" by Alpha Rev!

3/1/11- The Cardigans- "My Favourite Game"

It's early 1999, and the band the Cardigans get their new music video banned from MTV. How could that be? The band that brought us the super poppy and fun "Lovefool" are getting BANNED? What for?

Well the music video for their latest song "My Favourite Game" included reckless driving and a violent (and badly fake) crash at the end. Something MTV decided wasn't proper to air on their network. (Yet Jersey Shore somehow gets a pass? Go figure.)

Thakns to the internet, you get to see it now. Enjoy "My Favourite Game" by the Cardigans