Exotica is a very unique genre of music.  The genre got its name from the 1957 Martin Denny album seen above.  The musical style was popular during the late 1950′s through the 1960′s.  Martin Denny talks about it as “a combination of the South Pacific and the Orient…what a lot of people imagined the islands to be like…it’s pure fantasy though.”  This is the first track off Exotica, “Quite Village”

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Exotica is a caricature of the music from the Oceania region. Like Mr. Denny said, a fantasy.  This mix contains originals and standards redone with that exotica spice. Here is version of “Begin the Beguine” done by the BBC Jazz Ensemble.

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And here is Equivel’s

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Quite a difference. If you like it, check out this mix. The track listing is as follows:

• The Ames Brothers w/Esquivel-            Quizas, Quizas, Quizas
• Arthur Lyman-                                           Brazilleros
• Arthur Lyman-                                           Babalik Ka Rin
• Augie Colón-                                               Ode Colon
• Billy Mure-                                                  Kula Ha
• Chango and the Polynesians-                  Minoi, Minoi
• Charles Mauu-                                            Vana Vana
• Esquivel-                                                     Harlem Nocturne
• Esquivel-                                                     Take The “A” Train
• Esquivel-                                                    Granada
• Esquivel-                                                    Begin The Beguine
• Esquivel-                                                    Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2
• Gene Rains-                                              Busy Port
• John Buzon Trio-                                    Caravan
• Les Baxter-                                               Congo Train
• Les Baxter-                                               Balinese Bongos
• Les Baxter-                                               A Felicidade
• Les Baxter-                                              Tristeza
• Martin Denny-                                       The Girlfriend
• Martin Denny-                                       Ringo Oiwake/Firecracker
• Martin Denny-                                       Quiet Village
• Martin Denny-                                       Jungle River Boat
• Rene Paulo Trio-                                   Hawaiian War Chant
• The Surfers-                                            Mele Kalikimaka
• Terorotua and his Orchestra-             Vahine Taumotu
• Terorotua and his Orchestra-             To To To E
• Terorotua and his Orchestra-              Rupe Rupe

Introduction to Exotica

I have never heard of this band before today.  I was looking on the Earache website to see if I could find myself At The Gates’ Slaughter of the Soul on vinyl. I didn’t find it, but I did find Cerebral Bore. I think their music is kind of generic, nothing special. The singer does have some pipes on her though. The story behind it is that Cerebral Bore needed a new singer in 2010.  They saw this video on the youtube.

They were like, “OMG!! We have to have her!!” And now they are this.

I don’t think this song is that bad, but I do think the vocals sound really good. However, if you want some awesome female vocals AND metal you should listen to Fuck The Facts. Also I think it is funny that a woman is wearing a dying fetus shirt. You can’t get more pro-choice then that. Thank you and goodnight.

I really like the new Cave In song. Rock and Roll.

CAVE IN – Sing My Loves by H.H.R.

So the other day my lovely Aunt Pam sent me an envelope with a bunch of old pictures in it from my family’s past. I finally got around to scanning and cleaning them up a little bit. These photographs are pretty cool. My grandfather, Nando Gomez, was stationed in the city of Manila, Philippines during WWII. On December 21st 1941, it was bombed by the Japanese. There are two pictures, one of the harbor and one of the DMHM building, both ablaze. There is a photograph of General McArthur and another one of famous comedian and singer Joesph E. Lewis. The rest are of my family, most of whom are dead now. Check em out.

This is so awesome it hurts. You have to love the Beastie Boys. Look at the cast in this video!!! Unbelievable.

Fuck The Facts is a grindcore band from Canada and they have a female vocalist.  People who are unfamiliar with metal are usually completely shocked that a woman can make herself sound like this. Listen.

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What glorious beauty!!!  This woman, named Melanie Mongeon, sounds just as bad ass as any other metal vocalist out there. Their newest release, Unnmaned, came out last year. It is 11 minutes of wondrous grindcore. You can get it for digital download or the 7″ vinyl here. I suggest getting the vinyl.  Also, check out their live video.

Metal has been a big part of my life since my older brother, Joe, allowed me to own Vulgar Display of Power when I was in the third grade.  Shortly after that, death metal started creeping its way into my life with bands such as Cannibal Corpse, Carcass, Morbid Angel, Deicide, Death, and Dying Fetus just to name a few. Death Metal has had an extremely positive influence on me. Look at me in my picture above!! Anyhoo, Death Metal is usually categorized by deep growling vocals, fast down-tuned guitars, lots of blast beats and double bass, complex song structures, and a complete lack of bass guitar in the mix. Here is the track list:

• Broken Hope-             High on Formaldehyde
• Cannibal Corpse-            Hammer Smashed Face
• Death-                                    Scavenger Of Human Sorrow
• Dying Fetus-                        Conceived Into Enslavement
• Hate Eternal-                        Bringer of Storms
• Misery Index-                        Theocracy
• Morbid Angel-            Vengeance Is Mine
• Nile-                                    Sacrifice Unto Sebek
• ORIGIN-                        Larvae Of The Lie
• Cattle Decapitation-            Into the Public Bath
• Deicide-                        Once Upon the Cross
• Immolation-                        Dawn Of Possession
• Malevolent Creation-            Bone Exposed
• Serious Injury-            Forever Crucified (Part I)
• Serious Injury-            Forever Crucified (Part II)
• Suffocation-                        Funeral Inception

Just a side note, Serious Injury is my  death metal band from New Orleans, LA. It rocks.  Download mix here and prepare to have your life changed.

Circle Takes The Square is a screamo-punk band from Savannah, Georgia. The music and the lyrics are incredibly complex and hard to digest. I am not going to go into what they sound like, you can just listen for yourself. This is my favorite track from their 2004 release, As The Roots Undo.

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Since As The Roots Undo, CTTS have been working on a new release, Decompositions: Volume I. Every once and a while I check up on these guys to see what progress is being made on their new album. Usually I am disappointed to see nothing. However, this time I was surprised to find that they have a studio blog for Decompositions: Volume I.  Hurray!!  They also have a project on kickstarter.com. I gave a little bit to help them out, if you like the music you should do the same. As The Roots Undo is an album that will go on every portable music device I own and hopefully the next album will do the same. I can’t get enough. One more song.

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Here are some pictures of the Mission District in San Fran I took a while back. Click to enlarge.

Queens of the Stone Age is one of those bands I always feel like listening to. I just think they are really good. This song has been stuck in my head all night.

Also here is a live clip from the website, From The Basement.