Song of the Day for September 30th, 2010: "Rest" by The Temper Trap

And the song of the day is....Rest by the Temper Trap. I heard this song being played on a diet coke commercial yesterday, kind of strange, but I guess that's how it goes in the music biz. The Temper Trap are an alternative-rock band from Melbourne Australia, yet another Melbourne based band that is up and coming in a big way. No doubt that this album, titled Conditions (released in June or 2009) was a great one, but I just find it interesting to see which bands make it big and end up getting press and which ones don't despite being just as good if not better. The album reached #175 on the Billboard Top 200 albums in 2009, and it peaked at #25 on the UK Albums Chart. Now generally I like to post songs and bands that aren't all that well known, but I have to give props to Melbourne bands as I lived there for 2 years and heard heaps of amazing music, and have managed to stay somewhat connected thanks to Triple J online radio. That said, enjoy the song and definitely take some time out to check out the whole album. Also, one quick note, the song doesn't actually start up til about 15 seconds into it, so if audio doesn't seem to working its because there is a pause at the beginning of this track.

Song of the Day for September 29th, 2010: "Save Our Town" by Philadelphia Grand Jury

And the song is....Save Our Town by Australian indie-rock band Philadelphia Grand Jury. Philadelphia Grand Jury are a 3-piece band from Sydney, Australia but who are now based in the UK. They consist of band members Simon Berckelman, Joel Beeson, and latest addition Calvin Welch on drums. This song was released as a single from their new album titled Hope is for the Hopeless, and this single was released in August 2010. Also, be sure to take note that this song is still available as a free mp3 download at the following web-page, and like all of the other posts I have made of free mp3 downloads, yes, it is a legal download and in fact the band wants to their stuff out there, so there. Enjoy!

Consumer Reports video for "Driving impression: Honda CR-Z hybrid coupe" 2011

I am hoping to cover some more car stuff, and seeing that this vlog/blog is focusing a bit more on "the new" that I want to cover the new generation of cars coming out here in the USA. I would also like to cover the new gen. of cars in Europe/UK, such as Citroen and Peugeot but I really don't have any exposure to them so hang in there with me. Here is the recent consumer reports review for the 2011 Honda CR-Z hybrid sport coupe innit.

#53 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown!: "The KKK Took My Baby Away" by The Ramones (1981)

Well now, its been a bit too long this time hasn't it? I have been away at weddings and DJ gigs and what not, but I am back here today to present #53 of the countdown! And the song is....The KKK Took My Baby Away by the legendary American punk-rock band The Ramones. The Ramones are one of those staple punk-bands of all time, and they will always be out there in the spot light, at least they will be if I have anything to say about it. The Ramones originated in Forest Hills, in the burrow of Queens, New York, and they were active as a band from 1974-1996. They had a major influence on punk rock music in the USA and in the UK. All of the band members adopted the surname of Ramone, despite the fact that not of them were actually related. According to wikipedia The Ramones toured almost non-stop for more than 22 years and that they performed at 2,263 concerts during that time, and in 1996 they disbanded following one final show at the 1996 'Lollapalooza.' By 2004, the 3 lead members of the band had all died, inlcuding lead singer Joey Ramone, guitarist Johnny Ramone, and bassist Dee Dee Ramone. In 2002 The Ramones were inducted into the 'Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The KKK Took My Baby Away appeared on their 6th studio release album which was titled Pleasant Dreams and was released in July of 1981, and it was written by Joey Ramone. Well there it is in all its glory, now what could #52 be?? I reckon I should do that one sooner innit?

A VJ Brewski Remix: "Down Under Club" Men at Work vs. 50 Cent

I had to post this one, too good and too hilarious not too! Awesome job to VJ Brewski and DJ Lobsterdust!

Men at Work vs. 50 Cent - Down Under Club from VJ Brewski on Vimeo.
Men at Work - Land Down Under vs. 50 Cent - In da Club. DJ Lobsterdust Mashup. VJ Brewski Videomix

Song of the Day for September 28th, 2010: "Our Song (feat. Seth Sentry)" by Horrorshow

And the song of the day is....Our Song (feat. Seth Sentry) by Australian hip-hop duo Horrorshow. Horrorshow consists of duo Adit Gauchan (a.k.a. Adit) (DJ), and
Nick Bryant-Smith (a.k.a. Solo) (as emcee) who have been around since 2006 and come out of sunny Sydney, Australia. Both of these members grew up in the inner-west suburbs of Sydney and began their hip-hop careers at the age of 19. They have released two full-length albums in the past and have been releasing a few new singles here and there as well, in fact this song is still available as a free mp3 download as well as at least one other Horrorshow track at this link.  Also if you have a facebook account they have some free downloads and artist info on their page there, which I would highly recommend. Check them out, and enjoy yourself some great Aussie hip-hop!

Song of the Day for September 27th, 2010: "Collapsing Cities" by Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly.

And the song of the day is...Collapsing Cities, by English artist Sam Duckworth, and his band Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. come out of Southend, Essex, England and were signed to Atlantic Records in 2006. According to lead band member Sam Duckworth, the name for the band comes from a section out of a magazine called ZX Spectrum, as a solution to a Batman computer game. The song Collapsing Cities appears as the first single from the new self-titled album, which was released on August 9th, 2010. Also if you like the song, you would do well to know it is still available as a free mp3 download at this website.

Brief Movie Review for "Swedish Auto" (2006)

 3.5/5 Stars ***

Not your typical formulaic movie, which is nice for a change. About a young single auto-mechanic who is infatuated with a violinist, but who in turn discovers another attractive blonde girl who is infatuated with him. Her family life, however turns out to be troublesome. I would recommend this one.

Song of the Day for September 26th, 2010: "Stand Tall" by Dirty Heads

And the song of the day is...Stand Tall by American reggae-rock band Dirty Heads. Dirty Heads consist of members Jared Watson, Dustin "Duddy" Bushnell, Jon Olazabal, Matt Ochoa, and David Foral and they are based out of Huntington Beach, California. Stand Tall came off of their 2008 debut album release titled Any Port in a Storm and it was featured in a Sony Pictures film called Surf's Up. This album would peak at #55 on the US Album Chart in 2008. This band has a laid-back beachy sound, no doubt about that, and yet they also contain some elements of indie rock which makes for an interesting blend, I highly recommend checking out their album.

Song of the Day for September 25th, 2010: "Falling" by The Cat Empire

And the song is....Falling, by Australian indie-rock-ska-jazz-latin-reggae-eclectic band The Cat Empire. The Cat Empire consist of Felix Riebl (percussion and vocals), Harry James Angus (trumpet and vocals), Ollie McGill (keyboard and backing vocals), Ryan Monro (on bass guitar and vocals), Will Hull-Brown (on drums) and Jamshid "Jumps" Khadiwhala (various percussion), and various guest artists who appear throughout depending on the song. Falling appears on their 5th studio-album which was released on June 29th, 2010 titled Cinema. I recently did a post on another track from this album titled Beyond All, which I would also highly recommend checking out if you like this one. As always, they blend lots of styles together in one song to create a masterpiece.

Song of the Day for September 24th, 2010: "Teenage Crime" by Adrian Lux

And the song is...Teenage Crime, by Swedish DJ/producer Adrian Lux. Adrian Lux is based in Stockholm, Sweden and he is part of what has been called the La Vida Locash Movement. Adrian Lux is considered by some to be the successor of Eric Prydz. Teenage Crime is a single release which came out on June 28, 2010, and the album includes 3 or 4 remixes of the song, however the original mix is posted below via youtube. For more info on the artist and to check out some of his other work be sure to check out his myspace page here.

Consumer Reports Video: "New Ford Mustang vs. New Camaro"

I figure I haven't posted much about cars on this vlog/blog, and seeing that they are such a large part of our lives these days I figured its time to show some interest. The latest Consumer Reports Magazine has some ratings for the new muscle cars, as well as the new EV's coming out, so be sure to pick yourself up a copy of the October 2010 issue. If you are interested in seeing the 5 new electric vehicles coming out in 2011 (including the Chevy Volt, Ford Focus EV, Mini-E, Nissan Leaf, and Tesla Roadster) than click on this link.

Some interesting facts are that both of these cars put out over 300 horse-power and the Ford Mustang gets an overall 24 mpg, whilst the new Chevy Camaro gets 21 mpg.

Song of the Day for September 23rd, 2010: "Me and the Moon" by The Drums

And the song is...Me and the Moon, by American indie-rock group The Drums. The Drums come out of Brooklyn, New York and conists of members Jonathan Pierce (vocals), Jacob Graham (guitar), Connor Hanwick (drums). This track, like the last one I posted comes off of their self-titled debut album which was released on June 7th, 2010. This group has a unique sound, strangely though it is also not unique, but that is what makes it good, that duality.