Music Monday - Five Finger Death Punch

I'm going to start something new on my blog that I hope will keep me writing more consistently. Every Monday I'll do my best to put out a post about the music I've been listening to most recently. It'll be different but I'll still give my perspective and blah blah blah. I realize that today isn't Monday, though I do tend to get my days of the week confused. But if I had posted on Monday, this is what it would have been...

This past week I've been listening to a lot of Five Finger Death Punch. I hadn't listened to much from their first release, but upon doing so I realized why its called The Way of the Fist. Only a couple songs in and it felt like I'd just had the crap beaten out of me. The sick guitars' speed picking coupled with intensely belligerent lyrics makes for an audio smack in the face I won't forget.

Lead vocalist Ivan Moody's loud yelling vocals add impact to the angry lyrics while the guitars and drums slam the air waves with a sound that makes me think of a jack hammer pounding through concrete. In addition to the rough shouting, the album contains a decent amount of clean singing particularly during chorus lines.

Concerning the lyrics, I'd say "thems be fightin' words" and its true. Throughout most of the album, the words express great levels of disdain, frustration, and pissed-off-ness; Usually its complemented by an element of pessimism such as in "Never Enough" the words 'In the end, we're all just chalk lines on the concrete, drawn only to be washed away'. In "The Devil's Own", the lyrics talk about a childhood being destroyed by the father. In the song Ivan (who I assume wrote the lyrics) blames his father for being the reason he's dead inside. He also admits to hating to what he's become as a result of a flawed upbringing. Needless to say, the words contain high levels of emotion, which makes it one of my favorites. Along with that piece, I favor "The Way of the Fist", "White Knuckles", "Stranger Than Fiction", "Ashes", and "A Place to Die".

The entire album is rock solid and it was a great start to FFDP's music career. That's the end to our first Music Monday despite it being Wednesday -___-. I don't plan on them being long or super refined. Shoot me some feedback, comments, etc.

Art

Music is a huge part of my life. In fact, I've recently been branching off from my guitar playing and learning piano. As far as instruments go, the piano has been equivalent to a hott/cute/funny/physically stunning/OMG girl that you just want to talk to, but don't have the courage to try. I finally talked to her. And kinky innuendos aside, I've been playing the piano non-stop since I started. And it feels wonderful. Just like when I began teaching myself the guitar, its slow goin'. But a few break throughs here and there make all the difference to keep me on track. I love music.

However, it is not my entire life. At times I used to think it was. One month music would be everything to me, and the next it would be writing, and when I was a kid, I just craved drawing almost more than anything else.

I've come to realize that what really IS everything to me -- as far as earthly things are concerned -- is creativity and self expression in general. For those reading and grasping at straws trying to understand, I'd compare it to travel. Its like loving to travel and go places, but you don't get to destinations via only one method. There are planes, trains, and automobiles (no John Candy references, God rest his fat soul) that you use to reach places.

I'd say that writing would be like my "plane". I use it very often to get my thoughts from point A to B and it seems to be most effective at expressing what I think and feel. I would probably categorize music as either a train or a boat. They can get you places, though maybe not as fast. But the plus side is that you get to see life from a different perspective when traveling these ways. Drawing would probably be like a bike. If I'm good enough at riding, it can really get me places quite effectively. It might take more time and energy, but I can definitely get there. As of now, my drawing is limited to little doodlings here and there with an occasional half decent picture. I do like it though. And finally, I'll mention an art form that people don't think of very much, but it is one that I believe in. Speech. The way someone speaks can be truly incredible. It expresses and communicates whether by the actual words or just the way they are said. Not everyone speaks well, even on a daily basis. Modern day vernacular has become so watered down and cliche that it is remarkable to find a handful of people that speak well. Speech is my car. I use it everyday, all the time, but it is indeed unreliable at times. Just like my car, my voice has problems, namely in the way my thoughts reach my mouth and come out in stutters. Or when the thought comes to my mouth, but no words flow. People are just left looking at my gaping hole of a mouth, waiting for sound, but receiving a blank stare. Low gas. Brain farts.

Overall, I thank God for art and the ability it has to medicate and soothe the human soul if we will let it. Sometimes the hardest part is to slow our racing brains down enough to appreciate the simple pieces of human existence. Whether in an emotional painting or heartfelt lyrics. The human heart is an amazing thing. It is even more amazing when you can see a heart's tender contents become something tangible; able to be interpreted and digested, back into another person's heart.
Art was made to be shared.

LoveSick Symphony

I'm going to begin posting more recent poetry, seeing as I've really been on a roll and accomplishing a lot, which makes me joyous. So here's one that I started on a while ago, but got finished today. Enjoy :)

I met you last night

During a dream filled flight

Vivid and bright

Everything felt right

Sleep found the two of us

In a moment, spontaneous

Revealing years of trust

And feelings, robust

Twas more than an act

For my brain was cracked

Yes it was quite snapped

And so emotion reverted to black

My mind drifted

To the sound of a violin

Found the source

And was shy again

Therefore shifted

My heart’s trickery

To the rise and fall

Of a lovesick symphony

But the notes echoed in my head

Reverberated off walls instead

They bounced and floated like lead

Crushing my chest as I lay in bed

Hungover from dream juice

Neutrons firing so loose

Stalemate-induced truce

Reeling from reality’s noose

Senses dull, though my eyes did dart

In the morning I woke with a start

To find my feelings still in my heart

And us only existing in my art