You May Hate Us After This (I Know I Do) : Who's Crying Now

Back in my hometown (Small Southern Town, USA), life seems to progress a little bit slower and people's lifestyles are simple. Everyone is mostly spending time with their friends and family, cruising the Walmart strip to show off the new rims placed on their car, or just up to something completely mischievous (i'll leave that up to your own imagination). The most glitz and glamour that may be experienced is at the local Homecoming game when announcing the King and Queen.

I'm not knocking this way of living at all. In fact, I miss it from time to time. Home will always be home. The one thing I don't miss is what is usually placed on the local FM radio stations. One of the stations would consistently play music that was outdated. That's fine if it was an oldies station but it classified itself as a pop/rock station. It would act as if Christopher Cross was going to be the next big thing. Also, they had an affinity of playing current hit songs a billion times. The song " It's Been a While" by Staind is still in constant rotation in my mind.

Even though I have my complains about the local radio station, It has at least given me one song that connects me to the spirit of my hometown, and that's "Who's Crying Now" by Journey...Yes, I typed Journey. For most that know me, know that I've never been a fan of theirs but there is something about this song that draws me in. It's not one of their most famous songs, it's not the catchiest, nor does Journey have a specific connection to the south; however, when I hear Steven Perry's vocals, I think of that radio station back at home, which makes me think of cheesy old songs and unrelenting mainstream chart toppers, which leads to my mind being flooded with unforgettable memories. Late night runs to Waffle House, bonfires in the country while parents were out of town, and conversations on the telephone that were held until someone fell asleep saying "nah uh, you go to bed first..."

Is the song a guilty pleasure...probably...but does it hold sentimental value...definitely. It helps me to relish in the delightful parts of my youth and to remind me from whence I came from.

Is that too deep of an attachment for a Journey song? Possibly...

TENDABERRY EP RELEASE SHOW!

CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF "AM I STILL ILLMATIC?"

Prepare to have your socks rocked off, you're feet shufflin' and your head to bang for Tendaberry's EP Release Show with our friends The Killer and The Martyr, Night Nurses, The Doppel Gang, Small Eyez & L-Marr the Great, and of course, Tendaberry. Come and celebrate with us. It should be a shindig to remember.

$5 bucks at the door!

Start Time:	Tuesday, May 26, 2009 at 10:00pm
End Time:	Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 2:00am
Location:	Lenny's Bar
Street:	486 Decatur Street SE
City/Town:	Atlanta, GA

Wingman

While watching an old Coors Light commercial on Youtube recently, it crossed my mind that there should be a post dedicated to the actions of a wingman (wingwoman or wingperson if you prefer). This person know their role and plays it to perfection. That person is John Stockton and you're Karl Malone, and you can execute the pick and role at will. Also, you should know the playbook well enough to switch positions and do the same thing. This person is looking out for your best interest and may be sacrificing themselves for your personal gain. Isn't that what friends or for?

Tenda Berries Make Fine Wine : Lykke Li

Lykke Li is the latest imported artist that's beginning to make a splash in the American music scene. Originally from Sweden, this slightly nomadic singer has produced a buzz for herself with the release of her EP called Little Bit in 2007. Eventually Lykke's music would make it's way west to the U.S. with her debut album Youth Novels in 2008. Her sugary pop vocals gels smoothly with electro/synthpop. Also it has a slight dash of hip hop/trip hop.

State side Lykke has had a huge promotional push due to the Canadian hip hop artist Drake. After the release of the his mixtape So Far Gone and their collaberation on the song "A Little Bit (Remix)", her voice has been heard by hipsters, indie kids, and hardcore hip hoppers alike. Lykke has worked with the likes of Kanye West, Kings of Leon, Santagold, and Kleerup just to name a few, and she has covered such hits as "A Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed, and "Hustlin'" by Rick Ross.

This 23 year old has only made a dent into the music scene. With her popularity rising rapidly, this will soon turn into a rip...a tear...a gap...or even a chasm. Looking forward to what happens...

LCD Soundsystem- "Someone Great"

LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great
Uploaded by epb21

I have the horrible knack for ignoring wonderful bands and wonderful songs if too many people are talking about them. It's not completely my fault, it's conditioning. Growing up (not that I'm really an adult anyway) all the different bands and artists who were touted before me as the next big thing or the "greatest since..." whoever was the great thing that died in the 90's was a severe disappointment.

So if you come of age where the music that is popularized by pr machines and ad campaigns rather than an honest-to-god recommendation from someone you trust, be it a friend, your local record store employee or an artist you greatly enjoy you'd be pretty initially cynical about any band that got real big real quick. Unfortunately for me, as immersed as I am into underground bands, my concept of "popular" is somewhat skewed. Hence why I've willfully ignored LCD Soundsystem for so long and lately to my detriment.

For the past month I've been fretting about a song I heard on the best terrestrial radio station out and generally being frustrated 24 hours a day due to my not being able to remember a friggen song whose infectious bass line was haunting my everyday. This happens more often than I'd like it but never for a month. Imagine my relief when this morning I turned on said radio station and it was playing (thank you John Waters).

Finally listening in full to the two-year-old song I was happy to learn that the song didn't just stay in my head because it was catchy, but also because it was good. Jesse Murphy has long since proved himself to be one of the top electronic musicians around and "Someone Great" is one of the best his best examples.

Filling your head with a neo-disco groove perfectly suited for a packed house party in someones too-small-to-do-anything-but-stand-and-drink living room. Murphy's vocals seemingly are less important to adding meaning to the song but rather another layer of smooth melody in contrast to the sharp bell tones of which he harmonizes.

But most striking of the song has to be the cool delivery of what has to be some of the most melancholy lyrics in the past decade. The downer tone the song takes when you finally listen to it might be one of the reasons it never received too much notice here in the US and was pretty much relegated to widespread acclaim in the indie music circles; a factor which probably led to my not getting into the group before now.

But for the rest of the day I can now properly listen/dissect/obsess over "Someone Great" and get on with the rest of my life until the next song that gets stuck in my head comes along. If I'm lucky I'll actually have that song too.

You May Hate Us After This (I know I do)

About a week ago Maximus and I were going over the state of the blog and our respective posts. in his infinite wisdom he suggested there be some type of order and consistency to the blog. I agreed not knowing he'd practically assign me weekly homework and that I'd have no way of declining (being that I'm not exactly plying my writing trade for real American dollars yet). So yeah, thank you Maximus. Ya jerk.

Much like the new regular feature of eye candy/cheesecake/soft porn that is going up the folks here at Trivial Design would like to reach out to those who might not have the auditory acumen of the Tendaberry affiliated. We all would like to make it clear that we aren't a bunch of snotty music heads who frown upon anything that hits above a certain level of name recognition.

We like music, we aren't hipsters.

That being said there are plenty of songs and albums we shouldn't like because as we have what can only be described as impeccable taste in music. But we do; there are legions of records that we enjoy for no possible logical reason. And there is a reason for it.

We like music, and we aren't goddamn hipsters.

So yeah we'll get involved in a band that's entirely too popular to be worth it. Or we'll be in agreement that the single of the week by said rapper of the month is hot. Hell, you can have one good song by luck of the draw really.

So to kick this feature of the agreed upon theme "Guilty Pleasures" I thought I'd go all in and pick a song that I am constantly ridiculed for despite it's sheer greatness.


Motley Crue- Too Young To Fall In Love

Motley Crue - Too Young To Fall In Love (Official Music Video) - The best free videos are right here

Motley Crue is obviously not one of the best bands ever. Hell artistically/musically/logically they weren't even one of the best bands during their heyday. What they were though was fun, loud, and cocky, and despite what I have to say about the quality of their music those elements are oddly and shamefully appealing.

Moreso than the song though, I love this video. It has absolutely nothing to do with the song and not in a Spike Jonze "why the hell is this in here" montage but like Nikki Sixx decided he wanted their next video to be an homage to all the martial arts movies they were watching while stoned on the days they were too fucked up to record the song.

The lyrics and music of this song are generic especially for the era in which it came out. Guns N' Roses were a substantially more honest and likable archetype of the 80's LA metal scene. But sometimes you gotta check out what the runner-up has going for them seeing as you've already consumed everything the breakaway top spot has got.

I am pretty shameful for liking this song at all, not to mention having put the vid in my Youtube favorites whereas not all of my fave metal songs have even been looked at. It's not a great song, and it's chart position reflected that, and it's hardly a good song, but I like it for all it's campy visualization and forced earnestness. I am sorry world, so very sorry.

Tenda Berries Make Fine Wine

On Trivial Design, the gentlemen and myself bring a plethora of musical knowledge to the forefront for the enjoyment of the masses. It ranges from us speaking about obscure 80s groups, to the newest metal group moshing it's way through the music scene. It's not only entertaining but educational.

Not to pigeon hole ourselves as just a music blog, we wanted to expand our blog-a-sphere horizons are write about other various subjects that we hold near and dear to our hearts; therefore, we are creating a post called "Tenda Berries Make Fine Wine" (this is subject to change if you can come up with a more fluent and catchy title). It shall be about actresses, writers, singers, and other members of the fairer sex that are making productive strives in their respective industries.

This particular post will be a double feature. The first dedication goes to Megan Fox. She has been compared and often referred to the next generations Angelina Jolie. This 22 year old has been recently thrust into the mainstream limelight due to her role in as Mikaela Banes in the movie Transformers. She has also been featured in other films such as Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, and How to Lose Friends and Alienate People. Megan has also been dubbed in 2008 as FHM's "Sexiest Woman on the World". Viewers will be paying close attention to her as she reprises her role in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen due out June 24th, which will be one of the summers biggest blockbusters. Even with the Angelina comparisons, she is becoming a star in her own right.


Another tour de force in the film industry is an actress named Zoe Saldana. Some may know her as Nick Cannon's love interest in the movie Drumline or as the daughter of Bernie Mack in the comedy Guess Who. This New York native bodly plans on going where no man has gone before in the feature film Star Trek, which is released on May 8th. She will take the U.S.S. Enterprise to new heights and will give Trekkies more to believe in out their in the universe.

If anyone has any suggestions on whom shall grace the next post, we are open to suggestions. these lovely individuals all deserve praise for their accomplishments and what they bring to the table. On that note, there is only one song that could be played to finish this off..."A Girl Like You" by Edwyn Collins! Thank me later.

New Transformers Trailer

FHM's "Sexiest Woman in the World"

Star Trek Trailer