The 90's: A Music Love Affair

There is so much incredible music that came out of the 1990's. From the rise of the Spice Girls, Boy Bands from New Kids on the Block (who were formed in the late 80's, but won their first music award in 1990) to the Backstreet boys, N sync, 98 Degrees and beyond, Good hip hop, to my personal favorite 90's Alternative. Bands such as Spin Doctors, Better than Ezra, Dishwalla, The Goo Goo Dolls, Eve 6, and one of the best bands of the decade; Third Eye Blind. I am yet to meet a teenager from this decade who did not like this band, their music was awesome, and although we may not have understood the menagerie of drug references in Semi-Charmed Life it is still one of my favorite songs of all time.

Pop really saw its rise during this decade with boy bands. They played to the hearts of teenage girls (and sometimes boys) with their lyrics and made you feel like they were only talking to you. The Spice Girls gave you a little more of an in your face up beat type of pop. Girls loved the in your face attitude and guys loved Posh (or Ginger if you're into redheads). This time period also saw the rise of pop artists such as Usher, Mariah Carey, J-Lo, and the blonde pop sisters (Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, and Mandy Moore). As popular as this genre was only one "pop" artist stands out in my mind as a good artist from this group, and that is Alanis Morissette. Jagged Little Pill stayed in the top 20 on top 200 billboard hits for over a year. With songs like "Ironic" and "Hand in my Pocket" that everyone could enjoy.

Hip Hop also saw its roots grow in this time and really evolved very quickly. From MC Hammer to The Beastie Boyz to Biggy and Tupac to Jay-Z's humble beginnings Hip Hop really earned its place in the music spotlight on the 90's. The most important Hip Hop artists of this time were definitely Biggy and Tupac. These two stars wrote tremendous music that was only eclipsed by their unfortunate demise due to the East Side West Side gang violence.

One of the most influential and groundbreaking bands of this decade were Nirvana. Nirvana who were formed in the late 80's, but made it big in the 90's with their huge hit "Smells Like Teen Spirit" off of Nevermind, their second album. Their grunge 90's alternative style saved rock music from whatever distortions had popped up during the 80's. Alternative rock from this time period is probably one of my favorite genres, period. Everything about this music continues to enrapture me, even today. As happens with most bands many only had one hit album or song that really caught on, and they disappeared from the limelight after their fifteen minutes (or 3-4 minutes) of fame dissipated. Bands that fit this bill include Semisonic with "Closing Time," Marcy Playground with "Sex and Candy," and The Verve with "Bittersweet Symphony." There are a number of bands from this time period who did bridge the gap from the 90's to the new millenium. Artists such as Blink 182, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Goo Goo Dolls, and Counting Crows continue to make insightful music While their hits from the 90's are still very popular.

After I finish the series of posts on the nineties, I will try and assemble lists of top tens for each category.

Here is a little preview from my next 90's topic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7c3bQQmwVE

Before I continue my love affair with the 90's story a friend sent me this article which I thought everyone would enjoy

http://www.montrealgazette.com/travel/Boozy+chimp+sent+rehab+Russia/2616639/story.html

The '90's A love Affair

With the new decade only a few months old, I am going to take a trip back to my personal favorite decade, the 1990's. When the clock struck midnight on December 31, 1999, it sounded the birth of the new millennium, but it was also the death toll for an incredible decade, the last millennium seriously went out with a bang. Now that I have lived through another full decade, I have to express how much the 1990's meant to me. I am pretty sure that my brother Michael has written about the 90's already, but I would like to affirm how much that decade kicks the crap out of every other decade.

It could have to do with the fact that the 90's were the time of my childhood,the time period that took me from age 4-14, but I loved almost everything about this decade from snap bracelets to the first time I ever really followed the NCAA Tournament. I am going to look at the 90's from a number of different perspectives, from music, to pop culture, to sports, videos games, movies, TV shows, and more. Every few days or at least once a week I will try and add a different topic. For now I will leave you with a tremendous 90's classic from Snap!.

Nomar Retires!

yeah, yeah, I'm sure none of you New Yorkers care much about this, but Nomar Garciapara... one of my favorite Red Sox retired today, and with who else BUT the Red Sox. =)

Ahhh.. ain't life sweet? I mean obviously he would want to retire with such a dignified and well respected team, who wouldn't?! Nomar signed a one day contract with the sox so that he could retire with the team he loved most. Boston has always said that Nomar is always friendly and appreciative when he sees people around the city. Not cocky or rude... like Beckett (don't get me wrong, love the guy and he wears my number) But Nomar has always been a great kid, plus he's married to soccer legend Mia Hamm. no biggie, just legends all around.

Why is Nomar so great? Well besides the fact that he isn't the cutest puppy in the window (But, real baseball players don't wear makeup like Arod & Jeter) He was a hustler. One thing my dad always taught me in sports was if you want to get noticed, you hustle. And boy did Nomar hustle. He didn't jog to first because he knew he was going to be out, he ran like the wind because that was his job. Yeah I don't know too many statistics with baseball and other sports, but I know my players.. and I loved Nomar.

(By the way... don't try to tell me that I was too young to watch him play on the Sox. I'm 20 years old and I remember him plain as day on the team. Granted I was young, but I would remember that nose anyday.)


tootlelou

Ok Go at it Again!

Remember the craze over that perfectly timed dance routine on treadmills a few years back? Better yet. Don't remember that slow-mo dance routine recorded in a backyard. The one released by the same band even before the treadmills? Well, they're at it again with their damned crazy video antics.

Hailing from Chi-town USA, the band OK GO may be better known for their well choreographed music videos, than their music itself. Gaining international fame after releasing homemade videos of themselves dancing to their music in the early 2000's, the band became a YouTube sensation receiving millions of hits on their video's in just days. While you might have just begun to think they were long gone, OK GO has just released a new video for their single "This Too Shall Pass." The video that is gaining the mass attention is the Rube Goldberg-esque short made for the song that involves tons of bells, whistles, marbles and dominoes, that seemingly all coincide with the emotions of the song. While single shot film's are one of the bragging points OK GO has claimed, I have since heard rumors that this new video has cuts in it (not at all taking away from this genius music video). If the band does decide they still want to claim their video's are done in one take, they can just use the original idea they filmed for "This Too Shall Pass," which was done in a single shot with over one hundred members of a marching band. You can watch that video here, which is still listed as the official video for the song . The contraption used in the "Rube" version was apparently created by a team of engineers and has become yet another youtube sensation for the midwest band, currently based out of Los Angeles.

While personally I give their music a B- rating, nobody can deny the visual genius of this band and the entertainment they provide with the release of each of the videos.

Here's the video for "This Too Shall Pass"