Visiting my dad's vinyl and re-revisiting my own stash!

Recently I was able to visit my good ol' mom and dad in southwest Kansas and dig through my old man's vinyl collection. I've been wanting to do that for a long time because I knew I had a few gems I kept in there from years ago, and it's been high time to take 'em back!

Thanks, dad for keeping them safe!

As I dug through, I found countless examples of classic rock albums - all belonging to my dad. I combed through Hendrix, Deep Purple, Blue Oyster Cult, Johnny Winter, Nazareth, Judas Priest, Joplin, Beatles, Trapeze, and many more, including tons of blues and jazz.

I kept thinking how cool it was that many of these records my dad owns were bought new off the shelf, right when they came out. At the time, who knew that Hendrix would become the legend he is today or that Smoke on the Water would contain the riff that launched 1,000 guitarists?

Some of my dad's records are weathered and beat to hell from years of use and abuse, but man it felt good pulling those albums out and giving them some overdue attention.

Then I found my stash! You see, my vinyl-buying time was rather brief before I switched to cassette tapes and then CDs. I have only a few vinyl albums, and it was during a time when I was feeling my way through music to see what struck a chord in me.

I found Pink Floyd, ZZ Top, Zeppelin, AC/DC, Kingdom Come, and the Howard the Duck soundtrack.

Yes. The Howard the Duck soundtrack.

That pretty much summed up my vinyl buying experience, but I still picked up a couple more records a few years after I made the switch to CDs, and those were the ones I was after.

Here is one of 'em:

I already had the Garage Days Re-Revisted on CD, but when I saw this poor guy stuck in the freaking CUT-OUT BIN for a measly $2.99, I snatched it up and to this day never opened it. It still has the "Do not pay MORE!!!" sticker on it.

Now, I doubt that I would sell it for $5.98, damn what the stick on the cover says (including the $2.99 sticker).

I plan to get a nice turntable in the near future, and I am debating whether or not to rip the plastic off the cover and give this record a spin. The collector in me was kicking me in the balls as I wrote that last sentence.


Here is the second vinyl I was after:

I got the Whiplash EP at a used dealer YEARS ago for about $10.  This baby still looks brand-spankin' new, and I just love looking at it.

When I spotted these in the up-righted stack of records, I grabbed them up, added them to my sad little pile of vinyl and danced around a bit. My dad blankly looked at me and smiled. He loves music just as much as I do, so he understood my enthusiasm.

After I calmed down a bit, I put my pile to the side and continued to dig through my dad's records, pulling out stuff even he hasn't seen for years. We poured through quite a bit of his collection, dusting off memories and conversing about the magic of music.

Just...awesome.

We still have a bunch we haven't even went though yet. I can't wait to go back and continue where we left off.

Tantara covers Metallica

Tantara just posted their cover of the Metallica classic Disposable Heroes. This is excellent work for something they seemingly did just for fun (or good promo for their upcoming debut album).

The musicianship is tight, but it would have to be to get Metallica's ridiculously insane e-string gallops perfect. The coolest parts of the cover are the solos - they sound so full and rich. All in all, I dig this.

Hopefully this is just a taste of extra bits we can expect from the mighty Tantara, even after they come out full force with the release of Based On Evil!

Check out the cover below.

I like Lars Ulrich

I like Lars Ulrich.

As a person? Hell, I don't know, but as a musician and co-founder of Metallica? Yes, I like the guy.

So, no, I will not jump on the "Lars Sucks" bandwagon. Again, does he suck as a person? I don't know. As a musician? Of course not.

As a first line of defense against those within the metal fan community who seem to genuinely hate Lars, it's easy to site the first four (or five, if you enjoyed the Black Album) Metallica records.

"You hate Lars (and/or Metallica)? All I have to say is the first four albums mow over everything that has ever existed in the existence of existing," said the slobbering fanboy.

No, the only time I like to use the "First Four Albums" defense when debating about Metallica is when people slag on Ulrich's drumming skills.

You'll see it time and time again on forums and blog posts about how Lars is a terrible drummer. I remember reading a blog comment that basically said, Death Magnetic would have been a good record if Metallica would have found a different drummer.

Dumb.

Now, it's one thing if someone simply does not like Metallica's music, but to say that Lars Sucks as a drummer is just…silly.

So when I read or hear people dogging on Ulrich's drumming skills, I do usually site the first four albums, particularly Master of Puppets. Why? Think about it. When Master first came out back in '86, I don't remember hearing a lot of whining and bitching about how the supposed
piss poor drumming ruined the album.

Nowadays people view Master of Puppets as a classic thrash album, and I doubt Lars' "awful" drumming comes to mind when listening to Disposable Heroes, Damage, Inc., or the title track.

I've read the argument that Lars has become increasingly worse as a drummer since the 90s. Now, I understand that many thrash fans felt burned by 90s Metallica (me included), but that goes back to simply not enjoying the music. It has no bearing on the musician's actual skills as a player.

However, if someone actually believes that Lars use to be good but has somehow become decrepit as a drummer and musician, particularly when writing and playing on Metallica records, I would welcome someone to pull out a copy of Death Magnetic and point out the flaws in drumming technique that distracts from the songs. Not only that, but what could have been done to make it better?

As for my previous question, I am not a drummer, so I wouldn't know. I have a feeling that most people complaining about Lars Ulrich's skills are not drummers themselves.

So if Lars is not a walking failure as a drummer, then why all the Lars hate?

I believe the answer lies between Lars being a very rich and successful rock star and the stain left from taking Napster to court. I'm not saying the hate stems from all-out jealousy, but it IS easier to pick on the proverbial big guy.

I also believe that too many people make comparisons with other drummers.

"Lars?? HA! If you wanna hear a REAL thrash drummer, check out Lombardo, Menza, Hoglan, and that dude from Warbringer!"

Personally, I would also add that dude from Guillotine, but this is all beside the point. Yes, they are all incredible drummers, but because those guys are good takes zero away from what Lars does in his own band.

So is Ulrich the best or worst drummer in metal? I don't know and I don't care. All I know is that he played on some classic records that sound just as good today as when they first hit the shelves.

If you really want to know what a crappy drummer sounds like, get me behind a kit. Maybe if I am as bad as some people believe Lars to be, I still have my shot at playing in a successful metal band.

My prediction for Metallica's recording project

"I don't want to give too much away, but it's not really 100 percent a Metallica record. It's a recording project, let's put it that way."

So said Kirk Hammett about Metallica's next offering. Supposedly the music will be cranked out in the studio within two weeks.

The internet is lit up about what type of music Metallica is about to record, because after a return to form with Death Magnetic, I'm sure most fans are hoping that the band will dig deeper and get thrashier.

But with only two weeks scheduled for recording, are we gearing up for another Garage Days? I really, really doubt it.

I am going to make a prediction. If I'm wrong, I'll sit my butt down and admit it on this blog, but I have a feeling that I'm on the right path here.

Since Hammett claims that it is not a 100% Metallica record, I don't believe it will be either glory days thrash or a return to the alt-metal 90s flavor.

It will not be a progressive record with 20 riffs in each song, complete with off-time arrangements. With a two week schedule, I get the idea that the music will be simple and raw.

As I narrow it down, I firmly believe that the next record will be full-on heavy riff-rock, in the same ballpark as Karma to Burn.

Why?

The songs are relatively easy to write, raw as hell, and freaking fun to play. Also, this type of music is not foreign territory for Metallica. Listen to DM's instrumental Suicide & Redemption with your eyes closed - it freaking sounds like a Karma to Burn song (and a damn good one at that).

So there is my prediction for the secret Metallica recording project - stripped down versions of Suicide & Redemption.

Sure, I could be wrong. They could put out a cover album of Dr. Hook songs or some crazy Fantomas experimental stuff.

No matter what, color me interested.