Here’s something I’ve often wondered.

There are a handful of bands that I’ve come across since my adolecence that experienced a great deal of commercial success with their first hit (or first couple of hits). Then, just like that, they’re gone. Why? It’s not the quality of the song…otherwise, it wouldn’t have been a “hit”.

Was it the name of the NAME of the band that turned people off? Quite possibly.

Here are a few examples (with links to their YouTube videos if you’re interested)

Dogs Die In Hot Cars

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeywCfxYcas
These Scottish alt-punk rockers had a hard driving 2004 hit called “I Love You ‘Cause I Have To”. Such a great hook, melody, and story line…but how many animal lovers did they piss off? Plenty, I’m sure. They’re still around….supposedly.

Ass Ponys

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VTBam8YzQg
If you don’t know the song “Little Bastard”, you probably didn’t listen to ANY rock radio in 1993. Four words: ALL FISH BELLY WHITE! This Cincinnati based neo country quartet took a break from their grassroots influences to create the album “Electric Rock Music”. “Little Bastard” was the one and only single that ever saw the light of day. It quickly became one of my all time favorites…and still is. But with a band name like “Ass Ponys”, I can’t help but wonder if they would have gone further with a different name. Don’t ask me what that name should have been…that’s for someone else to deicde.

eels

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2yy141q8HQ
“Novocane For The Soul”…amazing song, excellent video, weird band name. It’s a shame, too. This west coast band has depth…and a weird band name. It’s not even “THE Eels”. It’s just “eels”…all lower case….because it wasn’t weird enough already. Anywhoo, I love this song and it will remain in many of my future playlists.

Alien Ant Farm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ2t4jfVTiU
In 2001, we got our first glimpse of AAF when they covered Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal”. Awesome. Everybody dug this….but as many music critics will tell you, if your first “hit” is a cover, you better come out swinging for your NEXT hit. AAF gave us “Movies”. The video was quirky and the hook got in to your head like an ear infection for a 5 month old (Sydney?). After that, the steam fizzled out. Sure, they’ve released more material since then and their fan base is smaller (and likely more defined and dedicated). Middle America seems to have forgotten about AAF, though. Did the name of the band act as an Alien death ray? Perhaps.

Butthole Surfers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4WUlNSx_Wk
When I was a DJ on 929 dave fm from 2005 to 2008, this was the ONLY band name I can honestly say I was uncomfortable saying on the air. It’s my suspicion that the program director(s) purposely scheduled this song during MY shift just to make me say it. A theory I have yet to prove. Let’s face it, it’s an awkward name that makes me squirm to this day. I didn’t even like typing it.

Cherry Poppin’ Daddies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IqH3uliwJY
During the swing revivial of the late ’90′s, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies burst on to the scene (with mouths foamed) with “Zoot Suit Riot”. These guys were tight, talented, and could SWING, baby. But along with the death of the aforementioned revival, the Daddies went by the wayside. It’s likely that they would have stuck around if the swing thing stayed, but this wasn’t the case. The other “daddy” group of the swing revival, “Big Bad VooDoo Daddy” also disappered from the scene. Did the revival kill the bands, or did the bands kill the revival? Ask Brian Setzer….and his orchestra.

Citizen King

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKxXHEx-XnU
“…and the bottom drops out!” – Catchy, right? Of course! This diddy went to # 10 in 1999 and was a mainstay on top 40 and AAA radio. You’ll still find it in my iTunes, as well (which is quite an honor). This Milwaukee based soul/rock group disbanded in 2002, but their biggest hit lives on in our various mp3 players. It’s a calcuated risk choosing a band name that can be drawn with another reference. In this case, it’s closely related to, what some consider, the greatest movie ever made. A risk that didn’t pay off in the long run.

Mannheim Steamroller

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68j6Ceof8QQ
I’m not saying they’re a BAD ensemble, I’m just saying the name is weird. If they had a better name, maybe we’d hear from them more often than we do, that’s all. The same might be said for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra….but at least their name strikes a little bit of fear in to you…and that’s awesome.

SHeDAISY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poACd-zYMSY
It’s no secret that country music is to me what kryptonite was to Superman. But I can recognize talent. SHeDAISY is made up of three very talented women (sisters) from the small town of West Valley, Utah. The attached song (“Don’t Worry ‘Bout A Thing”) reached # 7 on the Billboard Hot Country chart in 2004. The name is easy to SAY, but not easy to read…or type. Did this make country programmers shy away from the SHe? It’s possible. Catchy tune, though….for a country track.

Tony! Toni! Toné!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfoxsfhi-kk
No one in the band was named Tony, Toni, or Toné. ‘Nuff said. Apparently it’s a reference to the movie The Untouchables. There’s another defunct trio with a quintet name that also caused some confusion.

These are just ten I thought of but I think I’ve expressed the spirit of the exercise.

What band names would YOU add to this list?

‘Contra’ – Vampire Weekend – the aaron elya review

When I started this blog, I had bigger intentions than to just take a picture every day (which is still cool). I wanted to review music! While my time is often taken up with “real life” stuff, I have managed to gather enough thoughts about one of my favorite new albums.

‘Contra’
Vampire Weekend
XL Recordings
Released: January 12th, 2010
Produced by Rostam Batmanglij
Run Time: 36:40 (depending on which version you have)

‘Contra’ is the sophomore release for New York based indie-rock-band-turned-mainstream-darlings, Vampire Weekend.

It’s easy to tell that the follow up to their 2008 self-titled debut had much more support from the powers that be. It’s a much more complex album. The words from lead singer/writer, Ezra Koenig, are just as complex as those on the first album, but the music itself carries much deeper arrangements. Evidence of this is heard in songs like ‘California English’ and ‘Run’.

‘White Sky’, ‘Horchata’, and ‘Giant’ are plucky and full of vibrance. In contrast, songs like ‘I Think Ur A Contra’, ‘Taxi Cab’, and ‘Diplomat’s Son’ display the bands ability to flex musically in both directions.

The lead single, ‘Cousins’, helped propel ‘Contra’ to # 1 on the US Billboard 100 in its debut and is ALL about energy. The arrangement features fast beating rhythm, quick vocals, and a expressive percussion section (often seen on their TV appearances – Letterman, Fallon, etc.). A very “radio friendly” contribution.

I have to believe that when the band asked “What should our first single be?” ‘Giving Up The Gun’ was a close 2nd choice behind ‘Cousins’. It’s got a wonderful, new rock feel to it, but still maintains it’s “indie roots” which is a rare commodity in mainstream rock.

Whether or not you think ‘Contra’ is better, worse, or the same as their first album, its certain that this release shows that we’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what this band is truly capable of.

–a.

(Originally posted on http://theaaronelyareview.tumblr.com on November 29th, 2009)

When it came time for me to decide what to do as my first review, I felt it was only appropriate that I reviewed the first CD I ever owned. That said, it was also a CD that would, essentially, help determine the course of my musical existence. While that last part might seem a little “dramatic”, it’s really quite true.

I give you…’We Are In Love’ by Harry Connick, Jr.: The Aaron Elya Review.

‘We Are In Love’
Harry Connick, Jr.
Sony/Columbia
Released: July 3rd, 1990
Produced by Harry Connick, Jr & Marc Shaiman
Run Time: 52:51

‘We Are In Love’ (WAIL) was released the same day as ‘Lofty’s Roach Souffle‘, a trio album recorded by Harry, Ben Wolfe, and Shannon Powell. Releasing multiple albums on the same day would become a familiar treat later in Harry’s recording career (11 & 25; 30 & Songs I Heard; Oh My Nola & Chanson du Vieux Carre were all released as pairs).

The first CD I ever had in my collection was actually the Soup Dragons 1992 release ‘Divine Thing‘. Someone at church had found it left in a classroom and since no one claimed it, it ended up going home with me. WAIL, however, was the first CD I ever PURCHASED, so I give it the full credit for being my “first CD”. Here it is in it’s original jewel case, original insert and album artwork.

I still love the “fish tie”! Oh, and the hair…MAN, did I want that hair-do!! The case, artwork, and disc itself have survived my teen years, a move from Michigan to Georgia, my 20′s, and countless reorganization attempts on my CD rack.

Okay, on to the review…

WAIL starts off with quite a bang! The title track is 2:44 of high energy, fast moving swing. Those three famous orchestra hits really set the tempo for the ENTIRE record. It’s also our first chance to experience Harry’s songwriting on this album.

Following the opening big-band number is ‘Only ‘Cause I Don’t Have You‘ which is a beautifully orchestrated, 3/4 time ballad. The mixing of melodic and harmonic tones creates a haunting and soothing musical experience (as the entire album does).

For many of Harry’s fans who jumped on the bandwagon with the release of this album, ‘Recipe For Love‘ is the song that really drew us in. It’s the song that, in an era of really crappy pop music (this is pre-Nirvana, remember), gave radio stations a breath of fresh air…something different to offer it’s listeners. Harry, himself, quipped in his ‘Singin’ & Swingin‘ video that ‘Recipe‘ isn’t the typical pop radio song. The innocence of the lyrics, the crisp arrangement of the big band, and the up-beat rhythm make for an early album treat. ‘Recipe‘ still, to this day, remains one of the centerpieces of not only WAIL, but of Harry’s entire discography…and is easily one of my top 10 favorite songs of all time (another blog for another day…trust me).

Other ballads will follow on WAIL such as ‘Drifting‘, ‘A Nightingale Sang In Berkely Square‘ (which would later be sampled on his 1994 funk project, ‘She‘), ‘Just A Boy‘, ‘I’ll Dream Of You Again‘ (which Harry sang a verse of on his 1992 ‘Cheers’ appearance), and ‘Buried In Blue‘. What I like about these ballads is not just the fact of how well performed they are, but the actual placement of them on the record. If you look at the track listing, they’re placed in even numbered track spots on the album. It’s REALLY the essence of the construction of the album…the tempo of WAIL is dictated by this track placement. It’s a feature of WAIL that I’ve always liked. If I ever get to meet and talk to Harry, this would be a question I’d like to ask him. I’ve met him three times after concerts, but as you can imagine, I was a just bumbling idiot-fan with a sharpie.

‘Forever For Now‘ starts off with a creepy guitar and trombone duet. Adding to that is the trademark sizzling jazz high-hat and walking bass. Track 5 takes you on a seemingly dark yet hopeful jazz journey. This is the song that, as a young 12 year old trombone player, I tried to most emulate. Especially the upper-range trombone + plunger solo at the end. Absolute genius.

One of the more unique tracks on WAIL (and in Harry’s entire catalog) is ‘Heavenly‘. A strictly “voice only” piece featuring several layers of harmonized voices…which, by the way, are ALL Harry’s. It’s a romantic, peppy, finger-snapping, story of the “Man In The Moon” being in love with the “Girl in the world”…and she reciprocates! It’s a throw back to the era of doo-wop but with a moden flare that only Harry can deliver. On the last note, Harry belts out a note WAY up in his register…the icing on the cake!

The last “fast” song on the album is Harry’s version of the Cole Porter classic ‘It’s Alright With Me‘. As impressive as this song is on this album (featuring solos from guitarist Russell Malone, Ben Wolfe, Shannon Powell, and Harry himself), those of us who were fortunate enough to see Harry in concert in the early to mid 90′s know just how amazing this song was to see in person! The core arrangement has always been the same, but the placement of the song in any given set made it a great closer, a great opener, and a great “encore song” (depending on which concert you saw). This was also one of the songs he performed on his 1990 SNL appearance.

In the time it’s taken me to write all of this, I’ve listened to WAIL almost three times in it’s entirety. I don’t listen to this album often enough, quite honestly. It’s a masterpiece from start to finish. In many ways, WAIL was kind of the “measuring stick” to which all future Harry albums would be compared. Harry, however, had BIGGER plans. Bigger bands, bigger sounds, bigger vocals, and bigger success awaited him. This album really put Harry Connick, Jr. on the map…and we had yet to unfold it. The best was yet to come.

-a.

When I found out that I was going to be a parent, the emotions you’d expect to arise were definitely present: excitement, joy, nervous, love, etc. Along with those emotions came a certain set of expectations. In other words, there were things I knew would happen. I knew that there would be diapers. I knew there would be crying. I knew there would be an immeasurable amount of joy.

On the flip side to that, as my experience of being a parent carried on, other things happened that I never would have expected. One of those things is becoming friends with the parents of my daughter’s friends (I’ll let that sink in for a second for you)….

When Turner started attending her day care as a 5 month old, we didn’t have any detailed interaction with any other parents of the babies in her class. The only interaction we had was with the teachers and the day care staff. As she progressed throughout the day care rooms and started talking (full sentences), she would tell us about her friends in her class. Names like Avery, Ava (who we’ll talk more about later), Haley, Clay, Aaron, Jordan, Allie, and of course, Kylee came part of our daily conversations.

(Discovery Point, Cumming, GA)

The more we heard about Turner’s friends, the more aware of their parents we became. We would chit-chat with these parents when picking up our kids. We’d talk about the silly things our kids said the night before or the funny comparisons between them. These chit-chat sessions would lead to play dates…and ultimately, great friendships.

One of the friendships Jill and I gained was with Lauren, the mom of Turner’s friend Ava. Lauren is a super-cool single mom with an amazing sense of humor. She owns and operates First Impressions 3D/4D Ultrasound Experience…a service we took full advantage of while Jill was pregnant with Sydney. She’s an incredibly skilled and knowledgeable ultrasound technician (for lack of a better word) and I HIGHLY recommend using her service if you’re expecting. (PLUG)

Lauren’s second child, the sickeningly cute Parker, was born just a couple days after Sydney in July of 2010. When Lauren announced that she was pregnant with Parker, she made it very clear that the sex of the baby would be revealed, but the name would remain a tightly kept secret until the baby was born. Fair enough.

So, rather than calling this unborn child “the baby” or some other non-name, she decided to refer to the baby as “Clementine”. Cute, right? I thought so.

Fast forward to earlier this week. Lauren announced that her and her boyfriend Ricardo (Parker’s daddy) were expecting. Yes, a THIRD child! After letting Lauren know that I she’s a little bit crazy (an observation she agreed with), I extended my warmest congratulations. It really is great news and I couldn’t be happier for her. But yeah, she’s a little crazy.

Fast forward (again) to tonight. I told Lauren that I wanted to choose the “fake name” for her third child…and that I would do it in blog form….which brings me to the point of all of this rambling.

The following lists are names that I openly and humbly suggest that Lauren use as “fake names” for her next bundle of joy. They are in no particular order and hold no real significance other than the fact that I think they’re cool. I will limit my list to 10 names per gender:

Fake names for a BOY:
Aaron (duh)
Boris
Chester
Alfred
Trey (3rd child, duh again)
Maxwell
Hollywood
Chadwick
Sparky
Oswald

Fake names for a GIRL:
Delorean
Natasha
Clementine 2.0
Enid
Shortcake
Azalea
Pumpernickel
Jelly Bean
Skittles
Lorraine Bates

Okay, so that’s my set of suggestions. To be clear, I am in no way suggesting that ANY of these names become the ACTUAL name of the child. These are just suggestions for TEMPORARY names. And just suggestions at that.

So…what’ll it be? That remains to be seen. This was just my $.02.

Well, here it is! My newly designed website. Do you like it? Do you LOVE it?? I sure do! It’s got this super sweet blog feature as well as a calendar.

A big big BIG thank you to my friend Marie Castine and her amazing web design skills for making this happen. Thanks, Marie! You’re the best!

Welcome, once again, to Disc Jockey Etc. I’m glad you’re here. Now let’s DANCE!