Friday's Playlist: Happy New Year and Fuck 2020

Finally, the new year is upon us. We all agree that 2020 was shit, and sadly there are no do-overs. So let's wipe the slate clean, shall we? Start fresh. Let's say this year is going to be at least a little better than last year. Can we try that? 

Curtain Call

Given the fact that the virus is still spreading and that there will be no concerts for the foreseeable future, this page really has no reason to exist.

We've tried prolonging its lifeline by throwing together playlists, starting an ill-fated message board, posting about exhibits etc. but the whole raison d'être of www.ElectricEyeRock.com was to publish concert photos...

So there will likely be no more updates on the site or the associated social channels until we can return to a normal life. If we can return to a normal life.

There will be one more playlist on New Year's Day, because it's been planned for a while (although still a work in progress) but essentially this is going to remain inactive for the foreseeable future.

I never had any pretension of this ever being viable, it was just a way to get to enjoy concerts from a privileged perspective: the photo pit. And it's been awesome: I've managed to get credentialed for a shitload of great gigs and taken a few cool pictures (my favorite ones are HERE) so it's been pretty great. It would be cool if it happened again.

In the mean time stay safe and don't forget to wash your hands!

Friday's Playlist: Awesome Beatles Cover (pt. 3)

Here's the next installment in our Beatles covers series. Another eclectic bunch of songs, some downright weird interpretations, a few more faithful ones... Enjoy, comment and share.

Friday's Playlist: Variations on the Bo Diddley Beat

 

This Friday's Playlist compiles some notable examples of songs that use the famous "Bo Diddley" beat. Of course, Bo Diddley didn't come up with that chugging rhythm. But he was one of the first ones to use it in the context of electric popular music.

5 years

Five years ago I had no words. Now, a few come to mind. Words of anger, words of hate, words of sadness and pain. These things and these people never stop. Whether they're blowing themselves up in a concert for teenage girls in Manchester or opening fire on schoolchildren in Parkland, Florida. Emboldened, galvanized, brainwashed by their fanatic, bigoted leaders the world over. Enjoy your death cult, just leave the rest of us be. We just want to listen to music.

AC/DC - Power Up

The first thing I noticed as I listened to Power Up, AC/DC's first album in over five years, is how prominent the bass is. Not that Cliff Williams, who was coaxed out of a well-deserved retirement in Florida, has changed his playing style. His lines still have a spartan, essential quality to them. They are the perfect foil to Phil Rudd's playing. Nothing is ornate, and nothing is wasted. The quintessential rock and roll backbone. The bass is just louder than you're used to hearing in AC/DC.

November 13th, 2020: Friday the 13th

Hey, it's Friday the 13th! What do you know? We threw together a little playlist for the occasion. We've tried not to put too many duplicates with our Halloween playlist from last year but inevitably there are some overlaps...

Friday's Playlist: Awesome Beatles Covers (part 2)

 A few weeks ago we shared a playlist of Beatles covers, so here's the follow-up to that. Pop, Blues, Metal, Jazz, Reggae... You can play the Beatles in any style. Enjoy, comment and share!

Introducing Electric Eye Radio

Here's a fun new item. If you're an Apple Music subscriber, you can listen to our very own radio station. Full of classic tracks, but also some more obscure personal favorites in a wide array of genres: rock of course, but also jazz, blues, country, funk, metal, soul, folk and even some classical music.

Check it out here:

CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE ELECTRIC EYE RADIO PAGE

Friday's Playlist - Fuck Trump! Go vote.

For a long time I've resisted putting forth any political opinion on here, for two reasons. The first reason is that this is a music site, and music unites us regardless of who we chose to vote for. The second reason is that nobody cares about my opinions. I've been a lot more vocal on the Twitter account associated with the site, and I've shared a playlist or two that might have betrayed my leanings but essentially I've tried to keep this page free of anything overly topical or potentially divisive.

Friday's Monday's Playlist: Bootsy Collins: Sessions & Contributions

Today is Bootsy Collins' 69th birthday (he he, 69) so in his honour we're scrambling our schedule and are presenting Friday's Playlist on (GASP!) a Monday. This is the type of lunacy we're capable of. Watch out, we're funkin' crazy.

This Playlist explores some of Bootsy's sessions and contributions outside of his main gigs in Parliament, Funkadelic, the Rubber Band or his solo output. This is in no way an exhaustive list but rather an overview of the breadth of his talents.

Friday's Playlist: Rap and Hip Hop

Full disclosure: we're very ignorant when it comes to Hip Hop or Rap. It's just not our scene. But it's just a massive, ubiquitous cultural force. And it has infiltrated, informed, permeated, influenced every other musical genre, from Jazz to Blues to Metal. So one can't not be aware of its impact, pardon the double negative.

Musée de la Musique, Paris

The Cité de la Musique in Paris is a huge complex in the north-east section the capital which sits next to the Philharmonic and comprises a beautiful performance hall in which I've seen several acts including Comus, Bill Frisell and P.I.L. and a splendid museum which I visited back when it first opened in the early nineties.

Renaud: Putain d'Expo! @ La Cité de la Musique, Paris

À deux pas de la Philharmonie de Paris, temple de la Grande Musique, sérieuse et imposante, et à quatre pas du Zénith que Renaud a inauguré et rempli des centaines de fois, la prestigieuse Cité de la Musique consacre une belle exposition au chanteur énervant, l'occasion de retrouver son univers alors même que son activité musicale est en berne, hormis la sortie il y a quelque mois d'un single bâclé, le médiocre Corona Song.

Friday's Playlist: Awesome Beatles Covers (part 1)

This Friday's Playlist is a selection of Beatles songs played by other artists. Of course, these songs are given some new guises: soul, hard rock, jazz... Because a good song can be played in any style.