About Me

     If you're here in the "About Me" page of my blogs then you're either INCREDIBLY interested in what I have shared through my words... or you were click-happy and accidentally got here, in which case, stick around, grab a cup of coffee, tea, bear, vodka, and think and communicate through social media.

     I've always loved writing. Since I was a child I've always had a wild imagination from romance movies and love stories, to Die Hard's "Yippy Kiyay", and cartoons like Marvel's The X-Men and a generation of Pokemon and the Batman movie (1989) by Tim Burton, that brought back Batman from the black-and-white to modern times. I have a passion for amazing stories and adventures like Lord of the Rings or Star Trek, and I am a computer and video and video game participant.

     I love art, in all of it's forms, from canvas paint, to sculptures, movies, design, graphics, ceramics, puzzles, antiques, and most importantly, music. You can check out my music blog with random music discussions featuring various artists at http://tumblemountains.blogspot.com/2016/09/music-review-classical-merges-into.html.

     When I was a kid I wanted to do everything. I wanted to be a police officer, a fireman, an Army soldier, professional chef, an artist, musician, an actor, a book writer, an athlete, an astronaut, an inventor, a robotics engineer, a 3d graphics designer, a game level-designer (and still do), and film, act, direct videos and movies, and all in all enjoy and share and write and create multimedia within all aspects of the entertainment media industry.

     Of all of that, I joined the Army. At the time it was the most logical choice. I was 19, a little bit out of high school, working a job that wasn't going anywhere with a little bit of part time college. Felt like slow going, so I joined the Army at 19 years old, also to have the military pay for any further education. I wanted to be smart about joining. Sure, I'd be happy to go 11B Infantry and stack on and knock-down doors, but I considered what I would do after I got out of the military. I wanted to perform a job that I could use in the outside world that I enjoyed, so I scored high enough in the ASVAB testing to pick almost any job I wanted. I chose 25V (Combat Documentation/Production Specialist - sounds cool, eh?) it was audio, video recording, photography, studio recording, ceremonies, mixed videos, music videos, heavy missions and training missions, long nights in the cold and the snow and the heat and the dirt. I did that for about 4 years, then cross-trained into 46R (Broadcast Journalism Specialist) focusing the writing and front-of-of-the-camera performances. It's a learning and growing experience learning how to communicate with people in different ways and hear about other people's perspectives.

Well, until next time, check out my blogs, and remember, all you need is love. John Lennon, great man, shot in the back, very sad. (If you can name that movie quote, you're amazing and you deserve a cookie... that you should buy yourself)

Christopher J. Rosario - Writer, Creator, Entertainer, Freethinker

(Email Me Here)

http://tumblemountains.blogspot.com/

Music Review: Classical merges into Modern music

Classical merges into Modern music.

     Music has been around since the creation of man and different sounds were compiled into musical pleasure. Over time it's developed into whatever the current generation most appeals to, with constant changing of media and social interested, as quickly as a "viral video" can spread, that's how quickly the musical taste can change for the current generation.

Kelis, "Like You" (using Mozart's The Magic Flute).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeKIYw_cEms

     Kelis is able to bridge the generation gap between modern girl-pop artists like Rihanna and classical artists like Beethoven or Mozart, in W.A. Mozart - Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute). While Kelis appeals to the pop artists, Spike T Jones, a raper who found his recordings through Beat Boutique 2010,

Spike T. Jones - A Fifth of Beethoven (Hip Hop Instrumental Mix).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5lvlfZhmV0

     Is another great classical-rap mix-up or mash-up. It's like taking two records, a classical record, and a rap record recording, and you play them the same time at the right times, that they mesh well together into a coherent song. It's not everyone's favorite genre, but it's the way out generation explores our musical creativity; the mix is a strange, but a lovely blend of two generations melding into an appreciable song for both generations, bridging the gap, (Though, it doesn't mean you'll immediately want to listen to rap, or classical, baby steps)

Christopher J. Rosario, Writer, Entertainer, Freethinker, San Antonio, TX

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     And in case you think I forgot the title of this blog is, "Modern music" here's a band that didn't necessarily mix tracks of classical and rap or pop music, but the music is a hybrid, a breed of rock and punk and rap, like Beastie Boys - Sabatoge.

Beastie Boys - Sabatoge

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5rRZdiu1UE

     Many would say, simliarly, that Nirvana was the staple of a new area of music, the changing of a generation of music. It's exciting to keep up with new and fresh music to see what's developing around the world from all cultures. Share it.

Music Review: Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran - Music as an Art

      I can't tell you how many times I turn on the radio and think to myself, "Really? This is what's popular now? This is what our generation listens to? Repetitive lyrics, 4-chord-song treachery and catchy tunes with no lyrical meaning or soul? Ed Sheeran, an artist out of the United Kingdom, gained in popularity as a singer-songwriter in 2008, when he released the album "+", where the single "The A-Team" grew in popularity and gained radio air time.

(And if you've never heard of a 4-chord song, here's a link to a great example by: Axis of Awesome - 4 Chord Song.)

(some explicit language)

Beginings:

     Ed Sheeran started recording in 2004 at the age of 13 years old and eventually brought an old "indie" feel back to the radio scene, which is another way of saying singer-songwriter (think: Taylor Swift, before she was drowned in pop-artists beats). When I think of singer-songwriter, I think of an artist and their instrument, a guy and his guitar, a woman and her piano; simple music with a focus on lyrics that are personal to the artist. Ed Sheeran's hit, "Photograph", is a great example of a "man and his guitar" singing about memories of love kept within a photograph. His voice is filled with conviction and passion throughout his collective works and he's a testament to artists everywhere.

Here's a link to Asylum Record's and Ed Sheeran's - Photograph.

     Reminiscent of the days of Eric Clapton and Dave Matthews, Ed Sheeran is a reminder to us all that true art never dies. In a year since his music video "Photographs" was posted, the song has over 250 million views and continues to rise as he gains in popularity. Taking acoustic influences from The Beatles and Nizlopi, Ed found a unique sound for himself that took the world by storm.

Music Reviews: NF

9/13/2016
Christopher J Rosario

Music 2
NF

Rap is dead.

     Along with Eminem who wrote "Rap God" back in 2013 (doesn't it feel like yesterday?). "Rap God" was a testament to Eminem's talent when it was released, even at the age of 40 years old (I know!) we all remembered that Eminem was and still is the King of Rap. Pandora radio compares Eminem's rap title of King of Rap to Elvis's title, the King of Rock. Eminem took it old school, 20 years later and the entire album Marshal Mathers LP 2 felt like he took it back to his roots, what made him great. Raw rap, less "effects".
   
     But that was in 2013 and other than a few rappers that have fought to get to the top (like Kenrick Lemar), there aren't a whole lot that I could call "great". All of the famous ones, Kanye and Drake, Lil Wayne, Big Sean, are good, but not game-changing. Rap is no longer as big as R&B Hip Hop, back in the 1990's like Bone Thugs n Harmony, 2Pac, or Snoop Dogg.

     After listening to a rapper, NF, Nathan Feuerstein by accident, clicking through Youtube; I was brought back to the old days of Eminem, The Slim Shady LP (1999). I was in middle school, and he wrote the famous and annoying song, "Hi! My name is, What? My name is, Who? my name is, tika-tika Slim Shady." NF brings back the old feel of rap, raw words and lyrics. Very similar to Lecrae, he's a lyrical wordsmith with the emphasis of telling his stories while using clean lyrics. NF sometimes rhymes, but he's mastered the art of placing less vocabulary-heavy words and emphasizing certain words at the right moment or tempo in order to fit the beat perfectly, while still being musically coherent and pleasing.

     NF uses the phrase, "NF real" because his music is written by himself and typically about situations he's been through or friends that he's met and thoughts that go on in his mind. His human emotion is shared with the world through his honest and real lyrics and music. It's the passion to write and the passion to share his words that keep him going, he states in most of his music, especially his album, "Therapy Sessions". My favorite album release is NF's 2015 "Mansions" album featuring "All I Have". Here is a music video Capital Records published on Youtube for free, NF - All I Have.

    In a world full of music with nothing but beat-fetishes, auto-tune and overemphasis on a "cool sound" rather than poetic lyrics. You hear songs that repeat the words, like Lady Gaga's "P-p-p-p-poker face," or Drake's Hotline Bling, "You used to call me on your cellphone," or Adele, "Hello," and, "I can't feel my face when I'm with you," by The Weeknd. All of these songs have a point to them, but it's drowned-out by non-stop repetition of the same lyrics over and over, with a catchy beat.

     I think it's refreshing to have such a talented and musically engaging, passionate current-day rapper that isn't afraid to sing about the truth while still holding on to his morals. In his music, NF, Nathan Feuerstein, talks about his past mistakes, writing music without curse words, death of a parent, and the trials and tribulations that he, and many of us have gone through in our lives. It may sound depressing, but it's life. He raps, sings, and writes about life.

Artist Review: Local Natives

9/5/2016
Christopher J Rosario

Music 1
Local Natives

Since as long as I can remember I've always loved music, all kinds of music from Country to Pop to Opera, Rap, Alternative, Metal, it didn't matter, as long as the music was composed, written, and executed with care and style, I could legitimately put it on my play list and listen to it over and over until I burn-it-out and hate it forever (think, Barbie Girl, by Aqua).

For my first blog, I'll take it easy on you, the reader, and introduce a band I heard of a year or two ago that continues to stay in the forefront of my mind as modern indie/folk type music. A band called Local Natives brought back the days of the original Simon and Garfunkel and Bright Eyes (if you've never heard of either of these bands, go buy a CD-player from the thrift-store, take it home, and you'll find one of their CDs still sitting in the CD-tray). Both are very folk-like in style. Music back then felt more passionate and songs were written from the heart; Local Natives brings that back.

Local Natives was formed in California and is comprised of five band members, 2 guitarists, 1 bassist, keyboards, and a drummer. They released their debut album, Gorilla Manor 7 years ago. Their musical style is considered, "Indie Rock" but that's a very broad term. Indie in itself literally means "Independent" meaning they are free from restrictions or influence in their music by record labels (you know how popular artists release new albums every year, even if they are terrible, just to pump-in revenue?). What Indie is considered nowadays is just anything not main-stream, something you wouldn't normally find on a radio (until they are founded by a major record label). For Local Natives falls into another category of  "Indie", which is considered "folk-like" or softer music. Although huge now, I also consider artists like Ed Sheeran, Jack Johnson or Jason Maraz, all of which started out Indie back in the day, but later became more stream-line as they received more air time.

Either way, great band, check it out: below is a Youtube video of a live version of Local Natives, Who Knows, Who Cares (Start at 1:30). Let me know what you think. (And remember, everyone has their own tastes)

https://youtu.be/6hhE_sqJG3g?t=1m31s