Reviews and Analysis practice. Exercise One. From Mike Lohre

Students,

Please read the following links to reviews to get an idea of how different writers approach the genre.

As you read, think about why we use reviews and the different purposes these reviews take on.

For this Exercise, write a response to one of the reviews in the Comments section of this post.

Consider and analyze:

1. Who is the source/reviewer? What credibility do they have?
2. What is the conclusion of the review? Do you agree or disagree?  
3. Is this review fair or biased?  How can you tell? 
4. What counts as evidence here?  Research? Comparison/Contrast? Personal experience and taste?  Storytelling? Historical testing? 
5. What values are implied or stated in this review? 

 LINKS


http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/taylor-swift-1989/

or any of these. . .    http://www.collapseboard.com/music-blogs-3/no-one-sent-us-the-new-taylor-swift-album-to-review/

ALBUM

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/book-review-i-am-malala-by-malala-yousafzai/2013/10/11/530ba90a-329a-11e3-9c68-1cf643210300_story.html

BOOK

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/oct/23/fury-review-brad-pitt-second-world-war-drama

MOVIE

http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-iphone-6/

PRODUCT

Exploration Four: Music and Culture from Brandon

I see negative impacts generally coming from all major hip-hop and rap artist. Most of this genre has become more about self-promotion for the artist than anything else.Self promotion such as the amount of money they have, how many men or women they have been with and the amount of alcohol and or drugs they have been going lately. Mostly materialistic themed. As far as an artist who has been sucked into to this way of life and does more harm than good is Justin Bieber. Over the course of the last few years his style of music and the tone he uses in his songs has changed. He has had multiple run-ins with the law, and has been banned from a few countries as well.

The music I like usually depends on how I am feeling at the time. I normally like music that is upbeat. Music that excites me the most are songs that are connected to a certain point in my life which find enjoyable. Recently, I have found the song Centuries by Fall Out Boy to be one of my favorite songs. Before the Ohio State Buckeyes won the National Championship I had no interest in the song. Honestly I found it a little annoying at times. However, the song is paired up with highlights of the Buckeyes win almost every time. Every time I hear the song I think of the Buckeyes winning and even what the song means on a deeper level. Personally I like history, so I find the song meaningful in that direction as well.

"We'll go down in history
Remember me for centuries"

Fall Out Boy

Fall Out Boy - Centuries: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBr7kECsjcQ

Exploration 4 by Nick fox

    Rap music brings a lot of bad publicity to the music industry. A lot of artist that rap only sing about three things money, women, and drugs making the whole rap community seem like a bunch of thugs that set bad examples for children. Some rap about women in a degrading way, using lyrics that portray that they see women as item in which they only use for sex. Not only is this degrading to women it also makes the whole music community look bad.
      Lil Wayne is by far one of the worse at doing this he often makes degrading remarks, so much of his songs that it consumes 40% of his lyrics and in some song more. I think his music does more harm than good because he is not setting a good example for any kids, and his lyrics aren't even very cleaver. His lyrics are mostly about drugs, sex and money and most of his songs include profane "bars" that uses dirty humor that usually degrades women. He almost always raps profane lyrics and he sets a bad example for children that listen to him because of his ridiculous drug use history over his career. He raps about drugs very often and a few years back almost died by overdosing on drugs.
      I really like the music industry because most artist are very driven and passionate about their careers and it is cool to listen to people who care so much about what they are doing. Music captures the artist emotion and inhibition and lets you take a peak into their lives through their songs and lyrics. I really enjoy The Red Hot Chili Peppers because they are a great rock and roll band that has cool lyrics and whose band members are fantastic at playing. They have original lyrics and classic guitar riffs just like older rock bands like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. Their lyrics aren't perfectly clean but they use discretion and limit what they say in their songs. All around I think The Red Hot Chili Peppers are amazing and I love listening to their music i think they make the music industry look better in general.

                                          (Red Hot Chili Peppers-"cant stop" music video image)
Gettin' born in the state of Mississippi
Papa was a copper and mama was a hippie
In Alabama she would swing a hammer
Price you gotta pay when you pick the panorama
She never knew that there was anything more than poor
What in the world? What does your company take me for?

Black bandana, sweet Louisiana
Robbin' on a bank in the state of Indiana
She's a runner, rebel and a stunner
Oh her merry way sayin' baby whatcha gonna
Lookin' down the barrel of a hot metal forty five
Just another way to survive

[Chorus:]
California rest in peace
Simultaneous release
California show your teeth
She's my priestess, I'm your priest, yeah, yeah

She's a lover baby and a fighter
Shoulda seen her coming when it got a little brighter
With a name like Dani California
Day was gonna come when I was gonna mourn ya
A little loaded, she was stealin' another breath
I love my baby to death

[Chorus]

Who knew the other side of you?
Who knew what others died to prove?
Too true to say good bye to you
Too true to say say say...

Push the fader, gifted animator
One for the now and eleven for the later
Never made it up to Minnesota
North Dakota man was a gunnin' for the quota

Down in the badlands she was savin' the best for last
It only hurts when I laugh
Gone too fast...

[Chorus 2x]
 song analysis---
These are the lyrics to Dani California, a story about a mother who is a free spirit and commits armed robbery. It takes about how she is free and that's the only way she wants to live and in the end it is that which hurts her the most. It a sad song about a family being ripped apart at its seams. http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/redhotchilipeppers/danicalifornia.html

Exploration Four: Salma

Exploration Four: Music and Culture

Throughout the music industry I have mostly seen a negative impact from the rap/ hip-hop genre. A lot of artists throughout this genre sing about drugs, partying, etc. They give an image that these things are okay and "fun." Another way I believe that the music industry has a negative impact is by the way they sell their artist. They don't instill the same morals as once was instilled in older music. For example, Nikki Minaj's Anaconda song was mostly popular and talked about for it's inapropriate music video instead of the actual lyrics, which in my opinion weren't very good in the first place.

What I find exciting in the music culture is that when done right, music and artists have a way of changing people, bringing to light issues, and bringing people together. An artist that I believe does a great job of this is Andy Grammer. His songs are not only upbeat, joyful, but they are inspiring and I think set a prime example to how music should be viewed. He shows true passion when it comes to music. As a kid he learned to play the trumpet, the guitar, and the piano, and at the age of only 15 years old Grammer began writing music.

One of my favorite songs by Andy Grammer is Keep your head up

The glow that the sun gives
Right around sunset
Helps me realize
This is just a journey
Drop your worries
You're gonna turn out fine.
Oh, you'll turn out fine.
Fine, oh, you'll turn out fine.

But you gotta keep your head up, oh,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmrOB_q3tjo&list=RDCmrOB_q3tjo

Exploration Four by Liz

If you look at the music industry today especially in the rap, hip hop or pop genres, you see a lot of negativity. People today sing about sex and drugs and are disrespectful to women and people in general. I feel like people have moved away from the important issues in life and instead sing about things that aren't very important. One artist I think does a lot of damage is Miley Cyrus. In her video wrecking ball she sings on a giant wrecking ball practically naked. I feel like this is a really bad image especially for the younger generation. Young teens don't need to watch or listen to someone who tries to project it as cool to be nearly naked in front of so many people. They may feel like they should copy her activities and I think that would be a bad thing.

Music can be such an inspirational thing. For many people they listen to a song they relate to and it helps them to make their life better. I see Taylor Swift as a positive artist, even though I don't really listen to her music, for a couple of reasons. During this past Christmas season, Taylor compiled a list of her fans and then went Christmas shopping for presents to give to them. She brought them to her house and wrapped everything up included a hand written note and shipped them to the people on her list. I am not sure how she decided who was to be on the list but the fact she did something positive that she really didn't have to do is inspiring. It makes me hope other people will do little things like this just to make someones day a bit better. I really don't know her music well but some lyrics I have heard that stood out to me are "shake it off". I think it is important to not let things bother you. Some things are beyond your control and in such cases you should take Taylor's advice and "shake it off".

Taylor Swift

Exploration Four: Anthony Applegate

Exploration Four: Music and Culture

     When I think of negative music I normally think of the mainstream music that get produced and popularized.  The mainstream music industry seems to only care about profits and stardom instead of what the people are actually listening too. One example of someone who doesn’t care about what they say or who listens to their music is Lil Wayne. Lil Wayne is a hip-hop artist that sings about vulgar subjects and disrespects all women he sings about. Lil Wayne is not the only one doing this nor is hip-hop the only genre that disrespects women or promotes drug use among teens. The media does a good job of making sure that these artists stay in the spotlight and keep producing the same vulgar music. Lil Wayne defiantly does more harm than good when people listen to his music because of the promotion of drug use and his audience that he appeals to which is mostly teens and young adults. He is just one example of someone who stays in the spotlight for his negative messages and disgusting lyrics.

     What excites me when I listen to music is the message being portrayed in the song and how the artist delivers that message to his audience. My favorite band is O.A.R. who I have seen live twice now and it always get better and better to me. I like them the moat because of the content in their songs. They sing about family and friends and remind me how important they are to me. They sing a song called Road Outside Columbus, which might be one of their most popular here in Ohio. They attended The Ohio State University and will sometimes put on free shows for the students, which is awesome because they know how poor us college kids are. I particularly like that song because it always reminds me of my friends that I’ve known my whole life. I like the part in the song that says Columbus will always be their second home to them no matter where they go in life and I feel that way too if I were to ever move from this state. I recommend this band to anyone that likes some good instrumentals and catchy songs. 

O.A.R. live at Red Rocks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2tNgGyn5H0 

Exploration Four: Johnny Pilutti

Music as a whole has gone through as big of a transformation and shift as many other parts of culture. To see this, you'll have to trace music to its basic roots. Rap, Rock, R&B, etc, all have their starts form basic music stemming from 1890-current time. This gradual change has music at the crossroads that it finds itself at currently. Rock has slowly died and turned more into metal and all of those off shutes. The best example you can find right now of an artist/rapper who exemplifies all of what's wrong with rap or music would simply be Chris Brown. As an artist, his lyrics are very disrespectful towards women. Leaving aside the fact that he has raised his hand to a woman, he raps or sings about things that aren't positive in any manner. He is2951n't the worst example but he's a prime one that most late teenagers, early 20 year old college students can hear at a party or through social media. Now that i just got done blasting Chris Brown, the music i enjoy. The Foo Fighters might be one of the last good rock bands still out there today. Their lead singer/guitarist Dave Groehl is a great musician who was also a member of a very important band, Nirvana. Nirvana was all important to the late 80's and early 90's before Kurt Cobain died. Groehl was the drummer and then became famous as such. He started the Foo Fighters in 1994, after the death of Kurt Cobain. Any band that lasts over 20 years must be doing something right. I personally saw the Foo Fighters live a few years back, when they were touring. The concert was four hours long and was crazy. They sold out Nationwide arena, so that lends perspective as to how good they can be. As a musician, Dave Groehl is very talented. He can play the drums, guitar, bass, etc. The most recent album the Foo Fighters released was entitled ''Sonic Highways". This album was one of the first of its kinds. 60 Minutes did an expose on it, as well as HBO made a mini-series following the band around as they were recording.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFCC2A_iGD0
(i apologize for the spanish subtitles, this was the only good link i could find)

What made "Sonic Highways" such a different album was how it was recorded. The band had this idea to go to the epicenters of rock, the cities where rock takes its form and write songs based around those themes. For instance, the band traveled to New Orleans to learn about the history of jazz down south and how it's transformed over the years. Foo Fighters did this for each major city that had music as a huge part of its culture. Chicago, St. Louis, etc. This album was the first of its kind and if you do enjoy rock, i would give it a listen to. Google won't let me post a picture, so i apologize :/ My favorite song by the Foo Fighters is by far Everlong. This song was off the album The Colour And Shape, which released in 1996. This is their biggest hit and most well known by everyone in the music community. I'll post two links, one of a live performance and one of their original music video. The reason i love this song so much is i find deeper meaning in the lyrics. The opening lyrics: "Hello, I've waited here for you, everlong". Then once the main chorus kicks in... "Could anything ever be this real forever, could anything ever be this good again, the only thing i'll ever ask of you, you gotta promise not to stop when i say when, she sang". In my very personal opinion, this is a love song with the deepest meaning. The lyrics stick out to me because that's exactly what i hear every time i listen to the song. Itunes told me at one point last year that i had listened to the song 2951 times. That's ridiculous and i know that number is even higher now. This first link will be their original music video for "Everlong":



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBG7P-K-r1Y

Exploration Four from Maverick

               Music is a huge part of my life and probably part of most people’s lives. Music is just about everywhere you go. The only bad thing about music these days is how negative and how bad of an influence it has on the younger generation. Right now the music industry gives out a negative impact to our society. A prime example of a negative influence singer is Nicki Minaj. She is negative because in every song she talks about sex or drugs or something along those lines. Nicki Minaj is a causes more harm than good because the younger generation listens to her and takes in bad influence from her and none of her songs have real meaning to them.

               The thing that excites me the most in the music industry is the background music and the meaningful lyrics in songs. A great example of a positive music group would be One Republic. I feel like they are a good influence on the younger generation because their lyrics actually have meaning to them and they don’t talk about drugs and alcohol and all that stuff. An example from one of their recent songs is the song “I Lived”. This is a positive example because it has a real meaning and the meaning is to take chances because they will pay off in the end.

Hope when you take that jump,
You don't fear the fall.
Hope when the water rises,
You built a wall.

Hope when the crowd screams out
Its screaming your name

Hope if everybody runs
You choose to stay

Link to a lyric video of the song

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

Exploration Four from Amanda

I mainly see negative impacts coming from the hip- hop/ rap music culture.  The way artists get across their messages in their songs seem to be more negatives comments than positive.  A specific artist that does this is Lil Wayne.  He continually raps about illegal actions and also continues to be derogative towards the female gender. He puts an image in people's mind about that is how people should talk to girls, such as calling them multiple degrading adjectives that I think most people could name.  This isn't right and other rappers also contribute to this constant negative impact on how to treat people.
What excites me the most about the music culture is how popular a certain song or band can get very quickly.  Music spreads so fast around the country, or even world, and it's cool to see that happen, especially for smaller bands.  It's exciting as small bands get their claim to fame through one popular song and then continue to be successful after this.
One band I see is positive is the band Coldplay.  I have liked their music for a rather long time and I would say they were probably more popular a couple years ago, but they are still producing music.  They sing more about life things, mostly relationship aspects, but it is still positive music for the most part.  They tend to focus on how they forget to realize how important some pieces in your life are and also the importance of treating people correctly.  I feel this way about Coldplay because I would truly not continue to listen to them if they sang about such negative attitudes towards females or other people in that matter.

These are all the members of the band Coldplay.

One of my favorite songs by Coldplay is called "A Warning Sign".  The lyrics below stand out to me because Coldplay sings how they didn't realize how interesting this girl could have been.  They looked her over, not giving her a chance and now they are regretting it.  This is the opposite of most rap music today because rap discusses how women are toys just used to please men, whereas Coldplay wishes they would have gotten the moment to talk to a girl and see how great she truly is.

"A warnin' sign
It came back to haunt me, and I realized
That you were an island, and I passed you by
And you were an island, to discover"

Exploration Four Abigail

     Music has always been a huge part of my life, as well as many other people's lives. You see people listening or making music wherever you go. When you're driving and look over and the person next to you is jamming out to their favorite song, or the person behind you has their bass blaring and you can feel it, or someone downtown playing a guitar on the side of the street, music is everywhere. A lot of modern music has become extremely misogynistic, rude, talking about ridiculous drugs, etc. Not all music has become like this but enough of it has. Music is very influential, and always has been, whether people realize it or not. I think that younger kids tend to be more influenced by this negative music. They hear songs about getting f***ed up all the time or doing drugs and they're like oh it's so common that people are on the radio singing about it I can do whatever I want. Maybe not that easily but it still plants that seed in their minds. I personally dislike Chris Brown a lot and think he has had an extreme negative impact on the music industry. In one of his songs, Loyal, he keeps referring to women as bitches and hoes, like it is nothing, which can make other guys who hear the song think it's okay to refer to women as these things. Also he himself has hit a woman before. Soooo I think he has had a very negative impact on music culture. He has no positive meaning or inspirational meaning behind his lyrics.
     What excited me the most in music culture is that there is music out there for everyone. There's pop, hip hop, rap, country, alternative, instrumental, and anything else you can think of. There is music out there for everybody. There is music based on what mood you are in, too. I just feel like music creates endless possibilities for people. I think it is amazing when i listen to a song (Video Killed the Radio Star) and it takes me right back to being on the San Clemente beach in California with my cousins, or hearing Already Gone by Kelly Clarkson takes me back to when I broke up with my boyfriend in the eight grade, cheesy, I know, but still the fact that music has that power is so incredible to me.
     Two Door Cinema Club has had a positive impact on the music culture. All of their music is uplifting and has some sort of positive message behind it. My personal favorite of theirs is Something Good Can Work. It has a nice uplifting beat to it and the lyrics are uplifting as well. "Let's make this happen, girl
You gotta show the world that something good can work
And it can work for you
And you know that it will"

That is the refrain to that song, simple yet a positive message, a good reminder that things will work out. The video is pretty cool, too, I attached the link below. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wxu02vp_Vm0

Exploration 4 from Hayley

Music has impacted me more than anything else in this world. Music fills the silence when it becomes too much and says the things we’re too afraid to say, or even the truths we’re too afraid to face. With that being said, I don’t believe music could never have a negative impact on society, much less any one artist. Music is a form of self-expression. What makes music so incredible is the fact that it says the things we are too afraid to say and too afraid to face. It’s why one single song can mean a thousand different things to a thousand different people. If Miley Cyrus sings about sex and drugs and a twelve-year old-girl decides she wants to participate in those things, it’s her decision and her individual response to that song. I think there are probably a lot of other different factors in play when it comes to making that decision. Miley Cyrus or any other musical act shouldn’t have to behave a certain way because “kids might listen to this.” Miley is just being who she is the same way a Christian rock artist is being who they are, and I think telling that twelve-year-old girl “you shouldn’t be who you really are because some people might not like it” is way worse than singing about sex and drugs. People do have the ability to think and decide for themselves, and I’m not going to go out and drink just because Miley Cyrus told me to. And if I do decide to go out and drink, it probably will have nothing to do with Miley Cyrus.

What excites me the most about music today is what has always been exciting about music – how it’s growing. There are so many types of music and so many new artists emerging constantly. Music can also be communicated in different ways. With YouTube, people all over the world can share their versions of their favorite songs. I personally love YouTube covers of Billboard Hot 100 hits, because there are more ways than one to interpret a song.

An artist I’ve always loved since I was 10 years is Billy Joel. The first song I’ve ever listened to by him is “Vienna” and it is my all-time favorite song. It’s a song about growing up and realizing that you don’t need to have everything right at this very second, that your time will come. My favorite line is “Dream on, but don’t imagine they’ll all come true.” It’s bittersweet, but I like the message. Basically, don’t be afraid to dream big, but don’t assume you’re going to get every single thing you’re asking for. At this point in my life, at this age, a song like “Vienna” definitely holds true in many ways and has perfectly captured all of my feelings towards music since I was ten years old.

Billy Joel's fifth studio album, including "Vienna"