Well, it’s just about New Years and I can’t wait!! All in all, 2011 has been a great year for me(!) but not so much for many. Let’s not forget the many memorable deaths like Amy Winehouse, Steve Jobs and Elizabeth Taylor but also a few evil dictators left us too, which is good. And there was a lot of good MUSIC & MOVIES- Adele, LMFAO, Metallica & Lou Reed (JUST KIDDING- wasn’t so good), “Hugo”, “Drive”, The Last Harry Potter… what a stellar year!!

But with any end comes new beginnings. 2012 promises to be an equally EXCITING year!! “The Dark Knight Rises”, ‘The Hunger Games”, “Men in Black 3″… I’m already dieting because of all the popcorn I’ll be eating next summer!! And on the music front, it begins and ends with some news that came out a few months back… BLACK SABBATH WILL RELEASE A NEW RECORD AND TOUR IN 2012!!!! Forget about it, I can die now. I’ve always wanted to see Sabbath and now I have no excuse. Also Van Halen is gonna tour PLUS the following bands all have CDs coming out: Pearl Jam, Sound Garden, Alice in Chains, Smashing Pumpkins, The Offspring and Green Day!! It’s like 2012 is all the best of the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s already!! NOTHING wrong with that!!

So I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for 2012!! Let’s all hope Nostradamus and the Mayans are wrong about the end of the world stuff, I personally don’t believe it… besides, I’m way to busy to stop for that

Okay, everybody. Time to find something to wear for all the New Year’s Eve parties that we plan on crashing. So please have a HAPPY AND SAFE 2012!!! See you all at Sabbath!! \m/

CT

This year is almost over 2011 was a pretty good year, all in all. And you know what, it was a great year for VIDEO GAMES!! I love them all!! Being a gamer with a lot of gamer friends, I have been fortunate to play A LOT of video games this year, and I have a few favorites. Then I saw a post on Pinnacle College’s Facebook pointing out the Best Video Game Sound Design according to G4 and it got me thinking… Do I agree with their winner?? Hmm, let’s review..

Ok, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Batman: Arkham City. I spent hours playing that game and loved every minute of it!! I want to play it right now…. But this is a Sound Design review, so I’ll calm down a bit. Ok, aside from the game being awesome, the sound was awesome too!! And i know audio, game and otherwise, so I give this game a huge thumbs up and have to say that the sound designers nailed it!! I hope the new movie sounds as good as this game!! But let’s move on.

Battlefield 2 I played only once. It is a fun game with some cool features and graphics. The sound didn’t jump out at me like Batman did, but to be honest, I was at a friend’s place and we had music going too, so maybe I’m not giving it a fair shake. And to be honest, I haven’t played the other games nominated in this category. I’m lagging this year!!

Then, by default, I would have given it to Batman: Arkham City, but maybe this girl is a little biased. I promise to play Battlefield 3 again and this time with good headphones to really give it an honest assessment. Maybe this is my calling, reviewing video game sound!! Now if only G4 would call me!!

Ok, a quick plug. Pinnacle College, my school that let’s me blog on their site (thanks guys!) also offers a video game sound design program. I say CHECK IT OUT if if you love video game audio like I do!! I’ve seen some of the work that the students are doing and I’m sure that they’ll be winning some awards soon too!!

Ok, back to the xmas shopping… but maybe a quick game before I head out!!

Have a great holiday!!

CT

I’m a music girl. Ok, I’m a movie, techie, fashion, audio, music girl. I am happy having all of those things in my life, but I do miss one thing… BASKETBALL!!! I like watching football and baseball, but i LOVE watching hockey and NBA basketball! I was WAY bummed out when they announced the lockout a few months back (especially because my friend Stacy promised to take me to the opener) but I figured it would last a week or two. Turns out it’s gonna be more like 2 months before any games will have been played and that just sucks!! My friend Stacy probably won’t get tickets to the Xmas day opener after all and so i will have to wait till next year to see my Lakers play. This is AWFUL!! But, I respect what the players were asking for and even understand what the owners were wanting and more than anything I am VERY HAPPY that we will have a basketball season this year.

I love going to games at the Staples Center. If you’ve never been, you must go! That place JUMPS when Kobe makes a lay up or Fish sinks a 3. I miss that!! I have been going to King’s hockey games in the meantime and it is just as fun, but I miss my boys in purple and gold. I know that they will not disappoint and that Kobe will bring us another CHAMPIONSHIP!! And mark my words, I WILL BE FRONT AND CENTER AT THE LAKERS CHAMPIONSHIP PARADE!!!

Pass me the ball!!

CT

This has been a strange week. It started Sunday evening with some CRAZY rain/thunder/lightning/ and even HAIL in Southern Cali and will pretty much end in rain this weekend. Rap legend Heavy D was found dead outside of his house and boxing great Smokin’ Joe Frazier died too, just days after announcing that he was ill with liver cancer. WTH?? Why is this week so crazy?? Oh, and to top it off, THERE WAS A FREAKIN’ ASTEROID THAT CAME PRETTY DARN CLOSE TO HITTING THE EARTH OR MOON!!!! You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that that would have been a, to put it in layman’s terms, a bummer. But the more I think about it, is all of this because we have a monumental day ahead of us on Friday? Something that I think happens only once a century?? Hmm, I think all this craziness can be blamed on one number, and that’s the number ‘11′.

Friday is 11-11-11, and that can only happen every hundred years. The last occurrence was 11-11-1911, and the next time the same number will account for every number of the date will be 11-11-2111. I used to love the number ‘11′ but now I’m a little freaked out about it. My favorite thing with the number ‘11′ is:

BRILLIANT!!!
I guess not everything this week has been bad… I found 5 bucks and Nancy Grace got voted off Dancing With The Stars! Either way, I’ll be glad when Saturday comes around. I’ll try to preoccupy myself on 11-11-11 by honoring the many vets in my life. By the way, remember to thank a veteran on Friday!!! They at least deserve that!!

Ok, I got shake this week off!! Maybe I’ll listen to Led Zeppelin IV, which turned 40 this week… 40, there you have it– a new number this week!! Whoa, I’m a nerd! I’m going for a jog.

Happy Veteran’s Day!

CT

Hey yo!!!

I just read an article listing NME music magazine’s top 100 videos of all time and they got a few of them right, not ALL of them, but a few. For instance, #6 on their list is the Foo Fighter’s “Everlong”. In my opinion, it should have been ranked a little higher, as that video is AWESOME!! Have a look-see…

Great, huh?? It has Johnny Cash as #1 with the NIN song “Hurt”, but I disagree. It’s a nice video, but there are way better videos out there… like THIS ONE!! (which came in #8).

“Sabotage” is one fun video!! But not as fun as…

It’s hard to list all of them, but you get the picture. I guess it’s nice to see a list that doesn’t have ‘Thriller” as the #1 video. It’s hard to pick an absolute best, but if I had to choose, hmm… I would have to pick…

Oh, come on!! It has everything!! Car chases, a creature, beautiful girls, a floating bed, an old mansion, an actual story, THE WORKS!! Plus it’s almost 8 minutes long!

It’s sad that MTV doesn’t show videos like they used to, but I’m glad that people are still making them! ANd when they do, I hope they hire a good recording engineer like me

Keep pressing PLAY!!

CT

Okay, it’s no secret that I love music. Heck, I was named after a KISS song!! So I am always interested in the nominees for the Rock ‘N Roll Hall of Fame. This year has a good bunch of names in it, some legendary, but as usual there are a few names that are missing. I never understand what it takes to be nominated much yet be inducted into the RNRHOF. I don’t think many people do. Regardless, it’s always fun to see who makes it in. Let’s review…

-Heart: I say YES!! Just listen to ‘Barracuda’ and tell me ‘no’. The girls rocked!
-The Cure: Hells yes!! ‘Bout time some New Wave makes it in.
-Freddie King: Before my time… I think, so a definite maybe.
-Joan Jett and the Blackhearts: You would think yes, but they only had a few big hits. It’s hard for me to say this because I LOVE girls that ROCK, but better luck next year, Joan.
-The Spinners: Multiple Soul Train appearances and those suits… ABSOLUTELY!! I Youtubed them and they had tons of hits. Vote them in!!

-Beastie Boys: If not, I say time to close down the RNRHOF.
-Donovan: His daughter was married to Ad-Rock, so yes!! A family reunion on stage.
-Laura Nyro: Uh…
-Red Hot Chili Peppers: Uplift Mofo Party YES!!!! How can they not be??

-War: Yes. Who doesn’t smile every time they hear ‘Lowrider’??
-Guns ‘N Roses: Yes, but a hell yes if they had stayed together for longer than those few CDs. I hope they make it because I just really want to see Axl on stage with Slash, Duff, Izzy and Steven Adler and then keep my fingers crossed that they might get along at the induction ceremony and maybe, just maybe decide to TOUR AGAIN!!!!!!!
-Eric B. & Rakim: Not too familiar, but I say do it! I’ve seen too many people wearing shirts with them on it for them not to be recognized.
-Donna Summer: Absofrickenlootly!! She is the queen of disco and always gets me dancing!
-Rufus with Chaka Khan: Hmm, I say just Chaka, not Rufus. But that would be mean, so… no. next year.

And aside from all of them, and congrats by the way, but what about RUSH?? I grew up listening to them with my dad and they belong in the RNRHOF!! See how none of this makes a lot of sense at all? Oh well, maybe that’s what makes it fun?! Either way, I’ll be watching! The all star jams are usually pretty memorable at the ceremony, and by the way, HELLO CLEVELAND!!

Now I’m going to go listen to some Freddie King, Laura Nyro, Donovan and Eric B. & Rakim to see what I’ve been missing. Who knows? Maybe I’ll become their biggest fan!

Keep ROCKING!!

CT

My friend dragged me to see the singer from The Alarm on Sunday and it was AWESOME!!
The El Rey theater was a cool venue and the sound was great!! It was an intimate performance with a who’s who of 80’s artist for the encore. I snapped a few pics. Check them out! The last one has Cy Curnin from The Fixx, Mike Peters from The Alarm, Billy Duffy from The Cult, Jay Aston from Gene Loves Jezebel and the drummer from the Stray Cats Slim Jim Phantom. Those guys are such good musicians. Wish I could have seen them back in the 80’s while pogo-ing with huge crowds. Either way we had a great time!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing live bands!!

And to top off my 80’s month, I may even be talked into going to see Tears For Fears in two weeks! Now if only Kajagoogoo was touring!!

Like, totally!!

CT

I’m not that old and even I still remember when MTV stood for MUSIC TeleVision, but sadly those days are mostly gone. Sure I can waste a whole Saturday watching a Jersey Shore marathon or watch the usual horrors for all those girls who are 16 & Preggers, but to be honest, I miss all the music!! Thank god for the few other channels that still feature some music segments, like VH1 Classic, Sundance’s Live From Abbey Road and DirecTV’s Guitar Center Sessions. It’s always a pleasure to watch those shows, because they have awesome performances and usually sound AMAZING!! Check out the links below and see for yourself. All around good stuff!!

But that is the problem. On the average, you have to search for music on tv nowadays. Reality killed the video star (cheesy, but it makes my point!) But I still have faith that music television will make a huge comeback!! People are starting to demand it.

So last night MTV dug deep into its roots and as they do every year, they had their VMA Awards. It’s a lot of flash and the usual shock value, but all in all I guess it’s an effort to remind us that they were all about music at one point. And I was a fan of Amy Winehouse and all, but to have that tribute to her was a little much. Let’s not kid ourselves and pretend that she wasn’t a hot mess. I’d rather see them honor musicians and bands that helped get that channel started all those years ago that are still touring and making music and not giving up… the music survivors if you would. The best part about last night was that Beyonce showed off her baby bump and the reactions all around Jay Z. That was actually a nice moment that transcended music. Congrats to them! But still, I WANT MORE MUSIC!!!

I guess I’ll be able to stop complaining about it after somebody gets me or I finally break down and buy one of those BluRay players that stream Netflix and YouTube to my tv. Then I can watch HOURS AND HOURS of all the videos I want. Rats… is it xmas yet???

Turn it up LOUD!!
CT

So… I went to the Sunset Strip Music Festival last weekend and had a blast!! The Strip was packed with rockers, ravers, lovers, posers, cougars, hipsters, celebrities, some guy dressed like Jesus and Gene Simmons. It was quite the interesting crowd. Best part was that everybody had a good time. I only saw one (girl) fight, the rest of the people were singing along to Bush, Public Enemy (Boy-eeeee!) and the legendary Motley Crue. They all sounded great and it was awesome to see bands that I thought I never would have, but thanks to some VIP passes that a friend scored, we got in free and got some cool perks!
From what people were telling me, the Strip has changed a lot throughout its legendary history. It’s cool to know that Jim Morrison, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jane’s Addiction, Gun N’ Roses and Van Halen all walked on Sunset Blvd exactly where I was throughout the years. SO MUCH ROCK HISTORY!! I even had a drink at the Rainbow where everybody in rock has seemingly been! It was an awesome experience!!!

Then I heard this week that the Sunset Junction Festival will not be happening this year over permits– BUMMER!!! I was looking forward to checking that fest out too. But hey, Coachella is just around the corner!

Now stop reading this and go see some live music!!

\m/
CT

I remember when I first heard ‘Rehab’ a few years back. Great song! If you told me it was from Motown back in the Sixties, I would have totally believed you. But when I saw the video and realized that it was sung by an early 20’s white girl from England, I was really blown away! I think we all expected a lot of great things from this girl… but she had other plans.

I got some texts Saturday morning then turned to Facebook to confirm it. Yep, Amy was found dead in London. SHE WAS ONLY 27!! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, people: DRUGS ARE NO GOOD!! SO much talent has been taken from us because of them. We all have been cheated.

And no, I’m not comparing her to the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Janice Joplin, Keith Moon, Kurt Cobain, Chris Farley, John Belushi, or Marilyn Monroe… they were legends. I would put her more in a group with DJ AM, Mitch Hedberg, Shannon Hoon (Blind Melon), Greg Giraldo, O.D.B., Heath Ledger, Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy), Anna Nicole Smith, Dee Dee Ramone, Brittany Murphy, Bradley Nowell (Sublime), Chris Penn, Gram Parsons, River Phoenix, Sid Vicious, Brad Renfro, Bon Scott, Edie Sedgwick, Hillel Slovak (RHCP), Gidget Gein (Marilyn Manson), The Rev (Avenged Sevenfold), Andrew Wood (Mother Love Bone) and Layne Staley (Alice in Chains). All of them talented in their own right, all of them gone before they gave themselves a chance to reach legend status.

Everybody on that list was in a line of work that put them in the public eye. It’s sad that they couldn’t find satisfaction, achievement or happiness in their success. It’s sadder that we are all left wondering what could have been.

Fight your demons, people. There are different and better highs in life. I hope that list doesn’t get longer any time soon.

CT