Blog Posts by Robert of the Radish

When someone describes a piece of music as "autumnal", I hear something very specific in my head. Autumn music is not necessarily mellow, but it is never harsh. It is cool and calm, but never cold. It brings a sense of peace and well-being. And for me, no genre represents autumn better than jazz. One of the things I love about  jazz is the expressiveness of it -- how it can convey feeling without lyrics, or even without the sound of a human voice.  It's a communication that can be understood regardless of the listener's native language. For this playlist I've chosen 10 fantastic jazz artists, each presenting their own musical take on my favorite season - autumn. It includes some truly great standards, and some legendary artists. So get a cup of hot cider, a warm sweater, and spend some time outside with this playlist as you watch the falling leaves.

What would you add to your autumn jazz playlist?

Autumn Jazz

1. Autumn Leaves - Miles Davis

2. Autumn Serenade - John Coltrane

3. Tis'

If you were to ask a random group of people what the number one symbol of Halloween is, the responses may vary, but I can guarantee that you'll hear choices like the jack-o-lantern, the bat, the witch and the black cat. For this playlist I wanted to focus on the latter. In many cultures the black cat is a symbol of good luck, but during the middle ages they came to be viewed as evil - the devil himself in animal form, or the companion of witches. Black cats were killed on sight, and some historians believe this led to an increase in the rat population, which in turn caused the black plague to be all the worse. This black cat superstition was brought to the new world by puritanical pilgrims who would take no issue with sentencing a "witch" to death. This history made black cats synonymous with bad luck. And what genre tells the story of bad luck better than any other? Why, the blues of course. So, for this playlist I've selected 10 blues songs about black cats. 

It's the perfect

Thankfully, the Occupy Wall Street protests have been peaceful so far. Unlike the protests over austerity measures in Greece, which have not embraced non-violence to the same degree. Let's hope our domestic protests can continue to follow their non-violent path, and that we do not see them devolve into rioting. After all, a riot is never a good thing, and if you understand history, you know that non-violent resistance has had much more success in bringing change. In music, the riot is an irresistible subject for songwriters, especially in rock and roll. Rock music has always been the music of rebellion, and the riot is a pinnacle act of rebellion, so it make perfect sense that there are a lot of "riot songs" to be found in rock and roll. This playlist includes 24 of them. 

What would you add?

Songs About Wall Street

1. I Predict A Riot - Kaiser Chiefs

2. White Riot - The Clash

3. Teen Age Riot - Sonic Youth

4. Anarchy In The U.K. - The Sex Pistols

5. Panic - The Smiths

6. We Had

When I think of classic rock drummers I think of massive drum sets - complete, almost laughable, overkill. And nothing completes an over-the-top drum kit better than a gigantic gong, set right behind the drummer. And for even more effect it can be doused with lighter fluid and lit on fire during that one song where the gong is actually employed. The gong is an eastern invention, but Western rock and roll stole it and made it their own. But we need to face facts, the gong doesn't fit in too well with most songs. That's why it's hard to find rock tracks that actually feature one. This playlist includes 10 classic rock songs with gong that I could scrounge up.

Please help expand the list and add any I have missed to the comments.

Classic Rock Songs With Gong

1. The Day Begins - The Moody Blues

2. A Saucerful Of Secrets - Pink Floyd

3. Hemispheres - Rush

4. Dream On - Aerosmith

5.Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

6. Almost Human - KISS

7. Africa - Toto

8. Tank - Emerson, Lake & Palmer

9.

Independent music gets a lot more respect today than it has in past decades. Not too long ago it was extremely expensive and difficult for an artist to release an album. The recording, mixing, mastering, distribution and marketing were high hurdles to clear for unsigned acts.  Today, with some relatively inexpensive computer software and an Internet connection, even artists on a shoestring budget can record, mix, master, distribute and market their own music. Businesses like Topspin Media  even offer independent musicians a complete direct-to-fan platform that can completely eliminate the dependence on middle men who take the lion's share. Yes, independent music has certainly come a long way in a short amount of time. And it's not just DIY punk rock and alternative college bands doing the indie thing. Everyday, established artists are kicking record company dinosaurs to the curb as contracts expire. After all, it never really made sense that an artist should take a minor royalty for

It's hard to believe that the album Nevermind by Nirvana just had its 20th anniversary last month. Released on September 24th, 1991, Nevermind would go on to define a band, a genre and a generation. It has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, reached the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart, and by my calculations, is the 15th greatest album of all time. The album's influence is broad and deep, and continues 20 years on. As with most albums that stand the test of time, you'll find no filler on this record -- it contains a dozen songs that are all stand out tracks in their own right. For this playlist I've reconstructed Nirvana's Nevermind with cover songs. Hear the album with a fresh perspective.

What covers would be in your remake of this timeless classic?

Classic Albums Remade: Nirvana - Nevermind

1. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Paul Anka

2. In Bloom - Graham Parker

3. Come As You Are - Glasvegas

4. Breed - Otep

5. Lithium - The Bad Plus

6. Polly -Eyes Set to Kill

7. Territorial

Today, the family and I went out searching for our Halloween costumes. Every store we walked into seemed to be doing a brisk business, which I hope is a good sign for the economy. My kids, like most, are really into Halloween. They love picking costumes, trick-or-treating, pumpkin carving, and lately they've started to show an interest in monsters. They're finally at an age where a scary movie (I'm talking something mild like Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein) doesn't send them screaming in terror. Tonight we Neflixed a couple episodes of the Munsters, a show that I grew up with. My kids ate it up. This was the inspiration for this Halloween-themed playlist. I've chosen 14 songs, each one in honor of a classic monster. From Frankenstein, to Dracula, to the Mummy, to the Invisible Man, they're all here.

What's your favorite classic monster, and what songs would you add?

Classic Monsters: A Halloween Playlist

1. Frankenstein - The Edgar Winter Group

2. Werewolves Of London - Warren

The legend of the zombie emerged from Haitian and African voodoo folklore, but has since grown to epic proportions. Zombie films like The Night Of The Living Dead have become cult classics, and have helped create subcultures of zombie-loving goths across the globe. A "zombie" in the popular culture is an undead human, or in other words, an animated dead person. They have a taste for human brains, and those unfortunate enough to be infected also become zombies. This means that zombies can multiply fast, and can overtake whole towns relatively quickly. Luckily, zombies are slow.

You can find thousands of books, video games and movies that focus on the zombie, and it's not too hard to find songs inspired by these undead abominations. This playlist includes 20 zombie-inspired tracks.

What would you add?

Zombie Songs

1. Living Dead Girl - Rob Zombie

2. Zombies Ate Her Brain - The Creepshow

3. They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!! Ahhhhh! -