Brütal Legend Röcks

The Yankees win! Now onto relevant stuff.

The Premise

In Brütal Legend, you play as the greatest roadie in the world, Eddie Riggs (Jack Black). Riggs is killed while saving his wussy band’s pathetic guitarist after he does something stupid on stage. Instead of dying, Riggs is transported back in time to the World of Metal where he takes on the small task of saving the human race with the power of his metal.

The Basic Game Mechanics

Riggs is armed with two axes. The first axe (the chopping kind) is used for melee combat, while the second axe (the musical kind) is used to electrocute, blow away, and explode enemies… in the World of Metal, guitars can do that kind of shit. However, that’s just the tip of the mechanics iceberg. You also have an awesome car, “the Deuce” (as in the Deuce (not douche) from Bruce Springsteen’s song “Blinded By the Light”).

Finally, there is an entirely unique portion of the game, and that’s a real-time strategy (RTS) component. Riggs leads his army, the forces of heavy metal into battle against the likes of General Lionwhyte’s (Rob Halford of Judas Priest fame) glam metal army.

The game is part sandbox/ hack & slash, and part hack & slash/ real-time strategy. The combination works well.

The Good

There is a lot to love about this game; especially if you enjoy metal… but I believe that you don’t need to enjoy the music to have a good time playing this game.

First, the game is hilarious. The dialog is brilliant and well-crafted.

Sample dialog from the opening scenes:

Eddie: “I can fix anything, except that” (in reference to his band’s awful music)

Roadie: “Metal is dead”

Eddie: “Ever feel like you were born in the wrong time, like you should have been born earlier… when the music was real?”

Roadie: “Like the 70’s?”

Eddie: “Earlier… like the early 70’s.”

The voice acting is great. Metal legends like Ozzy Osbourne (who is unusually coherent), Lemmy Kilmister (or as I like to call him, “the fucking man”), Lita Ford, and the aforementioned Rob Halford all lend their legendary voices and faces to the game. They are joined by other actors like Tim Curry (the Tim Curry), and Brian Posehn.

The World of Metal is gorgeous. It looks exactly like what heavy metal world look like if the music and album covers became a functional reality. The landscape, people, weapons, buildings, cars, men, women (especially the women), and even the creatures all look like they could grace a stage or album cover.

The story is oddly compelling, and pays such a loving tribute to the often misunderstood musical genre.

My favorite part of the game was visiting the location known as “the Wall of Sound.” Guitarists like Yngwie Malmsteen play with a wall of amps behind them… the Wall of Sound is a cliff of amps.

While returning from the Wall of Sound, Riggs & Co. are attacked by a flock of seagulls; the joke was so subtle I had to pause the game to cackle (if you don’t get it, click this link & this one, but this link is at risk to your ears).

The subtle, and inside metal jokes were superb.

The use of the music was wonderful, especially in certain areas of the game where the music was deliberately selected. The getaway scene where you are speeding in the Deuce, avoiding the onslaught of some big and ugly monsters is set to Dragonforce’s shredfest, “Through the Fire and Flames” (I can’t help but speed in real life when this song is blasting in my car, so I was happy to race to it in-game). During one critical story moment, Ozzy Osbourne’s “Mr. Crowley” struck me as particularly beautiful and powerful.

Throughout the game, music constantly plays through the stereo in the Deuce. The selection is broad and generally good. I was especially pleased to hear song’s like Motörhead’s “We Are the Road Crew,” and a pair of songs by Racer X.

The driving and combat was intuitive, and the RTS components were easy to control after I got the hang of it; fortunately the learning curve was pretty shallow on the RTS battles.

The Not So Good

Brütal Legend gets everything almost perfect, but it could have used some polish. For example…

• Riggs often gets stuck on things like rocks – a jump button would have fixed that
• Riggs dies in water – I’m so tired of characters dying in water (especially when you see them swim in the during cinematic sequences of the game without dying)
• A mini-map while driving the Deuce would have saved me from constantly pausing to check the damn map
• Cinematic scenes, particularly at the beginning and end of the game cut to load screens in odd places; this yanked me out of the narrative
• A lack of instructional cues – There are things throughout the game that aren’t explained and you have to discover them for yourself (how do you a free serpent statues, or disabling songs that you don’t enjoy [I can't stand industrial metal], among many other key features

None of these ruin the game by any stretch of the imagination, but an extra month or two in development would have gone a long way.

The Ugly

I’m not completely sold that this belongs in the “Ugly” category, but I need to put something here, and this bothered me the most about Brütal Legend…

It was too easy, even on the Brütal difficulty level.

Once I got the hang of the RTS system, and discovered that the old Starcraft Zerg rush technique worked insanely well, I destroyed the computer without any resistance.

The Bottom-line

This is a great game, and well worth your time and money; if only for the humor, story, and music. Brütal Legend is a breath of fresh air, and a truly original experience in an ocean of sequels and rehashed game mechanics. There are so many great things about this game that I couldn’t even get into all of them. I guess you will just have to play and discover them for yourself.

The Grammys < Big Fat Turd (The Coldplay Plagiarism Saga Continues)

I’m going to make this short and only write one post on the Grammys because I could rant for days on this subject.

Coldplay, the miscreants who are being sued by Joe Satriani for plagiarism won a truck full of Grammys for the same damn song that they ripped off. 

Here’s a roundup of my past posts on the subject:

http://geekwhisperin.wordpress.com/tag/coldplay/

Now, I know that they have not been found liable for anything yet, but they couldn’t find a single other band or album to bestow the following awards upon:

• Pop performance by a duo or group with vocals
• Song of the year
• Rock album of the year

There isn’t a single other band out there that isn’t being sued by a world renown expert in music theory for plagiarism? Give me a freaking break!

We live in a world of brilliant musicians. Most of them never make it big, and this institution has continuously honored from within the current ranks of musical stardom, even when it is woefully undeserved. 

This is why I didn’t watch this circus.

OK… I feel better now.

If you’re going to do it, at least be smart about it… Piracy that is

I really am opposed to software piracy… but I also realize that asking geeks to stop pirating movies, music, software, comic books, or anything else that can be converted into a digital format is a bit like telling teenagers, “Don’t have sex.”

So, what I will say is, if you are going to pirate, be smart about it.

What do I mean?

Most important, always use protection. Please have virus protection on your computer. There are a lot of fake songs, movies, games, etc that are actually viruses. 

Also, and I really cannot stress this enough… be mindful of who you are pirating from. While I don’t endorse stealing from anyone, and make no mistake, that’s what piracy is… You should never, ever pirate indy movies, or albums from small bands.

A lot of smaller bands and movie makes struggle to make their art for the world. They work long hours in jobs they hate, so they can spend even longer hours trying to make a dream come true… and most of them will never make much money from their art. Don’t be an asshole and steal from these people.

… wait until they make it, and are rich. Then it’s not so bad.

Always remember to practice safe computing.

Coldplay & EMI Music Enter Panic Mode

I really thought I was going to let this one go until the Coldplay / Satriani plagiarism case was either settled or reached a verdict, but Coldplay and their record label EMI Music have really ticked me off.

As many of you know, I have written about this case a couple of times already: Tag – Coldplay

I’m not going to bother recapping the story. If you care to know, feel free to check out the previous entries.

I am a little on the OCD side when it comes to web design… and few things make me more irritated than links and functionality that do not work properly.

So, when one of my readers emailed me pointing out that my favorite YouTube video comparing both Viva La Vida & If I Could Fly, and then layering Coldplay’s vocals over Satriani’s guitar had been removed by order of EMI Music, I was pretty annoyed.

I just cannot stand having dead links… o boy does it tick me off that when you click on those videos all you see is, “This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by EMI Music.” 

This is a clear admission that there is something to this case because EMI Music hasn’t pulled all of the videos that play Viva La Vida, they just pulled the damning one. 

And since I am now committed to not letting this go because EMI and in turn, Coldplay have created dead links on my blog, I am going to retaliate by posting this, even more damning video that explains using music theory that Coldplay is in some seriously hot water. Have a look while you can. See the video before the control freaks at EMI censor this guy too.

EMI – You cannot stop the spread of information on the Internet, and trying is futile. If you take this video down, someone will make another, and taking the video down doesn’t change the truth. The easy answer to this problem is to encourage the bands on your label to either write their own material, or cite the material that they copy and pay the proper royalties.

Coldplay Writes a Response… All By Themselves

Coldplay finally decided that this whole plagiarism lawsuit against them might actually be a problem. As I wrote a few days ago, guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani has filed suit against Coldplay for stealing one of his riffs and using it in their hit song Viva La Vida.

Their response on their web site reads (Thank you Jackie V for emailing this to me):

“With the greatest possible respect to Joe Satriani, we have now unfortunately found it necessary to respond publicly to his allegations. If there are any similarities between our two pieces of music, they are entirely coincidental, and just as surprising to us as to him. Joe Satriani is a great musician, but he did not write or have any influence on the song Viva La Vida. We respectfully ask him to accept our assurances of this and wish him well with all future endeavours. Coldplay.”

I have a few thoughts here.

First, from a social media/ business perspective, this response took them way too long. When bloggers and twitterers get bent out of shape over something, response times should be measured in hours, not days.

The YouTube video that I had posted earlier, (and will repost because I like it so much) has had 1,611,590 views as of (7:07 EST on 12/9). That’s a lot of views and I’ve seen plenty of other posts and articles about the issue. My father tells me he even heard Satriani interviewed on NPR. This will be yet another case-study in poor reputation management. 

My other point has to do with the age-old practice of major artists ripping off lesser-known innovators.

For decades black blues pioneers were ripped off by their producers, and the musicians that they influenced. This isn’t something unique to bands that I don’t like such as Coldplay, even Led Zeppelin (who I really like) pulled this bullshit. 

While Satriani isn’t a black bluesman, and he clearly has earned a healthy living off of his music, it doesn’t change the fact that Coldplay is a huge pop act that has ripped off a lesser-known innovator. 

The similarities between Viva La Vida and If I Could Fly are just too substantive to simply brush off and ignore.

“Rodrigo Y Gabriela” – The Most Badass Guitarists You’ve Never Heard of

“Rodrigo Y Gabriela” are in a league of their own. If there is anyone else out there that sounds like them, I haven’t heard them.

They are a classical guitar duo that began their career playing thrash metal in Mexico. A few years ago gave up their electric guitars and band for a pair of classical guitars, and moved to Ireland.

The duo has found success writing their own material and covering tunes by some of their biggest influences. They play an inspired rendition of Stairway to Heaven, and have recorded covers of Metallica’s One and Orion.

(If you don’t have enough time to watch the whole video, watch the second half!)

Their fusion of metal, flamenco, and classical techniques is astounding to listen to. They play with such intensity and beauty. It’s is rare to hear a classical guitarist scream out to the audience, “Are you fucking ready?” before busting back into a scathing solo as Rodrigo does on their new live album “Live in Japan.” They don’t just cross or combine genres; they break them apart, and create something new, something completely unique.

They have a prominent place on a short list of musicians who have changed the way I listen to and think about music.

I strongly recommend you give them a listen. If you like instrumental or guitar music, you can’t go wrong with “Rodrigo Y Gabriela.”

I’ve Always Said Coldplay Were a Bunch of Hacks

So it seems that Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida” has been plagiarized from guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani’s “If I Could Fly.”

“Satch” has filed suit against the members of Coldplay for copyright infringement, and I think that the suit has legs.

Listen to this youtube video that plays portions of both songs, then layers Coldplay’s vocals over Satch’s guitar.
  

Two things to note: the chord progression is the same and Coldplay’s rip-off is boring as hell.

Satch gets my support on this one because he’s right, a crazy guitarist, an excellent composer, and a fellow geek.

Derek Truck’s New Single

If you’ve never heard of Derek Trucks, you are missing out. Trucks is one of the best slide guitarists of all-times, and by far the best I have ever seen.

He play’s guitar with the Allman Brother’s Band along side his uncle and long-time Allman’s drummer Butch Trucks. He spent about two years touring and recording with Eric Clapton, and he also keeps a regular touring schedule with his own, Derek Trucks Band.

When touring and recording as a solo artist, Trucks melds genres together in exceptional ways. Listening to any track will reveal a multitude of influences including blues, rock, jazz, blues rock, southern rock, traditional Indian slide guitar, and Sacred Steel.

If you like any of the genres listed about, I recommend you give him a try.

Anyway, I’m very excited because Trucks has released a new single – Down in the Flood, a magnificent cover of an old Bob Dylan tune (further proof that everyone sings Bob Dylan better than Bob Dylan). The single is available for download on iTunes.

What has me even more excited is that the single is a precursor to a full-length album, Almost Free, due out on January 13, 2009. Mark your calendars.

http://derektrucks.com/news.html

Everyone Sings Bob Dylan Better than Bob Dylan

For years, I have been cooking up the theory that everyone sings Bob Dylan better than Bob Dylan. Now I know a lot of people are going to disagree (my guitar teacher included), but I don’t care. He’s written a lot of great songs but that doesn’t mean he knows how to sing them.

Without any thought, this is the list of amazing Dylan covers that completely kick the ass of his original recordings:

• All Along the Watchtower (Jimi Hendrix)
• Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (Guns N’ Roses & Eric Clapton)
• One More Cup of Coffee (The White Stripes)
• Maggie’s Farm (Rage Against the Machine)
• It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue (Van Morrisson) (OK… Van sings better than just about everyone) 
• Blowin’ in the Wind (Peter, Paul, & Mary)
• Highway 61 Revisited (Johnny Winter)
• Lay, Lady, Lay (Buddy Guy)

I’m sure there are more.

Maybe I’m being too harsh, but I don’t feel it when he’s singing. 

Join CD Tracks – An Excellent Trick on iTunes

There are just some songs that you have to hear together, and listening to them separate is just a sonic travesty. I have put a lot of thought into this, and come up with a list (please post any that I forgot).

Rock You & We Are the Champions – Queen

Heartbreaker & Living Loving Maid – Led Zeppelin

Load Out & Stay – Jackson Browne

Black Magic Woman & Gypsy Queen – Santana

Amie & Falling in and Out of Love – Pure Prairie League

Foreplay & Long Time – Boston

Eruption & You Really Got Me - Van Halen

Funeral for a Friend & Love Lies Bleeding & Candle in the Wind - Elton John

… and then the “absolute must play these two tracks together award” goes to Brain Damage & Eclipse - Pink Floyd

You can really add almost any pairing from Dark Side of the Moon, or any other prog rock concept album or rock opera. A lot of Pink Floyd or Dream Theater stuff can fall into this catagory.

Anyway… for years I have wanted a way to link two songs together in iTunes so that they are not played apart from one-another when I am listening on random. Honestly, a little part of my soul dies every time I hear Brain Damage and it isn’t followed by Eclipse.  

Turns out there is a way! It just isn’t very intuitive. 

The trick is to use the “Join CD Tracks” function in iTunes before you rip the CD to your computer, or if you don’t own the CD, burn the tracks to a CD, and then rip them back to your computer using the “Join CD Tracks” tool. This is actually easy to do… it’s just annoying, but for some songs, it’s worth it.

Rip - the act of copying content from solid media. Basically, this is copying music from a CD, or a video from a DVD.

You can follow these instruction to do so:

1. Put the CD into your drive. 

2. In iTunes, click on the CD, so that you are viewing the track list from that album.

3. Hold down the “Apple” button, or “Control/ Ctrl” button if you are on a PC, and select the consecutive tracks that you would like to merge.

4. While keeping those tracks selected, go up to the top of the screen, and click on “Advanced.”

5. Select “Join CD Tracks.” You should see the tracks linked together with a bracket.

6. Import the CD to iTunes normally.

7. (Optional) If you had to re-rip the album to your computer, you might want to delete the old tracks so that you do not have duplicates.

Give it a shot, it isn’t difficult to do. It just doesn’t feel natural.

It would be nice if Apple added a feature to join tracks together without having to do it from a CD… for now, this works.

“Technically correct is the best kind of correct”

In the immortal words of Bureaucrat #1.0 from Futurama, “Technically correct is the best kind of correct.”

All of you file sharers out there should be aware of an epidemic that is flooding our iPods with false information.

A long time ago when Napster was cool, some people misnamed a few songs in their share folder. As time passed and more people downloaded those misnamed songs, they began to multiply, spreading their heinous falsehoods throughout the Internet.

Today, there are thousands of people suffering from misattribute-itis. A common disorder whereby the victim thinks one artist performed a particular song, but it really was someone else. 

This stops today my friends. Here is a short list of some of the most common songs that have been misattributed as a result of file sharing:

• Carry On Wayward Son is performed by Kansas, not the Eagles.
• The way cool theme from Top Gun was performed by Steve Stevens, not Eddie Van Halen.
• We Built This City was performed by Jefferson Starship, not Journey.
• Eric Clapton’s song Tears in Heaven is not called Would You Know My Name.
• The Red Hot Chili Pepper’s song Under the Bridge os not called City of Angels.

I am certain there are more out there. I will add them if I find any more. 

Check your iPod friend. Make sure you are not an unwitting victim of misattribute-itis.