November 27, 2008

Alright, last post. This is what started me on the idea and journey in the first place. Some backstory: This past July, I enrolled in a wrestling camp because I’m a longtime fan, and had to know if I could ever even potentially possess the ability to do it for a living down the road (the answer was no, but that’s a story for another day.) Anyway, by the time my first trial match was upon me, I had to pick a song to enter the ring to. Having witnessed countless entrances, I wanted to find a song that would get me pumped as well as the crowd, and be original as far as having never heard it in a wrestling arena. I settled on Quarashi’s “Mr. Jinx.” I’d liked the song since I first heard it on the Madden NFL 2003 soundtrack (tying it back to my paper even further!), and thought it was just uptempo and in-your-face enough to do the job. Hearing it over the loudspeakers as I made my way to the ring was I moment I won’t forget, not even a concussion could fuzz up this memory! I’d post up video of myself in action, but it’s not as musically oriented as the video for the song itself, so you’ll just have to use your imagination for now.

Here are the lyrics:

Now it’s your type o mad Jinx the mad sucker with a tail.
I’ve got my life worked up it ain’t as cheap as one thinks.
I’ve got links on it, the same internet porn,
ain’t as deep as I’ve been now I’ve got Justin in my corner.
I creep up but they don’t want me back in you know my love is so big
I think my head is cracking, smacking my face and always giving me the
baseline,
dead in a days time, give back what’s mine.
This ain’t no rhyme about a junky on run another punk with a gun.
Now when you get it, meet the mad fun.
So get on your feet and get in pack with the deal
the beats on the wheel,
now how do you feel.
The cool vibe from my lyrical solo
I beat on your chest when I’m bouncing like yoyo.
This story is old just like the tales I’ve told.
But mark my words it will turn into gold.

All right, we’ve got it right all right.
We’ve got it right all right.
We’ve got it right all right.

We dig around fanatics, tall and fallen manics
and the planets breaking down with god the only mechanic around,
faking firm ground, fucking up the program
so now I’m working on my devious master plan.
It’s all about these crazy comic relieves you know
Wooster and Jeeves and modern prophets you never believe,
we get them all on a boat leave out all the rules,
the white pigeons, and sail the ship of fools.

All right, we’ve got it right all right.
We’ve got it right all right.
We’ve got it right all right. x3

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As an example of the relationship music has to pro wrestling, here is a video of well known band Motorhead performing at Wrestlemania 21 a few years back. They played Triple H’s entrance theme, “The Game,” which they themselves recorded specifically for him. The crowd seemed pretty into it, and it made for a pretty dramatic entrance. Other artists that share a relationship with WWE include Limp Bizkit, Saliva, and Rev Theory.

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Yes, it’s dorky, but I can’t help but get pumped everytime I hear “Real American.” Music is so crucial to the very nature of professional wrestling, and though it may not be classified as sport to some, I still plan to touch upon it in my paper. After all, it’s what started me on this quixotic journey in the first place (more on that in a future post)! Anyway, the lyrics to this are actually pretty decent as far as wrestling music goes, so I figured I’d post em alongside the video.

I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what’s right, fight for your life!

When it comes crashing down, and it hurts inside,
ya’ gotta take a stand, it don’t help to hide,
Well, you hurt my friends, and you hurt my pride,
I gotta be a man; I can’t let it slide,
I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what’s right, fight for your life!

I feel strong about right and wrong,
And I don’t take trouble for very long,
I got something deep inside of me, and courage is the thing that keeps us free,
I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what’s right, fight for your life!

Well you hurt my friends, and you hurt my pride,
I gotta be a man; I can’t let it slide,
I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what’s right, fight for your life!
I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what’s right, fight for your life!

Nothing like good ol fashioned, chest thumping patriotism is there?

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I’ve already got enough posts, but I was randomly surfing YouTube, and found a couple videos I figured I might as well share to pad my stats as it were. Hope the Thanksgiving holiday was a pleasant one for anyone unfortunate enough to stumble upon my little corner in cyberspace!

This is my absolute FAVORITE piece of NFL Films music. I was upset that I couldn’t find a highlights montage set to it, but the NFL is pretty stringent on what’s allowed on YouTube anymore. I think the composition really captures the hectic nature of the gridiron. An interesting note is that this piece is titled “The Lineman”, yet the Autumn Thunder NFL Films music anthology I have calls it “Forearm Shiver.” Who am I to believe?

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November 22, 2008

A Swing and Another Hit

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/31/AR2008033102857.html

This Washington Post article dives into the Washington Nationals’ song choices at their stadium. It talks about how the Nationals came about their choices as well as why certain songs remain crowd pleasers. It specifically cites some pop songs that have fizzled out in terms of maintaining popularity with the crowd. This points to the archetype argument I hope to explore in my paper. Why don’t some songs connect with all the fans?

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Right music a crowd pleaser

Right music a crowd pleaser

BYLINE: MULROONEY Paul

SECTION: FEATURES; GENERAL; HIGHER EDUCATION; Pg. 7

This article came on the heels of a case study conducted in New Zealand. A team of researchers wanted to examine the effects of certain types of music on fans congregated at a rugby game. As it turns out, music with positive lyrics and a quicker backbeat led to the most positive reactions while slower songs with either indifferent or negative lyrics led to a crowd that “sat on its hands.” This article will help me explore why certain songs work and also shows me that I’m not the only one thinking about these things!

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Making all the right noises; Music and sport share acres of common ground

Making all the right noises;
Music and sport share acres of common ground, writes Martin Greig

BYLINE: Martin Greig

SECTION: SPORT; Pg. 32

“The challenge: to investigate the crossover between music and sport through themes of innovation and creativity. To the closed mind, sport and music may appear to be mutually exclusive concepts, but a scratching of the surface reveals acres of common ground. Unconvinced?”

Bingo! I finally found an article that explores the artistic side of the relationship between these two areas, which is exactly what I’ve been searching for this whole time! Thanks, LexisNexis!

Anyway, the article talks about a high school team that has developed a camaraderie through music, which is a common theme throughout team sports. Grieg also points to certain moments in sports that are commonly associated with music. Granted, his key example was a movie, but the point he makes is still a good one. At this point, the two forms of entertainment really do go hand in hand even if we’re not constantly aware of the situation. Do you remember the last time you witnessed a sports event live or watched one on TV and didn’t hear some form of music whether it be an entrance theme or backing tune for a package? I certainly can’t.

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EA’s Steve Schnur Explains The Hype Behind The Madden Soundtrack [Interview]

Jul. 8, 2008 (Kotaku delivered by Newstex)

This is basically a transcript of the interview I posted earlier from EA’s executive, where he talks about the positive relationship between video games (Madden NFL, in particular) and musicians. This also has some opinion thrown in, and the author seems to agree with Schnur. In what’s described as a win-win-win situation, the article explores how the musicians benefit from being included as they receive a lot more exposure than they may previously have enjoyed. EA benefits from using recognized artists as some people may buy the game if that’s the only way to hear a particular song (it’s been done before.) Fans win because they get to play a good game, and jam to their favorite tunes whilst doing it.

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G2: Arts: Music: On your marks, get set, compose!: Music and musicians made the Olympics what they are today

G2: Arts: Music: On your marks, get set, compose!: Music and musicians made the Olympics what they are today

BYLINE: Anthony Bateman

SECTION: GUARDIAN FEATURES PAGES; Pg. 28

This article from the London Guardian discusses the impact music has had on the Olympic Games throughout history. As the world was preparing for the Beijing Games, Bateman talks about all the previous opening and closing ceremonies and their utilization of music. Music has had a lot to do with maintaining a positive image for the Games throughout the world. This ties back to the messages within the lyrics, which was precisely the thing one of the chapters in our Studies Reader book discussed.

A point of interest I saw was when Bateman briefly mentioned China’s decision to go ahead and play pop music in the athletic stadiums during the duration of the Games. Apparently, this was a big deal at the time, and I hadn’t noticed. The government had previously frowned upon empty American pop, but in an effort to put on a smiling face for the world, they relented and that’s why I heard songs like Britney’s “Gimme More” during certain events. Thanks…

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Maximum Music Exposure in Video Games

http://www.artistshousemusic.org/videos/maximum+music+exposure+in+video+games

This link leads to a video clip of an EA video game executive talking about the exposure an artist receives when their song is included in a video game. As EA manufactures and distributes the Madden NFL title, this certainly caught my attention.

An interesting point he made was that having a song on the Madden soundtrack would lead to more exposure than having the #1 song in any country in the world. That’s an unbelievable statistic. With that logic, why wouldn’t you want your song included on one of these sports game soundtracks? He also mentions that the artists hear from all over from fans that have heard their songs in the game. This is a great example of how the realm of sports can provide exposure for musical artists.

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