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Music

Gig #125: Monster and Beer; Gig #126: Twenty Eight Bar

Been swamped with work but I swear I’ll get around to adding more random thoughts to this blog. For now, I’ll share some gig updates.

So after dipping my toes into the open mic scene again, I’ve secured myself another 2 slots in the coming days. One is later today (Sunday, if you’re reading it now) at Monster and Beer and the second one being another slot at the Twenty Eight Bar Open Mic the day after.

First up, Monster and Beer. They’re back with a second round of their open mic (not sure how often they do it, but this is 2.0). I’ve gone there a few times only to drink and had no idea they had gigs there until recently, so that’s exciting. Plus it’s a weekend, so more people can attend (yay).

It’ll be a brand new crowd since the lineup is everyone I don’t recognize. Hopefully, they vibe with acoustic emo tunes. The show starts at 4PM, and my slot is at 6PM, but stick around for some tasty craft beers and enjoy all the acts. There’s also food on site and plenty of restaurants nearby.

Google Maps | Instagram | 28 May 2023 | 4 PM

The next gig will be on a Monday night, my third appearance at Twenty Eight Bar, Bangsar. Was asked to take up a slot since they didn’t have enough sign ups, so if you’re interested in performing, sign up for a slot! Hit them up on Instagram. The gig starts at 8 PM and my set will be at 9.30 PM.

Google Maps | Instagram | 29 May | 8 PM

Looking forward to playing these shows, as usual, come hang if you’ve got nothing going on. I’ll try to make it worth your while.

Instagram ads are alright

I dislike ads. I’m sure most of you know that. I recommend uBlock Origin to everyone I know, I purposely purchased a domain name and rented server space so I could have an ad-free blog, and use a third-party YouTube app on my mobile devices so I don’t have to deal with them interrupting my videos.

Sometimes, ads can’t be avoided – like in the Instagram app. These advertisements show up in your feed after scrolling through a few posts, and other times they insert themselves in between stories of people you’re browsing. Most of the time I’ve received bullshit ads that I swipe away immediately, but recently I think the algorithm has me figured out (yay).

These days I don’t get any more adverts for strange sex toys, rubbish manga or cash-grabbing mobile games. Instead, I get music video ads that I watch and swipe up to. I like the fact that I can instantly load their YouTube video or Spotify page to continue listening to the whole song. While I haven’t found my next favorite band yet, I have discovered quite a lot of songs that I would have missed if it wasn’t for the intrusion.

Thank you for the encroaching commercials, Instagram (Facebook). For once, I can wholly support them, and I hope this trend keeps up.

In the meantime, do check out some of the bands I’ve discovered through the power of advertising:

Properties of Nature – You Didn’t Start a Fire in My Heart, You Started it in My House!

East of June – Rebel

PNKR – Olivia

LØE – People Have The Power (Official)

Anti-Modern-Radio Me

When I was young, I remember being bored to death whenever my parents switched radio channels to listen to oldies. Songs they listened to growing up. They would tell me that they don’t make songs like they used to anymore. I would fervently disagree with them, defending my tastes in Limp Bizkit and Eminem. I assumed they didn’t know better.

Now that I’m older, I don’t listen to the radio anymore – mostly because they mostly play songs I dislike, have terrible DJs and too many advertisements. When I have to (because I’m driving someone else’s car), I tune into Light and Easy – a channel that mostly plays oldies because I can enjoy them, unironically. I enjoy listening to songs that I heard growing up even though I wasn’t a big fan of them back in the day because, amongst the cesspool of modern radio, they sound euphonious.

It can’t be that music has gotten worse – there must be a reason why these artists on modern radio are getting airtime and making new records. There is a demand for them even though I might not like their music. It’s just not for me.

But why do I not enjoy a lot of current music? I think it comes down to a few factors:

  • I’m listening to the wrong stations – maybe, but I can’t be bothered to give other radio stations a shot. It’s not worth the time, so I stick with what I know and enjoy.
  • My tastes have already developed and I’m rejecting what’s new and unfamiliar. I have noticed that it doesn’t apply to a lot of new music I discover that’s not on the radio, so probably not the case.
  • Mainstream radio has always been trash and the only reason I enjoy old pop hits now is that I grew up listening to them – the nostalgia and singalong factor is what draws me to them. This seems like the most likely reason.

Is this what my parents were experiencing when I was growing up? As kids did they face the same chagrin for their music tastes from their parents? I’ll have to ask them to find out.

On the other hand, if you think I’m just some whiney old boomer who is wrong about modern music, feel free to share some songs to change my mind. I’m open to listening to new songs and artists. I know there’s a lot of good stuff out there I have yet to discover.