More than Useless video

This is the song that goes with my explication. And this is what I did the night before the research paper was due.

"More than Useless" Relient K

In Relient K’s “More than Useless” the speaker conveys an overall sense of despondency. That feeling of hopelessness repeats itself in each chorus until the last few stanzas where a ray of hope might save the speaker from a vicious cycle. The speaker has found himself trapped with a conversation within his own mind over the meaning of life. He ponders about his place and importance in society. Parts of the song are spoken in second person, this could reference a friendship that brings out the better half of the speaker. The speaker’s reliance on the friend get repeated every bridge and chorus, clarifying its importance. His idleness leads to regret on missed situations, which is represented in the lines “Too late look, my date bookIs packed full of days that were empty and now gone.” And the speaker realizes that he has every chance to grow from this regret and use it as a tool to become stronger, “And I bet, that regret Will prove to get me to improve in the long run.” By the end of the song the tone has shifted to feelings of hope and that things will get better for the speaker.

Relient K front man Matt Theissan takes most of the responsibility for writing the words of this song. Relient K is also known for having an occasional Biblical allusion, some Christian overtones can be noted. In the third stanza, sixth line; Theissan made an allusion to Jesus, “Like he would, for the good.” The stanza alone illustrates that if the speaker ever worked for anything it would be modeled after Jesus. The second person voice could ultimately refer to Jesus or another confidant. Throughout the song the speaker undergoes a certain epiphany about how he his reliant heavily on his friend.

Most of the lines in the song are sung with a stressed/ unstressed fashion. category. The first two and lines four and five rhyme, while other lines have a slant rhyme feel.
“Doing anything of any consequence
(Without me)
Showing any sign of ever making sense
Of my time , it's my life
And my right, to use it like I should
Like he would, for the good
Of everything that I would ever know”

The first two lines have the same syllabic value. The second person voice makes a connection between the listener and the speaker. For the bridge the first two lines are complex sentences separated musically by the an equal amount the rest within the simple statements. “And sometimes I think that I'm not any good at all. And sometimes I wonder why, why I'm even here at all”

In closing the song evaluates how every human being has value and all are ‘more than useless’. Even if the morale is low it may only take comradery in a confidant to generate positivity.

"More than Useless"

I feel like, I would like

To be somewhere else doing something that matters

And I'll admit here, while I sit here

My mind wastes away and my doubts start to gather

Whats the purpose? It feels worthless

So unwanted like I've lost all my value

I can't find it, not in the least bit

and I'm just scared, so scared that I'll fail you

And sometimes I think that I'm not any good at all

And sometimes I wonder why, why I'm even here at all

But then you assure me

I'm a little more than useless

And when I think that I can't do this

You promise me that I'll get through this

And do something right

Do something right for once

So I say if I can't, do something significant

I'll opt to leave most opportunities wasted

And nothing trivial, that life could give me will

Measure up to what might have replaced it

Too late look, my date book

Is packed full of days that were empty and now gone

And I bet, that regret

Will prove to get me to improve in the long run

And sometimes I think that I'm not any good at all

And sometimes I wonder why, why I'm even here at all

But then you assure me

I'm a little more than useless

And when I think that I can't do this

You promise me that I'll get through this

And do something right

Do something right for once

I’m a little more than useless

And I never knew I knew this

Was gonna be the day, gonna be the day

That I would do something right

Do something right for once

I notice, I know this

Weekend is a symbol of how I use my time

Resent it, I spent it

Convincing myself the world's doing just fine

(Without me)

Doing anything of any consequence

(Without me)

Showing any sign of ever making sense

Of my time , it's my life

And my right, to use it like I should

Like he would, for the good

Of everything that I would ever know

I'm a little more than useless

When I think that I can't do this

You promise me that I'll get through this

And do something right

Do something right for once

I’m a little more than useless

And I never knew I knew this

Was gonna the day, gonna be the day

That I would do something right

Do something right for once

I Found a Love Poem

He thinks in motion
She believes in voodoo
They live for jazz

They met under a flash of fuchsia
She raced rubies between heartbeats
He picked up his royal Copenhagen and decided to reload

They think I’m only a waitress
He drives into town to watch live jazz
She fills her china glaze with peach parfait

They meet the next morn at the café on Sandalwood drive
He thinks they have an essential essence
She knows he’s a one man show

They drink haute chocolate
He listens for vocal contradictions
She finds him mighty diesel

He asks for a taxi
She goes blind under dark lights
They escape to a chapel of love

Alex Goot

A freelancing independent musician may not be everyone's forte but for Alex Goot it is a daily reality. Reigning from Poughkeepsie, New York; Goot represent the rawest form of musical expression. He records all his music from his basement. This entails writing lyrics, creating melodies and laying down at least five instrumental tracks under his own direction. While recording he plays all his own instruments. Goot can read and play some percussive instruments, but plays the rest by ear. He performed with his high school band which trained his eye to read the percussive clef. Now a twenty something he tours the Northern cities of America with his own band promoting his music the hard way.

Artist such as Goot question my ideas about success. Right now he performs and sells any of his music for mere sustenance. He uses internet websites such as MySpace or Purevolume to enlarge his fan base. He has roughly three million plays on MySpace. Goot is now in the process of grabbing the attention of a record label to sign with. This is the logical next step in the music industry. But he has been a self-employed musician for about four years. Some of his songs question the stability of his future and stress uncertainty about his success in the music industry. But what if success is inspiring that one person to live better, or make something more of themselves. After all patience is well rewarded in the music industry.

He has recorded thirty-one songs stretched out onto four varied length EP's. He sells them digitally through iTunes or can mail a hard disc directly to any willing buyer. Goot also has imprinted t-shirts he sells for an added income.

I shot Goot an email with some questions and he later responded with these answers

Do you want your music or songs to have a certain message about life or anything for that matter?





Goot: Although all of my songs have a personal meaning to me, I do like the idea of people taking their own meaning from my music. The specific messages about life or anything else in the songs can be interpreted differently by everyone.





Is there anything you want to communicate to the listener with your songs?





G: I never really think about it that way - I just enjoy expressing myself through music. If people happen to connect with it, that's wonderful.





Can you actually read music or do you play by ear? Does this vary from instrument to instrument?





G: I played percussion all through high school band, so I can read rhythm pretty well. That's about it, though. The rest I play by ear.





What challenges; if any, do you feel you endure as an unsigned artist?





G: The lack of security, the fact that there's no team of people working with me. If I want to put out a new album and promote it, there is no one calling the shots or helping out. It's all up to me.


He credits his influences to a broad list of daily occurrences. He believes Phil Collins is his main musical influence. He sounds similar to The Rocket Summer, Jacks Mannequin, Phil Collins , Dan Fogelberg and even James Taylor. Listen for some themes like Loneliness, Uncertainty, Human Growth, Responsibility, Relationships, and Hope throughout his songs.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOgcygHO4aw

beam me up with that hypnopaediem biyyyyahhhhh

Basically for this statement, I expanded on the "Everyman is an Island" quote. I believe that there is a certain truth in this quote. The Brave New World society is the antithesis of that quote. I went further saying to stay near panormic skies and painted road lines you may find a home. I was trying to go for some Emerson-like stuff relating man's dependence on himself and nature to feel human; neither or which is present in brave new world.

Comment and Critique: cause I know some you thought mine was lame.



all pics taken by me or through association. except dancing batman, bush and soccer star.

Song- first 30 seconds of "Hey Brittany"- by- Forever the Sickest Kids

A Savage Monologue

That barren desert back home had more life than this city.
This Brave New World puzzles me. Everything seeems socially backward form my norms. I can't find acceptance here either so not much is new. How did I get roped into a situation like this? I can't believe my mom has left me, basically taken by a substance. Forget about my Father. I find great interest in Bernard. We have many a few deep conversations. I wonder what people think about him. I find him a strong and courageous man. I tried to stop those workers from getting their soma, but I did nothing. How can a society be addicted to a single substance. I can't stand Lenina. A woman without feminine traits or any fortitude. She confuses me the most. I can't fall into her temptations. That movie she made me watch was terribly dry. I didn't get lost in it like I do with other pieces of literature. Well tomorrow I'm leaving for the city outskirts, hopefully I can get some peace and quiet there. I think this Brave New World is too far gone for me to try and change anything

Found Poem

Mind the Fire
Sunk the Ash
Pour the Potion
Apply the Knife
Danced in the Handerchief-big Space


Suddenly I felt Old
Metal Woven
And coiled Into Yellow
Toward the Gulf
Boss got Out


The only S O S I suppose
I watched the cotton rows
before the barbeque
Coloseun, some ruined temple
He let the Boss shake it

Slightly Puzzled smile on his face
Politics, he said
Even to be Freed?
Cass continued
Good with a capital G