Blindsquirrel Attends Bootcamp!!! News at Eleven!

Do I HEAR coffee? No, I smell music...

2004-10-04T16:27:00.000-07:00

Today XM 75 Hear music had it's debut. I am glad to say that I heard this channel from almost the very beginning. I missed the first 3 minutes or so, but the first full song I heard was Diana Krall and Ray Charles singing a duet. I was surprised from the beginning. Today I was very pleased to hear music from Willie Nelson, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Lyle Lovett (AWESOME!), Bill Monroe (I'm not making this up), Emmy Lou Harris, Black Eyed Peas...I was totally blown away...Jazz, Soul, Bluegrass/Gospel, Country and on and on...no genre tied to this music...except to say that most of the tunes were a little mellow (which I loved). The channel spots were the biggest downfall...they had one dude's recorded voice all day long, which is no big deal, but it seemed like he was announcing the channel pretty often. What I DID like was the music sets PICKED by artists. It's interesting to hear what kind of music other musicians would listen to if given the choice. All in all...great music. I think I can keep this channel around as a preset...at least for a few weeks to see if it develops any. Otherwise, an AWESOME start for XM's newest music channel.

The Torch...

2004-10-02T20:22:00.000-07:00

I grew up listening to country music, but when I got into my late teens until my mid-twenties I spent the majority of my time listening to Christian Music. Here in Tennessee I would listen to WAYFM, but when I was stationed elsewhere my radio was set to country or classic rock. Still, until my mid twenties I mostly bought Christian music CD's. I have a ton and think the music is great. I stopped listening though, I thought that a lot of it began to sound the same...

My favorites were Jars of Clay ( I still think that their first album is TREMENDOUS!), Third Day (Again, their first album was their best, haven't heard any of their stuff in years), and of course RICH MULLINS (Rest In Peace) who had an insight into the heart of God like no one I've ever heard.

Hank's Place! YEE HAW

2004-10-02T20:18:00.000-07:00

This is just great country music. The old stuff that people make fun of. Lost my wife, drank a beer, wrecked my truck, she broke my heart so I broke her windshield! The Honky Tonk theme is neat, but the beer/coffee pouring can get a little old. I prefer XM 10 America (the true sound of country music) but after that channel this is my favorite country channel.

Even though this channel mainly covers Country music from the 50's and 60's it also has some newer stuff. It plays newer (70's early 80's) artists who still have the "old country" sound. I also heard some very recent music such as Daryl Worley's "Have You Forgotten".

The Bowel movement on MOVE

2004-10-02T20:17:00.000-07:00

This station sucked. One song the entire day. I don't care what you say...this music is repetitive and unimaginative...plus, I do like to hear lyrics...

All That Jazz...

2004-09-29T18:23:00.000-07:00

This was the first time I had listened to Real Jazz (even though I do enjoy the genre). I am pleased to report that I loved the station. It was very easy to listen to. However, this is another one of those stations that serve best as background music (would be perfect to have on while chatting with visitors at the house). I like more lyrics though, but for that I generally turn to a different Genre.

Someone else noted that he found it hard to picture that this music was ever considered scandalous. It does seem awfully mellow...very different than the picture painted by the popular musical "Chicago". Of course, like every type of music there is more than one side. I'm looking forward to seeing what other gems the rest of the Jazz & Blues neighborhood have in store for us (Especially Bluesville).

There's no place like Chrome

2004-09-28T20:47:00.000-07:00

Even though Disco is still corny...I had a great time listening to this channel. It was fun to picture the decade...I was born in 75 and still remember some of the music from my early youth.

One thing about disco is that it shows that society had gotten sick of taking itself seriously after the Vietnam era....so they decided to turn into silly morons for a while...(at least that's my opinion) and while the lyrics weren't very deep...the music has a place in history that will never be ousted. How many people still recognize so much of this music? A LOT! Over all, a fun (if not edifying) day at Bootcamp.

DEEP!

2004-09-28T20:45:00.000-07:00

I love Deep Tracks too. It was a pre-set when we started BOOTCAMP (NOTE: PRE-SETS have been temporarily moved around due to Bootcamp) and will likely be one when the dust settles. I have enjoyed a lot of the channels but I am confident that Deep Tracks will still be standing (right beside Top Tracks). I love the Genre, I love the music, Love the fact that a lot of the music is new to me...even though most of the artists are not...this is good radio.

Classics....AH...

2004-09-26T19:37:00.000-07:00

Ah...XM Classics...

what more needs to be said than...

Classy and Classic.

Enjoyed it a lot.

Rubbed RAW...

2004-09-26T19:27:00.000-07:00

I posted a small rant dealing with what I thought of RAW xL XM66. I will cover it again here. I need to catch up on my Bootcamp blog.

I found very little redeeming value in the "music" aired on this channel. Now, before I get the whole "You're intolerant" or "you just don't appreciate the culture" or "How can you not like this kickin' beat" or "Man, that bass is bad ass" or whatever other BS you can think of...here's why I feel this way...

1) No real instruments. I know this is a weak argument...technology has changed the face of "instruments". Anything can be used as an instrument these days...but I prefer traditional instruments...it shows some sort of talent...creativity...humanity that is lacking from Hip Hop (not to mention techno, and a lot of other crap out there.)

2) Screaming isn't singing.

3) Neither is talking in rhyme. That...is...rhyming...PERHAPS if it's good you can call it poetry.

4) The social commentary that is so blatant in these "songs" is IMHO racially charged, hedonistic, ignorant, hateful, vindictive, aggressive, selfish, self-righteous, and just down right rude, crude, and socially unacceptable.

It demonstrates how ignorance breeds ignorance, Hate breeds hate, poverty breeds poverty...and how humanity today (not just those in the community surrounding RAW's music) would rather point a finger at themselves and say "Look at me, I'm the shit." and then point a finger at someone else and say, "Look at you, YOU'RE JUST SHIT."

The unabashed idolatry...revelling in money, cars, women, drugs, weapons and open acceptance of outright debauchery shows that many in this social class/circle are losing sight of what it truly means to be free...and are allowing themselves to continue to be manipulated, oppressed, and repressed...OH FORGET IT, I CAN'T COMMENT ANYMORE...

BLAH.

SQUIZZ?

2004-09-23T18:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, I joked on XM411.com that I preferred music that was "Self-Loathing" verses the "Hateful" sounding music on Squizz. The truth is the music on Squizz wasn't "BAD" but I got a sour taste early. I would have been more likely to listen if one of the first songs I heard this morning didn't sound like the guy was homicidal (I mean that literally). Then I heard another song...I don't remember the artist, but I think the song was called Suffocate (I think I heard this during lunch) it was just ANGRY and HATEFUL.

I may have missed the actual message, but I don't think I did. The simple truth is that I have no desire to hear music that is this hateful. I don't want to rant, but the human race is hard enough to tolerate without focusing on how shitty we treat one another. The mentality that was expressed to me through some of these songs displayed in full force the selfish loathing asshole that is present in most people today. Now, a lot of you will point out that Country Music (the self-loathing music I referred to) is depressing or negative. I would have to disagree with that generality by saying that it focuses on Sad or Negative things that happen in life...and discusses how they affect people...it's reality check. This is different from the "GO FUCK YOURSELF YOU WORTHLESS SHITHEAD" sentiment that I felt was common today.

Now, I will say that I may have been reluctant to give this channel a better chance because of a couple of songs, and if so...well then..."GO FUCK YOURSELF YOU WORTHLESS SHITHEAD"! (Just Kidding)

U-Pop

2004-09-22T19:03:00.000-07:00

Unusual...that's pretty much my only comment.

Nashville

2004-09-22T19:02:00.000-07:00

The biggest complaint I have about Nashville, XM 11, is that they play a little too much of the stuff on Highway 16. I wish they'd stay away from the current hits and focus more on top 40 hits of the past two decades...especially the late 80's through the 90's. After that is when Country music started to change (for the worse in my opinion). I absolutely LOVE many of the songs on Nashville, but some of the newer country music puts a bad taste in my mouth. For instance, the song "Save a horse ride a cowboy" Who told these clowns that you could use the phrase "Bling Blinging" or "What? What?" in Country Music? You just can't...it's wrong. I don't care if you have a snappy banjo rift in the background...

From The Big Screen...

2004-09-20T22:51:00.000-07:00

I went to bed last night listening to "Hunt for Red October" on the drive to work and other times this morning I heard "Manhunter", "Alien", "The Dark Crystal" and "Big Trouble in Little China". This is a cool channel. Very interesting approach and the music scores are fantastic. But I doubt I could listen to this channel as a mainstay. Very nice background music and was awesome to fall asleep to...

20 on 20...

2004-09-18T23:52:00.000-07:00

This channel's concept is interesting...but not very. Sure, it's a great idea, letting the listeners choose the songs that get played. But what that accomplishes here in the "Hits" neighborhood is that the listeners get to choose which of the 20 overplayed songs gets played first...as far as I can tell pretty much the same songs get played every hour...it's a real pain in the ear. I hated this one too!

XM Cafe...

2004-09-17T20:58:00.000-07:00

Hated it...it bored the hell out of me...that's all.

I'm a SOUL man...

2004-09-16T19:42:00.000-07:00

So, I had NEVER listened to this channel before. I admit I pretty much blew off the "URBAN" channels as music that I would not be interested in listening to...this has been a big mistake. This is fantastic music. I was impressed with this channel. The music is great (even though most of it was new to me, even though many of the artist were not). The songs I DID recognize were a treat and the ones I didn't were nice to hear for the first time. I would like to hear these songs more on 60's and 70's. I think it is a shame that these songs are even on the same continent as those found at The Rhyme xL and RAW xL, but it's a doggone SIN that they're lumped into the same XM neighborhood. The connection is one that frankly I CANNOT make in my mind. This music is really fantastic.

I have only had 10 presets on my Roady until today, I think by the end of this Bootcamp all 30 will be filled. I may bump Nashville XM11 to my B list to include this channel in my A list...if not, then it's definately getting a B list preset.

Peace, Love and War!

2004-09-15T22:10:00.000-07:00

The 60's...WOW, FANTASTIC, AWESOME, AMAZING! What else can I say about this channel? I absolutely loved it. I would list all of the terrific music that I heard and the artists, but I don't have that kind of time. I will relate this story though. A co-worker and I were out and about taking care of stuff and he looked at me and said, "Why are you playing this 60's music?" I told him about Bootcamp and he just laughed...then he heard a song come on, and said, "I didn't know this song was that old?" Then HE started singing along with it and started really groovin'!

So far this has been my favorite Decades channel. 50's and 70's are tied, with 80's edging out the 40's by a pretty good margin. I have a feeling the 90's will fill the gap between the 40's and 80's but we'll have to wait and see.

50 years and still rockin'

2004-09-14T19:27:00.000-07:00

Wow. That is my official comment for the 50's on 5 channel. There was just SO much great music! Fats Domino, Chubby Checker, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash...it goes on and on. I actually was writing a list of songs/artists that I heard while listening today. I can't remember them all (and left the list at work), but I was very impressed. Yesterday's channel was a disappointment. I just knew I would like the sounds from the 40's but wasn't able to get into the songs. I was afraid today might have been the same way. WRONG. I was enjoying myself 100% + 10! Excellent channel, excellent music, incredible time period in American History.

I am loving this Bootcamp adventure. I also am enjoying reading the other campers' blogs.

The Greatest Generation

2004-09-13T17:08:00.000-07:00

Well, I have posted my thoughts on this music on XM411 and those thoughts just about say it all. Although I appreciate the content of this channel, it was not one that I think I could listen to very often. The music is quite nice, it's very cool to hear the music that was popular in a time when our Nation's fabric was being torn from all sides. Our Nation endured, as will this music. However, the sound of this station just fades away into the back drop for me. It would serve very well as background music during dinner or a conversation by the fire...or while working on a project from work.

I say all that to say this...I prefer a more modern tone, a more active listening experience. This music makes me feel left out, I don't fit in, I just don't belong with many of the legends of this musical age. There are exceptions, of course, but all in all...I'll pass on the 40's and hope tomorrow's 50's are better.

P.S. I found myself tuning into Lucy when I couldn't tolerate XM4 any longer...Lucy is quickly becoming a STRONG favorite. In fact it may be third behind America and Bluesville.

I Love Lucy...

2004-09-11T19:39:00.000-07:00

Well, I admit that I had never listened to Lucy before. With the whole "Alternative" tag attached I tended to stay away. This generally isn't my style of music. Then after the Ethel episode earlier in the week I was kind of dreading Fred and Lucy. But as a good trooper I decided to put my full effort into it. I have been listening to Lucy all day long and haven't switched. I am impressed with the variety and the flow of the station. The music, while not necessarily my genre is still pretty good. I find that most of the music doesn't have the same "different like everyone else" sound that I heard at Ethel. I have really enjoyed this station. This kind of Music Channel is what makes XM so great. Good job!

Pucker Up!

2004-09-10T17:00:00.000-07:00

Pucker up and Kiss my Keister! Today's Comments are word for word from my XM411 comments. Read on...

Popular Top 40...Music for the Mindless. While like anywhere, I heard some songs I could tolerate...it's not good music...repetitive lyrics (terrible song writing) no real instruments, boring, mindless prattle...this channel might as well pucker up and kiss my keister...IMHO,the only thing really good about this channel is it doesn't have commercials (but which XM channel does?) Take heart Kiss XM21...this is more an indictment against today's popular music, and not the station itself.

Ethel (XM 47)

2004-09-09T21:45:00.000-07:00

I had never really listened to Ethel until today. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know many of the bands that I heard I did know these few Beastie Boys, Foo Fighters, Blink 182, Nirvana, Hole, Garbage, The Cure, and Rage Against the Machine but that's about it (I recoginzed a few others in the channel description, but didn't hear them today). But even though I'd heard of these bands, every song that played today was BRAND NEW to me. I actually liked a lot of it, but all of the music sounds alike to me...which begs the question, WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS AN ALTERNATIVE TO?

I found that this channel has music that I don't "HATE" listening to, but it tends to fade away into the background. I don't know if this is because I don't know any of the songs or because the lyrics and meanings don't jump out and grab me. I love a song that I can relate to in some personal form or another. I found that (as I've already stated) most of this music sounds very similar to me. It seems like the 90's Alternative scene (My High School/college days) was the time in life when people decided they wanted to be different...just like everyone else. I would listen to this channel when someone who doesn't like Country or Blues (my two most often listened to channels) was around or when I wanted something very different from my usual habits. But, it's not a channel that I would listen to regularly. One good thing, I heard absolute NO chatter and very few channel spots. Continuous music from start to finish...awesome.

Decade of my youth...the 80's

2004-09-08T14:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I have XM 8 programmed as a preset, but unlike many of you it is not one of my favorites. There is plenty of great music from the 80's that I love to hear, but for every song that I remember and say, "Hey, this is a great song, I remember this..." there are plenty of songs that I hear and say, "Hey, I remember this, and it's still crap".

Music from this decade is the reason why I love country music today, the 80's music was a big turn off to me, especially because of the lack of REAL instruments. The biggest complaints I have about songs from the 80's is that much of the music is synthesized and as the current song so strongly illustrates lyrics weren't very well written during this time...(current song is Culture Club "I'll Tumble For You"). I have heard numerous songs today that have choruses or a majority of a song where the lines are so repetitive that there is no REAL content. Other examples in addition to the one already mentioned...I heard Kiss on the way home "Lick it Up" was said about 500 thousand times in that song...I heard "Xanadu" this morning (are there any other words in that song?) and numerous others.

But, I have also heard some really great music. Dire Straits, Huey Lewis, ZZ TOP, Heart, the Traveling Willbury's (remeber them?), the Fat Boys (HAH) and many others. I have enjoyed this channel, but not as much as "That 70's Channel". It's going to stay a present mainly because I have a friend who loves 80's music and always makes me play this channel when she rides in the car with me.

In closing as I have already stated, 80's music has some great stuff buried in it, but it has a lot of stuff I don't like too. Fortunately, in my old age, I have been able to appreciate a lot of things that when I was a kid I didn't like. This has helped me enjoy this station a lot more. All in all a great channel, I love the sound bites, video game sound effects, and I love the "80's Wannabes".

That 70's Channel....

2004-09-07T17:27:00.000-07:00

So, first I have to address the Christmas music...annoying at best. The last thing I wanted to hear at 0430 on my way to work was Christmas carols sung by CHICAGO.

Ok, now that my complaint is out of the way...WOW!!!

This channel is definitely not for someone who hates variety. No one can even begin to define this channel into a genre. There is so many different music styles and artists played on this channel that I was frankly so impressed I couldn't believe it. Just listening to this channel for the day made me realize that I had gotten stale in my XM. I had pretty much stuck to America XM10 (it is my favorite). But this channel reminded me of what XM can be. Total variety! It was like the first week I had XM when I was constantly changes channels to see what else was out there.

I was born in 1975, half way through the 70's, which really makes me more an 80's child...but here are some of the artists that I heard today that I recognized...

Olivia Newton John
John Denver
Kool and the Gang
Cher
Eagles
Anne Murray
Osmonds
Stevie Wonder
James Taylor
Aerosmith
Barry Manilow
Chicago's Christmas album
Elton John
Elvis!!! (right on!)
Barry White

Also, there were dozens that I had never heard of by name but recognized the songs and even more that I'd never heard of and had never the music before. I can already tell that this Bootcamp is going to be an AWESOME adventure.

My final comments on the channel...

It was already a preset, but got very little play. I have enjoyed today's music a ton. I will definitely be keeping my ears on this one in the future.

Off and Running...

2004-09-06T21:19:00.000-07:00

Being impatient like I am, I decided to start listening to tomorrow's channel a few minutes early. I found that apparently the 70's is playing some sort of Chicago concert or something...I'm not too familiar with the band (I was still very young or not born during their heyday). It's not bad music, but whenever a favorite from XM10 has popped up I haven't been able to resist the urge to switch. I am definately eager to see how tomorrow works out.

2004-09-06T14:58:00.000-07:00

So, tomorrow is the first offical day of Bootcamp III. I will leave my XM PCR on XM 7 tonight before going to bed to get a good start. It is already one of my presets on my Roady2 in the car (as is XM 8) so the first two days will be a pretty easy adjustment. It's still going to be tough not listening to my XM 10 as much, but I have been weaning myself of it the past week to make the transition a little easier. Now all that I need is a good haircut and some polish for my boots! FALL IN!

Bootcamp III starts on 7 September!!!

2004-09-06T01:39:00.000-07:00

So, this will be my first time attending Bootcamp! I am looking forward to it. Stay tuned for my thoughts on the channels. Of course, I'll also be commenting at www.xm411.com, so don't forget to check there daily for official coverage of Bootcamp III!

Even a Blind Squirrel can get a nut every now and then.