Let’s admit it, nearly all of us have interest in the day of spooks, ghouls and ghosts. Whether it’s heading to a scare-fest to try and not wet our pants or heading to a club night or house party, to dress up and get a little more than tipsy. But, what’s one unsung hero that pieces these events together? Music!

Music. What a strange concept, hey? Who knew that this thing humans can only truly hear could affect us in so many beautiful ways. There are so many questions about music, but I want to ask you a specific one. Do you know where the music you listen to comes from?

As with any new thing, musicians and the music they play has often been met with ridicule and adversity in their wake. Many, many famous people took a stand to the form of art that was their own, against all the naysayers, and made not just a career, but a lifestyle with the inspiration and drive of their own imagination.

In 1968, a band from San Francisco might have just started a genre of music that today, millions of people around the world love—heavy metal!

THE CREOLE COWBOYS

Shot of Love is the 21st Studio Album by Bob Dylan, yes, but it is also of prime importance as marking the end of the Born-Again Christian/Gospel Era with the third album in the series. Beginning with "Slow Train Coming", this series built up with the album Saved, in which contained the song "In the Garden" that Marc Bolan of T-Rex called a brilliantly written and beautiful song. However, normally it is cited that Shot of Love is the better album of the three despite being released last.

"Away out there in Kansas

I often wonder what makes the sound of my voice so different from that of my three sisters. The way I pronounce short vowels and grumble, how my laugh sometimes sounds violent, why I swear so often and cringe when I hear the word “like” too much. I used to attribute my sarcastic, matter-of-fact tone to a younger, subconscious need to stand out from my hyper-feminine sisters—the youngest in a family of six, I was always seeking small ways to rebel, to get attention, to be heard. But now I have to wonder if the way I talk and laugh and write is a direct result of growing up in the punk scene, and because of it. I feel certain that spending all of my free time in crowds of mohawked girls and men in tight pants taught me more about gender—and rebellion—than I could have understood at the time. The lyrics of my favorite songs, the way brusque, angry women would scream from their stomachs when they sang, the humor of their pseudonyms and song titles, and the brash attitudes they donned in interviews were speaking directly to the norms and standards against which I was also trying to rebel. Today, with a greater understanding of gender norms, subcultures, linguistic use, and of course, myself, I see that an analysis of women within the punk movement can be a valuable place to look for manifestations of social and political resistance through self-expression.

Welcome to the first edition of a series I like to call Essential Rock Stories, a deep dive on your favorite classic rock artists, songs, and albums that will change the way you think about Rock & Roll! Today we're directing our focus on Jackson Browne, and his smash hit, "Doctor My Eyes."

YUNGBLUD, although many fans would say otherwise, is a band with three (3) members! The most well known, of course, is Dominic Harrison, the lead singer. The lesser known (but still greatly appreciated) members are drummer, Michael Rennie, and guitarist, Adam Warrington. While the three of them tour together, make all of their music together, and write all of their songs together, this article will focus on one song in particular that has a certain heartbreaking.

"Dear Landlord"is one of Bob Dylan's most enduring songs and it has many messages that can be interpreted from its lyrics. It marks the beginning of a new era of folk music for Dylan and many have interpreted this song to mean something along those lines. Many have stated that there are clues in the songs of John Wesley Harding that give meaning to Bob Dylan's new semi-acoustic folk era. But, I believe that there's something more religious going on here. I know I talk a lot about Bob Dylan's religious aspects and well, I believe he is in conversation with Jesus Christ about his past and present positions. Though John Wesley Harding is known to be pretty religious, I think that there is something special about this song. "Dear Landlord" seems to be, ultimately, Bob Dylan begging for one more chance, something where he'll redeem himself.

As we know, a "dirge" is a funeral song, and William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury is no different to a dirge in my opinion. So, is it true that there are similarities between Bob Dylan's cast-iron torch ballad, and Faulkner's prize-winning Southern gothic novel?