SNYtunes: Lost in a Moment

Where do you go when you’re lost? Not lost when traveling, but lost in the emotion of a moment and are in need of an exit. For me that exit is music, specifically certain songs that have the lyrical and vocal strength to overpower my senses and dissolve my problems. You know of course what I mean. You come home late because your boss asked you to work extra hours even though you just did a double the night before. Maybe you stub your toe on the way in. Then you walk upstairs to find your lover in bed with Eatabagel, eating a bagel. Whatever your reasons, you need to let the pain out and what better way to do so than with a good melody and some lyrical poignancy.

Below are a few songs which have helped me through some hard times. Give them a listen then drop by the forums and share some of your favorite moment-crushing tunes.

Fiona Apple - Limp
You feed the beast I have within me
You wave the red flag, baby you make it run run run
Standing on the sidelines, waving and grinning
You fondle my trigger, then you blame my gun

Arcade Fire - Intervention
Been working for the church while your life falls apart
Been singing hallelujah with the fear in your heart
Every spark of friendship and love will die without a home
Hear the soldier groan, "We'll go at it alone"

Nine Inch Nails - Something I Can Never Have (Still version)
Grey would be the color if I had a heart
You make this all go away
I'm down to just one thing
I'm starting to scare myself

SNYtunes: Where’s the Beef?

There may be a lull of new music on the site, but there is an even bigger lull in a particular genre that has existed ever since thesixtyone was first conceived. That genre is hip-hop. I am in the minority as both a hip-hop artist and as a hip-hop fan. I came to this site on January 3rd along with some thousand or so digg.com users looking for great unsigned music. While my heart has its roots in many genres, including Alternative, Pop and Rock, it is rap that has always demanded and received my full attention thanks to the brilliant word play, in-your-face subject matter and addicting rhythms.

As a former Digg.com fanatic I found myself constantly voicing my defense of rap against the biased and misinformed community. I figured on a music site like this, things would be different. While I have seen no vocal hate against rap on thesixtyone, it is all too apparent that this is not a community that respects it much as an art form. On my first day here the only rap song in sight was an average track by an artist named WALE. You’ve no doubt heard his song W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E.. The only thought that came to mind was “is this really the best the site has to offer?”.

While I have come across a handful of talented rap artists since my first day, I still have the same question lingering in my mind. Is this the best we have to offer as a music community? I find myself in disbelief when these talented rap artists remain under-bumped in comparison to even the dregs of other genres. Are we so trapped in our favorite genres that we can’t see beyond their familiar borders? Why are the hip-hop uploads so rare? Why is the most popular genre in the world the least popular on our site? Where’s the beef?

Get to know a fellow 61'er: SNYpod

1. Your 61 Listener ID: SNYpod. It's a combination of my last name, Snyder and iPod. When my first iPod (circa 2003) asked me what to call it, SNYpod was the first thing that came to. It quickly became somewhat of a moniker.
2. Current Favorite Artist: fave-th61-artist: Chris Merritt; fave-non-the61-artist: Fiona Apple
3. Artist you most wish would upload music: Fefe Dobson. She is currently unsigned in America yet still manages to rock my socks. Go torrent (download) her un-released second album "Sunday Love" (which, in case you didn’t like her first one, is a HUGE leap forward in quality). She approves of it being pirated since the label she recorded it under dropped her after its completion... Currently she is working on new material and is shopping around for a new American label.
4. Your musical guilty pleasure: Avril Lavigne. Though I wouldn't say it's a "guilty" pleasure figuring I don't feel that guilty about it. Yes, I am fully aware of the flaws she has as an artist that most people can’t see past, however I am able to ignore these problems and enjoy her voice, addicting melodies and passion. So please stop throwing things at me when I play her in my car.
5. How did you hear of The Sixty One? There was a story on digg.com that lead me to the61 on January 3rd. I make music as a hobby, so I signed up as an artist initially. I quickly realized that there was a plethora of great indie material on the site so I decided to stick around for a while. Within a week the61 had retired digg as my most used site and put iTunes into hibernation.
6. How much less productive are you since you've joined? I wasn't productive at all to begin with so the site has been working out great for me.
7. What is the biggest change you'd make to The SixtyOne? I have three main changes I yearn for... Searchable artist profiles and stats pages, info/lyrics tabs, and the elimination of the "first bumped by" advertisement that accompanies every track on the site (it's pointless and redundant).
8. The listener you'd most like to meet in person: lankysob is the guy I talk to most on the site and is an awesome dude, but I gotta give the prize to AnnieB. Firstly because I’m dying to know what she looks like. All I know of her is that she likes old turntables. And secondly because I'm convinced she is a cyborg.
9. What do you think of Second Life Avatars for musicians and users? To be honest they kind of annoy me, but who am I to judge. I like stupid stuff too. (oh no he didn't!)
10. What sort of stuff would you like to see on this blog? You mean like nudie pictures?