“Survive” by Willis Earl Beal – A Song Review

     Contemplative lyrics and crooning travel well together. That was one thought while listening to “Survive” by Willis Earl Beal. The lyrics (included below) by the Chicago-born artist brought other thoughts as well:

“They tell you get off the stage but you can’t hear the gong

So stop beating your chest and acting like King Kong.”

     "Survive" is an interesting study on Hype Machine (hypem.com). As of this post, it only has 17 “favorites,” but we are the ninth blog to post the song on Hype Machine. That ratio of 17-to-9 is the lowest we’ve ever noticed. There may be many explanations, but it does indicate that bloggers are sometimes out of step with the march of other music lovers.

     Willis Earl Beal will visit the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on September 11, 2015. For ticket information CLICK HERE.

     “Survive” by Willis Earl Beal

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/willisearlbeal

Website: http://www.willisearlbeal.com/

Lyrics of “Survive” 

Principalities of man got you down in the mouth

You’re a single grain of sand so you can’t stand out

Misery on every corner looking for handouts

You got peoples steady yelling you don’t know what about

Just turn your eyes to the sky and remove all doubt

If you wanna survive

If you wanna survive

Cause they’ll eat you alive

They’ll eat you alive

In your heart you feel you’re right but they tell you you’re wrong

The melody you orchestrate don’t go with the song

You’re only waiting in vain don’t make a difference how long

They tell you get off the stage but you can’t hear the gong

So stop beating your chest and acting like King Kong

If you wanna survive

If you wanna survive

Cause they’ll eat you alive

Cause they’ll eat you alive

If you want to survive

You got to let it go

If you want to survive

You got to let it go

If you want to survive

Let it go

If you wanna survive

If you want to survive

July Songs that Bear Repeating

     As a welcome to the new month, here are favorite songs from July posts of Indie Obsessive. 

     “Fractures” by Wells (from the post of July 16) The song is still a free download.

     “Black Box” by Calan Mai (from the post of July 23)

     “What Went Down” by Foals (from the post of July 11)

     “With You Tonight” by Summer Moon (from the post of July 21)


     “I Want You” by Flagship (from the post of July 20)

     “Scared” by Colour the Atlas (from the post of July 26)


     ”Witches Have Friends” by Sea Legs (from the post of July 11)

Blisses B at Bottom of the Hill– A Concert Review

     Bottom line concert review: When the muscles used in forming your smile are fatigued after a performance, it’s an undeniable sign that you had an exceptional time. At the Bottom of the Hill, Blisses B presented a muscle-fatiguing high energy kickoff of the weekend.

     Discussions about sports, (particularly baseball) almost always result in the use of superlatives, such as best, fastest, and most powerful.

     Discussions about music are far less likely to rotate around superlatives. There are plenty of reasons. Music lovers are typically less entrenched in their beliefs. And it is difficult to argue that the numbers support your assertion of “best artist” when music for the masses is far easier to generate than music that has a shelf life longer than the attention span of a young teen.

     On the other hand, music lovers and concert-goers are very comfortable with talking about favorites. Over the last 18 months, during which we’ve seen more than 300 band performances, our favorites include:

   A favorite festival format: Bonnaroo.

   A favorite guitar performance: War on Drugs at the Fillmore.

   A favorite vocal performance: Florence Welch (Florence and the Machine) at the Bridge School Benefit Concert.

   A favorite flat-out fun experience: Blisses B at the Bottom of the Hill on July 31, 2015

     It’s not by accident that a Blisses B performance is best described as a fun evening of good music. Instead of just entering the stage like other bands, the four members of Blisses B walked through the Bottom of the Hill with instruments in tow, until they were near the entrance of the venue. It wasn’t easy, particularly since the instruments included a bass (fiddle, not guitar). The opening song was performed at a good distance from the stage. This start had more than one positive influence. It immediately showed that the band is approachable. Most bands must go through at least a few songs before achieving the chemistry with the audience that Blisses B had with their first note. And the start had the effect of inviting everyone into the performance, even patrons at the far end of the venue. Interestingly, instruments used in the opening song (the bass and banjo) were not used after the band went to the conventional position on the stage. 

     Still, even the best jumpstarts will only carry a band for a limited time. No problem, Blisses B continued to entertain after reaching their rightful position on the stage. The four members are Noah Libby (vocals, guitar, mandolin, banjo), Benjamin Keegan (keyboard, guitar, mandolin, vocals), Evan Bautista (drums, percussion), and James Touzel (bass, vocals). The mandolin playing by Noah Libby was far beyond the mere strumming that is typical of bands. Mandolin “hooks” are uncommon and are always a treat when a band has the skill to use one effectively.

     The band is strong when Ben Keegan is behind his keyboard, but springs to another level when he grabs the guitar (often moving from a Folk feel to the Rock genre, as in the song “Figurative Light”). The blend of vocals is entertaining, particularly when James Touzel makes his contributions. And the percussion of Evan Baustista plays a major role in getting the audience to shed their inhibitions and dance like nobody’s watching – pay attention to the percussion at the start of ”Well Lit Plan.”

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blissesb/timeline