to download songs, just click on the links below. if that doesn't work, right click on them, then "save target as". they have samples of the full versions of about 300k if you can't be bothered to wait. please email me or leave a note in the guestbook if there are any dead links. i've rambled on about a load of shit, because i thought you might want to read some jive while you're waiting for the songs to download. (all songs written by the rattlesnakes).
up_in_smoke.mp3 (2.9M) - up_in_smoke_sample.mp3 (0.2M) - i don't know what to say really. i don't want to get too soppy or anything, but i'll always look back to this period of my life with fond memories. i mean everyone wants to be 17 forever, because life is great: no responsibilities and freedom to enjoy yourself, but it is also a time when anything is possible. i don't mean to be too pessimistic and say that some things can be out of reach; i agree with my dad, "what the mind can conceive and believe it can achieve", in other words anything is possible, but with the freedom of youth it is easier to conceive and believe. what i'm trying to say is that these songs mean a lot to me, so if you don't like them you can fuck off. this one is called "up in smoke" and is about the rock n roll attitude. it is a fine example of the blend of bad boy riffs, phat solos, high singing and hitting the cymbals properly. the solo in this version is fucking ace.
the_land_owns_us.mp3 (5.1M) - the_land_owns_us_sample.mp3 (0.2M) - this song is so good. this was the only song we recorded 'properly' with a 4 track. this song kicks ass, because it induces involuntary head movement like a lot of rage songs. the interaction between the guitars, bass and drums in the verse is perfection. it is hard to explain, but you can't listen to it without rocking your head back and forth. it is as if the rythmn taps directly into the brain. i think this was near the peak of our accomplishments. craig does the solo in this one instead of luke, because luke had just left when we recorded it. it's a bit of a bad boy solo, and we definitely did not use any eddie van halen "tactics in the studio".
alive.mp3 (2.1M) - alive_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - "this world is changing all the time, it's what i need to keep me alive". alive was one of our best riffs and a fan favourite. my mousemat has got this stupid quote, "...there is nothing more difficult ... than to initiate a new order of things... [because people don't like it]". it's one of those pro-active business things - my mom's into all that stuff. but anyway, i think i agree that a lot of people don't like change. but i like it, because without it, the world goes stale and boring. luke told me this song was about lsd, but i think it is a bit deeper than that.
improvise.mp3 (6.0M) - improvise_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - dirty rockin bluesy tune. improvise is one of my favourites, because it just goes off on one. this is the way blues should be. you know how you go into hmv and it's got rock and pop together. i've never understood that. and it's the same with jazz and blues. they're at the other end of the spectrum from each other in my opinion. i know they kind of overlap a bit, but all the stuff in the middle is shit as well. if i had a record shop, it would be rock and blues together, and jazz and pop together, but i wouldn't sell any of that shit. well anyway, i can assure you that you won't find any jazz here. in fact i'm going to go out on a limb here and say this is the best fuckin hardcore bluesrock song ever.
stay.mp3 (5.2M) - stay_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - bit of a bon jovi power ballad, but you've got to be lovin it. the set wouldn't be complete without at least one ballad.
angel_s_eyes.mp3 (3.8M) - angel_s_eyes_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - classic acoustic song. you know how they say the simple ones are the best ones - like bob dylan and all that. well, lee went through a phase where he could just produce all these classic songs: angel's eyes, tired, dreaming, stay, did it for love, end of the road. and some "music fascists" say that that kind of stuff isn't interesting and is a waste of time. well that's bullshit, because people can really identify with songs like this. i remember lee played an acoustic song at dave's mom's birthday party or something, i think it was did it for love, and you could see how much it meant to her.
dreaming.mp3 (3.5M) - dreaming_sample.mp3 (0.2M) - another acoustic one.
rock_n_roll_bitch.mp3 (2.5M) - rock_n_roll_bitch_sample.mp3 (0.2M) - i always thought this one sounded a bit like zeppelin's song rock n roll. i dunno, maybe that's because it was a blatant rip off. i'm pretty sure we didn't do it on purpose, it sometimes just happens without thinking about it. but when you give it the same name that's got to be a bit dodgy. noel gallagher would be proud.
freight_train.mp3 (3.7M) - freight_train_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - heavy stuff. yeh this was about as heavy as it got sort of ozzy heaviness.
stable.mp3 (3.4M) - stable_sample.mp3 (0.4M) - a song about a stable.
the_last_touch.mp3 (3.1M) - the_last_touch_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - this was a killer song; it's got a phat bass line innit. but there isn't a good recorded version of it, so i "remastered" an acoustic jam of it from somewhere. we did actually go into the studio (solihull college) and do a fucking massive recording of it, but we neglected to take a tape to mix it down onto. i don't want to ramble too much, but some cultures believe that when you take a photo of someone, you are stealing part of their soul, and i believe it can be the same with some recorded music. you get all these jazz gimpazoids go on about soul and all that, but this song had more soul than any of that shit. so anyway maybe it is for the better that that dat evaporated into the cosmos.
sound_check.mp3 (2.1M) - sound_check_sample.mp3 (0.3M) - it might sound a bit crazy to have a sound check as one of the songs, but this is another example of some hardcore rattlesnake rockin shit. the funny thing is that the levels are completely wrong and the guitar is way too loud, but i guess that's rock n roll.
the band were:
lee stone - vocals
luke jones - lead guitar
craig stone - rhythmn guitar
dave ballard - drums
simon ball - bass
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hi, here are a few more misc songs when we had two different guitarists for a bit. the music at this point was still very much rock [and/or] roll - aerosmith, guns n roses kind of stuff.
high_class_hooker.mp3 (2.43M) - high_class_hooker_sample.mp3 (0.22M) - there is a big scream at the start of this one that you've got to be lovin. and the riff should really consider going on a diet.
up_in_smoke2.mp3 (2.52M) - up_in_smoke2_sample.mp3 (0.21M) - this has got the 2 after it, because this song was one of the relics of the old band, and there is another version of the song floating around in cyberspace somewhere. it stills rocks aiii.
white_noise.mp3 (2.88M) - white_noise_sample.mp3 (0.27M) - this is another of the old songs, but there was never a recording of the old version. we first started playing this song ages ago, when i was listening to the white album way too much. the idea was that the song started with a "white noise" - a bunch of messy noises and then the riff kicks in without you noticing. but really i was like - let's do a song about the white album and no one noticed. oh yeh, i almost forgot how fucking good i was on the bass.
moment_of_clarity.mp3 (3.23M) - moment_of_clarity_sample.mp3 (0.26M) - on the subject of how fucking good i was on the bass, this song has got a "moment of clarity" after 1 min 27 seconds. that's not what the song was really called, because it wasn't actually a song. it was just a riff that we jammed once at a practice then forgot about it. but anyway, there was just some deep level of understanding - sort of a shared conciousness - that there should be a phat bass fill by itself at one point. it's not technically amazing or anything, but it was perfect for bringing it back down to the 2nd verse, and it just happened without being planned. i think moments of clarity are exciting, because for one instant everything is beautiful and makes perfect sense.
blueberry_jam.mp3 (2.19M) - blueberry_jam_sample.mp3 (0.32M) - yo this is some phat blues jam, and it is peaking like a biatch. but it doesn't matter, cause it cooks. its like when you're cooking pasta and it flows over the side of the pan - it doesn't matter, because your living on the edge and it makes the pasta taste better.
when_will_i_see_you_again.mp3 (2.59M) - when_will_i_see_you_again_sample.mp3 (0.27M) - this is a slow nice song.
go_to_london.mp3 (3.37M) - go_to_london_sample.mp3 (0.26M) - very chilled out, staring at the ceiling kind of stuff.
the band were (for a couple of months at least):
lee stone - vocals
ben bartlett - lead guitar
adam jones - rhythmn guitar
dave ballard - drums
simon ball - bass
goodman69_uk@yahoo.com
