tHe wYrMHoLe Companion

Pop Rock Track Pack

5/14/09

Downloadable Track Pack for Guitar Hero World Tour featuring “Everything’s Magic” by Angels & Airwaves, “So What” by P!nk and “Stop and Stare” by OneRepublic.

Pink was born Alecia Moore in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Judy Moore, a nurse, and James Moore, Jr, a Vietnam veteran. Her father is Catholic and her mother Jewish, and her ancestors immigrated from Ireland, Germany, and Lithuania. Pink grew up in Doylestown, where she attended Kutz Elementary School, Klinger Middle School, and Central Bucks West High School. Her father played guitar and sang songs for her, and from an early age she aspired to be a rock star. When in high school, Pink joined her first band called Middleground, which never gained popularity beyond local status. Throughout high school, Middleground had an ongoing rivalry with another local band, The Jetsists. Middleground folded upon losing a battle of the bands competition, held at a local cafe, to The Jetsists. According to Pink, her biggest influences are Bette Midler, Janis Joplin, Steven Tyler, Madonna, Billy Joel, Indigo Girls, Don McLean, 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. Pink developed her voice early in life. Although a healthy baby at birth, she quickly developed asthma that plagued her through her early years. When she was a young teenager, Pink wrote lyrics as an outlet for her feelings, and her mother commented, “Her initial writings were always very introspective. Some of it was very black, and very deep, almost worrisome.” She began performing in Philadelphia clubs when she was fourteen years old. At sixteen, she joined the R&B Atlanta-based trio Choice, which included Chrissy Conway of the Christian girl group ZOEgirl. The group signed with LaFace Records and contributed “Key to My Heart” to the soundtrack of the 1996 film Kazaam. Choice eventually disbanded after recording an unreleased album; Pink remained at LaFace as a solo act under the stage name Pink. Daryl Simmons took her to recordings where she sang backing vocals for artists such as Diana Ross, 98 Degrees, Kenny Lattimore and Tevin Campbell.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Pink

OneRepublic is a Grammy-nominated American pop rock band formed in Colorado. After a few years of moderate success, they have drawn mainstream attention with the release of their singles “Apologize,” and “Stop and Stare“. “Apologize” is the most legally downloaded song in US digital history with sales of over 4.3 million digital downloads in the US alone. The band has also achieved sales in excess of 5 million outside of the US adding up to over 9 million singles of “Apologize” and well over 2 million of “Stop and Stare“. A remix of “Apologize” was featured on Timbaland’s Shock Value and the band’s debut album, Dreaming Out Loud.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:OneRepublic

Angels & Airwaves is an alternative rock band fronted by Blink-182 and former Box Car Racer guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge. The band also includes guitarist David Kennedy, notably from Over My Dead Body, Hazen Street and Box Car Racer, former Rocket From the Crypt and The Offspring drummer Atom Willard, and former 30 Seconds to Mars bassist Matt Wachter, who replaced former The Distillers bassist Ryan Sinn in May 2007. The band has released two albums thus far: We Don’t Need to Whisper and I-Empire. They released a documentary entitled Start the Machine on June 17, 2008, and also plan on releasing a feature film involving their music, entitled I-Empire, although in a Modlife video broadcast, Tom admitted that the movie may no longer be titled ‘I-Empire’ but instead, it will be named after the new album (which is currently in production).
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Angels & Airwaves

Social Distortion Pack 01

5/12/09

Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game track pack: Social Distortion Pack 01. This pack includes “Ring of Fire,” “Bad Luck,” and “Story of My Life” by Social Distortion.

Social Distortion (sometimes referred to simply as Social D) is an American rock band formed in 1979 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (vocals, guitars),Jonny Wickersham (guitars), Brent Harding (bass) and Adam “Atom” Willard (drums). They are often credited as one of the leading bands of the 1980s hardcore punk explosion.

The group briefly disbanded in 1985, due to frontman Ness’ drug addiction, but reformed around 1986 and have continued being active today, even after the death of longtime guitarist Dennis Danell, who succumbed to a brain aneurysm in 2000. Since their inception the band lineup has been a virtual revolving-door of talent, with many members coming and going – Ness has been the only constant member.

Among mainstream audiences, Social Distortion are best known for their hit singles “Ball and Chain“, “Story of My Life“, “I Was Wrong” and “Reach for the Sky” as well as a cover of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire.”

To date, Social Distortion has released six full-length studio albums, two compilations, one live album and two DVDs. Their most recent studio album, Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll, came out on September 28, 2004. They also released their first Greatest Hits compilation on June 26, 2007. Recently, there has been a rumor that the band has returned to the studio working their seventh album, which is reportedly due for release sometime in 2009.

From Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia:Social Distortion 

I found a cool post from one of the Harmonix developers today. It would appear they are setting up a voting system to decide which songs make it into a planned Pearl Jam Live Track Pack release for Rock Band, similar to last November’s AC/DC Live Track Pack.

The list of live songs to select from totals 43 in all and will most likely be edited down to about 20 songs or so once voting is finished. My sources say the possible song choices are:

• 1/2 Full
• Alive
• Animal
• Better Man
• Black
• Brain of J
• Comatose
• Corduroy
• Do The Evolution
• Down
• Elderly Woman Behind The Counter in A Small Town
• Even Flow
• Footsteps
• Garden
• Given To Fly
• Go
• I Am Mine
• I Got ID
• Inside Job
• Insignificance
• Jeremy
• Last Exit
• Life Wasted
• Light Years
• Love Boat Captain
• Lukin
• Man Of The Hour
• Marker In The Sand
• Nothingman
• Oceans
• Present Tense
• Rearviewmirror
• Red Mosquito
• Release
• Satan’s Bed
• Severed Hand
• Spin the Black Circle
• State of Love and Trust
• Wash
• Whipping
• Why Go
• Wishlist
• World Wide Suicide

The post mentioning the press release is as follows:

Today, 01:04 PM

HMXHenry Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 3,316

Pearl Jam Rock Band Project Coming Next Year Hey gang, Here’s an interesting press release that I thought you may want to check out. Read on. We need your help! Ten Club, MTV Games and Harmonix’s Rock Band, and Rhapsody are teaming up to let you, Pearl Jam’s biggest fans, help us choose the best versions of Pearl Jam live songs that will be presented for the first-ever fan voted set list for a forthcoming Rock Band project. Your expertise will help us determine which of these versions is worthy of making the cut. Just click on the songs you like and open up the Rhapsody playlist widget for that particular song. Once you have the widget open, listen to the version you think is the best. The versions that are played the most times will be deemed the best versions and will then be entered into consideration to make the final “set list” vote. Note: Those of you who aren’t Rhapsody subscribers will have to go to here to get your free trial subscription so you can use the play list. You’ve got your work cut out for you. You can hit up the official discussion thread here. So get posting! -HMXHenry

So I’m playing Tomb Raider Underworld and I’m in Southern Mexico having made my way underground to the temple of the dead, Xibalba. I am having all kinds of trouble finding the second of two scepters I need to activate some statues and open some doors. I’m looking all over this antechamber trying to figure out where that second scepter is and having no luck.  It has been something like 20 minutes and its starting to get frustrating because this area isn’t really all that big.

_{“Is it behind this statue over here?” Nope.}

_{“Is it behind that one?”}

_Nope.

_{“Maybe its on the ground in that dark area over there?”}

_Uh-uh.

_{“Could it be up on that small landing at the top of the broken stairs?”}

_{Naw. That area is too small and it wouldn’t be up there…}

So I continue to search in vain for another 10 to 15 minutes or so and still NO GODDAMN SCEPTER! Now I know the developers are just screwing with me. They have to be! It’s not here! It should be right here in this area since I can’t go any further without it! Damn! Now what?…

This is when I decide on a fresh start. I collect myself, go back to the entrance door and begin to comb every inch of the floor of this area. I then start climbing the pillars and outer walls leaving no crevice, platform or column unturned. That’s when I see something. Could that be it? There it is! Right there on… oh.

Know where the damn thing was? Yep, right where I said it wasn’t. On the small landing at the top of the broken stairs! Dammit! I know better than that! I know better than to break a cardinal rule of gaming; always look everywhere and leave nothing unexplored. I just assumed that it couldn’t be up there and that’s exactly where it was.

<sigh>

If you’re gonna be a better gamer, then you have to be able to get through them. What’s the point of playing if you can’t get anywhere? My folly has caused me to think about all the times I do stupid things in games when I know I shouldn’t. Somehow the synapses in my brain cease functioning and before I know it, I have fallen victim to what I like to think of as “The Rules of Gaming”.

Rule: Explore Thoroughly

Look behind every bush, barrel, house, car, pillar, crate, corner, dog, swing set, shopping cart, television, lion, table, statue, dead body, fish, rock, wall, fence, pillow, ship, cluster of banyan trees, dream, cow, zombie, club, box, desk, barn, tunnel, suitcase, hill, domino, action figure, kite, goose, train, wagon, teddy bear, jelly bean, demon, bear, book, roller skate and hive.

Look all around you, not just in your primary planes of travel, but also above and below you. You need to consider elevation as a direction of travel. Getting to high ground to get a good look at your surroundings will help you orient yourself and give you ideas on paths of travel or show you areas you have not been to yet that you might not have been aware of.

Notice the different areas around you and say to yourself “Have I been up/over/behind/in there?” If not, then find a way to get there; these could be key areas you need to get to in order to progress through your game. Move deliberately and methodically; spiral out from a central point or utilize a grid-based pattern going left to right near to far.  Smashing breakables is a great way to mark where you’ve been, but only tag paths you intend to use immediately so you will know later which paths you haven’t taken yet.

Taking the time to do a thorough initial investigation of an area will pay off later by saving you frustration and aggravation and will ultimately open more of your game for you. Also, by using your own guile and diligence you will get that sense of satisfaction that only comes from having accomplished something for yourself. Be your own Raleigh, De Soto or Cortes. Look at your surroundings, pay attention to details and actually move to where you can see and you will be experiencing adventures aplenty instead of stewing in the dark corners lost. Go forth and explore!

Ferret/Metal Blade Track Pack

5/7/09

*Free Download* Downloadable Track Pack for Guitar Hero World Tour featuring “On Broken Glass” by Chimaira, “Dez Moines” by Devil Wears Prada and “Grave Of Opportunity” by Unearth.

Chimaira (pronounced /kaɪˈmɪərə/) is an American heavy metal band from Cleveland, Ohio, formed in 1998. The band is a notable band in the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. Their band name is derived from the name Chimera, a monstrous creature in Greek mythology. Chimaira were formed in 1998 by rhythm guitarist Jason Hager, and vocalist Mark Hunter. The pair recruited Jason Genaro on drums and Andrew Ermlick on bass to complete the line-up.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Chimaira

The Devil Wears Prada, also known as TDWP, is an American Christian metalcore band from Dayton, Ohio. They are currently signed to Ferret Records. The band derives its name from an anti-materialistic mindset as stated by vocalist Mike Hranica in several interviews upon the subject. The members of the band only read the book with the same title after choosing their band name.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:The Devil Wears Prada

Unearth is an American metalcore band from Winthrop, Massachusetts, formed in 1998. They are also known for playing seven-stringed guitars, while the bass player plays a five-stringed bass. Their latest album, The March, was released on October 14th, 2008. Unearth was formed by Trevor Phipps, Buz McGrath, Ken Susi, Mike Rudberg, and Chris Rybicki in Wakefield, Massachusetts in 1998. The band began as Point 04 (containing McGrath, Rudberg, and Rybicki), and Susi was recruited soon afterwards. The band attempted to recruit Phipps while he recovered from appendicitis, but Phipps was reluctant to join. However, when Phipps showed up to a jam session for one of Susi’s side bands, Unearth was practicing instead, and Phipps agreed to join after hearing the song “Shattered by the Sun.” The name “Unearth” was reused from drummer Mike Rudberg’s old band.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Unearth

I find it quite amazing just how many stories I hear of parents being surprised by game content or kids asking for (and getting!) games that clearly aren’t geared for their age bracket.  Most of the parents I have talked to either have no clue about video games or simply can’t be bothered to question the content of the games they are purchasing/renting for their spawn.

In an effort to help educate the public (specifically YOU, parents!), I am starting this feature here at tHe wYrMHoLe entitled “Parental Fucking Advisory”.  I think you should know just what the fuck your kid is playing and how it may or may not be warping their fragile little mind as you sit and read this right now. That being said, here is an introduction to your first line of defense; the Entertainment Software Rating Board:

“The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a self-regulatory organization that puts ratings into force, advertising guidelines, and online privacy principles for computer and video games and other entertainment software in Canada and the United States.

The ESRB was established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Association (formerly Interactive Digital Software Association). By early 2003, it had rated over 8,000 titles that had been submitted by 350 publishers.

One of the reasons the ESRB was founded was due to violent content found in video games such as Mortal Kombat and Doom, as well as other controversial video games portraying overly violent or intense sexual situations at the time.

The ESRB applies ratings to games based on their content, similar to the motion picture rating systems used in many countries. Their aim is to aid consumers in determining a game’s content and suitability. A game’s rating is displayed on its box, the media, in advertisements and on game web site(s).

The rating system is voluntary.”

Read more at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:ESRB
or visit the Entertainment Software Rating Board website.

So what does all this mean to you? Well, basically the ESRB is a group of people who all sit around and decide who a game may or may not be appropriate for.  You can use this information, which comes across as a combination of a rating and content descriptors, to help you decide if you really want to purchase a game for a particular child, teen or adult. This should merely be a jumping-off point and not a hard-and-fast rule! There are many people out there who are able to handle content rated above their age bracket just as well as there are plenty of people can’t handle lower-rated content; you need to take the recommended rating and apply your own knowledge of who will be playing the game to decide whether or not to make your purchase. Keep in mind that smaller children tend to act out what they see and you may not want some of the things found in games acted out by your little loved one (this comes from experience, the little buggers pick up stuff quick).

Per the ESRB, here are the possible ratings a game may receive and their respective symbols:

Here are the possible content descriptors:

• Alcohol Reference - Reference to and/or images of alcoholic beverages
• Animated Blood - Discolored and/or unrealistic depictions of blood
• Blood - Depictions of blood
• Blood and Gore - Depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts
• Cartoon Violence - Violent actions involving cartoon-like situations and characters. May include violence where a character is unharmed after the action has been inflicted
• Comic Mischief - Depictions or dialogue involving slapstick or suggestive humor
• Crude Humor - Depictions or dialogue involving vulgar antics, including “bathroom” humor
• Drug Reference - Reference to and/or images of illegal drugs
• Fantasy Violence - Violent actions of a fantasy nature, involving human or non-human characters in situations easily distinguishable from real life
• Intense Violence - Graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. May involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death
• Language - Mild to moderate use of profanity
• Lyrics - Mild references to profanity, sexuality, violence, alcohol or drug use in music
• Mature Humor - Depictions or dialogue involving “adult” humor, including sexual references
• Nudity - Graphic or prolonged depictions of nudity
• Partial Nudity - Brief and/or mild depictions of nudity
• Real Gambling - Player can gamble, including betting or wagering real cash or currency
• Sexual Content - Non-explicit depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including partial nudity
• Sexual Themes - References to sex or sexuality
• Sexual Violence - Depictions of rape or other violent sexual acts
• Simulated Gambling - Player can gamble without betting or wagering real cash or currency
• Strong Language - Explicit and/or frequent use of profanity
• Strong Lyrics - Explicit and/or frequent references to profanity, sex, violence, alcohol or drug use in music
• Strong Sexual Content - Explicit and/or frequent depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including nudity
• Suggestive Themes - Mild provocative references or materials
• Tobacco Reference - Reference to and/or images of tobacco products
• Use of Drugs - The consumption or use of illegal drugs
• Use of Alcohol - The consumption of alcoholic beverages
• Use of Tobacco - The consumption of tobacco products
• Violence - Scenes involving aggressive conflict. May contain bloodless dismemberment
• Violent References - References to violent acts

These indicators from the ESRB are put into place to act as a guideline. You need to be the firewall that keeps kids away from undesirable content. The only way you can truly know what is in the games your kids are playing is to GET FUCKING INVOLVED! If you never lay eyes on a game for yourself, can you really be upset when your kid starts flailing around the house attacking invisible intruders and yelling profanities? Not in my book! You need to take resposibility for what these little gamers are getting their hands on. Passive, ignorant oversight just doesn’t cut it. I DO NOT believe that video games cause kids to go bad, but I do believe it can contribute if left unchecked. Use your head and make informed decisions.

Look for my game reviews from a parental standpoint in future installments and don’t hesitate to comment, question or complain. Also, feel free to ask for game recommendations or information, especially before you go out and buy something you really don’t want in your kids’ hands!

Stay involved, stay informed!

Various Singles

5/5/09

“Smooth Criminal”-Alien Ant Farm
“Blue Sky”-The Allman Brothers Band
“Midnight Rider”-The Allman Brothers Band
“Drain the Blood”-The Distillers
“Idealistic Types”-Prong
“The Banishment”-Prong
“Naked Eye”-Luscious Jackson

Alien Ant Farm is an American rock band that formed in the southern California city of Riverside in 1995. Their name comes from an idea guitarist Terry Corso had about aliens and the earth–”I was daydreaming at my dull desk job with my feet up, and I thought to myself, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if the human species were placed on earth and cultivated by alien intelligence?’ Maybe the aliens added us to an atmosphere that was suitable for us, and they’ve been watching us develop and colonize, kind of like what a kid does with an ant farm.”
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Alien Ant Farm

he Allman Brothers Band is a Southern rock band based in Macon, Georgia, United States. The band was formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, organ). While the band has been called the “principal architects of Southern rock“, they also incorporate elements of blues-rock and hard rock, and their live shows have jam band-style improvisation and instrumental songs.

In 1971, George Kimball of the Rolling Stone Magazine hailed them as “the best damn rock and roll band” of “the past five years.” The band has been awarded eleven Gold and five Platinum albums between 1971 and 2005. Rolling Stone ranked them 52nd on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time in 2004. The band continues to record and tour to the present day.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:The Allman Brothers Band

The Distillers were an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1998. They released their first two albums on Hellcat Records/Epitaph Records before moving to Sire, part of the Warner Music Group. The Distillers were originally formed by Australian-born Brody Armstrong (later Dalle), a woman with a distinctively harsh singing voice. Ex-wife of Rancid’s Tim Armstrong, Brody changed her name to “Dalle” after their divorce in 2003. Although there were significant line-up changes it was Brody who played guitar, sang, and wrote or co-wrote nearly every song on the band’s three albums. Tony Bradley also played guitar and Ryan Sinn played bass.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:The Distillers

Prong is an American heavy metal band formed in 1986. Prong had two independent releases, Primitive Origins and Force Fed. The albums attracted the attention of Epic Records, who signed the trio in 1989. The group disbanded in 1997 after the Rude Awakening tour, but re-formed in 2002. A pioneer of the urban metal scene, Prong is fronted by Tommy Victor. Members of bands such as Korn’s Jonathan Davis, Demon Hunter’s Ryan Clark, and Nine Inch Nails‘ Trent Reznor cite Prong as an influence to their musical style.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Prong

Luscious Jackson is an alternative/pop-rock group formed in 1991. They are named after now-retired American basketball player Lucious Jackson.

The original band consisted of Jill Cunniff (vocals, bass), Gabby Glaser (vocals, guitar), Kate Schellenbach (drums) and Vivian Trimble (keyboards, vocals). The band played nearly every instrument heard on their records, and with the exception of a few non-LP cover songs wrote all of their own material, the majority penned by vocalists Jill Cunniff and/or Gabby Glaser.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Luscious Jackson

Franz Ferdinand Pack 01

5/5/09

Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game track pack: Franz Ferdinand Pack 01. This pack includes “Do You Want To,” “Take Me Out,” and “Lucid Dreams” by Franz Ferdinand.

Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish rock band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2002. Named after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the band is comprised of Alex Kapranos (lead vocals and guitar), Bob Hardy (bass guitar), Nick McCarthy (rhythm guitar, keyboards and backing vocals), and Paul Thomson (drums, percussion and backing vocals).
The members of Franz Ferdinand played in various bands during the 1990s including The Karelia, Yummy Fur, 10p Invaders and Embryo. Alex Kapranos and Paul Thomson played together in Yummy Fur and subsequently teamed up to write songs. Around the same time, Kapranos taught his friend Bob Hardy how to play bass. Kapranos met co-guitarist Nick McCarthy, who had returned to Scotland after studying jazz bass in Germany, in 2001.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Franz Ferdinand

May the Fourth be with you!

Nirvana Track Pack 02

4/30/09

Downloadable Track Pack for Guitar Hero World Tour featuring “Very Ape”, “Sappy” and “Stay Away” by Nirvana.

Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987. Nirvana went through a succession of drummers, the most notable being Dave Grohl, who joined the band in 1990.

With the lead single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” from the band’s second album Nevermind (1991), Nirvana entered into the mainstream, bringing along with it a subgenre of alternative rock called grunge. Other Seattle grunge bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden also gained popularity, and as a result, alternative rock became a dominant genre on radio and music television in the United States during the early-to-mid-1990s. As Nirvana’s frontman, Kurt Cobain found himself referred to in the media as the “spokesman of a generation”, with Nirvana the “flagship band” of Generation X. Cobain was uncomfortable with the attention and placed his focus on the band’s music, believing the band’s message and artistic vision to have been misinterpreted by the public, challenging the band’s audience with its third studio album In Utero (1993).

Nirvana’s brief run ended with Cobain’s death in April 1994, but the band’s popularity continued in the years that followed. In 2002, “You Know You’re Right“, an unfinished demo from the band’s final recording session, topped radio playlists around the world. Since their debut, the band has sold over twenty-five million albums in the US alone, and over fifty million worldwide. 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Nirvana