Monday, December 24, 2018

Guest List: The RockNRoll Hi-Fives' Top Fives of 2018

The RockNRoll Hi-Fives at their record release show back in June.

Family Five

Merry Christmas, everybody!

Today, as a present for all of you, America's rockingest family band are here to give you their individual Top Fives of 2018. The band had a big year as they released their first LP, Re-Introducing The RockNRoll Hi-Fives, with Little Dickman Records, toured the United States from coast to coast in their RV, and went on tour to Japan. Their dog and manager, Ziggy, joined them for their U.S. tour; and, along the way, the band introduced us to "Yoga with Joga" through a series of Facebook Live episodes from around the country.

I'll slip another one of my own personal lists in here before we get to what the Centenos have to say:

CoolDad's Top Thing That He Did in 2018

I WENT ON TOUR IN JAPAN WITH THE ROCKNROLL HI-FIVES!!!!

OK. Now, that that's out of the way, here are each of The RockNRoll Hi-Fives with their Top Yoga with Joga Episode, Favorite Tour Stop, Favorite Road Food, Favorite Song, and Favorite Album of 2018.

Gloree

Favorite Yoga with Joga, "Healing Mud"



I loved watching Joga spread "poop" all over his arms and face! I was the one who was to interrupt him and let him know it was poop and not mud he was using. I let the bit go on longer to see how far he would go. He really sinks himself in the role.

Favorite Tour Stop, The Redwood Forest

It's amazing and reminds us of the beauty and majesty of nature and puts things into perspective (at least for me!)

Favorite Road Food, Jane's Pork Carnitas in Boise, ID!

Gracious hosts Jane and Declan fed and cared for us while we were in Boise. Jane is a great cook - lucky for us!

Favorite Song, "All You Can Eat" by Foodie (released on Custard Core Records Japan, 2018)



We had the honor of playing with Foodie on our Japanese tour.  This song is fun, groovy and makes me smile ear to ear.  Give it a listen.  Guaranteed to make you smile!

Favorite Album, Sparkle Hard, Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks

I listened to this album on the road quite a bit. It's perfect road music, so reminiscent of Pavement, sweet and melodic as I watched the landscape pass through the RV windows.

Photo: The RockNRoll Hi-Fives
Ziggy

Favorite Yoga with Joga, Joshua Tree when I got to pee on Joga's leg!




It was really hard to wait for my cue, but it was worth it!

Favorite Tour Stop, Humboldt Redwoods State Park, CA

I loved swimming in the South Fork Eel River.  My humans had to give me a treat to get me out of the water!

Favorite Road Food, BEEF JERKY!

My humans give me beef jerky when we make stops for gas.  And boy do I get excited!

Favorite Song, "Same Mistakes" by The RockNRoll Hi-Fives!

WOOF!



Favorite Album, Re-Introducing the RockNRoll Hi-Fives, The RockNRoll Hi-Fives

Because, duh! It's GREAT!!!

Joe

Favorite Yoga with Joga, "David Lee Roth's House in Pasadena, CA"




Being a huge fan of DLR Joga wanted to do a special pose outside of Roth's home. Our good friends, Doug, Elena and Roxie, who were letting us crash at their house had a map to the stars' so we all crammed into their car and headed over to Diamond Dave's with a broomstick in the trunk. Joga wanted to incorporate a stick with his pose in honor of Dave's love for twirling sticks. It was a crazy episode that left us laughing for hours… Maybe years.

Favorite Tour Stop, Bend, OR

So many incredibly awesome stops; but Bend, OR was a stop I've never been to, and I've been across the USA a few times now. We got to hang with our cousin Chris who was our tour guide for 2 days. We hit a really cool ice cream shop, record store, a few breweries, coffee shop, food trucks, and went down the Deschutes River on tubes. All while our dog Ziggy hung out with Chris's dog Tripps. At night, we sat outside the RV starring at the stars. On the way out, we tried to get a closer look at the stars by stopping at the Pine Mountain Observatory, but the road up was way too rough for the RV. Oh, well. Maybe next time the road will be paved.

Favorite Road Food, Betty's Noodle House, Santa Cruz, CA

This place is Asian food heaven. If you’re into Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai or Korean this is a must stop while passing through town. We played StreetLight Records and this phenomenal restaurant sits right across the street from the record store. It’s really hard to pick one meal on the menu so we ordered a bunch of meals to go and ate it for the next three days in the RV. YUM!

Favorite Song

This is a tough one so i have 3:

"Corked" by Dentist

"Erasure" by Superchunk (which they also have a fun video for)



"Birthday Suit" by Lost Boy ?

Favorite Album, Paranoid Fiction, Lost Boy ? and Constant Image, Flasher

Evren

Favorite Yoga with Joga, "Hacapaki Bird"



All throughout tour, my dad was OBSESSED with making Jogas. He was constantly taking about them; and, when I would sit in the front passenger seat on long drives, it seemed like all we did was write and rehearse these Jogas. Most mornings, I would be woken up by dad going, "Joga, let's go!"

I would drag myself out of bed and do whatever insane task he needed me to do. This time, we were in the Redwood Forest, and he had a special Joga planned. He handed me a bottle that was filled with a mix of hair conditioner and water. This episode has so many quotable moments. Watching my dad put on this crazy persona while standing on a picnic bench in an RV park at 9 am trying not to laugh will stick with me forever. When he leans his head back and I squirt him with the poop he made, it is just hilarious. He had his eyes closed so he had no idea when it was coming. And that stuff was really cold, too. He was supposed to make a bird call while Eilee panned the camera up, making it look like the Hacapaki came, but he ended up doing half the call because he cracked up laughing. We had to walk through the park with him drenched in conditioner. If anyone was watching I can't imagine what they were thinking.

We always bring up this episode when talking about Joga, and it's one of the reasons Joga is such an awesome thing that will forever be with us.

Favorite Tour Stop, Austin, TX

Austin has a super cool mix between a really big city filled to the brim with people and a small community where everyone comes together. There are so many cool places from Waterloo Records, Blues on the Green to Barton Springs, which is a crystal clear natural pool and creek. It has a diverse culture, and you can find incredible arts and food in the area. And speaking food...

Favorite Road Food, Chuy's, Austin, TX

Austin is home to some of the best Mexican food and Chuy's is no exception. The vibe is awesome. The rooms have crazy objects throughout. Our room had tires plastered on the walls. It was just really unique. The service was great, and the food was incredible. Their burritos are reeeaaally good and ginormous. They're also super cheap, so it's a great stop on tour.

Favorite Song, "Bodys" by Car Seat Headrest

I guess this isn't a "new song" as it's a remake of the original 2011 version, but I never listened to Twin Fantasy until this year, and my first experience with it was the new version that came out this year. This song is just so much fun with the dance beat that starts the track and the funny and wacky lyrics. Will Toledo's style of awkwardness is something that most songwriters don't use, and it's really memorable. The chorus is great and so powerful, and the main riff is really special. I think the song is super awesome and probably the best Car Seat Headrest song, but that's debatable.

Favorite Album, Some Rap Songs, Earl Sweatshirt



There were so many albums I enjoyed this year from the crazy and experimental Veteran by JPEGMAFIA to the catchy and incredibly written Twin Fantasy by Car Seat Headrest. But only recently was my favorite released. I've been a huge Earl Sweatshirt fan for a long time and for good reason. Every single one of his projects is genre-defying and incredible. In November, he released Some Rap Songs, his first album in 3 years. It's really not a typical rap album. Earl's beats are some of the most beautiful ever made in the genre. His use of old samples and dry samples makes for an incredible experience. None of the songs are catchy because they don't need to be. Earl Sweatshirt is known to be a rapper that strings together words to make sick rhyme schemes; but, on this album, he drops that. His lines are short and simple. He keeps it brief. All of this combined makes an unforgettable album that is one of the best rap albums of the decade.


Eilee

Favorite Yoga with Joga, "Red Rocks Amphitheater"



I was always behind the camera while all of Joga's craziness was going on, and I have to say that the episode at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado was my favorite episode. We were staying with our friends, Brian and Meghan, in Denver when we took their oldest daughter, Adele, who is 9 years old, for a ride in the RV to the Red Rocks Amphitheater.

During our tour, we were always brainstorming Joga video ideas' and we had an idea where a little kid beats up Joga, and Adele was perfect for the part. While we were really excited to film the video, Adele was not... She told us she wanted to be an actress when she was older but was too nervous to film the Joga episode. The whole time we were at the amphitheater, we kept trying to encourage her to participate in the video by repeating the lines and acting out what she had to do. Our hopes for the video were getting smaller; but, as we were leaving, we found the perfect spot to film Somehow, it all came together. All our Joga videos were shot live on FB, so they were one take. I said action. Adele knew exactly what to do and executed the part perfectly. She was amazing! Afterwards, we bought ice cream to thank Adele for her great acting skills.

Favorite Tour Stop, Kobe, Japan

All of these categories are so hard for me to choose because we have been so lucky to get to travel the world on tour. My favorite tour stop this year was Kobe, Japan. We got to spend a few days in Kobe, and I fell in love with the city.

Kobe is located on a mountain and surrounded by water. The city has beautiful scenery and flowers all around, but it also has huge skyscrapers and colorful buildings. When we were in Kobe, we went hiking to the Nunobiki Herb Garden. I think that everyone can attest that the hike was hell, but the view was amazing. We got to see waterfalls, lakes, lookout points to view the city, and a huge flower garden. However, we weren't prepared for the uphill hike. We didn't bring water, and nobody had the appropriate shoes; but it was still fun. If you were going to Kobe and were going to hike to the garden, I would suggest taking the cable car up and hiking down. Don't do what we did, which was the opposite.

Above Kobe, Japan

Kobe is filled with history; and, on our first day we went to the Ikuta Shrine, which was amazing. CoolDad (who was with us in Japan) ate raw chicken in Kobe and lived to tell about it. Thanks for taking one for the team! Everyone got hot coffee from a vending machine on our last night in Japan, which was something I’ve never seen. The can was so hot it burned just holding it. How does Japan do it?! We also played our last show of the tour in Kobe, which was really special and definitely sad. I did not want to leave! I'm so glad that I will always have these memories and got to experience this tour with the most amazing people I know!

Favorite Road Food

This is really hard, since we had amazing food at so many places; but one day stands out as far as food for me. At the beginning of tour, we stopped in New Orleans for the day to see our friends John and Cecily. Cecily was working, so John took us to the French Quarter; and we walked around for hours. It was the most perfect day!

It had just rained, so there weren't many people out; and it wasn't so hot out. On our adventure, we stopped for beignets, which were amazing. If you've never tried them they are a popular pastry that are kind of like zeppole. For lunch, we stopped at the Royal House, which was located in the middle of the French Quarter. I had a shrimp Po'Boy for the first time, and it was awesome. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I knew I had to try one since we were only in New Orleans for one day and it was my first time there. Then, later in the day, we met up with Cecily and went to Robears for snowballs. Snowballs are a popular ice cream in New Orleans where you choose a flavor of soft serve ice cream, and then they cover and top the soft serve ice cream in flavored shaved ice. I got chocolate soft serve with raspberry shaved ice. I had a great time visiting John and Cecily and trying traditional New Orleans food.

Favorite Song, "Sober to Death" by Car Seat Headrest

I personally wrote my 50 favorite songs of 2018 just for myself because I was bored and procrastinating doing my homework and I wrote down "Bodys" by Car Seat Headrest as my favorite song of the year. Now, thinking about it, I change my mind to "Sober to Death" by Car Seat Headrest.



While I don't think this is the best song off of Twin Fantasy (Face to Face), it is special to me. When I first got into Car Seat Headrest, I watched Will Toledos's NPR Tiny Desk performance; and he played this song and I thought it was amazing. I looked it up later and started listening to the original Twin Fantasy (Mirror to Mirror) record Toledo released in 2011, when he was only nineteen and recorded his music in his car. I was so excited to hear the new album and even more excited to hear a new version of "Sober to Death." In my opinion, Toledo is one of the best lyricists and songwriters of his generation, and this song showcases his talents. I love the slow verse into the melodic chorus. The song flows so well, and the ending is beautiful where the song breaks down and he repeatedly sings "Don't worry. You and me won't be alone no more."

Favorite Album, The Nude Party, The Nude Party

Thinking about all of the music that was released this year is very overwhelming. This year some of my favorite bands released albums including Hinds, The Frights, The Front Bottoms, Soccer Mommy, Superchunk, and the list goes on and on. I think my favorite album of 2018 is The Nude Party's self titled LP.

I had never heard of this band until this year when I saw Twin Peaks posting about their album. I was curious to hear it. I was so surprised by how much I enjoyed their sound. I have never liked psychedelic garage rock music before; but, for some reason, I was totally drawn to this band. The music was so fun and experimental yet catchy at the same time. When I first heard "Records" and "Feels Alright" I couldn't stop listening to the songs. "Chevrolet Van" is probably my favorite song off the album because, when they released their record, it was during the summer; and we were on tour and I totally related to the lyrics. ”You'll never make enough money / and no one cares about the things you say / You're gonna wake up someday / And you'll wish you got a job." It is so cool to be in a band with my parents who have showed me that I can do anything and are supportive.

I also wanted to mention that Jim (personally and not personally) has turned me onto a lot of music this year. Through his Instagram posts, album reviews on his website, and talking to him about what he's been listening to I found some of my favorite bands through him. I found bands like Bully, Charly Bliss, Hinds, and Flasher.

At the end of this year, Jim posted about the band Flasher and my dad and I started listening to them, watching their videos, and listening to the album around the house. We had never heard of this band until Jim posted about them, and now Constant Image is one of my favorite albums. I also saw through show reviews and pictures from SXSW that Jim really liked Bully, Hinds, and Charly Bliss. While I was aware of Bully and Hinds, I never really listened to them; but, after I saw him posting a lot about them, I listened to their records and now I look up to the bands. Same with Charly Bliss.

Moral of the story...read Jim's articles, follow him on instagram, and check out what he's listening to. He has great taste in music and you may just find your new favorite band through him.

[CoolDad Note: *sniff*] 

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