Papa Roach: Face Everything And Rise

           

Credit: Rolling Stone

“I will face everything and rise, never gonna quit until I die.”

            
These lyrics sent goosebumps down my arms and the rest of the song had me captivated.  If you thought Papa Roach was done creating meaningful and awe-inspiring music, think again.  Their first track of their album, F.E.A.R., looks very promising.  The amount of depth put into this song astounds even me.  I could tell from the very beginning that the band was alluding to conquering hardships that we all face.  Now these hardships are all different for everyone, and I thought that made this song even cooler.  For example, a quiet girl could be shy for a reason.  She may have been abused or taught that silence was better.  Someone else could take this song as conquering inner struggles.  Perhaps a person is mentally ill and struggles with depression all their life.  Depression is a serious matter.  However you look at this song, you have to admit it is stunning to listen to.  It invades your brain and worms into your insecurities, brining them to the front for you to see. 

            
The music video is even more striking.  It brings forth a visual to the song, and one that is very effective in my opinion.  It starts out with a man in a gasmask, staring at a screen of TVs.  He is tied in a chair and a hard looking woman appears, grabbing his gasmask, taunting him.  The scene switches to the band then and all of them are bouncing up and down to the beat of the music.  They begin to sing and their gestures take your breath away.  They appear so passionate about what they are doing and it spellbinds you.  The room with the man in the gasmask appears again, and this time the TVs are on, depicting catastrophes.  Fires, bombs, and men in black suits assault your eyes.  There is a ball of energy next to the man in the gasmask.  The scene shows the chair that the man occupied empty.  Then he knocks out a guard and takes a black car.  He drives on a road with two bikers.  They are chasing him and in a panic he brings the car to a screech, runs out and scrambles into the wild.  He runs until he sees men in black hoods, and gasmasks holding flaming arrows.  They release them and as the arrows fall, the man takes the ball of energy into the palm of his hand, raising it in the air and dispelling the enemies.  This indicates to me, that he has faced his fears. 

       
 I believe Papa Roach has produced good music since day one and this song proves that they can still make amazing music.  I’ll let you be the judge of what you think of the song though. 

Credit: Kerrang!

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9z4DWB7Iy8

Preorder the CD here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/f.e.a.r./id934533198

Kindle Fire HD 8.9

Credit: Online Gadget Store

I have had the joy of owning my Kindle Fire HD 8.9 for a year and six months.  In the time owning it, I have gotten great satisfaction from it, but also have encountered a few frustrations.  Now don’t get me wrong, the Kindle Fire is an amazing device and I would highly recommend it to a friend or family member.  Without any prior knowledge to the Kindle Fire, one might not easily assume what kind of tablet this device is.  A quick search would show that it was an android tablet, but some may not know how this tablet functions. 

According to Amazon.com The Kindle Fire comes in four different memory types: 8 GB, 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB.  I personally own a 16 GB version and have found that even after all of the hundreds of books, plus dozens of apps and games, that I still have over half the memory.  If you are looking for a good tablet reader that is less expensive than say an iPad, then I recommend the Kindle Fire.  When I bought my Kindle Fire it cost around $400, but this included the wall USB charger, a $60 case cover, and I kept the special offers.  Special offers are not that big of a deal.  They are basically ads that pop up every time you start up your Kindle Fire, or unlock it.  Honestly, they aren’t that annoying, in fact they can be quite helpful.  For example, these offers will showcase deals with books that are on sale, and similar deals concerning digital items.  Items such as: music and magazines.  If you wish to get rid of these ads, you can pay $15 at any time to get rid of them.  The price for a Kindle Fire on Amazon as of now, is $229.00, for a 16 GB, including special offers, and Wi-Fi connectivity.

The Good:

1.     The Kindle Fire has a decent battery life.  I have gotten 8-10 hours out of mine, which on Amazon is the same. 

2.     It has anti-glare technology, which helps when trying to read in direct sunlight.  When turned on either automatic brightness, or high brightness settings, you can read on your Kindle Fire without any difficulties.

3.     The books on amazon are cheap and there are dozens of free ones you can find if using the appropriate wording.

4.     The android interface is easy to handle, and before you know it you’ll be a pro on your Kindle Fire. 

5.     The Kindle Fire is considerably cheaper than a 16 GB iPad Air, which costs $499 as stated by Apple.com

The Bad:

1.     In my experience the iPad seems to have more apps and games. This may be a problem for some, who are avid app and game users. 

2.     For Apple users the interface of the carousel wheel on the Kindle Fire may appear clunky.  It is a matter of preference, but some people dislike drastic change.

3.     The iPad Air has folders, while the Kindle Fire has categories at the top of the screen labeled Shop, Games, Apps, Docs, Music, Videos, Newstand, Audiobooks, Web, Photos, Docs and Offers. There is also a search bar in the same area.

Conclusion:

While the iPad Air seems the superior choice, it comes down to preference, what you plan on doing the most on it, etc. reading or apps and games, and how much you have to spend.  I would personally choose the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 again if given the chance, because of the cost and because I own an android phone.  However, the choice is always yours dear reader.

Amazon and Apple.com