Happy Halloween! Boo!

Clockwise: Mike Furey, Casey Stratton, Sir Ari Gold, and Kendall Kelly.

Today is October 31, 2014. That makes it officially Halloween, a day that was first celebrated in the mid-1700s. It was also known as All Hallow's Eve and All Saint's Eve, marking the evening before All Saint's Day.It is thought to have Celtic roots, and is based on some forms of Christianity. Today, it is mostly known as a chance to dress up in costumes of every variety, no matter your age. Whether you are trying to scare people, or making them laugh, it is a day celebrated by many. To get us in the mood a bit, I thought I would post some Halloween-themed music, or at least some that could be. The first song is a remake of a 1984 single from Ministry, an American Industrial Metal band. It was covered in 2006 by the Electronic Rock project based in New York City. Vocalist Mike Furey is the man behind the artistic direction of the band. This is Dangerous Muse with "Everyday Is Halloween".

You can find "Everyday Is Halloween" on iTunes and Amazon. My next song isn't really a Halloween song, but it works, at least for me. There is something hot, and sexy about "Blood" a great song off Casey's first album, 'Standing on the Edge'. It was the first song by Casey I really fell for, and I have been hooked ever since. This is Casey Stratton performing "Blood" on morning television, and managing to look and sound pretty damn great!

You can find "Blood" on 'Blood EP (Junior Vasquez Mix)', available on iTunes and Amazon. The gloriously bearish Kendall Kelly has been making music for a while now, and garnering quite the fanbase. It seems many respond well to his mixture of humorous songs with romantic ballads. The driving Electro-Dance beat keeps me moving, while the sexy images of Kendall keeps the attention of anyone who hits play. And before I delay you too much longer, perhaps you should be hitting the play button for Kendall Kelly's "Don't Even Know You're A Vampire".

You can find "Don't Know You're A Vampire" off the album 'Manifest Destiny', available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon. And speaking of vampires, I don't know if there is anyone I'd rather have nibbling my neck, and wherever else they'd like, than the gorgeous and talented Sir Ari Gold. That was certainly much on my mind in October of 2010, when he released the music video for "Make My Body Rock", on of the several great songs off his album 'Between the Spirit & the Flesh'. OF course, I must admit I have been a fan of Gold's music since I first heard "Wave of You" several years ago, and that was even before I'd see how sexy he is! Fast forward several years, and Ari is still looking as good, if not better than ever. Check out the music video for Sir Ari Gold's "Make My Body Rock".

You can find "Make My Body Rock" on Gold's 2012 album, 'Between the Spirit & the Flesh', available on iTunes and Amazon. And have a wonderful and scary Halloween!

New Memories With Casey Stratton

I really want to see Casey Stratton playing live, but have not been able to yet. I have faith that I will, at some point, get the job done. But I did purchase the DVD of his live performance in Michigan, which I will admit to watching more than once already. To keep myself fooled, I search for live clips on YouTube, and pretend I was there. It doesn't really work, but it does lessen the feelings. This is Shut You Down from a show in New York City. The song was originally on the Memories & Photographs album.



I remember a couple of years ago, when I know who he was, but still hadn't purchased any music yet. I contacted him, and he told me to give the Standing At The Edge album a try. I did. Boy, was he right. I have been a fan ever since! This is a live performance of Blood from that album.

Happy Birthday, Casey Stratton!

Today Casey Stratton celebrates his birthday, and I just wanted to mark the day with a big hug! And the way I do that best is to pull up the video, and have it be from his recently released Live DVD. This is Blood, Live From The Wealthy Theatre. I really love the song, and this is an exceptional live version of it.



Casey also performed I Fail Again on the DVD, which I own and love! The beautiful song is from the Memories and Photographs album, which I also own and love. Hmmm, I see a trend there.



One way you can wish Casey a happy day is to stop by his website here, click on the digital store here, and buy some great music. I'll tell you I own several of the CDs on that list, and love them all. There is also the DVD available to order. You could also skip over to iTunes and check his music out there. Or you could check in to Amazon and click here and do a digital download of the Standing At The Edge album, which kicks some serious ass. Also the first music reviewed on this blog was Casey's. So you have some songs here, but you want the original material, I suggest clicking one of the spots above! And Happy Birthday Casey!

Friday Night Party - Casey Stratton

Photos by Terry Johnston

Back on May 20th, singer/songwriter Casey Stratton had a live show at the Wealthy Theatre in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Not only was it recorded to be made available for purchase, it was also taped for a future DVD release. The concert was sold out, as Michigan came out to support their talented native son. One of his popular songs is Blood, from the 2004 release Standing At The Edge.



He also performed I Fall Again, a song from the Memories & Photographs album release last fall. The gorgeous ballad is just intoxicating to me.



You can purchase a download of the concert here. I did, and it sounds fantastic, and covers Casey's music from the start of his recording career to the present. I look forward to purchasing the DVD soon!