If you don’t know who the Red Hot Chili Peppers are, I just want to know what rock you’ve been living under for the past twenty-five or so years. They are one of the biggest rock bands in the world, recording seven fantastic albums including the 2006 “Stadium Arcadium,” which won 6 Grammys. Since this band has such a long history, an autobiography of the main singer is bound to be a super interesting and full of scandal.

And Anthony Kiedis does not disappoint.

Anthony’s autobiography begins right at the beginning: his birth in 1962. He chronicles his experiences as a child that lead to his excessive party lifestyle as an adult, many of which are with his father, Blackie, a drug dealer. He discusses all of his relationships and diligently reports on the formation of the original Red Hot Chili Peppers.

At some points the book becomes slightly redundant: drug abuse, rehab, clean, repeat. But that was his life and although this repetitiveness takes away from the severity of the issue of drug abuse, the stories that go along with this vicious cycle are amazing and can only be those of a rock-star.

And they stay with you. Even though I read this about 5 years ago, certain anecdotes have never left me and I still find myself thinking of them. Read More »

The three weeks before I graduated from undergrad I was miserable. I was sad, and already dreading the day all my friends would leave our previously un-penetrated bubble of binge drinking, late nights, traveling, naps and academia.

I’m in grad school now but I realized the crummy days are coming back again. My fifth year friends are rounding the victory lap and getting ready to leave school. I’m excited for them to scatter across the country, but sad to see them go. I decided my sentiment was best expressed in two playlists; one for those dark, depressing days and one for the hopeful, bright ones.

We’ll start with the sad one. Sometimes the best way to get over a hurdle is to have a good cry. This should make you do just that.

1. Freshman – Verve Pipe

Achingly sad when I was a freshman in high school, still pretty tear-inducing now that I know what they’re talking about.

2. Forever Young – Alphaville

This song is most known for the 8 billion TV prom scenes its used in. Don’t hold that against it. If you want to hold those haircuts against them, be my guest.

3. Tear – Red Hot Chili Peppers

Best lyric? “Say it now because you never know.” It sounds so much easier when Anthony Kiedis is advising you. Read More »

I’ll be honest; there’s nothing I enjoy more than just lounging in my room with my playlist eternally on shuffle, nodding along to Red Hot Chili Peppers while doing whatever else happens to only have half my attention.

But at home, I can’t exactly play “Suck My Kiss” with my mom right downstairs, and my roommate doesn’t exactly always wanna hear “The Mean Kitty Song”. Thankfully, someone out there sympathized with the plight of music lovers who wanted to keep music to themselves and gave the public headphones starting way back in the 1930’s.

Of course, there are hundreds of thousands of options when it comes to headphones. You want something good, but you may not necessarily want to pay a lot – and even if you do, you don’t want to give away a hundred bucks for headphones that aren’t worth it. I’ve gone through my fair share, and I’m gonna recommend four models, all of which I’ve owned or at least used. I promise one of them are just the pair for you, and all of them are infinitely better than the crap you got with your iPod. Read More »