User:Moviemaniacx

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Hello, my name is Nick, I'm 21-years-old and I live in Baltimore, Maryland. I'm studying Mechanical Engineering at UMBC, which is extremely difficult. I love movies and music; they are the two things that make me the happiest and keep me sane! I love the Guitar Hero video games. I have become addicted and play them almost everyday. The games have also helped me broaden my love of rock music. I am also fascinated by the guitar and in the future I want to learn to play the real guitar. I think guitar solos are musical nirvana - there is nothing better than rocking out to Jimmy Page's extraordinary solo on "Stairway To Heaven" or Jimi Hendrix's skyscraping solo on "All Along the Watchtower".

Contents

[edit] What I edit

I get on Wikipedia everyday and always end up editing something, usually articles on films and music. I'm (obviously) an active contributor/monitor on the Guitar Hero and Rock Band pages. I have created a few articles, but mainly stick to editing. Most of the articles I have linked on this page, I have edited in some way and am an active monitor of. I also try to upload better pictures for articles. I do most of my editing at my job, when I should be doing other work :)

[edit] Movies

I love movies from all genres, especially action, horror, and science fiction. I enjoy films from all decades, but I especially like films from the 1970's and 1980's.

My top ten movies are as follows:

  1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
  2. John Carpenter's The Thing
  3. The Blade Trilogy
  4. The Living Dead Series:
    1. Night of the Living Dead
    2. Dawn of the Dead
    3. Day of the Dead
    4. Land of the Dead
  5. Jurassic Park
  6. The Back to the Future Trilogy
  7. The Indiana Jones Trilogy
  8. The Warriors
  9. Dirty Harry
  10. Sin City

I am currently excited for: Shoot 'Em Up and I Am Legend

[edit] Music

I strongly dislike current music, especially rap and hip-hop. I love what everyone calls classic rock, though it's just rock to me. My favorite music is from the birth of rock around 1960 to the end of grunge around 1995. I like all genres of music from this time period, including psychedelic rock, progressive rock, glam rock/glam metal, 1980's pop and wave, thrash metal, and punk rock.

When I get into an artist, I listen to their entire catalogue and buy many of their albums. I will get on what I like to call "kicks" and just listen to one or two artists I'm really into at the time.

I am currently into: Black Sabbath (again) and Stone Temple Pilots.

My top five bands are:

[edit] AC/DC

The greatest rock band ever. AC/DC is a legend. They rock the hardest and have the most fun doing it. Their songs are a blast to rock out to and great to drive to. Their songs are timeless - who hasn't heard "You Shook Me All Night Long" and went through it at least once? They have the 2nd highest selling album of all time and for good reason: They Rock. The late Bon Scott and Brian Johnson are equal frontmen in my eyes and Angus Young is one of the greatest guitarists ever. The "duck walk" a la Angus Young is also one of the coolest things I've ever seen. My favorite album is Highway To Hell and my favorite songs are "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" and "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)".


[edit] Led Zeppelin

Everybody loves Zeppelin. It is a fact, just accept it. Led Zeppelin have been called "The Gods of Rock" and the name undoubtedly fits. Jimmy Page is one of the greatest guitarists ever. Robert Plant is the most outrageously flamboyant frontman the world has ever seen. John Paul Jones has written some of the greatest songs to ever be put onto paper. And the late, great John Bonham is the most amazing drummer to have ever lived. "Stairway To Heaven" is truly one of best songs to grace human ears and will be remembered forever. Zeppelin's artistic achievements as musicians have yet to be topped. My favorite album is Physical Graffiti and my favorite songs are "Immigrant Song" and "Communication Breakdown".

[edit] Van Halen

Van Halen crashed onto the scene in 1978 with an album that blew every headbanger's thoroughly shaken mind. Van Halen is a landmark in rock music and gave us one of the most amazing guitarists ever: Eddie Van Halen. Go and listen to "Eruption" and you will see exactly what I'm talking about. The man is second only to Jimi Hendrix. David Lee Roth was the perfect frontman for the fast-paced band and his howling vocals will forever be etched into rock history. After 1984, Sammy Hagar entered and kept Van Halen alive and well. Though "Van Hagar" still rocked liked crazy, they never topped the original Van Halen. My favorite album is the above mentioned Van Halen and my favorite songs are "Runnin' With The Devil" and "Hot For Teacher".


[edit] Jimi Hendrix

Guitar God. Plain and simple. Jimi Hendrix is and will forever be the greatest guitarist to ever live. Period. Hendrix, while playing with The Jimi Hendrix Experience (with the great Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell) produced some of the most incredible songs anyone has ever heard. All three of Hendrix's studio albums - Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold As Love and Electric Ladyland - are three of the best rock albums ever produced. "Purple Haze", "Hey Joe", "Are You Experienced?", "Spanish Castle Magic", "If 6 Was 9", "Foxey Lady", "All Along The Watchtower" and "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" are prime examples of Hendrix's manipulation of the guitar and his mastery of sound. "All Along The Watchtower" is the most amazing song I've ever heard. Hendrix's showmanship on stage is also one of the most spectacular things you'll ever see: playing the guitar with his teeth and behind his head, as well as lighting the guitar on fire. Jimi Hendrix is the reason rock music was created. My favorite album is Electric Ladyland and my favorite songs are "All Along The Watchtower" and "Crosstown Traffic".


[edit] Def Leppard

The number one band of the 1980s and truly remarkable musicians. Though pegged as the typical "80s hair metal band", Def Leppard is so much more than that. You have an excellent lead singer, Joe Elliot, two great guitarists, the late Steve Willis and Phil Collen, a great bass player, Rick Savage, and a drummer who has one arm and is still one of the best drummers around, Rick Allen. This band has been through it all and produced some of the most successful songs and awesome albums of the 80s, including the "every song is a hit" album Hysteria, thanks to "Mutt" Lange. My favorite album is Pyromania and my favorite songs are "Photograph" and "Rock Of Ages".


[edit] Television

I don't watch very much television, but I am devoted to three shows: Lost, The Simpsons and Dexter. I like The Flintstones, The Jetsons and the older episodes of Scooby Doo. Miami Vice is also a guilty pleasure of mine. I really enjoy what people call "Old School Nickelodeon", which aired in the mid 90s. The reason I don't watch a lot of TV now is because it is too clichéd and it is becoming saturated with annoying reality shows that are too-gimmicky and have little to do with actual reality. I'll also watch CSI whenever I want to stimulate my mind.

[edit] Lost

Lost is an amazing show that is unlike any other show on primetime TV, which is one of the main reasons I started watching it. It has a very original premise (the only other TV series that shares a similar premise is Gilligan's Island, albeit comically) and so many interesting characters. It also finds ways to keep surprising viewers and keep us hooked. Season 1 was excellent, but we didn't really know the characters. Season 2 is the best one so far because now being familiar with the characters, the show took time to explore the mysteries of the island. Season 3 was great but revealed too much, most notably that the characters do get off the island eventually.

Favorite Characters
• Locke
• Mr. Eko
• Desmond
• Hurley
• Charlie
• Juliet
Favorite Elements
• Answer 1 Question, Raise 3 More
• The Dharma Initiative stations
• The Smoke Monster
• The Four-Toed Statue

[edit] The Simpsons

The Simpsons is a fantastic show that is one of the only animated sitcoms that is still funny after such a long run. I think it's very underrated, especially by parents. The show deals with every problem and situation a family or individual must deal with during their life, but critics just brush it off as "some silly cartoon" (don't get me wrong, it is silly, but it handles seriousness and comedy equally). Homer, Otto, Bart and Moe are my favorite characters.

[edit] Dexter

Dexter caught my attention because it was about a serial killer who only kills bad people, which I thought was a very cool premise. However, I soon found out that the show only used this as a minor background element and that the show was completely character-driven. And to my amazement, I was still hooked! The characters are so deep and interesting that I couldn't help getting involved with them and the actors do an amazing job and are utterly believable. My favorite characters are (obviously) Dexter and Special Agent Lundy. Interestingly, I really liked the character of Harry, Dexter's father, but the more I found out about him as the show progressed, the less I liked his character. Lila also intrigued me, but in a "watch out, she's a crazy psycho bitch!" kind of way. Do yourself a favor and watch this show from the beginning. You won't regret it.

[edit] Nickelodeon

Old School Nickelodeon is one of the best things ever to happen to television. Quality shows with excellent animation, characters and plots. I mainly enjoy all the older Nicktoons, but there are a few other shows that were awesome as well. The best include:

I also occassionly watch Family Guy.

[edit] Video Games

I enjoy all kinds of video games, mostly first person shooters like Red Faction. I like the Super Mario Bros. franchise (who doesn't), with 3 being my favorite. I also enjoy the Burnout series, especially Burnout: Revenge - crashing cars has never been so much fun! I find that video games are great stress relievers and they also hone your hand-eye coordination. They do not "rot your brain" as some nay-sayers claim.

[edit] Guitar Hero

The Guitar Hero series. One of the greatest things ever invented in the history of the universe! Yes, it's that great. Being a lover of rock music, these games let me (and everyone else who ever dreamed of rocking out to songs like "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Freebird") put my air guitar skills to the test. The best songs that are the most fun to play from each game are, in my opinion:

Guitar Hero
"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" by Judas Priest
"Sharp Dressed Man" by ZZ Top
"Ziggy Stardust" by David Bowie
"Crossroads" by Cream
"Godzilla" by Blue Öyster Cult
Guitar Hero II
"You Really Got Me" by Van Halen
"Cherry Pie" by Warrant
"Killing In The Name" by Rage Against The Machine
"Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns N' Roses
"Beast And The Harlot" by Avenged Sevenfold
Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s
"I Ran (So Far Away)" by A Flock of Seagulls
"No One Like You" by Scorpions
"The Warrior" by Scandal
"Nothin' But A Good Time" by Poison
"Lonely Is The Night" by Billy Squier
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
"Holiday in Cambodia" by Dead Kennedys
"La Grange" by ZZ Top
"Welcome To The Jungle" by Guns N' Roses
"Cherub Rock" by The Smashing Pumpkins
"Stricken" by Disturbed

[edit] Grand Theft Auto

The Grand Theft Auto series, a landmark in the history of video games. III paved the way for so many new innovations and possibilities that made the video game market explode. Controversy or not, these are great games that are a blast to play. They also featured big name actors doing the voices for some of the characters, which only added to your immersion in the game.

My favorite game out of the entire series is Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and its expansion pack, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories. The games nail the portrayal of the 80s with the clothes, the mindset, the cars and of course, the music! I love the in-game radio station V-Rock and wish it were a real radio station.

[edit] Rock Band

Rock Band is the best thing to happen EVER. Harmonix took what they had created with Guitar Hero and pushed it even further, including drums and a microphone. Talk about innovation! The idea was executed beautifully, producing a high quality game with sturdy perpherials and extreme replayability. Also very smart was the ability to download new tracks via the internet. This allows for you to keep expanding your song library without having to go buy another game! The game is truly something amazing and should not be overlooked. If you haven't played it - go buy it right now!

Top Songs:

[edit] Articles I've Created

[edit] My greatest accomplishment

[edit] Also

[edit] Personal Notes

[edit] Songs To Download

[edit] Bands To Check Out

[edit] External Links

http://www.digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_guitarsolo.html