So sentimental, not sentimental no!

If I were a blogger (which I am clearly not, obvi.), then these are the types of things that I would post:





If you can explain to me how Molly is doing that I would be ever so grateful. R.I.P. John.

Phoenix- Lisztomania (RIYL: Dancing, 80's sounding pop that actually got released this year, the French, the Brat Pack, no longer having an ass because of a previous incident in which you intentionally danced it off)

This will only appeal to a certain blog demographic

Best graph ever? (click to enlarge)

Dre Dre: "Forgot About Dre"
RIYL: West Coast Hip Hop, Siqqqqq Beats, Marshall Mathers, Profuse Swearing

VERY NSFW (Not Safe For Work, children, or easily shocked puppies)



Hat tip: Ezra

Paris Is Burning Anyone?

I'm headed out for a run and I was just lamenting the fact that I don't have Cheryl Lynn's "Got To Be Real" on my iPod:



Now THAT is a club track. It's an anthem, no doubt. I just had a little dance party.

I hope that everyone is having a good weekend.

Cheryl Lynn- Got To Be Real (obviously)

Very, very few of you will care.

Especially since I'm pretty certain that Kyle doesn't read this blog, and Wes just seems to be MIA in general, but:

THRICE has posted two new songs online.

And they are quite good. "Firebreather" is a little bit "modern rock" heavy, which I wasn't expecting out of the band, but it really picks up towards the end of the song. "Digital Sea" sounds a lot like Kid A without sounding like they are trying to rip off Radiohead. I'm very pleased.

As always, Dustin's lyrics don't disappoint:

Firebreather

Tell me, are you free in word or thought or deed, while the gallows stand, and bullets lance the bravest lungs? We fold our hands and hold our tongues. Tell me, are you free, when the fear falls on you? Will I fold my hands or hold my tongue? Or let the flames lick at my feet, and breathe in fire and know I’m free. The flames will rise and devour me. Oh, to breathe in fire, and know I’m free.

Digital Sea

I woke, cold and alone, adrift in the open sea; caught up in regrets, and tangled in nets, instead of your arms wrapped around me. And I wept but my tears are anathema here, just more water to fill my lungs. I hear someone scream, “God what is it we have done?” I am drowning in a digital sea; I am slipping beneath the sound. Here my voice goes, to ones and zeros, I’m slipping beneath the sound. A song from somewhere below, deadly and slow begins. Both sickly and sweet, now picking up speed, and ushering in the world’s end. And the ghost of Descartes screams again in the dark, “Oh how could I have been so wrong?” But above the screams still the sirens sing their song.


October can't come soon enough.

Wow.

Art.

Double-Double (Animal Style), Fries, and A Chocolate Shake

I'm in Tucson right now to drop off one of our volunteers at the airport. I'm staying for the weekend because:

A) Saves the Day is playing a show here tomorrow, my first show since last summer's The Format/Anathallo tour. Saves is one of my top ten favorite bands ever. Here's a classic from Through Being Cool, "Shoulder to the Wheel."



and

B) In-N-Out Burger opened a restaurant in Tucson. Apparently the line is over an hour long. I'm going right now, and bringing a book.

Mmmm. It's been far too long.

PG-13 Blogging: Some Mild Sexual Content

"Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol plays on MTV Mexico in the background of the restaurant.

Friend: Ugh. Why do people like this song?

Me: Sabe. (Spanish for "who knows?")

Friend: It's on all of the time.

Me: Yeah, I just don't get it. It's not even catchy. Just...long and boring.

Friend: I have a theory about this actually, but it's very Freudian.

Me: Freudian?

Friend: Yeah, I developed it after Death Cab's "Transatlanticism" became really popular.

Me: I like that album. And I really like that song.

Friend: Me too, but it's very Freudian.

Me: Ok, explain.

Friend: People like things that are very repetitive and then climax.

Me: Hahahahahahaha

Despierta Mama, Despierta

It's Mother's Day here in Mexico. Quite a celebration, let me tell you. Last night the jovenes group from the church (jovenes being high school to twentysomethings) set out to do a little late night serenading in the streets of Agua Prieta. Armed with two busted up guitars, some hand written lyrics sheets, a list of Mexican Mamas, and a few flashlights, three cars set out to wake up all the women of the church with off key singing and the promise of group hugs. 3:30 in the morning later I finally made it to bed, surprised by how quickly I have adjusted to a post college life (well before 2:00 a.m., my former bedtime, I was way past still wanting to be awake). I managed to confuse some of my Mexican (and American) friends yet again last night by being both very detached socially and also willing to sing quite loudly. A sure sign that it's time for a nap.

I have been really fortunate this year to take part in a whole mess of Mexican customs that I didn't understand or know anything about prior to arriving at the border. A lot of people have been very gracious by opening up their homes to me and letting me share a small part of their lives with them. This was one of those times.

I thought about calling my own mother to wake her up for some singing, but in the end decided that muffled and incomprehensible noises at two in the morning might not be the most compelling way to tell her how much I appreciate her. But there's always next year.

From my gmail inbox...

A link to this video:



And a suggestion:

"Now think in terms of Jesus"

One of my favorite short films set to music (yes, I made that genre up myself) from one of my favorite orchestra/post-rock/post-genres/unbelievable bands.

Glosoli by Sigur Ros. Thanks Jo.

I like both this and TV On the Radio...

does that mean that I'm a David Bowie fan now?

Elephant Shoes Rachel, Elephant Shoes

A few playlists submitted for the approval of our little blogspot community:

Lent (read: can't buy and therefore must listen to on the internet)

Cold War Kids, Hang Me Up to Dry
The Arcade Fire, Windowsill
Cat Power, The Greatest

Commute (read: music I listen to on my iPod while avoiding dogs and trying not to get hit by cars)

Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, Stars Fell on Alabama
Thursday, Sugar in the Sacrament
Miles Davis, So What
Weezer, Undone- The Sweater Song

In the Crib (read: songs I was playing on my guitar until the peg that holds my low e string broke in half this week leading to great weeping and gnashing of teeth)

Neutral Milk Hotel, King of Carrot Flowers Part 1
Death Cab for Cutie, I Will Follow You Into the Dark
Saves the Day, At Your Funeral
Dire Straits, Romeo and Juliet

Vacuum Mac, Vacuum.

Thanks facebook.

The power of the internets has just informed me that Karl F. Kling is part of a new project called The Pragmatic.

It has synths.

It has Karl.

You know I'm loving it.

Spin it to win it. Pull up your pants and do the rockaway. Act a fool. You know you want to.

Is it a sin to covet an ash cross on someone's head?

Today is Ash Wednesday. I am sad to say that I will not make it to a service today. I really wanted my ashes.

Despite this tragic setback I did manage to celebrate the beginning of Lent with my very dear friend Julia who came to visit me today. We hung out in Agua Prieta and ate some delicious tacos, then headed up to Bisbee for a little ice cream cone action. It was great to see her, and makes me miss all of my Po-mo-na/Claremont College folks.

My second celebration of Lent starts today as well. I had been thinking long and hard about how I should celebrate Lent this year, and later what I should give up. In years past I have given up tv (no Simpsons was really difficult), meat (not as hard as I would have thought), and "sweets" (I like sweets). This year I decided to really test myself and give up music. Not listening to it, that would kill me. I have decided to give up buying it. I know that this is a good thing to give up because I REALLY don't want to do it. I mean, I don't even have the entire Iron and Wine collection. Can that really wait forty more days?! As a way to pursue love, because I don't really think that Lent should be about self-deprivation, but rather about faithful reflection and celebration, I am going to give away the money that I would have spent on music to something worthwhile. Don't ask me what, I haven't quite decided. I'll keep you posted though.

Album Review: Dustin Kensrue- Please Come Home

I just finished writing a ten paragraph review for this album, and somehow in the process of publishing it almost the entire thing got erased.

Instead of rewriting it, which I know I could never do, here's a video of him performing "Pistol," one of my favorite songs from the album, on Jay Leno.



By the way, I gave the album a 9.1/10 and said that it would undoubtedly make my top ten of 2007 list.

Back in the Saddle: The Best of 2006

Well, I'm back from Chiapas. I didn't die, the van didn't break down (although I backed it into a ditch), and we didn't pay off any Mexican police or military. A very succesful trip. Been back about a week, but I spent most of that time running around with my friends Erik and Kyle and eating burritos. Time well spent for sure. Now I'm back in the saddle with my post for the best music of 2006. I know you all want to hear about Chiapas, but that's such an overwhelming blog task that I thought I'd start with something a little easier. Pictures soon though, I promise.

Best New Music of 2006:
To hear any of these, just google, myspace, or purevolume them. I'm too lazy for links.

10. mewithoutYou- Brother, Sister

mewithoutYou really has it all. They're musically innovative, pushing at the boundaries of indie rock, spoken word, and post-hardcore to create something that I've never once heard before. They're socially concious, dumpster diving for food and converting their tour bus to run on grease. Their live show is insane. I've never seen a band put that much energy into what they do. Never. After all of that, I will say that this album was a little bit disappointing. Great songs? Check. Aaron Weiss' clever lyrics? Check. That extra spark that made Catch for Us the Foxes? It's just not quite there. Maybe it just hasn't hit me yet.

key lyrics: "Open wide my door, my lord, my lord, open wide my door (to whatever makes me love you more)"

key tracks: C-Minor

9. Underoath- Define the Great Line

I was pretty over screaming. Really over it, actually. I was done with hardcore in general as a matter of fact. Oh sure, I still throw on the occasional Beloved and Norma Jean album, but that's about it. Well, that was about it. This album kills. Put it on and your pulse quickens, you want to dance- well, dance or get in a fight. They could have signed to a major, made it poppy, and played on TRL, but instead they screamed more, sang less, and turned the guitars up to 11.

key tracks: A Moment Suspended in Time, There Could Be Nothing After This

8. Band of Horses- Everything All the Time

After Pitchfork compared them to My Morning Jacket and the shins you had to expect this album to go big. Well, it did. And it doesn't disappoint either. This album is almost instantly warm and familiar, like a flannel shirt bought at a thrift store and left out on your back seat in the sun. No key lyrics or key tracks here for me. Put it on and before you know it the album is done, leaving behind an atmosphere of comfortable tranquility. Plus, I'm pretty sure that the album title is a reference to Radiohead's Kid A, and everyone loves that.

7. Brand New- the devil and god are raging inside me

Darker. Harder. Louder. Brand New is definitely back. There are some annoyances here: "I love you so much that it hurts my head," for a start, but overall, this is the album they were meant to make. It's more mature and more confident, and ironically it's all about insecurity and the demons in your head. I just wish they had kept more of the demos around.

key lyrics: "Jesus Christ I'm alone again, so what did you do those three days you were dead? 'cause this problem's gonna last more than the weekend."

key tracks: jesus, limousine, sowing season

6. Annie Peters- Suitcases EP

Well I didn't expect this. 2006 was DEFINITELY the year of female vocalists for me. I fell in love. I swooned. And Annie Peters might be my favorite of them all. And she's just so...down to earth. An about the artist taken from her myspace page (www.myspace.com/anniepeters) "I love making music so stinkin much." And I love you making music so stinkin much. She's just a girl with a guitar, but the lyrics really stick. Thanks to Trent for meeting her at a wedding and dragging my ass out to see her show. Listen to her stuff, and if you like it I will send you a copy of the ep. For real.

key lyrics: "Sometimes I feel like the four walls of my life are closing in on me."

key tracks: I bought a burned cd from her and it didn't come with names. Sad.

5. TV On the Radio- Return to Cookie Mountain

"Are those beats? Like, hip-hop beats? His voice sounds like James Brown trying to cover Isaac Brock. Is that David Bowie on this track!?" Yep, that's TV On the Radio. How could you expect any less than excellence from a band that named an ep Ok Calculator. Brilliant. These boys from Brooklyn released (from what I've heard) the best album of 2006. Brash, hopeful, musical, innovative, this album is what indie rock would sound like if it wasn't so safe, and what soul might sound like if it hadn't become r&boring. It's not my favorite of the year, but given time I wouldn't be surprised if it finds it's way to number one.

key lyrics: "Stand, stare fast, erect, and see that love is the province of the brave."

key tracks: I Was A Lover, Province

4. The Format- Dog Problems

I really used to think of The Format as a one song band. The First Single was all I really cared about. I was very, very wrong. Interventions and Lullabies was great, but Dog Problems takes their music to an entirely new level. The lyrics are smart and self-deprecating, the music is theatrical and thick. And the whole thing is just, well, fun. The live show is pretty awesome too.

key lyrics: "...and blame postmodern things I can't relate, like summer camp and coastal states. Like alcohol and coffee beans. Dance floors and magazines. I think its safe to say I've only got myself to blame, but boys in swooping haircuts are bringing me down, taking pictures of themselves."

key tracks: dog problems, oceans

3. Thursday- A City By the Light Divided

Bombs falling out of the sky. Train wrecks. Car crashes. Streetlights and deserted cities. These are the things that we have come to know and love from Geoff and company. And they're all here. After almost breaking up, Thursday dug deep, made their keyboardist a permanent member of the band, and rewrote "We Shall Overcome" as a post-hardcore song. Yeah, I love this band. It's probably more personal than anything they've ever written before, and even though I don't love the production, it grows on me with every listen.

key lyrics: "another life, swinging in the breeze, from southern trees, the strangest fruit" It's Geoff, it's all great.

key tracks: Sugar In the Sacrament, At This Velocity, We Will Overcome

2. The Hold Steady- Boys and Girls in America

I don't do a lot of hard bar drinking. Actually, come to think of it I don't do any hard bar drinking. I also don't use drugs. I've never really used drugs. I'm not a teenager, I don't live in Minnesota, and I'm not all that crazy about beer bands. So why does an album that incorporates all those things rock so hard, and why can't I stop listening to it? It might be those guitars. They just won't quit. Every time I have listened to this album (and we're talking about a couple dozen times by now)I just can't believe the hooks and the solos. Is it 80's? Retro? Who cares. It's rock & roll like only an American band could make.

key lyrics: "It started ice cream social nice and ended up all white and ecumenical." also "and then last night she said words alone never could save us. and then last night she cried and she told us about jesus."

key tracks: stuck between stations, first night, chips ahoy!

1. Anathallo- Floating World

Pitchfork hated this album. I think they gave it a 2.7 and called it pretentious. They said it was ripping off Sufjan. I can't even begin to tell you all the things that are wrong with that. Shows what they know. Half the lyrics are in Japanese. They don't have a record label. They use velcro, balloons, and a marching band drum as instruments. All that, and at its heart I'm pretty sure it's pop music. Give it a listen, get lost, and you'll always find yourself wanting to come back again.

key lyrics: "I'm off in a distant place, where I can be the signifier,
not that which is signified."

key tracks: dokkoise house, hanasakajijii (four: a great wind, more ash)

1. Karl F. Kling- The Best Of...

See what I did there? Yeah, two number ones. That's right, it's a tie. My list, my rules. Which is a good thing, because this doesn't really qualify as an album. In the first place, it's two different bands and then Karl solo. In the second place, not all of the songs are even from 2006. But it's just way too good to be denied. His voice is captivating, his lyrics are moving, and the songs are composed so tightly you'd think he'd been doing this for years. Actually, he has. From "The Best of Luck, Love, and Peace" to "Outer Space" to "Sanctity," the songs evolve with the bands, the music changes and so does the mood. But the quality never drops. Not once. And I know the bloke. I've even spooned with him.

key lyrics: "Eat out of hand, live like a bird, cut off your wings, squiggle and squirm" and "I'll tell you now, the journey will be long."

key tracks: The Best of Luck, Love, and Peace, and Sanctity

Honorable mentions: Derek Webb- Mockingbird (he's giving away the album on the internet for free fer goshsakes), Saves the Day (this album scares me...in a good way), and Brand New- Demos (the devil and god... would be even stronger with a few more of these tracks).

Still need to hear: Joanna Newsom, Cat Power

Best Old Stuff I Got Into This Year: This has been a big year for me. Big. The Beatles, Radiohead, and Sixpence None the Richer are all bands that I really "got" for the first time this year. Yeah, I know. Big. I didn't buy The Arcade Fire until this year either. Ella Fitzgerald as well. I'm sure there's other stuff I'm leaving out.

Oh yeah. Vheissu. Thrice is one of my top ten bands of all time, but I didn't get their new album until this year. It's stunning. I just can't stop.

Looking Forward Towards 2007 The Shins, Wolf Parade, Thrice, Jimmy Eat World, Say Anything, Iron & Wine

As much as I love my bicycle, I wish I had a biodiesel truck.

Here´s a really cool little interview between Aaron Weiss of mewithoutYou and Jeremy Enigk, formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate. They talk a lot about faith, music, and yes...biodiesel. Enjoy.

http://www.synthesis.net/music/story.php?type=story&id=4961

Sunday Music Video Blogging

In honor of the last concert I went to before wandering on down here to Meh-hee-koh I am posting a couple of really awesome videos from two incredible bands that I absolutely love.

This is the new video from The Format for their song "Dog Problems." This album is full of really great pop music with an orchestral bent, and the video is perfect for the song.



This link: http://www.tubopopcorn.com/mp4/anathallo/hanasakajijii.wmv takes you to a video that I put up last year on instant messenger. It is two songs performed by the band Anathallo, Hanasakajijii 1, and Hanasakajijii 4. Floating World was one of the best albums released in 2006. Do yourself a favor and check it out if you missed it the first time around.

Special thanks to Special K, E-Rick, The Legend, and Third Wheel for going to this concert with me and dancing to Anathallo when the rest of the crowd was being lame.