At 78 years old, Willie Nelson has been active in shaping American culture for the last four decades. Nelson made his mark on country music in the 70's as part of a rebel subgroup of country musicians like Kris Kristofferson and Waylon Jennings that were not interested in conforming to the standards of the clean cut Nashville look at the time. The quality of Willie's music has been recognized through commercial success as well as being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and receiving honors from the Kennedy Center in 1998. He has also used his standing in culture as an activist. Willie has championed some very noble causes like raising millions of dollars for local farmers through Farm Aid and supporting the advancement of bio-diesel fuel advancements. Willie Nelson is a man that has done things his own way throughout his life, and has gained the admiration of many as a result.
I love Coldplay. I have seen Coldplay in concerts several times, own all of their albums since "Parachutes," and blogged about them last year. Coldplay changed a lot of things about my musical preferences, and while I really enjoy a lot of musicians, they are my favorite band of all time and I would include both "Parachutes" and "A Rush of Blood to the Head" in my top ten albums. Just last night I got together with some friends and watched the DVD of the 2003 tour.
"The Scientist" is one of Coldplay's most popular songs. It was hard to imagine that a British pop-rock piano driven song would translate well with Nelson's gravelly voice and country music, but it fits perfectly. There is something that sounds and feels very real in Nelson singing about things going back to the start. No disrespect to Coldplay, but when Willie is singing about going back to the start you get the sense that he is a man who has some regrets and some things that he really wishes he could take back.
Unfortunately, blogging has been an afterthought for me recently. In late June I made a decision to leave my current job, move, take a different job, and become a full-time student again. It was a crazy July and August, but I feel like the dust is starting to settle, and I'm planning on getting back to blogging in September.
I have also been inspired because some dear friends at my last job gave me a very generous itunes gift card and this past week I made good use of that card to get into some new music (new music to me that is). I had heard a little bit of Horse Feathers, but wasn't very familiar and wouldn't have called myself a fan a week ago. When I was deciding on some new music a friend thought that I would really like Horse Feathers so I gave them a shot.
The band has a great earthy gentle sound, fitting of their Idohan roots. This is an album that I am excited to listen to as we usher in the fall in Pittsburgh. I cant wait for brisk morning walks to work, holding a nice warm cup of coffee on the BFCAT porch, and seeing the leaves change colors in Beaver Falls. I love the fall, and the idea of mellow foggy mornings with a band like Horse Feathers sounds great. The band has had a little bit of a rotating lineup, even with some changes since the album "House With No Home" came out in 2008 (the album that features "Working Poor"). They released an album with the current lineup in 2010 called "Thistled Spring" with a more upbeat springy sound, but this album is great to usher in a little colder weather.
I like the song "Working Poor" because even though it has a very depressing fatalistic vibe with lyrics about being poor and abused by people with power, they sing it all with a very content and even happy vibe that suggests they wouldn't change a thing if they had the choice. At several points in the song they even say "what failure gave us suits our taste." If you like simple acoustic singer songwriters, you'll enjoy Justing Ringle and Horse Feathers for sure. As a new appreciator of their music, I certainly don't have them all figured out yet, but I'm intrigued. Even little things like how "Horse Feathers" is also the name of a Marx brothers comedy about college football sparks my interest into what makes this band tick. So, I hope you enjoy this band carrying on in the flannel clad, strings based, Americana loving folk music strand.
This video is their NPR Tiny Desk Concert. The first song is "Working Poor" followed by a real gem in "Curs in the Weeds" and finished up with "Heathen's Kiss."
I've been a music fan for a long time. When I first became a fan I would obsess over one good song for weeks. I can remember buying Coldplay albums, finding those "go to" songs, and literally listening to them on repeat for days at a time in my car. I remember when I picked up "X & Y" by Coldplay I listened to it once through and then for weeks afterwards I listened to tracks 2,4,10 and 11 repeatedly. When I opened up my musical tastes a little bit and got into different styles of music, it seemed to happen less and less that one song would hold my attention for an extended period of time. There have certainly been some jams like "Skinny Love" by Bon Iver, "Helplessness Blues" by Fleet Foxes, and some others that have done this, but none have matched "Rivers and Roads" by the Head and the Heart in recent years for me.
I was a counselor at Suncrest Camp a few weeks ago, and one morning out there Jake Nelko told me I needed to listen to the Head and the Heart, I said ok and was going to go back to drinking my morning coffee, and then he explained that I needed to listen to them immeadietly, so I looked them up on my phone, and they caught me pretty quickly.
It is nothing new at this point that Americana folky sounds are popular right now. There are a lot of bands doing this well, and there are a lot of bands that are doing this because its cool. I'll be honest with you and tell you that I dont know very much about the Head and the Heart and I havent seen them in concert, so its tough for me to say if they're jumping on the bandwagon or not. I hope this band isnt just a flash in the pan because their energy, harmonies, and intelligent lyrics have had me captivated for two weeks now, especially the song "Rivers and Roads."
In my office for the past two days I've put on a youtube playlist of live performances from KEXP in Seattle, and I think there are only like 6 or 7 songs on the list, but I've kept them on all day. Yesterday, I chose not to go to lunch because I didn't want to stop listening to their music.
"Rivers and Roads" has been a song that really hit home these past few weeks. This song is about life changing and about how "nothing is as it has been." In bittersweet tones it talks about people coming and going in and out of their lives, and how even when that is a good thing it doesn't make it easy or fun, and then like so many good songs it talks about the struggle of getting back to that one person that they aren't willing to just let go without a fight. It's a great song, with simple lyrics that builds into this explosive ballad with beautiful harmonies and wonderful sentiments about loved ones.
I think this song has been so powerful for me the last two weeks because I am in a time of changes like they are talking about. For just under four years I have had the privilege of being a pastor at a church of people that I really care about and love. It has been a wonderful opportunity and one that has changed my life. I have grown as a person, have had the chance to spend time with a lot of people that I love and care about, and to work as a part of a great team. Two weeks ago today I was offered a position as a Resident Director at Geneva College, and over the past few weeks I have been telling the community that has shaped my life over the last four years that I will be leaving. I am really excited to begin this next step in life, but the last few weeks have also held some unique challenges. In that time there have been a lot of moments shared that have been really difficult, and at the same time there have been really beautiful human moments. It is a privilege that we have to let people know how we feel about them, it is an honor that we have to have people that care about us speak into our lives. These are things to embrace and not take for granted, because we never know when a year from now all our friends will move away...or when we will be the friends moving.
Life has been pretty crazy lately. Since I posted a month ago I have been out of town a few times, been really busy, and just haven't made it around to thinking through a good blog post. This morning is really no different, but I saw the link to this video on Scott McGough's facebook, and knew that I should take a couple minutes for a quick blog.This is definitely a change up in the SOTD world. I do not listen to a lot of "Christian" music because I think that a lot of it is of lower quality, both in regards to music and depth. However, I am all for people making good music and living out their faith when it is done well, and I think this song by "Gungor" is great.
I didnt know much about this band before I went to write, and since this is a quick post I didnt look up very much, but a few noteworthy things surfaced. The bands name does not match their sound. If you asked me to listen to a band called "Gungor" the first thing in my mind would be that I am about to listen to some kind of music that ends in "core" and probably doesn't have any words in English. Not the case. In this track "Gungor" features beautiful harmonies,moving lyrics, and delicate strings and xylophone (or some other mallet type of percussion instrument). According to Wikipedia, the source of all truth, Michael Gungor describes the bands music as "liturgical post-rock."
I think the song stuck out today because of the rain and thinking about everything growing in the springtime. Great meaning, and its cool to think that the trees and flowers arent the only thing that experience change and turn into "beautiful things."
This is really the song of yesterday, but I never got around to writing this post.
I love Mondays, and I love Beaver Falls Coffee and Tea (BFCAT). Mondays are my day off so its normally a nice day to wake up slow, play with my dog, read a book, and meet up with some friends for lunch. Another regular part of my day off is a stop at BFCAT for a macchiato or a nice cup of coffee. BFCAT is kind of like my Cheers. Its just nice sometimes to walk into a place where you can see lots friends and get a good cup of coffee without supporting the corporate machine and needing to remember the difference between tall and venti. Yesterday was also a nice soaking rain on a warm(ish) spring day, so I had my macchiato on the porch while the rain was coming down. A little bit later we were inside and Oliver James by Fleet Foxes came on, and instantly it hit me that this was the perfect song of the day.
Fleet Foxes is a Pacific Northwest band that became popular on the music scene with their self-titled 2008 release. The bands rise to prominence isn't necessarily one that I love, but their beautiful harmonies and wonderful music outweigh any doubts I have about them as talented musicians. The Fleet Foxes gained a lot of their notoriety and exposure through online venues, and while they are certainly not the only good band to achieve success in this way it isnt the way I would like to see it happen. It isn't that I think bands that do this are bad, but I think that sometimes they bypass an important part of becoming a good band... the struggle. I think there is something special about a band that pays their dues playing at dive bars where no one has ever heard their music, driving around in a beat up van they borrowed from their second cousin that keeps breaking down, and exerting as much energy into finding a place to shower as they do into their set lists. I think it is good for an up and coming band to struggle with success and limitations, to grow together, and to really put in the time and effort that makes them great together before there music matters to the world at large. The Fleet Foxes, like a lot of other bands in our time, haven't really gone that route, but man can these guys sing.
In a review by Simon Price on a website called "The Independent" the band is described as a blend of "West Coast hippie rock with Elizabethan madrigals." This band takes their harmonies and vocal energy to a beautiful haunting place that sets them apart from a lot of other indie bands out there.
"Oliver James" does a wonderful job of demonstrating the powerful vocals, and beautifully written music that is found all throughout their self-titled album. The song caught my ear yesterday as I was looking at the rain outside while the band was singing "Oliver James washed in the rain no longer." This song, which is seemingly about someone dying, is an enchanting, and the video is incredible. Enjoy, and Iwould love to hear some songs that you are listening to right now.
Life has been busy, and i really haven't had a lot of time consistent blocks of time to listen to good music or to write. There are still a lot of albums that have come out recently that I need to pick-up. This week I will definitely get one of the albums on my list. Most of the time a SOTD will come out of music that I am already listening to and for some reason it just feels write on that given day. Today I was just reading and checking my email in the wonderful Beaver Falls Coffee and Tea and the line from Salvation Song that says "And they may pay us off in fame though that is not why we came, and if it compromises truth then we will go."
I've said to lots of people in the last few years that the Avett Brothers are writing the best music being made right now. The lyrics they write are transparent and moving, and when they perform there is an electricity that fills the air with every song. Im not southern, and I've never been to a "family reunion," but when I'm at an Avett Brothers show I feel like I'm at a big southern family reunion where a couple of cousins broke out there guitars and banjos and everyone started jamming. The Bros just have this effect on a crowd that people of all different ages are just stomping their feet and singing along.
Salvation Song comes across to me like a mission statement for the Avett Brothers. When you hear the song they lay it right out there and say that they came for salvation, families, breaking the bad, and cheering the sad. The song is is full of great lines, and while lots of their music lets you see experiences the Brothers have had, this song gives you insight into who they want to be as a band. Give this song a shot, and please give the Avett brothers a shot if you haven't already. Salvation Song is track number 18 on their 2004 album Mignonette. The album has a lot of awesome tracks like "Swept Away," "Pretty Girl From Cedar Lane," and "Complainte D'Un Matelot Mourant" ("Lament of a Dying Sailor"). This album is a couple albums before the Avett Brothers really broke out nationally with Emotionalism in 2007.
I hope you enjoy the video, I think it does a great job at displaying their showmanship and incredible energy. I love the way the video ends with the Bob lightly plucking the bass, Scott tapping on the high hat, and the trios powerful vocals shining through. Buy tickets for the Pittsburgh show on May 27th, you wont regret it.
A few posts ago I said how there was a lot of good musicians releasing albums this year that i was looking forward to hearing. I didn't include Amos Lee on that list, and that was a bad decision on my part. On January 25th Amos Lee released "Mission Bell," and about two weeks ago I gave it a shot. I enjoy Amos Lee. I blogged about his soulful voice a while ago, and he displays that same style of singing on this album. In fact, the album is pretty similar to a lot of Amos Lee's other albums with a maybe just a touch more of a Gospel and South Western Country style. Amos features some talented guest singers on the album like Sam Beam and everyones best friend Willie Nelson. If you have enjoyed his previous albums then you will definitely want to give this album a listen. I enjoyed listening to the album the whole way through as one track builds into the next, so I would recommend to give it a try while you're spending a night at home doing work or reading a good book.
The song "Behind Me Now / El Camino Reprise" is the last song on the album, and it definitely ends the album on a high note. I read a review once that described Amos Lee's songwriting as music for the heart but not for the head, and I could not disagree with that more when it comes to this song. When you read the lyrics for this track they are really moving. Lee is writing about the cycle of relationships and some pretty sad stuff. The culmination of the song for me was when in a quiet, humble voice Lee sings "All my ships have sailed away..." Lee is good, the album is good, and hopefully if you've gone through a rough relationship or two it will work like the line in this track that says "yes I've loved and lost and loved again." It's sad, but its not a hopeless kind of sad.
I don't think that Lee will ever be the biggest name in music because he isn't really a cutting edge guy or a controversial guy or anything like that, but he's a solid musician. Give him a listen, he's worth the ten bucks for the album. I couldnt find a live performance of these two songs together, so the video below has the studio version of El Camino Reprise. The older country singer with a little bit of gravel in his voice accompanying Amos Lee on this song is Willie Nelson.
Ben Harper is a talented musician. I don't have a great reason why this is the song of my day, I was just driving down the road and the line "I would rather take your punch than not give you a shot" popped into my head. So I gave the song a good listening, and it is definitely a good jam.
Harper has a unique and varied musical past. He has some music that rocks pretty hard, and at the same time is known for skill on the guitar and his soft soulful voice. I remember a few years ago I read in a relevant magazine interview that Ben had either broken or dislocated ribs from screaming so hard at a concert. I know that sounds far fetched and tried to find that article online but didn't have any luck, so you'll have to take my word for it or find it yourself. Harper has partnered with Jack Johnson on his label Brushfire Records, and in 2005 won the grammy for best traditional soul gospel album.
The song "Fight Outta You" comes from his 2007 album "Lifeline." Lifeline is an album that demonstrates Harper's tremendous voice and skilled acoustic guitar playing. This has been an album that I have gone to over and over again since its release in good times and bad times. It has good music, a lot of soul, and doesnt get boring. "Fight Outta You" has tons of great one liners, in a song about taking a chance on someone. I remember sitting at my good friend Ron Cepek's house when he lived in Rochester and we were hanging out talking about that moment with a girl where you really aren't sure if she's into you or not, and you're trying to decide whether or not its worth taking a shot. When we were talking that night it was shortly after I got this album and I referenced that line and then like 10 minutes later a song from the album came on the music channel that was on the tv. I enjoy those moments in life where you sit around with friends listening to a good song and not really saying anything because you're just taking it all in.
I hope you like the song, dont let it take the fight outta you.
The potential exists for a lot of good music to come out this year. So far there have been lots of good things heard from bands like Iron and Wine and The Decemberists. I'm expecting good things from Bright Eyes, Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, My Morning Jacket, Radiohead, Coldplay, and last but certainly not least G. Love. In fact, G. Love's album, which was produced by the Avett Brothers I think, just dropped the other day, and "Fixin' to Die" was close to being the SOTD today. It wasn't though, because I really got a good chance over the last few days to listen through the new Decemberists album... and I have liked what I heard.
The album "The King is Dead" came out on January 14th of this year. This album is a solid contemporary folk rock album. It is a significant change up from a lot of the heavier sounds of their 2009 release, "Hazards of Love," but they don't lack passion, and a few of the songs still venture into harder rock. This is the bands third album released by Capitol Records, and it demonstrates what many have come to expect from The Decemberists in the way of intelligent lyircs, wonderful harmonies, and unique instrumentation.
I would really love to feel the warmth of spring again... like last week. I want to go take my dog for walks, play disc golf, and ride my motorcycle. I think that "June Hymn" is a great reminder that warm weather is just around the corner. This song is a hopeful and seemingly serious ode to the early summer month of June. The vocals and harmonies are definitely the carrying force of the song, and the acoustic guitar, harmonica, accordian, bass, and maybe even a little wurlitzer do a wonderful backing job. "The Decemberists" are very good at sounding old. This song reminds of a Northwestern town in the woods that has made it through a hard winter, and is awakening to the warmth of summer, but not a town we would visit today, a town like a hundred years ago. I like the vibes, I like the lyrics, I even like the album cover.
The Decemberists are a band that stands on the merits of their music. They aren't flashy, they certainly don't look as cool as Justin Bieber and Usher, but I think they bring good things to the world of music. The sun is shining today, and June will be here pretty soon... not really soon, but sooner than yesterday I guess so give "June Hymn" a try.
Summer concerts are taking shape so make sure to check out tickets now. The Decemberists will be in Pittsburgh on May 21st at the Benedum Center, and if you have the loot I'm sure it will be a good time.
This is a performance from MusicfestNW in Portland this past year. A perfect song for Portland.
"Somebody's Crying" is a solid mid-90's song of the day. When the weather took a turn for the worse this past weekend I turned to the bluesy sounds of Chris Isaak, and this song is a gem.
Up until last year the only song that I knew from Chris Isaak was "Wicked Game," a song that was out in 1989, but remained popular through the 90's. On my second trip to Seattle last year we spent some time hanging out in Fremont, a really hip, young section of town, and we were checking out some used CD's at "Jive Time Records," and came across the Chris Isaak album "Forever Blue." Whenever one of us picked it up my good friend Ron Cepek got the crazy look in his eyes that happens when he gets excited about music and even though I cant remember the details I am certain that Ron launched into a half a dozen different stories about the tracks on the album. Ron has a great taste in music, and a gift at remembering specific details about songs and albums that he loves. I've never been steered wrong by Ron's musical taste, so I picked up the album that day. A few days later Ron, Christian, Ryan, and I took a trip out to the coast, a surprisingly long drive from the port town of Seattle, but it was a great time spent with good people listening to good music. "Forever Blue" was definitely one of the best albums we listened to that day, and "Somebody's Crying" is a great track.
When I looked up some information on this song I found out it was written after a break up with a girl. No surprise there of course with much of the great art of human history coming directly as a result of heart break. The cool thing about the story I read was that Isaak was at a friends party after the break up, but he wasn't in the mood to party. In my mind I imagine that night he was probably just going through the motions smiling and telling little dumb stories to friends all the while trying to keep it together on the inside. At some point through the night he found himself alone in a walk-in closet with a guitar, and started writing "Somebody's Crying."
I found an interview with "Addicted to Noise," a 90's online music magazine that former Rolling Stone Editor Michael Goldberg founded, where they asked Chris a couple questions about writing this song.
Addicted To Noise: What were you thinking about when you wrote that?
Isaak: If you were looking at my life at the time, it looked like everything was okay. That I was having a good time. But in actuality, I was missing her more than ever. I like the first lines of the song: "I know somebody/ And they cry for you/ They lie awake at night." Not only are you saying that this is happening, but it's kind of in a secret way. It's like a little kid's way of saying things. Most of us are as terrified of love as little kids are terrified of the world. Little kids come up to you and say, "I know someone who loves you" or "I know someone who likes you." They say it like, I'm not going to really come out and say it. And for adults, it's probably the same way. They never really get beyond that fear."
This album was a great suggestion from Ron, and if you're feeling a little blue, id give it a shot. This is a good performance of the song in the video, and it gives you a good preview of his style of music, but I would check out some other songs to hear the range and power in his voice. Enjoy.
There are few bands that I love more than the Avett Brothers. I was first introduced to the Avett Brothers a few years ago from my friend Jake Nelko and my sister at right around the same time. At this point the Avett Brothers were not the Columbia signed, Rick Rubin produced band that has CD's sold at Starbucks and a big radio single. They were seemingly small town boys playing free shows at the Pittsburgh Arts Festival and were making good impressions in local folk and indie circles across the country. Unlike some people, I'm not mad at the Avett Brothers for making it big. I don't resent that they signed with Columbia or allowed Rick Rubin to help guide their recordings, I'm just glad that I am able to say I liked them before those days.
I remember the first time I saw the Avett Brothers play at the Carnegie Library and Music Hall in Munhall. We were near the front, and it was the most energized concert and excited crowd I have ever seen. Between songs there was a buzz in the audience about what would come out next, and for every song the applause started all over again. After the show I waited outside with my brother, Jake Nelko, and some of Jake's friends. Everyone waiting outside was pretty laid back. People were just kind of chilling in their little circles talking about the show. Then the Avett Brothers came off the tour bus and started making their way around to the different circles. I was amazed at the way it all went down. People were just cool and waited patiently for the Avett Brothers to come to their circle. They weren't rushed by mobs of fans, they weren't being hassled by loads of girls, and they weren't waiting for the fans to come to them. The Brothers just made their rounds, hanging out, graciously signing autographs, throwing frisbees with their fans, and stopping for a picture with my brother and I (as you can see below).
I have seen the Avett Brothers a few times since they've become a big name, and their demeanor hasn't changed. I ran into them again at Newport Folk Festival, and they were so nice and appreciative to the fans around them. Basically they're sweet guys. They play good honest music, and they really seem to love and appreciate their fans. I love seeing a band like this grow in popularity. They aren't pretentious, they aren't dark, and they don't have to add a ton of effects or choreographed dancing to make their performance entertaining.
When Jake and I are talking before an Avett Brothers concert we always talk about the different songs that we want to hear from their extensive catalog, and "If its the Beaches" always topped my list. This is an uncharacteristically mellow song by the Avett Brothers, but it is definitely one of my favorites. The song has a wonderful string section and builds into a really powerful song about loving a girl well, and doing whatever it takes to let her know she is loved. Its a good solid song. This isn't one of the more popular songs for the brothers to play in concert (probably because its mellow and their live shows are a foot stompin' party), but the last time I saw the Avett Brothers in Pittsburgh they played it. Whenever the intro to the song started, Jake and I just looked at each other and our little group started going nuts. I sang that song with everything I had in me that night, and when Scott Avett forgot the words (a rare mistake in all the awesome sets I've seen from them) I sang even harder. I like to think that when he says he heard someone singing in the audience he was talking about me.
So I love the Avett Brothers, I love this song, and they are playing a show in Pittsburgh on May 27th that you should all come see.
this is the video from the Pittsburgh show where Scott forgot the words. Like I said this is a subdued video, I would go to youtube and check out some of the other videos as well. To fans of the Avett Brothers, I would love to hear your favorite song.
I'm in Chicago for a work conference. It was a cool (or make that a really cold) couple of days. I've never been to Chicago, but I had these images in my mind about Al Capone style gangsters, deep dish pizza, and lots of wind. When I got a schedule I found out our training stuff ended early in the evening so I decided I was going to rent a car while I was in town to do a little exploring. Last night I did experience some deep dish pizza from Gino's East, which is suppose to be one one the best spots around town, and I also experienced a lot of nasty wind when I was walking around the city taking in the views. Chicago is a pretty beautiful city, but I probably wont really feel a strong need to come back in January.
Tonight I had a great time getting to see some old friends. I met Georgi and Lacy back in the summer of 2007 when I was working at Jackson Lake Lodge in Wyoming. They are both beautiful spirits, that are filled with laughs, smiles, and dreams. I haven't seen Georgi or Lacy since either late 2007 or early 2008, and it was a really wonderful opportunity to get to catch up with them and hear all about the path that they have been on for the last few years, and dreams about where they're headed in the near future. I remembered how much I loved sending time with Georgi and Lacy because they are just happy people that love life. Georgi and Lacy also met in the summer of 2007 back at the lodge and I remember when they started dating and I thought they were a perfect fit. So as I'm back in the hotel room and writing this blog I feel really blessed by the opportunity to see some old friends, but I also haven't forgotten that this is a music blog.
Dispatch is a band that I first listened to when I was a senior in high school, but really got into when I was a senior in college. I remember listening to the "Gut the Van" album a lot the summer that I was in Wyoming. "Out Loud" is an awesome Dispatch song. It was the first song I heard from them when a girlfriend from high school put it on a mix cd for me. I think that mix cd's might be too cheesy or outdated to be cool now, which is sad because I don't know if there is a gift I would rather receive from a friend than a heartfelt mix of songs. So I love "Out Loud," and it would always be a great SOTD, but right now I am watching a documentary about the last dispatch concert, which is appropriately titled "The Last Dispatch." On July 31, 2004 the band was going to perform a free concert as their last show in a park where they estimated somewhere around 10,000 to 20,000 people would show up, but on that day 110,000 people from all over the globe came to see Dispatch making it the largest independent music event in history. The last song that Dispatch played was "The General." You can go ahead and start criticizing me for choosing their most popular song, but the truth of the matter is that there is a reason its popular, its a great song.
"The General" is really a great example of good jam band music. It is light, fun, and good for bobbing your head to while you're listening. When I listen to this song I think about those great warm summer nights with shorts, flip flops, and tie dyed shirts. So you should listen to the General, and you should check out Dispatch. I am happy to be able to tell you that Dispatch decided to at least have one more dispatch, and is playing a few shows around the United States for the first time since their "farewell" show.
I would love to hear your favorite summer time music while we're all trying to feel a little warmer.
Im working out of the coffee shop today. Writing some invitations to youth group, doing some reading for a meeting with my intern Jesse later, and doing some ordination reading. I love an americano on a cold overcast January day. Something else I love on days like this is the music of "Band of Horses."
A few weeks ago Amazon was running a great deal on a bunch of albums from 2010 so I bought way too much music for one sitting and am just making my way into really giving the Band of Horses album "Infinite Arms" a good thorough listening. A lot of times I like to listen to an album three or four times before I make an assessment to see what songs rise to the top because a lot of times I find the songs that initially catch my ear aren't necessarily the bands best work.
Band of Horses is a Seattle based band, which is no surprise when you give their music a listen. They have the subdued personalities and introspective emotional song writing that we have come to expect with so many of the great bands coming out of the Pacific Northwest. "Infinite Arms" is the third studio album from the band since they were formed by Ben Bridwell in 2004. This album has received critical acclaim, and is nominated for the upcoming Grammy awards under the category of "Best Alternative Music Album." I don't mean this to be critical of other bands, but I think one of the coolest things about this album is that the band wanted this to truly be their album so the project was self-funded and self-produced. Certainly lots of bands out there fund and produce their albums, but a lot of them, especially early on in their careers, wouldn't produce anything close to music being considered for a Grammy.
The song "Blue Beard" begins with some of the trademark haunting vocals that BOH is known for, and moves into a cryptic story about someone the writer used to know. I like the way the falsetto harmonies back up Ben's vocals, and the way the determined drumming seems to match the singers quest to find what or who he is looking for, even if the banana peels are true. Check it out, this video was made by the band, at least that's what YouTube says so it must be true.
*I wrote this last night, but I didn't take the time to find good pictures and the video link until this morning, so this might be my SOTY instead of SOTD.
I just finished typing my last ordination paper, and while I was typing I was watching a movie that has some killer music, and just as the movie is coming in to the climax of the story the song "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" by Elton John plays sweetly in the background. It's the part in the story where a dream ends and the reality of loneliness sets in.
Forget the Elton John you think you know if you're in your twenties. Im not talking about the guy who likes to rap with Eminem or wear big bedazzled sunglasses (ok, maybe keep the glasses, he's been rocking those for a long time, and in the video below he's wearing a sequins shirt). A lot of us don't know how good Elton John is as a musician because of what his perception has been in our time.
Rolling Stone wrote, "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" shows how much John can really do in the space of a single cut. Using minimal instrumentation and singing one of Taupin's most direct lyrics, John effortlessly reveals the myth beneath the myth of "... a rose in Spanish Harlem." He expresses his involvement with the city, his need for its people, and his final desire to be alone through one of his best tunes, simplest arrangements, and most natural vocal performances.
This song is the hit. It has one of my favorite choruses of all time, and Elton does an incredible job of painting this picture about these people wandering around in New York City, all together and somehow all alone.
Give it a listen, you might just like Elton John more than you thought, and for more good Elton John cuts check out his 1971 album, "Tubleweed Connection."
