"If its the Beaches" The Avett Brothers

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.

"Out Loud" by Dispatch...no no "The General" by Dispatch

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.

"Blue Beard" by Band of Horses

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.

"Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" by Elton John

*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."

"Christmas Lights" by Coldplay

I am in the middle of a nice relaxing day after Christmas break.  This morning I got to have breakfast with some good friends, and after breakfast we started talking about what Jamie and Chase would name their son on the way. During the discussion we went through a bunch of crazy names, and I brought up "Apple," the name that Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow chose for their first child.  So, I found a little time to blog today, and "Christmas Lights" by Coldplay has been in my head since I saw it on my good friend Ben's blog @ www.benkendrew.blogspot.com.

Colplay has been my all time favorite band since 2001.  I love all different kinds of music, and while it is almost impossible for me to give you one favorite album or song, my favorite band is a pretty easy choice.  When I was a freshman in high school, I pretty much gave up on popular music.  I hated all the new stuff I was hearing on the radio, I didnt know WYEP existed yet, and I knew that somewhere out there music better than Brittney Spears and the Backstreet Boys had to exist.  So I really got into older music like the Beatles, CSNY, Clapton, Zeppelin, and a whole crew of older bands.  One night my junior year in high school after really letting current music pass me by I fell asleep watching TV and when I woke up in the middle of the night "Yellow" by Coldplay was on and instantly I dug their music.  I picked up that first album the next chance I got and I've been hooked ever since.  Coldplay is my favorite band because those first two albums had a huge impact on me, because I think they are really talented, and because they opened my eyes to a new world of music.

So I have followed Coldplay pretty closely for a long time.  They were the first concert I went to with friends and the first band that I looked up the album release date for and went to the store to get on its opening day.  Like lots of music lovers, I get a little bit nervous when a band that I love blows up in popularity, so I was kind of nervous about what would happened when they got their big break, but it has been cool to see their music develop through the years.  When you listen to the way they moved from the simple Piano driven rock with falsetto vocals featured on "Parachutes" to the distorted guitar riffs and driving vocals of "Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends" you see a band that has developed and changed over the years.

the song and video for "Christmas Lights" are both really cool (the piano is really sweet).  This is a band that has paid their dues, worked hard, and consistently made good music.  I know its a few days late, but "Christmas Lights" is my SOTD.

"Sweet Pea" by Amos Lee

Soul is something that is under appreciated in our world of music today.  I'm not talking about soul music necessarily, though I often wonder what happened to D'Angelo, but really just singers with a lot of soul and power in their music. I think we have a few solid soulful singers like Ray Lamontagne and Adele, but we can always use a little more soul in our lives I think.

Amos Lee has soul.  He is a talented singer songwriter from the Philadelphia area that has had the opportunity to tour with some great musicians like Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews, and Norah Jones to name a few.  Lee has released several album's since his self-titled debut in 2005, though none have found the same type of commercial success that his first album experienced.  This January Lee will release an album called "Mission Bell" that will feature well known musicians such as Willie Nelson, Sam Beam, and the band Calexico.

So I heard this song today that had a little soul and sounded really familiar.  I knew that I recognized the voice, and the song was on a commercial so I did a little research and i found the song "Sweat Pea" by Amos Lee.

This is a really nice simple song that features some light guitar work by Lee and some wonderful singing.  The simple lyrics put this idea and thought in my mind that the simple life is the way to go. (slight interuption, I am sitting in Starbucks, and I just looked out the window to the right for a minute to listen to the song and think about what to write, and there is a sign in the window that says "When I give gifts, I always get more in return." That sounds nice, but there is an owl or some other kind of bird winking at me underneath the saying, and I have no idea what that is suppose to be all about...but I digress from thoughts on the simple life) The song carries this idea that whatever is back at home (a girl, a child, a beloved pet, or a nice chair, who knows) is enough to keep him getting through his days and coming home at night happy.  It would be good to live life with that kind of simplicity and joy instead of letting a lot of little things in life get to you and rob you of happiness.
    

Stay classy...and simple.

This video is from a World Cafe performance, its a good listen, but the video isn't great.

"Come Away With Me" by Norah Jones

I don't have a ton of time to post today because I'm on a mission to get a lot of work done on writing some papers...so this will be short and sweet.  Yesterday was a bummer with blogging because I wrote a whole blog about "The Strokes" and then when I went to put a video of the song on the blog the live music was all so bad that they got yanked from the SOTD list and probably wont return anytime soon.  If you can't play live, don't waste our time as music lovers and go get a normal job... right? That might be harsh, but since they're rich, famous, and don't care what I think I'm sure they'll be fine.

I'm not really sure why, but for some reason Norah Jones always reminds me of the holidays.  I don't have a Christmas album by her, I don't know if she has ever made one, but there is something very warm, simple, and heartfelt in her music that makes me think of the holidays.

I'm in Starbucks working today and it is clear that we are in the holiday season. The store is all decked out in Christmas gear, my cup is red with snowflakes, and I almost went with the Christmas Blend today instead of my regular Americano. I didn't change, but I love Christmas and I love coffee so it was tempting.  I'm also pretty pumped for a little early thanksgiving celebration at my place tomorrow. So, the holiday season is here, and Norah is the hit.  Because I have a problem buying music, I'm a product of a commercialized culture, and I'm listening to Norah Jones right now, I'm gonna stop writing this and go buy her album that has been staring at me from the cash register all morning.

Have a good day, I feel like a really legitimate SOTD blog is coming soon.