Songbird
Jan
13
Down By The Sea
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So… I have been a very bad blogger. Not posting is like the biggest sin in the blog-o-sphere. What should I say? Forgive me blog readers for I have sinned?
Anyways… Dealing with a lot of family stuff right now. Grandma is moving in to her new condo here, Mom is stressing… Just trying to be there for everyone and still remain sane. Change is a hard thing to accept and sometimes I think it is harder to watch someone go through it… I was driving to work yesterday and this song shuffled on, it put me right at ease. I am sure some of you will find his voice to be familiar… Julian Plenti of Interpol released his debut solo album in 2009. I was turned on to it through Richard over at one of my favorite blogs To Die By Your Side. I am not the biggest fan of Interpol but I became quite a fan of this solo effort. xX
mp3:Â On The Esplanade
Is Skyscraper 2009 (Matador Records)
Jan
7
A Resolution?
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So this year I have decided that my New Years Resolution is going to be to give up using the F word… Pause for reaction. Some of you who know me and talk to me everyday are probably chuckling to yourselves right now… I curse like a sailor and I use the F word as if it were a common word such as “the” or “I”. The excessive use has come to bother me primarily because of the word having lost all meaning. It is a great and versatile word, but it should still be used sparingly. This is my resolution, we shall see how I do.
The Swell Season… I am such a sucker for these two. Their new album is really quite beautiful and I highly recommend picking up a copy if you haven’t already. It almost made it onto my year end list but missed it by a couple of tracks. Enjoy!
mp3:Â In These Arms
Strict Joy 2009 (Anti)
The Swell Season on myspace
Jan
3
So It Ends, Another Year Begins
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I have been sick since Thursday… Yep that is correct, the last 4 days of my vacation were completely ruined by a horrific case of bronchitis. I have basically been lying in bed for the last 4 days watching terrible television, snuggling with whatever cat decides to join me, coughing, aching, tossing and turning and quite frankly I am ready to pull my hair out. If this is any inkling into what 2010 has in store, can I just go back in time? Hopefully this means I am getting it out of the way? That is what I keep telling myself anyway to get me through. Anyways, I am on the mend. Hopefully I will feel good enough to drag myself out of bed and into work tomorrow but I sound like a frog that has been smoking for the better part of its life…
I hope everyone had a wonderful New Year and a fantastic Holiday. I am so sad it is all over, this is my favorite time of year… I don’t really have anything new from 2010 yet but I figured I would share some of the stuff I am still catching up on, one of them being Sea Wolf’s 2009 album, White Water, White Bloom. Which if you love Bright Eyes you will probably love this second full length album, for me only a few choice tracks made it onto the iPod but still an album to note.
mp3:Â Wicked Blood
White Water, White Bloom 2009 (Dangerbird Records)
Dec
27
Favorite Albums of 2009 Part 2
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Noah and the Whale – The First Days of Spring
This band has become one of my favorite bands… Their 2nd full length album has taken my breath away and brought tears to my eyes on more then one occasion. Their debut album Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down was one of my favorite albums of last year and it is still on constant rotation. I was a little hesitant to put, First Days of Spring on my favorite list because of the two instrumental tracks on the album… Not sure of the purpose, even when listening to the album from front to back it just pulls me right out of the album. Aside from those 2 tracks it is an album that I never want to end.
mp3:Â Â First Days of Spring (explicit lyrics)
Florence + The Machine – Lungs
This album is something magical indeed… Another debut album that contains some of the songs from their EP but uncovers so much more to this UK band. The vocals of Florence Welch howl throughout the entire album with big drum rhythms to carry it all along. Lungs is brilliant, epic and dense and leaves me wondering what the hell is next?
mp3:Â Â Cosmic Love
Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
I think this comes as no surprise, the album is brilliant. I was not a fan of their 2006 album Yellow House but I felt like this album had a more distinct direction. Most of all their music has progressed, their music is something I will compare other indie rock experimental music to in the future and that is a pretty high honor. From beginning to end this album is filled with amazing highs and some delicate dark lows. I love every moment.
mp3:Â Two Weeks
We Were Promised Jetpacks – These Four Walls
Soaring guitar driven indie rock and the lead singer Adam Thompson belting out lyrics with his delicious Scottish accent. Yes please! I love this album, it was a huge surprise and it has become one of my most listened to albums of 2009. Great driving music, great indie rock. Can’t wait to see them live in February.
mp3:Â It’s Thunder And It’s Lightning
This concludes my favorite albums of 2009… A short list this year but I do have an honorable mention list in the works. I wanted to say thank you for sharing another year of music with me and I look forward to 2010. xx
Dec
22
Favorite Albums Of 2009 Part 1
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Other Lives – Other Lives
Other Lives took my breath away with their debut self titled album. A big harmonization of sounds… Combining folk, indie rock and classical string arrangements to create an original and beautiful sound. Other Lives has swiftly become one of my favorite new bands that I have found myself recommending time and time again.
mp3:Â Don’t Let Them
The xx – xx
An indie pop band hailing from London and knocking our socks off with a debut album that has certainly been on constant rotation in my car, at work and at home. I love the sleek, sexy synthesizing pop.
mp3:Â Shelter
The Leisure Society – The Sleeper
Yet another UK band, and now that I think of it they are not the last one. The Leisure Society is an indie folk band with just a dash of pop. Poetic lyrics and gorgeous melodies fill this album. If you enjoy Grizzly Bear, I think you may be in favor of The Leisure Society.
mp3:Â The Sleeper
The Decemberists– Hazards Of Love
I really went back and forth on this album… It usually takes me quite some time to really get into one of their albums. There are so many different layers to their music, they mesh so many different genres into their own unique sound. I was driving home the other day and The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned) shuffled on and I was completely lost in it. This album proves once again that The Decemberists are one of the most creative and profound groups of their indie folk-rock genre and possibly of this generation.
mp3:Â Â Hazards Of Love 2 (Wager All)
Dec
9
Lissie Seems To Shine
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I came across Lissie while trolling through eMusic the other day. First off, I am not a big country fan, however I do not really feel like she is as country as she has been labeled, borderline. I would classify her music as indie folk/singer-songwriter with a Mississippi mud influence…. Kind of like Band of Horses, which is not a coincidence considering the bassist produced this 5 track EP. Lissie hails from Rock Island, IL where my father grew up. She has a small town feel to her music, her lyrics are simple and easy to relate to. Her voice billows through the speakers and right into your heart. She has a ton of soul and I am intrigued to say the least. A couple of the songs off the EP crossed a little too far over my Country threshold but man she shows major promise and I cannot wait to hear more from her. Enjoy!
mp3:Â Everywhere I Go
Why You Runnin’ 2009 (Fat Possum Records)
Available on eMusic
Nov
10
And So It Begins Here
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Do you ever feel like you look up at the calendar and it is already the new year? This past year flew by. And all of the sudden I realized it is that time of year when all the hustle and bustle begins, there is a chill in the air and all of us mp3 bloggers start compiling our year end lists. It has begun and man my head is spinning. These beginning stages are mind boggling… I mean I have my fair share of besties that are a shoe-in but I always get this feeling I am missing something… It is inevitable, I know, but it is terrible feeling when you really do miss something. Last year I missed Chelsea Diaries, an amazing acoustic album by Dead Heart Bloom. This acoustic album was really the brainchild of front man Boris Skalsky… He managed to create an incredibly dark but beautiful album that is honest and cynical but hidden under some fantastic mellow folk goodness… I love it.
mp3:Â Chelsea Song #2 (explicit lyrics)
Chelsea Diaries 2007 (Dead Heart Bloom)
Available at eMusic
p.s. this entire album is highly recommended. xx
Nov
3
Monogold Shines
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Dear Monogold, if I were a record label I would sign you… Just FYI. I have been listening to Monogold’s new album off and on for about a month now… You can’t deny the goodness of this 3 piece band hailing from New York. Soaring guitar driven riffs mixed with some sublime pop. Yummy! I can honestly say I enjoy the album from front to back and I am pretty sure you will agree. Here are a couple of my favs, enjoy!
mp3:Â Feel Animal
mp3:Â Dead Sea Minerals
We Animals 2009 (Monogold)
Album available at CDBaby
Oct
21
Headlight Cheer
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Just got a little blue… Thinking about all the money I am going to be giving my dentist in the next few months, it is kind of nauseating. I certainly need something to cheer me up. Headlights do the trick with their third delightful shoe gaze indie pop album which is shaping up to be one of my favorite albums of theirs, and possibly for the year. Enjoy!
mp3:Â Telephones
mp3:Â Secrets
Wildlife 2009 (Polyvinyl Record Co.)
Available at eMusic
Oct
14
Where Are We Going?
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I don’t know where I have been but I have certainly been away from my computer. It is hard updating sometimes, it takes awhile for me to decide on what to share… I heard this on Grey’s Anatomy and raced right over to the computer to check it out. Fabulous! Sébastien Schuller hails from France, he creates dark, mysterious and beautiful music. I am quite sure you will fall in love with him as I have.
More later, I promise, I have a lot to share this week but for now I must prepare for my 7:30AM dentist appointment… Yeah, that’s right I said 7:30AM. Wish me luck.
mp3:Â Morning Mist
mp3:Â The Border
Evenfall 2009 (Le Village Vert)
Available at eMusic
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