what to listen to tonight

Well, Christmas is over. All of the hard work and anticipation led up to a very brief whirlwind of wrapping paper, crying and drunk relatives, and now it's the day after and there is a blizzard. I have a fire in the fireplace, Monk and Coltrane at Carnegie Hall on the turntable and bourbon on the rocks in my glass. I think that all in all, the holiday was a great success but I'm relieved that it's over and done with, now it's on to new years, and the ringing in of 2011 which can only be better than 2010. I'll toast in the new year dreaming of what music will be exciting me at this time next year.

ipad

I have been so concerned about the fact that I couldn't just post to my blog from my ipad. not that it was that big of a deal getting on the computer to do anything, but it was frustrating that the convenience of the ipad was not translating to things like my blog. However, today i got a keyboard dock for the ipad, which I love and am so happy about, so I looked into a way to be able to post from my ipad. i will let you know what i think of this app.

Free Energy - Free Energy

Studio Brussel: Jay Reatard - 'Nightmares' + 'Fading all away'

Jay Reatard - "See/Saw"

Dawes - When My Time Comes

When I first listen to a band I don't think to myself "where are they going from here?". When I first listen to a band, I think about what they are doing now. Actually, I don't think that. I listen to a band for the first time to see if it moves me. If I respond to it in any way. In this age of instant gratification, and the abitility to pick and choose what you like, I still have to buy entire albums instead of single songs. I need to know what the band is trying to do, like the whole is worth more than it's parts. With the 30 year anniversary of the passing of John Lennon I started thinking of what it is that draws me to certain music/bands/artists, and I think that it has more to do with the ability to evolve than it is what they are doing at the moment. For example, I really like 311. But the fact of the matter is, it's all the same. When you look at bands like The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Kinks you can see and hear the progression of thier vision. In thier prime they were innovative and pushed the boundaries. They created the genre and then reinvented it. I don't want to listen to a band that does the same thing over and over and over again. What's the point. We need more John Lennon's and Ray Davies' in this world. Jack White is on par, but time will have to tell.

Ethan Miller of Comets on Fire and Howlin' Rain Chats at the Amoeblog

Ethan Miller of Comets on Fire and Howlin' Rain Chats at the Amoeblog

Howlin Rain - "Dancers at the End of Time" (Live at Amoeba)

I don't like being a music snob, I really don't. I am a firm believer in the idea that what you like is never wrong, or bad. Like wine, I feel like you should listen to what you want and not worry about what anyone else says. It doesn't have to please anyone but you. I say like wine, because there are so many people who are concerned about what other people tell them is "good" without thinking for themselves and just trying a couple of things and determining what they like and going from there. Just because someone who's supposed to be an expert says one thing is better than another doesn't really mean anything at all! This all being said I always find myself judging people based on what they listen to. My brother in law only listens to jam band stuff, specifically Dicky Betts, and Allman Brothers and stuff like that. Not that there is really anything wrong with that, but that's all he listens to. I also found myself scoffing at my best friends girlfriend for telling me she likes the Backstreet Boys. If that's what you're into, that's totally cool! I have no right to belittle anyone for their taste in music, or art, or books, or wine. all of these things are totally subjective and shouldn't be dictated by one source or authority. listen to what you want, like what you want. the point is enjoyment isn't it?

Death Cab for Cutie

For a considerably long time now, I have actively avoided Death Cab for Cutie. I assumed that I wouldn't like them. I think that at one point I heard a song that I probably thought was trite, or too poppy, or someone that I didn't like liked them. For some reason, I fought the idea of even giving them a chance. I would hear people talk about them, people who's oppinion I respected, and still shrug it off, and give it the "yea, yea. I know, death cab. right right." not saying that I didn't like them exactly, but not entertaining the discusion which if you know me, is kinda strange in and of itself. But in the last couple of months I started listening to bits and pieces of thier catalog. Tonight I bought the record Narrow Stairs; all I can say is BRILLIANT!!! I don't know why it took me so long, but I'm a convert man! It's got all the elements, it's progressive yet traditional. There's amazing storytelling, coupled with awesome structure. It's sort of a pain in the ass though, I mean now I'm goin gto have to go and listen to their whole body of work.

shoes

just a picture of my shoes. no reason, just thought that I'd share. Will be back to talk about music soon

Free Energy

I'm getting a bit sick of only talking about bands that I like, so after I talk about Free Energy, I'm going to actively look for a band that everyone loves and that I hate and talk about how much I hate them. I promise. But for now I want to talk just a little about Free Energy. They aren't setting the world on fire, and they aren't reinventing the wheel. They aren't experimental or edgy in any stretch of the imagination. What they are is a really good throw back band reminiscent of 70's arena rockers like Cheap Trick and Thin Lizzy. dripping with bravado and attitude they are a fun band to listen to and dance to. Nothing really all that special, just really good fun music. If it makes any difference to anyone, the record was produced by James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem fame. I read some reviews of these guys on line and saw that there are a lot of people who have a real distaste for them, and i'm not really sure where that comes from. As I said, they're not an indie/progressive art band trying to impress a very small group of elitist audiophiles, they are a feel good rock and roll band looking to make people happy. that's it. take it for what it is and enjoy the tunes

Zoroaster

I wouldn't say that I am really that into Zoroaster, but I do definately respect their approach to good old fasioned heavy metal. I imagine that Zoroaster is the band that people who don't know anything about metal would expect when thinking about heavy metal. They are a good, hard, thundering sonic explosion with growling and evil sounding vocals.. There is a new movement in metal going on it seems. I heard someone call it post-metal, paying hommage to the genres greats, most specifically Black Sabbath, and to a lesser extent Glen Danzigs solo stuff. This "Post Metal" might not be something that most of these bands are going to like. I think that bands like J Mascis' metal venture Witch falls into this catagory, and perhaps even bands like Black Label Society. I think the harder and darker it gets that it could be seen as having a bit of an ironic bent to it and may attract a crowd that they weren't expecting. For example, I recently watched an interview with J Mascis, and he said that he was somewhere and this person kept trying to get his attention, and when he turns around it was Elijah Wood, who proceeded to tell him how much he loved Witch. Not that it's a totally bad thing, but I think that hipsters latch onto things like this and take it over and make it thier own. Perhaps to the chagrin of the musicians that are trying to be legitimate. There's an ironic, tongue in cheek aspect to the over the top death metal, whether its intentional or not, that makes it something that would be embraced by an artistic mindset as opposed to the whiskey drinking black wearing head banging hordes that were the fans of bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Pantera and so on and so on. This might be the next music genre embraced by those in the know whatever that may mean.
Listen to Zoroaster. let me know what you think

Brendan Benson

I know that I might be a little late to the party here on Brendan Benson, considering how well the Raconteurs have done over the past couple of years, but I would like to talk about his solo work. No one that has any interest in music deny's the talent and innovation of Jack White and that all he does is somehow musically relevant. I mean, he made a documentary movie called "It Might Get Loud" where he and the Edge and most importantly Jimmy Page talk about music, specifically the guitar and it's influence on music. It's so focused on White that the others seem like supporting players in the Jack White show. This information is presented just to illustrate how important Jack Whites oppinion is in the music world, and he chose Benson to be a part of one of his (many) projects speaks volumes to the talent of this particticular artist. The first thing I listened to by Benson was the Metarie EP with the Well Fed Boys, and I really enjoyed the title track that was sentimental and self-depricating without being trite and annoying. From this I dug a little deeper and decided to purchase One Mississippi which I think is a great record. Very poppy, but with enough edge to make it worth while. Like on the track Sittin Pretty, "my baby is tied to a chair. don't she look pretty just sitting there." and when he gets to the line "and when she wants some air she tells me" and in the background you hear a woman say "i can't breath". it's that tongue-in-cheek air to legitimate songwriting that makes Benson one of my favorite artists making music out there at the moment.

modest mouse

I love modest mouse. I don't care about anyone of my friends who make fun of them, and when I say them, they're not really talking about them as a band or musicians, but their fan base. Whenever I make any comment about liking modest mouse i hear any number of criticisms. most of them having something to do with moving to Brooklyn and wearing flannel. That's cool, I don't really care that much. I don't think that I could really be mistaken for a brooklyn hipster, but I do have to say, that from what I understand, I have the same taste in music as some of those dopes. I will have to say that I tend to like what I like and take a lot of pride in likeing things that other people haven't heard about yet. I like being on the forefront of the musical scope. Not that Modest Mouse is really on the forefront any more, but the lisping growl of the vocals really gets me. I think that it's totally great. I sometimes feel myself talking with a bit of a lisp because of this. The instrumentation combined with the very distinct lyrics and songwriting make Modest Mouse a band that needs more attention than it's getting. they are a band that needs more people paying attention. I will admit that there is some of their music that is a little too avant garde for most of the listening public, but I can't stop listening. from The Lonesome Crowded West to We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, they are an amazing band in need of some serious attention

introduction

I am currently working on a mission statement for this blog, outlining what I hope to accomplish. when I get it all sorted out I will put it down here. I want this blog to be about music. the love of music, the passion of music, and the desire to be a part of music if for nothing else, but for me. I want an outlet to talk about my passion for music. This is an entirely self indulgent excercise, where I can feel like I'm the foremost expert in all things sonic and auditory. I'll get back to you on the exact mission, there is one... I promise

~jpw~