Animal names...

I love looking through the best of the year lists. This year I am noting a pattern though. The rest of this post is just a thought...I am not saying that these bands are bad or these bands are unoriginal. The following is a continued thought:

In 2004 Brian Wilson released "Smile" that fantastic collection that uses materials from The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds." The characterization of the record is unique. The fantastic album uses vocal harmonies, multi-layers, abstract noises and movements. I really enjoy this record and many like it. So much so that since that record it has sparked the interest of indie rock basement dwellers for years to come. The conversation of Pet Sounds and it's follow up of Smile has captured the admiration and interest of the hipster type.

Since the release of the beloved "Smile" some newly defined classics have emerged. In 2004 and in 2005 Animal Collective released "Sung Tongs" and "Feels." The records are great but they reminded me of something...it reminded me of the beloved pet sounds. 2006 released Grizzly Bears "Yellow House". Another beautiful record with beautiful melodies and vocal part harmonies that are earthy...tribal at moments. Nothing sparked or clicked in my head. What makes these records so good? 2007 has Panda Bear (with members of Animal Collective) releasing "Person Pitch." Another great record with fantastic layers and transfixing vocal harmonies. 2008 Fleet Foxes seem to have taken the Indie World by storm and placing their record in the category with the rest of these bands.

So I guess all this to say. What is our infatuation with the vocal harmonies and the animal names. Something happened with "Pet Sounds" some have written to say it was a magical record (or maybe those are my words). Many records you can put in once and you have the feel for it, a few more times and you got it. But the records I have mentioned fold and unfold telling new stories. I can understand why they would be in a top ten but is there going to be something sooner than later that isn't an offshoot of our beloved Pet Sounds?

Creating is never easy. I don't make music. I LOVE it and can't go a day without listening, ingesting, and finding some new thought about some record, some band, or some new song. Some days I want to dance and some days I want one song and one song that helps my heart. Some days I wonder how the same record year after year gets put on number one lists time after time?

So there are my thoughts....Any one want to start a band? We could call it Bears of Vocal Harmonies....

so this is the new year...

It's been a long time since i have been
motivated
to move

not my feet or my hands
but to move my mind to find
new dreams
and new passions
and a new breath in my lungs

I don't know what the new year will bring
i don't know what 2009 will provide

but 2008 has a single finger raised to it's calendar page
and i wave fond farewell
and I don't look back
so that you may see my eyes one last time.

a strange.

I had this strange experience yesterday where my life currently went and intermingled with my past. I was thinking of a record and a friend called and mentioned that he was listening to that record right at that moment. It wasn't something that I have listened to for quite some time and it was a strange coincidence.

To be honest I love strange coincidences. Usually that is when my lazy mind recieves a signal that something is happening that you are not in control of.

The strange coincidences continued to happen throughout the evening.

I like knowing that we are not alone.

Top Ten Records 2008

This year as I had mentioned earlier came with so much change. I spent just as much time finding old records as I did new records. This was a good year for me and music. I found many songs that comforted and just as many that made me dance. But it is now time for the coveted top ten records. Many years I check out other websites top ten and usually there is a sense of cohesion. Not this year! So here is my list. There are records missing. About half way into next year I will feel more caught up. You might not see your favorite...these are just some of mine. Take it as you will.

#10 TV on the Radio: "Dear Science": I like this record. Not the best TV on the Radio Record by far but of all the records that I heard it's a lot better than lets say The Jonas Brothers or She and Him! I think the drums are amazing in the record. I love the lyrical flow, and I like that they took chances. Did it work perfect? Nope but that's ok I still like the record....It has indie, dance, and hip hop element strung together like a necklace around your neck.

#9 The Cool Kids "Bake Sale": This hip hop record throws down the fattiest beats. The production is hot and the lyrics are even hotter. The record is tough from beginning to end. My favorite jam is Black Mags...The record is not over hyped or over produced. It's just a SOLID hip hop jam from beginning to end.

#8 M83 "Saturdays=Youth: This record is throw back 1986. If 16 Candles could have a soundtrack this would be it. I love the synth pop 80s feel. I love the 80s and I love this record. It's like Popples and Punky Brewster all over again. Sign me up twice and find me boyfriend before the record ends!

#7 Anathallo "Canopy Glow": Granted my bestie is in the band but I wouldn't just put it on there for that reason. That would be wrong. But I really like the record. At first it seemed simple and Sufjans kin but the more I listened the more it grew and more I heard a new direction from a band I have heard and listened to almost as much as Wilco. The backing vocals of Erica are so beautiful!! The tracks of Canopy Glow and Bells are so beautiful and I really enjoy the lyrics focusing on the natural life and the earth. It's a beauty.

#6 Dosh: "Wolves and Wishes": I am a fan of great instrumental records. I happened to hear them live when Anathallo opened for him. Dosh is better known to being part of Andrew Bird's band. This is a great record with stylish layers and thoughtful melodies. There is a lot going on but nothing that would be so overwhelming that you get lost in the noise or the consistent patterns. The record is smart and I like smart!

#5 The Walkmen "You & Me": The Walkmen are a solid, tight, well played, well produced band. They have great vision, they have sassy songs, they are fun, and the more you listen the more the record opens up to your ears. The lyrics are so beautiful. I wasn't a fan of the Walkmen in years past but something happened and I heard the tune The Rat off of "Bows and Arrows" and then I got the Walkmen...something clicked and I seemed to understand where they were coming from and what they were trying to tell me. After that stunning moment I knew the Walkmen would be a band I would love. This record sealed the deal!

#4 Fleet Foxes "Fleet Foxes": The album had a lot of buzz about it. It's good but not on the top of my list. The record throws it's reins around the americana/folk generation and holds on tight. The vocal harmonies are tight and the mix is well put together. I wasn't to into it at first and yet I felt like a second listen. It blossomed over time. I really like when records do that. I like it alot.

#3 Horse Feathers: "House with No Home" I found this band late one night and I knew it was love at first listen. I found "Words are Dead" a 2006 release and listened to that pretty frequently and the follow up to that record is this little ditty. Simple, sweet, dark, and beautiful. It must be the aura surrounding the record or lyrics that catch my attention after ten times listening to the record. I like the record because of the use of the piano and strings. The theme seems to be simple this year.

#2 Sigur Ros: "Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust": The sixth album from Icelandic wonders, Sigur Ros, make my heart melt. My eyes and heart fill with wonder, and my spirit is often at rest or peace when this record plays. Is it there best record? I'm not sure. But it is simple, easy, happy and joyous. It's fun and beautiful. A rare combo!! The record in english is: "With a buzz in our ears we play endlessly"... I think I listen to this record endlessly.

#1 Bon Iver "For Emma Forever Ago": Hands Down my favorite record. Skinny Love was a track I found early on and the record itself I don't think was removed from the cd player for over a month. A simple record, ten tracks. The lyrics are profound expressing heartbreak, lost, and life. I am inspired by this record. The BEST record that whispers it's goodness on a regular basis.

snow day.

Being away from the winter has done me well
when the sun shines i feel like there is a different sense of
hope

and yet I retreated back
to a place I once called home
the rain was loud against my window
and you sat and read and listened
as the pounding force of the rain
was it's own rhythm
in the midst of silence

and now the snow has begun to fall
and new clothing adorns my body
and my legs and arms
are consistenly wrapped in a variety of materials

the feelings of linen and wool against my face
as I try to beat the cold

and the snow is beautiful
so silent as opposed to it's counterpart
and you have to watch
with silence
in the dark
as the wind make it dance outside of the
freezing window pane.

and that is where i am at.
staring at the grace offered to me
as well as the silence.

My favorite songs of 2008.

My favorite songs of 2008

These are some of my favorite songs of the year. i will do my favorite records of 2008 next month...but I was thinking of the mixes I have made, the songs I have put on repeat, the songs that made me stop and cry or stop and make me smile. They didn't necessarily arrive in 2008 but they certainly resonated in 2008 so I am making a list. Maybe you can find them.

This year was complex and hard. Beauty and Pain filled the year. Death and Celebration. Joy and Sorrow.
My heart was filled with emotion.

Sia: Breathe Me
(Colour the Small One, 2005)
If I could bottle one song and say 2008 it would be this song. I would lay on the floor of the green house with my ear near the speaker and put it on repeat. I am sure that the roommates were sick of this song past April but it is so beautiful. The stings describe the heart where the lyrics described the aches of my soul. I also finished Six Feet Under this year....


Ryan Adams: Come Pick Me Up
(Heartbreaker, 2000)
I think there wouldn't be a day from about March-until I graduated that I wouldn't play this song. DAn would come into my room and laugh because it was playing again. It was in my car, ipod, iphone, cd player, computer. It is A-MAZING. I don't know why it was this year that I connected to the song but I did. and so should you.


The Avett Brothers: Living of Love
(Emotionalism, 2008)
One of the best shows of the year and what life should be lived....with love and the Avett Brothers.


Wilco: Impossible Germany
(Sky Blue Sky, 2007)
The guitar lines of Nels Cline make my heart swoon. We got to see him this year do some avant-jazz and it was a definite spiritual experience. This band is my favorite. This song is a top five favorite Wilco song. Amazing. Beautiful. Unique. Favorite line: Gorgeous and Alone. Face to face.
Are you listening?


Horse Feathers: Hardwood Pews
(Words are Dead; 2006)
I found this band randomly this year. Seriously it took me this long to find this Portland beauty. Americana/folk...best song on the record. His voice is magic.


Bon Iver: Skinny Love
(for Emma Forever Ago; 2008)
My friend Travis and I listened to this song 144 times and then I listened to it 300 more. It is the best song that came out this year. It's amazing. I always without fail play it twice because once is never enough. When I close my eyes I can think of screaming the lyrics with 200 other people one of my last nights in LA. It was a moment I hope I never forget.


Sigur Ros: Ara Batur
(Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust: 2008)
Can this song be anymore beautiful? I honestly don't think it can. It brings peace and stillness to my heart and tears to my eyes when the all boy choir comes in around minute five. I drove to the PCH with all my windows down knowing everything was about to change and I wasn't sad....I was at peace.


Radiohead: Videotape
(In Rainbows; 2007/8)
I got to see Radiohead this year and it was an interesting though fun experience. Many people know my mom died this year and this song makes me thing of here. Last Christmas I put it on a mixtape for her. I can't help but to hope that when I get to the pearly gates her life and her memory will be on my videotape.


Radical Face: Welcome Home
(Ghost; 2007)
My beautiful friend Erika (as well as many others) made mix CDs for my road trip back to Michigan. I heard this song and knew it was the perfect song to welcome me home to the changing leaves of the Michigan mitten. It is what somewhat pictures coming home to. With wind chimes, clothes on the clothes line, scars peeled away, and arms wide open.


Javelins: Out on the Sand
(Heavy Meadows; 2008)
I love this song and I am glad I came back to Detroit to remember how amazing the Detroit music scene is. Best band in the city and this song is so catchy....


Misty Lyn and the Big Beautiful: The Fall
(For the Dead; 2008)
During the saddest week of my life I went to a show in a tiny bar in Hamtramak. I drank some Pabst and I saw some bands play. I am in love with americana and I told the man with the band this. He asked me to wait a moment and came back with this cd. "My other band," he says. I brought it home and this song was on it. It caught by surprise. It is perfect and the line "Lord, will you hold my hand" is the perfect question to this year.

I hope you enjoy these tunes or others like it....

and my heart skips a beat.

I feel in love once.
It was a long time ago
where the problems really were so trivial
and none important
and today seem like non issues

and today a different love has emerged
a love that comes from some silly instruments
and a silly man who sings
or hums
or strums
or a lady that does something so similar

and i sit
and am in awe
and my stress weens
and my heart calms
and my eyes close
and i just listen

i rarely argue
i rarely fuss
and I rarely complain

can you really complain when something
so beautiful captures your imagination
puts a smile on your face
and you realize that you are not the only one on the planet
and you are not alone.