CHRISTMAS, PLEASE!

I'll be "recording" acoustic renditions of my favorite/underrated Christmas songs. Yes, I plan on singing too. Here are the songs (and composers) I plan on covering:

Somewhere In My Memory (John Williams)

Christmas Time Is Here (Vince Guaraldi)

Christmas for Cowboys (John Denver)

We're Goin' to the Country! (Sufjan Stevens)

The First Noel (Scott E Hall)

Skating (Vince Guaraldi)

Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis (Tom Waits)*

Merry Christmas Darling (Richard Carpenter & Frank Pooler)

That Was The Worst Christmas Ever! (Sufjan Stevens)

Little Drummer Boy (Mark Kozelek)

Joy To The World (Sufjan Stevens)

Once In Royal David's City (Mack Wilberg)

"Muppet Christmas Carol" Medley (Paul Williams/Miles Goodman)

Remember (Christmas) (Harry Nilsson)*

Ignition (Christmas) (Scott E Hall & R. Kelly)

*implies the song actually has nothing to do with Christmas

I plan on recording around finals week.

A Led Zeppelin IV Blog

I remember being about 11 years old and buying Led Zeppelin IV at a Target in Stockton with my own money + $1 from my brother Todd.
I hate writing about my tween years, so I'll just skip to my current analysis: Led Zeppelin IV is one of the greatest albums ever and possibly the greatest album of the 70s.

But why? I mean, look at that stupid album cover. It's a portrait of an old man hunched with a cane in hand and a bunch of large sticks on his back. This has to be the dumbest album cover of all time. Who knew that this would be the cover of the most explosive rock music you'll ever hear?
Led Zeppelin IV (also known as Zoso) would become the epitome of how to make rock music for the next 43 years (and counting). Made only one year after The Beatles broke up, their message was clear: Screw The Beatles. They're dead. Listen to Led Zeppelin. We're alive. 
This thing's got it all:

1 The insanely electric "farewell-to-blues-as-you-know-it" riff on "Black Dog."
2 The new sonic definition of "rock and roll" as heard on "Rock And Roll."
3 The dark, epic folk and mystical storytelling of "The Battle Of Evermore." 
4 The immortalized, beautiful, climactic ballad from hell [(about drugs, of course) and apparently about Satan if played backwards] "Stairway To Heaven."
5 The drunken bass-heavy banger about hobbits, "Misty Mountain Hop."
6 The song with four drumsticks, "Four Sticks."
7 The part-personal and part-nonsensical tender folk ballad, "Going To California."
8 The echoing, all-powerful drum part on "When The Levee Breaks."
I suppose that there are plenty of elements on this album that people were introduced to before 1971. But I think that Zoso is Zeppelin's most dynamic work. Their most-well produced album. Their most focused. The blueprint for rock and roll to come. 
Another interesting about this album: No band photo. We get the old man on the cover. We get the I don't know how they did it!
drawing of Gandolf-hermit. We have some dude reading a book next to the "Stairway to Heaven" lyrics. But where's the band? To me it makes the production more mysterious. Cuz heck,
Each band member stepped up their game on this album:
Robert Plant Plant's voice was used before as a hippie who could scream the blues. After this album, he sounded more more mature, yet also more drugged-up. This is where he made his crossover. I don't know what the frick he's saying on half these songs, but he sounds very passionate about it. (And yes, he did have a crush on Joni Mitchell. "Going to California" refers to her song "California.") 
Jimmy Page Listen to "Black Dog." Have you ever-- ever heard a sound like that before? Maybe Hendrix? Maybe Cream? Maybe King Crimson? Those are only maybe's. Nobody utilized electricity quite like Jimmy. Also, "Stairway to Heaven." The transition from acoustic to electric to the depths of hell sound effortless... and flawless. Plus, sick mandolin part on "Evermore!"
John Paul Jones I'm not gonna lie, if you want a "Bass Playing 101" lesson, try Led Zeppelin II. On Zoso, he proves himself to be an equally talented multi-instrumentalist. Hear the flute organ on "Four Sticks" and "Stairway." His piano solo on "Rock And Roll." The bass-and-keyboard combo on "Misty Mountain." 
John Bonham No, Bonham wasn't given any solos on this one. There is the track where he plays drums with 4 sticks. His part on "Levee" was recorded in a stairwell to make it sound bigger and echoing. This makes up for his absence on 2 (and-a-half) songs here. That-- and his part on "Rock And Roll." Holy ****.
Anyways, this album is being reissued this week. I probably won't buy that copy. But it's a friendly reminder of a personal favorite and historic classic.

Zoso is not a word, but rather, a symbol...

5 Albums i feel like i should talk about

In December, I will be making my novel/list of my favorite albums of the last 5 years. These 5 critically acclaimed albums will NOT appear on my list. Here's why:

M83 Hurry Up, We're Dreaming 

Double album. Great production quality. Perfect lead single. Despite Anthony Gonazalez's conceptual ambition, despite its growing influential production style, despite how awesome "Midnight City" is: This album has some boring moments, it has some poorly-written songs, and Gonzalez's annoying voice clashes with the music. Combining the passionate youthful experience with 80s sci-fi magic is a really cool idea. However, some songs on here are just super corny and some sound super fake. I don't think it's a bad album, but at the same time, I can't stand it!




Tame Impala Lonerism

I like this album more than the others mentioned in this blog. Tame Impala is a great band doing great things. I myself find it hard to define the band's personality. They're obviously a psychedelic band. But are they psychedelic rock or psychedelic pop? This album has some great tracks, but some of the experimentation here isn't exactly mind-blowing. The music sounds like it isn't being made by real people, which is actually a plus in my book. The 60s vinyl-sound production is great. I love the 60s Pink Floyd influence. But adding all the 60s-ness with Kevin Parker's total John Lennon voice... I'd like to know what Tame Impala sounds like.



Kanye West Yeezus

On-and-off, I love and hate this album. It has this standout production style that has become quite influential in the last year. Even the track-by-track structure is pretty solid. The tracks themselves however... Kanye got kinda lazy. I'm unimpressed hearing him scream "God!" alongside the 2 repetitive notes on "On Site." "Guilt Trip" sucks. "Send It Up" is somewhat underwhelming. The sounds of Yeezus are legitimately unforgettable. But there's just  too much dead weight for me to fully appreciate this.



Arcade Fire Reflektor

Bought this album the day it came out. $8 at Hastings. Loved it when I listened to it at 1am during the 24-stream included w/ scenes from "Black Orpheus." Thought it was trippy. Thought it was dark. That it was deep. Thought it was cool. A year has passed, and the album hasn't stuck. "Here Comes The Night Time" and "Normal Person" have lost their flavor. "Joan of Arc" is stupid. "You Already Know" is too big for its own good. But sure, the album's mostly good. I still think it's a nocturnal album with great James Murphy production. But there are only a couple deep/honest moments. And cool? Nah. By the time its 3rd music video came out, nobody cared anymore.

Beyonce Beyonce

Yeah, it's overrated. But I can see why critics like it. The production is quite ambitious. The lyrics are more in-your-face. It's not made for pop radio. The most popular lady in the world is toying with PBR&B. I admit there are some great tracks on here and the album sounds cool if anything. But at times I wish B' stuck with her pop songsmith talents here. "Blow" sounds jerky and fun, but lyrically is a dumb way of saying she wants Shawn Carter to have oral sex with her. "Mine" tries to be experimental, but sounds terrible (mostly due to Drake). She worked darn hard on this. Songwriting still needs some work.

Christmas wishlist

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS:
Slim-cut suit (mom is getting me this)
Restaurant gift card
PANTS. (not jeans)
Mom's cookbook
Recording/Personal Laptop Studio Equipment
Clothes (as long as they're not Sunday sweaters)
Shoes/Shoe shopping (both my boat shoes and chucks are torn up)
Socks
Belt
Cologne

CDs:
Sun Kil Moon Benji (want this one most, but it aint always cheap)
The Magnetic Fields 69 Love Songs (i don't expect to get this one- its 3 discs)
Iceage Plowing Into The Field of Love
Neil Young & Crazy Horse Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Avalanches Since I Left You
Girls Album (thats the actual album title)
Neil Young On The Beach
Red House Painters Red House Painters I

2010-2014: My Favorite Songs

Here it is, folks. My 50 favorite songs from the past 5 years. I was going to write a paragraph on each track, but I'll spare your time. Don't read my crap and listen to the stuff yourself if you want. Also, this list is extremely biased. The video to the right represents a song that didn't shake the music world at all (but I love it because it references Superman's "Fortress of Solitude" and they chant "You will always be a loser!") But no, most songs on the list don't sound like it. 
It's been an cool 5 years for me. There are more lists to come!



50:NO FUTURE PART THREE: ESCAPE FROM NO FUTURE  Titus Andronicus (10)  
49:FEELS LIKE WE ONLY GO BACKWARDS  Tame Impala (12)
48:DOIN' IT RIGHT  Daft Punk ft Panda Bear (13)
47:DO YOU  Spoon (14) 
46:RETROGRADE  James Blake (13)
45:CMYK  James Blake (10)
44:LOSING YOU  Solange (12)
43:NEVER CATCH ME  Flying Lotus ft Kendrick Lamar (14)
42:EVERY SINGLE NIGHT  Fiona Apple (12)
41:THE WIRE  Haim (13)
40:I BELONG IN YOUR ARMS  Chairlift (12)
39:WATCH THE CORNERS  Dinosaur Jr. (12)
38:MYTH  Beach House (12)
37:IT'S REAL  Real Estate (11)
36:CAN'T DO WITHOUT YOU  Caribou (14)
35:BLURRED LINES  Robin Thicke ft Pharrell Williams & T.I. (13)
34:DANCE YRSELF CLEAN  LCD Soundsystem (10)

James Blake

33:REFLEKTOR  Arcade Fire (13)
32:TWO WEEKS  FKA Twigs (14)
31:CHAMAKAY  Blood Orange (13)
30:WHITE NOISE  Disclosure ft AlunaGeorge (13)
29:HELPLESSNESS BLUES  Fleet Foxes (11)
28:WAKIN' ON A PRETTY DAY  Kurt Vile (13)
27:THE FEVER (AYE AYE)  Death Grips (12)
26:BAD GIRLS  M.I.A. (12)
25:JASMINE  Jai Paul (12)
24:CRUEL  St. Vincent (11)
23:PUT YOUR NUMBER IN MY PHONE  Ariel Pink (14)
22:SEASONS (WAITING ON YOU)  Future Islands (14)
21:SPRAWL II (MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS)  Arcade Fire (10)
20:ODESSA  Caribou (10)

Why yes, I do like Ariel Pink.

19:PYRAMIDS  Frank Ocean (12)
18:THINKIN BOUT YOU  Frank Ocean (12)
17:HANG ON TO LIFE  Ariel Pink & Jorge Elbrecht (13)
16:COUNTDOWN  Beyonce (11)
15:REAL LOVE  Beach House (10)
14:I CAN CHANGE  LCD Soundsystem (10)
13:THE WILHELM SCREAM  James Blake (11)
12:DESIRE LINES  Deerhunter (10)
11:TIGHTROPE  Janelle Monae ft Big Boi (10)
10:GET LUCKY  Daft Punk ft Pharrell Williams (13)
9:MIDNIGHT CITY  M83 (11)
8:I WATCHED THE FILM THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME  Sun Kil Moon (14)
7:STEP  Vampire Weekend (13)
6:ROUND AND ROUND  Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti (10)
5:BITCH, DON'T KILL MY VIBE  Kendrick Lamar (12)
4:THE HOUSE THAT HEAVEN BUILT  Japandroids (12)
3:POWER  Kanye West (10)
2:KAPUTT  Destroyer (11)
1:HOLOCENE  Bon Iver (11)

A Slew of Music Blogs Are Coming...

Well, there are less than 3 month left in 2014. 10 months ago today, I made my year-end albums list for 2013. I plan on doing the same for 2014 around that same time. The end of this also wraps up the first half of a decade. This also ought to come with accompanying lists for the time period. Here are the lists I will be making in the next 2 months:

1-The Last 5 Years In Music: TRAXX
I know this year isn't even over yet, but my opinion of songs change all the time anyway. Also, it's not like I've heard every song in the world, so of course this list is going to come with biases. I wasn't even going to make one, but I sat down today and listed my favorite songs from the last 5 years... and it added up to about 50.

2- 5 Albums I Should Talk About
There are 5 particular albums from the first half of this decade that lots of critics love to death. I like them all, even love a couple of them. But they're all overreated-not by a ton, by just basically overrated. And I'm gonna tell ya why.

3-Favorite Songs of 2014
This may seem irrelevant because I already made a list of songs. However, there's always the chance that my opinion has changed... or perhaps there are just a few extra tracks from 2014 that I feel deserve their respective praise.

4-Favorite Albums of 2014
I'm an "album" guy. That's the important musical release to me. I don't have iTunes. I can't buy songs. I buy albums. And always will.

5-The Last 5 Years In Music: ALBUMS
This is a very very big one for me. These last 5 years have been important to my life. I listen to more albums than most folks. So I'm gonna hold back this list for as long as I can.

On Sadness/Mental Instability: my mind, Sep 2009-Apr 2010

I started college in fall 2009 a theatre performance major at the College of Southern Idaho. I came in after the summer of my life at Redfish Lake Lodge. When I entered CSI, everything seemed underwhelming. Everything. Friendships. Listening to Pavement. The drama department. The so-called college experience. I was still living at home and drove my '83 Honda by myself to school everyday. Then I'd be stuck in Twin Falls all day. I was almost always just by myself. I remember having a small part in 'Othello' and nobody liked the show. I remember buying a CD at Hasting's every other week. My car's battery would die often. I'd explore Twin Falls by myself and pretended to enjoy it. I remember Tony Mannen complimenting my acting in 'The Murder Room' and he got me to be a more 'laid back' actor. I guess you call it being laid back; when we were performing the show, I once told Kyle Irwin (in the green room, as I was on facebook) "I don't give a single CRAP about this show." In essence, I didn't give a crap about anything. And it wasn't because I was a free spirit (although I'd try to present myself as such). I had lost the ability to care. About anything. Like, at all.

I turned 19 in Novembe. I can't remember what I got for my birthday. I hadn't finished my mission papers yet. I remember saying the word 'douchebag' about 100 times at Shari's on New Year's Eve. I got pulled over 4 times between November and January. One of those times was for drunk driving. I wasn't drunk, I was just driving poorly. Just like the other 3 times I got pulled over. I had a job as a substitute teacher, but was only called to teach twice. So I say I was unemployed. After the CSI semester ended, I stayed in my room with my body curled by the heater everyday, listening to music really loud. I doodled lots of pictures around wrote big, weird sentences I'd come up with. I'd also write poems about dreams, about how love is laziness and how I couldn't feel anything anymore. I often listened to The Soft Bulletin, Perfect from Now On, and lots of Radiohead. It's kinda hard for me to listen to anything I loved at that time of my life. It takes me back.
When I got my mission call in February, I made an effort to say a good goodbye to everybody. This was weird because I was never consistently hanging out with anybody anyway. I left for the mission field unknowingly suffering from depression. It was in the field where this definitely turned into anxiety. I was on pills up until November 2012. Earlier this year, I reached the point (where I still am) where I can't remember what anxiety attacks feel like. I can't remember what being emotionally numb was like. I also can't remember what acting felt like. I don't even get doses of those dark moments. But make no mistake, it still haunts me. Especially this time of year. For the most part I enjoy the atmosphere of a brisk fall morning and the smell of apple cider. On occasion, my mind goes back to the CSI days and the sound of Nick Drake tracks from Pink Moon. I know how to get rid of those sad feelings now. But dang- there was definitely a time in my life where secretly, I couldn't shake it.
Going from place to place pretending like you're happy is a weird, stupid waste of time. I testify of this from personal experience. I don't think myself to be a regretful person, but if there ever was a lonesome, life-altering, regretted era of my life, it was from between September 2009 and April 2010.