last post...for a bit

as i will be traveling to spain on monday, this will be the last post i will put up until i get back. due to this fact, this post is all over the place...music, movies, youtube, whatever is on my mind. enjoy!

okkervil river is one of my favorite bands, they play great music and their lyrics are very...lyrical. not sure how to explain it other than their lyrics are similar to the decemberists, but they don't tell a story or folk tale in every one of them.

my favorite song is titled plus ones, it takes songs with numbers in the title and adds one to them and is put together with wit and charm here is the song and a link to the titles used in the song.

okkervil river - plus ones plus ones analysis

okkervil river - lost coastlines

here is a youtube video that has been making me cry at the back of my classroom for the last couple of months. actually it is a series of videos in which a person who knows about a historical event in the united states becomes inibriated and retells the story...in short i give you 'drunk history'



there are 5 videos in all and they are each worth watching.

ben found this movie trailer and had the insight to remind me that no matter how good it looks...there is still no chance of it ever coming to my lovely little village of sidney. thanks buddy.

rudo y cursi



and finally...new tunes. i found this group today on a blog that i read. mewithoutyou are a band from philadelphia who sing songs that tell stories. i'm a sucker for that type of music. the song on here is based on one of aesop's fables. as always check 'em out and let me know what you think.

mewithoutyou - the fox, the crow and the cookie

new release and new signing

iron & wine have just released a "new" album yesterday. the album is called around the well it includes previously unreleased tracks and some of their tracks that are no longer available. the band is also doing a 6 show tour where the fans can get online and request which songs they play at each venue...pretty cool idea. i bought it yesterday and have been listening to the soothing sounds of samuel beam's voice and guitar the past 24 hours. the album includes possibly one of my favorite songs called 'the trapeze swinger', give it a listen below and let me know what you think.

iron & wine - the trapeze swinger



a new saddle creek band! after their performance at SXSW this year the canadian folk band 'the rural alberta advantage' was picked up by saddle creek records. their album 'hometowns' will be released by saddle creek this summer. they have a great sound and i happen to have a huge crush on amy cole. they will be playing on july 15 in the front room of the slowdown in omaha.


the rural alberta advantage - don't haunt this place


i am attepmting to go back through a large amount of the music that i have been listening to in the past year...which it turns out is a lot...but if you have any music you want me to check out leave a comment at the bottom of the posts and i'll definitely check it out.

a new begining

i had the amazing opportunity this weekend to move into a new apartment. Add this move to the total and since i graduated from high school nine years ago i have moved no less than ten times, i guess i just don't want to let my roots get too stuck in somewhere. but anyway...on to some tunes.

frightened rabbit is a scottish band who i've been listening to lately. their most recent album called the midnight organ fight is a great listen. most of the songs are pretty direct and too the point and Scott Hutchison's voice is amazing. when coupled with his lyrics it becomes something that is heartwrenching and beautiful at the same time.




frightened rabbit - old, old fashioned
frightened rabbit - the modern leper
frightened rabbit - good arms vs. bad arms



one more band to check out for the day, blind pilot. they are a great indie band out of portland who's music is mostly acoustic guitar driven (which i like). check out their album 3 rounds and a sound. they have played on a few late night shows i believe which generally means they are on the verge of becoming more popular...so we'll hopefully get to see them on mtv now between the jonas brothers and that hannah montana girl. excellent!

blind pilot - one red thread
blind pilot - the story i heard

enjoy your monday, i only have 4 days of work left...teaching is ridiculous.

some different music

I figured I needed to give you a taste of some music that doesn't have acoustic guitar in it so here is your taste.

The French band Phoenix has a new album coming out on May 26^th here in the U.S. I found this video the other day while listening to a few of their songs on-line. If you love 80’s movies and the random dance scenes that ensue in these wonderful movies enjoy this…

Phoenix – Too Young

Phoenix – Lisztomania

Another band who has gotten some popular attention this year is MGMT.

I originally heard this song on a soccer highlight video and I can remember thinking it was a pretty catchy tune. I haven’t listened to a lot of their music, but I’ve listened to this quite a bit. Here it is along with a few covers.

MGMT - Kids

The Kooks – Kids (MGMT cover)

Ben Lee – Kids (MGMT cover)

Now for something a little...okay a lot different.

I already made Will listen to this band and they are for lack of a better word…odd. Micachu and the Shapes is a band from London who's sound I would compare to, well I'm not sure what I would compare it to.

A better way to describe it would be the feeling their music gives me. The first time I listened to them is like the first I heard the Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's...whom I love...but let's be honest, they're a little bit much to handle right away. After a few listens I was hooked and listened to the album non-stop for a month, so I decided to play it for a bunch of people and they gave me the "What the hell is this" face.

I promise that if you give Micachu and the Shapes a few listens (maybe more than a few) you will get hooked, their songs are catchy even if the melody and harmony are different than what you are used to.

I wouldn't lead you astray.

Micachu and the Shapes - Lips

Micachu and the Shapes - Just in Case

Enjoy

some inspiration for wednesday

Here is a graduation speech given by the late David Foster Wallace. To completely oversimplify it he talks about how it is possible to make it through life without letting the trivial little things drive you crazy. It's definitely a worthwhile read.

There is a book out that contains the full speech. Which is why it's impossible to find the full transcript of it on-line now. Mine is in the mail and on the way to my house as I type this...you can get one here.


On another note, here is a new movie coming out.

Away We Go. It could be pretty good, but the music is what caught my attention. I believe my brother Will first tried to get me listening to Alexi Murdoch over a year ago, but I didn't listen. Then as I watched the trailer the combination of visual and audio hit me and I'm hooked. He is doing a majority of the songs on the soundtrack as well.

Alexi Murdoch - All My Days


Buenas Noches

Videos and Tunes

The Tallest Man On Earth - The Gardener

This is a like this video...I love this location. How much fun would it be to walk around The Music Inn? Instruments from all over the world hanging above your head and you can play them all. I would love this!

Block Party - This Modern Love (acoustic on the street)

How great is this? A band that doesn't play acoustic music and plays with tons of distortion/effects on their instruments stripped down to a guitar and a voice (you can tell Kele isn't entirely comfortable at the start). This may be one of my favorite music videos.

And finally some music to listen to:


Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band just released their new album Outer South buy it here.

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Nikorette
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Breezy
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - White Shoes


The band also filmed a documentary called "One of My Kind" which gives a behind the scenes look at their first world tour and subsequent recording sessions that became Outer South. You can watch it at Causecast.





I'll try to get some more variety in the future, I've just been listening to Conor Oberst a lot lately. Am I a sad bastard or what?

I'm Wide Awake and I'm Still Not A Morning Person

This blog will be for my friends who are tired of me telling them about obscure bands to listen to. Hopefully now they can just check out this site and see what I'm listening to and form their own opinions.

This last weekend I had the privilege of driving 5 1/2 hours across the beautiful/desolate state that we call Nebraska. It is home but oh, how I wish it had a little more to offer in the scenery department. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel...Margot and the Nuclear So and So's were playing a show at the Slowdown in downtown Omaha.

The opening band was a group from Indianapolis called Everything, Now. They were pretty good so I had to buy one of their limited copies of their LP Sunshine of Doom. Each cover was hand drawn and I found that pretty cool.

Richard Edwards and his crew put on a great show and everyone had a great time. Seriously...buy their music. Their most recent album is Animal!/Not Animal, the "man" wanted them to release one, they wanted the other Animal! is theirs, Not Animal the "man's." Their first album is amazing as well it is titled The Dust of Retreat.

Here are a few tunes to check out:
Margot and the Nuclear So and So's -
Tall as Cliffs
Broadripple is Burning