Favorite Songs Of 2014, #12
“Spinners” – The Hold Steady http://youtu.be/3QHMsP4DkUA The Hold Steady will never again be as good as during their three-album run from 2005–2008. But they still write great songs, like this ode to getting out and trying to put heartbreak behind you. Or, put the ball in play, as some of us used to say. The nights go on forever now…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #13
“Fall In Love” – Phantogram http://youtu.be/Aq_9-UpaJ_A Phantogram describes their music as “darkadelic,” which strikes me as perfect. Electro-rock with heavy psychedlic influences, their sound is dark and dense. Throw on lyrics that speak about the hopeless side of love, and their songs aren’t terribly uplifting. But damn do they sound great. Bonus points: If I had to have a crush…
I’m Excited, Don’t Know Why
So one morning last week I’m on my way home after dropping the girls off at St. P’s. I’m flipping through my stored channels on SirriusXM and not having much luck finding something to listen to. Until I hit channel 8, the 80s station. There, I hear that familiar church organ dirge, followed by some of the most recognizable first…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #14
“Seasons (Waiting On You)” – Future Islands http://youtu.be/1Ee4bfu_t3c Sometimes great songs get an extra push from a video or nationally televised performance. This is a fine example of that phenomenon, as the band’s performance on Letterman last spring nearly broke the Internet.[1] But that performance should not hide that this is a great song even without Samuel T. Herring’s wacky…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #15
“New Skin” – Torres A song I absolutely fell in love with back in February. This was part of Weathervane Records’ Shaking Through project, in which they document the entire creative process as a song is written and recorded. For this, they took Torres, Mackenzie Scott’s stage name, and added two members of The War On Drugs (Adam Granduciel and…
Hot Sports Takes
A few quick, very hot, sports takes. CFP As an alum of the University of Kansas, I generally root for chaos when it comes to determining a college football champion. So I was pleased that there was much controversy surrounding college football’s first final four. What happened, with Ohio State leap-frogging[1] TCU and holding off Baylor after they pounded Wisconsin…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #16
“Milwaukee” – The Both Take two legends of power pop, put them together, and magic ensues. Aimee Mann and Ted Leo sound like they’ve been playing together for decades, and their differing backgrouns (Mann coming from art rock, Leo from punk) compliment each other nicely. Bonus points for the nicely done video. It’s the nucleus burning inside of the cell…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #17
“Too True To Be Good” – Dum Dum Girls DDG changed their sound a little for this year’s Too True release. They left behind the fuzzy, garage-rock sound of their first three albums for a darker, post-punk sound that is firmly rooted in the early–1980s. While making the musical change, Dee Dee did not lose her ability to write a…
Favorite Songs Of 2014, #18
“We Only Come Out At Night” – Sugar Stems I reserve one spot each year for a pure pop gem. This song lives up to the band’s name, sweet as sugar. Go ahead and run your mouth if you think it’ll make people think you’re smarter You always thought you knew it all anyway Previously: 20 – “Black And White”…
Fun With Editing
Over the weekend C. brought home a story she had written in class with instructions for the weekend. We were supposed to read it with her, then rewrite it to take out grammatical errors so she could record it in class on Monday. Which is a good thing. Her story, which was based on the Nutcracker, featured one very concerning…