1-27-12 - "January Wedding" ~ The Avett Brothers

With a few performances on TV lately and word that their new album is fast approaching, I've been getting excited about The Avett Brothers again lately.  I've waxed eloquent on several previous occasions about the boys, and even posted a song with a month in the title before.  So I'll spare you the rehash of all that, and present you with this sweet, simple love song:


(live)

(album)

"And I was sick with heartache

And she was sick like Audrey Hepburn when I met her...

…no longer does it matter what circumstances we were born in

She knows which birds are singin' 

And the names of the trees where they're performin' in the mornin'…"

1-15-12 - "Ice Age" ~ Big Snow Big Thaw

So like I said late (really late) Friday night, both artists at the early show at Club Cafe were pretty okay.  Pittsburgh band Big Snow Big Thaw set the stage for troubadour Jeffrey Foucault (see how I used a French-type word to describe a guy with a French last name?!?!), and this was their closing tune.


I really enjoy the dissonance and resolution, maybe it's just me.  But the lyrics are pretty intriguing, and maybe you'll enjoy pondering them even if you're not quite as enthralled by the unusual chord structure as I.


Here's a concert video I filmed at Friday's show:

And here's another one that someone got at Thunderbird early last year - the track isn't part of their Winter/Spring dual EP, but hopefully it'll be on the new album (due for release quite soon, rumor has it...)

"how the hell'd I get here,

hangin' in the lurch?

can't reckon if I done myself

or you done done me worse..."

PS - check out another sweet song from Friday's show on my YouTube channel - new one "Homestead Grays".  Might make it a post of its own someday...

1-3-12 - "Snow" ~ The Zolas

I have several good reasons (at least in my own mind) to post this song tonight:


1)  Today was the first day with a legitimate snowfall in Pittsburgh since last winter.  Just my luck it was the morning I had to go to work... I swear, people in this city forget how to drive in inclement weather every summer.  But I love snow even when it means extra traffic headaches and waking up earlier to shovel.  It's better though when you can go sledding and whatnot, so who wants to quit our jobs and just enjoy the best part of the year, eh?


2)  One year ago today, I posted a song by The Zolas, and I love symmetry.


3)  There's an awesome video of Zach Gray playing the song with a children's choir singing along (the St. James Music Academy in Vancouver):


"Snow" ~ The Zolas featuring the St. James Music Academy Choir (on vimeo.com)


Along with the acoustic+kids video, here's the recorded version:

And a concert video, if that's more your thing:

"and it's hard not to call you
when it starts to cover the road
...'cause we kissed in the snow..."


PS - I found a sweet stripped down version of "Green Light" by Leisure (originally posted 8-26-11).  Check it out!

12-25-11 - "O Holy Night" ~ Josh Groban / Il Divo

This Christmas tune is a pretty tough one to pull off properly, but Josh Groban is not half bad at it.  My little brother insisted I consider Il Divo's version as well - the quartet definitely have pipes to pull this off, as does Groban.  Both artists treat the song with respect - not showboating, just hitting the melody smoothly and sweetly, as it was intended (I have the same complaints when people embellish too much on the Star Spangled Banner).  Il Divo does have the benefit of harmonic ability, which Groban of course lacks as a solo artist... but ultimately, both versions pass my rigorous critiquing.  Enjoy, and Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Joyful Festivus, and all that jazz!

12-24-11 - "White Christmas" ~ Bing Crosby / The Drifters

This one likely doesn't need much explanation, but here's a bit of it anyway.  My family just watched "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and that other girl (the one with the brown eyes...)  It's a pretty entertaining old flick, which involves an unseasonably warm December in Vermont.  And no, a white Christmas is not looking promising here in PA this year... we'll just have to make do.  But the film features some snappy song and dance routines along with some witty one-liners:

"Well, now, isn't this cozy? Boy, girl, boy, girl..."

"You're not exactly Superman, but you are awfully available..."

"In some ways, you're far superior to my cocker spaniel." 

And of course, the finale is the titular song.  Here's Bing Crosby's famous / classic version (don't believe me?  The Guinness Book of World Records cites it as the best selling single of all time):

And here's a spiffy version by The Drifters, which you may recognize from Home Alone:

"...and may all your Christmases be white..."

12-23-11 - "Here I Dreamt I Was An Architect" ~ The Decemberists

Oh, you know, it's December, so a Decemberists song seems fitting.  As usual, the lyrics are a tapestry, woven into allegories with likely deep and significant meaning... but I'm not going to try to break this one down for you.  Songmeanings.net has some interesting efforts at deconstruction in the comments... check it out, if you're so inclined.

This one is somewhat reflective and somber, recalling love's labours lost, or something like that...

"And I recall in spring

the perfume that the air would bring

to the indolent town..."

12-04-11 - "My December" ~ Linkin Park

We've all gone through that phase where we were into rap metal, but for most of us it was quite a while ago that we got over it.  OK, so I say that tongue-in-cheek, because who ever really gets over it?  But seriously, maybe we haven't all done that, but we all experience changes in our musical tastes as we grow up and find ourselves at different stages in life.


All that to say, I haven't really kept up with Linkin Park, but apparently they have spent the last several years trying some different things stylistically, which I always appreciate in bands (as opposed to those who have one hit and spend decades writing more songs that sound exactly like that one.)  I'm not sure how well LP's first few albums have held up as I progressed out of my teen/college years, but I can still enjoy some of those tracks from time to time.  This particular song always did strike a chord for me, it's much more mellow and less intense musically than most of their stuff, but the simple lyrics pack a punch.  There's another side to the band besides the angsty, angry vibes of "Numb" and the Ecclesiastic nihilism of "In The End".


This song is about reflection, regret, and reconciliation.  The singer has made some major mistakes, which tore apart relationships.  He's realizing what he threw away and trying to make amends.  Hopefully most of you haven't had things fall apart quite that badly, but we've all said or done things which hurt family, friends, or lovers... 


Here's an acoustic / piano only version they've been doing in concert in recent years:

And here's the original version:

And while we're at it, Josh Groban (possibly the best male vocalist alive) covered the song, so you know it's legit:

(And yes, I posted this song in part to be cute and "oh snap it's a song about the current month!", like last night.  Also in part because my friend Josh tweeted some lyrics the other day.)


"This is my December

these are my snow covered dreams

this is me pretending

this is all I need..."

11-24-11 - "Wagon Wheel" ~ Old Crow Medicine Show

Holiday Quickie.  Here's a track that was cobbled together from the strains of a chorus composed by Bob Dylan.  Nostalgic and regretful, but with a hopeful attitude toward the future, the protagonist seeks redemption and rebirth as his journey to his hometown acts as a metaphor for his turning from evil, self-sabotaging ways and returning to his roots...

"North country winters keep a'gettin me

lost my money playin' poker so I had to up and leave

but I ain't goin' back to livin' that old life no more..."

"...and if I die in Raleigh, at least I will die free..."

10-13-11 - "Flume" ~ Bon Iver

There's something spectacular about wandering around a city like Seattle on a crisp, sunny fall day listening to The Tallest Man On Earth and Bon Iver.  (guess what I did today...?)  These two men weave tapestries of emotion and delve into the deepest, darkest mines of human souls, yet always leave me brimming with joy.

Live in studio:

Album:

"Only love is all maroon
lapping lakes like leery loons
leaving rope burns, reddish rouge..."

9-5-11 - "Mykonos" ~ Fleet Foxes

I have not posted a Fleet Foxes song since April, and they're pretty great, so here's another.  It might be my favorite track of theirs.  From the opening strains of melancholy guitar, I'm hooked every time.  The harmonic wordless vocals set an eerie tone, and from Robin Pecknold's first lyrics, the foreboding hangs thick in the air.


Rumor has it the song is about a brother who has lost his way; Mykonos seems to represent either a safe haven - redemption from "the mess (he) made" - or perhaps a false salvation.  The "vision of a gentle coast" and "sun to maybe dissipate" lines evoke the haven, but something about the other lyrics hints that Mykonos may not be the paradise the subject seeks, after all...


(the paper art music video was made by Sean Pecknold; who, if my limited internet research is accurate, is the "brother" to whom the song refers...)

"Brother you don't need to turn me away

I was waiting down at the ancient gate..."

1-6-11 - "Winter Song" ~ Ingrid Michaelson and Sara Bareilles

Simple, somber, and elegant duet.  Not a lot to say about it; just a good one for a mellow evening with a fresh snowfall.

"My love a beacon in the night

my words will be your light

to carry you to me..."