9-29-11 - "Great Balls Of Fire" ~ Jerry Lee Lewis

WYEP played this one today while I was driving home.  It's an oldie, but a goodie, as they say.  Just plain fun.  

"Goodness, gracious..."

9-28-11 - "O.C. Supertones" ~ The O.C. Supertones

Some days, no matter how important your project is at work, no matter how "disrespectful" it may be considered to those around you, you just gotta crank some ska.  Today was one of those days.  


Ska's prime was a while ago, to be sure; can't say I listen to the genre frequently these days, but if you're in the right mood it's still great.  And yes, when I said "crank", I meant "go one click higher than normal on the computer volume button", so I wasn't really sticking it to the man.  But man, hearing this album (and especially this song) just made me happy.


Give it a try and just try to stay angry or depressed or whatever unpleasant mood you may be in right now.  And if you're already feeling good, this will only expound upon your good feelings.  I promise.


"O.C. Supertones" ~ The Orange County Supertones (grooveshark link)


"Orange County, huh?"

9-27-11 - "Wildcat" ~ Ratatat

Oh, just a little jam for you tonight.  Instrumental, más o menos.  With synthy, crunchy guitars and the roar of the wildcat, it's just loads of fun hitting your eardrums.  The duo from Brooklyn is fairly new to me, but after refreshing my Garden State soundtrack kick a few days ago, I thought I'd trust a tweet from the film's writer/director/star, Zach Braff, and check these guys out.  They may not ever top my list of favorite artists of all time, but I'll certainly give them some digital spins in the future...

"Rawr!"

9-26-11 - "The Hazards Of Love 1" ~ The Decemberists

The Decemberists seem to enjoy creating albums that beg to be experienced in their entirety.  The Crane Wife is such an album, and The Hazards Of Love is no different.  The opening track of each album (discounting the instrumental prelude on Hazards) draws you in with an impeccably woven allegory, the beginnings of a tapestry you can't wait to fully discover.


The general meaning of this track, the subsequent #2, #3, and #4, and the album as a whole is fairly clear.  We all have witnessed love, and all (well pretty much all) desire it.  Yet love is not easily obtained, and even more arduously kept.  Once discovered, it often is not what it seemed; we have to plunge into the depths of love to discover its truth, and it may not always be entirely pleasant.  Ultimately, however, those who venture forth find love worth pursuing, despite the challenges.

"The prettiest whistles won't wrestle the thistles undone…"

9-25-11 - "The Great Estates" ~ Freelance Whales

This track is a swell album closer.  It brings the themes of "Weathervanes" together, and just has the right feel for it.  My opinion of the debut album by Freelance Whales is that it's pretty neat, and I recommend you check it out; especially if you like this track or "Generator^First Floor" which kicks off the album and which I posted a while back.

"I used to shout to find my way

the water find my distant memory failed..."

9-24-11 - "Such Great Heights" ~ The Postal Service

Stayed home sick from a concert I was really looking forward to attending.  Watched "Garden State" instead, and was reminded of some good tunes from the soundtrack.  The film uses the Iron & Wine cover of this song (which is also awesome); I'm focusing on the original.

The Postal Service is (was?) a side project of Ben Gibbard (of DCFC fame) and Jimmy Tamborello.  The name was derived from the fact that they recorded tracks for songs and mailed them to each other to build the songs.  Kinda cool, eh?

The song is upbeat, electronic, and catchy, with lyrics celebrating finding one's soulmate... a bit cliched, perhaps, but still fun.  

Here's the Iron & Wine cover, too:

"And I have to speculate

That God himself did make us

Into corresponding shapes

Like puzzle pieces from the clay..."

9-23-11 - "Hold On" ~ Angus and Julia Stone

This one has a haunting and ethereal vibe.  Sounds like she loved someone whom she thought loved her in return, only to have her heart broken... yet she still holds on to hope that he'll come through in the end... or something to that effect, anyway.  Give it a listen; I think you may enjoy it.

"Hold on, what do you take me for?"