They'll Only Miss You When You Leave

I certainly have missed Carissa's Wierd, and I can't even put into words how amazing it was to see them play a one off reunion show last Friday in Seattle at the Showbox.



The show was packed. I guess the Showbox holds about 1,100 people and the show fell about 80 short of a sellout. It was so amazing to have that many people that fancy this band as much as I do in the same space. I was almost brought to tears several times during the course of the show and I had the chills almost the whole time. Just some beautiful stuff.



The set was comprised of a slew of songs from all their albums, and was largely filled with songs off of their recent retrospective that was released called "They'll Only Miss You When You Leave: Songs 1996-2003"
Here is a song off of the retrospective originally from the album You Should Be At Home Here: http://www.hardlyart.com/mp3/CW_TheColorThatYourEyes.mp3

They then finished their set prior to the encore with a brand new song. Not sure if this will ever be officially released but I am keeping my fingers crossed. Here is the video of it being performed live. The audio is pretty bad, but just to get an idea.



I am all about spreading the word of these guys. If you've never heard them and are interested, I have the entire discography including the new retrospective that would be the best to introduce you to them with. I'll be back to update soon with pictures and such from the rest of my trip to Seattle and the surrounding areas. Until then, I am going to try to make it through the work week with almost nothing to do and my bosses out of town.

I'm out of sync yeah it's nothing new

It has been quite awhile since I have posted on the blogasphere. Figured it might be about that time. So, what to talk about, hmmmm. I am fresh off of a few excursions to see some live music. The first was to Philadelphia on the weekend of June 5th to see the National. We had quite the large crew, and the site seeing and more importantly the show were great. Very awesome weekend.

This was my view from the show. Not too shabby!!


Then this past Sunday myself, Christine, Ryan and Mutt went to see The New Pornographers with The Dodos and The Dutchess and The Duke in Columbus. This was also tons of fun. We spent the day in Columbus, hung out with Christine's parents for a bit, ate Cane's Chicken (which later caused some serious Cane Mutiny's) and did whatever until the show. There were however some interesting occurrences on the Columbus venture.

We stopped for gas in I think it was Quaker City, OH. While we were there Mutt and Ryan took a smoke break at least 10 feet away from the gas pumps in the grass. Some dude in the parking lot starts yelling over at us saying "Are you guys crazy? You can't be smoking at a gas station you are going to blow all of us up!" He persisted and tried to teach us a life lesson of sorts although all he was doing was displaying his paranoia. Ryan asked him to explain the ash tray even closer to the gas pumps then where they had been smoking and to that he had no answer. The next interesting occurrence took place while we were driving in downtown Columbus. Christine was mistakenly in a turn only lane, but didn't know it and went straight through an intersection. The guy behind us wildly beeped his horn etc. Christine proceeds to flick the guy off. At the next light, the guy gets out of his car, approaches ours, and says very calmly "you know that was a turn only lane back there, and if I would have hit you it would've been your fault." What made him feel the need to get out of his car walk up to ours and say that I'll never know. People really confuse me sometimes.

That was the past two weekends. This week and next will be largely chill and that's a good thing since the 4th of July Christine and I depart for Seattle. Can't wait! On completely unrelated notes there are some new albums I am highly anticipating that come out the next few months.

1. Admiral Radley - I Heart California (July 1stish I believe haha)
admiralradley.com

2. Kathryn Calder - Are You My Mother? (August 10th)
http://www.myspace.com/kathryncalder

3. Arcade Fire - Suburbs (August 3rd)
here some new tracks here:http://consequenceofsound.net/2010/06/14/check-out-arcade-fire-ready-to-start/

I have my looks and perfume on

I have my looks and perfume on... I am starting to think even that isn't enough to hang my hat on these days. I am completely in the work week lull. I am increasingly getting more and more bogged down by a typical 9-5 job. I should and need to stay at the job I have right now for at least a year, but it's becoming difficult. I am so much happier when I am not living in a typical routine. Example A of that would be when I was in San Francisco 2 weeks ago. I don't remember being that happy in quite awhile. I am just sorta stuck in this transition from adolescence to adulthood I guess. That's probably why I identify so much with The National's music, as these struggles seem to be a constant theme in many of their songs. I don't know, I have just been pondering over some things in my life lately, and I at times wonder if I am doing what I really want to be in this life. A life you only get one chance to live. Usually this sort of deep thinking does nothing but make me feel worse about myself, so I am going to try and not do this. Back to staring at my computer, and finding motivation to work on this monotonous Health & Wellness tips I am doing in After Effects. Right.. so this is what I went to school for 4 years and 80,000 dollars worth of debt I am totally convinced...

On a bit more of a positive note, yet still related I am going to continue the onslaught of National related posts some more. Below is a video of The National performing Sorrow as part of a streaming youtube show they had on Saturday. There are many other videos up of other songs they performed, but this song is just speaking to me today so I figured I'd post it with this post. My one bit of joy I can bring to this depressing rant.

San Francisco: Post Trip

I just got back from a 5 day trip to San Fran on Sunday night, and indeed it was very difficult to come home. For anyone who hasn't been to San Fran I would highly suggest it. There is a laundry list of reasons to do so. For one, the city is beautiful and the sights along the bay are incredible

A nice pic Nick took of the Golden Gate Bridge


This is a pic I took from Alcatraz


Second, the city is so culturally diverse, and there is something for everyone. People are into all sorts of different things, and there are outlets for you to express yourself in anyway you could imagine. This is the complete opposite of Pittsburgh. This place is so closed minded, and all that people in this city rally together for are sports and drinking holidays such as St. Patrick's Day. Our downtown is brutally boring, and filthy. The only decent parts of Pittsburgh are small areas outside of the city, not the city itself. When you visit a city like Seattle, Toronto, or San Francisco it just really allows you to see how boring and close minded Pittsburgh is.

Hmmm, what else we drove on Highway 1 quite a bit and explored an amazing beach that was hidden down below. Just views that were amazing and that I am so thankful I got to see firsthand.



Basically, I want to go back and that's why I created this blog entry. I am currently sitting in my office with nothing to do, and I am just daydreaming that I am back in this beautiful atmosphere. This 9-5 is becoming depressing. I need to find a job that allows me to see things and do different things everyday. Sitting in one spot in an office 9 hours a day doing the same thing, is definitely not for me. I am thankful for what I have, don't get me wrong, but it's just so redundant anymore and soon I am going to have to move on. To end this blog on a good note though, I am going to Philly in 3 weeks with all of my roommates, my girlfriend, and brother to see The National and hangout. Can't wait! A month after that I will be heading to Seattle too to see Carissa's Wierd and spend time with Christine. Bright things on the horizon. I'll check back soon.

San Francisco

So, today is the day I leave for San Fran. Pretty exciting stuff! I haven't taken a trip of this magnitude since I went to Omaha, which was almost 2 years ago now. That was strictly a venture with my close friends to see live music. This is more of a chance to see and spend time in a new exciting city, and see my brother. I haven't seriously hung out with my brother in such a long time. It's kinda funny, because I feel like we talk more now then when we both lived in Pittsburgh.

I really don't have too much more to say. Just trying to kill the next 2 hours of my work day, before I go home and finish packing for my 5:20 flight. Oh, I am definitely excited Jason is coming on the trip as well. It seemed like I picked bad travel dates for him considering we will be flying back home throughout all of Mother's Day. That being said, I think it will be worth it. I am sure he can send her the usual post card like he does when he travels anywhere. That might suffice. Hmmm... Saturday we are taking a tour of Alcatraz. That will be a ton of fun. Other than that we will probably just see what the city has to offer, and chill out. A much needed break of work and Pittsburgh is definitely in order. I am sure I will be posting pics and a synopsis of my trip in about a week. Until then I'll see you on the other side.

A New Find: Evening Hymns

So, since today and yesterday have been two of the absolute slowest days of work I've had in some time, it's safe to say I've had an ample amount of time on the internet. I am always looking for new talented musicians to listen to and appreciate it, and by gully I found one today. They are called Evening Hymns, and they are from the Toronto area in Ontario Canada. This band is especially perfect for today. Storms are rolling in, and this music seems to fit right in tune with that. Below I am going to post a few videos of the band playing live to give everyone a taste if they've never heard any of their stuff.



The crowd in this one is annoying but I love this song, and the video quality is great. The song is titled "Cedars"



So... yeah I guess this is a typical band I would love. They play heartfilled, melodic indie rock, and they wear flannels and sing a line in the song "Cedars," the second video I posted, about wearing flannel. I am just setting myself up to be made fun of by my friends with this post haha. Anyways, hope you enjoy these guys if you read this. Under a month and counting until I leave for my vacation in San Francisco. Can't wait! Hopefully I get something fun to start on at work soon so I can stop posting blogs everyday. Catch ya'll later.

Wandering about Infinite Arms

So, this is my first blog in awhile. I haven't had much to discuss lately I guess. I just had a really nice visit from my best friend Gary and his girlfriend who were in Pittsburgh from Seattle for a few days. We had some good times, and some funny times for sure. I also got to spend a lot of time with Christine last week, since she was on spring break, which reminded me of the old days we use to share and it was really nice and I miss it greatly. A sentimental weekend no doubt. Other than that it's been status quot really. I am working 5 days a week, skating or hanging out with friends in the evenings, and then on the weekends I get my Christine time. The weather hasn't been typical at least. That took a turn for the absolute best. It's been abnormally warm and sunny. I've been getting a chance to get on the skateboard and it's been tons of fun. I do miss getting to skate with all my friends who are largely gone from the area, but it's still been nice to get out.

Anyways... I wanted to discuss the upcoming release from Band Of Horses which is titled Infinite Arms. It will be out May 18th. Saying that I've been critical of this band over the past 2 years would be putting it nicely. The transformation this band has taken since the release of Everything All The Time is baffling. Musically they are pretty close to what they originally were, but boy have they blown up. I remember logging onto Myspace the one day and on the homepage there was an ad for shows they were playing for Jerry Garcia! Seriously!!??? I couldn't believe that shit, not to mention that they are currently playing a tour with Pearl Jam, where they are performing in hockey arenas. I am not trying to sound elitist, but I remember 3 or 4 years ago watching them play at the Grog Shop in Cleveland. If you have never been to the Grog Shop, it's very small, and its max capacity would probably be about 100 people or so. I am not trying to be one of those guys with this statement who is claiming they are sell outs or what not. I know how obnoxious that is. I am glad they have had a lot of success. They are a talented group and deserve it, but unfortunately what happens when a band that was good for certain reasons get's as big as Band Of Horses anymore is that they change things about what they did in the first place that was so great. They do things to appease the mainstream of society rather sticking to what made them great to begin with. Hints to support that are the fact that besides singer Ben Bridwell the only member from the original band is the drummer. Not to mention, that Everything All The Time was a much better all around record than Cease to Begin, mostly because Mat Brooke helped write it I would argue. For those BOH fans out there that have seen the band live, did you ever once hear them play St. Augustine or I Go The Barn Because I Like The...?? I would guess not, because those songs were written by Mat Brooke and so they are never played live since his departure from the band.

Because of all this, their ever growing popularity, and change of identity I am not expecting a lot out of the new album Infinite Arms. That being said, there is a new song and video up on their site called Compliments and I have to admit I like it quite a lot. So maybe I am completely wrong about this, and the new BOH look and sound will be just as good as the old. It's hard for me to imagine that, since the old BOH was one of my favorite bands. I will try not to be overcritical, and we'll wait and see. I will post back sometime after May 18th and I'll let you know. You can here the new song on bandofhorses.com if you're interested. Catch you on the other side.

I'm Not As Good At It As You

No this isn't an original creative blog title, but what it really is, is the title to the new S record coming out April 8th on Own Records. I put the link to an mp3 from the new album as well for those who have never heard S.



http://www.ownrecords.com/mp3s/S_SaveYou.mp3

This for me personally is some very exciting stuff. For those of you who don't know, which would probably be most of you who don't hear me rant on about her on a regular basis, S is the name of Jenn Ghetto's project. Jenn Ghetto was once a focal member of a band called Carissa's Wierd from Seattle, whose members notably consisted of Mat Brooke (Grand Archives), Ben Bridwell (Band Of Horses) and Sera Cahoone. If you have never checked them out I would say most definitely do so. I have the discography and would be more than happy to share it with anyone who is interested. My excitement for this new album exists not for an obvious reason (a new record coming out from one of my favorite artists) but more so for another reason. Jenn Ghetto hasn't released new material since 2004! This is as almost as exciting to me as if Elliott Smith were to rise from the grave and release a new album. Since the latter isn't possible, I am just going to enjoy the new S album. Fortunately for me I found the album leaked on one of my trustworthy music sites. Being that she is one of my favorite artists though, I will be purchasing the CD as well. I just can't wait 3 more weeks to hear it! Also one last exciting tid bit regarding the artists I have been talking about throughout this blog post. Carissa's Wierd is re-releasing 3 of their albums as well as getting together for a reunion show in Seattle this July! I will most certainly be there. Unfortunately the chances of Band Of Horses megastar Ben Bridwell having anything to do with this show is unrealistic at best. At least I'll be there in July to witness what truly does take place firsthand.

Kid In A Candy Store

The title to this blog describes the exact feelings I am consumed with today. For some reason I am struggling mightily to sit here in my office at work. I feel like a kid in a candy store. I am just really excited for some reason, and I am having a hard time sitting still. It could be two things. One the weather is gorgeous today, and two I just watched this live performance by The National on Jimmy Fallon last night.




Anyways, I am going to write a bit to kill sometime and to give my mind something to focus on other than wanting to be outside enjoying this beautiful day. Last night was one of those nights where you just waste a ton of time. I sat around and played Excitebike on the WiiWare for hours, and beat all 4 cups in a few hours. Looking back on it today, it was pretty sad that I played that game for so long yesterday. But seriously, the game is really addicting. Look at this video below and it will give you an idea.




So this is what I've been wasting my nights on lately. It's only going to get worse considering Mega Man 10 just came out. I believe that will be purchased tonight...



Those are just a few tid bits to enjoy. I'm going to go back to being fidgety as hell at work. Why wouldn't it rain so much this weekend that it might flood, but be gorgeous during the entire week when I have to work? Pittsburgh annoys me sometimes.

Seattle or San Francisco?

OR



So I am having an extremely hard time deciding on my vacation destination this year. What I absolutely know with certainty are two things. I am going somewhere in May, and it's either going to be Seattle (which would encompass Vancouver and Portland) or San Francisco. My brother has been working in San Fran for 6 weeks now, and maybe making a permanent transition to that market very soon. Two of my best friends Gary and John live near Seattle. This is a tough call for me. John and Gary have extremely busy schedules. John works 2 jobs, 60 hours a week and Gary is in the Navy and has a demanding work schedule during the week as well. But... I really want to see these guys and explore more of the Pacific Northwest then I got to the last time I was out there. I was hoping to branch out to Vancouver which is only an hour and 45 minutes from their house, and Portland which isn't too far either. My conflict about doing this though is their work schedules. If they can't get free time, then I will be stuck on an island off of Washington with absolutely nothing to do or transportation means to get me anywhere.

On the other hand, my brother Nick stays in the heart of downtown San Francisco. I could stay at his place/hotel and even while he's working I could just walk out and enjoy the city. So this is a tough call. I am thinking about possibly going both places. One of my favorite bands of all time Carissa's Wierd are getting together for a reunion show in Seattle in July, which I absolutely have to go see. I should have about 7 paid vacation days accrued in May, and I will have two more by July. So maybe I will use up 5 of those days to go to San Fran, and then 4 of those days to go to Seattle. I don't know why I am rambling on about this on my blog really. I think it's mostly in an attempt to talk out loud about things rather than just thinking them out inside my head. Taking two vacations to the West Coast though is going to be extremely expensive. Doubt I can afford it. Not to mention I am taking a weekend trip to Philly in early June to see The National. I think I'm going to sit here at work and ponder this some more in the meantime, while I listen to a live concert I just downloaded by Fleet Foxes' Robin Pecknold.

You can download the whole thing here if you're interested: http://chocolatebobka.blogspot.com/2009/07/mp3-white-antelope-two-headed-boy.html

People love to be apart of something even if they don't understand it

Sorry for the extremely long title to this blog, but I was perturbed yesterday after logging onto Facebook following the gold medal hockey game between Canada and the U.S. The first thing that annoyed me was just the hockey fans that seemed to just fall out of the sky!? Why do these people all of a sudden have an interest in watching a hockey game? It's pretty clear that the reasoning for this is that they want to be a part of something that everyone else is talking about around them. I have a hard time believing some of these people actually enjoy watching hockey, and aren't just watching it to see some "hot" hockey players as they see it or to fit in. Quotes like "Awwhhh I am so bummed we lost, but Crosby scored the game winner and is my hubby so it's all good!!" just annoy me to no end. So apparently you play for the team, when you say things like "we lost." It's also pretty clear you watch because you fantasize about fucking and or marrying Sidney Crosby. Somehow neither of these things really seem important, and the hard work put out there by team USA slips by the way side. The more I dwell on these thoughts I'm having regarding this, I am beginning to realize I'm probably just being a total elitist. However, I can't help but be critical. It's a game that I highly enjoy watching and if this fake enthusiasm for hockey must exist for a day I wish it could appreciated this much everyday throughout the nation which would in turn help the game of hockey and the NHL as a whole. Fortunately, I live in a city that has a ton of passion for hockey, largely due to the success of the Penguins and Sidney Crosby. This is part of the problem but also ends up being part of the great thing about hockey in this city. Marks for Sidney Crosby or Kris Letang because he's hot or whatever buy merchandise and go to games and so forth and annoy the shit out of me. Yet, they lead to more financial revenue for the team, and hence better talent gets put out on the ice. But, most of these people probably don't know the difference between a one timer or a wrist shot...

I am extremely grateful that I get to root for and watch such amazing talent in the best sport that exists each year in Pittsburgh. I am just over these people that would otherwise talk shit on or not care about hockey claiming to be hockey fans because the U.S. almost won a gold medal or because Sidney Crosby is hot. I apologize for the rant, but luckily not to many people read this blog so it shouldn't offend to many people anyways. BUH.

Impressed

So I stumbled upon a band today known as Mumford & Sons and the only thing I can say after an initial listen to there album Sigh No More is "holy shit I'm impressed." This record literally has me blown away right now. It's by far the best record recently released that I have listened to front to back since maybe Boxer by The National. I might be quick in making that large of a claim about it, but man this music makes me want to go climb an enormous mountain or do something amazing right now. I mean most albums I hear have some good tracks here and there but you just hit this point on most albums where there's this lull and everything sounds the same. Like the new Joanna Newsom for instance. Don't get me wrong I think she's a very talented artist and I like some of her music, but her new album "Have One On Me" bored me to no end. It's 18 tracks most of them over 6 minutes or more and it just is so damn repetitive and boring. I am sure Pitchfork will still find it necessary to give it a 9/10 record review. Anyway, this Mumford & Sons record is basically the antithesis of this. I posted a music video of the song Winter Winds from the album below to give you an idea of how awesome this band is. I am just so psyched on this right now. Enjoy.



Also, I've been waiting for the New P's to release a track from their new album coming in May and here it is:

http://pitchfork.com/news/37972-new-track-from-new-pornographers-your-hands-together/


-Chicken

That Herd

So just to give a little bit of background for those of you who do not listen to sports talk radio, which I am guessing is almost anyone who would be reading this, there is a show from 10-2 on ESPN radio called The Herd. It is hosted by Colin Cowherd and for me he is by far the best radio host I have ever listened to. I never got into Ron & Fez or things like that because I never had XM or any type of Satellite Radio, plus I enjoy sports talk. I am just a nerd for sports, always have been. Anyways The Herd goes deeper into sports, and he also tackles a lot of social issues and human values. Basically I agree with everything this doggy has to say. He just views life the same way I do I suppose. When I stumpled upon the video below I had to post it, because this is both hilarious and true. Not to mention, it gives you an idea of what The Herd is like. Enjoy!

A Fitting Song

I stumbled across this Grand Archives cover of Sam Cooke's Cupid today and figured I'd post it for those of you to enjoy with Valentine's Day just passing and all.



I don't have much to talk about. Just another week of work and winter weather. I am hoping to find this sweet apple chamomile tea made by celestial seasonings this week though. That would be something nice to look forward too. I don't want to pay $10 to have it shipped to me, but I think according to the site I might be able to find it at a Big K-Mart... weird. Anyways, some cool things are ahead. Next weekend we are going to shoot the pilot to a web series that I and some doggies are producing known as Eutaw Street. It'll be extremely fun to work on something creative with my friends again. I am seriously counting down the days for nice weather and more daylight to return. When it does, the skateboard and the HMC-150 are going to see alot of action. Seriously, can't wait!

Also I have this to look forward to among the countless other amazing releases coming out later this year.

It's Called Admiral Radley and it's a newly formed band with Aaron Espinoza as well as Ariana Murray of Earlimart and Jason Lytle and Aaron Burtch formerly of Grandaddy. How awesome is this gonna be!!??

That's all I got. I'll be back soon. BUH

Bored At Work

I have absolutely nothing going on at work today so I figured I'd ramble about some things. I just had a really amazing weekend with my girlfriend in Streetsboro, OH. We got a chance to hangout with my sister for a little bit too, which was awesome. I am really proud of my sister. She has always been the overachieving type, and always has huge aspirations for her life. Recently she broke up with her boyfriend of over 3 years so that she could more clearly focus on her future amongst other reasons. I believe in staying with someone you love and making sacrifices for that someone, but I also highly believe in the subconscious requests of our brain to philosophically figure out what we are meant to do here on earth. I see my sister recognizing these things, and making the appropriate decisions to finding her path. I am still finding that path, and it's been extremely difficult. Christine and I are going through a tough time in our lives. I have what should make one entirely happy. I have a great full time job in my field, I have great friends, a loving, smart, beautiful girlfriend and a caring supportive family. Yet, for some reason I don't feel as happy as I could or should. Maybe I am just settling into a role that wasn't meant for me, or maybe it's the distance of my relationship that is taking a toll on me. Either way I feel as if my philosophical journey through life has reached a lull and that something has to happen before I can reach happiness and wisdom. Let's face it, I think most spend their whole lives in the search for complete happiness. I know I need patience, and there are always lots of cool signs that come into my conscious mind to let me know I am getting there. In the mean time I am going to listen to some music, and continue on with my daily routine. Some exciting things are on the horizon!

-Chicken-

Downtime

Well work today is certainly dragging. Some days I absolutely love work, and am challenged creatively, which is all I have ever wanted out of a job. Other days, like today, I sit around and rummage around all over the internet, looking at the same web sites 50 times a day in an attempt to make the day go a little faster. I am starting to realize that all of the downtime I have in my life anymore is making me a lot less healthy and happy than I was a year or even two ago. I have many things in my life that make me much happier than back then. My job is a perfect example of that, and so is my lovely girlfriend Christine. What has changed in a negative way from those days though, is my content with sitting around doing nothing. This is not me!

My whole life I was the kid who couldn't sit still and needed to be doing something 24/7. I was constantly outdoors doing whatever it was that occupied my interests at the time. Not anymore! I go to work, come home and sit around on the computer some more, or watch t.v. which is more or less the same thing. The only things that provide me with some happiness in my house after work are the communication I share with my roommates and watching hockey. I don't want to make myself seem depressed, because I have a lot of things to be thankful for, but what I have developed mostly due to my lack of passion for going out and being active are bad habits.

One bad habit that I am struggling with mightily is too much self-introspection. I study everything I do now, and every feeling I get under a microscope it seems. Most people probably do this to an extent probably, but I have been doing it to the point that it is making me highly uncomfortable and often times full of intense anxiety. I feel like I don't see things around me the way I use too, and I am questioning the rationale and reality behind things constantly. I usually don't believe that deep thinking is a bad thing, but when you accompany it with intense worry it is very problematic and hard to deal with. I have always been a worrier. Anyone who knows me well can attest to that. When something is worrying me, it becomes me. I am unable to be myself, and I focus solely on it. This motivates me to get many things done, and drives me creatively, but it is also debilitating for me at times.

On and off for the past year I have been doing this too myself, and the anxiety problems I have had most of my life have reached great intensity on certain occasions. I am fed up with it though. I am sick of sitting around thinking about myself. I want to be out "there" in this world we get to experience everyday, taking as much of it in as possible, and living my life for that. I am fed up with this internal living habit I have developed. I have taken several steps to try and get out of this. I have completely changed my diet as of 2 weeks ago, and I think it will help. The next thing to change is my lifestyle, and with that I am hoping my overall mentality. I'll be talking about my progress with this periodically on this blog I am sure.

-Chicken-

Cabin Fever/I Miss Music

Well, hitting the home stretch of winter here and I am definitely over it. There is seriously nothing worse to me than winter. I enjoy seeing snow for maybe 2 weeks of the year. The first snow of the year, and around Christmas is about all I can stand. Worse than the snow though, has got to be cold temperatures. That's what really keeps me from doing anything. I am just too skinny to deal with cold weather, it pierces right through me. Anyways, what has really been frustrating me with the winter in general in PA is not the temperatures, constantly being indoors, or dealing with terrible Pittsburgh traffic when one inch of snow drops, but the fact that no good music can be seen anywhere nearby.
Cleveland hasn't had anything going on either, and I know it's just a product of two things. One is the fact that no band wants to deal with the weather here this time of the year. Second, most bands I listen to don't release new music in the winter it seems. I just miss going to shows in such a bad way. That use to be by far my favorite thing to do. Just traveling to see some music. It just hasn't happened in awhile and it's a bit depressing for sure. Maybe it's the fact that my best traveling buddy Joller moved to Seattle, or maybe it's just the bad anxiety problems I've had the past year. Probably a combination of both, but this year I am hoping to get back out there and do what makes me happy regardless, which is traveling and seeing music.
I am gonna go through some of the releases I'm anticipating this year, and some shows I plan on going to. If any of my friends read this I'll definitely get shit for being a "hipster" talking about "indie" bands, and that's expected. I guess the fact that I have a beard and like flannel shirts fits the bill, but I just wear and listen to what I like. I've had a beard and a few flannels when I listened to metal and screamo music everyday, so I am not sure if it's a completely fair assessment. I try to just like what I like and talk to the people that enjoy it for the pure essence of it, not to try to fit in or be a part of something. Those people would be "marks" in wrestling terms. So hopefully some of you enjoy this.

My Anticipated 2010 Releases:

1.

The New Pornographers - Together (May 4, 2010)

They release nothing but good records and I'm sure that this one will be nothing different. They even have some contributions from Okkervil River's Will Sheff and Beirut's Zach Condon. I can't wait to jam out to some new New P's in May!

2. The National - (Yet to be determined) (sometime May 2010)

These guys are seriously one of the best bands I've listened to in the past 5 years. I remember when a buddy of mine told me to download Alligator my Freshman year of college, definitely wasn't a mistake. Their last LP Boxer though put The National to almost rock star status, but hey well deserved. I have been lucky enough to have seen them back to back nights in 2007 in support of Boxer. One of the best bands I have ever seen live. I am hoping to go on a nice trip to Philly to see them June 5th.

3. Arcade Fire - (Yet to be determined) (sometime this year)

Hoping to finally get to see them perform live this year. They played for free in Cleveland for an Obama rally awhile back, and somehow I didn't find out about it and missed it. Always releasing good music, can't wait for another album.

Albums I've been digging lately:

1. A.A. Bondy - When The Devil's Loose
2. Beach House - Teen Dream
3. Middle East - The Recordings of The Middle East
4. Windmill - Puddle City Racing Lights *the voice is an all or nothing

Okay, I didn't hope on the best albums of 2009 band wagon so I'll list a few of my favorite albums that were released this year (no particular order).

1. Jason Lytle - Yours Truly, The Commuter

I always liked Grandaddy, but this album is so damn good. I could listen to this album all the time.

2. Grand Archives - Keep In Mind Frankenstein

Pitchfork ripped this album, but I am always a huge fan of Mat Brooke's work. My
girlfriend Christine says I'm gay for him haha. This album is definitely darker
than there first one, and it seems to end too quickly, but there are a lot of
standout tracks. I am hoping Mat's next move is to do another Carissa's Wierd
album with Jenn Ghetto back to recording and touring.

3. J.Tillman - Year In The Kingdom

I BEG you to find another album as calming and nice to sleep or relax to hehe.

4. S - Sad Style (10 Year Anniversary re-release)

This album was originally released in 1999 with 12 tracks and was recorded on a 4
track in a bedroom. The 2009 re-issue features 5 additional tracks, and the
original tracks were re-mastered for this release. Jenn Ghetto is certainly not
for everyone. Her lyrics are very depressing, but she has such a raw style and
unique prospective on things that I just admire.

5. A.C. Newman - Get Guilty

Anything done by anyone from the New P's is usually listen worthy, and especially
anything done by A.C. Newman, Dan Bejar, Neko Case, and Kathryn Calder.

6. Neko Case - Middle Cyclone

Not much to say, gotta love that powerful Neko Case voice. This might be her best
solo record ever.

7. Sunset Rubdown - Dragonslayer

I got a chance to see Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade, and Handsome Furs, but I have
to say that Sunset Rubdown was by far the most enjoyable live. Something about
that lamp on Spencer Krug's keyboard and those wailing vocals is just great.

Hope anyone who read this appreciated it somewhat. I felt like going on a rant about music, and unleashing some passion. Welcome to my blog!