Ruby Red

Vintage Ford on my morning walk.

Wed, 23 May 2012 13:38:58 -0400

Vintage Ford on my morning walk.

“The Golden Age” — Beck. Earlier this week when I...

Wed, 23 May 2012 13:15:39 -0400

“The Golden Age” — Beck.

Earlier this week when I discovered that Black Keys tune, I got back into the mood for some twangy guitars and a little melancholy. I found myself stacking up a playlist with Cat Power, Beck, My Morning Jacket, Grizzley Bear and Neil Young. Yes, I know it’s silly to list Mr. Young last since he’s the reason most of these other folks even exist.

This lovely night driving lullaby shares the long twang and steel guitar string sound that I was loving in “These Days.” It usually lives on a mix devoted to road trips. As long as I don’t get distracted by some other music styles this week, I’ll share the rest of this divine playlist with you.

Speaking of playlists, Beck always seems to be up to something interesting. I wish I could hear the mixtapes he’s got lined up on this page. There are quite a few little gems in there!

Rainy days on the road.

Mon, 21 May 2012 14:38:23 -0400

Rainy days on the road.

“These Days” — Black Keys. I admit, I heard this...

Mon, 21 May 2012 12:51:00 -0400

“These Days” — Black Keys.

I admit, I heard this track at the end of a TV show earlier this weekend. I always get sucked in by those long twangy guitar notes. I found myself hunting down other Black Keys tracks and discovered that this band is a long lost favorite I’m only just discovering. With my western roots, it’s a wonder it took me so long.

Slow, hot, lazy and sad. There are occasions for such a song.

"He’s too ugly to be the world champ. The world champ should be pretty like me!"

Tue, 15 May 2012 22:59:26 -0400

“He’s too ugly to be the world champ. The world champ should be pretty like me!” -...

“More Important than Michael Jordan” - Pretty...

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:52:00 -0400

“More Important than Michael Jordan” - Pretty Lights.

Earlier this winter, the Pretty Lights track “Finally Moving” hit me like a ton of bricks and I couldn’t stop playing it. Since then, Pretty Lights and Bonobo have been the jumping off artists for my morning Pandora mixes and I have to say, what a great goddamn bit of technology, to plug in a song you like and have the computer *actually* find songs like it. I know I’m behind the times in discovering dub-step and its sisters and brothers, but hey. I’m here to tell you, this shiz is sick.

Anyways, this song gave me extra juice tonight during rehearsal with just the right combinations of tinkly sounds, dirty beats and climactic build.

"You know your neighborhood is turning over when… …the drug-dealer on your block trades..."

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:18:16 -0400

“You know your neighborhood is turning over when… …the drug-dealer on your block...

"You know the neighborhood is going downhill when: …the mannequins in the storefronts get..."

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:12:00 -0400

“You know the neighborhood is going downhill when: …the mannequins in the storefronts...

"You know the neighborhood is going downhill when: … you see a gang of white people in the..."

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:11:00 -0400

“You know the neighborhood is going downhill when: … you see a gang of white people in...

"Chicago is a city of extremes. The abundance of beefy men in baggy clothes is offset only by small..."

Mon, 14 May 2012 19:57:00 -0400

“Chicago is a city of extremes. The abundance of beefy men in baggy clothes is offset only by...

“Call It What You Want” — Foster The...

Fri, 11 May 2012 09:17:52 -0400

“Call It What You Want” — Foster The People.

I’ve been on this kick for the last couple months of listening to the same few playlists, mainly centered around new new-wave and lately, dubstep. Dubstep is everywhere now, so I won’t regale you with any today. Usually I listen to nerd podcasts on my way to the gym, but this morning, I have a feeling this one is going to fuel my bike ride. It never fails. And I always find myself singing out loud, which probably sounds ridiculous, but in my head it sounds great.

I just looked at the lyrics and they’re pretty progressive. It’s nice to be loving a pop track that isn’t about unrequited love.

Yeah we’re locked up in ideas
We like to label everything
Well I’m just gonna do here what I gotta do here
‘Cause I gotta keep myself free
You’re ducking and moving just to hide your bruises from all your enemies

And I’m in the crossfire dodging bullets from your expectancies

Yeah you’ve crossed the line
I’ve got a knife behind my back (just sayin’)
We’ve got nothing to prove
Your social guides give you swollen eyes
But what I’ve got can’t be bought so you can just

Call it what you want
Call it what you want
I said just call it what you want
Call it what you want

I really like that. That’s the mantra for the day: “But what I’ve got can’t be bought so you can just… Call it what you want.”

I thought I’d catch you up on what’s been powering me for the last couple months before I delve into new music. So… hello. I’m back. Enjoy.

Unbearable Morning Boner

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 10:14:32 -0400

So, I’m walking up Milwaukee Avenue at 6:30 this morning in my sloppy sweats, not looking...

The neo-soul ghetto

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 10:06:00 -0400

Sometimes I wonder how hard it is not to slip into the neo-soul ghetto. I just deleted an Amy...

“New York” — P.S. I Love You. The evening I arrived...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 00:40:48 -0400

“New York” — P.S. I Love You.

The evening I arrived in Brooklyn we went out to dinner and a posse of black girls on the sidewalk screaming and calling each other “nigga” reminded me how different black culture in the states is from the UK. I don’t think I heard that word in the seven weeks I was there. It was jarring. The restaurant itself sold soul food, and played R&B over the sound system, while sports played on the four TV screens positioned around the room strategically enough to distract me from my friends. Our server was unusually attentive, probably because we were the only ones in the joint. The merlot tasted like old shoes but the catfish was solid.

In Bushwick the next day, I walked out of the subway to be confronted by gritty warehouses, walls of graffiti and rustic cafés inhabited by skinny white poorly dressed hipsters, as if they could only afford things they found in dumpsters, because they’d spent all their money on laptops and coffee. In Williamsburg, it’s cute and quaint but still gritty. The kids all have oversized horn-rimmed glasses, and John and I are pretty sure we saw the singer (or his doppleganger) from LMFAO jogging down the middle of the street clad in a maroon and black thigh-length unitard, head-band and shades, his unit bouncing prominently. I stood and hailed him, crying, “I work ouuuut!” Later I paid $25 for a burger and a cocktail.

In Midtown the streets are jammed and no one cares if they bump into you. We found respite on the highline. At the 16th floor of the Ripley-Grier dance studio where we hired space, over 100 women lined the hallways in dresses and heels, waiting for an audition call. Meanwhile, we could hear the soprano screams of a singer across the floor, belting out her lines in Italian.

Late at night, taking the train home from Manhattan we waited for the R train to go south. A car arrived heading north and everyone but us boarded. In confusion, we jumped on for a second, asking the other passengers which way the train was going. Nobody seemed sure, so we jumped off and then saw that the train was going the direction we had wanted. In frustration we gave up and walked home at 2am. Someone at a swing dance tried to sell me “virgin” Sangria without mentioning the “virgin” part of the deal. That’s New York for you.

There are things I love about this city, but I’m glad to be leaving. It’s filthy, noisy and full of piss and vinegar. Literally. It smells like piss.

“Kiss On My List” — Hall & Oates. Billboard hit...

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 10:33:00 -0400

“Kiss On My List” — Hall & Oates.

Billboard hit of 1981.

Most of the time that I’ve been traveling, I’ve been obsessed with new music: pop, dub-step, electro… but occasionally, I go back to the old standards that remind me of home. So, I’m back on a Yacht Rock kick. Perhaps it’s in anticipation of meeting up with some friends tonight for Karaoke. (pronounce it: Ka-ra-OH-kay!) Perhaps I reached critical mass of travel-joy last week during my epic bus+bus+train+plane+bus trip to Heidelberg. Either way, the nostalgia for home comes at just the right time.

Hall & Oates have some of the best hooks and grooves of that seminal era in the 70’s & 80’s, when music was really smoooooth. This one has been in my head all morning.

Sausage party

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 17:59:00 -0400

Sausage party

Possibly the best nut cream I’ve ever had.

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 17:48:49 -0400

Possibly the best nut cream I’ve ever had.

Best Customs Conversation Ever

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:35:14 -0400

Customs Agent: Vat do you vant vith Germany? Me: To sample your nation's wine and sausage....

"The men’s bathroom at the Frankfrurt Hahn airport has a vending machine that sells something..."

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:26:29 -0400

“The men’s bathroom at the Frankfrurt Hahn airport has a vending machine that sells...

“On The Road Again” — Canned Heat. This is probably...

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:24:33 -0400

“On The Road Again” — Canned Heat.

This is probably one of my favorite blues songs of the era. And whenever I hit the road again, it hums in my brain.