Sunday, July 31, 2011

Something is not right with me! How was I supposed to know?

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Cold War Kids
Song of the day- Something is not right with me

It seems fitting to end my lollapalooza blog prepping with Cold War Kids as they were the first band that I discovered just by passing the stage in the sweltering heat several years ago while covering Lolla. There is something about Nathan Willett's vocals that draw you to him and before you know it you snagged between all the rumbling guitar strings of songs that seem to by crying out in melodious agony. It's that sweet sweet kind of pain that makes you think you might be in love with your own pain because of the kind of art it can produce. This might be a tad sadistic and something is probably not right with me, but luckily I'm not alone as the Cold War Kids sing my anthem. If something is not right with you, then here's an anthem for you to agonize with as well.



Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
Tryin' not to let it show!

I tryed to call you collect
You said you would not accept
Your friends are laughin' cause
No body uses pay phones

Gave me quarters to select
So I'm on the jukebox again
People dancin'
Shoulda never chose "Girlfriend"

Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
How was I supposed to know?

Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
Something is not right with me!
I'm trying not to let it show!

Crash into the people who're
Sleepin' late into the evening
Reach behind they can hardly find their spines

Crash into the people who're
Sleepin' late into the evening
Reach behind they can hardly find their spines

Crash into the people who're
Sleepin' late into the evening
Reach behind they can hardly find their spines

You said did you lack a cause
I try to feel like I can
It was smokey but it died in your front yard

You find out who's datin' who
But when it comes to you
Hope is pullin' punches
With different ways in my mind

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Catastrophe And The Cure

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Explosions in the sky
Song of the day- Catastrophe And The Cure

I have always been reluctant posting electronica or instrumental songs on my blog cuz without words I'm not sure what to say about music. Cuz I'm a fiction writing major, I really really really love wordy wordy lyrics (can't you tell my amazing writing skills firsthand? Thanks for the degree Columbia). But there is something to be said about certain artists like today's Explosion in the sky. Though I'd prefer an indie tight pant wearing, skinnier and paler than me male singing over this anthem, there is so much emotion behind these strings and drums, it really can stand on it's own. By the end of it I feel as if I've experienced and entire futuristic suspense thriller with plenty of plot twists and probable leading man walking away from an explosion ending. And really, how many songs with lyrics can offer you that? By Sunday night, after I've lived through 3 full days of sweaty drunk bodies and blasting music, I think I might plop face down on probable nasty grass and take in some instrumental jams and experience my own suspense thriller. If you're in need of the same, get ready for some explosions in the sky.



No lyrics?!

Friday, July 29, 2011

The world is lazy but you and me we're just crazy

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Best Coast
Song of the day- When I'm with you

My friend Blake sent this to me awhile ago cuz he understood my love of California and perhaps equally if not stronger, my love of In-n-Out burger. Set to the backdrop of Best Coast it somehow filters only fond memories of sunny cali and makes me think nothing bad could ever happen there with my delicious fast food and clown boyfriend. Only good times and no stomach ache. If you're looking for that kind of dream, this one's for you.



The world is lazy
but you and me
we're just crazy

So when I'm with you, I have fun
Yeah when I'm with you, I have fun

The world is lazy
but you and me
We're just crazy

So when I'm with you, I have fun
Yeah when I'm with you, I have fun

Ever since I was a little girl
My mama always told me
there'd be boys like you

So when I'm with you, I have fun
Yeah when I'm with you, I have fun

I hate sleeping alone (4x)
Alone (5x)

Thursday, July 28, 2011

It doesn't matter where you've been As long as it was deep, yeah

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- The Cars
Song of the day- Just What I needed

Let's turn the clock back a few generations for today's jam. I'm not sure of the story behind the 1970s band playing Lolla, but as I realized all the fabu songs they sang, I'm pretty excited for the afternoon rock out old school that will happen on sunday. If you're in need of an afternoon retro jam, this might be just what you needed.



I don't mind you comin' here
And wastin' all my time
'cause when you're standin' oh so near
I kinda lose my mind
It's not the perfume that you wear
It's not the ribbons in your hair
I don't mind you comin' here
And wastin' all my time

I don't mind you hangin' out
And talkin' in your sleep
It doesn't matter where you've been
As long as it was deep, yeah
You always knew to wear it well and
You look so fancy I can tell
I don't mind you hangin' out
And talkin' in your sleep

I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to feed
I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to bleed

I don't mind you comin' here
And wastin' all my time time
'cause when you're standin' oh so near
I kinda lose my mind, yeah
It's not the perfume that you wear
It's not the ribbons in your hair
I don't mind you comin' here
And wastin' all my time

I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to feed
I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to bleed

I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to feed
I guess you're just what I needed
(just what I needed)
I needed someone to plead
Yeah, yeah, so plead me

You're just what I needed
You're just what I needed
Yeah, you're just what I needed
Yeah, yeah yeah

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

But it's almost always never you Never you

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Lissie
Song of the day- When I'm alone

There are some artists that are just better live. And even though I have yet to experience Lissie up close, it is obvious even in live videos like today's that she can blow any audio mixes out of the water with her live vocals. Just add her to the list of people I've been dying to see and also artists I desperately wish I was. She defines the term raw talent. Everything about her music is rough, hard, a proper soundtrack to any smokey whole in the wall bar, can probably kick your ass and goes down like melted butter. Now that's what rock n roll should be according to me.



I turned my back
You were gone in a flash
Like you always do
You've always gone off somewhere else
And when the phone rang
And I thought it was you
And I sprung like a kid who's just got out of school
But it's almost always never you
Never you

I screamed like a child
My insides went wild

When I'm alone with you
You make me feel, you make me feel
When I'm alone with you
You are the one, you are the one
When I'm alone with you
You make me feel, you make me feel
When I'm alone with you
You are the one, you are the one

And when I reach out and I only grab air
And it kills me to think that you never did care
And it's hopeless
You've always run off somewhere else
I'm throwing a tantrum
Why are you such a phantom?

When I'm alone with you
You make me feel, you make me feel
When I'm alone with you
You are the one, you are the one
When I'm alone with you
You make me feel, you make me feel
When I'm alone with you
You are the one, you are the one

Reminds me of home
When you're around me
Next time you leave, don't go without me
No oh no
When I'm alone with you
You make me feel, you make me feel
When I'm alone with you
You are the one, you are the one

More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmania.com/when_im_alone_lyrics_lissie.html
All about Lissie: http://www.musictory.com/music/Lissie

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Something’s coming, but nothing ever does

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- The Paines of Being pure at heart
Song of the day- Say No to Love

The over dramatic feeling of adolescents oozes out of today's band which should be obvious even with just the band's name. And I embrace it 100%. They write musical teen anthems like today's song about being stuck in a situation you don't want but don't know anything else to do when you're still stuck in your small town and can't picture a world bigger than that but have a hope inside you of something more. It most likely plays in all of our coming of age stories. So for looking back or looking forward, let's get a little over dramatic about it.



Yeah I’m looking for you

and I know you’ll be found

with the parking lot kids,

with the loneliest crowd

And his heart’s on his sleeve



and your hand’s on the wheel

trying hard not to say

what you just don’t feel -

yeah you just don’t feel



Now you’re looking away

could you plan an escape

from the places you’ve known,

where they know your mistakes?



And you wish he would stop

and you wish you weren’t steel

should you try to do something

that you just don’t feel?



Something’s coming,

but nothing ever does

Something’s coming

you better say no to love



When everything he says is wrong

and all you want to feel is “gone”

go on



When everything he does is wrong

and all you want to feel is “gone”

go on

Monday, July 25, 2011

What makes a man want to break a heart with ease? I think I know I think I might know

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- City and Colour
Song of the day-

My newest pet peeve after doing these Lolla blogs is discovering a new fantastic band that I know I will be missing at Lolla cuz I'm seeing another band I've been dying to hear. Alas, if you are not me you should most definitely stop and check out City and Colour. I've been listening to him for about 10min now and I can't get enough. He has one of those voices that stops you dead in your tracks. It's a simple guy and guitar but also perhaps my most favorite type of music. Stripped down to one voice and one instrument, it's amazing to see what one person is capable to make you feel with just these two things. What makes a man capable of knocking you off course with just a voice and a strum? well listen to this and you might know.



I can hear my train comin'
It's a lonesome and distant cry
I can hear my train comin'
Now I'm runnin' for my life
What makes a man walk away from his mind?
I think I know
I think I might know

I can feel the wind blowin'
It's sending shivers down my spine
I can feel the wind blowin'
It shakes the trees and the power lines
What makes a man spend his whole life in disguise?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh

I can see the sun settin'
It's casting shadows on the sea
I can see the sun, it's setting
It's getting colder, starting to freeze
What makes a man want to break a heart with ease?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh

Well I can hear my train comin'
Looks like time is not on my side
Well I can hear my train comin'
I'm still runnin' for my life
What makes a man pray, when he's about to die?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh, oh oh

I think I might know
I think I might know, woah oh

Sunday, July 24, 2011

And if you share (with your heart) Yeah, you give (with your heart) What you share with the world is what it keeps of you

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Noah and the Whale
Song of the day- Give a little Love

I think if one of my favorite directors, Wes Anderson, had a band it would be Noah and the Whale. There are similar styling, not just about the look of the band but also the sound that is quirky, a bit off center, a tad unusual, and pretty much how I think the inside of my mind looks. It's a perhaps innocent, perhaps naive, perhaps simplistic outlook on life that mixed with a ton of idiosyncrasies make up an odd outlook on life. Today's song is one of my favorites and I hope they play it live. When you strip down on the complications of love and relationships and emotions and rambling thoughts and selfishness. Love can be as simple as this song and I think when I get lost in all the complexities of love I need to sometimes go back and look at the stripped down version. If you give a little love you can get a little love of your own. So if you need a little love, this one's for you.


Well I know my death will not come
'Til I breathe all the air out my lungs
'Til my final tune is sung
That all is fleeting
Yeah, but all is good
And my love is my whole being
And I've shared what I could
But if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart
Yeah if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart

Well my heart is bigger than the earth
And though life is what gave it love first
Life is not all that it's worth
'Cause life is fleeting
Yeah, but I love you
And my love surrounds you like an ether
In everything that you do
But if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart
Yeah if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart
Yeah if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart
Yeah if you give a little love, you can get a little love of your own
Don't break his heart

Well if you are (what you love)
And you do (what you love)
I will always be the sun and moon to you
And if you share (with your heart)
Yeah, you give (with your heart)
What you share with the world is what it keeps of you

Saturday, July 23, 2011

But will my heart be broken When the night Meets the morning sun.

Artist- Amy Winehouse
Song of the day- Will you still love me tomorrow

Taking a step off track for a moment, I felt like celebrating a voice so angelic and a life so broken. Amy Winehouse's problems couldn't have been more exposed in the media, in her music, and in her performances. It's often heartbreaking to see such precious gift like a voice that exposes the soul, seeing the true beauty of a person and realizing all the demons that surround a life trying to tear that soul down. Despite all her issues Winehouse's voice broke through and hopefully in the end that is what she will be known for and in the end she may have finally found peace to rest in.R.I.P. Amy Winehouse.



Tonight you're mine completely,
You give your love so sweetly,
Tonight the light of love is in your eyes,
But will you love me tomorrow?

Is this a lasting treasure,
Or just a moment's pleasure,
Can I believe the magic of your sighs,
Will you still love me tomorrow?

Tonight with words unspoken,
You said that I'm the only one,
But will my heart be broken,
When the night (When the night)
Meets the morning sun.

I'd like to know that your love,
Is love I can be sure of,
So tell me now and I won't ask again,
Will you still love me tomorrow?
Will you still love me tomorrow?

Thursday, July 21, 2011

This ain't no place to lose your mind This ain't no place to fall behind

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Ryan Bingham
Song of the day- The Weary Kind

I fell in love with Ryan Bingham perhaps like many people, after the movie Crazy Heart came out in which he contributed some fantastic music. He has that lived voice that you just almost think can barely sing but actually makes the kind of rough broken music work even better. It's that pure kind of country sound that when exaggerated can be about your wife leaving you and taking the dog and the pickup but when done right tells a lonesome tragedy of a hard man, open horizon, and a loss you can't drink yourself out of. It's exaggeration in the way that pulls on the heartstrings. And if you're in need of that kind of hyperbole, this one's for you.



Your heart's on the loose
You rolled them seven's with nothing to lose
This ain't no place for the weary kind

You called all your shots
Shooting 8 ball at the corner truck stop
Somehow this don't feel like home anymore

And this ain't no place for the weary kind
This ain't no place to lose your mind
This ain't no place to fall behind
Pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try

Your body aches
Playing your guitar and sweating out the hate
The days and the nights all feel the same

Whiskey has been a thorn in your side
It doesn't forget
The highway that calls for your heart inside

And this ain't no place for the weary kind
This ain't no place to lose your mind
This ain't no place to fall behind
Pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try

Your lover's warm kiss
Is too damn far from your fingertips
You are the man that ruined her world

Your heart's on the loose
You rolled them seven's with nothing to lose
And this ain't no place for the weary kind

i guess i got just what i wanted and all i wanted was a glance

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Fences
Song of the day- Girls with accents

Perhaps because I'm still on chicago time and it's 2:30am to me, but today's band, which I just started researching 10min ago, seems like if Taylor Swift was an indie rocker man with lots of tattoos but the same emotional need to gossip about her youthful feelings. It feels almost too personal, somewhat naive, yet intriguing snippets of one's life set to a catchy rhythm that before I know it I secretly enjoy but don't know why. So if you're in need of some grungier adolescent (not so much emo as feelings-esque) rock, give it a try.



i guess i got just what i wanted
and all i wanted was a glance
when you pass me in the hallways
on your way to your next class

i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything
i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything

guess i got just what i wanted
we're both alone at my dad's house
and now's my chance to finally kiss you
but i got drunk and i passed out

i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything
i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything

i guess i got just what i wanted
a pretty girl to live with me
and split the rent right down the middle
and all i wanna do is be

i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything
i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything
i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything
i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up, i'm fucking up everything

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

If I was young, I'd flee this town I'd bury my dreams underground

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Beirut
Song of the day- Elephant Gun

Beirut is like the music of how I wish my life was; very bohemian, very young and romantic and well traveled and dreamy. It is like an old soul kind of music that I think is lost in the musical scene right now so I'm pretty excited that it's planted right on the night showing of Lolla's lineup. When the majority of chicago will be at Eminem, I shall be sitting back, most probably with a bottle of cheap wine, enjoying a little old soul type of music. If you care to join me, this one's for you.



If I was young, I'd flee this town
I'd bury my dreams underground
As did I, we drink to die, we drink tonight

Far from home, elephant gun
Let's take them down one by one
We'll lay it down, it's not been found, it's not around

Let the seasons begin - it rolls right on
Let the seasons begin - take the big game down

Let the seasons begin - it rolls right on
Let the seasons begin - take the big game down

And it rips through the silence of our camp at night
And it rips through the night

And it rips through the silence of our camp at night
And it rips through the silence, all that is left is all that I hide

Monday, July 18, 2011

Rather die in your arms, than die lonesome Rather die hard, than die hollow

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Lykke Li
Song of the day- Love out of lust

Probably my favorite artist of the year, Lykke Li is often known for her innocent voice and dance beats, but I think my most favorite song off her new album is today's ballad. In fact after being obsessed with her music for the last 6 months I've come to realize she writes / performs some pretty fantastic, heartbreaking, emotional, beauty of a ballad. But alas ballads aren't really an outdoors music festival scene but I'm crossing my fingers for this song. It's about the battle of settling in order to not be alone, risking too much to find love, knowing it is the greatest thing life has to offer but maybe going about all the wrong ways to find it. it's tragic, it's relatable, it's Lykke Li.



Rather die in your arms, than die lonesome
Rather die hard, than die hollow
The higher that I climb
the deeper I fall down
I'm running out of time
So let's dance while we're waiting

We will live longer than I will
We will be better than I was
We can cross rivers with our will
we can do better than I can
so dance while you can
Dance cause you must
Love out of lust
Dance while you can

Rather live out a lie than live wondering
how the fire feels while burning
for life is like a flame
and the ashes for wasting
so honey don't be afraid
to dance while we're waiting
we will live longer than I will
we will be better than I was
we can cross rivers without wind
we can do better than i can
so dance while you can
dance cause you must
love out of lust
dance while you can

so tired of waiting
come baby
so tired of waiting
come baby

we will live longer than i will
we will be better than i was
we can cross rivers with our will
we can do better than i can
we will live longer than I will
we can cross rivers with our will
we can do better than i can
so dance while you can
dance cause you must
love out of lust
so dance while you can


Love out of lust
Love out of lust
Love out of lust..

Sunday, July 17, 2011

When you look out on the Midwest plain Do you realize the moon is still the same?

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Maps & Atlases
Song of the day- Israeli Caves

My sister once told me I looked exactly like the lead singer of today's band. Though I wished to argue, I realized we had the same wavy hair minus my lack of a long scraggly beard and we may or may not have been wearing the exact same pair of maroon corduroy pants at the time. Though I tend to enjoy comparisons to other musicians, namely female, I do feel like their sound is right up my alley. And pairing it with an adorable little boy working out in a head band and well I'm sold! It reminds me of one of my friend's desire in having a child just so she can dress them up in old man clothes, which might be a strange reason for having a kid but I must admit it makes my heart giggle inside. I enjoy the quirky light hearted ideas this song pulls out. It paints a magical jolly picture of the world without taking it too seriously. So if you're in need of a jolly good time or a kid wearing a ninja outfit, this one's for you.



Where whose trees finally sigh
And all the rain has covered
Where I was pierced slowly by
The happy humming all the more

When you look out on the Midwest plain
Do you realize the moon is still the same?
That rose above Israeli caves
The day the words you praised were written

When you look out on the Midwest plain
Do you realize the moon is still the same?
That rose above Israeli caves
The day the words you praised were written

And the moon stood stock still
Under the Joshua tree
And we all stood stock still
Just waiting to see

And the moon stood stock still
Under the Joshua tree
And we all stood stock still
Just waiting to see
Oh, we were just waiting to see it

Where whose trees finally sigh
And the moon sets down highly covered
An iceberg skin disguise
All brooding brooks lie

When you look out on the Midwest plain
Do you realize the moon is still the same?
That rose above Israeli caves
The day the words you praised were written
(x4)

Friday, July 15, 2011

Warning sign of things to come Love is here, but I guess it's gone now

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Local Natives
Song of the day- Warning Sign

Sorry for the absence of music knowledge, I have been busy with my love affair with Elvis...or at least hunting down his ghost at Graceland, but that's a story for another blog. Today's Lolla band is one of my fav concerts of last year. Boy harmony and heavy drum beats is just about the best thing and make for some good indie crowd dancing, which I guess is more nodding in place than usual. There is something soothing about there music but energetic at the same time. And today's cover of the Talking Heads tune is almost like a brand new song pulling I think the best of the Talking Heads and making it fit perfectly with their own sound. If you aren't a Local Native fan yet, I suggest visiting!



Warning sign
Warning sign
I hear it, but I pay no mind

Hear my voice
Hear my voice
It's saying something
It's not very nice

Pay attention
Pay attention
I'm talking to you
And I hope you're concentrating

I've got money now
I've got money now
C'mon baby
C'mon baby

Warning sign of things to come
Happened before, it'll happen again

Hear my voice
Move my hair
Move it around a lot
I don't care what I remember

Warning sign
Warning sign
Look at my hair
I like the design

It's the truth
It's the truth
Your glassy eyes
And your open mouth

Take it easy, baby
Take it easy
It's a natural thing
So relax

I've got money now
I've got money now
C'mon baby
C'mon baby

Warning sign of things to come
Love is here, but I guess it's gone now

Warning sign of things to come
Love is here, but I guess it's gone now

Hear my voice
Move my hair
Move it around a lot
I don't care what I remember

Monday, July 11, 2011

Touching down, hit the ground I'm breathing new air

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Friendly Fires
Song of the day- Hawaiian Air

What can I say about me and my fear of flying? It's hard to recall since I've been taking anxiety pills for it since I was like in sixth grade, but this video makes the back of my neck sweat just a tiny bit. Mostly I think because on top of all my fear of plummeting to the ground in a tiny cylinder tube, I forget how uncomfortable it also is in general and am extra happy I'm conked out for the majority of the tight spaces of uncomfortableness. But, you know besides that this music is quite pleasant and makes me wish I was dancing around on a jungle or a beach and yes maybe even flying on a plane as long as it was taking me to this type of good time. So far all those who need a flight to good times STAT, this one's for you.



Taking a ride to another clime
Knees in my back 'cause we’re flying high
Did I give it all, I guess I gave it all.
Seeing the mountains through the fog
Watching a film with a talking dog
‘Cause if I fall then I guess I fall.

Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air
Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air

Leaving the world down beneath the clouds
Hawaiian notes, don’t need no pounds
Did I give them all, oh did I give them all?
Ache in my leg from a broken seat
Skipping the meal for a G&T
‘Cause if I fall I'm begging not to fall.

Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air
Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air

Touching down, hit the ground,
I'm breathing new air
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in
As we land you pinch my hand
We’re still here
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in

Up in the sky Honolulu bound
Steel guitar and a melly sound
Did I give it all, I guess I gave it all
Feeling the shakes keeps me reticent
Stuck in my seat from the turbulence
And if I fall, then I fall.

Breaking open skies and green earths
Around them we float
Deserts in our eyes were falling
Our hearts are not broke

Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air
Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air

Touching down, hit the ground
I'm breathing new air
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in

As we land, you pinch my hand
I'm still here
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in

As the wheels, hit the ground
I'm breathing Hawaiian air
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in

As the heat fills my lungs
I'm breathing Hawaiian air
Gonna take this all in
Gonna take this all in

Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air
Hawaiian air, Hawaiian air

Sunday, July 10, 2011

If the color's bad No need to be sad. It really ain't that bad.

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Grouplove
Song of the day- Colours

I plan on starting off my Saturday morning at Lollapalooza with a little Grouplove. Though the video is slightly disturbing there is something youthful and funloving about today's song. It's wrapped up in intense emotion and energy that makes you want to embrace life even when you don't want to. It's when you feel down and out but there's a light inside your head, that logic that tells you it's really not as bad as you think it feels. I sometimes think it's my damn logic that keeps me from running completely mad and makes me often debate if I'm the better or worse for it. I suppose it's finding that balance of logic and madness that makes us adults and not the little lost boys in the video. But to all the little lost boys running mad inside of you, this one's for you.



I am a man, man, man, man
Up, up in the air
And I run around, round, round, round this down town and act like I don't care.
So when you see me flying by the planet's moon,
You don't need to explain if everything's changed
Just know I'm just like you.

Huh.
Ha, (x4)

So I pull the switch, the switch, the switch inside my head.
And I see black, black, green,and brown, brown, brown and blue, yellow, violets, red.
And suddenly a light appears inside my brain
And I think of my ways, I think of my days and know that I have changed.

If the color's (bad?)
No need to be sad.
It really ain't that bad.

If the color's (bad?)
No need to be sad.
You've still got your (hand?)

So Mistress, Mistress have you been up to the roof?
He shot himself, self
There's blood on the wall
'Cause he couldn't face the truth.

Oh, knock that down, leave the ground and find some space
And tell your friends, friends,
You'll be back again, gain
Before it's too late.

If the color's (bad?)
No need to be sad.
It really ain't that bad.

Oooooooooh, If the color's (bad?)
No need to be sad.
It really ain't that bad

If the color's (bad?)
No need to be sad.
You've still got your (hands?)


So I am a man, man, man, man
Up, up in the air
And I float around, 'round, 'round this downtown
And know I shouldn't care.
So when you see us there out in the open road
You don't need to explain
If everything's changed
Just know that you don't know.

We call it... (Life?)
Oh yeah, that's what we call it.
We can't call it at all.
We call it... (Life?)
Oh yeah, that's what we call it.
When you can't call it at all.
Yeah, We call it (Life?)
Oh yeah that's what we call it.
(OOOOOOOOOOhhhhh)
We do it for... (sweet love?)

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Nobody said it was easy No one ever said it would be this hard Oh, take me back to the start

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Coldplay
Song of the day- The Scientist

What can I say about my love for Coldplay? Other than, it is vast. They create music well, they dress well, they speak Britishly well, they perform well, but at their best I think they write songs well. Today's song is one of my all time favs in any category. I find they can touch on emotion without going overboard and be just catchy enough without being annoying. But today's song also is a fav because I've come to realize I'm a big fan of starting things and maybe not as great in the long hall at finishing things. I can start a book well then never finish it, make sure I ace tests at the beginning so I can peter out as the class continues, make fantastic first impressions then can become more awkward and weird the more you know me, start at a new place then quickly have the itch to move, write a mean first verse and a sucky second one, write a really awesome start of a blog then realize it has turned into a long run on sentence all about me and my quirky habits...I digress. Often I wish I can go back to the start of things when it's fresh and interesting cuz everything gets harder the longer you stick it out, school, relationships, Dostoevsky novels, I think that's why the bible always talks about how what matters is how you finish the race of life. Not how you start it, not how you had that one good stride in the middle, but that you made it to the end. So here's to loving the start and making it to the end.

And a short footnote one of my most favorite lines of any song is "you don't know how lovely you are" it's so simple yet endearing and says so much at the same time. I'm pretty sure if anyone would walk up and say it to me I might marry them on the spot. However don't go around revealing this secret of mine to creepy men that they might use it for evil, it's like love kryptonite.



Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry
You don't know how lovely you are

I had to find you
Tell you I need you
Tell you I set you apart

Tell me your secrets
And ask me your questions
Oh, lets go back to the start

Running in circles
Coming up tails
Heads on a science apart.

Nobody said it was easy
It's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard

Oh, take me back to the start.

I was just guessing
At numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart

Questions of science
Science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart

Tell me you love me
Come back and haunt me
Oh, and I rush to the start

Running in circles
Chasing our tails
Coming back as we are

Nobody said it was easy
Oh it's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be so hard

I'm going back to the start

Friday, July 8, 2011

Oh baby don't you know I suffer? Oh baby can't you hear me moan? You caught me under false pretences How long before you let me go?

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- Muse
Song of the day- Supermassive Black Hole

I have to say, I am pretty sad that this will be playing at the other side of the park while I enjoy a little Coldplay instead. Though I"m not the type of person who will just put in a Muse cd and enjoy, they are excellent music festival artists. As you can tell by today's song they have the exact type of music for a mass crowd of sweaty dancing people and by the end of the day it's exactly the type of music you want to hear. I had many a good time jamming to them a few years ago so if you need a sweaty, rocking good time type of music check them out at lolla, or right now!



Oh baby don't you know I suffer?
Oh baby can't you hear me moan?
You caught me under false pretences
How long before you let me go?

Oooh...You set my soul alight
Oooh...You set my soul alight

(oooh...You set my soul alight)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

(oooh...You set my soul alight)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

I thought I was a fool for no-one
Oh baby I'm a fool for you
You're the queen of the superficial
And how long before you tell the truth

Oooh...You set my soul alight
Oooh...You set my soul alight

(oooh...You set my soul alight)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

(oooh...You set my soul alight)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive
(sucked into the supermassive)

Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole

Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

(oooh...You set my soul alight)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

(oooh...You set my soul)
Glaciers melting in the dead of night
And the superstars sucked into the supermassive

Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole

Thursday, July 7, 2011

This is a song for the one that I love I haven’t met them yet But I’m quietly confident

Lollapalooza Edition
Artist- An Horse
Song of the day- Camp Out

Over at my music guru Blake's house today he unloaded many new great bands on me who will be playing at Lolla this year. Today's artist is one that seemed so catchy right off the bat. There is a hint of Tegan and Sara like vocals over musical riffs reminiscent of late 90s when rock was just jumping off the bridge back into a poppy sound but not quite there yet. Plus it's the sweet, hopeful, fearful, practical,whatever , kind of love song I can easily relate to. Being practical but trying to remind yourself it's ok to fall down. If you need to fall down, this one's for you.



This is a song for the one that I love
I haven’t met them yet
But I’m quietly confident

Although what if like you said
All I’m looking for
It doesn’t exist
Oh I have to believe it does

Cause it’s okay to fall down
It’s okay to crumble
I’ve seen this before
I have seen this before

And you said you wanted to crawl down deep inside
But at this point of the last year I am happy to be alive and

Like that good Hole album
I could live through this
I can live through worse
So play it back in reverse
Oh play it back in reverse

Cause it’s okay to fall down
It’s okay to crumble
I’ve seen this before
I have seen this before and

You wanna camp out and I wanna screw around
In the dark
In the dark

But my hips won’t give anything away
Not tonight not to you
but I think we both know you will stay

And I am surprised how this fits together
I’m surprised how we fit together
And that I will remember
Oh and that I will remember

Cause It’s okay to fall down
It’s okay to crumble
I’ve seen this before
I have seen this before
And you wanna camp out and I wanna fuck around
In the dark
In the dark

But you need to know I’d do this all again
Just to get where I am
Just to get where I am
And I let you know I’d do it all again
Just to get where I am
Just to get where I am

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

And she spoke words that would melt in your hands And she spoke words of wisdom

Lollapalooza Edition:
Artist- Two Door Cinema Club
Song of the day- Undercover Martyn

Running a close second as the band I'm most excited to see at Lolla this year is today's band. They make that kind of catchy pop that hooks you in right away and you don't know how or why but just make you glad you found them. They some how capture an almost retro 80s sound but at the same time are able to have an original spin on it. For sure one of my top album picks of the year, they can make you peppy, make you move,just good ol summertime music. So if you're in need of some good ol' fun, this one's for you.



And she spoke words that would melt in your hands
And she spoke words of wisdom
To the basement people, to the basement
Many surprises await you
In the basement people, in the basement

You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission
You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission

And she spoke words that would melt in your hands
And she spoke words of wisdom
To the basement people, to the basement
Many surprises await you
In the basement people, in the basement

You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission
You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car sick, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission

You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission
You hid there last time, you know we're gunna find you
Sick in the car, sick coz you're not up to going
Out on the main streets, completing your mission

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

and I have no faith but it is all I want, to be loved and believe in my soul, in my soul...

Artist- Bright Eyes
Song of the day- Waste of Paint

The last / only time I saw Bright Eyes live was almost nine years ago in a bar in Chicago. It was maybe the drunkest I've ever seen an artist perform, Conor Orberst is one of those fragile, deep souls in the world that encompasses tragedy so artistically its beautiful and still kind of sad. But he is a mad genius, often called the voice of our generation and when I heard this song live it was hard for me to argue. it's that desperate longing hidden under cynicism and depression that just draws you to him, both because you understand it and because you want to save him from it and be saved from it yourself all rolled into one song. It's not a song you jam to, or cry to, or barely even musically, but more like rough poetry you just feel. And there are times in your life when it's exactly what you are looking for. So let's just say I'm a little more than excited to see Bright Eyes this Lollapalooza. If you can relate to that same kind of longing roughness, this one's for you.



I have a friend, he's mostly made of pain. He wakes up, drives to work,
and then straight back home again. He once cut one of my nightmares out of paper.
I thought it was beautiful, I put it on a record cover.
And I tried to tell him he had a sense of color and composition so magnificent.
And he said "Thank you, please but your flattery is truly not becoming me.
Your eyes are poor. You are blind. You see, no beauty could have come from me.
I am a waste of breath, of space, of time."
I knew a woman, she was dignified and true. Her love for her man was one of her many virtues.
Until one day, she found out that he had lied and she decided the rest of her life,
from that point on would be a lie. But she was grateful for everything that had happened.
And she was anxious for all that would come next. But then she wept.
What did you expect? In that big, old house with the cars she kept.
"Oh!" and "such is life," she often said. With one day leading to the next,
you get a little closer to your death, which was fine with her.
She never got upset and with all the days she may have left,
she would never clean another mess or fold his shirts or look her best.
She was free to waste away alone.
Last night, my brother he got drunk and drove. And this cop pulled him off to the side of the road.
And he said, "Officer! Officer! You have got the wrong man.
No, no, I'm a student of medicine, the son of a banker, you don't understand!"
The cop said, "No one got hurt, you should be thankful. And your carelessness,
it is something awful. And no, I can't just let you go. And though your father's name is known,
your decisions now are yours alone. You're nothing but a stepping stone
on a path to debt, to loss, to shame."
The last few months I have been living with this couple.
Yeah, you know, the kind who buy everything in doubles. They fit together, like a puzzle.
And I love their love and I am thankful that someone actually
receives the prize that was promised by all those fairy tales that drugged us.
And they still do me. I'm sick, lonely, no laurel tree, just green envy.
Will my number come up eventually? Like Love is some kind of lottery,
where you can scratch and see what is underneath. It's "Sorry",
just one cherry, "Play Again." Get lucky.
So I have been hanging out down by the train's depot. No, I don't ride.
I just sit and watch the people there. And they remind me of wind up cars in motion.
The way they spin and turn and jockey for positions.
And I want to scream out that it all is nonsense.
All your lives one track, can't you see it's pointless?
But then, my knees give under me. My head feels weak and
suddenly it is clear to see that it is not them but me, who has lost my self-identity.
As I hide behind these books I read, while scribbling my poetry,
like art could save a wretch like me, with some ideal ideology that no one can hope to achieve.
And I am never real; it is just a sketch of me.
And everything I made is trite and cheap and a waste of paint, of tape, of time.
So now I park my car down my the cathedral, where floodlights point up at the steeples.
Choir practice was filling up with people. I hear the sound escaping as an echo.
Sloping off the ceiling at an angle. When voices blend they sound like angels.
I hope there is some room still in the middle.
But when I lift my voice up now to reach them. The range is too high, way up in heaven.
So I hold my tongue, forget the song, tie my shoe and start walking off.
And try to just keep moving on, with my broken heart and my absent God
and I have no faith but it is all I want, to be loved and believe in my soul, in my soul...

Monday, July 4, 2011

there goes my hero he's ordinary

Lollapalooza Edition:
Artist- Foo Fighters
Song of the day- My Hero

On a day celebrating independence and the fight for it, it seems fitting to play this song. And after watching a day of "Rocky" marathons, I've had much time to contemplate just what makes up a hero. And though Foo Fighters are fantastic at rocking out, it wasn't till being at this concert in Hollywood a few years ago I realized what great songwriters they were. My favorite line from the song is I think what makes heroes in our lives so great, being ordinary. It's when the extraordinary can somehow happen from human hands, when they push themselves when they think they can't, when they triumph when they have no reason to, but what makes them "my hero" is when they risk their ordinary lives to do the extraordinary for me. The sacrifice for another, that is my kind of hero. Maybe it's not always laying down lives, but laying down time, laying down your heart, wisdom, love, humor, strength for another. For all my heroes and your heroes out there. This one's for you.



too alarming now to talk about
take your pictures down
and shake it out
truth or consequence, say it aloud
use that evidence race it around

there goes my hero
watch him as he goes
there goes my hero
he's ordinary

don't the best of them bleed it out
while the rest of them peter out
truth or consequence, say it aloud
use that evidence race it around

kudos my hero
leaving all the best
you know my hero
the one that's on

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Pray for David

Artist- Stephen Gasperetti
Song of the day- David's song

Ok I'm gonna keep breaking my blog rules for another special blog and promise to go back to the Lollapalooza edition tomorrow. But I believe it is a story worth telling and one worth hearing. I was a missionary in India a few years back and traveled through much of the country on long, packed train rides with young team mates ranging from late teens to early twenties. I know the word missionary can mean different things to different people depending your walk of life. But what I learned traveling side my side with these teens is that we are all ordinary people with the same sense of humor, the same struggles, the same doubts, the same fears, the same joys as most of the people you have ever met. The only difference if any, and perhaps the greatest difference is the faith we had carrying us through.

And maybe that is why this story of David Ricci hits so close to my heart. Because I took the same journey he was on 4 years ago in India. He had been serving and caring for the dying and destitute in India and while waiting for a train he fell on the tracks without time to escape and was ran over. His leg was amputated, severely infected, severe blood loss and in critical condition. He is still in an Indian hospital in a great deal of pain, awaiting transport to America. He is in need of funding for the great medical costs and logistics it will take to bring David back to America for the care he needs. His family and friends have banned together in different ways to get the word our for prayer and support. One of his best friends in Australia wrote this prayer for David and I thought it important to share. You can buy the song, donate, receive information and updates on David and info on how to help by clicking the title of the blog or copy and pasting the link:
http://www.facebook.com/?ref=hp#!/pages/Pray-for-David/214053931969229?sk=info

Please take time to read David's story and support him any way you feel you can.

Latest tracks by stephengasperetti

it was in the singing and the Strumming-- oh man, i even saw it coming

Artist- Rilo Kiley
Song of the day- Ripchord

Let my digress from my Lollapalooza prep blogging for just a minute so I can obsess about the concert I just went to. If Rilo Kiley is my Fleetwood Mac then Blake Sennett is for sure my Lindsey Buckingham. Half of the reason I ever liked Rilo Kiley was because of Sennett's guitar and songwriting that luckily still live on in the band The Elected who just started touring again after Sennett swore off the music business years ago. Seeing the Elected play tonight was like seeing an old crush you had in high school, all the girlie butterflies began to twirl in my stomach, especially when he played today's song on the ukulele, which I was sure I'd never hear live again. Now this isn't my favorite song of all time, or even my top Rilo Kiley song, however I named my entire blog after it for a reason. It's sweet, it's sad, and somehow makes you smile, it embodies how music can pull you through the most awful of times in you life. Sennett wrote the song after hearing about the suicide of his good friend and possibly one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Elliott Smith. And yet it's not full of mourning but a tiny burst of emotion. A ripcord is what you pull to release a parachute, when you are basically falling to your death. And to me I feel like when you pull the ripcHord is when you release that burst of emotion via a musical chord to express that type of feeling of falling in your soul...falling in love, falling out of love, falling to hit rock bottom, falling to fly, the falling that you have no words for that you have to sing. And feeling that type of falling tonight through this song makes me remember why I fell for music in the first place. If you're in need of a fall or better yet, a ripchord, this one's for you.

p.s. I spent two hours trying to find a video where the sound didn't suck or wasn't off, but alas it isn't perfect...so maybe don't look directly at the video, kinda like an eclipse.






Pull the ripcord, the ship has lost its sail.
Your momma's got a new man. Your daddy always fails.
And you're eating again, at them, 'cause nobody loves you.
And even fancy things have finally lost their charm.
Wine and diamond rings, they never get you anymore.
You're sleeping again, alone, 'cause nobody loves you.
And ooh ooh ooh ooh, they should have seen you,
Should have known you, should've known what
It was like to be you.
So come on kid, look at what you did.
I don't know if you meant it,but you did yourself in and
I was even havin' a good day when i found out we lost you.
So aye aye aye and a
Oh oh oh and a yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah oh oh
Bad-da-da-da-dada...
And ooh ooh ooh ooh she said "it was in the singing and the
Strumming-- oh man, i even saw it coming"
(whistling)
Bada-da-da-da-da
Pull the ripcord, the ship has lost its sail.
Your momma's got a new man. Your daddy always fails.
And you're eating again, at them, 'cause nobody loves you.
And even fancy things have finally lost their charm.
Wine and diamond rings, they never get you anymore.
You're sleeping again, alone, 'cause nobody loves you.
And ooh ooh ooh ooh, they should have seen you,
Should have known you, should've known what
It was like to be you.
So come on kid, look at what you did.
I don't know if you meant it,but you did yourself in and
I was even havin' a good day when i found out we lost you.
So aye aye aye and a
Oh oh oh and a yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah oh oh
Bad-da-da-da-dada...
And ooh ooh ooh ooh she said "it was in the singing and the
Strumming-- oh man, i even saw it coming"
(whistling)
Bada-da-da-da-da

Friday, July 1, 2011

Tell me what’s wrong with my brain 'Cause I've seem to have lost it

Lollapalooza Edition:
Artist- Cults
Song of the day- You know what I mean

I was mostly intrigued by the name of this band. One of those band names that are general and clever enough to think you've heard of them, but in reality they're just releasing their debut album. And I can't decide if the lead vocalist has an interesting or annoying voice depending on the track, and I also don't love the reverb or whatever they seem to do to the sound to make it hard to understand what they are saying, but there is something clever about them I can't quite put my finger on. I like the solemness of today's song mixed with the pounding anxiety chorus that feels like the heart of every teenage girl (or older late 20s girl that will remain nameless and is definitely not probably me). But if you know what I mean, this one's for you.



I, I can’t take things slowly
Come let away that’s what they all do
Help me ‘cause I’m feeling shaky
Tell me what’s wrong with my brain
'Cause I've seem to have lost it

Chorus:
'Cause I am afraid of the light
Yeah you know what I mean
And I can't sleep alone at night
yeah you know what I mean

Lonely, that’s not quite my problem
I have all that I need, haven't quite lost it
I try so hard to be happy
'Cause something goes wrong once again

Please, please come and save me
Tell me what’s wrong with my brain
'Cause I've seem to have lost it


Chorus:
'Cause I am afraid of the light
yeah you know what I mean
And I can't sleep alone at night
and you know what I mean.

'Cause I am afraid of the light
yeah you know what I mean
'Cause I can't sleep alone at night
and you know what I mean.