Guide to 2008 (music)

Welcome to the third annual end-of-the-year guide to my favorite things of the year. Last year, I think I stuck to music only. This year, I will do the same and will write another post to mention a few other things that have been of influence this year. Stay tuned for that.

It really has been a big year, media-wise. After consulting my trusty iTunes play counter, it would appear that my two most listened-to bands of the year were Bon Iver and the Fleet Foxes. Big surprise there. I've posted several times about both groups--but for fun, here are two more videos for your listening enjoyment.

This performance of "re: Stacks" (my favorite song on the album) is actually from their show that I saw here in Champaign. So sweet. I just love the quite honesty of Justin Vernon's tunes. He's an inspiration.

(The song actually starts 2 minutes in on this clip if you want to skip ahead)



The Fleet Foxes have a similar vibe. I love their harmonies, percussion, and that sweet mandolin lead. Here's a link to my favorite tune "Blue Ridge Mountains" since this video won't let me embed.

The Punch Brothers, or more specifically Chris Thile--formerly of Nickel Creek and currently of the Punch Brothers--would get the third slot. My interest in bluegrass is currently in blossom mode. I recently purchased some hardware to mod my guitar into a dobro and with artists like Jerry Douglas and Chris Thile to emulate, I'm on my way!

Thile is a master musician--a respected expert on the mandolin (the guy was recording with legends before he was 20)--and a really great singer/songwriter to boot. This hasn't just been a year of solo-Thile for me, but rather one where I consumed the whole Nickel Creek catalog as well.

Here's a great quiet tune from the first Punch Brothers album (some of you may recognize the program Woodsongs that it is taken from. Our local PBS station carries it):



And if you can stand it, here's them doing an 8 minute cover of Radiohead's "Morning Bell"--the song they also ended with at the show I saw in Champaign:



So rad! That clip really shows off the band in true, pass-the-solo, bluegrass style. It will also give you a really great look at Thile's virtuosity.

It's also been a year of much Wilco, Radiohead, and other newer voices like Ray LaMontagne:



Radiohead - Weird Fishes - by Tobias Stretch




I should also mention that old favorites, Weezer and the Cure also came out with new albums this year. I was largely underwhelmed by both, though. Especially the Cure album. Both albums had some stand-outs for me though.

Underneath the Stars by the Cure might be their best song (even if not on the best album) in 10 years:



And I really love this tune, Troublemaker, from the new Weezer album. Actually, I would have to say that the "Red" album is probably the best release from my old favorite band since Pinkerton. But it just doesn't hold up against the other groups in terms of times listened last year.

Finally, a very honorable mention goes to Mates of State. They are the band that I got to meet at Lollapalooza in August and they're really great. Here's the wacky video for my favorite song on their new album Re-Arrange Us. It's called "Get Better"



Have fun jamming (and if you only chose one video to watch here, you really should check out that Morning Bell cover!).

Punch Brothers

I haven't said much here about my burgeoning love of bluegrass (or maybe I have)--so I'll say it: I'm starting to really dig bluegrass--especially from more contemporary artists.

One of the most amazing musicians in the genre is Chris Thile. Formerly of Nickel Creek, Chris (who plays mandolin) currently heads the amazing, progressive, pseudo-classical "Punch Brothers." I got to see them play last week and was completely blown away. This is not your typical pop group. These dudes are consummate musicians.

Here is just a little taste of the show:

"The Eleventh Hour"

Yesterday

I had one of those monumental days yesterday. So many good, little things happened that by the end of the day, I couldn't get the smile off my face. Here they are in list form:

1. A good Illinois friend tipped me off that single-day Lollapalooza tickets had gone on sale. I'd been waiting for this moment for months.

2. A few weeks ago, I had worked out with a great old friend from the SF days (who is now an incredible artist and designer--currently working through an MFA [or whatever they call it there] in graphic design at the illustrious Cranbrook near Detroit) that should said tickets go on sale, he would get one and we would meet in Chicago to bask in the Radioheadedness of it all). He did and we had a sweet, all-day conversation via IM.

3. Another best (AZ) friend of mine got the idea that coming to visit on that weekend would be a good idea. He could come see our Illinois digs and potentially see another best AZ friend who may very likely be in Chicago the same weekend as Lolla for internship interviews with some law firms. So, by the end of the day, not only did he buy plane tickets, but also now has a Lolla ticket in hand. It is going to be a party!

4. Early in the afternoon I got a call from my other other best AZ bud and he had won tickets to Weezer's Hootenanny show in Phoenix that was to take place later that night. Yesterday was also his birthday! Hootenanny was a special--jam with the band--kind of event. He called me after the show and said that he and his wife had an amazing experience. Read about it--and him!--here. I can't believe he got to rock that solo! That's him on the melodica!

5. This is a little thing, but the day ended with me and my kids dancing around the house to Coldplay's new (and I think really good) album Viva la Vida. Nothing like dancing with your kids to celebrate great days.

A little something nice to start the summer (linktastic edition)

If you know me, you know I love the Cure. I was 14 when Andy and I first started sneaking tapes from his older brother's room and dubbing copies. It started with songs like "Boys Don't Cry" and Plastic Passion but I soon became literally infatuated with the their then, most recent release Wish (1992). It is still my favorite album--and I suppose that makes me unique as a fan. Most site their 89 album Disintegration as their best, and I agree that it is an amazing album, but Wish just captures my adolescence so perfectly. The songs were easy to play on guitar; I was only just learning. The guitarist Porl Thompson had a unique sound that I fawned over and tried to imitate--found most prominently on cuts like "From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea" and "Cut." And the tunes were, for the most part (and despite the "gloom and doom" persona that Robert's hair and make-up may have incited from casual observers of the posters on my wall [parents]), the band was at least 50% pop. The pop tracks were fun to sing and the intense songs were the perfect foil for my mild brand of teenage angst. Both songs were fun to play. In many ways, Only Anything (the greatest teenage band ever to have not gotten big in Tucson circa 93-97) was born of The Cure.

In 96 the Cure released Wild Mood Swings which became an album full of songs that Tina and I now consider the soundtrack of our early courtship (especially "Mint Car" and "Jupiter Crash"). 2000 saw the release of Bloodflowers and later in 2003 they released an eponymous album. Both didn't connect with me as much as their previous work had--which is likely due to changing tastes. Still, a day rarely goes by that I don't hear a Cure song or two.

A new album is due in September--their 13th studio album (Next year is the band's 30th year together so there are other exciting things rumored to be on the release horizon), but they are going to release a new single every month until then on the 13th of that month--kinda cool.

This first single "The Only One" is great. It reminds me of one of the reasons that I started liking the band to begin with--the pop love. Check out Porl's head tattoos! Woah!

good (and bad) distractions

I know, I know. I never finished my Jr. college treatise. I'll come back around to it eventually. It remains an important topic to explore (and one that people seem to have some interesting things to say about), but I've lost my original steam, so I better move on rather than remain in the between-lands.

We've reached that point in the semester where the panic starts--that place where I have filled my shelves with potential sources for my end-of-the semester writing projects, but have, as of yet, not been able to comprehend, glean, or even crack open most of them. Basically, I have a month until the end of the semester--which seems like a long time, but it will sneak by so quickly and soon I will be holed up in my basement working it. Grumpily.

First paper, due April, 28th. I'll be writing on blogging (again) and rhetorical communities. I have one good source on the subject--and hope that it flowers a few times. Grief.

Second paper, due date is flexible, but I am shooting for May 4th (one week later). This one is tougher to define--I am still working on the precise subject of my paper. I am trying to survey the histories of visual studies--both visual culture and visual rhetoric and so I can somehow draw a line between their connection. I haven't yet put a finger on good reason--a "so what?"--for the project, other than I want to know more about it. And that's not gonna cut it for 15-20 pages. I need a reason. A lens. Something specific to ground my study and give me something to look for... instead of just the hundreds and hundreds of scary pages of peruse! panicpanicpanicpanic

To remain sane, I have my share of distractions. Which (as part of a vicious cycle) often end up taking up more of my time than they should, reducing sanity further rather than helping to maintain it.

One thing I did this week was make a list of bands the I like that are coming out with new albums this summer:

The Cure (May 6?--this one is unconfirmed)
Death Cab for Cutie (May 13)
Jason Mraz (May 20)
My Morning Jacket (June 10)
Coldplay (June 17)
My Brightest Diamond (June 17)
Weezer (June)

Some of those I am more excited about than others--but still: sweet.

I get to see two really great shows in the second week of April: Bon Iver and Ben Folds. Tina even gets to accompany me to see BF since my parents will be with us when he comes (yay for family visits!).

I love this blog that I happened upon today. But you already knew that I think Andrew Bird is the bees knees. This is some of the "composition study" that I think needs more attention in my field. There have gotta be some interesting questions to wander through connecting the creative/invention processes of all kinds of composition--the layers at play are made up of similar stuffs, even if the details are different. Blast you disciplinary boundaries. Just you try and stop my illegal immigration.

I suppose that is the end of my post, though it is just the beginning of my distractions.

How far away is Tennessee?

I’m exited to get on with the next educational history episode. I had no idea that it would prompt an actual response or two (something that this blog has a hard time doing). I’ll get to that in the next 48 hours or so…

Until then, consider this question: what do the following (favorite) bands, June, and 6 hours have to do with each other?

Pearl Jam
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss Featuring T Bone Burnett
My Morning Jacket
Death Cab for Cutie
Sigur Ros
Ben Folds
The Bluegrass Allstars Feat. Luke Bulla, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas (!!), Bela Fleck,
Iron & Wine
Broken Social Scene
Rilo Kiley
Aimee Mann
Jose Gonzalez

(less favorite, but still cool)
Metallica
Kanye West
Jack Johnson
The Allman Brothers Band
The Raconteurs
Willie Nelson
B.B. King
Ozomatli
Tegan & Sara
!!!
Jakob Dylan
Vampire Weekend

(plus dozens more...)

Bonnaroo. Which is apparently only about 6 hours south of here. I would love love love to go… I mean My Morning Jacket, Death Cab, Ben Folds, Iron and Wine, Jose Gonzalez and BSS all in one place? With Jerry Douglas to boot? And the chance to see two contemporary legends: Peal Jam and Metallica...AHHH!!! but tickets are like $250, plus camping/lodging expenses and food over the four days—a bit more than just petty cash. Especially if I am going to be buying one of these at roughly the same time…

I never went to Coachella when it was about the same distance away either.

Getting older stinks.

Blast.

My Brightest Diamond (aka Shara Warden)

A year or so ago, Sufjan Stevens was on Austin City Limits and I noticed this striking brunette singing back-up for him (as well as playing various instruments). I soon learned that this woman was in fact Shara Warden and she had a band of her own (My Brightest Diamond). After listening to hear album stream numerous times here, I had to buy it and did when we were in Berkeley over the summer break (at Amoeba). On my last weekend in Phoenix, Shara played a solo show that I was able to attend and she blew me away with her vocal, guitar, and over-all creative talent.

So I need to share (this is a good look at what was like in solo mode):



And here is a full band version (I know the same song is in there):



Enjoy.

Coming soon: my first foray into the land of sushi making.

Everything in its right place

(I have been sitting on this blog for a few days wanting to put more links to cool Radiohead stuff in it. I just haven't had the time. If you check back, there will be more fun stuff to play with.)

Tina and I are watching the first season of Alias on DVD. It’s taking a while, but we like it. We get in one or maybe two episodes a week. I check out the discs from our library’s huge movie holdings. There are literally thousands of hours of media, all free to students—one of the perks, I suppose. The other night, we were watching one and during a swanky, under-double-cover moment that should have been intense and interesting, an old song by Smash Mouth started up. It made the scene funny. Now, I am fairly certain that the scene wouldn’t have been funny if I had seen it in the context of its original air date (2001). I don’t know that there is anything very significant about that story, but it made me think about music, media, and context. I know one example of a movie that was re-scored—the pop soundtrack it was released with was replaced with an orchestral one—in order to alleviate the cheesiness of viewing the movie post-1984 (interestingly, I'm wrong here...you'll see what I mean if you click the link). It’s interesting that sometimes music, even old music, helps maintain the “moment” for viewers—like in something like, say, Say Anything, and sometimes music makes things hopelessly silly.

On a different note (there’s that pesky pun again), if you haven’t downloaded the new Radiohead album (In Rainbows) yet, you should do it right now. Some of you may have heard about how the band released the album all on their own and made it available for a you-name-it price (a move that totally shakes things up in the music business). You can legitimately pay nothing for it; I paid 1 Euro (the equivalent of $2.14). It is really really good. I’m not really that good at deciding if it is the best music they have ever put out. As my buddy Mat said last week, their Kid A might be the best album of all time.

I came to Radiohead late in the game. When I was in high school, Marisa H. made me a copy of their first album. I was mildly interested because of their hit Creep (every 14 year old’s theme song) but wasn’t really moved by any of their songs—later, once Creep had been played out, and the Bends came out, I was much more interested in the louder, more aggressive music that was coming out at the same time. I left on the mission right as Paranoid Android was being debuted on Mtv, and while I sensed that there was something interesting about the band (I only know this because I mention a notice of the release of OK computer in a letter to Tina from Palo Alto), I didn't pay much attention to the music or what the critical mass was saying. But then, Radiosilence.

When I got home, it wasn’t until Amnesiac was released—particularly the enchanting Pyramid Song in the summer of 2001—that my attention was piqued. I remember listening to it in San Diego with Tina on our first anniversary. I quickly learned that I had been missing out on something special.

If you are not a fan, you have too.

I’m a reasonable man, get off my case.

New Music...Cycling Trivialities

Three great new albums came out on Tuesday:

Iron and Wine, "The Shepherd's Dog"
Jose Gonzalez, "In our Nature"
Stars, "In Our Bedroom After the War"

Nearly every song of each new album is streaming on their respective Myspace pages (which I have linked above). I wish I had more time to write a nice review for each of them. It is going to have to suffice to say that the Iron and Wine is my favorite, if least commercial. Sam Beam obviously has more going for him than superb beard growing abilities. The Gonzalez is much like his first album, "Veneer"--same sweet nylon string guitar, same calming vocal tones, new melodies. The Stars album is the one that I think that may be the easiest to consume by a new audience: Very poppy, very dance-around-in-your-kitcheny. There are two vocalists, a man and a woman. The man's voice sounds like a less sanctimonious Morrissey, the woman's...hmm... like clean, unpasteurized goodness. So check it out.

A side note here, if you are not into buying music and you have a current school email address, may I suggest Ruckus as a way to (legally) stay up on most of the new stuff that is coming out?

A few other musical side notes (hehe, bad pun):

I went to this amazing show the other night. Andrew Bird--you gotta check this guy out. He used to play violin for that great old 90s band Squirrel Nut Zippers and he has "gotta little something new" going now. His two solo-solo albums: "The Mysterious Production of Eggs" and "Armchair Apocrypha" are really really great. But seeing him live just really blew it out of the water for me. It would take me an hour to write up a description of how he runs his show, so let me just say that with the aid of carefully cued delay petals, he is able to perform as a band--even though he is just one guy on a stage. It is amazing. Not only is he a classically trained violinist, he plays guitar, is am amazing vocalist, and (get this) a world class whistler. You heard me right: the man whistles like nobody I have ever heard.

Finally, I thought it would be fun the other day to listen to Stevie Wonder's "At the Close of A Century" four disc anthology all in one sitting. So I did. 5 hours straight Stevie...and man oh man. He is the best. I didn't just sit there and listen, mind you--I did other stuff. I taught my class, went to my seminars, etc. But the old Ipod stayed on the Stevie dial and ne'er did it deviate. (Come to think of it, I actually did the same thing except with the Foo Fighters--who also had a new album come out last Tuesday--a few weeks ago. That was fun too.)

I have thought it might be fun to approach some of my favorite artists this way--listen to whole catalogs at a time(even though the 5 hours of Stevie is hardly his whole catalog).

Imagine listening to the whole Cure catalog in one sitting, or the whole Beatles catalog (or Dave Matthews Band if you are M&B). It would be really fun, if you have the patience for that kind of thing, to pay attention to the trajectory of the music styles...especially in regards to when the music kind of flattens out and stops changing as much (as it almost always does). This may give way to interesting questions. Why, for example, did Stevie write his last big hit in the 80s? Why can't Sir Paul write another Blackbird or Yesterday? What happens?

Those questions left for you to ponder, it's amazing to me that modern technology even allows the multi-album marathon. As first uttered by the Reverend MC Hammer: Sweetness (is my weakness).

Update: New Radiohead next week! Guess what artist marathon is next on my list?

Can't resist (but don't miss the new post below, too!)

just stumbled on this...

In my opinion, this is one of the best reasons I can think of to continue the pursuit of good music. Soooo pretty. Iron & Wine is my favorite.



And if you like bearded men singing tender songs, try "Golden" by My Morning Jacket:



This, by far, has been my song of the year. This has crummy video--just close your eyes and listen.

A piano, a guitar and 10,000 screaming fans

Last night Tina and I attended a concert together as a special anniversary treat. John Mayer was the name on the ticket, but we were also there for our old favorite Ben Folds and his current band. It was a great show and a wonderful time with my sweet wife who is currently working so hard in Tucson. But before my thorough analysis…

I must begin this blog by mentioning a sentiment of Tina’s that I share. During the half hour break between the two groups, she reminisced about the feeling of excitement that going to concerts used to give her. I remember those days—we would wait and wait for a show and when that day finally arrived, man-oh-man. Concerts that we wanted to go to were usually in Phoenix back in those days, and it’s almost like it was better that way for us Tucsonans. Driving up and back from the show was a big part of the fun. I remember, distinctly, sitting in the back of Marisa Henderson’s old convertible on the way home from my very first concert: Lollapalooza 1994. My ears were ringing and there was a melancholy smile on my face. I had just seen the Smashing Pumpkins. IN PERSON. And now it was over. I remember thinking that that summer day was, to that point, the best day in my life so far. That’s how dramatic it was. And it didn’t end there—I was hooked. My friends and I perfected the art of concert going. Later, we would fill every seat in John Heidenreich’s old Brown van and head off to see Weezer or No Doubt or Weezer again (I think we went to Phoenix to see Weezer on at least three occasions). We would show up early so as to secure our spot at the front of the general admission crowd and would be the last to leave the concert hall—just incase the band decided to come out and play one last song. We would often hang around the tour buses afterwards with hopes to meet the band, and on several occasions we did! I have Rivers Cuomo’s signature from three separate meetings. John and I snuck back stage and met Gwen Stefani and No Doubt; we met the members of the now defunct that dog., and I even was invited on stage with them at one show we went to. Those were good, good times.

Concerts in adulthood just don’t have the same affect on us anymore. I am fairly sure that if I added them all up, since returning from San Francisco in ‘99 I have been to twice the concerts I had been to as a teenager. But it would take me a while to sit and figure it out because I really don’t remember a lot of the shows that I have been to in the last eight years that clearly. There just isn’t that intense happiness that accompanies them anymore like theirwas in the days of yore. So, last night we mourned a bit over the loss of our childhood. As we approach 30, had three kids at a babysitter, and had to come to grips with going back to work the next morning, we were reminded (again) that the gap is getting larger.

But we still had a great time. We got to the Jobing.com arena (the lamest name for a venue since Cricket pavilion) during what I determined today to be Ben Fold’s first song, Gone (it killed me that we could have missed some of his set). The strangest thing about seeing a band you really really like (and readers of this blog know how much I love Ben) open for a different, much bigger band. In other words, they are definitely not the main event, and you can tell because everybody is sitting down. In fact, it is safe to say that a majority of the audience didn’t know who he was until late in his set when he played Brick. “Ohhhh,” the 8500 people who were there solely for John Mayer must have thought at once, “THAT is who this guy is!”

So we found our way down to our 12th row seats (Tina had forgotten that we had such great seats—which was fun. “We’re on the floor! Awesome!”). And sat there amongst all the John Mayer fans and belted along with Ben Folds as he sang. After the first song, the 50 year old guy that was sitting next to me said, sensing my enthusiasm, “Who is this guy?” So Ben Folds rocked the house and I sat there politely tapping my foot, every inch of me wanting to get up and shake my bootie. He played some favorites, including some great songs from the “five” days: All You Can Eat, Not the Same, Kate, Narcolepsy, 1 Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn faces, and a cover of Postal Service’s Some Great Heights come to mind at the moment. He had some songs where he added in some synth happiness—and I think I read somewhere that he is going to be using that synthesizer more on his next album. In classic Ben Folds potty humor, he mentioned studying up on the internet a very low frequency at which when felt/heard at a high enough volume, caused the listener to loose control of his bowels. He then played a note/frequency a few pitches above that note. As you might imagine, it’s a myth. But a funny myth, wouldn’t you say?

Ben Folds was over too quickly. The only Ben Folds t-shirt you could buy was a brown one that had the words “I ♥ Ben Folds” in the “I ♥ New York” fashion, except that over the white lettering, it had this alteration in red: “I ♥’d Ben Folds before he sucked” That pretty much summed up why he is the coolest dude ever.

The John Mayer show was what you might expect. Mayer is such an amazing guitarist. Maybe I will expand on this in some future blog, but the guy has one of the classiest careers in the biz (did I just say biz?). You gotta hand it to someone who has had so much commercial success, but yet remains so authentic and true to himself. Both times I have seen John Mayer (the other you can read about here), this sense of authenticism was the most palpable feeling present. The guy is just talented and can write a sweet melody to boot. You can take a look at the set list for last night’s show here. The highlights for me were “Bigger than My Body” and “Gravity.” Plus, unlike Tina, I LOVE all the jams and jam he did.

Watching crowds at concerts is fun. Next time you go to one, look around at how the people are behaving. A lot of people are like you, they are into it—dancing around a bit—definitely singing along. And then there are the folks who are REALLY into it. I saw a few of these fans during last night’s show. These are the fans that are SO into it, you have to ask yourself, “are they really into it or are they just into being into it?” There were these two girls who fit this description. Here’s how you can tell. During every song, they don’t actually look at the artist playing. They look at each other, hands in the air, dancing, singing every word to each other (as if to say, “we know every word to this song—and we know it TOGETHER!”). Then, in between songs, when there is a chance that John Mayer might be looking in their direction, they swoon for him—reach toward him, even though they are way too far away—like 100 feet and 45 degrees up—to touch him. So that was fun/pathetic to watch.

Final thoughts? I can’t wait to see Ben Folds in a crowd full of Ben Folds fans again. Then you know it will be me showing everyone I know EVERY WORD and reaching toward the stage, hoping to catch Ben’s eye, if only for a moment. Maybe I’ll wear a tube-top.

Attempt at some interaction--the Favorite Three

When I was a freshman in high school, me and my best buddy, Andy Hunt would lay on his living room floor and try to guess the next song that would come on the 5-disc CD changer that his parents had recently purchased (and let me tell you--that thing was high technology!). You got points (it was never determined how many) if you got the right artist (there were always at lest two discs in the changer by the same band--usually The Cure or Morrissey), more points for getting the album right, and then the closer you were to the actual track--you guessed it--more points. If you actually chose the song--well, I don't know that it ever happened. Perhaps the room would have been sucked into a new dimension.

That cute story from my past aside, I know that there are several of you who read this blog who have a favorite group or maybe even a few bands or singers you like. Here's how you play this game. Think of a group that you like and then post a comment that has your top 3-5 songs by that group (I know how hard it can be to boil it down) and some words about why (optional). Then we can post in agreement or disagreement with words of our own.

I'll start:

Ben Folds is probably my favorite songwriter of all time. Yes, even more so than Robert Smith or Billy Corgan. Here are my top three songs by him:

"Selfless, Cold, and Composed"- I already have a soft spot for songs in 6/8. This song came out in the months before I left on my mission and it (as well as "Missing the War" and "Evaporated") had just the right forlorn twinge that suited me then and suits certain moods of mine now (though the other songs I mentioned were more acute back then--"Selfless" has jumped in the rankings since). It is, for me, the consummate Ben Folds tune.
"Army"- you know you can't resist those horns! This song starts off with a swear that I can't condone (though for some reason when BF swears, I can't help but smile usually--kinda like your dad swearing. It's funny!), "Army" is Ben Folds Five at their best. Harmony and Horns--that's all you need (and fuzz bass).
"Trusted"- this tune in on Ben Folds's most recent solo album. I love it. I love how he can be super funny on one track and then super serious on the next. This is one of those serious moments. When I heard this tune I knew my boy Ben would be around for a long time.

Tina and I are going to see Ben Folds and John Mayer together this summer (you got John Mayer, Nick? Tell us your fave three!). It is sure to be magnificent.

Guide to 2006

I wanted to get my two cents in on my greatest influences in music, film, and books during 2006 as it seemed a year of shifts and new experiences. You may or may not notice that many of these things were not new in 2006, rather they were new to me in 2006.

Music:

1. Alison Krauss and Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas- I posted about my discovery of this great singer and bluegrass band earlier in the year and my respect and love for the music, especially as egged on by Dave Bertoglio, has only grown. Alison Krauss and her band have been around forever, so they are nothing new, per se, but for some reason, their music just clicked for me this year. It’s funny, because there were inklings years ago that I might like this kind of music when Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? and their song “Man of Constant Sorrow” came out way back in 2000 (There exists a video tape of me and Nick singing this tune together at my parent’s house in Laramie). But it has taken me this long to jump on the horse (as it were). And while I really love Alison’s signature voice, it is really the other elements of the band that have grabbed me. I have to admit that I have become quite the bluegrass fan and can’t help but perk up whenever I hear a banjo and though I now know the instrument that Jerry Douglas plays is called a dobro, I didn’t know at first and thought that he was making a regular guitar sound that way. I have since also learned that he is considered the best dobro player in the world. I have enjoyed seeing him play with and sans Krauss on such programs as the wonderful James Taylor tribute concert that aired on PBS over the holidays and playing with Garrison Keillor’s band during his New Year’s Eve special. I look forward to seeing them in concert someday.
2. Sufjan Stevens- At the end of 2005, I had only just begun listening to the radio program All Songs Considered and was officially hooked on it after listening to their annual “best songs of the year” countdown. Sufjan’s 4^th album Illinois was consistently being ranked in the number one spot, so I knew that I better hop on the bus and see what the fuss was all about. It is safe to say, now, that Steven’s (a former creative writing major) sometimes pop, sometimes not music was very much the soundtrack of my year. I have listened to the songs on each of his albums (as well as all of the songs from his Christmas songs collection) hundreds and hundreds of times. I wonder if it will be hard for me in the future to listen to his music and not think about Norton Anthologies and the ASU shuttle. I am now (as well as every other kid in America) a life long fan and can only hope that he completes his 50 States album project. Check out this performance from Austin City Limits. This too.
   
3. Iron & Wine- One of the shifts that occurred for me this year was a shift toward more quiet, acoustic music. In addition to the five groups listed here, I have found myself listening to more classical and jazz music and spending much more time with my own acoustic guitar (I even bought a new one this year!). Iron & Wine is, essentially a guy named Sam Beam. And while he is in the same genre (maybe) as some of the other artists that I have mentioned here, I think that he is very different. His music is almost like a whisper when compared to these other groups. I love it. His collaboration with Tucson’s Calexico and the album that they produced (In the Reins) along with Beam’s 2004 album Endless Numbered Days got top spots in Ipod consumed tunage this year.
4. Jose Gonzales- Gonzales was a late entry for me, but he stuck fast. I don’t quite know what it is about his 2005 album Veneer that moves me—especially since I am usually not very complimentary towards overly short albums (his clocks in at just over 30 minutes). But it does—move me, I mean. The songs are short and soft, but they are intense. His guitar playing, which is entirely done on a classical guitar, is droning and full and his voice is melodic and has a comforting quality to it. Besides Alison Krauss, his music is the easiest for me to recommend and it has almost universal likability. I missed seeing him in concert at a very small venue in Tempe last autumn—mostly, I think, because I had only really head of him when he came through. I didn’t know!
5. James Taylor’s complete catalog (instead of just his ever-present Greatest Hits album) has come to be much more meaningful to me this year(especially songs like: “Don’t Be Sad ‘Cause Your Son is Down” and “Frozen Man” but with new respect for “Sweet Baby James”). I have always been a fan, but JT has now moved to everyday listening status.
6. The Decemberists- In a lot of ways, Collin Meloy is, for me, this year’s Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie/Postal Service). The dudes look like they could be brothers, but this added to the fact that they both sport high tenor voices and front post-Indie rock bands kind of seals the deal. The two artists’ music, though, is quite different. The Decemberists are to Irish seafaring folk music what the Postal Service are to the Pet Shop boys. My dad would be proud to know that with the help of bands like the Decemberists, the accordion is making a comeback.
7. John Mayer’s “Stop this Train” Off the 2006 album Continuum (also a big album for me last year), might just be my favorite song of the year. For some reason, the lyrics to this song got to me. I think it may have something to do with the fact that John Mayer and I are nearly the same age (he is only four months older), share the same first name (which he refers to in the third person in this song), and it is a song about getting older and not knowing what to make of it. Plus it is one of those songs that you can listen to over and over without getting tired of it. John Mayer is consistent—but he always manages to be innovative as well. I loved his Trio album—who can’t get behind a lyric like “Gravity is working against me; gravity always gets me down”?—and (maybe minus “Waiting on the World to Change”) really love Continuum. I also just found out that he was nominated for 5 Grammys this year.
8. Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy”- Is Gnarls Barkley a fad band? Probably. Was “Crazy” one of the best songs of 2006? Absolutely.

Movies & TV:

I don’t know that I can go to one or really even a group of movies as being stand out for me this year, but thought I should mention that due to the amazing Tivo ability to search and record any movie you may have ever wanted to watch in your entire life—ever. So, this year, I have tried to watch as many of the classics as I could find.

Tina and I have also enjoyed 24, Lost, Heroes, Scrubs, and only recently (technically not qualifying for this 2006 report) the Office.

Books:

While you might think that a Literature major would have read a lot of books in the past year…well you’d be right. I read like crazy last year. My favorites were: Moby Dick, Empire Grill, Cold Mountain, The Chosen, Life of Pi, and the Giver. I also discovered a love for American author Stephen Crane, English legend John Milton, and found out what the big whoop is about Mark Twain. I have also tried to start reading my Best Short Stories series and made it through 1989 and can’t wait to read the rest of them.

Websites: see my “Waste Your Time on My Dime” entries below.

Radiohead dissertation pipe dreams

I haven't posted in a while. I have been so busy with life and school and such. As I am finishing up the first two of the fifteen graduate program applications (University of Wisconsin, Madison and University of Pittsburgh: both due Dec 15), I came across this posted on one of Madison's student's web logs:

And I’ve often had the nagging thought that one could, if one wanted to, place the trajectory of Radiohead’s career up against my maturation as a reader. Not unlike the recording of the sounds in Brandon’s room as they wound up superimposed over Pablo Honey. (These are the thoughts of super-fandom—thoughts that, once written down, aren’t just cringe-worthy, but are downright sickening). I’ll admit it, I’ve thought to myself: “The narrative impulse behind the traditional rock formula that drives The Bends speaks to my realism-driven style of reading, one that requires texts to be clear, well-framed windows onto a coherent, objective event. You know, like folksy, narrative rock songs. OK Computer complicates this in interesting ways by not only providing a commentary on our contemporary hyper-media-saturated frustrations, but by also experimenting with more expressive and performative venues through which to enact those hyper-media-saturated frustrations. Kid A messes with this even further by embracing the artificiality of our hyper-media-saturated historical moment and providing opportunities to occupy expressions that are simultaneously deliriously happy and frustratingly violent within that constructed environment. Meanwhile, Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief ask us to shape responsible ways of living within those hyper-media-saturated conditions.” Oh, yes, these are the artifacts of super-fandom.

All this is to illustrate the shape of the Radiohead essay I’ve always wanted to write. Since I’ve been thinking about dissertations a lot lately, I’ve thought about the essay in even grander ways: a book with chapters each dedicated to one album, unpacking each song in ways that provide a method for reading that we would be able to see a younger Adam beginning to shape. It would be BuildungsRoman meets critical theory. Then I blink those thoughts away.

Not until I recently read an article by Mark Greif in n + 1’s third issue (an older issue, I know, but I’m slow to these sorts of things) did I think I could write that essay in a way that would make anybody care. I found myself reading his essay, “Radiohead, or the Philosophy of Pop” with skepticism at first, thinking to myself, dammit, why didn’t I write this?! Then, on second read, I began to see some of the approaches he makes toward Radiohead as, well, downright honest, tiny gems.

There’s an unrest present in Radiohead that many are quick to notice. They have made an art out of packaging panic and using the soundscape of popular rock against itself, while trying to identify what sort of will listeners can retain while complicit within that soundscape. My results often end up something akin to a cynical shrug: yep, contemporary pop music is damned, so I might as well go down with the ship. Rarely do I get the satisfaction Greif manages to carve out in his essay.

He puts his finger on it, I think, when he uses Hail to the Thief to illustrate how Radiohead tries to coax the listener into not just commentator on, but as active participant in the political ramifications inherent in a media-saturated culture mediated by the artificiality of the modes used to provide form to cultural artifact. Radiohead isn’t just saying “look at how screwed up it all is;” they’re also saying, “learn how to ‘consume’ responsibly.” I find this very helpful when listening to Radiohead on the bus, after a long day at work, using their music as a form of escapism.

I’m just wondering, though, if such a philosophy comes equipped with a methodology coherent enough to provide way(s) of navigating such consumption. Or if its enough for a philosophy of pop merely to point out that we must, in some nebulous way, be more responsible consumers. I’m uneasy with both of those positions, but feel as if the repercussions are far-reaching and important, well, necessary to fashioning a philosophy of pop. All this is to say: how can a philosophy of pop provide a method that doesn’t expire with the relevancy of the pop (music, culture, etc.) used to construct it?

This is the kind of stuff that I hope to one day be able to write. Even though he is almost in jest--it's still awesome.

Waste Your Time on My Dime (part two)

Today is the music edition of Waste Your Time on My Dime (part 2, I guess). I am currently going through a gigantic list of vocabulary words—trying to study them for the GRE that I am taking in three weeks. I can’t believe how quickly it has crept up on me…so anyway, this is my noontime reprieve.

NPR’s All Songs Considered

Since discovering this show as a podcast a year or so ago (in fact I think that it was last Christmastime’s “Best Songs of the Year” show that got me hooked), I have listened to it almost every single week. Today as I have been studying, I have been catching up on the last several weeks of the program and am again reminded how much I enjoy it. Bob Boilen, the host and DJ of the program, is a musician himself and unlike most radio personalities, his genuine tastes and interests are articulated in a way that make the listener want to be fans of the songs that he plays. His show is a wonderful mix of the old and the new. He takes time to give histories and make musical connections—often genealogies—of the songs and artists that he plays. This week’s show, for example, highlights the work of contemporary folk musician M. Ward. The show is awesome, though, because first, M. Ward himself is a guest DJ. Bob Boilan, a genuine fan of M. Ward asks questions of the musician that fans would want to know. M. Ward is also given the opportunity to play music that interests him which leads to an exploration of songs by Roy Orbison, the Beach Boys, My Morning Jacket and others. But again, the show is great because it peels the musical layers that are always present in recorded music back and allows the listener to peak into the cracks. Also, the concert series is both extensive and supurb. Really, really cool stuff.

Last.fm

Last.fm is many things. First and foremost it is an audioscrobbler database which means, basically, that, with your permission, it collects information from your computer’s audio player (WMP or Itunes) as you play your music and tabulates which artists and tracks you are listening to most and organizes this information in a fun format on their website. The fun part of this process is that it then connects you with people who share your same musical interests and you can check out the groups that they are listening to that you may not have heard of—so it is a gateway to finding new music. Also, you can have “friends” which allows me to see what my buddies are listening to. (Who would have thunk that Aaron Bell was a Justin Timberlake fan?) Finally, if you are away from a computer that has all of your music on it, you can listen to last.fm radio which plays tracks that it thinks you might like based on the music you are listening to that it has collected. Amazing! View my profile at http://www.last.fm/user/jwstone/

Pitchfork Media

Pitchfork is a music news site that focuses on—well—I don’t really know how to describe it. It’s not really what I would call an “indie” music website, although the majority of what it reviews and critiques might be considered independent. Honestly, I am not familiar with the majority of the bands that are highlighted by Pitchfork (I am not very cool, you know), but I do know that when I am familiar (or want to become familiar) with the bands, the writing is excellent and the reviews are fresh, honest and often really funny.

KEXP

KEXP is a Seattle based independent radio station that it just completely and totally cool. The website has a live, streaming radio feed which makes it a great place to hear new bands and old favorites.

Finally, there are a few (usually fan produced) band websites out there that I consider to be exceptional.

Chain of Flowers is the most comprehensive web source for Cure fans that I have ever come across. During times of high band activity, there is something new and cool almost everyday on the site. My favorite things about Chain of Flowers include the news section (of course) but also include things like the database of what has gotten played during specific tours and tour dates over the years. Anybody wonder what songs they played during the Phoenix tour of the Prayer tour? Chain of Flowers will tell you.

Green Plastic is a Radiohead website that allows for more straightforward access to Radiohead information than their official site allows. It is well done for many of the same reasons that Chain of Flowers is well done.

Ben Folds's official site is one of the few label based websites that I really like. The best part about it are the pictures that have been taken by Ben and his band on the road.

Weezer.com is another really great label based website. The only reason that it remains to be so good is that it is still written and maintained by Weezer side-kick Karl Koch. It used to be better—back when Weezer used to be better—but it is still a reliable source for the =w= fan in you. I do miss the old "Karl's Corner" days, though.

Finally, I have to mention Myspace’s one good quality. When Jon and I were playing around town with Lancaster a year or so ago, Myspace became a very useful tool of local music discovery and networking. There are some really great bands to discover in the Valley (and in your city too) if you look around a bit. Can’t say that I am really into Myspace as a social networking tool, though. Too much stupid crap out there that I don’t want to look at on people’s sites.

Gnarls Barkley= summer fun

Summer time is about harmless guilty pleasures—right ? This summer my guilty pleasure has a name and that name is Gnarls Barkley. Besides having an awesome first album with St. Elsewhere and a completely catchy single in Crazy—with a totally unique video, to boot—they are showing up in public in costumes like this, and with live remixes like this. Man oh man. It’s probably been done before—but I think that the R&B with hip-hop/sampling sensibilities is so cool! That the guys (Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo) have a sense of humor with their costuming and stuff makes the band even better. The other cool thing that I just read about them was that after 9 weeks they had their own single deleted from the top ten (as #1) to keep the public from getting sick of it and to make way for their next single. I don't think that anybody has ever done that before.

I hope to see them live.

Sliding through the last week of the semester

Immersed in Milton and Burke, trying to exert myself in a way that produces some sort of semi-scholarly work, I am locking in for quite a week. My blog diversions have been a way of coming up for air. So, speaking of fresh breaths of that invisible, life-giving chemical:

Check this dude out: Jerry Douglas

I have been listening to a lot of Alison Krauss & Union Station lately (a lovely accent to my almost constant diet of Sufjan Stevens, Iron & Wine, James Taylor and the Shins of late). Douglas is, as you might have already seen, the acoustic slide guitarist for Alison’s band and the guy is amazing. I have been listening to the albums lately and couldn’t put my finger on what gave that unique twinge to the amazing slide soloing going on. When I saw them play on last Friday night’s Austin City Limits, I saw Douglas in action for the first time and was utterly floored. I am a guy who has severely dissed the twang of the electric slide heard in most country music, but this is a whole new thing (and I can stand the former much more these days too). Anyway, I hope you enjoy seeing this guy in action. If you like what you see and haven’t listened to much Alison Krauss, I recommend theses two songs to start you out:

This is from Austin City Limits It shows the bluegrassiness at its best.

Goodbye is All We Have

And if you can find it, Restless is a great song too

NESsy: Our underwater ally

On Only Anything's second album SpaceCapers, Jon Thwaits busted out a cover of a tune from the NES video game Mega Man 3--that was 1994. In 2006 it has become an industry.
You can find Asian prodigies on the net working out the Mario theme on the piano or a guitar, high school bands rocking the "Mike Tyson's Punch Out" theme, and I just stumbled on this today.

Phoenix has the Minibosses. I can barely believe the close harmonies these dueling guitarists pull off (sorry about the swears in that last link, just leave the volume down until the dudes start rockin' Castlevania). I guess Jon and I should have followed that muse.
The Advantage from San Diego are pretty cool too.

What does this all say about my generation's music sensibilities?

I'm sorry, this post just keeps growing (and this is totally unrelated)--but I can't help but love this
(You'll love it too if you are into Ben Folds singing old Wham! songs with Rufus Wainwright)

Mr. Corgan and Mr. Smith

When I was about 14 years old, in the summer before my Freshman year in high school, my buddy Andy and I did what most young teenagers do who are searching for coolness and identity—we would sneak periodically into Andy’s older brother Joe’s room in hopes that some of his esteemed coolness would seep into us. Joe had just graduated from high school and the first thing that you noticed when you went into his room was that he was a fan of what was then called “new wave” music. There were posters from floor to ceiling. These posters featured all of the late 80’s prominent gloom rockers. Depeche Mode and The Smith’s Morrissey were featured prominently as were other, more minor characters. One group, however, outshined them all—both by total number of posters and by the distinct look of the individuals presented within. I speak, of course, of Robert Smith and his band the Cure. Here was a guy who managed, by appearance alone, to be both terrifying and beautiful. His music was also exactly that.

So we braved the tapes. The first songs I remember listening to by the Cure were those off their very first album (“why not start at the beginning?” we thought). “Boys Don’t Cry” was (though we hadn’t the experience then to describe it this way) was the epitome of post punk. In it you could hear elements of the Ramones and the Clash but it had something else too. I remember loving the title single off the album, and being perplexed by the song “Killing an Arab.” After listening for most of the summer, and becoming familiar with their library (especially their most current release at the time “Wish”) what ended up sealing the deal for me in becoming the mega-fan that I have become was the guitar. That same summer I took a special interest in learning how to play. The Cure’s songs were just simple enough that with some effort I could learn how to play almost any song by them that I wanted. This coupled with the formation of my first band “Only Anything” which consisted at the time of 3 other hard core Cure fans became the bedrock for what has now become a 10+ year following. They are my very favorite band, the one rock group that I would choose if forced to listen to only one band for the rest of my life on that proverbial deserted island. This might also have to do with the fact that their arsenal of tunes has to be in the 200s.

Anyway, a few years later I had become a poster child for early 90s rock and roll. By first hand experience I was a certified expert in what for others like me was the natural flow of music progression. Listening to the Cure made listening to other dynamically gloomy music something that wasn’t only natural but inevitable. Among other bands that I began gobbling was a Chicago based group called the Smashing Pumpkins. Almost immediately, Billy Corgan’s foursome became #2 on my list. Just like the Cure, the Pumpkins appealed to me on a variety of levels and languages. Like Smith, Corgan wrote songs that seemed to speak to that adolescent spirit that was in bloom within me. Both the Cure and the Pumpkins seemed to get the formula right, but did so without seeming to be trying to do so like other bands of the time that I loved to hate like Candlebox and Dishwalla. My first concert was a Lollapalooza stop in Phoenix. The Pumpkins and the Beastie Boys headlined—I seemed to be the only one there who gone to see the Pumpkins exclusively. Billy’s guitar playing blew me away and I had a new idol.

So, Siamese Dream literally became a soundtrack to my life. It introduced me to heavy music, and taught me how that dynamic could be moving without seeming overwrought like other metal bands seemed to me. When Mellon Collie came out it was like a gift of 26 more songs written just for me about my life. That same year The Cure released Wild Mood Swings, an album who’s songs my wife and I think back on as the songs of our courtship and early love.
So that was a long introduction to my intent on writing this little piece about my two favorite bands of all time. The real reason I wanted to write is that now, ten years later, the Cure is still going strong and the Pumpkins have broken up. Recently, Billy Corgan announced his intentions to reform his band. He said that he wants his songs back as if they have somehow, mysteriously left him behind. This announcement has been met with speculation and disbelief as in the last 5 years or so, he has severely alienated his former band mates, citing James Iha as the reason that the Pumpkins broke up in the first place and pegging D’Arcy as a raving addict. So what is Robert’s secret to success? Why has his band been around for almost 30 years and the Pumpkins broke up to the dismay of their leader after only 12?

Fans might say that it is because Billy is such a head case, but I would submit that Robert does and says things that are just as cold. Just a few months ago, without warning he fired two 12+ year members of his band (Roger O’Donnell and Perry Bamonte). According to their web sites, Roger and Perry still have no idea why Robert pushed them out.

I think that Robert realizes something that Billy might not. Robert Smith realizes that he is the Cure. It doesn’t matter who else is in the band with him as long as they can play or be taught to play the band’s catalog. Its Robert’s unique voice and guitar playing that make the Cure what they are. It could be argued that Simon Gallup, the bands bassist is also necessary to the sound—and I will give you that, but also say that he has been the only constant member of the band besides Robert for most of the band’s long history. In much the same way the Pumpkin’s drummer, Jimmy Chamberlin, is a necessary requisite for that classic Pumpkin sound. He too has been the only constant member of the band and he and Billy continue to be chummy and amicable.

I think Billy claims nobility saying that the Smashing Pumpkins can only be Billy, James, D’Arcy and Jimmy, but he has broken his own rule on numerous occasions replacing the drummer or bassist when breakdowns and addictions forced him to. So why not just reform the band with different members? The fans will miss the old members—I for one love James Iha—but we will embrace the replacements just as we have with the Cure. All we really want to hear is Geek U.S.A and Soma played live again.
So I can’t help but wonder what will happen here. With the less-than-successful release of his first solo album, Billy doesn’t seem to be creating any buzz or longing for his future plans with the general public. It is just me and the good, loyal Pumpkin fan base that will continue waiting and wondering about the return of Captain Zero.

Why Folds Still Gets Five Stars

Entry # 2

If you are a Ben Folds fan then you know what I am talking about when I say that the man can do no wrong. On his latest release Songs for Silverman, Ben once again proves that success as an artist cannot be measured merely according to the parameters and terms of a critical or commercial agenda. Silverman is yet another example of why he doesn’t nor will he ever need those things to be a successful artist. Rather, his success stems from the ability he has to write melody after beautiful melody and present them within a familiar Folds package of the piano/bass/drum combination. Silverman, however, adds something to his repertoire that I don’t think was there before: true sophistication.

I have been a fan of Folds since shortly after the release of Ben Folds Five’s eponymous first release. The first song I heard off the album was “Underground” and it had all the right elements: It rocked (!), there were great vocals/harmonies, it was different (no guitar), and it had just the right element of humor in it (“Officer Friendly’s little boy’s got a mohawk, and he knows just where we’re coming from”). I got the album and found that it was loaded with the other element that is so crucial to my connecting with a band. It was my central argument in the Weezer entry and that is that the overwhelming sense and range of emotional ideas and feelings presented by Folds, Jesse, and Sledge. Song’s like “Philosophy,” “Best Imitation of Myself” and “The Last Polka” are still enough, I think, to make all the Emo-geeks pine, wishing that they had the ability to write songs that good.

The thing that makes Ben Folds so awesome, though (sadly, as apposed to Rivers Cuomo) is that he has continued to deliver. Most of you will at least have the band’s second album Whatever and Ever Amen for which the band received the most critical attention for their single “Brick.” Brick aside (and you almost always have to put singles aside, don’t you?) the album is full of more tunes that move and amaze. Part of the reason for this, and I forgot to mention this above, is that part of the Folds formula is that he almost always tells some sort of story in his songs. The most notable examples of this on Whatever are the songs “Missing the War” (probably my all time favorite BFF song), “Fair” and “Selfless, Cold and Composed” (My second favorite). I saw the trio for the first time while touring for this album at the Pima County fair just outside Tucson, and this sealed the deal. They were just as good: harmonies just as tight, charming, funny in person as they ever were on the album.

The band’s final release The Unauthorized Biography Of Reinhold Messner, made it hard to say goodbye. I mean, have you heard that horn section on “Army”? “Magic” (penned by Jesse), and “Lullaby” just added to the wealth and emotion of the first two releases.

When Ben Folds (finally) released his first solo album (Rockin’ the Suburbs) on 9/11/2001, I remember coping with what had happened that morning by going out and buying that album. Back was the Fold’s classic humor, (see the title song) the story format (“Zak and Sara,” & “Not the Same”) and the—sometimes very personal,—emotional tunes (“Fred Jones, Pt.2,” & “Still Fighting It”). If you had a chance to see Folds on the first part of that tour, you saw how diverse he could be, playing with 4 other musicians, and if you saw him on the latter part of that tour you saw this versatility raised to an exponential level as you helped Ben by singing those horns on “Army” because he was all alone on stage.

Just incase you missed them, leading up to the release of Silverman, Ben released three self produced EPs: Speed Graphic, Super D, and Sunny 16. All of which contain excellent, full-album worthy material. My favorites are the cover of The Cure’s “In between Days,” the solo version of “Give Judy My Notice” and the song about Ben’s now residence, “Adelaide.” My favorites tend to be fairly pointless in a blog like this, they are another one of those things that are like butts. Everybody’s… well you know.

Anyway, all of this has led me to the latest release from Ben Songs for Silverman. It was released at the very beginning of the summer, before the new Weezer, Beck, Coldplay, Corgan, before all of them, and better. As I stated at the beginning of this little blog turned essay is that Ben has moved from humor here to something even better: sophistication. The old format is there, even more so than on Suburbs, just listen to the sweet “Trusted.” What we have here, though, is almost a “growing up and stretching out” for Ben. He seems to be under less pressure to be comical (maybe he got that out of his system on the B-side from “Landed”). Weird Al’s cameo on the album is just back-up singer (“Time”). You get the sense that you are listening to a jam on “Prison Food,” and if you watch the making-of dvd that comes with certain versions of the album, you see that that is precisely what it started as. I can hardly believe that I am being gypped out of a stop on the “Odd Man Out” tour with Rufus Wainwright. For those of you who are fans and also have to miss, see if you can’t find Ben and Rufus doing Wham’s “Careless Whisper”—classic!

So in a nut shell, I am a big Ben fan. You should be too. If you haven’t bought an album since Whatever, get caught up! If you heard the new album and were like my friend (“I just couldn’t get into it, man”) give it another listen. For me, Folds is goodness.