Category: Music

Music

1 2 3 4

I’m officially mad at whoever is responsible for knowing about Feist yet not telling me about how good she is. Sure, there were clues abound: the Magnet and New Yorker articles I recently read about her, the Broken Social Scene album I own (she’s a sometime member), but no one ever grabbed me by the shoulders, looked me in the eyes and demanded that I buy all of her albums. Whoever that is, I’m mad at you.

Well, I took matters into my own hands this weekend and got two of her albums: Let it Die and The Reminder (out in the US on May 1). The weekend became a Feist-a-thon in themuy household. So good. I’ve listened to 1 2 3 4, off the new album, about 5 times today. It hasn’t gotten old yet. I also found the video on YouTube. It’s wonderful and seems so simple until you realize that the dancers in the video appeared out of nowhere at the beginning and then disappeared the same way again. Subtle goodness. Watch it now and then go buy all of her albums. Also, she’s playing the Variety Playhouse on June 15. I’ll be there.

Chapel Hill’s Elusive Charms

I played a show last night with the Georgia Fireflies. I’m not sure how it came up, but we were standing around back stage and found ourselves suddenly talking about Chapel Hill, NC. We had all been there, some a few times, either playing shows or just daytripping from a nearby city. We all agreed on one thing about Chapel Hill: we don’t get it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure it’s a cool city, but not one of us ever really enjoyed hanging out there. It looks good on paper: college town, cool local bands, rock clubs, record/book stores, etc. But, for some reason, it just doesn’t add up. There’s like one main street, some barely decent restaurants and you can walk around the whole downtown area in about 30 minutes tops. After that, it’s like, huh?

So, if you know why Chapel Hill is a cool town, or can explain its charms, will you please let me know? Any cool areas that I and all my friends missed for some reason? Like, is there this insane skate park, with elephant rides and killer home brew situated a few blocks off the main drag? I’m genuinely curious because I want to like that town, but can’t help feeling that Athens, GA blows it out of the water. Prove me wrong, internets.

Busy?

My days have been getting away from me recently. Work’s been kind of crazy, I’ve got way too many freelance web projects cooking, we’re real busy at home, the holidays are coming up and I’ve been working on yet another music project. I feel like I spend all day writing/answering emails, working on code, FTP’ing files, and trying to keep all of the right projects compartmentalized in the right areas of my brain. By the time I get a chance to look at my watch it’s 6pm already.

Today I launched a client’s web site, and this weekend is the grand finale of a music project I’ve been working on, so things are looking up. Being busy is a good thing, but not when you can’t see the forest from the trees. I need to take another look at GTD or I might go crazy (great, something else to add to my list).

Sometimes just talking about how busy you are gets it off your chest and you can breathe again. Thanks for listening and sorry this post was mainly about nothing.

Blindness

Last night on TV I witnessed a highly disturbing thing. I was watching Family Guy and during one of the commercial breaks, an ad for Mitsubishi cars came on. The background music sounded oddly familiar. It had a throbbing, distorted bass line, scratchy guitars and a powerful yet swinging drum beat. And then all of a sudden I heard Mark E. Smith‘s voice. What the hell? Yes, that’s right, The Fall are helping to sell American cars now.

Judge for yourself, does this song make you want to buy Mitsubishi automobiles?

Don’t even get me started on Of Montreal and Outback Steakhouse.

Just Watch Me Now

This song thoroughly rocked me on the way to work this morning. I’ve bolded my favorite parts.

Sweet Jane
(The Velvet Underground, 1970)
written by Lou Reed

Standing on the corner
suitcase in my hand
Jack is in his corset, Jane is in her vest
and me, I’m in a rock ‘n’ roll band, huh
Ridin’ in a Stutz Bearcat, Jim
you know those were different times
Oh, all the poets they studied rules of verse
and those ladies they rolled their eyes

Sweet Jane, woh
Sweet Jane, oh-oh
Sweet Jane

I’ll tell you somethin’ that Jack, he is a banker
and Jane, she is a clerk
And both of them save their monies
hah, and when, when they come home from work
Ooohhh-wah, sittin’ down by the fire, oh-wah
the radio does play a little classical music there, Jim
“The March Of The Wooden Soldiers”, all you protest kids
you can hear Jack say, get ready, ah

Sweet Jane, ah, come on baby
Sweet Jane, oh-oh-oh-ah
Sweet Jane

Some people they like to go out dancing
and other peoples they have to work, just watch me now
And there’s even some evil mothers, haha
well they’re gonna tell you that everything is just dirt
You know that women never really faint
and that villains always blink their eyes, ooohhh
And that, you know children are the only ones who blush
and that life is just to die

But anyone who ever had a heart
oh, they wouldn’t turn around and break it
And anyone who ever played a part
oh, they wouldn’t turn around and hate it

Sweet Jane, oh, wow-woh
Sweet Jane

Sweet Jane, Sweet Jane
Sweet Jane, Sweet Jane
Sweet Jane, Sweet Jane

The Joys of the Music Industry

For the past three years, I’ve been booking all of the musical entertainment at the Grant Park Festival. I happen to know a lot of musicians and so it isn’t too painful for me to line up a decent group of bands (check out this year’s lineup). It can still be a logistical nightmare, sometimes, trying to schedule the lineup, create a logical flow to the music and not step on egos. I think I manage alright. The bands still return my calls, so I think they are relatively cool with how I work.

Bands live complicated lives, though, so every year people will have to cancel on me. It’s no big deal; I usually have extras lined up to fill in the vacancies. This year has been about par for the course with 2 or 3 bands having to either cancel or play at a different time. Like I said, no big deal.

Well, get a load of this email I received yesterday, a mere 3 days before the festival starts. It’s from a guy playing a small food and wine event at the festival (and is actually one of the few paying gigs). 

Tim,

Yesterday evening I set my classical guitar on top of 
my car and the wind blew it off and it broke. I am 
sorry but I have to cancel on the agreed upon date. 
Sorry

Xxxx Xxxxxx

What an idiot. Is that the only acoustic guitar in Georgia? You don’t have any friends you can call to borrow a guitar? Hell, aren’t there going to be about 100 musicians at the festival who might have something you can play? Have a little backbone, dude! I mean, it sucks that your guitar broke, but don’t let that bring you down! Pull yourself up by your boot straps!

I’d hate to be this guy’s boss.

Dear Boss,

This morning as I was getting ready to come into 
work, I spilled coffee on my brand new shirt.  I 
don't have anything else clean so I'm not going to 
be able to come into work today.  Sorry

Xxxx Xxxxxx

Needless to say, this guy has been replaced and will not be playing the festival.

So, if you want to come hang out at a cool festival, come on down to Grant Park this weekend! My wife will be showing her jewelry and I’ll be hanging out all weekend enjoying the music (and beer).

I’ve Waited a Long Time

Tom WaitsWell, tonight’s the night. I finally get to see Tom Waits perform live. I missed the opportunity about 7 years ago to see him play in Austin, TX and so when I heard that Tom was playing in Atlanta, I jumped at the chance to get tickets. I can’t wait to hear pretty much anything he decides to play, but am especially hoping he plays the song that my wife and I danced to at our wedding.

I plan on smuggling in some whiskey to put myself in the right frame of mind and hope to get a few pictures. If I do, I’ll post them here.