Ten Artists

This game was floating around my little corner of the internet before I embarked on my own blogular adventures. Now's my chance to play, too.

Instructions:

1. Open a music player.
2. Add all your music.
3. Hit shuffle/repeat/randomize.
4. Find photos of the first 10 artists/bands that come up (no repeats and no cheating).
5. Have people guess who the artists/bands are.
6. Paste this in your journal/blog and do it too, so I can have fun guessing as well.

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Remember, Envy Is a Deadly Sin

The Husband and I are the proud owners of two, brand new, bright and shiny tickets to see Ani Difranco at the House of Blues in New Orleans on March 16.

There is some chance that The Husband will be in Tokyo again on business during that time, so I will be taking applications for a fellow awesomeness aficionado to be my back-up partner in awesomeness. Good luck.

Pink Martini

The Husband and I went to an incredible concert this weekend by Pink Martini and the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. Pink Martini is one of my absolute favorite bands, and I can't wait for their new album to come out next month. Here's how they describe themselves.

Somewhere between a 1930s Cuban dance orchestra, a classical chamber music ensemble, a Brasilian marching street band and Japanese film noir is the 12-piece Pink Martini.

They incorporate musical traditions from all over the globe into their compositions both in the languages and instruments they use. I couldn't even name most of the percussion instruments they were using to produce some amazing sounds. You can listen to their two albums, Sympathique and Hang on Little Tomato on their website.

Their concert was a unique event for me. I'm not a very aural personal, and I usually find myself responding most to the lyrics of songs since I'm more verbal. But on Saturday night I suddenly could "see" how all the parts of the songs were fitting together in a mosaic of sound. For a few brief moments I understood how the trumpet and the shekere and the cello and the conga drums all fit together. It was an incredible musical experience.

Live from the Gypsy Tea Room...

The Decemberists!


via Unruly Duckling's cell phone...

I had a great time at the show last night even though they didn't play very many of my favorites. A lot of the songs came from their new album "The Crane Wife" which I don't have yet. However, I enjoyed the new stuff more than I thought I would. I tend to get really attached to one certain album of any particular band, and then I'm all disappointed with everything else they do, but The Decemberists are one of a few bands that I consistently like.

The crowd was also very cool. No one jostled me or inappropriately Woo!ed in my ear throughout the show. No one puked on themselves within my sight. And, most importantly, at no point was I in fear of being quite literally trampled to death by hormonally over-charged teenagers. These are the experiences I have come to associate with concert-going, which is why I usually avoid it like the plague. Way to go, Decemberist fans! We totally rock and have a well-developed understanding of socially acceptable behavior at a public gathering! Woo hoo!

To Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before...

I nearly died from the awesomeness. Make sure you have the sound on. NOT SAFE FOR WORK!

Your Top One Album of All Time

I have procured 100* free downloads from eMusic.com, and I'm feeling adventurous. Tell me what your favorite album of all time is, and if eMusic offers it, I will download it and give it a listen - unless I think you're yanking my chain. Don't even try to trick me into thinking you really love Milli Vanilli or something lame like that.

*Actually, by the time I post this I'll probably only have 87 left because I am super jazzed about downloading some of Paris Combo's stuff. Seriously - super jazzed.

The Decemberists

I just discovered The Decemberists recently, thanks to Last.fm, and I can't get enough of them. I'm nothing of a music junkie, so I lack the vocabulary to describe their sound. They definitely compare to Neutral Milk Hotel and Belle and Sebastian, but no one I know (except S of course - he's super cool. Like me!) has any idea who I'm talking about, so that's not helpful. Plus, they're way better than either of those two bands.

They take their name from a failed Russian revolt against Tsar (Tzar? Czar?) Nicholas I during December 1825. Many of their songs have an historical or literary context, and they often tell imaginative stories that range from enchanting to gruesome. They're sort of hipster balladeers. I'm definitely more literarily than aurally inclined, so I'm particularly drawn to the lyrics, but their melodies are also lovely.

One of my favorites songs is "Leslie Ann Levine," a morbid ghost story about a premature baby whose ghost wanders the rooftops, her only companion a chimney sweep who was lost inside a flue in 1842.

My name is Leslie Ann Levine
My mother birthed me down a dry ravine
My mother birthed me far too soon
Born at nine and dead at noon

Another one I can't get out of my head is "The Engine Driver," which tells of several different characters - an engine driver, a county lineman, a writer, and a money lender - all of whom are asking, "If you don't love me, let me go." This verse is particularly haunting:

And I am a writer, writer of fictions
I am the heart that you call home
And I've written pages upon pages
Trying to rid you from my bones

"16 Military Wives" is one of my favorites although it seems a little out of character for The Decemberists. It's an anti-jingoistic little ditty whose perky pop tune belies its political message. Here's the upbeat, rousing chorus:

Cheer them on to their rivals
Cause America can
And America can't say no
And America does
If America says it's so
It's so
And the anchorperson on t.v.
Goes la-di-da-di-da

The Decemberists are coming to the Gypsy Tea Room on October 25th, and I plan on going although I'm usually loath to attend organized events on a school night no less. Yes. I am willing to stay up late on a Wednesday for the Decemberists. I would love some company if anyone's interested or at least curious. If anyone wants to make a trade, I will accompany you to a show or event no one else is interested in if you need the company. AND, I promise to have fun and be enthusiastic. The only thing I'll ask for is a ride, so I can safely fuel my enthusiasm with vodka.

The Decemberists travel exclusively by Dr. Herring's Brand® Dirigible Balloons.