Music to Fall To

I always associate music with seasons. In fact, I think that more important than album title, song names, track order or even band name, the season in which the record is released (or discovered) is the most important aspect of the entire process. Sure, if you have a catchy name (start it with a "the", throw in some !!!!'s, and drop in a phrase in brackets, and thats a start. ie: (Oh My God!) Its The Pitchforks!!! ) thats a good way to get a marketing kick. Write some good songs, and you might stick in someone's head for a week.

But - if you can nail your sound to a season, the music will forever be popular, in a cyclical rhythm, in the mind's of the addicted. I guess the season that most people focus on is the summer. Those annoying hip pop tunes that become the "hit of the summer"... or the acoustic strummings that inspire lifelong campfire memories... they are all seasonal affairs.

However, the other three seasons are where the gems lie. Spring albums bring you out of a snowy hibernation.... guitar riffs melting icebergs with their face-melting sunshine. The Tragically Hip melt snowbanks - its been proven. Winter albums keep you warm, yet conjure up haunting sensations when reflected upon out of season. Sigur Ros - Agaetis Byrjun. Yeah, now you're shivering.

But best of all, I think, is the fall album. I think the dark has something to do with it.... its not yet cold enough that going outside invokes a second thought - yet its often dark enough to trigger a reflection upon sound that is not possible with the distractions that come with daylight. Also, headphones under hoodies just sound better. Bury your hands in your pockets, keep your face out of the wind, spin your thumb around that iPod dial - and find the volume that resonates with your season. Falling leaves do it too. The crunching of leaves underfoot, synchronized with a snare or cymbal, is as natural as surround sound is gonna get.

So here begins a list of fall albums... albums that I crave when the leaves fall, and albums that leave me craving when listened out of season.

The Streets - A Grand Don't Come For Free
U2 - The Unforgettable Fire
The Tea Party - Transmission
David Bowie - Hours
Death In Vegas - The Contino Sessions
Leftfield - Rhythm & Stealth
Fountains of Wayne - Welcome Interstate Managers
Bjork - Vespertine
Mercury Rev - All Is Dream
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
The Watchmen - Slomotion (disc 1)


thats all for now. add your fall albums to the comments, and i'll add them to the iPod. zzz

Tomorrow Starts Again

Tomorrow I will start again. Bought a gym membership, going to get back onto this rehab kick. Damn running and its reliance on lower abs - the location formerly known as my appendix was a little tender after the few miles last week - so I am going to have to mix in the stationary bike. Gotta start somewhere.

Couldn't sleep earlier tonight - so i woke up and had a go at a design that wasn't working earlier. Nothing to show for it yet, in code, but the mock is looking much nicer. More work on the folk singer front. New one is gonna be tight. and posh. Splash going up tomorrow.

Had a chat with Mr. K about big ideas, being a big deal and taking over the world. Nothing new there. Its gonna happen - whether lawyers like it or not.

Tonight's soundtrack: Gabriel & Dresden.

Have a ton of albums to pod tomorrow.

Stars of Track and Field

New (and old) albums have been making my world go around lately.

Stars of Track and Field - Centuries Before Love and War
The Tragically Hip - World Container
Imogen Heap - Glittering Cloud
The Hold Steady - Boys & Girls In America
Ratatat - Classics

have a few more loaded up that i will pod tomorrow. Lots of work to get done - that means sleep.

MSTRKRFT's remix of Metric's Monster Hospital... yes... its good to be running again.

Don't Call it A Comeback...

Its time to get back to normal. Its been such a strange trip, its hard to remember what normal is. Was just moving into the new crib (the converted meth lab) when the organ 'sploded... then a full month on the shelf. Its been 3 weeks now and I decided that due to certain circumstances, it was time to find normal again.

I laced them up tonight. An obvious sign that its been too long? My running shorts - the ones that sit on my floor at all times... the ones that I am wary of washing in fear of not having them handy when the urge to run away becomes too strong - yeah, those ones - they were nowhere to be found. The shoes were right where I left them, and despite the miles and miles of damage that they have incurred, the lack of cushioning that was slowly stressing my feet towards fracture, the encrusted mud and dirt from the hidden puddles that ambushed me many weeks ago... nothing could have felt better.

Somewhere along the way, autumn arrived. Shorts were still in order, especially after searching for a good half hour to find them, but a longsleeve was a definite requirement. My dad came along too... another requirement. My stomach felt like I was at the starting line of the marathon that I missed - nervous - those studies on VO2 and bedrest are not pretty. But I ran. and I kept running. Scar felt odd - but nothing bad. After a mile, I stopped. Probably around 8 minutes. I could've kept going, but I was feeling so good, about not feeling bad, that I didn't want to risk feeling bad, about not feeling good. Walked for a few miles, and talked about the day - what it brought and what it didn't.

It was only 8 minutes, but tomorrow will bring more. Its supposed to rain, but that never stopped me before. Grit your teeth and get it done. Hey normal, how are ya... its been awhile, i'm glad to be back.

Reinvention

When I last posted, I was less evolved. You see, human beings, as a product of evolution, contain many parts that serve no function besides that of helping our former selves survive. I don't mean former selves as a therapy term, or even in the witness-protection-sense of the word... I am talking about the former selves that once swam in oceans, swung from trees, hunted and gathered. Scientists have estimated that there are as many as 180 extra pieces in the human puzzle. Research is slowly decreasing the number of "useless" parts, as physiologists determine new functions for previously unknown organs. In the last 3 weeks, I have also reduced my allotment of useless parts. Here's a riddle for you:

What is the difference between an encyclopedia and a ninja?

Answer? The former has an appendix, the latter does not.