if my life was made into a movie

i'd like "the funeral" by band of horses to play in the trailer. it's such a shame cease to begin wasn't half as good as everything all the time. either way, band of horses did write one of the best records of recent years and it will go down in my books as one of of my favourites.

now that i think about it, i'd say the same about "four provinces" by the walkmen, or any ryan adams song, for that matter. i don't even know why i started my post this way, to be honest. it has nothing to do with these songs or artists or movies. actually, that's a lie. i could see a tune from the band i'm about to write about be a fantastic movie soundtrack song. movie soundtrack songs always have a pretty, memorable verse but an explosive chorus. the kind of chorus that's big and releases with the tension or drama releasing on screen. - like snow patrol's "chasing cars". that shit was all over movie soundtracks and grey's anatomy.

but i digress. i'm writing about Mumford & Sons: a band from england who's released a few EPs available for download. i think they're pretty fantastic and i'd like to bet on the fact that they could blow up someday. the interesting thing is that they're still unsigned and capable of generating buzz in North America. it could be because they do "indie-folk" pretty well and everyone's all abuzz with the bon ivers and frightened rabbits of the current musical landscape, but when i asked my boyfriend what he thought of mumford & sons he said they reminded him of everything he hates about Dave Mathews Band, which makes me think we may have a few hits on our hands here.

either way, i dig "white blank page" and "hold on to what you believe" and i think you will too.

wow. i'm really fucking bad at this.

seriously. i may be the worst blogger - of life. i think i'm going to make a pact to keep my posts short and sweet so they don't seem like such an invasion on my ever dwindling free time. man... where to start? emusic's probably the best invention - of life. i'm exposed to 50 new downloads every month. it's almost overwhelming.

first. lykke li. she completes me - i love her that much. check out "little bit". it's one of those tunes that makes me want to dance around in my underwear and makeout with someone. i know i use that a lot, but good music just sorta does that to me.

second. my favourite man on the face of the planet next to my daddy-o and my dude-thing is bon iver. check out blood bank. i hope this man makes music for my ears for the rest of my existence on this fine planet. "i'm in love with your honour" - seriously? maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan he knows just what to say to make a girl...

third. just downloaded otis redding live in paris & london tonight. it's an essential. no one (not even my man bon iver) compares.

last. passion pit. random emusic find back in december. check it.

wow. i'm bad at this.

I'm back. Yes. You read that right. My posts have been few and far between lately, but I've finally got something to write about that gives me a musical half-hard on, at least. Or will - on Thursday at the Opera House.

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a soft spot for anything 80s. I can probably recite 64% of The Wedding Singer, I'm strangely attracted to David Bowie and, on occasion, I've been known to admit to pre-pubescent crushes on Jim Henson puppets. But, worst/best of all, in Grade 9 I bought one of those canvas binders, in blue, just like "Sam" had in Sixteen Candles. I thought it was so cool. But I digress, I'm not writing a blog about Joy Division or The Psychedelic Furs. I'm writing about M83.

M83 have managed to make a modern tribute to a decade we all know and love. As far as I'm concerned, it merges the best parts of the decade that was with contemporary indie-pop, resulting in a record that's bold, lavish and fucking beautiful. The clear front-runners are "we own the sky" and "kim & jessie" (check the video here. it's one of the best I've seen in a long, long while). "kim & jessie" is one of the best songs I've heard all year. It makes me want to take drugs I'd never do and dance around my room in my underwear (that I do - often) with... Jake Ryan. I also love the eerie quality to "you, appearing" and "skin of the night". "graveyard girl" seems to be a favourite in the blogsphere, but I'm not the biggest fan. To be honest, I find the dialogue to be seriously lame. That aside, it would be an amazing pop song. Every time I listen to it I wish I could remove that stupid dialogue. Urgggh. It's a "WTF?!?!" moment, for sure.

M83 plays at The Opera House, Thursday, November 20th. See you there.

PS - Bon Iver's releasing a 4-song EP, Blood Bank, in January. No words can be used to describe this news - it's that fucking A-mazing. I love this man.

bronchitis is the pits

So I've been suffering from a nasty bout of bronchitis/a-cold-that-has-turned-into-bronchitis over the past two weeks, hence my decreased inclination to search out new tunes and post about said tunes.

Today my boss asked me to leave work early because my walrus cough was disturbing my co-workers (jokes, but she really did tell me to go home.) Annnnnnyway, I tried to take a nap but I couldn't sleep without enduring a wicked coughing fit, so I ventured onto one of my favourite music blogs, chromewaves. I like Frank; because once and a while he introduces me to a new band I fall in love with, though generally after the band has played a show in Toronto, which is often a kick in the pants if you ask me. This is the case with Frightened Rabbit. They're a band from Scotland who started as a one-man outfit around 2003 and grew to include two other members but didn't go public until a few years later - says their bio. They're fucking awesome, plain and simple. Who wouldn't love a band who says:

You won't find love in a hole/it takes more than fucking someone to keep yourself warm.

I'm drunk, I'm drunk/And you're probably on pills/If we've both got the same diseases it's irrelevant, Girl.

Now, someone may find these lyrics to be slightly off-putting, but I'm struck by their honesty and realness (realness probably isn't a real word and my writing lab teacher would probably die if she saw I published something with the word "realness" in it but what the hell). Despite the clever and albeit dark lyrics, the music is warm and uplifting. I was trying to think of the best way to describe the album and all I could come up with was that it's the kind of music you wish had arms and was able to pick you up and press you against it's warm chest and let you snuggle in its beard. Basically it makes me feel warm and fuzzy and happy all over. I love every single track off Midnight Organ Fight. Literally, EVERY. SINGLE. TRACK.

Standouts:

"Backwards Walk" - I love the line that says: You're the shit and I'm knee-deep in it.
"Keep yourself warm" - This is the one I quoted above.
"The Twist" - Again. Honest, honest lyrics.
"The Modern Leper" - Possibly my favourite

Seriously, I could list every single track. Each time another one comes on my iTunes while I write this I want to add it.

Check them out and buy their album. PLEASE. (if anyone besides Jason actually reads this).
I want them to come back to Toronto again. So do it for me, not the band.

With instant love like this on the first two listens I would say that Midnight Organ Fight rivals my pick of TVOTR's Dear Science as best album of the year.

I'm in serious fucking music love right now.

i've been busy and ill

and maybe a little lazy. new post coming as soon as i can muster the gumption to search the net for some new tunes.

"i'm bored, you're amorous"

(HA! the story of my life.)

So I've been lazy. I'm not sure why. I didn't have a particularly busy week, by normal standards. I think I just didn't find anything that I felt inspired to write about, until now... dun, dun, duuuuuuuuuuuun. Okay, that was sorta lame. But so am I.

Dear and the Headlights are a band from Phoenix, AZ. I don't really know too much about them, besides what I found on wiki. My Internet friend (who really lives down the street from me - i know. i don't get it either. i think he's afraid that my sweetness (and my boobs) might compromise his current relationship. both are pretty irresistible if you ask me) recommended the band to me when we were convinced that we'd never find anything that we could both categorize as "good shit".

Drunk Like Bible Times dropped Sept. 30th and I really hope it gains some steam. As far as I'm concerned it marries what's best about britpop and indie-rock quite charmingly. A few songs remind me a bit of The Kooks, but the first Kooks album, not the second.

"I'm not crying. You're not crying, Are you?" is the first single and one of the best tunes on the record. It's a toe-tapping rock song for sure. I'm sure I'll be bouncing to this one on the subway come Monday morning.

"Flowers for My Brain" is another favourite. I love the lyrical phrasing, particularly in the beginning. The swell, mid-way through the song, is pretty sweet too. I wish I could find it online somewhere. Dig it up if you can.

"I Know" is also a favourite. I'm a fan of the drums. It almost feels like two songs, really. And again, it's a toe-tapper.

Overall, the album is solid. I've been listening to it non-stop for the past few days. I hope they find their way North to Toronto. I have a feeling it'd be a solid live show.

i'm going to take you home (well, i'll try anyway)

So. I'm not sure why I didn't get into TV On The Radio back when Return to Cookie Mountain hit - it was a HUGE oversight on my behalf, clearly. However, last Friday I followed the sweet hum of buzz and good reviews to Dear Science and I'm sure glad I did. It's one of the best records I've heard this year. I'm sure. Fuck that. It is the best record I've heard this year. Yep. Pretty sure.

I love every track on this record. It's raw and sexy. It's so sexy that all I think about when I listen to it is making-out... and stuff... For me, a really good record should make you want to make-out with someone. This revelation gives me an idea. Perhaps I'll rate all the records/bands I talk about on a scale of how badly it makes me want to make-out with someone when I listen to it. TVOTR = I would make-out with that dude I sat beside on the subway on Friday - who smelt like cheese - because I want to make-out with someone that badly when I listen to this record. Yep. That's it.

With that said. My favourite track is "Lover's Day". I can imagine the video for it now. TVOTR playing in a field. Keywords: Night, Fireworks, Drumline, Choir, Hot people making-out. That's it. I mean, I can go into all the editing details but that would be boring. I'm sure.

Now, as I said, I love every track on this record but I won't go into detail with them all. "Crying" has a great groove though. If Prince and David Bowie (circa tunes he wrote for the labyrinth - yes. I mean that. specifically "Underground") were to get together and make sweet, sweet love, they would create the tune that met Cut Copy and subsequently birthed "Crying".

"DLZ" has a slightly darker tone than the others I've mentioned so far. Actually, I listened to it yesterday walking home from my friends place (at night) and it tripped the fuck out of me. I love it. The vocals kill. I'm a fan of the clear political assault. You can hear the strain and anger behind the lyrics in this song. Put simply, you yearn to hear it live after you listen, just once.

Get it. Love it. Resist the urge to make-out. I dare you.