stampede!!

Last week was a wash for me. Nothing got done despite some of my valient efforts in the face of sickness. I ended up retreating to my bed and trying not to think about anything except healing my diseased body. No music, no tv, no food, no light. All of these stimulations could only impede my progress back to superior health.

7 days later and I am about 80% of the way there. The doctor provided little insight into what could knock a 27 year old super human to the turf for such a long period of time, but he did provide me with a prescription for Amoxicillian in 875mg tabs. Which is what doctors do these days. Why am I telling you the dosage? Because an 875mg tab is roughly the size of a peice of Bubbalicious.....for me to swallow. Fast forward to around 3am and I am tossing and turning up a storm before I remembered my youth and how hyper and restless Amoxicillian used to make me. You forget a lot in 20 years. All I needed was some detergent and water in bed with me, and I could have washed my sheets for all my "agitator" impersonation efforts.

In the midst of my sick week, I was positioned on a couch, staring off into space, contemplating if it was worth breathing air anymore when a young child asked me a simple question.....

"Is Rage Against the Machine one of the greatest bands of the 90's?"

My head exploded. All I could give him was the simplest form of an answer. An answer in which I am sure he was unaware of the computer overload on my diseased and over heated brain. It just spit out.....

"No, they can't be"

He said more things, but I just waved my hand in a shoo-fly fashion so I could get back to more serious endeavors like not dying and assigning blame elsewhere for my troubles. But the question still needs a proper answer and then follow up information to support the cause.

The reason why they aren't: Not because I do not like them (because I really really do) and not because of a lack of musical talent (because they are easily one of the most talented hard rock groups all time). Its because they didn't sell enough records or get enough main stream play. They would be in a top 20 discussion, but not the top 10.

When you are discussing "Greatest", you must include how well the stupid stupid public and the critics see them. I know, I don't agree either, but those are the rules because everyone has to agree that they are great in order to get the label. Now if you want to include great to you, then thats a different list. That's a "My favorites" list.

So since we are here, the greatest bands of the 1990's (in my order cause I can do that). The criteria includes first or first acclaimed album released 1990-1999. Critical success at award shows, critical success by music reviewers, album sales, longevity, and consistency.

1) Radiohead
2)Pearl Jam
3)Nirvana
4)Beck
5)Pavement
6)Oasis
7)Dave Matthews Band
8)Green Day
9)Smashing Pumpkins
10)Weezer

*foo fighters, third eye blind, rage against the machine, Massive Attack, Nine Inch Nails, Built to Spill, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, and Tool is probably 10-20

This story is due to the fact that I got run over by the internet while I was away. There isn't much hope for me to catch up. I tried for about an hour today, but you bloggers need to slow the fuck down!

The comment box is where you complain or challenge my music knowledge superiority. I don't want to hear any U2, Chili peppers, Beastie boys, and REM talk people, they are from the 1980's

Fin

Today is the last day. I think it worked out well that its the day before the day that is the day before the day. I guess I just have that natural sense of perfect timing. That and a natural sense of being completely arrogant when I don't need to be.

So many promises to keep, lets get started!

1) She bought the PC....suckerrrr. Ruining her life begins this weekend.

2) The UNRATED bonus material. (Albums that looked good in 2008, but I never got around to buying). Santogold . Department of Eagles "In Ear Park". The Hold Steady "Stay Positive". Crystal Castles. Kanye West "808's and Heartbreak". The Cool Kids "The Bake Sale". The Whigs "Mission Control". The Cure "4:13 Dream". No Age "Nouns" . Hercules and Love Affair. The Killers "Day and Age".

I will probably buy some of these based on how they do in the 2008 reviews that I haven't read yet and how much money I get(steal). Sorry gang, but you can rest assured that in 2008 there is going to be a shift to quality, not quantity.

3) I have made a "Christmas music that doesn't suck" mix. I am going to put it up on iTunes under "PoVegas Christmas". Feel free to search for it, or hit up the comment box for a track listing.

#1 album time. Put your happy hats on!

1-Fleet Foxes "Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant EP" I am not sure if it is legal to group them together like this, but since they came out within a month of each other and contain different songs, I am grouping them as one album.

Why is this the number one album? Good question. When I put together this list, it was easy to come up with the order that felt right in my head (subjectively), but to come up with reasons as to why I put the order as I did it became more difficult to validate my feelings. Music is such a deeply rooted entertainment source, that it becomes difficult to explain why something is better. It's so philosophical that you can come up with so many reasons as to why or why not one sound is better than another sound. DIGRESSING.......

So, why does S.VINCENT think Fleet Foxes is the number 1 album of 2008? For me, they simply did the most subjective things right AND I knew that other people would like it. If I had my ultimate way, this album and Cut Copy would be a dead heat. I like them both so much, one is fun and one is magnificent. Cut Copy is like winning your first game against your dad and Fleet Foxes is like winning your final game against professionals. They may be equal to you, but the public will only remember the last they see of you.

Basically, this album is number 1 because it's more respectable than Cut Copy. Fleet Foxes have a hymnal folk sound that just soaks through your skin. It's crisp, it's clean, and it's timeless. You would never get sick of their harmonious voices soaring over their effortless melodies. If you like Neil Young or Crosby Stills and Nash, this is right up your alley. When I first heard them, I thought instantly of My Morning Jacket, and it's true, there is a similar sound to the vocal instrumentation, but there is something a little deeper here than My Morning Jacket. I still haven't figured out what it is, but it has something to do with Fleet Foxes poise in the production. Their songs feel like they summon them from the earth, where as My Morning Jacket cranks them out of their endless creativity. This could be why Fleet Foxes seems so effortless, because it sounds like they aren't even trying. Jimmy James uses my morning jacket like a costume. He puts it on and he does his fabulous act of wonder. Fleet Foxes seem to blend into the background in some kind of a forest lullaby. Every melody and lyric eases out like a new plant or bird fluttering in.

I know this all sounds very melodramatic, but when you have to come up with ways to explain music, its very hard to conjure up what is going on, so you find yourself creating this picture of the sound. Its especially hard with the more musically dense albums because there is so much going on here. So put some headphones on, close your eyes, and let the number 1 album of 2008 soak in.

Jittery Monday

I am all jittery today and I don't really know why. Maybe it's a hangover from the hunkey-ness of Hugh Jackson in Australia that I watched last night. Maybe it's endorphins from attacking the wheel wells of my car with a broom handle to dislodge the ice blocks so that I could make more than 10 degree turns. Or maybe it's just the excitement for Christmas!

I was quite productive at the mall and found some good presents (and if they aren't, maybe a shank between the 3rd and 4th rib is something I could interest you in). I even bought some wrapping paper! How un-male of me, eh? Between that and driving my little puddle jumper around 5 inch snowbanks out of fear of getting stuck, I'd say my balls may have shrunk a little this Christmas. I guess I am going to have to go to a strip club on NYE to make up for it. Or maybe go outside and chop down a tree. Or lift a big snow shovel full of wet slushy snow RIGHT OVER MY HEAD! "I am S.Vincent, the man of men, hear me roar!"

ALBUM REVIEWS

Tomorrow will be a post of all the UNRATED albums that I didn't get to listen to. And I am working on a cool Christmas music list. Meaning Christmas songs that don't make you wanna throw up. That is, if I can find any.

Alright kiddies, here we go. Down to the last 5 albums of 2008. I hope you are as excited as I am. Actually, you should be more excited because I have been staring ENDLESSLY at this list for the past week and I know what it says. But you have no idea what they are going to be, so this one is for you!

Without further delay......

5-Kings of Leon "Only by the Night": This is one of my current favorite bands ever since I got into them last year. I love the music, the style, the lyrics, the image, and the lack of any big time exposure they have. Many critics use say that this is their ultimate sell out album. That this album goes against their musical roots and simplifies their once unique country rock sound. They say that their lyrics have been dumbed down into a preen for the ladies. All of this is more or less true, but at least they have albums where they didn't do those things. Albums that were more intricate, raw, artistic, and critically acclaimed. You can buy them on Amazon and I suggest you do. My point is, they did it already, so why not come up with an album that reaches a wider audience? Maybe they didn't do it with enough tact, but they did it. And to tell you the truth, the album is still great. I saw them live about a month ago, and the songs that really resonated with the new crowd was the current hits and not because they are current, but because they sound better live in a larger venue. The old songs are better as album songs, but their sound gets lost in the crowd noise and venue reverberations. Bands make their money touring, so if KOL can get earn some bucks and still rock the house. I am going to say "rock on". I love all the songs from radio-rocker "sex on fire" to industrial-istic "crawl" to slow jam "cold desert" to party rock "Manhattan".

4-Bon Iver "For Emma, Forever Ago": It gets really tough here in the top 5 to pick who is 5 and who is number 1. I don't remember where I got this album from, I think I read randomly about it somewhere, and the name stuck with me, so when I was on iTunes I looked him up. This is a perfect winter album (that was released in the summer) but I heard it was written and recorded by Justin Vernon (lead singer, creative force) in a cabin in Wisconsin during a winter that he spent by himself. The music is slow, sad depression type tunes. But its not as pathetic sounding as it sounds, so if you are a big fan of folk, you will like this album (also if you TMOE that we talked about earlier, they tour together). The lyrics are incredibly cryptic, but you don't really need em to understand where he's going. Catch a word here or there and it all starts to come together. His voice is fantastic and there is some sort of studio harmonizing with himself going on, making all his tracks sound like much more than simple singer songwriter. But there is still a whole bunch of background noise (like his shirt sleeve rubbing on his guitar, an fire siren in the distance, weird clicks and tape reel noises) that make this album feel so personal. Like Justin made the album just for you in his basement. All this makes it feel so fresh, pure and spontaneous. All the tracks are awesome, Headphones are a must or a really quiet room.

3-M83 "Saturdays = Youth": You take a leap of faith when you tell people you like M83. Because it really does teeter on the line of dork emo-ish music. You really almost have to find it yourself because if someone tells you how great it is, you'll probably end up criticizing its lack of subtlety. And I guess this is a case of beauty being in the eye of the beholder. It's incredibly luxurious and lush sounding, and on the surface it sounds like something out of a Planet Earth segment or a commercial. But if you really listen with an open and fresh ear, you can hear that there is a real artistic quality to this album. I like to call them an English speaking Sigur Ros (if you know who they are). But as much as it is atmospheric shoegaze type music, there is a real simplicity to the stories of the songs. Mostly about being young and innocent and stressed, but not as immature as that may sound. Just go with it, pretend you're not as cool as you think you are. Embrace your inner low self esteem nerd! The music does go over the top, but its supposed to be that way and its the simple lyrics which keep it grounded, focused and give it the ability to be appreciated by common (albeit open minded) music fans. It's the style in which Anthony Gonzalez basically gets his really good electronic shoegaze across and I think it works out a lot better then other uptight elitist shoegaze I have heard. All the tracks are good here in the top 5, and this applies even to teenage french-inspired electronic shoegaze in this case.

2-Cut Copy "In Ghost Colours": Can I say that I get excited about listening to this album most of all. That even though its number 2, it holds a special place in my heart? I think it may be the fate of a non #1 album to be my favorite despite the lack of respect that I give it. Maybe because its a deep rooted emotional problem. Last year it was #4's Kings of Leon's "Because of the Times" and I have listened to that album a bajillion times too even though I gave the crown to NIN. I guess there is a difference between what you enjoy the most and what you respect the most. This is the case here. I am at a loss of words to explain it........summer, dance music, 80's chic, snarky female smiles, big hearty laughs, cold glasses of iced tea, slip on sneakers, cool night air, sliding on car hoods, booty bonks.........
Cut Copy is from the rockin city of Melbourne, Australia and they specialize in new wave-esque dance tunes. Think Duran Duran with a little more emphasis on dance electronics then top 40 hits. This album has everything I love. Great builds to the highs, audible lyrics, definitive new sound, a great percussion foundation, variety of sound (once you listen more) and EXCELLENT track order. It's fun, it grows on you, it doesn't get old, and a song ending just means another great one is up next. I don't think there is one teeny thing I would change about this album. I don't think the video on your computer does this justice. Listen to it in the car, or out with your friends. And turn it up loud! If you buy one thing from this list or remember this list for one thing, remember it for Cut Copy and that I love it and that I stuck up for it. Tell your grand kids and have them tell their grand kids, for the love of PETE!

Number 1 tomorrow ;) OH THE HUMANITY!!!!!!

The Grinch(internet) stole Christmas

There is a common theme that happens at my place of employment involving everyone but S.Vincent. Everyone YELLS all THE TIME! Despite my anxious web scribblings, I am actually a very Zen like creature when it comes to my physical actions. I wake up very early, I go to sleep late, and there are many hours of intense labor inbetween. I don't have the energy to talk above a normal speaking voice, something my co-workers are oviously unable to control. It's absolutely deafening in the office, no exageration, and I can't even move because the volume paralyzes me. Between co-worker yelling at co-worker, bosses yelling at customers, co-workers yelling on the cell phone, bosses yelling on their cell phone, my co-worker yelling at himself, and crack addicts outside yelling at the garbage cans, I feel like I am riding in the landing gear of a 747 everyday. Its not even angry yelling, its just talking in a EXTREMELY loud voice. Someday I am going to stand up in the middle of it all and just scream "ALL IS WELL, REMAIN CALM, ALLLL ISS WELLL!!!!!"

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The internet ruined my christmas. For the past week, I have been hounding Amazon.com to find a gift for everyone on my list. It took me about 3 days to collect it all and then on Monday I was ready to hit CHECK OUT. Well only 4 of my 15 items were able to get here before christmas EVEN if I used 1 day shipping. What the Reindeer-Fuck is that? Now I have to trek my ass to the mall with every other idiot out there to buy christmas presents that I will be settling for, instead of being excited about. That's more work for less satisfaction. Screw it! Everyone's getting kisses this year. DEAL WITH IT GRZY!

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The album review has once again driven more hits to this site then in the previous month. I am getting almost double the traffic that I usually do. Probably because people are copy-pasting my idiocy into e-mails to their co-workers and friends saying "Look at what this idiot said, lets go stab him with a rusty spoon and poop in his car". Either way, I am blog rolling today to hopefully get some of my internet buddies some biz-nass, and that will be their christmas present, unless they come to my house in which I will also give them a kiss. DOUBLE PRESENTS! So check that out over yonder......(right hand side of the page dummy.....no, your other right)

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ALBUM REVIEWS

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As many albums as I bought; there are a bunch sitting in my shopping cart right now that I didn't buy. (There's a pants-shitting surprise) Some of them are very popular choices and will probably be on a bunch of "album of the year" lists. Unfourtunatly, Superman turned down my offer to do his "fly around the world in the opposite direction, and thus reverse time or destroy the earth's gravitational center and send it hurling off into the universe manuver", so I am stuck. In the next post I will go over the UNRATED version of the album review. You see what I did there? I figure if it can work for "American Pie", it can work for S.Vincent.

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10-Ray LaMontagne "Gossip in the Grain": Looks like jesus, sings like christians think jesus would sing like. He could make a killing singing church songs. Probably make more money and be more popular then he is now. Appearances aside, this is a better version of classic Ray LaMontagne. (When Grzy told me about this guy during his first album, he said "it's spelled like Lasagna, only it's LaMontagne" and I actually knew exactly what he meant) His previous albums have been a great example of his talent with a simple guitar and great signing voice. They are really good, but what pushes Gossip over the edge is it's production quality. He has background singers and full band sets and a wider variety of styles to show off his skill set across different platforms. But, its still got its classic LaMontagne feel. It's like LaMontagne on Steroids!! Call the cops! I Really like "Sarah" (weeper love song) "Hey Me, Hey Mama" (extra hill billy folksy) "A falling through" and "Roses and Cigarettes"

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9-Vampire Weekend (self titled): This is the first 2008 release album I bought in 2008 and it seems like that was forever ago. I liked it immediately. It was cool, easy, simple tunes that had a real fresh sound with plenty of new band enthusiasm. But I wasn't blown away by anything. They don't build to big rocking highs or slow it down real nice or have crazy lyrics or some cool new method. It was like this ever chugging pretty enjoyable music machine, with no real defineable attribute. Over time I moved on to more exciting options. So why did you put them here, you ask? Well this is a pizza album, as I like to say. Even bad pizza is still better than a lot of other bad things, and mediocre pizza is great, and good pizza is really really great. Pizza might never be gourmet cuisine or something to brag to your friends about eating, but it's not supposed to be. Basically this album does enough things that involve not screwing anything up, having a real good and unique sound, and not trying to be anything more than really good pizza. I challenge you to NOT like it. Every track is solid (except for the one that oddly enough has the same name as my sister, and thus, creeps me out) and if I had to name their music, I would call it "Ivy Rock". Cause they only sing about fun school times, use stuff like violins and weird keyboards, and they all went to Columbia. So yeah, I just did that.

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8-The Tallest Man on Earth "Shallow Grave": Ahhh, what a pleasant album. TMOE is a guitar plucker, country twang/howl folk singer. He sounds a lot like Bob Dylan so if you are a Bob Dylan fan, you HAVE to buy this album. I had a tough time picking between Vampire Weekend and TMOE for this spot, and what clinched it for him was the sudden death tie breaker in which I check the playcount on iTunes. I listened to this album 8 more times than Vampire Weekend, so there you go.

TMOE is not at all tall in stature, as evidenced by this photo which Grzy sent to me while he was at his concert. I was so upset with him for living in a large city and thus having only 15 min drives for Live music. It really makes me laugh whenever I see it. Don't you just love the cute little bugger already? And he sounds like a little old "general store" man. His album is a series of simple love folk songs with lyrics that highlight missed lovers, attraction, investigation, admiration, and journeys. Its your basic folk album, but it seems much less bland than a basic folk album and I really can't say enough about the twing twangy guitar plucking. It really sets the album off on a good foot. Love "Pistol Dreams" "I won't be found" and "The Gardener"(My Favorite)

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7-MGMT "Oracular Spectacular": One of the rare finds that I got from a free iTunes single of the week. See kids? There is a point to downloading those songs! Ha, in your defense they are crap most of the time, but every once and a while you can find a little golden nugget like MGMT. You've all heard "Time to Pretend" which is the highlight of this album, but there are actually a ton of good songs to accompany it. I am not sure if it counts, but I got a deluxe version which has some other really good songs on it that may not be on most of the albums. What makes this album unique is the way that they sing with a echoey howl and electro music. Plenty of good builds in all their tracks and kind of a bizarro version of Vampire Weekend, in that it sounds like Vampire Weekend only a little more eccentric, experimental, and with specific build up points and more instrumentation. They aren't so hot live, but they are new, so give them some time to refine it. But I think this album may have "one hit wonder" written on it. Usually the people who are not good live, don't have enough chops for more than one album. Thankfully, they released a hum-dinger. There are a few duds but the hot tracks are hot. "Time to Pretend" "Kids" "Electric Feel" "Destrokk" "The Youth"

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6-Jack's Mannequin "The Glass Passenger": (cue 15-18 year old teenage girls screaming) I admit that this is a little girly. But if you didn't know that and just tried to enjoy some pf the well crafted pop-music from a good musician (featuring piano, which I am a sucker for), then you will like this album a whole lot. It sounds similar his first album under this band-title but a little more musical, if that makes sense. Deeper cuts, more sound, more instrumentation, less vocal priority. They are sing a long songs, and I am always glad when I can actually hear and understand each one. Sometimes you need music like this which you like from the start and is easy to get into no matter what the occasion. I am pretty guarded with my music (despite the blog where I talk about it all the time) because you can take a lot of flack for what you listen to. I listen to everything, but as far as what I recommend to the public, I stay on the safe road. This album is safe because even if you don't really like it, you wouldn't be confused as to why someone else would. If Vampire Weekend is pizza, then this is ranch dressing. You may prefer other types of dressing, but you aren't gonna make reaching noises at the guy who puts it on his salad. Best Tracks are "Crashin" "Annie Use your Telescope" "Caves" "Miss California" and "Drop Out/So Unknown" "Hammers and Strings"

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I would check back on Saturday for 5-1. The weather in PoVegas is a suckfest, so I may be trapped inside with nothing to do. No guarantees in PoVegas though.

Picture me Rollin'

I don't have time to do it today, but soon I will make up a blog roll for all of you who somehow found your way to my blog but then the stench of terrible writing caused you to go into a cultural coma and now you can't find your way out. Kind of like going to a Fall Out Boy concert. This blog roll will assist you to greener pastures. Maybe someday, if I pay these bloggers thousands of dollars (or threaten them with being forced to smell my shoes) I will appear on one of their blogrolls. Don't tell them I led you there though, or else they will kick you out. It'd be like Lee jeans at the cool kids party in high school.

Title comes from the greatest movie of all time (or when I am in a immature enough of a mood to call it that) watch to the first 1:00 with the senior quote for seth green aka Special K. So many quotes, my head explodes. You can bail after that.

I have a chance to finish 3rd in two of my three fantasy football leagues and in 1st or 2nd in the other one. This is the first time I have had a chance at 3 medals. But that's just nerd talk....the best part of Fantasy Football Leagues is the team name. They are as follows "Whoa Whoa WEE WHOA!" "PoVegas Punishers" (lame, but its an old league and there is a legacy rule) and "Thundercats, HOOO!!" Pretty sweet names right? .......Pretty lame topic right? Moving on....

ALBUM REVIEWS
So I inadvertently heard on the radio that Rolling Stone gave TV on the Radio's "Dear Science" the "album of the year". I knew that they would get a high placing, but it really frustrates me that I can't get into them and I am rededicating to the cause. Probably shouldn't have mentioned that, and if you choose to ignore the rest of the list as pure poppycock, then I won't blame you.

14- The Airborne Toxic Event (self titled)- Of course I heard the single "Sometime Around Midnight" first. And I smugly thought to myself if I haven't heard of this yet, its because its a one hit wonder. Then I went back to smoking clove cigarettes, drinking imported beer, and cursing the overuse of auto tone/tune in hip hop these days. I forgot when I first got clued in, but around a month later I was listening to this album over and over. They remind me a little of another band I love; Pulp. The vocals are really gritty packed with loose cannon emotion just like rock legend and weirdo Jarvis Cocker used to do. They aren't quite as experimental and artsy as Pulp is, but even I think Pulp would go too far sometimes and I am a big fan.
"Sometime around Midnight" is a sucker song for me. I am better emotionally equipped to handle it these days, but back in the day this song would have slayed me (back in that day it was Motorcycle Drive By-3eB). Its got angry/depressed mix tape written all over it, I almost wish I had some girl to spring it on. (wait, you mean I would have to talk to her more than once? okay forget it then) This whole album is very good, but this song is by far the shining star and keeps it from being a mid 20 album to its current position. The other songs do a fine job of being original and the album features a good variety of hard rockers to poppy songs to power ballads. If you are a casual music fan, pick up this album. It is very fan friendly and easy to enjoy music. You'll like it a lot the first time through and I just hope these guys got enough juice for another album.

13-Girl Talk "Feed the Animals": This is the most unique album on the list and should be all the rage with the kiddies. You won't hear it on the radio though because it's somewhat controversial in that it is a pure "mashup" album. Basically, Greg Gillis (girl talk) takes a ton of samples and then mashes them all up in different ways to create new songs. They are super fun and super cool. From Lil John, The Band, Ace of Base, Jay Z, Kanye, and Rod Stewart. Its all in there! However, as you can see, no link to amazon because they don't carry it now for some reason. They did when I bought it, but perhaps there is some trouble with the licensing and copyrighting of this album.
The only problem with it is that it should be used sparingly. For me anyway, I get a little brain dead from listening to it too much as the undeniable nature of DJ'd material is a very rhythmic and unchanging beat and for some people that can get old quick! It obviously excels in a party atmospheres and driving in groups of immature people, but alone time or work time and it can be distracting. You should definitely check this out (if you can find it) to see if you can "smell what the Girl Talk is cookin'."

12-Foals "Antidotes": Dubbed as Math Rock, whatever that means, this album has a fun european sound. Maybe its because it makes you feel really smart and sophisticated. They have a real upbeat sound with quick strumming guitars and high pitched plucking. There is a quick stomping beat throughout and is a real toe tapper. The vocals are often repetitive with the beat and sung in a exasperated fashion with lots of the lyrics ending in mini gasps. A unique sort of style that I have heard before but can't put my finger on. Foals reminds me of a less electronic and more conventional version of LCD Soundsystem and they also remind a little of Spoon. I could be way off on that, but it's what I think. Plus, they look like cool dudes who know how to have fun being rock n' roll stars. Really like "The French Open", "Olympic Airways" "Two steps, twice"and "Big Big Love". Sweet album artwork too!

11-Blitzen Trapper "Furr": This is a late pickup (3 weeks old), and I might be a little too over-juiced about it to be fair. But whatever, I am not a pro and I don't get paid to critique albums, nor do I get them free ahead of time. So I like what I like when I like it. This album has an old time 70's folk-rock feel, but is surprisingly well modified to modern tastes. They remind me of country rocked Death Cab for Cutie. Awesome wood panelled cover art! Lots of cool harmonica and good percussion. Good harmonizing too! I think these guys should tour with Black Mountain. They would be an awesome show. Their lyrics are impressively vague, fun, and well written. Songs about being a farm animal (Furr) a confused serial killer (black river killer) and a resentful lover (not your lover anymore). The tracks have a good amount of variety and the lead singer has a great way of modifying his style to match the tempo and mood of each one. If you like bands such as The Band, The Allman Brothers, Crosby Stills and Nash, and Okkervil River; you will probably really like these guys.

Albums number 10-5 tomorrow. Stay Tuned!

Judge Dredd

It may be cheating, but I actually hand wrote this post while I am waiting at the dealership for a standard oil change. Male blasphemy you say? True, but its free for a year with my new (used) car and they have tasty hot beverages in the service department lounge. So consider me happily emasculated.
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At the dealership, this takes about 45 minutes for a 15 minute job, but as a card carrying member of the "Fuck me, I work in the service industry" society, I understand why this is, and happily keep my "cool" while I enjoy some coffee and the sideways glances of senior citizens at the the hole in the crotch of my jeans.
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Since we are here, lets go around the room overly-judgemental style, yes?
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-The Receptionist is wearing short black shorts with long thick grey tights underneath, and knee high black leather stiletto boots. She is also wearing a deep v-neck long sleeve shirt, but a scarf to cover her neck. Her teeth are bleached, but the spaces between the teeth say 2 packs a day. I would be willing to bet the price of a transmission fluid flush that her coat is one of those mini jacket numbers that comes down to just under her boobs, but has a gigantic hood with the fake fur trim. She's 38 going on 23 in her mind.
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-There is a husky guy in his mid 50's sitting across from me who has an un-naturally red face and bald head. I wonder what his blood pressure is? He looks like a pot roast dinner and 3 egg omelet breakfast kind of guy.
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-A man who looks like recently retired high school janitor is talking the ear off of the receptionist. I avoided this disaster earlier when I went up for coffee and he was standing there looking very very lost and searching for my eye contact. I grabbed a cup and ran out of there shielding my eyes from his. I can spot a pesterer from a mile away and all it takes is eye contact to ruin the next 15 minutes of your life.
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-This is funny because I was just discussing him yesterday, but there is a man in the corner who looks like a short version of John Malkavich. He is laid back in his chair trying desperately to stay awake, but he is doing the extended blink of death. Each blink keeping his eyes closed longer and longer. He must not have partaken in the array of hot beverages.
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-A girl in her early 20's just came in. She is dressed in new employee corporate attire. She's still trying hard with her pinstriped black pants, pressed and creased. Super shiny low heels with decorative buckle. Probably 200 bucks a piece, matched with a 100 dollar winter coat. I'm on to you Missy, you can't hide the insecurity in your face. She probably set aside 2.5 hours for this 45 min service appointment and has been stressing out about it for a week and still is a little stressed. Her counter language says "please don't ruin my day" and now she is gripping her magazine like hungry badger.......a hungry badger that likes to eat magazines. Extra points for a hounds tooth purse though.
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-Oh goody! Blue tooth guy just burst through the door. Hi Blue tooth guy! Tell me something. Have you ever tried using 2 blue tooths for each ear? That way you can take orders from your wife that doesn't respect you or your personal time at the same time as you berate the company idiot by over-managing and over-organizing to make yourself feel smart and important.
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That's enough people watching for now. I always end up getting carried away with overly mean comments. That one of the nasty side effects from religiously reading sites like The Superfish......
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(6 minutes passes)
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Ugh, Overwhelmed Corporate Girl just ripped open a perfume sample in her magazine and it made me pass out. I think it also may have killed all the bugs in the room and woken up Bizarro Malkavich because now he is gone. Extra hounds tooth points REVOKED!
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Holy Moley! High Blood Pressure guy just let out about 10 seconds worth of hacking coughs which made him turn a scary shade of purple. Where is the AED in this place?

ALBUM REVIEWS
22-Quiet Village "Silent Movie": I wasn't paying close enough attention and this album should probably be just under Flying Lotus in the "Really good, but an instrumentals album" section. A mistake in that I am trying to make this list less personal and more critical towards getting it right for the common person, but when you are reorganizing the list over and over, stuff like this happens. This album is a little more conventional than Flying Lotus and has a really good oldies groove to it. I really dig the way it captures its own title in that the songs almost sound like background tracks to cool movies from the 50's and 60's mixed with some new age techniques. A very interesting head phones album. YOu may really like it, or completely tune it out depending on your ear for musical appreciation. "Circus of Horror" is my favorite.

21-Beck "Modern Guilt": I am of the camp that Beck is a musical genius and he is one of my favorite artists. He can make a song for just about any genre, he is that good. I have never seen him live, but I have heard he loses his edge a little bit. Which is okay, because his effectiveness is in his nuances that don't translate well in a large live show. At first, I thought this album was kind of a dud. But the more I listened to it, the more I began to really like it. There is some really good stuff on here and it is pretty strong the whole way through, albeit a short album with about a 50 min run time. If you really like Beck (such as consider Sea Change a really good album of his) buy this album and eventually you will be glad you did. If you don't like Beck....move on, nothing to see here. The title track "Modern Guilt" is my favorite.

20-Q-Tip "The Renaissance": Hey! A rap Album! I know, I bet you all were thinking I didn't listen to much rap, but I do. This is a great album by a rap legend (formerly of A Tribe Called Quest). The hip hop stars should pay attention because the most important thing about a good rap album is the lyrics. THE LYRICS and Delivery. Therefore, they have to be easily understandable and not many can do this as well as Q-Tip. His voice is as clear as a bell. If you think about most of the long lasting rap artists, they rap clearly. This is a fun car-riding album and you don't have to worry if there are any school children in the car with you. Nothing special or trendy, just good solid simple beats and Q-tip doing his thing. Probably the most can't miss like able album I have given so far.

19-Coldplay "Viva la Vida": I like the music, I hate Chris Martin. So its pretty good music if I am willing to bypass this discrepancy. Maybe it has something to do with the Brian Eno production. It's definitely a little different than their past albums and has a little more extra electronic pizazz to it. It's also a little cheesy, but its good from start to finish and is on par with the other albums from this band. It kicks off well with "Life in Technicolor" and I think that the title track may be my least favorite on this album. I would also like to subtract some points for 2 versions of "Lovers in Japan" and "Lost". Save it for the re-mix guys. But its all enjoyable for pop music and maybe had a shot at being top 15 with out a d-bag lead singer and 1-2 more original tracks. My favorite track is "Yes"

18-Deerhunter "Microcastle": Alright, I don't know how to explain this, but I went from hating Deerhunter to really really liking it. I have a sneaky suspicion that Pitchfork may make this their #1 album of the year. A little history is that I bought "Cryptograms" last year and was pissed. It was noise and at the time I had a lot of other music on my plate, so I was like "fuck this guy" and went back to other stuff. So when this album came out to rave reviews again, I went "okay, I gotta give this guy a real shot" and I listened. And I listened again. And I listened again. And I was pissed. I'M NOT HEARING IT PEOPLE! Then about a month later, I was on a train ride down to NYC and I was feeling lost on what to listen to. "Alright, I said, why not" BAM, I was into it. I dunno why, but right now I am on the Deerhunter bandwagon. So.......all this means is, if you listen to this, you will question the music business and me. I don't know what to tell you, but you need to really want to hear this stuff to hear it. It's shoegaze (which means you're supposed to listen to it under the influence) but there is more here than that if you really really concentrate after about 30 times through. hahahahahaha "Agoraphobia" is my favorite track and I really like the album cover too. Wouldn't you know it, now I really like "Cryptograms" as well and its even more of a stretch than this one. Deerhunter cookies for everyone! Now, if only TV on the Radio would work out for me then I would really be in business.

Going to go for 7 albums tomorrow. Why? cause its wacky Wednesday, that's why.

summoning willpower....

"Hello willpower, anybody there? It's me, S.Vincent, and I need you to step up the power to 11"

After my 120 album 2008 debacle, I had a small conversation with myself that went a little something like this....

"hey assface, you do that again an I'm gonna sock you in the guts"

But, today is a going to be a serious challenge for me as I clicked on over to pitchfork.com and saw that they are starting their "2008 best of's" lists including "top 100 tracks" and "top 50 albums". A brief analogy: music reviews are to me as acting like a douche is to Pete Wentz and Spencer from the Hills. One, I am going to have to supress the urge to look so as to not spoil my list, and 2) to supress the urge not to buy any albums that I don't already have. (besides the number 1 if I don't have it, that one is justifiable)

It won't be easy, but I figure it could be best to get this big test out of the way first in my "52 albums or less" campaign. Plus, times are tight with the holiday shopping season upon me, so it should be quite a bit easier to hold back.

I don't wanna get punched in the guts.

27-Flying Lotus "Los Angeles": This is a beats type album. I really enjoy it, but its electronic melodies instrumental with very few lyrics basically means that unless you are a music snob, you probably will tune this stuff out. Reminds me a lot of Aphex Twin. You can really get into the flow on this particular album, as Flying Lotus moves in really unique directions with claps, snaps, thumps. There is a really disturbing video for the song "Parisian Goldfish" that I will not assist you in finding anymore than I already have. Trust me, your life will change for the negative in this horrific 3 minutes.

26-The Walkmen "You and Me": I can't really figure out why I like this album. It should be utterly boring to me with its indeciseable sound and direction and what sounds like off-keyish vocals. But the more I hear it, the more I like it. They use an echoey effect kind of like My Morning Jacket, but at a much slower pace. There are some good highs and lows, but this is coffehouse type music as subtleties are the name of the game. They build slowly and deliberately but you never really know when they are going to come and the vocals move awkwardly up with these melodies. I know that I am not explaining anything good right now, but somehow this all works for The Walkmen, trust me. I really like "Four Provinces" and "In the New Year" these guys sound a lot like down-tempoed Peter, Bjorn, and John (if you know who they are). But this album and the next album, Wolf Parade, are pretty much equal to me. I like Wolf Parade a little bit more because it's sound is more conventional.

25-Wolf Parade "At Mount Zoomer": That is, as conventional as an independent strugglings artists can be. To tell you the truth, I don't even know why I bought this album, since I wasn't a huge fan of their 2005 release "Apologies to Queen Mary". But when you download 120 albums in a year, you obviously have a done a lot of things that you don't remember and that don't make sense. However, this one worked out better. I really enjoy this album, especially the vocal stylings of Dan Boekner and Spencer Krug. This album will growa with more listens as you get used to the warbly lyrics and the bounces back and forth between the keyboards and guitars. It's solid all the way through, but I wouldn't say there is one distinct single here. They sound a little bit like Spoon, except less structured. If I did this list over and over again, I could see this album bouncing all over anywhere from 20-30. A real solid release, and next time I download an album of theirs, I will know why I did it.

24- Black Mountain "In the Future": Ahhhh yes, a rock album. So few and far between they are these days, and this is a good one at that. I really enjoy it as a tribute to the Led Zeppelin 70's dream rock style. Wolfmother did a pretty good job at re-juvenating this genre as well. However, they cherry picked the crowd pleasers, not the whole catalogue. Black Mountains approach is the less bombastic side of Led Zep, but its still enjoyable. I especially like that the background vocals are sung by a female/male combo and it makes the whole experience feel like a walk into a country farm house filled with various road drifters telling their tales of the open road. Woe, love, exhaustion, confusion, wonder and lust. Was that artsy enough for you?

23- Brian Eno & David Byrne "Everything that Happens Will Happen Today": I must admit, I am a sucker for both of these guys. David Byrne is the lead singer for the Talking Heads, which is a very underated band, and Eno is a legendary producer and musician, including a short stint with U2 on my second favorite album by them "Achtung Baby". Their partnership goes back a long way and I couldn't even begin to elaborate on Eno's illustrious career, so I won't, but there is some serious no-debateable talent here. This partnership works uniquely in that the two work independently of each other. Eno makes the music, sends it Byrne, then Byrne melts his voice into it. If you listen closely, you can tell thats exactly what happened as the vocals and music could almost work independently of each other. Very cool. I Really Really like "Everything that Happens" "Strange Overtones" and "One Fine Day".

mediocrity..

Bettie Page died today. I didn't even know she was still alive to tell you the truth. There used to be a category on the old MTV game show "Remote Control", (which was like a pop culture jeopardy type show), that was called "Alive or Dead". They would give the name of a celebrity and then your only task was to answer whether you thought they were alive or dead.

But more specifically, I'll tell you why I never found Bettie Page physically attractive......Bangs. She had ramrod straight bangs in her hair.

S.Vincent hates bangs....."I HATES THE BANGSES' "says the S.Vincent gollum....Take note potential female suitors.......(crickets chirping).....

Why? I don't know. I just think they look stupid on everyone. To me, hair should always have the look of organized chaos. It's crazy strands of fillament protuding from your body and if you cut it too much and style it too much in an overly organized fashion, it loses its spontaniety and its life. I think hair should be like the sail of a ship. There is a control and movement to a sail, but it can never fully harnass the effects of the wild nature.

Yeah....hair should be just like sailboat, I said it.

Back to the reviews:

Three of the next 5 albums all have something in common and thus I put them in a tie at number 30. They are from artist that I love, but whose 2008 albums were under-whelming. Not bad by any sense of the word, just down a little bit from their previous works. Which is more than can be said of some of the artist who will finish above them in 2008, but will most likely only have one big album to their name.

30-The Magnetic Fields-"Distortion": The Magnetic Fields is headed up by frontman Stephen Merritt, but is composed of many seperate strong musicians. Stephen has a great baritone voice which he uses in a character that is his own amusing deeply dark and depressing persona. Reminds me of a real life Eeyore. Anyway, he doesn't do all the singing on The Magnetic Fields albums and the other band members keep him a little bit more bright and sunny some of songs. This release has some good songs on it and a lot of wait for it......distortion sounds.....but is otherwise un-remarkable.

30-My Morning Jacket-"Evil Urges": I may be making a little mistake in putting them here. I enjoy this album a good amount, but its not up to my expectations of MMJ. These songs seem a little less exotic then previous MMJ. I am not a giant fan of the band but these songs seem unexciteable to me. The MMJ I like has a large echoey cavernous sound, like they are playing in a cave or in your dreams. Very other-wordly sounding, like they are in another dimension playing on instruments that you can hear but not locate. They are echoey and dreamy but they also ROCK, and this album doesn't transfer a lot of that. I'm not turning them off, but I'm not rushing to turn this on either.

30-Nine Inch Nails- "The Slip": Another free release from Trent, so who is really going to be upset about listening to this? I like it enough, and this album received the highest rating from Pitchfork that I have ever seen. However, this album is missing the flow for me. A great NIN album has a pulse. An underlying thump that rolls ahead with a real industrial sound. This is the foundation for the unstoppable aggression and gutteral tones that Trent can deliver with his voice. Without a real deep bass line, it all seems a little soul-less. Some of the songs, like the single "discipline" have some part of this (it sounds like its from the with teeth album), but otherwise all the rest of the seems a little half-hearted or underdeveloped. I like it, but its missing some of its edge. Still NIN to me though.

29-Does it Offend You, Yeah?-"You Have No Idea What You are Getting Yourself Into": I hate that I need to type for that long to get the name of this band out, but this album is pretty decent. It's got a new age industrial electronic rock feel to it and I checked them out because they were the opening act for NIN during the summer tour. It's got some cool songs and some dud's but is otherwise a fun miscellaneus type listen. They mix a lot of random electro-rock beats togethor and is kind of mish mash sound. Sometimes they mish togethor into something new and fun, and sometimes its utterly random mash. They remind me of a less focused/mature MGMT and perhaps may release a better album in the future. There are whisps of real talent here, like on the track "Dawn of the Dead" and "Lets Make Out" when they mish togethor something good.

28- Little Joy: (Self-Titled): This is fun little small outdoor party type album. Light island like sounds with soft singing. Lots of long "ooooo's" and "ahhhh's" in the background vocals. It such a simple sounding album that it should be lost into obscurity and probably will be since it is the plight of most independent artists. You won't yearn to hear this album, but when in the background, your day will brighten. When I listen to it, I want to put my feet up, drink lemonade, and smile at a sun-shiney day and ignore my laundry and grocery shopping duties. It loses points for its simplicity because there isn't any groundbreaking anything done here or any highs or lows, but its deserves respect for nailing what it was set out to be by the artists; a side project of happy songs written in a cocktail lounge in LA.

iTunes, we have a problem

If you didn't read the last post, just go to the part where it says I downloaded 120 albums in 2008. That said..... A) I am sick. Does "A&E's Intervention" show accept music addicts? B) I have a lot of music to analyze and I realized there was no way I could leave out so many albums without talking about them. C)Therefore, you are forced to suffer because I need to feel validated for purchasing so much music. So D) We have to get ourselves started!

As a preface, the bottom of this list from number 35 to 25, will not be given much attention by me. Album name, quick description of the music, a short critique and then moving on. No photos and no samples. However, the titles will be linked to Amazon.com for further research if you choose. Most of these albums I only listened to 5 or 6 times and put the them in the "Pretty Good" pile.

35-Nine Inch Nails-"Ghosts I-IV": This is an instrumentals album that is 4 CD's of NIN style compilations. It's a decent mix of background music, sleep music, or study tunes so long as you like Nine Inch Nails. Trent Reznor has a very signature sound, so if you liked his old stuff you will like this album in which Trent plays with landscape style soundings. But its not something to get super excited about. On the plus side it was 8 bucks or something from the NIN.com website, so it was easy on the conscience to buy.

34- Portishead - "Third": The Third album is Portishead's 3rd album, so bonus points for a real creative album title.....NOT! The album artwork is "simplicity cool" though. I will probably take the biggest hit here in the respected critics circle as most of them love this release which came after a 10 year or so lay-off from this band. Their style was very popular in the late 90's and they have found a way to transform it into a very respectable modern version. But, it's tough for me to get into. I always liked Massive Attack's approach to this genre better.

33- Fucked Up-"The Chemistry of Common Life": What a great band name right? This band is not as stupid as it sounds, and their album is suprisingly dense and well structured despite the moniker. You need to have a real open ear to be able to listen to this one, and it reminds me of last years A Place to Bury Strangers in that way. Real loud noises here cause this shit is hardcore. I really love the first track.But amidst the chaos there is a real unique sound here. I would rate this album slightly higher on a more personal list, but I know that even most educated music fans will turn away from this album. Too much screaming, too much feedback noise, too much speed and aggression.

32- Spiritualized-"Songs in A&E": The title doesn't stand for the key of the music. It's the name for "Emergency Room" in England. Accidents and Emergencies, I think. Anyway, the main dude Jason Pierce spent a bunch of time in the hospital from an accident and wrote this album. Only the second one since the critically acclaimed "Ladies and Gentleman, we are floating in Space". Thus, you can tell from the title that Spiritualized deals mainly in spacey shoegaze style music. Which I dig here and there, but it isn't my favorite genre. This is another album that will be rated higher elsewhere.

31- TV on the Radio- "Dear Science": I want to like TVOTR more. I really do.....but I don't. They are so cool and their sound is so unique, but I can't quite get into the flow on most of their songs. I love some of their songs but as total albums, I find myself drifting away mentally while I am listening. This is another album that will get higher praise elsewhere. Either way, I tried and will continue to try to get into them more. I promise.

Tune in tomorrow folks!

incoming dark clouds.....that play music

It's that time of year for all you hangers on to YFYB. The time of year where you take a look at your inner soul and question if you have the mental fortitude to handle another barrage of posts regarding S.Vincents "20 Best Albums of the Year". I was surprised to see that I have listened to over 120 albums this year. Of course all of them were not 2008 releases, probably around 50% are, but there is a ton of music I have listened to in the past year and its going to be tough to narrow it down again.

Last year turned into a pretty big debacle, but in S.Vincents defense, it got YFYB through some rough times when I didn't have much to post about. It was cold, the holidays were over, and I was rowing, working, rowing, lifting, sleeping every weekday. Plus every weekend, I was away in some of the northeast's most boring and desolate locations for rowing races. The strangest thing was; I got the most hits per week during that period then any other period this year. YFYB was averging about 350 hits a week back then, as opposed to around 100 a week now. I think that was due to some of the labeling I used, I dunno, maybe people really like music

But this year there is going to be a change in format. For one, I am going to start it next week. I am really busy this week otherwise I would start it now, but I want to try to get mine out before I am influenced by the opinions of all the other lists and then see how mine compares. There may be some follow up posting on others opinions if I get bored, but lets cross our fingers that something cool happens to me instead. Like....finding a girl who is willing to follow me around and we can laugh about her behind her back before she finds out how much of an internet nerd I am, and dumps me and then goes to therapy or gets an eating disorder.

For two, there will MUCH less description. I am going to try to knock out 5 albums per post with 1/3 of the drivel that I rambled about last year. I think most people just want to see which albums I picked and not hear about why I like the music that they have never heard of. Maybe thats just me though.....NOT. If they want to know more about the album they can just send me a compliment. There will also be less video examples per album. Just one song if I can find it for the album. I wasted too much time on that last year.

So there we go, get yourself ready and turn your RSS feeders on to FULL BLAST or OFF. It's about to get a little noisey in this piece. As a teaser, SVTV is featuring a song from one of the top 5 candidates that I have rocked once a week since it came out in the early summer. I have no idea why it is not gigantic. Every pop-music idiot I know should LOVE this album.

Speaking of noise. I was recently re-connected with the best headphones I have ever owned and since it is christmas and many of you are scouring for gifts for your loved ones, I will tell you a little about them. I got these headphones in a splurge period when some money was burning a hole in my pocket about 2.5 years ago. The Shure E2C's. About a year and a half ago, I lost them at the gym and figured that the I could get something at least close to as good in a smaller price range. Wrong! at $85 bucks these headphones are the best I have tried and worth at least 150 dollars. And they are cheaper now! The quality of sound is a big thing to me, so I wanted a set of headphones that could deliver, without being 300 bucks. The earbuds that come with the iPod are trash I feel. They don't stay in your ears, only deliver moderate sound, and don't block out any. The Shure E2C's are the opposite of that, they are locked in your ears and the wires wrap around the back of your ears out of sight like a Secret Service agent. The sound is crisp and clear with great bass delivery, and the best part is that they block out a TON of outside noise. Perfect for city dwellers and other loud environments.

The cons....they can be a little uncomfortable at first and for longer periods of listening (2 hours+), but they come with a bunch of different silicone attachments that helps. But mostly, I have found that when they are new, the silicone takes a little while to break in and soften up as well as the cord which will be zig-zagged for a little while from being locked in the packaging. But once they do, they are super comfy and don't budge even when your ipod falls out of your pocket. It will be hanging from your ears! Rare for any headphones.

So if you or someone you know really loves music and is someone you are going to spend more than 50 bucks on. Get them these headphones....like NOW.

The autumn of our content (with pumpkins of course)

Welcome to the first day of Fall. I don't really consider it fall till there is the delicious scent of pumpkin in the air. Deliciously robust pumpkin. In fairness, I also realized that pumpkin may not be so delicious if it wasn't for cinnamon and sugar. I don't think I have ever tasted pumpkin without those other two involved, so I may not even like pumpkin, I may only like pumpkin+. Maybe thats another reason to like pumpkin even more, because pumpkin is a team player. "Hey sugar; lets have me, you and cinnamon get togethor and take 2 months by storm. We could own this country, but I need you guys to help me." And what do you know, they did it. They did it for us, and they did it for them. Are we all happier for it? You bet your ass we are.

Pumpkin: American Hero. A story by S. Vincent.

Busy busy this time of year. It seems like 16 hour days, 7 days a week aren't enough. I get the major stuff mostly done, but the minors like dishes, laundry, house cleaning, shopping, and personal hygiene is always a rat race. I am barely keeping my head above water and there is always one of theses that is in a disgusting shamble before I can grab hold and get in under control. I won't share with you which is falling behind currently, but every day, one of those maintenance tasks that most humans need to keep up with to be considered human is not happening. Aren't you glad I share?

As an iTunes freakshow, I have recently been toying with the new "Genius" feature. For those not hopelessly en-slaved by the Apple universe, Genius is a feature which takes the song you select and then tells you songs and albums they have that you should buy (Steve Jobs says: "make money money, make money MONEY!!") but then the real kicker is that they can also create a playlist from that song of other songs you have in your library that are similar to the selected song. Interesting and fun new feature.

I think the internet should create a feature like that for blogs. Such as You like YFYB?, you may also like retarded monkey's dancing videos on YouTube, poop jokes, naked pictures of Robert DeNiro, and horror movies involving green fiberous vegetables.

Something that scares me? The fact that Dooce is probably the blogger that I have the most in common with. I'm sure I need to read more blogs and get a wider scope, but her humor, taste in music, fear of religious fanatics, cavalier attitude towards implied responsibility, and sense of fashion is very very very similar to mine. She is a little more politically minded then I am, and she likes animals way more than I do, but other than that and the fact that she is a married woman with 1 child living in Utah. We are twins........ (S.Vincent looks to shoes and shakes head in an acknowledgement that he is one messed up tollhouse cookie)

what a glutton

I like to think that I never write till I have something complete and pure to write about, but based on most of my posts, it's obviously not the case. Sure, it would be nice if that was true so all 3 of my loyal fans could defend me by saying "well he may not put out that much material, but at least he doesn't pump out trash like your favorite blogger". That would make me feel special. Like one of those mercurial olympic champions that shows up outta no-where and destroys the world and then go back into relative hiding. Or like one of those writers or musicians who shows up every 4 years to drop off some masterpeice leaving fans to ponder the fantastic depth he or she must be in the darkest sections of the mind during all that time away. That's how you become a legend in the artistic field; 1 part talent, 2 parts shrewd image managment.

So what have I been doing the past 3 weeks? Being the opposite of deep and just skimming the cream of the internet crop. Wasting all my time reading others hard work, managing my 3 fantasy baseball teams, reading celebrity trash sites, watching instant movies on netflix, making cool music mixes, 2008 olympic rowing online videos, and writing recruiting letters to high school kids. Obviously, this is very consuming for me mentally, as I have the multi-tasking skills and intellegence of a lowly soldier ant.

I did notice one thing in all my time spent on my own enjoyment and that is how much I stalk blogs, and how my stalking is actually very very weak compared to other bloggers. I read my feed religiously and heres the funny thing. Half of them, I have given up interest on. Weird huh? Its like some kind of compulsion to continue to hope that something good will be there. Why? I guess it's because the internet is so inconsistent between "blah" and "awesome" that "guess and check" is the only reliable way to get a bunch of awesome in. Check as much as your patience can take and soak in as much awesome as you can.

This is why my RSS feed is loaded up with bloggers that I actually realize I don't care about anymore. I can't put my finger on it, but they lost me somewhere. They fail to bring up anything I care about or can relate to. Sometimes this is my fault for failing to recognize the bloggers main interests in life, and sometimes it is their fault for a variety of reason. Usually it entails getting too much into their day to day minutae without bringing up something of importance to the audience. Every story should have a point beyond "that annoys me" or "that makes me happy". They fail to answer the 5 W's and an H (who, what, where, why, when and how for the high school drop out readers of mine) with any skill or skip out on enough of them to make the story confusing or un-interesting to an outside reader.

I guess they win though, cause they fail at writing, and yet here I am still reading. So who is the bigger failure? As usual, it's S to the V.......

P.S: To confirm my suspicion that I am sadder than the bloggers I disapprove of; my main motivation for coming out of this temporary vacation was to post my new favorite song by "Kings of Leon" on SVTV. But seriously, how awesome are these guys live? Read my review of their last album here, but I am stoked for the next one.....

I've been lazy the past 5 months, I just didn't know it

I've heard of seasonal depression, but I never really believed in it. The low light of winter sapping the happiness out of people and the lack of the sunlight making them depressed. I'm not admitting depression, and nor should I have to, cause I wasn't. But I do think that the coldness and the earlier arrival of darkness and later arrival of light had something to do with my productivity over the winter. I wasn't sad, I just felt like not doing anything that I didn't have to. This lack of motivation probably does cause some depression in the more affluent and Type A personailties in this country. I am immune to such feelings because I never have a problem with being selfish and lazy. So, Ha Ha to you implied exestential stress. However, I think that trudging through the winter like a brave little Po-Vegas soldier has trained me in an un-intentional way to be more productive in the longer days of summer. The little things friends, the little things. That extra load of laundry, showering, throwing the garbage out when the bag is full, washing the car, an extra cardio session, that trip to the dry-cleaners or the mall, and cleaning that space on the floor between the stove and the counter. In the winter, they would have been put off til the weekend so I could get another much needed hour of sleep or to jam in a missed workout.

So today, I will write a blog post AND make a playlist with some relaxing outdoor summer songs (which will probably be listened to inside, 90% of the times it is played)

Unfourtunatly, with all this productivity, I am missing out on retaining information to blog about here. Too many thoughts, too much focus on singular tasks. With a larger readership then I anticipated, I have to be a little more guarded than I ever planned on being. I can't just flail away at whatever is on my mind when I sit down.

That would be easier, a better-written blog and probably more fun, but inherintly would include more problems. I wish I could be brave and shirk the expectations and the reputations I have worked very hard to fool everyone with. But I am lazy, and this blog is certainly not an eternal masterpeice with which I can show to my grandkids nor did I ever want it to be. It's my entertaining past-time to keep me awake so I don't take another nap or watch the same Family Guy episode for the 10,000th time. I can't be over-worked and lose sleep over my leisure time.

And that's the problem with undertaking any activity in this day and age. Every once and while you can feel pressured to make it perfect or that if you spent more time, it could be better. With so many things to take care of these days, its impossible to give everything the time it requires. But nothing outside your main focus in life has to be perfect. Nor do you have to strive to make something better than what it is. I find that sometimes its much better to let extra curricular activities be what they naturally are and leave it alone. There is a cliche phrase that I like to use which says "too many chefs spoil the soup" and another phrase which says "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". So when I feel the pressure coming down on me when I am supposed to be having fun, I have to step back and say "If it ain't broke, don't let 6 chefs come in and make you soup"..... or something like that.

Summertime also means lots of movies. I LOVE movies. But this summer is more than just the theatre and me scowling at people who show up 20 mins late and stand near me assesing the scene for the absolute best seat available for 5 minutes instead of sitting their tardy distracting unseated ass down pronto!(BASTARDS) Like it matters how much they visually enjoy the movie when they have no idea what is going on cause they missed 1/4 of it. That and restraining my temper at people who smack, chomp, and crackle the wrappers of their theatre food like they are at a raucus ball game instead of when a serial killer is stalking ever so quietly and terrorizingly down a dimly lit hallway towards his un-suspecting prey. Last week, I was ever so close to jumping out of my seat at that girl and giving her something to really be scared of.

Anywhosal, like I was saying, this is the summer of Netflix and me catching up on all those movies that I want to see, but miss out on the chance to. I have some serious movie watching to do now. I have already seen a lot of movies, but now I am going to be a regular ol' expert with this new and highly enjoyable service.

And with that, like whoever the celebrity is that is going to promote the will rogers institute this year in all the previews, "we'll see you....AT THE MOVIES"

SV-TV Programming Note: This is one of my new favorite bands, but being hopelessly indie, they have no money and can't afford any cool videos. As much as I hate making a joke of their musical style, the guys in this video make videos like I would make videos if I made videos. Extremely funny with a touch of homo-eroticism and slow motion running. Too funny not to post, hang in there, song is longggggg.

I hope they cannot see......

Well, dear friends, today is the day. Just a shade under half a year too! I mentioned previously that I am little tentative to post the last album because all this fun has to come to an end. But, a mission is a mission and you don't get to check it off as completed till you get it all done. As promised, I will post the iMix on iTunes for those of you who may wish to have a copy of the music. I still listen to it all the time, but I recently have made a "New Hotness" mix as well which I have been working on for a month that I will post too. So you have 2 possible lists from me if you are looking for some beach/travel music. If you search iMix for "SVC best of 07" and "Summer Hotness" you should find them in the next couple of days when iTunes posts them. Feel free to holler at your boii if you can't get it to work.
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This album should come as no surprise to those who know me on a more intimate level, but my number 1 album for 2007 is.......
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Nine Inch Nails "Year Zero": What can I say about Nine Inch Nails? Well I guess I can start out with Nine Inch Nails for dummy's which basically means that Nine Inch Nails is not so much a band as it is Trent Reznor's call sign. He uses a band for the live shows and certain recordings, but he does all of the production himself. He is a fantastic producer behind many other albums as well and help put Marilyn Manson on the map. He started as a helper in a studio and was paid partially in studio time. This is where Trent got his start on going solo since he could not find anyone to agree with him on a musical direction. He was influenced by Prince to do it all himself. Thus, the studio time he earned is what gave him the ability to lay down one element at a time, then mix them all. Trent's first album "Pretty Hate Machine" was one of the first independently produced albums to go platinum.
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Why do I love Nine Inch Nails? It's the way Trent mixes such strong ideas and music so perfectly. When musicians get aggressive, the result is usually sloppy. Sometimes that sloppyness is good, because there is nothing nice and easy about anger. Somehow, and I can't really define it, Nine Inch Nails captures the entirety of anger, agression, despair, and paranoia. Your favorite musicians have a way of being the voices you hear in your head, and when the mood is dark, there is no ones voice and music that quite hits me like Trent. He is calm and then not. He is crazy and unabashidly uncensored. Lots of other musicians are these things, but Trent seems to access it on another level. His visuals are also so unique and the videos are generally fantastic. His live shows are out of this world and he is always ALWAYS remixing his songs. The good news is that he is so secure in his ability, that he often lets other musicians, even common fans, remix his songs just so there can always be a new twist on an old favorite.
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Lets face it, to really be a Nine Inch Nails fan, you don't roll like Dick and Jane. Nine Inch Nails fans, (most of them are shithead teenagers who think they know, sucked in by NIN's cool logos and images) are people who have a connection to the macabe. They are closet horror fans and posses a darker soul than regular people. They have usually experienced real pain and despair at some point, or have found themselves attracted to it. I knew the first time I saw the video for "Closer" just before I started high school that I had to know more about this band and where it came from. It wasn't the peep show/gross out shock factor that attracted me, but rather the way Trent seem's so at home in the chaos. Like someone who grew up in a completely different world than everyone else and was honestly de-sensitized to the horror. Selling that genuine-ness is why NIN is so successful despite its very un-popular subject matter. I know I can't sell this kind of sickness as art to someone who can't get past the images. So I won't, but there is something so re-freshing about uncensored images and a beautiful song with ugly lyrics.
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"Closer" is the number 1 played song on my iTunes. I have it on just about every one of my playlists and its the only song I have never gotten sick of. At this point, my iTunes has it as being played 209 times. It's haunting, it's real, it's dirty, it's awful, it's wrong, and it's awesome. As similar as the style is from album to album, NIN is pretty diverse once you start to dissect the songs. But the similar industrial thump to most of the songs is something that once you let it in, It will always be near and dear to your heart or you'll never get it. You either love NIN or you don't.
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So why is "Year Zero" number 1 on the list? It's because its back to basics (somewhat) for Trent. Between 1995-2003 Trent was lost in some sort of "where do I go now?" period. The follow up to the smash album "The Downward Spiral" a 2 disc monstrosity of mix and matches called "The Fragile" was universally dis-credited and although I personally feel it was a great album, I think Trent felt as though he had lost the touch with his audience. He hid after that album, just doing some producing on the side. And although his new creativity was so fresh and easy early in his career, "Year Zero" is not mix and match because as a more mature musician, he needs a universal direction of story to be successful in popular music. "Year Zero" is a story of a future society in violence and despair based on the current government propaganda and egotistical/overconfident attitude of powerful nations. Something that most people can identify with due to the war and universal distaste towards President Bush.
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But, this isn't why I like this album so much. I like this album because Trent seems convicted. And when Trent seems convicted, I am convicted. Because when it comes to crazy, it isn't cool unless you believe it. So, its good to have Trent back, if only for a little while.
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Song Samples: Survivalism, Me, I'm Not, The Great Destoyer (hang in there on this video, it gets awesome) Capital G
Amazon Page
NIN home

Do video games spontaneously combust in Canada?

Okay, I am feeling much more inspired today. I think the problem yesterday was that I got too much sleep and not enough coffee. I like to roll on about 5 hours of sleep and 3 cups of coffee. If my body is too awake, I think it stalls out and doesn't know what to do with itself. Just like flooding an engine with too much gasoline.

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I guess for now this means I have to continue upon my album quest. There is no way I am letting this thing take 6 months........right? Well, there is no way I want it to take 6 months so I should write 2007's number 2 album review.
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Quick YFYB news is that I officially tweet'd for the first time today. I guess you can check that out over on the right hand side of the page. I don't really know how to use it aptly yet, but every other nerd is doing it, so I gotta do it too or else they might take away my Han Solo rookie card or something.

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NUMBER 2: Arcade Fire "Neon Bible" Big upps to the Grzylle for forcing me to like this band way back in 2005. Even if it does seem like only yesterday......

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Straight outta da Quebec, yo, Arcade Fire is a collection of like 100 musicians.....or maybe just 7, but with the number of instruments that they all play, it sounds like a full orchestra. They are centered around the husband and wife combo of Win Butler and Regine Chassagne who are the creative force of the band. Win started the band with some prep school pretty boys at the prestigious Phillips Exeter Academy where they probably wore really nice sweaters and talked about Clipper ships or whatever it is the prep school kids do. Eventually he ditched the snobs, who now have their own band, and started this superforce with his ball and chain. Between Arcade Fire and Broken Social Scene, Canada is the home of 2 of the most acclaimed indie bands in the world.

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Arcade Fire picked up steam shortly after releasing the 2004 record "Funeral". Their signature sound attracted the notices of people like Bono who used it as house music before U2 concerts and David Bowie, who was featured in a few of their live shows. Unfortunately, their secretly awesome status is quickly dissolving due to their highly regarded live shows and commercial air wave prominence. Appearances on David Letterman and SNL were highly successful. With music that holds this much quality, Arcade Fire is more like Radiohead than The Fray and everyone on the bandwagon doesn't have to be ashamed of being an AF fan just because you heard them on Grey's Anatomy or some other girly show.

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Neon Bible is aptly titled because it was recorded in an old church the band bought in Farnham, Quebec. A bunch of the songs have an evangelical feel about them and instrumentation/lyrics about things like faith, confusion, and being an outcast. The neon in Neon Bible is what reflects this distinction between the TV preacher and the more accepted church clergy. Especially one of my favorites "Antichrist Television Blues". It would seem like a huge deviation from their first album, but lyrically much of their ideas and poetry is the same, just using the evangelical culture of outcast believers as its foundation in which they express it. It's quite a shrewd concept actually that they made work well for them.

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The biggest deviation is in the universal use of loudness and bombastic-ness on this album as opposed to Funeral. Funeral is more rich and slow. It has it's loud/fast parts, but they are built up to slowly. Funeral is more elegant and invested. Neon Bible "rocks out" with a little less instrumentation, a lot more vocality, and quick builds. The vocals and style of Win Butler on this album reminds me a lot of Torquil Campbell from Stars in the way he uses his pronunciation and shouts at the opportune moments. They both command attention on the microphone and the songs flow with their vocals much more so than other bands.

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Like the other top 5 albums, all the songs on this album are great. They are each quite unique and easily grow on you with each listen. Personally, I like Intervention, Black Mirror, Antichrist Television Blues, and The Well and the Lighthouse best.

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Song Samples: neon bible, no cars go, Black Mirror

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