An audio Guide to...my night in Richmond

A week ago, my wife and I took a little road trip that I wouldn’t have thought twice about in the past.  Drive down to Richmond to see a show and drive back in the same day/night?  Sure, why not.  Its only 2 and a half hours each way.  I remember going to see Josh Rouse on a whim in college.  My buddy (who was supposed to be the on-duty RA for the evening) and I got in my car, drove 3 hours, got to the venue in time to order food and beer, took in the show (very good, by the way), got back in the car and drove the 3 hours back to school.  No sweat.  This time, we needed to find someone to take care of the dog while we were gone, make sure we met up with friends for dinner, etc (and this was all after the initial debate over whether we even could spare the time to leave town for a night).

Well, we decided to go for it and we don’t regret anything about the decision.  The show in question featured my friend Drew Kennedy and his friend Austin Collins.  If you’ve stopped by Seabass Says before, then you already know how I feel about Drew’s music.  After the show, I can definitively say that Drew keeps some good company down in Texas.

That's Drew talking and Austin tuning (with a giant flaming martini glass growing out of his head)

Instead of the typical opener/feature setup, Drew and Austin basically traded songs in what amounted to more of a songwriter showcase for the evening’s entertainment.  I knew what I was getting into with Drew’s music: stories littered with cleverly turned phrases, framed by his big and bright guitar and some catchy melodies.  On the other hand, Austin’s music was a bit of an unknown.  After a few songs, I was happy to find it to be a great contrast to Drew’s music (the bitter to Drew’s sweet, if you will).

Austin’s music struck me as honest, introspective, and a little bit sad.  To me, that’s a good combo.  For some reason, I tend to lean toward songs that leave a heart on a sleeve and a rough edge or two.  Austin’s songs had a feeling of yearning to them and a bit of anger bubbling under the surface.  His music reminds me a little bit of Jay Farrar’s work with Son Volt.  A couple of songs in particular stuck out, including "Unapology" which we took video of, but it turned out less than good (I blame the table full of chatty ladies next to us for the din).  Instead of putting you through straining to hear Austin in our video, I'll post something I found poking around YouTube.  Here's Austin with his band, The Rainbirds, playing "Roses are Black."


Austin Collins - Roses are Black




P.S. You must check out the new commercial for I-95's most popular (at least by billboard count) attraction, South Of The Border:





And check out more about Austin Collins (new CD coming out soon) and Drew Kennedy (new album out now).

If you walk my way...

This time of year, specifically this middle stretch of December, can be pretty hectic for those of us that celebrate Christmas. Adding holiday shopping, decorating, traveling, and all the other stuff to your normal life of deadlines at work and trying to maintain a semblance of order around the house makes for a muddled head full of mile long to do lists. Its hard to follow good Mr. Bueller’s advice and stop and look around.

That’s why I’m glad there is winter music to help slow me down. I’m not talking about the newest pop sensation’s reinterpreted version of Good King Wenceslas (I’m assuming the Jonas brothers of Taylor Swift or someone has this covered). Some music just feels like winter. There are three different kinds of winter music for me: the kind that feels like looking out over a vast snow covered landscape (I’d put my favorite Icelandic band, Sigur Ros in this category), the kind that feels like standing in the woods with the wind cutting through your jacket (listen to Bon Iver, you’ll understand what I mean), and the kind that feels like sitting in front of a fire with a big ol mug of spiked hot chocolate.

The third kind of winter music is what I want to highlight in this post. I’ve been listening to Lisa Hannigan’s debut album “Sea Sew” a good bit recently because of its nearly tangible warmth. For anyone who isn’t familiar with Lisa Hannigan, she was the sweet to Damien Rice’s sour on his two albums, sometimes lending a smoky backing vocal and sometimes a haunting solo (this one’s appropriate for the time of year) to his work.

While Rice’s albums hold a simmering rage waiting to break through most of his songs, Hannigan’s solo work has a cozy sweetness to it in songs like “Ocean and a Rock.” I like that it isn’t all sugar coated and feel good, though. A couple of the songs on the album rough up the edges a bit and lines like “I stumble out into the afternoon / Still salty from drink and the late night pool” remind me that she’s Irish. I don’t think anything sums up the feel of her music more than the video below. I’m just sad I missed her touring with David Gray. That would have been a great one to catch.


Lisa Hannigan – I Don’t Know:

Dear Internet, I've Missed You

To the internet at large and my many loyal readers (Hi, wife!), I apologize for being away for what seems to be eons.  I've missed you and I'm back and ready to share some tunes.  I was in fabulous Las Vegas, eating Thanksgiving dinner in the nearest restaurant without a giant wait and losing/winning back some money.  Oh yeah, my best man got married, too.  Small detail.  Mainly, I was gone for awhile gambling, consuming adult beverages, and catching a cold.

Also, due to some additional unexpected travel, I'm going to miss out on both Ha Ha Tonka shows (tonight and Sunday) in my area.  So someone should go in my stead and report back.  I have a feeling I'll be missing a great show.  They're opening for Cross Canadian Ragweed in case anyone was wondering.

In other news, I'm looking for an adventurous soul or two to join me on a mini road trip to see my buddy Drew play the last show of his tour of the southeast in Richmond, VA on December 12.  I think Drew should name his tour something along the lines of "The Drew Kennedy Not Close Enough To Seabass To Be Overly Convenient Winter Tour 2009."  That would be a sweet concert T-Shirt.  Drew, make it happen and I'll definitely make the trip.

Back to the original intent of this post...as an apology for my absence, I offer this little slice of awesome (embedding was disabled, so you'll just have to follow the link and trust me).

This glimpse of brilliance is better than a long look at mediocrity

A couple weekends ago, we picked up Ha Ha Tonka's first album, "Buckle in the Bible Belt."  I sat on it for a few days, as I was a little caught up in work and the Monsters of Folk album.  When I finally got around to giving it a try, I was mighty impressed.  The entry page to their website reads: "Ha Ha Tonka - foot stomping indie rock" and I think that about sums it up.  Their sound is an interesting mix of rootsy folk/country, 3 and 4 part gospel harmonies, and whiskey laden rock.  This is rail drinks and concrete floors type of music and I'm loving every minute of it.  They have a second album - "Novel Sounds of the Nouveau South" - out, too, but I haven't grabbed that one yet (who wants to buy me a gift?).  I think what impresses me the most about Ha Ha Tonka's music is how well the lyrics stand up to the rest of the music.  That may be hard to follow, but I think it is easy for the words to get lost in the raucous nature of this type of sound.  In the same way the Rhett Miller's wordsmithing shines through the Old 97s rocking, I think Ha Ha Tonka nails the balance between rowdy and thoughtful.  For examples of what I'm babbling about, check out these videos from a in studio performance for Chicago's Q101:


St. Nick on the Fourth in a Fervor (from Buckle in the Bible Belt)



Close Every Valve To Your Bleeding Heart (from Novel Sounds of the Nouveau South)



If anyone else agrees with me on the quality of Ha Ha Tonka's music, we're in luck (at least those of us who live in the 'burgh or Baltimore/DC areas).  The band is currently on tour and stopping at the Recher Theater in Baltimore (Towson to be exact) on Dec. 3, Mr. Smalls in the 'burgh on Dec. 5, and the 9:30 Club in DC on Dec. 6.  Hopefully I can make it out on the 3rd or 6th and report back on how the band sounds up close and personal.

Here There Be Monsters

When I first learned about the Monsters of Folk (Conor Oberst, Jim James, M. Ward, and Mike Mogis) supergroup, tour, album, and more touring, I was guardedly optimistic.  I had heard some live recordings of the group, but, to me, those sounded like the guys getting together to play a few of each others' songs and the occasional classic like "Always On My Mind" instead of a band with their own identity.  I wasn't sure whether we'd be seeing a one off fun little side project like the Bens (Folds, Lee, and Kweller) or a supergroup that somehow manages to do something somehow bigger than the sum of its parts like the Travelling Wilburys (Lefty, Nelson, Otis, Lucky, and Charlie T., Jr.).  After hearing the whole Monsters of Folk album (self titled) and seeing some of what these guys are doing live, I'm definitely thinking it'll be the latter.  The Wilburys tailed off after Roy Orbison passed, but with the ages of the Monsters, there is potential for at least a few more albums than the Wilburys put out.

At first glance, I didn't really see how the Monsters of Folk would work.  I imagine the guys are friends and respect each other as people, musicians, collaborators, an so on, but their voices just don't seem like they'd mesh.  You have Ward's lightly Waitsian (that's right...Waitsian) bluesy rasp, Oberst's wavery and sometimes rageful singing, and James's wide ranging dreamy melodies that sometimes sound like a muffled echo.  At second glance and first full listen, I can see why it works.  It seems that they all set aside whatever egos they may have and recorded a truly collaborative album.  "Temazcal" (in the first video below) is a great example of what I'm trying to get at.  The song has this great feeling of movement and wonder powered by Ward's vocals and amplified by James's haunting little pieces of backing vocals.  Like the rest of the album, I think "Temazcal" is at its best when all three of the vocalists are all singing.  Oberst's voice fits in surprisingly well and kind of grounds the song a bit for me.  See and hear for yourself:



Just to show that this isn't one trick pony territory, check out "The Sandman, The Breakman, and Me" where Jim James seems to be finding a nice balance between his early My Morning Jacket vocals and his more recent experimentation. 



There are definitely threads of My Morning Jacket, Bright Eyes, and M. Ward's solo stuff running through the album, but the Monsters definitely have their own unique sound and have managed to create an album that is tough to categorize.  It would be easy to say its folk, but there is a bit more going on than that...almost as if the Monsters are threatening to toss aside the pedal steel and acoustics and just plain rock out.

Where did the blue skies go?

In my last post, I mentioned that I spent a good bit of time on the couch during my day off.  It wasn't entirely my fault.  I had plans to paint my newly build shed (shhh...don't tell my Homeowners' Association), but mama nature didn't think that was a good idea.  I guess she likes the idea of hurricane season clinging on until the bitter end.  The wind, rain, and chilly weather here in Naptown are not making for a good combination.  So to share in my whining, I give you Travis and the situationally appropriate "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?"





In related news, I'd like to brag that my wife and I got to see Travis play the WRNR Private Artist Showcase awhile back.  We got to see the band play a "half-plugged" show for free in a <500 seat space.  It was quite fantastic.

I've been thinking a lot today...

I thought about
The Army

What's that you say?  You've had enough Ben Folds?  Veterans' Day was yesterday?  I know, but I might have dozed off on the couch on my day off instead of doing any number of the productive things I had ambitiously planned for myself (blog post included).  So, in between things at work, I'll put the post together today.  Instead of a Veterans' Day post, I'll just call it a post inspired by the holiday.

Living in Annapolis, I can't help letting my mind wander toward the military.  Usually, its thoughts like, "Man, I can't find parking anywhere.  Oh, yeah, its commissioning week." But sometimes, I'm reminded how much respect the people who put their lives on the line for their country deserve.  Like during the pirate saga (did it qualify as a saga?) that unfolded not too long ago:

Two songs (three, actually, but I'm resisting the urge to post anything related to the Village People) came to mind when thinking about a Veterans' Day themed post.  I'll put the fun one first and end with more of a somber tune at the end.

Ben Folds Five - Army



Iron & Wine - Love Vigilantes (New Order cover)


Side note: I expect that I'll do an Iron & Wine post sometime soon and then probably a bunch of times after that.  Sam Beam is very, very good.

If you were looking for a George Michael cover, you've come to the right place

One of the best moments from one of my favorite concert experiences (that also produced one of my favorite concert t-shirts) was when Rufus Wainwright joined Ben Folds on stage toward the end of Ben's set (Guster headlined the show after Rufus and Ben were through).  I'm not sure if anyone knew of the fun that was about to ensue, but we were all loving it by the time they hit the first chorus.  I remember both guys visibly fighting back laughter and Rufus had to consult a sheet of lyrics a couple of times after almost losing his battle.  Here they are knocking it out of the park in New York:



I've seen Ben Folds 4 times and he's always good for bouncing between his ballads and rockers while sprinkling in some ridiculously fun covers.  This one had one of my friends in tears when we caught a show in State College and I found this one to be pretty impressive when he closed his set amonst strobe lights the last time I saw him (added bonus of a guit-orchestra on the video...I want a guit-orchestra).

Cause its running you with red

I gave blood earlier today, so I can't think of any music more appropriate to mark the occasion than "Blood Bank" by Bon Iver.  The video below is from the sunrise show they played at a cemetery in California.  I don't think a time, setting, and band could ever mesh better than that.  Bon Iver's music is haunting, raw, and intimate.  This is heart directly on sleeve kind of music.  If "Blood Bank" doesn't convince you.  Check out "Re: Stacks", "Flume", and especially "Skinny Love" from the same show.  Watching the footage from the concert leads me to believe that more shows should be held at sunrise.  Why should dusk get to be the only magic hour?

The Music Organization Project: Part I

I'm a big fan of organization.  I sleep better in a clean bedroom with all of my laundry put away.  I work more efficiently with a clean desk and an accurate file system.  The problem is that I'm really good at procrastinating and organizing things is something easy to put off in favor of more enjoyable endeavors.  Recently, I've grown ambitious and decided to get some things in order.  One of those things happens to be my laptop that is currently stuffed full of music.  When I left my two prior jobs for greener pastures, I just dumped every personal file from my work computers right onto my laptop in on big mess of a folder.  Between employment relocation dumps and moving files back and forth between computers and my mp3 player, there isn't much organization to be found on the ol laptop.  So today, I am starting the Music Organization Project, or MOP for short.  I only point out the acronym because of how well it fits.

As I work my way through the various folders and somewhat random files on my laptop, I will be stumbling across music that I've either forgotten about or just plain haven't listened to in awhile and posting about it.  This could take some time.

First up for the MOP is an album by Zero 7 called "The Garden."  I was first introduced to Zero 7 in 2001 or 2002 when I saw the video for "Destiny" on MTV2.  Does that channel still exist?  Do they show videos on it, or just reruns of old Road Rules episodes?  Anyway, I caught the video partway through and was sucked in, making sure I stuck around until the end to see who the band was.  I downloaded a few songs and liked everything I heard.  The music was moody, laid back, and just plain smooth.  I kept tabs on the band, but for some reason skipped out on buying their first 2 albums.  I impulse bought "The Garden" one day in my favorite music store when I read that Zero 7 worked with both Sia (who had been on board on previous Zero 7 recording) and José González on the album.  It turned out to be a good idea and I'm ready to get their new album "Yeah Ghost" as soon as I can.  I'd love to see them live sometime, but it looks like I'll have to wait for the next tour.  The crazy brits are playing 2 shows in my area while I'll be off at a wedding.  I guess I'll settle for the things I find on the web for now.  Here's a video of Zero 7, with Sia (playing backup singer and bartender, apparently) and José González along for the ride playing "Today" off of "The Garden":

Stress relief for a busy Tuesday

On a day when I should be paying attention to who is going to be my new boss (get out and vote, Annapolitans), I'm stuck at my desk dealing with all kinds of things that aren't worth the effort to type about.  In a nutshell, it was a busy morning and a busy afternoon is sure to follow.  A day like this calls for some stress relief, so I think I'll post two videos that always seem to make the world melt away when I watch them.

The first is the video for "Her Morning Elegance" by Oren Lavie.  Lavie's music is great for this time of year.  Whimsical and airy, much like Alexi Murdoch, Oren Lavie crafts some excellent music to daydream to.  With apologies to Ms. Swift and Mr. West, I think this is the video of the year.  Anything that can bring stop motion back to music videos ("Sledgehammer" anyone?) and include a floating cello gets my vote.



The second video is for "Ljósið" by Ólafur Arnalds (if anyone knows how to pronounce that, please let me know).  After hearing this, I'm convinced that I'm developing a potentially unhealthy adoration of Icelandic music.  I'm baffled that my friends don't enjoy Sigur Rós anywhere close to as much as I do and I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to track down Arnalds' new album on vinyl.  I can only assume it will be fantastic.  He is from Iceland, after all.  I'm no expert on classical or neo-classical or whatever music, but to my ears, this song (and video) starts off as rather pretty and builds into something quite gorgeous.

Goose's picks for Goose's birthday: Camera Obscura and Deer Tick, together at last

I mentioned my friend Goose in my last post. Turns out his birthday is right on the heels of Murph's, so I'm sticking with the bday theme for another post. Goose's big day was yesterday, so I missed posting this on his actual birthday, but I had more important things to do yesterday (like grocery shopping...I was very proud of the bag of meat my wife and I brought home).

Before I start salivating over my memory of those strip steaks, I should get back to the point. Looking back, Goose has been a part of some very good music related memories. The only band I've ever been in featured Goose shredding his way through "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" with a bone chip in his ring finger (dude can play) during a battle of the bands in 10th grade. For some strange reason, the 9th and 10th graders preferred Blink182 covers to our versions of Dire Straits and Hendrix. We still managed to take 2nd place. My only regret is that we talked ourselves out of using the name Scary Larry.

One of my fondest concert-going memories also featured Goose and happened all the way back in 10th grade. The Dave Matthews Band came through Pittsburgh and played back to back dates at the wonderful Star Lake Amphitheater (I know it has a different name now, but it will always be Star Lake to me) on a Thursday and Friday during the school year. Goose and I convinced our parents to let us go to both, even though we had a chemistry test waiting for us Friday morning.

We made it to the parking lot early enough on Thursday to make a lame attempt at tailgating. Goose had come across a tiny, store bought charcoal grill that turned out to be little more than foil formed around a brick of something flammable that sort of resembled charcoal. I think we struggled to light the thing for a good 10 minutes and it probably took at least a half hour to cook the frozen burgers we brought. In the words of a drunken passerby, "I don't know about that grill...but that grill is awesome!"

These days, when Goose and I get together, there is always the obligatory "Have you heard of (insert band name here) yet?" "Yeah, they're great. Have you heard of (insert other band name here) yet? They sound a little like (third band we both know of) and (another band)" conversation. I love those conversations. In a way, this blog is one end of that conversation. So to make it two sided for a little bit, I talked to Goose yesterday and asked for a couple of bands he'd like to see mentioned in my little piece of the internet (yeah, its mine...I'm even thinking of making a flag to stick in the ground). He gave me two excellent suggestions and here they be:

Camera Obscura

The video above is from Camera Obscura's excellent set on my oft visited favorite, KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic.  The KCRW set was my introduction to the band and I found myself liking everything that I heard.  There is a cheerfulness to the music without being bubble gummy, if that makes sense.  After repeated listens, I've found that the surface cheerfulness is a little deceptive.  There is definitely a bittersweet quality to the songs I've heard and that makes me like Camera Obscura even more.  It isn't too often you find this much depth behind such a shiny exterior.  Maybe the horns fooled me.  Horns are tricky like that.  Thinking about Camera Obscura's music in terms of my day to day life (brace for the metaphor) keeps bringing me to the recent weather here in Annapolis.  It's just like the crisp fall day we had yesterday.  It was kind of dreary in the morning.  The kind of day that makes you want to find a couch and a TV and a good football game.  But then you remember the errands you have to run and you go ahead and turn off the TV and brave the elements.  And to your surprise, the sun comes out to greet you.  The ground is wet and there is a little hint of a chill in the air, but the sun is still around, clinging to the last few ounces of summer's heat and cheer.

Deer Tick

I have to admit I'm not all that familiar with Deer Tick's work.  I have two Deer Tick songs on my computer and one of them is a Paul Simon cover.  But from between what I've heard from their set on Daytrotter and some poking around YouTube (see above), I think I have a perfect opportunity to forcibly extend my fall weather metaphor.  If Camera Obscura is the sun on a crisp fall afternoon, all bittersweet and nostalgia inducing, then Deer Tick is the last few minutes of dusk, when the all that's left of the sun is some orange tinged clouds and you might need to start up a fire if you want to hang around outside.  I dare you to close your eyes while that video plays and not get a picture of a guy sitting near a fall fire finding his way through a tune after a good pull of moonshine.  I double dare you.

A thank you to Murph on the day of his birth

...or should I have said Burph?...

I've always been pretty terrible at keeping in touch with firends and family and especially atrocious at remembering birthdays.  Because of that, I think I'm really starting to enjoy this Facebook thing.  I still don't carry on long conversations with friends or anything because of my entry into social networking, but my friends and I can at least casually stalk each other through our various picture posting and status updates.  Also, I can tell when friends and family have birthdays coming up.  Recently, my Facebook page alerted me to the upcoming birthday of my friend and old roommate, Murph.  In the words of another friend, "everyone needs a buddy called Murph."  I couldn't agree more.

I met Murph on the first day of our freshman year at Dear Old State and after establishing that we had similar taste in music, we explored central Pennsylvania's musical hotbed (for those of you who've never been to State College, its about as hot a bed as you can get when there are 10s of thousands of kids running around and nothing outside the town other than cows).  The discovery of the wonderful City Lights music store on College Ave and the live shows at the Crowbar were especially influential in shaping my taste.  I've lost track of the number of times I got a cheap ticket to a great show at the Crowbar - with or without Murph along for the ride.  Man, I miss the Crowbar.  Murph was always an eager companion for the local shows and surprisingly just as eager to hop in the car to see a show at a moment's notice. 

I think these conversations are almost 100% to-the-word accurate:
A Thursday in fall 2000...
Seabass: "Want to head into Pittsburgh and see John Mayer at a little club in Oakland then get up and drive back into town for the noon football game?"
Murph: "Sure."
Mid to late winter 2002 (with the usual amount of PA snow on the ground)...
Seabass: "Guster is playing in West Virginia.  Want to head out and catch the show?"
Murph: "Sure."

Between road trips, parties, procrastination sessions over pizza and video games, and other downtime, we got to delve deeper into the bands we liked and the bands they were like.  I'd like to think I steered Murph toward some great tunes over the years.  I know for sure that he's pointed me in the right direction a number of times.  So as a little birthday tribute, here are two bands that I give Murph full credit for opening my ears to:

Belle and Sebastian

Somehow, I managed to miss out on these members of indie rock royalty (kings and queens?  dukes and duchesses?) until Murph clued me in.  If I remember correctly, my introduction to B&S was a compilation of a few EPs they had put out.  I knew about 2 or 3 songs in that I was going to be throwing some money down at City Lights on an album or two on my next trip in.  Sadly, I had to pass on my only opportunity to see them when Murph grabbed some tickets to a show in DC a few years ago.  Yet another reason why I shouldn't have ever grown up and got a desk job.  Daggone limited vacation time ruining all my fun.

The Old 97's

I think the Old 97's became a staple of some always enjoyable and sometimes raucous thursday night gatherings at some point (I'm trying to use intelligent sounding words in case my parents see this and think I wasn't spending my Thursday nights studying in college).  Regardless of how often they were played at parties, the music was always good.  Murph and Goose (another friend with a nickname because nicknames are fun and real names are usually boring...unless you're Rivers Cuomo...that dude's name is awesome) saw the Old 97's live and quickly reported that they may be the best live act in the world.  My wife and I got tickets to see the 97's play the 'rocking river cruise' here in Annapolis about a year and a half ago and I can definitely vouch for the awesomeness of the 97's as a live act.  The video above is actually from that show, on a boat somewhere in the Chesapeake Bay with only a couple hundred people aboard.  We had a nice summer breeze, some quality pulled pork sandwiches, some great rowdy tunes, and Rhett Miller almost cracked his head open jumping around on the main deck of the boat.  We have a video of our own buried somewhere on my wife's laptop and I'll post it as soon as I can.  For now, I'll rely on what someone else shot.

In closing, happy birthday to Murph and thanks for the tunes!

(11/2/09 - Updated with bonus coverage of the Old 97's Rocking the Chesapeake Bay from my wife's very own camera.)

An Audio Guide To Cross Country Travel

When I think about people I admire, there is a common trait that runs through the group. These are people who pursue their passions and find joy in what they do in life (and often in their work). My wife's job allows her to do work that has a real impact on making companies more environmentally friendly. My parents spent their careers teaching and are living proof that the profession can lead to a rewarding life. My friend Darren created a high school ultimate frisbee league that quickly grew to be one of the most successful in the country. It may be cliched, but as the Life Is Good motto says: "Do what you like. Like what you do."

In a bit of a roundabout way, this leads me to the main point of my post. I've been happy to call Drew Kennedy a friend for the better part of a decade, though I haven't seen him in at least a few years (way to move to Texas, Drew). As long as I've known him, Drew has been following his passion as a songwriter and music lover. Now that I think of it, without Drew around, I might have never made the previous Jay Farrar related post. He turned me on to the whole alt country/americana /whatever you want to call it genre. Thanks, Drew.

Today marks the release of Drew's new album, An Audio Guide To Cross Country Travel (the title seems appropriate to me, having first listened to his last album from front to back while driving through the mountains of central Pennsylvania). I'm certainly biased, but I really like Drew's work. I think he has really matured as a songwriter since I've known him and I don't think there's anything anywhere close to a throwaway song on the new album. I'm glad to see Cincinnati make it back onto an album, as it is an old favorite. I've only listened to the new album a couple of times at this point, but St. Abilene and Caroline are sticking out as especially enjoyable. So, for anyone who is a fan of americana, country, bluegrass, friends of mine, good music of any kind, supporting independent songwriters, or all of the above, give the album a listen and buy it if you're feeling the least bit generous.

If any of my Texas based friends read this, stop by one of Drew's shows and buy him a drink. And finally, for your viewing pleasure, here's Drew and his band beard playing Rolling Around in the Bed:

One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Kerouac's Big Sur

So this is what happens when you mix Jay Farrar, Ben Gibbard and a book full of Kerouac's prose.  I just found out about this project at the end of last week, but the documentary (addressing Kerouac's attempt and eventually inability to kick his drinking habit) and the accompanying soundtrack came out on Tuesday the 20th.

I managed to stumble across the Farrar/Gibbard pairing while perusing the recent Morning Becomes Eclectic
shows at KCRW's website.  The KCRW site is a great source of music to stream at work and I especially enjoy the Morning Becomes Eclectic program.  Its usually pretty laid back and there are a lot of stripped down, acoustic or solo sets that are a great way to ease into a day at the office.  They had Farrar and Gibbard in the studio last Friday to perform songs off of the One Fast Move or I'm Gone soundtrack.  I took a listen and I'm liking it enough that I may have to try to talk the wife into a trip to our local music store.  Check it out for yourself and see what you think.  It shows that Farrar was the primary songwriter for the project, as the music is very reminiscent of his Son Volt work.  I think anyone who likes Son Volt and their moody alt-country should give One Fast Move or I'm Gone a try.  Anyone with a chance to see the documentary should probably take it, too.  It'd be nice to see more of these types of collaborations make their way to the theaters instead of just an endless stream of remakes.

Know Better, Learn Faster: Music for a Slow Friday

Things are dragging a bit at work today.  Let me rephrase...I'm dragging more than usual at work today.  I've been letting the little tiny DJ that lives in my computer dictate the music for the morning (when I wasn't in meetings discussing project funding...so much fun and excitement), but I think its time to take the reins.  So for the time being, this is what I'm listening to.  Spinner.com has an awesome little section that lets you stream a selection of full albums, some before or during their release week.  Thao With the Get Down Stay Down (in addition to being a good band name) produces some good tunes that I predict will kick off my afternoon quite nicely.  It might even give me the energy required to make it through the stack of plans I want to review before I go home for the weekend.  I am especially enjoying the title track from the album, "Know Better Learn Faster."  I'll probably give the new Middle Distance Runner a try after Thao and the gang are done.

To the 2 people who might read this, feel free to share with friends, family, people you pass on the street, etc.

Okay, part two. Now Clear The House.

Last week, I had the pleasure of heading into Baltimore with my wife for the Avett Brothers show.  And what a show it was.  We always make it a goal to get to a show in time to see the opener in the hopes that we might find a new group/artist to listen to.  We were pleased to find out that we can add another to the long, long list.  Jessica Lee Mayfield set the mood with some smokey, blusey, rootsy tunes and her brother (playing lead guitar) was mostly insane.  I'm looking forward to getting our hands on an album sometime soon.

The Avetts and their bandmates were just about all you could ask for in a live act.  They had the audience jumping around and belting out choruses from song #1 on.  The bassist wore a sweet bow tie.  Most importantly, it was easy to see that the band was absolutely loving what they were doing.  Whether they were playing a boot stomper, a pretty little love song, or something in between, their energy was pretty much infectous and the crowd ate it up.  They didn't even play the two songs I was most familiar with and hoping to hear ("Murder in the City" and "I and Love and You") and I couldn't have cared less.  The show really was that good.  They closed with what is quickly becoming my favorite song on the new album, "The Perfect Space" and the house lights came on to a whole slew of people who weren't ready to go home yet.  Where's the second encore when you need it?

P.S. Thanks to YouTuber 'projectwhere' for posting pretty much the whole show.  It looks like the YouTube is going to be a much-mined resourse for my little blog.

You Are My Sweetest Downfall: A Recap of Last Week

Last week was eventful enough to deserve a recap post to kick things off here at Sebass Says.  So here are the highlights:

Sunday: Went out to the Maryland Rennaissance Festival with a group of friends to see our favorite Scottish War Tunes band, Allbanach, throw axes, savagely eat turkey legs, and have ourselves a few brews.  Also, it was Pirate Weekend.  As you can see, I wore my most appropriate hat to blend in:

Tuesday: Big day.  My wife and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary.  I continue to be amazed that someone would be so happy to spend their life with me.  Needless to say, I love my wife.  She bought me my very own Pleepleeus hoodie (everyone should go ahead and watch Three Sheets) and got us tickets to see The Avett Brothers on the 15th in Baltimore.

Wednesday: Our anniversary celebration continued with a trip into DC for the Regina Spektor show at DAR Constitution Hall.  Regina Spektor is quite good live.  Actually, quite good isn't nearly enough to describe the show.  I found a couple of clips from the show (thanks, YouTube): Dance Anthem of the 80's and a snippet of Samson.  I highly recommend heading out to a Regina Spektor show and having it screw with your energy level for the rest of the week because you didn't get anywhere close to enough sleep on the night of the show.  Well worth the sleep deprivation.

Thursday: Happy hour followed by a kickball victory!  I am the greatest shortstop in the history of the sport!  Actually, we're all just in it for the beer.

Friday: My wife's office held their annual crab feast on Maryland's Eastern Shore.  Our crazy dog joined us for great fall weather (I got to rock my Pleepleeus hoodie), excellent food, and good company.  I'd include a picture if we remembered to bring the camera.  We watched "Away We Go" when we got home and I think it was a near perfect movie to cap off a week filled with celebrating our anniversary, and being around our friends.  The movie (written by my favorite author, Dave Eggers, and his wife) follows a couple around the US (with a short detour to Canada) as they try to figure out where they should settle down and raise their soon-to-be-born daughter.  Another strong recommendation, especially for all of our friends who find themselves at similar points in their lives.

Songs my mp3 player chose for me while I typed this up: Bandages & Scars - Son Volt, Clint Eastwood - Gorillaz, Jersey Clowns - Josh Rouse, Sweet Lil' Gal (live) - Ryan Adams, Half-Life - Duncan Sheik, If I Am a Stranger - Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, Cigarette - Ben Folds Five, Lover's Rock - The Clash