Thoughts Sparked by Music

Of late, I have found myself pondering various people I have known. Those with whom I lost touch; whose memory is still etched ever so clearly on my mind. Those who spring to mind as brightly as they first shone, even if only briefly, in my life. I also found myself pondering multiple people who I may not know personally, but wish to desperately.

The common thread I find between nearly all the people flitting across my brain, is music. The musicians I knew, I felt bonded with, even when conversation was a rarity. And the artists I have yet to meet, still hold string to my heart.

I think we write music because we want to reach people even when we may never share a prosaic exchange with them. And I feel it's the true musicians, those who write with their heart and soul just as much as their brain, who truly succeed. Musicians can become best friends and lovers, confidants and co-conspirators, heart-wrenchingly close even when they are far away. All without ever laying eyes on you, or breathing so much as a word your way.

What greater power is there?

I have been told on rare occasions that my music has spoken to people. As unassumingly as I wrote the songs themselves, I thank those who compliment me. But there is always a part of me that hopes more supportive words will come. That out of the woodwork will come more souls I've touched. Because I am a musician at heart, and I want to know I'm holding peoples' heartstrings just as much as they are holding mine.

Men Who Dance = BADASSES

I entered into this post planning to write something extraordinarily eloquent. But there are no words to do these men justice. There is no eloquence I can convey that does half as much as the eloquence of the stories these men are telling through dance.

Keep in mind, in each of these solos, the men are "dancing for their lives." Not to say SYTYCD executes the dancers who are eliminated from the show via firing squad or anything. But the solos in this show are done when people are at risk of being sent home, and must put it all out there with everything they have, to prove they should stay in the competition.

Nothing breeds more incredible, heartfelt, passionate, beautiful dance than the desire to prove oneself because you have everything to lose.

In closing...

Anyone out there who wants to tell me male dancers are not badasses can feel free to do so after they can replicate even ONE of these solos.

Not that I'm obsessed or anything...

But Jarle Bernhoft. JARLE BERNHOFT! Did I mention Jarle Bernhoft? Because I really like Jarle Bernhoft.

He has just put out his latest album, Solidarity Breaks, and I am still lamenting the fact I can't buy it on iTunes and have only been able to find it thus far on Norwegian sites. As much as I love Bernhoft, I am afraid of getting ripped off because I don't read a language well (or at all in this case). And I don't trust Babelfish enough to believe I'll keep from accidentally paying $4,000 for an album.

In any case, this studio album features both "C'mon Talk" and "Choices," the live versions of which I have posted previously in this blog.

In my opinion, C'mon Talk was WAY better live, and Choices was equally good both ways. The fun of the studio version is that it's far more danceable.

But the whole album is great. Every song. Literally, there was not a single song on the album I did not enjoy. And I can almost NEVER say that, both due to the fact albums are rarely that great, and the fact I am opinionated and critical.

I have posted Choices and Prophet (which did some special things to me for several reasons I shall not divulge) below, and recommend going to youtube and checking out EMuzach's account for the whole album.

I may be dubstep fail, but this guy is dubstep win in my book

In a quest to get me to fall in love with dubstep as he has, a good friend of mine sent me a multitude of his favorite tracks. After striking out with me about 5 or 6 times, he finally took a step back and gave up on making me "see the light" on what he liked.

Then he sent me a track that he knew I would like based on everything he knows about ME. The fact I go weak in the knees for strong, solid, unique, and clean male vocals. The fact that I want to feel the soul behind the music I hear. The fact I love music that can cross the boundaries between genres.

And with this one, my friend hit a home run with me. I hope you enjoy it as well. :-)

This Just Makes Me Happy

New Obsession for the Day (and Night)

Well, I suppose one could say I'm horribly behind the curve for making this guy my new obsession, since he died in 1944. Then again, one could say just about anything, really, and blogs like this one are proof of that.

Anyway, my point is, this: Agustin Barrios Mangore is THE MAN. No, not the white man "the man," but rather the shiz, "the man." I am so excited about him that I don't have any time to worry if that last sentence made any sense or could be written more eloquently.

I discovered him, by first doing a search on youtube for a very talented guy I knew in college (who, as I only recently discovered, is also friends with the female friend mentioned in my Deftones post). I had the distinct pleasure of listening to this guy play guitar through a cardboard thin wall that separated our two dorm rooms. His guitar playing made up for all the times his roommate's alarm clock woke me up.

He's the guy on the far right.

Well, after listening to the other two Gershwin... OH MY GOD WHY DOESN'T BLOGGER RECOGNIZE GERSHWIN AS A WORD?!?!?! GET THAT STUPID SQUIGGLY RED LINE OUT FROM UNDER THE NAME OF ONE OF THE GREATEST COMPOSERS TO EVER LIVE EVER IN THE HISTORY OF EVER, RIGHT NOW! I MEAN IT, BLOGGER!

Wow.

Sorry. But really, that outburst was completely warranted.

ANYWAY, after listening to the other two Gershwin Preludes performed by my friend and his friends, I moved on to a guitar solo video from the same youtube account. It was this one:

After hearing this, I decided I had to hear as much of Agustin Barrios Mangore as possible. I decided this at 10:45 PM, so I don't believe I will be listening to his entire repertoire tonight. Nonetheless, I have my playlist of discovery selected for the next several days at least.

And here are two more, for you who may not want to have to venture to youtube and look him up yourself (though you really should).

And if you're a fan of Mangore, and/or Gipsy Kings, or amazing edgy flamenco guitar in general... I also highly recommend checking out Paco de Lucia's music as well. But you'll have to go to youtube for that one because I've already rambled quite a bit, and if I start posting my favorite Paco stuff on here it'll take everyone 3 days to get through this post.

Something Resembling a Review of Deftones

I love reviews that come with stories. I will presume my readers feel the same way.

One of my dearest friends of all time informed me she will, in the near future, attend a Deftones concert with a gentleman who is a very big fan of theirs. I do not recall ever having heard a Deftones song, as they don't fall among my fave genres of music. I have never known my friend to be a fan of Deftones either. Thus I inquired about her motivation. She said "because my date has a ridiculous body that I want to eat things off of."

Since I have no visuals by which I may judge my take on her date's body, I am listening to several Deftones songs (spanning several years to gauge artistic growth), in order to determine how hot he must be. The logic being: the hotter his body, the more terrible music my friend would be willing to endure. Therefore, if a=b and b=a, the worse the music, the hotter his body.

Alright... here goes nothing.

Having listened to a song from 2005, two from 2006, and a few from 2010 (I think?).

I prefer the slower songs, on the whole. They are somewhat simplistic, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing in my opinion. Especially when so many songs of this genre tend to be really cogged up with so much shredding and drumming that I can't focus on any of the lyrics of the musicality of the singer's voice.

Speaking of the singer's voice, I can't say it's the most impressive voice I've ever heard, but it's still got several qualities I respect. Songs like Hole in the Earth, and Diamond Eyes, for example, show the quiet strength of Chino Moreno's voice. While I can give a nod to his ability to scream "cleanly," I most definitely prefer when he actually sings. There is a great deal of passion and intensity behind his voice, even when he isn't being loud. I can feel that he feels his music very deeply, and isn't faking it like some band fronters do.

I liked the song Be Quiet and Drive, for no good reason other than I found it kind of fun to listen to.

Okay, enough. I've made my determination.

Judging strictly by the music of Deftones, I'd say on a 1 - 10 scale of hottness (1 being sad-tastically uggo, and 10 being unfairly, obscenely, almost blindingly good looking)... my friend is attending the Deftones concert with a guy who's around an 8.95. Though I'm sure SHE'D put him at a solid 9.99. :-)

The Physical Hearts--River Song

This song is sleepier than the songs I make a habit of regularly listening to. I choose to classify it as "psychedelic folk." But don't let that mislead you into assuming it's simply "hippie music" requiring one to be in a purple haze to appreciate it.

This song, and the singer behind it, bring equal parts of calming force and raw passion. It's beautiful to experience. There is a nearly hollow airy quality to Nathaniel Talbot's voice, as if his throat is a flute. I really appreciate the clarity of his tones, and the sincerity behind his delivery. I have it on decent authority that Nathaniel Talbot is part of multiple groups from different genres, including Sleepy Bell, which is also worth a checkout. The purity of his voice transcends a lot of genre lines.

I would say this is the perfect song to listen to driving westbound toward the Oregon Coast, or eastbound along The Gorge. For those unaware: those are two completely opposite directions! That just shows the versatility of this song. :-)

Chris Velan: Best of Me

From the get-go, the strains of this song possess something slightly reminiscent of Jack Johnson; in its ability to just get a grin on your face and make you say right off the bat "this song is going to make me feel good."

Chris Velan's voice has a puppy-like quality to it that says "I already love you, and I hope you'll just let my voice cuddle up beside you on your pillow." Whomever he may be offering a bedside serenade at night, or early dawn break, or mid afternoon is lucky indeed.

As far as the song goes, maybe it's the timing of having discovered this particular tune, but it struck me. In a way I needed to be touched. After so much self-doubt and conflicted emotion, I needed to hear someone else say boldly (but without desperation): "No I'm not fine, but I'm not broken. So go ahead, forget the rest of me. I love it when you get the best of me.""

The song expresses with lightheartedness, the sensation of taking love at it's scariest when you are at your most vulnerable... and surrendering to it all with a smile and a shrug.

Thank you, Chris, for creating this song.

DJ Shortee!

I was introduced to this chick's scratching about 3 years ago, and I don't really know why I have failed to post any of her videos on this blog. She is how I first learned just how complex scratching really is, and is one of several DJ's who first got me respecting what DJ's can do.

I know there are a lot of DJ's out there with solid scratching and beat juggling skills. But DJ Shortee has some extra showmanship to go along with those skills. For one, if you pay attention closely, she's completely ambidextrous with her juggling and scratching. I can't even eat or write with both hands. I give her "mad props" for it. In videos of her doing competitions and live shows, she very often will spin behind her back, do little turns and tricks with her body as she scratches, etc.

I know for some people it may not really seem like much more than making noise on a couple records. I used to be one of them. But just paying attention to the movement of her hands; the speed and intricacy (along with the delicacy) with which she executes the creation of every sound, makes the video worth watching.