You know those days where it seems like the entire fucking world decided to take a collective shit on your soul (eloquent, I know)? That was today...yesterday now? The point is, after kicking the wooden cabinet door in the kitchen, which may now be broken, the only thing that calms me down is some Mumford & Sons. I think it has to do with the fact that country reminds me of childhood and that, mixed with the alternative folk rock, is rather soothing, or maybe it's just because I kind of like Winston Marshall (when his beard is more five/ten o'clock and less pedophile in the country).
These few songs just calm me down enough that I don't need to strangle the punk who just got his license and is riding my poor car's ass in the car his daddy just bought him. Dick (I love to curse; every word, despite it's meaning or crudeness, is part of the English language and should be cherished for its value in said vernacular, but I never curse more than I do while driving, or at rich kids, or republicans...I swear I'm not an angry person. Usually).
Back to the point, if you're ready to simultaneously cry and begin punching kittens, listen to these songs to try to calm down. If you are not like me, I am sure your nearest animal shelter is just teeming with newborns, as no one knows how to get an animal fixed anymore, you can punch.*
ClickHERE! for the best Mumford & Sons songs, thus far. I mean, they're all good but, well, click on the link and don't fuck with me (I may still be a little perturbed by the day's events).
- E
*Please do not start punching animals. They're soft and cuddly and really fun to hug after a day such as this. Go to your nearest shelter, adopt the first five animals you see, and just hug them. It will be adorable. And probably overwhelming. Get only one animal.
Wiz Khalifa is one of the best performers I have seen. Of course, I say that about most everyone I see (i.e. Tokyo Police Club is better live than recorded, Lady Danville is fucking adorable, Panic! At The Disco is the best performance I have ever seen) but, it is only because, when I pay to see someone perform, I make sure that it is going to be worth my money; Wiz Khalifa is worth the money.
For one, there's the experience of every concert; each one is very different. Wiz's is the first concert I have ever been to where I simultaneously saw three different groups light up their joints. It is the first time I saw a haze stay above the heads of the crowd, at an outside concert, and it is the first time I saw a performance I was dying to see, followed by one I desperately wanted to avoid, though I stayed for my friends benefit (Snoop Dogg is not in my list of top 200 performers. I do not know who is in that list, but I know he does not make the cut. Anyone who has a stuffed dog prance around the stage hitting girls asses with a giant foam penis; no. Everyone knows you're over compensating now. Congratulations on outing yourself.) Where was I? Oh yes, secondhand smoke.
Yes, it is quite possible, and totally plausible, to get high from secondhand smoke. How do I know this? I attended a Wiz Khalifa concert; don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Wiz and think that he is awesome, but he is also a big supporter of legal and recreational weed use. I should have realized something was up when I was at the pizza place after the show and could not quite read the screen on my phone; or maybe when I was driving home and kept slipping between paranoia and incessant giggling. There was no real cue for the laughter either, just two idiots in a car, laughing out of insanity.
When I informed my friend of what I was pretty sure was happening, she stated there was no such thing as a secondhand high and that I was just paranoid.
Me: "DUDE! That's what HAPPENS."
Friend: "'-Blank stare-' *gigglegigglegiggle*"
When we got back to the condo, it became fully apparent, to me at least, that a secondhand high was all too possible.
Me: "That light is flickering; it's really freaking me the frack out. We're in a horror movie. We.
Are going. To die."
Friend: "Fuck. Get in the elevator. GET IN THE ELEVATOR." *one minute later* -gets off
elevator- "RUN!"
Once we were inside, with the door securely locked and all the lights turned on (because that always saves people in horror movies), I was certain there was such a thing as a secondhand high but, as my friend continued to contest what I deemed solid factual evidence, I decided to consult someone who had dealt with many of my outlandish conclusions and ramblings throughout the years.
Me: "Hey mom. Uh, just, you know, a theoretical question, speaking candidly, on theory; is there
maybe a way you could, I don't know, get, uhm, you know, high? From people smoking around
you, I mean, not firsthand stuff, just secondhand smoke, if you're in it, for say, four hours?"
Mom: "Yes... If the content is that intense for an extended period of time it is quite plausible. I
told you he was a big pot supporter. Did you drive last night?"
Me: "Erm, what? No. That would be irrespons-I'mareallygoodhighdriver. It made me focused, I
think. I mean, more focused, than before. More focused than usual...I wouldn't still be high,
would I?"
Mom: "'-Sigh-' Goodbye."
The incredibly long point of this short dive into the chronicles of my unintended debauchery: Wiz Khalifa is amazing, especially live. When I saw him, he opened with "When I'm Gone" (one of my favorites) and immediately captured the attention of the crowd. How many people can play those first few notes on a piano and have kids running towards the stage? It is so difficult for a single performer to command the stage, while still creating a sense of ease and enjoyment for the audience, yet Wiz Khalifa does this flawlessly; he was born to perform. He knows when to mix it up with a slow or fast song, when to throw in a song that everyone knows before he loses the crowd, and when to pump up the crowd and make sure everyone is singing along by the time the chorus rolls around.
He is a naturally great performer and well worth the money to see him perform live. He's rocketing towards fame pretty quickly, and with fame comes higher ticket prices, so make sure to see him while you can still afford it as, the higher the ticket price becomes, the less his real fans will be present; and seeing a performer surrounded by his real fans makes the experience ten times better than seeing that same performer surrounded by the people who could afford the concert (this difference was extremely evident the second time I saw Passion Pit; it makes a big fucking difference). And despite my personal feelings on Snoop Dogg, he is a really, really good performer, and seems completely at home on stage. Plus, it was worth staying for Snoop to see a fifty year old woman grinding on a palm tree to "I Wanna Fuck You" and seeing Wiz come out on stage and sing with him to "Young, Wild, And Free" (even if Snoop Dogg kind of had a coughing fit that made me laugh a little at the start of their performance).
So go see Wiz Khalifa (and I suppose Snoop Dogg, as well), or at the least, get some of his songs. They're pretty great and, behind all his lyrics, there's that sense of freedom, fun, and that ever present theme of staying young forever.
I put a lot of work into this post. No, seriously; I almost missed my connection and ran across the length of an airport to get to a city that played this song every ten minutes on KREV. It's okay though because the song is pretty addictive and her voice is kind of awesome. Enjoy.
The indie rock band, consisting of David Monks, Josh Hook, Graham Wright, and Greg Aslop, formed in 2005. They have achieved much success in Canada with their catchy beats and sing-along lyrics but, though they have performed multiple times on The Late Show With David Letterman and toured with well known bands like Passion Pit, Weezer, and Foster the People, they have not made as much of an impact in the US yet.
The band released their first EP, A Lesson in Crime, in 2006 and their second, Smith, in 2007. They did not release their first LP, Elephant Shell, until 2008 and their album, Champ, was released in 2010. In 2011, they worked on their album, Ten Songs, Ten Years, Ten Days. Their newest album was rumored to be released during the summer of 2012, so here's hoping that it will be released soon.
Though their songs have not yet topped any of the US charts, it won't be long before their single is played one too many times on your local radio station. I fell in love with the band and their sound in high school after I found their album and, deeming their cover cool, yet understated, enough to represent a pretty good band, I bought Elephant Shell and quickly came to the conclusion that "Tessellate" was my new favorite song; there is nothing that can pick me up on a really crappy day like that song can. The best thing about this band is that all of their songs have this ability to make you feel great just by listening to them. The lyrics ring so true and each song manages to sound upbeat, rather than depressing, despite what the lyrics may imply (take "Graves" for example).
Their second album, Champ, is even better than their first album. Songs like "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" and "End of A Spark" were made to be blared on car speakers on your way down a highway, and there is nothing quite so great as listening to "Gone" on your way to the beach. Each time the band releases an album, they manage to make it better than their last.
The band is amazing (and one of the few that is better live than they are recorded) so check out the websites below and listen to some of their music. Besides, the guitarist is adorable, so they're fun to watch.
After a cringe worthy first week or so of school, it's finally time for a break. Never does a weekend seem so sweet as the first one of the semester. Strangely enough for me, I will not be sitting at home, procrastinating on assignments while working on research for blog posts; I will, thank goodness, be on the other side of the country for a much needed girls weekend. I suggest you do the same, maybe not so drastically, but the grab the person who annoys you least and go on a road trip. Short or long, it does not matter, it just feels good to have the windows down and the music up. So, grab some sodas, a bag of Cheetos, and throw these songs on a CD. Have fun and relax.
Music caught itself on a snag in my soul when I was young, and it's been there for me over the years with such consistency that I can't imagine not having it in my life. The only thing better than finding good music is attending a good concert. I swear, if I don't go to at least one concert a year I'll combust.
There are some misconceptions about concerts that I've had many people mention to me lately and, if these fallacies are not fixed, you could miss out on some great performances.
1) Concerts are too expensive.
This is just not true; do not let it stop you from seeing a band live because it's not even a good excuse. Sure, there are expensive concerts (I gave up on Coldplay this summer because the least expensive ticket was over $150), but the majority of them are actually quite affordable. When I saw Panic! At the Disco and Fun., it was only $38. The first time I saw Passion Pit, the tickets were only $21, and Graffiti6 had a $12 concert in Atlanta this summer. There are added expenses like $10 parking and one and half hours worth of gas, but it's never not been worth it. Another type of concert experience is a music festival and, though the overall price may seem expensive ($60-$120), you are going to see about four bands/artists a day for 3-5 days; this averages out to a pretty amazing deal, especially as the festivals offer at least two big names a day. Don't tell yourself that you can't go to a concert because it will be too expensive, there are plenty of free and cheap concerts in college towns and big cities.
2) Music festivals are dirty, drug ridden, and sex-filled?
Seriously? If you can get in position to have sex when there are hundreds of people crushed together then good for you; that's impressive. And as far as drugs go, I have never seen anything more harmful than pot, and that is only prevalent at certain performances; not all of them are subject to that. There is a lot of drinking, but it's a concert/fair/outside gathering, there is always drinking. Now, as far as being dirty goes, that's not a fair argument to make to the event organizers. They work to keep their grounds as clean as possible so that they can continue to hold the event for years to come (and if you attend an established festival, it's bound to be better organized, cleaner, and generally safer). There is always a large number of volunteers (who wouldn't agree to a few days of manual labor for some free concerts) who are constantly on the move, picking up trash along the way. Overall, music festivals are a really fun place to see a lot of bands and meet people. The only way you won't enjoy yourself is if you go in with that mind set and decide to hang out in the obviously bad places (don't expect the porta-potty alley to be clean, well-lit, and full of fresh flowers). Also, there are police and firemen milling around everywhere and, the larger the concert, the more protection they have. Some festivals will even bring in military police if they suspect a band will be popular, providing extra security for everyone.
3) There are never any concerts near me.
Unless you live in a college town or a major city, there usually are not concerts next door to you, but that doesn't mean you can't drive to them. Most of the concerts I attend are a minimum of one hour away, but one hour isn't long to drive for a great performance. I would actually prefer that longer drive over a short one; it gives you and your friends time to get excited and then, on the way back, time to talk about the concert and sing along to the album you bought at the merchandise table (always buy something from the merch table to help your favorite band).
