May 1 - Strand of Oaks

It's May! It's warm! I wore sandals again today! And now I have to go pack for Korea, which I'm trying put off. But I'm really excited to go and I can't wait for dinner. We're going to a makkeoli bar with over 30 types of makkeoli and all kinds of delicious Korean treats. And Jay has been telling me about all the restaurants he'll be taking me to over the next few days. And I am so excited. So, so excited.

Also last night I used Spotify on my phone for like the first time ever. I just had it running through my starred playlist, and it was great! The only not so great thing was that I have all kinds of random stuff on there, all of which is great, but some of which is not great when you're on your way out to bars for the evening. It made me realize maybe I should make a more upbeat going out playlist. So maybe I'll do that. But anyway, the first song that came on is a great one. JM, by Strand of Oaks. Definitely my favorite song off of last year's HEAL, which made it onto my long list of best albums last year. But this song made it into the Top 5 songs of the year. It's a great one.

Apr 30 - Welcome to Los Santos

Today is my Friday! Because tomorrow is international labour day. So I'm going out drinking. And then tomorrow I'm going to Korea. Unfortunately I just had to cut my trip short to come back to China. I was supposed to come back Monday evening then start work travel from Wednesday. Now it turns out I had to change my flight to go from Seoul straight to Beijing earlier on Monday, meaning one less meal. And that sucks cause I'm really just going to eat and drink. And see my friend Jay. And then I'm on planes almost every day next week. It's gonna be a long one, so this long weekend will be very much appreciated.

And before I go and begin enjoying the weekend, here's a great song for you. It's by MNDR feat. Killer Mike, and it's called Lock & Load. It's off this album called Welcome To Los Santos, which is an album that was apparently created as the soundtrack to a radio station on the upcoming computer version of Grand Theft Auto V. And it's got some great new tracks by wonderful artists like Little Dragon and Phantogram. But actually, I think this song is my favorite one off the album.

Apr 29 - Odessa

I found a mediocre new artist today. Her name is Odessa. The main reason I listened is because I wanted to make sure it wasn't Odesza, which it definitely isn't. She has a mediocre album, but there is one very good song on it, called Hummed Low. So here it is.

Apr 28 - SOHN

I actually spent the entire afternoon at home and could have written, but I didn't feel like it. I was bored and work and jetlagged, so I'm just too tired. But I'll write tomorrow at work. Promise.

For now, here's today's song, Lessons, off of SOHN's debut album Tremors from last year. Great album, been relistening to it today. I was very much anticipating that album last year, and he did not disappoint. And then I listened today, and songs that I liked, but didn't love, before I think I now love. With multiple songs. Good stuff.

Apr 27 - Maxwell

Another day has turned late and I'm tired. Actually, it's not that late. It's 9:30. But I just got back from dinner and I'm exhausted because I slept 2 hours last night. And on those two hours I had to entertain my friend's fiance's parents, who I'd never met. But it was lovely, and we went to Din Tai Fung, so no complaints. But yeah, for some reason Friday and Saturday night were no problem whatsoever, but Sunday night I could not sleep. Stupid jetlag. I don't usually get jetlagged either, but last night I seem to have. Hopefully tonight I'll be super exhausted and just pass out, but then that's how I felt last night and it didn't work. So wish me luck.

And today's song is Pretty Wings, by Maxwell. I love guys singing neo-soul in falsetto. It's pretty awesome. And Maxwell is great at it. And this is a great song. Actually, the whole album, BLACKsummers'night, is quite good. Also not on that album but incredible is his live version of This Woman's Work. Maybe I should share that.... Too late now, though. But I definitely don't share enough soul/r&b. Maybe I should do more of this.

Apr 26 - Wye Oak

I knew I was forgetting to do something today. Specifically, write a blog. So now I'm tired and getting ready for bed and won't write anything long. But you will get the song I've been listening to on repeat, which is Civilian by Wye Oak. Off of 2011's album Civilian, which is by far their best. The song Civilian actually isn't my favorite song by them, I think Fish might be, off of the same album, but I've had it on repeat these last couple of days, and it's great for biking around town.

Apr 25 - Sharon Van Etten

Busy, busy day today, and I'm already late to go meet a friend! But here's a new single by Sharon Van Etten, called I Don't Want To Let You Down. Came out in January. Not my favorite, but still great and typical Sharon Van Etten sound. I do hope this means more new music is coming...

Apr 24 - Alabama Shakes

I just made it back to China, and the flight was alright. Of course I was surrounded by a bunch of Chinese people who have no concept of personal space or public etiquette, but at least I got my window this time, unlike the last flight. And I managed to sleep a lot, so now I'm also good to go out and see friends. But my old iPod is acting up now. Which means tomorrow I really have to go to the Apple store and get it/them checked out.

And before I go see friends, I'll play you Gimme All Your Love, possibly the best track off the Alabama Shakes new album, Sound & Color, that came out last week. I've been waiting for this album since they first released it, and it's probably one of my most anticipated of the year. I've listened twice on Spotify, but now that I'm home and have my personal computer again, I can actually download it and give it a proper listen. So I may report back with another song. But as of now, this is my favorite.

Apr 23 - The Talking Heads

I'm sitting at the airport waiting for my flight back to Shanghai, having a glass of wine and as much apfelschorle as possible before leaving Germany. Schorle is probably one of my favorite things about Germany, it's basically juice with soda water. Super easy, and super delicious. And I never thought to make it at home until this morning. And I think that once I'm back in Shanghai, I'm gonna make it all the time. It's the best.

But yeah, back to Shanghai, luckily just in time for the weekend. It was a long week of work, then I had my free time in Munich. Got my new phone and a new 8TB wifi hard drive, that will hopefully become one of the central points of my home. And a surprising amount of food, pretty much all for my friend Zabrina. I actually don't know how I fit all this stuff, plus the baby stuff I got for my friend Leping, into my suitcase. I'm kind of impressed with myself this time.

And once again I'm sitting in the lounge writing. And today's song is This Must Be The Place, by The Talking Heads. Just like other classic artists I've shared songs by, I can't say I'm a Talking Heads fan. Not that I dislike them, just that I don't really know them. But This Must Be The Place haunts me. It will pop into my head unexpectedly every few months, and I can't make it go away. There is just something brilliant about it. Honestly, I listen to it and I feel like it's kind of corny in so many ways, super cliched 80s stylings, and I shouldn't like it at all. But I can't help loving it. Loving it to the point that I think it's becoming one of my favorite songs ever.

And to make matters worse (or better), I read the lyrics. I'm usually one for music over lyrics, and I often don't pay attention to lyrics until I somehow have managed to memorize all of them, and then I realize I know them all and never actually paid attention to them. But it also usually turns out that the songs which I love for the music, I usually end up loving for the lyrics as well once I start paying attention. And that goes so much so for this song. I love the lyrics. It really connects with me on so many levels, whether you're thinking about home or about love or about how can be mutually exclusive but also (obviously) so interconnected. Anyway, now I'm just blabbering. So anyway listen to the song and I hope you fall in love with it like I have.

Apr 22 - Four Tet

I missed a day yesterday. I could say it was because I was busy playing with my best friend Henry, which is true, but it's actually because after Henry and his parents went to bed and I came to write a blog, I realized that my work computer (which is the only computer I have with me) had never been connected to the internet in this house, and so I couldn't get online. So I went to bed.

But now I'll write my blog for today, which is more interesting than yesterday would have been. Because yesterday I just spent most of the day working, then took the train to Munich and came to visit the Mangs. I know the Mangs from Japan. I've written about them many times on here, but here's a quick recap: their 4 (soon to be 5) year old son Henry is my best friend. Their daughter Anna seems to have come to like me now. They are the best. So I spent the evening with them yesterday and also tonight. And during the day I bought myself a new phone and visited a friend. Tomorrow is supposed to be rainy, so I'll try to stay indoors. Maybe go to a museum, maybe just chill at home and watch movies. I definitely need to do a bit of shopping, though. I have some gifts to buy, which probably won't fit in my suitcase so I need to figure that out, too. And soon, because I leave tomorrow night. So I guess I'll also pack. That's important.

Anyway, today's song is Sing, by Four Tet. He's a DJ. I don't pay enough attention to him, cause I've only heard 2 albums, but apparently he's got like 7. And I do like him, so I might pay a bit more attention now that I know this to be true. This is off of 2010's There Is Love In You, the album that introduced me to Four Tet. He does some mean remixes, too. So I'll go listen to more of them as well.

Apr 20 - Brolin

Today was pretty busy, as expected. Our Chinese customers finally showed up, and so we had to spend all day with them. They come for 24 hours, then they travel around Europe for a week. It's pretty shitty, but I actually don't care since all that matters is I don't have to travel with them. And, as tonight taught me, I barely even have to drink with them. They all left early, when I was sure that the one night the Chinese are around I'd be up drinking all night. That was a pleasant surprise.

Another pleasant surprise is the song Swim Deep, by Brolin. No clue who he is, but he does exist. And this song is by far his best song. It kind of reminds me of The Acid, or Howling (both side projects of Ry X). He also has this Cundo EP, which is pretty good, but then he put out a weird single called Portland that is not good at all. I'm more interested in just seeing what happens from here on out. Including here on, because up until now it's been mostly great.

Apr 19 - Crystal Castles

Back in the office for day 2 of this big event, and today I'm extremely not busy. I had a couple of meetings this morning, but otherwise I'm just hiding out at my old desk, reading news and interspersing it with a bit of work and play. It is Sunday after all, and all my colleagues went on the day trip that was offered today, so I'm basically just here on my own hanging out.

But I do get to catch up on some news, like I said. And by news, I mean entertainment news. I already read BBC this morning, but that's not what we're here to talk about. We're here to talk about Crystal Castles. Apparently the lady singer left the group last year, and the male producer and other half of the group has now put out a new song without her, called Frail. Someone is on vocals, so not sure who, but anyway it's a great song. Sounds like he's still got it, even after losing his partner.

Apr 18 - Vaults

Today was the official first day of our annual event. I'd say I had some good meetings. But now I'm bored. And I'm stuck here until 9pm. And I don't want to be.

And I actually have no idea what song to share, either. So I'm going to just randomly pick something off of my "Starred" songs on Spotify. I'll set it on random and hit next and see what comes up. And the answer is... Vultures, by Vaults. So here you go. I think I'm gonna use this method more often, I kind of like it.

Apr 17 - Passion Pit

I'm in Germany. Flew here overnight. Managed to sleep a bunch on the plane, but then I landed at 5:30 am and went straight to the office where I pretty much just sat and listened to lectures all day. We have our big, global annual customer event starting tomorrow, so we had some product training before that. It was not easy to concentrate. And I think I set a new personal record for coffee drinking. I probably had 8 cups today.

So in honor of my current feelings, we're going to listen to Sleepyhead, by Passion Pit. This is off their first album, Manners, which was great. Their second album, Gossamer, meh. Their third album, Kindred, which comes out in May, I'm not so sure I'm excited about based off of the current singles. It sucks, cause their first album was great and I wish I still liked them as much as I did when they first started making music. I guess they could still surprise me with the new album.

Apr 16 - Boxed In

I just finished packing for my flight tonight. I'm headed to Germany for our big annual In-House Exhibition. We basically invite our customers from all over the world to come and hang out and drink for 4 days. So I get to do the same. And then I get to spend 2 days in Munich with friends on the way back. And I get to buy a new phone because the Euro is super weak right now and I can get a VAT refund. Should be a good week!

I just need to load a bit more music onto my iPod before going. I'm using the old iPod cause I haven't gotten the new one fixed yet, which means there are a few albums missing that I just might want. Specifically the new D'Angelo and the new Laura Marling. I've already got the newest stuff on there, though, since I've been using it for a couple of weeks. And that includes Boxed In's eponymous debut album. Boxed In is what made me go back and listen to LCD Soundsystem. A few Boxed In songs really remind me of LCD Soundsystem, so needless to say I've really been enjoying their album this week as well. So far I've got two favorites, but the song of the day will be my first favorite, which is the opening track, Mystery.




Just in case you were wondering, my other favorite is False Alarm. But all around it's a great album, so just go listen to the whole thing.

Apr 15 - LCD Soundsystem

Ok, so where was I? I was meaning to talk about F1. For like 4 days now. And now I actually will. Because I'm super bored at work.

So F1 was pretty great. Greater than I expected, actually. I've never really watched it, but my friend Rich loves it and was planning to come down from Beijing for the Grand Prix and he asked me to go. So I figured, why not? And then he asked how much I was willing to spend on it, because he wanted really expensive tickets, and I figured if I'm probably only ever gonna do it once in my life, I might as well do it right. And so we bought expensive tickets, and that was absolutely the right choice.

We ended up with great seats in the Grandstand, in the high section pretty much on the finish line. This meant that we could see not only see the straightaway and the start and finish of the race, but also the pit, and we were high enough to see other sections of the track as well. So I never had to get bored because if there wasn't something happening right in front of me (which was uncommon, the cars go so fast and get so spread out across the track as the race progresses that you never go longer than about 20 seconds without someone racing past you). So it was hard to get bored, because if I didn't have something to watch right in front of me, all I had to do was look left or right or out a little further, and voila! more entertainment. And if that wasn't enough, Rich also bought a program so I ended up trying to pick out the drivers and learn the teams and drivers and keep track of who was where and how they were doing. And I think I picked a favorite team. I think I like the Lotus Team, although the Scuderia team was also really good. I like that both of them weren't ranked way at the top, but managed to do quite well. Plus the Lotus team had an Ecuadorian guy, which is pretty cool. And the Lotus team also really impressed me with their pit crew. Granted, everyone's pit crew really impressed me, but Lotus was right in front of us and I thought they ran the smoothest.

The only disappointing part about the whole weekend was the fact that Rich didn't really get to meet all my friends. Some were busy, some were out of town, but some were just flaky. That seems to be the nature of people here in Shanghai, flakier than not, which I hate, but it was especially disappointing that some of them didn't really make an effort to come and meet one of my best friends, when they've been hearing about him as long as they've known me, and have known he'd be here for a couple of months. But, he did meet some of my favorites, and we did have a great weekend all around, so I can't really complain.

And now you know about F1. And maybe you'll know more about it next year. You also know about LCD Soundsystem, both because I wrote about them yesterday and because they are not new news at all. But I write about them again because I've been listening to them pretty much non-stop for the last couple of days. Particularly the album Sound of Silver. I just found another band called Boxed In (who I'll be writing about soon) that kind of reminded me of LCD Soundsystem, so I decided to go and listen to LCD Soundsystem again. And it was one of those moments when you listen to a song/album after not having listened to it in a while, and you finally get it. I love that, it's one of my favorite things. It often happens with songs, but rarely with albums. But it happened with Sound of Silver. All of the tracks on that album are great. That album is stupendous. I also went and relistened to their newest/final album, This is Happening, and also a much better album than I initially realized. I also listened to their eponymous first album, which I'd never heard, and it's probably my least favorite of the three, but still, great album. Way to go LCD Soundsystem.

Our seats in the Grandstand at the start of the race

So if I haven't made it clear yesterday and today, Sound of Silver is a great album. I always knew that All My Friends was like my favorite song on the album, and my favorite song by the band, but as of yesterday I'm having second thoughts. Yesterday I shared North American Scum, another fantastic track off that album. Then there's Us V Them. And maybe my new favorite track by them, Get Innocuous!. It's the opening track, and it's a beast of a song. It would definitely make it onto that mix of the best opening tracks on albums that I've talked about before (actually now that I mention it, what with Spotify and all these other tools at my disposal, I really should finally make that playlist...). I hope you agree.

Apr 14 - LCD Soundsystem

LCD Soundsytem blew my mind today. Which is weird because I've been listening to them since I lived in Japan in 2007. But for some reason, today, I just totally got them. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

First, let me tell you about my weekend.

...

5 hours later - I went on a date. It turns out I thought I had time to write my blog before the date, but then I got busy with other things, and then I went on the date, and it was very good and it took up my entire evening and now it's late and I need to go to sleep. So you'll hear about the weekend soon. I promise.

And as for LCD Soundsystem, you'll hear more about them soon too. Like tomorrow, cause I'll be listening to Sound of Silver on repeat. Such an amazing album. For now, enjoy this song, off of Sound of Silver, it's North American Scum. Urrghhh

Apr 13 - Grimes

So remember that time I was supposed to write about F1 today because I was too tired yesterday? Well instead I went out drinking. So I'm not going to do that today. But I will share a new song by Grimes. I'm actually not obsessed with Grimes like the rest of the world. Based on her first couple of singles, I was very excited for her to put out her album back in 2012. But then she did, and it was just ok. Not nearly as good as the few standout tracks that she had previously released. But now she has a new single. Not a single exactly, it's apparently a scrapped demo from her upcoming album, but it sounds pretty produced and finalized to me, and there's even a music video for it. And it's really good. So let's hope this isn't the same scenario as the last album, and that rather than following the regular cycle of great first album, sophomore slump, amazing third album, instead she puts out a meh first album and second album. Because, just like last time, based on this song (which is called REALiTi, by the way), I'm excited for more. I hope she doesn't disappoint.

Apr 12 - Soley

Well it was a wonderful day with F1, and a wonderful weekend with my friend Rich in town, but now it's late and I'm tired so I'll write more about F1 tomorrow instead. For now, it's a sleepytime song, Aevintyr (actually Ævintýr), the new single from Soley (actually Sóley). It's the first single off of  the Icelandic singer's maybe second album, Ask The Deep. I say Maybe second album because I have her album We Sink, and she also had this weird kind of instrumental album that I didn't really like and don't really count, and then apparently she was also in a band. But anyway, after that weird album that I don't really count cause it sounded like a completely different approach and project from her first solo album (it's called Kromantik, by the way, in case my description got you really excited to listen to it), she has now put out this single which I think is very good and I'm once again excited for new music by her.

Apr 11 - Empires

Today is the last day of Passover. Finally. I spent the day at F1, watching the practice rounds and qualifiers, and now I'm home for a nap before going to eat a sandwich. A grilled cheese sandwich. Grilled with mac and cheese. It will be the perfect ending to Passover.

Also, I went to a shitty burlesque show last night. It was like 3 hours long and there were 3 actual burlesque dances in it. The rest were just random dances or songs. It was kind of lame.

But what's not lame is this song, Shadowfaux, by Empires, off of last year's album Orphan. I'm not sure if you can see this video. It's on YouTube, and I'm able to share it, but I'm not able to watch it. I think maybe because I have my VPN set to Australia right now. I'm not sure. But anyway, it's on the Spotify playlist.

Apr 10 - Zero 7

Victoria Falls is like 1.7 miles long. This is just a tiny portion.

So it's finally time to write another full blog. And again I'm super tired, but now I have time and no excuse not to. I've been doing all kinds of errands today cause I left the office early to come home and get my water cooler repaired. So I feel pretty accomplished already. Ready for a nap, in fact. But first, Zambia.

Getting soaked at the Falls

I went to Zambia last week. I've been a few times already, so Zambia isn't that exciting. But what is exciting is that I went to Victoria Falls this time, a place that was at the top of my list to visit while I was living in Africa, but I never made it until now. I made a point of making it on this trip because who knows the next time I'll be back. And what's also exciting is I got to see my good friend Robyn, who's on a fellowship in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. She came down and met me at Vic Falls and we spent a couple of days together before going back to South Africa together to celebrate Pesach.

Like I said, Vic Falls was top of my list of things to do in Africa and I've been wanting to do it for years. I've heard so much about it and how awesome it is and it's so close to Johannesburg and I always meant to go, then just never did. But boy am I glad I finally did, cause it was incredible. I mean, it's just a waterfall, which doesn't sound so exciting. Except it's like a massive waterfall. It's unfathomable how big it is and just how much water there is. And we were there in high season, which means the water was exponentially higher. Robyn had been a few times already and showed me pictures from other seasons where the falls are pretty normal or just a trickle, but nothing like what we experienced. We were soaked. It was crazy.

Lost in the mist with Robyn

Actually I'm getting ahead of myself. We got soaked on the second day when we hiked the falls. The first day Robyn arrived later than me so I took a sunset cruise. That was nice, but it was pretty overcast so sunset wasn't great. But the cruise was nice, I had some good chats, and about a bottle of wine. So no complaints. Then the next day we spent the entire day hiking around the falls, which ended with cocktails on the deck of the Royal Livingstone Hotel, just along the Zambezi by the falls, for like 2 hours. We should have had a beautiful sunset, but sadly it was really overcast again so no luck.

But the real excitement didn't come until our last morning, when we woke up at like 6am to go and take a microlight flight. If you don't know what a microlight is, it's basically a hang-glider with a propeller on the back. You sit in a seat with a driver in front of you, and then you fly. Open to the elements. It's nuts. I'd heard about it and was pretty excited by the idea, but at the same time kind of freaked out because I'm afraid of heights. But a couple of the friends that told me about it are also afraid of heights and said they were fine, so I decided to do it. And I do not regret it at all. It was absolutely incredible. It was kind of terrifying, ,not in the same way as my fear of heights when I'm at the top of a tall tower or something, but just terrifying cause you know you can plummet 1500 feet to your death at any moment and there is literally only a tiny little seatbelt holding you in. But it was fine, and totally worth it. The terror was definitely overcome by my amazement, because the views are nuts. And we even got to see a couple elephants and impala, plus Robyn saw hippos but I didn't.

Flying above the falls

So that was it, after that we headed back to South Africa, spent a bit more time with friends and "family", had a couple seders, and said my goodbyes. All in all, it was a fantastic trip. Super relaxing ,very eventful, lots of exciting new experiences - basically the perfect trip for me.

Turning and diving to get a closer look at the falls

All in all, a wonderful trip. And I returned to some wonderful music. And the wonderful music that I'll be sharing today is Zero 7. I thought they'd been pretty inactive for a while, but it turns out they put out an EP last year (Simple Science) which is just ok. But now they're putting out another EP this year (EP3), and they've released two out of the four songs. And so far, I'm impressed. The first one I heard was actually the second one they released off of the EP, Last Light. When I first saw it on some playlists I thought maybe it was just an old song that I'd forgotten the name of, but no, they have new music. And they're working with Jose Gonzalez again. These are both wonderful things. Actually, I first learned about Jose Gonzalez thanks to his work with Zero 7 back on The Garden. I also first learned about Sia thanks to them. This was well before she sold out and got popular.




Last Light may not be as good as some of the older songs they did with Jose Gonzalez (check out Today and Crosses), but it's still a great song. But if you want a really great song, listen to 400 Blows, the other song they've released from the EP. This one features Danny Pratt on vocals. I have no idea who he is, but I love this song so I went and checked him out, and he has one song called Antidote on Spotify which is pretty good, so hopefully this is also the start of another artist that I learn about thanks to Zero 7 and then fall in love with.

Apr 9 - St. Vincent

I was thinking of writing a full blog today and going over my time in Zambia, but I'm actually only working a half day tomorrow which means I'll have more time to write a blog tomorrow afternoon. So today is just a song. A new song by St. Vincent. Even though she released an album last year, she's decided to put out a new single this year. This week, in fact. It's called Teenage Talk.

Apr 8 - Jamie xx

I have been cooking up a storm these last couple of days. And if you know me, you know that's quite a feat. I don't cook. I hate cooking. I can cook, I know how to follow directions, I just don't particularly enjoy it. But Passover is the one time of year I'll actually cook because it makes my life much easier. So I've made matzoh ball soup, burgers and short ribs in the last 2 days, and I've got some peri peri chicken breasts marinading overnight to prepare for dinner tomorrow and lunch Friday. Go me.

Other things I find myself liking which I'm not normally crazy about is The xx. Well, Jamie xx to be more specific. Jamie xx is one third of The xx, and he's just put out an EP of his own called In Colour. The EP is just alright, but the opening track, Loud Places, is fantastic. I've had it on repeat. It features vocals by Romy Madley Croft, his bandmate from The xx, which is interesting if he's trying to do something solo, but she sounds good so no complaints from me. If the rest of The xx's music was this good, I'd be a much bigger fan.

Apr 7 - Bat For Lashes

First day back at work wasn't actually all that bad. Yesterday I was dreading it. As soon as I landed I did not want to be in China. It was cold and wet and gross and the lines at immigration were super long, and I just wanted to be back in the warmth of the Africa sun. So I really did not want to go to work today. But I did, and it was fine.

I wasn't crazy busy like I expected, but busy enough for the day. And I have a new employee who started today, so my life should get easier from now on. All in all it wasn't so bad. And now I just need to cook some burgers and ribs so I have my dinner and meals for the rest of the week, and start to catch up on the last two weeks worth of TV shows.

I also got to catch up on some music today. But I'm not sharing a new song that I heard today, even though I did hear quite a few good ones. In fact I'm listening to quite a good new one right now. But since my iPod broke I'm back on my old iPod (well, not that old, I stopped using it in September so it's still pretty up to date) and I was listening to Bat For Lashes. Specifically 2012's The Haunted Man. And what a fantastic album. Talk about an artist whose best album was her 3rd. This is the perfect example. Because this album is leaps and bounds better than any of her previous albums. I don't know why it didn't make it into my Top 10. Granted, I just looked back at my Top 10 and it was a really solid year, but this album is also super solid. Tough choices, I guess. Anyway, now you can listen to my favorite song off of it, Rest Your Head. But there are plenty of great tracks, so go listen to the whole album if you haven't.

Apr 6 - Son Lux

I am very tired. I came back and was super productive today. I actually unpacked and straightened up everything, and bought a couple things online, and spent time catching up with friends, and went out to dinner, and made matzoh balls. Go me. But now I'm exhausted. So here's a wonderful new song that I picked by randomly flipping through my iTunes. Change Is Everything, from the album Bones, by Son Lux, which should be out in June. Wonderful. He also makes a mean remix. And puts on an awesome live show.

Apr 5 - Monoswezi

For my last day in Africa, it's Monoswezi. And it's another quick blog because I'm short on time. I saw this band in Mozambique a couple years ago and fell in love immediately. They're a mix of Africans and Scandinavians, and I have no idea how they got together and worked out their magic, but luckily they have. Their album The Village is definitely worth checking out, but I'm not sharing anything from there. Instead it's Matatya, their new single, which hopefully is from an upcoming album.

Apr 4 - Sufjan Stevens

I forgot to write again yesterday. It was quite a busy day, but I thought it about after coming home from Seder and instead Instagrammed and fell asleep. Whoops. I think I can still get to 365 in the year, though, so I'm still on track.

Today will be quick again, and I'll probably write more once I'm at the airport on a layover or something. We went to the Lion Park yesterday, which is basically like a safari zoo that you can drive yourself around and get very close to all the animals. Mostly lions, obviously. If you've done a safari it's nothing special, but the real special thing is that you can play with baby lions. I've done it a couple times, but went and did it with Robyn cause it's awesome. And instead of playing with lions, lions played with me. The guide put me next to a lion to take our picture, and my lion thought I looked fun I guess cause he reached out and grabbed my leg. With his claws. And then my ankle. With his mouth. And then everyone laughed and the guide took lots of pictures and I freaked out more than a little bit inside but laughed on the outside and we all had a wonderful time and I had an excellent photographic souvenir. And a couple of little holes in my leg to take home as well. They weren't too deep or anything and didn't bleed, so I guess I was in no real danger, but it was definitely freaky.

And then I took a nap and we went to a seder. All good things.

And now I'm posting a Sufjan Stevens song off of his new album that came out last week. I have only listened to it once because my iPod seems to be broken. I'm trying to fix it, but we'll see how much luck I have. All I want is to get enough music on there to last me the flight home. And that music should include Sufjan's new album, Carrie & Lowell, which came out last week. He's finally back to his old folky stylings, which makes me happy. Like I said, I only listened once, but I think my favorites so far are Should Have Known Better and Fourth of July. I need to give it a proper listen, though, once my iPod works again, because I think I'm going to love the album.

Apr 2 - Memory Tapes

I've had little to no internet for 3 days while I was in Zambia! I've missed so much! And now, once again, I'm exhausted. So music time, and I'll write when I have time tomorrow. And I'll do a good one with multiple songs to make up for missing days.

And today is Bicycle by Memory Tapes. A few years old, but a great song. There are 2 new songs from Memory Tapes which aren't so great, but just listen to this and be happy.