Sunday variety

Here's two songs I'm really enjoying today. Two very, very different songs.

This one while I was at the gym:





And this one right now:

 

I don't think there's any album or anything attached to Geronimo, but graph rabbit have an album coming out in October. Only Fields is the first single and the only track I can find now, but I'm looking forward to hearing more.

The Oh Hello's

Today was kind of shit and now I have a headache. But The Oh Hello's make it all better. The brother and sister duo from Texas have one self-titled EP and I love every song on it. Mostly reminds me of Of Monsters and Men, but also a lot of The Civil Wars. They only have 4 songs on the EP, so I'll just put one up, Hello My Old Heart, the opener. But you should probably go buy the EP cause every song on there is awesome.





Ok I lied, I'll put two. Have I mentioned that I rate all my songs in iTunes? Well I do, and 5 stars is reserved for songs I could listen to over and over and over and over. And then maybe once more. All 4 tracks on this EP are 5 star songs. I want more from these guys. Here's more for you.

Stars

Today was not looking like it was going to be a very good day. In fact it wasn't such a good day. But then I found out Monday is a public holiday so I have a 3 day weekend, which makes it all better. That and I'm headed up north to visit a friend for the weekend and stay on the gold mine he manages. I'm hoping I can get a couple pounds as a souvenir. For free, obviously. I mean what are friends for if not to hook you up at their job?

I'm in Ghana, by the way. For like the 4th time this year. Which is fine by me cause I kind of like it here. And the food is good. I would actually be happy being poor in Ghana, because I could honestly eat banku (this gruel stuff made from maize) and shito (Ghanaian hot sauce) every day, and I figure that's like the Chinese equivalent of rice and soy sauce. So I'd be set.

Anyway this blog is supposed to be about music, so music it is. This time it's what is probably my favorite band: Stars. They're part of that whole Toronto/Broken Social Scene group of artists (which includes Feist, another favorite). Their album Set Yourself on Fire is my favorite album of theirs, and possibly one of my favorite albums. Never gets old, and I can relate to pretty much every song on there.

I'm not sure which song is my favorite. There are a bunch of great ones, but two in particular that I are probably my favorite Stars songs, period. Don't really know what to say about the two songs except that they're my favorites. So just have a listen. Your Ex-Lover Is Dead.

They took the words right out of my mouth. And probably hers, too, but I'm not as concerned with that.

I used to play One More Night for my students in Japan as part of class. I would play them songs and make it a fill in the blank excersize. I'd mix up the songs for different classes, basically whatever I was feeling, but all of my students heard this one (and Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis cause it was #1 on the Billboard charts at the time and I was trying to incorporate the Billboard charts into my lesson. I probably know every word of that song thanks to teaching in Japan.)

So the good news is you've now heard these songs in case you hadn't before. The better news is that Stars's new album comes out next month and I'm very excited about it. The few songs I've heard so far have been great and I would like to have it now.

Hiatus Kaiyote

Hiatus Kaiyote are my new favorite. I can't stop listening to their album, Tawk Tomahawk. Especially The World It Softly Lulls, which is pretty much on repeat in my ears.




This self-proclaimed future soul group has an incredible debut album, which will definitely be on my top 10 list for the year. Unless I find a bunch more music like this and realize they're just mediocre, but I highly doubt that's going to happen.

Generally, I don't pay too much attention to lyrics, but sometimes I'll look them up when I particularly like a song or a specific line strikes me. There was one of those lines in Mobius Streak, the opening track on their album.

Origami birds flock from my heart, burst out in colour to wherever you are.

Other than that, the lyrics make pretty much no sense to me. They're super abstract. But I like how that one sounds anyway.

School of Seven Bells

I got the newest School of Seven Bells album a couple months ago and was planning to blog about it cause I really enjoyed it. But then sometimes when I blog about bands I've been listening to for a while, I'll go back and listen to their old albums before blogging about a new one. That's what I've done in this case. Before, I thought their new album, Ghostory, was my clear favorite by them. But then when I went back and listened to the first one, Alpinisms, I realized it was much better than I originally thought and really great.

School of Seven Bells are these twin sisters and some dude who make music. For some reason, I always think of them as gypsies, or coming from the mountains of Peru or something. Don't ask me why, I have no idea how I got that image. They're from New York. I became a bit obsessed with the first song I heard by them back in 2008ish, Iamundernodisguise.





I also love that they have weird names for their songs. Makes me like them even more. Like this one, Connjur. I don't even think that's a real word.





One of the twins quit the band before this third album, so the sound is a bit different. That's not completely true. The sound is actually quite consistent, it's just the vocal style that's different. Not as layered and not so much harmony and all that good stuff. But still an awesome album. Listen to all their albums. And on the new one, pay special attention to The Night and Lafaye.

The Head & The Heart

So I've neglected my blog again. This time it was partially due to a trip home to the States, which was wonderful. I managed to get about 2 weeks home, split between California and Oregon, where I went to a wedding. It was actually pretty ridiculous, out in a vineyard in the middle of nowhere, on a hillside with Mt. Hood as the backdrop. And I got to see all kinds of fun people who I haven't seen in literally 4 years, since leaving Japan. So that was good.

You all get to benefit from it as well though. While I was home, my sister and I did a little music swap. There are a few common ways that this usually works out. The first is that I tell her about music and she forgets. Then months later she'll come tell me she found a band and I'll tell her I told them about the band months ago. Or that I put them on my blog, but she is a terrible sister and doesn't read my with the avid interest it deserves. The second option is that she actually listens to it, which is always fun. Sometimes she also gives me music, and this time she gave me some gold.

I usually listen to music my sister tells me about with a lot of scepticism, cause I can remember the days when she loved bands like Yellowcard and Panic! At The Disco. But The Head & The Heart are actually awesome. The Seattle band has one album out and it's excellent. They've also toured with a bunch of great people, which is always a good sign. One of my favorite tracks off the album is Down In The Valley, which I listen to on repeat.

Luckily that track is immediately followed by Rivers & Roads, which is another favorite (and I believe my sister's favorite). So I can just keep listening to both tracks over and over. And this track does one of my favorite things, which is combine male & female vocals. It actually reminds me a bit of Avalanche City at the beginning.

But more than anything else, they remind me of Joe Purdy, one of my old time favorites. So as an added bonus, here's one of my favorite songs ever, I Love The Rain The Most by Joe Purdy.

Lucius

I've been getting whispers about this band Lucius in my earholes for a while now. That makes me happy because my friend is one of the singers in the band, and she's amazing. This one time, when I was turning 16 I think, she serenaded me with Etta James's At Last. It was pretty sweet, especially considering how amazing her voice is. And then this other time, years and years later, I saw her on American Idol (which I watch obsessively. Guilty Pleasure. Don't judge me. Or do, it's cool. I'm gonna keep watching anyway). I don't know how she didn't win, considering she is actually probably the best singer I know. I guess she was just too awesome for the show.

Anyway, they've released a self-titled EP which is only 4 tracks but worth every penny. Especially the first track, Don't Just Sit There, which I've been listening to on repeat. Gives me chills every time. Go purchase it. Then if you're in or near New York, go and see them, and tell Jess I say hello. I hear they've been touring with Freelance Whales, which is an added bonus, though that may have ended...? Anyway, go see them. And enjoy this track.