Holiday Mixtape

I am now finally done with all school work and have completed my first semester as a Graduate student.

As a way to celebrate that, what better than some holiday themed music? 

Here's some of the holiday songs that I like and I hope you do too.

1) The Go! Team - "The Ice Storm"

2) Sally Shapiro - "Anorak Christmas"

3) Caribou - "Yeti"

4) The Knife - "Reindeer"

5) The Deer Tracks - "Christmas Fire"

6) Casiotone For the Painfully Alone - "It's Winter and You Don't Love Me Anymore"

7) Sufjan Stevens - "Only At Christmas Time"

8) Mirah - "Jerusalem"

9) Yo La Tengo - "It's Christmas Time"

10) Jens Lekman - "The Opposite of Hallelujah"

11) Stars - "Fairytale of New York"

12) El Perro Del Mar - "Oh! What a Christmas"

13) The Arcade Fire - "Jinglebell Rock"

14) Dirty Projectors - "Winter Is Here"

15) The Walkmen - "Christmas Party"

16) Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "All I Want for Christmas"

17) Brendan Canning - "All the Best Wooden Toys Come From Germany"

18) Bjork - "Frosti"

"I was a professional twice over - an analyst and a therapist.."

First of all, I love David Cross. I just really love him as Tobias Fünke from Arrested Development.

Anyway, the point of this post is that he's wearing a sweater from the store I work at. I know this because 1) I look at this sweater and touch it everyday at work and 2) It has the water tower logo on the chest. I don't believe he came into the location I work at, because I would have heard about it if that were the case (the only famous people to come into my store include a former cast member from Days of Our Lives, the drummer from Jared Leto's band, and a secondary cast member from Gossip Girl). Thank you BrooklynVegan for bringing this to my attention.

Dear David Cross, 

The next time you shop at Brooklyn Industries, please visit the Union Square location.

Thank you,

Erin

Top Albums of 2008

Like every other music website or perhaps music fan, I've compiled my Top Ten Albums of 2008. I've done this every year and it's something I enjoy. Now that I have this blog, I figure I should share my list.

Of course, I do have a few pet peeves about lists like these. I do hate how with music blogs, after they make a post like this, all the fans do is complain: "I cannot believe so and so isn't on here!" or " [insert band name here] fucking sucks." It's just ridiculous really. Make your own list then, sheesh.

On that note, here's my list. Notice the absence of Radiohead and Bon Iver. Oh wait, that's because that was 2007 and this is 2008.

10) Fuck Buttons - "Street Horrrsing"

I know, I know. They use a children's cassette recorder as an instrument. And I don't care. With distorted vocals, drones, other worldly noise, and synths how can you go wrong? Plus, this album got a lot of airplay on my former radio station and the band called me to say thank you and I love them for that fact alone.

9) The Dodos - "Visiter"

One of the perks of my former job as Music Director at my own radio station was previewing and reviewing new music and getting excited about new releases. "Visiter" was one of those albums and The Dodos stole my heart from the very beginning of "Walking."

8) Foals - "Antidotes"

From what I've read, people either love or hate Foals. I happen to enjoy them (and British dance rock) very much and think they are very nice lads. Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of interviewing two members of the band at my former radio station while they did a DJ set and I got the chance to meet rest of the band later on. I just really like their "we're just making music because we want to and we don't give a shit if you like it or not" attitude. That and I can listen to "Antidotes" on repeat. Oh wait, I've already been doing that.

7) No Age - "Nouns"

I was a little late to jump on the No Age bandwagon. I heard the initial buzz about them, but I didn't bother to check them out for some unknown reason, which was foolish because I love Sub Pop. Anyway, one of my friends mentioned how I should listen to them because he was really enjoying them and he's been really good with recommending music to me that I end up liking. SO, I followed his advice and fell in love with "Nouns" and that's the end of the story. I've had many failed attempts (3) to see No Age live and I'm hoping that maybe someday it will actually happen and I can cry during "Things I Did When I Was Dead."

6) Beach House - "Devotion"

I have yet to see Beach House live, and from what I've heard, the consensus is that they are either boring or incredible. Well despite that, "Devotion" is anything but boring. It's hypnotic and heartbreaking with gorgeous vocals. Plus, it's really mopey and I love that. 

5) The Walkmen - "You & Me"

I had been somewhat of a fan of The Walkmen before the release of "You & Me,"  and by that I mean I listened to them sporadically. However, since "You & Me" came out, I have changed my mind about the band and I've been listening to the album heavily since. Hey Walkmen! I'm sorry for doubting you.

4) Wolf Parade - "At Mount Zoomer"

Oh, Wolf Parade, I. Love. You. From other blogs I'd read, people mostly bitched that the album took a few listens to get into or that it completely sucked. I beg to differ. If you compare "At Mount Zoomer" to "Apologies to the Queen Mary" well, actually, you can't compare them. They are too different and I don't think a lot of people have realized that fact or gotten over initial judgements of "At Mount Zoomer." This is a great album that shows the different direction the band is going in and what they are capable of. I want to slap anyone who thinks otherwise.

3) Deerhunter - "Microcastles/Weird Era Cont."

"Cryptograms" took me awhile to get into, mostly because I thought Deerhunter was fucking insane, but that's what I like most about the band now. "Microcastles" on the other hand, was an album I got into right away and afterwards, I was better able to understand "Cryptograms" if that makes sense. My only question now is what the hell is with all the irrational hate towards this band? Please don't tell me it's because Pitchfork loves Deerhunter.

2) Cut Copy - "In Ghost Colours"

I don't want to toot my own horn, but I'm going to. I've been a huge fan of Cut Copy after "Bright Like Neon Love" came out. I played them nearly every single week on my radio show and more heavily when I got my hands on "In Ghost Colours" before it was released. Then the album came out and a little while later, Cut Copy was popping up all over my station's playlists. Anyway, that's besides the point. I'm glad that people are loving them because the praise is well deserved and definitely overdue. All I want to do when listening to this album is dance, although sometimes I have to restrain myself. I've seen Cut Copy twice this past year (well three, if you count the DJ set) and they have not failed to deliver a chaotic, yet extremely fun dance party. On a side note, the people at Modular are very, very nice!

1) M83 - "Saturdays = Youth"

I don't know where to begin with this album. I love everything about it. The amount that I listen to it is sickening really. While "Saturdays = Youth" is more "poppy" than other M83 albums, it's still the instrumental tracks that I like the best. I can't help but nearly lose it and become overwhelmed with an urge to clap and dance every single time I listen to "Couleurs." This is another album that has received a lot of hate and backlash, mostly for being "cheesy." Well, when an album is a homage to the 80s and John Hughes movies, how can it not be a little cheesy? I think that's part of the album's charm. 

Also, I'm really excited for the beginning of 2009 with new releases from the following:

Andrew Bird, Animal Collective, Antony and the Johnsons, Squarepusher, Telefon Tel Aviv, Handsome Furs, Asobi Seksu, Beirut, Realpeople, The Decemberists, Mirah, Fever Ray, Grizzly Bear, and many, many more.

Well, there you have it.

New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down

I came across this video last week, but then it was taken down by EMI. I was able to find it again via Videogum (thank goodness) and I want to share it, because it's awesome.

After actually living in New York City now, I can relate much more to this song.

Good God I need to see LCD Soundsystem at some point in my life.

Missed Connections

For my Media Concepts class, we had to get in small groups and make a video about an encounter between two people. My group chose to base ours off of the Craigslist "Missed Connections."

Here is the result. 

Oh and in case you don't know me, I'm in the second segment. I also picked the music.

November Mixtape

If there's one thing I really enjoy, it's making mix CDs for other people. Since I love music and enjoy writing about it so much, I figure I should start posting mp3s I've been enjoying and share them with anyone who happens to stumble across this blog.

Anyway, here's mine for the month of November, which consists of newer music (for the most part) I've been listening to a lot lately.

1) Beach House - "Used to Be"

2) Atlas Sound - "Quarantined" 

3) Dokkemand - "Knapp"

4) Arliss Parker - "Taken to Antrim"

5) Alias - "Well Water Black (ft. Why?)

6) The Egg - "Always There"

7) Alaska In Winter - "Berlin"

8) School of Seven Bells - "Iamundernodisguise"

9) White Rabbits - "The Plot"

10) To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie - "Lovers & Liars"

11) Department of Eagles - "No One Does It Like You"

12) Takka Takka - "Silence"

Enjoy!

A Very Vegan Thanksgiving

I spent Thanksgiving in Redbank, New Jersey where most of my relatives live. It was definitely a change from the more formal Thanksgiving I'm used to back home. 

I had my first Tofurky ever. To be honest, I thought it was pretty good. Of course, I was just excited to have a Thanksgiving that was veggie friendly, as one of my cousins is vegan.

For the first time in my life I actually had a good time in New Jersey. I'm not one of those New Yorkers that has an irrational hatred towards that state, but it's just that every time I've been there, it has been one of the worst experiences of my life. Of course, I was only there for a little over 24 hours this time and most of that was spent indoors.

Then again, when I spend my time watching Arrested Development, talking about Jens Lekman, browsing for records, and getting Indian bunch, I'm enjoying myself no matter where I am.

In January, I will take the longest trip of my life

My dear friend Kat, who I've known since Freshman year at UVM and lived with for most of that time, is in Suwon teaching English. I'm going to visit her towards the end of January and I will return right when classes start up.

I've never been to Asia, so I'm very excited for this. In fact every flight I have taken out of the country has been to Europe, which I've done 4 times. Round 1: Ireland, Round 2: England, Round 3: Denmark and Iceland, Round 4: Czech Republic (which included visits to Austria and Poland), France, and Sweden. I believe the longest flight I've ever been on was from Stockholm to New York and that's not even that long. 

I'm going to need to invest in some sleeping pills that's for sure.

Class registration is definitely easier at the New School than it is at UVM and that is something I am o.k. with.

Anyway, so for next semester, I am taking the following:

WNSR Radio Lab

Music Business In Media

Electronic Media and Live Performance (on-line)

Yes, I am taking an on-line class. Why? Because Although the main reason I am in NYC is for school right now, I need to get a grown up job and make some money. Of course, with the way things are right now, that may not happen for quite some time. 

Also, as you may or may not be able to tell, I'm trying to do a focus around music and sound studies because ultimately I'd like to pursue a career in that field. However, I really do miss taking a film class (after all, I did major in Film & Television Studies) and a part of me feels like that degree is going to waste because I'll probably never do anything with it. My program right now is set up so that you take 3 classes a semester and I'm planning on graduating in May of 2010, so I don't really have the time to take a class just for the hell of it. That kind of makes me sad.

"7 A.M. Dusty road. I'm gonna drive until it burns my bones"

This is a few days late, but I saw M83 and School of Seven Bells at Webster Hall on Friday night. I had been looking forward to that show for quite some time and it did not disappoint.

School of Seven Bells were great, however I felt their set was a bit short. Also, only a small portion of the crowd seemed to be really into them and I suppose that didn't help things. Their album Alpinisms recently came out and I've been listening to it on repeat. While they played most of that album, I was hoping they would play "Iamundernodisguise", but they didn't. I really like that song. Actually, I just really, really like Prefuse 73's version.

M83 blew me away. Starting off with "Run Into Flowers" will surely do that. The songs flowed into each other with minimal breaks in between. Aside from playing most of Saturdays = Youth (one of my favorite albums of the year), they also played from Dead Cities, Red Seas, and Lost Ghosts and Before the Dawn Heals Us. The highlight for me was the encore which consisted of "Couleurs" and it was incredible. Anthony Gonzalez had so much energy and was so grateful to the crowd. It was adorable.

The show was lovely, but the crowd was annoying to say the least. Or, where I happened to be standing it was. For some reason, every time I go to a show, I always end up standing behind some of the most obnoxious people ever.  Also, during "Teen Angst" some girl had her camera pointed at my face for a very long time and a guy by me kept asking me why she was taking so many pictures of me. I don't know why and I don't feel it was necessary and I hope I don't see them on-line anywhere.

"Only love interests me, and I am only in contact with things I love"

Despite living in New York City for not even 3 months, I've already visited the MoMA many times, with the most recent being this past Friday. Of course, it does help that I get in for free with my student ID. Every time that I do go though, I always find myself spending a fair amount of time looking at this painting:

"Birthday" by Marc Chagall. I have only taken a handful of Art History classes, so I'm far from being an expert in the field, but I love his use of color, attention to detail, and influence from his early life along with his commentary on society. Again, I'm no Art scholar, but I know what I like and I love this painting.

CMJ Recap

CMJ took place this past week, from the 21st to the 25th. I've only been once before and that time I had a badge. This time however, I didn't have a badge, but there was still much to see and do. Due to my work and class schedule, I wasn't able to take as much advantage of all the free shows as I would have liked. However, the ones that I was able to catch did not disappoint.

On Wednesday there was the Terrorbird (sidenote, I love them) party at the Cake Shop. The lineup was outstanding, but I only made it for Tobacco, Women and Takka Takka. Tobacco, while I love his latest album Fucked Up Friends, put on an interesting show. The visuals didn't quite match the music and he didn't do much in the way of play anything, unless you count pressing the play button on his computer. But, I still enjoyed it nonetheless. After Tobacco, I left for a bit and when I came back, Women were almost halfway through their set. I know some were let down by their performance, but I loved their energy. Up next was Takka Takka, who were one of the highlights of the party for me, as I've been listening to Migrations on repeat. Unfortunately, their set was cut short due to time issues, but they definitely made the most of it.

Takka Takka

During the day on Friday I went to the Pirate! party at Fontanas and the Team Clermont part at Arlene's. I went to those more for the people hosting than for the bands themselves, but I still had a good time. 

Friday night was Land of Talk and Broken Social Scene at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple. The show sold out and I managed to get a ticket from one of my coworkers. Thank goodness, because the show was incredible. I haven't heard Land of Talk's first full length Some Are Lakes, but I really liked their EP Applause Cheer Boo Hiss and after their performance that night, I'm going to have to check out their new album. 

This was my third time seeing Broken Social Scene (for those of you who don't know me, they are my favorite band and I might be slightly obsessed) and it was quite the experience. The first time I saw them was last November during the Broken Social Scene Presents Kevin Drew tour. So, half the band was absent, but they did play some older songs. I caught the band in most of their entirety this past August at Osheaga. Amy Millan (from Stars) showed up and BSS mixed the set up with their material, along with songs from Kevin Drew's solo album and Brendan Canning's album as well. 

This time however, Elizabeth Powell (from Land of Talk) filled in for the female vocals. I wasn't aware that she had actually joined the band, but I thought she was great. Anyway, so Broken Social Scene was fantastic. They started the show off with "Late Nineties Bedroom Rock for the Missionaries" and went straight into "Shampoo Suicide" which was basically the signal that this show was going to be quite different from previous shows. The band played for over 2 1/2 hours and they played almost all of You Forgot It In People . There were breaks at various points; first for the song "3,000" from bassist Sam Goldberg's side project, then for a scientific musical project from Do Make Say Think which featured studying voice recordings and using their patterns to create songs, and finally for Apostle of Hustle's "National Anthem of Nowhere." 

Also, Kevin Drew was in a strange mood. I know I say this like I know him personally, but from past shows, he seemed less annoyed this time especially with all his talk about playing until the venue's curfew and talking about how great and appreciative the fans were. That was short lived because then of course he got snippy as soon as someone in the audience would shout a request (sidenote: thank God that didn't deter him from playing certain songs. That happened the first time I saw the band; some overly obnoxious people in the audience kept shouting for "Lover's Spit" and he then decided not to play it since people kept asking for it even though it was on the set-list). Drew claimed that this was the last time the band would be playing some songs (such as "Anthems For a Seventeen Year Old Girl") for awhile as the band will be going on a short hiatus after this tour and possibly recording new material. I really hope that new material is on the way, though it will be sad if the band no longer plays songs such as "Anthems" as previously mentioned. However, it would be incredible if the band played 3 hour shows (as hinted) or just perhaps do something completely different and play Feel Good Lost live in its entirety.

All in all, I'd say my CMJ experience went fairly well. My only regret is that I missed out on a lot of bands I wanted to see, but with so much going on, it's actually kind of overwhelming.

Yesterday, I saw Chuck Klosterman while I was walking to class. For those of you who don't know me very well (or at all for that matter), let me just say that I love him. Well, I love his writing. I love the fact that he makes no apologies for his viewpoints and is more or less, both a music snob and nerd. Perhaps aficionado would be a better way to describe it.

ANYWAY, Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs is one of my favorite books (although it's more of a collection of essays, but that's besides the point). I've read it countless times and as a result, the book is not in the best condition. To add to its wear, it is the book I always bring with me when flying, which is something I seem to do fairly often. I've also made it a point to highlight and mark quotations and excerpts that I enjoy and mostly find completely hilarious.

"I wake up, I feel the inescapable oppression of sunlight pouring through my bedroom window, and I am struck by the fact that I am alone. And that everyone is alone. And that everything I understood seven hours ago has already changed, and that I have to learn everything again. I guess I am not a morning person."

About a month or so ago, I stumbled across a box of books in the lobby of a friend's apartment building. It was there that I found two books by Joan Didion, Slouching Towards Bethlehem and The White Album. I had first read Didion during my Freshman year of college, in an English class that focused on Post-modern literature. We read the essay "John Wayne: A Love Song." Out of the many books and essays I read in that class, Didion stuck out the most to me. I just loved the detail of her writing, her honesty, and her capture of the cultural, political, and social atmosphere of the 60s and 70s in America.

Recently, I've had time to read both collections of essays. Her writing has struck me on both a personal and academic level. Primarily in my Media Studies: Ideas class, with her descriptions on culture industry and the interpretations of it.

From The White Album:

"We tell ourselves stories in order to live. The princess is caged in the consulate. The man with the candy will lead the children into the sea...We interpret what we see, select the most workable of the multiple choices. We live entirely, especially if we are writers, by the imposition of a narrative line upon disparate images, by the 'ideas' with which we have learned to freeze the shifting phantasmagoria which is our actual experience."

I cannot understand why someone would give away collections of her essays. At the same time, whoever did it, I thank you, as those books have now taken a permanent residence on my bookshelf.

2008 Polaris Music Prize

The Polaris Music Prize is Canada's response to the Mercury Prize, which honors musicians from the UK and Ireland. It's relatively new, having awarded it's first prize back in 2006. 

Caribou won the 2008 Polaris Music Prize for his album Andorra. Although I do enjoy that album, I thought that Plants and Animals with Parc Avenue or Holy Fuck with LP would win.

I'm surprised that Caribou won, only because compared to the other musicians nominated for this year's prize (with the exception of Stars and The Weakerthans), he is fairly well-known. In the past, the bigger name musicians, such as Broken Social Scene, Wolf Parade, and the Arcade Fire, all who were nominated (and rightly so) did not win. I've read other blogs that commented on this issue as well and I happen to agree with them.

However, it seems that since last year's awards, the Polaris Prize has been seen by some as somewhat of a joke. There was quite a fuss made over Patrick Watson winning over nominees such as fan favorites Feist and the Arcade Fire. This is mostly because Watson has been associated with having a fan base of soccer moms, and that's just ridiculous and unfortunate. Of course, thanks to the iPod commercials, look what has now happened to Feist. I happen to really like Patrick Watson (I love his collaboration with The Cinematic Orchestra) and I thought Close to Paradise was a beautiful album. 

Perhaps now that Caribou won, the Polaris Prize will be taken more seriously by those who have snubbed it for past decisions.

"I always wanted to be a Tenenbaum"

I absolutely love Wes Anderson. Unlike most Anderson fans I know, The Royal Tenenbaums is not my favorite film of his. Mine's Rushmore. However, that's neither here nor there.

I visited the Tenenbaum house today, which is located at 339 Convent Ave., right off of W. 144th. It was wonderful and probably as close as I will ever get to Wes Anderson or any star of the film for that matter. 

From the outside, the house was gorgeous, and so were the surrounding brownstones. I did not get to see what the inside of the house looked like, as it was locked and vacant because it had a building permit on one of the outside doors with a description of the work that is to be done on the house. From one of the windows I was able to make out some living room furniture, but it didn't look like any from the film. I was slightly disappointed that I had no access to the roof, as all I really wanted to do was shout "Go Mordecai!", but perhaps it was for the best, as not to publicly embarrass myself. 

Instead, I spent my time milling about the outside and sitting on the glorious stoop.

This Dance Will Last Us Forever

Cut Copy is one of my favorite bands. In Ghost Colours is a fantastic album and is without a doubt one of my Favorite Albums of 2008. In fact, it's still in heavy rotation on my iPod and iTunes. Anyway, Cut Copy played 2 shows here in NYC, on Sunday and Monday night, but both of them sold out before I could get a ticket which was slightly disappointing, but I got over it since I've seen them twice before. I will say that Cut Copy puts on a great show and a respectful, yet fun dance party.

Yesterday afternoon, members from Cut Copy and The Presets did a DJ set at the Apple store on W 14th. It was fun, but strange since not many people showed up for the set. No one was up for dancing and it was a bit awkward just standing around the Apple store trying to not get in the way of the employees assisting customers. The DJ set only lasted for an hour and while some people were in and out, I stayed for the entire time. My choosing to do so resulted in getting put on the guest list for their after party  and getting a bunch of other free stuff as well. All in all, I think that turned out to be a pretty good tradeoff for not being able to go to the shows at Webster Hall.

(@ SXSW 2008)

Oh Modular, I love you so.

The Squid and the Whale

Say what you will about that film and Noah Baumbach in general. I don't care. I absolutely love The Squid and the Whale. It may be pretentious, but it's earnest, troubling, uncomfortable and completely hilarious all at the same time.

Anyway, the real point of this post is to mention that I saw Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Walt Berkman in the film, on 5th Ave. the other day. 

In order to spare myself the humiliation, I didn't approach him. I wouldn't have had anything of substance to say; instead I would have been my awkward self, mentioned that I loved the film, and then make things more painful by mentioning Kafka.

Sigur Ros at United Palace Theater

I love all things Icelandic and Sigur Ros is no exception. Their show earlier tonight at the United Palace Theater is now on my list of the best shows I've seen, along with Bjork, Broken Social Scene, and The Arcade Fire respectively.

Despite arriving 15 minutes late (this was my fault, as it took longer than I had expected to get from my class to the 175th stop), the show was everything I anticipated and more. I have a few friends who have seen Sigur Ros in the past and they told me that it was nothing less than amazing.

The sound was absolutely incredible and along with the multimedia projection and the light show, the show was mesmerizing and I was in awe for most of it. As expected, the majority of the songs they played were off of Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, but the highlights for me were Sæglópur and Viðrar vel til loftárása.

My only regret is that I waited to get tickets and ended up in the balcony section. Oh if only I was one of the lucky ones to have gotten orchestra seating.

Obligatory Introductory Post

For one of my classes, Understanding Media Studies, I am required to create a website of some sort, to be used mainly as a "professional" website showcasing my media related work but also as a place to showcase my interests.

I had always wanted to create a blog (though who doesn't blog these days?) and have the opportunity to share my thoughts and opinions about certain things, though I doubt anyone else cares. ANYWAY, this blog is going to be less professional and focused more on my interests, which are mainly music and film, but mostly music. And ultimately, I would like to work in the music industry, so I guess that makes this semi-professional.

So for the time being, I'm going to write about the things that I find interesting as well as general happenings around New York City.

That is all.