Live from Philadelphia... Death Cab for Cutie

This Saturday, I will (hopefully) be seeing Death Cab for Cutie perform live at the Trocadero in Philly, as part of their "small venue" tour. My friends said that they want to stand so close to the front that they can "touch Ben Gibbard's beard." We appreciate his musical Godliness.
Also performing with the legendary Death Cab is The Lonely Forest, whom I've played on the blog here before. I hadn't head of The Lonely Forest before I found out they would be performing with Death Cab, but I'm glad I've listened to them. They've got a great sound, with meaningful lyrics. Excellent stuff. 
In other news, Death Cab's new album, "Codes and Keys" came out today. Get it while it's hot, because it is fantastic!
Enjoy the music! :)

--Post Update- 6/5/11
The DCFC concert yesterday was great. My brother, my friend, and I got in line starting at 1:30 pm (doors didn't open until 7!) and we endeavored to be in the front row. When we were in the middle of eating our packed lunches at 2:30-ish in front of the Troc, Nick Harmer, DCFC's bassist, came out & saw us sitting there and came over and talked to us! He shook our hands and everything! It was pretty cool. We also made some new friends while waiting for so long.
In short, we were in the front row, directly in front of the center mic where Ben Gibbard sang. It was definitely a memorable experience. Death Cab even played "Stay Young, Go Dancing"!

















"Stay Young, Go Dancing" (which can be found in a post of the same title here at KSG) is a beautiful song written for Gibbard's wife, Zooey Deschanel. Deschanel, who is also musically gifted, is the "she" of "She and Him" (the "him" is singer M. Ward). All I can say is that Gibbard and Deschanel's children (please tell me there will be children!) will have the voices of angels and will be lyrical geniuses.

Photographia

I've loved photography ever since I received my first camera when I was roughly six or seven years old. There's something about being able to stop time, and print it on a piece of paper to keep that absolutely awes and entrances me. People love photographs; they keep them tucked in drawers, pressed in books, framed on desks. In a 4x6 window, time stands still. Though we move endlessly on through time and space, the image remains the same. Through it, one can travel to a different era, place, or culture. From it, one can learn more than books could ever teach. Though silent, the photograph speaks volumes, in a language words could never truly capture the essence of.

I've recently entered a photography contest. I don't know what my odds are of winning, but if you look at my entry, and you like it, please consider voting for me :)

Here's the website for my photo, entitled "Gone": http://www.youtube.com/imagination?x=us_hausswf_12404
I took it in the office of an abandoned factory. No one knows why the company up and left, but the remains proved interesting enough for me to go exploring with my camera.

Enjoy the music, and thanks for voting :)

Stay Young, Go Dancing

This post is dedicated to my brother, because he loves the song, "Stay Young, Go Dancing" from Death Cab for Cutie's new album: "Codes and Keys", dropping May 31st (get excited!)
Enjoy the music :)










Arcade Fire - "Keep the Car Running" from SNL Fan on Vimeo.

Sasquarooza!

It's that time of year again: the summer concert season is upon us! However, if you're strapped for cash, are a college student, or happen to be a combination of the two, the golden ticket to these events-of-a-lifetime are pretty far out of your grasp (unless you somehow find one in a chocolate bar, but I think I'm mixing my metaphors...) Anyways, this post contains songs by artists featured at the most sought after summer concert series: Bonnaroo in Manchester, TN, Lollapalooza held in Chicago, IL, and Sasquatch Music Festival, happening this weekend (sigh) in George, Washington (too funny, that.)

Enjoy the music! (and if you are among the lucky ones who are able to go to any of these concerts, feel free to comment on this post and tell me how it was!)

Arachnophobia of Ron Weasley-Sized Proportions

What was actually in the car:

"Get out of the car!" My mom shrieks as soon as we parked at the mall. I follow her panicked stare to find the furry, eight-legged beast menacingly brandishing its mandibles on the rear-view mirror. My mom and I take turns running around the car like headless chickens, much to the amusement of passersby. I grab the hairspray out of the backseat that my mom had just bought from Ulta and attempt to use it as a weapon (but nothing kills bugs better than Lysol.) No good. Aragog was still going strong. 10 minutes of high-pitched womanly gibberish later, a brave man (who absolutely deserves a gold star for his courage) came over to our car with a napkin, and in one fell swoop snatched the offensive creature up and threw it out. To the gentleman who slayed the spider: THANK YOU!! WE COULD HAVE BEEN THERE FOR DAYS!!

What it felt like:(my Mom literally told me that she would do her best to protect me from the dangers in life, but when it came to spiders, I was on my own.)

And now, a mix dedicated to today's adventures:










Motion City Soundtrack - Everything Is A by KeelanEarly



"Misunderstood Spider" meme is all too applicable:

Thursday Night Mix

It's almost the weekend! Chill out from a long week with this mix.
Enjoy the music :)



An Horse - Horizons by anhorse

Dial-Tone Disconnect

For all of the phone calls that you tried to make, wanted to make, or never received, here's a mix about phones.
Enjoy the music :)










Misophone is a relatively recent addition to my music library. They sound best if the volume is relatively low, as the vocals for the majority of their songs have a "unique" quality to them. Despite the title, this song is actually quite enjoyable.

7 Things I Know for Sure

1) Tomorrow isn't promised.
2) Speak softly when you want to use harsh words, because you might have to eat them later (soft words help with the chewing.)
3) Never tell someone to leave if you know in your heart it's the last thing you want.
4) Quesadillas from the Jay's after 10 pm will give you heartburn.
5) Sometimes you have to lose everything to realize what you do have.
6) Maybe not knowing everything about yourself is a good thing. It leaves room to grow, and gives you a reason to have new experiences to figure out what you're made of.

And the seventh thing? I know nothing for sure, because as number one suggests, tomorrow, as with anything in life, is not promised.

Live from Philadelphia... Manchester Orchestra

So last night, my adventures included seeing Manchester Orchestra with a friend at the Theater of the Living Arts in the always lively city of Brotherly Love.
This mix is brought to you by two of the opening bands: Harrison Hudson of Nashville, Tennessee, and An Horse from Australia. Yes, they are from Australia. Of course, this mix would not be complete without a few select songs from the headliner, Manchester Orchestra.
Enjoy the music :)

( I do apologize for the Harrison Hudson "widgets": you have to toggle with them a bit before they'll play. Try clicking the play button a couple of times, or sliding the little time marker over until it says "buffering" and then move it back to the start of the song. That's the trouble with these indie people, they never have decent Youtube clips! haha.)

Last Days and New Beginnings

The more I try to study, the more blog posts I write. Perhaps I should study more regularly and maybe my posts would be less sporadic.
I read this quote, and I thought I'd share:

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” ~Steve Jobs

I like that idea. As I spend my last full day here at school (I'm in the library no less), I hope you have a summer to remember. I hope that you accomplish everything you want to do, not purely because you want to do it, but because it will better you or further you in some way, in an attempt to bring you closer to who you truly are.

Enjoy the music :)

See You Soon

Only two more days until I'm on the way back to where I'm from. It's funny when you leave home for a while; you grow so much internally that you don't quite fit back into your old bedroom. Like you're juxtaposed among the clothes, magazines, and stuff that's supposed to be yours, but you don't quite recognize it anymore. You pick up the pictures on the dresser from days gone by and you smile a bit like it's all a half-remembered dream.

Finals Cram Jam

Yes, I'm procrastinating. I have a final this week, not to mention several end-of-term papers due, but I love this study mix so much, I just wanted to share it with all of you. Could making other people's days better be considered procrastination? I would think not :)