Category Archives: Music

Music

Why I Love The Current

Leave a comment

It’s pledge drive time again at Minnesota Public Radio, which means my default station, 89.3 FM The Current, is full of pleas for cash. But that’s OK because The Current is the best music station ever. When people say radio is dead, they don’t listen to The Current.

I’m not a big fan of pledge drives. I can’t listen when the news side of MPR does their pledge drive. But I can endure it for The Current, mainly because they make it fun. It also helps that I’m a founding and sustaining member, so no guilt.

While listening to their pledge spiel today I started thinking about all the great bands and music I’ve discovered thanks to The Current. Here’s a quick list of music I discovered thanks to The Current (in no particular order):

Arthur Yoria, Arcade Fire, The Postal Service, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Death Cab for Cutie, Rilo Kiley, The Magnetic Fields, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Cloud Cult, Sondre Lerche, Mark Mallman, Kaiser Chiefs, The Heavy, Hot Hot Heat, The Raconteurs, Nada Surf, Rainer Maria, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Gossip, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Cold War Kids, M.I.A., The Fratellis, Regina Spektor, Bloc Party, The Big Pink, Art Brut, MGMT, Metric, Mumford & Sons, Avett Brothers, Gogol Bordello, Jonsi, Lady Sovereign, Ladyhawke, Lily Allen, The Decemberists, The Rural Alberta Advantage, The Thermals, The New Pornographers, Trampled by Turtles, Apples in Stereo, Ida Maria, Haley Bonar, Mates of State, Rancid, Tilly & the Wall, Tullycraft, Blonde Redhead.

Every band in this list has at least one song in my iTunes that I’ve listened to more than a dozen times (at the bare minimum). In most cases I bought something by this band because I heard it on The Current and liked it. In several cases The Current gave it to me for free (and then I often went on to buy more of it). Some of these are obscure hipster bands, but others are well known bands that I certainly heard about before hearing them on The Current, but I didn’t listen to their music until after hearing them on The Current.

Radio is not dead. Go check out The Current. You can listen online.

Music

Father Revisted by Justin McRoberts

Leave a comment
Father Revisted by Justin McRoberts
Father Revisited

Justin McRoberts is back. Never mind that he already put out an album this year (welcome to the new musician-controlled music industry). Now he’s revisiting his second album, Father, originally released a decade ago, and offering rearranged versions of four songs from that release. You can get them for free from NoiseTrade (you can also score $3 off his latest covers album).

Twelve years ago this month Justin lost his father to suicide and depression. These songs explore his father and the experience of losing him. But this time around there’s something deeper:

“Every May 6th since has a surreal quality to it; as if the day should have been retired for all its wear and tear. But this May has a different shade to it than the past 11, as my first child, a son, is due May 31.”

So this collection marks the end of an old era and the beginning of a new one. As a father myself, that’s pretty cool. I started listening to Justin McRoberts more than a decade ago (has it been that long?!), and it’s been cool to watch him stretch and grow as an artist and person.

Continue reading Father Revisted by Justin McRoberts →

Music

Through Songs I Was First Undone

Leave a comment
Through Songs I Was First Undone by Justin McRoberts
Through Songs I Was First Undone by Justin McRoberts

You know what’s embarrassing? Reviewing a cover album when you’re not familiar with any of the original songs. That’s where I find myself with the new release from Justin McRoberts, Through Songs I Was First Undone. I believe that makes me a musical dork.

Justin picks a wide range of songs from The Rolling Stones to Tom Waits to Nine Inch Nails (unfamiliar with the ‘Stones? Yep, musical dork.). He makes them his own, like any good cover project needs to, but you can still feel some of the original artist coming through (I could easily pick out the Nine Inch Nails and George Michael songs).

The best songs on the album are perhaps the most intimate ones, “Gerogia Lee” (by Tom Waits) and “Head Like a Hole” (by Nine Inch Nails). Both songs are honest explorations of truth, the kind of thing Justin is good at. It also might help that I’ve read Justin’s blog posts about both songs (Georgia Lee: Part 1, Part 2; Head Like a Hole: Part 1, Part 2).

Perhaps my favorite part of the album was the bonus tracks you get for buying the album, which included a cover of U2’s “First Time.” Now there’s an original I’m familiar with! A lot of people rightly think it’s sacrilege to cover U2, but when it’s done well I appreciate a good U2 cover. They’re perhaps never as good as the original, but when you start with such good material you end up with something pretty good. That’s the case with Justin’s cover.

God, Church & Stuff, U2

Easter & MLK

Leave a comment

I love church on Easter Sunday. It’s a party. The music rocks harder. People dance. Everybody comes in smiling. And after six weeks of a quiet, somber end to church,  we get to say Alleluia again.

Last year Milo banished us to the cry room and Lexi threw a fit when we went up for communion. This year Milo seemed to want to sing in the choir, even though we don’t have a choir. Lexi did fine at communion, pausing to lean Pinky against the kneeler before she stood at the communion rail. After church I didn’t have much time to talk to anyone because Milo made a beeline for the door and we spent a while playing in the grass.

This year the sermon closed with a reading of John Updike’s “Seven Stanzas at Easter.” I’d never heard it before and find Updike to be very hit or miss, but this was good. The poem focused on the importance of Christ’s bodily ressurrection—that Jesus literally came back from the dead. Updike focus more on the reality of it, but a few lines reminded me of the very Buffy the Vampire Slayer nature of the ressurrection. The grave was empty. The body was gone. And he was walking around. Not all putrified zombie corpse, but whole and restored. That’s crazy. And that’s the point. From Updike:

Let us not mock God with metaphor,
analogy, sidestepping, transcendence;
making of the event a parable, a sign painted in the
faded credulity of earlier ages:
let us walk through the door. …

Let us not seek to make it less monstrous,
for our own convenience, our own sense of beauty,
lest, awakened in one unthinkable hour, we are
embarrassed by the miracle,
and crushed by remonstrance.

Continue reading Easter & MLK →

God, Church & Stuff, Music

A Soundtrack & a Prayer for Haiti

Leave a comment

We could all use some joyous piano rock. Especially after this week.

Which works nicely because Ian Axel’s “This is the New Year” is the free weekly download from iTunes. I think they switch out the freebies on Tuesday, so you’ve got a couple more days to grab this gem for free. The video nicely captures the spirit of the song.

I’ve been playing the song on repeat while working on a project to help relief efforts in Haiti. It’s an ideal soundtrack:

A cross stands amid the ruins of the Eglise Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart Church), in downtown Port au Prince, Haiti. Photo by Lane Hartill/CRSCause in the end we have each other,
and that’s at least one thing worth living for,
and I would give the world to you…

Lets tear the walls down that divide us
and build a statue strong enough for two…

This is the new year
A new beginning
You made a promise
You are the brightest
We are the voices
This is the new year

Yes, it’s a lot of generic, fluffy, over-the-top, pop lyrics, but sometimes that’s exactly what we need as we lift our arms in prayer for our fellow brothers and sisters in Haiti:

Almighty Father, God of mercies and giver of comfort, deal graciously, we pray, with the people of Haiti in the midst of the great suffering caused by the catastrophic earthquake. May they cast all their care on you and know the consolation of your love.

Give us the courage, zeal, wisdom and patience to assist them, not only in these first days and weeks of urgent need, but as they continue to need the care and partnership of all their sisters and brothers around the world in the long and difficult work of healing and rebuilding.

Grant eternal life to those who have died, healing to the injured and strength to all the survivors, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

[By the Ven. Dr. J. Fritz Bazin Archdeacon for Immigration and Social Concerns Diocese of Southeast Florida. Posted by the Sisters of St. Margaret (an Episcopal order located in Boston) who run the Holy Trinity Cathedral and School, the Foyer Notre Dame and the St. Vincent School for the Handicapped, all in Port au Prince and which my church has supported. The Holy Trinity facilities and St. Vincent’s were destroyed and the Foyer damaged. The picture is of the Sacred Heart Church in Port au Prince, photo by Lane Hartill/CRS.]

Music

Free Christmas Music

1 Comment

Last year I explored my top 5 Christmas songs. Those recommendations still stand this year, though I keep coming across a number of free Christmas songs and they’re worth sharing.

  • Christmas for Kenya – University Baptist Church (David Crowder’s church) has put together their second Christmas album raising money for a water well in Kenya. You can download the album for free and then donate whatever you like (but please donate something).
  • Holiday Sampler – Vanguard Records has a free holiday sampler. All it will cost you is your e-mail address. It’s more country/folk oriented then I’d prefer, but I did like the tracks by Joshua Radin, Dar Williams and the Watson Twins.
  • Christmas Songs Vol. 2 – Folk rocker Justin McRoberts has made his EP of Christmas songs available through Noise Trade, which means you can have it if you spam five of your friends. I’m not a big fan of that method, but the price is right.
  • 25 Days of Free – Like they did last year, Amazon is offering 25 days of free Christmas song downloads. It’s not all quality stuff, but you might find a few gems.
Children, Music, Personal Pics

Lexi Does Johnny Cash: Devil’s Right Hand

2 Comments

One of my favorite Johnny Cash songs is “Devil’s Right Hand.” It’s on a playlist I created of half Lexi’s music and half my music (I can only stand so much Veggie Tales). I guess we’ve been playing that list a little too much lately, because now “Devil’s Right Hand” appears to be one of Lexi’s favorites.

Abby alluded to it yesterday and now here’s a bit of the original followed by Lexi’s rendition:

You can snag a copy of “Devil’s Right Hand.” It’s included in the Unearthed box set:

iTunes: Single / Box set

Amazon: Digital Single / Digital Box set / CD box set

Books, Daily Grind, God, Church & Stuff, Music, Politics, Society, Technology

The Crusades Were a Bad Idea: Let’s Not Do It Again

1 Comment

Update: I’ve been Snoped. Ouch. It appears the stats in this video are of questionable accuracy. They’re not denied outright, but there are significant questions. Despite all the rhetoric (my own included), perhaps the real question this post should raise is how should we respond to news of the growing population of a different faith? I’d contend that the negative overtones of this video aren’t helpful. End update.

I saw what I consider to be a bat-crazy video today. Take a look and tell me what you think:

Continue reading The Crusades Were a Bad Idea: Let’s Not Do It Again →

U2

Initial Reaction to U2’s No Line on the Horizon

3 Comments

U2’s new album, No Line on the Horizon, debuted today on MySpace (you have to choose NLOTH from the playlist dropdown in the player—easy to miss). They streamed the entire thing. So below I offer my very first reactions to hearing the album. I did this with How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and it’s kind of fun to record the initial response and see how horribly wrong I am.

No Line on the Horizon
Very first thought: Wow, Bono’s voice sounds ragged. He’s certainly not protecting his voice as he gets older. The Oh-oh-ohs are catchy.

Magnificent
The intro felt very not U2, but then the guitars came in. Now it actually feels like very early U2. Interesting lines: “Only love can leave such a mark. / Only love can leave such a spark.” and “I was born to sing for you.” Reminds me of the Magnificat (I image that’s intentional).

Continue reading Initial Reaction to U2’s No Line on the Horizon →

Music, Society

You Can Change the World: Saving Kids from Poverty

1 Comment

Shaun Groves spray-painting a rock at Northwestern: 163 kids sponsored!Last week indie rock star (wait, is that an oxymoron?) Shaun Groves came to town.

I’ve tried to keep up with Shaun since his debut album came out back when I was just getting started at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. We interviewed him at GMA and he played at the our offices and I think we talked him into writing for us. I was always struck by how genuine he seemed. A few years ago he launched a blog, but it wasn’t a typical rock star blog. For starters he called it a “Shlog” (which is where that ‘shlog envy’ comment came from), but more importantly he blogged about the real stuff of life and not just ‘hey look, I’ve got an album coming out’ or ‘we’re rocking in Georgia!’ and then no posts until the next album. Plus, he tried to kick Amy Grant’s ass (OK, not really).

Lately Shaun’s been doing this whole Compassion blogger thing and actually comments on people’s blogs. He still does some music in there somewhere, but he gives it all away for free.

Continue reading You Can Change the World: Saving Kids from Poverty →