(50) Sundays of Music: #44

#44: Fight Club Soundtrack


This one should come as no surprise.

I first saw Fight Club in my freshman year of college so I was about six years late. But that movie changed everything for me. Ever since that first viewing it has stayed on my #1 spot and it will probably never leave. I could go on and on about why I like the movie so much, but seeing as how this is "Music Sunday" I will just talk about the soundtrack.

Even though there were a couple songs by different artists (The Pixies "Where is My Mind?" to close the movie) the soundtrack was mainly done by The Dust Brothers. And contained on this cd is all the songs that were featured in the movie.

What I love is listening to the songs and them taking me back to individual scenes in the movie (last time I counted, I lost track of how many times I've seen that movie). I remember my birthday was coming up and my sister wanted to get me something so were at the mall and I was like "how about this?" and bam, I have a new soundtrack.

Now, you can't really listen to this in your car or anything like that. Actually, I don't really know that great of a place to sit down and listen to it, though I have used it to study in the past. With that said, there's not many songs to post as they are mainly instrumentals, but enjoy some of these and maybe a bonus song from the movie itself.

And remember: "You are not your fucking khakis"

(this video doesn't necessarily highlight the soundtrack, but you can hear a track in the background -- and I just think the video is really cool)

WW (Sort of): Ten Things

So while not entirely wordless and not entirely pictures, it still sort of fits that category. But this post was inspired by a recent offering from Kaylalala at Cinnamon on Toast who was inspired by Lisa at A Day in The Life. These are ten things that are currently making me happy (though "currently" is debatable because most of these are stuff I am looking forward to)

10. Alice in Wonderland - March 5

If you aren't excited for this movie, I don't know what to say. Depp + Burton + classic story + 3D = Effing Magical

9. After trying to find some classic Alice in Wonderland footage from the Disney cartoon, I came across this. And I could not stop laughing.



8. And then when I went to show Frisco that, he in turn showed me this. And I almost cried from laughing so hard.



7. March Madness

I don't know much about college basketball, but it's fun to play in the brackets. And my uncle is a big UNC fan, so that's who I go for.

6. Resistance - The Tiesto Remix (I was a little unsure about this at first, but it has grown on me)



5. Netflix

Netflix has allowed me to watch this season of Heroes with my family in South Dakota over Xbox Live, get started and finish Arrested Development, start 30 Rock and various other movies that I have been meaning to see.

4. Spring Break

Yes, that is a picture of Lost going with my spring break plans. My family has moved and most of my friends have their break at a different time so I will be spending my break playing video games and catching up on shows. And thanks to the above mentioned Netflix, one of those shows will be Lost.

3. Meeting new blogging buddies (and reuniting with old ones)


2. Wrestlemania 26

Don't hate, it's our Superbowl. And it's about a month away.

1. Graduation

Granted, this is the one that is the longest away. But it is the one I am looking forward to the most. The countdown has begun.

Good News for Those Who Like Music News

Man, I'm on a blogging rampage this week. Hope you guys don't mind.

First off, I FINALLY have release dates for two of my favorite bands. Envy On The Coast's new cd, Lowcountry, comes out March 30 and Minus the Bear's new cd, OMNI, comes out May 4. Consider these dates marked on my calendar.

But on to the news worthy story: Fearless Records will release another "Punk Goes..." on April 27.

I have been a fan of this series for a while, with them releasing such stuff as Punk Goes (Pop, '90s, Crunk) which are all cover songs. (They also released two versions of Punk Goes Acoustic, but that doesn't really apply here).

Anyways, the one they will release in April will be called "Punk Goes Classic Rock," which means some of your favorite tracks are going to be butchered. But same may be given justice.

In these releases, they are always hit or miss. I have some huge favorites such as Halifax's cover of Paula Abdul's "Straight Up" and Alesana's cover of Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around." There is plenty more, but I would just be rambling. Some songs just straight up suck. And I can already tell from the following list, some of these are going to as well. But I think there are going to be some gems in there.

The following is the track list for the release. I'm sure some are already out as I have seen one of them in a past post by jeanette at Cooler Ranch or Nacho Cheese? But the ones in bold are the ones I am looking forward to. The ones in italics are the ones I am curious about because the original is one of my favorites. The rest I guess we will just have to wait and see.

1. Hit The Lights "More Than A Feeling" (originally recorded by Boston)
2. VersaEmerge "Paint It Black" (originally recorded by The Rolling Stones)
3. The Almost "Free Fallin'" (originally recorded by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers)
4. Mayday Parade "We Are The Champions" (originally recorded by Queen)
5. The Summer Set "Rock 'n Roll All Nite" (originally recorded by KISS)
6. We The Kings "Caught Up In You" (originally recorded by .38 Special)
7. A Skylit Drive "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)" (originally recorded by Journey)
8. I See Stars "Your Love" (originally recorded by The Outfield)
9. Pierce The Veil "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (originally recorded by Blue Oyster Cult)
10. Forever The Sickest Kids "Crazy Train" (originally recorded by Ozzy Osbourne)
11. The Maine "Pour Some Sugar On Me" (originally recorded by Def Leppard)
12. Envy On The Coast "All Along The Watchtower" (originally recorded by Bob Dylan)
13. Every Avenue "Take Me Home Tonight" (originally recorded by Eddie Money)
14. Never Shout Never "Bohemian Rhapsody" (originally recorded by Queen)
15. blessthefall "Dream On" (originally recorded by Aerosmith)

Remembering the Times

So before we get started on this little post, I must put out there that you only have till Wednesday to get in the running for a FREE poster print at my friend's blog over here.

I know you guys like free stuff, so sign up. I'm especially looking at you, you, you and you. I would put more, but I think you guys like a free poster thingy and you have to be in the US.

Now, let's get down to business.

It's starting to hit me that I am mere months away from graduation. While I am ecstatic to close this chapter in my life and begin a new one, the time has come that a person like is me starts to reflect on all the details of these last 5 years. So every now and again I will post a blog telling a story about what happened during my time as a "college kid." I hope you enjoy reflecting with me.

This one goes back to my freshman year, as a lot of these things do. I had just gotten my camera before I graduated high school and used it a lot my first two years, then it gave out on me and I just got a new one a few months ago. But here is as much of a back story as I can remember.

Don't ask me why, but for some reason when we moved in we put a loaf of bread in a drawer of an extra dresser we had in the living room. After a couple months in, Hedman and I discovered it and realized what happened if you leave bread sitting there for that long. So of course we couldn't eat it, so what did we do? Naturally, get out brooms and play a modified version of hockey using the bread as the puck.

We set up chairs as the "goals" and I'm not kidding, for about 15 minutes we tried to score on each other but to no avail. We got pretty loud at one point to where our fourth roommate, who lasted all from August to November, actually came out and said something to us. But it was more curiousity so when he went back in, we continued. But this time, we got Frisco involved.

We explained the situation and asked him to be the cameraman. We even came up with a mini story -- Hedman would be sitting at the table eating his dinner when I would "challenge" him to a match. He would accept and our match would be under way. However, after that we freestyled it because as I said, we were playing for like 15 minutes with no one making a shot. That's why the following video is so magical.







Hope you enjoyed that and don't forget to enter the contest!

(50) Sundays of Music: #45

#45: Band of Horses - Everything All The Time


This is one of those indie-type releases that I got into, ironically, when a buzz started being created about it both from my friends and in popular culture.

The story goes like this. I had sort of heard a few of their songs from a combination of my ex-girlfriend and my friend Hedman. I think after listening to them on my own I came across the songs "Funeral" and "No One's Gonna Love You," the second track not being on this cd, but it was on the same release of "Is There A Ghost" which I first heard on Alt Nation, the Siruis channel where I get most of my music. But back to this album.

I started to get into this cd's chill vibe, but thinking it was a little weird so I didn't really grasp it at first. But as with most releases, it takes a spark to get me back into it and this album had two. One was "Funeral" showing up on the video game Skate (which I would have never put together, but it worked) and "Our Swords" showing up the soundtrack to Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. "Our Swords" has an awesome bass line intro that I tried to get my roommate to duplicate (he said it was pretty easy haha).

Another stand-out track is "The Great Salt Lake," which I started playing more when I became a dj at my college radio station and it was in the automation system. I think that track is one of the few that I could see making it onto the alternative radio stations. Some of the rest, like the closing tracks, would be perfect to the soundtrack of some indie movie that that hipsters will tell you is the best release of any year, primarily because you haven't heard of it.

But if you want to chill out and relax, just click play on the following videos.

Giveaways and Dance Parties

You want to take part in a giveaway? Well, you can't do it here, but you can find a way to get a poster print of your choice shipped for free...

here

At this blog: http://jakintheb0x.blogspot.com/2010/02/it-has-been-almost-3-months.html

And where do you do this dance party at?

Well, it's not necessarily a dance party per se, as I am just going to Atlanta tomorrow to check out some drum and bass and my first brush with dubstep. Facebook link here

I really hope they play a something like this:




or this:



or maybe a little of this:



but I would be pumped if they played something like this:



Maybe I will dance like this:

Wordless Wednesdays: My Best Friend's Wedding

I got a lot of positive feedback from my last picture post, so I think I am going to try my best to get back into Wordless Wednesdays. Because I like pictures. And you like pictures. I mean, who doesn't like pictures?

So I have shared some pics from my bfff's wedding back in December, but why not go back and look at a few more?

The awesome shoes

I guess weddings turn into high school reunions

I don't know what's going on, but I like it

Hangin out afterward (fyi: that's the groom trying to bite the head of the bride)

Out of all the thousands of pics taken, this is one of my favorites (yes, jme, I stole this from your blog. I hope you don't mind because it just happened)

(50) Sundays of Music: #46

#46: John Mayer - Continuum


Let's get this out of the way. John Mayer can be a bit of a dbag in real life. But hopefully he has learned from some of the stuff he says and will start to think a little bit before speaking. But I've always heard "I like his music, I just can't stand him." So let's talk about his music.

Of all the albums in this countdown, I have spent the least amount of time with this one. I downloaded it during my relapse of downloading music when I went to South Dakota and I could not stop listening to it. (I do believe in paying for music; music that's worth it. When I get the funds, I plan on buying this cd on vinyl). The events that led me to download it: A friend telling me how great his latest album was so I began to listen to him a little bit. Then I put him in one of my pandora playlists and a song called "Vultures" off this cd came on. I was hooked. So when I got the chance to download it and have it for myself, I jumped on it.

The cd starts off with "Waiting On The World to Change," so I usually start playing at track 2. I don't hate the song, but just like Viva La Vida, I think I'm just a little tired of it. But giving the entire cd a chance and I was surprised. From his radio singles I always thought of John Mayer as adult friendly material that my mom could listen to as well as me and that his songs were just radio ready hits. While that could be true, I wasn't prepared to be taken on a musical journey that showed signs of blues and slow jams.

Immediately with the second track, "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" the blues feeling kicks in for me. This is also shown on "Dreaming" and the already mentioned "Vultures." "Heart of Life" and "Dreaming With A Broken Heart" are feel good songs that occasionally I just lay down and relax to. "Bold as Love" is a much better than expected tribute to Jimi Hendrix, one of my favorite artists.

The two stand out tracks to me are "Stop This Train" and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room." The first shows his ability as a storyteller and the second is a song that I have made a vow that I will slow dance to someone with someday. A boy can dream can't he?

And speaking of dreaming, I'm about to lay down and put this cd on (starting with track 2). Enjoy some songs for yourself:

Picture Post

So I was going to update on my life and speak about random things, but then I just decided not to. If you still want to read some words though, check out what I thought of Monster over at my movie blog.

But for now, I would just like to share some recent pictures. Enjoy.

The test shot. The first picture ever taken with my new camera.

Random trip to Jme's. This is her cooking an awesome chicken/spaghetti hybrid (I know what it's called, but that just sounded cooler)

Her new dog Kami

Rockin out (I was on guitar)

What my last class of the day looks like. Notice how cramped the seats are. Worst idea ever.

Wrestling in Atlanta

Felt like I was watching it in HD

My visual aid for my Patriot speech (Stephen Colbert)

My awesomely delicious Superbowl meal (we like to call it Taco Extravaganza)

Kind of ironic to find a heart when throwing away boxes during Valentine's Day

A behind the scenes look at VDay

And this final picture proves that my best friend is cooler than yours

February 7th

2/7 of any year is a day that I don't forget on my calendar. But 2/7/10 is going to be pretty special as well. Let me see if I can begin to explain:

The Good:

*February 7th is one week away from Valentine's Day. This is only good because it keeps me informed. Whenever I was in a relationship, I knew I had one week to go. And working at a flower shop, Vday means only one thing: HOURS! Not to be a sad story, but we have been really slow since the economy fell through. And I am only a delivery driver, so I only work when there are orders to be delivered. There have honestly been weeks where I have gotten like three hours on a paycheck. But Cupid's holiday never fails to deliver the goods.

*2/14/10 will be special for a couple of reasons.

1) The Saints won the Superbowl. Now, if you know me you know that the Denver Broncos are my team, but New Orleans is my roommate's/best friend's team. And I pretty much fed off of his excitement so it was great to see him celebrate and celebrate with him when they picked off Manning to pretty much seal the deal. My sister joked around and said that I should buy him the stuff that says "New Orleans 2010 Champions" for Valentine's Day.

2) I already declared that I watch wrestling, but to go even further I am as big a fan as some are for baseball. As in, knowing every stat and ridiculous information that people shouldn't know. Well, I get this info because of a website I go to. That website said they needed new columnists and I needed to get some practice in before graduation so I sent a sample in and they posted it and gave me a spot. I now have to post a column every week. I would put up a link, but I'm pretty sure none of you want to read about it. But still, it's pretty cool.

The Bad:

*Valentine's Day is a week away. Fuck.

*My ex-girlfriend's birthday is today. There was a time when I was seriously considering shooting her a text or something, but I thought against it. I've talked to a few people within the blogosphere and my IRL friends know the story, but man it's so hectic. But when you are with someone for so long (nearly 4 years altogether), dates like that start to get stuck in your head. That's why, even though I heard nothing from her, I still think she thought me when I turned 23 back in December.

The Beautiful:

*Another one of my friend's had a birthday today, but it is a whole different story. I usually talk of my friend Shedrick on here, who we lost in November of 2005. But I'm not sure if I have mentioned Cynthia, who we lost in April of 2006. But I don't want to end this on a sad note, I want to have it end on a happy note. Especially since today was her birthday, so that makes me think of good times.

Good times like this:


Random lyric of the day:

I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue

(50) Sundays of Music: #47

#47: Coldplay - Viva La Vida (or Death and All His Friends)

I remember driving around sometime in early 2007 listening to the radio and hearing the latest news that Coldplay had decided to take a hiatus. It was one of those "spend time with family" things so I couldn't be mad, but I was hurt. In the past couple years, I had heavily gotten into Coldplay. I would go into it, but let's just say this isn't the only time you will see this band on the countdown (trivia: only three other bands appear more than once).

So imagine my excitement in early 2008 when I am again driving and listening to the radio and they report that a new Coldplay album would be out that year. I think I got so pumped I called my friend at the time who I had converted into a Coldplay fan. After two singles ("Violet Hill" then the hugely popular title track), the album finally dropped in June of 2008 and I ultimately picked up three copies. I am a sucker for exclusives and I picked up the iTunes pre-order so I could get some acoustic tracks, I purchased the vinyl for obvious reasons and because I am a super-fan I bought the actual cd so I could get the artwork and everything that goes with it.

I would like to say it was perfect, but there is a reason Coldplay's first appearance on this countdown is so early. Actually two. One is that I felt this album was too short. Take away the intro and outro tracks and you basically have 8 songs. And this album lacked what made other cd's great -- those deep, make you think about life songs.

So why is it still on here? Because by itself, it was still amazing. The experimentation they did with instruments was incredible and one thing I love about cds is when artists fade or mix songs together and a few times certain songs will give way to a couple bonus minutes within the track.

It also helps that I saw them live in November of the year the cd came out and they played almost every track off of VLV, so whenever I listen to it I am reminded of that magical night. Enjoy some for yourself.





The following are from Viva La Vida, but they were edited for the bonus EP, Prospekt's March





And just a sample of the awesomeness that was our night with Coldplay:

You're A Dirty Girl!

Ok, that title is from an episode of Rob & Big. Classic, classic good times.

And this post was inspired by the recent offerings of Mr. Condescending. In the link is the result of a simple request: "I’d like you to email me a racy, but captivating snippet of lust in only 100 words." The results have been great so far. I wanted to try and come up with something, but I'm honestly not that creative. But then something came to my mind today...

Most everything I do in life can be brought back to music and this is no different. Today, I was listening to my headphones and I had it on a Kooks cd (that was recommended to me by Miss*H) and a lyric in there really caught my attention. That's when it hit me -- while I can't come up with anything, I do love some lyrics that vaguely refer to sexual themes.

You see, I'm not talking about hip hop and rap songs where they say straight up what's going down (with classic lines such as "You ain't gotta say too much From the look in your eyes I can tell you want to fuck").

I mean, the subtle stuff that you can find in poems is what some of my favorite artists do. I will share mine, but this post is for you -- what are some of your favorite lyrics that fall into this category? I know I am missing some and am hoping you guys can help me out. But the following are just three of my favorites.

The Kooks - Sofa Song:

Me and my girl
Are going out for some air
And I will do my best
Just to get under her dress

Taking Back Sunday - Little Devotional:

well i'm blowing smoke out of your window
and you're slipping back into your dress.
you know you were always such a lady.
i've always been impressed.
but gentlemen, they don't ask questions,
just keep quiet, pay attention
/
well i pictured you in blue
but i have to say i'm more partial to the red.
deep, dark, and devastating,
leaving no question as to where you've been.
i calm the crowd by keeping quiet,
move like a shadow up to your mattress.
gentlemen don't ask questions.
we could pay attention.

Say Anything - Alive With The Glory of Love:

When I watch you, wanna do you, right where you're standing…yeah.
Right on the foyer, on this dark day, right in plain view…oh, yeah….

Ok, so that last one isn't really subtle at all. But it is still a classic. So now, it's your turn. Give me some lyrics that can relate to this post and I will... love you forever. Or at least pimp you out. One of the two (maybe both?)

EDIT: I almost forgot. Today on facebook people were doing this thing where they went to urbandictionary.com and typed in their name and posted the results. I kid you not, here were mine:

ancient greek translation for "eternal sex-god". It is beleived that anyone that holds this name has a great level of skill and ability to perform sexual acts for long periods of time. Men posessing this name are also well endowed. Girl 1: I wish my boyfriend was a matt Girl 2: Oh you poor thing

Also, if you want to relive the awesomeness of Bobby Light's "Dirty Girl" just click HERE