Mr O's Music News

First off, after a month or so of speculation, it has finally been confirmed. On Monday, I will bee seeing The Kings of Leon headline a show in Birmingham. But wait, there's more. The opener? THE BLACK KEYS! To say I'm excited about this is an understatement. For one, I haven't been to a concert in a while. My last experience (Warped Tour) was kinda just, "eh" with one good band - Pierce the Veil. The last few concerts have been club stuff, which is amazing, but I'm ready for an arena show. To just sit and enjoy the music. And I have recently become a huge fan of the keys, absolutely loving and absorbing their sound. So Monday night should be a special night.

*sidenote: There is a person responsible for my going to said concert. I'm just not sure if they want to be identified. But I would like to publicly say thank you and it means so much.

I know I've talked about Anberlin a lot lately, but I want to get this out of the way. Their new cd is great and I am loving it. I think I finally nailed down why I like them so much. I was having a conversation the other day that revolved around why I don't yell when I get mad. I guess I'm kinda one of those get stern and use dagger words rather than make my voice louder and just be an ass. I think you can tell when I'm mad when I start cussing a little bit more or you can just tell by my tone. Anyway, I think that's why I like Anberlin so much. The majority of their lyrics revolve around heartache and anger, but it's a sung in a way where he isn't yelling or whining. It's just such a unique emotional outlet, one that I can definitely get behind. And that is why they are my third favorite band.

Speaking of favorites, news is starting to leak out about My Chemical Romance's new cd. The 19-year-old in me is starting to get a little excited.

Other news I've heard involves cool shows. Andrew McMahon will perform double duties in November when both his bands, Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin, do a show together for the first time ever. If I lived near LA, there would be nothing stopping me from going. Also, after weeks or rumors, Weezer finally confirmed the "Blinkerton" tour where they will be performing The Blue Album and Pinkerton in their entirety - two nights, one city. I'm not the biggest Weezer fan, but that is pretty cool.

Three big names in music dropped cds Tuesday - Brandon Flowers (from the Killers), Weezer and Linkin Park. "A Thousand Suns" by Linkin Park is the only cd I have listened to so far and I have to say - I'm in between. I want to hate it, but there is something different about it that allows it to stand out. Though it feels more like a soundtrack to a sci-fi movie than an actual studio album. The crazy amount of interludes and chanting tracks kind of take it away, but there are a couple definite Linkin Park tracks on there. Jimmy Eat World and Kanye West still have cds to come out this month and I have to say that I'm definitely looking forward to hearing from Mr. West.

Speaking of new stuff, Kings of Leon have a new cd coming out in October. Has anybody heard the new song "Radioactive"? If so, what do you think? My quick thoughts is that it's a decent song, but it sounds, to me, more like an album track than a lead single.

And finally, to close this out, I really can't wait to tell all of you, my friends, about this coming Sunday's selection in the countdown.

And just to follow up

Anberlin's new cd, "Dark is the Way, Light is a Place" came out today.

So far, I have some tracks I really like. Others, I think I am going to get used to (some repeat a lot, and I kind of don't like songs that repeat but I will post about that later).

Here is the really awesome video for their first single, "Impossible"

Hope you enjoy. And expect "normal" blogging to return soon :)

(50) Sundays of Music #17

#17: Anberlin - Never Take Friendship Personal


If you recall, I said earlier when talking about Armor For Sleep in this countdown, that it was one of two cds that I got from my ex for a birthday because I liked the burned version so much I wanted the real thing. "Never Take Friendship Personal" was the other one.

The first time I heard Anberlin, I was immediately intrigued. However, my love for them didn't grow till later. I had to learn to appreciate the work put in by the band because, to be honest, at first, I just kinda thought they were good, but not enough to go crazy over.

Then I listened to them more and more. And I think the thing I admire most about Anberlin is how they can have what some would call "emo" lyrics, but they are sung in an adult setting. Does that make sense? I hope it does. I guess I'm just trying to say it has always felt like real emotion, rather than whining.

And it's not just heartbreak. Love is in there. Relationships in general is an overall theme with the band, as you could kind of see in the countdown leading up to this post.

I have to say, this cd was chosen because it was the one that introduced me to them. But I feel all their releases are on the same level and all have definitive songs. On this release you have songs about staying in touch, a friend confessing love just a little too late, and always bailing on relationships.

It also contains the original version of the band's 2008 radio hit "The Feel Good Drag." Check out the one that was released for this cd, which as a fun fact - was released the year I graduated, and some other standouts below.

Music Sunday Bonus Post #4 of 4

The last day before the #17 selection on the Music Sunday countdown. Missed out on the first three days? Check back here.

So far we have went over the majority of Anberlin's discography. However, they released "Lost Songs" which was a collection of B-sides, covers and acoustic versions of previously released songs. Honestly, I wish more bands would do this.

Their covers are fantastic (Radiohead's "Creep" and The Smith's "There is a Light that Never Goes Out" are on there). But the song for today is one of the b-sides, "The Haunting."

Now, while I am posting lyrics and not videos, I have to make a compromise because, in my opinion, what makes this song is the way he delivers the words.

See what I mean by checking out this acoustic performance.

"Up on this hill in this uncanny house
The wind makes this place creak
The lights, they are flickering
The moon, she is lurking
The clock, it stopped working
At a quarter past three
There's something dancing here in the shadows
And I wish it were us

You haunt me baby
You haunt me here tonight
You haunt me baby
You haunt me here tonight
Tonight, tonight

Can't get your memory off of my mind (My mind)
Just want your heartbeat on top of my mine (On mine)
There's something dancing here in the shadows
And I wish it were us

You haunt me baby
You haunt me here tonight
You haunt me baby
You haunt me here tonight
Tonight, to-

Up on this hill, in this uncanny house
Your spirit I can't see, but I still believe
I can feel your breath on me"

Music Sunday Bonus Post #3 of 4

Not sure what this is all about? Go back to Tuesday's post here.

It's getting really hard to leave the stories of my connection with this band out of these posts. But hopefully it will draw attention to Sunday's post.

Today's album highlight is Anberlin's latest release, coming out exactly two years ago, "New Surrender." I remember being kind of "eh" about it at first because admittedly, it is a slight departure from earlier work. But after giving it a few more rotations I really got into it.

Song selection from today is "Soft Skeletons"

"Dear little girl
There's so much hurt for such a young age
Trapped inside a pretty little lie
Your body's betrayed

Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix she relies upon

Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid

When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Are you too afraid to fight?

Dear little one, there was so much pain
Time you can't replace
Trapped inside, too afraid to cry
And now hands and bruises cover face

Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix

When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?

Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid
All of the good souls stand unafraid

When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war

When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?"

Music Sunday Bonus Post #2 of 4

Confused as to what's going on? Check yesterday's post here.

Like I said, I'm holding off on my Anberlin story, but I will say today's selection wasn't that hard as it discusses elements I am still going through, and frankly, I bet we have all been through. There, that's a small glimpse into why I've been busy lately (or it will will be once you read on).

Today's album is "Cities." And while I have a few favorite tracks on there, it was a no-brainer to pick "Dismantle. Repair" as today's pick.

"One last glance from a taxi cab
Images scar my mind
Four weeks've felt like years
Since your full attention was all mine
The night was young and so were we
Talked about life, God, death, and your family
Didn't want any promises,
Just my undivided honesty, and you said

Oh oh, things are gonna change now for the better
Oh oh, things are gonna change, oh, they're gonna change

I am the patron saint of lost causes
A fraction of who I once believed (change)
only a matter of time
Opinions I would try and rewrite
If life had background music playing your song
I've got to be honest, I tried to escape you
But the orchestra plays on, and they sang

Oh oh, things are gonna change now for the better
Oh oh, things are gonna change

Hands, like secrets, are the hardest thing to keep from you
Lines and phrases, like knives, your words can cut me through
Dismantle me down (repair)
You dismantle me
You dismantle me

Give me time to prove
Prove I want the rest of yours (prelude)
Call this a prelude to a lifetime of you
It's not that I hang on every word
I hang myself on what you repeat
It's not that I keep hanging on
I'm never letting go"

Music Sunday Bonus Post #1 of 4

So if you remember a couple Sunday's ago, I said I switched the countdown up because I could. But also to coincide with the release one of my favorite band's new album coming out. So, for the first time in the countdown, I am revealing what band will be featured this coming Sunday. And that band is...

Anberlin.

I will talk more about the band on Sunday. For now, I finally figured out how I am going to celebrate their new release, "Dark Is The Way, Light Is A Place" coming out on September 7.

I will count down my favorite Anberlin cds, leading up to Sunday's selection, and then one more friendly reminder next Tuesday. But instead of taking up space with videos, I decided to challenge myself.

All I will do is attempt to find my favorite song from each cd. Trust me, this is hard.

The first cd up for the bonus days is "Blueprints for the Black Market." The song is "Naive Orleans."

"Come and go now as you please
Your actions write the melodies
To those songs that we sing
And you just sing

And I finally found that life goes on without you
And my world still turns when you're not around

Is this the way you want it?
Is this the way it has to be?
Sitting here beside you
When my heart's lost in New Orleans
Dreams come clever
Hearts now severed
Difference of forever
And I am lost there

And I finally found that life goes on without you
And my world still turns when you're not around
And I finally found that life goes on without you
And my world still turns when you're not around"

If I Didn't Know Myself Any Better, I Would Think I Was An Anberlin Fan

So j sent me this the other day and it almost inspired me to write a whole new post...


But for some reason I abandoned it. So if you ever want to hear my take on people like Zooey Deschanel vs. people like Megan Fox, hopefully that will come soon.

For now, I want to talk about my top 25.

What am I talking about? I'm talking about that little section in your iTunes playlists that lists the top 25 most played songs in your music library. My current top 25 is a little surprising, but understandable. Before I reveal it, here are some minor details you need to know.

*I have to update my iTunes library every once in a while. This can be due to a change in where I keep my music or I get OCD and go on an organizing spree. When this happens, it resets my play count. Being accurate, this is my top 25 most played since July 13, 2009.

*Some of these tracks are kind of cheaters. When I do my radio show, I try to see where a song ends. When it goes to the end of the track, it counts it as one play. So I've had to go back and forth with some songs and so the play count has been bumped up. But still, I think this is a pretty good idea of my top plays.

*I guess at some point, I went on an Anberlin kick. Which isn't bad, they are in my top ten definitely. But that is the only thing I don't think this list accurately reflects. I don't listen to them that much and there are other bands I probably listen to more. But still, this is a small window into what I listen to. A window that apparently reserved one corner exclusively for Anberlin.

Without further ado,

1. A Day to Remember - I'm Made of Wax Larry, What Are You Made Of?
2. Silversun Pickups - Substitution
3. Anberlin - The Haunting
4. Anberlin - Dismantle. Repair (from Lost Songs)
5. Taking Back Sunday - Lonely, Lonely
6. A Day To Remember - NJ Legion Iced Tea
7. Anberlin - Blame Me! Blame Me!
8. Death Cab for Cutie - What Sarah Said
9. Broadway - Don't Jump The Shark Before You Save The Whale
10. Paramore - Misguided Ghosts
11. Taking Back Sunday - Catholic Knees
12. Taking Back Sunday - Carpathia
13. Anberlin - Naive Orleans (from Lost Songs)
14. Death Cab for Cutie - Grapevine Fires
15. Death Cab for Cutie - Brothers On A Hotel Bed
16. Saosin - Changing
17. Taking Back Sunday - Cut Me Up Jenny
18. Anberlin - Breaking
19. Anberlin - Retrace
20. Anberlin - Feel Good Drag (New Surrender version)
21. A Day To Remember - Welcome To The Family
22. Paramore - All I Wanted
23. All Time Low - Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don't)
24. Anberlin - Feel Good Drag (acoustic)
25. Anberlin - The Resistance

So that's my top 25 (my apologies for the ATL. I don't know what happened...)

I kind of just wanted to share that, but really I am interested in yours. Now, I know 25 is a lot to type, but feel free to share some highlights. Unless you don't have iTunes, then we're not friends.

(Edit: Of course we're still friends)

Music Sunday: 2009 Concerts I Attended

The Sounds/Paramore/No Doubt
June 5, Atlanta

On our way to the concert
The Sounds and their awesome performance

Paramore (fun fact: heard "Ignorance" before it was released and thought "I really like this song")

With the lead singer of The Sounds, missing the beginning of No Doubt but it was worth it...

Because I asked her to sign the ticket like that (that's what she kept saying on stage) and she laughed and actually did it

No Doubt doing their thing

And this is apparently me rocking out to No Doubt doing their thing

Not to overstate, but they were amazing

And when we got home, we could NOT stop laughing about this:




Envy On The Coast/Anberlin/Taking Back Sunday
June 17, Atlanta

Envy On The Coast opening up (and doing a damn good job of it)

Anberlin getting us to the main event

The band we all came to see

And the man we all came to see (Adam Lazarra)

The following is a video I didn't take, just found it on youtube. I was probably in the back trying to catch my breath:




Warped Tour 2009
July 28, Atlanta

Warped Tour is always so much fun

Underoath

Me w/ Saosin

Bayside

Senses Fail

The Devil Wears Prada

A Day To Remember and their insanely huge crowd for not being on a main stage

w/ the lead singer of Senses Fail

Chiodos closing out the day

The following is the craziness of seeing Underoath live:

Incubus
August 14, Atlanta

I only got two good pics, which is a shame really

because that concert was absolutely amazing

And the following is one of the sickest intros to a concert I have ever seen:

Carolina Liar/Taking Back Sunday
September 18, Tuscaloosa

Now this one hurt, because I had to attend my rival school's campus in order to watch this show. And when we were there, the coliseum was not even half full so that was disappointing. But what wasn't disappointing was their performance. However, there was one more thing that was disappointing: no pictures. But I did a quick youtube search and found the following video from that concert that displays just why I love this band so much:

The Swellers/Paper Route/Paramore
October 27, Atlanta

The Swellers

A cool collage my friend made of Paper Route and their 27 instruments

Paramore owning the place

And Hayley owning my heart

These pics were taken from a friend's camera, and I had to search youtube once again for a video from that show. Everybody's (and my) favorite song from the new album seems to be Misguided Ghosts, and this their performance, complete with the crowd (that would include myself) joining in



Minus the Bear
November 10, Birmingham

A show we bought tickets for at the last minute, I also did not have a camera for this one and relied on the tube to bring the greatness to this blog post. It turned out to be our last show of the year after failing to see Anberlin/All American Rejects/Taking Back Sunday at the end of November and Saosin at the beginning of December (I also missed Blink-182 in September and still kick myself for it). But if this is a band you haven't heard of, you need to know. Show was epic.



So ends the look back at 2009. I already have Muse in February and Warped Tour (possibly in Chicago -- WHAT) to look forward to, but here's hoping that some of my favorite bands hit the road and here's really hoping I have my own camera this time.

So I Know It's Not Sunday, but Whatever...

STOP... Music time


1) Seems like bands are having the worst luck lately. Last month a bunch of bands (including Anberlin and Mae) had their vans broken into and now, within the past WEEK or so, Every Time I Die, Weezer and Underoath have all been in accidents. What the f is going on?

2) On a happier note, I saw that Muse has released US dates for next year with the supporting act being SILVERSUN PICKUPS! Where will they be on February 27th? If you guessed Atlanta, you would be correct :)

3) Lastly, this song is quickly becoming one of my favorites of all time. Take 7-8 minutes of your life and please check it out here

I'm caught
Somewhere in between
Alive
And living a dream.
No peace
Just clicking machines
In the quiet of compazine.
The walls caved in on me.

And she sings
My bird dressed in white.
And she stings
My arm in the night.
I lay still
Still I'm ready to fight.
Have my lungs
But you can't take my sight.
The walls caved in
Tonight.

And out here
I watch the sun circle the earth
The marrows collide in rebirth
In God's glory praise
The spirit calls out from the caves.
The walls fell and there I lay
Saved.

The walls are caving in
As far as I can see
The walls are caving in
The doors got locked for sure
There's no one here but me

Beat my body like a rag doll
you stuck the needles in my hip
Said 'we're not gonna lie
Son, you just might die
Get you on that morphine drip, drip'

The walls are caving in
As far as I can see
The walls are caving in
The doors got locked for sure
There's no one here but me

I fought a war to walk a gang plank
Into a life I left behind
Windows leading to the past
Think it's time I broke some glass
Get this history off my mind

And what if we were married forever?
Like the past never happened
And time did not exist for us at all
I still think we'd still be traveling together
Through all kinds of weather
Everything's a piece of everyone

As far as I can see
Walls are caving in
Doors got locked for sure
But I see these doors have keys

Walls are caving in
As far as I can see
The walls are caving in
Doors got locked for sure
There's no one here but me
There's no one here but me
No one here but me, yeah.
There's no one here but me
No one here but me.

Under My Covers, Vol. 3 (updated)

So I really wanted to blog, but I couldn't figure out about what. I feel like a bunch of little things are happening (Russell Crowe playing Robin Hood -- they are making a Robin Hood?) but not enough for a post. So that's where that damn covers thing comes in handy, and at least it's not 4 hours ;)

But here are a few things:

*Does anyone do what I do with cd's and as soon as you buy them/download them you listen to them a few times and then go onto something else, but something will trigger it and you end up coming back to said cd? I do it all the time. I will be like "this cd is ok" and move on, then hear a song in a movie or someone will talk about it, I will go back to it and like it. The two cd's that I am currently going through this process with is Anberlin's "Cities" and taking it WAY back to Something Corporate's "Songs for Silent Movies." Not sure if the second one was an actual cd, but I downloaded it somehow...

*This week is looking good. I have a pizza date tomorrow where I will be getting my big kahuna from Brick Oven. Then on Wednesday I may have a partner in the studio. I like doing the show and everything, but it can get boring (and lonely) in there sometimes. To end the week? Beach trip.

*So I've begun to realize that my blog is very music related. I hope that's still cool with people. I think I am going to add a new weekly blog thing that will replace Flashback Friday. FF was cool, but it was starting to get hard looking back at stuff that is no longer going on. It may still make a few guest appearances though. But like I said, I am working a new weekly thing and soon you will all be guests in my house (courtesy of a great idea by Mr. Condescending)

*Lastly, my created fighter in the UFC game got knocked out today. After going 9-0. Ah, what are you gonna do?

On to the cover. This one, you will most likely know. But I heard it on the radio and I figured I would do something about it. Mainly because when it was going strong on the radio I wasn't deep into this and the whole point of the cover thing is to get people's opinions on it. I know one blogger's (she posted it one of hers a while ago) but I am curious what everybody else thinks. Especially when the cover is a rock band from today covering a slow 80's song. Song in question: Careless Whisper.

Original version by WHAM (or George Michael, whichever credit you prefer)

Cover version by Seether

*BONUS* -- More of a dance version cover with All Time Low, 3OH!3 & Juliet Sims
(thank you to jeanette for throwing this one in there)

Sidenote: what happened to Seether? Back in the day I would put them in the same category of Slipknot and System of a Down. Then they did the song with Amy Lee from Evanescence, this song, a cover of a Frank Sinatra song for iTunes and are touring with Nickelback. Things do change...


Oh, and I wasn't doing the random lyrics with music posts, but eff it. I'm bringing it back.

Random lyric of the day:

this is to a girl
who got into my head
with all the pretty things she did
hey
ya know
you keep me up in bed
this is to a girl
who got into my head
with all these fucked up things i did
hey
maybe
baby you could keep me up in bed
my konstanine

Just like old times

Tonight was a good night. Well, come to think of it, last night was good too. I just don't have the pictures so I can't show it off. Oh well, i will try my best to give a visual. For chronological sake, let's start with yesterday.

It was my roommate's birthday. Little trivia about my roommate... he's basically my p.i.c. We have been friends since 4th or 5th grade, but we tell everybody it's been about 27 years. If you have ever seen the show Scrubs, look at Turk and JD and that is pretty much us. I am JD, the more emotional one. He just kinda goes along with most stuff. We have been roommates since our first year in college (August will start year 5) and the thought of the day we separate (he will graduate in the spring, myself in the summer) is a sad thought to say the least. If you saw the FINAL episode of Scrubs, it basically revolved around JD leaving the hospital. I told him how it was going to suck when that day came for us. Well, enough of the background. We both have a pretty random sense of humor, so here is how his birthday went down. We put up a banner in the hallway that had "16" dangling from it (signaling a sweet 16, even though he turned 22) and we got him a pinata. The pinata was a 100 dollar bill that we filled with paper money, fake coins, and skittles. So when he finally busted it (edit: we tore it open) it literally rained skittles. Pretty awesome. Add in the fact our friend from Troy came up and our other friend from down the street made him a cake, THEN toss in a dinner at CiCi's and a good Rock Band session, and you had a good night.

Now, on to tonight. For all these people coming into my little corner of the blogosphere (especially those in the music group), one thing to know about me is that I am a dj at a campus radio station. That is not me saying "know this about me because I am cooler than you," rather "know this about me because I will probably talk about it -- a lot." But tonight was my first trip in the studio since April, and it felt good. I mostly played the new Taking Back Sunday cd, but I threw in some other bands like Incubus, Anberlin and The Sounds. No one could call in cuz the phones were down so I don't know if anybody was listening, but an old friend from high school named Leah (for you jme, cuz i know you would ask who it was if I left it vague) tuned in after we got to chatting on myspace's new chat feature. After I gave her a shoutout, she referred to me in her status as "THE COOLEST PERSON ALIVE!!!" I think I will end this post on that note...

Random lyric of the day:

Oh, there ain't no rest for the wicked,
Money don't grow on trees.
I got bills to pay,
I got mouths to feed,
There ain't nothing in this world for free.
I know I can't slow down,
I can't hold back,
Though you know, I wish I could.
No there ain't no rest for the wicked,
Until we close our eyes for good

Crashing

I feel a deep blog coming. Or at least, more than a "this is what I did today." I have some stuff I need to get off my mind and I'm thinking an "online journal" might be my best outline instead of holding it in and listening to the wrong music and getting in one of those moods. Or a more informative one. I feel like really exploring my musical tastes. Or maybe I will save that for the space. Who knows.

Today was tiring. And windy. I woke up tired and never really recovered. That's why I think I am about to head to bed before 11 even though I have a test on Thursday. I had an energy drink before my night class (new flavor of AMP - Lemonade. I like it) and now it's effects are sure as hell wearing off.

I bought some blank cd's today. Not for me either, since i'm going pretty much all digital. But I still like to make mix cd's for my friends. They appreciate it, so that's nice. I can't really cook or anything like that, but I can make a mean mixtape. I remember at one point my ex-girlfriend said she didn't really like listening to my music, which kinda sucked because that was "my thing." (However, this was during one of our breakups so it may have been used as ammunition, who knows).

I haven't talked to my sister since Friday. She has been in Orlando with her husband on family matters. Usually the longest we let go that we don't talk is MAYBE one day. I miss her.

I also miss the jmeister herself, but not for much longer, cuz I will be seeing her Friday afternoon. And I can't wait.

But right now I am crashing. Goodnight.

Random lyric of the day:

Failure is your disease
You want my outline drawn
You were my greatest failure
Discourse your saving song