Friday, October 16, 2009

Hittin' The Road

After such a stressful week, I am ecstatic to be making my way to Corpus Christi to spend time with family and friends and get back in touch with my roots. Maybe I'll go to Molina, where I grew up, and check out the Selena memorabilia. The movie, Selena, made me miss that small neighborhood so much that I think I want to grow old and die there. Sounds weird, I know...

Musicwise: Things have been on a temporary hiatus after being bombarded with so much music on my birthday. One of my roommates bought me MC5's Kick Out The James, Beck's Sea Change and Neil Young's Harvest, and shortly after, I bought Robert Johnson's Complete Recordings, so let's just say my mind has been kept busy to the point where I have no room for newer music, besides Brand New's Daisy, which after hearing The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me, there was no way I could pass up their new album. The new album is pretty much like Devil and God, but it doesn't hit quite as hard as the other one did, but it's still a great album.

MC5 is one of my favorites right now. Kick Out The Jams is an album I listen to almost every morning as a ceremonial wake-up. I think everyone should check out this "obscure" band that rocked the Detroit pre-punk scene way back when.

Neil Young - what to say...well, I have never been a big Neil Young fan, but after MOJO described this as being one of the best albums ever recorded, I had to check it out. It's a great piece of work. The first track automatically puts you in a place where hypnotizing country music sets inside your bones and puts you in a pastoral movement that is hard to shake. I love it. The album has many influences, many directions, but the cohesiveness lingers throughout. Check this one out.

Beck - Well, I have always loved Beck. He is one of my top-five favorite musicians/bands/etc. I love that his style is ever-changing, and while we may not always agree with his changes, we respect him as an artist enough to know that there is always some good to it. Sea Change has always been described as his "break-up" album. After listening to it a few times, I can understand why that critique has been tossed around so much. It is sweet, melancholy, and redeeming of the human spirit. I've never seen Beck like this before, but it is amazing how he captures the intensity of heartbreak but still has an undertone of hope despite it all. Definitely an album that everyone should look into if you haven't already.

Well, that's all I got for now. Until Oct. 27th, cause that's when Devendra Banhart's new album comes out! He's another top-five, so I won't even get started. Peace, Love and happy trails!

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