It’s the anniversary of my birth. It’s my first California birthday. It’s an occasion to be pensive, nostalgic, reflective, optimistic. I made this mix to capture that. Somewhere between being sad at getting old, being joyful for the moments that I get, and being thankful for still being alive, is this.
Taking a road trip towards my favorite city and some of my favorite people. Not a road trip, a relocation. After a decade in Portland, I say goodbye – and some less choice words – to a city that never quite felt like home. And say goodbye and thank you to friends that made me [...]
Time flies! My baby is walking…or something. It’s been just over a year since I launched this site. I’ve been less ambitious and diligent than I intended to be (and particularly lazy of late). But, it’s been a ton of fun sharing music and talking shit with y’all and I’ve met some great people as [...]
If it’s been quiet around here lately, it’s because, on Saturday, June 12th, I got news that I’d lost a friend to a sudden, shocking death. Calling Tim a “friend” is like saying life is “interesting”. As I said in my Facebook post, “my friend, ex-boyfriend, partner in crime, and perennial pain-in-my-ass has died”. He [...]
The third Saturday of April is now officially Record Store Day, when “independently owned record stores come together with artists to celebrate the art of music”, or, presumably, to get people off the internet and back into record stores. I’m as guilty as the next girl of neglecting my beloved independent music store (that’s you, [...]
You can hear/buy/download singles from some of my most-anticipated albums of Spring 2010 now. The Hold Steady release Heaven is Whenever on May 4th. You can stream “Hurricane J” here. Two-word review: Ehn, maybe? Broken Social Scene release Forgiveness Rock Record on May 4th. Watch/download “World Sick” from Stereogum here. Two-word review: Quite promising. The [...]
What better way to celebrate a cellophane holiday than with a compilation of songs about heartbreak? Download the zip file here. Track Listing: 1) Your Ex-Lover is Dead – Stars 2) Backwards Walk – Frightened Rabbit 3) Through the Winter – Star Anna 4) Roll On – Josh Ritter 5) Andy – Neko Case 6) [...]
Midlake, The Courage of Others, February 2 Midlake’s 2006 Album, The Trials of VanOccupanther, has been a favorite of mine for a couple years now. This is a 21st Century Texas band channeling Fleetwood Mac, singing about things that happened in 1893 and keeping it all highly listenable. Live in Portland, March 6th, Wonder Ballroom [...]
THE GOOD These are some albums that nearly missed the top twenty, or that I didn’t spend enough time with until recently. Slaid Cleaves: Everything You Love Will Be Taken Away. Honestly, I stayed away from this one because dude’s name freaks me out. I mean, how do you even say that? It makes me [...]
Here is the combined ranked list of the top 20 albums of 2009 from what we like to call a “loose confederation of like-minded bloggers”. This is the inaugural year. It’s been a patchy one! But what we do have is a decent idea, and what we feel is an interesting list. So here they [...]