this is posted over at buzzgrinder...

Hey Folks! I hope this finds you well. Before I dive in, there are a few things about my top 10 records list. Firstly, I have purposefully omitted some of the bigger guns/scene darlings.

Everybody loved Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Cut Copy, etc… myself included. Okay, not everybody. However, there were a ton of amazing records out there that hipster bloggers didn’t make love to on a daily basis, therefore not pushing their buzz into a fever pitch, vomit inducing fervor. Secondly, its more of a collection of favorites, so they are in no particular order, and i don’t even necessarily think they were the “best.”

They just spent lots of time pumping out of my iPod. Thirdly, year end lists are so last year. And finally, every record gets a pro and a con… and it’s kinda long. Sorry. So here goes! Happy new year!

Honorable mentions:
Paul Westerberg - 49:00
Air France - No Way Down EP
Atlas Sound - Let The Blind Lead…
Eric Copeland - Alien In A Garbage Dump EP
El Guincho - Alegranza
Plants & Animals - Parc Avenue

Chad VanGaalen - Soft Airplane
Pro: Bedroom recordings have made a big comeback in the last few
years, and VanGaalen makes no effort to hide his love of the lo-fi, much to my delight. Imagine a younger, depression-fueled Neil Young if he had been a big fan of Guided By Voices and Neutral Milk Hotel.
Con: VanGaalen’s voice sometimes ventures into the quivering kind of territory that makes groups like Bright Eyes completely unlistenable for me, if unlistenable is even a word.

Tobacco - Fucked Up Friends
Pro: Imagine a garage band influenced mainly by hip hop beats and rhythms doing their best impression of Boards Of Canada and you are heading in the right direction. Tobacco is also the lead vocalist for Black Moth Super Rainbow, although this album is largely instrumental.
Con: As with many laptop records these days, you can tell that Tobacco used a similar layering formula for the entire record, so it can get a little “samey” at points, ifyouknowwhatimean? Still, its catchy as hell, with more bounce to the ounce.

Marnie Stern - This is it and I am it…
Pro: It’s hard to go wrong with Zach Hill of Hella fame pounding the skins on your records, but Stern manages to upstage even him. It’s like a cheerleader squad performing to early Dillenger Escape Plan or Gorguts with Sleater Kinney handling the choreography duties.
Con: The record title is stupid long. This songs don’t leave you much room to breathe. I hear she will kiss you for a few dollars. Stern’s vocals often fall into a kind of pulsing cadence that can sometimes grate the ears, other times massaging them.

The Ruby Suns - Sea Lion
Pro: A Californian living in New Zealand, Ryan McPhun and his Ruby Suns crafted an album of densely packed, percussion fueled world-pop perfection. Imagine if the Polyphonic Spree were staffed with musical visionaries and weren’t creepy. Not really.
Con: I almost spit out my Diet Coke when i heard their wonderful tune Oh, Mojave being used in advertising to shill out the newest operating system from Microsoft, aptly named. The grade-school punk in me still cringes at corporate sponsorship. But hey! (props to Jay for use of the term “the grade school punk in me”)

Stars - Sad Robots EP
Pro: After loving 2005’s Set Yourself On Fire and abhorring their early 2008 release In Our Bedroom…, I was pleasantly surprised by this. Their live version of Going Going Gone makes the original sound like a bad cover. This release is soft and magical, electric tender feel.
Con: A very boring intro song that is more of an uninspired sound collage that never quite goes anywhere. The older I get, the more I enjoy a record that kicks your ass right off the bat. The rest is pure gold, except for some lyrics in french towards the end.

Annuals - Such Fun
Pro: I always enjoy a bunch of studio rats getting together and crafting an album of tedious musicianship. Using dynamics as a rule and not just a transitional point, Annuals can purr and roar with perfectly equal emotional pitch. This is goosebumps inducing music.
Con: There is one vocal styling employed by the singer that sounds EXACTLY like Christian from Blindside. Not a bad thing, but distracting nonetheless. Also, he is another subscriber to what I like to call “Band Of Horses vocal syndrome”, where certain words are given extra syllables and soft endings. Example: “dear” becomes “dee-air” and “down” becomes “dee-oun.” It’s annoying.

Why? - Alopecia
Pro: Yoni Wolf of cLOUDDEAD fame has a voice that is hard to mistake, which is sometimes a very bad thing for him. It’s definitely NOT a problem here, with the biggest surprise being how well he can sing. Imagine a group of Harvard students starting an experimental hip-hop group backed by members of The Flaming Lips, NIN and The Byrds. Not even close. Fatalist Palmistry is my personal jam of the month. This album has a resounding personal element which deepens upon multiple listens.
Con: I love this record. At one point, Wolf raps about “shitting his pants”. I guess that’s kinda gross and weird.

The Week That Was - S/T
Pro: I always enjoy a band with an intelligent and discriminating use of rhythm, and The Week That Was has this in spades. I especially love how you almost never hear a cymbal. Imagine Pinback with members of The Crystal Skulls and Fireside and you are getting there. Very clean. Very military. Very catchy. The Airport Line is my other jam of the month.
Con: This album is almost too perfect, which is hard to define. The old saying “A face is drawn by the scar” is appropriate here. The Week That Was could easily benefit from showing a few of their scars. Kids dig battle wounds.

Pyramids - S/T
Pro: How do you describe this band and this record? Its like two different musical things going on at once. Grindcore meets psychedelic shoe gazer? Death metal meets no wave? Whatever it is, I hope they keep doing it. Its like a sudden violent accident in slow motion. Like a tunnel.
Con: This record just pummels and plunders the listener with wave after wave of sonic psychotic paranoia. You definitely feel like you need a drink when its done… but then you just want to hear it again.

David Byrne & Brian Eno - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
Pro: Their first collaboration in thirty years, Byrne and Eno bring their vast and varied experience together once again to craft the sleeper hit record of the year. Byrne is in rare form, actually sounding hopeful… cocky even… instead of destined for doom. And as with anything engineered and/or produced by Eno, it sounds absolutely impeccable.
Con: As with most “senior moment” records, the tunes here can be a little long and drawn out. Vocally, Byrne is still his typical self, so if his stylings from the Talking Heads material isn’t your thing, steer clear. I personally just adore the guy… and his voice.

Our Present States of Being

"Individually, many of us are feeling more and more unmoored and dislocated – the result of old ways beginning to break down around us. Reality first begins within the etheric realms and many of us are feeling these subtle realms. The physical reality of form and matter are the last to break down. Bursting through the etheric into form and matter was/is the financial situation that seems quiet at the moment but will accelerate in 2009. There is no solving of the financial crisis and humanity stands at a transition point between the old dissolving and new not yet created (which we must do together). While many of us don’t know where we’re going yet, most of humanity is going about as if business is usual. The ads in the newspapers for Christmas sales have created stampedes of shoppers that in some cases have resulted in deaths of workers (WalMart, Long Island). This is an example of extreme greed and the continued fanatical desire for “things.” I will paraphrase Thomas Friedman…if this economic breakdown were a 24-hour period; we are just in the first 5 minutes."

couple of things...

i have a twitter now.  i thought it was silly, but now i kinda dig it.

i leave tonight for nashville.  ill be recording for a few weeks with a group called the early hours from NYC.  i am really excited, and the studio is definitely the most totally boss place i have ever recorded at. 

i went up to norman, OK and blackwatch studios last weekend and played drums and percussion, as well as a bit of singing and hand clapping, for mister chase pagan on his sophomore effort. we did some gnarly 2 o'clock in the morning madness, which included llama toenails and mouth sounds.  cant wait to see how it turns out.

i heart my sarabugg and my two boys and i will miss them alot.

one last thing.  this picture is awesome.

concentration

In the sutras there is a story about a man who had been condemned to death. The king who had condemned the man gave him one last chance to live. The king told the man that if he could carry a jar of oil on his head around town without spilling a single drop, he would let him go free. The man agreed to the proposal. With utmost concentration he slowly carried the jar of oil around the town. As he walked along his route, the king had people ring bells and make noise to distract him. When this did not work, the king had beautiful dancing girls sway beside the man as he proceeded. Nothing made him lose his concentration. Since his life depended on it, the man's mind was perfectly fixed on the jar of oil on his head. Eventually he succeeded in completing his route without spilling a drop of oil, and the king let him go free.

Major Themes Of The Tao Te Ching

Force begets force.

One whose needs are simple can fulfill them easily.

Material wealth does not enrich the spirit.

Self-absorption and self-importance are vain and self-destructive.

Victory in war is not glorious and not to be celebrated, but stems from devastation, and is to be mourned.

The harder one tries, the more resistance one creates for oneself.

The more one acts in harmony with the universe (the Mother of the ten thousand things), the more one will achieve, with less effort.

The truly wise make little of their own wisdom for the more they know, the more they realize how little they know.

When we lose the fundamentals, we supplant them with increasingly inferior values which we pretend are the true values.

Glorification of wealth, power and beauty beget crime, envy and shame.

The qualities of flexibility and suppleness, especially as exemplified by water, are superior to rigidity and strength.

Everything is in its own time and place.

Duality of nature that complements each other instead of competing with each other — the two faces of the same coin — one cannot exist without the other.

The differences of opposite polarities — e.g., the differences between male and female, light and dark, strong and weak, etc. — help us to understand and appreciate the universe.

Humility is the highest virtue.

Knowing oneself is a virtue.

Envy is our calamity; overindulgence is our plight.

The more you go in search of an answer, the less you will understand.

Know when it's time to stop. If you don't know then stop when you are done.

sand - buddhist wheel of life

Duracell

being human

global cooling?

fascinating

dexters back..

ah, hell yeah.

More

seahorses foreva...

im going on tour...

...with unwed sailor. come see.

Jul 23 2008 8:00P	Swello Venue	Jackson, Mississippi
Jul 24 2008 8:00P	The Bottletree	Birmingham, Alabama
Jul 25 2008 8:00P	The Coup	Clarksville, Tennessee
Jul 26 2008 2:30P	Forecastle Festival(East Stage) w/ Tortoise, Extra Golden	Louisville, Kentucky
Jul 27 2008 8:00P	The Temple	Cookeville, Tennessee
Jul 28 2008 8:00P	The Southgate House(Parlour Room)	Newport, Kentucky
Jul 29 2008 8:00P	Cinema Center INC.	Ft. Wayne, Indiana
Jul 30 2008 8:00P	Mojo’s	Columbia, Missouri
Aug 1 2008 8:00P	The OPO	Fayetteville, Arkansas
Aug 2 2008 8:00P	The Marquee w/ Black Swan & Recorder	Tulsa, Oklahoma
Sep 17 2008 8:00P	The House Cafe w/ Evangelicals	Dekalb, Illinois

Swami Dayananda 1976

what is the truth of time
the present alone reminds

fearmongering...

i need to get past it
no matter what i think i see

fascinating...

...and disturbing

new trailer for resurrection county...

...with some of the music we have created thus far.

the witness..

"As we begin to develop awareness of the mind, the mind itself appears to divide into two. A new aspect of the mind arises. This is referred to variously as the witness, the seer, the knower, or the observer. It witnesses without judgment and without comment. Along with the arrival of the witness, a space appears within the mind. This enables us to see thoughts and emotions as mere thoughts and emotions, rather than as 'me' and 'mine.' When the thoughts and emotions are no longer seen as 'me' or 'mine', we begin to have choices. Certain thoughts and emotions are helpful, so we encourage them. Others are not so helpful, so we just let them go. All the thoughts and emotions are recognized and accepted. Nothing is suppressed. But now we have a choice about how to react. We can give energy to the ones, which are useful and skillful and withdraw energy from those which are not."

sorry about the music...

Food Patterns of Our Body - Free videos are just a click away

i like the guy...

There are many things people do not know about BARACK OBAMA. It is every American's duty to read this message and pass it along to all of their friends and loved ones.

Barack Obama wears a FLAG PIN at all times. Even in the shower.

Barack Obama says the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE every time he sees an American flag. He also ends every sentence by saying, "WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL." Click here for video of Obama quietly mouthing the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE in his sleep.

A tape exists of Michelle Obama saying the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE at a conference on PATRIOTISM.

Every weekend, Barack and Michelle take their daughters HUNTING.

Barack Obama is a PATRIOTIC AMERICAN. He has one HAND over his HEART at all times. He occasionally switches when one arm gets tired, which is almost never because he is STRONG.

Barack Obama has the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE tattooed on his stomach. It's upside-down, so he can read it while doing sit-ups.

There's only one artist on Barack Obama's iPod: FRANCIS SCOTT KEY.

Barack Obama is a DEVOUT CHRISTIAN. His favorite book is the BIBLE, which he has memorized. His name means HE WHO LOVES JESUS in the ancient language of Aramaic. He is PROUD that Jesus was an American.

Barack Obama goes to church every morning. He goes to church every afternoon. He goes to church every evening. He is IN CHURCH RIGHT NOW.

Barack Obama's new airplane includes a conference room, a kitchen, and a MEGACHURCH.

Barack Obama's skin is the color of AMERICAN SOIL.

Barack Obama buys AMERICAN STUFF. He owns a FORD, a BASEBALL TEAM, and a COMPUTER HE BUILT HIMSELF FROM AMERICAN PARTS. He travels mostly by FORKLIFT.

Barack Obama says that Americans cling to GUNS and RELIGION because they are AWESOME.

it begins...

tooth universe...

Zoom into a Tooth
Uploaded by Weird_Weird_Science

kill your darlings

the pace of music is strange lately
been listening to many new records
wise young folks making great albums
its happening more frequently, that
i find myself unprepared for what im hearing
there is no way to be ahead of your own time
not anymore with this new dawn
people are feeling it and reacting to it
spending time teetering on the cusp
elbowing their way into new ideas
i get a taste of it when listening
the things they carried back with them
also strange are the questions that peer out
stretching and leaning in towards me
i dont know my place with music
and even though i listen
its not the same anymore
even with all the progress and activity
this energy that pulses quicker and quicker
this overload of amazement has grown common
i cant find the place anymore
i think the place might just be gone
but i have known it
and i remember how it felt
and there is still the sadness.
so the pace of life is strange lately
and i see this happening everywhere
not just in my sphere

slugs do it better...

David Attenborough - Slugs mating
by PigLips

i needed that.
still, i want to be a better person.
my head hurts.
one thing at a time.

a video of my brother and his band jamming with chino from the deftones, who is writing and performing a song with them for their new record. im really happy for him (my brother that is) and proud too.

the third lion

LEO (July 21-Aug. 22): Is your mind seeking a sense of greater meaning? Are you hunting a rainbow? Have you encountered many important people and those who love you as you remained detached? You are a loner yet need people to color your world, to inspire you, and to be, in turn inspired by you. You are uncomfortable in crowds yet it’s the crowd that crowns you. Are you thinking of all you could have done, but didn’t?

i heart panda bear

"Take Pills", from Panda Bear's Person Pitch, is a sample and loop-based swirl that fits squarely within the psychedelic-pop sound that his primary group, Animal Collective, is known for. Thick with reverb, dreamy harmonies, and unusual found-sound stimuli, it's a track with all the markings of a "drug song." So why does the mantra of the final section begin with "I don't want for us to take pills anymore?" In a recent interview with Dusted Magazine's Rob Hatch-Miller, Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) clarified:

"That song is pretty explicitly about anti-depressant drugs, not more recreational kinds of drugs. I was on anti-depressants for a while and my mom continues to be on them. Melancholy and depression is kind of a theme in my family. The song is about appreciating what they did for me at the time but wanting to get off of them, and to try not to rely on them if I could. And that's not to say that I think nobody should be on them, like I said they really helped me out for a while. But for me personally I just wanted to try to get on with it, and it's kind of me talking to my mom about trying to get her off of them too. I used to see a psychiatrist and he was like, "You're going to have to be on these drugs for the rest of your life, it's just the chemistry of your brain." That kind of bummed me out, so I really wanted to prove him wrong. He was a nice guy, but he was wrong.

The song, then, acknowledges the utility of prescription medication as a temporary fix, but reflects discomfort with it being a permanent solution, a common obstacle facing people who are recommended to go on antidepressants. As a replacement for pills, Lennox instead recommends a sort of holistic type of advice, to "take one day at a time" and "only one thing at a time," the popular idea that a temporary amount of time on medication is enough to get one's brain chemistry sorted out, and that healthy living can stand in for pharmaceutical treatments.

i want this...

i updated my muxtape.
tour van radio from the old days.
plus some newbies.

at the movies...

snailhuntr starts work tomorrow on the score for a movie called resurrection county. here is the trailer if you wanna take a look see. spooky.

the collective

a good week for lions

LEO (July 21-Aug. 22): Those you share dreams, goals and interests with are the ones you need to be with socially. In this group you are the central figure, sharing global and universal issues, teaching others who circle around you like planets around a Sun. Leos are always the light around which others are magnetized. Understanding this, always use your mind to reflect your Soul purpose. Then others learn to do the same.

what time is it?

moment
details
clarity
attention
all is doing
sadhana

i guess
even good
truths are
subject to
novelty.

ive lotsa ideas
pickin thins
uppin the sonic realm
somethin gettin growin
been allova me
mouth onda micro
pulse abeat smoove
lets rattle cage
im inta that

is it just me, or are people driving worse than ever?

this human is a lyrical juggler

most recently all tied up in a closet
yesterday with the radio in the tub
two years ago storming the hotel room
that time the car spun in circles
last century spying on the garbage man
thirteen minutes ago without the knife
when i was eight peeking through floorboards
in tenth grade snorting powdered plastic
endlessly watching television in the reflection

its been ages since we've tripped
tomorrow will be wasted

i updated my muxtape.

i put something out there.