• Friday, Nov 3rd: Mute Math
  At first I wasn’t sure I was going to go to this show, but I’m VERY glad I did. These guys are excellent live.
• Saturday, Nov 4th: All American Rejects
  I’ll be honest, I could care less about All American Rejects. However, the show was pretty decent and there were a couple good songs.
• Friday, Nov 10th: Imogen Heap
  My second favorite concert of all time. Amazing.
• Saturday, Nov 11th: Polymer
  Way to go Jon! You guys were fantastic. And congrats on the new CD.

Alright, seriously though, stellastarr* is awesome. Sasha, Chris (Sasha’s friend) and I all went to their concert last night at the TLA (theatre of living arts). I always get a little nervous when I see a band live. I’m sure you’ve experienced it… the CD is great, but they can’t perform on stage to save their lives. And thusly, your respect and admiration has been destroyed. People mention in passing “Oh, I love ______” to which you reply “they’re not very good live”. And now, you’re forced to live with this mediocre performance… forever scarring the joy you once experienced.

Luckily, as I have previously mentioned, “stellastarr* is awesome”.

The band was incredibly tight on stage, extremely energetic and put on a hell of a show. And due to their minimal catalogue of music (aka, only two CD’s released so far), they were able to play all of my favorite songs. So yeah, good times… good times.

The British prime minister made African poverty and climate change the centerpiece of the three-day summit. The G8 countries had already agreed to cancel the debt of 18 of the world’s poorest countries, 14 of them in Africa.

On Africa, he said the deal was “not what everyone wanted” but said it represented “real, achievable progress.”

“The 50 billion dollar uplift in aid is a signal for a new deal on trade, (as is) the cancellation of debt of poorer nations, universal access to AIDS treatment and a commitment to a new peacekeeping force for Africa,” Blair said.

So, it begs the question… was Live 8 responsible for this? Or was it something that would have happened anyway?

Another thing the CNN article mentions is that Climate Change didn’t get much attention at the summit. If there were a worldwide Earth Day concert (with one location being Philly of course), do you think that would have changed the focus of the summit?

Total Volume Of Music On My Computer

1.3 GB

The Last CD I Bought

Susie Suh (Self-Titled)

Song Playing Right Now

Metric – Succexy

Five Songs I Listen To A Lot, Or That Mean A Lot To Me

1. Remy Zero – Fair
2. Conjure One featuring Poe – Center of the Sun
3. Rufus Wainwright – Go or Go Ahead
4. Dishwalla – So Much Time
5. Spooks – Karma Hotel

Five people who I’m passing the baton to

1. Ryan Brill
2. Pixelpusher
3. Dave & Gord from TVShowsOnDVD.com
4. Anthony from DVDToons.com
5. Anyone who feels like posting a comment

I ended up getting two tickets to the show… even though I really don’t have anyone to go with. So, from now until the day of the show, I’m on a mission to meet some more people. And, hopefully, one of them will want to see the show.

Remember the band, the Stone Roses? Well, Ian Brown was their lead singer. The band was a big hit in the alternative music boom of the mid 90′s and while they may not be around anymore, Ian Brown still is. Now, onto his album.

At first listen, I really like this CD… British pop/rock music at it’s best… great melodies, soaring vocals, high production values. My favorite tracks are 1) Longsight M13, 2) Time is My Everything, 5) Solarized, 7) Keep What Ya Got, and 9) One Way Ticket To Paradise. However, as the album closes, I’m left feeling a little empty. I don’t know why, but the album just didn’t leave a major impression on me. It’s good, don’t get me wrong, but I just don’t see myself listening to it a whole lot more after this initial round.

Overall: *** (3 stars out of 5)

1. Breathe (2 AM)
2. Citadel
3. Paper Bag
4. Wreck Of The Day
5. Satellite
6. Forever Love (Digame)
7. In The Rough
8. In My Head
9. Bleed
10. Catalyst
11. Consider This

Just the other day I received a “sampler” disc for this album, which sadly only contains the first five tracks. However, let me first just say how nice it’s been to get a good flood of female singer/songwriters lately. It seems like a lot of these young women have really been inspired by the likes of Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Dido, Alanis Morissette, etc, and Anna Nalick is no exception. Her sound is fairly generic, female singer with a bit of an alternative edge, but still firmly planted in the “pop” world. Occassionally, though, I hear brief glimpses of some Fiona Apple-esque styling.

As for the songs presented here (on the sampler), they are pretty good… especially considering this is her first major CD release. The first track, Breathe (2 A.M.) is the first single and pretty decent… exactly what you would expect … good hook, average lyrics, etc. And for those curious, it’s currently the free song of the week on iTunes, so you can check it out there if you like. The next two songs, Citadel and Satellite, are (in my opinion) actually better than the first. Anna’s singing is more impressive and the musical arrangements of the songs are more original and interesting. Track 4, Paper Bag, sadly is fairly forgettable. However, things bounce back with the final song and title track from the album due out in January, Wreck of the Day. It’s a slower track and given that, it comes across much more personal and intimate. A nice ending to a nice sampler.

At this point, I have to say, I’m interested to know what the rest of the album sounds like. If there’s one or two more tracks that really impress me, I would probably buy it.

Overall: *** (3 stars out of 5)

The opening song on the album, You’re The Only One, is also the first single. Sadly, this is a pretty formulaic pop song that doesn’t really distinguish Maria form the Avril’s, Michelle Branch’s and Ashley Simpson’s of the current music scene. Fear not though, because track 2, Fragile (Free), is a beautiful tune that really shows off Maria’s incredible singing ability. Track 3, Just A Little Bit, and track 4, Blame It On Me, are equally as good.

Things change a bit once you get to track 6, Take You With Me. It’s biting, powerful, and full of emotional energy. A few tracks later is #9, Shadow, perhaps my favorite on the entire album. It’s a brilliantly written and arranged ballad that just sucks you in. Immediately following is track 10, Your Glasses. Like track 6, this song is full of energy and emotion, but with much more anst and edge to it. It harkens back to when Alanis Morissette lit the music scene on fire with You Oughta Know. Granted, the lyrics are more tame and Maria isn’t as angry, but musically, the songs have similar styles and arrangements.

Overall, this disc, and Maria Mena, really impressed me. I can pop the CD in my player, press play, and listen to the whole thing from start to finish. Each song is so well crafted that the album just flows perfectly from one track to another.

**** (4 stars) / out of 5

Now, first off, let me just say that Jimmy Eat World is an “indie” band… always have been. The commercial success of their last album, however, had some questioning whether or not they “sold out”. Well, I think this album will prove to their fans that they didn’t. It’s darker, more experimental, and more mature… in other words, more “indie”.

Track 1, Futures, is an energetic tune with a resounding bass-line that really gets things going with some major gusto. It’s also probably the most commercial song on the album and has a good chance of being a decent single for radio and video. For me, however, the standout track on the album is #7, Drugs or Me. It starts out slow and calm, but builds throughout and ends up becoming a really wonderful “epic” track. My final favorite on the album is the closing song, 23. This is the last song on the album, so I almost overlooked it, but after a few listens it really started to grow on me. It’s a slower track, like #7, but with it’s own distinct feel and sound.

Overall, I liked this disc and even thought there were only a few favorite tracks, they were REALLY good. Does it outway the remainder of rather average songs? I don’t know, that’s your call to make, but I’d suggest at least giving this disc a chance.

**** (4 stars) / out of 5

The opening track, and first single, is (Reach Up for The) Sunrise and just like the name of the song, it’s a really uplifting and energetic track. The next track, Want You More!, is a sort of hip/swaggering tune with a bit of 70′s disco flavor. Track 3, What Happens Tomorrow, is a good candidate for the band’s next single. It’s a solid pop song that really shines with some wonderful backing string arrangements. My remaining favorites on the album are track 8, Finest Hour and track 9, Chains.

Overall, I can’t recommend this disc enough if you’re a Duran Duran fan. Even if you’re not, it’s worth checking out.

**** (4 stars) / out of 5