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Saturday, September 25, 2004

Save the world

A couple nights ago I had a dream I saved the world in a giant mech. For real. It was really cool; the girls loved me.

MY DREAM


Addendum: I am forming a new band. We're called My Dog Is Dead Too.

Thursday, September 16, 2004

Love and Rejection

I live only to repeat yesterday over and over again in my head. Like Bill Murray? Except everything around me changes and only the motions are the same. So instead of breaking the glass, I'll break the vase. Or maybe I'll knock the cat onto the floor or look down and see my fish is trying to breathe oxygen from air instead of from water.

What I'm saying is that, no matter what we learn, we can't help who we love, but we can help those we may hurt.

I remember when I was 18 me and my best friend Steve and this girl, Carrie, all snuck down into the basement of my parent's house. Carrie and I crawled into the pull-out bed, and Steve sat on the floor glaring angrily at us. We pretended he was scary looking so we could cuddle together. When I saw her two years later she had just had her second kid. She said her last name was Snowball, but I never knew if I should believe that.

Tonight I finish writing an article I started a few weeks ago. This is the sound track (on random, repeat):

38 tracks in playlist, average track length: 4:05
Playlist length: 2 hours 35 minutes 39 seconds

Playlist files:

1. The Magnetic Fields - I Don't Want To Get Over You (2:22)
2. The Walkmen - Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me is Gone (4:12)
3. The Walkmen - Rue The Day (3:35)
4. The Walkmen - They're Winning (2:06)
5. A Trillion Barnacle Lapse - Binary Roulette (3:00)
6. A Trillion Barnacle Lapse - On the Docks (4:52)
7. Argentine - Slumberside (5:53)
8. Ashbury - Blood On Stone (5:19)
9. Asobi Seksu - Walk on the Moon (4:35)
10. Electro Group - Glistened (4:32)
11. Emperor X - Constantly Constantly Radio's On (1:56)
12. Epic45 - You Said Nothing (2:31)
13. Experimental Aircraft - Electric Surgery (5:38)
14. Experimental Aircraft - Symphony (3:11)
15. Frausdots - Dead Wrong (5:00)
16. Magnet - Heaviest Heart (4:42)
17. Magnet - Little Miss More Or Less (3:41)
18. Moving Units - Turn Away (2:48)
19. My Dad Is Dead - The Big Picture (6:24)
20. Sigur Rós - Hamast (7:10)
21. Sigur Rós - Svefn (10:04)
22. Singapore Sling - Guiding Light (6:14)
23. The Magnetic Fields - I Don't Want To Get Over You (2:22)
24. The Arcade Fire - Wake Up (5:35)
25. The Kinks - Nothing In This World Can.... (2:42)
26. The Legends - There And Back Again (3:13)
27. The Legends - When The Day Is done (2:27)
28. The Occasion - Smoke and Mirrors (5:42)
29. Tree Wave - May Banners (3:44)
30. Tree Wave - Sleep (2:56)
31. The Walkmen - Wake Up (4:13)
32. Azure Ray - 4th of July (4:13)
33. Broadcast - Come On Let's Go (3:17)
34. Felt - Black Ship in the Harbour (2:58)
35. Post - A Rest (4:58)
36. The Movies - Creation Lake (3:14)
37. The Movies - Dont steal my licks (2:03)
38. The Movies - Scary Footsteps (2:17)

Thursday, September 09, 2004

An hour of tonight

13 tracks in playlist, average track length: 4:21
Playlist length: 56 minutes 36 seconds

Playlist files:

1. Castle Project - Apologies (4:13)
2. Azure Ray - Trees Keep Growing (3:16)
3. Castle Project - In Frustration (4:17)
4. Castle Project - Where Were You (4:49)
5. Interpol - A Time To Be So Small (5:45)
6. Magnet - Heaviest Heart (4:42)
7. Magnet - Little Miss More Or Less (3:41)
8. Mojave 3 - Who Do You Love? (3:31)
9. Moving Units - Turn Away (2:48)
10. On!Air!Library! - Faultered Ego (4:32)
11. Slowdive - Blue Skied An Clear (6:54)
12. Slowdive - Dagger (3:33)
13. Asobi Seksu - Walk on the Moon (4:35)

Tuesday, September 07, 2004

Ashbury - Ashbury EP

Ashbury's first, self-titled EP has drawn the inevitable comparisons to Joy Division, and Interpol -- but these are only superficial observations. The band's grasp on melodies and hooks is strong enough to make each of the six songs stand on their own, while still coming across as a consistent whole. With Blood On Stone standing as the highlight, the EP is an interesting mix of balance: Danceable but not disposable, melancholy but not depressing. Taking inspiration from their early eighties predecessors, Ashbury have created a sound which may borrow sonically, but has a distinct feel of it's own. With a new EP on the way, they will have a chance to show that their talents can extend beyond the solid consistency they exhibit here. An impressive debut.

Sunday, September 05, 2004

Relocation

To answer the question I've been asked -- I am not moving to New York yet. I'm going back to Toronto for a while to save money before heading down to the States again. Funny how that works. I eat my words now. Looking forward to seeing my friends and family out east again :)

Dance with me (don't dance with me)

DANCE

Bloc Party - Finally the album is almost ready. Sounds great. And they're English!

Moving Units - Finally the album is almost ready. Sounds like everything The Rapture's Echoes should have been but wasn't. But please don't compare them to The Rapture.

Elkland - Waiting for an album. The band that opened for the Scissor Sisters and evidently blew them away. Should do; these kids are actually good.

Ashbury - Dance and cry at the same time. New EP on the way.

The Blood Arm - Album out now. Get it from their website; www.thebloodarm.com

... and I don't care if you're gay or straight, the new Rob Rives remix of The Magnetic Fields "I Thought You Were My Boyfriend" is universally danceworthy.


DON'T DANCE

Gang Gang Dance - The reissue of their earlier album and a new album both only on vinyl make me want to writhe around on the ground and squeeze my pillow really hard.

Midnight Movies - Just because they're on the same label that brought you that ungodly new Felix da Housecat album, doesn't mean they sound ANYTHING LIKE HIM. Rock and roll and sigh.