My Music: 2013 Edition

I thought I'd take a look back on my own personal year in music. It's always nice to look back and see what was actually accomplished  with myself and the band.

We played 19 shows at a variety of places around town. I got to play at the Triple Rock Social Club for the first time way back in January and Harriet Brewing for the first time in October. We also spent time at favorites like 331 Club, Amsterdam Bar and Hall, Kitty Cat Klub, Turf Club, and The Nomad. And TWO of those were residencies. One in early summer:

And one in late fall:

I updated and revamped my website at the beginning of the year. It's much cleaner and user-friendly - also more web manager friendly for me : )

I released my first music video, made by the wonderful Rev K, for the song "Can't Even Tell". We held a Video Premiere Party at the Amsterdam Bar and Hall on February 16th and were joined by Middlepicker and The White Whales.


We welcomed new drummer John in May. John's been a wonderful addition to our band and we're very happy to have him.

I played a solo set at my first ever Live Letters show hosted by Bethany Larson of Bethany Larson and the Bee's Knees. This was a super fun night. Bethany and her band played a full set and then myself, along with other musicians Reina del Cid, Dan Isreal, and Lydia Liza of Bomba de Luz, joined Bethany on stage and each took turns singing songs.

We released an EP in June titled Intermission with the lead-off single "Blind" debuting on 89.3 The Current on April 4th. We went about Intermission a little differently by recording it via 4 track cassette.



We took part in the Stone Arch Bridge Festival for our third year in a row, performing on Father's Day. This is one of my favorite events of the year and I love so much being a part of it.

We took July off and most of August to prep for my birthday party show at the Turf Club on August 23rd. Also on the bill: Prissy Clerks and Bomba de Luz.

We've added many new songs to our setlists, including the new songs off of Intermission. But we've also been writing and arranging for our third full-length and so far have added 5 currently unreleased songs to our set. Another addition to our set happened at our final show of the year and our final show of our Nomad residency back in November: We've added back-up singers Laura Borgendale and Colleen Borgendale! It was so much fun singing with them! I'm so happy they will be joining us for shows some time and will be singing on some songs on the new album. 

That was 2013. A lot of fun stuff happened. As I always say, I'm so happy I finally took the plunge and started playing music publicly and releasing albums and writing with others and playing with others. I really love it so much. 

We'll see you in the new year with new shows and (hopefully) a new album late 2014.

 

Martin Freeman Movie Weekend

This weekend I watched The World's End and The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug. Here is what I thought of them:

The World's End

 This is the final installment of the Cornetto Trilogy put on by director Edgar Wright and actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and includes Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz as the other two movies. It's called the Cornetto Trilogy because in each of these films, a character is seen eating a different flavor of Cornetto ice cream cones.

Simon Pegg plays Gary King, a man who never really left high school mentally and has a dream to gather up his former high school gang and complete the Golden Mile: A mile long pub crawl through their hometown. Except, when they return, things are...different.

There's a similarity to Hot Fuzz in that the movie is rolling along and seems like just a regular comedy (and a good one) and then things take a very unexpected turn and even greater hilarity ensues. Really, it's a funny movie and I highly recommend it. It's currently out on DVD.

Martin Freeman Connection: He plays Owen the "O-Man". One of Gary King's friends taking part in the Golden Mile.

The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug
Disclaimer: I have never read the book.

 I didn't sit and watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy as a whole until last year. I had seen bits and pieces and never really gave them much thought except that I didn't really have a huge desire to see them. But, watching them back to back over a weekend, I enjoyed them. So when The Hobbit was released, I wanted to see it.

I was one of the few who actually really enjoyed The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - probably because I never read the book. So I knew I'd enjoy Desolation of Smaug as the reviews said it was better than the first one. 

And I did like it, but not as much as An Unexpected Journey. In the first film, I like how it mostly fell on Bilbo to get them out of the many trappings they found themselves in. But in this film, the Elves were there to always save the day just in the nick of time and it got a little old. And the orcs. They never stopped. There was way more action and it became a bit monotonous after a while.

The introduction of Smaug was really well done - amazing CGI.

Really, my biggest complaint is that there wasn't enough Bilbo and way too much Legolas staring blankly into space or saving the day.

Martin Freeman Connection: He's Bilbo Baggins, duh-doy.

Zero Degrees

I had some time to myself the other day when it was bitterly awfully horribly cold. I was stuck indoors all day. I didn't even have my car and I certainly wasn't walking anywhere. So I do as I do and I picked up my guitar and I wrote a little ditty about how cold it is, pulled up Garage Band on the computer, recorded it, and then put it on the internet for you to listen to and download.

Things I Love Right Now

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning and everything I encounter is making me grumpier so I thought that this would be a good time to take a look at the things that I am actually enjoying right now - the things that are making me happy.

Focus on the positive, right?

1. My New Winter Coat
I finally got a winter coat a few weeks ago. I live in Minnesota and I haven't had a winter coat in two years. It is wonderful. It's from Old Navy - so it probably won't last past this winter - but it was only $40 so that's cool. It really is super warm and exactly what I wanted/needed.

2. Mazzy Star
Oh, it's been so nice to reacquaint myself with Mazzy Star again after seeing their show last month. They opened the show with the song "Look on Down From the Bridge" off of Among My Swan, which is an album I never got around to picking up back in the day, but this song is just lovely. Also, the first track off the new album, Seasons of Your Day, is pretty much the kind of song that I want to make a whole album of. Love it.


 
3. Trailers for the Return of My Two Favorite Shows Were Released
Facing the beginning of winter and knowing that there are still 6 months of this crap to go and you already can't stand it and feel like you're going crazy is difficult for everybody. So you have to try to find things that help you get through it. For me, I am super excited that January brings the return of both Community and Sherlock. I AM SO EXCITED!!! Also, Downton Abbey returns, and I will watch that, too, but with a bit less enthusiasm.

Anyway, it's obvious that the only way for Community to continue is to do what they are doing with Jeff Winger, though I can't imagine how the rest of the gang factors in.

As for Sherlock, the first 3 weeks of January are going to be so difficult as the show returns in the UK on New Year's Day and everyone will know the answer to the big cliffhanger from the last season (that was 2 years ago!!!) and I will have to stay off the internet so as not to be spoiled. Sigh. Stupid internet.

 

4. My Husband's Awesome Cooking
My husband has taken up cooking and baking and he is very good at it and I am very lucky. He's started making banana bread and corn bread (two of my favorites) almost on a weekly basis. Last weekend he made eggplant lasagna and it was delicious! This weekend he is going to make a homemade pizza. I am excited for all of the foods to come.

My Favorite Music Of 2013

2013 hasn't been the best year for music. There hasn't been much at all that has completely grabbed my attention or wowed me from the get-go - and there hasn't been much of any that have grown on me over time. Albums that I loved at the beginning of the year haven't really held up over the months.

I had a hard time picking up albums this year, too. There are several that I would still like to get that I was unable to get yet this year. Those maybe would have altered this list. But I guess we'll never know...

All that said, these are the albums I have consistently enjoyed over 2013, with a clear cut #1. The rest could move up and down depending on my mood.

My Favorite Music of 2013

1. Scout Niblett: It's Up to Emma
Scout has definitely created a sound all her own and on It's Up to Emma, she perfects it. This might be one of the greatest break-up albums of all time. Full of anger, sadness, bitterness. The album opener, "Gun", speaks to buying a gun and well...the ex and the new girl are not going to see it coming.

From the moment the first strum hits and then those pounding drums kick in, I knew I was going to love this album. It's dark. It takes me back to those grunge days that I grew up with, yet it feels totally modern. It's simple. She sticks to many of the same chord progressions and vibe throughout the album, but it never gets boring. It's thematic. It's honest. It's raw. It's beautiful.

Oh, and there's also an awesome and not at all cheesy cover of TLC's "No Scrubs".

Top Four Tracks Because I Can't Narrow It Down To Three: "Gun", "My Man", "Second Chance Dreams", "What Can I Do?"

2. Veronica Falls: Waiting for Something to Happen
Blissful indie-pop/rock. Catchy hooks. Lovely harmonies. Put it on and drive kind of music. This is just an overall fun record. It's easy to listen to - and I don't mean that in a bad way. I put it on knowing nothing about them and it immediately hooked me. In fact, just thinking about how much I enjoy this album as I type this bumped it from #3 to #2 (sorry, Cloud Cult).

Top Three Tracks: "Tell Me", "Teenage", "Fall Out"

3. Cloud Cult: Love
A new Cloud Cult album always brings happiness. This one came at just the right time for me. It pretty much embodied exactly what was going on in my life at the time. It summed up how I was feeling. It helped me make sense of things. It gave me advice on how to get through it.

Love takes me back to their early days. It feels like the Cloud Cult that I originally fell in love with. A good mixture of folk and rock and singalongs and big soaring Cloud Cult moments. Craig Minowa always seems to know exactly what to say. He can perfectly sum up a thought and with the music, Cloud Cult can pin point a feeling and bring you exactly where you need to go.

Top Three Tracks: "You're the Only Thing in Your Way", "Good Friend", "Meet Me Where You're Going"

4. Tristen: CAVES
I stumbled onto Tristen a couple of years ago when she opened for The Elected at Triple Rock Social Club. I picked up her album from her at the show because I kind of liked what I heard and then ended up listening to that album, Charlatans at the Garden Gate, non-stop. When I heard she was doing a Kickstarter for her new album, I didn't hesitate to back it. CAVES is the result of that Kickstarter.

CAVES is a bit of a departure from Charlatans. She's left behind the folksy/roots rockier side of things and turned on the dance machine and it serves her well. There is a very big 80s synth influence throughout the album - particularly a strong Eurythmics vibe.

There's just something I really enjoy about her voice. She has a way of pronouncing certain words when she sings that is somewhat jarring at first (but not in a Tori Amos WTF are you doing way)  but then totally grows on you. It's super sweet, yet she has this snarl/growl that comes out when she really belts out the big notes that I just love. And she can belt them out. Car singalongs leave my throat in major pain.

Lesson: Don't skip the opener. You could really miss out.

Top Three Tracks: "No One's Gonna Know", "Catalyst", "Forgiveness"

5. The White Whales: Lakestate
The White Whales were a fast favorite for me. Since I first saw them playing a show with a friend's band, to playing a couple of shows with me, I was super excited for them to release this album.When I first heard the teaser snippet of the title track, I knew this would be an Album of the Year contender for me. Lead singer Matthew Schufman has one of those voices that immediately draws you in - just enough quirk to prick up your ears, yet so smooth that it keeps you listening. The music is just good indie rock, right in the mix with The National as far as style goes. The album is dynamic lyrically and once again the title track's line "don't dream about the ocean in a lake state" got me right in the heart. I think any landlocked state inhabitant can get what that means.

Top Three Tracks: "Lakestate", "Summer Ghost", "Skeletons"

6. Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs: Mosquito
I've been surprised to hear that most people didn't care for this album. I can see how it's not for everybody, but I still think there's a lot of good here. I was never one for their early early noisy stuff so this album doesn't seem that weird to me - and considering they've long departed from that sound, Mosquito seems like a suitable next step.

The album opens with "Sacrilege" and Karen O's always stellar vocals veering from super sweet to her signature snarl line by line and then follows that up with a gospel choir. It's a very genre-inclusive album, mixing odd rock tunes like "Area 52", rap cameos from Dr. Octagon in "Buried Alive", and utter beauty with "Despair" and "Wedding Song" closing out the album. To some it might seem scattered and unfocused. To me, it means it has something to fit whatever mood I'm in.

But, I will say, this might be my least favorite album cover ever.

Top Three Tracks: "Despair", "Subway", "Sacrilege"

7. Strange Relations: Ghost World
Lead singer and drummer Casey Sowa's voice has quickly become one of my favorites on the scene and with it, Strange Relations pack a lot of emotion into this EP. Not quite in the shoegazer rock category - though that's about as close as I can describe them - they've really put together their own sound in such a short time frame. It's also another one of those albums that upon first listen, you might just think this sounds cool. But then you listen again and again and you catch more and more of the lyrics and you realize the words are really cool, too. As a lyrics person, that's important to me.

Top Three Tracks: "Or Telepathy", "Endurance", "Ghost World"

8. Caroline Smith: Half About Being a Woman
Where did the folksinger go?  She's turned herself into an R&B queen. Gone are the acoustic guitars and in are the heavy beats and soulful vocals. I was really unsure if this was something I would go for. Not that I don't enjoy this style of music, just that I really loved Caroline Smith and the Good Night Sleeps and all that they did. But this album surprised me. She really pulled it off. Kudos to her for knowing what she wants to do and just going for it full force.

This album is full on R&B and verging on old soul. Unlike the live performances I've seen of these songs, Caroline handles all of the vocals herself while her band, still there just changing up the sound, handles the new direction like they've been doing it all along.

Top Three Tracks: "Half About Being a Woman", "Magazine", "Child of Moving On"

9. Phosphorescent: Muchacho
Honestly not quite sure what to say about this album except that I just like it. It's folksy yet somewhat experimental. The songs are packed with emotion. "Song for Zula" is truly an amazing piece of work. And though there are definitely some songs on here that I'll continuously skip, the ones that I don't are stellar and I believe I'll enjoy them just as much in the future if not more.

Top Three Tracks: "Song for Zula", "Muchaho's Tune", "Terror in the Canyons"

 10. Lucy Michelle: Attack of the Heart
Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles (who have recently renamed themselves Field Trip) have been a favorite of mine for a few years now. I wasn't sure what to expect from Lucy for a solo album. Though the overall Lucy Michelle sound still peaks through on Attack of the Heart, she really did manage to create a new sound for herself. The songs veer toward piano driven jazzy pop. Saxophones and upright bass dance along with beats that make it hard to not snap your fingers along. It's still very throwback, which suits her voice, but it just throws back to a different time. She's left the mountains and gypsies behind here to meet up with the smokey jazz clubs of the 20s. And it works.

Top Three Tracks: "Heart Race", "Can I Confide", "Beat Like Mine"

Bonus: Rilo Kiley: RKives 
This really would be in my Top 5 releases of 2013, but I felt weird having a compilation album amongst the albums filled with new material - even though this material is new to most people, half of it features songs from hard to find singles and soundtracks. I've had some of these songs from various sources in my music library for some time now. But it's nice to have them all in one place.

The songs on here that I've hadn't heard are phenomenal and a reminder of how excellent this band is/was. I mean, these are the songs that they left off of albums for whatever reason and they are still some of the best I've heard by this band or from other bands this year. RKives is a great starting point for anyone looking to check out Rilo Kiley.

Top Three Tracks: "Draggin' Around", "I Remember You", "It'll Get You There"

Honorable Mentions: 

Gospel Gossip: Gospel Gossip
Vampire Weekend: Modern Vampires of the City
Volcano Choir: Repave
 
Beyond these albums that I love, like I said above, there are always a stack of albums come the end of the year that I wanted to get but was unable to for whatever reason. Usually money. Then either for Christmas or shortly after the new year, I end up getting them and falling in love with them and thinking, man, this would definitely be in my Top 10 for last year. Those albums I'm hoping to get soon because I know they are probably awesome and I will love them:

Agnes Obel: Aventine
Camera Obscura: Desire Lines
Janelle Monae: The Electric Lady
Joey Verskotzi: Lemon Heart

And, of course, I can't not mention that I also released an EP this year. Stream it, yo.


My Favorite Songs of 2013 
(in no particular order)

Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Despair"


Phosphorescent: "Song for Zula"

Lorde: "Royals"
 

Jeremy Messersmith: "Tourniquet"
 

Miley Cyrus: "We Can't Stop" 
Don't judge me. This song is awesome.


Janelle Monae: "Q.U.E.E.N."
 

The Cloak Ox: "Pigeon Lung"

 

Rilo Kiley: "Draggin' Around"

In Which I Complain About The Weather

It has been snowing since yesterday. It makes me so angry. Everything is a billion times harder when the weather gets like this. Then it's going to turn freakishly cold. It is way too early in the winter season for it to get this cold. Oh, wait. It's not even winter yet. That officially happens over two weeks from now. It is technically still fall.

OMG WHY DO I LIVE HERE?????

There is so much I love about this state. But this, this weather...I just can't.

Here's a little song I wrote about it some time ago.

Out Of Mind

It was a lovely long holiday weekend. I was generally feeling pretty happy the entire time.

Then I went to visit my dad yesterday.

It had been a really long time.

Dad in his younger days.

He's been in an assisted living home for over 2 years now. His diabetes got the best of him a couple of years ago and he's been in deterioration mode ever since.

He never wanted to be this way. He always said - and I mean always - that when he got old and if he ended up in a wheelchair or couldn't care for himself to just shoot him. And now here he is. Wheelchair bound. One leg amputated. Completely blind. Unable to use the bathroom by himself.

I was on top of things at first. I helped find him a place to live. It was nearly impossible. Between missing a leg, being nearly blind, the constant diabetes care and then having absolutely no money, we weren't allowed to be choosey about where he got to go. But we did end up finding a place that seemed pleasant enough. All he wanted was his own room where he could do as he pleases. And he has that. A TV (which he can no longer watch because he can't see it) a microwave to make his popcorn, a place to sit and lift his weights (which he still tries to do to keep his arms in shape - just dumbbells), his own bathroom. That's all he wanted and that's what he got.

I made an effort to get out there at least once a month. It's over an hour drive from my house. But two of my sisters and his brothers live out there so he's not completely detached from others. I did make an effort at first. But it got harder and harder to do so. Or I got lazy.

I hadn't been out there since late July. And since he can no longer see to dial the phone and even getting to the phone to answer it is difficult for him now, I haven't spoken to him much in recent months.

I had no idea how bad he's become.

His mind was definitely not that sharp even the last time I saw him, but he really can't hold a conversation at all anymore.

He's a completely different person than he used to be. He was a fighter. He was tough. I guess he still is as he's still going. But he's tiny. He's helpless.

He's only 72.

He has a twin brother who owns his own home and still goes about a normal life.

My dad can't do anything without help anymore.

I walked into his room yesterday and it smelled. Bad. There was crackers and chip bits all over the floor. A tupperware container with some leftover food from who knows when was sitting on the table. There were obvious stains on the toilet that needed to be cleaned and empty toilet paper rolls surrounding it. His bed was covered in crumbs. The one chair was covered in crumbs. There was a towel on the floor. I asked him when people clean his room and he said Tuesdays - assured me they will be in on Tuesday - but that they are short staffed. I vacuumed the floor and threw away the tupperware container.

He was in the bathroom trying to wash his hands. The bathroom is not set up for a wheelchair so he gets stuck. This is made all the more difficult since he can't see.

I helped him get out and then that is how we spent the next 2 hours. He showed me how hard it is for him to get to the bathroom. I watched through tears of sadness and frustration as he went through the motions over and over again. Wheeling himself from the middle of his room to the bathroom. Wiggling the chair back and forth to get over the lip between the two rooms and to squeeze through the door. Going forward into the bathroom until he hit the wall. Grasping blindly for the wall rail to hoist himself up and then repeating this to get back into the chair. Then the struggle to try to back up and turn around in a very small space so he can wash his hands. And he can't do it. There is no room. He can't tell where he is and there is no room anyway. His foot gets caught on one of the guard rails by the toilet. Even if he makes it to the sink, it's set up for a person who is standing.

I went and got one of the people on staff. I showed her what he was saying. She had no idea - or so she said. We tried to come up with a solution. She even showed me a vacant room with a slightly larger bathroom but told me there isn't a room set up that is wheelchair accessible. In an assisted living home. WTF?

She tried to remind him where the call for help strings are that he can pull if he needs assistance, but he can't see so it doesn't matter.

He also has no idea where he is in the room. In one of the many attempts to show me how he navigates the bathroom, he would have no idea which way he was facing. The room is only so big so I tried to get him to use his bed as a reference. Feel for it. If it's on your left, you're facing the bathroom.

I just cannot imagine his frustration. It must be a 45 minute process just to deal with going to the bathroom.

The first thing he said to me when I walked in the door is that he wishes he could see.

And when I left and watched him just sitting there in the middle of his room, head to the floor, with a football game on the radio that was mostly static, I tried to assure him we would figure this out and find something that works. But I don't know how to do that. The nicer homes cost a fortune that nobody in my family has. The next step is a nursing home. He had to stay in one once when he broke his arm and he hated it. He couldn't wait to get out of there.

But I don't know if there is any other choice.

He is only 72.

It is terrifying to think of where you could end up someday. And to see it happening to someone I love is unbearable. Which is why I think I've stayed away for so long. Out of sight, out of mind. I tried to ignore it. But I can't. He's my dad. He may have not won any Father of the Year awards, but he's my dad and I love him and I don't want him to go out like this.

No one should end up that way. But a quick walk through any nursing home will show you so many who do.

His spirit is gone. He is literally just living. He gets up. He eats. He sits. He goes to bed. He loves talk radio and sports, and he had his radio on, but it was mostly static. I tried to get a better signal, but it wouldn't work. I asked him how he turns it on and off. He says he doesn't. It's just on all the time.

I just don't know what to do for him.