Setlists, Album Covers, and Remembering

1. Show at Art-A-Whirl
Setlist:

• Untitled new song (first time played!)
• Can't Even Tell
• Good
• The Party
• The Paul Simon Song
• Johnny B. Goode
• Flavor
• Adore
• In the Company of Elvis
• Cast a Spell

2. Show at Honey:
Setlist:

• Good
• The Party
• Can't Even Tell
• The Paul Simon Song
• Easy to Blame
• Thursday
• Ramble Song
• Johnny B.Goode
• Minnesota
• Cast a Spell

And Marcus Metropolis took some great pro photos:

3. Sea Salt Album Cover!
Here's the cover art for my new album, Sea Salt!

4. Life has otherwise consisted of work, rainy stormy days, not getting enough sleep, watching a lot of How I Met Your Mother and Seinfeld, seeing shows (Broken Bicyles CD release, Art-A-Whirl, Memory Lanes Block Party), drinking too much on the rare sunny days, and super hardcore missing my dog. Lately, the missing has come back with a vengeance.

Miss you, babydog.

New Song Preview #6!

Here's another sneak peek at a new song. This is called "Float".

 Float (snippet) by Niki Becker

New album comes out first week of August!

10 Songs I Can't Get Enough of Right Now

Lykke Li - "Dance, Dance, Dance"

Here she is singing this song in a park in LA with Bon Iver...



Anais Mitchell - Young Man in America"



Beirut - "Elephant Gun"



Amanda Palmer - "In My Mind"



Bon Iver - "Blood Bank"



Zoo Animal - "Dream On"

Zoo Animal's lead singer singing this song acapella while ice skating....




David Karsten Daniels - "We Go Right On"

Sadly, I can't find video or a link for this song anywhere.

Leonard Cohen - "Going Home"



Noel Gallagher - "If I Had a Gun"



Regina Spektor - "Chemo Limo"

Pinky

This is Pinky.

He is the best cat that ever lived.

Today is his last day.

I'm not much of a cat person. I mean, I love cats because I love animals and cats are animals and that's how all of that works. But I don't ever see myself having one as a pet.

But Pinky and I used to live together many years ago. I've never met a cat like him. He's very special. Everyone who's ever met him says this.

He's just so awesome.

When I was 20 years old and unemployed, we spent a lot of time together hanging out on the couch, playing Super Mario Bros 3 and eating Doritos and mini donuts (I would feed him the inside of the donut and I would eat the chocolately outside.

He would just hang out. He'd come sit between you and someone else on the couch and just chill. Occasionally he'd meow like he was a part of the conversation.

He loved to play fetch....

....and he would bring the ball back.

He'd sit in a chair at the kitchen table and just listen to the conversations. And, I mean sit in the chair.

He was social, but yet socially awkward.

He was one of those animals that almost seemed human. Like he got it.

He was very special.

He was my buddy.

I didn't see him much in his elderly years. But I did get a chance to say goodbye. I brought him some Doritos and mini donuts last weekend and we shared them and I'm so glad we did.

Pinky and his life partner, Sausage. They didn't think we could see them up there.

He was the best cat.

He will be so very missed.

Things I Did This Weekend

Admittedly, I really didn't do much this weekend - but really, I did. And, admittedly, this is a pretty shitty list for my Sunday list post, but oh well.

1. On Friday, I had some beers with my gals on a porch.
2. On Saturday...I mixed all the songs for the new album!!! It's basically done!!! It is so exciting!!!

This list is really just an excuse to tell you that the songs are all done and now it just has to be mastered and pressed.

And my CD release show has been booked for Saturday, August 4th at the Amsterdam Bar and Hall.

And I can't wait to share these songs with everyone.

And now I am going to curl up on the couch and continue watching season 5 of Lost.

And Sherlock returns tonight on BBC Masterpiece on channel 2.

Good times.

Lyric Of The Day

"if you're not getting happier
as you get older
then you're fuckin' up"

-from "If Yr Not" by Ani Difranco

Adam Yauch and How Much Cancer Sucks

News just went out that Adam Yauch, aka MCA from the Beasties Boys, died of cancer at the age of 47.

47.

That is so fucking young.

I went through a huge Beastie Boys phase back in the late 90s/early 00s. In fact, on my first date with my husband, he asked me what bands I was into. I told him I really liked the Beastie Boys. Years later he told me that he almost wasn't going to call me again after hearing that. Not that he's anti-Beastie Boys...just that it's a weird band for a 20 year old girl to claim is her favorite (as they were at that moment).

Beastie Boys were always there when I was growing up. They were all over the MTV. A pop cultural stamp on my life. When those people die (and when they die so young), it really makes you take a look at your own life and start counting the years. I am way closer to 47 than I am comfortable with. It's strange how quickly life goes by.

My mom died of breast cancer at 48. I was 6 years old. I remember her looking so old. And now when I look at people I know in their mid to late 40s and think about how young they appear - it's just crazy what cancer can do to a person.

Cancer terrifies me. It's one of those things I try really hard to ignore and keep out of my mind because, really, I'm in my 30s and it is a very realistic possibility it could enter my life at anytime. And that is frightening.

I think about the shortness of life all too often. How quickly it can just go away. I think that has a lot to do with how I just don't want to wade around in all the muck of unnecessary unhappiness and stress anymore. I just want to live and experience and fulfill all of my whims.

And we all should.

Because life is short, folks. And life is great. And most of the other shit doesn't matter. Nobody ever says they wish they spent more time in the office when they die.

Because you can't, you won't, and you don't stop.

Long Days Are Long

Really dragging today.

I was supposed to host an open mic last night (have I mentioned that I’ve been doing that?). I got there and immediately started to feel…strange. My chest was feeling really tight – like a really bad case of heartburn.

I sucked it up and got set up and then waited for the performers to arrive. While I waited, my chest started to feel like it was caving in. Just as I was about to call it a night, someone showed up to play. I had to get things started, so I struggled my way through 3 songs and then set up the guy to play. I sat down and took some deep breaths but the pain became unbearable.

I ran to find the bar manager and blurted out: “Having terrible chest pains…can’t really breathe…need to leave”. He said sure, sure, go. But then I couldn’t go because I couldn’t drive with this pain so I ran down to the basement of the bar where the offices are and sat on the floor rocking back and forth and freaking out and feeling, on top of everything else, a panic attack coming on.

I called the husband who talked me down from the panic attack, but the pain was still there.  I eventually managed to get up and grab my guitar and leave and drive home in the pouring rain.

I got home and felt a little better. And then it came back. And then it went away. And then it came back.

I tried to lay down in bed, but lying flat on my back just felt like I was crushing my ribs. So I got up and sort of propped myself up on our tiny couch and tried to sleep sitting up. I felt asleep for a little bit, woke up and thought I was better. I rolled over to get more comfortable and it was like someone stuck several knives in my chest. The pain was unbearable, but there was nothing I could do but grit my teeth and try to ignore it.

This has happened to me before. I did go to the ER that time and they told me it was probably Chostochondritis, an inflammation of the cartilage in the rib cage. There isn’t really anything you can do for it except rest and take some advil. But, holy shit, does it hurt. It’s like a vice grip clamped onto each side of your chest and squeezing. It’s like every rib is broken and stabbing all of your insides. It fucking hurts.

So, needless to say, sleep was not my friend last night, but I managed to make it into work. I feel a little tender and it kind of feels like any overexertion could bring back, so I’m trying to be mellow. Trying. On the way into work I was driving and traffic came to a sudden halt. Every car in my lane almost slammed into each other. Then I saw why: A dog was running across the freeway. I watched as he jumped over the meridian and into traffic and narrowly miss being hit by several cars. I, of course, started shaking and bawling. My lane started to move so I had to drive. I really hope the dog is okay.

Ready to go home tonight and curl up on the couch and watch the rest of season 4 of Lost. It’s such a short season. I’ve watched it in about 4 days. Only 3 episodes left. It’s kind of a dud of a season, with a couple of really excellent episodes thrown in.

But still 5 hours to go….

Long days are long.

Dream Log #13

I was at an Ani Difranco show. I was sitting to the side of the stage, sort of backstage. It was an outdoor show.

She sounded great and I got super excited when she played a song she hadn't performed in years, "Promised Land". Even though it's not one of my favorites, it's always nice to hear something different.

But then, she started to play a new song, a song she said she just wrote. I leaned in to listen, and was struck by the familiarity of the opening chords. It sounded just like one of my songs! I shrugged it off as the chords are just A and Dm and nothing too crazy there.

But then the rest of the instruments joined in just like they do on my song and then she started singing my words and - though part of me was hugely flattered that one of my favorite musicians liked my song enough to steal it - the other part of me was horribly offended. I couldn't believe she was saying it was hers! And where did she get it? It hasn't been released yet!

Post show, I walked over to where she was signing some albums. I said "I know that song isn't yours." She looked at me and said she didn't know what I was talking about. I said, "That's my song you're passing off as your own." She said started to back away and said, once again, she didn't know what I was talking about and then ran off backstage.

And then I woke up.