The XX: XX

Yet another album I’ve been listening to on heavy repeat is XX, by The XX. I can’t honestly say I’ve heard anything that sounds like this before, but damn, I like it.

Kodomo, Still Life.

Some more good music I just found this morning while listening to Morning Edition: Kodomo’s Still Life. Nice melodic electronica, nothing too intense, but enough melody to be background/working music. Very nice.

Ratatat, LP3

I’m kind of ashamed to say this, because I dislike the name of the band so much, but I’m currently digging LP3 by Ratatat. It sort of defies description, but I like the way it’s constructed and the influences I’m hearing.

The Crystal Method

After a couple of middling albums, The Crystal Method released a new one called Divided By Night which has been slowly growing on me this week. They’ve dialed back the big-beat they were known for earlier to produce an album full of collaborations with other artists, including Emily Haines of Metric (another favorite new album), but the one I’ve been rotating is the final track with an artist named Meiko, called Falling Hard. It’s nice to have them back.

Maps: We Can Create

I’m currently listening to an album called We Can Create (iTunes link) by Maps on heavy rotation. It’s laid back electronica with some hooky choruses. Right up my alley.

Metric, Fantasies

I’m currently listening to Metric, Fantasies (iTunes link). I’m a sucker for indie electro-pop with female vocals (no, not Britney; think Ladytron) and this fills the bill perfectly.

My Bloody Valentine

I obviously wasn’t cool enough in 1991 to have appreciated My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless when it first came out, but I’m playing “Sometimes” over and over again this morning.

Props to Morphine

Excellent listening for this cloudy, gray weather we’re enjoying: Morphine’s Cure For Pain.

Heavy Rotation

DJ Shadow, You Made It. I first heard this two weeks ago, and I can’t get it out of my head.

RJD2, Here’s What’s Left.

I’ve got Here’s What’s Left by RJD2 on repeat in my head(phones) all day, on the heels of Ring Finger. I love me some RJD2. Plus, I just wound up getting a hatchet job haircut not unlike his.

John Mayer, Heavier Things.

I’ve been listening to John Mayer’s Heavier Things for the last couple of days, and liking it more and more. It’s good in a heartfelt acoustic pop sort of way, a lot like Pete Yorn.

John Mayer, Heavier Things.

I’ve been listening to John Mayer’s Heavier Things for the last couple of days, and liking it more and more. It’s good in a heartfelt acoustic pop sort of way, a lot like Pete Yorn.

Cut Copy

Cut Copy, Bright Like Neon Love.
I have “Saturdays” going through my head on infinite loop.

Album Of The Week 1.22.06

Album Of The Week 1.22.06
Beck, Guero. An excellent follow-up to Sea Change. Varying syles, subtle use of sampling (dig the backbeat in E-Pro) and lots of lush texturing. I like it more each time I hear it. Bonus: Check out “Everybody’s Gotta Learn Sometime” from the Eternal Sunshine soundtrack.

Album of the Day:

ford v-8, frederick, 7.24.04

Album of the Day: Sparta, Porcelain. From the punk ashes of At The Drive-In, this band rises to rock you out. (The iTunes biography calls them emo, but I don’t know where the line between rock and emo is drawn these days.)

Thanks to everybody offering support to my lovely wife during the ’04 Lockard World Hospital Tour; between cards, calls, and online shout-outs, I think she must feel a lot less lonely.

Random Fun Links: Airport Express Tips. In case you have $129 laying around asking to be spent. | Tricks of the Trade from the man known as Defective Yeti. (The butcher tip is fascinating.) | Recycle your old computer. Office Depot and HP are running a free recycling program until early September. Save some environment.

Community.

I hafta admit, I wish I had installed the comments system here a year ago. It’s been really interesting to write about different subjects and see what you’ve responded to over the last month, so I’m doing a little unscientific list:

• Online Personality Tests – 2 entries out of 3 got comments. (My Theory: everybody got tired of them, or you already got them in your inbox the previous morning)
• Working on the house – 3/4 (You feel sorry for us, and are secretly happy your houses aren’t broke-down like this one is)
• Wedding Information – 2/3 (You’re thinking, enough already…am I invited or not, you cheap prick?)
• Weekend Updates – 2/3 (Because it’s just so much more interesting than the rest of this crap.)
• Computers – 1/4 (This is you: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz)
• Trucks – 2/2 (Everybody loves trucks.)
• Booze – 1/1 (Almost as much as they like booze.)
• NASCAR – 0/1 (But nobody likes NASCAR.)
• Democrats 2/2 (OK, damn, this got some feathers rustled. Good to see you’re still awake out there.)
• Frigging AOL – 1/1 (And who doesn’t have a frigging AOL story?)
• TPS Reports – 1/1 (Or forgotten to put a cover on theirs?)
• Maryland Ham – 1/1 (Wow. I mean, this one got some people talking. Or maybe it was the beets.)
• Work changes – 0/3 (You don’t care where we’re employed, as long as we pick up the next round of drinks. Ungrateful bastards.)

So there you have it; that’s what people are talking about.

Pictures. Here’s some shots of the office in progress.

Daily Boardscan. Jen and I have a blue paperweight sitting in the foyer of the house taking up space: a rev C (slot-loading) iMac I bought a few months back in working condition. During the install of OS 10.3, I accidentally kicked the power cord out of the wall and (predictably) it went dark. Upon reboot, the machine made the needed clicks, whirs, and beeps, and showed nothing on the screen. Apparently I had blown the video board in my clumsiness, rendering the machine useless (this unfortunately is not the DVD model with the VGA out port on the back) for anything but anchoring a boat. What I’d like to do is swap it for the rev B grape iMac server, as it’s faster and quieter, but money and time have put those plans on hold. Anyway, after searching in vain for information online about this malady, I found this page with other folks having the same problems.

Music for working by: Chemical Brothers, One Too Many Mornings. Beautiful, driving, relaxed beats.