7 posts from January 2009

This post is explicitly aimed at the fans of the fanfiction story Disc Jockeys.

I've had several inquiries about the music referenced in the story, or comments cheering certain choices.  Granted, I have been spinning a 200-track playlist during the writing of this monster, but there are songs that are more crucial to the story and its mood, as opposed to 'good writing music'.  Unable to narrow it to a few tracks, I've created a two-disc compilation.

I mainly opted for songs mentioned in the fic as being played by the characters in the store, although a few obvious choices were dropped (Rick Astley) in favour of pieces that would play if I were to film certain scenes.  The discs are zipped, with the file names changed to reflect correct order of sequencing and play.  I will make notes with the tracklistings below to indicate such.

As per the RIAA and their rules, you know the drill:  these are for educational purposes or review purposes only, delete after 3 days or I'm not responsible, etc etc etc.  On a more serious note, I strongly encourage you to support the artists on these discs, especially the indies.  Supporting art is crucial now more than ever.

DISC JOCKEYS:  THE SOUNDTRACK

DISC ONE

1. The Pot - Tool.  Played in the store during the opening - chapter 3.
2. Discipline - Nine Inch Nails.  Played during chapter 3 and leading into chapter 4.
3. Money - Pink Floyd.  Alice plays this as a salute to Edward's awesome gambling skills.
4. Common People - Pulp.  Played after the 'songs for disenfranchised workers' conversation in chapter 5, after Carlisle breaks the bad news about Virgin.
5. The Grace - Neverending White Lights.  Jasper plays this after vetoing Eminem..  Fits his mood about things with Alice.
6. Portrait of a Dead Soul - The Red Paintings.  Emmett plays this for Alice before he does his 'call to the supplier' for some interesting CD titles.
   
7. Youth of America - Birdbrain.  Alice blasts this after she and Jasper mock the cannibal customer in chapter 6.
8. Womanizer - Britney Spears.  Emmett earns himself a dance in chapter 9 to this from Rosalie...
9. The Mountain - PJ Harvey.  Alice is listening to this as Carlisle talks to her about her foster mother's abandonment.
10. The Thin Ice - Pink Floyd.  The source for the title of chapter 10, Bella sings it in that chapter after her disaster of a chat with Edward.  Note that at the end of chapter 9, Alice quotes from In The Flesh?, another track on the same Pink Floyd album.
11. Like A Friend - Pulp.  This is the first of the 'mood songs'.  It could have been played by Edward while driving to Seattle in chapter 1 and 2, but it also fits his broken heart state after talking to Bella and throughout chapter 10.
12. Straight - Amanda Palmer.  Alice plays this for Bella (and herself) in chapter 10.
13. Pandora's Aquarium - Tori Amos.  Another mood track.  This one sets the feel for both Bella in the forest path, feeling hopeless, and Alice, who feels as if she can never be 'normal' enough for Jasper again.
14. Paint's Peeling - Rilo Kiley.  Another mood song, a sort of angsty piece that tracks Bella's overdose and its feel for her, as well as Edward's treatment of her to come.
15. Failing The Rorschach Test - Matthew Good Band.  Jasper plays this for Alice in chapter 11, one of her 'Alice' songs.
16. Round Here - Counting Crows.  Carlisle sings and plays this before discovering the dance party out front.
17. Butterflies and Hurricanes - Muse.  A mood track that captures both the fight with Edward and Carlisle, the chaos with Rosalie and Rick, and Bella's meltdown.

DISC TWO
Mirror source

1. The Resolution - Jack's Mannequin.  Edward plays this for Bella in chapter 15.
2. An Unexpected Rain - Melissa Etheridge.  Rosalie is blasting this as she drives back to the store in chapter 16.
3. Mad World - Gary Jules.  Alice selects this as her funeral music...
4. Another Year - Amanda Palmer.  ...But indicates if she could only hear one more song before her death, she'd choose this one.
5. Graveyard Girl - M83.  The song Alice is dancing to at the start of chapter 17.
6. Don't Cry - Jakalope.  I see this as a mood piece for Alice's battle for her life, beginning in the club with her worries and fears.  Alternate song rejected due to length restrictions:  Sing For Absolution by Muse.
   
7. Girl Disappearing - Tori Amos  This song is a mood piece, capturing Bella's feelings for Alice after hearing her story.
8. Bloodflower - Tilly and the Wall.  A nice sassy 'watch out' song for the preparations for the party.
9. Time Is Running Out - Muse.  The first song Jasper's band sings, and indeed, the store's time is running out.
10. 'Til I Hear It From You - Gin Blossoms.  The second song the band plays, the first Empire Records soundtrack reference.
11. Konstantine (live in Ventura) - Something Corporate.  The song, and specific version of it, Edward sings for Bella.
12. You're All I Have - Snow Patrol.  The fourth song played by the band, in the background of Bella and Edward's talk in chapter 22.
13. Livin' On A Prayer - Bon Jovi.  The group sing-along and the last song before the police shut the party down.
14. Sugarhigh - Coyote Shivers.  Part of the party on the roof scene, and the second Empire Records soundtrack grab.
15. This Year's Love - David Gray.  Played in the car by Bella on the way to Edward's in chapter 23.
16. Center of the Sun - Conjure One.  Edward plays this during... well...  you know.  ;)
17. A Single Explosion - Matthew Good.  Closing scene of the fic... 
    

Something Corporate Live Ventura DvD Konstantine

Sometimes, I'm late to the musical party, and this song is one instance of that.  I have liked Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin for a while now, but I only finally heard this, one of the more infamous songs by SoCo, as the fangirls call them, in the last few months.

I'm in love with this version in particular.  There's something about the delivery, about the moment, that breaks my heart and reminds me of timeless, epic love, the sort that withstands everything that the world throws at it.  It reminds me of my grandparents and the love they shared, the love my grandmother keeps alive through her memories.  It's the sort of love that can burn out if not tended carefully, as Andrew sings.

I worry and fear that my love will burn out, turn to ashes, leaving me dreaming in a living room, missing my own Konstantine.  I worry this will be the story of my life, for I am a fire, always burning embers waiting to ignite with the right fuel.  But if I become the one burned, a song this beautiful would win me back. 

Jack's Mannequin - The Resolution

This is the anthem of 2009, I have decided.  Each year seems to become about a certain mood or song, for me.  For 2005, it was Common People by Pulp.  For 2006, it came down to Fly Away by Poe.  For 2007, it became about You Look So Fine by Garbage.  2008 was 99% Of Us Is Failure by Matthew Good.

But this year, I am going to rise from the ashes of the sorrow of 2008, as any good Phoenix should do.  In 2003, I understood it so clearly, the message I fought to embrace even as I tattooed a symbolic reminder of it on my back:  I'm alive.  I survived.  I will always survive.  If the past I have endured already has not killed me, nothing will.  It's given me blows that left me gasping and bleeding, figuratively and literally, and I have always found that elusive light to follow out of the dark.

This song reached out to me later in 2008, and rings truer than ever.  It rings true for several of my friends, fellow survivors who surely, as I do, need to be reminded in darker hours that they too have survived.

There are stories we will never tell, stories from the hell we have endured.  Some stories burn so deeply that only the scar remains to testify, for there are no words to articulate it.  The past, it may haunt us, voices whispering in the back of our heads as the sun sets on another day.  But the sun will rise, and the light will shine again.  And even in the dark, the moon lies near to guide us.

This is my resolution.

Above and beyond my own declared favourites, here's what last.fm tells me I spent the most time listening to in the last year.

Top Artists

Tori Amos
Karen Kosowski
Matthew Good
Nine Inch Nails
Matthew Good Band
Garbage
The Dresden Dolls
Spring Awakening cast
Paramore
Evanescence
Amanda Palmer
Sunshine State
Finger Eleven
Rilo Kiley
Melissa Etheridge
Jakalope
Neverending White Lights
Emilie Autumn
Sarah McLachlan
Conjure One

Top Tracks

Day Job – Sunshine State
Reset – Peter Angelo
Black Cab – Jens Lekman
Broken Glass – The Gathering
Dancing – Elisa
99% Of Us Is Failure – Matthew Good
Sinners of Saint Avenue – Slave To The SQUAREwave
Anywhere – Evanescence
How To Save A Life – The Fray
The Grace – Neverending White Lights
Time Is Running Out – Muse
Emergency – Paramore
Breathe Me – Sia
Brighter – Paramore
Like A Friend – Pulp

This discrepancies astound me, namely how few of my top artists yielded a top track.  Tori Amos is an artist I love, but I've found myself pulling back from her music in the last year, so it surprises me that she still holds the number one place.

As a note:  if you combine stats for Matthew Good and Matthew Good Band, he would rank second on my artist charts, and if you combine The Dresden Dolls with Amanda Palmer, that would be the new third place, both of which feel more 'right' in terms of my listening habits this year.

Most Listened To Albums of 2008

Sunshine State - Sunshine State
Who Killed Amanda Palmer - Amanda Palmer
Hospital Music - Matthew Good
American Doll Posse - Tori Amos
Empire Records soundtrack - Various
Big Change - Slave to the SQUAREwave
Riot - Paramore
Beautiful Midnight - Matthew Good Band
All We Know Is Falling - Paramore
Greatest Hits - Spice Girls
Act 1:  Goodbye Friends of the Heavenly Bodies - Neverending White Lights
Optimist Party - Karen Kosowski
Cast Recording - Spring Awakening
The Dresden Dolls - The Dresden Dolls
Version 2.0 - Garbage
It Dreams - Jakalope
The Wall - Pink Floyd
Out Here At Sea - Karen Kosowski
The Fragile (left) - Nine Inch Nails
Speak For Yourself - Imogen Heap

What music blog is complete without a yearly wrap-up on the releases of the year that stood out, for positive or negative reasons?

Admittedly, I have not been as in touch with the releases of the year and must preface this entry with stating that there are going to be glaring omissions from this list. Life has kept me from music this year, be it keeping me from concerts I wished to see, keeping me from the time to listen to albums I want to hear, or making it difficult to listen to certain artists without feeling uncomfortable. However, I do have several albums upon which to rave or rant, so here's what you get.

This was a year where my stalwart music artists took the backseat for others, where single songs possessed my devoted attention, while albums were generally shunned. It was a year of nostalgia, as I turned to older favourites for comfort in trying times. But beyond that, I found this year's music lacklustre and not to my liking, perhaps due to the concentration of artists in genres I'm not fond of. For several months, I was “off music”, something that has never happened before to me. It was disorienting, to say the least.

The concerts I saw this year were fewer than I would have liked, but none of them disappointed. All of them delivered beyond my hopes and expectations. It was a year of seeing new artists and old favourites. If I were to rank a top five of shows I saw this year, it would go a little something like this:

5. Rilo Kiley at The Phoenix: Solid set, great energy, tight openers including Thao Nugyen

4. Paramore with Jack's Mannequin at The Kool Haus: Amazing energy, three solid openers, and Jack's Mannequin renewed my love for Andrew McMahon

3. Melissa Etheridge at Massey Hall: Three hours of non-stop, high energy music with powerful and moving banter between songs. A first time for me with Melissa and hopefully not the last.

2. Matthew Good at Massey Hall: This man never disappoints me with his intense delivery on every song, his caustic wit and his genius songwriting. So grateful this became a live album.

1. Amanda Palmer at The Mod Club: It had every element going for it – incredible setlist, stellar performance, fabulous openers, and incredible theatrics and stage presence. Easily one of the best performances I've seen Amanda give (and I have 8 other points of reference).

And now, without further ado, here we go with my personal 'awards' for 2008:

Album That Sends Me Into Fits Of 80's Nostalgia: Saturdays=Youth by M83. This album is utterly fantastic, with tracks like Couleurs, Highway of Endless Dreams and Skin of the Night leading the charge into a soundscape that evoked Erasure meets Conjure One meets Arcade Fire's intelligent layering and music craft. I easily find myself lost within the tracks of this album in a way that lands on par with Explosions In The Sky and Max Richter.

The Album That Lived Up To The Hype: Donkey by CSS. I'm not much of a trend follower, and even the critical darling pieces often leave me cold (see: You Say Party, We Say Die!; most of Radiohead's post-OK Computer output; Coldplay's discography). CSS however live up to the excitement, and Donkey is just so much fun to dance around to, one can't resist it. There's not a single bad track, although some are stronger than others. I'm fond of Believe Achieve, Jager Yoga and Let's Reggae All Night, myself.

Reviving The Now Crowded Male Singer-Songwriter Folkie Genre: Charmed and Strange by Yoav. I first had a taste of Yoav's music as he opened for Tori Amos' American Doll Posse tour in 2007. At first, I took one look at a lone guy and a guitar and immediately wondered how Tori kept finding Howie Day part nauseum. Yoav, however, is far more clever as a lyricist, and his musical palette is more acoustic Red Paintings than Jason Mraz. Adore, Adore, There Is Nobody, and the soulful One By One set Yoav miles ahead of a crowded field.

Bringing The LOLZ To Musicals: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Joss Whedon remains my master after he cleverly proves that you can give a product away for free and then sell it... and make a profit! Neil Patrick Harris singing about freeze rays? An Evil League of Evil run by Bad Horse? Each song is so silly and fun, I can't help myself. Once More With Feeling was one of Joss' finest Buffy hours. Perhaps he should write an actual musical, complete with ridiculous stage sets? I can dream!

The Slightly Guilty Musical Theatre Junkie's Pleasure: I Stand by Idina Menzel. Are some of the lyrics cliched? Sure. Are some of them dripping with the saccharine Celine Dion is famous for? Hell yes. Does Idina kick ass and take names vocally, making the album enjoyable all the same? You bet your (tattooed) ass. Check out Brave, I Stand, I Feel Everything.

Solid But Sorta Overrated: Third by Portishead. This is where gasps of indignant objection begin. I am not, let me stress not implying Third isn't a solid album of quality music, good news for a band that took such an extended hiatus. But on repeated listenings over time, I can't say the album stands out enough as a whole to make me want to listen to it over and over. Some tracks are absolutely stunning (We Carry On; Silence; Nylon Smile), while the others are solid but not worth the prostrating critics gave it. I coin this Radiohead syndrome.

Letdown of the Year: Acid Tongue by Jenny Lewis. When Rilo Kiley's Under The Blacklight came out, my personal theory for the album not being to par with their previous outings was that Jenny and Blake were both 'holding back' for their solo projects. Unfortunately, that may have not been the case with Jenny. It's not a bad album, per se; tracks like Jack Killed Mom and Pretty Bird resonate with me. It's just not memorable; each song blends into the next, lacking the wordplay jabs and sonic shifts throughout Rabbit Fur Coat.

Best Album That's Not Really An Album: No, Virginia by The Dresden Dolls. Consisting of outtakes and old live favourites finally recorded for official release, No,Virginia feels rather all over the place at times. But when viewed as a b-sides/rarities collection, this is acceptable, and the quality of the material is enough to enjoy it. Dear Jenny, Mouse and the Model, The Gardener, Lonesome Organist Rapes Page Turner... All the typical fun and punk cabaret you'd expect from the Dresden Dolls.

Best Return To & Reinvention of Roots: The Slip by Nine Inch Nails. Is Trent in angsty form? Oh yes. Do I detect a strong flavour of the 80's tinged Depeche Mode-ness of Pretty Hate Machine? Yes, yes I do. Does this album deliver both rocking and despairing tracks with a lyrical flavour that feel more self-aware and self-mocking than self-loathing? Damn right it does. I love this album rather passionately, and offer you 1,000,000, Discipline, Demon Seed and Letting You as the places to start your love affair.

Favourite Local Album: Meeting The Future At Full Speed by Karen Kosowski. I've already covered this album in extensive detail in this blog, but it deserves its mention here. Karen remains one of my favourites among the Toronto-area indie artists I've come to know and love, and this album only builds on her previous stellar album, Out Here At Sea. Earnest and hopeful, its electro-pop vibe will leave you humming your way through the day, even at its darkest.

And now, *drum roll* the big awards...

Best Album of the Year (live): Live At Massey Hall by Matthew Good. After such an extensive catalogue, it was long overdue that the raw emotional intensity of Matthew Good be captured for prosperity on CD, and this disc is special in that, other than edits to correct lost audio the night of, it is an uncorrected live album. Having been at the show it was recorded at, it takes me back to one of the best concerts I saw this year. The set strongly slants towards Hospital Music material, which to me is one of his very best albums. In light of the loss of my grandfather to cancer, 99% Of Us Is Failure hits particularly hard and is one of the highlights of the 2 disc set. Many songs are much richer live (She's In It For The Money is painful to listen to because of the raw pain in Matt's delivery; A Single Explosion closes on a haunting powerful note), which makes this album a must have for fans and a fantastic introduction to his genius.

Best Album Of The Year (studio): Who Killed Amanda Palmer by Amanda Palmer. I've been with Amanda since a friend encouraged me to download Girl Anachronism in 2002, and I am with her for the long haul. I dearly love her work within the dynamic of The Dresden Dolls, love the playful cabaret feel of the drums and piano coupled with incisive and something darkly amusing lyrics. This album bring those elements of lyrical finesse and dark humour, but it also brings a more personal, deeper look into the human condition with songs like Strength Through Music and Have To Drive. Coupled with Ben Folds' guiding advice (the usage of a very raw demo vocal for Leeds United was a brilliant move that only adds to the song) and the gorgeous strings created for the album, Who Killed Amanda Palmer is the album Amanda was born to write, and the one album that you must try, no matter what preconceptions you may have of The Dresden Dolls or Amanda herself. Get started with Astronaut, Leeds United, Guitar Hero, Another Year and Have To Drive.

And now, a few older discs worth mentioning...

Rediscovery of the Year: Act I: Goodbye Friends of the Heavenly Bodies by Neverending White Lights. An album from 2005, it's always been one I have endorsed to fellow music lovers. The ethereal moody feel of Daniel Victor's compositions, complimented by haunting and heartbreaking lyrics performed by a who's who of the Canadian alt rock scene, this album crept up on me and demanded centre stage in 2008. The lyrics weave a set of stories about loss and love that interconnect subtly, adding a delicious cohesion. Sample The Grace, I Hope Your Heart Runs Empty or From What I Once Was.

Better Late To The Party Than Never:  Kala by M.I.A. I'm not generally a girl who goes for hip hop, rap or R&B; it's just not my scene. The odd song will catch my ear, but nothing that has me buying a CD, not since Salt N Pepa's Very Necessary. But with Kala, M.I.A. has created something so utterly fun and sassy, one can't help but be drawn in. Paper Planes caught me, hook, line and gunshot sample, and that has led to an affair with $20, Come Around and XR2. Where was I in '92? Wishing for music this ridiculously enjoyable!

Better Late To The Party Than Never, Part Two:  The Awakening by Melissa Etheridge. Passed a copy of this by a friend prior to my live experience with Melissa, it's fast become an album dear to my heart and almost a metaphor for my entire year. While some may find the spiritual elements a little off-putting (there is some God mentions, but most of it is general spiritual belief), it's an incredible testament to the journey Melissa went through emotionally as she battled breast cancer. There are scathing political references as well, fitting in light of this election year, and songs of regret and heartbreak. But the end feeling is one of being able to rise above everything, if we believe that all can be possible, and that there is something larger than us. A solid, well-written album that doesn't have a single dud to it.