I Love You

Alright, so it’s Monday and it’s been quite a long time since I last wrote. Plus, today is extra special because…are you ready for it? This is my 100th post!! WOO-HOO! And to celebrate this I’m going to do a 100 song Random Playlist Monday. I know, I’m pretty dedicated. So, without further ado, here it is (just a warning: I am about to completely embarrass and humiliate myself because I have a feeling some very weird things are about to come up, brace yourselves).

1. War of the Worlds – Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
2. The City is a Drag – Hawksley Workman
3. To The Dogs or Whoever – Josh Ritter
4. Neon – John Mayer (so far so good)
5. Joy to the World – Sufjan Stevens
6. Woods – Bon Iver
7. Depot Depot – Tom Waits
8. Fool – Neutral Milk Hotel
9. The Girl You Lost to Cocaine – Sia
10. Back Broke – Swell Season
11. Cape Canaveral – Connor Oberst
12. New Years – Ohbijou
13. At the Airport – Old Man Luedecke
14. Motion the Eleven – Cornershop
15. Extra Ordinary – Dave Mann Collective
16. Sixteen – Justin Trawick (Freaky, no!?)
17. Come Together – Across the Universe Soundtrack
18. Late Bloomer – Sarah Harmer
19. Never Going Back Again – Fleetwood Mac
20. An Open Door – Illinois
21. Dream About Flying – Alexis Murdoch
22. South Australia – The Pogues
23. Trouble – Ray LaMontagne
24. Here Goes Something – Nada Surf
25. Waiting on the World to Change – John Mayer
26. To Go Home – M. Ward
27. Language is a Virus – Laurie Anderson
28. Doot Doot Plot – The Hidden Cameras
29. I Don’t Mind – The Cave Singers
30. Whole Lotta Losin’ – Monsters of Folk
31. Home – Wintersleep
32. Perfect – Danny Michel (It’s about time!)
33. Say Hey (I Love You)  – Michael Franti and Spearhead
34. Sula – Jeremy Fisher
35. Violins – Lagwagon
36. The Clearing in the Woods – Harry Nilsson (It’s getting strange now!)
37. Oviedo – Blind Pilot
38. Little Nancy – Fionn Regan
39. Junkie Song – The Be Good Tanyas
40. Jimmy Jazz – Clash (Good changeup there!)
41. Chelsea Dagger – Fratellis
42. Free Until They Cut Me Down – Iron and Wine
43. Low Day – Capra
44. Gypsy Boys Reprise – David Francey
45. I Am a Rich Man – Old Man Luedecke
46. Sammy – The One Night Band
47. The First Snow of the Year – Hawksley Workman
48. Run Devil Run – Jenny Lewis with the Watson T
49. On My Way – Ben Kweller
50. I’ve Just Seen a Face – Across the Universe (Go see this movie if you haven’t already, and if you have go watch it again I know I’m going to)
51. Toothpaste Kisses – The Maccabees
52. A Matter of Minutes – Shawn Colvin
53. Black Wave-Bad Vibrations – Arcade Fire
54. We Go -   Thao
55. Story of My Life – Done With Dolls
56. Had Me a Girl – Tom Waits
57. Blake’s View – M. Ward
58. Salt Bean Fumble – The Penguin Cafe Orchestra (Great name for a song if not a little strange)
59. Close to Me – The Cure
60. With or Without You – U2
61. Why Didn’t You Call Me? – Macy Gray
62. To Your Love – Fiona Apple
63. Never Know – Jack Johnson
64. Sold – Dan Mangan (Going to see him next week: can’t wait)
65. Anti-social – Cuff the Duke
66. Satisfied – Bruce Peninsula
67. Cowgirl in the Sand – City and Color
68. No Sleep – Sam Roberts
69. Last Leaf – The Cake Sale
70. Basket – Dan Mangan
71. Happier – A Fine Frenzy
72. Hearts in the Park – Patrick Watson
73. Our Velocity – Maximo Park
74. Midnight Lullaby – Tom Waits (With 3 songs, Tom now dominates, but how could he not?)
75. House in Motion – Talking Heads
76. Hello Seattle – Owl City
77. Oxford Comma – Vampire Weekend
78. Run (I’m a Natural Disaster) – Gnarls Barkley
79. Patience – Take That
80. Hours Last Stand – Elvis Perkins
81. (Past-due) – The Weakerthans
82. State of the Union – David Ford
83. Gomni – Ali Farka Toure
84. A Call to Arms – Beirut
85. The Saga – The Libertines
86. Shelter from the Storm – Bob Dylan
87. Sweet Baby James – James Taylor (some classic cheese, but we all love our cheese, well except for lactose intolerant people)
88. True – The Frames
89. The Dozens – Amelia Curran
90. 1234 – Feist
91. Champion Angel – Low Anthem
92. Try (just a little bit harder) – Janis Joplin
93. Sweet Hallelujah – Hawksley Workman
94. Quiet – Rachael Yamagata
95. All is Love – Karen O and the Kids (if you haven’t seen “Where the Wild Things Are”, go see it NOW)
96. Hannah – Freelance
97. Whales – Personal Stars
98. This Feeling — Danny Michel (just in time)
99. Relax – Frankie Goes to Hollywood (a terrible song! Yet so very good)
100. Brainy – The National

So, that was quite the list. There were some really good things on there, and a few questionable ones. Now is the appropriate time to laugh at that list. I must admit I’m slightly embarrassed by it, especially the Frankie Goes to Hollywood, but oh well I guess. Of course, there was an extremely large amount of Danny, Tom and Hawksley, but there always is. Today though out of all those songs I’m going to go for Michael Franti, because we all need a music pick-me-up every once and a while, and a little reggae never hurt anyone.

I first discovered Michael Franti through his Obama Song. I was really into Obama and all he stood for (and still am) and the song just seemed really cool to me, it also proved to me that I can like hip-hop/rap/reggae music (other than Bob Marley). After the intial discovery I went in and found a few more of his songs. I especially fell in love with Say Hey (I Love You). Sure it’s a little cheesy, but it’s a damn good cheesiness. And there’s just some kind of appeal to Michael Franti, I’m not entirely sure what it is, but he has that “thing”. This song just always makes me especially happy, and it can give you a good outlook on the world, this is especially shown in the video. The video for Say Hey (I Love You) has just made it up pretty high on my list of top videos. It’s pretty fantastic and incredible cute, see for yourself.

I love this video, I especially love that it’s real people and his background looks real, not Hollywood perfect. I think that’s what makes the song not come across totally fake and cheesy. It has a certain real-ness to it not expressed in most things. I really love that the people look like real people of different sizes, cultures, and are allowed to show real emotions. It’s a pretty darn cute video, and I think it can even make all you cynics out there smile (it achieved that for me, and I’m about as cynical as it gets). So, please smile away for the rest night, and if you’re like me you’re going to watch this video about a million times more. For now though I’m out, thanks for putting up with me for this long, it’s greatly appreciated, and feel free to continue, that would also be greatly appreciated.

P.S. Feel free to get up and dance a bit to, it may actually be a requirement. Awkward dancing especially.

Random Dan

It’s Monday, boohoo! But I’m not going to dwell on the negative and just move right onto the positive. And what is that you may ask? Maybe the fact that it’s RANDOM PLAYLIST MONDAY!! Hip-hip-hurray! Without further ado, here it is, on this lovely freezing cold day.

1. Piano Song – Meiko (I really like her if you’re into that cheery indie girl stuff)
2. Peace Train – Cat Stevens
3. Steady On – Shawn Colvin (this is quite the gloomy, folky playlist)
4. Two – The Antlers
5. Train in the Distance – Paul Simon
6. Coat Hook – Fionn Regan
7. Fantasy Man – Swell Season (a perfect song for the weather today)
8. Heavy Soup – Cornershop (also perfect)
9. Joy to the World – Arthur & Friends (getting into that Christmas mood)
10. Road Regrets – Dan Mangan

So that was a pretty awesome Random Playlist, although there isn’t really anything new on it, it was pretty old-school. So I am going to resort back to Dan Mangan. Now I know I’m always talking about him, but there is a video of his I’ve been wanting to show for a while, plus you can’t really get tired of Dan Mangan. Road Regrets is by far one of my favourite Dan Mangan songs, actually it’s one of my favourite songs over-all, and the video really lives up to the greatness of the song. So, without any more delay, here is the video for Road Regrets.

It’s a really clever video, and extremely cute too. It could also be one of those short animated videos at the beginning of some movies. What I don’t understand is why isn’t music like this more  popular? Why isn’t the Indie industry the main industry? It is so interesting and so in-depth and in my opinion knocks the socks off of the main-stream industry but for some reason never seems to be completely accepted. Well, for all those people for completely missing out because you don’t get to see gems like the fantasic Mr. Mangan. I think that is all of my music rant for the day, so until next time, have  a great night and talk to you soon!

Battle of the Bearded Boys (and Lady Gaga)

Five Words. I love The Swell Season. Simple as that. And more over, I especially love The Swell Season live, which I first realized last night when I saw them live. Yes live! It was a fantastic show, full of dreamy Irish charm, and passionate vocals. In fact I think it may have been one of my favourite live shows, EVER. And trust me that’s saying a lot. I was really worried about the show, because I love The Swell Season so much, and I so badly wanted it to be good. I thought that  I may love it too much, and it couldn’t possibly live up to my standards. It lived up to my standards and than passed my standards, passing into a whole new realm of standards I didn’t even know existed. They did everything I wanted them to, plus more. Peter Katz, the opening show, was also incredibly fantastic.

We walked in a little late (after getting my Strict Joy record of course), and at first I didn’t care how much of Peter Katz I missed. I mean he was just the opening act, how good could he be. The answer is really, really good. By the end of the first song I heard, my opinion had completely changed. I had aquainted myself with his music going in, but nothing could prepare me for how good he really was. Seeing him live really opened my eyes. I found him really similar to Donovan Woods in that same way. Listening to his songs, and his stories, and inspirations related to them, was really fun. I highly recommend checking him out if you ever get the chance. For now though, give a listen to ‘Til You Come Home, The Fence (Matthew Shepard’s Song), and Oliver’s Tune. The Fence (Matthew Shepard’s Song) is especially awesome. Not only is it a tribute to Matthew but a really beautiful song about pain and loss. I love to see musicians sing about things that really inspire, and impact them, but that are also current events. Using the power that is fantastic singing for the greater good is the way I’d use mine if I had any singing powers.

So below is the video for Peter Katz’s song Posters. This video is pretty quiet, but I find it powerful in an…un-powerful way. He’s just painting away, in his plaid shirt and ripped jeans, singing a quiet and serene song. Isn’t that what everyone does when they paint? By the way, he’s definitely invited to my Sensitive Bearded Boys Festival. It should actually be called Sensitive Bearded Boys in Plaid Festival, since they’re always wearing plaid. What’s with that? Anyways here’s the first video of my Battle of the Bearded Boys post.

So up next was the main attraction. THE SWELL SEASON. Yes folks, your heard it here first. They came out and (warning this is an increibly cheesy thought) this sense of calm just washed right over me. It was like at that moment everything was okay. I have a feeling The Swell Season has that effect on most people (mainly young women, who drive Mini Coopers, since the parking lot was filled with them). They started into the first song, and well I was completely blissful in my Glen Hansard filled heaven that was the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Nothing could have interrupted it. Not even the bad singing in the row behind me. Nope, nothing disturbed it. The only disturbance was the ending when I had to leave. That was a total bummer. I could have stayed there forever. But that wasn’t an option so I made the best of what I could with the time I had. I was hoping to add pictures to this post, but my hands were shaking so badly because I was so excited that my photos are just blurry messes of Glen Hansard.

They did all my favourites including Low Rising, Feeling the Pull (a fantasic rendition, really awesome), Falling Slowly (of course, I’m not sure they’ve ever done a show without this song), In These Arms, and The Moon. They also did a Neil Young song, as well as a duet with Peter Katz, which was awesome. I felt like they added some new things they’ve never done before, which was great because that means they were comfortable at the show. They also had one of the greatest encores, consisting of a large variety of songs including solos by both Glen and Marketa as well as a few duets. The show also consisted of spot the U2 moments becuase of some lame joke someone made about Bono and Glen Hansard that I never understood and I don’t think he did either. Glen really does have great stage presence though. He definitely turns on that Irish charm to the max. But not in a kitchy, cheesy way, but a refined and subtle way. A way that made almost every woman (and probably some men) completely swoon out of that building with happy dreamy thoughts of Glen dancing in their heads. I almost brought a Marry My Mother poster, but decided against it in the end, sorry mom. Although he has some great charm he’s also one of the most passionate singers I’ve ever encountered. It’s obvious he’s doing the thing he really loves to do, and he wants everyone to love and appreciate it as much as he does. Well, I’m pretty sure most people do. Even if they don’t like his music, they have to appreciate his passion and dedication. This reminds me of Van Morrison at times. Although I don’t know much of his music, from the few I do he has the same passion. Of course Marketa Irglova was great too, although I’m not as much a fan of her music. She has a beautiful voice, it’s just not my kind of voice. Although their duets are stunning together. What with his big rolling voice, and her high, quiet voice. It’s a nice mix.

Fans of The Swell Season are also much shorter than, say, Vampire Weekend. Maybe because the main audience is female? Anyways I could see perfectly. I’ve also found at shows, when you get tired of watching the singer (not that I ever get tired of you Glen, I just needed some amusement), watching the drummer is the cause of much amusement. Especially this drummer. He was hilarious to watch. What with his crazy facial expressions and funny body movements. Of course he could also sing. Like really sing, only as back-up but still just from that I loved his voice.

As you can tell I’m sure, I loved the show. I’m having trouble fitting it all into one post. I hope I’m doing the show justice. If not, well, go see it for yourself and experience it all on your own. For now though I think my time has come. I’ve passed 1000 words and my bedtime (congratualtions you dedicated readers, you’ve passed quite a feat today), so I’m going to finish it off with another video. This one’s for In These Arms, which is a quiet song, with a pretty funny video.

I like it because the song almost verges on cheesy but the video is completely ridiculous and funny. Especially Glen’s…interprative dance? And the funny masks. He’s definitely going to be added to my awkward dancers list. Congrats Glen. And congrats to all of you readers, until next time, goodnight!

P.S. you should have seen the Lady Gaga fans last night (or maybe you did..) they were almost as ridiculously dressed as the Lady herself. The only funny outfit we got at The Swell Season was Glen’s ridiculous hat.

When Dinosaurs Roamed the Earth

So, it’s Monday, but it’s a free Monday wiht no school or other commitments. I didn’t even realize until my mom pointed out that it was random playlist day, and because she was the one who remembered she got to shuffle the playlist on her iPod. So without further ado here is my mother’s random playlist.

1. Clampdown – The Clash

2. When You Gonna Flower? – Hawksley Workman

3. Midnight Moonlight – Be Good Tanyas

4. Song For Sarah Jane – Hawksley Workman (I guess it’s a Hawksley day)

5. Rise – The Frames

6. Toledo – Danny Michel (another awesome Danny song)

7. Mrs Mcgrath – Bruce Springsteen (from my favourite Springsteen album, We Shall Overcome)

8. Virginia Avenue – Tom Waits (there’s always some Tom, and always some Hawksley)

9. Into The Flame – Danny Michel (I guess the shuffle also sensed our Danny mood lately)

10. I Go Blind – 54-40 (another classic, and one of my moms favourites)

So apparently it was a Danny/Hawksley day, and that’s always a good day. I especially love the Hawksley Workman/Be Good Tanyas segue. That was really something you’d only get in a random playlist. Overall though, my mom;s shuffle was pretty similar to mine. I’m really happy the 54-40 came up on it, because that’s a great topic for a great, but super incredibly, wicked witch of the west melting kind of day.

I know my mom has been a fan of them since, well, dinosaurs roamed the earth. But they’ve managed to stay pretty popular. We were just talking about how their music doesn’t sound very dated, well I Go Blind doesn’t anyway. That’s pretty impressive 25 years later. I can’t say I know a ton of their music, but I know a good song when I hear one, and I Go Blind is surely one of those (in a bit of a cheesy kind of way). Below is the video for the song. It’s not at all what I expected, but see for yourselves.

It was a way different take on the song than I imagined. I kind of saw a pretty girl, and a bit of a love story, but instead it was much deeper. It looked at real issues like, poverty, fires, disasters, pain and in a sad way I really liked that. I liked that they used their song for more than money, and popularity (although I’m sure they got that too). It’s not the best quality video, and not even the best video, but I really appreciated the effort to do something a little different, in my opinion anyway.

P.S. I love their matching jackets at the end.

Tickled in Johnny

Once again I have a new discovery, thanks once again to Last.fm. It’s a little on the folk/country side, but in a tasteful way, not in a “god’s great, beer’s good, people are crazy way”, thankfully. Anyone heard of Johnny Flynn, well me neither, until about a week ago and I’m not sure how I ever lived before it. He’s fantastic in a country/folk/indie/blues/rock way. He basically sounds like a British David Francey. What could be better? –  truthfully, not much.

I’m patricularily obsessed with his song Shore to Shore, there’s something about the lyrics, and the whole melody that really gets me. Almost a “throat catcher” as my mom would describe it. Other great songs to check out are Tickle Me Pink, Sally, and Leftovers. Trust me, when you first listen to it you won’t understand and you’ll be like “what was that littlethumbed, weird vegetarian girl talking about” (someone actually said that to me, well not the littlethumbed part but the weird vegetarian part, gotta love highschool), but give it a few more tries and my guess is you’ll love it as much as I do. I mean I feel like I shouldn’t, but well, I do. His voice is not at all what I usually go for, maybe it’s the fact that it reminds me of another musician I really like? I have no idea. I find it’s  best not to question the wonderful world of music, well the indie one, maybe the major, popular stuff (I mean, Brittney Spears and Lady Gaga, or 50 Cent and Lil’ Wayne, you can question that for sure).

Johnny Flynn is one of those musicians where I could actually listen to the whole CD, not just a few songs which is what’s been happening to me lately. His CD A larum, is especially fantastic. Every song on there is extremely listenable, I’ve already told you my favourites, but do check out the whole thing it’s pretty awesome. I’m sitting here listening to it and I’m in shock that I love it as much as I do. His voice really is magic, in a way like Tom Waits or Hawksley Workman, because I find they both have “magic” voices to. When I first heard him sing, I had such a clear picture of what he looked like and than actually saw and picture and was shocked. Not that he looked bad (not that at all , just that he wasn’t bearded, and weathered looking, rather spry and “slim and trim” like my grandma would say, and man can that guy pull off a plaid, lumberjack style shirt, I mean that there is a feet (no offense to any lumberjacks, I’m sure you do to).

I think it’s best I stop ranting about lumberjacks and get to the video. I couldn’t decide what to show, but I think I’m going to go for Leftovers, don’t forget to check out others. Once again this video is a little strange, but not as much so.

I’m still in shock about how much I love him, but hey music’s a funny thing, I already knew that. Hope you like it as much as I do, and remember to give it a chance — it may take awhile. Try starting with Shore to Shore, it’s a pretty gentle introduction into the world of Johnny Flynn.

Music On The Hillside

So it’s only Tuesday, which sucks because that means there is still 3 days of school left. But to make this Tuesday better I have some good music to talk about which in my opinion makes every day better. I’ve created yet another playlist but this one is super exciting. This is my Hillside 2010 playlist (yes I know I’m obsessed). It features bands that are playing at Hillside this year. I’ve gone through and picked ones that I thought sounded interesting, but feel free to check it out for yourself here. I’ve added bands I already knew that were playing plus I went in search of some new ones and think I made some pretty fantastic discoveries. Below is my playlist, the ones with the *’s beside them mean their new to me and maybe to you too.

1.  Heart of my Own – Basia Bulat

2.*City Lights – Bent by Elephants (this is awesome, I got a few songs, I highly recommend checking it out)

3.*Girls’s Night – First Rate People (I think this will be good live, but it sounds interesting, I’m liking it for a young indie canadian band)

4.  Babies Don’t Like Blue Anymore – Yukon Blonde

5.*Slow Knots – Brasstronaut (I’m really happy about this discovery, it has a cool beat and the voices are awesome)

6.  Winnipeg Winds – Jason Collett (I’m excited for him live)

7.*River Song – The Wooden Sky (another great discovery)

8.  The Hideout – Sarah Harmer (of course she’s a classic, a classy classic)

9.*Dark Eyes – Calexico & Iron & Wine (I got this song just because I have an Iron & Wine thing, sorry if I excited you although Calexico is sounding good too)

10. Take Me To The Riot – Stars

11. Kindergarten – Zeus

12. Doot Doot Plot -Hidden Cameras (I really love this song, but check out the rest it’s awesome, I can’t wait for Hillside)

13.*Firecracker – Frazey Ford (so I didn’t know she was from the Be Good Tanyas until I heard her voice, than I knew)

14.*Even While You’re Sleeping – The Acorn (another indie boy band but trust me I’m not complaining)

15.*Curs In The Weeds – Horse Feathers (to feed everyone’s need for some good ol’ twang, although he isn’t as twangy as I thought, he’s more pretty voice)

16.*Your Island – Young Rival (more indie boy, although more upbeat)

As you can see alot is new to me, which is great. Please check out all of the bands and listen more, these are just songs I kinda liked — you may feel differently. Featured below is The Acorn with Even While Your Sleeping. It’s awesome to see the band play live and it makes me even more excited.

I hope you don’t mind my many Hillside rants. I thought this would be okay because it’s giving you awesone new music that maybe you wouldn’t have found any other way, I know I probably wouldn’t have. Check out more  by all the artists.

Where The Wild Things Are

As I’m writing this, I’m sitting and listening to my Where The Wild Things Are record. And I was wondering what to write about but than I realized, it’s pretty obvious, I’m going to talk about Where The Wild Things Are.

As a little (and a kinda older kid) my parents always read to me at night (which I’m convinced turned me into the writer, reader and weirdo I am now, thanks mom and dad, truly ). Where The Wild Things Are was always one of the stories they read me, although I have to admit, it wasn’t always my very favourite. When I heard the movie was coming out though I was excited because I was hoping I’d get the story a little more as I got older. When I heard Spike Jonze was directing the movie my excitment grew even more. I went to see the movie close after opening night(with one of friends who didn’t appreciate it and my mom) without really knowing what I was in store for with the soundtrack…or the movie (the only song I had was All Is Love, which is probably still my favourite).

The movie, in my opinion was incredible. The monsters were unbelievable. Ira of course was my favourite but I defiently felt for Alexander, poor guy. The landscape and everything was great, the whole movie fit with the book even though the book has like nothing it. Spike must of had a pretty clear picture in his head because he got it so right. I felt like the whole movie was pretty moving. Did anybody else think that Carol should have hugged Max at the end? I did. And the soundtrack, well the soundtrack rocked my world. I can’t say I was ever really a fan of Karen O or the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s but maybe she’s just better with kids? Anyways, I love all of it, it has this really cool indie vibe to it that I love and somehow relates to the movie which I thought would be an impossible task. Head’s up is also one of my favourites.

I went shopping with my mom on the weekend and we ended up in Urban Outfitters. I think we must have spent about an hour there looking at clothes (of course) but also looking at all the other stuff they had. I mean I knew those stores had funky things, but I had no idea how cool. I not only got clothes (which were awesome) but I also got a Barack Obama figure that says things, sadly not Yes We Can! though (he’s staring down at me right now). I also got my Where The Wild Things Are Record (on sale). It has this really sad picture of Carol on the front that kinda of breaks my heart but makes me happy at the same time. I wnated to get a figurine to add to my collection of figurines (featuring Dude Love, yes Dude Love, his shirt actually says that and he’s a wrestling guy that I got at the dollar store. What does that even mean?) but they only had Max and I really didn’t want Max (even on sale) I wanted a monster.

You may be wondering why I don’t mind Where The Wild Things Are getting popular, but it’s not the same crowd of usuals who appreciate Where The Wild Things Are. It’s not like Nicholas Sparks The Last Song or Twlight because it isn’t annoying 12 yearold girls loving it, it’s people who are a little well…strange?

Anyways, I’ve posted All Is Love, check out the rest of CD, it’s great and if you haven’t already WATCH THE MOVIE! And of course, read the book, always read the book like my librarian mother says (actually she never said that, but if she a normal librarian I’m sure she would). Enjoy!

Of course their wasn’t an actual music video for the movie, but this is good because it gives you a snapshot of the movie if you haven’t already seen it of course, if you have well enjoy it again, or just listen to the song or just look at the big lovely monster faces. Think this made kids more scared of monsters in their closets or less. For me less.

Marching to Hillside

So it’s Hillside ticket buying day. We got ours…luckily. My aunt stood in line at the actual store and got them but I thought I’d check the internet just for fun. Within 5 minutes I think all the weekend passes were gone. It’s incredible. 5 minutes, last year, it was 20 minutes. If you wanted to go to hillside, better luck next year. I think for people that have been going forever they should get free passes, I mean around 11 years later and I still have to wait like everyone else. When my family and I first went, we could just go to the booth that day and get in. Now there’s millions of line-ups and people. It’s all because of the year Arcade Fire, Bedouin Soundclash and Stars played (sadly I was too young to really realize, and couldn’t appreciate the music greatness). That year made the festival so popular. It’s all worth it though. It may be the greatest experience ever — if you haven’t gone, I recommend you do, but it will have to be next year.

The line-up this year looks awesome. It features bands like Sarah Harmer, Jason Collett,  Zeus, Yukon Blonde, Hidden Cameras, Basia Bulat, The Acorns and the Stars among many others. I’ve seen Sarah Harmer , The Hidden Cameras and Stars all at Hillside, but not the others and not to mention the bands I don’t know at all, but soon will, those are the best.

For those of you who don’t know Hillside I’m about to give you a tour, so close your eyes and imagine it, than open them again to finish the tour. Okay, there’s 4 stages, the smallest is the sun stage, it’s mainly spoken word and a few workshops. The next is the Lake stage conveniently set right on the lake, it’s second smallest, usually the where the littler bands play (you can tell the popularity rank of a band by the stage they play on). Third is the Island stage which is my personal favourite. It’s off to the other side of the island. It usually plays the bands that aren’t tiny but aren’t huge. It’s also where the more upbeat bands play, whereas the Lake stage plays quieter music, mainly because it’s smaller and there isn’t room to dance (just to clarify, when I say stage it’s mainly a big tent except for the main). And last but certainly not least (I never got that saying) is the main stage. It’s where the big people play like Sarah Harmer, Stars, Jason Collett. It’s open so if it rains, well you get soaked (and it always rains). Around the stages is the food tent (which is amazing), areas to swim (it is on an island) and vendors usually with clothes, pottery and jewelery.

I hope you enjoyed my mini tour. As you can probably tell, I LOVE Hillside, I have ever since I was about 3. But I’m going to stop ranting about how great it is and move onto music (it really is great).

I figured I might as well talk about a band playing at Hillside, so I thought it would be a good day for Zeus. They’re a pretty small Indie Canadian band (probably a Island stage band). I thought it would be a good time to talk about them because I never probably will think about them again. My mom discovered them on CBC. It took us a few times to actually like the song, but I do now. They have this great indie, rock thing and the one song I like has a great chorus that always get stuck in my head. I have only really listened to the song Marching Through Your Head, I guess I’ll discover more at the show.

The video is hilarious and the song great. This may be one of my favourite videos. Really strange but awesome. The video is also really great because, well it’s camping, and most people wear those kinds of boots at Hillside. So, let the song “march through your head” and laugh away.

Click here for the Hillside site, check out the rest of bands playing, let me know if you know any of them.

P.S. sorry about the long Hillside rant

P.P.S I got the Where The Wild Things Are record to add to my collection, it’s a awesome soundtrack, maybe I’ll talk about them tomorrow.

P.P.P.S. I feel like I’m writing a diary with all these P.S.’s sorry.

Warning: Top Secret

Okay, so we’ve been together awhile and because our relationship is going so well, and you’ve been treating me nicely (by actually readng my blog). I’m finally prepared to share my most secret music secret. My one music indulgence that I know I shouldn’t like but do. Are you ready, okay here it goes (I hope you know this is  a big deal that I’m actually going to share this, please don’t count it against me, everyone has their own dirty music secrets). I don’t even tell my friends this but but I feel we’re ready. Alright, it’s Miley Cyrus. Yes, teen pop sensation Miley Cyrus (and no, not Hannah Montanna, MILEY CYRUS! Don’t get them confused). Anyways, I’ve admitted this but I don’t think it’s really that bad…right? I mean I could of confessed to loving something much worse … like her father.

In my opinion Miley Cyrus seems really down-to-earth, well for a seventeen yearold superstar anyways. I’m not crazy about all her stuff I mean Party in the U.S.A. was a mega disaster and her poll dancing on the teen choice awards wasn’t great but I thought she was actually really good in The Last Song (yes I’m a Nicholas Sparks fan, but to clarify it’s my grandma who first got me hooked on him. And I liked him before everyone else, that’s important to me, I hate being a follower of trends if you haven’t already noticed). Anyways, I think she’s pretty cool, she’s certainly made it far for her age, I guess her dad is (or was) a huge country star (not a good one) which may have helped but either way I like her. I find that she actually can’t sing that well which may be why I like her so much. I don’t like really pretty voices and hers has a certain edge that I really like, it’s a little gruff and edgy. She’s not the normal disney princess like Ashley Tisdale, Selena Gomez or Demi Lovato. I’ve always wondered if she would still be so popular without Hannah Montanna, luckily she seems to breaking out and doing her thing apart from Hannah Montanna (the movie was also a disaster). I think a lot of people don’t like her because of the whole disney, Hannah Montanna thing.

She is also my thunderstorm music. I have this huge fear of thunderstorms and a few weeks ago I was on my own during one, so I sat in the bathtub and listened to her song The Climb on repeat really loud and it helped (this may be more embarassing than the fact that I like her). If you’re having trouble liking her try listening to her music through headphones instead of speakers, for some reason it seems to help or so I’ve found.

I don’t know, you may be wondering why liking her is so weird, but if you know me you know I don’t like anything popular so I’m really having to fight with myself to admit it because it goes against all my musical bones. But I did it and I’m proud to say I’m a Miley Cyrus fan (funny as I’m writing this Hannah Montanna came on the disney channel, which I must admit I have  a bit of a weakness for). Their is about 5 songs I actaully like by her, these are: The Climb, When I Look at You, Breakout and well I guess that’s it.

So, I’m actually going to post a video by her. Hope you enjoy, or atleast somewhat tolerate it. Actually I just hope you don’t stop reading my blog because of this. Please ignore the awful picture and just listen. Don’t think about whose singing, just listen to the music it may help.

I can’t believe I’m actually going to show this. Please continue reading after this post.

Vampire Weekend Live

Right off the bat I’m going to tell you this is NOT todays post. It’s yesterdays I was just too exhausted to write it yesterday. Expect todays post later today.

So, Tuesday night I went to see Vampire Weekend at the Sound Academy in Toronto. This post will basically be my review on performance, venue, and overall experience.

I loved the place. It was big enough that it didn’t feel like everyone was on top of each other but it didn’t feel like it was just you in the room either. For performance I’m pretty sure the show was good. I mean the music was great, their AWESOME live but I don’t really know what the band looked like. I barely even saw Ezra Koenigs head. Every once and a while when people would a little I could see his head bob up and down. I don’t even know what he was wearing (which is very important!). I’ve decided I am way too short for clubs like this.  There was one nice person at the show who didn’t stand in front of me (and I know it’s tricky not too) who, even though his friends were beside me didn’t get in my way (good thing too he was like 6.5″ I think). The guy in front of me was the same height so basically I just looked at his hair all night, and don’t get me wrong it was nice hair but I’m sure Ezras hair is much nicer (funny story about the Ezra thing. If I was a boy my parents would have probably named me Ezra and I thought it was the worst name ever until I discovered the lead singer of VDs name is Ezra. That almost made it cool enough I almost wished I was a boy…but not really). The other annoying this is that people kept cutting in front of me. My dad said they kept cutting in front of me because there was a gap in the crowd, HAHAHA! Anyways, other than the fact that I’m too short, the show was great. They made it much more upbeat and danceable. Their encore was Contra, which was awesome and they did a really good job of Cousins. I love their song One (Blake’s Got A New Face) even though I think it annoys everybody else in the world. Maybe it’s just because it reminds me of a friend.  Overall the show was great.

Conclusion: Vampire Weekend fans = freakishly tall (no joke, their monsters).Next time I’m wearing heels. And I’ve decided clubs should hand out phone books or something like they do for concerts or movies with children.

Overall Rating: 41/2 stars

Here’s California English, which was awesome live. Really cool to see him making all the noises.

P.S. I’ll talk about Vampire Weekend again, this is just about their live show, so don’t PANIC!