Leif Vollebekk’s “Northernmost Eva Maria”

By Justin | February 20, 2010

Leif Vollebekk's "Inland"With unfortunate irregularity, an artist’s voice will melt together with instrumentation so perfectly that the results leave you clinging to the song, playback set to loop, for weeks on end. Leif Vollebekk’s song, “Northernmost Eva Maria,” from his latest album Inlands, is one such song. Vollebekk’s deep and intimate vocals, with a hint of warm, gentle rasp, layer perfectly with the picked strings and shifting tempos, while his unpretentious rhymes betray a sophistication—literally as well as rhythmically—that few artists seem able to perfect. That this song can be so beautiful, even when describing what seems to be the morning after a one-night stand, is testament to Vollebekk’s expert craftsmanship of lyric and song.

I’m not too happy about my inability to figure out the lyrics of the last line of the third verse, but I can’t let my own imperfections get in the way of this perfect song! Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think!

Midwinter’s eve midweek in October
I saw a churchyard, green stardust blowing all over
And it snowed all over the city
The streetlamps fog so pretty
Snow all over the city

We were so warm inside
No, she showed she had nothing to hide
By the window, by the bed, there was something said
The morning was a-coming so, so soon
With her orchard breath in bloom
It’s coming so soon, so soon

I was standing there at the top of the stairs
You did up your coat
And how should I know
We were going nowhere?
When we said goodbye I saw some look in your eyes
Which was not like (disguise ?) which will be its (own ?)

And I’m walking away without turning around
I’m struggling to make it all seem so profound
I must’ve been lost around the time that I found you, Eva…

You can listen to “Northernmost Eva Maria” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more music by Leif Vollebekk on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, at MySpace Music, or on his official website.

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Fallout 3, totes epic, is complete

By Justin | February 6, 2010

Let it be known that on Saturday, February 6, at 2:47 AM ET, after weeks of thoroughly exploring each and every location in the entire Capital Wasteland; building a legendary reputation as the Hero of the Wastes; amassing tens of thousands of bottle caps and hundreds of top-quality armaments; destroying President Henry Eden and his Raven Rock installation; retaking the Jefferson Memorial and Project Purity with the help of Liberty Prime, Fawkes, and the Brotherhood of Steel; opting not to put the Forced Evolutionary Virus into the Project Purity filtration system; and, ultimately, sacrificing myself to the greater cause of humanity, I completed the most epic video game I have ever played: Fallout 3.

Badass.

Now, it’s on to the five expansion packs I haven’t yet played…

Posted in Games | Tagged | 4 Comments

Immediate thoughts on Scott Brown’s election

By Justin | January 19, 2010

I’m pretty pissed that my senator—a representative of Massachusetts, no less—supports torturing prisoners, opposes health care reform, opposes cap-and-trade, opposes gay marriage, opposes reproductive rights for women…

We gave the Republicans eight years to run our country into the ground, and now we’re pissed at the Democrats because they haven’t fixed all the damage in Obama’s first year on the job. Granted, Coakley was a miserable candidate, but to elect a Republican—a member of the Party of No—to the Senate, is ridiculous.

This is terrible.

Posted in Politics | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Patrick Watson’s “Big Bird In a Small Cage”

By Justin | January 10, 2010

Wooden ArmsNo introduction. Just listen:

There was a house halfway ’round the world
And I was invited in for a small taste of gin
There was a hallway a thousand birds long
But the biggest one of all was in a cage too small

I asked the caretaker cuz he was the maker
Looked at me and laughed, took another sip from his glass, he said
Open up your ears and hearts
You put a big bird in a small cage and he’ll sing you a song
That we all love to sing along
To the sound of the bird that mourns

Well, we rolled into town, into sweet New Orleans
To the Apple Bell bar, it was a hole in the wall
The ceilings weren’t tall, the floors were the ground
But the sound that you would make would just warm the hearts

Well, it was quarter to twelve and the boys walked in
They got their black suits on and the songs would begin
You open up your ears and hearts
You put a big bird in a small cage and he’ll sing you a song
That we all love to sing along
To the sound of the bird that mourns

You’ve already listened to the song for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada. You can find more music by Patrick Watson on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, at MySpace Music, or on his official website.

Posted in Lyrics, Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Wooden Sky’s “The Late King Henry”

By Justin | January 9, 2010

If I Don't Come Home You'll Know I'm GoneIf this song doesn’t get your foot tapping, your hands clapping, and your voice at least a little bit sore, you may want to check your pulse.

“The Late King Henry,” a lovely singalong tune by Toronto’s The Wooden Sky, deftly blends folk, country, and indie rock to make a song about as fun as any I’ve heard in the past few months. Off of 2009’s If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone, “The Late King Henry” is a song that’ll cure any case of the winter blues… and make the case for being your next album purchase.

You can listen to the song for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more music by The Wooden Sky on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, and at MySpace Music.

Well, we built this house on a web of lies
And when the walls fell in I came to realize
That if your love don’t leave you then you’re (OK ?)
And baby we’ve a-got it made

Well, the river rose up and came to me last night
And took the hat right off of my head
You said, Honey don’t you let it push you on your back
Because … forgot your raise

Come on and save me
Take me to the river and bathe me
Just don’t let nobody else claim me, honey
Take me to the river and name me
Tell me that it’s all right

Well, the late King Henry came to me last night
Said you get your wings when you go straight
Well, no one on the river ever needed to fly
To lead their poor hearts astray

Come on and save me
Take me to the river and bathe me
Just don’t let nobody else claim me, honey
Take me to the river and change me
Tell me that it’s all right!

Yeah, tell me that it’s all right!

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Hello, New York City!

By Justin | October 22, 2009

I’m looking down, come help me up
And stumbling around trying to fill my cup
It’s half empty, been that way all my life
So come pour some in and take me out tonight

The sun is shining but we stay inside (oh, but we go out at night)
We stay in looking for a better life (oh, but we go out at night)
We put up curtains, block out the light (oh, but we go out at night)
And we stay in bed till we feel all right (oh, but we go out at night)

I need meaning, I need a mission, I need a path, I need conviction
I need a life I never had, I need much more good and much less bad

Bring it to me, if only for a weekend, O Big Apple!

Posted in Lyrics, Personal | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Constantines’ “Young Lions”

By Justin | September 27, 2009

Too Slow for LoveJust when I thought Constantines couldn’t put together a song more satisfying than “Young Lions,” they prove me wrong by releasing an amazing acoustic version of the tune. Part of their 2009 release Too Slow for Love, featuring seven alternate takes of songs originally released as part of their 2008 album Kensington Heights, the acoustic version of “Young Lions” shines with the same coarse energy as the original, but features a new, more heartfelt tone that complicates the song’s message.

You can listen to the acoustic version of “Young Lions” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more music by Constantines on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, at MySpace Music, or on their official website.

Oh, young lions, this is your kingdom
Every beast has its poison, every lion has its victim
Choose your crime, pour the ashes out the window
Empty Mickey by the river, shattered like a broken arrow

Oh, young lions, this is your kingdom
Roll out the cradle, climb out the window
Make your love, too wild for words
Stumbling through the city with the ordinary bird

Choose your crime, pour the ashes out the window
Empty Mickey by the river, shattered like a broken arrow
Loosen up the collar, shake off the wire
Run like a river, glow like a beacon fire

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Joel Plaskett’s “Through & Through & Through”

By Justin | May 30, 2009

Joel Plaskett's "Three"I’ve always been a fan of The Joel Plaskett Emergency, especially the songs “Fashionable People,” “Snowed In,” “True Patriot Love,” and most of all, “Penny for Your Thoughts.” So, naturally, I was excited when I heard that Joel Plaskett had released a new three-disc set titled, appropriately, Three. Radio 3 added the first single, “Through & Through & Through,” to their rotation, and I instantly fell in love.

You can listen to “Through & Through & Through” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more music by Joel Plaskett on iTunes (where the entire 27-song set is available for only $9.99), at CBC Radio 3, or at MySpace Music.

I’m the Berlin Wall, I’m a Communist
You’re a wrecking ball in a summer dress
You’re the horizon line, I’m the last sunset
I might be going down, but I’m not set yet
I’m as a white as a ghost, digging foolish gold
I will man my post but I won’t do what I’m told
Got a Purple Heart from a bloody war
Can’t take it anymore, more, more

They say good things come to those who wait
If you snooze then you lose, so don’t h-h-h-hesitate 

Out of sight, out of mind, out of luck, out of wine
Don’t you say that I’m out of my fucking mind
I’ve been talking trash but it ain’t my fault
Every time I move, somebody’s in my spot

They say good things come to those who wait
If you snooze then you lose, so don’t h-h-h-hesitate 

You’ve got nowhere to go (I know, I know, I know)
It’s only you and me (but good things come in threes)

You be April Stevens, I’ll be April Wine
You be Israel, I will be Palestine
Come on, “Teach Me Tiger,” come on, show me tricks
Let me take my time and take a couple lazy licks

Are you feeling blue? (Through and through and through)
Where do we find you now? (Around, around, around)

All the dirty blondes playing blue-eyed soul
You won’t hear our songs on your radio
Every note we sing can’t be solid gold
Every boy can’t be Romeo

They say that good things come to those who wait
Good things come if you take the bait
In a rummage sale (at the Sally Ann) everything is cheap
Love should last a life (or at least a year) but it lasts a week

I’m the Berlin Wall (and that ain’t all), I’m a total mess
You’re a wrecking ball (I’m a wrecking ball) in a summer dress

All the dirty blondes playing blue-eyed soul on the radio
I can’t take it anymore, more, more

Posted in Lyrics, Music | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Dan Mangan’s “Robots”

By Justin | May 30, 2009

Dan Mangan's "Roboteering" EPDan Mangan’s new song is all horns and handclaps and big, bright choral arrangements—nothing short of a total singalong treat. So take a listen to “Robots” off of his 2009 EP Roboteering, and sing along.

You can listen to “Robots” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more music by Dan Mangan on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, or at MySpace Music.

Well, I don’t know what you’ve been told
But I don’t get out much these days
Waking young and feeling old
The days are no longer my own
To piss away the waking hours

But don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t let them go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t let them go to waste
The fire in my eye is fleeting now
Your robot heart is bleeding

Tried to be the robot king
And settled for the robot boy
Ring the bells that still can ring
And sing your stupid head off
To the ones who are not listening

But don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t let them go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t let them go to waste
The fire in my eye is fleeting now
Your robot heart is bleeding out

And I spent half of my life in the customer service line
Flaws in the design, a sign of the times
And that little voice in the back of your mind
Just wants you to know
Just hopes that you know

Robots need love, too
They want to be loved by you
They want to be loved by you
They want to be loved by you

Posted in Lyrics, Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

FemBots’ “Get In the Van”

By Justin | May 30, 2009

"Calling Out" by FemBotsI like when the words of songs are easy to understand, like they are in this great FemBots tune, “Get In the Van.” It’s off of their 2008 release Calling Out.

You can listen to “Get In the Van” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can find more FemBots music on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, or at MySpace Music.

We scratched our way up to the bottom
Scraped our shins, skinned our knees
Money’s always a problem
The rest is sweet misery

I dream of rollin’ in the van
I dream a car crash, wake up on the backseat bench
Across a country without maps, we lost our will and our way
Distance divided by hours, tomorrow is just another day

They whisper something in my ear
When it’s loud like this, I can’t hear a word you say
It’s all right, it’s all right tonight
It’s all right, it’s all right tonight

You’re never far away
If I can reach you on the phone
And when I think I can’t do this again
Someone says…

Get in the van! Get in the van!
Get in the van! Get in the van!
Get in the van! Get in the van!
Get in the van! Get in the van!

Posted in Lyrics, Music | Tagged , | Leave a comment

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