When you blink your eyes...

I just picked up the M83 joint that I mentioned in a previous post. It was recently released for US consumption. After several spins today I can say it could possibly be considered by some people (me), as a combination of Daft Punk, My Bloody Valentine, and Broken Social Scene. They are also electronic musicians from France as are Daft Punk, but they bring a whole new sound to the table. They have a much more epic, symphonic and sweeping sound. Enthralling in the way that Broken Social Scene can be. I can also see that it can be a great album for analyitcal thought as Kid A can be. Its not nearly as dance oriented as Daft Punk, however, possibly more emotionally rewarding. After approximately 3 listens of the entire album I think it is outstanding, very original, and worth purchasing.

The last couple of days the weather has been amazing. Its cooled off and is a very un-July temperature. Its making me actually kind look forward to winter. I rather enjoy cold weather.

In one month from now I will be in England. I am getting excited about it. The only other time I've been out of the country is Mexico for a few hours so this should be a good experience. I'm going to have to figure out how to get my iPod and camera battery charged while I'm there. I hear some of the hotels do have American outlets but I don't know that I can count on that.

I've been very busy at work lately which has been very satisfying. I'm actually getting to write software which is what I love doing and what I went to school for. I don't mind working longer hours sometimes when I'm doing something that I wouldn't even mind doing in my spare time for fun. For me, writing software is like solving a difficult puzzle that not a lot of people are able to solve. Its really a good workout for my brain, trying to think of all possible solutions to the problem at hand and deciding which one is the best. Fortunately, I also enjoy reading technical documentation. More specifically, I enjoy reading well written technical documentation. The one I've been working with lately is rather poor but I'm getting past it.

Also, programming is great because it allows me to listen to music the entire time. My all time favorite album for programming has to be Radiohead - Kid A. I remember listening to it for approximately 6-7 hours straight on repeat in college one day and not getting tired of it. There is just something about it that gets the analytical juices flowing.

FYI, if you search for "gay robot" on google image search, C-3P0 is #2 on the list. I don't know what made me decide to just type that in. Somehow, these guys came up #3 which is even funnier.

I purchased Cocteau Twins - Treasure several weeks ago. I liked a couple of the songs very well initially but I hadn't totally gotten into the album in its entirety until today. I just happened to be in the perfect mood this morning to absorb its beauty. The voice of Elizabeth Fraser is like that of an angel through out the album with the perfect accompanying music. The word that comes up most often when I read about them is "ethereal" which does come to mind when listening to them.

I first started off just mainly liking the first 3 tracks, Ivo, Lorelei and Beatrix. Now I see the whole album in its entirety as something very beautiful. I actually listened to the last track Donimo many times back to back on repeat. I think its my new favorite on the album at the moment. I can really hear the influence of what they are doing here on this 1984 release in groups such as The Cure and My Bloody Valentine.

I still do not know the correct pronunciation of the group's name. I did a google search but couldn't find a place that helped people in my situation who have never heard it pronounced by someone who knows but have only read about them. I think I will ask at Guest Room Records when I go in to feed my addiction to recorded music this week.

I'll tell you what can really get you amped. Drink 2 double espressos, put The Hives - Veni Vidi Vicious on the iPod and run 2 miles. I just did that and I felt like I could run through a wall afterwards.

I'm surprised at how much I still like this album from these Swedish rockers. I really appreciate punk music as it is the influence for much of my favorite musicians, but often times true punk music isn't very palatable to the mood I am normally in. I can only listen to so much of at once. I'm speaking of groups such as the Ramones and the Misfits. At they right time they are great, but only so much at once. Anyway, I wouldn't consider the Hives true punk, but they are somewhat in the category of punk revival. However, I can listen to the entire album all the way through and not get tired of it. Its a great album to play in the car with the windows down in the summer with the volume at high decibels. I'm anxious to listen to the Hive's recent release, Tyrannosaurous Hives.

I'll tell you what can really get you amped. Drink 2 double espressos, put The Hives - Veni Vidi Vicious on the iPod and run 2 miles. I just did that and I felt like I could run through a wall afterwards.

I'm surprised at how much I still like this album from these Swedish rockers. I really appreciate punk music as it is the influence for much of my favorite musicians, but often times true punk music isn't very palatable to the mood I am normally in. I can only listen to so much of at once. I'm speaking of groups such as the Ramones and the Misfits. At they right time they are great, but only so much at once. Anyway, I wouldn't consider the Hives true punk, but they are somewhat in the category of punk revival. However, I can listen to the entire album all the way through and not get tired of it. Its a great album to play in the car with the windows down in the summer with the volume at high decibels. I'm anxious to listen to the Hive's recent release, Tyrannosaurous Hives.

I obtained Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot album the other day for what I considered a quite reasonable price of $8. It really is a great album, I have heard a lot of great things about Wilco for awhile but haven't gotten around to hearing them much until now. Jeff Tweedy seems to be a very inspired and intelligent songwriter after a few spins of this disc. At times he has a very warm and familiar sense of Bob Dylan's vocal style. The melodies are very catchy and original, this is definitely an album that can be listened to many times. I think I want to try and go back and get their previous 2 albums when I get a chance, I want to try more of the alt-country sound that they are famous for.

On a continuation of my classic rap album appreciation, today I listened to Notorious B.I.G's Ready to Die. While a great album. I don't know that a few of the songs seem quite as strong to me today. Maybe it was just the mood I was in. But there are of course many outstanding tracks on the album. Maybe, its thinking that poop daddy had something to do with the album that detracts from it a bit. It is still great and even poop daddy can't ruin it. I actually prefer the next album Life After Death a bit more.

I posted another set of photos the other day. We stopped at the USS Batfish memorial on the way to the Illinois River. It turned out to be very interesting. I rather enjoy old gizmos and thing-a-ma-jigs as you might be able to ascertain after viewing the photos. Its worth the $5 to take a look at it if you are in the area.

I'm listening to some excellent sad bastard music this morning. So far I've listened to Elliott Smith - X0 twice today. Now I'm onto Will Oldham - I see darkness, or Bonnie Prince Billy, Palace Brothers, Palace Music, or whatever name he is going by this week. It has gone well with the book about C# that I'm reading.

Elliott Smith is very much in the beautiful sadness category. In many ways his sound reminds me of Paul Simon. On the Good Will Hunting soundtrack which he was famous for, I thought it might be Paul Simon the first time I saw it. But, the more I examine this album he really has his own unique style. In other ways he really parallels the career of the great Nick Drake who also died at an early age. I am also reminded of Ian Curtis of Joy Division. The music doesn't sound at all the same but both talked about dying and self loathing a lot in their lyrics, kind of predicting their own demise. I listened to The Best of Alice in Chains yesterday in a friends car and it the themes in their songs also seem to predict the early demise of one of the all time great rock voices, Layne Staley.

Will Oldham, also has the sad undertones. But, he is more positive at times to balance it out I think. So, hopefully he will be staying alive to continue making good music.

I enjoy trying new imported beers whenever possible, so I got a 6 of one yesterday that was pretty interesting. Carlsberg Elephant. I am a big fan of Carlsberg's regular brew so I decided to give this one a try. It has very sharp looking logo of an elephant on it, one of the more attractive looking beer bottles I've ever consumed from. I got home and realized it was 7.2% alcohol. It has bit more of an alcoholic taste than most beers, but I rather enjoyed the flavor. I started searching google on Carlsberg Elephant and found an interesting site:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/. The reveiws basically weren't favorable for Elephant.

Its kind of got me interested in knowing more about what technically makes a good beer. I know what I like, but it would be interesting to be able to describe the flavors and such. I can somewhat do that with different types of coffee, but I'd like to know more about that as well. Basically, I'm saying I enjoy to analyze beverages for fun. Anyway, I enjoyed this beer. I don't know if its better than regular Carlsberg, but its definitely worth a try in my opinion.
 
My favorite beer still has to be Samuel Adams Boston Lager. I first drank it in New York City about 6 years ago. I had never tasted beer that delicious, it was so fresh and crisp. The after taste of a fresh Samuel Adams always reminds me of apple juice. Another favorite is Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat out of Kansas City. You are very likely to get a fresh batch here in Oklahoma City so its a safe bet for a satisfying consumption experience. At times Samuel Adams around here can be a bit older and become a bit more bitter.
 
Tomorrow I plan on going on a float trip down one of Oklahoma's finest waterway's for drunken revelry, the Illinois River. I believe the beverage on the menu will be Coors. Its not my favorite, but it is a banquet beer so I can't complain.

Continuing to revisit some of my favorite rap albums, the last few days I've listened to two more classics.

Yesterday it was Genius - Liquid Swords. Some of the sickest raps ever recorded. The RZA was so far ahead of his time as far as production and beats. I also like RZA quite a bit as a rapper. I have nearly all albums released by the Wu-Tang Clan and solo member releases and this is one of the best. I've heard RZA himself say that GZA/Genius was his favorite rapper of all time, to me that's very high praise. Method Man (Iron Lung) has always been my favorite rapper in the Wu-Tang but none of his albums as a whole are as good as this one. I really like Tical a lot, but what's better about Liquid Swords are the outstanding cameo appearances. That's what's so great about the Wu-Tang, the variety of perfomers each with a different delivery style. It really keeps it interesting. Plus, Genius is just relentlessly consistent and focused on this one. Having RZA lay down some of the greatest tracks of his career doesn't hurt either.

Today I decided to go with OutKast - Aquemini. OutKast and Wu-Tang Clan are probably my 2 favorite rap groups. OutKast also always bring intelligent and thought-provoking lyrics. In a way they re-invent themselves on every album but still stay true to producing quality and innovative material. This one has so many great tracks. When it came out I had a new favorite track every week from it. I was very excited that the track Skew it on the Bar-b featured Raekwon of Wu-Tang Clan and it really turned out to be a great collaboration.