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Death Cab for Cutie - Meet Me on the Equinox

Death Cab for Cutie has a brand new song Meet Me on the Equinox which kicks off the new Twilight (New Moon) movie soundtrack. Caught myself doing a double-take the other day when I watched the video for it. OMG! Did DCFC hire a new singer or is that the newly trim, made-over and handsome Ben Gibbard?! Fear not, Ben's signature nasal twang remains distinctive and is clearly unmistakable on this track, so there is no confusion.

Ben Gibbard also made his big screen debut in John Krasinski's Brief Interviews With Hideous Men. This proves to be an interesting before and after contrast of Ben since getting married. Looks like being married to Zooey Deschanel must be doing incredible wonders for Mr. Gibbard.

Oh Ben Gibbard!

...and Jeff Tweedy and Will Sheff.

I installed the last.fm Scrobbler yesterday and it charted my iTunes listening habits. I was not entirely surprised at the top 3, Death Cab For Cutie, Wilco and Okkervil River.

What did surprise me was how far out in front Death Cab were, and how far ahead the top 3 were over everyone else.

And wow, I sure like Heavy Metal Drummer.

See the whole list here: http://www.last.fm/user/wagonmonster

Song of the Day: "Transatlanticism" by Death Cab for Cutie

“Transatlanticism” by Death Cab For Cutie

The kind of song to put on in the car when you have to do some thinking and need eight minutes of unobtrusive music to keep focused. I love the last couple minutes of the song.

Zooey Deschanel Marries Boyfriend, Singer Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM - LOSING MY EDGE (2002)

Thought I'd end this month with an admission:  I'm a failed hipster... HAPPILY.  There's a bar here in Los Angeles called the Cha-Cha Lounge where you see people like this:  http://www.latfh.com/  You'd have to drag me kicking and screaming to that place.

People try to claim I'm a hipster.  Sorry, NO.  I dress like a regular guy and not in these weird colorful fashions, ironic T-shirts from thrift stores, and American Apparel clothing.  I don't have a tattoo, nor do I find them particularly attractive, which makes living in L.A. difficult.  I would never drink Pabst aka Hipster Juice, the piss-water of beers.  I can't fathom a need to wear a scarf here in sunny L.A. like they prefer to do.  I know film because I want to be a filmmaker, but I reference and love for a movie like Now, Voyager rather than Eraserhead or John Waters, and I love studio and independent films equally.  I'm an obsessive music fan who digs deep into the past and genuinely loves a band because it's good rather than because I'm supposed to.  And when it comes to the coolest, hippest bands right now?  I'm completely in the dark.  Losing my edge, indeed.

Just because a hipster likes a band doesn't make it bad or a flavor of the month.  So I'm in Amoeba a couple months ago and I decide "Y'know... I'm going to impulse buy this band Art Brut.  Frank Black produced the new album... Why not?  Let's do this!"  I bought the album, put it on, and two songs in I screamed inside "Get this out of my ears IMMEDIATELY!"  Maybe one of the worst things I've heard in a while with the most excruciating vocals.  Kill me now and kill me hard! 

How behind am I?  I only really started getting into The White Stripes and Jack White's offshoot bands recently.  Still don't own a single album but it's coming and will happen sometime soon.  Pretty bad, huh?  I'm constantly hearing "You like music and you've never heard/don't like (blank)?!?!"  No, I don't/haven't.  Some publications are putting together their albums/tracks of the past decade list already (...really?) and I look over it and realize how out of it I am.

So, to explain why you haven't heard some bands on this blog and/or never will here's a handy list by category:

Admittedly... Never heard them yet:
Fleet Foxes, Deerhunter, Panda Bear, Band Of Horses, Of Montreal, Grizzly Bear
(apparently I have an aversion to animal-named bands)

Respect and admire, even though they do nothing for me:
The Flaming Lips, Wilco, Radiohead

Keep thinking I should like them but they haven't hooked into me yet:
TV On The Radio, Animal Collective, The Hold Steady

Enjoy a couple songs but after that they bore me:
Interpol, The Arcade Fire, Franz Ferdinand, The Shins, Bloc Party, Artic Monkeys

Sorry, kids, never gonna happen:
Weezer, Built To Spill, Sufjan Stevens, Modest Mouse, Spoon, The Strokes, Vampire Weekend, The Postal Service

Not sure why ANYONE likes them:
Death Cab For Cutie, The Killers, Jimmy Eat World

So there you go.  Did I miss anyone?  I'd say not being a fan of Radiohead or Arcade Fire makes me a rather spectacular failure.  And I'll also say that at some point I could change my mind on any of these bands once I hear a track that makes me finally "get it" (although not in the final two categories).  I have a sneaking suspicion Of Montreal may break from the pack and The Hold Steady's Springsteen influence is becoming increasingly attractive.

In the end I'm just looking for something that made me feel like I do when I hear The Stooges... Mission Of Burma... The Fall...  I felt that way when I heard the old Detroit punk band Death a couple months ago for the first time.  It was excellent and after that all those bands in that list above just couldn't compare.

I can only love what I love.  And I love LCD Soundsystem.  Coolest of the cool?  Check.  But that doesn't make a person a hipster because I can't understand why they're not rubbing shoulders with Kayne West and Coldplay on the charts.  Who can't love this band?  And God Bless James Murphy for releasing the ultimate anti-hipster song Losing My Edge as the starter-pistol for his first single.

For more info:
LCD Soundsystem:  http://www.lcdsoundsystem.com/

Music Review: Don't take me home.

 

First, Throw Me The Statue's second album (first I've ever heard) Creaturesque. They're four dudes from Seattle, and I've read a couple of reviewers who've compared them to the likes to Death Cab. I get that, sort of. The music is really pop, and sort of eclectic with the instruments (is that a xylophone I hear often...?). The lead singer's voice is easy-going and pretty enough. (I'm assuming the lead singer is Scott Reitherman, but I can't be sure. After checking out their band website, their myspace, and wikipedia, I know the names of the guys, but not how they all contribute. Reitherman formed the band, and is always listed first in a group, so I'll just assume that's who's crooning. If not, then I blame the band's poor information.) 

Playlist - Late Night Acoustic

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Song of The Day: 7/27

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I Will Follow You Into The Dark Death Cab For Cutie Album - Plans -matthew

Music Review: A foxtrot above my head

 

Music Review: Hey, music! Why so lackluster?

I love updating my music collection. It feels so refreshing, kind of like when you're about to start out on a hiking trail or something. You're just thinking about all the things you're going to run into, all the stuff you'll discover, and how you really should have worn jeans to avoid the inevitable scratches.