So if you’re in Eugene tomorrow and are super bored and love music, you should most definitely come check out the WILLAMETTE VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL. Yeah, this may be blatant advertising, but it doesn’t hurt to get it out there!
The line up is pretty freaking sweet:
A-Trak
Yeasayer
Baths
Donnis
Catwalk
The Globes
The Codi Jordan Band
Jared Mees & The Grown Children…. and that’s only the main stage! ALL FREE. There’s more info here.
Anyways, to get you guys excited, here’s some A-Trak… he’s so awesome and I’m so stoked to see him. His DJing is top-notch, as you can see from this clip. Enjoy it and check out this awesome fest!
Sorry for the super strange post… I am so beyond tired. See ya on Sunday!!
Here’s a super short blog post for you guys tonight, mainly because my allergies are really messing with my brain right now.
A friend of mine posted “Slow-motion Jello” on Facebook earlier, and it blew my mind. Seriously. It’s unbelievable.
Isn’t that freaking awesome? I can’t even… I don’t even know what to think!!
In addition to that craziness, I wanted to include the new Washed Out song that also blows my mind. The song is called “Eyes Be Closed” (off of his upcoming album Within And Without, available in July), and it is beautiful. The chillwave beat and the powerful melody works together in a wonderful symphony. At least it does in my head!
The Room, written, directed and starring Tommy Wiseau
So, I didn’t get to expand on this yesterday, but I wanted to feature something (now) near and dear to my heart.
This last Saturday I got to attend a “The Room” party, which went from being a Rocky Horror Picture Show-like movie experience to a drunken crazy-fest. And, strangely enough, this is exactly how The Room (2003) needs to be watched: with a little bit of lighthearted silliness.
The movie is a disaster, to say the least. It’s full of plot holes, soap-opera lines, and melodramatic acting… not to mention how creepy all of the characters are (I’m looking at you, Denny!!). But what makes it so great is how classically bad it is, much like the other midnight movies out there (RHPS and Snakes On A Plane are just two examples).
After I signed up to drink every time a football was on the scene – which is ridiculous because this comes in the most ridiculous times – it was clear that everyone at this party was going to be either drunk or close to it by the end of this film. Boy, was I right!
By all means, I want to say that this movie is no Oscar winner, but the movie is classic. Whenever the main characters enter a room, they say “Oh hi _____” before getting to the point; Johnny (played by the strange Tommy Wiseau, who also wrote and directed the film) bellows out poorly-accented lines (“YOU’RE TEARING ME AHHHPAAAHHHHT LEEESAAA!”) and drinks scotchka; Denny is apparently an 18-year old drug addict that has serious parental-deficiencies as he lays in bed with Lisa and Johnny while they’re trying to get it on (mind you, Johnny wanted to adopt Denny); then there’s Mark, who’s Johnny’s best friend (and this fact is stated NUMEROUS times throughout the film) and seems like a cool guy until, you know, he sleeps with Johnny’s fiancée…. it’s like scene after scene goes by, making less and less sense.
But overall the experience was a blast. Those of us at the party pelted the make-shift screen with plastic spoons (and sometimes knives and forks) everytime the pointless spoon painting showed up in a scene, and we all yelled “GO! GO! GO!” as we travelled along with the stock footage of the Golden Gate Bridge… there were tons more, but that’s something you should find out for yourself.
I highly recommend The Room because it is an experience in itself. It may be considered the worst movie ever made (probably after Troll 2 (1990)), but it sure is a hell of a lot of fun. Especially if you don’t take it seriously (please don’t. That’s a fate worse than death!)
Here’s a preview for you to get stoked about, and if you live in Oregon, Wiseau is showing the movie in Portland towards the end of May! ENJOY (and beware!)
And thanks to Bryan for inviting me to watch this insane film. SPOON!
I’m gonna post a short one tonight, mainly because I’m running on about 3 hours of sleep.
Sealab 2021 was one of those awesome shows on [adult swim] that made fun of those old-school 70s cartoons I used to love. With the archaic animation of the olden days of the mid-2000s, the voices of awesome people (specifically Erik Estrada!), and the completely random episodes that just don’t make sense half the time, Sealab is just a win upon wins.
Warning, this show is sort of dumb, but I can’t help but laugh every time I watch it.
I wanted to feature this song today because it literally encompassed my feelings in song-form. Sort of.
You see, today was one of those strange bipolar weather days, where the sun would peek out for a good ten minutes before hail rained down. Rain to sun to hail to rain to clouds to sun to rain. All day long.
And as I was walking through campus, doing whatever I normally do on Thursdays, I had the undeniable urge to find a CD that could compliment the strange weather pattern… making it more realistic, I guess.
I try to turn to bands that I’ve trusted with this task before, so it only took me a few seconds to realize that Arcade Fire’s whole Neon Bible album is incredibly effective for this type of day. But what really convinced me was the presence of the song “Windowsill.”
The song is incredibly somber, but it’s grandiose and beautiful while still remaining terribly melancholy. With Win Butler’s graceful voice moving through the difficult lyrics, and the background instruments (specifically that string part towards the middle), I can’t help but feel like this song is an escape for not only me but for the band itself (see the lyrics “I don’t wanna live in my father’s house no more…”). It expands and increases it’s intensity while still remaining full of plea.
With the weather changes that just mess with the population of our little city, “Windowsill” is not only an escape, but it falls with the rain, just in a different way. I feel like I can imagine looking through the window of a hectic world onto like a green pasture, so free from all this craziness. I guess I’m just strange like that.
But regardless, it perfectly encapsulated a moment in time today, and I couldn’t help but feel a little empowered by this song. The world just sort of melted away around me, and all that was left was me and the rain/hail/clouds/sun. It was a beautiful feeling.
I hope you can enjoy this song the same way. Here’s “Windowsill” by Arcade Fire
I just recently got into My Morning Jacket (probably a little late, but better late than never!), and of all the songs I’ve heard so far, this is my favorite.
“Gideon” not only displays the gorgeous voice of Jim James, but it’s so uplifting and wonderful. I love the intro guitar part, which is sort of reminiscent of U2 or another band of that caliber, but his voice just reverberates in my brain. It’s a lovely feeling.
Enjoy “Gideon” (and this awesome video for it) by My Morning Jacket.
On a totally random note, I used to hate the show American Dad, but when I watched this episode premier a while back, I had total respect for the show and My Morning Jacket (that was my first real exposure). Here’s how I felt the other day when I played the band on my poster route:
The other night, Fleet Foxes performed their first live show in two years. It was a small, secret charity concert in Seattle for an intimate crowd, but someone got some amazing footage and (of course) stuck it on YouTube.
The song I want to feature today is a new song called “Montezuma,” which is off their new album Helplessness Blues (coming out May 3rd), and it is gorgeous. Pecknold’s voice carries across this small audience, and his relaxed posture almost adds to the whole experience. While I’m sad I missed this concert (being in Eugene, after all, sort of hurts my ability to go see concerts in Seattle these days), this video has gotten me super stoked to see them in Portland on May 1st!
I included the live video (which also features the song “He Doesn’t Know Why” off of their debut, self-titled album), but below the video is a copy of the actual, studio-made song… which is still absolutely wonderful!
Enjoy “Montezuma” and “He Doesn’t Know Why” live by Fleet Foxes!
I saw this Portland-based/made/themed movie pop up on my blog roll a few months back, and I really want to see it! Not only is Carrie Brownstein (aka that one girl from Sleater-Kinney and Portlandia) in it, but my lovely James Mercer (lead singer of the Shins) plays a character as well.
The movie is about four different, quirky people who are leading lives that go nowhere… they sort of embark on a mental trip into the unknown of their soul, searching for the meaning of life, while conversing with each other.
Here’s the preview, and I really hope I can see this movie in the future:
I love this song. Seriously, not only is it my alarm clock in the mornings, but it’s also just the happiest song ever.
Plus we don’t need no thugs. Unless those thugs was giving out hugs.
They bring up a pretty strong argument!
By the way, I know I have posted TheAquabats before, but I’d like to remind all you guys that they are awesome. Their new CD just came out recently (Hi-Five Soup!click here to see it on iTunes) and it’s full of feel-good songs that fit perfectly with the impending summer season. I personally love “In My Dreams” and “Radio Down”…. just a few of the awesomeness that is ska-punk kids music for adults.
If you get a chance to see them live, please go. Please please please go. I’ve seen them twice, and I’m just waiting for them to come closer to me so I can go again. And don’t hesitate to dress up (no one else does).
So don those capes, put on those masks, and enjoy the life out of “Hey Homies!”
Life As We Don't Know It 