andreadonadio:

I haven’t been writing in this a lot lately. I’ve been busy with work, Halloween, and my obsessive insecurities; but this week thanks to my Day Quill and other nice things I’m back! and as per requested - here is a really embarrassing list of my top albums of 2009! Now I realize these all didn’t come out this year (or even last year), but I have a habit of listening to the same thing over and over again until I am so super exhausted by it I never listen to it again - so there tends to be a big gap. Here is what I’ve been into lately so DEAL.

1. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion (what is up with that name?)

I think this would make a lot of people’s favorite list for 2009 and I totally get why. At first I wasn’t that into it, the synth and everything was actually kind of intimidating - but I gave it a few trys and it eventually blew my mind. I listened to this almost exclusively on my runs in New Zealand and it was the BEST BEST BEST soundtrack for my weird video game like runs where you get chased by horses (or think you do) and run through rain forests and the beach and pastures and crazy fucking landscapes at night and alone. so awesome.

2. Kayne West -808s & Heartbreak

For the record I think Kayne is a fucking dick that should learn a little modesty and what it means to be a  successful adult and the responsibilities that come with it- but his douchery doesn’t change the fact that “808s & Heartbreak” is fucking awesome. I haven’t read a lot about this album but  I perceive it to be about how his mom died suddenly and tragically and then his gf from high school who he went with for YEARS dumped him - sending him into the arms of an alien lesbian stripper that doesn’t care if he gets super drunk on Hennessy and embarrasses young woman performers and then ends up believing he is  GOD or some crazy shit like that. Am I rambling? The short story is I love the beats on this album and know the words to most of the, albeit melodramatic, songs and it is also super great to run to / dance to (in your apartment with your roommates cheering you on). I think, I think  street lights is my favorite track.

3. RadioHead - In Rainbows

I don’t want to say too much about this, because I can gush FOREVER about my FAVORITE band (they are the only ones who  I can say without a doubt that I have loved and listened to every album).  I once listened to In Rainbows 4 times in a row when I was trying to get home from a date/show in Park Slope at 2 in the morning and was really tired and had to take like 3 different trains and it was just . perfection. Every time I listen to this album I find new things I like about it, and whatever- I’m a fan ok?

4. Feist - The Reminder

Ok so don’t laugh - but I LOVE running to this album. I know its folkys synthy girly maybe even semi-boring music that overall I am not really that into, but its just that this is a really really good album. And not just that counting song either, the entire thing is fucking SOLID, and “How My Heart Behaves” has tear potential - which is lame of me but awesome of Feist.

5. Bad Business - I have no clue what the album title is, I think its self-titled - my bad.

Definitely not an album from the past year - but one that I rediscovered when I started a punk/hardcore retrospective after unpacking all my old cds when I moved to Greenpoint. The intro to the first song is like: dun ne ne ne nenene nenene and then a shotgun shot. SO GOOD - and the rest of the tracks follow in awesomeness. I mean - I never really even got that in to hardcore in the first place, and even when I can understand the lyrics I think they’re about being straightedge which to me is LAME -  but Bad Business does it right and the music is fast and hard - which is what I like in music…. and other things. Oh and I knew the bassist from college, he’s really cool.

OKOK - I know there should be a lot more on here, and its been a long year so I kind of forget everything that I’ve been listening to up to this point. (something about The Knife, TV on the Radio, etc..) so please bear (sp: like the animal?) in mind that I am no good at this.  Maybe a more correct title for this post would be: “Favorite Albums of the Last 6 Months” or  “Albums That I Can Remember Listening To In Their Entirety and More Than Once” or even “Sounds That I Listen To That Is Not Talk Radio” but that just isn’t as snappy, is it? I think its pretty obvious that since college my coolness has been in rapid decline and I’ve kind of dropped the ball in terms of being like really in to music like a lot of my peers are- but I DO like it and I DO listen to it…. just now in an  admittedly more of a while I’m here I might as well enjoy the ride (and dance along) kind of way. If you want I could make a books of 2009 list that would be really boring and detailed and probs 20 pages long - but I like you guys too much for that. I like you guys and I like Day Quill a lot.

Oh and I hope everyone had a great Halloween (I know I did).

I’m going to rip you off with a twist.

This year I spent a lot of time doing a lot of things that are just a fun as music, but I don’t have enough bands.  So here’s my embarrassing list of 5 things from this year.

1) I listened to DAFT PUNK - ALIVE way too much.

It’s true that this year I listened to this album about 500 times.  I now know the way Daft Punk mixes together their songs better than I know the songs themselves.  The worst part about this as a number 1 is that I passed up a chance to see them because I didn’t know who they were.

2) I’m playing a shitty casio and making dance beats probably no one will hear

This one is so incredibly tied to the first one that It’s almost stupid to post it.  I got obsessed with Daft Punk. I miss playing the drums and making music in general, so I looked up how it is they make music and I’ve downloaded hundreds of dollar software to give it a shot.  I only have half of my major scales down at this point.  It’s definitely going to take a while, but it’s worth it.

3) Speaking of things that take a while, but are worth it: Food.

I started learning about food and how to cook and it’s a lot more important and amazing than I ever imagined.  More importantly though, learning about my food and how to cook it is a really liberating experience.  It’s also kind of strange to think about how much time I spent being tired and sick and gross feeling and just all around in bad shape.  I spent a lot of time doing those things.  I’m not a master chef yet, but I don’t give a fuck.  I’m learning.  And right now I’m pretty fucking good at mushrooms and onions.

4) Read a ton of books

I treat books the same way I treat cooking.  The first time I picked up a mushroom, I had no idea what to do. I actually took the stem out and just threw it away.  I buy ingredients I don’t know how to use all the time and then one day figure out how I can mix it in with all the stuff I already have going.  I sometimes buy a book and don’t even know what the fuck the person’s talking about until 50 pages in.  Then I’ll go back and read the first 50 pages again and go, “oh, wow… ok.”  Also, this year I learned that all mathematician / writers think their humor inclined.  It’s started me on a campaign of clarification about the difference between someone being humorous and them being funny.

5) I quit smoking

First, It’s totally worth quitting. Second, I quit by going from cigarettes to the lozenges.  I kept thinking “How the fuck am I going to quit the lozenges?” It didn’t make any sense. I thought I was going to be addicted to them for the rest of my life (and by the way, the nicotine companies are kind of banking on that).  Then the ‘read the label’ parts of #3 kicked in and I read the side of my lozenge box.  The main ingredient in my lozenges was aspartame.  I spit out the one in my mouth and I haven’t had one since.

6) I have $90 in Radioshack electronics under my desk I don’t use enough

I can build basic circuits now though.  So that’s fun.  This one’s gonna get bigger this next year.  It’s a large barrier to entry.  Lots of symbols to understand and math to figure out how to do.  I’ll probably end up doing some blogs about what I’m learning here. Seems to help me clarify my thoughts.

7) Made beer money on the internet.

Which is something I’m insanely proud of.

Seriously…if you haven’t listened to Daft Punk’s Alive album…. you need to do that now.

Andrea’s list is gonna help me get some ‘new’ music into my ears.  Maybe something I’ve said will get you doing something you want to do?

Good year so far everyone.  Let’s finish it out strong.