COLDPLAYY and other thoughts about the ACL lineup

This is a repost from my blog. Because I think everybody needs to know.

Coldplay is definitely my predominant thought about ACL. If it can even be considered a thought. It's more of an echo. That keeps echoing. Coldplaaayyy..coldplaaaaay....coooooldplaaaaay.

Colldddplaaaay

Coldplay and Kanye West will be the Friday night co-headliners. Coldplay vs. Kanye = easiest choice of my life. Now, before I start oozing over Coldplay again, I'm going to list some of the bands I'm most looking forward to or believe I will look forward to more after listening to more of their music.

In no particular order at all, possibly even a peculiar order:

1. Bright Eyes - Why? Who are Bright Eyes? I'm not the person to ask, I just like their.. Actually, no. This isn't even the band I thought it was. I was writing about the Local Natives, who performed at ACL last year. I like their song Gorilla Manor. The Local Natives' song, that is.

2. Old Crow Medicine Show - I haven't actually listened to them either, but they participated in the Railroad Revival Tour with Mumford and Sons and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, so they have to be cool, right?

3. My Morning Jacket - I will definitely be checking these guys out. I'm Amazed played on the radio frequently a few years ago, and every time I hear it, I'm reminded of the good old days when I still rode horses (before I fell and broke my arm..). I can picture myself listening to it inside my mom's car at Sonic, waiting for my limeaide to be delivered. Oh yes.

4. Alison Krauss and Union Station - I had no idea who Krauss was until she released that famous album, Raising Sands, with Robert Plant, who was the vocalist for Led Zeppelin when he was young. Great album. Gone Gone Gone is a pretty cool song with a friggin hilarious music video. Oh, you funny middle-aged musicians.

5. Cee Lo Green - For one reason only. "Forget" You. Watch it.

6. Iron and Wine - They're lovely. Really. And if anyone has Iron and Wine CDs they'd like to lend me, go ahead, if you know who I am. If not, I'll frequent the library and Half-Price over the summer. Well, I'll do that anyway. Have a beautiful sample here, listen to Naked As We Come.

Samuel Beam, a.k.a. Iron and Wine.

Also (as a sidenote, because I'm not yet a devout listener to any of these bands)~ The Fleet Foxes, Arcade Fire, and Broken Social Scene (a Canadian indie rock band) will be performing as well, not to mention the tens of other bands I haven't mentioned.

These bands are not the extent of my interest, but I am neither willing nor do I have time to write about all of the bands that even remotely appeal to me. So, those are the big highlights in my mind. What do you think?

~ OMO

Music fest POLL!

A(ctually) C(aught) a L(icense)

That is, I actually got three-day passes for ACL! They went on sale at 10:00 a.m. today, and they sold out in less than 120 minutes. After an agonizing wait online, many unfourtunates discovered that the tickets were already gone. But no worries, there are still single day passes that will be available on May 17. The festival lineup may be released on that date as well.

For the past few years, ACL has been held in October, a nice time of year for avoiding the sweltering Texas heat. However, this year, ACL has reverted to its original date in September. This change brings back memories of dripping sweat, dehydration, and blistering sun beams. But it's all worth it to hang out on the Zilker lawn and listen to live music for three days straight.

The Austin City Limits Music Fest location

~ OMO

New camera lenses are exciting!

I had the opportunity to shoot a few pictures with the new lens of my dad's camera last weekend. Those flowers were just sitting on the table, tempting me to document their delicacy. I couldn't resist.

This new lens (a Nikon Nikkor 50mm, in case anyone is interested) does not zoom, but it absorbs more light than any of the other lenses we own. It also has a narrow field of focus, therefore blurring any objects surrounding the focal point of the picture to create a nice, softening effect.

There are billions of pictures of flowers floating around, but why not take a few more?

~ OMO

OMO is one jealous octopus

Guess who is seeing Mumford and Sons tomorrow.

Wait, no, don't guess. I wouldn't want to strain your imagination, because good writers should never directly ask their readers to imagine anything at all. Not that I'm claiming to be a good writer.

My mom is going to the Railroad Revival Tour Mumford and Sons concert . Without me.

I am seething with jealousy.

But at least she's getting me a shirt.

Sulkingly yours,
OMO

Also -- Have a song.

This is snazzy

ModCloth is awesome

~ OMO

You could help build a well in Ghana!

The Watersong Project was born out of one woman's desire to help Africans lacking regular access to clean water. Karen Strange, the founder, began this project several years ago. She combined her interest in humanitarian aid with her interest in classical music to create the Watersong Project. 

Ghanaians struggle to find clean water sources.

Strange held a benefit concert in 2009, featuring several professional musicians, to aid efforts to drill a well in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Her first endeavor to help people living in the DRC was successful; the concert raised enough money to build a well for a Congolese community. The second event occurred in 2010 and was equally successful. With the collections from this concert, she raised enough money to drill a well in Ghana. The third concert took place on April 9th 2011, which was last Saturday. The proceeds from this concert have not been revealed yet, because it happened so recently. If it's as successful as the previous performances, however, another Ghanaian community will have a new well to look forward to.

Many performers have stuck with the project through all three events. Strange herself sings a few songs for each concert. There have been slight variations in the groups of performers. In the most recent two performances, there have been a few students musicians included in the mix. I was fortunate enough to be asked to perform in the 2011 Watersong Project.

Though this specific opportunity to help build a well has passed, the Watersong Project accepts donations at any time. The benefits concerts are shaping up to be an annual event, so mark your calendar for April 2012 if you're interested.

Democratic Republic of the Congo, courtesy of UMCOR

~ OMO

OMO's Feature Leads

ONE - descriptive: Sunlight spills in from the windows, illuminating the otherwise dark room. An earthy-toned painting of a cup rests above the sofa, hanging simply without a frame. It is mid-day, and the house is bustling with activity. A young boy cantankerously enjoys his Star Wars video-game, leaping around the living room with a game controller. Outside, a man in his thirties bends over a green Toyota, intently repairing it. A metal garden frog calmly regards his endeavors from the grassy lawn. This is the home of marketing director Christina Bennett, who manages the advertising and communications aspects of the Austin-based company, Survey and Mapping (SAM).

TWO - sort of descriptive, sort of my last resort: Christina Bennett must create. She says, "I discovered that making things is like a critical component to my well-being, to being happy in myself and what I do." As the marketing director at an Austin-based surveying company, she is responsible for making sure their clients are content. But at home, she has more freedom to produce whatever she wishes.

THREE - narrative-ish: She designs, she creates, and she...manages the marketing department of a surveying company? Christina Bennett graduated from the design program at UT, intending to work as designer. Somehow, life has led her astray from her semi-original intention. But she's cool with that. Christina thoughtfully remarked, "I mean, if I had to do it all over again, I would still do the exact same thing I did, even though I’m not a graphic designer or an art director..."

~ OMO

OMO's fantastically loquacious interviewee

There are some interviews that completely fail at being useful for anything at all because they are really short. Mine was not one of them. In fact, I had a problem on the completely opposite side of the spectrum. It took hours to transcribe the forty-six minute recording of my interview. In addition to that, my interviewee answered most of my questions in her first response, which happened to be quite thorough and elaborate. I was winging it for most of the interview. Not that I'm really complaining. Having this explosion of content will be great when I start writing my feature and will provide me with a broad selection of quotes to choose from. 

I've been talking about "my interviewee" in very broad terms and to this point in the post her identity is unknown. This is because I don't know what to call her profession. Christina went to college for studio art classes, graduated from design school instead, and works with surveyors. She says that she doesn't call herself a designer and what she does doesn't exactly have a title. Essentially, all of this means that I'm not sure what the focus of my story is anymore and that I may a few follow-up questions for her to clarify some  things.

Exhibition of Jean-Michel Folon

~OMO

What? New Radiohead album?

Maybe it's old news to some of you that Radiohead released a new album on February 18th. I'm not sure how this could have slipped by, but over a month after its release, I, OMO, finally discovered The King of Limbs. While I listen to the iTunes song previews for this album (because I just bought the new Strokes CD and have no money to spend on another album), I will fill everybody in on some random facts and other information, be it factual or otherwise, regarding Radiohead.

Album art for The King of Limbs

This eight-track album is Radiohead's eighth. Their career as a band was launched in 1992 with the release of the hit song, "Creep". It was recently featured in a movie about the creation of Facebook, called The Social Network. Radiohead has become known for their soul-wrenching, electronic-ish, spacey sound.

Here is a link to their most recent website, if you wish to learn more about them. They seem to make websites on an album to album basis, but this is their current site. And if you want to seem them live, good luck, because they have no tour dates posted, as of today.

As I listen to the previews, I am noticing that the songs sound very reminiscent of past releases. Even so, from the ninety second bits of each song iTunes allows me to access, it seems as though Radiohead has taken some of their best work and melded it together, like a conglomeration of the most stirring, riveting parts of each album. It takes me back to the times when I would constantly listen to this band. I'm not sure what happened and why I stopped following releases of Radiohead so closely, but this album sounds very promising and is pretty much guaranteed to reinstate my love of their music.

Also, for all the Radiohead fans out there, if you did not know, Thom Yorke, who sings for Radiohead, released a solo album (this was a while back) that you should definitely check out if you haven't already. And, another note on websites: Yorke's website for his album, The Eraser, has the most transfixing introductory video. 

Album art for The Eraser

Take a short break from the toils of daily life and expose yourself to the dreamy music of Radiohead. Here is a music video for "Lotus Flower," one of the tracks on the new album. I absolutely love the music video that was paired with it, although I understand why some people think it is silly. The absurdity is what draws me to this video, and to Radiohead in general.

"Lotus Flower"- Radiohead

~ OMO

Free early shows rock

Like many other Austinites and touristy folks, I was very eager to listen to some music at SXSW this year. However, my mom is predisposed to hating SXSW purely because of the thousands of visitors that pour into Austin annually. Fortunately, my dad was willing to take me to see a few bands. 

We left the house at 8:00 in the morning, headed for the free KUT-sponsored shows at the fancy Hilton hotel in downtown Austin. When we arrived, we found a small stage surrounded by about thirty cushioned chairs. It was thirty minutes before the first band was scheduled to play, and only three chairs were occupied (Interestingly enough, I found my sixth grade English teacher seated in one of these chairs.) These early shows are obviously not for the people who like to stay out late partying and head-banging to the sound of grinding guitars and crashing drums.

The first performer, singer/songwriter Bobby Long, played at an eye-opening (or maybe eye-closing) 9:00 am. He just released his debut album in February, and is visiting Austin from his current location in NYC.  I really enjoyed Long's music and have been listening to it in various YouTube videos constantly since (I've yet to purchase the album, titled A Winter Tale.). Watching him perform was priceless. Long is very expressive while singing and his guitar-playing was absolutely amazing.

Bobby Long, performing "Dead and Done."

Also, about the videos: I'm a total amateur with video cameras. A) This was probably the first time I've used one. So, I apologize for shakiness and everything else, B) I did not have a tripod, and, being seated in the second row, had to hold my camera above the fat heads of the people in the first row and C) There was a very large speaker blocking part of the stage, so for the next two bands, I was unable to film both band members well. Again, sorry. But hey, at least you can hear the music!

The second band, The Old 97's, was extremely energetic. I enjoyed watching them because the fun they were having while performing traveled from their music to the audience (though we were all tamely seated). I recorded a video of their performance of "Time Bomb," which will hopefully be attached below.

The Old 97's performing "Time Bomb."

Tristen, the third band to perform at the Hilton, was a great finale for the morning music. Though more subdued than the Old 97's (who obviously don't understand the concept of apostrophes not making things plural), Tristen was just as enthralling as Bobby Long. The band recently released its debut album in February as well. It's titled Charlatans at the Garden Gate, and I'll provide a link to the band's website here. Below is a video of Tristen performing "Heart and Hope to Die."

Tristen performing "Heart and Hope to Die."

~ OMO      

So what's happening March 22?

This is going to be my first weekly rambling. This week, it happens to be vaguely related to The Strokes. If I am able, I will attempt to connect the end of my rambling to the beginning, but I may or may not be successful. So, to begin, March 22 is the release date of ANGLES!

Many people believe that the Strokes will be hard-pressed to live up to the legacy left behind by Is This It and Room on Fire, but from various clips I've seen, it appears to possess the same sort of strokiness (The only reason this would be valuable information at all is if anyone doubts the consistency of the band members' identities).

I personally don't think albums should be judged by how much "better" they are compared to previous albums. New albums dabble in bits of the unknown because musicians can't be successful if they continue recycling the vibes of old albums. It would create a stagnant pool of music if musicians tried to make new albums as similar to previously released ones as possible. In an interview with the British magazine, Fashion Music Style, Simon Neil of the Scottish band Biffy Clyro, says "I would rather that [our fans] hated Only Revolutions or Puzzle than we try to re-make an old album," in reference to two of the band's albums.

Photo credit: ClashMusic

A lot of really great albums result from experimenting with new techniques without regard for how fans will react. To wrap up this rambling by talking about the Strokes again, I'll first tell you to check out Julian Casablancas' (the Strokes' vocalist) debut solo album, Phrazes for the Young, because it is ridiculously great.

And second, comment if you saw the Strokes at ACL last year, because though I was there, I'm not really sure what to think about Julian Casablancas, who was wearing sunglasses after the sun set and could not see past the front of the stage..

~ OMO

Also - Here's a video of the single they've already released from the album.

Sam Hart!

I really know very little about Sam Hart. He just isn't famous enough to have easily-found information about himself floating around on the internet. He puts videos of his songs on YouTube. He sings (without autotuning!), he plays guitar and he writes his own songs. It's amazing how that's so special today. Check him out here, playing "Still My Dream".

I first found out about Sam Hart with Clyde. A couple of guys were pressured into playing a song for a small crowd, of which we were a part. After finding a guitar in a closet or a car somewhere, they began playing "Still My Dream". I've been hooked to Sam Hart YouTube playlists ever since. I love all his songs, serious or not so much (You're A Zombie Now). Some seem superficially silly and innocent, but there are always threads of truth weaved throughout.

I'm not the best at explaining music in words, it just doesn't make much since. So, the only solution to this is for you to go to YouTube and search Sam Hart* (You won't be very successful if you look at iTunes; they've only released one of his songs).

~OMO

*Sam Hart posts his videos with the username blinktwice4y.

Mediocrity - Experimentation with Leads

Lead 1 (Rhetorical question) - Can you imagine school without art or music classes? As budget woes plague schools around the nation, many education systems are considering cuts to the arts programs.

Lead 2 (Twist) - They improve focus, strengthen literacy, and increase mathematical understanding in children. They also receive more budget cuts than other school programs. The arts are struggling to gain support for funding in schools around the nation.

Lead 3 (Startling statement) - Arts education can improve focus in children. Being exposed to music and art can strengthen reading fluency and mathematical understanding in children. It’s surprising, then, with these results, that schools should consider cutting these programs.

~The OMO