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Last 5 songs I bought on iTunes

So I got tagged by Sean Bonner to post the last 5 songs I bought on iTunes. I think this is supposed to be some kind of indication of what kind of music I like, and it works for the most part. However, I’ve been buying a lot of music in CD format lately so the results of this experiment are 1.) not really accurate and 2.) kind of embarrassing.

The last five tracks I bought from iTunes are from one album, the soundtrack to Spanglish. There is a song in the movie that has a great violin (possibly viola) solo and I really wanted it but you can only buy the entire album. So I did and it was well worth it.

If you want an actual sampling of what I buy on iTunes I can tell you the last 5 items. They would be

5. Spanglish soundtrack

4. a free sampler album from iTunes

3. episodes of Shear Genius (reality/competition t.v. show on Bravo)

2. Tracy Chapman – Fast Car

1. Gwen Stefani – Sweet Escape

I know this won’t help much but to balance it out I have also bought episodes of This American Life as well as a full Mitch Hedberg CD.

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Welcome to the, how do you say, show?

Welcome to my mid-year show review. It’s actually not quite mid year yet but I have free time right now and who knows when I’ll feel up to the task again. So here we go.

I was pretty happy with the number of shows I attended last year. I was even able to cross bands off my “must see before I die” list, the list isn’t very long so it was relatively easy to do for me. Living in Los Angeles, helps quite a bit too.

My first show of the year was actually not until February when I saw The Blow at The Echo with Julie.  Actually it was just Kaehla from The Blow, Jona was touring with Yacht at the time. Still it was a pretty high energy, feel good time and I even got to meet Kaehla.

Next was Do Make Say Think at The Troubador with Sean. That was a really relaxed show, how can you not be with DMST? This was the show where I realized one of the best places to sit at the Troub was way in the back behind the bar. Not only do you have a seat but generally it’s far back enough that you can see over everyone, with the exception of maybe unbelievably tall person.

Then South by Southwest came and it was a big “showfest” for me. I tried to take photos of each band I saw. The flickr set is here if you’d like to see.  The most notable band for me was The Faint. I’ve loved them for years and was ecstatic when I heard they were going to be playing SxSW. Of course, I have no proof  of this because my computer and camera didn’t want to talk to each other that night and deleted all the pictures from that show. I’m going to do this list style:

  •  Yacht
  • The Mae Shi
  • Ghostland Observatory
  • The Black Lips
  • Andrew Bird
  • Tokyo Police Club
  • Bloc Party
  • Apes and Androids
  • Apostle of Hustle
  • Thunderbirds Are Now!
  • De Novo Dahl (I’d never heard of them before)

from the party we threw:

  • Deep Sea Diver (really great local band from Long Beach, CA)
  • Chuck Ragan
  • This Providence
  • Limbeck
  • MC Lars
  • Brazil
  •  The Oohlas

There might have been a couple more bands that I just don’t remember or didn’t catch their names.

Upon returning, I’m not sure if this counts but, I went to a club to see Prince Paul do a DJ set. I think that sort of counts as a show.

Then Man Man at The Roxy to start April off. That was an awesome show. I’d never heard Man Man before and it was a pretty great introduction. They have so much energy. It was so fun with lots of yelling and stompyness. I’ve started listening to them regularly since that show.

The next night I went to see Dntel (the non-Gibbard half of The Postal Service) spin at The Natural History Museum. I also caught a set by The Submarines and Plaid while I was there.

The next week it was Triple Chicken Foot in Pasadena. They’re this local  twangy banjo threesome I found online. Sort of bluegrass, folky, Appalachian music. It was quite pleasant.

The week after that I saw Lavender Diamond at the Disney REDCAT theater. They played with Indian Jewelry, which I wasn’t too fond of. I think I actually took that time to take a nap. Totally disrespectful, but it really wasn’t my cup of tea. However, Lavender Diamond was so entertaining and cute. It was quite an experience, I was a little bored at times but I’m sure any Diamond fan would have been thrilled to have been there.

Art Brut at the Troub three days later. Then Sunset Rubdown and Xiu Xiu at the Troub again about three days after that. April appears to have been a busy month for me! I didn’t even realize until now.

Next on the list is one I’ve been anticipating for awhile now. Arcade Fire at The Greek. I’m hoping it will be amazing, how could it not be? But I’m trying to play it down in my head, not get too over excited for this. I’ll let you know how it goes.

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Chicken Scratch

I’ve recently discovered that I love Appalaichan music. If you’re wondering what that means well, it’s a form of banjo strummin’, fiddle fiddlin’, harmoninzin’, knee-slappin’, yeeeehawin’ country/folk type music that originated in the Appalachian Mountains of the United States.

I hadn’t always known that I liked it or even what it was called. My appreciation of music has come a long way since I started developing my own tastes and discovering music back in grade school. I think I’ve always sort of liked that sound but until now I never really took it seriously as a genre of music that I could listen to or identify with as a music lover. It’s not something that you usually hear on the radio. It’s not really commerical – unless you’re defining “commerical as a commerical for mother’s day at the Chicken Scratch Shack. Or something.

I’m Chinese American. Well, I’m full blooded Chinese but I’m a first generation so I really consider myself an American (not only because I literally am but because I don’t really identify with anyone from China). This love for the sounds of twangy instruments makes me wonder what in my childhood could have inlfluenced my taste in music. How does a little girl growing up in America with traditional Chinese parents fall in love with a genre of music like old- timey Appalaichan music?

How did that happen? I wonder if these tastes and preferences are inherent in our DNA from birth and it just takes some experiementation to find them or if this is something competely learned. Is it another case of Nature Vs Nurture?

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Rhapsody in Blue

Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue has this weird affect on me. It makes me feel nostalgic and think back on the days when I was young. It reminds me of the cool tile of my parent’s master bathroom. It makes me think of lazy Saturdays.

Or family vacations, like the one we took to Hawaii when I was too young to remember anything except buying one of those pearl oysters from the sidewalk stands. I had the pearl put onto a whale’s tale necklace for good luck. I remember being really sad when I lost it in the shower. I think it went down the drain. Just the pearl, not the whole necklace.

The strange thing is that I can’t remember why Rhapsody in Blue would evoke these memories. I really like the feeling it brings, which may be why I’ve had it stuck in my head for the past week. It’s just…odd.

I know they have airline commercials featuring this song nowadays. Did they used to? Can anyone remember if Delta used it? My mom and I used to fly Delta all the time. I was in the airline kids club. I’d get the newsletter from Dusty the aviator Lion. I had special meals when I flew. I got the little Delta wings pin.

It’s a good feeling. I sound like rain man. Yeah, I like it. Good feeling. It’s good.

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Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

Imma go see Har Mar Supastar and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs tonite!

I only have two hours before I need to be at Joanie’s house. I bettah go git ready.

I was spelling badly on purpose.

UPDATE~ the morning after:

I look “to’ up” or is it toe up? I always thought it was the ghetto version of “tore” which would translate into “to'”.

I went to the offical afterparty where Nick was DJing, thanks to my inside hook-up connection. I met him and mentally humped him and he signed my poster. He did interviews for the new SG magazine. He said he liked my SG sweatshirt…yeah, that’s right.

ok now I need to shower.