Manufacturing Content

Musically Contained

The age of the iPod has its pros and cons.  The pros are easy to come by: cool device, good sound quality, the ability to carry your whole music library with you.

I can deal with most of the cons.  My biggest beef with the iPods is that you have to digitally compress your music, which can lessen the quality. 

If you want to know what I’m talking about, try listening to a store-bought music CD (not a burned CD) with real, studio quality headphones, or an awesome stereo system.  Listen to the sound of the drums, and pay close attention to the symbols and hi-hats.  Then, listen to the same CD after you’ve ripped it onto iTunes, or Winamp (do people still use that?) or whatever.

There’s a huge difference there, which is why I still buy CDs when I know the production quality will be worth listening to.

But I digress.

My current beef, however, is that for one year, I won’t be able to change the songs on my iPod. 

Last time I left the country for a year, way back on 2000, I only brought about a dozen CDs with me, and came back with about twenty.  And I survived, somehow – with the added unexpected bonus of being able to recite the Deftones’ White Pony album in its entirety.  I guess I’ll find a way to survive with the 170 album capacity of my iPod.

Albums are a dying art form in the world of popular music.  Bands like Radiohead and Beck are already breaking down the medium.  But, for my money, a well crafted album is much more rewarding that a single tune.  And, let’s not forget the concept-album, a-la Pink Floyd’s The Wall (also on my list of best albums).

I’ve spent endless hours refining the 11 gigs I have left (after downloading all of the LOTR extended edition movies – boo-yeah) into the ultimate collection of albums.  Part of that quest has been finding the best albums I don’t yet own.

Suggestions are welcome here, but my current favourite finds are:

Return from Cookie Mountain by TV on the Radio – This is a kick-ass album of moody rock and roll.  Good for long bus rides, and sleepless nights while on safari.

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot by Wilco – An excellent piece of post nine-eleven commentary, which kind of sounds like The Weakerthans with a moral conscience and a bit more country.  I’ll be listening to this when nostalgia for simple home-life rears its head.

Untrue by Burial – Electronic of the highest quality, good for running, lounging, and waiting in airports.

D.

Songs for a Fall Wedding

This mix CD was part of the long string of wedding favours and special touches that K and I prepared for our guests.

1. Let’s Never Stop Falling in Love – Pink Martini
2. World Container - The Tragically Hip
3. The Builder
4. Don’t Forget - Martha Wainwright
5. Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe - Okkervil River
6. I Found a Reason - Cat Power
7. Start a War - The National
8. Cinder and Smoke - Iron & Wine
9. We Will Still Need a Song - Hawksley Workman
10. Wolf Like Me - TV on the Radio
11. You're Pretty Good Looking (for a girl) - The White Stripes
12. Nothing in This World Can Stop Me Worryin’ ‘Bout That Girl - The Kinks
13. To Be Alone With You - Sufjan Stevens
14. Wildflowers - Tom Petty
15. Beach Day
16. The Crane Wife 1 and 2 - The Decemberists

Also, now playing on the side-bar, are the first round of photos from the wedding. Enjoy responsibly.

D.

Short letters to people seen at Bluesfest ‘07

Dear Active Living enthusiast,

I recognize your right to be seventy and still enjoy all the wonderful freedoms and pleasures of the younger set.  That said, you too must recognize the rights of said younger set to remain unencumbered with the thought that one day, they too might be old and drunk at a rock concert.  It’s a bit of a downer.

Your interpretive dance routine set to three back-to-back Blue Rodeo numbers was inspired, however.  Between that, the video-screen, and the actual performance on stage, I felt my money was well spent that day.  The only thing that might have made my evening more enjoyable would have been if I were able to stop myself from hoping that I wouldn’t have to perform CPR anytime soon.

In closing, thanks for amping up the good times, and don’t take my refusal to ‘touch elbows’ as any sort of personal slight – the elbows in question just looked a bit wrinkly.

Dear Text-messaging teeny-boppers,

In the name of entertainment, thanks for sharing your views about which of your friends ‘rock’ and your sadness over the fate of the Sens. 

While I was sad to read that J.H. had to break it off with Jessi because you found someone better waiting in line at the port-a-potties, the number of engagement proposals and acceptances more than makes up for it.  Love is indeed in the air, and in the brain-cancer-causing microwaves bouncing between all of you.

I must say that this advance in technology represents a leap forward in being able to find your lost friends with a four word cryptic message – “Billy we’re beside speaker”.  Hopefully we can apply it to lost children in supermarkets and amusement parks around the world.

Dear High-heeled, short skirt, wrong place, wrong time bimbo,

Maybe I’m giving away too much about my age here, but I can not fathom the train of thought that precedes attending an outdoor festival without proper footwear.  I mean, how can you dance in grass in stilettos?

In case you haven’t noticed, this isn’t the Mercury Lounge, it’s the War Museum.  To honour our fallen brothers and sisters, the appropriate attire is obviously army boots.  I am sorry if they don’t go with your tube top.

Maybe this is a bit petty of me after all.  I mean, once the rain starts, and the ground turns to mud, we’ll all be in the same boat anyway.  Just don’t ask me to carry you out of the crowd.

Dear White Stripes,

I don’t know how one dude on a guitar, and a semi-talented drummer can muster that much ass to kick, but you did.  For that, I salute you.

D.

What I'm listening to these days

Okay, my music nerd roots are showing.  I'm on a bit of an eclecctic kick, so here's the best of the albums I've recently bought or 'borrowed' from the local public library.

The National - Boxer
Picture Morrisey, Leonard Cohen, old (read: good) U2, and Coldplay all mixed in together.  Might take a couple of listens to get into it, but it's god solid songwriting (Mr. McK - buy this album.  You'll love it, guaranteed!).

Battles - Mirrored
A bit on the strange side, this ultra-technical collection of 'math-rock' tunes is off-the-charts brilliant, and the hardest thing to listen to since Wes Borland's Big Dumb Face project (but a million times better).  I read one review on this that said this is what heavy metal music will sound like in 100 years, and I beleive it.  Don't listen to it in the store, you won't like it the first time.  Buy it and force yourself to listen to the album a few times, then pass judgement once you've gotten past the munchin vocals.

John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
I'm getting into a jazz phase.  This was my first exposure to experiemental jazz.  Next on the list is some Thelonius Monk.  Suggestions welcome!

D.

Saturday Jam

Not too long ago, I was in a band. We started out as four guys from the same floor in residence at Carleton, playing at open-stage nights at Roosters, back before it became a “coffee house” (back in the glory days of Carleton, there were four bars on Campus. Now there’s one, a coffee house, a never-opened restaurant, and a grad club – boo-urns).

I remember sitting in my room playing a tune when E, who I had only met in passing, strolled in and, without saying a word, started to play along with me. A few months later, we had a drummer and a keyboard player and were off to the races.

The fate of all Ottawa bands, good and bad, is that there are no decent venues, or willing patrons. Sure, we did the Bank Street World Tour, consisting of Bumpers (since closed), The Underground (since closed), The Bayou (since closed), and Babylon. We even had a few regular gigs at the less-than band-friendly space in the back corner of the Cock-and-Lion and in the courtyard of the Brig. We made a CD, had some great memories, and left it at that. We never got the fame and success we thought we deserved and our fan base never expanded beyond the circle of roommates, girlfriends, and random hangers-on – not to discount their loyalty and contribution to the cause.

I had taken a bit a hiatus from playing. Once real life starts, the important little distractions like this get tucked away. The past few months, however, have seen a renewal of sorts. I’ve gotten together with my fellow band-less guitar players and other musicians for a bi-weekly noise making session at the best little jam space ever underneath Irene’s Pub. While none of us have the time or the inclination to form a “band”, we’re all more than happy to rock-out every other week for the sake of our sanity, something to do, and an excuse to have beers before noon.

The genesis of the jam was a simple enough idea that there are way too many people walking around saying “we should jam”, “I wish I could jam”, and “why doesn’t anyone jam” and not nearly enough people doing anything about it. Sadly, far too many of these people are guitar players – not that there’s anything wrong with guitar players, per se, but put five or more of them in a room, with another pretending to play bass, and another still trying to drum, and you’ve got quite the cacophony. I’m just as guilty since I’m the worst kind of guitar player – one who can’t (read: won’t) sing, doesn’t know the first thing about music, and can’t play the drums.

In an ideal world, there’s be a diverse group of people hanging out at Irene’s every other Saturday – maybe a keyboard player, some horns, a harmonica, dare I say an accordion - some having beers, taking turns playing a tune or two and generally enjoying the interaction with others, sharing ideas, and becoming better players. Ideally, there’d be enough demand that we could do this every week.

If you, or anyone you know, would be interested in being included on the email I send out reminding people to come and make some noise (doesn’t mean you have to come, it just means you might one day…) let me know! Drop me a comment with your email address.

D.