Music Video

I was in a music video. You can't tell though because I'm wearing a giant skeleton head in it. It's Red Arrow Messenger's video for their song "Murder Ballad."

Music

It's been a LONG time since I reviewed any music. I would say I've been busy with "real life" and that is sort of true. But I also have been wasting a lot of time on the internet. Just not here.

But here are some quick comments about some music I've been listening to:

• The Antlers - Hospice: I LOVE this album. Yes, the lyrics are depressing and about death and illness and whatnot, but the music has this sense of intensity that I find really beautiful. I saw them live last Thursday, as well, and I was not disappointed. Great small LA venue that I'll probably be frequenting since there are quite a few good upcoming shows there (the Bootleg on Beverly, for anyone in the LA area). There was just a ton of emotion in the music and the performance. The people I went with also enjoyed it, and one of them had never heard the music prior to the show.
• Circulatory System - Signal Morning: When I listened to this last week, I remember thinking, "oh, I like this." Now I can't remember why - or even what they sound like. I will need to listen again.
• Fool's Gold - S/T: Everyone seems to be raving about this band, but I just can't get into it. They're an LA band and have been playing around a lot lately, so perhaps I should see them live to see if I change my mind. They are also touring with a couple of really really great LA bands (Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros and Local Natives) - the latter I will write about in this post.
• Headlights - Wildlife: I really liked their last album. A lot. It was fun, catchy pop music. This feels like too much. Like when something is just too sweet and sugary...
• Imogen Heap - Ellipse: I love her. I don't care if she's overplayed now or if her songs sound the same or whatever. If I'm in a bad mood, I can just listen to one of her albums, including this one, and I feel better. It's quite phenomenal, really. Works particularly well if I have headphones on and turn the volume up high.
• Jenny Owen Youngs - Transmitter Failure: I can't actually remember if I've already posted about this. I've been listening to it for quite a while, but just in case I missed it... I think this is pretty good. Not every song is great, but there are some definite stand-outs. I love "No More Words."
• Jupiter One - Sunshower: I liked this the one time I listened. They are touring with Regina Spektor, who I love. This is pretty typical indie pop/rock. Nothing too amazing, but pleasant and nice in a way that is, well, pleasant...and nice.
• Local Natives - Gorilla Manor: I first heard of this band when they played on the same line-up as my friend's band Red Arrow Messenger. They had tons of energy and were really great to see live. Makes sense that they are playing some shows with Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, another LA band with tons of energy.
• Ramona Falls - Intuit: Yet another album I have only listened to once through, but so far I am really happy with it. It's a new band from Menomena's Brent Knopf. Justin Harris is my favorite Menomena member, but that's only because I think he's beautiful. Music-wise, I apparently really like Brent Knopf - if Ramona Falls is something to base that decision on. If you like Menomena, you will probably like this, too.
• The Rest - Everything All at Once: Ida made me get this album. I really really like it. It's exactly my kind of music, which is why Ida suggested it. There are 7 people in the band. This means there are harmonies and lots of instruments and layers and layers and layers.
• Sea Wolf - White Water, White Bloom: I've only listened once, but my response is "eh." I so wanted to like this album because I LOVED their last one and loved them in concert, etc etc. But honestly, I was a little bored by this album. Maybe it will grow on me. I'll keep listening and keep you posted. Update: with another listen, I realize that I DO like it, but I expect more from them. So compared to, say, Jupiter One that I just said I liked, this is just as good if not better, but I guess my expectations were too high...
• Tegan & Sara - Sainthood: Again. I wanted to like this album because I liked The Con so much. And I read reviews ahead of time saying it was great. But I was bored...
• Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Fast: First listen was "eh." Second listen I liked it. Maybe I was in a bad mood the first time? This is the problem with music reviews. They can be totally mood dependent. Now I think I might like it better than the last album...
• Volcano Choir - Unmap: If you like Bon Iver, then you will probably like Volcano Choir. I think that's all I have to say.
• Why? - Eskimo Snow: Typical Why? Not as good as Alopecia, in my opinion. But worth listening...
• The xx - xx: Sounds like another band - although I can't put my finger on it at this moment. This is why I will never be paid to write music reviews. It's good, but nothing spectacular.

Anger Management

One thing I love about living in a big city is the diversity. I love being around people who aren't exactly like me. But what comes with that? Well...bitchy women. I'm sure there are some asshole men, too, but I have a couple of stories that involve women, so that's the focus of this post...

The other day, I was picking up a prescription from the pharmacy after work. It was busy, as everyone else was making their after-work-errand-runs. So I was waiting, with blinker on, to turn left into the parking garage for Trader Joe's and Rite Aid. The line was backed up to get into the garage, and there were a number of cars waiting to make right hand turns in, as well. So I waited. As I waited, other cars were able to make left hand turns to exit the garage because I was following traffic flow rules, creating space for them to exit. The woman behind me, though, was not happy. She laid on her horn. My assumption initially was that she was probably upset because she wanted to go straight and didn't want to wait for me to be able to turn left. But I was wrong. Her blinker was on, as well. So she had to wait to get into the same garage that I was going to, yet for some reason felt the need to lay on her horn. Where was I supposed to go? Well, apparently I was supposed to block all traffic. At least that's what she did after I eventually was able to pull into the line for the garage. There was no space behind me in line, but she did not wait as I had. She pulled right behind me, blocking all traffic. People behind her could not go straight because she was still a bit in their lane. People going the opposite direction could not go because she was completely blocking their lane. People turning left out of the garage could not go either. All so that she would be sure to have her spot in line to get into the packed garage. What irritates me even more is that I am fairly certain that if she had been in any of the other cars that were blocked at that moment, she would have been laying on her horn at herself. I hate hypocrisy...

Another instance came on the elevator in the building where my office is. There is some relevant background for this story. These elevators suck. Flat out suck. I have waited almost 15 minutes for an elevator to come before. I have also been on one where, after someone pushed for the 1st floor, and the elevator hesitated slightly at floor 1 before just continuing up to higher floors. Those people had to ride all the way up before going back down to (hopefully) get off on the correct floor. The doors do not always have the safety feature where they stop closing if they sense motion. They will squash you if you let them.

So I'm on an elevator. It is mildly crowded, but not ridiculously so. There is still plenty of room. We stop to let some people out on a floor, and we hear a woman running to catch the elevator. She yells for us to hold the door, then sticks her arm in to try to get on before it closes. A few of us on the elevator frantically ask the woman standing near the buttons to push the "door open" button. She ignores us. After the woman's arm is in, we ask again for this other woman to push the button, as the door is not responding to the motion. It's still closing. The woman outside removes her arm, so that it is not squashed, and the woman inside remains still. After the door closes, she bitchally (yes, I made that word up, but it's apt) says, "She can catch the next one." Seriously? It was that hard to push a freaking button? It wasn't that she tried and couldn't find it. It wasn't that she tried and it didn't work. It wasn't that moved a muscle at all... She just sat there. I suppose in other buildings, waiting for the next elevator wouldn't be a big deal, but I'm telling you - 15 minutes! Elevators skip floors erratically. My friend won't get on the elevator without her cell phone because she simply doesn't trust them. And this woman can't push a simple little button that is right in front of her face!

I just wish everyone had some sense of empathy or at least thought for other people.

Gay Marriage

Anyone who knows me in "real life" knows that I am very passionate about gay rights. This video struck a chord with me. Apparently it's a few years old, but I missed it somehow.

Ava's Shoes

Remember when I bought Ava shoes to wear hiking? Well, after two hikes in LA where her paws were either cut or rubbed completely raw, I decided she needed to start wearing them again. Yesterday we hiked Solstice Canyon in Malibu. It's a relatively easy hike, so there were large groups of people and kids on the trail. Ava was the hit of the trail in her shoes. She made kids giggle uncontrollably. She had people taking pictures of her. Not a single person walked by us without commenting either to us or amongst themselves. One woman suggested I design a line of designer dog shoes since Ava's looked a bit boy-ish. I sort of doubt there is a big market for hiking dogs who want fancy shoes...

Applying

I just applied for a job. A faculty position. I haven't been applying to too many because I was not sure what sort of job I really wanted to have, and I'm feeling very geographically particular... Basically, I didn't want a job in Laramie, Wyoming. Or Ohio. Or a number of other places. So one day, a job popped up that seemed appealing, and I did it. I applied.

And I'm suddenly excited. I sort of want to apply to more places just to see what will happen. Of course, the whole point in not applying earlier was that there were no appealing locales... But maybe? Maybe something amazing will come up - and I will be able to apply for another position. People think applying for jobs is stressful. I think it's fun. Of course, we'll see how I feel come spring if I have no job lined up...

Brand New

I think I forgot I had a blog...

But I just had this thought. There is a band called Brand New. What happens when they've been around for 40 years? Or maybe they plan on breaking up before then...