A Forgotten Art Form, Part 4

I've got movies on the brain, so bear with me for another post about them.


The film industry has been around for well over 100 years, and in that time it has established itself as a major staple in the entertainment world and society. Along with the advancements of technology and such, the way we watch movies has changed as well. Of course, we have new 3D technologies, high definition, and IMAX, but that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking more about how we actually watch and take in the movies ourselves. People don't watch movies the way they used to, and unfortunately, the film industry has adjusted accordingly.


I guess the best way to illustrate this would be with a recent example. Inception is one of the most critically acclaimed science fiction movies of the past few years. I wanted to see it the second I saw a teaser trailer for it. After it came out, I heard so many people saying that it was super confusing and that they needed to watch it multiple times to understand everything. So, when I finally went to watch it, I was almost worried about the brain twisting that was to come. Although the movie was fantastic, I was somewhat disappointed in the fact that I understood most, if not all of the movie after one viewing (I even had to pee for the last hour). At first my theory was that I went into the movie mentally prepared for brain stretching action, but after thinking about it for awhile, several of my friends, who I consider to be intelligent people who would have seen it under similar circumstances still had to watch it more than once.


So I thought I was a unique example, that I could take in more information like that at once than the average person. Then I convinced my parents to watch the movie. My dad, specifically, grasped most of the movie in one viewing as well. We even have our own little inside joke about the movie (THE VAN IS STILL FALLING!). But the biggest reveal came when my little brother who is six years younger than I finally watched the movie. Even he managed to understand most of the movie in one sitting.


At this point, I was baffled. How could three people totally comprehend a film that the majority of people required multiple views to understand? There is the fact that we were all related, but it's not some sort of genetic thing we have. I think it just has more to do with the the fact that we all lived in the same house. My parents really enjoy watching movies and TV shows. Some of their all time favorites were mystery based shows like Sherlock Holmes, Poirot, Law and Order, and NCIS more recently. My dad specifically watched shows like that so much that it's not even fun to watch anything with him anymore. Okay, it's actually a lot of fun, because he tries to figure it out before the end and shares with everyone. The not so fun part comes in when he's usually right. I can't tell you how many times he's guessed the murderer within the first ten minutes of an NCIS episode. He even figured out what Rosebud was while we still had over 30 minutes left in Citizen Kane!


The "forgotten art form" I'm trying to get at here is the ability to watch things; films, specifically. My brother and I were raised in a house where much of our entertainment was dependent on details. Most of today's viewers probably don't know it, but the best mysteries give you all the information you need during the show to figure out whodunit. You just need to pay attention. The ability to sit and pay close attention to something seems to be a rarity in today's society, and the entertainment industry has suffered because of it.


Along with Citizen Kane, I have begun to watch some classic movies, including 
Casablanca and Rear Window. All of them have been fantastic so far, but the more I think about them, the more I realize that they would probably be hated if they were released today, and most movie goers would consider them boring. Most would rather see another cleavage-laden Transformers movie. Sure, a few good ones like The King's Speech and The Artist show up every now and then, but the only reason people know about them and have any desire to see them is because they won Academy Awards.


It's actually kind of funny because one of those older films, Rear Window, was remade to appeal to today's audiences. The result was the lackluster thriller Disturbia starring Shia The-beef. Sure, replace a bedridden photographer with a teen under house arrest and the suspected murderer with a serial ax-wielding maniac, that should really bring the old Hitchcock fans flocking! I'm being sarcastic of course.


In all honesty, I thought my brother would find the films to be boring, but he sat through all of them and found an interest in them (with the exception of Casablanca, he kind of spaced out on that one). He even got drawn into the mostly silent Spaghetti western epics The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and Once Upon A Time in The West. It's because he, unlike many people his age (and even my age), has developed the ability to sit still and pay attention, and actually watch a movie.


It's also a bit of a balancing act because you don't want to become so caught up in the details that you miss the big picture. A good example of this is The Avengers, I won't spoil anything, don't worry. But The Avengers could fit nicely in the big noisy ADHD action movies we've become so used to, and although the movie does have a great exterior, it is full of details that make it even better. Director Joss Whedon does many things well, and one of them is details. Nothing is in the movie without a reason. If you haven't seen The Avengers yet, or plan on watching it again, try to pay attention to some of the details and see how much better the movie becomes. Then apply the same thing to other movies as you watch (granted, some movies just aren't going to have them). You might be surprised with what you find.




What I'm listening to:

No Jacket Required by Phil Collins (vinyl)

Pop Is Not a Bad Word

I found myself discussing this topic twice in the past couple weeks, so I guess it's relevant. I kind of touched on it before, but I'm going to go a little deeper this time. In my previous post, "I'm Hooked" I talk about the hook in music and how it's the part that catches our ears and we say, "hey, that sounds good" and we start tapping our toes and such. The entire world of pop music is based on this hook. The thing is, there is a right and wrong way to do this. I'm not going to tell the same story over again, so I'm going to move on.


The title of this post is "Pop Is Not a Bad Word". Although many music-philes like myself would agree that all things wrong with the music world are the result of pop music and the music industry in general (there is an underlying cause, but we'll get to that later; if not here, in another post). But I am not going to say that just because something comes from the realm of pop music, it is automatically bad. I will readily say that the methods employed by pop musicians, agents, managers, and producers, are all bad, but the music itself isn't always (key word, always) bad. Every now and then, you'll find a rare gem.


Let's look at the example of Lana Del Rey. Practically everything about her is a fabrication of some manager or agent, even her name (her real name is Elizabeth "Lizzy" Grant). And yet, she puts out something like this:

She is the daughter of a dot com millionaire and her hand has been held throughout the entire process. Even her "indie" image was created by an agent. She has the sound, the look, and even the (fabricated) story of an up-and-coming indie star, but she is by all meanings of the word a product of the pop music machine. But the song is fantastic. There's no easy way around it, it is a good song.


And it doesn't only apply to the music industry's attempts at building "indie cred" and making fake indie stars. Even the worst of the worst pop radio fodder turn up a decent track here and there. Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and Nicki Minaj all have good songs, granted that they are few and far between and that for the latter it's when she stops trying to be a pop star and does what she's actually good at (rapping). Even pop's rock bands turn up some good stuff here and there.


Except for Nickelback, that crap is always going to suck. As the saying goes, you can't polish a turd.


The thing is, all these decent songs are buried under a pile of garbage. You have to really dig and know where to look to find them. It doesn't help that the singles they pick are a part of the garbage 99% of the time. It is possible to start clearing the air, but at this point, it almost seems hopeless. The key is that the people need to stop demanding crap, and even when they don't they need to stop eating it up like it's the greatest thing since the invention of the wheel.


As I said before, there is another underlying cause behind all this, but it stretches much farther than just the music world. Although this post is relatively short, it would become far too long by the end of that explanation. It will have to wait for another time.


Until then, demand good music from the industry. Don't accept mediocre and recycled pop songs. Don't give them the satisfaction of buying it (and I don't mean you should pirate it either, that just contributes to the problem).




What I'm listening to:

El Camino by The Black Keys

I Can Only Take So Much!

Over the past year, I noticed something in a couple movies that I watched, and I can only hope that it isn't the beginning of a trend. The movies in question are Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows. Neither were particularly great movies though one was far better than the other (I'm sure you can figure out which). Anyway, each one had a couple scenes that kind of stood out to me, and all for the same reason. I'll go into details for the scenes in Transformers because, if you haven't seen it yet, you either have excellent taste in movies, or you live under a rock. Since Sherlock Holmes is still relatively new, I will try to not spoil too much.


The first scene in question in Transformers takes place in a skyscraper in Chicago, which has been taken over by the Decepticons. Sam and his rag-tag group of commandos have saved Carly (played by not-Megan-Fox) and are hiding from Shockwave on their way to Megatron and Sentinel Prime. Shockwave notices them and unleashes an attack on the building that, more or less, snaps it in half. As you can imagine, the following sequence of the humans trying to escape the building with their lives runs pretty high on the intensity scale. The problem with the scene is that it's incredibly long. When it's all over, you are almost exhausted from being on the edge of your seat for so long. 


Unfortunately, that's not the end of it. Later on, in the same "Battle for Chicago", Sam and Carly have a run-in with Starscream. Sam grabs a grappling hook type device and fires it at Starscream, hitting him in the eye. The robot then reacts like you'd expect someone who just had a sharp object shoved in their eye would. He panics and starts flailing around and even trying to fly away at times, all while Sam is still attached to him. Apart from the mild entertainment of seeing Shia Lebeouf flung around at the end of a string, the scene, again is too tense for too long. After awhile you find yourself saying, "For crying out loud, won't someone just cut him down?"


As promised, I won't reveal too much about Sherlock Holmes, but there are similar instances in it as well. Let's just say one involves a meat hook and the other involves Holmes and Watson running away while being shot at. One isn't as bad as the other, but the same applies as before. Both are incredibly intense and incredibly long, and it doesn't help that the cinematography in one of them is really weird (I think Guy Ritchie has been taking lessons from Zack Snyder).


I guess this concerns me because there were multiple offenses in multiple movies released within the same year. As I said before, I really hope this isn't the beginning of a trend. I guess I can somewhat understand why filmmakers would put scenes like this in their movies, but we'll get to that later. The main concept, in terms of entertainment, that they are violating is pacing, or how emotional and action oriented highs and lows are used to effectively move a plot along. That link is to a video where the narrator talks about how pacing can and should be used in video games. I know I'm talking about movies, but the video says that games should follow the patterns that film has set before them. It also serves  as a good explanation of how pacing works in general.


Now back to what I was saying before about why filmmakers would put super high intensity scenes in their movies at all. And it goes back to the concept of bigger is better. Filmmakers are constantly trying to surpass their last works, especially when they make sequels. They want to avoid the common assumption that a sequel will not be as good as the first. So they up the ante in one respect or another. Now, it's no surprise that Michael Bay would choose to increase action, suspense, and destruction in his Transformers sequels. Those are things that are synonymous with Michael Bay. But another thing that is synonymous with him is bad movies. You can only take things so far, when the intensity is too high, you end up exhausting your audience.


In Sherlock Holmes, the first movie was actually quite enjoyable to watch. Although Holmes isn't a super hero, the movie followed pretty much your basic super hero movie blueprint. I can understand that Guy Ritchie would want to take it up a notch, especially considering all the other movies in similar genres releasing that year. Unfortunately, Game of Shadows is another victim of excess.


Too often the tendency is to suddenly plunge a film into a super intense moment and then keep the intensity rising at a constant rate. Hopefully this trend doesn't last long, and if it does, hopefully today's ADD generation will at least realize how ridiculous it is and the filmmakers will realize their mistake.




What I'm listening to:

Van Halen by Van Halen (vinyl)

A Few Favorites From 2011

Another year has come to a close and another one has begun. And I'd like to look back on the year and see what it gave us. You may recall that I made a similar post at the end of last year, and much of the same applies. These are all based on my personal opinions. I will not rate any of these on any scale. They are my personal favorites and I just want to share them with you. I'm not going to try and convince you that you have to like them. They are just suggestions from a fellow enthusiast. Form your own opinions and share them, if you like.


All the following are in no particular order, and are compiled from things that I currently own and/or have seen.


Music:


Regional At Best by Twenty One Pilots


Twenty One Pilots is an unsigned band from Ohio and this is their second self-released album. I was introduced to them through another Ohio-based band that I am personal friends with. It's only two guys and they have a unique blend of electro-pop and hip-hop with a little twinge of rock, all presented with the punk rock attitude as in, they aren't going to let their musical limitations keep them from saying what they have to say. And I love it. Despite their somewhat light-hearted sound, they cover some heavy issues including death and suicide. An excellent blend of making music for the sake of it and to make a statement.


Portamento by The Drums


The Drums were one of my favorite new bands from last year, and they made themselves better for this year. Their first album had this bright, jangly west coast guitar pop feel with most of the songs about pining for a love interest or fun things like surfing. They did touch on some darker issues, but never to the extent of Portamento. With this album they take the same vibe from before and darken it a bit. Most of the songs are asking a significant other not to leave or about breakups. The whole album sounds much more mature, as if it should have been released years after their debut, not immediately after it.


No Color by The Dodos


I was introduced to and became interested in The Dodos with their second album, Time To Die. I liked the easy going, but not necessarily laid back acoustic folk-influenced pop. But what I didn't know is that The Dodos had built a reputation for music that was still acoustic, but with an incredible, almost explosive energy. No Color is a return to that. It starts with relentless energy and rhythms, slows down a bit, but picks it right back up. The songs all have different movements, deviating from standard pop structures, but remain incredibly listenable. The vocal contributions from Neko Case are a nice touch, too. If anyone thought acoustic music was reserved for light folk or singer/songwriters, give The Dodos a listen.


Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two by Beastie Boys


When it comes to hip-hop music, the Beastie Boys have always been one of my favorites. They are incredibly tongue-in-cheek and don't expect you to take them seriously all the while taking what they do very seriously. They almost seem like a hip-hop group with a rock-and-roll attitude. Hot Sauce is the Beasties' first album since 2007's all instrumental The Mix-Up and the first with lyrics since 2004's To the 5 Boroughs, and it is a true return to form. The songs are all solid and fun with tight verses from all three of the members and contributions from Nas and Santigold. They sound like the Beasties we came to love with 1994's Ill Communication. It might not be as strong as that record, but it fits nicely with it and Hello Nasty.


Bon Iver by Bon Iver


Chalk this one up as one of my biggest surprises of the year. I bought it with a passing interest, having heard good things about the group from people whose opinions I trust. I did not expect to love it as much as I do. The sound of the album escapes description, but the best I can do is alternative folk rock. The composition of the whole record is nothing but excellent. Nothing in any of the songs sounds like it doesn't belong there. And the album's closer "Beth/Rest" has an undeniably delightful '80s feel to it. I can't say enough good about this one. Seriously. This one spent a good bit of time in my car stereo, which is strange since it's not really driving music. Those who've heard it know what I'm talking about. Either way, it's that good.


Barton Hollow by The Civil Wars


Although half of the group, Joy Williams, has been recording for years, The Civil Wars are all new. They are a light singer/songwriter folk group and everything about them works together well. The two voices compliment each other well and you can just tell that Williams and John Paul White work together incredibly on a creative level as well. Most of the songs are slower and light; there is one raucous stomp-and-clap song in the middle of the mix, but it doesn't feel out of place. In fact, it would almost be out of place if it wasn't there, and that's not only because it's the title track. Digital versions of the album also include unique covers of "I Want You Back" by the Jackson 5 and "Dance Me to the End of Love" by Leonard Cohen.


Cyanide Sisters EP by Com Truise


If I could pick a genre of the year, it would be chillwave. I've already written an entire post about it, but chillwave is basically an electronic music sub-genre that is laid back but still has a danceable beat. Com Truise wasn't the artist that introduced me to chillwave, but I believe him to be the best. The Cyanide Sisters EP has this nice flow to it and it's great background music as well as music to listen to for enjoyment. I recommend the bonus tracks version of the EP. It started as a seven song EP, but four bonus tracks were added, so it might as well be a full album. He has also released an official full length album called Galactic Melt, but I feel that this is the superior of the two.


Mylo Xyloto by Coldplay


This was one of my most anticipated albums of 2011. I first became excited when I heard they were releasing a new album, and became even more so when I heard the first single. It's nothing like previous Coldplay, but at the same time sounds exactly like Coldplay. I feel this is an album where they are really becoming the band they want to be. It has a brighter feel than Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, and has some of their strongest hooks to date. It doesn't quite surpass their first two albums for me, but I find Mylo to be an excellent step forward. You know something's up when some of the best indie rock of the year comes from a mainstream band of thirty-somethings.


El Camino by The Black Keys


This is the other most anticipated album of 2011 for me. The Black Keys have been one of my favorite bands for a long time, and this album further enforces that. El Camino basically takes the attitude of last years' Brothers, speeds it up, and sharpens its claws. This record is fast and raw garage rock fun. It even had a sticker on the cover that said "PLAY LOUD". Danger Mouse returns as the producer, only this time, he understands what the Keys are about more. It's a great blend of their early career heavy blues and the more recent soulful fare. It's a good fun ride from start to finish.


All Things Bright And Beautiful by Owl City


To be honest I was a little scared when this one came out. I was afraid that Adam Young would only be able to make the same album over and over. Let's just say I was pleasantly surprised. Although there are parallels between this and Ocean Eyes in sound, lyrics, and even song titles, this is not the same album. Young manages to bridge the gap between progression and familiarity. You still have your tried and true gushy gooey pop music, but he also dares for some darker material, like recuperating in a hospital after a car crash. He even branches into hip-hop with a guest appearance by Shawn Chrystopher. But to be honest, I prefer the version of "Alligator Sky" without him. Give it a try if you like.



Movies:


Rango


This is one of those movies where you love it or you hate it. And most people who hate it probably hate westerns or think all cartoon movies should be for kids. If I had to pick one word to describe this movie, it would be "unique". It's a territory that animated movies haven't explored yet, and even the art style is crazy. It has a good story that plays just like a good old-fashioned western with modern twists and the visuals are just plain incredible. It's got a good sense of humor, to boot.


Battle: Los Angeles


Okay, at its core, this is pretty much your typical alien invasion movie, but it finds a spot on my list for a couple reasons. First, the action is paced nicely and intense, like it should be. Second, it's different from other alien invasion movies because it shows a (somewhat) more realistic situation of how the country would react to an invasion. That being with military force. It's equal parts war movie and alien movie, and does it well enough for me.




The King's Speech


Okay, to be fair, this one was released in 2010, but nobody knew it existed until this year because it won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Believe it or not, I'm actually a fan of drama films and this one is great. The story of a man who has a position thrust upon him that he never wanted, that position being the King of England. And to make matters worse, he struggles with a speech impediment. It's a great story of overcoming obstacles, and it has one hilarious string of profanity, too.


Thor


How you feel about this movie depends on what you think a superhero movie should be, because this is not your typical superhero movie. But to be honest, Thor isn't really a typical superhero. Thor doesn't really have an origin story in terms of his abilities, but more of one in terms of how he comes to love and respect Earth and recognize its need to be protected. And it may or may not be directly related to the fact that Natalie Portman lives here. This film has great visuals and action and feels like more than just a lead-in to next year's The Avengers.




X-Men: First Class


This movie is a strong contender for the best superhero movie of the year, and even the best movie of the year (in my opinion). I've never been a huge fan of the X-Men, but this just about made me one. It tells the story of the first real assembly of mutants and the relationship between Professor X and Magneto before they became enemies. The whole thing is basically a long origin story for the organization as a whole as well as the individual mutants, like Beast, Mystique, and the aforementioned Magneto and Professor X. Also, Kevin Bacon plays the villain. How cool is that?


Super 8


This is my other possibility for the best movie of the year. The brilliant minds of Steven Spielberg and J.J. Abrams come together to create a tense, unseen-enemy type alien movie that works on you emotionally as well. The story focuses around middle school kids making a movie for a competition and getting wrapped up in the events following a massive train wreck that unleashes something strange on their small town. It's tense when it should be and emotional throughout. It's really one of my personal favorites.




Winnie the Pooh


It's hard to call this one a movie since it's just barely longer than an hour, but it's such a good return to form that it just has to be on this list. I grew up watching Winnie the Pooh cartoons and this captures the feel of it all wonderfully. With intertwining stories about finding a new tail for Eeyore and rescuing Christopher Robin from an imaginary monster. As you can imagine, hilarity ensues as their plans hit snag after snag. A nice bonus are songs performed by Zooey Deschanel.


Captain America: The First Avenger


This was a good year for Marvel superhero movies. Although I still think X-Men was the best one of the year, Captain America holds a close second. I've been a fan of Cap since elementary school and I was very impressed with this one. The character was portrayed properly and his origins were dead on. It's also interesting because he's not a typical superhero. Along with having the super powers, he's actually the leader of a group of commandos. I was a bit disappointed that Hugh Jackman didn't make a cameo as Logan (aka Wolverine), but I guess one cameo is enough for one year. 


Fright Night


This one ranks as another surprise of the year. I really only went to see this one because David Tennant was in it and a girl I knew wanted to see it (like you haven't done the same). But it ended up being a real enjoyable movie. As a remake, some people might not be interested, but this particular remake is more tongue-in-cheek than anything. It doesn't expect you to take it seriously, but at the same time it's a respectful tribute as opposed to a parody. It's scary and funny when it's supposed to be. An added bonus is a cameo from Chris Sarandon, who played the vampire in the first Fright Night.

The Muppets


The Muppets as a franchise have been somewhat inactive for several years now, having released only a few made-for-TV movies in the last decade. Most fans would agree that it was time for them to re-establish themselves. And they do so, quite well in fact, with The Muppets. This film gives you everything you'd expect, cliche and all, in a Muppet movie, and they even mix in the original Muppet Show, capturing the original spirit of it as well. Yes, you've seen this movie before, and the jokes are corny. But the truth is, we wouldn't expect any less from the Muppets.



Video Games:


I have only just this year purchased and started playing current-generation video games (PS3 and such), so this list will be considerably short. But, it exists because I did find a couple games this year that are worth noting.


Bastion


I do like RPGs but generally, they're not my thing. Mostly because of the turn-based combat. Yes, I'm a fan of Final Fantasy, but that's a few in a large group. Bastion is an RPG that I can get excited about. The environments are gorgeous, the story is intriguing, the music is great, and the voice acting is perhaps the best you'll ever get when it comes to narration. Combat is simple and adaptable depending on what route you want to take (ranged, melee, etc.). It is fun, inexpensive, and available on Xbox Live Arcade and Steam. So have at it!


Portal 2


Some may say that Skyrim was the most anticipated game of the year, but for me it was Portal 2. And I must say that it did not disappoint. This time around, Valve took everything that made the first one great and made it better. Adding deeper story, more characters, and most importantly, more levels makes this game a worthy successor. Although the puzzles might not be any more difficult, the additions to the game make completion feel that much more rewarding. With side splitting voice work from new characters and the expected dry evilness from GLaDOS to accompany you, exploring an abandoned lab has never been more fun.




Honorable Mention


Normally I try to limit myself, but there were so many things this year that, although they don't deserve to be on the list, accomplished something that at least deserves a mention.


Music:


Is For Karaoke by Relient K


Releasing an album of nothing but cover songs takes a lot of guts because it shows a couple things. It can tell your fans that you've possibly run out of ideas and are just filling space, and it runs the risk of alienating your fans based on your choices. The album is good, but it only gets an honorable mention because none of the covers are particularly special. They just sound like Relient K trying to play those songs with no real unique spin to them.


The Fall by Gorillaz


This one gets a mention mostly because of when and how it was made. The physical release of this album was in April of 2011, but the initial release was to members of the Gorillaz fan club on Christmas of 2010. Keep in mind, that was only nine months after their last album Plastic Beach was released. It was also recorded entirely on an iPad. Otherwise, The Fall is pretty unremarkable with only a couple good songs and the others falling in the realm of experimental electronic music.


(e)vening by Mae


As the final installment of Mae's last musical project before going on indefinite hiatus, (e)vening earns a mention. It's predecessors, the EPs (m)orning and (a)fternoon, provided a  return to form of sorts to the sounds of the excellent The Everglow, and even experimented with progressive music. Although (e)vening is nearly as good as the preceding EPs, it only earns a mention because 3 of its 8 songs, nearly half of the record, are instrumental piano solo pieces. They are great in their own right, but I expected a bit more from Mae's last hurrah.



Movies:




Green Lantern


The only good thing I can say about this movie is that it had its enjoyable moments. I am very excited to see that DC is starting to pay attention to its other higher profile heroes and not just pouring everything into Batman, and that earns it a mention, but they're going to have to do better than this if they want people to take them seriously. Admittedly, I felt like I was going to be proven wrong when I started watching this one, but all hope vanished when the giant Hot Wheels track showed up.


Transformers: Dark of the Moon


No matter how much you try to defend them, none of the Transformers movies are great examples of film making. Although this one is better than the second, with more focus on internal conflict among the robots and less focus on robot blood and genitalia, earning its mention, some parts are just plain annoying. In fact, if you took out all the scenes with Shia The-beef, the girl who's not Megan Fox, and McDreamy, not only would the run time still be enough for a feature length film, but you'd probably have a better movie, too.




Again, these are just my opinions and personal favorites from the year. I don't expect you to agree with them and just take them as suggestions and form your own opinions on them. If you have some personal favorites from last year that aren't on this list, don't hesitate to share.






What I'm listening to:

Thickfreakness by The Black Keys

Listening is a Part of Life

A few weeks ago, I was making my normal rounds on the internet, checking the various websites that I visit daily. Then I happened upon this:

And quite honestly, I was somewhat offended. It's not secret to any readers of this blog that music plays a very large part in my life, and although I do play a couple instruments, a big chunk of music's importance to me came through listening. And it still does.

Now, I understand that this picture is only for humorous purposes, and I also know that the group it is targeting are adolescent boys and girls who listen to nothing but Kiss FM and think Lady Gaga and Ke$ha are legitimate artists. Them and hipsters. But, what about the people who listen to music for true artistic appreciation?

Some people listen to music and only hear it. When I listen to music, I like to listen to it. I pay attention to arrangements and mixes and ask, "okay, I've seen (heard) this before, what are you going to do differently?" I hear things that other people miss. I know this because I can recall several times where I would stop and say something like "Whoa! Did you hear that?" and the other person in the room wouldn't know what I was talking about.

It is possible that my musical training has contributed to this, so my argument may be moot. In fact, most of the people I know that listen to music in such a way are all musicians. But what about the fact that playing my instruments hasn't necessarily taken a back seat in my life, but my life doesn't allow it to be incredibly prominent? I've still managed to develop an incredible ear for musical structures and arrangements. I can hear nuances and tell when mixes just feel slightly off. All the while only playing my guitar about twice a week.

Maybe my initial inundation with music while learning the guitar opened the doors, and I just pushed them wider with time. I can't say that I rightly know, but I do know that when it comes to music, listening is a big part of life.

What I'm listening to:

Astro Coast by Surfer Blood

Indie Does Not Equal Not Listenable

I don't know if this is a valid assumption, but it seems to me that a common excuse for shying away from music labeled as "indie" is because it sounds weird or isn't very listenable. Often people think they are going to run into something like this:

Or even this:

And the truth is, when you listen to indie music, you are going to run into a few things that are a little out there. And sometimes it's just downright discordant. But this is a gross misrepresentation of a descriptor as hugely broad as indie. For example, listen to this:

That is a song from the same group in the first video. It might not be your Lady Gaga or Katy Perry, but you have to admit that it has a solid, quite dance-able beat and even a pleasant melody. In fact, some of the best electronic I've heard lately comes from the indie scene, if only for its originality and refusal to simply repackage the same song with different lyrics. Here's another example:

Hardly not listenable. This doesn't apply to electronic music only, it stretches to everything. Specifically in the rock genre, most people expect something like that As Cities Burn song above, which is more respected for its technicality than its melody. But, there's perfectly catchy music in the indie rock realm.

Starflyer 59 never ceases to amaze me, not only musically, but in the fact that even after 18 years of activity they are largely unknown. Their first three albums were more shoegazing noise rock, which is weird, but after that, they never did anything particularly outlandish, and yet I'm still met with a "Who?" every time I mention them. Then there's Band of Horses:

These guys are a sight more popular than Starflyer, but they are still unknown for the most part. And again, they don't do anything particularly outlandish and would actually fit quite nicely on a country or adult contemporary station.

I'm going to cut myself off now because I could go on for hours posting songs by indie bands that would (and should) be on radio stations if they weren't dismissed as strange or weird indie music. So, if you're the type to automatically think of indie music as not listenable, at least give it a chance before you knock it down completely.


What I'm listening to:

Give Up by The Postal Service

A Person Shaped Hole (That Really Isn't There)

I recently read a book called A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller. It's a very good read and I recommend it to everyone. The book is about stories and how every one of us is living one and how to open ourselves to better stories and creating better memories. It's an excellent book on living life, but that's not what I'm talking about here.


Also in the book, Miller touches on a subject that affects every single one of us. Dating. There are several statements in the book that stood out to me, and we'll cover all of them eventually, but the one that stood out the most was from a friend of the author's. Miller was interviewing a fellow writer named Susan Isaacs in front of a live audience after the release of one of her books. He was reading her questions from the audience and one of them was "whether she believed there was one true love for every person." And she, in a roundabout way, basically said no.


At first I thought this lady was off her rocker, but then I read her reasoning. In the end, she does believe it, but not in the sense that many people think. She does believe that a person can be a special gift to someone and that a person can find someone that "fits", but she doesn't believe that finding that person will make you feel fulfilled and make all your problems go away. Which led me back to another statement Miller himself made earlier in the book.


Interspersed throughout the book is the story of a relationship that Miller had that eventually failed. And during that relationship, he says that he "enjoyed the natural high the body creates to trick us into thinking another human being might rescue us, something I now believe is a lie that ends many marriages."


What he's trying to say is that people glorify romantic relationships. Singles think that finding that one person will solve all their problems and make their life "complete". And couples fall apart because both parties believe the same delusion and put high expectations on each other. Miller sums it up pretty well by saying:

...I realized that for years I'd thought of love as something that would complete me, make all my troubles go away. I worshipped at the altar of romantic completion. And it had cost me, plenty of times. And it had cost most of the girls I'd dated, too, because I wanted them to be something they couldn't be. It's too much pressure to put on a person. I think that's why so many couples fight, because they want their partners to validate them and affirm them, and if they don't get that, they feel as though they're going to die. And so they lash out. But it's a terrible thing to wake up and realize the person you just finished crucifying didn't turn out to be Jesus. (pp. 204-205)

Most, if not all of us, believe that there is a person-shaped hole in our hearts, and only one person will fit perfectly, when in reality, the hole is quite a bit bigger.  Isaacs says in her statement that she and her husband love and cherish each other very much, but they don't view the other as the great problem solver. She fell in love with just a guy, not a Superman, and he fell in love with just a girl, not Wonder Woman. And when they viewed their relationship that way, the problems didn't disappear, but they had wonderful company through the conflict.


It turns out the hole in your heart is God-shaped. But it also turns out that you can't expect all your problems to disappear once you start following God. In fact, God basically guarantees that you're going to run into trouble. The problem is that people do think of God as the Master Problem Solver, and then become angry and bitter towards Him when conflict arises. People expect now what won't be until Jesus establishes His new kingdom. And as Miller says, "when you stop expecting God to end all your troubles, you'd be surprised how much you like spending time with God."


Now I'm not saying God isn't capable of solving problems, because there have been many real-life instances of God's hand through miraculous healing and provision. But we live in a sinful world, and God never promises sunshine and rainbows. He does say that we "would have life, and that more abundantly." My favorite illustration of this is by the comedian Mark Lowry. He moves his hands up and down like they are following a series of hills, using the analogy that life is a roller coaster. Then he increases the height of the "hills" to illustrate life more abundantly.


The point is that there will always be lows, conflicts, and problems, but we have hope and believe that God has a plan and that He is returning. I'll close with another statement from Miller:

Do I think there will be a day when all wrongs are made right, when our souls find the completion they are looking for? I do. But when all things are made right, it won't be because of some preacher or snake-oil salesman or politician or writer making promises in his book. I think, instead, this will be done by Jesus. And it will be at a wedding. And there will be a feast. (p. 206)

What I'm listening to:

 Do You Feel by The Rocket Summer