Currently

HBO.com

Watching: Six Feet Under, my hands-down all-time favorite show.  I've been slowly re-watching the entire series (five seasons) over the past year, and it is still just as moving and overwhelming as the first go around.  Seriously... THE best show ever.  If you haven't watched it, I strongly suggest you do so as soon as humanly possible.  As naive and teenager-y as Claire is for most of the show, I can't get over how many remarkable ideas she comes up with.  I could quote her for ages.  To sum it up, the show is a beautifully written depiction of family dysfunction, birth, death, love, the ups and downs of relationships, the search for beauty and truth, self-actualization and growth, survival and impending finality.

Anticipating: the release of Catching Fire this coming weekend.  I probably won't be able to see it until sometime next week because I have to work Friday and Saturday.  I remember really liking the book, but I think Mockingjay is still my favorite, and I am really excited to see how it translates to film.  Also anticipating Thanksgiving and Christmas, of course.  Casseroles, pies and rolls, oh my!  I would like to get all of my Christmas shopping out of the way early this year.  I did pretty good last year, but I always leave a few things for the last minute, like those impossible-to-buy-for family members.

Eating: lots of rice.  I've never been a huge rice-eater, but lately I've been making a couple of different rice recipes as a starch for meals.  This Mexican rice recipe and this orzo-white rice blend are both really delicious components in any weeknight feast.  Last night I baked some chicken, spinach & feta sausages and served them with carrots, broccoli and the orzo-rice mix.  It was pretty delicious and very filling.  Tonight, I'm probably going to make chicken and dumplings in my Crock Pot!  It's a little chilly outside today, so why not whip up something that is sure to warm our bellies?

Wondering: if it's lame to give homemade Christmas gifts when you're an adult?  I've had the crafting bug as of late, and I have a few ideas that would make good gifts, but I'm not sure if that's something that people still do in their twenties?  I don't want anyone to think I'm being cheap and thoughtless!

Listening to: the new Arcade Fire album, Beck, Michale Graves, Warpaint, Interpol (always), Daughter, the Arctic Monkeys new album, Cults and Chris Isaak.  I'll post a playlist sometime this week with my favorite songs from these artists so you can check them out for yourself.

As always, many thanks to Danielle for providing the inspiration for these Currently posts.

xoxo

Halloween Playlist 2013

Ah, yes.  It's that MAGICAL time of year again; a time for some of the best songs to be played relentlessly on repeat until your ears bleed from all of the charming, eerie spookiness.  Seriously though.  Some of my favorite songs are "horror" themed so it's never a real challenge for me to put together a Halloween playlist of songs for every little girl and boy ghost to enjoy.  Feel free to enjoy them yourself by listening to my selections on Spotify.

1. "Evil" Interpol

2. "River of Blood" The Black Angels

3. "Hell's Bells" Cary Ann Hearst

4. "Blah Blah Blah" Say Hi To Your Mom

5. "Dressed In Black" Shangri-Las

6. "Witchcraft" DZ Deathrays

7. "Alive" Kid Cudi

8. "The Scream" The Cure

9. "Wolf Like Me" TV On The Radio

10. "Dead Souls" Joy Division

11. "Ghost Dream" Blouse

12. "Trick Or Treat" Peaches

13. "Spellbound" Siouxsie and the Banshees

14. "Twilight Omens" Franz Ferdinand

15. "Vicious" Lou Reed

16. "Superstition" The Kills

17. "Bloody Water" Thee Oh Sees

18. "New Fang" Them Crooked Vultures

19. "Midnight Creeper" Eagles of Death Metal

20. "Godzilla" Fu Manchu

21. "Love You To Death" Type O Negative

22. "Pet Sematary" Ramones

23. "Monster Mash" Misfits

24. "Pa Pa Power" Dead Man's Bones

25. "Dead Man's Bones" Dead Man's Bones

26. "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" Blue Oyster Cult

27. "Candy Man" Roy Orbison

28. "Ghostbusters Theme" Ray Parker Jr.

29. "I'm Your Boogie Man" KC & The Sunshine Band

30. "I Put A Spell On You" Screamin' Jay Hawkins

31. "Creeper" Islands

32. "Super Freak" Rick James

33. "Love At First Fright" Murderdolls

34. "Skeletons" Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.

35. "Devil's Playground" Gram Rabbit

36. "Leaves In The River" Sea Wolf

I Took My Little Sister to a Garage Rock Show

...and it was scary.

As you can see, my sister, at 14 years young, is quite beautiful...and, as I am noticing from this picture, a bit taller than I am.  Over the past few years her taste in music has blossomed a little, from The Jonas Brothers and Justin Bieber to Sleeping With Sirens (still not sure who these guys are) and a few other "screamo" bands.  She's been to a handful of live shows, but nothing like what I was ready to introduce her to.  One of my favorite bands that I have mentioned many times, Bass Drum of Death, is a lo-fi, fairly energetic garage rock group from Oxford, Mississippi, and they were scheduled to play at The Parish downtown on Sixth Street last Friday night.  I was planning on going for a while leading up to it, but I got really excited when I found out that my mom and sister were coming to town for my brother's official UT baseball visit that weekend.  Taking my sister to a live show with me is something I had been waiting to do for a long time.  There is an 11-year difference between us, and even when she was a little baby, I would dream about the days when we could be more than just sisters; when we would both be older and could be good friends, and the age gap wouldn't be such a big deal anymore.  Well, the time has finally come and it is frightening.  I did her hair and makeup for the evening, which I suppose made her look a little more mature, but we hadn't been at the venue for more than five minutes before two drunk guys in their 30s came up and started to make conversation with us.  I went through the redundant small talk (which sincerely annoys me to no end) with these guys and managed to not-so-casually mention that this stunning young lady next to me is my little sister who happens to be FOURTEEN.  The least drunk of the two seemed to get the hint and meandered over to the opposite side of the room while his idiotic, stumbling counterpart remained in our faces.  We managed to escape when he finally looked the other way.  After the Bass Drum of Death set, as we were leaving, another guy came up to Micah and started making conversation with her.  Let's just say I was thrilled when we were out of there and back in my car headed home.  I'm sure I sound a little silly, but this was the first time I'd witnessed my sister getting hit on and by GROWN men.  It threw me for quite a little loop, but she really enjoyed the music and, in the end, that was my only hope and intention.  It was fun to be able to experience that with her.  I got to see one of my favorite bands with my little sister/good friend, and, for that, I am nothing but grateful and oh so happy.  Here's to our next adventure!

Austin City Limits 2013

Once again, Jason and I were given free wristbands to ACL - this time free VIP wristbands!  As VIPs we were granted access to the VIP Grove.  I like to refer to it as the "secret garden" because that's what it felt like to me.  It was a bit annoying being surrounded by filthy rich people who are used to getting this kind of treatment on a daily basis, but it was still fun, and I felt super grateful to be there getting FREE food and FREE drinks and air-conditioned restrooms and seating in one of the few shady areas of Zilker Park.  It was a sweet escape from the hot sun and sea of sweaty bodies wandering around from stage to stage.  In the VIP Grove, each day between 3:30 and 5:30 there were free "happy hour" tastings from some of the best chefs in Central Texas.  I tried some samples from Jason Dady, Lucy's Fried Chicken and Cafe Mueller.  In addition to the daily chef tastings, Central Market catered lunch and dinner!  On Friday, we ate lunch there (gourmet sandwiches, bacon & bleu cheese potato salad), and we partook in the dinner spread on both Saturday (veggie tortellini, chicken penne pasta) and Sunday (barbeque).  All of the food was delicious, and all of the drinks were served perfectly strong in the VIP Grove.  I can't forget to mention the unlimited amounts of free Topo Chico, Sweet Leaf Tea, Red Bull, Boxed Water and Coconut Water.  Pretty awesome..

Enough with the special treatment details and onto the music.  Oh, the music!  The core reason I go to so many of these blown-up, over-the-top hipster affairs in the first place.  Friday, we unexpectedly had to leave the festival early, but we got there early and managed to see FIDLAR, Savages, Electric Six, The Blind Boys of Alabama and The Black Angels.  My favorite show of the day was actually Detroit-based Electric Six, who I had never even heard of prior to the festival.  One of Jason's friends, who is from Detroit, met up with us, and Electric Six was pretty much the only band he really wanted to see, so we decided to join him, and I am so glad we did!  They were so much fun!  Their music is a crazy amazing blend of garage rock, disco, dance, punk and metal, and they put on quite a funky performance.

On Saturday we went later in the day to see Portugal.The Man, The Joy Formidable, Wilco, Kendrick Lamar and, finally, THE CURE!!  Hands down, my Saturday favorite was The Cure.  DUH.  I have been a lifelong fan of those guys, and they put on a flawless show.  We stayed for the whole thing because I was so drawn in and it would have been an absolute crime to walk out early.  They played nearly all of their popular hits, some new stuff and finished with "Boys Don't Cry."  Perfection.

Sunday was the most relaxed day.  I worked until 3 p.m. and then headed to the festival to meet up with Jason and see Franz Ferdinand, Tame Impala and Atoms For Peace.  I had already seen Tame Impala live, and while they continue to be one of my favorite live shows, I have to say Atoms For Peace won my heart that day.  I hadn't really listened to them much before, but you can bet I will now!  Thom Yorke and Flea make a great musical match.

Yet again, ACL blew me away, and into outer space.  It's such a magical, fun-filled experience that I look forward to every year.  This was my fifth time to attend ACL, and it better not have been my last!  I'm already excited to hear who will be playing it in 2014 because my brother Kaleb will be living up here by then, and I plan to buy him a wristband for his first plunge.

FIDLAR

Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar

The Cure

The Cure

Tame Impala

Atoms For Peace

Mixtape Monday

Today's Mixtape Monday is all about the band that is No.1 on my list.  Now, please understand, this is no easy feat.  This band has rightfully earned their title of being the best in my mind.  I can, and have, listened to every single one of their albums from start to finish over and over and over, and I am still 100% head over heels for their sound, their style, their songwriting, their lyrics, their messages, their passion, their live performance, etc.  I could go on, but this would be the longest blog post known to man.  Obviously, this is all subjective, because they're clearly not everyone's favorite band, but they are seriously the biscuits to my gravy.  Ladies and gentlemen, here are just a handful of the best songs by the one and only...INTERPOL:

1. "Leif Erikson"

2. "PDA"

3. "Evil"

4. "Public Pervert"

5. "Slow Hands"

6. "All Fired Up"

7. "No I In Threesome"

8. "The Heinrich Maneuver"

9. "Success"

10. "The New"

11. "Obstacle 2"

12. "Roland"

13. "NYC"

14. "Stella Was a Diver and She Was Always Down"

15. "Obstacle 1"

Listen on Spotify.

Mixtape Monday

I am so excited! I just found out Jason and I will be attending the ACL Music Festival again this year, and one of my all-time favorite bands is headlining - THE CURE!  I am so unbelievably happy that I get to see them live, as they have been on my list of bands-to-see-live for as long as I can remember.  Both my mom and my dad are fans of The Cure, so they've been a big part of my life since I was a wee little human.  Robert Smith has no idea that he shaped me into the person I am today! HAH.

popstache.com

In honor of my abounding love for The Cure, I am going to share some of the songs that I consider to be their best:

1. "High"

2. "Fascination Street"

3. "Lullaby"

4. "Just Like Heaven"

5. "Why Can't I Be You"

6. "Cut Here"

7. "Boys Don't Cry"

8. "Hot Hot Hot!!!"

9. "The Hanging Garden"

10. "The Only One"

11. "The Real Snow White"

12. "Freakshow"

13. "Close To Me"

14. "The Lovecats"

15. "A Forest"

16. "The Walk"

17. "Disintegration"

Listen on Spotify.

Cheers to you and yours on Labor Day!

xoxo

Mixtape Monday

Ahoy, friends!  The music lover in me has been itching to bring back my playlist posts, but I've been having some technical difficulties with my little old Mac OS operating system.  I'm being super stubborn and refusing to pay for the new version of the software because I keep telling myself I'm going to just buy a new computer soon.  We'll see what happens.  I, myself, truly do not even know.  However, I have managed to work out a temporary fix until the magical day comes when I can afford to buy a new computer without feeling guilty and penniless.  Starting today, I am going to publish a recurring, weekly "Mixtape Monday" post with a different theme each time, unlike my previous playlist posts which tended to be on the random side.

So, here it is, in all its glory.  My first Mixtape Monday.  The almighty theme for this week's playlist is grunge/garage rock.  Each of these 16 songs have a raw, barbaric sound that is so real you can't help but wanna rage and riot.  Have at it, kids.

Track Listing:

1. "Jane" - Popstrangers
2. "Ripper" - Jeff The Brotherhood
3. "Think" - The Men
4. "Planet Of The Dreamers" - Jacuzzi Boys
5. "Block Of Ice" - The Oh Sees
6. "Pond Rot" - California X
7. "Get Along" - Mikal Cronin
8. "Mystical Portal II" - Jeff The Brotherhood
9. "The Coconut" - The Oh Sees
10. "Hours Of The Night" - Mrs. Magician
11. "Meet You Later" - Japanther
12. "Everyone's A Bitch" - Jaill
13. "Troubled And Done" - Balkans
14. "What's Mine Is Yours" - Sleater-Kinney
15. "No Demons" - Bass Drum of Death
16. "Jellyfish" - Paws

Listen on Spotify

xoxo

Top 10 Best Shows I've Been To

One thing you probably already know about me is that I am a live music fiend!  To me, there are few things better than drinking a cold beer, hand-in-hand with my boy, watching one of our favorite bands play live.  It's seriously such a rush for me, and it pretty much finalizes my true love for a band if they put on a crazy amazing live show.  However, it works the opposite way too.  If they play horribly live or don't give off a good stage presence or don't interact with the audience at all, it could completely turn me off to a band.  A perfect example of this would be Brand New.  I have been a HUGE fan of theirs since about ninth grade.  My friend Taylor and I went to see them together at La Zona Rosa the day before I turned twenty-one, and I was so incredibly disappointed with their live performance that I now have a lack of respect and enthusiasm for them as a band.  The entire set, it seemed like they didn't even want to be there playing for us - like it was an inconvenience for them.  They barely said anything to the crowd.  They just got up on stage, said "hi", rushed through their set and got off stage.  I don't even think they played an encore.  Such a letdown.  But enough of the negative stuff!  I have compiled a list of some of the absolute BEST shows I've been to thus far (you can bet your booty I'll be attending MANY more in the days to come), and I've tried my best to rank them for you.  Now, I've been to a ridiculous amount of shows in the past twenty-five years (Jason and I went to three major music festivals in 2010 - Coachella, ACL and VooDoo Fest!), so I might have forgotten a couple, but these are the ones that came to me when I was assembling this post.

Last.fm

1.  Wolfmother

Stubb's Amphitheater, Austin, Texas

October 2009

Brooklyn Vegan

2.  Bass Drum of Death with DZ Deathrays

The Mohawk, Austin, Texas

July 2012

Pop Press International

3.  Grizzly Bear

ACL Live at the Moody Theater, Austin, Texas

March 2013

Strictly Randl

4.  Eagles of Death Metal with The Hives

Stubb's Amphitheater, Austin, Texas

Spring 2008

Brooklyn Vegan

5.  Albert Hammond Jr.

Webster Hall, New York, New York

June 2007

OC Register

6.  Them Crooked Vultures

Coachella, Indio, California

April 2010

Eric Uhlir Photo

7.  Jenny Lewis

Stubb's Amphitheater, Austin, Texas

June 2009

Flickr

8.  Conor Oberst

Stubb's Amphitheater, Austin, Texas

November 2008

Daily Texan

9.  Tame Impala

Stubb's Amphitheater, Austin, Texas

February 2013

Brooklyn Vegan

10.  Interpol

VooDoo Fest, New Orleans, Louisiana

October 2010

An Evening of Singin' & Dancin'

photo credit: modern-vinyl.com

Jason and I had the pleasure of seeing She & Him tonight at the Moody Theater downtown, and boy, oh boy, did I have a good old fashioned blast singing along, rocking my hips and tapping my toes!  This duo (along with four other fantastic musicians and two lovely back-up vocalists) really know how to put on a fun show.  Jason isn't as into their music as I am, but he was good sport by my crazy side.  Surely you've all heard at least one song by She & Him (Zooey Deschanel and Matt Ward), but, if you haven't, I would personally describe their sound as the indie, new-age version of Patsy Cline or Tammy Wynette at a luau.  Most of their songs have a vintage feel, and some even have a tropical, surf-y feel because of Zooey's ukulele and Matt's subtle, short guitar strums.

The set list for tonight's show was really great.  They played some old favorites - "Sweet Darlin'", "Thieves", "You Really Got a Hold on Me"and "I Was Made For You."  They also played some new favorites - "Never Wanted Your Love", "Together", "Baby" and "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me."  And of course some irreplaceable covers - "Rave On", "Roll Over Beethoven", "Stars Fell On Alabama" and "I Put A Spell On You."

I didn't get to take any pictures tonight at the show because the venue staff were being oddly restrictive about the use of photography - even camera phones!  However, I did see She & Him a few years ago at the Coachella Music Festival in Indio, CA, so I'll share a couple of pictures from that with you.

Music & Memories

As you should all know by now, music is a pretty important part of my life.  In fact, it's a huge piece of my day-to-day routine.  I am constantly singing whatever song is stuck in my head at work or something someone says reminds me of a song and so on.  I've been thinking about how crazy it is that a certain song can remind you of a specific time, place and/or person, and every single time you hear it you feel like you've been transported back in time to that very moment.  As I mentioned in my last post, I've been listening to a lot of Eve 6 and other late '90s - early '00s bands as of late, and it's been taking me back to high school little by little.  Obviously, everything wasn't perfect for me high school.  (Is it for anyone really??)  But I was surrounded by some wonderful people, and I was a part of some unforgettable experiences.  It was definitely an exciting time for me for many reasons, and it's really neat to be reminded of all of those new, uncharted feelings and emotions that consumed me during that time.

Listening to Eve 6 reminds me of being fourteen.  So unimaginably ecstatic that my dad was taking me to see Eve 6, Good Charlotte and Goldfinger at the Verizon Wireless Theater in downtown Houston.

"Swallow my doubt, turn it inside out, find nothing but faith in nothing. Wanna put my tender heart in a blender, watch it spin 'round to a beautiful oblivion.  Rendezvous now I'm through with you." 

Tegan and Sara, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, We Are Scientists, The Academy Is..., Saves The Day, Dashboard Confessional, The Blood Brothers, The Killers, Bright Eyes, Thursday, Brand New, Taking Back Sunday, The Moldy Peaches, Action Action, Be Your Own Pet, She Wants Revenge, Gym Class Heroes, Something Corporate, Jack's Mannequin and so many more take me back to when I got my first car and wanted to drive EVERYWHERE with my best friend Jessica.  We would belt out those songs like we were the only two people on the planet.

"I kissed a girl with a broken jaw that her father gave to her. She had eyes bright enough to burn me. They reminded me of yours."

I feel as if I could go on and on about the music that helped to build this person that I am today, but it would honestly be never-ending.  I love that I can listen to a song and be blinded by the beautiful, everlasting memory of something that was once so meaningful to me.  It's a comforting, yet overwhelming thought for me.  And to know that I'm only making new memories connected to new songs and artists that I fall in love with each and every day is just such a perfect gift.

Austin Psych Fest 2013

Yesterday Jason and I went to one of our city's many music festivals, Austin Psych Fest.  This is the sixth (and the best) year the Reverberation Appreciation Society has put together this niche music festival for lovers of all things psychedelic.  Psych Fest started out relatively small and has taken place at a variety of venues including the old Austin Power Plant and the new, larger Emo's location on East Riverside.  This year the people in charge anticipated even greater crowds than years before so this year the festival is taking place out in a rural area, near Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, known as Carson Creek Ranch.  I said "taking" place because it's actually a three-day-long festival; we chose to just attend on Friday due to the high cost of tickets.  

Luckily, most of the bands we were interested in seeing were scheduled to play their sets on Friday!  We got to see my favorite garage rockers from Mississippi - Bass Drum of Death as well as Warpaint, The Soft Moon and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, among a few others we managed to catch in between.  

Aside from the awful humidity, it was a really fun experience.  It never felt too crowded, which is always a good thing because live shows, especially festivals, can be a little overwhelming at times for a worrier such as myself.  There was a lovely breeze the whole day/night, there were areas to relax and catch our breath and there was a delicious variety of food trucks.  I ordered and demolished a Mac N' Cheese BLT with sweet potato fries from the Whole Foods truck, and Jason and I shared a Flying Pig donut (a masterpiece topped with maple icing & bacon pieces) from Gourdough's later on in the evening.  

Assuming the lineup is as good as it was this year in the coming years, I'm sure we'll give Austin Psych Fest another go!  I absolutely love living in a city that is so welcoming and supportive of music genres of all kinds and believes in celebrating live music year-round.  Keep it coming, Austin!

The Elevation Stage

Bass Drum of Death

Warpaint

The Soft Moon

Five Fresh Finds

I hope each of you are having a beautiful Sunday!  As for me, the highs of this weekend were fantastic, but the lows were the absolute worst.  I felt like I was trying to catch up on work literally all day Friday.  No matter how many tasks I juggled at once, or how quickly I attempted to get things done, I just couldn't seem to keep up with everything.  Alas, that's just the business I suppose...especially this time of the year.

So I've come across, in one way or another, some really great films, music, and TV shows, and each of these things (for lack of a better word) have been on my mind non-stop for the past week or so.  Because I've enjoyed them all so much, I thought I'd take some time to share them with you so you can experience them for yourself if you haven't already.

1.  Harmony Korine's outrageously fun and dreamy Spring Breakers.

Now, I know this film has gotten a TON of buzz all over the media, but, in my opinion, it is well deserved.  My favorite parts were all of James Franco's scenes, of course, because his lines and his image absolutely ruled the film, but I also surprisingly enjoyed the girls' performances.  I was a little hesitant about the movie's credibility when I first heard that the main characters of the story were to be played by some ex-Disney starlets, but I was pleasantly surprised.  It's definitely not for everyone and is super weird at times, but I really enjoyed the bizarreness of it all.  I would dive further into my views on the film, but this Hello Giggles article by Lesley Arfin truly expresses my exact thoughts on the film.  I honestly cannot say it better myself.

2.  Afraid of Heights, the new full-length album from So-Cal pop-punk band WAVVES.

This has to be my favorite album right now!  I just can't stop listening to it.  I mean, King of the Beach was a masterpiece, but Afraid of Heights takes it to the next level.  The band has remained true to their raw, catchy sound, but taken their lyrics to a deeper, darker place, and I am absolutely swooning.  My current favorite tracks are "Sail To The Sun", "Demon To Lean On" and "I Can't Dream."

3.  Deerhunter on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon the other night.

Did anyone else happen to catch this crazy weird performance?  Having been a fan of Deerhunter for years now, I half expected them to do something odd because that's just the nature of frontman Bradford Cox, but I was pretty stunned.  Bradford was wearing a leopard print blouse and black wig and had two of his fingers bloody and bandaged as they gripped the microphone he was singing into.  Then, toward the end of the set, he threw the microphone down and walked off down the hallway backstage all the way to the elevator, pushed the signal button and leaned against the wall as the band played out the rest of the song.  Well played, Mr.Cox. 

4.  Hannibal.  

Jason and I decided to give this new NBC show a try since we're both fans of cannibalism (kidding), and the cast looked pretty legit.  So far there has only been one episode, and it was actually really really good.  It held my attention the entire time and even challenged my mind a little (which isn't terribly difficult to do, haha).  I think we'll keep watching it if it stays on par with what we've seen so far.

5.  Bates Motel on A&E.

Bates Motel is another new TV show we've adopted to our every-growing list of shows to keep up with, but I'm totally not sorry.  If you know me well, you know I've been an avid Hitchcock fan my whole life, and, while Psycho has never been my favorite, I love that Hollywood is re-imagining the story this way.  Jason doesn't really like that it's set in contemporary times instead of the original time period, but I don't really mind it.  It's definitely a fresh take on the classic story of a twisted mother-son relationship and Norman's downward spiral into insanity.  I'm anxious to see where the story will lead and eventually end.