Buddy Holly, A Torah, and Four Vampires Walk Into a Room...

On the recommendation of one of my very best friends (Brandon Murray), I listened to Vampire

Weekend for the first time in my life. Their new album, Modern Vampires of the City, is an aural collage so awesomely constructed of old things from many parts of the world. It is a masterpiece. It uses  music and religious concepts to create an entirely unique sound, vibe, and experience for the listener. To be clear, it is not a religious work, for those of you who are not familiar with Vampire Weekend. I've separated all these different sounds into separate talking points on this blog. But the truth is that these concepts all appear in endlessly exciting combinations throughout the album. It's almost overstimulating to listen to.

Some of the song titles are reference the Torah (Old Testament) with names like Don't Lie and Ya Hey (a play on the Hebrew title for God, Yahweh), while others have more subtle religious allusions (e.g. Everlasting Arms, Unbelievers, and Worship You). Given that the lead singer Ezra Koenig identifies strongly with the Jewish faith, it is not so surprising.

What I found more surprising was the musical and textual content of the album. In songs like Obvious Bicycle and Young Lion there are some strong similarities between the vocals and chant associated with ascetic ritual of some religions. In these songs the vocal lines stretch out syllables in slow melismatic contours. Combined with a lot of reverb and (sometimes) subtle choral accompaniment, suddenly you feel like you're in a great cathedral, temple, or synagogue. It's beautiful. Textually, Ya Hey is full of religious allusion, "Zion doesn't love you... Babylon don't love you." "I am that I am" is repeated in the chorus numerous times; this is a verse from Exodus 3:14 that Moses spoke to God. In the second verse, Ezra addresses God directly (is he supposed to be Moses?):

Oh, good God

The faithless they don't love you

The zealous hearts don't love you

And that's not gonna change

There's more stuff like like this all throughout the album. Clearly I find it fascinating but I won't go on being a geek. 

Well except for this: A blatant Baroque aesthetic shows up on the third track entitled Step. Pachelbel's famous Canon in D sequence serves as the harmonic foundation of the song even though Step transposes the sequence so that it is in B flat Major. The song is accompanied by choral voices (as are many in the album) and a harpsichord. There are also several songs heavily coated in the 50s rock tradition. Elements that put you in the mind of Buddy Holly and the Crickets (Peggy Sue). And of course, I mean the sound is more similar instrumentally than it is in vocal style. Diane Young and Finger Back are great examples of Vampire Weekend's eloquent stylistic quotations. There are some cool jazzy bass lines that you can find hidden in Hudson. And there are some songs hinting at drinking song/Gaelic folk, reggae, and something that just reminds me of Michael Jackson (like PYT Michael, not Thriller Michael).

Super cool.

This is a supreme example of artistry to me. Now, I've gotta go back to see what I've missed from these guys' past projects.

CauliMash

I haven't been this excited about something I made in a long time. Seth is on a quest for low/no carb food. Since I don't eat bread or potatoes very much in the first place, it makes things pretty easy for me. He suggested cauliflower as an alternative to mashed potatoes. I was skeptical because I think cauliflower smells like fart. But then I remembered that apples were cousins to potatoes, possibly avoiding gross smells and weird texture. Turns out I was right. The recipe below is what I came up with just today and it was delicious.

What You'll Need:

• A Blender
• 1 Head of Cauliflower
• 1 peeled and cored Fuji Apple (I only used about 80% of it and ate the rest)
• 1-2 Cups of water
• 1 Clove of finely chopped Garlic
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 2 tsp of unsalted butter
• appx. 1 Tbsp of light cream cheese
• 1/2 cup of milk
• Parsley Leaves

What To Do:

1. Cut the head of cauliflower into snack-sized pieces
2. Cut the apple into small chunks
3. Put the cauliflower and apple pieces in a medium sauce pan with the water
4. Steam for 20 minutes or until the cauliflower is easily broken with a fork
5. Empty water from pan
6. Add butter and cream cheese
7. Further break the apple and cauliflower into smaller pieces
8. Mix in the remaining ingredients (salt, pepper, garlic)
9. Move the contents of the pan into the blender
10. Add Milk
11. Blend or puree until the consistency is smooth
12. Pour contents of blender back into the sauce pan
13. Garnish with parsley
14. Enjoy

Like I said, it was quite good. You can eat it with anything you'd eat mashed potatoes with. I really like baked chicken and green beans. I wish I had a picture but we ate it all.

The Savvy Musician

I feel like I'm about a century behind everyone. But in case you're even more behind the times than I am, check out this website. For any musician with big dreams, Savvy Musician is helpful, encouraging, and forward looking. Thanks to a friend, I've seen the light. I'm into it. Thanks, Kiki.

Doin' It Right

This album is what I need. For one, its release gives me hope that Daft Punk will come back to The United States at some point. When I discovered them about 6 years ago (late, I know), they were doing their final appearance in The States. Of course, with me being in a freshman in college in Michigan and the concert happening in Las Vegas, I did not go. Now, there is a sliver of hope that they will be back. I do hope it happens.

In the 60s I wasn't a thought. In the 70s and early 80s, I was a hope and dream, maybe. This new Daft Punk album is taking me back in time to groovy days and phone parties. Or at least, that's what I imagine was the case back then.

The music on this project is a fun reminder of the past, hence "Random Access Memories." It does not forsake today's connotations of "dance music," as there are plenty of electronic manipulations of instruments, voices, and effects. It does however possess a decided mood of what dance music was circa the 60s and 70s. It's smooth, organic, and beautiful. You can dance, take a ride, lay out on a beach somewhere... It makes so much sense.

The whole album is my favorite. But here is one called Touch and their latest single Get Lucky.

Get it now.

Touch feat Paul Williams

Get Lucky feat. Pharell Williams*

*He's producing the soundtrack to the sequel of Despicable Me 2. Can't wait to hear it. If you haven't seen the first movie or heard the soundtrack to it, it's worth it. 

40 Yard Fake and Acid Dreams

Summertime is (almost) officially here. For me, it's been here since May 11.

THANK GOD.

Lots of driving, hanging out with friends, catching up with sports (moment of silence for The Red Wings), drinking, eating... It's been great.

Of particular note was the trip Seth and I took to Paris. We flew to London first, staying long enough to eat a little something, taxi through the city, and then hastily catch the next train to Paris. We went through "The Chunnel," which I slept almost the whole way through. I assume it was pretty boring, given the whole dark tunnel part.

Once we woke up, Paris was in our midst. It was graffiti-laden and beautiful. Also very dangerous. If people feel like they'll die in New York City traffic, then go to Paris once and you'll appreciate your life in an instant. The driving there is CRAZY. Like I saw three accidents crazy. And I was only there for a week. Besides constantly dodging death, we had a swell time. The city is like a living museum. Everywhere you go is old. Even convenience stores and bars are edifices with hundreds of years of history.

My favorite part of Paris: The Food (and drink).

Breakfast: Paul's. It's a chain but it's fresh and delicious. The ham in the omelet I had was incredible.
Lunch: Just about anywhere is great. You can grab a sidewalk spot, some coffee, and people watch for hours. I will say, ketchup is really different over there. Should you get french fries, be warned.
Dinner: Chez Fernand. Great wine list. Many options. Fresh vegetables. Very kind. My favorite place above all places.

Least favorite part of Paris: The Eifel Tower.

It's a 40 yard fake: Good from far. Far from good.

Don't misunderstand me. The view from it is incredible. And again, looking at it from afar is very nice, especially at nighttime. But up close it is brown. Like dirty brown. And apparently, Parisians feel the same way. Got some great pictures from up top. And since Seth is terrified of heights, we didn't stay long. Sorry, not sorry.

All I ever heard about France and Americans was that they don't like us.  I think that as long as you make an effort to indulge the French culture, they'll meet you part of the way. Either we were really lucky or my French was so bad to the point of charm. Regardless of the reason, our experience was enjoyable and without any major complications (besides getting lost a lot, which I happen to enjoy).

-----------------------------------

Two days ago, Seth and I got back from Las Vegas for his cousin Corey's bachelor party (also for his soon-to-be cousin's bachelorette party). This was my second stint in Vegas. Four days of Hangover worthy fun in the sun, dancing in the dark, and a lot of stuff in between.

The highlight of this trip was Kaskade. He is an electronic music phenom.

Getting there was long.
Once we got inside it was hot.
We waited for two hours.
My feet hurt.
Then it started and it all made sense.

WHAT A SHOW! There were lasers, ballerinas, whacky colors on an enormous screen, flashing lights, disco balls, cold steam guns... I felt like I had been transported to a time when LSD was flowing and free love was the law. The music, of course, was awesome. Kaskade does this things where he starts new loops on up beats and using the craziest subdivisions. It's jarring and exciting and fascinating. It's improv taken to a new level that I've never heard, at least not in person. So cool.

That night/morning, I didn't sleep for nearly 24 hours. A plane ride back to Michigan at 6 in the morning makes sleeping useless when you're done carousing at 4AM with packing left to do.
It's been a great three weeks of summer so far. Now I've got to be productive. Looking for the motivation...