Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
I’ve been pretty busy with school, doing homework and getting ready for the last finals week of the Master’s program. I have to take that real analysis exam again on June 15, so I’ve been spending a lot of free time studying to make sure I pass it this time.
That isn’t to say that I haven’t had any free time though. I’ve been able to ride my bike quite a bit still, play my guitar every so often, and last night Christine and I went to a MAE concert in Anaheim. The show was awesome, and we talked to the guys a bit after their performance. It was great to meet the band and hear more about what they are doing. I’m looking forward to seeing them play again when they tour to promote their next EP.
Work is going well, but it looks like I won’t be able to stay in my current department after graduation. I am looking into transferring to another department so that I can still stay at WD, but it seems like resources are stretched a little thin at the moment. I’ve also been looking at jobs at a few places in San Diego. So we may be moving back down south, but it really just depends on the job situation.
That’s all for now, but I plan to write plenty more after school is over.
Please take some time to visit whatismae.com and support their current cause: The House That Fire Built.
This is the premise of what I believe is a really cool idea: each month this year, MAE will be releasing a new song to support a humanitarian effort or charitable organization. Each song requires a minimum donation of $1 to download, which will go towards that month’s cause. Even if you can only donate the minimum (or even if you can’t donate at all), help spread the word by embedding the widget (see my sidebar) in your blog, your myspace page, or your facebook profile.
These three guys are great people and make amazing music, so help them help others, and you can get some cool stuff from them in return.
So, as of 7:00 p.m. this evening, I’m done with my fourth quarter of grad school, which is pretty sweet. It’s nice to not have to worry about homework or tests for a little while. I’m looking forward to this nice long break (one month, to be precise). I’ll be working a full schedule at WD (more on that later) for the first two and a half weeks and then heading on down to San Diego on Christmas Eve. If any of you are gonna be around and want to hang out, we’ll be there until January 1st or 2nd. Then it’s on to the winter quarter.
I’ve been working at WD for the past three weeks now, and it’s been a pretty fun job. I’m learning a lot of things about hard drives that I never cared about before, but that I find pretty interesting. As far as saving on hard drives goes, I get a pretty decent discount for each item, but there are some conditions to using it. Technically, I’m only supposed to buy hard drives for mysef (as in, not for resale), and I can only buy three of any given SKU# per year. Also, WD keeps track of the serial numbers on the drives sold through the employee store, so if there is ever a problem with the drive, maintenance or whatever has to go through me. So that’s the deal. I’m also guessing that if I buy a ton of hard drives all the time someone will catch on. But whatever. If anyone is really in need of a hard drive, I can occasionally help you out.
Finally, if you haven’t seen Coldplay in concert, you’re missing out on a whole different side of the Coldplay experience. We were lucky enough to see them on Tuesday, Nov. 25th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, and I must say that it was one of the greatest live shows I’ve ever witenessed. I’ve always been a fan of Coldplay, but after this show, I have to say that they are even dearer to my heart.
Now it’s time to enjoy my time off.
GET IT. You won’t regret it.
I’ve recently acquired The Alchemy Index, Vols. I-IV by Thrice, and I am amazed at the diversity of this collection (thanks to Jason and Zim for the recommendation). Each volume (they come in two sets of two EPs each) is themed according to one of the four basic alchemical elements: Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. After listening to each one a few times (see my Last.fm chart from a couple weeks ago), I’ve picked out my four favorites – one from each volume:
Fire – “Burn the Fleet” – This song is just so evocative. The images which the lyrics produce vividly describe the true desperate spirit of battle and victory, and the consequences of failure.
Water – “Open Water” – This is a mellow song that has some seemingly theological implications. The way I interpret things, this song compares the ocean to God, because “it gives and takes away.” The accompanying music does an incredible job of providing the listener with a sense of depth – as though the song itself is being cast up from the bottom of the sea.
Air – “Daedalus” – This song revisits an older Thrice song (“The Melting Point of Wax”) and an even older story – the Greek myth of Icarus and Daedalus. The song is heard from Daedalus’ point of view as Icarus’ father, and it brilliantly uncovers a parent’s inner hopes and desires for the life of his child.
(Honorable Mention – “A Song for Milly Michaelson”)
Earth – “Digging My Own Grave” – I love this song simply because it is so far away from what I normally would expect to hear from Thrice. This was one of the first songs I heard from the collection (during a random sampling), and it struck me as being wholly original and beautiful.
Even if you’ve never listened to or enjoyed Thrice before, you should still check out The Alchemy Index. The group truly pushed their limits making this collection: each volume has a distinctive style and each song fits its corresponding theme, but the entire collection can be viewed as a whole, with each element complementing the others. Each song in a volume achieves a different result than the last, and each EP displays a different aspect of the band’s technical prowess. They definitely played up the dichotomies between these four fundamental media – and the result is an amazing journey through pure audio bliss.
…and listen to Greg Laswell!
Check out his myspace here:
And if you ever see him live, that’s professional Sideman Brandon Walters playing guitar with Mr. Laswell. If you don’t know about his life, he’s Greg’s top friend, so you can check him out too.
It was a much simpler fix than creating a widget. I just edited the sidebar.php file of my wordpress theme to include my Last.fm chart. The only tricky part was to make sure that the chart code was inside an unordered list, which was inside a list item for another unordered list. The WP sidebar is weird that way.
Music of the Moment:
Sæglópur
Sigur Ros
