Music Monday: Chromatics

There's a lot to appreciate when it comes to the luscious sounds of Chromatics but what I like the most is what I simply classify as 'vibes'; a severely overused word but aptly concise. The energy that this music exudes is exactly what I look for when I'm lounging around the house or in the mood to kick back and decompress.

Chromatics is an electronic group from Portland. Their latest release is available now and can be purchased here.


Shadow



Cherry

Into the Black (Neil Young Cover)

I'm on Fire (Bruce Springsteen Cover)

Quoteworthy

"You have to systematically create confusion, it sets creativity free. Everything that is contradictory creates life." 
-Salvador Dalí 1904-1989











Now Playing: "Stay Late" by Elektrik People

Quoteworthy

"Nothing is less real than realism. Details are confusing. It is only by selection, by elimination, by emphasis, that we get at the real meaning of things."
-Georgia O'Keeffe 1887-1986












Now Playing: "Ragged Wood" by Fleet Foxes
*Any old lie will do...

Quoteworthy

"At that instant he saw, in one blaze of light, an image of unutterable conviction, the reason why the artist works and lives and has his being--the reward he seeks--the only reward he really cares about, without which there is nothing. It is to snare the spirits of mankind in nets of magic, to make his life prevail through his creation, to wreak the vision of his life, the rude and painful substance of his own experience, into the congruence of blazing and enchanted images that are themselves the core of life, the essential pattern whence all other things proceed, the kernel of eternity."
-Thomas Wolfe 1900-1938












Now Playing: "(At) The End (of a Rainbow)" by Earl Grant

Music Monday: Black Gold Buffalo

"A Million"


"Magnets"


Black Gold Buffalo is a female trio based in London. An album is expected later this year.

Facebook
Twitter

Go Deep: Woodkid + Absolut

Okay, so perhaps a commercial for vodka isn't the most probing thing on the planet but I loved it! Woodkid is astonishing and at the top of my "artists I want to see live the most" list.

And if you're now in the mood to hear "Ghost Lights" in its entirety, click no further:

For those who aren't familiar, Woodkid is Yoann Lemoine, a French musician/director/graphic designer. His debut album, The Golden Age, was released earlier this year (definitely a favorite) and can be purchased here.

Be sure to check out these other songs by Woodkid:

• "The Golden Age"
• "Boat Song"
• "I Love You"
• "Shadows"
• "Conquest of Spaces"

Quoteworthy

"There's a great body of people who flower at night, who feel night is their time. Night is the time people truly become individuals, because all the familiar things are dark and done, all the restrictions on freedom are removed. Many artists work at night—it is particularly conducive to creative work. Many of us attuned to night are not artists but are embattled against the official, organized, righteous day people who are completely bound by their switchboards and their red tape. Night people like the quiet darkness; day people are terrified at suddenly becoming individuals, afraid to let the mind probe into unknown areas."
-John Crosby 1912-1991











Now Playing: "Midnight City" by M83

Music Monday: Kurt Vile

"Wakin On A Pretty Day"


"Baby's Arms"


"Heart Attack"







Kurt Vile is from Philadelphia. His latest album, Wakin On A Pretty Daze, can be purchased here.

Official
Facebook
Twitter

Gallery Girls: Sandra Suy

Sandra Suy is an artist from Barcelona, Spain.

Official Site











Now Playing: "Fitzpleasure" by ∆ 

My 12 Favorite Albums of 2012!

2012 was a great year for music! While I spent a good amount of time listening to new releases or attending concerts and festivals, I certainly haven't had the opportunity to hear everything. This is a small list of some of the music I enjoyed the most. I hesitate to call it the best of 2012 but they're all certainly among my favorites. Enjoy!


12. Antony and the Johnsons, Cut The World.
Released: August 7, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Cut The World
4) You Are My Sister

11. The xx, Coexist.
Released: September 10, 2012
Best Tacks:
1) Angels
3) Fiction
7) Missing
11) Our Song

10. Michael Kiwanuka, Home Again.
Released: May 8, 2012
Best Tacks:
3) I'll Get Along
4) Rest
5) Home Again
6) Bones

9. Frank Ocean, Channel Orange.
Released: July 17, 2012
Best Tracks:
2) Thinkin Bout You
10) Pyramids
14) Bad Religion

8. Cat Power, Sun.
Released: September 3, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Cherokee
2) Sun
8) Manhattan
10) Nothin But Time

7. Grimes, Visions
Released: February 21, 2012
Best Tracks:
3) Oblivion
6) Vowels = Space And Time
8) Be A Body
12) Skin

6. Father John Misty, Fear Fun.
Released: May 1, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Funtimes in Babylon
2) Nancy From Now On
5) O I Long to Feel Your Arms Around Me
7) Only Son of the Ladiesman

5. Wild Nothing, Nocturne.
Released: August 28, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Shadow
2) Midnight Song
3) Nocturne
8) Paradise
11) Rheya

4. Miguel, Kaleidoscope Dream.
Released: October 2, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Adorn
2) Don't Look Back
3) Use Me
4) Do You...
9) Arch & Point

3. Tame Impala, Lonerism.
Released: October 9, 2012
Best Tracks:
3) Apocalypse Dreams
4) Mind Mischief
7) Feels Like We Only Go Backwards
9) Elephant

2. Beach House, Bloom.
Released: May 15, 2012
Best Tracks:
1) Myth
2) Wild
3) Lazuli
4) Other People
5) The Hours
7) New Year

1. The Shins, Port of Morrow.
Released: March 16, 2012
Best Tracks:
2) Simple Song
3) It's Only Life
9) 40 Mark Strasse
10) Port of Morrow

Honorable Mentions:

• New Build, Yesterday Was Lived and Lost.
• Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city.
• Chappo, Moonwater.
• Crystal Castles, III.
• Jack White, Blunderbuss.

Quoteworthy

"The idea that you might end up in a job that doesn't allow you to be who you are, over the course of a lifetime, is still one of the most chilling nightmares to me. It's a good metaphor for fears I have about losing my soul in some accidental, mundane way."
-Miranda July









Now Playing: "5 on a Joyride" by Cody ChestnuTT

Manuel Rebollo

I really loved these three illustrations that I stumbled upon online. I couldn't find much information about the artist, Manuel Rebollo, other than he's from Spain and is inspired by fashion and music.









Now Playing: "Junk of the Heart" by The Kooks

Mark Ryden

I've been a fan of Mark Ryden for years. Here are two of my favorite pieces:

Allegory of the Four Elements, 2006.

Fetal Trapping in Northern California, 2006.

Now Playing: "Ecstasy" by jj