Stuck on Repeat: Chains, Chains, Chains by Elvis Perkins

Every once in a while I hear a new song that I just can't get enough of no matter how many times I listen to it.

My latest song obsession is called "Chains, Chains, Chains" by Elvis Perkins. It has great musicality and a really focused and controlled performance by Elvis. I just love the way he semi-wails the word chains over and over. It's passionate but not over the top.

Take a listen and see if the song stands up to repeat listens for you:

- FileFactory.com

The Art of Making a Mix Tape

I have made quite a few mix tapes in my day. I enjoy the challenge of trying to capture a person's musical taste while also surprising them with new songs and artists. Sometimes I give myself a theme to work towards like songs about America or songs featuring the banjo.

Over the years I have developed my own system of arranging songs in order to create a mix that flows while telling a continuous story with the music. To some extent I follow the technique explained by Rob in the movie High Fidelity:

"The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules."

Here are a few other tips from me:

--Never use two songs by the same artist.

--Include one good cover songs if you can.

--Inevitably you will have a handful of songs that you think are killer. Make sure you space them somewhat evenly in the mix.

--I like to end my mixes upbeat rather than with a slow song. It's a bit more unexpected.

What are you mix tape rules and tips?

Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Hollywood Bowl

I was lucky enough to take in a concert at the Hollywood Bowl this past week. Not only is this one of my favorite venues, the show was all music from musicals—another one of my favorite things. And speaking of favorite things, the night was dedicated to the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein, the legendary duo that penned the music for Oklahoma, The King and I, and of course, The Sound of Music. And the icing on this cake was that the night was hosted by none other than Robert Osborne, film historian and host for the Turner Classic Movie channel! I loved hearing his off-the-cuff trivia and anecdotes about the movies and music, and it was great to see him live after years of watching him on television.

More than just music, the night was about movies. The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, led by David Newman (of the film-composing Newmans), played the musical score in synchronization with scenes from the movies played on a giant screen. The amazing thing is that this music-image combo was so seamless that we weren’t listening to the film’s soundtrack.

After playing some of the best-known songs from the Rodgers and Hammerstein songbook, the evening concluded with an audience sing-along of “Do Re Mi” from The Sound of Music. This is what I was hoping for all night! Until then we had been instructed to join in the music making, but finally we were able to belt out along with Julie Andrews—and all was as it should be.

Daytrotter Sessions: Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes

Daytrotter.com (http://www.daytrotter.com) is one of my favorite websites for music. They have a huge variety of mp3s for FREE download on their site and it's all live versions of songs by indie bands. In the past they've had some favorites like Bon Iver, Cold War Kids, Aimee Mann and Andrew Bird.

All this week I have had the Daytrotter Session by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros stuck on repeat. So far this band's recent album, "Up From Below", is my favorite album of 2009. It's full of catchy and exuberant songs that feel like they've come out of some super happy hippy commune. From what I hear, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros put on a great live show that eclipses even the energy heard on the album. Hopefully, I can judge for myself when the band comes to the El Rey in Los Angeles later this month for a show--Anyone interested in going? Anyone have tickets you want to give me?

Until then, I am happily spinning their Daytrotter Session which gives a pretty good estimation of their odd wit and tight musicianship. "Home" is great and the live version of "40 Day Dream" manages to sound as big and sprawling as the album version. If I had to describe them (which I am terrible at) I would say it's something like a less sparkly and more folksy version of The Polyphonic Spree. Only maybe (probably) better.

Check them out and bask in the retro vibe:
http://www.edwardsharpeandthemagneticzeros.com/

The Moth

The Moth is an organization dedicated to storytelling. They host evenings where people get up on stage and tell true stories from their lives without notes or scripts. You can listen to podcasts of stories on iTunes, or their website: http://www.themoth.org/

I love that there is a community of people out there dedicated to preserving personal narratives. I love it so much that my friend Kim and I have decided to host our own Moth night!

It's still in the works, but we have some really exciting plans in the works. We hope to have our first Moth Nighte in October and we are already getting some good interest generated among some of our favorite storytellers.

If you enjoy storytelling and you want to be involved or attend, be sure to let me know. If it goes well we may do these on a semi-regular basis.

And let me know if you have any good ideas for themes!