music and hollywood ...boy and girl ... folkster and starlet

last year i was very impressed with a seemingly unlikely collaboration that occurred between folk singer songwriter m. ward and the independent film starlet, zooey deschanel called 'she and him'. zooey and m. released their album entitled 'volume 1', a 12 track album filled with the twangy sounds of m. wards guitar and covering zooeys singing talents with the spotlight.

well like with all good things (software, signature dinner dishes, and movies) a successful idea has been replicated, built upon, and released as a slightly different version. this september has brought us another indie folk star teaming up with another leading lady. our 2009 starlet-folkster collaboration is between pete yorn and scarlett johansson with their september release 'break up'.

i was skeptical of this album when i first heard about the album and collaboration on the radio and then upon its release saw it in starbucks as the 'album of the week' or something like that. after seeing the album while drinking my milky late i can recall thinking to myself 'robert plant and alison krauss win one grammy and now the guy with the guitar and the girl with the voice = instant success, and throw in a movie star and this bitch is going platinum ... geez get an original idea people', but i got my hands on the album anyway.

i like it. i dont want to, but i actually enjoy it. where 'she and him are' stripped back 'pete and scarlett' are over produced, but it adds to the sound and lends to his songwriting and her voice. she can sing. where on the screen she brings an over the top beauty and an amazing bust ... on this album she is understated and a tad bit vulnerable which makes her warm, accessible, and someone you can understand. the breaking up theme is very cliched, and i applaud 'she and him' for approaching and exploring those themes (along with others) without hitting the listener over the head with it. with that being said yorn's song writing is all just throw away cliched turns of phrase - there is some substance underneath all the heart ache (check out the tracks 'wear and tear' and 'shampoo' for an example of this).

all in all its worth a try. go to last.fm and listen to the single 'relator' (miserable name), check out there stuff on youtube (See below), and decide for yourself if you should give it a try. while i dont like it more than the other duets listed above, my low expectations have been exceeded and has left me wondering if i am a sucker for a scruff guitarist and pretty voice starlet combo ...

pete yorn and scarlett johansson - 'shampoo'


she and him - 'you really got a hold on me'

and you think you take sports seriously ...

the irish government is now getting involved in the world cup qualifying debacle

in no particular order ...

i am love music and i love sharing it with other people. these 2 aspects of my musical life come together in an art form know as the mix (tapes evolved into cds). i am am not quite the ocd mixologist that rob gordon or barry from high fidelity are, but i love to dabble in the art of putting songs together in a clever order that makes people go hmmmmm 'this guy knows what hes doing'.

with my love of the mix being established, i want to start throwing out clips of tunes that would make it on my 'steves mix tape of life'. this is obviously totally subjective and you can play barry and comment on the lameness, but its mine so deal with it.

like the title says ... this is in no particular order

band of horses - 'our swords'

happy early birthday to me ... love david chang

i turn 27 in a week and a half and i just received my 1st present in the mail today, and i have a sneaking suspicion that the amazon.com box came via 2nd ave in new york city (the abode of my older brother). il just let you all know that he has set the bar and i really dont think anything will top this - that being said please i still will entertain all presents offered and fain excitement if it doesnt surpass what i have in my hands right now.

so whats in the box? well only the latest and greatest thing to come from david chang, my (and the rest of new york citys) favorite chef ... momofuku the cook book. i am giddy with anticipation to dive into this textbook sized and strength nonfictional glimpse into the world of the coolest chef around and his mini downtown new york city food empire.

the book is co-authored by peter meehan who is like the david chang of newspapers. he is understated but knows his shit just as well as anyone else. oh and hes really young and is all over the new york times. from just thumbing through these pages and watching this video (embedded below as well) i am know that i am going to be thrust into the world of the lucky peach and i am going to love every last picture, word, and bite that this book has to offer!

album of the year ...?

its getting close to the end of the year, and like the past couple of years there has been some wonderful albums that have surfaced this year. there is one album in particular that has the college radio, indie alternative, and musically criticals talking like its a lock for pitchforks top album, and thats grizzly bears 'veckatimest'. i like it a fair bit, but im not obsessed with it like i was with say the fleet foxes 2008 self titled album that swept the alternative music scene last year. with that said grizzly bears 2009 album is beautifully simple with nodes of complexity that allow you to get lost in the musical landscape of carved out by this indie folk avant garde album ... here is a live cut and the official clip for my favorite track off the album 'ready, able' ...

holy jet lag batman ...

so i am back on the east coast of the us after a quick 8 days on the east coast of my home away from home, australia. the reason for my brief jaunt was the wedding of 2 wonderful aussie friends steve and airlie. it was a beautiful service and a perfect portrait of a romantic wedding set in green hill of south east new south wales right outside of nowra.

with all the reconnections, sunshine, and wonderful time spent in sydney, i now get to go through the vicious jet lag caused from two stepping the planet.

have a full more day off of work where i wll be catching up on this blog, my dvr, and the laudry i didnt do before i left.