Coffee For The Brain Mixtape Challenge. Okay I am cleaning and organizing. I just organized
all purchased albums. So here is the mixtape scenario. Give me a number
between 1-700. First twenty numbers I will go to that album in the
sequence and select one track from album. This will be a 20 song mix.
Caution to picture, whole top row is all Dave Matthews so pick
accordingly. Here we go...
I am doing the same thing on Facebook and will share both mixtapes when completed.
I saw this picture and just had to repost to create some good discussion. I am in need of some good insight after my stupid watch not working during my 5K test run this morning.
Go ahead and let me know.
For me it is currently the new Green Day album. Not sure why, but when their songs pop up I am never in the mood to listen.
I have been meaning to write about my past weekend in Noblesville, IN to watch my favorite band of all time - Dave Matthews Band. I traveled to Deer Creek with my two brother in laws and my college buddy. My brother in law, Adam, my college buddy, Tommy, and my friend, James, who I have been friends with since we were 4 months old have traveled each summer watching Dave for at least the past 5 years. This two shows put me over seeing Dave 15 times. I have been to quite a few shows, but nothing in comparison to other fans who are in the 100's.
I don't know how to describe the experience. Dave has an energy that the crowd just feeds off of. I have been to too many concerts to count, but Dave is one of the very few that just puts you in a trance with his music and the crowd. You become part of something much larger than yourself. You never know what song you are getting next and with a two night stand you love the fact that both shows will be completely different.
We headed out Thursday night around 5 which is 6 Indiana time. It is about an 5.5 hour drive. About 3 hours into the drive we stopped at a McDonalds for some grub and it was here that I realized I did not pack my wallet. No wallet means I did not have the credit card for the hotel and did not have my drivers license to show for ticket pickup for will call and also for getting into the pubs around town that have music both before and after the shows. Friday morning Amanda was nice enough to send my identification via UPS overnight with a 9:30 am guarantee. That was a nice $80 price tag, but worth every penny.
Thursday night we made it to my buddy's house who lives in Indy. We stayed up until about 4:30 playing ping pong and old Mario Cart. It does not take much to entertain us!
Friday morning we headed out to the hotel and for some lunch. We got things figured out and headed to the venue around 4 for some Dave tailgating which is such a great time listening to music, talking with other fans, and playing bags. Friday night we had upper pavilion seats and got in to see Gary Clark Jr. open up. He put on a great show. To the left is our seats during the opener. We had to ask people to switch seats so all 5 of us could be together. People are so awesome that nobody even gave it a second thought.
Just as the sun was setting I snapped a picture of the crowd behind us. I love this venue. It might be my favorite venue of all I have been too. There is not a bad seat in the venue.
Here is the setlist for N1
Dave Matthews Band
June 22, 2012
Klipsch Music Center, Noblesville, IN
Everyday
Eh Hee
The Stone
You & Me
Proudest Monkey »
Satellite
Everybody Wake Up (Our Finest Hour Arrives)
Crush
So Right
Mercy »
Out of My Hands
All Along the Watchtower
Squirm
Gaucho
Funny the Way It Is
Typical Situation
Don't Drink the Water
-----------------------------------
So Damn Lucky »
Ants Marching
Typical Situation was the highlight. It has not been played by the full band since 9.10.09 which knocked it off the liberation list. I loved Watchtower with Gary Clark Jr. on guitar midset. Nobody saw that coming. I honestly thought this was a rocking show. I loved it. I sang my heart out and I had proof as the next day my stomach muscles and chest were super sore from yelling and singing. Many people we talked with thought the show was mellow, but I dug it big time. Little did I know that N2 was going to be epic by many standards. The new songs sounded great and it won't be long until the crowd joins in the sing alongs with Gaucho. It is just too new and I remember Big Whiskey songs feeling the same way a few years back and now the crowd just sings their hearts out. I can't wait for the new album.
Friday night we were back in our hotel around 3 am. It was late by the time we gathered everyone as some of us never made it back to the van. We have a one hour rule and if you are not back by one hour after the show we leave you behind. This sounds mean, but our hotel is less than a mile away and it is probably faster to walk than drive with the way they route the cars.
Saturday morning I was up and ready to get going. All of a sudden we realized this was our last night to our weekend. Around 11:30 we headed over to the venue (well, those of use that were awake). Box office opened at noon and we were told we could get our tickets. My UPS package had arrived and off we went. Unfortunately, all tickets could be picked up except PIT tickets. Yes, we had Pit tickets for N2. We hung out a bit and came back around 3:30 for the 4:00 pick up time. We started tailgating super early and just enjoyed the sunshine, people, and music again. I stood in line, grabbed my ticket and made another ticket exchange for two more pits. We were waiting our last two pit tickets, but we were stood up by a fellow WH member. Luckily, I found two more tickets for my friends so they could see the show.
I made my way to the pit and just was blown away. I have never been so close and I just absorbed it all. I loved watching the interactions and the nonverbal communication of the band. It was so cool. On top of it all the setlist is one that is going to be hard to beat. I later learned Minarets was supposed to start the encore, but for some reason it was scratched. Had they played that it would have been a miracle setlist.
The Dancing Nancies into Warehouse made it for me. I love Warehouse. This song just gets the crowd so into it and this has always been a favorite of mine. If Only is going to be one of my favorites I can tell. I love the vibe of this song. Two Step was mind blowing as always and they completely jammed out hard to end the mainset. Boyd was able to let loose several times during this show and I just love watching him go crazy. Pig was epic. The stuff animals of pigs in the Pit and the excitement this song brings. It just has all the highs and lows that make Dave music so great. You are chill one minute, and singing on top of your lungs the next.
I was dead center and about 15 feet back from Dave
A 20 minute Jimi Thing with a sing along to start, Dave scat(my favorite part of any show), nice jam was just unheard of. Then the crowd started singing Thank You. Dave caught on with Rashawn and next thing you know they are singing Sexy MF along with the crowd. It was just too cool to put into words.
I had no idea what to expect during the encore. I prayed for Halloween. I know it has been in rotation lately, but I have never heard it live and always plead and beg for it. It is one of my all time favorites that I have always wanted live. I got it!!!!!! It was spectacular. I recorded the entire encore, but for some reason the audio cuts out and I can't hear anything. My phone is all messed up. It started acting up during the weekend where it would just go crazy. It works, but nothing is very easy. It was one of those weekends with not bringing my wallet, phone going crazy, and ticket issues of being screwed out of two VIP Pit tickets. However, it was all worth it due to the amazing shows the band provided.
Below is the setlist. I have listened to this show at least three times since this weekend. I feel so blessed to have been part of this show. You must listen to this show if you are a Dave fan. It will capture you for sure. Head to DMBsteam.com and listen to it. It will make you eargasm.
Thank you DMB for giving me probably my best Dave weekend ever and one of the best shows of all time. I cannot put this show into words anymore. You had to live it, breathe it, and be there to understand how amazing it was.
Yes, I think I am almost back to being recovered from three night of being up until 5 am. This body does not do that anymore as usually by 5 am I am working out not going to bed.
My dad sent me this link way back in the middle of January. I kept meaning to share it with all of you because
1. He-Man is AWESOMESAUCE!
2. This mash-up works out perfect.
A perfect video after a long week
Yes,
my playlist is coming. I am just listening to a few stack of albums
that I need to listen to before I finalize(like I just added a Tune Yards track). Send your playlists in the
comments or share playlist via Spotify if you have that.
Let's do this.
Rules
1. Playlist must either be all songs or all albums
2. Songs and albums must be from 2011
3. Yes, you can make two playlists if you wish - 1. Songs 2. Albums
As you may or may not know, I love Dave Matthews Band. I have set out this summer to listen to and review each of the 20 Live Trax concerts. You can read more here.
Here is the first review:
I forgot how much I dig this Live Trax. Being the first one it had to be one of main reasons that I have continued to buy almost every single Live Trax(all 20 of them) over the course of the last few years when this all started.
Live Trax Vol. 1 is the first release of the Dave Matthews Band's Live Trax series. This two-disc set was released on November 2, 2004 and features the band's live performance at the former Centrum Centre in Worcester, MA on December 8, 1998.
The show featured songs from all of the band's four albums at the time: Remember Two Things, Under the Table and Dreaming, Crash, and the most recent Before These Crowded Streets. The five members of the Dave Matthews Band were joined by guitarist Tim Reynolds and keyboardist Butch Taylor throughout the duration of the show. Songs such as "Don't Drink the Water", "#41", and "The Last Stop" featured guest banjo player Béla Fleck in addition to the rest of the band. During "#41," saxophonist Jeff Coffin from Béla Fleck and the Flecktones guested with Béla and the rest of the band for a 20-minute jam which featured an interpolation of the Flecktones' song "Sojourn of Arjuna" off the album Left of Cool.
I am more of a DMB fan without Butch Taylor on the keyboard as I like the rock vibe and louder feel to the shows since his departure, but listening to this Live Trax and recently listening the deluxe Weekend On the Rocks 8 CD three night show I have forgotten how he brings a great vibe to the band.
Live Trax brings me back to the days of Leroi and Butch and the vibe is so much more chill and I love it.
Here is the setlist of the show
1 Seek Up
2 Linus and Lucy
3 Pantala Naga Pampa » Rapunzel
4 Satellite
5 Don't Drink the Water
6 Jimi Thing 7 Stay (Wasting Time)
Disc 2
1 #41
2 So Much To Say » Anyone Seen the Bridge?
3 Too Much
4 Drive In, Drive Out
5 Tripping Billies
6 I'll Back You Up
7 The Last Stop
This show starts off with Seek Up which is an 18 minute jam to start the show. What an opener! A great start to the show that really gets things going in the right direction.
However, the one downer to this show is the Linus and Lucy jam that follows. I like the little Charlie Brown solo, but not 7 minutes of it. Give me a about a minute or two and then move on to the next song. This is what I don't miss about Butch Taylor. To me this was 7 minutes of concert time that could have been added to any of the other great songs or more jam time with Bela Fleck.
I like the recovery of PNP into Rapunzel. I know it has been done over and over, but I love this combo and don't think it will ever get old to me. It just has a great summer vibe. I always sing at the top of my lungs to this one. The drums make me do that dumb finger drum playing thing that we concert goers do when jamming. The little Dave scream at the ~3:50 mark I love! It is the small things that make me love a show.
Satellite is Satellite and you know what you are getting with this song.
However, when he moves into Don't Drink the Water with Bela......WOW! Love it. Great jam with Bela on the banjo. A great pick up to the show. This is a great song without any guests, but having Bela just makes it better. Then he moves right into Jimi Thing which is a great transition. A 13 minute Jimi Thing jam works at this point in the show. My man Boyd tears up the violin on this song. Not only Boyd, but everyone in the band has their moment of glory to show off their skills. Timmy on guitar, Leroi, and the rest of the crew just jam this song out. I forgot how great this version of Jimi Thing really is. I am moving that song version to my DMB Fave playlist right now.
The show just does not slow down when from Jimi Thing it slides right into another favorite of mine, Stay. But, I must straight to the jam of all jams and of course I am talking about #41.
Bela Fleck joins the crew and this is one of the best jams. I cannot remember what other versions are out there in the LT series, but I don't know if this #41 jam will be beat. Leroi destroys the brass on this song. You also have Jeff Coffin joining which he shows why he is now added to the live crew after the death of Leroi. Adding a little banjo, Dave on guitar and of course the drumming is top notch quality I am not sure if there is 20 minutes of music that gets any better than this. The little banjo/guitar solo after the 8 minute mark is so cool. It almost makes you want to learn to play the banjo! The last thing I can say about this song is the end when Dave sings his little outro, "Maybe I will....." Words cannot do this song justice. Yes, this song moved over to my ultimate DMB Setlist playlist. Not sure if it will be topped and not sure where it will end up in my setlist, but I think it will last the next 19 Live Trax listens. Tough to outdo this version.
Quickly moving on to the rest of the show as I have rambled on quite a bit already, the band moves right into So Much To Say with an Anyone Seen The Bridge that I live. So Much is standard with every show, the The Bridge was very cool. I would love to hear this version live. They then move onto another standard of Too Much. Then they pack a one two punch with Drive In Drive Out which I just love the emotion followed by a great Tripping Billies.
He then slows things down with I'll Back You Up which I love this song. However, I would have liked to see him keep the energy level up with another big one, but I enjoy this song so I cannot complain too much. They then close the show with a stellar The Last Stop. A 20 minute rendition that blows the show up and brings everything to an amazing close.
That sums up Live Trax #1 for me. I am out and ready to move on to Live Trax #2.
Have you listened to Live Trax #1? If so, what are your thoughts? Until Next Time........
This song tells a story. A story that many can relate to. This song slows things up a little bit after the first two jams. This is a sing a long song for sure.
The chorus always has me singing at the top of my lungs "I'm still alive"
The most powerful lyrics come right after the nice little solo piece when Eddie sings:
"Is something wrong?" she said
Of course there is
"You're still alive," she said
Oh, and do I deserve to be?
Is that the question?
And if so...if so...who answers...who answers...?
WOW! And to hear Eddie sing these words really makes you want to sit in your bedroom and journal and ponder "Do I deserve to be?" As an adult I don't have the same thoughts as I did growing up(thank goodness), but these lyrics are still ones to be processed. Who gets to decide?
Don't forget the unbelievable guitar to end this song. It just builds up and ends with a smack to the face to get you ready for "Why Go"
Why Go probably one of the lesser known tracks on this album, but not any less of a song. Just as Eddie winds down on "Alive" the drums kick in for this track, followed by the guitars and we take off again on another ride. Eddie is angry. The music is angry and it just adds more fuel. Love it and of course you have to sing along with the the line, "Why go home?" And yes another guitar solo and will rock your socks.
From this jam we move onto "Black". A nice slow, mellow vibe. Acoustic and Eddie to start and just a another song that grabs you and takes you on another little ride.
Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay
Her legs spread out before me as her body once did
All five horizons revolved around her soul
As the earth to the sun
Now the air I tasted and breathed has taken a turn
Ooh, and all I taught her was everything
Ooh, I know she gave me all that she wore
And now my bitter hands chafe beneath the clouds
Of what was everything?
Oh, the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed Everything...
I take a walk outside
I'm surrounded by some kids at play
I can feel their laughter, so why do I sear
Oh, and twisted thoughts that spin round my head
I'm spinning, oh, I'm spinning
How quick the sun can, drop away
And now my bitter hands cradle broken glass
Of what was everything
All the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed everything...
All the love gone bad turned my world to black
Tattooed all I see, all that I am, all I'll be...yeah...
Uh huh...uh huh...ooh...
I know someday you'll have a beautiful life, I know you'll be a star
In somebody else's sky, but why, why, why
Can't it be, can't it be mine
You cannot go wrong with Pearl Jam. The guitar, the lyrics. There is so much to the music. Yet, you don't have to go deep to enjoy PJ.
Since I am broke this summer after a new roof and baby, the Dave Matthews Caravan is out of my summer plans. The three day festival I estimated will cost me about $900 when all said and done.
However, I still need my live music fix. Pearl Jam is going to host a festival. I may have to look into this if they ever unveil the date and location.
I am getting distracted here.
What I want to know is - What is your favorite song and why of Pearl Jam?
My two personal favorites are Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town and of course the blazing song Evolution.
But, Betterman is so unstoppable along with any song from Ten.
I think it is time to start a music journey and go through each album again.
This weekend I will start with Ten. Feel free to join me.
This week has marked week #1 of my first ever marathon training. As I put in the miles (a recap of the week coming soon) I am in need of some music for my long runs.
You guys always come up with great ideas.
So why don't you help this blogger out and provide some music suggestions to keep me entertained while running my long runs. I have a 9 mile run Sunday and they only go up from there.
Leave a comment with some albums to check out.
Music that I enjoy listening to while running is pretty open as depending on my mental state of mind I listen to rap, country, rock, laid back vibe music, etc.
Here is a playlist from 1986 from this week. Here are the top ten hits. Two songs were not available on Playlist.com and I have those marked with **. Feel free to listen with pleasure and remember some good old jams. Man, I am getting old.
One more thing, you cannot stop Billy Ocean. He is so underrated. Period.
1. Dionne and Friends - That's what friends are for
2. Survivor - Burning Heart (yes, from Rocky 4)
3. Wham! - I'm Your Man
4. Stevie Nicks - Talk To Me **
5. Lionel Richie - Say You, Say Me (this song will be stuck with you for the next week, AAGGHHHH!)
6. Bruce Springsteen - My Hometown (probably the only song I don't like)
7. Billy Ocean - When the Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going
8. Paul McCartney - Spies Like Us
9. Dire Straits - Walk of Life
10. Stevie Wonder - Go Home **
Send me another random date and year and I will see what I can find.
My parents rock. Here is another email I received from my dad the other day. It is a video from the comedian Tim Hawkins. A pretty fun video covering rock music by the bands as they get older. Check it out and let me know what you think.
I just want all of my fellow blog friends and viewers that I have been in a constant mind debate over the last 3 days trying to decided which album is better by Guns N Roses
Use Your Illusion 1
OR
Use Your Illusion 2
I will let you know that as of this posting I have listened to each album at least 3 times and closing in on 4. Before I post my final decision you might want to give both a listen and come up with your own choice and rationale.
This is serious music talk. I cannot stop thinking about this. When something gets stuck in my mind it does not leave until there is resolution.
I will post my final answer in a day or two. Until then listen to two unbelievable fantastic rock n roll albums and possibly one of the best compilations of music ever assembled in the rock n roll era.
Just as heads up, I am looking for other possible albums by other bands to compare. Do you have a good suggestion? Leave it in the comments.
I love talking music and have not done so on this blog in quite some time.
Just another heads up. I am also working on a list of the best epic songs of all time. I will be following the guidelines from this post to compile my list. Yes, a few GnR songs are in my consideration pool.
This weekend has been super crazy busy as we try to get everything done prior to finishing three long days of school this week and traveling to Indiana for the holidays. I had to drive to help coach a basketball game and decided to try a new app on my phone to mix things up.
I tested out the RDIO app. It is my favorite app on my phone and iPad right now. It is taking over my life.
This app allows you listen to pretty much any album, song, artist, and playlists from friends on your phone for free. It currently claims to have over 5 million songs. I streamed a few albums on my drive(the second amazing thing that almost caused me to crash my car) through my speakers via an AUX jack and was in music bliss.
What I love best about this app is that it is free. I added a few albums to my collection and BOOM there it was ready to go on both my phone and iPad when I got home. I woke up this morning to stream my favorite new album on my iPad to my Apply TV that is connected to my surround sound system. I was drinking coffee, reading, and listening to some amazing music in a few seconds and all for free!
If you don't have this app, get it, and when you do let me know so we can follow each other with our playlists and music. Get it before it either costs money or Apple takes it away!
The second thing that almost caused me to crash was an album that I was listening to on RDIO. The new Michael Jackson album. I know there are many critics who are upset that it was released because it was not finalized by Michael himself.(just google search "upset by release of Michael Jackson album" and you will find all you want).
I agree with the people who are upset. Michael took his music very seriously. He was a genius. He crafted each song with all his life, soul, and passion. However, with that being said I am so glad to hear this music. This album is beautiful. It feels so good to hear his voice. He is the man. PERIOD!
The first track, "Hold My Hand" starts the album off on the right foot and you never lose ground until the end when you are waiting for more. I like every track. I have listened to the album about six times since yesterday evening. I will have a more complete breakdown of this album in a future post because this one is already long enough.
I have to leave with this. Hearing Michael Jackson(link to his website) sound so good and back to what he does best has me wishing he was still around. The tour was ready to go, the album was almost finished, the man was ready to take his crown and achieve more, and it was all lost so quickly by a man who nobody really took the time to get to know. It just goes to remind me as both a parent and teacher to take the time to care about everyone around us. Someone could be smiling on the outside, but have many issues inside. How well do you know your friends? How well do you know yourself?
So, in closing download RDIO to your phone, listen to music free, become my friend so we can share music, and listen to Michael Jackson because it is a great album.
I love this mashup. How does two completely different styles of music sound so good together? A little something something to start off our ITBS testing with this morning. Enjoy!
Check out a new band on the rise. I am telling you that their names will be up and coming in good time. I posted the album over in the sidebar to listen to them. Check out their site and if you like, buy the album and support the band.
When it comes to the summertime I listen to an absurd amount of music. I listen to it while reading, playing on my iPad, driving, mowing, sitting in the garage with the kids, etc. I have been listening to nothing but Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, Mishka, and OAR lately and am looking for something new and fresh. So, I pose the question to you fellow nerd clansmen, "What have you been listening to this summer?"
Here is my suggested list of albums to check out
Dave Matthews Band - any Live Trax albums O.A.R. - 4 disc live set titled Rain or Shine Mishka - Guy with a Guitar Jack Johson - To the Sea
I don't like Lady Gaga. However, I give her credit for her power to create music that won't leave your head and to make a name for herself. She has become a huge star. With all that being said, this is an unstoppable a capella Lady Gaga Cover. This comes from the University of Oregon’s On the Rocks group. You may find yourself wasting an hour watching their stuff on YouTube and they also a have a sister group as well. Enjoy! I think we should do something like this.......
Watch this video! I order you to. This is sooooo cool. I am going to learn how to make a balloon bass. Probably will not be good at making music(just like my guitar t-shirt that I am not smart enough to figure out yet). But, I will give it a try. How about you try, submit me your video and I will post it here.
Friday morning we headed out to the hotel and for some lunch. We got things figured out and headed to the venue around 4 for some Dave tailgating which is such a great time listening to music, talking with other fans, and playing bags. Friday night we had upper pavilion seats and got in to see Gary Clark Jr. open up. He put on a great show. To the left is our seats during the opener. We had to ask people to switch seats so all 5 of us could be together. People are so awesome that nobody even gave it a second thought.
I made my way to the pit and just was blown away. I have never been so close and I just absorbed it all. I loved watching the interactions and the nonverbal communication of the band. It was so cool. On top of it all the setlist is one that is going to be hard to beat. I later learned Minarets was supposed to start the encore, but for some reason it was scratched. Had they played that it would have been a miracle setlist.
I had no idea what to expect during the encore. I prayed for Halloween. I know it has been in rotation lately, but I have never heard it live and always plead and beg for it. It is one of my all time favorites that I have always wanted live. I got it!!!!!! It was spectacular. I recorded the entire encore, but for some reason the audio cuts out and I can't hear anything. My phone is all messed up. It started acting up during the weekend where it would just go crazy. It works, but nothing is very easy. It was one of those weekends with not bringing my wallet, phone going crazy, and ticket issues of being screwed out of two VIP Pit tickets. However, it was all worth it due to the amazing shows the band provided.
The second thing that almost caused me to crash was an album that I was listening to on RDIO. The new Michael Jackson album. I know there are many critics who are upset that it was released because it was not finalized by Michael himself.(just google search "upset by release of Michael Jackson album" and you will find all you want). 
