CourtneyP

I’ve recently become enamored with the music vlog Concerts à Emporter (“Take Away Shows“) from the French music blog La Blogotheque. And I feel compelled to share it with you.

The concept behind the show is simple: catch up with musicians passing through Paris (for the most part, amongst other major cities) and have them perform live… impromptu, on the streets, wherever they may be. There is something quite zen and calming about many of these performances. Take, for instance, the latest video, featuring Andrew Bird strolling leisurely along the stone streets of Paris with his guitar, attracting the attention of nary a traveler:

This performance from The Shins on a bright sunny day makes me feel warm and ready for spring. I love how they  break out with Alone Again Or as they stroll to find a place on the Paris streets to perform.

These are just a couple of the wonderful performances to be found within, including Grizzly Bear performing while crammed into a tiny hotel bathroom, and a performance by Arcade Fire from inside a freight elevator. I could go on and on, but you could probably just find out for yourself.

I find myself inspired and feeling a bit more at peace with every performance.

More music posts, heh.

Tonight is the Belle and Sebastian/New Pornographers show, looking forward to it, although I hear that the Concourse is kinda meh (acoustically flawed, poor visibility) for live shows, and eep, it’s sold out! I guess we’ll see how it goes, but with two great artists like them, and being in attendance with a few friends, it should be fun.

Friday is the Arab Strap/His Name is Alive show @Cafe du Nord, which is one of my favorite small venues (well, besides the times that it gets overcrowded cos it really *is* tiny, but maybe that’s why I like it, because of its intimacy).

Next week is Noise Pop… too many good bands to catch, not enough time! I’m hoping to catch glimpses of Every Move a Picture, Scissors For Lefty, Her Space Holiday, Citizens Here & Abroad, Thursday, Minus the Bear, The New Amsterdams, Jason Collett and of course, more… but, gah, there are conflicts!

Yay, scenesters.

Man, I think I’m gonna know how Buzz and Willo felt at the end of SXSWm if I really do go to all these shows in the next week or two!

Bonus content, whee! These are my current favorite music podcasts:

• KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic
• NPR’s All Songs Considered
• Zoe’s Radio Show

Some good streams/online radio:

• somaFM‘s Indie Pop Rocks
• BAGeL Radio
• and of course, last.fm streams of my friends …currently Ryan and Robert (these links are last.fm streams)

I know, I’ve had music on my mind a lot lately, and I’ve been obsessing. I’m incredibly jealous of those at SXSW music this week, more so than SXSWi (don’t get me wrong, it looked like a blast, though!). I guess I’m living vicariously through Buzz’s photos of the event.

I recently went on a record store run with Ryan and had a lot of fun going through the racks with someone that lives in very similar musical worlds as I. We were able to make suggestions to each other and truthfully say that we would think the other would enjoy such and such an artist/album.

Last weekend, Robert and I traded a bunch of music files in the same spirit (puttin’ PodWorks to good use, hee). I’m in music heaven right now, to say the least.

So I thought I’d share some of my current musical obsessions… some are old, some are new, but these are the bands I’ve had in regular rotation as of late (I guess this is prolly also reflected in my last.fm profile for the most part, but hey, it’s worth posting):

• Pinback – @Bimbo’s soon, yay!
• American Analog Set
• Air Miami
• Sigur Rós
• His Name is Alive – @Cafe du Nord next week!
• The Arcade Fire

Mostly the type of stuff that I’ve already expressed that I’ve had an affinity for before, more of the mellow stuff that I like to play during work or late at night when at home. Some of Arcade Fire’s and Air Miami’s stuff is a bit outside of that mold, but I never said I was that consistent, did I?

Okay, back to working and my tunes.

Uhm, I think my brain just imploded.

Simply looking at the lineup for the upcoming Sasquatch Festival in Washington State made it happen.

This is what Coachella should’ve been. This line up is so far amazing…

Nine Inch Nails, Special Guest (to be announced), HIM, …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, Wolfmother, BEN HARPER & The Innocent Criminals, The Flaming Lips, The Shins, The Tragically Hip, Neko Case, Iron & Wine, Sufjan Stevens, Gomez, Rogue Wave, Sam Roberts, Constantines, Architecture In Helsinki, Bedouin Soundclash, Matt Costa, The Brunettes, Tim Seely, Korby Lenker, Common Market, Beck, Death Cab For Cutie, Queens of the Stone Age, Matisyahu, The Decemberists, Nada Surf, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Blue Scholars, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Arctic Monkeys, We Are Scientists, Chad Vangaalen, The Heavenly States, Rocky Votolato, Laura Veirs, Mercir, The Village Green, more artists to be announced…

So. There.

In the madness of the new year, I forgot to post my playlists for my 2004 mixes. Most of the interested parties have exchanged CDs already, so I figured it is now safe to post the lists.

Best of 2004: All are not necessarily the best songs of 2004, but the best artists (IMHO, of course) and a representative track. Each of these tracks were released in the year of 2004.

1. TKO, Le Tigre

2. Wouldn’t Believe It, The Get Up Kids
3. Bend & Break, Keane
4. The Yellow Ones, Pinback
5. Don’t Look Away, Joshua Radin
6. Au Contraire, They Might Be Giants
7. The Dark of the Matinee, Franz Ferdinand
8. Planet Tokyo, PuffyAmiYumi
9. Somebody Told Me, The Killers
10. Ocean Breathes Salty, Modest Mouse
11. Muzzle of Bees, Wilco
12. How to be Dead, Snow Patrol
13. Memory Lane, Elliott Smith
14. Evil, Interpol
15. No Cars Go, Arcade Fire
16. Fit But You Know It, The Streets
17. Move On, Mike Doughty
18. BONUS TRACK: Take Me Out (Live Lounge), Scissor Sisters

New to Me 2004: I blame KSCU.

1. My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend, Her Space Holiday

2. The Execution of All Things, Rilo Kiley
3. I Fought the Angels, The Delgados
4. Why I Cry, All Time Quarterback
5. Ha Ha, Mates of State
6. Boycott, Mood Elevator
7. Lucky Ladybug, Guv’ner
8. The Scientist, Coldplay
9. Naked as We Came, Iron & Wine
10. El Caminos in the West, Grandaddy
11. Something Bigger, Something Brighter, Pretty Girls Make Graves
12. Let Go, Frou Frou
13. Last Goodbye, Jeff Buckley
14. Paper Bag, Fiona Apple
15. Desperado, Langley Schools Music Project

If you want a copy of the CDs, comment or shoot me an email. You’ll have to give me a copy of yours, too!