I apologize if this sounds out of line, but I need to tell you something. I woke up to your voice every weekday morning for 3 years. “Until You” remained my morning alarm for 3 years of my college career. I never once got sick of it and pressed snooze not only to gain 10 more minutes of precious sleep but also to hear more of the song (ok, let’s be real, I probably snoozed 3-4 times each day). I still get text messages from roommates past when they hear Until You because they, too, got to experience the song each and every morning. One of the best concerts I’ve been to was your visit with Matt Wertz to the Canopy Club in Champaign, IL. This was before Blake Shelton got ahold of “God Gave Me You” and before “Until You” even had a music video. What I’m trying to say is I’ve been a longtime fan and I truly appreciate you waking me up every morning.

Sincerely,

Annie

__________________

Somehow, I am just now getting to listen to Barnes’ “Stories to Tell,” and I’m shaking my head in disbelief that I didn’t keep this album on repeat from the second it came out in March until God knows when. “Stories to Tell” has a more playful feel than some of Barnes’ past albums but I love it just the same, and potentially even more. One thing, however, has remained consistent throughout Barnes’ career. He continues to write both the music and lyrics for all of his songs. In my eyes, Barnes encapsulates the meaning of being a musician. Flawless vocals, instrumentation, great songwriting and meaningful lyrics all in one, “Stories to Tell” does more than just impress. It has continued my respect for Barnes as a musician in an industry that has gone through a plethora of changes throughout the past decade.

Barnes’ music expresses human emotion, particularly love, and makes the listener want to experience these emotions right along with him. In Missing You, he sings about a past love and made me respect the end of their relationship as if they were my friends. I don’t know him personally nor do I know his past flame, but I do know that after listening to Missing You a couple times through, I’m convinced that he and this mystery girl had great chemistry but are mature enough to move on.

You and me together
I’d pick you up and we go
Some place only we’d know
Summer, whole life
Stay up dreaming all night

I started this post as a Song of the Day as soon as I listened to White Flag. Now that I’ve finished listening to the album in its entirety and eager to start it over, it’s turned into an album gush review. After a great past few days full of friends, love and family (and an impromptu visit from my dog), “Stories to Tell” not only became my new go-to album, it made me incredibly grateful. Thanks, Dave Barnes; you’ve done it again. You’ve created a fan that will stick around as long as you continue to make music, and beyond.

White Flag:

Stories to Tell:

Missing You:

And the one that started it all:

What else is huge? Kenny Chesney’s recent release of two songs from his 13th studio album, “Welcome to the Fishbowl.” Listening to Come Over and Feel Like a Rockstar, a duet with Tim McGraw, coupled with an impending 87 degree beach day tomorrow has made sitting still an impossibility today. Kenny’s chilling message in Come Over gives me goosebumps each time I replay the song. As Kenny says, “Come Over is about two people who are as broken as their relationship is, when they realize deep down that their time together has probably ran its course, but they aren’t really ready to emotionally or physically move on to something else.” Oof. I realize that wasn’t the most summer loving summary, but I couldn’t deprive you of something that is sure to be on the country charts for awhile.

Since today is Friday (and I didn’t want to be a buzz kill by raving about a song that covers an unfortunate relationship), I moved on to Feel Like a Rockstar. After listening to it a couple times through, I’m pretty sure I could stare at Tim McGraw and fantasize about our life together listen to the song all day. Their voices compliment each other perfectly and if this is any indication of what the concert will be like, I might pass out.

My last encounter with Sara Bareilles’ voice was during the Plot Your Escape show at Chicago’s Union Station.  I, of course, was standing there trying to soak in every last sound of hers while surrounded by a group of girls who didn’t know how to shut their mouths.  I didn’t know I was capable of feeling such rage.  I also didn’t realize I’d still feel it two months later.

So, when I saw a great Facebook status about Sara B. yesterday, I realized I had to have a love fest post today.  Thank you, Katie, for posting Stay.  I can honestly say I’ve been listening to it on repeat all day and will be hitting replay the second it ends.  The song is full of emotion, feeling and talent.  It commands my attention and makes me want to sprint to a dance class and encourage someone to choreograph something to Stay immediately.  I know, probably not the reaction most of you have to a song, particularly a slower one like this, but the lyrical dancer in me lives on.

Stay is off of Sara’s upcoming EP, “Once Upon Another Time,” which will be available May 22.  Head to her website for a free download of the song!

Aaaand I’m listening again.

In my 23-year-old body lives a fan of music past. I can’t help it. So, when I hear a song reminiscent of the things my elementary school self listened to, I tend to gravitate. That’s exactly what happened with Delta Spirit’s California. Is it overly complex? No. Does it give me a headache? Not in the least. Do I enjoy it? Absolutely. It has an heir of modernity about it through the dissonance in the beginning, but still features the harmonious “ooo” sound that made me fall in love with The Beach Boys at a young age. Thank you to Delta Spirit for taking something that has worked in the past and making it work today.

Source: Wikipedia

Thank you also to whoever wrote the group’s Wikipedia entry and included that last thing under “genre.”  It resulted in at least a quadruple take from yours truly.

These five gents hail from New York and Phildelphia and come together to form The Walkmen, a group that entered the indie world in 2000. On a typical Monday, I try to listen to music that basically lulls me to accept that another work week has begun. The Rat doesn’t exactly take on that same vibe. The full sound from vocals, guitar, organ and drums are not something I would classify as easy listening but it strangely fits this gloomy Monday and rainy weather.

Truthfully, I don’t have a novel to write about The Rat.  In fact, the name of it even makes me slightly uncomfortable.  But I like the song, and am thrilled that I found it. It’s as simple as that.

On another note, I have a confession. While I’ve always been taught to never judge a book by its cover, I usually do. I can’t help it that I have eyes. If a cover looks intriguing, I’ll pick it up. I may not always leave the bookstore (or Target) with the book with the most elaborate cover, but I definitely grabbed one or two that caught my eye. I can be the same way when it comes to a band. This time, however, I don’t judge or choose to give it a chance simply by the album cover. If a band name stands out among the others, I’ll give it a listen. This doesn’t mean a full run-through of a song, but I will most certainly dedicate a solid 15 seconds of my time.

Yellow Ostrich.

What did I do when I saw the band name Yellow Ostrich? You can bet I grabbed my headphones and had to give it a shot. Truly, who wouldn’t? The group is called Yellow Ostrich. If you aren’t at least slightly intrigued by this name, I urge you to get a pulse.

Turns out, I learned a little something about this Lollapalooza line-up bearing group. The group recorded most of the tracks on their most recent album in a small studio near Woodstock, New York, with Beau Sorenson. You may recognize that name from Sorenson’s work with Death Cab for Cutie and Sparklehorse. Choosing a song from the group’s repertoire was relatively simple for me. The Shakedown had a different sound than the others. While I clearly didn’t get a chance to listen to every song ever made by this colorful large bird of a group, I did notice that many of them began the same way and sounded similar. Aside from this one, of course.

So today I spare you from a cheesy joke and sassy attitude about it being another Monday and instead introduce you to one of Lolla’s Friday performers, Yellow Ostrich.

Source: last.fm

I just. don’t. get it.

Not only do these Dave lovers line up and willingly admit their love for him (which is embarrassing in itself), they do so with the enthusiasm of an over-caffeinated high school cheerleader. It begs the simple question of, why? I’ve heard it all. It’s the experience. His lyrics speak to me. It’s so chill. So many of his shows sell out. That voice. He’s a Grammy winning artist.

His tour bus also dumped 800 pounds of human waste into the Chicago River, drenching individuals on an architectural boat tour. Just wanted to remind you of that.

Before I continue, I’d like to clarify something here. I don’t only listen things that I consider to be musically impressive. It doesn’t have to be a groundbreaking song, full of complex chords, vocal leaps, trills and riffs. I will happily sing the lyrics to Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy as loud as the next guy, and I’ll be even happier to suggest listening to it again 5 minutes later. Heck, if you scroll down a bit, you can see that I made the sugar coated Call Me Maybe a song of the day. However, I do think a group that has a cult following – that’s what it is, a cult – should be able to display why the group is worthy of said minions.

Allow me to go through the reasons I’ve listed above. I’ve heard many more, but those seem to be the ones that are constantly hurled in my direction in an effort to make me join the band of followers. Nuh uh, not happening.

It’s the experience: I understand the great feeling fans get from going to a show. One of their all-time favorite musicians is on stage, pouring his or her heart out and they’re surrounded by people who all share a similar love. It’s euphoric. It bonds the members of the audience and can be extremely memorable. Notice I didn’t say this was the result of attending a DMB show. I said it was the result of attending a show. Couldn’t a diehard John Mayer fan get the same feeling at one of his concerts? Or Usher? Or a fan of a band with an extremely small following? I would argue yes. How is the DMB experience any different than the others?

His lyrics speak to me: I’m a huge lyric person. I catch myself paying as much attention to the words as I am to the melody. Are his lyrics the worst out there? No, not at all. Are they the best? No, not at all. Does their overall mediocrity constitute a cult following? Once again, no, not at all.

It’s so chill: This is one of my favorite reasons. You’re right. It isn’t heavy metal, hard rock or intense rap. There isn’t a loud bass and Matthews never turns into a punk rock screamer. That’s what I gather when you tell me it’s so chill. Well, so are a lot of things. In this case, I think DMB is considered to be “chill” because so many of the songs sound the same, meaning it doesn’t require much, if any, effort to listen to it.

So many of his shows sell out: Hannah Montana’s shows sold out within minutes. No further explanation needed.

That voice: That voice? That distorted sound? It sounds like a yodeler with a mouth full of marbles.

He’s a Grammy-winning artist: So is Britney Spears.

I can recall a number of times where I let it slip that I don’t like Dave Matthews Band to a diehard DMB cult member. One person ignored me for 2 weeks and actually closed a door on me, another insisted upon playing it every time I was in his car while explaining why I should like it, and countless others have stared at me, dumbfounded, as if I told them I was going to go home and perform a lobotomy on myself.

My dislike for the group has come up multiple times throughout the past few weeks, so this explanation was beyond necessary. I believe it can be summed up rather quickly. I don’t understand the cult fascination with mediocrity nor do I understand why Matthews feels the need to make all of his songs sound identical. Or the need to make so many of them over 5 minutes long with a sax solo. As the wise Vanilla Ice once rhythmically said, “anything less than the best is a felony.” Unless, of course, you’re talking to a DMB fan…in which case everything less than the best is applauded, praised and voraciously followed.

After my discovery yesterday, I blabbed about Band of Skulls for awhile.  I told my co-workers about them, I sent a text to my cousin and I rambled to my manfriend about how they had an alternative sound but a pretty rock heavy sound from the guitar (he thinks I like weird things).  I also decided I would feature a song by them for song of the day the following day. Band of Skulls, you’re welcome for the word of mouth marketing.

As I stumbled into work today, I couldn’t help but notice that my desk looked like a band of tornadoes had gone through it.  I tried to make myself feel better by moving some post its around and discovered this gem.

In case you’re struggling to read my red pen scrawl, it says: Band of Skulls – I Know What I am.  It’s true.

Please tell me you now understand why I called this musical fate.  While it may also prove why I recognized the name, I’m not sure how long ago I wrote this down or what prompted me to, aside from the sheer fact that it’s a great song.  A wonderful story like this constitutes two songs for today.  Plus, The Devil Takes Care of His Own proves that the guitar portions are extremely rock driven.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, my desk is still Disastville U.S.A.  Things you might notice upon first glance include a small tailgate table, multiple post its and a my little pony toy from a McDonald’s Happy Meal.

You’ve all heard the story. A music hungry individual moves to L.A. to satiate his dreams of becoming a successful artist. Between struggles to hold a day job, find the perfect sound and book enough gigs to make a name for himself, he becomes mentally and physically exhausted. And that’s the end of it. However, that wasn’t the case for Danny Aguiluz, Chris Johansen, Matt Geronimo, Lorenzo Perea, and Dakota Clark. Plus, to make the journey more difficult, they were robbed of their music equipment and truly were at a loss.

But they prevailed, and that message is heard loud and clear in their self-titled, debut album, Attaloss, released today, April 10.

Initially starting as a group of four, Aguiluz, Johansen, Perea, and Clark all pursued their dream to make a living with music by banding together after meeting in Los Angeles. Soon thereafter came the daunting task of choosing a name. During the brainstorming process, the group received the unfortunate news that their recording studio had been broken into and all of their equipment was gone. This made them realize two things: they were suffering a serious blow to their career and the group’s name was inarguably Attaloss.

As luck would have it, guitarist Johansen worked with the police to help locate their stolen equipment. A few long months later, the group’s equipment was found mostly intact. They wasted no time and nailed down the first five tracks of the album, all of which are energy driven rock songs with an inspiring message.

“This journey has been a real roller coaster ride but we have come out of it stronger than ever,” said lead vocalist Aguiluz. “Hopefully that message comes across and inspires people to continue chasing their dreams. Today is an ‘Open Door.’”

The instrumentation combined with the feeling in Aguiluz’ voice gives Attaloss a full sound in every song on the album. Having experienced a traumatic event in the early days of the group’s existence gives Attaloss an upper hand. It allows them to play with raw emotion and deliver a humanized experience. The cry of the guitar in Fate Will Only Know Tomorrow is a true testament to the strength of the emotion found throughout the album.

Once the heavy hitting tracks were recorded and their emotions were laid on the table, the group of four began to tour and played with the likes of Neon Trees, Smashing Pumpkins and Fallout Boy’s Patrick Stump. As all tours teach a musician something, Attaloss couldn’t help but notice that they weren’t translating their recorded sound to a live venue. They added a fifth member, guitarist and vocalist Matt Geronimo, and spent time in the studio to record acoustic versions of the five already recorded tracks. Croons and simple harmonies took the place of belted notes and power chords, giving the album an incredibly well rounded sound.

Both versions, the heavy hitting tracks and softer acoustics, show that Attaloss is able to translate the journey to form a band and the obstacles along the way into a killer debut album. With titles such as Open Door, Move On, and Forward, the group almost taunts their thief and rubs their ability to turn a loss into an extremely talented group of five guys in his face. Kudos to them for doing so, and I urge Attaloss to continue. Show off with your multi-city tour and numerous requests from fans to perform in their hometowns. Quite frankly, I don’t think Attaloss is missing much of anything.

***HauteThought exlusive! Click here for a free download of Open Door!

One of my closest set of TV “friends” comes from Friday Night Lights. No, not the movie. There was, in fact, a five season show on NBC, and it was one of the best things that has ever happened to me. I’m not kidding. No sarcasm here. I started watching the show the day it premiered (October 2006), wrote a paper on it my freshman year of college (and got an A), used it to bribe a crush of mine to hang out with me (it worked) and nearly cried during the last episode (…).

When else did I nearly cry? Today, when I stumbled across the “FNL Farewell Promo” on YouTube. I couldn’t watch it. I just listened to it at my desk and froze. 5 solid years with my FNL friends and now…nothing. Relationships aren’t meant to just end like that. I have no closure. I don’t feel like I’ve grown. I feel like I want to find out who decided to cancel the show, and egg his house. Twice.

The promo reel ended with a short clip of a song with a catchy guitar intro and a vocalist who sounds like Kings of Leon front man, Caleb Followill. Sold. I can confidently say I’ve listened to it at least 20 times today. Not only does it sum up five seasons of the show in a well thought out three minutes and seven seconds, it’s actually a great song and was hard to find. Perfect – this was the initial motivation behind posting a song of the day, to introduce you to songs you may not come across otherwise. However, this isn’t a full introduction. I’m not sure who sings “Run With Me,” (and trust me – I’ve looked) but I can tell you it was composed by David William Hearn and I can tell you I love it.

I realize the accompanying still shot isn’t the most technologically advanced video. There were a few montages but I didn’t want to ruin anything for potential Friday Night Lights watchers. And, if you couldn’t tell, I wholeheartedly recommend you become one.