Across the Line

Welcome to the latest installment of my monthly playlist. As I did last month, I am posting my latest playlist along with commentary on how I came across each song. I plan to continue this as a regular feature, so be sure to keep an out eye during the last week of each month. I think you’ll enjoy this month’s songs, so go ahead, throw it on an do whatever it is you do.

Listen to this month’s playlist:

1. “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence + The Machine
   This song came by recommendation of several of my new co-workers and was mentioned on an episode of our podcast, Design in the Moment. A couple had the privilege of seeing her live in Chicago which I understand is a show not to miss. Florence and her amazing finely-tuned Machine is possibly my favorite new artist I’ve had the fortune to come across this year.
2. “Closer” by Suffrajet
   Back in April, I attended an animal rights fundraiser called Pin-ups for Pitbulls at a local bar called The Cobra Lounge. Now, the bar is not located in the best neighborhood, but suffice to say it is one of the nicest and cleanest yet edgiest establishments I have been to in Chicago. When I looked into the venue further, I learned that there is a record label somewhat affiliated with it which happens to have released this gem of a song.
3. “The Space in Between” by How to Destroy Angels
   It’s not a secret that I’m a Nine Inch Nails fan, so it perhaps figures that I’ve followed Trent Reznor’s latest project. The group features Reznor’s wife Mariqueen on vocals alongside frequent collaborator Atticus Ross.
4. “Not Afraid” by Eminem
   I’ll admit it, I first heard this song on an NHL commercial during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I was struck by the the lyrics so much it took me until the end of the ad to even notice the song is by Eminem. While not a fan of his latest work, I’m certainly glad to see that Marshall Mathers has gotten back to using his talent and production good music again.
5. “You Are the Best Thing” by Ray LaMontagne
   While I’ve heard the song before, I was asked to learn this song so that I can play it at my friends’ wedding. After figuring out the chord progression on my own, I scoured the internet to see how others had learned to play it. I found tabs in several different tunings and capo positions, and ultimately settled on one that places the capo at the first fret of the guitar. I can only hope that my friend Drew’s sister somehow manages to sing along to my playing.
6. “Backfire” by MuteMath
   I actually came across this song for my playlist from last month, but only rarely do I put two songs by the artist on one playlist. However, I liked the song enough that I deferred it to this month’s playlist instead.
7. “Bury Me Far (From My Uniform)” by Joe Pug
   Joe Pug is an artist from Chicago who records at Shirk Music & Sound, the same studio where my company records our weekly podcast. This song is particularly timely in its theme of war as it was released on music blog Hear Ya around Memorial Day.
8. “Janglin” by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
   Yet another song that came from a TV ad, this one for the Ford Fiesta. (I think Ford deserves the mention if only because this song is in the ad.) Where would I be without television informing my music listening? In all seriousness, it’s a great song and I love the horn section during the chorus. Simply fabulous.
9. “Rill Rill” by Sleigh Bells
   This was featured on an album review of Sleigh Bells heard on Chicago Public Radio’s NPR show, Sound Opinions. News to me, the band features Derek Miller, former guitarist for the hardcore band Poison the Well. After hearing this band, go figure that Poison the Well is a band that highly informed my taste in heavier music circa 1999.
10. “Teardrop” by Massive Attack
    About two seconds into the song, any fan of TV’s favorite doctor, House, will recognize this as the show’s theme song. Thanks to this coming up on one of my Pandora stations, I can claim that I was not inspired to pick this show due to its use on TV.
11. “Wood and Wire” by Thrice
    Thrice is one of my favorite bands, and I was fortunate enough to see them live for the first time earlier this month. (After you’re done here, why not read my review of the show?)
12. “On My Way Back Home” by Band of Horses
    I try to limit my visits to Starbucks to once a week, if only as an excuse to pick up their iTunes song of the week card. I really like the way this song rounds out the backside of the playlist, slowing things down a bit.
13. “Tighten Up” by The Black Keys
    I’ll be seeing The Black Keys in August at The Metro when they come through Chicago for a Lollapalooza and an after party, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. It’s a great venue and a great band I haven’t seen live since Lollapalooza 2007.
14. “Space Song” by Reid King
    A friend of mine recently sold her battered, old MacBook on e-Bay. Not only buyer did Reid King assure her that her former bundle of joy would be restored to its full youthfulness, but he provided an EP’s worth of original self-produced music along with his payment. This song is by far my favorite from the collection with its Simon & Garfunkel-esque harmonies and Moog-inspired sci-fi synths.

Thanks for listening and reading. As always, I do appreciate feedback. You can, hit me up on Twitter or drop a line here.

Saturday night, I had the pleasure of seeing Thrice play at Chicago’s House of Blues. Being they are one of my favorite bands, it was great to finally see them live after all these years. The band played great, the setlist was well-selected and the venue wasn’t packed and sounded superb.

Thrice played a set that spanned their entire repertoire; one of the best parts of the show was wondering what they would sound like next. At times they rocked as hard as any metalhead could ask for, with songs from the heavier sides of Fire (The Alchemy Index Vol. 1) and The Artist in the Ambulance. Meanwhile they slipped in some toned down numbers for good measure and a well paced show, notably some great performances off their latest release, Beggars.

The Setlist (via setlist.fm):

• All The World Is Mad
• The Weight
• The Artist In The Ambulance
• Of Dust And Nations
• The Earth Will Shake
• Firebreather
• The Messenger
• Circles
• Doublespeak
• Daedalus
• Silhouette
• Hold Fast Hope
• Child of Dust
• In Exile
• Image Of The Invisible
• To Awake And Avenge The Dead
  Encore:
• Stand and Feel Your Worth
• Beggars

This was my first show at the House of Blues and for all the mixed reviews I’ve heard about the venue, I thought it was great. It’s not often you find a venue built in the last decade or two (outside of Las Vegas, perhaps) that is as ornately decorated as the HOB. It really looks like an old theater out of the 1920’s but with all the modern accommodations and appointments. Beside that and more importantly, the show sounded phenomenal. This has to be the best sounding venue I have been to in years and rivals even the Detroit Fillmore (formerly the State Theater). It’s also small enough that there really aren’t any bad spots to see the show, and as a bonus, HOB seems to not oversell the capacity as the show was not crowded at all despite being sold out.

All around it was a great time, including solid sets from supporting bandsKevin Devine, Bad Veins, and The Dig. My only regret was getting to the show late and missing the Dig, who put on a great show at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall when they played with Portugal. The Man.

If you have a chance to see Thrice, I highly recommend their live show. Simply put, they’re as raw and honest of a live rock band as anyone would expect and sound phenomenal live.

And now, here are some blurry pictures I snapped with my iPhone:

With this post, I’m starting what I hope becomes a regular monthly column on Across the Line. Each month, I collect a playlist of my favorite songs that I’ve discovered. I listen to these playlists daily during my morning and evening commutes and tweak the track order regularly, as I add new songs every few days. Friends often ask me what I’m listening to and how I find the songs, so I’ll be taking the time to link to where you can listen to and download each song along with how I came across it and any significance it holds.

I’ve also created a playlist of most the songs on Grooveshark for your streaming pleasure, so listen now. Enjoy!

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Ask I Fight Dragons lead vocalist/guitarist Brian Mazzaferri to describe his band’s sound and you’ll likely hear an explanation of an underground internet meme scene known as Chiptune. More on just what that is later.

You can start to get an idea of the how eclectic this band is by taking a solid chunk of pop-punk, mixing it with some old-school NES, Commodore 64 and Atari tones, and then throwing in lyrical references to everything from sci-fi pop culture to youthful idealism. If you’re skeptical, know that in just over a year this Chicago-based band has amassed a legion of fans, headlined legendary rock venue The Metro, and recently signed to Atlantic Records. 

Mazzaferri took some time out from touring and working on I Fight Dragons’ debut full-length album to take some questions. In our discussion, we cover the band’s unexpected beginnings, connecting with fans over the internet, and of course, the geeky gadgetry behind their music.

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Hello friends.

It’s been well over a month now since I re-launched my Across the Line domain as this experiment in blogging. I’ve received a fair amount of feedback from close friends and casual readers alike on what they think works and what doesn’t. As a reader of my blog, I’d like to take some time to share these findings and my plans (read: “best guesses”) for the future.

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