s'mores cupcakes

cupcakes and the alabama shakes.

valentine(s)

polica, pop rocks, and a pile of sweethearts

a good day in music

two pretty fantastic new albums dropped today:
clap your hands say yeahs third album hysterical
and
caroline smith and the good night sleeps little wind


Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Maniac


"Tanktop" - Caroline Smith & the Good Night Sleeps

if i ever...

once upon a time (not so long ago), i lived
above a recording studio. where i often baked treats
for the musicians passing through.
i have often wondered if it might be possible to combine
my love of music with my love of baking. permanently.

just the other night i caught a glimpse of what that might be like.
i was asked to bake for flogging molly when they came to town!
a commissioned project for a band that i adore.
with no suggestions or limitations,
i held back on the frosted shamrocks,
and ended up with three types of cookies,
a batch of scones, and a box of guinness cupcakes
filled with baileys ganache.
just couldn't resist.

things to get us to spring

candied citrus peel and the decemberists.
what better way to celebrate d's birthday?

song for november

'i spent the day forgetting
the dream
that woke me up.'

chris pureka

autumn mix

been working on a mix for fall since sometime in september. soon. or at least before the first snow falls. i will have it ready to send out. in the meantime, be patient friends. and enjoy the first track. gregory alan isakov (the latest on my list of favorite guitar playing folk singing boys) performing 'all there is'.

the mixed tape

yesterday i returned to find a parcel from ireland at my door. my first mail at my new home (i also love mail but will save that for a later posting). in it there was the most brilliant mix! it opens with the lou reed classic 'walk on the wild side' and proceeds with a blend ranging from dusty springfield to the eels, stereophonics to buddy holly. the treasure amongst all the tracks is a version of steve earle's 'galway girl' done by mundy in irish.  while i figure out how to post the mp3, have a listen here.

my older brother made me my first mixed tape. while i cannot remember exactly what was on it, it was certainly an odd collection of punk, metal, and covers. just last year, he plunged into the modern day and made his first mixed cd. it was perfect blend of his current favorites sprinkled with the rancid and lita ford of our past.

my younger brother was born a master of the mixed cd. when i lived abroad, he sent me a mix each month. introducing me to new sounds by cleverly folding them in with the familiar.

i love mixed tapes. (now playlists and cds) love making them. love receiving them.
it's an art really. creating a musical sampler.
both random and thoughtful.
flowing perfectly from track to track.

thank you dgmc. and everyone else who has ever made me a mix!

after having successfully baked myself out of my apartment (this week's been a scorcher. don't know why i thought using the oven was such a grand idea.) i've resigned to sipping cool beverages and updating. outside.
but prior to this, was listening to the one, the only, nina simone.
and making some 'whatever needs to be used in the fridge' creations.

this bluesy.smokey.greasy barroom rock sound
is sure to bring joy to the ears of many.
grab a beverage (cold press in my case)
and start your day right.

'everlasting light'
from the black keys new album 'brothers'
(in stores today):

you're the voices swallowing
my soul, soul, soul.

from the national, 'afraid of everyone'

so fitting.

everyone has that music that makes everything better. the records they go to before anything else. the music that just fits.
call it tortured. call it deep. the voice of matt berninger has been singing sweet songs with the national for over a decade.
their new album is 'high violet'. it is amazing. and it is in stores today.

i had a dream last night
dreamt that i was swimming
and the stars up above
directionless and drifting
somewhere in the dark
were the sirens and the thunder
and around me as I swam
the drifters who'd gone under...

from josh ritter's change of time,
which is on 'so runs the world away'
which is out today.

sweet things

there's a cute canadian in my basement.
and i get to bake something every day for a week.

sweet things indeed.

a bit like coffee

you look a bit like coffee
and you taste a bit like me
how. can i keep me from moving?
now. i need a change of scenery
just listen to me I won't pretend to
understand the movement of the wind
or the waves out in the ocean or how
like the hours i change softly slowly
plainly blindly oh me oh my.

(clap your hands say yeah)

sipping peace coffee from my latest thrift store find.
enjoying the music in my head.