Away Message

Hiya Chrysalis Crew,
I'm writing a few hours before I depart for London to hawk red lipstick on television. Many of you know of my deep, abiding love for those creamy, crimson crayons. I've been wearing the stuff since I was just old enough not to look like a Denver version of Jodi Foster in Taxi Driver. I used to wear it with dance tights and sweat pants when I first moved to New York. Now I wear it in the daytime with flip flops and hoop earrings. I leave it, like a signature, on the rims of glasses, on linen napkins and smeared at the bottom of cheap purses. All I have to do is convince fifty thousand British women that they, too, can experience the surge of confidence and perplexing blend of retro and modern glamour that comes from leaving your lip print on the rim of a coffee cup. Easy. easy. easy.

Before I go I want to honor the month of April 2008 (the official anniversary of the best music year of my life) with a few links 'n' notes about what I'm taking with me and looking forward to upon my return. Now, I'm nobody's music blogger. I'm not a cutting-edge insider, music geek or go-to trendwatcher. But in April of last year I was in a dank apartment in Nantes with my brother doing one of those music-share marathons ("okay, now you go", "oh my God, I HAVE to play you this!", "where can I find that?") and it shaped my entire year. As I finish packing today I'm thinking of that gray, salty Nantes afternoon and am feeling a similar excitment about the coming summer of music and all the memories waiting to be made to its soundtrack. This post is my 2008 music-share. Some new, some older. From my dank New York apartment to you, with love.

Lest you should think there is any formality to this list, see disclaimers below:

1.) I totally know that some of these selections are not from 2008.
2.) I totally know that some of these albums have been out for awhile.
3.) I totally know that many of these bands have like, 3-5 albums out and that this is not their "pivotal" album nor have I "discovered" anything.

Alright, with all that business out of the way, let's delve.

The following accompanies me over the Atlantic:
-Elvis Perkins, Ash Wednesday
*a stunningly heartfelt, lyrical gem with some of the most complex singer-songwriter melodies I've heard.
**Standouts: All the Night Without Love, While You Were Sleeping, Sleep Sandwich, Good Friday.

-Blue Scholars, Bayani
*rich, intelligent Seattle-based indie-hop with memorable hooks and everyman quality.
**Standouts: Opening Salvo, North by Northwest, Still Got Love.

-Balkan Beat Box, Balkan Beat Box :
*sweet world dance with gypsy vibe and sexy, trippy vocals accompanied by mindblowing horns.
**Standouts: Bulgarian Chicks, Shushan, Hassan, 9/4 Ladies.

-Bon Iver, For Emma, Forever Ago:
*heartachingly gentle falsetto vocals layered over acoustic and percussion with lyrics of love and loss.
**Standouts: Skinny Love, Flume, The Wolves (Act I and II).

-M.I.A., Kala
*bracing, ass-kicking Sri Lankan (via London) lady-rap with insane production.
**Standouts: Bamboo Banga, Paper Planes, XR2.


What Sends Me Back Home:
-Gogol Bordello, live, McCarren Pool, June 20. If you haven't seen them live, you're missing a piece of the human experience.
-Elbow releases The Seldom Seen Kid, April 22nd. How can they get better?
-Firewater (the best travel music ever) releases The Golden Hour in April and plays The Bowery May 26.
-The Black Keys have released Attack and Release. Just good. Just period.
-The Raconteurs have released Consolers of the Lonely. Richer, deeper, more complex.
-Ghostland Observatory has released Robotique Majestique. Insane techno-glam-rock with a frontman to rival Mick Jagger.

Okay, now you go...