Weekly Song List: Wednesday, July 25th

And here you have it! My very first weekly song list. Feel free to leave any questions/comments in the "comments" section, and enjoy!

1. Is David Bowie Dying??. The Flaming Lips + Neon Indian: the Lips played this song when I saw them live this past October in Portland, ME. It was my favorite song of the whole show. Amazing song. I also love Neon Indian.

2. Superstar. Sonic Youth: completely brilliant cover of The Carpenters song, which also happens to be a completely brilliant song in its own right. Haunting. Dark. Romantic. Beautiful.

3. Optimistic. Radiohead: awesome, lush, gorgeous song from Radiohead's 2000 album Kid A.

4. Broken Boy Soldiers. The Raconteurs: this is the song that got me hooked on The Raconteurs. I love the momentum of the whole thing. It makes me feel like I'm riding horseback in some Western, or running at a great speed through the woods. Great song to listen to while driving.

5. Alesund. Sun Kill Moon: I heard this song during an episode of Sons of Anarchy. It was very well placed, and I think I'll forever think of that scene when I hear the song. And, I've just discovered that this "band" is actually a moniker for Mark Kozelek, formerly of Red House Painters (a favorite of mine from way back). He writes some of the most heartbreaking songs.

6. Dark Days. Punch Brothers: from The Hunger Games original soundtrack. Beautiful song. I just love these guys. Can't wait to see them live in a few months!

7. Night After Night. Laura Marling: every time I hear this girl I have to remind myself that she's only 22. She has so much soul and emotion and vitality in her voice. I know that age doesn't matter, really. She's just so accomplished and poised. She's my new favorite. She's magic!

Photo: The Flaming Lips.

Flaming Lips At The State Theater

Monday, October 24th, what a night! After work, I hopped in my car armed with two new mixes, both chock full of Flaming Lips songs.

A couple of hours later I was in Portland, Maine at the State Theater watching Wayne Coyne rolling around (on top of) the audience in his magic human hamster ball. It was so awesome!

Having read about the Lips' live shows, I knew a bit of what to expect, but it was so much more theatrical, beautiful, and colorful than I could have imagined.

The show was wicked noisy, which I loved. They sounded fantastic. "See the Leaves", "Pompeii Am Gotterdammerung", and (what I'm fairly sure was) "Is David Bowie Dying??" were my faves. "Do You Realise??" was also amazing, of course. It closed the show. Someone fainted a few rows ahead of me. Very dramatic and confusing.

There were tons of oversized balloons, confetti, oversized balloons filled with confetti, green lasers, and plenty of fog/smoke (from fog/smoke machines, of course). Wayne Coyne was wearing his usual dress pants and button down shirt, as well as a very cozy looking fur-type neck warmer/stole. He was quite a joy to watch, let me tell you. Very funny. Charming. Sweet. He has a wizard-meets-circus-ring-master kind of vibe, with a smidge of Fraggle, and/or any member of The Electric Mayhem.

I adore the Muppets, so any comparison to Fraggles or Muppets is a huge compliment! I really, really love Muppets. They're charming and adorable! I think this vibe has a lot to do with his wildly curly hair, and general playfulness and energy.

I'm still buzzing from it. Can't wait to see them next time they're in my neck of the woods!

The above photo was taken by a friend of mine who was also at the show (we went together, and danced our hearts out!) It captures the balloons, confetti, and fog/smoke very well. Beautiful, and magical. Thanks for the pic!

Wayne Coyne + Exciting News

Oh, how I love a man in a three piece suit! I came upon this photo of Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne earlier this week, and I love everything about it. The three piece suit is (obviously) a draw. The cluttered fridge. The where-have-you-been-all-my-life pink stove/oven that seems to have been plucked straight from the part of my brain that fantasizes daily about home decor.

And now, for the most exciting part of this post: I'm going to see The Flaming Lips next week!!! I'm so, so, so, so, so excited, I can't even stand it.

Thank Goodness For The Flaming Lips

I can't seem to get enough of the The Flaming Lips lately. I don't know what switched on in my brain recently, but all of sudden I'm buying up Flaming Lips stuff like there's no tomorrow. I've always liked them and have been intrigued by their experimental, psychadelic, space rock, avant-garde sensibilities.

And I've always found Wayne Coyne's personal style very appealing. Love the neutral colored suits with vests, love the dress shirts. Love the hair.

I may never figure out why all of a sudden my long-standing intrigue has been replaced by full fledged love, but I'm really enjoying it. And it makes me happy. So, who cares why!?!