Bishop Allen is an American indie rock band from Boston. Being a Boston native myself, I like that they got the name for their band from Bishop Allen Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where the two band members lived together after attending Harvard University.

I would have to say they have sounds that remind me of Los Campesinos! with a little bit of folk vibe. Apparently, according to the band’s website, the band has literary influences for their music, one of the more noteworthy ones would be G.K. Chesterton who wrote one of my favorites books, The man who was Thursday.

I’m really amazed at how the lyrics by themselves seem to be so queer and strange to be put to a melody but they do it so perfectly and meaningful. Like the two wouldn’t make sense apart from one another. That these two things need to be together in order to be understood. Maybe, that’s why these band members continue to harmonize together as well…

Please enjoy.

Like castanets

The lyrics:

This city is silver in the moon
And mountains heaped with sugar spoons
The click and clatter of my feet
On lonely crooked cobbled streets
Like castanets

Down past the window shutter tie
The hollow of a haunted night
It’s raining now out on the beach
The chit and chatter of my teeth
Like Castanets

I’m following the coffee trail
And drink it black and by the bail
The pesos turn to paper cups
My fingers tremble at the touch
Like castanets

Santa Lucia
…Bella vista

San Cristobal

La Moneda

And on the cable car I climb
Up to the sacred virgin shrine
This city’s smothered in the smog
The snippy snap of wild dogs
Like Castanets

Tomorrow is Assumption Day
I ask them what they celebrate
Daniello says he can’t explain
But he’ll be clappin’ anyway
Like Castanets

Ohh…Like Castanets

The Monitor

The lyrics:

Once a great ironworks
Stood at the end of my street
And they hauled in The Monitor
Fit her with armor
For to save the union fleet

The River James was on fire
As The Merrimack thundered and raged
And she seemed so colossal and so unstoppable
Until the two engaged
And inside the sound
A deafening din, round after round, again and again
Shattering down, shattering down, shattering down

The neighborhood’s quiet at night
But sometimes my ears still ring
And you think I’d understand
That a rock-n-roll band
Doesn’t mean a blessed thing
But I picture the poor crew stunned
When the cannons did finally subside
How they stand on the deck
With the sun at their neck
And they wonder if they’re still alive
And I try to shout
But none of them hear
They’re moving their mouths
But the blood in their ears
Is running down, running down, running down

And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
But what then?

It’s stunning to know I’ve survived
But I’m not sure what I’m fighting for anymore
And when I break another string
And continue to sing
Is that courage? I’m not sure.
When the ironclads drifted apart
Still blue and still gray
The men shoveled in the coal
And worked the pumps in the hull
Just like every other day
And none of them knew
Oh, none of them cared
How much it just changed right then and right there
They just carried on, carried on, carried on

And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
But what then?

And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
And we’re singing la da da da da da
But what then?

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code; (PS: if you used a Google Reader, the original audio source link would show up for you). I have to do it this way because when I post music it kills my bandwidth.

I was flipping through the T.V. this morning while I was scarfing some Eggo’s and I landed on MTV and I was amazed at what was playing…it was a recording of Naughty by Nature live on YO! MTV Raps! singing OPP! I was psyched! So I sat and watched MTV like I was 9 years old again, feeling pretty great about life, then of course, OPP, was followed by a slew of crap songs with crappier videos but right before I gave up and was about to walk into the shower they played Beck – Everybody’s Gotta Learn Sometime!

Apparently MTV now plays music videos in the morning. Which would be a whole lot cooler if they played an equal amount of older music and newer music. But nope they’re still playing a shit-ton of those 15-minutes of fame no-name rappers.

Anyway, I was originally going to post OPP, but, this weekend I was particularly sad about a girl I miss terribly and this song made me think of her.

The song:

The lyrics:

Change your heart
Look around you
Change your heart
It will astound you
I need your lovin’
Like the sunshine

Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime

Change your heart
Look around you
Change your heart
Will astound you
I need your lovin’
Like the sunshine

Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime

I need your lovin’
Like the sunshine

Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime

Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime

Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime
Everybody’s gotta learn sometime

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code; (PS: if you used a Google Reader, the original audio source link would show up for you). I have to do it this way because when I post music it kills my bandwidth.

From waltzes to electro disco and hard punk this band is a mix of Belle and Sebastian, Huggy Bear, and Sonic Youth with influences of electronica and screamy art punk; and although the song I am posting below may not reflect much of those influences as their other songs do, I highly recommend it as an intro into the greatness that is Bearsuit.

The song:

The lyrics:

I could not find lyrics, I am terribly sorry.

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code; (PS: if you used a Google Reader, the original audio source link would show up for you). I have to do it this way because when I post music it kills my bandwidth.

Discussion: Do you have a favorite song that makes you want to dance? (Please leave your comments below, do not message or IM me with your answers)

I may piss and moan a lot about having to live at home right now, but, waking up to breakfast on the weekends is one of the single greatest pleasantries about living at home. When/if I do find a place to live, not having breakfast in the morning will be a great tragedy indeed.

In lieu of this revelation, enjoy some Quest…and be merry!

The song:

The lyrics:

I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
A yo, Phife do you eat em? No, Tip do you eat em?
Uh huh, not at all(again)
I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
Jarobi, do you eat em? Nope, Shah, do you eat em? (Nope)
Not at all

Q-Tip and Phife(trading lines):
A tisket, a tasket, what’s in mama’s basket?
Some veggie links and some fish that stinks
Why, just the other day, I went to Grandma’s house
Smelled like she conjured up a mouse
Eggs was fryin, ham was smellin
In ten minutes, she started yellin (come and get it)
And the gettin’s were good
I said, I shouldn’t eat, she said, I think you should
But I can’t, I’m plagued by vegetarians
No cats and dogs, I’m not a veterinarian
Strictly collard greens and a occasional steak
Goes on my plate
Asparagus tips look yummy, yummy, yummy
Candied yams inside my tummy
A collage of good eats, some snacks or nice treats
Apple sauce and some nice red beets
This is what we snack on when we’re Questin’
(both: No second guessin)

chorus:
(Q-Tip: bridge)

Phife:
Now drop the beat, so I can talk about my favorite tastings
The food that is the everlasting, see I’m not fasting
I’m gobbling, like a dog on turkey
Beef jerky, slim jims, I eat sometimes
I like lemons and limes
And if not that, take it the road see and the salad sopped
Sit back, relax, listen to some hip hop

Q-Tip:
Gum drops and gummy bears tease my eyes
A sight for sore ones and some bore pies
And other goodies that are filled with goop
With fried apple roots
Delectable delights, control my appetites
Mine is for me, right, but I know what I like
Chicken for lunch, chicken for my dinner
Chicken, chicken, chicken, I’m a finger lickin winner
When breakfast time comes, I don’t recognize
Pig in the pan or a pair of bogey chides
Mixed with stewed tomatoes, home fried potatoes
Or anything with flair, cook it, I’m in there
Pay attention to the Tribe as we impose
This is how it goes

I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
A yo, Phife do you eat em? Nah, Tip do you eat em?
Uh huh, not at all(come again, y’all)
I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
Jarobi, do you eat em? Nope, Shah, do you eat em?
Nope, not at all
I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
Afrika do you eat em? No, Pos, do you eat em?
Hell yeah, all the time
I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
Phife, do you eat em? Nah, Tip, do you eat em?
Uh huh, not at all
Jarobi, do you eat em? Nope, Shah, do you eat em?
Nope, not at all
I don’t eat no ham n’ eggs, cuz they’re high in cholesterol
Afrika, do you eat em? No, Gary, do you eat em?
Yeah, all the time (laughing)

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code; (PS: if you used a Google Reader, the original audio source link would show up for you). I have to do it this way because when I post music it kills my bandwidth.

Discussion: If you could only eat one kind of breakfast food for the rest of your life, what would it be? (Please leave your comments below, do not message or IM me with your answers)

I am posting this song, for someone who is very special to me and I’m afraid I’m losing.

First a little about the makers of this song:
Arrah and the Ferns were a pop/rock/folk/jazz trio. In early 2008, the band announced they would no longer be making music together and their next album would be canceled. Which is very unfortunate, because the instruments they use make a perfect fun pop band.

Their cute indie pop mixture will make you smile.

The song:

The lyrics:

It’s a big world
and you’re such a little girl
with your heart in trees
all I’ve got is mud on my knees
from praying for you to change
your mind and come back home
it’s all that I do
when I see a tree I think it was me
that you couldn’t change
I wanted more than you could give.
I wanted more than how we lived.
I wanted more than you could give.
I wanted more than how we lived.
Well you’re a skylark
with your head up in the clouds
you hop from tree to tree
and you never touch the ground
’cause you know you’ll find me, alone
waiting for you to fall
with your tired wings, ashamed
that you ever thought you could be
so restless and free
I wanted more than you could give.
I wanted more than how we lived.
I wanted more than you could give.
I wanted more than how we lived.
You know I’m looking for you,
and I’m looking ’cause it’s love.
I know you’re running from me,
are you running just because…
you can run?

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code. I have to do it this way because when I post music it kills my bandwidth.

A broken leg? A broken social life? It’s all relative when you listen to the words of this song.

The words in this song describe how I feel right now perfectly. I can’t even write out the context with how it relates to my own life because I’d just be repetitive.

Enjoy and be merry.

The song:

The lyrics:

When I look in the mirror, I can’t believe what I see
Tell me, who’s that funky dude, staring back at me?
Broken, beaten down can’t even get around
Without an old-man cane, I fall and hit the ground
Shivering in the cold, I’m bitter and alone

Excuse the bitchin, I shouldn’t complain
I should have no feeling, ’cause feeling is pain
As everything I need, is denied me
And everything i want, is taken away from me
But who do I got to blame? Nobody but me

…And I don’t wanna be an old man anymore
It’s been a year or two since I was out on the floor
Shakin’ booty, makin’ sweet love all the night
It’s time I got back to the Good Life
It’s time i got back, it’s time i got back
And I don’t even know how I got off the track
I wanna go back…Yeah!

Screw this crap, I’ve had it! I ain’t no Mr. Cool
I’m a pig, I’m a dog, so ’scuse me if I drool
I ain’t gonna hurt nobody, ain’t gonna ’cause a scene
I just need to admit that I want sugar in my tea
Hear me? Hear me? I want sugar in my tea!

…And I don’t wanna be an old man anymore
It’s been a year or two since I was out on the floor
Shakin’ booty, makin’ sweet love all the night
It’s time I got back to the Good Life
It’s time i got back, it’s time i got back
And I don’t even know how I got off the track
I wanna go back…Yeah!

I want to go back, I want to go back
And I don’t even know how I got off the track
It’s time i got back, it’s time i got back
And I don’t even know how I got off the track
I want to go back…Yeah!

…And I don’t wanna be an old man anymore
It’s been a year or two since I was out on the floor
Shakin’ booty, makin’ sweet love all the night
It’s time I got back to the Good Life
It’s time i got back, it’s time i got back
and I don’t even know how I got off the track
I wanna go back…Yeah!

Blake Hazard and John Dragonetti (coolest names I’ve ever heard, [minus the two I heard last night who had the names Dakota and Sky]), were introduced through a mutual friend. Dragonetti and Hazard soon become romantically involved, and toured Europe together as members of each other’s band. After they broke-up, Hazard had realized all the songs she was writing about was about the sadness she felt from their break-up. So they decided to work on a few songs together and, thankfully, eventually got back together. “Declare a New State,” their first album together, is the result of this decision.

The two getting together and creating The Submarines means they can display their ability to harmonize musically and vocally to large crowds of people but it also means they can harmonize mentally and create something beautiful from something tragic. They continue to unify their minds to remind us that two heads are better than one. They are a great example to the question I posed after going to the recent Voxtrot show, “what place do the lonely and unwanted have in this world? When the evolution of society and our place in it requires a relationship between you and someone else?” The Submarines are a great example of humanity’s will to become something better than it is.

Peace and hate

This is the first song I heard by them. This song helped me make peace with the hardest break-up I ever had to go through.

You me & the Bourgeoisie

This is a song you should listen to every morning you get up and on your ride/walk to work. It can bring about a sense of purpose in a world where it often seems as though people have forgotten the concept.

If you want the original audio email me or search my source code. I have to do it this way because the last time I posted music it killed my bandwidth.