Musical Thursday! Long Playlist Edition

So unfortunately this past Monday I was unable to post because I spent most of Sunday & Monday comforting my mom who had to put her dog down =(

But I do have some music to share.

I tried to make a playlist for someone on spotify and sharing seemed impossible cause whatever avenue I attempted seemed to fail. So I'm gonna try to embed the player here w/ the html embed code and my frustration is your luck because now everyone will get a chance to hear the awesome playlist:

Skip the Ramona Falls track (the first one), for some reason it wont stream



The purpose was to share music we didn't think the other person had heard, so frequent blog visitors might see some of my frequent favorites, Matt Corby, HAIM, Bombay Bicycle Club but even then, I hope you discovered something new =)

Musical Monday: For The Long Haul

This weekend I will be taking a trip up to PA for a college teammate's wedding and will then head to the outer banks in NC for a few days of sun. This means I need a good road trip playlist.

While there are plenty of great songs out there, I like building my playlists for long trips around long songs. This way I feel like I have accomplished more, and driven farther as each song passes.

In honor of my looooong road trip, here are some looooong songs (criteria, close to or over 10 minutes) I love to listen to on the open road:

Sufjan Stevens: Impossible Soul

Off of his 2010 release Age of Adz,  Sufjan experiments more in this 25 minute song then most artists do throughout their careers. About 13:45, my favorite part kicks in, so if the crooning guitar player or auto-tuned circus aren't your thing, you can join me in the cheer/shout section!

Memory Tapes: Sheila

This song just gets my moving so I have to make sure I don't get too involved in shoulder dancing behind the wheel that it affects my driving.

Explosions in the Sky: The Only Moment We Were Alone

What can I say about my beloved Explosions, they have gotten me through many moments and can be perfect for a great road trip soundtrack. This song is one of my favorites and is off of the 2003 album The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place.

Explosions in the Sky: It's Natural to Be Afraid

From their fifth album, 2007's All of A Sudden I Miss Everyone.

Gotye: Seven Hours with a Backseat Driver

From one of my favorite albums of all time Like Drawing Blood (The 2007 album was named the 11th best Australian album of all time by Triple J last year). While not quite "qualifying" based on my 10minute criteria, I make the rules here so this one makes the list based on getting extra points for being related to the theme. The cartoon is what plays behind Wally in concert and just about perfectly sums up the uncomfortable and muscle-clench-inducing obnoxiousness of driving with a backseat driver.

What are your favorite road-trip or 10+ minute songs? Let me know in the comments or on twitter @itzbizr!

Musical Monday: Christmas Unicorns!

So today's blog is brought to you by Christmas non-human entities =). We have Christmas Unicorns, Christmas Ghosts, Christmas Hippos, and of course that magical snowman who lives on the edge!

Sufjan Stevens: Christmas Unicorn

A song about how we're all uniquely outcasts, and don't quite feel we deserve Christmas in our own ways, but that's why Christmas happened and happens every year! Even if you're wary of artsy, indie, angsty music, it is totally worth getting through the first 5-6 minutes to the slow build to a dance-tastic, "It's alright, I love you" filled joyful groove (the beat finally drops about 6:30). I love how Sufjan is constantly changing and experimenting with his sounds and so evolves as an artist with each song. I would've LOVED to have seen his latest tour but he was in DC over Thanksgiving & I couldn't convince Grandma to go =)

A Muppet Christmas Carol: It Feels Like Christmas

So i pretended to be a celebrity and totally live-tweeted my first (of many) viewing of the movie this year, that's how much I love it! The message of this song is so wonderful to: "in all the ways that you show love it feels like Christmas... the message if you hear it, is make it last all year!"

Gayla Peevey: I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas

I LOVED this song growing up because imagining a Hippo standing next to a Christmas tree is just too hilarious! Just picture it: a real live, aggressively irate (hippos are not Chill Charlies, like they want you to believe) hippo standing with a giant bow on its head or around it's stomach, too funny!

Bing Crosby: Frosty the Snowman

And it's just not Christmas without good old Frosty the snowman. A reminder that life is short so why not enjoy it and have fun (although I'd draw the line before provoking a traffic cop, but then again I'm not quite as bold as an animated snowman)

What are some of your favorite songs of the season? I'd love to know in the comments section!

Follow me on Twitter: @itzbizr

Musical Monday: It Will Be OK

Sooooooooooooooooooooooooo, the bar is 8 days away... cue FREAKOUT!  Cue tears, hyperventilation, heart palpitations, desperate pleas, and unjustifiably snarking at the people I love..... Cue helpful, it'll-be-alright-themed-calming-music

Ingrid Michaelson -- Keep Breathing

It's some good advice, and the first step to calm a stressed out mind

Sufjan Stevens -- For the Widows in Paradise, For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti

Faith has definitely helped me get through law school especially through this past summer.  Plus, banjo. I'm all about the banjo.

Reliant K -- For the Moments I Feel Faint

An oldie and a goodie, literally my go-to theme song for the last month. But for the grace of God I know I would not have made it this far.

Gotye -- Save Me

I.can't.not.smile.at.this.song!

Glee covering Florence & the Machine -- Shake it Out

I usually prefer the originals to covers, and we all know I love Flo, but the acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies in this version get me. Truly, there will be a dawn soon

ALMOST DONE (there will be no post next week, apologies ahead of time but I will be doing some last minute studying, relaxing, packing, prepping, travelling etc.)