i know where you can stick your Monday . . .

 . . .and it's dark there . . .very dark.  Usually, I'm pretty chippy on any given Monday, but today, I'm not.  Let this be the first of many "bah, humbugs" you hear from various sources.  I'm sick of Christmas already.  I know that's not the best thing to say, considering that Christmas is still roughly three weeks away, but that's just how it is  I'm sick of the traffic, I'm sick of the lines and I'm sick  . . .ohh so sick  . . .of the Christmas music.  I heard a Coldplay Christmas song somewhere and, to be honest, I'd rather someone sit me in a room, staple my eyelids to my forehead, flash Christmas images across a gigantic screen while simultaneously playing An Anne Murray Christmas over and over and over . . .Clockwork Orange Style . . .until I went crazy with seasonal cheer, than I would hear a Coldplay Christmas song . . .or any other Coldplay song, for that matter.

I guess it could be worse.  It could have been a Kanye Christmas song.  That would have prompted a post office style shooting spree or, at the least, shanking someone with a sharpened candy cane.  I listened to his new album over the weekend, trying desperately to spot the genius about which everyone raves, and I just couldn't find it.  The best song on the album, So Appalled, is stacked with special guests like Jay Z and RZA . . .you know, guys with more talent than him.  All in all, it's a few hours of my life that I'll never get back.  His new album now occupies a place that has been reserved for James Cameron's recent "movies," Titanic and Avatar.  Based on the time lost watching those movies, Cameron owes me about seven years of my life back.  I now hate them both.  That places them on the list with Bieber, that guy Lady Gaga and all nineteen Jonas Brothers.  BAH, HUMBUG.

I have a love/hate relationship with NPR.  At times, they dead on with music, insightful and passionate about artists and artistic pursuits.  Other times, they become self indulgent and patronizing, spouting the genius of whichever trendy band is the "IT" band of the moment (i.e. Arcade Fire or Vampire Weekend).  I hate it when they gush over a band continuously, without regard to the actual music being made.  They like a band because it's the band, not the music.  Arcade Fire and Vampire Weekend are good, but are they THAT good?  Are they changing the way music is made or simply change the way that people advertise music?

I love NPR for introducing me to Setting Sun.  I had a great description all planned out touting this band, but then I read the bio on their website and realized that I couldn't possibly describe them any better.  Read for yourself:

"The recording of "Fantasurreal" was a cathartic moment for Setting Sun. Tired from a tour schedule that encompassed much of 2008-2009, Setting Sun, aka. prolific songwriter Gary Levitt returned to the quiet of his studio in upstate New York. Over the course of six months, the record just flowed. “This was the easiest record I’ve ever made,” says Levitt. “It felt natural to come home to my studio and let these songs pour out while embracing some solitude that is so hard to find on tour. It was a big relief and a great way to ease back into my life.” The end result was energetic indie folk textured with percussion, swirling electronics, trumpets and strings creating a record that exists somewhere between Beck’s most insular moments and the giddy excitement of MGMT, simultaneously undercutting the vitality with raw, emotive vocals and lyrics that channel Bright Eyes or Elliott Smith. Buoyant pop songs like “Driving” share space with introspective indie folk tunes like “Don’t Grow Up”. Add in booming floor stomps like “Make You Feel” and Fantasurreal becomes Levitt’s most diverse work to date."

When I first heard "Make You Feel" the first thing that came to mind was "Open Heart Surgery" by Brian Jonestown Massacre.  It has the same tempo and dreamy quality and I was hooked like I was when I first heard BJM.  I loved them even more when I saw the documentary, "Dig" that included BJM and The Dandy Warhols.  Enough talk . . .go check them out and decide for yourselves.

I'd stick around and ramble more, but I'm going to start drinking early today so I'm not inclined to burn down fake Santa's North Pole retreat and practice my punting skills on his elves.  I honestly think elves are just leprechauns that made it through the twelve step program, in which case, they should be eliminated because nobody likes quitters.

Until next time . . .

chris 

p.s. BAH, HUMBUG

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