this is not a formal survey, but i was just wondering...
when was the last time you used your ipod or mp3 player? what were you doing? did you listen to a custom playlist or put it on random? what were three songs, albums or artists you listened to?
if you don't use an ipod/mp3 player, do you use an alternative portable music device? if so, substitute it in the above questions. if not, you can still join the conversation and tell us what you listened to recently!
to kick things off, last night after work i used the ipod shuffle (G2, pink, a for-no-real-reason present from an exboyfriend). the dog and me went for a run, which is pretty much the only time i use the ipod to it's full advantage. i just turned the thing on and let whatever was going to play, play. it did it's thing and i heard, among others, songs by mirah, brian whitson and the nightwolves, and do make say think.
mirah is like the pacific northwest's darling--i'm pretty sure the entire population of portland knows all the words to at least half a dozen of her songs--but the only time i hear her now that i don't live there is from my own collection. her music is totally pop and i'm not sure she's the kind of pop that can endure the test of time, either. maybe this explains why her fame seems to be localized? this isn't to say you shouldn't give her a listen, because you should. but you should do it when you want to hear something giddy and a little off-key. maybe while eating gelato.
brian whitson and the nightwolves switches its home base around a lot, as well as its roster of players, but nicholas always plays the guitar and sings songs about hitting the road, being near the sea, sights seen in nature, dreams and nightmares literal and figurative, catholicism, trainyards, places, and his family and friends. when i first met him we lived in the same town. now we don't and i miss him. there's usually a banjo involved at some point or other, too. i love banjos!
do make say think shun lyrics in favor of letting their instruments convey the story, sort of like a smoother more grown up explosions in the sky (and literally so as well since the band has been around longer and the players in dmst are older than those in explosions, too). their songs combine the qualities of being soothing and interesting at the same time. can you imagine taking a ride on a rollercoaster under still briny water with shafts of light intermittently illuminating slow swimming manatees and then darting schools of chum? that's the sort of experience they provide if you listen to their albums all the way through. except without the unreality of all that. and even my mom likes them.