Grab Bag of Random-ness!!

I apologize for this not being "Sharing Time 2" like I said last time but I really try to give suggestions a good listen and I haven't gotten to all of them just yet and I'm musically against just throwing something on here last minute/ without any effort.

Please Come Back!

Also, there's been a recent trend that we need to discuss. Have a seat. This will only take a second.... *breathes in heavily*... participation is down. BIG time. Now, I don't expect every post to be everyone's favorite every time (but I actually kinda do;) and it's okay if you don't feel like taking a second to shoot me a suggestion (for those who have, this doesn't apply to you because I'm inexplicably grateful and I'm listening to them slowly but Shirley ;) because I like sharing and writing about the stuff I already know. I have faith in you guys and that y'all will warm up to the whole "sharing-my-music-with-Matt-so-he-can-find-new-stuff-too" idea eventually.  BUT, according to my figure (yes, I actually have A single number to support this... that number being zero) NO ONE is reading this.

I'm Sorry!

The Newton Faulkner post back in March has been the most viewed so far (for which I thank you profusely) but these last two posts have been virtually ignored (get it? like a computer?). Where did I go wrong? What can I do to make it up to you? Was it the Cars? I know they're 80's... I apologize! I'm sorry! I want to hear from you! What makes you view Newton Faulkner over 150 times and then stop altogether? Was he just THAT awesome and now you never need to listen to anything ever again? Please... SPEAK TO ME!! Take me back! I promise I'll do better!!! :( I put a sad face on there so you'd know I'm sincere.

I Need You! ;)

That being said, here's a desperate attempt to play something y'all will like. These are a bunch of songs where I've already posted about or probably won't bother with a post solely about that band but still like the one song. I tried to get a little of everything in here. PLEASE LIKE IT... and (by extension) MY BLOG! ;)

Desperate pleas aside, here's the music! ;)
Opportunity- Catch 22
Gravity- Intercept (I LOVE this one... so should you)
Little Girl- The Daylights (friends with Switchfoot I believe...)
The World Turned Upside Down- Coldplay
Monsoon- Jack Johnson
This Is Him- Virginia Coalition
The Story- Brandi Carlile
Fortune & Fame- The K.G.B.
Roll to Me- Del Amitri
And just in case I was right about Newton Faulkner being all you need in life: Enjoy! and Share!!

Whisper-man and the Vroom Vrooms!

Today is your lucky day!! It's a semi-sharing day combined with a current but classic event of a lifetime all rolled up into one (not too) big ball of fun... stuff! I'm not going to lie, I have mixed feelings about the first part but I hope no one will take anything I say too seriously. With that, onward we go!

Billy Joel meets Harry Connick

The first stop on our magical musical tour, brought to you by Traci, is... drum roll please.... Whisper-man! (aka Joshua Radin... "Whisper-man" is just what I decided to call him for reasons that will soon become clear). WARNING: don't listen to these while driving or performing some other task of which staying awake is an integral part... like working at the front desk in a library. They mostly all sound the same: soft and slow and you WILL fall asleep if exposed to severe "Radin-ation" for exteneded periods of time. However, although they all sound the same, they all sound good. Here's my favorites:

Everything'll Be Alright- He kinda whisper-sings but once you get past that, it's nice.
Star Mile- I like the duet feel. It balances out the whisper.
I'd Rather Be With You- He ups the volume a bit more and adds some drums.

I feel like I should throw in a "but don't take my word for it" in here somewhere. Listen to his other stuff whilst laying in a hammock or snuggled up in a blanket on a couch. Quite relaxing. (Word of caution: there's a COMPLETELY random, unnecessary, and just plain stupid F-bomb in "sun drenched world" but everything else seems perfectly clean :)

Then, after you've enjoyed your nap, we come to the CARS!!! (get it? vroom vroom?... nervous laughter...) This is already a longish post so I'll keep this short and sweet. They're awesome and they're BACK! In honor of their reunion tour that I sadly won't be going to, we will now celebrate them here with my personal favs:

My Best Friend's Girl
Let's Go- Fun claps.
Bye Bye Love- No awesome solo on this but it's punchy.
And the ABSOLUTE ALL-TIME BEST for last: Just What I Needed (You need to CRANK this one).

Next week- Sharing Time 2: Revenge of the Riffs!... until then, here's a mystery song. Enjoy! And keep sharing!! ;)

Self-awareness and Eric Hutchinson!!

This is me being not cool

So, I had briefly considered trying to incorporate something about Bin Laden in here since I do try my hardest to appear "hip and with it" and it's what all the cool kids are talking about but then I remembered,... I'm not cool; I cried; sought therapy; dealt with it and now I'm back ;) I will take the time, however, to steal my funny cousin in-law's quip that Osama must be very confused not having any virgins, having Hitler as a room mate, and being forced to watch Rosie O' Donnell reruns all day long. Tee hee. However, had it been MY quip, I think I would have substituted  Carrot Top in there...

"So, let's get down to the Neety Greety." Who is this artist of the week? None other than Eric Hutchinson!! His favorite color is light tan and his favorite animal is poopies... Don't ask me how or why Nacho Libre snuck its way in there but it is an awesome show. Seriously though, this guy is awesome. If you have extra time, give the whole album a listen because they'll all great songs but here are my favs. Also, keep a look out for his new album coming out soon! It looks to be very promising indeed. Enjoy!

All Over Now- Probably MY favorite. Good groove to it and it's happy.
Back to Where I Was- This one really showcases his vocals I think.
Hasn't Been Long Enough- This is a really well written song. Lyrics and melody and structure and what not.
Rock 'n' Roll- Probably his most famous. And rightly so, cuz it's awesome.

Next week I'll either hit Joshua Radin or Yellowcard... we'll see. And here's this week's Mystery Song! Remember to share! Send me suggestions, feedback, candy or pass this on to someone else!!

OH!! One last thing: For those who feel like this post wasn't nearly patriotic enough, I give you Jon Foreman. The National Anthem never sounded SO COOL!