I was going to put the contents of my CD changer, as usual....but it would be useless because all I've been listening to recently is The Decemberists. Literally, the CD 'Picaresque' has not left my changer or my head for over a week. That CD is incredible...every song on the album is so well crafted and written. It's a love song to the art of making music. How does crap like Britney Spears and Fallout Boy get on the radio and popular while beautiful, sad, and deep music like this goes unnoticed? Do that many people not care at all about the music they listen to? Regardless, The Decemberists have captured me and drawn me in. For those of you who have no idea (as I was up till a little bit ago...more on that later), imagine if Belle & Sebastian and Neutral Milk Hotel got together, learned how to play accordian, and went back in time about 200 years....yeah it's as good as it sounds. It's amazing the musical changes I've gone through in the past year or so, last summer I wouldn't have listened to anything like The Decemberists...now I can't get enough of indie folk goodness. I still love my heavier distorted indie rock (Cursive forever....) but I've really come to enjoy the more acoustic and....storytelling type of music. Special thanks to Bethany (for getting me interested in them) and Tracy (for burning ALL of The Decemberist albums for me). Spasiba bolshoi!

So I was in Gander Mtn. (one of those 'trendy' sports/outdoors stores...) when I happened to pass by the 'Children's Camo' section. As if seeing that sign was not disturbing enough, directly next to it was a child-sized mannequin wearing camo and holding a RIFLE! I was so mesmerized by this that I had to take a picture with my cell phone. Jeez I've got no problem with people owning guns if they want to, but am I the only one that thinks it's a bit much to see a mannequin the size of a ten year old holding a rifle?

In my changer...

The Appleseed Cast ~ Peregrine
State Radio ~ Peace Between Nations
Neutral Milk Hotel ~ In The Aeroplane Over the Sea (cannot get enough of this goodness!)
Cursive ~ Domestica
Damien Rice ~ O
The Arcade Fire ~ Funeral (this CD has seeped into my subconcious so much recently....I need to see them live...)
Rainer Maria ~ Look Now Look Again
[Sympathy] ~ What's So Special About Ohio?

On my player I've been listening to Matt Pond PA's 'The Nature of Maps' like crazy. Seriously, if you love Bright Eyes (and just good music) you must hear this CD, esp. the tracks 'Summer is Coming' and 'Athabasca'

Instead of trying to have a 'favorites' of bands/musicians at the top of this page, I've decided to include a 'what am I listening to now?' section here. This is basically the CDs that are in my car CD changer at the moment. I've found that this is also a much more accurate barometer of my moods and thoughts that anything else I could write in this journal....so without further ado:

Neutral Milk Hotel ~ In The Aeroplane Over the Sea
Jets to Brazil ~ Perfecting Loneliness
The Arcade Fire ~ Funeral
Cursive ~ The Ugly Organ
Damien Rice ~ O
Ida ~ Will You Find Me
Rainer Maria ~ Catastrophe Keeps Us Together
The Frames ~ For the Birds
Postal Service ~ Give Up
The Get Up Kids ~ On a Wire