Tuesday Tunes - Oceanship

I've known about this band for a while now, although I only recently started listening to their album in its entirety. I have played the second song, Hotblack, about a million times on my iTunes, and I have watched the official music video maybe just as many times. The video is so unique and, I dunno, it just makes me feel very emotional for some reason.

Photo from Vimeo

I'm not entirely sure what message the video and song are supposed to send, but I'm the kind of person who likes to just experience music by going with whatever it makes me feel. Part of the reason I chose this song for my blog is because I'm actually really curious about what other people think of this video in particular, since I'm not sure if it's supposed to be funny or tortured. Maybe a little of both?


I really meant to listen to the entire album before posting this, so I sort of fail at giving a full recommendation for this band, but since Hotblack was enough to get my ears majorly perked a year or so ago, I think it will be enough of a push for you to give the rest of their music a listen too. From what I HAVE heard so far, the album has a very....earthy feel? Maybe I'm just getting that from the opening song with its rainfall background. There's also a lot of piano accompaniment in the first few songs, which I always love. Either way, I can't wait to listen to the whole thing - I am attempting to take Brad Lyons' (frontman) advice and listen to it all in order in one fell swoop. Take the emotional roller coaster and experience the whole story Oceanship.

Pic from Oceanship Website

You can listen to all of their songs on the official website =) 

Tuesday Tunes - ArchAnimals

This song is called Pokemon. I'm not gonna lie, that's the main reason I even listened to it in the first place. And I'm really glad I did, because this is some really cool sound. And it comes from another band that you likely have never heard of (put on your hipster glasses, everyone)! I mean, they only have 117 likes on their Facebook page.

Picture from GMAD Indie

I haven't been feeling my greatest lately, so that might partly explain the sparseness of this post, but I will also blame it on the fact that this band really is still super local - currently stationed in New Orleans - and this is the only song that they've recorded and released. It's available as a free download (yay free music!), but I'd say support new bands and name your price for the song on their website!


Pokemon's a hard one to describe, but I just really like the feel of it. It's like the music starts out just as barely intentional noise, and then there's this part right around 1:30 when it turns into something really beautiful. Only for a brief moment though! And then it comes back at 3 minutes and makes you feel like you're in the emotional climax of a movie when the main character has this epiphany that he's really in love with the girl he just said goodbye to. Or something. Either way, give it a listen, because it's cool stuff. And "Like" them on FB!

Tuesday Tunes - Cherub

I unfortunately have no free music to offer this week, but this band is still definitely worth checking out. When I read the band description ("sexy, avant-garde, electro-pop duo that is the dance love-child of 80's funk, and pop-music from the future" - Facebook), I was a bit skeptical. But then I figured that if I've given folk a chance, might as well do the same for funk. I was very pleasantly surprised, and also a bit relieved, to find that their music actually has a lot of variety to it; it's not all James Brown funkadelic but instead finds a happy, unexpected medium between that and...I dunno, some popular electronic band these days.

Photo from ThisSongIsSick.com

The members, Jordan Kelley and Jason Huber, hail from Nashville, Tennessee, but there is not even a glimpse of their Southern roots in their music. Instead, their sound is very sultry and Prince-like (as in "the artist formerly known as", not royalty =P). As in, remember the time Prince wore those ass-less chaps? This band reminds me of that moment, although maybe just toned down from pure sexual energy to somewhat more subtle sensuality. It's like Prince's funky grooves meet Robin Thicke's sexy falsetto. Plus some electronica...

I just really like that these guys have taken music styles of the past and mixed them up with a contemporary sound. I mean, how cool is it that they have essentially brought back the 60's, reincarnated into music that my generation would totally bust a move to in the clubs? So cool. So suave. 

Check 'em out on Facebook and their Official Website!

Thrifting Haul!

So I recently bought some of the coolest stuff to use for future projects, and I got all of them for a total of only about $12!

My haul! Well, minus 1 book and 2 maps that I forgot to put in this picture...

All in all, this is what I got:
-4 LPs with their album covers, plus the smaller Xanadu LP
-A cool yellow-green coffee mug
-5 books, including a book of poems and sketches, just a random old book because I have a strange obsession with old books, a children's book filled with drawings of the cutest bunny I've ever seen, another children's story book with some really classic illustrations, and a silly joke book about butt rot and bottom gas (couldn't resist)
-A plain, wood picture frame that I can't wait to paint ^_^
-2 National Geographic inserts with awesome animal illustrations


These items are providing me with endless inspiration right now. I have a few favorites...

Been thinking so much lately about the possibility of moving to Chicago in my near future, so I had to grab this album cover...

This tiny book, Pages of Angels, is full of really cool poems and sketches. Only cost me a dollar at the library book sale, and I can't wait to use some of the pages in craft projects!

I'm not a huge fan of the color (might have to repaint this one), but I love how unique this mug is!

I love the idea of just framing album covers to use as wall art, especially for only 50cents apiece! Use frames you find at Goodwill for a totally cheap but beautiful piece of decoration. I bought the West Side Story one for my mom since it's her favorite musical =)


Also, this:

SO FREAKING CUTE

Tuesday Tunes - Milk Carton Kids

I have pretty much continuously listened to this song for the past month. There is something so entrancing about the guitar work and the fact that Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan have this crazy ability to be indiscernible from each other. As in, their voices have essentially melded into one super voice that ties in with the somber lyrics in a hauntingly beautiful way.

The guy who wrote the Foreward to their album Prologue found the perfect word for how this music makes me feel: seduced. Not in the lustful, rock-my-body kind of way, but in that I always want more. More of those subtle harmonies, more of that effortless finger-picking, more of their emotional lyrics that feed the "sometimes crying feels good" mentality. I mean, come on...these words are perfect for us self-defined tortured souls:



"You took the words right out my mouth,
When you knew that I would need 'em.
What am I supposed to do now,
Without you?
Without you." ~Michigan

Photo from Birmingham Box Set

"I come in pieces, I always have
I miss your face, the way you laugh...
I'm glad we met
In God we tried
My one regret
We got one goodbye." ~One Goodbye


I'm feeling like having myself a good cry just listening to the album in order to write this post. My lady readers will understand. This is the perfect music for a rainy day, or to play in the background while you're doing homework. I'm finding it to be the perfect accompaniment for blogging, so there's that! And don't worry, they do have some cheerful tunes in their repertoire =P

To add frosting to this already delicious cake, this band has put their two albums up as FREE downloads on their website.  I IMPLORE you to grab those freebies, even if it's just because turning down free music offered up by the musicians themselves is a waste. I wouldn't be surprised if this incredible sound starts catching like wild fire - they've been around for a year and I personally think they should already be much bigger than they already are.

Quickie: Ingrid Michaelson covers Gotye

No way. Ingrid Michaelson covering “Somebody That I Used to Know”?!?  (don’t lie, you’ve definitely heard of this song and you’re definitely just as obsessed with it as I am). This song has now spurred TWO awesome covers (previously, by Walk off the Earth) including this new one, and I am just so pleased with the music world right now. I love that super talented people have been inspired by this great song enough to put their own unique spins on it.




...quickie posts are hard to end.

Janine and the Dream of Horses

Yesterday turned into an impromptu adventure, and I'm so pleased that it did! I was visiting my parents and found out that we'd be spending a portion of the day babysitting my sister's boyfriend's daughter, Kennedy.

That's my Mom with her at Southern States =)

She's SO freaking adorable, and she was SET on seeing some baby chickens after my mom told her there were some at her job. Hearing a two year old screaming happily about "babie chickes" is was enough to make my heart break when we found the chicks hadn't arrived yet.


But good news everyone! My mom's awesome coworker lives on a LOT of land and owns 5 horses!

This place was just so gorgeous...

The look on this little cutie's face when the horses ate treats right out of her hand just ruined me. And her delayed and ridiculously precious "whee" as she rode around on a horse for the first time...just what anyone needs to put a smile on their face for the rest of the day.

Kennedy meets Lily!

This trip also reminded me of the fact that I reeeeally miss riding horses. I used to take riding lessons when I was pretty young, but my parents made me quit when my trainer switched me to a bigger horse that could easily throw me and break my tiny body into a million pieces. Needless to say, riding again made me pretty happy too ^_^

Anyways, just thought I'd share! I honestly was just expecting a quiet day at home with my parents, but I'm glad we were impulsive and ended up having a super awesome day =) Hope you guys had great weekends as well!

Arts and Crafts Haul!

I've been really good about saving money lately and so treated myself to a little shopping spree today. The weather is nice, the boyfriend has other plans, and I feel like being creative....the destination? Michael's. It's one of my favorite stores, and always the hardest place for me to leave without wanting to buy everything I see.


Without digging too deep into my wallet, I got some really fun stuff that I can't wait to turn into great projects! Here are my two favorite buys:

The design on this scrapbook paper caught my eye and I just had to grab it. Not sure yet what I'll use it for yet...

My apologies again for the crappy quality picture...but, I am SO EXCITED to finally have some Sculpey. One of my favorite bloggers (Delighted Momma) has these awesome DIY tutorials for polymer clay jewelry, and now I can actually try them myself ^_^

I even, reluctantly, picked up some items in order to retry a project that I have miserably failed at completing twice in the past...BUT, I am determined to make it work this time! More about that in a future post =)

If you guys have any craft ideas, let me know in the comments!