Portland Cello Project

I'm gonna be honest here, when Britney Spears' Toxic came out years ago, it was my favorite song to dance to, whether in the club or in my living room. So glad The Portland Cello Project revived it for me.

swoon

I feel so lucky to spend most of my days in near proximity to an unbelievably talented dude. My boyfriend is a constant source of creative inspiration. It was quite a sight to see our makeshift office in the spare bedroom of his parent's house in Montana, both huddled over our laptops, oblivious to the beautiful snow that was falling outside. All his hard work paid off, because this music video for friend's band Broken Remotes turned out to be a real stunner.

dream landscapes

I'm buried in work and trying to prepare for the holidays. If you're stressed and spread thin, too, this stunning video shot by Anthony Crook with a soundtrack by Mogwai is the perfect thing to soothe your frazzled mind. The Norwegian landscapes are almost as unbelievable as the feat of cyclist James Bowthorpe, the round-the world champion cyclist who broke the previous record by twenty days.

we still miss you.

let's have a toast.

Are you stuck working on Thanksgiving Eve? Yeah, me too...

But maybe this will cheer you up. Love the color palette and textures in Kanye's Runaway video. (Sometime I'll have the attention span to watch the full-length version.)

new music you should know about

I'm so pleased to count Morgan Kibby as a recent addition to my friend network. There is nothing better than finding yourself surrounded by creative and inspiring folks, and Morgan's music, under the moniker White Sea, has definitely been inspiring me. Morgan recorded and toured with M83 for their last album Saturdays=Youth, and she recently released her very own EP, This Frontier.

White Sea is characterized by peculiar, haunting vocals, irresistible disco dance beats and moody tones inspired by the American Southwest. These seemingly disjointed elements come together to create something pretty amazing.

Listen to the EP here, then go buy it here. You won't be sorry.

kool thing

Last night I was fortunate to experience the double-threat that was Sonic Youth and Pavement at the Hollywood Bowl. Once again, Kim Gordon blew my mind with how utterly and unbelievably cool she is. Musician, visual artist, fashion designer, furniture designer & carpenter, wife, mother...it is overwhelming and inspiring all at once. This one goes out to the queen of all rock and roll...or queen of all things in the universe, actually.

on & ever onward

This time last year I stood third row from the stage as Dirty Projectors played in a small rec center in Echo Park. Last Thursday I saw them play to a crowded house at the Wiltern Theater. If you aren't going to see Dirty Projectors on their current tour you have no idea what you're missing. David Longstreth is like the David Byrne of our generation, such a musical innovator, and the sounds Amber, Angel and Haley create with their voices is just unbelievable. They are by far my favorite contemporary band.

Alas, Björk did not make an appearance to perform the songs from Mount Wittenberg Orca, so I'll have to settle for these videos for now.

my love is strong, and my heart is weak...

My roommate and dear friend Jennifer June gave me a copy of Delta Spirit's History From Below on vinyl. She was so certain I was going to love it, she said it's the kind of album that can bring you to tears, and she was right. I've been listening to it over and over again, wanting to hold onto that feeling of perfect melancholy. This live version of "Bushwick Blues" is almost too much...

virtual nostalgia

this will blow your mind,

I guarantee it.

interactive film by Chris Milk for Arcade Fire

(google images of the neighborhood I grew up in)