Why is that Norse people seem to be able to do American country and roots music better than we can? Between The Tallest Man on Earth(Sweden), Lay Low(Iceland), and now First Aid Kit(Sweden), they’re really showing us up.
This song brings me back to my childhood, hearing old country tunes on my grandma’s radio.
Source: SoundCloud / First Aid Kit
Past Forward Podcast, Episode 9 - Mike Taus
Mike is a very old and very dear friend of mine. I’m not entirely sure we actually discussed a single topic at any sort of length during our discussion, but I guess that’s what happens when we get together. I think we make for entertaining banter, though. At the very least, you can marvel at how two grown men can carry on like this.
Past Forward Podcast, Episode Seven - Andria Tieman
Yes, you read that title correctly, the past Forward Podcast is back with a vengeance and this time, it’s out for justice…or something like that.
I sat down last week and chatted with Andria Tieman, a gal who seems to have been shadowing me since high school. We know so many of the same people, went to the same college, hung out in the same areas and yet we only met a single time (or two). It’s really bizarre.
You can download the newest episode and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes right here.
Or, you can download it from the source here.
This episode, more than any other, brought a dilemma that I have been wrangling with for quite some time to the fore. I seem to almost always have less of a memory of my relationships with people than they have of me. For a long time, I thought that it might just be bad selective memory on my part. I’ve always had a very good memory and even recall a few moments when I was 1 to 2 years old, yet there are large gaps in my memory after I reached my teenage years, college especially.
I recall specific moments in time with near-crystal clarity but so many moments that seemed to resonate with my friends at that time are gone entirely. It’s troubling, to say the least. Because I grew up without a lot of close friends, I value my friends immensely, so for me to simply forget big moments that we shared is just not okay. It makes me feel like I’m a cold, remorseless asshole and, even worse, that I may be a bad friend.
That’s a scary thought for almost anyone. Connecting with other people is one of the most important things we do as human beings. Friendship reminds us that we’re not alone in this world, that we have purpose. So, the idea that I could be at worst a heartless, remorseless asshole when other people are concern and at best be forgetful and scatterbrained is definitely bad. Especially considering that I try to be a caring, thoughtful person in my day-to-day life.
In the end, maybe I’m just overreacting to what is a totally normal part of life; forgetting. I’ve spent so many years being prideful of my memory when I may have just been deluding myself into thinking I had a good memory. Perhaps we’re all forgetful and everyone has these gaps in their memory, even on incidents that seemed to be important at the time. I don’t really know for sure, and if I did, I probably forgot.
In any case, listen to the podcast. I hope you enjoy it.
Elanor Friedberger - Roosevelt Island
I’m going to be honest, I always thought that Elanor’s brother, Matthew, was the driving force behind their musical output as the Fiery Furnaces. After starting to listen to her new solo album, Last Summer, I have to say that I’m very impressed. This is good shit. I’m not really sure how to categorize it. Like most of the output that she was a part of as the Fiery Furnaces, it hops between musical genres at a whim, with mostly positive results.
You should go check it out.
Source: topherchris
For the second episode of Past Forward, I sat down with former Bismarck Tribune and future Great Plains Examiner columnist, Kelly Hagen to discuss living in North Dakota, the newspaper industry and what print media has to look forward to as we get further into the digital age.
Kelly and I went to college together and have continued a long-distance friendship over the past nine years.
You can find Kelly online at sohagen.com.
You can now subscribe to the Past Forward Podcast on iTunes!
Mayer Hawthorne - Mr. Blue Sky (ELO Cover)
Appropriate, as it’s 70+ without a cloud in the sky today in Portland. Hello, Mr. Blue Sky!
Ever since I picked up a copy of The Things We Lost in the Fire, I’ve been a big fan of Minnesota-based Low. I grew up on the other side of the state from Alan and Mimi (they’re from Duluth, I’m from a small town on the MN/ND border, almost directly West from Duluth) but their music has always evoked home for me.
Whether it’s the stunning still beauty of a landscape under newly fallen snow or the racing winds that howled outside my window as I tried to sleep (pun intended), their unique style and gorgeous harmonies sound like home, both good and bad.
Their latest, C’mon, is exactly what I love about them. There are the hauntingly beautiful tracks like the opener, Try to Sleep, coupled with the long, slow burners like Nothing But Heart that just tear at your soul with each punctuated drumbeat, aching chord and pleading vocal. This record is a bit of a return to form for them after a few albums - Drums and Guns and The Great Destroyer - experimenting and branching out. While I enjoyed both of those albums, it’s nice to settle into the Low I fell in love with all those years ago.
You're welcome!
