34th & Now

Here’s Alex Dezen of The Damnwells performing...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 11:38:00 -0500

Here’s Alex Dezen of The Damnwells performing “Assholes” live at Jammin’ Java in Virginia. I’ve listened to this about 45x in the past three days.

It’s very Springsteen-esque in the way it captures the disenchantment with the working world that many twenty-somethings seem to go through a few years after graduation. Almost four years out of undergrad my friends in finance are finally breaking out of their sixty hour work weeks albeit jaded and disillusioned with “Wall Street.” Meanwhile, those who are fresh out of law school, with their shiny J.D. degrees, are grateful to be working sixty hours a week assuming they even found jobs. As for those of us in the medical field…well…we’ll be crushing cans of Red Bull and living on 5 hours of sleep until we’re thirty-five.

Is this what you call free?

Here’s “Come Back Down,” the latest from...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:46:31 -0500

Here’s “Come Back Down,” the latest from singer-songwriter Greg Laswell’s off his upcoming album Landline. The single, which features Sarah Bareilles on the hook, can be picked up for free at GregLaswell.com where you can also check out the awesome stop-motion music video.

Photo

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 17:28:17 -0500

This. Just. Blew. My. Mind. How I’ve never heard of jazz,...

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:00:00 -0500

This. Just. Blew. My. Mind.

How I’ve never heard of jazz, funk, fusion supergroup Snarky Puppy until 10 minutes ago is beyond me. I don’t even particularly like jazz or funk or fusion…but this is AMAZING. The fact that this video was “recorded and filmed live (free of overdubs) on December 16, 2011, at Shapeshifter Lab in Brooklyn, New York, for GroundUP Music” makes me even more appalled that over produced, auto-tuned artists who can’t play an instrument are winning Grammy’s…

Founded by composer and bassist Michael League back in 2004, and signed to SitMOM records in ‘05, Snarky Puppy has been steadily building a buzz in the “people who like actual music” community for the past 8 years.

Because when you are born a Coppola, starring in tons of movies...

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:44:26 -0500

Because when you are born a Coppola, starring in tons of movies and having your own HBO series aren’t enough, here’s Jason Schwartzman aka Coconut Records with “West Coast”

This performance of “Anna Sun” by Walk the Moon is...

Sat, 18 Feb 2012 23:52:33 -0500

This performance of “Anna Sun” by Walk the Moon is amazing. It’s even more amazing than Carson Daly still having a show and that fact that he hasn’t aged since 1999.

Walk the Moon is currently on tour with Young the Giant through March before playing with the Kaiser Chiefs March 6th. You can pick up their Anna Sun EP for $2.99 at their website walkthemoonband.com

My buddy Evan just got me hooked on NY based...

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:14:00 -0500

My buddy Evan just got me hooked on NY based trip-hop/psych-pop/indie-rock duo Phantogram. I’ve been listening to them while I study for the past 2 hours. Do yourself a favor and check out their album Nightlife. Here’s “Don’t Move.”

That awkward moment when you use your Radiology lecture slides...

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:00:00 -0500

That awkward moment when you use your Radiology lecture slides to double check that the 3rd world Dominican radiologist didn’t misread your x-rays from when you slipped in muddy shoes after intramural kickball…

Bon Iver wins Best New Artist 2012? Um….For Emma, Forever...

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 01:03:00 -0500

Bon Iver wins Best New Artist 2012? Um….For Emma, Forever Ago was released in 2008. Blood Bank was released in 2009 with the “Blood Bank” single charting as follows:

Charts (2009) Peak^[12]Irish Singles Chart 24
UK Indie Chart 1
UK Singles Chart 37
U.S. Billboard 200 16

Dear Recording Academy,
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Sincerely,
Every indie music fan ever.

I’ve been on a bit of a Villagers kick lately. Every time...

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 18:33:00 -0500

I’ve been on a bit of a Villagers kick lately. Every time I come across one of their songs I wind up listening to the whole Becoming a Jackal album on repeat. Here’s the titular track, “Becoming a Jackal.”

The 34th & Now: Study Playlist is up to 206 tracks and 13...

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 18:27:00 -0500

The 34th & Now: Study Playlist is up to 206 tracks and 13 hours long. Thanks to all the Spotify users who subscribed. Hopefully you guys are enjoying it. Since I spend over 13 hours studying/day and since a lot of you share similar musical interests, if you’ve got any suggestions on mellow, laid-back, study music drop me a suggestion.

Here’s a complete tracklisting for those interested.

Other than the fact that she is studying in an apartment that is...

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:28:15 -0500

Other than the fact that she is studying in an apartment that is way too nice, this is 100% accurate.

Matt Nathanson remains one of my favorite...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:06:00 -0500

Matt Nathanson remains one of my favorite “strummers” of all time. Don’t get me wrong, I love watching Mayer or Clapton tear through the fretboard as much as the next guitarist but for when it comes to crushing it on the rhythm, I will take Nathanson any day of the week. From 2:39 on, Nathanson’s right hand is out of control. With strumming that hard, no wonder his guitars tend to look like this.

The official 34th & Now: Study Playlist now sits at 189...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:42:44 -0500

The official 34th & Now: Study Playlist now sits at 189 songs with a 12hr running playtime. Currently on my 11th straight hour in the library/listening…here’s Noah & The Whale with “Slow Glass.”

This video was brought to my attention along with the knowledge...

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:50:32 -0500

This video was brought to my attention along with the knowledge that some of John Mayer’s biggest hits—Neon, Why Georgia, Comfortable, No Such Thing, Man on the Side—were actually co-written by John’s former Berklee classmate Clay Cook. Cook, a solo artist in his own right, has also been an active member of country-cross over favorites The Zac Brown Band since 2009.

I think I like Cook’s version of “Comfortable” better, and not just because he throws in “your mouth was fuckin’ dirty.” Overall the song seems to have more feeling behind it and after listening to Cook’s versions of some other songs they’ve cowritten that seems to be par for the course. I like Mayer and the guy can certainly wail on a guitar like no one else from his generation but I can’t help but wonder if he’d have been as big without Cook’s influence.

iPhone 3Gs photography on my study break.

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:25:00 -0500

iPhone 3Gs photography on my study break.

The recipe for a great stripped-down acoustic version of an...

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:40:00 -0500

The recipe for a great stripped-down acoustic version of an indie song? Apparently mix one part The Format, one part Anathallo, and one part Steel Train, shake until frothy, garnish with Janelle Monae.

After the breakup of indie pop band The Format, lead singer Nate Reuss joined forces with Andrew Dost from Anathallo and Jack Antonoff from Steel Train to form Fun. Their debut album Aim & Ignite was released in 2009 and re-released as a deluxe album in 2010. However, it wasn’t until late 2011 when their single “We Are Young” was performed on Glee that the band really started getting the attention they deserve.

"I saw a man pursuing the horizon; Round and round they sped. I was disturbed at this; I accosted the..."

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 23:38:00 -0500

“

I saw a man pursuing the horizon;
Round and round they sped.
I was disturbed at this;
I accosted the man.
“It is futile,” I said,
“You can never”—

“You lie,” he cried,
And ran on.

”

- Stephen Crane, I Saw A Man

The amount of information thrown at you as a medical student is often equated to “trying to drink from a fire hose.” Our first midterm covered around 1300 slides of info and only covered two weeks worth of lectures and labs. We’re never going to remember everything but that doesn’t stop us from hitting the library for 15+ hours a day and trying anyway.

Here’s experimental indie 4-piece Portugal. The Man with...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:40:00 -0500

Here’s experimental indie 4-piece Portugal. The Man with “Guns and Dogs” off their album Satanic Satanist. Great band. Great album. Great song.

Hypothesis: My girlfriend has better taste in music than your...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:52:00 -0500

Hypothesis:
My girlfriend has better taste in music than your girlfriend.

Data:
-Liz told me to check out Dawes.
-This video is a live Dawes performance.
-This video rocks fucking hard.

Conclusion:
My girlfriend has better taste in music than your girlfriend.

Note: I am currently up to my eyeballs in embryology and thus unable to give this a full write up, but will get to it sometime in the morning. In the mean time, watch this video and revel in it’s awesomeness.