Wintery Songs

In honor of being snowed in today and to welcome in the holiday season, I have compiled a list of pre-Christmas songs that might be worth your while. These songs are not seasonal nor are they really perfect songs for the holiday season. I have compiled this list based on criteria of chilliness and funkiness. These are just cool songs that should warm you up for the cold weather and bright winter days. They just have a good vibe to them.

1. Eminence Front – The Who

Something about keyboards speaks to me of snow. This song has them, plus some lyrics that I don’t quite understand, but I think I get.

2. No Quarter – Led Zeppelin

More keyboards. This song actually speaks of snow, which helps its cause in this list. Plus, it’s just plain cool. Pun.

3. A Long Way From Home – The Kinks

Runny noses and piano: just screams winter. Plus, there’s kind of a Silver Bell’s quality to the vocals? Right?

4. What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 3) – DJ Shadow

If you like to space out to plinky piano and tight drum beats while driving in the snow, this song is the song for you.

5. Creature Fear – Bon Iver

Justin Vernon recorded this in a cabin, so that pretty much speaks volumes towards the aesthetic.

6. Oh, Me – Nirvana’s Version

Something about the arrangement and subtle acoustic guitar brings me chills, despite not understanding what the heck is being said.

7. In The Air Tonight – Phil Collins

Man, those drums get me every time! This song is timeless, but, for me, it has a very dark winter night feel.

8. Children of December – The Slip

December is in the title, so that sums it up. Also, the cool bass piles on the wintery butter.

9. Wordsworth’s Ridge – Sufjan Stevens

This song is classic early Sufjan and holds a style very similar to his Christmas albums, so it belongs on this list by default.

10. Bloody Well Right – Supertramp

Nothing wintery about this one except for the keyboards. I told you before, it’s the keyboards that bring a holiday quality to music. The keyboards.

An Exercise in Self

So, I gave this SHaRTicle a much fancier title than it deserves, seeing as how this is simply a Top 5 Favorite Music Albums list. The title is truer than it is fancy, however, because I really do believe that it is quite an exercise in understanding your tastes when you attempt to compile a list of your favorites. It's more difficult than you might realize. Cuts are made that you just can't stand. In this case I had to cut some music that I listen to incessantly, such as Led Zeppelin and The Who, because, on an individual album basis, it was either too difficult to choose between selections or just not worth all of the tears and convulsions. So, they were cut completely.

Also, most songs on these albums would not make my top song lists. However, due to the way in which they cooperate with each other in a clear, concise, and joyous way on each respective album, I view the albums as masterpieces.

So, here goes:

Number 1:

Eat a Peach - The Allman Brothers Band

From the opening piano on Ain't Wastin' Time No More to the closing string harmonics on Little Martha, this album is a fantastic journey of aural satisfaction. Greg Allman's voice has never been better, quietly crooning on Melissa and wailing out in ways that the microphone can't handle on Ain't Wastin' Time No More. The rest of the band is brilliant throughout, from the tight arrangement of Stand Back to the meandering instrumentals of Les Brers in A Minor. Mountain Jam, the 33-minute opus that fills the middle of the album, and Blue Sky highlight Duane Allman and Dickey Betts' guitar chops, with quietly melodic and soaring solos. An incredible album of jazz, southern rock, and folk.

Number 2

Nia - Blackalicious

I came across this album because of an EA Sports Boxing video game. Emcee Gift of Gab and DJ Chief Xcel both shine on this album of groovy instrumentals and imaginative lyrics. Gift of Gab shines with blazing speed and hypnotic rhymes, while Chief Xcel finds just the right mix of old school, new school, and funk. This album was straight up rocking my Cutlass Ciera in high school, my Thunderbird in college, and now my Focus. The right mix of swagger and consciousness are boiled down to perfection. Best tracks: Fabulous Ones, Deception, If I May, Dream Seasons, but every track is phenomenal.

Number 3

Blinking Lights and Other Revelations - Eels

This double album is for those of us who are loved, lonely, joyous, sad, enamored, depressed, introspective, extroverted, quiet, loud, male, female, human, and otherwise. An array of home-brewed tracks by E that are infused with personality and honest lyrics. Fantastic album, with a few songs that I consider missteps. Not enough to ruin the sum of the parts, however.

Number 4

Lola Versus Powerman Versus Moneygoround - The Kinks

The best album by The Kinks. The most balanced. Not too strange, not a mix of half-baked ideas, not an exercise in excess or simplicity, just a good balanced album of touching songs, fun ideas, and well-crafted lyrics. Get Back in Line gets me every time. I wanted to use Powerman in a movie with Bill Murray, but Wes Anderson beat me to it.

Number 5

...Is Dating Your Sister - Pigeon John

The most weird and endearing selection on the list, Pigeon John throws everything into this album. His heart, his soul, his inner demons, his insecurity, his humor, his faith, his everything, and it all comes out beautifully. The razor thin edge of self deprecation and ego is a tricky one that John walks without a cut. It's not a typical hip-hop album and he's definitely not a typical rapper, but he still brings the skills, honesty, and rawness that make music worthwhile.

So that's my list.

Check out some of this music, it's definitely worth it.

A couple of fairly recent paintings

Here's a look at a couple of paintings I have done recently (over the past couple of months). They just sort of came to me and I whipped em out in a couple days each. I'm pretty happy with them and I hope you like them!

This is Duane Allman of The Allman Brothers Band. He's just noodling away, dreaming of a better tomorrow or something like that.

This is a painting that was originally going to be a low perspective view of a field with menacing clouds above it, but it somehow morphed into this as I was painting it.

Just want to post some old charcoal drawings from last year to give you a little background on my art. These are from a figure drawing class last year.

This one was done using a charcoal pencil.

This one was vine charcoal with some compressed charcoal touch-ups.

This one was done using pencil.

New Blog!!!

Here it is. Ta-da!

Between watching the Zero Effect and cleaning my paintbrushes, I had the crazy idea that I might start a blog. It's really an attempt at sticking to something for a prolonged amount of time that requires creativity, sharing, and developing my writing skills. Obviously this blog post is lame. But I assure you that they will improve!

I guess I just want a way to share my artistic pursuits and influences with friends and people of similar interests. Hopefully, I will actually be producing art for you to look at and I might make some suggestions for some music for you to listen to and maybe some books for you to read or stuff like that. I might even do some more posting later today as I get the ball rolling.

And that's pretty much it.

Adam