Dear God, I Hate Myself

Xiu Xiu has always been a band striving to make difficult music -- case in point, in response to all of the positive press and popularity heaped upon Fabulous Muscles -- the band's most accessible release to that point -- they released La Foret, an album of extremely loud and extremely quiet dynamics, as well as a bit of an exercise in patience (there are some songs on that album that I have never been able to make it through); this makes me wonder how they will respond to Dear God, I Hate Myself -- an album even more accessible than Fabulous Muscles, an album where the difficulty lies in its simplicity.
It has taken me a while to warm up to this album, due mainly to how subdued (for Xiu Xiu) it sounds; while it's certainly not your standard pop album, this one will probably be seen as Xiu Xiu's "pop" album in the years to come.
If it's your first time to the Xiu Xiu party, than you can't really go wrong with this one -- it has all of the elements you'll find throughout the rest of their oeuvre, but slightly diluted for general consumption. And if your ears get turned on by this one, then definitely pick up Fabulous Muscles as a chaser. Beyond that, you'll have to blaze your own trail.

Xiu Xiu - Dear God, I Hate Myself from Kill Rock Stars on Vimeo.

I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart

It's been interesting watching Butch Walker evolve over the course of his solo career -- from the over-produced, arena-ready Left of Self-Centered (little more than the fourth Marvelous 3 album...just without the rest of the band); to the slightly toned-down, slightly more focused love letter to 1970s AM radio, Letters; to his balls-out, make-no-mistakes ode to David Bowie, The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker and the Let's-Go-Out-Tonites; to the introspective, near-masterpiece of Sycamore Meadows...and now, I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart finds Walker picking himself back up from the (literal) ashes of the previous album, forming a new backing band (the Black Widows), and having the most fun he's had with a record in a long time.
For those expecting a return to his amped-up, full-on rock releases, it might be a bit disappointing that ILIBWYHNH continues the Tom Petty/ELO-ish Americana rock from Sycamore Meadows, throwing in a bit of doo-wop, soul, and later-career Cars for good measure. It may seem like a bit of a mess on paper, however it's anything but -- in fact, this is one of Walker's strongest albums yet; not since the Marvelous 3's Hey! Album has he released an album full of nothing but solid tracks, possible hit after possible hit that will probably get ignored by the majority of the music-buying public.

In my (slightly biased) opinion, you can't go wrong with buying the whole thing; but if you're watching your pennies, or just want a sample to see if it fits your tastes, may I recommend:
"Canadian Ten"
"She Likes Hair Bands"
"Days/Months/Years"
"Fixed Gears and Broken Hearts" (an iTunes-only "bonus track")




And if you buy a physical copy of the album, you get a code for a free download of the above cover of Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me"


Take it as you will.

kitteh

kitteh, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

My first attempt at one of the creations found in the 'Sock & Glove' books (with more than a little help from Vadim). It's a cat. I swear.

reflect

reflect, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

Cuddle!

Cuddle!, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

Open Up

Open Up, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

stop

stop, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

V.

V., originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

got my first 3 rolls of Pentax shots back from the developer today

My level of gourmet

This weekend, I tried a new cookie (of sorts) recipe.



Step 1: gather box cake mix (and ingredients needed to construct), cake frosting, baking chocolate (or bulk choc. if preferred).



Step 2: mix ingredients for cake, for 9x13 pan.



Step 3: bake cake.



Step 4: let cake cool (45 minutes or so); crumble cake into bowl; add cake frosting; mix together.



Step 5: put mixture in refrigerator overnight.



Step 6: using hands (or melonballer), roll out bite size balls.



Step 7: dip balls into melted chocolate; leave for chocolate to set.


Step 8: nom nom nom

Dancing Allowed

Dancing Allowed, originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

at the Russian mafia disco

classy...

classy..., originally uploaded by iamthequarry.

Wow...kinda been neglecting this one for a bit. I guess that's what I get for drinking the tasty, tasty Facebook Kool~aid. Nothing really of note going on, though. Same ol stuff.

BAM!

Portland, you heard my cries and you have answered. B.A.M. ~~ the first ever (annual?) Beer and Movie festival (more for the movies than the beer) ~~ 2/10 through 2/26, spread across 4 local theaters, a few pubs, and a few places in between: screening some promising up and coming films, and a shitload of "classics." The ones I'll definitely be attending (feel free to join, if'n ya wanna): 2/19 'Deadly Spawn' & 'Hausu' @ Cinema 21; 2/20 'Adventures in Babysitting' @ Bagdad; 2/22 'Trick or Treat' @ the Mission. I'll possibly/probably shoot for more, but those are the definites.