one song a day: song nineteen | song from your favorite album

I love Raise the Dead, it is possibly my favorite Phantom Planet album (it runs neck and neck with the self-titled). But for as long as I've loved them, I didn't get to see them live until 2008, a few weeks before I got married. They were the first opening act for Panic At The Disco. They only played about 5 songs on stage, including this one—which wasn't even a single at the time. I about lost my freakin' mind.

At the merch table after their set, I got to meet the guys and Alex cued me in to a post-Panic show out by the tour bus. And sure enough, after the headliner, Alex came out and took requests from the dedicated Phantom Planet fans gathered outside the Gordon Fieldhouse. It was like a camp singalong... only with way more awesome.



Day 01. Your favorite song: Frank Turner - Photosynthesis
Day 02. Your least favorite song: Joe - Don't Wanna Be A Player No More
Day 03. A song that makes you happy: The Hold Steady - Slapped Actress
Day 04. A song that makes you sad: Spring Awakening/Johnathan Groff - Left Behind
Day 05. A song that reminds you of someone: The Weakerthans - The Reasons
Day 06. A song that reminds you of somewhere: Rooney - Blueside
Day 07. A song that reminds you of a certain event: Weezer - The Good Life
Day 08. A song that you know all the words to: Descendents - When I Get Old
Day 09. A song that you can dance to: Queen - Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Day 10. A song that makes you fall asleep: Palo Alto - Breathe In
Day 11. A song from your favorite band: Phantom Planet - Lonely Day
Day 12. A song from a band you hate: Nickelback - All of their songs
Day 13. A song that is a guilty pleasure: Finn & Jake - The Baby Song
Day 14. A song that no one would expect you to love: The Music Man/Robert Preston - Ya Got Trouble
Day 15. A song that describes you: Frank Turner - Photosynthesis
Day 16. A song that you used to love but now hate: Celine Dion - My Heart Will Go On
Day 17. A song that you hear often on the radio: NPR/PRI/APM - Various Public Radio Themes
Day 18. A song that you wish you heard on the radio: Clash at Demonhead (Metric) - Black Sheep
Day 19. A song from your favorite album: Phantom Planet - Dropped
Day 20. A song that you listen to when you’re angry
Day 21. A song that you listen to when you’re happy
Day 22. A song that you listen to when you’re sad
Day 23. A song that you want to play at your wedding
Day 24. A song that you want to play at your funeral
Day 25. A song that makes you laugh
Day 26. A song that you can play on an instrument
Day 27. A song that you wish you could play
Day 28. A song that makes you feel guilty
Day 29. A song from your childhood
Day 30. Your favorite song at this time last year

one song a day: song three | song that makes you happy

The Hold Steady is a band Matt introduced me to when he became obsessed with them—and for good reason, they're fucking amazing. In the past few years, I've seen them live more than any other band in my life and their shows are always amazing. This is my favorite Hold Steady song, I love the lyrics and just the general feeling of the song, the up and down, the build up and the quiet. And every time I hear it, I turn it up and every time we've seen the Hold Steady, they've played it and I sing along at the top of my lungs. Craig Finn is incredible on stage, he always looks like he's having the time of his life and that makes a live performance. Remembering how that feels, hearing your favorite song played live, just brings that rush of happiness each time I heard it, no matter where I am.

We're just dust in the spotlight, we're just kind of floating.

Day 01. Your favorite song: Frank Turner - Photosynthesis
Day 02. Your least favorite song: Joe - Don't Wanna Be A Player No More
Day 03. A song that makes you happy: The Hold Steady - Slapped Actress
Day 04. A song that makes you sad
Day 05. A song that reminds you of someone
Day 06. A song that reminds you of somewhere
Day 07. A song that reminds you of a certain event
Day 08. A song that you know all the words to
Day 09. A song that you can dance to
Day 10. A song that makes you fall asleep
Day 11. A song from your favorite band
Day 12. A song from a band you hate
Day 13. A song that is a guilty pleasure
Day 14. A song that no one would expect you to love
Day 15. A song that describes you
Day 16. A song that you used to love but now hate
Day 17. A song that you hear often on the radio
Day 18. A song that you wish you heard on the radio
Day 19. A song from your favorite album
Day 20. A song that you listen to when you’re angry
Day 21. A song that you listen to when you’re happy
Day 22. A song that you listen to when you’re sad
Day 23. A song that you want to play at your wedding
Day 24. A song that you want to play at your funeral
Day 25. A song that makes you laugh
Day 26. A song that you can play on an instrument
Day 27. A song that you wish you could play
Day 28. A song that makes you feel guilty
Day 29. A song from your childhood
Day 30. Your favorite song at this time last year

monday. monday.

Here's a surefire cure for the Mondays:

The Hold Steady at the Club at Waterstreet. I love the club side at Waterstreet, but not as much as I love the Hold Steady. We just saw them in Syracuse Saturday night and that show had been kind of a let down. I like their slower songs... but not in concert. Tonight blew doors down. Then again, I'm always partial to a show when the last song of the night is my absolute favorite song.

Roc City Roller Derby season tickets. How cool are these? I mean, besides the fact that they're season tickets... they're dog tags. You're looking at season ticket holder #180. I can wait for the season to properly start. We went to Buffalo a few weekends ago to check out QCRG—they were amazing and the set up at the Rainbow Rink is unreal.

a concert where frank turner and some others play.

In the fall, we bought tickets for a show at Water Street, based on the presumption that two of our favorite bands/singers would be there. The first was Murder By Death, who I've seen a few times before. The second was Frank Turner, who I'd never seen and was completely obsessed with.

A week or so before the show, he dropped off the tour. I was crushed.

So when the Flogging Molly tour was announced with Frank as one of the supporting acts, I was there. So there... despite not being much of a Flogging Molly fan.

A truly awful band took the stage first. The Architects. It was like bad butt rock straight from the 80's.

The following tweets were twittered:

"Seriously, The Architects? What year is this? Or have I fallen victim to a hot tub time machine?"

"Yay. The suck has ended."

When the suck had indeed ended, Frank Turner came out with his full band. It was amazing. How often does Ben Franklin get a shout out during a rock show? Not often enough. But apparently the song that followed the historical reference really pissed off the drunk kid in front of me and he held his swaying fists up with both middle fingers extended. It was funny, until he continued to do so well into the next song. My favorite song; completely non-political. A god damn love song. It was impossible to record without his meaty fist cutting in and out of the shot.

Regardless, I'm so glad he sang this.

As for Flogging Molly... who cares? I have nothing against the band, but the crowd had done wonders to turn me off to the headliner. These are people who crawl out of their caves once or twice a year to go to a show that's not in a stadium. They don't know how to act when you're standing on the floor.

I've realized that what I don't like about Flogging Molly fans is the same thing I don't like about people who are really into Jimmy Buffet. These are people pretending to be Irish, like Parrotheads pretend they're all going to end up living on a beach some day. This was made crystal clear when Dave King commented that the next song was about the Irish being sent to Barbados by the thousands. This Cromwellian act was cheered. Cheered to the point that King had to point out this was part of a greater plan to wipe out the Irish race to get the appropriate "booo" from the gathered masses. Yeah, that wasn't a cruise so much as forced indentured servitude.

Matt and I wandered back to the merch tables and with the ATM out of cash and a tenner between us, I got 7-inch from Frank Turner... directly. He signed the cover, my heart raced and I babbled something about how much I love his music and he was just English and adorable and reached out to shake my hand.