So, last night Sam did something no one else had ever done for me. Thanks to him, I got to go to my first live concert. (Yes, I am almost 32 years old and had never been to a concert outside of all those middle and high school band concerts I was part of.) We saw Rush along with Sam's dad in Charlotte, NC, last night, which when Sam first suggested it a few months ago I was kind of, "Eh, I guess I'll tag along. Sounds like a good night out if nothing else." I mean, they had a few songs I liked, though they weren't on the same level as, say, Nightwish is for me, or even Loreena McKennitt where I might consider giving my right arm to see them live (we've established my musical tastes are all over the map, right? Good.).

I have to say after seeing them put on a live show, they really won me over and if they come my way again, I'll be the one to buy the tickets if Sam doesn't get it first. I mean, they got me to spend forty bucks on a t-shirt, so that says something, and I'm giving them another chance as Sam has pretty much their entire collection (spanning back to 1968) on his computer and shared it with me.

Anyway, they did two sets and an encore, the first set of which was a collection of songs from their extensive discography. The second set they focused mostly on their newest release Clockwork Angels, and the final song they performed from it was one Geddy Lee (lead singer) said was their favorite on this album, and I have to say it's gotta be my favorite on this and a song I really can identify with, though a part of me wishes I couldn't.



The measure of a life is a measure of love and respect,
So hard to earn so easily burned

[...]

In the rise and the set of the sun,
'Till the stars go spinning,
Spinning 'round the night
It is what it is, and forever
Each moment of memory in flight

This is, of course, a softer song for them, but hearing it live toward the end of such an amazing show was quite powerful and made the song an instant favorite. Another from the same album was "Halo Effect."



And if you know anything about me and the last few years of my life, you'll understand what that one too hits rather close to home.

What did I see?
Fool that I was
A goddess, with wings on her heels
All my illusions
Projected on her
The ideal, that I wanted to see

[...]

What did I do?
Fool that I was
To profit from youthful mistakes?
It's shameful to tell
How often I fell
In love with illusions again

Anyway, my sleep-deprived rambling, fangirlish self realizes this is a strange entry. So the tl;dr version of this: RUSH WAS FUCKING AWESOME IN CHARLOTTE LAST NIGHT!!! Also, Geddy Lee might be 59 years old, but I'd still hit that like my life depended on it.

Some of the soundtrack to my childhood and most of my early teen years died tonight.

Western North Carolina is full of talented folks ranging from artists to musicians. There's something in the water around here, I swear.

Last night Sam, the kiddo, and I went to an open mic night at The Pizza Shoppe in Spruce Pine, NC. Local musicians from the area played and there was even one woman who did belly dancing, and she was gorgeous plus-sized gal who was so comfortable in her own skin. Everyone loved what she did. I'm still wondering how her hips moved like that. I told Sam it was like watching Tony Jaa's fight scenes in Ong Bak. Hips aren't supposed to do that! (And if you have seen that movie and/or know who Tony Jaa is, give yourself a pat on the back.)

Anyway, Sam's youngest sister asked her some questions and it turns out she teaches in a town about an hour's drive from here. We are definitely considering trying to look into taking classes at some point. Right now, I don't know how feasible it is, however, I have wanted to learn belly dancing for years.

Let's see, there was also a man who played Native American flute and I am now apparently involved in a family conspiracy aimed at getting me to play flute again. Sam's sister seems convinced that I need to get a flute again and practice so I can play for her while she sings for some awesome duets. I pointed out that I have never fared well playing for crowds, but I think that doesn't matter. They know I have music talent now (or used to at any rate) and they want to hear it, even told me I'd get refreshers on how to read music (I remember the basics and know my notes, but I completely blank on time heh).

There was a gentleman who played a song he'd just finished writing that night. Story went that his buddy called him up and said, "Hey, there's an open mic night. Want to come?" He did well despite only having finished it mere hours before.

Oh! I met a Kennedy, too. Not sure how closely he's related to JFK et al, but he was certainly dressed the part and had that notable Massachusettes accent and he definitely shared a family resemblence.

After Sam's dad's band played (they were pretty awesome as usual, by the way, even though they forgot the words a couple of time, silly people), the woman responsible for organizing the open mic night got up there with a guitar. She was a petite lady and when she started singing, I was blown away. She had this voice like Norah Jones and Fiona Apple, something I wasn't expecting. A nice bluesy, smoky alto voice that just about knocked me back in my chair. She had some CDs for sale for five bucks and I picked it up. Best five bucks I've ever spent on music, no lie. (As I said on Twitter last night: Girl crush. I has one. I liked her page on Facebook and hope I can catch announcements for when she's playing nearby. It also helps that Sam's dad, uncle, and friend know her personally.)

Her name is Polly Lorien, and while her band is apparently no longer together and she's a solo act, you can check out her music at her band's/her website. If you get a chance, listen to some of the sample tracks on there, and I can't reccomend "The Lady (Must Be Free)" and "No No No" enough. In fact, have some lyrics as copied from her page. I don't even normally like this genre of music, but I am in love with the album I picked up last night.

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Via The Daily What:

Kickass Cover of the Day: Upsettingly talented Mexican siblings Angie (10, vocals), Abelardo (15, guitar/bass/piano), and Gustavo Vazquez (13, drums) — AKA Vazquez Sounds — cover the hell out of Adele’s “Rolling In The Deep.”

Can you imagine how that voice is going to sound as she matures? Holy shit.

Sam, per usual, put me onto some new music I can appreciate. Listening to it for a bit and working on some writing notes (I hope) before I have to head out. Kiddo only has a half-day since it's a staff meeting or something for school employees (I forget the official name; all I know is the automated calling service the district uses called me, like, three times since Friday to remind me today was a half-day). After we pick him up, Sam's taking us out to lunch at a local deli-style place we haven't been to before (he has with his parents, but the kiddo and I haven't).

Anyway, listen to this song and bear in mind that it's one of the shorter tracks on this album.

No real reason for posting this, except maybe to say I wish this song had come out 15 years ago.

Amy Winehouse singing "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" by Gerry Goffin and Carole King.



Amy Winehouse joins Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and too many others in the "27 Club."

I never really got into Amy Winehouse's music, but I recognized her talent and lovely voice.

I looked up Crash Test Dummies' music video for "Mmm, Mmm, Mmm, Mmm" for a silly reason. Anyway I happened to look down at the comments and the first comment I see is this:

I wish I was around when this music came out. It's so much better than the crap that is popular today.

I was in middle school when this song was released, but I was in high school the first time I heard it (I was a very sheltered child and was listening to country music at the time).

Because this seemed appropriate given that for some of us this is a time of remembering those who have departed this plane/world/life.



"Dante's Prayer"
Loreena McKennitt

When the dark wood fell before me
And all the paths were overgrown
When the priests of pride say there is no other way
I tilled the sorrows of stone

I did not believe because I could not see
Though you came to me in the night
When the dawn seemed forever lost
You showed me your love in the light of the stars

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me

Then the mountain rose before me
By the deep well of desire
From the fountain of forgiveness
Beyond the ice and the fire

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me

Though we share this humble path, alone
How fragile is the heart
Oh give these clay feet wings to fly
To touch the face of the stars

Breathe life into this feeble heart
Lift this mortal veil of fear
Take these crumbled hopes, etched with tears
We'll rise above these earthly cares

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me
Please remember me

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Only one? Wow, that'd really cripple my music collection since I tend to have a little bit of everything.

I'd probably pick hard/progressive rock since that's what I listen to the most, but I would miss my Enya, Alison Krauss, and video game soundtracks (which mostly amounts to Final Fantasy stuff).

I'd pose this question to Sam, but I imagine his answer would be something like, "Only one genre? For the rest of my life? Noooooooooo!" (I'll remind some of you now that Sam has about 100+ GBs of music on his computer/external hard drive, and his collection is very, very eclectic.)