making nashville sing

i think i've said it before, but the best part of being a teacher may or may not be the gratuitous snow days.

so: if it's sunday afternoon and the 22-year-old english teacher is dying for just one more day off(as if the three day weekend wasnt quite enough), i think it's best to sit in my apartment and drink mimosas, plow through classic literature for memorable quotes, write songs with my best friend, and listen to and play good music for most of the day. and use a crock pot.

so. speaking of good music. let's talk EVAN P. DONOHUE. YESSSSSSSS.

while this lovely gentleman may ceaselessly be compared to buddy holly in lots of ways, it doesn't really matter because evan is evan and i consider him quite unique to the nashville music scene. plus, he's got great hair.

evan. playing @ mercy lounge this thursday (2/4) with Natalie Prass and The Deep Vibration. Also a sexy, sexy act. I was disappointed when I was once invited to 2nd Ave. Live and they did not, in fact, have a slot to play when i showed up. So, this will be my chance to catch 2 of my favorite nashville music acts in my FAVORITE place in nashville.

if i could live at mercy lounge, i certainly would. and for good measure, i would house evan and/or members of the deep vibration whenever need be.

So, let's sample:

Evan P. Donohue: The Money Making Nashville (I believe this is what this song is called. I hope. Either way, I love it. It's my nashville anthem. Sometimes I drive around with my windows down in 30 degree weather so everyone can hear it. I try not to sing over it, because i don't want to ruin it; but, sometimes i can't help it.)

The Deep Vibration: Tennessee Rose

Yeah, I'm sure this is the, like, cliché song, but does it really matter? If it's good, who really cares?

don't you know i've got things to do?

i need good music to get me through a week full of girl fights. (it will come after this brief self-indulgent anecdote). if it weren't for the valiant mr. jones (no, not the eponymous counting crows anthem),--english teacher pauses and wonders if she used that word correctly-- i'm speaking of the ever-brave and pillar of morality, mr. davis jones: cat fight thwarter extraordinaire. he really knows how to put an end to a trivial mess.

what? you can't imagine this bow-tied charmer breaking up fist fights that are quite inevitably over poorly chosen boyfriends?

So. How do we ease the pain for the students and ourselves? Besides the 12 pack of Yahoo?

By listening to this: Carl Anderson and Carleigh Nesbit..From Charlottesville, VA--these guys might be the modern day Johnny and June. (Note the "Jackson" cover) Guy girl harmony: gets me every time. (Plus. look how cute) after having this album for about a week and forgetting to import it until about 2 days ago, i'm pretty sure i already know all the words.

meaning: this is catchy and invasive--especially if you have a soft spot for that appalachian bluegrass-y feel... (let's not pigeon hole here, though)

Carl Anderson and Carleigh Nesbit: Track 2. Stand By Me (If I had to guess) (buy)

Carl Anderson and Carleigh Nesbit: Jackson (Johnny Cash Cover) (buy)

And, the original: Johnny Cash w/ June Carter: Jackson (live at folsom) (buy)

i love my time here....

nothing makes a good, solid, cheery monday morning like an angry parent, deceitful student, and abrasive conference. and, i can't think of a better way to start my week than by getting told why i'm such a humiliatingly poor teacher.

tell me something i don't know.

on that note,

I walk into my apartment at 2:35 p.m. today (hell no, i didn't stay after school for a hot second). I'm carrying a 12 pack of Yazoo Pale Ale. Has it been a bad day, or do I just love Yazoo? You tell me.

Anywho, the only surefire way to cure a charming parent-teacher conference, a misunderstanding of pronoun-antecedent agreement, and the destruction of all my perfectly arranged rows: KITTEN MITTONS!

and then of course, the title track to this culturally trenchant blog posting:

Avett Brothers: November Blue (buy)

I hate that I didn't live in Nashville quite yet when the Avett Bros played in front of this crowd at Grimey's. BLAHHHHHH

Dawes. Dawes. Dawes.

Dawes,

I love you. Your album is changing my life. So much so that I'm going to write more. I'm going to put another song on here. I'm going to listen to it on repeat. I'm going to sing it from the rooftops and force people to listen to mix CDs I make where there are only Dawes songs and songs that sound like they could be Dawes songs and songs that remind me of Dawes songs and songs that are so bad they make me only think of how good Dawes is/are and songs that Dawes probably thought of when writing its/their songs. And then I'll throw in a few more Dawes songs.

Dawes: Love is all i am (music vidddd)

These guys will be on tour with Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons

And who doesn't love Daytrotter?

Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons: Tennessee (buy)

Mercy Lounge is going to own my soul on Feb. 27.

I guess I'm partial to all things Tennessee now that I live here.

anyone that's making anything new only breaks something else

i have never seen dangerous minds but i can only imagine that my life at least somewhat reflects on some of the thematic issues in the film.

i broke up my first fight on friday between my favorite student (what? you're telling me your teachers in high school didn't have favorites?) and a girl. yeah. he was gonna hit a girl. i had to grab him by the shirt and pin him up against the wall and drag him kicking, screaming, and cuussssssinnnnggggg down the hall in front of the majority of the 9th grade. ms. riggs? badass. yeahupppp. most of my friends? break up fights regularly and it's not a big deal.

don't care. i'm excited about it. although i guess i shouldn't be excited that my students are fighting.

and now i'm listening to THIS song:

Dawes: When My Time Comes (buy)

Playing at the one and only Mercy Lounge in... February (27 I believe). Cali rockers with greatttttt harmonies. love it.

Thank you, Andrew Mcmahon, for recommending good music to me.

famous people are just more interesting

sometimes it's hard to get up at 5:30 a.m. when you go to bed at 4:30 a.m. let's just say that.

three reasons this week has been what the 1950s would call "top-notch."

1. hanging out with andrew mcmahon. you know. the guy from jack's mannequin. the band you quietly mock but secretly listened to in your freshman dorm room. or perhaps you remember him from something corporate. a band you also hated but not as much as you hated yourself when you sort of liked the song konstantine.

Andrew Mcmahon: Songwriting because you can't.

Do we need a little Jack's to get us through the day? I do.

Jack's Mannequin: Holiday From Real (Acapella) HOW DO YOU SPELL THAT WORD??? Yeah, I get it. The English teacher should know.

Let's just say, there's nothing like a 9-hour night on the town with this guy. How much of this information should I make public? Let me know if you want more details.

(Also. the 5 minute video of him doing karaoke to a Meatloaf song at Lonnie's will currently not upload. I'll do my best to get it out to all my die-hard fans as soon as possible)

2. Seeing Madi Diaz again. Stumbled upon her lovely voice at the Wild Sweet Orange show last month at Mercy Lounge--but this was just a treat. Like I told her when I so creepily attempted to be her friend, I am normally NOT a fan of girl singers. They're just not my thing. Kind of like how thinking isn't really some of my students' "thing"--I just don't like girl singers. BUT, Madi Diaz is just a gem. Sweetheart too.

This is probably the cliché song, but I don't care, it's good.

Madi Diaz: I Know I Know (buy)

(remember all you crazy fans out there: these mp3s are for sampling purposes only)

Next Shows around here: Mercy Lounge (2/15) and Exit/In (2/26)

annnnnnnnd then she'll be at SXSW. SWEET!

3. Last reason this weekend was "top-notch"--No school monday. yes. 4 day week. MLK is awesome for many, many reasons. And, I am pleased to have had this day off. No 15 year olds shouting at me, no teaching how to write a thesis statement, no making copies of worksheets that will end up somewhere on my classroom floor or perhaps the streets of downtown nashville. a day off is just a beautiful, beautiful thing.

And, since I still feel I must absolutely embrace the idolatry of my past week:look how not cool i am.

"so, andrew--what do you do?"

---i'll send this message through the speakers---

HA.

i didn't understand

it's my job to make sure 9th graders don't grow up stupid. it's bad for the world.

but, i must say, teaching 15-year-old kids (who are already years and years behind academically) how to write is one of the world's greatest challenges. i'd be willing to try gnawing off an extremity as a means of comparison. i've never fielded so many questions in my life. i don't even know a way to make this funny that keeps it appropriate in case my boss somehow stumbles across this blog.

atrocious.

that's all i'll say about that. (aka if you're one of my millions of avid followers who couldn't care less about teaching in the inner city, now is where i make the transition to something seemingly unrelated but inevitably connected to everything i've just talked about)

yesterday, however, i got a chance to interview two eccentric and charming young gentlemen who are in the process of orchestrating what can only be described as god's holy project.

what: the making of shel silverstein's Where The Sidewalk Ends into a full double album of songs

who: recorded by copious amounts of nashville singer-songwriters and organized by Brady Surface and Jared Ziemba, members of the band Westfolk, and mastermind entrepreneurs.

when: hopefully really f---ing soon. well, probably by May.

why: pairing with the one and only Teach For America, these guys have organized for all the proceeds from this record to support Teach For America (an organization that puts recent college graduates in our nation's low-income classrooms to teach for 2 years)

lots of people are behind this effort and we'll be finding out more information and spreading more news as the album reaches completion--

People, places, things, glorious entities, charming businessmen, etc that are involved with making this project possible (or at least involved in some unintentional way that we'll ultimately realize later)

Dirty Eye Booking (Check out their next event Jan. 19 @ Exit/In--Free show featuring Simon Kerr, Andrew Combs, Heidi Feek, Colorfeels, + Holmes & Presley and probably others that i forgot)

The Rabbit (A nashville arts, culture, etcccccc. magazine that will rock your face off)

My personal favorite of the people performing on Jan 19? This Guy:

It's like if Ryan Adams wasn't an asshole and he morphed his voice with the soothing nature of James Taylor's and then they got kinda stoned with Johnny Cash and accidentally bumped into The Avett Brothers on the street somewhere. But better.

Andrew Combs: Too Stoned To Cry

and on a completely unrelated note: this song is really good.

Fleet Foxes: He Doesn't Know Why (buy)

doesn't matter if i even go

the benefits of being a teacher?

snow days.

the benefits of living in tennessee?

flurries=2 snow days in a row.

so, here i sit, warmly in my snuggie, debating whether i should lesson plan for the next 89320234098 days of teaching, watch old boy meets world episodes, or drink some gin and do neither. the latter will probably win.

it's so cold, and i've been doing nothing inside for the past few days. so, it seemed like we might all need to hear this song:

The Low Anthem: This God Damn House (buy)

i love going to shows where i've barely heard of a band and then i hear them live and love them. so is the story of the low anthem. opened for blind pilot @ mercy lounge back in november (yeeessssssss) and i left the show with pretty much everything at the merch stand. including some email addresses. so sue me. but this song is beautiful and haunting, and it's probably the perfect thing to make you cry by yourself on a cold winter day.

i think they'll be touring with the avett bros this spring, so that will be a pretty sick show. i was told to listen to their latest album (oh my god charlie darwin) on a cold rainy day with some chicken noodle soup and some jameson (recommended by a member of the band). so, do with that advice what you will.

drink responsibly.

look at miss ohio...

yes. yes. yes. yes. yes.

the blind pilot itunes EP is officially up and out and on my computer and in my ears and car etc etc etc. granted, it came out about a week ago, but sometimes when you're in ohio you forget that the rest of the world is still moving while you're at a standstill.

anywho, blind pilot is the shit not only because of their blendedddddd-harmonies and folk-pop accessibility, but they also toured the west coast on BIKES. f---ing bikes.




well, now there is finally a recording of their cover of gillian welch's "look at miss ohio." what.a.song. after hearing this live and feeling particularly connected to it (for obvious reasons), i've been waiting away for the 'studio' version.

gillian welch is an amazing songwriter, and blind pilot is easily my favorite band that i've heard in the last year--meaning: this song is one of a kind. I have the blind pilot version below and part of a video from the blind pilot concert at mercy lounge back in november when i first heard them play this song.

Blind Pilot: Look At Miss Ohio (Gillian Welch Cover-Itunes Session Version) (buy)

Blind Pilot live at Mercy Lounge 11/7/09: Look At Miss Ohio (I don't know who those strange girls laughing occasionally, making odd comments, and screaming often are in the background)


bleh. this video won't load. maybe later.

and, because, if school isn't cancelled tomorrow, my life might be at risk.

Matt Pond PA: Snow Day (buy)

(I'm not quite sure what Matt Pond is up to these days...I'm pretty sure there's a fairly new 7" out, but I haven't noticed any of his usual incessant touring lately--perhaps I've just been teaching too much...)

that being said...one of my students asked me to adopt him today. first, he asked me if i had a kid. then, he asked me if i wanted one. then, he offered himself up as said kid.

needless to say, i was speechless.

until i find words--

tell me this is the hardest part

oh. my. god.

no self-respecting human should ever enter into the workforce. for all of you worshipping fans out there who are still in school----stay there. there's simply no sense in ending your stint as a an undergraduate, unless you want to end up in a cesspool of tears and panic somewhere in a low income high school.

kidding! kind of.

since it's rolling right around mid afternoon in Nashville (ooohhh just after 4 o clock), it is, of course getting dark. the sun is setting, college students are starting their days, and i've just woken up from my afternoon nap only to be greeted by an endless sea of black. welcome home.

so, we need some trent dabbs. a little old school and a little new school. why?

1) He's playing friday (Jan. 8-also known as my half birthday) at The Basement with Andrew Belle

2) He has a song called January Lights. and it's january. and we need lights.

3) he's awesome. not only has his song 'odds of being alone' with amy stroup been featured on the WB's slow-track-to-DVD One Tree Hill, but he's sexy and plays a pretty mean little gibson.

4) He has songs on all kinds of other shows that you've probably watched obsessively but never admitted to doing so. (i.e. the hills, ghost whisperer, etc.)

so, with that articulate, witty, and flawless description in-tact, here's some music and some vids. i enjoy the vid because i like to pretend it was filmed near my apartment, and i think it shows a keen appreciation for cowboy boots.

Trent Dabbs: January Lights (buy)

Trent Dabbs and Amy Stroup: "Odds of Being Alone" (note the cowboy boots and nondescript location...)

more to come when my students' academic careers aren't hanging in the balance...

something else was on my mind

fine, BO BRANNEN. you win. i don't listen to enough josh ritter.

but, josh ritter sings about idaho.

Josh Ritter: Idaho (thanks bo. the entire world has been keeping their eyes and ears on this blog--mostly in hopes of a song that describes all their feelings about the united states' most forgotten state) (buy)

so this is the new year?

the world-renowned writer of this blog is a twenty-something prodigy/web-savvy goddess. mp3s for sample. yes. things just got serious. [it is appropriate to wait until the 5th official blog posting to start using profanity]

unfortunately, i can't locate any good songs about idaho (where i just spent the last few days). but, then again, it's fairly difficult to find anything in general about idaho. (let alone anything good) so, instead, it only seems fair to post one super cliche new years song and then one song that i have been listening to on repeat for about 6 weeks. if paste magazine thinks they're on top of their shit (oops)--they've got another thing coming.

i would eat an entire dead dinosaur to continue hearing this kind of music for the rest of my life from my new favorite nashville band. Seriously, Bo, when are they playing next?

Michael Ford, Jr. & The Apache Relay: Sugarcane (buy)

not to give Paste too many nods tonight, but it only makes sense; here's the article on Michael Ford, Jr:

paste is so scenester they knew about the beatles before paul mccartney was born. game on.

whoa. my font just got huge. not so web-savvy anymore...ok. better?

time to go back to the daily grind: does anyone have a lesson plan i can teach on tuesday?

[so this is the new year? and i don't feel any different]

Death Cab: The New Year (Call me as emo as you want, but Transatlanticism is a great album. Never skip a track on that one.) (buy)