The needle that sings in your heart...

I just got a comment today on another post of mine by someone named Mystic asking why i never write anymore. And you know what? I have no clue. I honestly don't know why I stopped. I have no valid excuse. But I felt bad, so I've decided I'm going to post more often. Anyway, here goes:

The summer of last year was a great one. I finally moved out of my parents house and was living on my own. I went to Denver to see my favorite band, The Dresden Dolls, and even got to meet them. I was hanging out with my best friends on a near daily basis. I got my first tattoo. I think it's safe to say that it's been the best summer I've had to date. But one particular album was in my CD player constantly. It was In The Aeroplane Over The Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel. I'd only heard of this band in passing, in a recommendation I'd seen by Amanda Fucking Palmer. So, I put them in the little filing cabinet of my brain and said, "Remember these guys. If she loves them, you probably do too. You just don't know it yet."

As it turns out, I was right. I downloaded the album, and from then on, I was hooked. I wore it out, even. But one particular event with this album occured when I decided to go on a random nighttime adventure to WalMart. I was driving up the hill on 2nd Street and I hear the agressive strumming of an acoustic guitar. I like acoustic guitar. A lot. And anyone who can move me with just that one instrument and their voice has a lot of respect from me. This doesn't happen a lot, however. So I was weary, but gave the song a chance, because so far, the rest of the album rocked. The song was "Two-Headed Boy." I turned up the radio, and I was taken aback. The song just had me floored from the moment the simple melody passed my ears and my brain registered the glory of what it was hearing.

Jeff Mangum has this ability to take you and jerk you around without you really caring at all. His melodies are unpredictable, and his instrumentation is the opposite. What occurs is this feirce battle between man and object, a scuffle that leaves you wanting more, and has you asking the question, "Where the fuck does this go next?" His emotion shines through the most in his singing. His lyrics are raw, and real. He is a master of language, and his talent is underappreciated amongst the majority of the music world.

It's a song that I've taken, and cherished. I learned it as quickly as I could on the guitar, and I've performed it many times. It quickly has become one of my favorites, and I hope that it's had the same affect for you.

Until next time....

Two-headed boy
All floating in glass
The sun it has passed
Now it's blacker than black
I can hear as you tap on your jar
I am listening to hear where you are
I am listening to hear where you are