DJ Earworm

While at ALT ... 2 weeks ago (what?!) DJ Earworm was one of the keynote speakers during lunch. I've been a fan for about a year now, so I was thrilled to hear from him (and meet him - wahoo!). He is known for his mashups (a mashup is created by blending two or more songs.) He highlighted one of my favorites (while I danced in my seat...SO FUN!):

If I were a free falling boy - Really, these two songs (If I were a boy: Beyonce and Free Falling: Tom Petty) blend together so well, it's crazy. At about the 3 minute mark, is where I like to belt it out in my car (my poor kids...).



For the last three years, at the end of the year, he takes the top 20-25 POP songs and does one big mashup. I love last year's that he just did for 2009 - Blame It On The Pop:






Thanks DJ Earworm for keeping it fresh!

Have a Super...bowl Weekend!

You're Invited...

to a Dance Party! A year ago, I hosted a Movie Clip Party, and I loved seeing everyone's movie clips. So this year let's have a dance party.

Time: As soon as you locate your favorite dance tunes on Youtube
Place: Your blog
Date: This week sometime...before Thanksgiving

It may be "all Christmas music, all the time" for you already, but I prefer to wait until after Thanksgiving. So until then, let's have a dance party!

First Up: Just Dance by Lady Gaga
Ever since Ellen walked out to this one on Oprah last week, it has been my dance/exercise/clean the house tune of choice.


Next Up: Party in The U.S.A. by Miley Cyrus
Last Friday night was Family night for Avery's school at the local skating rink. If you had heard all the kids scream when this one came on (and when the Owl City song came on), it was tooo funny. So we'll say this one is for her. ;) Don't judge, just dance.


And last up: Forever (remix) by Chris Brown
I can't help it, I have loved this song since Season 4 of SYTYCD.


Okay, now it's your turn. RSVP right here in the comment section.

PS. Don't forget to turn it up LOUD!

Download:

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Download:

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Download:

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Kyle Week: Friday Favorites

Thanks to my good buddy Derek Miner for introducing me to the beauty of Vadrum.

Kyle Week: Song of the Day - My Morning Jacket

If I were wise, I would pull a Mother Hips and break this post over two days. Unfortunately, I have too much music to get in before the week is done. Like I said on Monday, so much music, so little time.

My Morning Jacket has a very unique sound and a LOT of worthwhile tunes. I'll divide them into 'Rock' and 'Mellow', and try to put the two or three I think you will most enjoy at the top of each section. If you like what you hear, there is a whole album's worth of tunes on this post.

ROCK:

Gideon

Wordless Chorus
(Great falsetto at the end. You should hear me attempt it while in the privacy of my own car...)


I'm Amazed

It Beats 4 U


Off The Record


Anytime
(The first 10 seconds is my current ringtone)



MELLOW:

Where To Begin
This song was on the Elizabethtown soundtrack. Love how the song crescendos (particularly at the 2:00 mark: "It's the art of feeling naked in your clothes.")


Thank You Too


Look At You

Golden

Gideon (acoustic)

It Beats 4 U (acoustic)

Kyle Week: Song of the Day - The Mother Hips (pt 2)

Tim Bluhm & Greg Loiacono - pre-show performance in SLC in 2001
(Fellow T-Bird, Brian Isaacson is in the bottom left corner)

As promised, today will focus on acoustic songs written and performed by Tim Bluhm and Greg Loiacono - co-guitarists and vocalists for The Mother Hips (when recording/performing as an acoustic duo, they are known as Ball-Point Birds).


Daisy & Joaquin
Classic Tim & Greg.


My Stony Heart
I love the mood of this song. Feeling melancholy? This song is for you.


Impatience/Change
The following line in this song (at 1:02) always makes me stop and think. "What is a man who doesn't follow paths that lead him where his heart wants to go?"


An Extraordinary Meeting In The Winter Forest
I love this song. Very visual storytelling.

I hope you enjoy the music. As mentioned earlier this week, if you have any suggested artists, please share.

Kyle Week: Quick Tech Tip - Half Stars in iTunes

There is something strangely satisfying about rating a song in iTunes. Sort of like a private, people's choice award - without the Red Carpet. The only problem is deciding how to rank those in-between songs. You know, a song that deserves more than 4 stars, but is not quite worthy of 5 stars? Serious dilemma, right? Not any more.

Here is how you can tweak your iTunes to allow for 'half-star' rankings (it might look more technical/intimidating than it really is):

For Windows Vista:

• Close out iTunes.
  
• Open your Start Menu and type iTunesPrefs.xml into the 'Search' field and hit enter. A new window will open up and you should see a matching search result.
• Copy the iTunesPrefs.xml file and paste it to your desktop - just so you have a clean copy if things get messed up.
  
• Return to the open window and right click the iTunesPrefs.xml file and highlight the 'Open With' menu option. When the submenu pops up, choose WordPad to open the file.
• Once open in WordPad, search the .xml file (ctrl f) for the following line:

• Below this line, but above the next line, type

• Save the WordPad file and close it out.
• Open iTunes and start giving those in-between songs the love they deserve.
• Once the half-stars are enabled, you can delete the iTunesPrefs.xml copy you placed on your desktop.

For Mac:

• Close iTunes
• Open Terminal (go to 'Applications', then 'Utilities')
• With Terminal open, type in the following command and press enter

defaults write com.apple.iTunes allow-half-stars -bool TRUE

• Open iTunes and test it out.

End Result:




Kyle Week: Song of the Day - The Mother Hips (pt 1)

(Greg Loiacono, John Hofer, Tim Bluhm, Paul Hoaglin)

Trust me...their music is even better than their logo.

In fact, The Mother Hips have SO MUCH good music, I had to split the post over two days:

• Tuesday will highlight music from the entire group - specifically three recent albums.
  
• Wednesday will highlight the acoustic work of Tim Bluhm and Greg Loiacono - dual front-men (guitars/vocals) for the Hips.

Time We Had (Kiss the Crystal Flake)

Channel Island Girl (The Green Hills of Earth)


Lion and the Bull (Pacific Dust)


Time Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear (Kiss the Crystal Flake)


White Falcon Fuzz (Pacific Dust)


Singing Seems To Ease Me (The Green Hills of Earth)


Third Floor Story (Pacific Dust)

Kyle Week: My Life According to Rush

I occasionally wander over to Mindi's blog (for good humor) or Tiffany's blog (for good writing). When I say occasionally, I mean about as often as I change the oil in my car. During one of these random visits I happened to catch this post (inspired by Tiburon). I immediately knew if I were ever to author a post other than for Kami's birthday, it would be the one you are reading right now. That's right, I just linked this post to itself (you know, just to mix things up).

Describe yourself:
Working Man; Driven; Finding My Way

How do you feel:
Need Some Love; Limbo

Describe where you currently live:
Subdivisions

If you could go anywhere, where would you go:
Half the World; Territories; The Way the Wind Blows

Your favorite form of transportation:
Red Barchetta

Your best friend:
New World Man

You and your best friend are:
Second Nature; Open Secrets

What's the weather like:
Turn the Page; Freeze

Favorite time of day:
Here Again; Nocturne

If your life was a TV show, what would it be called:
Circumstances

What is life to you:
One Little Victory; Making Memories

Your Relationship:
Sweet Miracle; Chemistry; Between Sun & Moon; Time Stands Still; The Speed of Love; Closer to the Heart; In the Mood

What do you fear:
I Think I'm Going Bald; The Enemy Within; The Weapon; Losing It

What is the best advice you have to give:
Show Me Don't Tell Me

Thought for the day:
Everyday Glory

How I would like to die:
Roll the Bones; Between the Wheels

My soul's present condition:
Hope; Ceiling Unlimited; How It Is:

My Motto:
Best I Can

What I believe in:
Spirit of Radio; Freewill; Before and After

I'm impressed by:
Marathon

My wish for others:
Big Money; Peaceable Kingdom


Now that I've wasted 5 minutes of your day, feel free to scroll down to my previous post, where I'll try to redeem myself by providing something of actual value.

Kyle Week: Song of the Day - Fleet Foxes

Music, like emotion, is deeply personal - and meant to be shared.

So much music, so little time to share. Therefore, 'Song of the Week' is now 'Song of the Day'

Much love to Ryan Jacobs for introducing me to Fleet Foxes. They may look a little grisly, but they sure sound amazing. If you like harmony (and who doesn't?), you'll love Fleet Foxes. They have several great songs, but non better than "Drops In The River."

Rules for maximum enjoyment:

• No distractions.
• Volume up.
• Use earphones.
• Close eyes. Seriously.

Why I love this song:

• 'Crosby Stills & Nash' harmony.
• Slow crescendo throughout the song.
• Mellow without being boring.
  

Other worthwhile songs by Fleet Foxes
White Winter Hymnal (this was my first exposure to FF. Caught me by surprise)
Ragged Wood (2nd favorite - love the change of pace starting at 2:30)
Blue Ridge Mountains
He Doesn't Know Why (did I mention Crosby Stills & Nash)
Sun It Rises (just get past the first 22 seconds...)

Listen to anything that sounds like Fleet Foxes? Leave a comment and share the wealth!

The Killers: point and shoot

with your camera, of course.

I loved having my point and shoot with me at the Killers show this Saturday night. Not only to capture Mr. Flowers rockin' out in his skinny jeans, but to capture the crowd doing the exact same thing I was; documenting his every move.

Once again, we joined the Cloves for what I like to call "A Killer Clove Weekend". We always have a blast with these two: Mindi and The RBC.



It was fun to compare the two set lists from the this show next to the show in Vegas.

Two of my sibs (Beck & T-Bob), along with their friends Lynette and Jen, joined us in the hot, stinky crowd. I loved having them there, it made for a fun night.

Probably my favorite part of the night was when we were showered with confetti, I loved it!


That Brandon Flowers sure puts on a good show. On a scale from 1 to 10, he is skinny.

This Weekend

image via: we ♥ it

Call your folks, or better yet, have them call you so that you can hear all the new ring tones you've been making. Ever since my BIL-Dave posted a tutorial on how to make ringtones out of songs already in your iTunes library, I have gone a little crazy...as in 65 ringtones crazy. It's too bad that I'll probably only get to hear two of them... "Oh? So, you missed a message from who? Chandler? Or your mom? Or Chandler? Or your mom?"

Here are some of my favorites (these won't show up in reader):

1.Because I've always wanted to learn a second language:
Mr. Roboto


2.Who doesn't want this song stuck in their head:
Tainted Love


3.Because I can whistle better than I can sing:
Young Folks


4.When I'm out with the ladies:
Glamorous

5.For my sister Shauna:
Safety Dance


6.For when Kyle calls from work:
Working Man Blues


7.For those stressed out days:
Breathe


8.For when my Mom is calling to nag me:
...


9.For the days when I feel like screening all my calls:
Did you get my message

10.The weekend theme song:
Wang Chung


So, what songs do you (or would you) have for ringtones?

Amy Seeley

images of Amy Seeley by Jesh de Rox

Last week Holly of Decor8 blogged about Amy Seeley, and I was reminded about how I felt the first time I heard her music. The first song I fell in love with was Gravel Lines. It was about a year ago when I came across Jesh de Rox's site and heard that song, I was moved to tears...and it was late and I was tired (not a good combo).I couldn't agree more with Holly about how Amy's music makes you feel.

I Heart Minnie

To kick off this season of love, I thought what better way than with a little 'Loving You' by Miss Minnie Riperton. There are so many things to love about this gem of a song, so many that I had to make it my song o' the week. Here are a few of my favorites:

• She tells it how it is...it's not your good character, nice personality, or great sense of humor; it's just because you are BEAUTIFUL. ;)
• You know it's bound to be a classic when you hear birds tweeting in the background.
• All the high notes: 0:34, 1:00, and 2:05 and finishing off with the grand finale.
• At about 1:44... no one says it better with out words then Minnie (I always get the giggles).
• Any song with filler lyrics like the la-la-la's and the do-do-do's is a keeper...c'mon how can you not sing along with that?!

If you are new to the loveliness of Miss Riperton, then I am pleased to present Loving You. Enjoy!

As Heard on TV

It seems that music is usually the selling factor in commercials for me. For instance...who can forget the wall paper warehouse theme song. ;)

Here are two commercials with music I love.

#1 Lame-O Commercial...but I love the song. Now c'mon people...who really wants mismatched wrong size shoes falling from the sky while driving?! Can you say hazardous? The song on the other hand: Surprise Surprise by Emy Reynolds, I love.



#2 Coolest Commercial with a beautiful song. The song: To Build a Home by The Cinematic Orchestra. I love how this song builds. It is beautiful, set to an amazing video.



Heard any good music in commercials lately?

I Really Should Be Listening To Christmas Music...

but instead, I can't get enough of The Killers New Album - Day & Age. There is just something about his voice when he sings "and there's a little boy in her arms" (at about 1:50 min. into the song) it's like he's singing right to me (swoon). I love the whole album. You might need to wait until December 26th to check it out, or if you are like me...Today!


The Killers - I Can't Stay

I'll Be Honest...

I love this commercial. It makes me so excited for summer. I could watch it again and again. The first time I saw it I had to download the song (Starry Eyed Surprise by Paul Oakenfold). It just makes me happy!

And The Winners Are...

1. Heather
2. Jen who linked over from Tanielle
3. Annie who linked over from Bethany
4. Karen

Congrats to all the names listed above, you are all winners!
Please email me at itsnobiggie@gmail.com so that I can get these out to you all.
Thanks to all who played. We will have to do it again, just as soon as I can fill up another CD (which is in about 20 weeks). I love finding new music, so if you have any suggestions for upcoming songs of the week, just let me know.

Song Of The Week Giveaway!

I have been doing the Song of the Week since the beginning of the new year and it will finally fill a CD! 19 weeks to be exact, but I rounded it to 20. Each song was picked specifically for what was going on that week or just a new song that I liked. You will notice there are a lot of songs with the word love in the title, those were all during February the month of Love (aaahhh, shmoopie). Anyway, I wanted to do a little giveaway to celebrate. I will be giving away 4 possibly 8 CDs. To help explain, here are the rules:
- To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post before Monday, May 19th, at 10 p.m. (anonymous comments will not count).
- To double your odds, you can leave a second comment on this post if you add a link to my giveaway in a post on your blog, using the image above.
- To really increase your odds of winning, make sure that people who link over from your blog reference your name in their comment. If one of the winners linked over from your blog, you will automatically win as well.
(For example, if Jill linked to my blog through Becky's blog, Jill should mention that she heard about the giveaway from Becky's blog. Then, if Jill wins, Becky will also win.)
Here are all the songs in order from the first week of this year. Don't you just love a giveaway?!

"What Are the Words Again?"

via

The other night Kyle and I were driving in the car and he started laughing because I was singing something completely different than the actual lyrics of the song that was on. So I got thinking about all the songs that we sing wrong. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Down Under by: Men At Work
My sister Shauna has always sang "He just smiled and gave me a piece of a sandwich", when the actual words are "He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich"
What the heck is a vegemite sandwich? I think her words sound better.

2. Say It Isn't So by: The Outfield
This is the one that I sang wrong that night, I sang "Now I know I'll never survive" when I should have sang... "Now I know why love is so blind". Ya, ya... whatever.

3. "There's Your Trouble" by: Dixie Chicks
This one is courtesy of my nephew Preston when he was little, he thought it said "Bears in Trouble". So cute.

4. "More Than A Woman" by: Bee Gees
I can't remember who sang this one, but I will forever sing "Bald Headed Woman".

5. Blinded By The Light by: Manfred Mann's Earth Band
I need some help on this one... "Wrapped up like a What?!"

Have Your Cake And Sing It Too

This is her current fave, an oldie but a goodie!