Musically Speaking: A Whole Lot of the Same, But Different
I’ve had a good run of music over the last 2 months – I’ve found some really cool new stuff and enjoyed some old favorites once again. I usually won’t listen to the same stuff repeatedly, but lately Grace Potter & the Nocturnals’ latest album, “This is Somewhere” has been really a stalwart on my iTunes playlist. Definitely worth a listen if not a buy if you like strong blues-influenced rock.
Top 15 Songs
- Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, This is Somewhere – “Big White Gate” , “Stop the Bus” and “Mastermind”
- “Morningside” – Sara Bareilles, Little Voice
- “American Folk Song” – Warren Sroka, American Dreams Soundtrack
- “Mr. Columbus” – Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, This is Somewhere
- “Love on the Rocks” – Sara Bareilles, Little Voice
- “Jesse James” – Bruce Springsteen, Live in Dublin (CD 1)
- “The Mountains Win Again (Live)” – Blues Traveler, Travelers & Thieves: On Tour Forever
- “Late Morning Lullaby” – Brandi Carlisle, The Story
- “The Story” – Brandi Carlisle, The Story
- “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” – Green Day, Bullet in a Bible
- “Falling or Flying” – Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, This is Somewhere
- “Sola” – Insite, Sola (Single)
- “Piece of My Heart” – Janis Joplin, Greatest Hits
- “Watch Me Walk” – Keri Noble, Let Go
- “Die In My Bones” – The Barrel House Mamas, gathering
Top 5 Albums
- Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, This is Somewhere
- Bruce Springsteen, Live in Dublin
- Sara Bareilles, Little Voice
- Brandi Carlisle, The Story
- Janis Joplin, Greatest Hits
New Discoveries
- The Barrel House Mamas – My boss’ daughter’s band, it’s very folk-oriented but good music.
- Tin Bird Choir – My buddy Matt turned me on to this band, led by his friends Eric and Heather Hurlock. A local band, they are getting quite a bit of notice, even getting to play in the Philly Folk Festival this summer.
- Eddie Vedder, Into the Wild – Great music from the movie: Vedder uses a more laid-back folky style but with his traditional edge.
- Jack Johnson, Sleep Through the Static
- Tina Dico, Far
Old Classics Returned
- AC/DC, Back in Black and Fly On the Wall – For some reason, I’ve been on an older AC/DC kick – not just the typical stuff, but good bluesy heavy metal tunes like “Whole Lotta Rosie” and rockers like “For Those About to Rock”.
- Janis Joplin, Greatest Hits – We should never forget one of the best vocal performers in classic rock. Every time I hear her, I get chills.
- Everlast, White Trash Beautiful – I go through spurts with this album. There’s some really good, powerful songs here, although “Saving Grace” is still my favorite tune (but it’s not on this album).