those crazy monkeys!

i was over at aarons the other day and we were talking about a song that was on the radio last time we hung out. neither of us had heard it before but we both really liked it. he figured out what it was: DARE by the gorillaz. cool! they just keep surprising me with how cool their stuff is. i have their first album, but im thinking i should pick up their new one...

Marty Casey

last week i got a new cd. i havent gotten a new cd in a while (mostly because i never listen to the radio, so i never get suckered into buying the crap they are playing). last year i was drawn in by rockstar: inxs. i cant defend myself, i know it was really stupid, but i liked it- it was better than american idol at least...
anyway, i really liked one of the singers on there: marty casey. he made it to the last two, but was not chosen the winner. i was mad, but then i thought about it- the person who wins has to sign a contract to sing for inxs. how is that winning? marty got the best deal, he got all the exposure, but he could go back and play with is own band. they even got invited to open for inxs on their world tour.
i got the marty casey cd and the song that he sang a few times, 'trees', is on it. i really digged that song alot. ive only gotten a chance to listen to it through a few times, but it seems cool. its alot more rock than i was expecting, i thought it would be a bit more popish. ill have to listen to it some more to give an accurate review.

an oldie, but a goodie

as a teacher i am always looking for teaching aids. usually that means movies or music that will help get across the ideas that i am teaching. a while ago i found an aid in the most random of places: a band called pegtop. dont feel bad if you dont know who i am talking about, i would actually be more surprised if you knew who they actually were... let me explain:
back in college i found myself with an oportunity to see a band i had never heard of. we were already at the place, it was free to get in, and there was nothing else to do. so we figured why not? i ended up actually liking the band a lot, but my friends didnt really care for it. i ended up buying their album called 'the great reverse'. in the following weeks i found myself, much to my friend's annoyance, playing the cd alot and really loving it. soon after i found their first album 'just us' and picked it up.
fast-forward 5 years... was looking through my cds and was feeling a bit nastalgic. i spotted those pegtop cds and popped them into the player. as it turns out there are a couple of great songs with lyrics that fit perfectly into a couple lessons that i teach! who would have thought, a local folk band from minnisota with no record deal and a 50 gallon drum for a kickdrum would have helped me so much in my teaching!