more than just a good time.

i've written before about how i think artists in the industry are doing it wrong. how they say one thing and do another. how they portray themselves in one light and are really living in the dark.
this post is the exact opposite.
this is one artist who i think is doing it right.
he isn't even in the "Christian" industry and he is more outspoken in his interviews and on his blog than a vast majority of the Christian artists out there.
so in this post i tip my proverbial hat to mr. adam young...better known as, owl city.

who didn't love "fireflies" when it came out? it was a new sound for pop radio, it was ethereal, and it rocketed owl city onto the music scene. there was nothing in the lyrics that said he was a Christian and nothing offensive to anyone in any way. his entire ocean eyes album was pretty imaginative and brought you into this fantasy world mr. young had created.

just before the release of all things bright and beautiful (owl city's sophomore release) there was a blog post that showed a side that the average listener and fan may not have known about the quiet frontman. adam had taken the beloved song, "in christ alone," recorded it and tossed it up on his blog. it was linked by hundreds (if not thousands) on facebook, twitter, and was played on many a radio station, including the one i work for. suddenly, adam's faith had been thrust into the forefront and he didn't shy away from it at all.

in interviews he said that he was a Christian and quoted Scripture, he tweets Bible verses, his sophomore album had a song that sang, "dear God, you're the only north star i would follow this far." on his last tour he partnered with the salvation army for their "rock the red kettle" movement, stopping in almost every city along the way to volunteer his time and energy in the stores and sorting rooms and using his celebrity (via youtube videos) to help their cause. and i get that you can't ever truly know anyone else's heart and tweeting John 3:16 doesn't make you a super Christian but you can tell when it's authentic and when it's a show. i get the feeling that, with adam, it's genuine.

do i think adam young is perfect? no.
do i think he's doing a better job than a lot of Christian artists at living out his faith? yes.
he isn't afraid, of what label might be put on him or how it may affect his career. and that's an example we can all learn from.

xo

a first.

so i added a band recently to the radio playlist that i really enjoy.
the song is this great kind of rock that is a little arena and a little progressive.
the band is called pioneer.
here's the catch...
i can't remember if i have seen them live.
i think i have but i can't for the life of me remember clearly.
i even creeped on pictures of them online.
nothing.
i blame it on turning 27.

xo

2013.

"so this is the new year, and i don't feel any different" -death cab for cutie

as i quickly approach my 27th year of life (ie. my birthday) i can't lie, i still feel like i'm 22. so naturally my resolutions for the year mirror that "i do what i want" attitude of most 22 year olds:

• learn to play guitar- i'm sick of the fact that taylor swift is living my life.
• put out a second line of shirts- i've had jon foreman's permission to use his quotes for a year and a half and i've been too lazy to do anything about it.
• get to california- bro am, ellen, a really rad zoo, tmz bus tours.
• sing karaoke- just waiting on cody and adam.
• see one of the concerts that i missed last year- take your pick: switchfoot, needtobreathe, mat kearney, mute math, paper route, etc. 

what are your resolutions???
cheers to 2013.

xo

i sang for people: here's the update.

remember when i told you about how i was going to do something scary and i was going to sing in front of people?

well that has come and passed and you know what, it wasn't nearly as terrifying as i thought it would be. it was actually pretty fun.

see i wrangled a friend who knows how to play guitar into helping me (since i don't know how to play guitar, don't worry, it's on the new year's resolution list) and we practiced some christmas tunes and showed up on a rainy december morning to play for a handful of people who were all either drinking coffee and chatting with loved ones, knitting, or having a bible study. we did all covers (i'm not ready to completely wear my heart, emotions, and soul on my sleeve with my own tunes just yet) and only screwed up once or twice, which i am totally blaming on my singing partner.

it reminded me how much i love creating music. i used to perform with my high school orchestra and i loved concert nights. and even though these songs weren't something i had penned myself it was still this sense of rightness when performing them.

so i will continue on in music even though i may not have the best voice and despite the fact that i'm not the most naturally musically inclined because it is something that fills my heart with joy. it feels like where i am supposed to be, even when it takes getting over myself to get there.

"far better to fail at building a magnificent world than succeed in monochromatic survival." -jon foreman

xo

top 20

recently i was asked to write my top 20 christian album releases of 2012.
so here they are, in no particular order (because let's be honest, i can't decide who gets first in this race):

·      Paper Route- “The Peace of Wild Things”= One of those albums that is straight-up captivating.

·      Future of Forestry- “Young Man Follow EP”= I was tardy to the party with Future of Forestry but I am a fan now because of this EP.

·      The Classic Crime- “Phoenix”= Crafty writing and driven beats garner this release a spot in the top 20.  And ‘Glass Houses’ has a sing-a-long part!

·      The Wedding- “No Direction”= Their first full-length in years, it was worth the wait.

·      NEEDTOBREATHE- “Keep Your Eyes Open EP: Songs from The Reckoning Sessions”= I love their recordings, I love them live, so obviously I would love a live recording.

·      Capital Kings- “I Feel So Alive”= It’s fun. And dancey.

·      Stomptown Revival- “Stomptown Revival EP”= It has harmonica, I mean come on.

·      Brandon Heath- “Blue Mountain”= The first track, ‘The Harvester,’ is what got this album on the list.

·      Write This Down- “Lost Weekend”= Such a solid sophomore release, gritty and raw and perfectly imperfect.

·      Britt Nicole- “Gold” = She sounds a little more grown-up, and a little more polished. And she got Lecrae to join her on a track, don’t worry, it works.

·      Anberlin- “Vital”= Stephen Christian and Co. are really good at hitting the nail on the head.

·      Owl City- “The Midsummer Station”= With the summer anthem ‘Good Time’ and unexpected songs like ‘Silhouette’ it nabs a spot.

·      Summertime Dropouts- “Rewind”= A sparkling new band with a sparkling new pop-punk summer soundtrack.

·      Love Out Loud- “Catch Me If You Can” = If Owl City, Family Force 5, and Relient K got together and had a baby it would be this album.

·      Benjamin Dunn and the Animal Orchestra- “Fable”= Unabashedly Christian, not a drop of cheesy.

·      Heath McNease- “The Weight of Glory”= Making an album inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis could go horribly wrong or horribly right, in this case it was the latter.

·      From Indian Lakes- “Able Bodies”= I just like these fellas.

·      Josh Anderson- “All the Little Things”=He’s like a rough Jon Foreman, I’m for it.

·      Dave Barnes- “Stories To Tell” =Sometimes you just want a solid pop album from a talented singer-songwiter.

·      Honorable mention: House of Heroes- “Cold Hard Want” = I have heard so many great things about this album but have yet to really spend time with it, my fault. 

here's to a 2013 filled with great jams!

xo 

oh be careful little pen what you write.

semantics are important. words, i'm a fan of 'em. there are certain words i won't say because i don't like the way they feel in my mouth or i just think they sound ugly. and they aren't even bad words!

because i am such a fan of words i hate cheap rhymes/dumb phrases in songs. train is super guilty of this crime (but i still love them). ed sheeran wrote one that i hated so much i tweeted it (and he's "ginger Jesus"). even jon foreman has written a rhyme that i could have written (and i expect more out of him, we all know how much i adore him).
so here are some lyrics that i wasn't thrilled with and how these same people completely redeemed themselves:

train: well let's just say there are a TON of awful lyrics from the pen of pat monahan but we'll stick with a famous one, "but my heart is 'bout to beat right out my untrimmed chest." redemptive lyric: "in a world where what we want is only what we want until it's ours." 

ed sheeran: out of his first single here in the states we get this gem, "but lately her face is slowing sinking, crumbling like pastries." redemptive lyric: "all i want is the taste that your lips allow."

jon foreman: this one hurts me more than you will ever know, "i want to thrive and not just survive." (added note on this one, i don't disagree with the content i just feel like he can write SO MUCH BETTER than this). redemptive lyric: "if it doesn't break your heart, it isn't love."

so i think the valuable lesson we have all learned here is to think twice before you write a song that will go on to gain you popularity and bring you monetary gain because i might not like it and blog about it.

xo

mistakes and learning.

i am a firm believer in the idea that you never stop learning.
it's not always book or classroom learning.
often we learn from making mistakes.
recently i learned that if you are going to take pictures with cookies featuring the faces of your favorite band boys expect them to be seen by the band boys.

*if you have no idea what i am talking about, scroll back to earlier this year and read the story about how my roommates are wonderful people.*

my one roommate decided that she was going to the music with a mission tour in a town a couple of hours away. i didn't end up going. what i didn't know was that icon for hire was on that tour. not a huge icon for hire fan but i am a fan of their drummer. or rather, i'm a fan of his huge biceps. so that is what i put as the caption when i took a picture with my "adam" cookie and put it up on facebook. i know, i'm a real class act.

see? super classy.

while at the show my roommate decided to show adam the picture of me holding the cookie with his face rosie-the-riveter-style. i know my muscles are super impressive but it's probably really awkward to see a picture with your face on a cookie being held by a girl you have never met.
they then proceeded to take a picture of him balancing her phone (with my cookie picture on it) on his bicep. now i'm the one who's awkward.

but look at those biceps! 

but then i figured he already knows that i'm weirdly obsessed so i friended him on facebook. now we're friends and you know if i meet him someday that i will straight up tell him that i'm "that girl who had the cookie with your face on it" because clearly i don't learn from my mistakes.

xo