Lost somewhere between the earth and my home today.

I often think of The Geraldine Fibbers, actually. How they shoulda been bigger. How unique they were. How sexy was their sound. How otherworldly Buzolich's voice and how its expanse swallows you and surrounds you with every emotion and stimuli imaginable from within its acrobatic depths. How gnarled and tangled they got those guitars. How their proper full-length debut never stood a chance on a Major label in 1995 and that is just all the more reason to love it. How that debut hasn't aged a day because it was always ahead of its time. How much I fell and am still in love with every new nook and cranny my ears and/or brain discover each time I listen. 

How random it was that I was looking for something to listen to that was meaningful to me on my birthday and when I fired up Lost Somewhere Between The Earth And My Home I also hopped online to see if the band had been up to anything I missed in the last, oh, 20 years since I last checked up on them and whammo-blammo can you believe it they just released Lost Somewhere Between The Earth And My Home on vinyl last year and it includes the first new track from the band in 20 years (!) as a bonus so I immediately ordered a copy of my own and that was pretty exciting.

If you wanna feel fancy you'll call it 'Oxygène'

I've scraped most of the streaming services for content that can still hold my interest after 14+ months of largely staying home. After my extreme disappointment in the latest Conjuring* movie I was looking for something that might actually be scary, and while Oxygen (titled Oxygène elsewhere) is more thriller than horror, it is very effective at raising your pulse ... even after you've figured out the twist (which, of course, there is a twist but it's reasonably obvious, so it never feels like you've been hoodwinked or anything).

So yeah, watch Oxygen!

*To be fair, I've never watched a Conjuring movie all the way through before, and while I was aware it was a popular franchise I had no idea HOW popular! So I'm probably in the minority when it comes to people that find them terrible.

Hold onto your hats!

While it might seem odd I'm only just now seeing a video from 2016, that's the glory on the internet, right? Discovering old news that feels surprising and new! Well, sometimes. In this instance I had to watch this a few times because I figured there had to be a trick I was missing, but apparently it's just physics at work. 

[h/t Kottke]

The Rare Occasions ask that "You Call Me When You Get There," so put them on speed dial.

The Rare Occasions are based in L.A. and their new album Big Whoop is out June 18, and it is very fun and quite incredible. The video above for "Call Me When You Get There" nicely encapsulates the band's strengths, so if you're expecting a brash and bright power-pop explosion from the rest of the disc, your expectations will be met!

Also, a side note about videos in general, but is anyone else simply floored at how almost every video these days looks great and is as inventive as all get-out? I was reading the oral history of the initial MTV boom and I swear that videos these days produced on shoestring budgets either rival or are superior to the once that cost hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars.

All you need is a great idea now, and technology has caught up with how you execute your visions ... so I think that's pretty cool. Even if I am doubtful any video by anyone not a superstar converts into many sales, I'm grateful they're still out there and bands are making them awesome.

You can pre-order Big Whoop here, but if you can't wait you can snag "Call Me When You Get There" below.

It's been a good week!

I've spent more time in my company's physical office in the last week than I did in the previous fourteen months. I don't know what the future holds, though I am not a fan of the notion we would all resume the  regular pre-pandemic commutes and losing all that time just to be in the office every single day. But I do appreciate having a physical space to use when I need gear that I don't have at home. And now that more and more folks are fully vaccinated, meeting in person occasionally can't be beat when hammering out complicated projects on tight deadlines. There is something about being in a room together, knowing everyone is in the same physical space and working toward the same destination, that even the most robust virtual meeting platforms can't replicate.

Plus, my office rooftop has views like the above, and it's beautiful!

LØLØ's killer jamz.

Some days you just need a really big, crunchy guitar, straightforward pop tune that doesn't have any real deeper meaning beyond creating an aggressive head-nodding vibe and the potential to start throwing stuff around your family room while slam dancing with your cat.

Or something like that.

Debris slide!

So Saturday I was minding my business when I suddenly had to hear a particular song! This was unusual, since it has been years since my entire system demanded such specific immediate aural and systemic satisfaction, so I listened and dialed up Pavement's "Debris Slide" post haste, with results that surprised even me with their pleasurable force.

The band never made a proper video for the track, but this performance from 1994 very much reminds me of the first few times I saw Pavement play during that era, so here you go. No point here—just fond memories and the hope you find this as pleasurable as I do.