Just Be Calm

Two Hundred Seventy-Five

Artist - The Calm Blue Sea
Album - The Calm Blue Sea
Released - 2008
Label - No Label
Genre - Post-Rock

Tracks:
Side 1
We Happy Few
Literal
This Will Happen Again
Side 2
The Rivers That Run Beneath The City
After the Legions
Now Those Ashes Are At The Bottom

Enjoy!

Intuition

Two Hundred Fifty

Artist - The Black Angels
Album - Passover
Released - 2006
Label - Light in the Attic Records
Genre - Psychedelic Rock

Tracks:
1. Young Men
2. The First Vietnamese War
3. The Sniper at the Gates of Heaven
4. The Prodigal Sun
5. Black Grease
6. Manipulation
7. Empire
8. Better Off Alone
9. Bloodhounds on My Trail
10.  Call to Arms

Enjoy!

Local is Good

Two Hundred Thirty-Six

Artist - The Strange Boys
Album - Be Brave
Released - 2010
Label - In The Red Records
Genre - Garage Rock

Tracks:
I See
A Walk On The Beach
Be Brave
Between Us
Da Da
Night Might
Dare I Say
Laugh At Sex, Not Her
All You Can Hide Inside
The Unsent Letter
You Can't Only Love When You Want

Enjoy!

Heavyness

Two Hundred Twenty -Seven

Artist - The Sword
Album - Age of Winters
Released - 2006
Label - Kemado
Genre - Heavy Metal

Tracks:
Side A
Celestial Crown
Barael's Blade
Freya
Winter's Wolves
The Horned Goddess
Side B
Iron Swan
Lament for the Aurochs
March of the Lor
Ebethron

The debut album by Austin rockers The Sword, Age of Winters is a heavy, yet fascinating record.  Heavy metal at it's best, this record, in its entirety is pretty hard.  I always admire my taste in music, not to sound full of myself, because my range is so broad.  I go from Hip-Hop to Pop to Heavy Metal and it just helps me appreciate all types of sounds.  When listening to this record, it reminded me a lot of Red Fang, another heavy metal band that I had the pleasure of seeing live at Fun Fun Fun Fest this past November.  I love the drums and guitar on this album the most.  I feels like I'm almost in a time warp when I used to listen to nothing by Heavy Metal.  Those were the days.

Enjoy!

With Much Delight

Two Hundred Twenty-Five

Artist - Sound Team
Album - Marathon
Released - 2005
Label - St. Ives Records
Genre - Indie Rock

Tracks:
A
The Fastest Man Alive
Your Eyes Are Mirrors
Orange Bird
In The Dark No One Can Hear You Sweat
B
Back in Town
Shattered Glass
Afterglow Years
Don't Turn Away

A rarity to find, I thank my friend Brian for sharing this pick.  Sound Team is a local Austin band that I've stumbled upon (through the recommendation through friends) a little too late.  Even though they broke up 5 years ago, it seems to me that that has not been the case.  Maybe because I play their music a lot and still enjoy it, maybe because Matt Oliver and Jordan Johns have now formed another group called TV Torso, who knows?  But what I know is is that this album is amazing.  The Fastest Man Alive, Back In Town and Shattered Glass are probably my favorites on this track.  The possibilities could have been endless for this band, but I think with record label woes and conflicts of interest/personalities, the end was inevitable.  If you ever come across any Sound Team tunes, they are definitely worth a listen.  Let me not forget to mention they are A-OK guys, though I can only speak for one.

Enjoy!

Farewell

Two Hundred Eight

Artist - Explosions In The Sky
Album - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Released - 2011
Label - Temporary Residence
Genre - Post Rock

Tracks:
Last Known Surroundings
Human Qualities
Trembling Hands
Be Comfortable, Creature
Post Rock from 1952
Let Me Back In

The introduction of Explosions In The Sky's sixth album Take Care, Take Care, Take Care comes to you with a winding type sound that plays well into the rest of the tracks with what is considered to be very comforting.  What I love most about Explosions in the Sky (EITS) is that their post rock sound is very warming and inviting.  You could introduce this album, as well as their other albums, to someone whose never heard of them and they could instantly be drawn in by the magnitude of what EITS has to offer.  It would almost be like love at first listen, especially when you hear the guitar sound against the drums and bass.  It is like a magical feeling and I'm happy that a record, let alone a band, gives me the feeling I feel like EITS does.  A great band that has so much to offer, one could say that this kind of post rock is best listened to loud.

Enjoy!

Melodic Energy

One Hundred Eighty-Sixth

Artist - Explosions In The Sky
Album - The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place
Released - 2003
Label - Temporary Residence
Genre - Post Rock

Tracks:
First Breath After Coma
The Only Moment We Were Alone
Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean
Memorial
Your Hand if Mine

The third album by Austin Rockers Explosion In The Sky, The Earth Is Not a Cold Place is such a beautiful album.  As I'm listening to it at this very moment, the sound on each track is just so passionate, so warming that I cannot get enough.  This will have to be one of my TOP POST ROCK ALBUMS EVER!!  Music like this, what Explosions In The Sky are doing here, is the type of work that changes your life.  I know I've mentioned before about how some previous albums I've posted changes my life, but this one in particular is above them all.  Not only do you have the music, but look at the title of the album and the name of the tracks.  Lovely words written together to think that there are such things as great, life changing things.  Better by chance, laying down right now, holding someone's hand and just being happy is what this makes me think of.  I can go on and on about the feelings I feel when listening to this record, but I will say this, I AM HAPPY!

Enjoy!

City Limits

One Hundred Eighty-Fifth

Artist - Ume
Album - Phantoms
Released - 2011
Label - Modern Outsider
Genre - Rock/Indie Rock

Tracks:
Side A
Rubicon
Burst
Captive
The Push
Destroyer
Side B
Run Wild
Pretend Again
Hurricane II
Dancing Blind
The Task

The debut album by Austin rockers Ume, Phantoms is a force to be reckoned with. The lead singer/guitarist, Lauren Larson is a cute, blonde, petite ball of energy that will definitely melt your face off with her amazing guitar playing skills.  A shredder, as you may not have noticed, Larson is accompanied by her husband/bassist Eric and if you have yet to see this album live, you are definitely missing out.  Captive is one of my favorite songs on this record.  I love the way Lauren's voice projects through each song, and then listening to Hurricane II make it all the more obvious that she is one talented musician and Ume is a great band.

Enjoy!

A Team of Sound

One Hundred Sixty-One

Artist - Sound Team
Album - Work EP
Released - 2005
Label - Capitol Records
Genre - Indie Rock

Tracks:
The Fastest Man Alive
It's Obvious What's Happening Here
Orange Bird
In The Dark No One Can Hear You Sweat
Don't Turn Away

I wish I lived in Austin, Texas when this band was still together.  Now I have the remnants of what used to be, which is now TV Torso.  We are here to talk about Sound Team, which a six man band who had a lifespan of 7 years, but their sound definitely lives on.  A band with an amazing drummer (yes, I am a lover of Jordan Johns), Work EP has one of my favorite songs on it, The Fastest Man Alive.   After the release of Work EP, they released a few more albums and even two on cassettes.  I absolutely love that about bands.  On another note, as I was listening to this, I was overly excited with The Fastest Man Alive and Don't Turn Away.  It's something about Matt Oliver's voice that and also his hair, though you can't really tell unless you see it in person.  He is a tall, slender man with the curliest hair.  Ahhh, I love that.  But yes, this record is great, one to definitely appreciate.

Enjoy!

A Local Best

Departing the lovely city of Austin had to go out in style.  So I thought, how could I accomplish just that?  What record would make me think of Austin?  With the good help of my new roommate, here I have my one hundred twentieth pick.

Artist - Spoon
Album - Girls Can Tell
Released - 2001
Label - Merge
Genre - Indie Rock

Tracks:
Everything Hits At Once
Believing is Art
Me and Mr. Bean
Lines In The Suit
The Fitted Shirt
Anything You Want
Take A Walk
1020AM
Take The Fifth
This Book is a Movie
Chicago at Night

So Spoon is a local band from Austin, Texas and I think that this is one of their best records.  Of course a personal favorite of mine, Everything Hits At Once is one of the best songs on this record.  From time to time, I like to dabble in playing some local artists to get a feel of what Austin was back in the early 2000.  A lot has changed since then, though a few bands here and there come out and surprise you.  I've had the pleasure of seeing Spoon once, in Ft. Lauderdale, when I used to live there.  I always felt that people in South Florida don't appreciate good music.  I guess what is one of the reasons why I always felt like the music scene there was just so blaze.  Settling for Austin in regards to their music scene was a good choice because I feel that so many people pass through Austin.  Then you have Austin City Limits Music Festival, Fun Fun Fun Fest and SXSW that make it just that much better.

Enjoy!

Formerly, Now Known As

We all know the ever evolving door of the music industry and how bands break up and reform to become what they always wanted to be.  Here, my sixty-ninth pick, is one I've grown to love.  A local Austin, Texas band, they are indeed divine.

Artist - TV Torso
Album - Status Quo Vadis
Released - 2010
Label -
Genre - Rock


Tracks:
Side A
Nobodies
Slanderer's Stew
Two Glass Eyes
Side B
Slouch Hat City
Far Enough Away
Elegy

Status Quo Vadis is TV Torso's debut EP and despite not seeing them in almost a year, my friend and I have had the pleasure of seeing them about 5 times before that.  A local band from Austin, Texas and two of the members were formerly in Sound Team (another Austin, Texas based band), Matt Oliver, Jordan Johns and Austin Jones really put together the great sound.  Such a great sound, they are worthy enough to be included in my list of 365 days of vinyl.  Definitely check out this album and listen to Nobodies and Two Glass Eyes, two of my favorite songs on this album.   

Enjoy!

Right in my Backyard

This is a mini milestone of sorts for me, because I'm on my fiftieth vinyl TODAY.  So with that being said, I didn't have to search far for this one, since this band is right here from good 'ol Austin, Texas.

Artist - Explosions In The Sky
Album - Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever
Released - 2001
Label - Temporary Residence Limited
Genre  - Post-Rock


Tracks:
die
greet death
yasmin the light
the moon is down
live forever
have you passed through this night?
a poor man's memory
with tired eyes, tired minds, tired souls, we slept

Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever is Explosions in the Sky's second album and they are from the lovely city of Austin, Texas, where I currently reside.  It's hard to imagine this album came out in 2001, since before 5 or so years ago I never HEARD of Explosions in the Sky.  Mind you, I'm from Miami, so the scene down there isn't very post-rock, indie rock friendly, unless you know people who are into that and not much into the mainstream type of rock.  But low and behold, I have a great group of online friends that I met in a message board that have showed me the way to better music, a much more broader selection so to speak.

Yesterday, when my friend mentioned this record was in my collection, I had to play it today.  I've been on an Explosions in the Sky kick since coming back from Seattle and there is nothing that makes me happier than knowing Kevin has this on vinyl.  Grant it, I was listening to it on my iTunes as I was cleaning today, trying to make sure everything is done before I go on vacation, and as soon as I put the record on the turntable, what a difference.  I feel like the sound is just that much more intense and with it being post-rock and all.  I had the great pleasure of seeing them at Austin City Limits (not the festival, the actual venue) and they were mind blowing.

Enjoy!