How long?

This is how I feel right now : post

Except it hurts ten times more this time around cause we were so close.

also to the person from Russia who looked at this numerous times this past week...I hope you enjoyed what you read. 

Beginning of the End

It's a weird feeling being in San Jose, knowing that I only have four months left to call this place home.
The misanthropist doesn't want to share this news with many people and just go about doing my business when school starts and then quietly clock out when the time comes. The other part of me wants to share the news and spend as much time as I can with people since I only have few months left.

Few days ago, My friend and I made a trip down to Monterey. We had been talking about this trip for few weeks now so I had an idea on how the trip would go and as usual, the reality was nothing like the idea I had in my head. The first place we visited was Point Pinos Lighthouse. I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but, I have some sort of an obsession with lighthouses so I was excited to see my very first one in person. 

It was also nice that the day was nice. Every once in a while, you have those days where everything goes well, even if it is not how you imagined it to be, you are more than happy on how it ended up being. This was one of those days. 

Faces.

I recently made a mix for a friend that consisted 18 tracks, all of em with female vocalist.
Here is the track listing:

1. Romance by Wild Flag
2. Faces by the Happy Hollows
3. Oscar Wilde by Company of Thieves
4. Last Person by Jenny Owen Youngs
5. The Healthy One by Laura Stevenson and the Cans
6. Tears Dry on Their Own by Amy Winehouse
7. Smells Like Teen Spirit by Patti Smith
8. Back In Your Head by Tegan and Sara
9. Cliche by Audra Mae
10. Zebra by Beach House
11. India Ink by Correatown
12. Civilian by Wye Oak
13. Lounge Act by Jessica Lea Mayfield
14. The Words that Maketh Murder by PJ Harvey
15. Avalanche by Zola Jesus
16. The Greatest by Cat Power
17. These Days by Nico
18. On the Radio by Regina Spektor

It just dawned me that I added to cover songs and both of them are Nirvana covers....I'm not sure why I did that.

We love the sound,
The Sound is what found us
Sound is the blood between me and you.

Fly Free

I spent the last few weeks in Southern California...it was my first time being back there since FYF Fest and I have to say I had a pleasant time while I was down there.
It was nice to spend New Years Eve with the Henry Clay People and turning 21 and going out and ordering a drink with people you have known for few years now.

While I was bored on the flight back, I decided to do some work on the Southwest napkins since I can't really read while I'm inside a moving object and you can only spend so much time staring at the clouds.

 When you get bored in Irvine, you drink and play video games and then drink more...My last night in town.

 Also a trip to Southern California isn't complete with going to Taco Mesa and ordering some Stuffed Jalapeños.

I went to the Satellite for the very first time to see the Henry Clay People on New Years Eve...HCP hold a special place in my heart since they were the first band I saw in San Francisco and they are the only band I can say that has gotten better every year. They played 60min set of their own songs and after midnight they played a 60min set of covers, including Rancid, Bruce Springsteen, REM covers...I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend my first NYE as a 21 year old. 

Simply Livin' 

Take It Back

I don't know how you can live anymore.

Aesthetic

I guess since the year is almost over I should write some sort of review so that when I want to look back to this year, I can just read my own review.

2011 Music: Some Albums that caught my attention.
Vacation by Bomb the Music Industry!
England Keep My Bones by Frank Turner
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by M83
Resolutions by Dave Hause
Sit Resist by Laura Stevenson and the Cans
Quiet in the Valley, On the Shores the End Begins by Jim Ward
Self Titled- Wild Flag
This is A Desert EP by the Henry Clay People

I have my reasons for falling in love with these records, I recommend you check em out and find your own reasons rather than reading mine.

2011 Movies:
Beginners (by far the best film I have seen in the last 12 months or so)
Tree of Life
Midnight in Paris
Take Shelter
Another Earth
Everything Must Go

Let's see...other things that I did this year...
I went to three different music festivals.
Went to Florida for the first time.
Got my very first tattoo.
Read more books than the past year.
Moved from an apartment to a house.
Meet some amazing, amazing people.

hmm maybe I'll come back to this and add few more things when I remember.

Plan for 2012: Win the last game of the Season.

The National at Bill Graham

Last night I witnessed the National at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco. I'm not even going to bother talking about the opening acts Local Natives and Wye Oaks....The National were simply perfect.

I have waited three years to see them live but I could never convince anyone to with me and for some odd reason, they are the only band I would refuse to see alone. Last night I went with my friends Ryan and Nicole, my sister bought me the tickets for my birthday and I have to say, it was the best thing anyone could have bought for me.

The way the Nationals control your emotions live is really rare. Their songs build up this tension within you that just makes you want to scream and then after five or six songs into their set, they played 'Squalor Victoria' which gave you a little chance to release that tension towards the end of the song though not all of it. It left you for wanting to scream more, wanting to release that tension more. Few more songs, more tension builds up and then they go into 'Abel' where Matt, the singer just becomes a disaster. This process continues till the end until they play 'Mr.November' and 'Terrible Love' back to back and you just release everything that you had inside you.

It was perfect, just the way I wanted it to be.

My friend Ryan on Local Natives: "They look like a band Urban Outfitters created."

Controlled Chaos

Few days ago, I mentioned I was working on the Romantic Catastrophe/Bellyflop split...well, I decided to scratch the idea. Not really, I kept half of the concept and just sort of expanded on that concept and also decided that the title of the split, together don't sound too good. Individually, the meaning behind the name is interesting to me but together, not sure if it's too good of an idea.

So the split evolved into 'Controlled Chaos"...so here it is:

1. On My Way Back Home by Jim Ward
2. Lived In Bars by Cat Power
3. Goodbye England by Laura Marling
4. La Cienga Just Smiled by Ryan Adams
5. Tacoma by Tim Barry
6. Love Ire and Songs by Frank Turner
7. Man of the Hour by Eddie Vedder
8. A Broken Promise by Sleepercar
9. If U Got Some Magic by Rademacher
10. Apartment Story by the National
11. Forever by the Parson Red Heads
12. Call It Off by Tegan and Sara