It seems like I don’t have much to post about these days… or perhaps it is that I only have mundane things to post about? Either way, I feel like I could at least do a bulleted update list or something, to give y’all the 411 on what’s going on in the wonderful world of duane.
- I have officially ran out of classes to take for my pre-requisites. I am taking Microbiology this fall, and after that, I just have to wait to get into a program. I am really anxious about getting into one right away, because I REALLY want to get moving on this nursing degree. Keep your fingers crossed for me.
- Speaking of taking that one class, just getting the random holds off of my account at GPC was more than a headache that lasted from early June all the way through this week. Currently, things are okay, but it was REALLY frustrating to deal with… especially when you call the registration and administration services offices at any of their campuses, and all it does is ring five times before you get a voicemail. Is anyone working there? I mean, they have extended hours for crying out loud! Ugh, I am just glad I have things squared away with GPC.
- I have officially applied to Kennesaw and Georgia State. I am awaiting my friendly “you got in, yay” packet, so that I can then apply to each one of their nursing programs. I REALLY want to get in and start taking the next steps to becoming a nurse. I am so freaking ready it isn’t even funny.
- I mentioned a while back that I wanted a new lens for my birthday, but I ended up getting that before I went on my NYC trip. I have decided to wait a little while and see what Apple is going to do, but I have pretty much promised myself that I will be obtaining an iPod touch in the near future. I hope that they come out with one that has more than 32gb, and is cheaper than $500. It would be awesome to throw a camera on that thing too; because I think that the iPhone is awesome, and I would like to have everything BUT the phone. Hurry Apple! I’m anxious!
- We are still loving the counter tops, sink, and new faucet. I literally walk into the kitchen every time, and cannot believe that it is my house. It was the last thing about our house that we wanted to desperately change, and it has been done… I love our house even more now!
- Other than dealing with trying to get transcripts out, holds taken off of accounts, applications in, and other whatnot, I have been hanging out with friends and having a pretty good last few weeks. My mood seems to be in an upswing, and I am not complaining about that in the least. I just wish I could get rid of my extreme sensitivity to heat. I really feel like people think that I am making it up sometimes just for attention, which is far from the truth. The other night, we were at a cookout, and I had to leave really abruptly, or pass out. Seriously, I sat in the car for like 10 minutes with the AC on full blast just to keep my food down, and my self conscious. It was awful. I just wish that it didn’t bother me as bad as it does.
- Lastly, I guess, Soul Calibur IV, while it may make me REALLY frustrated at times when the opponent is a seemingly perfect god of moves and penetrating skills, is an amazing game. They have improved over the Soul Calibur franchise considerably, and the graphics are nothing short of jaw droppingly beautiful. It is also a hoot to play as Yoda, because he says a bunch of his little catch phrases, and well, he’s just so damn cute! It’s a great game, and a must for any fighting game fan. The Xbox 360 continually impresses me with it’s graphical prowess.
Alright, that’s it for now. Back to life…
This song was a total random find…. I downloaded this massive “indie” playlist a while back when I was trying to get an mp3 copy of Uh Huh Her’s amazing song so that I could feature it a few weeks back (I bought the track on iTunes, but my mp3 player on the blog doesn’t like DRM protected formats… foo). Well, I finally sat down to see if this playlist had any other gems, and I actually managed to find a few. One of those gems was this head bopping hit by the Infadels. I checked out a few other songs from their most recent release, Universe in Reverse (great cover art!!!), and they reminded me a lot of a group I LOVE, the Kaiser Chiefs. I haven’t had the chance to delve deeper into their record, but I am hoping to hear more great tracks like this one.
I first heard this song because it was featured as a free download of the week on iTunes. Every once and a while, iTunes has a very, very good selection (most of the time, not so much), and this is definitely one of the better ones I have gotten free. After several listens, I get the same satisfaction out of this song that I get with other acts like City and Colour and Hayden. I love folk/acoustic music. I think that should be clear by now; and as such, here’s another group I can check out because of their great sound. Also, it should be noted that I really love the vocal stylings that these guys use; it is just purty.
This is the song that my friend Deb introduced me to. I downloaded the record, and this is definitely my favorite song from the record thus far. I like the pumping beat, and the rock n’ roll nature of this track. I always regret not listening to her suggestions right away, because usually, they are really good, and I end up kicking myself down the line for not listening sooner, so I am glad that I paid attention this time. I love the intro to the song, because it totally sounds like it is going to be a big house number or some big old diva is about to hit the stage, and instead, they hit you with a marching beat, and some sweet lady-vocals. Nice track. 
I almost posted their song Ghosts, because that is the song that initially attracted me to Ladytron. However, I think that I enjoy this track much more; mostly for the beat and the distortion in the backing instruments. It’s funny, because every time I describe Ladytron, I end up saying that they are what the Cranberries would sound like, that is, if they Cranberries were better. Hear me out… I used to like the Cranberries, but the songs Linger and Zombie pretty much ruined it for me; Deloris O’Riordan’s screeching vocals repeating the same stuff over and over (Linger, linger, do you haf-to, do you haf-to; and Zombey, zombeieieieieieieiiieeeee) just makes me wish it would end. The reason they remind me of Ladytron, is because the lead singer’s voice is slightly reminiscent of Deloris’; but mostly because of the lady-Irish-y accent. Unlike the Cranberries, however, I am having a good time listening to Ladytron, however, so that is definitely a positive that I wanted to pass along to you guys.
If the summer drought of good television is making you sad, well you are in luck, because one of the best shows ever made is now out, for the first time in Region one DVD goodness, as of today!!! That’s right ladies and gents, the one and only 
I actually stumbled upon Jamie’s new record JIM by accident; the cover looked interesting, so I downloaded it. I wasn’t expecting to hear what I did, however, because this guy has a ton of talent. There are jazzy, hip-hop influenced, and even soulful bluesy songs littered throughout his record. His voice reminds me a lot of Marc Broussard, but with a touch of Jay Kay from Jamiroquai mixed in. In fact, there are a couple of songs that sound like they were influenced by Jamiroquai, and they are fun, and well executed. Overall, the record is a great listen, and this is my favorite song from it. 
I seriously cannot get enough of this song. I randomly looked up something else (I can’t even remember what), and I saw a mention of Uh Huh Her, and how it was Leisha Hailey’s new band. Well, I LOVE her on the L Word, so I had to see what the buzz was about. What I found was a fantastic song, and upon listening to their previously released EP, I found a band that I am definitely interesting in getting to know more. This song is interesting, because of the distortion that they used with the synthesizers, it’s almost a little eighties, but at the same time, it isn’t. I can’t explain it. All I know is that I fucking LOVE this song, and I am having to stop myself from pressing repeat every time it comes up on my ipod. I cannot wait for their CD release, which is only a short time away; August 19th. 
Alright, this one totally caught me by a huge surprise. Those of you that use iTunes know that they randomly feature people on the main page, and occasionally, I will go and see what they are all about. Well, this guy had done an iTunes exclusive, and I saw his picture and though, “hey cutie… I want to see more of you!”. Well, I checked out his most recent record, Bring Me Your Love, and what I found was one of the best records of 2008. Seriously, there isn’t a bad track on it. His acoustic style is one of my favorite types of music, and I love the tenderness in his voice. This is my favorite song from the record, even though the subject is a bit macabre. Overall, I am glad my appreciation of a hot guy with a beard has led me to fantastic music… who would’ve thought?
I am very pleased to feature another out gay artist today (Leisha Hailey of Uh Huh Her is an out lesbian), especially being that it is Shortbus star Jay Brannan. After seeing Shortbus, I heard that Jay was a musician, and even heard a few songs by him, but nothing substantial was released until recently. His recently released CD goddamned is out on iTunes as of a week or so ago, and this song, which is the first on the CD, has me CAPTIVATED. I love the simplicity of the rhythm, and I love his tender and sincere voice. This song is great not only because it sounds great, but because of the realization that he can’t have it all, and the frustration from that he explores in the lyrics. Just a note for those of you listening at work, he does say fuck a few times in the song, so just be aware of that, okay? Man, I love this song.
First up today is a leaked song by the AMAZING Lady GaGa. I have been going gaga over this lady since I instantly fell in love with her infectious HIT Just Dance, and I have anxiously been awaiting new stuff to satiate my appetite for all things Lady GaGa. Well, I found this little gem out there on the internets, and I have been loving every second of it. So far, Lady GaGa’s record is my most anticipated record of the year; this song shows me that she is a huge talent that is going to really deliver. I can’t wait for the The Fame! Until then, I am MAD about Boys Boys Boys!!! (And how appropriate, a song about loving boys on Pride weekend!)
This is a definite blast from the past for me. I was thinking that I wanted to search my dance-music dominated past, and come up with my favorite song, and I will tell you that it was hard. I have a HUGE collection of dance music, and there are so many that really get me moving. However, when I heard this remixed version of Jessica Folcker’s hit, I knew I had to choose this one to include this week. Perhaps I will add more dance songs in nostalgia in the future after rediscovering this amazing song. I can still remember how I came to know this song… my friend Matt (a DJ) used to make CDs for his friends. Well, he handed me a CD one night, and told me simply, that the first song would make me cum. It was Jessica Folcker’s To Be Able To Love, and I can tell you, that I squealed with delight when I heard it. This song is dance music at its best.
Whoa. This song is a huge, fantastic SURPRISE!!! It has all of the energy and spunk that I love in groups like Paramore; in fact, the blazing guitar riffs, and the high range of the singer borrow a lot from that sound that I love so much. With this song, this “little Irish girl” is showing us that acts like Kelly Clarkson may have to step up their game, because they are no longer alone in this music scene. If there is any justice in this world, this song is going to be HUGE!!!! I love it and I can’t wait to see what Lesley has in store for us next. I have seen some buzz about her on the internets (specifically over at arjan writes), and all of the buzz seems to be the same; this chick is hot! Here’s hoping her album comes out soon, and we get to see what she’s all about! I like what I’ve heard on her myspace, so if that is any indicator, I can tell you I am definitely looking forward to more from Ms. Roy.
I briefly mentioned Alanis’ new album, Flavors of Entanglement last week; however, it was before I was able to truly absorb the record. I was (kind of) surprised to find a really decent effort from Alanis, not because I didn’t think she had it in her, but because of how different and ever changing her music has been in the past. Listening to Flavors, she has reminded me of why I liked her so much in the past; she has some great songs in her catalog, and with this record, she only adds to that list. This, so far, is my favorite song on the record. I love the softness of the song, and how her voice is so beautiful on it. I also love the lyrics. I am glad that Alanis is back! (Although, did she really go anywhere?!?!)
I can’t believe I am FINALLY featuring this song (I’ve been meaning to, but it kept getting pushed off of the list)! After seeing Rachael open for Sara Bareilles a couple of months ago, I have been absolutely smitten with this track, which in my opinion, is her most beautiful, honest, and touching. While some of her other stuff is a bit heavier than I like, this song is so light and beautiful, that you can’t help but love it. Rachael has some new material out now on an EP, and has a new album coming out this year. I can’t wait to hear it, because I really loved her in concert, and I like this album as well. This is one of those acts that not a lot of people know about, and when you hear them, you wonder why, because the talent is so clearly obvious.