cake

Cake Day (Birthdays)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

Today I decided to write a post about birthdays, and because we’re closing in on the end of my birthday month, its more than appropriate. You know what Lesley Gore used to say right? After all, what is the point of a birthday other than to celebrate the anniversary of your date of birth, also known as your birthdate – the date and time in which you were born.

How birthdays are celebrated vary from culture to culture, and even within certain cultures there are personal traditions to uphold. These celebrations usually involve gifts, parties, and rituals which serve to reinforce the celebration. Getting punched on the arm for every year you’ve been alive came to mind almost immediately for me. Which I hate.

On top of that, many religions celebrate the birth of their founders. Think Christmas and Buddha’s Birthday.

Another item to consider with birthdays is that they help us to establish milestones of life and all of the responsibilities that are conferred to us at those times. Some of them are good, some of them are dangerous, and others are up for debate, literally. For example, the age of consent, voting rights, emancipation, quitting secondary school, marriage, getting a drivers license, purchasing alcohol and tobacco and a host of other doozies. Also, when we reach our governments elected age of majority, minors assume all responsibilities over their lives, and parents/guardians no longer have legal charges to take care of them.

It’s fun stuff.

But let’s consider traditions of North America, because it’s where I live and what I grew up with, okay dear readers? As many of you know, we celebrate birthdays with a party of some scale, including presents for the birthday person, often bringing out a birthday cake/pie/treat at some point during the festivities and topping said cake with candles to signify the persons age. Then we blow out the candles and make a wish – we’re supposed to keep this secret because the wish won’t come true otherwise.

Yeah, I’m calling bullshit on that.

I just turned thirty-two, and I am not married, I do not have children nor a house in my name, I am not a successful author, painter, musician, public speaker, athlete or lecturer, and I am definitely not in the best shape of my life.

And that’s the problem with birthdays, they’re built upon dreams, deadlines, obligations, expectations, and wish fulfillment.

So this year I’m trying something different. A new set of theories and a new mindset – I’m celebrating my unbirthdays and my perpetual state of progress OR being progressive. This is the year of campfire stories, so watch closely, listen intently, and keep close to the warmth of the fire. I’m going to share some more birthday stories soon, and get you in the spirit of the present.

Bad pun, yes. But a better gift cannot be found anywhere.

Tim!

Sometimes Its About Whiskey and Cake (July Talk, July Talk review)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

Apparently music writing is something that cannot be taught. Well at least that’s what I read in a review of a book titled  “How to Write About Music” which was edited by the same person that wrote the review.

We all understand that the digital landscape has changed things significantly, to the point that anyone with 7 bucks a month and an internet connection can speak their mind, and literally anyone can stumble onto their work. That’s both a terrifying and fascinating prospect.

But the lady who wrote the article makes some good points, and I enjoyed it, so I want to write about my take on what she shared.

So what did I learn from this article? Some good things in fact.

  1. Listen to music normally before you approach it critically. That makes sense, you can’t really discuss an album until you’ve experienced it.
  2. Put it on repeat, but don’t get trapped in your seat. If you over-think it, you’ll probably give a false impression of how you really feel. However, if you listen one time you might not appreciate hidden details.
  3. R&D is everything, just ask Batman. By researching you learn what the music is about, what the perception in the media is, and how you feel about it all.
  4. People like stories and storytelling is easier. Well potentially. But if you do come up with a framework, you can progress along quicker.
  5. Embrace the darkness. Err, I mean editing. Embrace the editing. What, another Batman reference? You are going to spend a lot of your time reading and rereading what you’ve written, moreso than writing. But more than that, you will be rewriting your work.
  6. Do not succumb to timeline pressures. Writers aren’t going to have much of an advantage over anyone at this time, because of downloads and the like. Write a thoughtful evaluation because its useful, not because you need to be first.xzibit-meme-generator-first-line-so-i-made-a-lame-comment-on-your-post-p-fbfb45

Now that I have those tips and tricks under my belt, I think its time to tackle my first album review. Because I can, dear readers, and because I think its time to start expanding my reach and my breadth.

July Talk – July Talk
released October 15, 2012
******** 8/10

julytalk-album-extended

I like Peter Dreimanis’ voice. Its distinct and also reminiscent of Tom Waits, Johnny Cash, Americana, and whiskey. All things that I love in equal proportions.

Incidentally, and while doing a little research, I learned that he didn’t used to sing when he played. In fact, he only began to embrace that musical ability after he decided to form July Talk with Leah Fay (co-frontman, frontwoman?), Ian Docherty, Josh Warburton, and Danny Miles back in 2012.

What makes July Talk even more distinct is the pairing of Peter’s vocals with Leah’s vocals right beside him. She carries an angelic weight so slight that if you were to reach out for it, it would disappear.

I’m not one to fawn over an album too often, but when I like a musical act, I find generally that the tracks will work together. July Talk doesn’t easily give me that comfortable satisfaction though.

It seems with every track I have to work and listen through it very carefully because while their “vision” is familiar throughout, the content shifts ever so subtly. With lyrics like “if you want money in your coffee, if you want secrets in your tea” it is hard not to smile at the whimsy they offer up so quickly in Paper Girl. Then they’ll switch gears and jump into a track like My Neck – A track that has amazing chords woven into it’s chorus and feels like it’s ripped out of a bad TV show from the 70s, hints of sexuality and tired violence. But its oh so captivating.

And have you watched any of the music videos for their singles? Go do it now! They refuse to put colour into any of the videos, and it makes them more special for it. It reminds me of painting as a teenager, so much angst and emotion, but you don’t need colour to appreciate it.

You know what, I’ll just link to them all here. 1 2 3 4 5 6

You’re welcome.

You’ve probably heard Headsick at this point in history though right? That’s another one of my favourite tracks. I think it combines a nice mix of their indie, garage, punk, and pop sensibilities all in one place. And have I mentioned their voices… So good!

You should also consider visiting Leah on twitter she is pretty fun to follow @whiskeyandcake

If you ever have an opportunity to check them out live. I highly recommend that experience as well. I personally saw them this past July and rank it among my favourite live acts. Convenient and poetic right? Also it was one of the first dates I took my current belle on, and I think that’s pretty neat.

So what did you think? I hope you enjoyed my post. I look forward to hearing your feedback. My goal here is to share music that is currently in my queue or whatever is hot off the presses and on the top of my mind. For instance, I may just be giving some feedback on EODM next week, but you’ll have to stay tuned to find out.

And that’s all the theories I’ve got this week.

Tim!