Halfway to Fivepoints

Do you remember what it was like listening to music before the Internet was a thing? Do you remember how frustrating it was to hear a song on the radio or during a movie, and have no way to find out what that song was? For all the arguments that digital piracy has ruined music forever, I've found that the inverse is the actual truth; I love being able to find music from all across the world that I would never have had a chance to learn about otherwise. You're not limited to what's playing on the radio or available in the CD aisle anymore.

Now, we have the entire world open to us, with all of its niche styles and indie artists. I love that.

I first heard of Swedish singer-songwriter Anna Ternheim when her song "No, I Don't Remember" was played during the end credits to the Xbox 360 video game Alan Wake. Her lyrics and musical ability captured my attention immediately and I wanted more. With a bit of searching based on nothing more than a half-remembered lyric, I found Anna's album Halfway to Fivepoints.

Anywhere but Home

One of my favorite things in Freegal is how it's helped me find some hidden gems that I never would have known about otherwise. Now, most of the time, when you hear the phrase "hidden gem," it's referring to a band or album that was overlooked despite being amazing. For me, however, there's another kind of hidden gem: songs or albums by some of my own favorite artists that I never knew existed. These are particularly exciting in my opinion because they blend the familiar with the unfamiliar, the new with the old. You get the excitement of discovering something new even though it still sounds comfortably familiar.

My hidden gem for today is "Anywhere but Home." It's a live album recording from Evanescence, recorded during a 2004 tour. Now, I'm a fan of live albums for several reasons; I think it's interesting (albeit sometimes sad) to hear the difference between a studio album and a live one. In my opinion, there's something more visceral about hearing the music without all the cleaning, modifying and other audio tricks that go into a studio work. Most importantly, however, is that you can usually find a hidden gem on a live album that didn't make it into the studio release.

Found Magazine + Rasputina Visiting Tucson

After catching the hilarious Found Footage Festival at the Loft recently, I'm really excited for more peeks into the weird private moments of America, at the Found Magazine tour coming to Club Congress Saturday, October 20th. They often choose great musicians to accompany their show (the last time they were in town, it was the Watson Twins), and this time, one of my favorite (and equally weird) bands, Rasputina, is joining them.

Plus, on the following Sunday, October 21st, the Found Magazine folks are going to stop by Main Library at 2pm for a free matinee performance sponsored by, that's right, the coolest public library in Pima County. (The Sunday show will be minus Rasputina and some of the more risqué content). Read on for more info about Found Magazine and Rasputina!

Heroes for Just One Day

Fun fact I learned in library school: researchers at one large public library discovered that about most of the items people check out are ones that they found through browsing (as opposed to ones on a list, or ones they'd put on hold). The library is all about serendipity, like finding that hidden treasure on a shelf, or grabbing a choice item that's on display. This is just as true for music as it is for books. My favorite impulse checkout CD so far is War Child Presents: Heroes.

The BlessTheFall Beat

  One of my favorite bands, BlessTheFall, which is a Christian post-hardcore band that originated in Phoenix, Arizona, came back with a new album, Awakening!  The sounds on this track are softer than the last album and still better than ever!  You can find all of the songs on this album on Freegal.  For people who like the softer side of hardcore music, I would recommend the songs 40 Days, Meet Me At The Gates, Bones Crew.  'Till The Death Of Me, Undefeated, Bottomfeeder, The Reign, and others are some of the heavier side that album. I believe there's a BTF song out there for almost everyone, you just have to take a listen and find that out for yourself!
-Alyssa

A Los Angeles Kind of Mood

Hole, Celebrity Skin: I played this constantly in 1998, and I recently rediscovered it after a prolonged absence. The recent arson fires in L.A. made me think of the title track and the album as a whole. Why? The album has a sunshiny, shimmering vibe, along the lines of the Beach Boys and the Go-Go's; fun (and at times almost pretty) melodies and harmonies that make you wish you were in a convertible singing along. But at the same time, with the razor-edged guitars and the lyrics you're reminded that so much of what we see is artifice and that sometimes the most beautiful things in life have a very ugly side to them and a very short shelf life, and are easily destroyed...maybe much like L.A. itself.