A New Favorite Band: The Avett Brothers

It was my choice last week on Music Togetherness, and I wanted to get to know The Avett Brothers a little better. I'm glad I did, because now I know at least one more show I won't stand to miss.

It was kind of a fitting choice because the band was playing Coachella the weekend I blogged their intro post.

The folk-rock band from Concord, North Carolina stole my heart and got me in the mood for some bluegrass/country exploration. See, I've never much been into country, although I've always had a thing for the fiddle, banjo and cute boys with southern accents - now, I'm seeing the light.

What gets me more than anything is their versatility, their tendency to always stay true to themselves and the emotion and authenticity they put into their music. We focused on four albums (the latter three mostly) - "Mignonette," "Four Thieves Gone," "Emotionalism" and "I and Love and You" - and all were solid (though I've yet to rate them if you want to get specific.

My favorite tracks of the week include "Paranoia in B-flat Major," "Distraction #74," "The Weight of Lies," "Laundry Room," "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise" and "Slight Figure of Speech."

I cannot wait to see these guys live. If you want a glimpse, check out their Vevo page for some cool video, including this one:

Tenacious D will Rock My Socks Off

The dynamic duo of screen actor-funny man Jack Black and the amazingly-talented-but-looks-nothing-like-a-rockstar-should Kyle Gass is going to make for one can't miss for me at Bonnaroo this year.

I became a hard core D fan in high school when the first, self-titled CD came out and shortly there after purchased the self-titled TV series on DVD. It was six hilarious shorts featuring many of the songs we know and love today, and I couldn't get enough. For my 18th birthday, my best friend bought us tickets to go see a live show at the Pageant in St. Louis, but I fell ill that day and she ended up having to take her then-boyfriend instead. Boo. Since then, I've been dying to get what's coming to me - Tenacious D live and a damn good time - and it's coming this summer.

So the music isn't lifechanging, and many might argue that the band does not deserve its spot so high on the lineup, but Jack and Kyle are no musical slouches. Kyle's kind of a bad @$$ on guitar and Jack's actually got a great voice. Together, their songs are undoubtedly silly, but musically sound, and this should be one show festivalgoers won't soon forget.

Upcoming Bonnaroo artists on MT blog

I know I haven't written about anyone but DMB and the Flaming Lips and there are just more than two months to go. Convenient right? Two of the artists my friends and I have already featured on Music Togetherness?

Well, this is about when I plan to hit it hard.

I'm just about through going over the lineup as it is today and placing artists in 4 tiers according to how badly I want to see them - 1 being can't miss and 4 being I probably will miss.

I'm going to hit a few more on the blog in the weeks coming up - but make sure you check over at MT blog because The Avett Brothers week and The National are both coming up on our calendar.

testing 1-2-3

Just set up my phone for mobile blogging. Watch out Bonnaroo 2010!

Bonnaroo has returned to my dreams

I haven't written about the 'roo in awhile, as you can see, but a quick trip back to Inforoo yesterday, the first or second since all the Neil Young rumors way back when, lit a spark under my butt. With 64 days and 22 hours to go until the big event, I am, once again, pumped as all hell.

Something must have stuck because I dreamt about the farm last night. I don't remember what happened in the dream but I remember a few details.

1. It wasn't the farm as I remembered it. My boyfriend set up our tent to the left of What Stage (I'm talking really close to What Stage) and my only concern was whether I would be able to sleep at all because of the music being so loud there (why was that a concern? I'm not totally sure.)

2. My married friends (a couple), who would never go to Bonnaroo in the first place, brought a tent the size of the Which Stage, and my roommate forgot to bring a tent altogether. We decided she would sleep under the canopy.

3. There was a lake on the farm, which I decided to dive into, only when I hit the water it wasn't so much water as it was a giant mud puddle and I came up looking like that guy who thought he was a raptor from the '09 fest, thinking "oh great, now I get to feel like this for four days."

Oh the joys of the farm...