Sara Bareilles - City

More of her gorgeousness Sara -- live performance of City at the Fillmore in San Francisco. The thing I find so extraordinary about artists like her is that they're able to belt out their most personal thoughts to a stadium full of listeners. Imagine exposing your diary to several thousand people. Seriously! But I suppose that's what gives music that unparalleled ability to touch us...

Real version here. Btw the guitarist at 4:30 looks hilarious bahahah

In these deep city lights... girl could get lost tonight

Sara Bareilles - Vegas

I saw Sara Bareilles live at MIT last Saturday, and although I've always liked her for her catchy songs, I now love her -- for her spunk and for her incredible live performances. She's got one of those rare voices that sound so much better when not heard through a recording!

Gonna quit my job and move to New York,
Cause somebody told that's where dreams should go
Gonna quit my job and move to New York,
And tattoo my body with every Broadway show

Ben Folds Five - Alice Childress (on Naked Baby Photos)

In Freshman year, came for our school's Spring Fling concert and I waited nearly alone in the freezing cold for him for three hours because everyone I knew had gone home after Third Eye Blind finished. An hour to midnight he finally got onstage, and I swear the piano melodies were so captivating that each note took with it a piece of my loneliness as it echoed into nothingness in the night sky. Part by part, the pain evaporated, and despite all the crap of that first year I felt just happy singing my heart out to "Army" and looking like a lunatic doing so. But I didn't care. Happy makes you stop caring about a lot of inconsequential shit like that.

He did a concert at the school neighboring ours in Sophomore year, and I was ecstatic when my friend from there told me she'd get me a ticket. The afternoon of the concert, however, I decided that I desperately needed to study for my math final and had no choice but to skip -- so I expressed my regret to her over the phone, then turned my attention back to the textbook. Three hours later, she called me. "Hey. Just wanted to tell you that we just saw Ben Folds sitting on the grass with his kid, and we went over and chilled with him," she said nonchalantly over the phone. Still one of the biggest disappointments of my short, boring life. I failed the exam anyway.

Now it's Junior year and I have a chance to see him play live again: he's going to Boston for MIT's Spring Fling the same weekend we're going up there for the Open Ballroom Competition. It's like DESTINY. Bahahah. But I have a hugeass paper to write by Monday, which I'm obviously (and stupidly) neglecting at the moment. What do I do? Do I choose homework/GPA/future job prospects, or music?

Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness. -- Maya Angelou

Jon Brion - Little Person

We'll take a road trip way out west. You're the one that I like the best.

Daniel Powter - Am I Still The One

Didn't know DPouter was this intense, maybe this was the cause of his bad day? Cause of my bad day: went sleepless last night so I could spend time getting intimate with Gaussian surfaces but failed the quiz anyway (it was one of those exams with q's that built upon the other and I got the first one wrong :D) ; spent the rest of day being scary and zombified. Reasons to still be happy: it's the weekend and I am watching The Office on Hulu. I got a haircut for 16 bucks and now it's uber short and Rihanna-esque. I tried on neon tribal clothes from the clearance racks of Urban Outfitters all afternoon for a cheap laugh. I exercised my parentless freedom by eating oatmeal for breakfast, European drinking chocolate for lunch (it's like a cup of hot Hershey's syrup), free & guacamole-smothered hors d'oeuvres from an animation seminar for dinner, and Chocolate Turtle Chex Mix for supper.

And, um, idk what's up with the extinction video... it's appropriately emo I guess, but not exactly the first thing I'd think of hahah

Chopin Ballade No. 1 (from The Pianist)

Kind of want to see this movie again.

Ben Folds - Smoke

Double Feature! Because I'm trying to compensate for not being able to find "Alice Childress" on YouTube, here are two versions of "Smoke." The first was performed in 1997 with Ben Folds Five on a series called Sessions at West 54th, and the second was done in 2005 with the Western Australian Symphony Orchestra. Neither mimics the studio version on Whatever and Ever Amen, yet both have their unique charm--the first because it's so raw, unpolished, and honest; the second because it simply sends chills down my spine.

So sleepy don't wanna go to MAC. =P

Sessions at West 54th


Western Australian Symphony Orchestra

Umbrellas - Ships

1. Umbrellas - Ships 204
   
2. Stars - One More Night (Your Ex-Lover Remains Dead) 168
3. Goo Goo Dolls - Here Is Gone 162
   
4. Anya Marina - Move You (Slow & Steady Seduction Phase II) 159
   
5. Umbrellas - The City Lights 152
   
6. Stars - Your Ex-Lover Is Dead 139
   
7. Death Cab For Cutie - Photobooth 138
   
8. KT Tunstall - Other Side Of The World 137
   
9. Athlete - Tourist 132
   
10. Eagle-Eye Cherry - Save Tonight 132
    
11. Rilo Kiley - Dreamworld 132
    
12. KT Tunstall - Universe & U 128
    
13. Rilo Kiley - Portions For Foxes 127
    
14. Death Cab For Cutie - Summer Skin 126
    
15. Goo Goo Dolls - Slide 125
    

I've lost my blogging mojo for the moment--I think that until I figure out how to act with a little more care and consideration, this will become a boring music blog. Hopefully 2009 will be filled with fewer words and overcomplications, more singing.

These are the top 15 songs (and play counts) on my iTunes playlist. Observations: The only new entries since 2007 are #4/11/13. Ben Folds is strangely not on this list. This is heavily Grey's-influenced. #1 has unwaveringly retained its place at the top ever since I discovered it freshman year even though I could swear I never listen to it any more. Yay Umbrellas! Companion on late nights with bright screens--you're so lovably emo.

Just like ships, we float through each other's lives
Through the waters of beauty and grace
We will one day dock at the same port
And give rest to our weary legs
There is a light placed up in the sky
Like the stained glass, time slows down
I wish I could sleep, I wish I could dream
I love the sound of my feet against these empty streets
I saw the whole town burn down
I'm walking away
Nothing stays, these feelings have wings
Our arms outstretched, we are soaring

Mae - Breakdown

An old song I really like...