Let’s be honest here: these posts are more for me than you. I mean, I’m pleasantly pleased if you do read them and even more pleasantly pleased if you find something you like. But I like keeping track of things I’m reading, listening to and reading so that I can compare the things I’ve taken in with the things that make it to my “favorites of the year” list. I listen to a lot of music and I try to read, on average, a book a week (though it doesn’t always work out that way) and its neat to be able to look back and see how certain bands, songs, books, movies, television shows, etc. can remind you of very specific times in your life.
With all of that long-windedness in mind, here is some of what I’ve been digging lately:
Reading:
Brothers Karamozov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Yes, I’m still making my way through Brothers Karamozov. Want to make something of it? What, you think you’re world’s fastest reader or something? Well, maybe you are. How was I supposed to know. Anyways, it’s really good.
ESV Journaling Bible, Interleaved Edition
I recently picked up the Interleaved edition of the ESV journaling bible. I love to make lots of notes, draw and doodle. It helps me process, so I was considering having a custom bible bound but I went ahead and opted for the interleaved ESV Journaling Bible. I went with the brown cloth one and overall I really like it. I wish the pages were a bit thicker but then again I didn’t want to go to the time and trouble to design my own so I can’t/won’t complain too much.
Listening:
NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concerts have a now-annual contest to be given a Tiny Desk Concert. This year’s winner, Gaelynn Lea beat out over 6,000 other entries and it’s easy to see why. Combining looping with ancient Irish melodies, Lea creates hauntingly beautiful songs. If you haven’t seen the contest-winning video, peep it here. The visuals focus on the desk until the melody has sufficiently captured you. Then, once the vocals come in, the camera pans 
back to reveal Lea, a small woman in a wheelchair who plays the violin like others would the cello. Far from being a hindrance, Lea’s size makes her approach to the violin utterly unique.
Lea also plays with Low/Retribution Gospel Choir/Black Eyed Snakes guy Alan Sparkhawk as Murder of Crows. Watch Lea’s Tiny Desk Concert featuring Sparhawk here:
And watch the duo perform one of my current favorite songs, “Your Battle” in 2011:
- Visit Gaelynn Lea’s website
- Visit Murder of Crow’s website
- Read an interview with Lea about working with Sparhawk
- Buy Lea’s music at Amazon
Memphis’ Star & Micey just released their debut LP (they have released several EPs and singles) Get ‘Em Next Time. The band creates infectious and urgent good ol’ rockitty roll and dangitall if they aren’t just really good. They are. I like them. I think you might too.
You can stream the album now at Soundcloud, or check out the band performing “I Can’t Wait” for Audiotree:
Here’s “Everything” from the same Audiotree sessions:
As if we haven’t already had enough musical goodness today, I want to add Chapel Hill’s Mount Moriah to the mix. The band’s newest album How To Dance has become one of my favorites of the year so far. Paste magazine named the band “the best of what’s next” way back in 2013 and the band has only solidified their sound since then. Describing the band’s maturation, Pitchfork says: “The trio is now so fluent in roots music that it passes as their native tongue.”
Here’s the band as a duo performing “Calvander” for Paste:
Watch the official video for the track “Precita”:
- Visit the band’s official website
Watching:
We are almost all the way through Parks and Recreation. We don’t watch much “live television” so we’ve seen the show but never regularly. That’s the beauty of a service like Netflix or Amazon Prime. We’ve just about made our way through the show and it’s been really good. Like any good show, it is filled with great characters who have been not only casted well but developed over time.
Watch Ron Swanson on Snake Juice:
What media have you been digging lately, my faithful pop culture digging friends?!
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