First Listen: Todd Snider's "Agnostic Hymns..."

Hey folks, you can stream the new Todd Snider via the New Yorker website (link). Agnostic Hymns and Stoner Fables hits shelves next week (3/6). Check it out.

Assemble

So. So. So. Excited.

I love Lake Superior/Duluth/vacations/my wife (happy birthday!). If only every day could be as care-free as today has been.

Smyze

Today feels like an America's Next Top Model marathon kinda day.

Shame

I've got some huge life-updates for you (which is what has kept me quiet these last few weeks), that I've clearly been procrastinating writing about (but it's all fascinating, I assure you). But I just wanted to say something before we get too far away from the time of incident and it seems irrelevant.

Last Sunday was the Grammys (which I'll discuss at length in a future post) and during the telecast we watched Chris Brown perform not once, but twice AND actually take home a golden gramophone. I don't listen to Chris Brown. I could recognize maybe two of his songs, but haven't a clue what the titles are. What I have heard I don't like, and I don't find anything about him musically redeeming at all. But this isn't about anything he's recorded or released. This is about the fact that he beat the living shit out of his girlfriend and we all seem to be okay with this.

In case you're somehow unaware, back in 2009, just a day before they were both scheduled to appear at that year's Grammys, Chris Brown and his girlfriend, the even more popular celebrity and successful R&B/pop/dance recording artist Rihanna, were thrown into the public eye after he, as I already mentioned, beat the shit out her. Sure, there are more eloquent ways to put that, but it wouldn't change the fact that he repeatedly hit her in the face and choked and bit her while she was essentially held hostage in a moving vehicle (if you really want to be reminded of how horrible humans can be, read that whole police incident report I linked to). Chris Brown pleaded guilty to felony assault and was sentenced to five years probation and six months community service.

How on Earth have we, as a society, allowed this person to continue to have a career? When did we all just decide to shrug our collective shoulders and say, "Meh." When it first happened, people were outraged, and we all assumed it was the end of Chris Brown's recording career. But guess what? He released a Grammy-nominated album later that exact same year. And now his latest album, which came out last year, has made him a Grammy winner. And the Grammy connection isn't important at all, not in the grand scheme of things. I just find it curious that the incident took place the day before the 2009 Grammys, causing them to find last-minute replacements for the broadcast because one performer had just put another performer in the hospital. Wouldn't you think that alone would be enough for the Recording Academy to say, "Alright, we're done with this guy."

I'm flabbergasted that this isn't a bigger issue than it has been. How are we all okay with this? I don't pay ANY attention to sports, but I still hear people talk about Michael Vick and his illegal dog-fighting operation. That's insane and I'm a guy who likes dogs more than I like people. John Lennon was once quoted as saying the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus" and people burned his records in the streets. Where are the fires for Chris Brown?

And I'm trying really hard not to use the whole "what kind of message is this sending" argument, but...seriously, what kind of message is this sending? Read these reactions people posted on Twitter after his performance at the Grammys on Sunday. I'm not going to make any dramatic claims that we're raising a generation of women to be complacent about domestic violence, but we certainly don't seem to be discouraging it either.

And the biggest controversy at this year's awards show was Nicki Minaj doing a terribly boring Lady Gaga impression (or Madonna impression, depending on how original you think Lady Gaga is)! If the Catholic church spent half as much time condemning the Grammys for letting Chris Brown perform as they are for letting Minaj perform a theatrical interpretation of an exorcism, I might actually go to church on Sunday (no I wouldn't, but the act would get an approving head nod from me).

Something is really, sincerely fucked up with us as a community if we're all okay with giving awards, praise and positive attention to people who very publicly perform extreme acts of aggression and violence on...well I should say anyone, but I'm only going to say women.

For anyone who would like to read far funnier and more poignant rants about Chris Brown, head over to The Superficial, a hilarious tabloid/comedy site that has tried hard to not let anyone forget how terrible Brown is. And then read this article, which does a better job of conveying how I'm feeling and expressing how disappointing this whole thing is.

Shame on the Recording Academy and Fuck Chris Brown.

I think a lot of people mistake my expressions for the things I'm passionate about, both for the things I love and the things I hate, as either obsessive or rage-filled. And both make people uncomfortable.

Slow?

Are all the YouTube videos I keep posting making Safety Break load slowly for everyone else, or is it just my computer? We switched to from Comcast to CenturyLink and our internet connectivity is so GD slow I'm going to pop a vessel yelling at my computer screen. It's almost not worth the $45/mo we're saving to have our internet crawl this slow.

Big, Big Day For New Releases

HUGE day today for new releases. Lots of great stuff hitting shelves this week kicking off what should be a strong year for new tunes.

Craig Finn - Clear Heart Full Eyes

Craig Finn "Clear Heart Full Eyes" from Helms Workshop on Vimeo.

Rodrigo y Gabriela - Area 52


First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar


Bhi Bhiman - Bhiman

Bhi Bhiman "Guttersnipe" from Bhi Bhiman on Vimeo.

Lazerbeak - Lava Bangers


Moe. - What Happened To The La Las


Grace Woodroofe - Always Want

Grace Woodroofe - I've Handled Myself Wrong from Modular People on Vimeo.

Martin Sexton - Fall Like Rain EP


Laura Gibson - La Grande


Stew & The Negro Problem - Making It


Nada Surf - The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy
(Can't find any video for this...sorry)

I don't know where this picture came from, or what the story behind it is. All I know is it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my entire life.

Just a dog and her squirrel.