Blogging is a pain in the Moby-Dick.

Right now, I'm listening to Bruce Willis' The Return of Bruno on vinyl.

There. Now you know what I've been up to.



I also have a (short) short story hatching. I've genetically engineered it to be the best creative monster since Jurassic Park. Little known fact: the day I bought my Sega Genesis was the same day I saw Jurassic Park in the theater.

Otherwise, it's been on my agenda for about a month to write briefly (perhaps comically) about a couple concerts, and provide a trite list of the major concert events I attended last year. Riveting, yeah?

Now, for being patient little puppies, let me toss a bone your way in the form of compilations:

Dark Was the Night Compilation (feat. new tracks from The National, Sufjan Stevens, Grizzly Bear, Arcade Fire, Yo La Tengo, Yeasayer, etc.):
Disc One &,
Disc Two.

This excellent compilation benefits the Red Hot Organization – an international charity dedicated to raising money and awareness for HIV and AIDS through popular culture. Produced by both Aaron and Bryce Dessner from The National (with the charity's founder, John Carlin, its executive producer), Dark Was The Night is one of the most terrific compilations I've ever heard, and you should definitely consider a purchase for a good cause. Or, you know, just 'cause it's good.

Then, here's a couple more packaged together. First, I've included half of the War Child: Heroes compilation. According to the cause, "One child dies every three minutes because of armed conflict. War Child believes children should never be affected by war. Full stop. Our campaigning seeks to address this gross injustice. Sanction action with us now."

You can easily follow the previous link to purchase the full album, or if you're like me and only want about half of the music included (opting to scoff over Duffy, The Kooks, Leonard Cohen's son, etc.), then you can always donate to Warchild. The good stuff includes Beck covering Bob Dylan, The Hold Steady covering Bruce Springsteen, Hot Chip covering Joy Division, etc. Although it's included, I'd argue TV on the Radio continues their losing streak with their cover of David Bowie's "Heroes". I just don't feel it anymore, guys. Donate, then be bigger heroes, and return to Return to Cookie Mountain's aesthetic. Not many agree with me since Dear Science, topped many year-end lists, but I named them my favorite new find of 2006, so, uh, my opinion is worth more indie cred, am I right? Good.

Secondly, there's this Starbucks compilation for Sweethearts. Only five of the compilation tracks are included, and needless to say, none of them are Katy Perry. Instead, you'll only find Ben Bridwell (renamed as Band of Horses for iTunes purposes of saving artist space), Department of Eagles, A.C. Newman (of The New Pornographers), She & Him and even Death Cab for Cutie. Yeah, sure, the world needs more sub-par covers of The Cure. If you want Katy Perry and the rest of the tracklisting, then you'll have to get it from Starbucks. On the other hand, if these are enough, then support them and buy a coffee or something. Just not decaf in the afternoon, because they'll have to make it fresh, and that's a pain in the Moby-Dick. Well, you know, because the company was named after Captain Ahab's first mate in the novel.

So, anyway, find samples of both compilations here:
War Child: Heroes & Sweetheart: Our Favourite Artists Sing Their Favourite Love Songs.

Last year, I detailed some of my favorite albums to theme Valentine's Day. This year, I went as far to listen to some albums with love themes in the album title, such as PJ Harvey's To Bring You My Love, Built to Spill's There's Nothing Wrong With Love, Spoon's Girls Can Tell (um, that you like them?), Kate Bush's Hounds of Love and Yo La Tengo's I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One. Not to mention previous year favorites such as My Bloody Valentine's Loveless and everyone's favorite band name/best middle school break-up line: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness.

Next year, perhaps I'll listen to Tom Waits' Blue Valentine (though I used it to theme Christmas), The Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs (again), Love's Forever Changes, Jeff Buckley's Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk, and whatever else I can come up with. We'll see. I have another year to think about it.

Until then, I must be off. I mean, I love you, but I've chosen The Office (reruns).