anyway. it was amazing. probably because i just did what i wanted the whole time. i flew solo a lot of it, because there was music i wanted to hear, and bands i wanted to see, regardless of what anyone wanted to do. forget the drinking, the partying, the spring break shenanigans, the cute boys… ok, wait, don’t forget the cute boys, i was there to just be in sunshine music heaven. and my mission was accomplished. with a lot of cute boys added it.

i came back more obsessed with music than ever. so obviously i had to make a mix to share!

this mix is about 80% bands i saw at sxsw and the rest just damn good new music that i couldn’t not put on here. i’ve included two SF bands that played at our SF Embassy Showcase at sxsw- geographer and the frail because they are great.

there’s a lot of stuff on here that came out today (you’re welcome) and a lot of stuff that didn’t. basically it’s like the greatest mix ever, and if you don’t think so, you’re wrong. ( :) ) most importantly if you like a song/band GO BUY THEIR ALBUM!!

with that, i dedicate this mix, postsxswmusicmania, to all the very wonderful, awkward, cute, shy, sensitive musician boys out there. they remind me everyday that people feel, care, and are cute. and that i’m allowed to swoon. because, i love you all.

postsxswmusicmania (click me! click me!)

(i’m lazy, so yes you get  screen shot of my itunes folder for the track listing)

it’s pretty awesome if i do say so myself.

…and she took out her shoelaces (click to download)

track listing:

badaboom- tapes ‘n tapes
fader- the temper trap
idiot heart- sunset rubdown
take off your sunglasses- ezra furman and the harpoons
waiting on you- sun airway
know better learn faster – thao with the get down stay down
an ear for baby- the thermals
not sick- tokyo police club
dlz- tv on the radio
becoming a jackal- villagers
red letter day- the get up kids
we’ve been had- the walkmen
16 days (acoustic)- whiskeytown
smithsonian liver- hot rod circuit
what a drag- bear hands
strictly game- harlem shakes
heat & hot water- arms
this bed- horse feathers
understand at all- cloud nothings
bruises to prove it- say hi
helplessness blues- fleet foxes
onion- sean hayes
answer to yourself- the soft pack

i like this one. it’s titled juryduty.

download it here.

’cause it’s that good.

here’s today’s.

sundayrain

two of my favorites responded, leaving me with a barrel of entertainment packed into every minute of this show. aubrey  and daisy were my lovey in studio guests, and we had a very interesting time.

tori and i discussed in self aware/new agey (my fav)/ psychological terms (much to daisy’s dismay) the process of becoming aware of certain things in your relationships in order to change them, and attract the right kind of relationships and love.

then Tori did a color wisdom card reading for each of us. (around halfway through the show)

aubrey went first, and we knew then that this was good. Tori was good. she hit on some majorly interesting things  for us.

she chose two colors for aubrey and daisy and reviewed them and their meanings. then she chose two for me, and i actually got one of the same as aubrey’s and one of the same as daisy’s.

she was a little surprised, and then explained that it was probably because i had so much energy invested in their outcomes and that i cared so deeply for their happiness, or something. awwww.

to get a clear picture, she drew three cards for me, and WOW. basically my destiny in life is to heal myself of past wounds and then HELP OTHERS heal/have happy relationships. uh, thank you validation (that i knew all along, but now YOU see ;)

preeeetttty cool. check her out at www.torihartman.com

and listen to the podcast. it’s great.

tori hartman gives us hope.

Allo Darlin. My Heart is a Drummer.

As I am preparing myself to say farewell to my pride again
I remember how it was back then:
Id see you light a cigarette, and then you’d ask me to pass your asthma inhaler.
I’d say ‘Don’t you ever think about cancer?’
You’d say ‘Baby, you don’t know but my heart is as strong as a drummer’
‘My heart is as strong as a drummer’
You make me feel like apologising for being like this:
do I have to, say I’m sorry for my happiness?
You see it’s like loving ‘Graceland’, it’s not allowed to be but we know it’s everybody’s favourite
deep down in the place where, music makes you happiest.
In the place where my heart is a drummer,
in the place where my heart is a drummer.

…and when you call me, on the telephone my fingers will twist through the cord
and I’ll slide my feet up and down the wall,
…but I know that I’m stronger than you are
…but I know that I’m stronger than you are

…and when you call me, on the telephone my fingers will still twist through the cord
and I’ll slide my feet up and down the wall,
…but I know that I’m stronger than you are
…but I know that I’m stronger than you are.

http://allodarlin.com

there’s something fascinating, and endlessly entertaining about getting to know yourself. and then accepting yourself for everything you are.

and i encourage every single person i’ve ever met to do it. understand who you are. why you are. what you are. get rid of what was given to by others. and fill it in with who you want to be.

this entire process will take approximately… your lifetime. but in reality, the fun starts a few years in.

it’s crazy what knowing yourself, and liking all those teeny things that make up who you are will do for your ability to connect with people.

lately, i feel connected. in a way that doesn’t overwhelm me, or scare me. or lead me on. it simply feels, well, simple. we’re all human. we’re all different. we all have intricate, messy, complicated glorious stories of what got us here. right here. and those stories are no one else’s but ours. how exciting is THAT?! yea, i know, you’re thinking the SF heatwave has gone to my head, but no. it hasn’t.

recently, i read two articles (whoa, i’m just realizing that they were both from paste magazine) that really affected me. one was about a well known celebrity (of whom i’ve had a crush on since i was 11) and another a musician. both men. both amazingly, unbashedfully, and wholeheartedly affected by the human condition. by words. by connection. by people. by their stories.

so if you know me, you’ll know that i have a propensity to crush, hard, on certain artist types. some of whom happen to be well known (celebrity). but the fact that i’m so affected by these strangers spirals me into weird and crazy ‘i don’t know you, this is unhealthy’ land. so i have to seriously avoid reading about, or listening to these boys.

and the only way i can explain my craziness to others, explain my crush, my longing for connection with these boys- they get it. they get what it’s like to connect.

maybe it’s the rediscovery of my feelings, and allowing my self to love them, or something, but i just get overwhelmingly excited and hopeful when i see evidence that someone else gets it. like i do. that we’re all in this together.

and where does this leave me right now? basically, that i don’t need to explain it any more.

that i am in love with connection. that i love nothing more than to get to know someone. to connect with someone. through conversation. through music. through sharing. through being. through asking.

other things about me that just are. and i’m ok with them, because they make up who i am:
when i hear a song i love, i play it on repeat. for as long as necessary.
apples and cheese is, in fact, a perfectly acceptable dinner
i am really much worse than i thought at doing dishes, i hate them
and laundry.
when i’m channeling patience, tact and appropriateness in conversation i take short quick breaths.
i maybe like cuddling more than i thought.
i’m obsessed with words.
i’m very deliberate with them.
i have faith in the process. even if i’m not sure what process it is.
i laugh loudly.
my hair will always be… everywhere.
my coffee table cluttered.
i need to talk through things to figure them out.
i love listening to friends, and friends that listen to me.
i will never, ever, be able to quit ice cream.
and i like boys. and it can be that simple.

so for a while, i’ll focus on connecting with people that get it. maybe one of them will be romantic. maybe not. maybe it won’t matter.

there’s a song at the heart of it all and we all try hard
just to write it down but you can’t write it down

ezra furman and the harpoons. the world is alive.

don’t you want it. lovers.

there’s something so, well, raw about this song. despite the synth that, normally, suggests anything but raw. the lyrics, the authenticity in carolyn’s voice. it’s got a little bit of tegan and sara mets cyndie lauper with a new and modern freshness. it’s just real. and sweet. and yea.

i dunno. i like it. a lot. in a, “yea, that’s about right.” kind of way.

do you want it. lovers.

after coming back to SF from a long weekend in my hometown i was inspired to dedicate this date night to detroit. with dale earnhardt jr jr in town that night, and having seen jessica hernandez and the deltas three days before it seemed fitting.

includes an interview with jessica hernandez where we discuss the creative scene in detroit, her music, how the band has evolved and what’s to come.

not many people who have never visited the city, or great mitten state would have any clue of just what a wonderful place it is.

detroit has the heart of a midwesterner, enough soul and groove to keep motown alive for centuries, and a little sass to keep things interesting.

i took this the night before i left town in july. i was driving from my dad’s house to my mom’s, staring at the sky the entire way. then i remembered that my camera was in the back. i pulled over along the 2 mile drive and tried my best to capture the feeling. this doesn’t even begin to instill the comfort and warmth of that moment.

went i was home for the week in july i decided to spend the day downtown taking photos. capturing what it is about detroit that consumes my heart.

i’ll post some of those, but right now i am craving this. this sunset. this 80 degrees at 10 pm. this warmth. and green. and homeness.