Music Monday - Air

Air is fantastic ambient music when you need to relax, focus, and/or write. I'm not big on pure electronic stuff, but something about this just gets my brain in the right frame for creativity. Their album Moon Safari is full of gems like this one, highly worth checking out.

Music Monday - Brandi Carlile

I love a well-traveled voice, and it blows me away that the voice owned by Brandi Carlile is younger than mine. She was born in 1981! But the heartache, and true passion in her voice amazes me. Give it a listen and have your heart broken just a l'il bit.

Music Monday - Bright Eyes

"Language just happened, it was never planned; and it's inadequate to describe where I am, in the room of my house where the light's never been, waiting for this day to end..."

I was going back through my CDs, looking for music I haven't listened to for a while, and came across "Fevers and Mirrors" by Bright Eyes (Conor Oberst). The man has a way with words. Every song attacks emotion and every lyric sears into your psyche. Which is to say, he's another melancholy artist that I really enjoy listening to when I write. It's certainly not the happiest album in the world, but today, you should make it mandatory listening.

"Once the page of a calendar is turned it's no more. So tell me then, what was it for?"

Musical Mondays - Jason Webley

I think I'm going to try to post a music video here every Monday. Something I'm listening to as I write, or just something that catches my attention, but hopefully nothing you've heard before. Jason Webley is a bit like a young Tom Waits with an accordion (in this song at least). He's got range, he's always willing to try new things with different artists. He's even one half of a Siamese twin sister act, Evelyn Evelyn.



This song has two of my favorite ingredients: heavy melancholy and accordion. The lyrics are quite moving, and the fact that he's up there, alone and raw, makes this performance all the better. Enjoy!