It's strange how some songs become all the more meaningful depending on the circumstances in your life.
Happy anniversary, hun. You have made me a better person. I am forever at your feet.
-Adam
Showing posts with label Snow Patrol. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Snow Patrol. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
For Jessi
It's strange how some songs become all the more meaningful depending on the circumstances in your life.
Happy anniversary, hun. You have made me a better person. I am forever at your feet.
-Adam
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Mash Up Monday - Belated Tuesday Posting Edition ***MUST SEE***
I wasn't able to get around to posting this last night. Under normal circumstances, I would have just waited until next week to post again. These aren't normal circumstances.
Last week, I did a "Mashup Monday" post from a new artist named SpareElbowSkin. He has only been on the scene for a few weeks, but his first mashup, a mix of Goldfrapp's 'A&E' and Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars', was quite impressive. Last week, he released another mashup.
I have been chomping at the bit to post it. It is easily...EASILY, one of the best mashups I have ever heard. In my opinion, it is the best mashup since Norwegian Recycling's September track, 'Miracles'. In many ways, though, it's better.
Mashups today have become a conglomeration of tracks that come together to a point that you almost have to pick them apart with a microscope and a pair of tweezers. "I think I hear such and such's beat." Or, "Wait. Did you just hear Jay-Z? I think I heard Jay-Z just then. Rewind it." When a DJ is mixing as many as 16 tracks together in a matter of three and a half minutes, it shows both the apex of talent and lunacy.
S.E.S. is different. He sticks to two tracks. He doesn't try to make his mashup "dance-able". In fact, he sticks to tracks that you normally wouldn't think of mixing together. This week's mix is a mashup of Adele's 'Rolling In The Deep' with Snow Patrol's 'Set The Fire To The Third Bar'.
Since Adele released her latest album, '21', about a month ago, I have heard literally dozens of mashups involving 'Rolling In The Deep'. Some good. Some...well....um..yeah, no. Some of the better ones have been mixed with The Rolling Stones, Britney Spears, and even Gnarls Barkley. When I saw the song that S.E.S. had selected to pair up with Adele on this mix, my first thought was, "You've got to be kidding me. There's no way in a million years that this will work. For the beats to even match up he's going to have to slow her voice down considerably. It's going to sound horrible."
Boy, was I wrong. When Adele's voice comes in, it gave me goosebumps. The mix is one of the most haunting songs I have ever heard. And that is what I quickly learned about SpareElbowSkin. He has an appreciation for the music that other DJs don't. That's what sets him apart from other artists. He creates his mashups while still keeping the emotion, the heart, of the music in tact. That is something that has been lost over the years with everyone else. Their goal is to make something that sounds cool, or to make something with a cool beat. SpareElbowSkin does it for the love of the song. He's a fan. He's not putting these two songs together simply because he thinks they would sound good together, but because he's a fan of Snow Patrol and of Adele. He's showing his respect for the artists and their music.
If you need further proof, he even re-edited the video so that it was in 2.39:1 format, just so it would look nicer on screen. Enjoy 'Rolling In The Third Bar'.
Last week, I did a "Mashup Monday" post from a new artist named SpareElbowSkin. He has only been on the scene for a few weeks, but his first mashup, a mix of Goldfrapp's 'A&E' and Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars', was quite impressive. Last week, he released another mashup.
I have been chomping at the bit to post it. It is easily...EASILY, one of the best mashups I have ever heard. In my opinion, it is the best mashup since Norwegian Recycling's September track, 'Miracles'. In many ways, though, it's better.
Mashups today have become a conglomeration of tracks that come together to a point that you almost have to pick them apart with a microscope and a pair of tweezers. "I think I hear such and such's beat." Or, "Wait. Did you just hear Jay-Z? I think I heard Jay-Z just then. Rewind it." When a DJ is mixing as many as 16 tracks together in a matter of three and a half minutes, it shows both the apex of talent and lunacy.
S.E.S. is different. He sticks to two tracks. He doesn't try to make his mashup "dance-able". In fact, he sticks to tracks that you normally wouldn't think of mixing together. This week's mix is a mashup of Adele's 'Rolling In The Deep' with Snow Patrol's 'Set The Fire To The Third Bar'.
Since Adele released her latest album, '21', about a month ago, I have heard literally dozens of mashups involving 'Rolling In The Deep'. Some good. Some...well....um..yeah, no. Some of the better ones have been mixed with The Rolling Stones, Britney Spears, and even Gnarls Barkley. When I saw the song that S.E.S. had selected to pair up with Adele on this mix, my first thought was, "You've got to be kidding me. There's no way in a million years that this will work. For the beats to even match up he's going to have to slow her voice down considerably. It's going to sound horrible."
Boy, was I wrong. When Adele's voice comes in, it gave me goosebumps. The mix is one of the most haunting songs I have ever heard. And that is what I quickly learned about SpareElbowSkin. He has an appreciation for the music that other DJs don't. That's what sets him apart from other artists. He creates his mashups while still keeping the emotion, the heart, of the music in tact. That is something that has been lost over the years with everyone else. Their goal is to make something that sounds cool, or to make something with a cool beat. SpareElbowSkin does it for the love of the song. He's a fan. He's not putting these two songs together simply because he thinks they would sound good together, but because he's a fan of Snow Patrol and of Adele. He's showing his respect for the artists and their music.
If you need further proof, he even re-edited the video so that it was in 2.39:1 format, just so it would look nicer on screen. Enjoy 'Rolling In The Third Bar'.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Mash Up Monday
After a brief hiatus, we're back with a mashup from a new DJ that I, for one, am unfamiliar with. This week's mix comes from SpareElbowSkin. This guy, or girl, from what I can tell, is relatively new to the scene. Their Youtube channel has only been up and going for about 7 weeks. And, at the time of this posting, has only had about 350 views.
This weeks mashup is so subtle, it can almost be classified as a remix. It's a mix of Goldfrapp's 'A&E' with Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars'. I really enjoyed it. Not only did I appreciate the song selection, but I liked the way in which the lyrics are shuffled around on the track. It's refreshing.
I also appreciate the fact that they included the "missing" line in 'Chasing Cars'. It's my favorite line of the song. In the U.S. version of the single, the bridge goes,
Without further adieu, here is 'Chasing A&E Cars' (I didn't name it folks. I'm just playing it.)
This weeks mashup is so subtle, it can almost be classified as a remix. It's a mix of Goldfrapp's 'A&E' with Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars'. I really enjoyed it. Not only did I appreciate the song selection, but I liked the way in which the lyrics are shuffled around on the track. It's refreshing.
I also appreciate the fact that they included the "missing" line in 'Chasing Cars'. It's my favorite line of the song. In the U.S. version of the single, the bridge goes,
"Let's waste time/Chasing cars/Around our heads"Then you hear the *bing*, and the chorus starts. But in the U.K. and International versions, the bridge goes,
"Let's waste time/Chasing cars/Around our heads...
I need your grace/To remind me/To find my own"Then the chorus. In my opinion, they cut out the most touching moment of the song. But I digress.
Without further adieu, here is 'Chasing A&E Cars' (I didn't name it folks. I'm just playing it.)
Monday, February 28, 2011
Mash Up Monday - New From Norwegian Recycling
If you have been following my Mash Up Monday posts for a while, it's easy to see that I am a fan of Norwegian Recycling. Over the last year, my eyes have been opened. Any talented DJ can mashup two or three songs. There are very few, in fact, only two that I can think of off the top of my head (Girl Talk and Norwegian Recycling), that can effectively incorporate anywhere from 8 to 15 different tracks and turn them into an original composition. Norwegian Recycling is the only one that can form a new composition with original lyrics.
I published a post last September, in reference to a mashup entitled 'Miracles', in which the lyrics of 16 songs were sampled together to lyrically form a brand new song. It was something I had never seen before. It's a spectacular display of musical knowledge, creativity, and unbridled talent.
I received a wall post on my Facebook page at around noon, today, from Norwegian Recycling, announcing that his first mashup of 2011 had been completed. It's called 'Open Your Eyes'. In a nutshell, it's fucking brilliant. Using Katy Perry's 'Firework' as a background, it takes 11 tracks and combines them into one free flowing four minute masterpiece. It's very Snow Patrol heavy, and it's very reminiscent of it's 'Miracles' predecessor. The chorus is, lyrically, a new composition. Here are a list of the 11 songs that are sampled on the mashup:
1. Katy Perry - Firework
2. Flo Rida feat. Akon - Who Dat Girl3. Black Eyed Peas - The Time
4. Snow Patrol - Open Your Eyes
5. Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars
6. Mike Posner - Please Don't Go
7. Jason Derulo - Whatcha Say
8. Usher feat. will.i.am - OMG
9. Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson & D.O.E. - The Way I Are
10. Jay Sean - Do You Remember
11. David Guetta feat. Kid Cudi - Memories
Enjoy.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
A Tale Of True Love
It's a remarkable thing to know the exact moment that your life changed. To be able to tell someone the day, hour, and minute that light shined down onto your path and mapped out the rest of your life. For me, that moment was September 21, 2005, at 8:29pm.
At the time, I had just turned 30. I was working as a dispatcher and office manager for the family trucking company, and I was hating every minute of it. My previous relationships, if you wanted to call them that, were utter failures. I would go on maybe a couple of dates with a girl and realize there was zero compatibility between us. Had a number of one night stands. Nothing meaningful. I hadn't been in a boyfriend/girlfriend type of scenario since that previous February, and that ended badly. At the time, I was ready to just give up.
On the evening of September 21st, I received the following message in my Myspace inbox:
So I responded,
I can honestly say now that the spaghetti really wasn't that good. I think she put sugar in the sauce. Regardless, I was polite and ate it. Later that evening, as I was laying on the couch in her living room, she gave me a "cow kiss" across the entire right side of my face. I almost vomited, but it attracted me to her. I always wanted someone that was a lover and a buddy. Someone that would try to give me a "wet Willy" when I was half asleep. To me, that was a sign of someone that was interested in you, in a sick and twisted sort of way. It was the best first date I ever had.
Later that week, we were on our second date, and I was realizing that I was falling in love with this woman. Normally, that would be scaring the shit out of me, but something deep down inside of me knew that this was the woman I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I had already been engaged in the past, and she was the first person I felt safe with. I could tell her things, things that I was scared to admit to myself. I tried to scare her away. I told her all of my secrets, and she only got closer to me.
In January of 2006, I moved in with her. It was a huge adjustment to make. I had never lived with a partner before. Nine months later, the two of us were walking through the mall. A jewelry store was having a sapphire sale. Sapphires are her favorite stone. We went in, just to look at the ring settings. As she was looking at the rings, I called her mom on my cell phone. I told her mom that I was going to propose to her daughter right now, but first I need her permission. Her mom was sobbing, but I think she said "yes". I got down on one knee in the middle of the store. I told her that I have loved her from the moment I saw her. I told her that I couldn't imagine my life without her in it, and I asked her to marry me. She said "yes" too. I told her to pick any ring she wanted.
As the weeks and months went by, we discovered ourselves. We realized that all of these years we had been living our lives to make the people around us happy. Speaking for myself, there were things that I didn't know about myself at 30 that I should have figured out at 15. It was almost as if we grew up together. We found each other and found ourselves. We started planning our wedding. We decided on Las Vegas, February 29, 2008, Mandalay Bay Hotel.
We had everything picked out. It was going to be a Beatles themed wedding. The processional was going to be Regina Spektor's cover of John Lennon's 'Real Love' and we were going to walk down the aisle as husband and wife to the Beatles' 'All You Need Is Love'. We had hotel reservations and restaurant reservations. Everything was figured out. Then at about 2am on a night in early October 2007, Jessi rolled over and softly said, "I think I'm late".
"Late to what?"
"You know, late."
"Like?"
"Yeah."
A half hour later, I'm at a 24 hour Walgreens buying pregnancy tests and a two liter bottle of Coke. At 4am, we realized we were having a baby. We also realized that meant on February 29, 2008, my wife would be nearly 7 months pregnant. "If I'm going to Vegas, I'm drinking." That's a quote from her. Not me. So, on November 23rd, 2007, I married my lover, my buddy, my best friend, and the mother of what would soon be my daughter. It was a simple ceremony. We had it in the kitchen of our apartment. It was just us and three close friends. Afterward, we had sparkling grape juice and Blue Bunny chocolate chip ice cream. So, on every November 23rd of every year, we celebrate by having sparkling grape juice and Blue Bunny chocolate chip ice cream.
It has been about five and a half years since that first message. 1,973 days. And it has been the best 1,973 days of my life. We have the type of relationship that movies are written about. Besides the occasional appointment or trip to the grocery store, we have not been more than 30 feet away from each other for the last five years. Even when I was working, we worked in the same office, for the same department, within 25 feet of each other. We had the same hours and had the same lunch schedule. We were together 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we wouldn't have had it any other way.
We have never had a fight. We have had maybe two little arguments in the last five years. We very rarely disagree. If there is one perfect person out there in the world for you, I have found that person. I am never letting her go. Only death will separate us, and even after I die, I have promised to haunt her. It is the only way she would be able to go on without me.
Happy Valentine's Day Jessi. You are my love, my strength, my rock, and in so many ways, my better half. I love you.
At the time, I had just turned 30. I was working as a dispatcher and office manager for the family trucking company, and I was hating every minute of it. My previous relationships, if you wanted to call them that, were utter failures. I would go on maybe a couple of dates with a girl and realize there was zero compatibility between us. Had a number of one night stands. Nothing meaningful. I hadn't been in a boyfriend/girlfriend type of scenario since that previous February, and that ended badly. At the time, I was ready to just give up.
On the evening of September 21st, I received the following message in my Myspace inbox:
"Hey happened to stumble across your profile......great song clip!"Her name was Jessi. She was 22. I looked at her profile. She had a couple of country music song clips (ugh), but she was pretty cute:
 |
| (She's the one on the right) |
"Thanks....was sorta fitting at the time....still is...lol. I really liked your page....except for the country music part...but you made up for it with Nelly......Like your sense of humor.....you're a bit twisted....NICE."She continued,
"Hahaha yeah that definetely sums me up ... twisted...And i will agree not ALL country music is good but there are exceptions! if ya wanna chat sometime i'm on yahoo or msn as ixxxxxx_xxxxxs"I had recently gone to see the documentary 'March of the Penguins', and wrote a review of it on my Myspace blog. I also wrote a small blog about my memories of 9/11/2001. She sent me another message a couple of minutes later,
"WOW just got done reading your blogs.....happened to stumble across those too...the 9/11 one made me cry....don't feel bad but i seriously bawled...it took me back to what exactly i was doing when i heard...at the time i was working for MCI and it was located literally right next door to the air force base (in iowa) so i couldn't go to work not that i could have anyways....its amazing how much can change in such a short time.... also very jealous you have seen march of the penguins....i LOVE penguins and haven't had time to see it....guess i will have to catch it on pay per view or something...thats all!"Our email conversation continued the next morning. I sent her a message saying,
"that penguin movie was amazing....im a big fan of documentaries.....would like to chat with you later....you seem pretty cool....cute too...lol"From that point on, we either sent each other instant messages or talked to each other on the phone. That was on September 22nd. She invited me to come over to her place for spaghetti on Tuesday, September 27th. I knocked on her door. When it opened, I was frozen. I looked in her eyes, and said "Oh my God, you're beautiful." Then I kissed her.
I can honestly say now that the spaghetti really wasn't that good. I think she put sugar in the sauce. Regardless, I was polite and ate it. Later that evening, as I was laying on the couch in her living room, she gave me a "cow kiss" across the entire right side of my face. I almost vomited, but it attracted me to her. I always wanted someone that was a lover and a buddy. Someone that would try to give me a "wet Willy" when I was half asleep. To me, that was a sign of someone that was interested in you, in a sick and twisted sort of way. It was the best first date I ever had.
Later that week, we were on our second date, and I was realizing that I was falling in love with this woman. Normally, that would be scaring the shit out of me, but something deep down inside of me knew that this was the woman I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I had already been engaged in the past, and she was the first person I felt safe with. I could tell her things, things that I was scared to admit to myself. I tried to scare her away. I told her all of my secrets, and she only got closer to me.
In January of 2006, I moved in with her. It was a huge adjustment to make. I had never lived with a partner before. Nine months later, the two of us were walking through the mall. A jewelry store was having a sapphire sale. Sapphires are her favorite stone. We went in, just to look at the ring settings. As she was looking at the rings, I called her mom on my cell phone. I told her mom that I was going to propose to her daughter right now, but first I need her permission. Her mom was sobbing, but I think she said "yes". I got down on one knee in the middle of the store. I told her that I have loved her from the moment I saw her. I told her that I couldn't imagine my life without her in it, and I asked her to marry me. She said "yes" too. I told her to pick any ring she wanted.
As the weeks and months went by, we discovered ourselves. We realized that all of these years we had been living our lives to make the people around us happy. Speaking for myself, there were things that I didn't know about myself at 30 that I should have figured out at 15. It was almost as if we grew up together. We found each other and found ourselves. We started planning our wedding. We decided on Las Vegas, February 29, 2008, Mandalay Bay Hotel.
We had everything picked out. It was going to be a Beatles themed wedding. The processional was going to be Regina Spektor's cover of John Lennon's 'Real Love' and we were going to walk down the aisle as husband and wife to the Beatles' 'All You Need Is Love'. We had hotel reservations and restaurant reservations. Everything was figured out. Then at about 2am on a night in early October 2007, Jessi rolled over and softly said, "I think I'm late".
"Late to what?"
"You know, late."
"Like?"
"Yeah."
A half hour later, I'm at a 24 hour Walgreens buying pregnancy tests and a two liter bottle of Coke. At 4am, we realized we were having a baby. We also realized that meant on February 29, 2008, my wife would be nearly 7 months pregnant. "If I'm going to Vegas, I'm drinking." That's a quote from her. Not me. So, on November 23rd, 2007, I married my lover, my buddy, my best friend, and the mother of what would soon be my daughter. It was a simple ceremony. We had it in the kitchen of our apartment. It was just us and three close friends. Afterward, we had sparkling grape juice and Blue Bunny chocolate chip ice cream. So, on every November 23rd of every year, we celebrate by having sparkling grape juice and Blue Bunny chocolate chip ice cream.
It has been about five and a half years since that first message. 1,973 days. And it has been the best 1,973 days of my life. We have the type of relationship that movies are written about. Besides the occasional appointment or trip to the grocery store, we have not been more than 30 feet away from each other for the last five years. Even when I was working, we worked in the same office, for the same department, within 25 feet of each other. We had the same hours and had the same lunch schedule. We were together 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we wouldn't have had it any other way.
We have never had a fight. We have had maybe two little arguments in the last five years. We very rarely disagree. If there is one perfect person out there in the world for you, I have found that person. I am never letting her go. Only death will separate us, and even after I die, I have promised to haunt her. It is the only way she would be able to go on without me.
Happy Valentine's Day Jessi. You are my love, my strength, my rock, and in so many ways, my better half. I love you.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Autobiographical Songs Part V
It seems like from day one of our relationship, my wife and I have been on our own. We have had no one else to count on. Shortly after we met, I lost my family. Hers were in Iowa. We had a number of acquaintances, but no real "friends" to count on, for the most part. Just the two of us, for the better part of four years.
Somehow, we made it. Everyday, our love for each other stronger than the last. We have always been told that we have the perfect relationship...the type of marriage you only see in the movies. We've been together for a little over four years and have never had a fight. We very rarely, if ever, raise our voices around each other. She's into video games. I like to help her pick out clothes. It just works.
The song I am writing about tonight is "our song", 'Chasing Cars' by Snow Patrol. Had we had a "traditional" wedding, this would have been the first dance at our reception. Instead of marrying in Vegas as planned, we got married in our kitchen, the night after Thanksgiving, by our friend Lindsay, with two witnesses in attendance to sign the license. Instead of champagne and wedding cake, we each had a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream.
The song is very simple in it's writing style. It's not overly flowery or wordy. That, I think, is what I like about it. It gets to the point. The first verse describes us perfectly:
"We'll do it all
Everything
On our own
We don't need
Anything
Or anyone"
We have been through more drama in the four short years that we have been together, than some couples see in a lifetime. Six, count them, six moves, two of which were long distance. Not to mention the loss of my family. The stress associated with the loss of a job and the subsequent unemployment. Pregnancy and the birth of our baby girl. Then my medical/mental issues came to the forefront. We're now dealing with the consequences associated with that. A couple of months ago we lost the family van. Last Friday, I received the last paycheck from my employer that I'll ever get. My career is over. I am expecting a decision from MetLife within the next 24-48 hours with a decision as to whether my long term disability has been approved. Since I can no longer care for myself, we're discussing the possibility of having my wife quit her job to become a caretaker of sorts. So, her career is so to end as well.
My favorite line from the song is one that has been edited out of the U.S. single and radio versions heard here in the States. It says, "I need your grace to remind me to find my own". Just being in my wife's presence makes me a better person. She makes me want to be a better human being. I am who I am today because of her. I wouldn't care about anyone in this world other than myself if it wasn't for trying to copy her selfless attitude, and I don't thank her enough for that. She is the greatest "human" I have ever personally had the pleasure of knowing, and I'm so happy I have her here to instill her values and morals in my daughter and keep me in check as well. I love you Jessi...I knew it from the moment I first saw your eyes.
It took me forever to find the U.K. version of the song. It includes the extra line. Enjoy.
Here is a pic of the two of us from a much less stressful time. It was taken in a photo booth at the 2007 New Mexico State Fair just weeks before we were married. We were a little more punk then and a little less crazy. The pic is currently on our refrigerator. I still smile every time I get the milk.
Somehow, we made it. Everyday, our love for each other stronger than the last. We have always been told that we have the perfect relationship...the type of marriage you only see in the movies. We've been together for a little over four years and have never had a fight. We very rarely, if ever, raise our voices around each other. She's into video games. I like to help her pick out clothes. It just works.
The song I am writing about tonight is "our song", 'Chasing Cars' by Snow Patrol. Had we had a "traditional" wedding, this would have been the first dance at our reception. Instead of marrying in Vegas as planned, we got married in our kitchen, the night after Thanksgiving, by our friend Lindsay, with two witnesses in attendance to sign the license. Instead of champagne and wedding cake, we each had a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream.
The song is very simple in it's writing style. It's not overly flowery or wordy. That, I think, is what I like about it. It gets to the point. The first verse describes us perfectly:
"We'll do it all
Everything
On our own
We don't need
Anything
Or anyone"
We have been through more drama in the four short years that we have been together, than some couples see in a lifetime. Six, count them, six moves, two of which were long distance. Not to mention the loss of my family. The stress associated with the loss of a job and the subsequent unemployment. Pregnancy and the birth of our baby girl. Then my medical/mental issues came to the forefront. We're now dealing with the consequences associated with that. A couple of months ago we lost the family van. Last Friday, I received the last paycheck from my employer that I'll ever get. My career is over. I am expecting a decision from MetLife within the next 24-48 hours with a decision as to whether my long term disability has been approved. Since I can no longer care for myself, we're discussing the possibility of having my wife quit her job to become a caretaker of sorts. So, her career is so to end as well.
My favorite line from the song is one that has been edited out of the U.S. single and radio versions heard here in the States. It says, "I need your grace to remind me to find my own". Just being in my wife's presence makes me a better person. She makes me want to be a better human being. I am who I am today because of her. I wouldn't care about anyone in this world other than myself if it wasn't for trying to copy her selfless attitude, and I don't thank her enough for that. She is the greatest "human" I have ever personally had the pleasure of knowing, and I'm so happy I have her here to instill her values and morals in my daughter and keep me in check as well. I love you Jessi...I knew it from the moment I first saw your eyes.
It took me forever to find the U.K. version of the song. It includes the extra line. Enjoy.
Here is a pic of the two of us from a much less stressful time. It was taken in a photo booth at the 2007 New Mexico State Fair just weeks before we were married. We were a little more punk then and a little less crazy. The pic is currently on our refrigerator. I still smile every time I get the milk.
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