Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Like-em July Playlist

I haven't written much in July. This month has been an absolute rush. 

I kicked it off with Summerfest on the 4th, raced through a crazy week in the office covering a colleague's vacation, and the next two weeks might be even busier. In the past few days my fiancee not only turned 30, but accepted an incredible new job.

First - I'm thankful that God delivered such a wonderful end to this journey. She's been job hunting for three years - in higher education there's usually only a flood of opportunity in the early summers. Going through lead after lead has been incredibly challenging for her and nearly destroyed her confidence several times. I'm proud of her resilience, her growth, and her herself. This new opportunity is a generous step forward in a career that she enjoys. 

Her current position required her to live on campus due to her "on-call" schedule and handling escalations from her student staff even when she isn't on call. That means she has to pack up more than her office in the next two weeks. Oh and we have to find an apartment for her that we hadn't been searching for.

So yes, the next couple weeks will be pretty crazy too.

But that doesn't mean that I've not been soundtracking this whole month. I've got another handful of great new tunes to share. 

Robert Plant - Rainbow

I've never gotten into a Robert Plant song quite like I have with "Rainbow". It's the single for his forthcoming album. 


Milky Chance - Stolen Dance

Is it right that mostly put these songs here in the order that I decided to add them to my personal monthly playlist? "Stolen Dance" was one of those songs that was love at first listen for me and has probably the most plays this month. I actually threatened to leave my sister's upcoming October wedding early if this wasn't added to the reception playlist.


SOHN - Artiface

"Artiface" took me some time to get into, but I think that's mostly because the rest of SOHN's album of the same name still hasn't caught on with me. "Artiface", though, is worth more than a few plays. 


Got a Girl - Did We Live to Fast

Here's a sound that totally different from most of what I listen to and it stuck to me like crazy. It features a mashup of talents in Dan the Automator and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. With a slew of my most anticipated albums already released this summer, Got a Girl's release is high on my want list.


Hozier - Take Me to Church

Yes, there's an official video. Yes, it makes an incredibly strong statement. Yes, I have referred to Like-em Playlist Rule 72 and posted the unofficial lyrics video instead so you could enjoy your own interpretation first. 


Heidi Spencer and the Rare Birds - Nebraska

My Milwaukee pick of the month. Heidi has a great sound and several tracks make me want to call in sick to work and walk to the local coffee shop where she would be playing live and the dark roast would be flowing freely.... anyway, I also love the twangy sound she brings in "Nebraska".