Author Archives: Krissie

The Greatest Mix Tapes Ever Made (?)

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I came home from work tonight to a little package slip in my mailbox.  As I went to the office to collect it, I had no idea what it could be.  Thanks to teenage years spent writing to over 7 dozen pen pals, I don’t think I will ever tire of the thrill of getting something unexpected in the mailbox.

The package was a thick, padded envelope from my friend Fred in Colorado.  Fred and I have a unique friendship – about a year ago, he left a comment here on one of my blog posts about an artist we both really like (okay, Fred really likes, I’m obsessed with…whatever).  Since then, we’ve traded e-mails and music and stories about music…Kindred spirits across the miles.  So it’s only appropriate that Fred’s belated Christmas gift to me, wrapped in that padded envelope, was a hard cover book entitled Cassette From My Ex:  Stories and Soundtracks of Lost Love.  It’s a book full of short stories about relationships and the mix tapes they spawned.  And it’s AWESOME.  I’ve been reading it all night, engrossed in other people’s memories, love, heartbreak and music.  And it got me to thinking about my own mix tapes.

Yes, I still have them.  Actual cassette tapes.  Several boxes, to be completely honest, buried at the bottom of my little storage unit.  So what better time to dig them out than at 9 PM on a Wednesday night in January?  Most of them are tapes that I made myself – for roadtrips, for lost loves, for periods of time in my life.  But there are a handful made by others for me.  More than a mix CD could ever be, a mix tape took work.  You couldn’t make a playlist and listen to it on your iPod a few times before making it permanent.  There was an art to it – planning, plotting, handwriting, naming it (the name was always a painstaking and extremely creative and witty aspect for me) designing a cover – usually by hand, because not everyone had a computer and printer in their house then. Oh, yes, getting a mix tape from someone was a big deal.

In my box of mix tapes, there are four that are in contention for the title of greatest mix tapes ever made.  I’m going to take a page out of this fabulous book and write about these epic masterpieces…and even give you the track lists.   Names have been changed to protect the innocent.  Feel free to share your favorite mix tape moments and track lists in the comments.  I love to hear other people’s overly sentimental sides come out. 🙂

#4.  M’s Mix for Krissie
I couldn’t wait to go to college.  College, for me, represented a million worlds of promise, learning and writing (at the time, I fancied that I would someday be a famous novelist).  So when I got my freshman year roommate assignment, the first thing I did was write to my roommates.  Yes, as in old fashioned letter write – e-mail was yet to be released upon the world.  I had two – and one of them, I’ll call her M.,  I knew would be an instant friend.  How?  She responded to my letter with a mix tape.  The cover, now faded, was a brightly, multi-colored, bubble lettered version of my name, surrounded by red – a representation of her personality?  The song list was even better, part 1992 frozen in time, part exotic – I’d been weaned on Springsteen and Bon Jovi – who was this Meatloaf person?, and part high expectation about the fun college would bring.  And our freshman year did bring fun, loads of laughter, incessant crushes on boys, my first drinking experiences (I didn’t drink in high school), and my first real heartaches – both in breaking someone’s heart and having mine broken.  M. was a very large part of that, and there were many mixes swapped during that year…the soundtrack to our first year of independence, in Minta Martin 413, will always be filled with Simon and Garfunkel’s “Cecelia” and KWS’s “Please Don’t Go” in my mind.  But, that first mix tape, the one she sent before we ever met, will always be the most epic, and the songs will always represent the excitement about going away to school.

Epilogue: M and I were on and off close throughout college; she spent some time abroad, and left school for awhile.  We stayed in touch up until a few years ago; I’ve tried to reconnect with her on Facebook without any luck.  I guess some friendships are just meant to be in your life for short periods of time.

The track list:  (My cassette player is buried in the closet outside, so I’ll have to apologize – I don’t know all of the artists) Side A: Something To Talk About – Bonnie Raitt / Can’t Stop This Thing – Bryan Adams / Let’s Go – ? /You Make My Dreams – Hall and Oates / Fool In the Rain – Led Zeppelin / I Want Action – Poison / Deeper Shade Of Soul – Urban Dance Squad / Move This – Technotronic / Jump – The Movement / Motown Philly – Boyz II Men / Everything About You – Ugly Kid Joe  // Side B:  Divine Thing – The Soup Dragons / To Be With You – Mr. Big / Paradise by the Dashboard Light – Meatloaf / Stand – REM / Cheeseburger in Paradise – Jimmy Buffet / Apron Strings – Everything But the Girl (?) / Better – ? / Signs – Tesla / Just One Look – ? / Total Eclipse of the Heart – Bonnie Tyler / Walk Away from Love – ?

# 3.  [Whited Out Title]
Perhaps the most infuriatingly titled mix CD ever, given to me by my ex-senior in high school love interest, at-the-time-recently-reacquired-friend (we’ll call him BFF) and not-so-secret crush during “our summer.”  The title was literally whited out, leaving me to wonder if he’d named it something and whited it out to make me insane with wonder or if it had just been the only tape he’d had lying around and it already had something on the title space.  I shall never know.  BFF was, and remains to this day, the most interesting person I know.  He’s ridiculously creative (later CD mix covers would be elaborate displays of his graphic design schooling), peaceably rebellious, has a bizarre and eclectic musical taste – this is the man whose favorite band was Queen long before Wayne and Garth made it cool, who practically forced Hootie and the Blowfish down my throat before they were cool, and who loves rap, punk and strange German house music, and who loved to torture me with our not-so-subtle infatuations with each other. We spent the entire summer between my sophomore and junior years together, rather inseparable; when we weren’t at work, we were together (and sometimes, one of us was hanging out at the place where the other worked), and we spent many nights driving aimlessly around in our boring little county, doing nothing but talking and wasting perfectly good .89 cent-a-gallon gas in my 1983 Toyota Tercel, eating the same exact things at least three times a week at our local 24-hour diner, or just sitting in one driveway or another talking.  This was the first of two mix tapes from that summer – and it is a perfect reflection of BFF, with just enough buried message in the lyrics that made me fall even further in love with him.  I played it so much that the last time I listened to it a few years ago, the tape was so worn that it got caught up in the heads ever few minutes and I had to stop it and rewind it manually with a pencil.

Epilogue: See #1.

Track List: Side A:  Intro – (Cryptically titled Guess Who on the track list) Snoop Dogg / Close to You – Saigon Kick / It’s Like That – US3 / Calling You – George Michael / Connected – The Stereo MCs / Dust in the Wind – Kansas / Until I Fall Away – The Gin Blossoms / Interstate Love Song – Stone Temple Pilots / Being Around – The Lemonheads / Push Th’ Little Daisies – Ween / Light – KMFDM / She’s A Beauty – The Tubes / Bijou – Queen // Side B:  Last Acoustic Remains – Hollywood Basics / Speed – Alpha Team / One for the Road – House of Pain / Epic – Faith No More / Silvergun Superman – Stone Temple Pilots / Too Much Love Will Kill You – Brian May / Dinner Bell – They Might Be Giants / No Reply At All – Genesis / Gin & Juice – Snoop Dogg / Nevermore – Queen / The March of the Black Queen – Queen / Sabotage – The Beastie Boys / Ode to Tipper Gore – Warrant

#2. Time Stand Still (With a Little 70s Retro)
Enter the Internet.  At the end of my sophomore year, I struck up what would be the first of many online friendships with guys at military schools.  What can I say, I am a sucker for a man in a military uniform. WC was a little ahead of its time with internet access, and I was (and until very recently, still had) a profile on the ISCA BBS, one of the first real active bulletin board systems (an early advent of a chat room).  Soldier Boy (SB), as we’ll call him, and I struck up a conversation one late night and chatted until the wee hours in the morning.  He was a cadet at West Point.  That summer, we wrote letters back and forth as he was away at some training or another.  Our online friendship continued into my junior year and became increasingly flirtatious.  It culminated in a sorority sister and I making a roadtrip to West Point one weekend for a football game, where we spent a weekend hanging out with SB and one of his friends who were on liberty or whatever you wanted to call it.  The attraction between SB and I was obvious, and we continued a relationship for several months, with him coming to visit me at school, and us meeting up at the Army-Navy game in Philadelphia for a weekend.  Our visits were intense and fueled by a steady diet of overly-sappy hair metal ballads.  The mix, which he gave me during our weekend in Philly, and which we played over and over again (it would turn out to be the last time I saw him), has a hastily scrawled note inside the cover that says, “This is pretty random!  Time Stand Still has the best lyrics.  Listen…It’s so true!  The innocence slips away… – SB.” Truer words were never spoken.

Epilogue: SB and I actually stayed in random touch on and off over the years, usually when one of us was lonely and searching for someone to tell us we were special.  In 2004 (or around there) he got married and invited me to the wedding – not sure if it was a “thanks for being a friend” invite or a “ha ha, I’m getting married and you aren’t.”  Whichever it was, I could never have mustered the nerve to go. I’ve heard from him maybe two times since then and we may or may not be friends on Facebook.

Track List: Side A:  Time Stand Still – Rush / You Learn – Alanis Morrisette / Love Hurts – Nazareth / Don’t Cry – Seal / How Deep Is Your Love – The Bee Gees / Forbidden Love – Madonna & Babyface / Naked – Goo Goo Dolls // Side B:  Can’t Fight This Feeling – REO Speedwagon / Wonderwall – Oasis / Slow Ride – Foghat / Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in My Hand – Primitive Radio Gods / Broken Wings – Mr. Mister / The Night Is Still Young – Billy Joel / Have You Ever Needed Somebody – Def Leppard

# 1. Moths & Flies:  The Hits
Oh, BFF.  Back to our summer.  It was a strange summer.  While we spent a lot of time together, he did have a girlfriend back at school, and I spent the summer dating a random assortment of guys.   He made a comment one night, when I said I was going out with one of them, that I was like Motel 6 – I left a light on and attracted moths.  And although he had a girlfriend, there was always some girl interested in him, so I responded that if that were me, he had to be a fly strip.  It was a silly analogy, but it stuck, and so was aptly named the end-of-summer mix he gave me.  In a completely romantic teen-comedy angst inspired ending, he kissed me in my front yard the night before I left to go back to school, and then used our high school secret one-ring “call me back” code later that night – and I didn’t call him back (in my defense:  he hadn’t used it all summer, and I was sure it was a wrong number).  For the next several months, this tape got played over and over – alternating with Hootie & The Blowfish’s record, which I also played incessantly – while I was back at school, not-so-subtly pining away over him (there were many alcohol-fueled answering machine messages of love left that fall), and overanalyzing the “coded messages” in the songs, the lyrics, whatever.  I’m a girl, what can I say.

Epilogue: BFF and I never have gotten together, although we’ve had on-and-off moments over the years where I think we have both contemplated the idea, but none too recently.  He’s been way more successful on the relationship front then I have.  When I’m sad and lonely, I write him and bemoan my single status, and he tells me to get over it, and I remind him that he is my model for the type of guy I want in my life.  I think this alternately flatters him and scares the bejesus out of him.  We remain friends, even if we don’t talk that often.

Track List: Side A:  Vasoline – Stone Temple Pilots / Thunder Kiss ’65 (Remix) – White Zombie / B-Boys Makin’ With the Freak – Beastie Boys / Selfish – Ned’s Atomic Dustbin / Alison’s Starting to Happen – The Lemonheads / O-o-h Child – The Posies / Dear Friends – Queen / Pump Pump – Snoop Doggy Dogg / Who Was In My Room Last Night – The Butthole Surfers / I Wanna Be Sedated – The Ramones / What I Like About You – The Romantics / Apart – The Cure / Love U More – Sun Screem / She’s Actual Size – They Might Be Giants // Side B:  Mary Jane’s Last Dance – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers / A Drug Against War – KMFDM / Feels So Good – Chuck Mangione / The More You Ignore Me – Morissey / Jump – The Movement / Plush (Acoustic) – Stone Temple Pilots / Break ‘Em Off Some – Cypress Hill / President Garfield – Julianna Hatfield 3/ Liebeslied – KMFDM / Satellite – Elvis Costello

Whew.  That was a trip down memory lane.  I’m plum worn out now, but smiling.  I may be a sentimental fool, but it’s good to know that there are enough other sentimental fools out there, and ones that love music at that, to compile a whole book on the subject.  And, to the Ms, SBs and BFFs of the world, thanks for caring enough to make the mix tapes.  You have probably long since forgotten them, but they will live on – in my storage unit and in my memory – for eternity.

A Look at #1: The Influence

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If you read my Top Ten Albums of 2010 post, you saw that a little band from Virginia Beach called The Influence made it to the top with their new album Falling Objects.  I’ll keep repeating it over and over again, but these guys are just oozing talent from their pores – and they have an incredibly unique sound.  They performed for a Knoxville, TN TV station this morning… and the video footage is awesome.  Check it out; then go see ’em on their tour this month!

The Gifts of a Bad Year

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As I sat in a fancy, schmancy hotel surrounded by some of my best friends watching one of my favorite songwriters sing “Old Lang Syne” on Friday night, I couldn’t help but be thankful that 2010 had finally ended.  It’s not been the best year for me and my family; in fact, I’d hazard saying that it was the worst year of my life.  Funny, though, how when your eyes are blurred by tears brought on by hard, heartbreaking events, you sometimes have the clearest vision of your world.  Amidst the bad things happening in 2010, I was given so many gifts.  I take so much for granted in my life – 2010 reminded me of all the people and things that I am truly lucky to have in my life.

As many of you know, my Mom was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in July.  It’s been a really horrific fight for her, and the last six months have seemed like an eternity.  Severe dehydration during her chemo treatment put her into septic shock and we came very close to losing her.  Her body has been through so much, and the emotional toll it has taken on her, my brother, sister and me, as well as many of our other family members, has been taxing.   I have spent the last five months being angry that this happened to my Mom, scared to death that I would lose her, worried about how we’re going to pay for everything, and heartbroken for her because this has completely changed her life.  And yet, despite all of those negative feelings, the good somehow shines through the bad.  In December, she was finally physically strong enough to have surgery to remove the tumor and we hope that we’ll soon have an “all clear.”  She’s had access to some of the best oncologists and surgeons in the country, thanks to where she lives.  The care she received at the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania was beyond amazing.  I cannot possibly express my gratitude to everyone there who played a role in her care and recovery – but most especially the nurses.  If you’ve never had to sit in a hospital for days on end, you could never fully grasp the depths of compassion, knowledge, and hard work these people do every day.  I was astounded, over and over again, by the kindness shown to my Mom, and to our family, by these wonderful people who were complete strangers but cared for my Mom as if she was their own mother.  The biggest gift that 2010 gave me was the gift of my Mom:  she’s still here with us, and we remain optimistic that she will be cancer-free.

Beyond the obvious, Mom’s illness has also had an impact on my relationship with my family.  Since moving to North Carolina almost 13 years ago, my time with my family has been limited. I have been able to spend so much time with my Mom this year and feel much closer to her.  The same goes for my brother and sister, who have been unbelievably strong through this whole ordeal, bearing a lot of the burden because they area geographically closer to Mom.  There was hardly a day that went by during Mom’s six weeks in the hospital this year that one of us wasn’t there with her, and a lot of times, it was them.   My Dad and my stepmom have been incredible resources and pillars of strength for me.  Anytime I had a medical question, I was lucky enough to have them to turn to, and they were there, no matter what time of night I needed them.  My Gran, despite fighting through a severe illness of her own this year, was her same strong self, insisting upon feeding us when we were home, giving us money, and making what couldn’t have been easy physical trips for her up to the hospital to see my Mom. My Uncle Bull, my Mom’s brother, was so supportive and although his work schedule is extremely taxing, he took what little free time he had to visit Mom in the hospital, drive me to the airport, send text messages to check in, take care of stuff at Mom’s house while she was sick, or whatever we needed from him. My great Uncle Jack and Aunt Barb, who would do anything for their family, doing the same, making sure we were fed, checking on us constantly.  Not a day went by when my Aunt Nina, my Dad’s sister-in-law, who has remained friends with my Mom over the years, didn’t check in during Mom’s illness.  The same holds true for our extended family of friends and neighbors, who reached out over and over again to let us know we weren’t alone and to help whenever we needed it.  I am forever grateful for that, and count my family among the biggest gifts of 2010.

With everything that happened with my Mom, my own friendships really got neglected.  But that didn’t stop my friends – my other family – from being the most incredibly supportive group of people on the planet.  It’s true what they say; that when you’re in crisis, you find out who your true friends are.  I will never be able to repay my friends for what they’ve done for me and my Mom over the past few months.  From sending Mom cards, flowers and gifts (Christy and Andrew, Michelle, Kelly and Matt, Stacy, Lee, Kim, Peter, Jen, Shelia, Denise and Sue), to offering and giving me air miles to fly home at the last minute (Christy, Kelly and Matt), just calling to tell me they were thinking about my Mom (so many of you!), letting me cry on their shoulder (too many to list), cooking me dinner (Annie and Brad), or getting me out of the house for a few hours to forget about everything for awhile (a whole wide range of you and the staff at The Gin Mill, of course).   I would give my right arm (and leg) to be able to give back to my friends an ounce of the love they have showed me and my family.  My friends are always some of my biggest blessings, but this year, they are even more so.

I don’t often talk about work because I prefer to keep my work life and personal life separate, but I can’t possibly talk about the gifts of this last year without talking about my job.  I am so very lucky to have an employer who from the very moment I told them about my Mom’s illness, has been absolutely incredible.  At every level, from my direct manager on up to the CEO and founder of the company, I have received nothing but support.  Not once did I question my job’s security.  They allowed me the flexibility to take the time I needed to be with my Mom during her illness and work remotely when I could.  And, to top it all off, despite being out more than I have been in nearly 13 years with the company, I received a promotion at the end of the year.  I cannot be anything but grateful for working for a company that puts family first.

No blog from me would be complete without talking about music.  Music always inspires me, makes me happy, consoles me, and provides a soundtrack to my life.  This year, it did all those things, but with even more intensity.  I had a spectacular music year – where do I even begin to talk about it?  The highlight of my music year was finally, FINALLY getting to meet and see Christopher Jak perform.  Jak has been in my Top 5 artists since I first heard him in 2003, but I’d never been able to see him live.  So when the team at Rock by the Sea invited him to perform, I was without words.  His two performances were everything I expected and more.  A close second was seeing Alpha Rev live for the first time – the other band in my Top 10 that I’d never seen before.   Let’s just say that Casey McPherson is even more magical live…and I have a massive musical crush on Brian Batch.  If you ever want to watch someone absolutely crush an electric violin performance, I highly recommend getting your ass out to see this band.   The Influence continues to become a bigger and bigger part of my musical landscape, and the release of their new album, Falling Objects, was one of my favorite musical moments this year – the best release of the year, in my opinion.  Grace Potter – new album and two live shows this year.  Hello amazing.  And let’s not forget those Sequoyah Prep School kids.  The second half of the year was sadly a little lacking in shows from them, but they managed to tie The Influence boys for the band I saw most this year – six times in total. I’m eagerly anticipating the release of their new album in 2011.  And, lastly, thanks to the generosity of my bestie Christy and her wonderful fiance, I closed out the year with an intimate performance from the ever talented Emerson Hart, sitting less than 10 feet away from the man himself…there are worse ways to spend a New Year’s Eve, my friends.  Yes, indeed, music is a big gift from 2010.

One thing that has been missing from my life for a long time is writing.  I write every day for work, and occasionally here for the blog, but I haven’t earnestly tried to write anything for enjoyment in years.  Thanks to a challenge from my partner-in-crime Shelia, that changed this year.  The gauntlet was thrown:  sign up for NaNoWriMo and write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. I completely and totally failed – only managed to get to 10K.  But, in failing, I succeeded.  I brought writing back to my life.  I had forgotten how much I enjoyed it, how exhilarating the process could be, how much I enjoyed creating characters.  In 2011, writing will be more a part of my life.  So thank you Shelia for encouraging the writer in me, and giving me the gift of writing again.

I could go into a list of a million other things that brought me happiness in 2010 – being asked to be the maid-of-honor at Christy and Andrew’s wedding, photography, silly things like Guinness and Hawaii Five-0 – and it would probably take pages and pages.  As I sweep 2010 out the door and welcome 2011, I can only hope that 2011 brings me more gifts like the ones I received in 2010.  2010 may have been the worst year of my life, but somehow, that makes the good things, big and small, matter even more.

Krissie’s Top Ten Albums of 2010

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It’s that time of year folks – time for my annual “best of” lists.  To kick it off, the Top Ten Albums of 2010.  I could attempt to tell you how hard this list is for me to make and a few of you would probably understand.  I will not claim that this is an unbiased list; in fact, I’d say the complete opposite.  I firmly believe that music shouldn’t be all “industry” talk – about whose breaking ground, and who writes technically perfect songs.  Sure, you have to be able to write and play music well, but music is also about how a song reaches the audience, and how it makes people feel.  With that said, my “Top Ten” list is a list of albums that I wore out this year because I just had to hear them – over and over and over again.  It’s a list of records that makes me happy.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

12.  The Jealous Kind – EP
I couldn’t leave my friends Josh and Dave off of this list.  I love their music more than life – and my love for it is augmented because they are friends. “Beautiful Regrets” was the soundtrack to my summer this year…so, so, so singable.  And despite the fact that iTunes has a completely wrong description of the album (some other band), I’m linking to it here so that you can download it and listen to how great these boys are.  Expect to be hearing more of The Jealous Kind on a TV station near you soon!

11. Son of a Bad Man – EP
These fellas from Jacksonville were my favorite “new find” of the year.  Formerly known as Shawn Fisher and The Jukebox Gypsies, the guys were signed to Universal for a short time, but realized they could be doing more on their own, so as of last month, are back to being independent.  And already they are cranking out new stuff that is utterly phenomenal (wait until you all hear their new tune “Written in Stone” – I played it more than 50 times in a week!  Wee bit obsessed!).  This EP is the perfect, bite-sized portion of pop-rock.  I love, love, LOVE it.  Fair warning “Open Your Eyes” WILL get stuck in your head!

THE TOP 10

10.  HoneyChild – Nearer The Earth
Damn Adam Duritz.  As if being my favorite songwriter on earth wasn’t enough, the man has to make musical recommendations that make me swoon.  Sometime this summer, Adam sent out a tweet about this band, so I immediately investigated, and almost as immediately fell in love.  I could go swimming in this record – vacillating between delicate (“The Father”) or fever-pitch (“Away We Go”), this is modern Americana that everyone should know.   Favorite track:  “Driving Song.”

09.  Green River Ordinance – The Morning Passengers EP
It’s no secret that I love me some GRO, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the boys’ first foray sans record label would be on my Top Ten list.  And acoustic nonetheless!  But this one is a very emotional add for me. The album was released the day I drove home to NC from NJ after spending two weeks with my Mom during her chemo treatments.  Twenty-four hours later, I was on a plane back to NJ because she was in dire straits in medical ICU at University of Pennsylvania.  I listened to this record over and over again for the next month as my Mom slowly fought her way back.  But I digress…this is GRO at their very core.  Great songwriting with their signature positive, upbeat spin.  Favorite Track: “Undertow.”

08.  The Grand Magnolias – The Grand Magnolias
Formerly known as Hightide Blues, this little quintet from Alabama is nothing short of a lightning rod for incredibly solid, dirty, sweaty southern rock n’ roll.  And their debut album under their new name (which you can get on iTunes for all of $4.99 right now, people) does a fairly good job of capturing their powerhouse live performance.   Eases you in with the ear-worm “Sing Out” and then puts you straight on your ass with the mandolin-laced “I Can’t Remember” – and it doesn’t let up.  I’m not kidding when I say I bang on the steering wheel like I’m the best drummer in the world when I’m playing this album.  If you’re a fan of Whiskeytown, Will Hoge, or The Allman Brothers, you owe it to yourself to check this record out.  Favorite Track:  “Heartbreak.”

07.  Gareth Asher – Between the Smiles and the Tears
Sweet heaven.  Gareth.  What can I say to describe this record in one word?  Soulful.  Two words? With heart.  I owe the world to Christy for turning me onto Gareth’s music so many years ago…I don’t know if I can imagine my musical landscape without his songs.  Gareth’s third album packs together everything I love most about him:  his gigantic heart, his ability to connect with others and capture the emotions he feels from them in song, and his obvious passion for making music.   Gareth’s been performing these songs live for a few years, so it was great to hear them appear on this record – songs like “Can We Get It Right?” and the heartbreaking ballad “Somewhere South of Here,”  but there were also unexpected little gems like the James Taylor-esque “On My Own.”  You really should just own this record.  Favorite Track:  “Break.”

06.  Shane Hines – All the Quiet, All the Chaos
One of the great things about “discovering” an artist early in their career is that you get to watch them evolve and grow.  Shane Hines is one of those artists for me.  I don’t know if I’ve ever met an artist that is as prolific as Shane and yet consistently strong.  One of the best things about Shane is that he really writes from the heart.  All the Quiet, All the Chaos is Shane’s best record to date, in my opinion, for this very reason.  It’s a really introspective record, and because of that, sometimes it’s actually hard to listen to (if “It’s Not Home” doesn’t make you tear up, you are NOT human).  And he’s a master at putting fake smiles on songs – “Cemetery Shoes” is crazily morbid and sad, but will have you tapping your toes the whole time you’re singing along.  And then there’s just straight up rock n’ roll, with Shane killing on the electric guitar as always, with songs like “Leave It All Behind.”  I adore every second of this record.  Every. Single. Second.  Favorite Track:  “Nobody Tells You Anything.”

05.  Christopher Jak – The Folk EP
Even if this whole EP wasn’t amazing, it would have made it on this list for one single lyric, perhaps the best line out of any song I’ve purchased this year.  “I’m the human wrecking ball, you’re the love grenade; we leave a trail behind us, like a suicide parade.”  Utterly brilliant.  Then there’s this one:  “I was a man on fire asking you to dance, but having been burned before, you’re not taking no chances on me.” C’mon – you cannot tell me that line just doesn’t blow the stuff you hear on the radio out of the freakin’ water.  The “mellow” to last year’s more upbeat Leadfoot Lover EP, The Folk EP is Jak at what I think is his best – just that delicious voice and an acoustic guitar.  Three new songs, one older song done acoustic, and a haunting cover of Neil Young’s “Birds”… and all sheer perfection in their own ways.  I couldn’t be more in love with Jak’s music if I wanted to be.  You can be, too – for free.  The EP is still available for free download at Bandcamp. Favorite Track:  “Breaking.”

04.  Gaslight Anthem – American Slang
This one’s a surprise for those of you who know my musical tastes well, I know.  But I can’t help it…This record is by far my favorite driving record of the year.  The one that caused me to open the sunroof, crank the volume to max, and unabashedly sing my lungs out like it was nobody’s business, much to the amusement of the people sitting next to me in D.C. traffic.  This album is FULL of…well, anthemic rock songs.  Or should I say punk rock songs?  Either way, I LOVE THIS ALBUM. But don’t take my word for it… here’s a little quote from Paste Magazine’s “Slobbering Rave” from earlier this year:

“More than it even knows it, this country needs a great rock band. We live in a complicated age. We’ve got tea parties and bailouts and shutdowns and politicized street howlers of all persuasions shrieking from our thousand-channel satellite descramblers. We have no common chant to anchor our dreams or uphold a cherished myth. We’ve got mixtapes and sequins and nostalgia merchants and every manner of self-conscious polyrhythms, but we’re short on raw fire and romantic longing. Too many curveballs, too few Hail Marys…Enter The Gaslight Anthem. Could they be The Ones? Hell, their name has the word “anthem” in it. They are unafraid. There is absolutely no fucking sleight-of-hand with this band. They don’t just sound like Springsteen; they flat-out quote his lyrics. They sketch charcoal drawings of hard-luck girls and guys who yearn themselves bloody. They sing about classic cars and sailor tattoos and outlaw cowboy bands. They’re not topical. They’re universal. They awake our inner teenager who retreated in us too quickly.”

Well said, Paste, well said.  Put this one in, blow out your speakers and forget about life for awhile.  Favorite track:  “Queen of Lower Chelsea.”

*insert drumroll*

And now for the Top 3.  I just want you all to know that it was REALLY hard for me to rank these records.  All three of them, at some point or another this year, have been my favorite.  But, I forced myself to do it, based on a number of things (including how many plays it got on my iPod), and this is how it shook out.  (P.S.  A little shout out to Hollywood Records, which claimed two of the top three spots!)

03.  Grace Potter & The Nocturnals – Grace Potter & The Nocturnals
I’ve been professing my love for Grace and her merry band of Nocturnals since the summer of 2007 when my friend Pete forced me to stay at the XPN festival to see her play.  I am not a fan of female singers, and the thought of having to sit through an entire set of some chick I did not know was about as appealing as listening to someone scrape fingernails on a chalkboard.   I can admit when I am wrong.  She and the band blew my mind that day, and have been doing so ever since.  I knew the second I heard their latest album that I would soon have to share Grace with the rest of the world, and I was not wrong…She’s currently blowing up.  Last week the record was number 1 on the rock charts!  You go, Grace.  This record, while not quite as gospel-laden as her previous two records, is the perfect mix of Grace’s fortés – blistering, make you dance rock n’ roll (re-written “Paris (Ooh La La)” and “Only Love” being two great examples), and wailing, soul-filled numbers (“Colors” and “Things I Never Needed”).  And while I don’t think anything could capture her live energy – fabulous music blogger Allison Rizk says it’s like rock n’ roll porn – this record will definitely turn the masses into fans.  About time the world learned to love some good music.  Favorite Track:  “Only Love.”

02.  Alpha Rev – New Morning
No holds barred, this was my most anticipated album this year.  When it came out in April, I’d been waiting well over two years for it, and it did not disappoint me in anyway.  I first heard Alpha Rev nearly four years ago courtesy of Alternative Addiction, and I became immediately obsessed with them.  Lead singer Casey McPherson comes within a hair of Adam Duritz brilliance in my world.  His writing speaks to me in ways that nothing has in a long time.  And talk about music!  This band is downright orchestral at times, and they make it SEXY.  They are a seven-piece band – complete with a cello player and a violin player (who, by the way, I could watch play for hours on end…he is bottled lightning, I tell ya!).  Anyway, you always get scared when your favorite artists go to a big label – that the songs will be watered down, that they’ll lose the very things that made them unique enough to get signed, etc.  Not Alpha Rev.  Every single song on New Morning screams out why these guys should be huge rock stars… The only thing missing, in my opinion, were a few of their older songs I wish had made it onto the record – but then it would have been about 20 songs too long.  I honestly don’t think I can do my love for this album, or this band, justice.  Just get the record and you’ll understand.   Favorite Track:  “Alone With You.”

01.  The Influence – Falling Objects
I once read a review of The Influence’s music that described them as “dark surf rock” or something to that effect, and it’s been the way I have described them to every single person I’ve talked to about them since.  These five guys from Virginia Beach have got IT.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – more than any other band I follow, I believe in this band.  I know, in my gut, that when the right person hears them, they are going to take off like a rocket.   And I will freely admit to you that when Falling Objects came out, I was not expecting it to be this amazing.  I knew it was going to be good, but it is beyond good.  Normally, I’m not a fan of bands “redoing” their songs because they always seem to lose something in translation.  But The Influence took a few of their older songs and reworked them, rearranged them, added to them and … holy shit, they got even stronger than they already were.  That, to me, is a sign of true musicianship.  Here’s an example – “Torn” old version and “Torn” new version.  Sure, you can chalk some of the stronger up to production, but it’s 99% the guys working these songs over and over until they got them perfect. And the new songs on the album are really tight. “Colorado Lazer Storm” and “Bleed Out” are two of the new songs that  showcase the creativity and range that these guys have.  I’m not kidding you when I say I have listened to this album more than 200 times since I got it.   This band is the most unique thing going right now, in my opinion.  “Falling Objects” should fall directly into your lap via iPod, CD, or whatever way you can get it there quickest.  (P.S.  If you buy it on iTunes, you get a phenomenal bonus track – an acoustic version of my all-time favorite Influence tune, “Corpse Song.”)  Favorite Track:  If I had to choose at gunpoint, I’d say “Bleed Out,” but I adore them all.

So there ya go, kids.  The Top 10 of 2010.  Phew. It’s now nearly 3 AM and I’m going to be SO tired tomorrow, but it feels good to have written all of this…and as usual, I surprised myself with some of these!   Next up in a few days…The Top 10 Best Live Shows of 2010.

Rob Fleming, where are you?

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There’s a scene in the novel High Fidelity, written by the ever-brilliant Nick Hornby, where the main character, Rob Fleming, is talking about making a mix tape for Laura, his at the time ex-girlfriend, at the very beginning of their relationship. It’s a fabulous scene, and as a maker of many, many mixes, I always get a giggle out of reading it. Because for those of us who take mix-making seriously, there are definite rules…

I spent hours putting that cassette together. To me, making a tape is like writing a letter – there’s a lot of erasing and rethinking and stating again, and I wanted it to be a good one, because…to be honest, because I hadn’t met anyone as promising as Laura since I’d started the DJ-ing, and meeting promising women was partly what the DJ-ing was supposed to be about. A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do. You’ve got to kick off with a corker, to hold the attention (I started with “Got to Get You Off My Mind,” but then realized that she might not get any further than track one, side one if I delivered what she wanted straightaway, so I buried it in the middle of side two), and then you’ve got to up it a notch, or cool it a notch, and you can’t have white music and black music together, unless the white music sounds like black music, and you can’t have two tracks by the same artists side by side, unless you’ve done the whole thing in pairs, and…oh, there are loads of rules.”

I love making mix CDs. Truly love it. I wish there was a job that involved making mix CDs for a living (oh, who am I kidding, there probably is). Figuring out how songs fit together, how they match up – and how they don’t – is magical for me. That’s part of the reason I do my seasonal mixes for my friends; hate to burst the bubble of the 75 or so of you who get the Krissie, but it really is a rather selfish endeavor. True, I like to help the artists out by introducing them to new people, but even more, I love the process of putting the mix together. There’s nothing like feeling like you’ve made a great mix. There’s a definite sense of accomplishment to it. When I make mixes, I make a playlist and dump songs into it as I build the mix. Then I listen to it in the car. Over and over again. And I know when I’ve got a winner when I keep wanting to repeat sections just to hear the way songs ebb and flow into one another. On a Krissie Mix, I always have a favorite “section” where it’s perfect to me. Rarely do I make a whole mix that I love all the way through, but there are occasions.

I spent a good chunk of today listening to a mix CD made by my best friend, Christy. Christy is an artist with mix CDs. Getting them in the mail from her is like Christmas every time. Christy’s getting married in the spring, and to me, it’s obvious that she’s madly in love when I listen to this most recent mix. There are songs about being in love, and being part of something, and traveling across the ocean (her fiance lives in Ireland; she lives in Georgia). I’m sure she was thinking about Andrew the whole time she was making it, and that makes it adorable.

When I was in college, my best friend from home and I used to make crazy numbers of mix tapes for one another. Thing was, I was madly in love with him; I’d like to think the feeling was mutual. I spent HOURS working on mixes for him. Choosing every song carefully, because the lyrics reminded me of him or because I thought something in the song would make him laugh or smile. And as much as I loved making mixes for him, the best part was getting his mixes. They were always so full of him, funny and eclectic. Because he hid messages in them, I knew, for me, just like I did for him. And there was a certain kind of joy in discovering them, one that sent my heart fluttering every time. Even after college, I’d occasionally get a mix CD from him. I still have every single mix he ever made me. And I’ll probably always keep them. They mean the world to me, knowing that he thought about me enough to sit down and make me a mix. I make a lot of mix CDs, but it’s been a long time since I’ve made one for someone because I was falling for them or because I loved them. Is there anything more romantic?

I so need a Rob Fleming in my life. I think I’ll start taking applications….