Living in the South

I've been in Atlanta for about a week and a half now, and you know what....it's already starting to really grow on me. There are so many fantastic places to eat (especially southern soul food and bbq), there are people constantly outside, and pretty much everybody says hello to you on the street. Granted, the pace is definitely a little bit different down here, but sometimes it can be quite refreshing. You all should come visit at one point...

Speaking of Georgia, I put together three songs about the South/Georgia for you to listen to. The first is a Neil Young classic called Southern Man. Young busts out his electric guitar, harmonizes with his bandmates in the choruses, and just belt out the verses with his nasal voice. The interplay between the piano and his guitar throughout the song is quite cool. When I think Neil Young, this is one of the first tunes I really think of.

The second tune is the Ray Charles classic 'Georgia on my Mind'. If you haven't ever heard this, you need to. Opening with some nice strings, the song gracefully falls down into Ray's soothing voice crooning about his mind always wandering back to Georgia. Take this one out when the moon is shining over a Georgia plain and slow dance until the sun rises.

The last tune is the 'bastardization' of the Ray Charles tune with Ludacris's version called 'Georgia'. My roommates said that this had to be my new theme song, so I guess it is for a while. They sample the old Ray Charles tune and add a lot of verses about how badass Georgia is. It's actually not a very good tune, haha....but it's kind of fun to bump on the way to a Braves game.

Enjoy!

Neil Young - Southern Man

Ray Charles - Georgia on My Mind

Ludacris - Georgia

Pinback

I did something a few weeks ago that I haven't done for years. I heard one song from a band, liked it, and then went out and bought the cd. It's not the buying part that was different, haha....it was the fact that I had only really ever heard one tune from this band. I get the feeling that back in the 90's that was pretty much how everyone bought CD's. "Oh, I like this song....I'll get the CD." It's amazing that even in my short life the music industry and how people buy music has changed so drastically.

Pinback, hailing from San Diego, got me hooked with their song 'Good to Sea'. I then picked up their Autumn of the Seraphs disc at some local record shop in Atlanta. When I popped it into the car, I was half-expecting all crappy songs except for the one I heard (just like the old days), but I was pleasantly surprised. Pinback has a bit of a 'mathy' feel to them (see Minus the Bear or Gatsby's American Dream), meaning that they sound very technical and keep things in very distinct time signatures.

'Good to Sea' is a very simple song. Listen to it and try not to get it stuck in your head...especially the little backup-vocal 'echos'. 'Barnes' brings out the technical, mathy side to Pinback with intertwining bass and guitar lines to kick the song off. It then collapses into a breezy pop riff before returning to the previously heard strict bass line. The last tune 'Subbing for Eden' is the most indie-oriented of the three. You can hear hints of Elliot Smith in the muted vocals, but the marching cadence of the bass keeps you really thinking Pinback. Let me know if you dig it!

Pinback - Good to Sea

Pinback - Barnes

Pinback - Subbing for Eden