new music.

First allow me to point out that this is my second post today. As far as May is concerned, I'm 3/2. I don't at all expect to continue posting at this rate, but so far I'm doing better than last month.

Today I had a not so great day. For reasons that I'll not go into now (they deserve their own post... and when I sort things out I'm sure I'll fill you guys in) I was just a little melancholy all day. Nothing was really helping to cheer me up. THEN, I remembered that I had a 15 dollar balance on my apple account. You know what that means... NEW MUSIC. I've been so busy with school stuff, moving, and various other life changes that I've not been keeping up with who was releasing music. As such, when I discovered that one of my favorite bands, Augustana released an EP last week, my day got exceedingly better!

I first heard of Augustana when their song Boston was on the radio. They sort of disappeared from my radar though, until they played on the Rock Boat in 2009. I saw 3 or 4 or their sets and they were fantastic every time. Then last summer I saw them from the front row of the Uptown Amphitheater when they preformed with the Counting Crows. That was one of the best shows I've ever seen.

So. Why am I writing all this? Because despite already having a soft spot for Augustana, I was blown away by how good this record is! I read a review that said "Imagine Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty had a child, then Bob Dylan adopted said child during its formative years. The music eventually produced by this kid?That sound that makes you feel so good, so wistful, so happy? That’s Augustana’s latest self-titled album." I completely agree.

The lyrics on every track are killer. Dan Layus has the PERFECT voice for folk rock, and there is just something about the simple feel of the record as a whole that seems to say timeless. I can TOTALLY see myself still diggin' this record in a few years.

I tell you all this as a public service... go get this record now... that way when MTV picks it up and everyone is playing it this summer you can say you've been listening to it since the beginning of May. Or, when one of your friends gets dumped (that sort of thing is inevitable, right?) you can provide this gem of an album. It'll help, and you'll be the hero.




I've listened to all the tracks a few time, and as of right now I'll leave you with the lyrics that are currently my favorite:


"Counting Stars"

Everything has a reason
Everything has a start
Anything that ever burned
Had a spark
Anything I ever wanted
Anyone I ever needed
Always seemed to leave me standing in the dark

Suddenly I'm caught in your light
Opened the door, and you stepped inside
And I'm watching the hours
Looking for reasons
Find that I'm missing every beat of your heart
'Til you're back in my arms,
I'll be waiting up, counting the stars
Counting the stars

Nothing could ever touch us
Nothing gonna shake my faith
Nothing in this big, bad world will ever take you away
Like a rolling hurricane
Nothing's standing in our way
Full of life, full of grace, in a perfect place

Suddenly I'm caught in your light
Opened the door, and you stepped inside
And I'm watching the hours
Looking for reasons
Find that I'm missing every beat of your heart
'Til you're back in my arms,
I'll be waiting up, counting the stars
Ooh, counting the stars, ooh

Like a rolling hurricane
Nothing's standing in our way
Full of life, full of grace, in a perfect place

Suddenly I'm caught in your light
Opened the door, and you stepped inside
And I'm watching the hours
Looking for reasons
Find that I'm missing every beat of your heart
'Til you're back in my arms,
I'll be waiting up, counting the stars

Counting the stars
Counting the stars
I'll be waiting 'til you're back in my arms
And I'll be waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting up
Counting the stars