Heaven Is Whenever...

  I got seven albums in the mail this morning. I didn't expect them to get here on the same day. I ordered the new New Pornographers and The Hold Steady on Sunday night, and Warren Zevon's Original Album Series box set on Saturday. The Warren Zevon collection includes his self-titled album, Excitable Boy, Bad Luck Streak At Dancing School, Stand In The Fire and The Envoy. 

I know he didn't like Wanted Dead Or Alive, but I wish it had been included in the set. It looks like the only affordable version of that album is iTunes'. I've already listened to Carmelita while driving to work. I had been waiting for that for a while. 

So far, my favorite song is Hurricane J because it's one of those "whoa whoa whoa whoa" songs that are classic The Hold Steady. I listened to it about 15 times on NPR's First Listen and since I got the album, I've listened to it a bunch of times.  My favorite lyrics are:

"I know you look at the ground,

I know you probably cry,

you're a beautiful girl,

and you're a pretty good waitress, 

but Jesse, I don't think I'm the guy

I don't want this to stop, 

I want you to know

I don't want you to settle, 

I want you to grow"

They're so simple yet heartbreaking. 

We Can Get Together : the backing vocals, described in Rolling Stone as "angelic" are eerily reminiscent of the backing vocals on Bright Eyes' Make A Plan To Love Me. It was one of the things that struck me immediately. I had to listen to the Bright Eyes song again, and now it's growing on me. Or maybe they sound more like the backing vocals on No One Would Riot For Less. They're equally dreamy. 

Lately, I've been listening to Stay Positive a lot. I fell in love with Joke About Jamaica, One For The Cutters, and Slapped Actress. 

Last week, I finally decided to give Neko Case another chance because she's such an awesome back up singer on Jakob Dylan's new album, and so I listened to the new New Pornographers' album, Together, on NPR's First Listen and I was instantly hooked. I'm a sucker for big sounds. If it sounds like a glorious mess, count me in. If it has men and women trading lead vocal duties, I'm even more in. 

I was captivated by the end of the first song. And then, I heard Your Hands (Together), and the drums and guitar hooks pulled me in even further. I knew I had to get the album. 

My profound love for the album came when I heard Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk. It made me want to dance and crank the volume all the way up and I couldn't concentrate on anything else. I must have listened to it over 30 times on NPR's website. I made a friend of mine listen to it, and we listened to it and tapped on our desks at the same time, across an ocean and a vast land area. That's how you know a song has an infectious quality to it. 

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Once in a while, I'll find a photo of mine on a Tumblr. I always wonder if I should take it as a compliment or if I should ask for credit.

April came and went and I didn't even add a word to my script.