Bill's top songs of 2011

Okay everybody.  Follow along if you, like me, might still be stuck in a previous generation; after rock and roll, and when electropop from the UK ruled my cd player.  I still have a penchant for the same sort of tunes:  mostly upbeat, some danceable, most sing-able and all with a distinct similarity of style.  And in a new attempt at accurate blogging, a link so you can actually listen to each of the tracks is included !

10.   Capital Cities   "Safe and Sound"     Actually an upstart group from LA but with a sound unlike most music coming from America.   This track is of note in that it is one of Chelsea Handler's favorite tunes as well  (yes, I'm a namedropper)    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWZr2F0qohA

9.     Mirrors   "Fear of Drowning"      This is a new group from Brighton UK who's first full length cd 'Lights and Offerings' was released early in 2011.   Several tracks are among my fav's, but this is the one I chose to put on the list.  There is no official 'video', but here's a link so that you can listen to the track if you'd like.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61YfAHvAZ1s

8.     Underworld "Diamond Jigsaw"     Of course another in the long list of UK acts posted here, tho this group shows a bit of age.  They first came to some notoriety with a popular track from the soundtrack to the indie film 'Trainspotting'(1996), plus they've been contracted to produce the music for the opening ceremonies for the summer Olympics 2012 in London.   Any song which includes lyrics involving a shot of tequila is worthy of my annual list!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f734DJk2kkg

7.     Darren Hayes  "Black out the Sun"  For those of you unfamiliar, Darren was the lead singer for the group Savage Garden from Australia who hit the top of the charts several times at the end of the 90's.  He remains one of the best pop singer/songwriters in the world, despite his lack of exposure and airplay as a solo artist.  His new full length release is a bit downtempo and ballad-heavy for my liking, but here is one of the finest tracks on his latest release 'Secret Codes and Battleships'.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJMNWTioW34

6.     Moby   "The Day"   Another of the rare ballads on any playlist for me;  this one borders on morose actually.   But it is a very moving track, and one of the most beautiful songs of the year.  Despite his quirky personality, Moby continues to make some music that almost always moves me in one way or another.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JSVaSpD9xo

5.     Bright Light Bright Light  "Disco Moment"   Another new discovery for me this year, this chap from the UK (Rod Thomas) could become one of my all time favorites if his early work is any indicator of what he can do.  He has still not made a full length release; this track is the second single to hit the airwaves.   Ah, to be in your twenties and full of the future ......    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qs1VRlTbEO4

4.     Dragonette featuring Martin Solveig  "Hello"   Well this one is certainly the guilty pleasure of the year.  Dragonette is a indie label group from Canada,  and Mr. Solveig is a producer/remixer in Paris, who is rumored to be working on some new tracks with Madonna as we speak.   This song is cheesy to the max, but it's perfect for windows down in the car!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnET4RKXx5k

3.     Adele  "Set Fire to the Rain"    Usually when somebody gets all this publicity and popularity I go running in the other direction.  But you cannot deny this woman's multiple gifts.   That voice, and the way she can emote while performing live is just beyond amazing.  While her entire release '21' is worthy, I've chosen a live recording of this, my favorite track, which shows Adele in all her glory.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2j279pZxTY

2.     Erasure  "Be With You"     Anytime my favorite group releases a new cd, you know there's at least one track showing up on my annual list.  'Tomorrow's World' contains several top-flight tracks, but I've decided upon this one.   Despite the unusual choice of singing all those 'eeee-s', the romping nature of the song takes me to a very special place.   And when Andy sings those repeated 'I'll come running' in the closing moments, I get chills at every turn.  The video linked here is the winner of the fan-based creative contest sponsored by the band and youtube.  It is very very well done !  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF44_ntm2k4

drum roll, please .....
1.     M83   "Midnight City"    Creatively this is bang on!  Never before have I heard a pop song where there is no lyric to the chorus, but you really try to sing along.   How is that possible ??   Sing along with a wordless synthesizer ??    I feel like Phoebe in that old episode of friends where she tries to sing along to Ross's bad bagpipe !   And this French fellow, Anthony Gonzalez has managed to do all of that in a 4 minute pop song.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX3k_QDnzHE

Public opinions can be fun !

On Saturday, a letter to the editor in the local Santa Rosa newspaper sent me over the edge enough to fire back my own letter to the editor.    The premise of the original letter was to assert that the reason that Fox News has higher ratings than the other news channels is that the public at large realizes that they can only get the 'truth' from Fox and not CNN or MSNBC.     My response follows:

Editor:   A Mr. Cox of Sonoma opined that somehow the higher ratings at Fox News vs. CNN and MSNBC is a relevant factor on what is true and what is not.   Remember that majorities of humans once thought it appropriate to own as personal property those they deemed 'lesser', or to burn at the stake a neighbor whose behavior was thought to cause death and disease.  Fox now regularly features folks who believe that man lived concurrently with dinosaurs, New Hampshire was the site of the first shots of the Revolutionary War, that the millions of tons of pollutants we have pumped into the atmosphere and water supply have no direct link to the state of the planet, and that somehow Hawaii isn't really a part of the United States.  These things are all patently false. To insist upon them as facts makes you either ignorant or a liar.   My only conclusion is that the masses have become intellectually lazy and can be led along by their most base instinct of fear.   And no, most of us are not following anything related to Michael Moore.   Except perhaps for the notion that the rich and powerful are leading us all down a slope few will ever have the means to climb up.   That's the speech I want to hear from one of our leaders.

Bill Klausing

Santa Rosa

First unsettling experience of 2011 !

well now that was really interesting.   Last week a guy called to ask me whether or not I was interested in having him trim my eucalyptus trees in the front yard.   They really are in great need of pruning, and I was planning on calling my regular tree guy at some point in the near future;   this guy said he was new in the area and would give me a good deal, etc.    So we made an appointment for later in the day and he came by to look more closely @ the trees and gave me a bid.   He made what I thought was a reasonable offer and I told him I would get back to him shortly.

Two days later (on new years eve), he left me a voicemail stating that he was really interested in doing the work, and would be willing to include the pruning on sycamore tree in the back yard in addition, for the same price.    So now this seems like a really good deal.   So I called him back today (Jan 4) and left him a voicemail.   He returned my call about 15 minutes later.  I told him that if the price still held, let's go ahead with the work.   I could hear another voice in the background, and then he said "that was a december price", now the price is 1200  (previous was 960).    When I questioned that his previous voicemail was left on december 31st  (hardly work that could be done in 2010 ??), the other background voice clearly grabbed the phone from him and replied, "that 20% discount no longer applies; find somebody else to do your damned work", and slammed the phone down.  

wtf ??

So now that I"ve been hung up on by somebody who randomly sought out my $$ for doing tree work, my hackles have been raised just a bit.   So I called the number back.   The second voice picked up immediately and before I could even utter a syllable, screamed into the phone:  "I am another owner, and I don't like the way you spoke to my son.   If you continue to call us, I"m going to call the police!"   And the phone disconnects.

suffice it to say, her customer service could use a little work.....

Bill's top songs of 2010 ....

It's been a while since I've posted anything here ...... and that needed to change immediately.  So until I decide exactly which rant to take off on next, I'll just settle for putting together my list of the best music of 2010 for those who might be interested, and perhaps have the same general taste in music.   It's not easy to whittle the list down to a top 10, but I've attempted to do just that.   I managed to make it to two live shows this year and enjoyed them both a lot.   I saw Goldfrapp here in Oakland in June, and caught Robyn's latest tour in Miami Beach in November.   Here goes...

10.    Hot Chip    "I Feel Better"
 9.     Robyn        "Dancing on my Own"
 8.     Kylie Minogue   "All the Lovers"
 7.     Brandon Flowers  "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas"
 6.     LCD Soundsystem   "I Can Change"
 5.     Goldfrapp     "Head First"
 4.     Florence and the Machine    "Dog Days are Over"
 3.     Hurts      "Wonderful Life"
 2.     Robyn    "Hang With Me"
 1.     Scissor Sisters    "Invisible Light"

Check out the sounds on i-tunes or youtube and put a smile on your face .....