On music and the absence of the Anna

[annathepiper]

It should amuse seimaisin, I think, that I have been in a complete and total Carbon Leaf mood lately after purchasing their first three albums on iTunes. I've been trying to hit all their tracks on my iPod over the last day or two, and as a result have gotten myself songvirused by "Home" off Ether-Electrified Porch Music, as well as "American Tale". Now that I've finally fixed the cover art problem on the tracks for Love Loss Hope Repeat, I'll be giving it another run through tomorrow as well.

There are two drawbacks to this, though. One is that the sound mix on the earlier albums is kind of bugging me, since it's very obvious in comparison with the later albums where vocals and instruments are in a much better balance. But I'm not sure what I can do about it yet, since I have not yet mastered the mojo of playing with iTunes' equalizer settings. There's a Vocal Booster setting, but at least on my headphones that doesn't seem to help much, and it sacrifies the fullness of the instruments to boot.

The other drawback is that I think I have regretfully decided that the tracks I snarfed for their performance at the 2004 show at the Moore, which was the one I attended where they opened for GBS, aren't doing it for me. Just something about the energy of that show--it doesn't come close to what I get out of Echo Echo or Indian Summer. I like the sample tracks I have for 5 Alive! a lot better and will have to get that album, I think, to give live Carbon Leaf another fair shake. And of course there's always the option of actually attending one of their shows; they'll be out here again in February!

Meanwhile, as those of you who follow my annathewriter journal know, I'm trying to make a hard press to finish Queen of Souls by the end of the month so that I can make February a Month of Editing--and get both Lament of the Dove and Queen of Souls out the door, at least as partials. This is likely to mean that my attention to my LJ will be erratic at best; those of you who are local, if you need me for anything it'll probably be best to email me. But I will endeavor to post book reviews and BSG commentary--not to mention Dresden Files once that kicks in on the 21st, so keep tuning in!

Other general notes:

I have purchased two pairs of Yaktrax on lyonesse's recommendation, since I found them at REI--one pair for me, one for solarbird. Here's hoping they will serve the purpose next time it ices up around here.

And tomorrow I have to take Polly to the vet. Again. More on this tomorrow.

Thursday through Wednesday miles: 13.15
Miles out of Hobbiton: 1662.2
Miles out of Rauros Falls: 353.2
Miles to Isengard: 130.8

Comments

[seimaisin.livejournal.com]

If you can, I would definitely give live Carbon Leaf another shot! I've heard that headlining CL in Seattle is quite the show - they've got a huge fanbase out there. These days, they definitely not the same band that opened for GBS, though ... more a rock band than a folk-ish band, but the quality of the music and the vocals are always fantastic. If you end up liking LLHR, I highly recommend their concert. :D

[annathepiper]

Thanks for the input! I knew posting about them would get your attention. ;)

[seimaisin.livejournal.com]

Heh. my attention is easily drawn by shiny objects. :)

[annathepiper]

And the Carbon Leaf lads are shiny! (Whoops, wait, my Firefly fandom is showing there. ;) )

I need a Carbon Leaf icon!

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Yaktrax are fabulous in snow - I use them for winter hiking and they make a stunning amount of difference. They're good for anything they can get a slight grip into, which means slightly soft ice is fine too. But if you're talking solid sheets of the stuff, they just can't get a grip in the surface - you need crampons for that.

[annathepiper]

Well, all I want these for will be walking up and down our icy hill in bad weather, so hopefully this will serve the need. While it was very convenient to be able to use my shiny new VPN the other day when the street iced up, I kind of need to default to actually being at work. ;)

[cafiorello.livejournal.com]

I have another brand that has actual carbide spikes, for our icy hill and I LOVE them!
http://cozywinters.com/shop/dg-go.html?source=base

Cathy

[annathepiper]

Thanks! If the Yaktrax don't work out, I'll keep this link in mind. :) We get ice seldom enough around my immediate neighborhood that hopefully the Yaktrax will be sufficient.

(Of course, now that I say that we'll probably ice right the hell up next week. We have a new Special Weather Statement up for the region claiming we're supposed to have another cold snap next week, with the possibility of lowland snows. YAY!)