valentine's day EAR FARM has moved!

It's been a great run on Blogger... 1,924 posts from October 2005 to June 2008. However, it's time for EAR FARM to move on to bigger and better things. We'd love for you to come along with us!

From now on EAR FARM will be located here: http://earfarm.com

Please update your links accordingly. We'll see you on the other side.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: Paraskavedekatriaphobia

valentine's day Paraskavedekatriaphobia: the fear of Friday the 13th.

Horror movie fans will have to wait until next year for the remake of the 1980 Sean Cunningham classic Friday the 13th; fans and foes of the day itself have only one chance this year to either revel in its glory or hide from the world for twenty four hours. You see, today is Friday the 13th. Watch out.

If we had planned things a bit better we'd be on our 13th mix this week, but we didn't. And hey, maybe we don't want that many thirteens all up in one post together. Still, we won't let no stinkin' paraskavedekatriaphobia stop us from gettin' busy with EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: twelve (Muxtape doesn't allow thirteen!) songs dedicated both to the wonderful horror series, and to the unluckiest of days in the entire calendar. Be careful out there!

Listen to this week's muxtape HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: Paraskavedekatriaphobia
1. "Moments of Terror" by Harry Manfredini
2. "Psycho Killer" by Talking Heads
3. "Luck's Up" by Public Image Ltd.
4. "Good Friday" by Why?
5. "I Ain't Superstitious" by Megadeth
6. "Jason's Theme" by Brendon Small
7. "Thirteen Women (And Only One Man In Town)" by Bill Haley And His Comets
8. "Unlucky Day" by Murder City Players
9. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder
10. "Jason" by Sufjan Stevens
11. "The Crystal Lake" by Grandaddy
12. "Triskaidekaphobia" by Jimmy Sutton's Four Charms

*above photo from HERE.

Recent EF mixes:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments. View all EAR FARM mixes HERE.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Top Photos

valentine's day (above photo of Bell at Pianos... more pictures of Bell HERE)
In preparing for our move over to http://earfarm.com (happening on Monday, June 16th!) I decided to take a look at all of the pictures I've taken thus far for EAR FARM and select some of my favorites. It wasn't easy - I've uploaded over 2900 photos (mostly live concert shots) to EAR FARM's Flickr page since October of 2006. But I managed to select about 200 of my favorite ones and put them in a nice little Flickr set that you can view HERE. Over time I'll be sure to continually add favorites to this set. As well, if you'd like to see these pics in a nice little slideshow, click on through to the other side where there's a lovely TV theme song waiting for you...



Listen: "Picture Pages Theme Song"

*above slideshow created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Mixes

Below (after the jump) you will find links to each of the custom mixes featured on EAR FARM to date, listed from most recent to oldest. In order to make room on our server, not all of these are currently available to listen to or download; therefore, be sure to check back often so you don't miss out on future EAR FARM mixes! There's a new one posted every Friday with some special ones thrown in here and there randomly and on our favorite holidays.

Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
Muxtape #10: MARS!
Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
Locally Grown: an April Mix Tape from Brooklyn Based and EAR FARM
Muxtape #5: 2:42
Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
valentine's day Mix 3: Easily the Cheesiest
National Kazoo Day: Top Ten Eleven Songs That Feature A Kazoo
You Name The Mix #1
New Wave Cure For A Serious Case Of The Mondays Mix
Presidential Campaign 2008 Mix
All I Want For Christmas Is Music Mix
Beatles Cover Song Mix
10 Songs by Sassy Magazine 'Cute Band Alert' Bands (and yes, I did some research) Mix
Saxophone Mix
Gambling Mix
Chemistry Mix
Thanksgiving Mix
Dangerous Cities Mix
Mix for Barry Bonds
valentine's day Mix 2: Easy Cheesier
"Easy Cheesy" valentine's day Mix

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)

valentine's day Ladies and gentlemen, a change is gonna come... EAR FARM is about to change big time. We won't be starting over from scratch per se, but we will be giving EAR FARM a junior kickstart in hopes of making the site something bigger, something brighter, something much more awesome. Here's the deal: in just over a week we're going to bust a move out of Blogger for good and start new/start again. Like the Jeffersons (and thanks to some supersweet design work by our friends at Destroy Space) we'll be movin' on up to a brand new address with a funky fresh layout. Checkit: as of Monday, June 16th, you will be able to find a completely redesigned EAR FARM over at http://earfarm.com.

Asked to comment on the move, EAR FARM said "I want to be a farmer, a real farmer, and I am confident that things with the new site will be getting better and better with each passing day as I grow into this better version of me. I'm excited!"

You can listen to this week's muxtape celebrating the new EAR FARM HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
1. "Getting Better" by The Wedding Present
2. "Bust A Move" by Young MC
3. "Start New" by Cloud Cult
4. "Junior Kickstart" by The Go! Team
5. "The Jeffersons" by Ja'Net Dubois & Oren Waters
6. "Start Again" by Folk Implosion
7. "Change" by Tears For Fears
8. "Something Bigger, Something Brighter" by Pretty Girls Make Graves
9. "Better Version Of Me" by Fiona Apple
10. "A Change Is Gonna Come" by Otis Redding
11. "I Want To Be A Farmer" by Pete Seeger
12. "Scratch" by Morphine

***Remember... Monday, June 16th: the new EAR FARM launches over at http://earfarm.com***

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!

valentine's day With the recent (successful) landing of the Phoenix Mars Lander all up in the news, I've had Mars on the brain tons lately. In fact, I nerded out and downloaded an animation (from here) of the entry, descent and landing of the Phoenix Mars Lander and added a Black Moth Super Rainbow song to it. It's pretty sweet. Check it out over on EARF... Mars fever! Let's get people on that planet already. "Come on, Cohaagen! You got what you want. Give those people air!"

You can listen to this week's EAR FARM muxtape HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
1. "Tip Your Hat To Whitey (Mars)" by Chris Rock
2. "Mars Loves Venus" by The Brunettes
3. "Mars Needs Women" by Mylo
4. "The Stars Our Destination" by Stereolab
5. "Mars Sparkles Down On Me" by The Wedding Present
6. "Woodpecker from Mars" by Faith No More
7. "Red Planet" by NRBQ
8. "Teenagers From Mars" by The Misfits
9. "Honey Bee (Let's Fly To Mars)" by Grinderman
10. "I Married A Martian" by Sparks
11. "Holst: Mars, The Bringer Of War" by London Symphony Orchestra
12. "Life On Mars?" by Seu Jorge

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day Scripps National Spelling Bee Finalists Beware: EAR FARM's Surefire Stumbling Blocks

Look at poor Akshay Buddiga faint. This infamous clip from the Ghost of Scripps National Spelling Bees Past should be a warning to the precocious youngsters battling it out in Washington D.C. today (the Semifinals are on NOW on ESPN and the Finals are on tonight on ABC at 8:00pm): this competition is INTENSE.

Pitfalls and perils await kiddies; best to train hard and be prepared for ANY situation that may face you this afternoon. Like when the judges start throwing curveballs and present those deceptive words whose pronunciations bear little to no bearing on their actual spelling, stuff like that.

The disconnect between pronunciation and spelling is harsh. That's why EF is here to give you a quick primer while you refuel on juice boxes and cookies in the Comfort Room. So in the off chance they hit you with a tricky band name during the Finals tonight, we've got you covered.

The Top 8 Potential Stumbling Blocks. Beware!

8. The judge says a word that sounds like "oh nye duh"; correct spelling is O-N-E-I-D-A: Oneida

7. The next word sounds like "bohn eevair"; correct spelling is B-O-N I-V-E-R: Bon Iver

6. The next one sounds like "luckily"; too easy right? Right. The correct spelling is L-Y-K-K-E L-I: Lykke Li

Congratulations, you're down to the final 5. Grab another Capri Sun and continue your training after the jump...

5. This word sounds like "soof-yan stevens"; it's one of the most mispronounced names in indie rock. That's right, the correct spelling is S-U-F-J-A-N S-T-E-V-E-N-S: Sufjan Stevens

4. The next word sounds like "shoe shoe"; correct spelling is X-I-U X-I-U: Xiu Xiu

3. The final three. Okay, this word sounds like "lay sah vee fahv"; correct spelling is L-E-S S-A-V-Y F-A-V: Les Savy Fav

2. The judge says this one very quickly and it sounds like "sih ur rose"; correct spelling is S-I-G-U-R R-Ó-S: Sigur Rós

1. Your last challenge. The judge adjusts his glasses and says this word has a few different pronunciations. He first says something that sounds like "chik chik chik" and then "pow pow pow" before following those up with three clicking noises made with his tongue on the roof of his mouth. Tricky. The correct spelling is !-!-!: !!!

So there you go, you're all set to dominate the competition today and tonight. Go forth and...wait, what's that you say? The judges pick actual words and not band names for the bee? Oh....you may be screwed then. Sorry about that.

valentine's day EAR FARM Mini-mix: Memorial Day

valentine's day Below is a selection of three songs in honor of Memorial Day. As well, in response to a recent comment and some emails I've received, I'd like to give a brief update about my situation... basically, last Wednesday I had to have reconstructive surgery on my shoulder/arm that I injured a few weeks ago. It's been extra-debilitating (but I'm doing fine and recovering), so my posts will not be the most wordy/frequent over the next many days. However, I'll be back to normal action as soon as I can. You betcha.

In the meantime, have a happy Memorial Day!

Listen:
"The Ballad Of The Green Berets" by SSgt. Barry Sadler
"Battle Cry Of Freedom" by 2nd South Carolina String Band
"Battle Hymn Of The Republic" by Eef Barzelay

*above photo of Arlington National Cemetery from HERE.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist

valentine's day I'm a mover and a shaker. I won't wear sweatpants outside the house and I'm not above walking down the wrong side of the subway stairs to get where I need to be. I like to constantly make "On-The-Go" playlists to alleviate the boredom between points A and B. Thus, this mux is plain and simple; it's basically just my most current "On-The-Go" playlist. Boom bam. You can listen HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
1. "Let's Talk About It" by White Denim
2. "J'aime Vous Voir Quitter" by Islands
3. "Don't Sell Me Now" by Hey Hey My My
4. "Hold It In" by Jukebox The Ghost
5. "Slowly Typed" by Pavement
6. "Navajo" by The Black Lips
7. "One Wink At A Time" by The Replacements
8. "Sea Shanty" by Plants and Animals
9. "Science Killer" by The Black Angels
10. "Deep Water" by Portishead
11. "Angelo (4-Track") by Sublime
12. "Hugs On Soil" by Windy & Destiny

*above picture found HERE

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball

valentine's day Wallowing in self-absorption this past week, focusing entirely too much on my injury, I created the following mix. The song order kind of tells the story of how I became a crippled wiffle ball legend. You can listen HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
1. "Wiffle Ball" by Halliburton(s)
2. "Falling and Laughing" by Orange Juice
3. "The Arm" by Islands
4. "Definition of an Accident" by Mancino
5. "Emergency" by Wilderness
6. "Broken Bones" by Howling Bells
7. "Broken Man" by Corrosion of Conformity
8. "Fractured (Like Chandeliers)" by Polvo
9. "Bones" by Radiohead
10. "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister
11. "Healer" by Marnie Stern
12. "Good Arms vs. Bad Arms" by Frightened Rabbit

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!

valentine's day A special mux for a special day; this one goes out to our Earfmoms for raising their sons into some tall drinks of water who never fail to irk those standing behind them at concerts. To all the mothers, grandmothers, mothers-to-be, and erstwhile maternal figures, enjoy the following collection of maternally-themed songs hand-picked to soundtrack your Mother's Day celebrations. You can listen to this mix/mux right HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
1. "Mama" - Stephen Malkmus
2. "Mama, Won't You Keep Those Castles In The Air & Burning?" - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
3. "Some Mother's Son" - The Kinks
4. "Your Mother Loves You Son" - Beulah
5. "Momma's Boy" - Chromeo
6. "Hey Mama" - Kanye West
7. "Shop Around" - The Miracles
8. "Mama Says" - The Beach Boys
9. "Rabbit Fur Coat" - Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins
10. "Your Mother Should Know" - The Beatles
11. "Mother and Child Reunion" - Paul Simon
12. "Mother Popcorn" - James Brown

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set

valentine's day Jimmy Jet And His TV Set
by Shel Silverstein

I'll tell you the story of Jimmy Jet --
And you know what I tell you is true.
He loved to watch his TV set
Almost as much as you.

He watched all day, he watched all night
Till he grew pale and lean,
From "The Early Show" to "The Late Late Show"
And all the shows between.

He watched till his eyes were frozen wide,
And his bottom grew into his chair.
And his chin turned into a tuning dial,
And antennae grew out of his hair.

And his brains turned into TV tubes,
And his face to a TV screen.
And two knobs saying "VERT." and "HORIZ."
Grew where his ears had been.

And he grew a plug that looked like a tail
So we plugged in little Jim.
And now instead of him watching TV
We all sit around and watch him.
You can listen to this mix/mux right HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
1. "Scooby Doo"
2. "Airwolf"
3. "Tales From The Crypt"
4. "The Muppet Show"
5. "Dr. Who Theme"
6. "Who’s The Boss?"
7. "Growing Pains"
8. "Wonder Woman"
9. "Looney Toons"
10. "Fraggle Rock"
11. "Knight Rider"
12. "Theme From The A Team"

*above picture of Jimmy Jet from HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day Locally Grown: an April Mix Tape from Brooklyn Based and EAR FARM

valentine's day It's a well established fact: I love making mixes. It's an art form, it's a game, it's like my Sunday crossword puzzle; or, it's like baking a cake for someone except the cake is made out of ingredients you can listen to. Mmm!

So, when Nicole Davis from Brooklyn Based (an essential newsletter focusing on Brooklyn's best food, art, services, shops and people - subscribe HERE) got in touch and asked me to curate a mix of Brooklyn-based artists I jumped out of my seat and screamed "fuggedaboutit"! Then I set my sights on putting together a choice selection of songs from bands in some way associated with Kings County. All of the songs are ones that have been offered for FREE by the corresponding bands - in other words, this mix is 100% legal and entirely free. Aw yeah. Look for another Brooklyn Based/EAR FARM mix in the near future. For now, click through to listen, download, and read a bit about each song...

1. “Opposite Sides” by The Epochs - Formed by two brothers, electro-rock hybrid band The Epochs could fall into the familiar trappings of trying to add too many layers to their Pro Tools projects (see TV on the Radio), but they don’t. And that’s precisely what makes this band successful: plenty of space for harmony, melody, and ever-shifting beats.

2. “Fuck and Run” by Cassettes Won’t Listen - Last year Cassettes Won’t Listen, aka Jason Drake, released a free EP of covers of songs from the ’90s that featured favorites from Pavement, Butter 08, Blind Melon, Sebadoh, and the Liz Phair classic, “Fuck and Run,” that’s posted here. All of the cover versions from that EP are worth checking out, as is Drake’s most recent effort Small-Time Machine, but none flowed better into the next song than “Fuck and Run.”

3. “The Mule” by Z-Ro, Devin The Dude & Juvenile, remixed by Ratatat - This song, originally a Z-Ro joint, has been masterfully Ratatat’d and is a shining example of two things. #1 - Ratatat Remixes Mixtape Volume 2 is worth seeking out (note: it’s free). #2 - Ratatat should do an album full of songs featuring guest vocalists and rappers. Shit, that would be the shit.

4. “Golden Prize” by Apes & Androids - I was told by a friend in early 2006 that Apes & Androids was a “must see” band, but I didn’t listen. Stupid me. What, I didn’t want a bit more Beck/Queen influence in my life?? Well, now I’m listening — you’re listening — and Androidery abounds as the band continues to build upon their reputation as having one of Brooklyn’s top live shows. See them in person to find out for yourself. Trust me.

5. “Sunrise” by Yeasayer - This is Yeasayer: cerebral tribal rock that rises above flavor of the week status by offering layer upon layer for listeners to peel back and enjoy with each repeated spin. Scrobble. Whatever. Yeasayer’s album All Hour Cymbals has gotten lots of critical attention lately but I still stand by my assertion that their recorded output has yet to fully capture what the band does live. Which is simply another way for me to say “don’t miss them live.”

6. “Plea Bargain” by Beat the Devil - Beat the Devil is easily one of NYC’s top “unknown” bands. By a long shot. They’re unique, visceral, and instantly memorable. If you long for sultry dark dirgey folk rock that climbs into your mind and never lets go (”wow wow, a WOW WOW”), then this is the band you’ve been waiting for. I’ve yet to meet someone who didn’t fall in love with this song after hearing it once.

7. “Buy My Product” by Mancino - EAR FARM writer Mike Grimes plays guitar and sings in the band Mancino, so we’ll leave the dissecting of this track to you. But I can tell you this much: it’s included here for the most honest and transparent of reasons, I love the song and I’m willing to bet you will too.

8. “Monolith” by Hopewell - Hopewell literally reaches for the stars with their soaring, anthemic, psychedelic-infused rock. They blend the romantic ambition of Bowie with the spaced-out snarl of Spiritualized and what comes out is pop-rock that’s, in a word, immense. In some ways slightly out of time, Hopewell would’ve been a huge success in the ’70s. Like, sold-out arena huge.

9. “What Would Wolves Do?” by Les Savy Fav - People “know” vocalist Tim Harrington but the real superstar of this band is guitarist Seth Jabour, who alternates between understated rhythms lurking at the back of the mix to insanely catchy lead lines. On last year’s Let’s Stay Friends he helped bring Les Savy Fav out of postpunk-by-numbers and into the realm of truly great.

10. “No More” by Dirty Projectors - This song is taken from the most recent record by Bed-Stuy’s own Dirty Projectors. The record, Rise Above, was Dave Longstreth’s re-imagining of the entire Black Flag album Damaged, apparently from memory and without any revisiting of the original. Which, I suppose, explains the absence of T.V. Party and Life Of Pain. Regardless of what was forgotten, Rise Above is fantastic.

11. “On A Neck, On A Spit” by Grizzly Bear - Grizzly Bear has blown me away, literally, with every step they’ve taken, from Horn of Plenty to Yellow House to the Friend EP to their outstanding cover versions of Paul Simon songs at BAM. “On A Neck, On A Spit” is as fine of an example as any other song as to why myself, Radiohead, and everyone else who hears the band, are such big fans of Grizzly Bear. The sky’s the limit for these guys.

12. “Something of an End” by My Brightest Diamond - My Brightest Diamond is the project of singer-songwriter multi-instrumentalist Shara Worden who has been seen performing with Sufjan Stevens. If you like Antony and the Johnsons and/or Joanna Newsom, you’ll love the unique blend of cabaret, chamber music, rock, and opera that is My Brightest Diamond.

Listen to the Locally Grown muxtape.

Download the entire mix as a ZIP.

Print the front cover above; back cover below. Enjoy!

valentine's day

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42

valentine's day Joshua Allen recently wrote a piece in The Morning News claiming that the perfect song length is precisely 2:42, and after going through the exercise of putting together the following mix, I'm inclined to agree. The quality of songs in my library at the 2:41, 2:42, and 2:43 marks is rather outstanding. So how was I able to whittle down this week's mux to a mere 12 songs? Because I rule. Also because I made rules.

Even though the length of songs gets a bit screwy sometimes upon import, I stuck to tracks that registered as exactly 2:42 in my library. This ruled out a lot of great songs I've noticed on other peoples' 242 lists. For example, "California Dreamin'" shows up on a ton of 242 lists but in my music library it's listed at 2:43. Sorry Charlies. Also, I decided to avoid picking any of the songs already posted on the following 242 muxes I stumbled upon: author Joshua Allen's 2m42s mux, contrabandwidth's 2:42 is the magic # mux, and Wired's listeningpost242 mux.

If it seems as though everyone has made a 242 mix, it's probably because they have. The way I see it, it's like Spike with all of his ruminating about how you can quickly judge a chef by the soup they make - one can tell a lot about the talent/resources of a given mix-maker by their ability to put together a proper 242 mix. I decree. So listen to mine, make your own, and let's fight over whose is better!

You can hear EF's 242 mux right HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
1. "Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)?" by Buzzcocks
2. "If You Hate Your Friends, You're Not Alone" by Pretty Girls Make Graves
3. "School" by Nirvana
4. "Me-Jane" by PJ Harvey
5. "Sheila Take A Bow" by The Smiths
6. "Leah" by Roy Orbison
7. "Sway" by Dean Martin
8. "The Next Episode" by Dr. Dre
9. "Michelle" by The Beatles
10. "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On" by Jerry Lee Lewis
11. "A Chicken With Its Head Cut Off" by The Magnetic Fields
12. "Center Of Gravity" by Yo La Tengo

*above Front 242 record photo from HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
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A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist

valentine's day Rock Band + Muxtape = YAY!

EAR FARM's fourth mix mux is 100% self-indulgent. It's my personal top 12 favorite songs to play (I play guitar, rather than drums or vocals) in the video game Rock Band (full list of Rock Band songs HERE). So it stands to reason that this mux is all about rocking, shredding, finger-tapping, and making that guitar solo face. Check out the songs featured in this mix listed below and listen to the mix itself HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
1. "Working Man" by Rush
2. "Maps" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3. "...And Justice for All" by Metallica
4. "Say It Ain't So" by Weezer
5. "Dani California" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
6. "Foreplay/Long Time" by Boston
7. "Green Grass and High Tides" by The Outlaws
8. "Train Kept a Rollin'" by Aerosmith
9. "Go With The Flow" by Queens Of The Stone Age
10. "Siva" by Smashing Pumpkins
11. "Gimme Shelter" by The Rolling Stones
12. "My Iron Lung" by Radiohead

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
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What's this Muxtape business? A Muxtape is a quite genius, very simple, way to create and share mixtapes. Please share your own ridonkulously themed mix in the comments. Or ELSE.

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!

valentine's day Ya'll know what time it is? Muxtime baby! EAR FARM's third mix mux is all about applauding the arrival of Spring (at least here in NYC) and celebrating the weekend. It's a menagerie of like-minded songs/artists that should make for a swell listen as you begin your weekend and enjoy the nice weather. Check out the songs featured in this mix listed below and listen to the mix itself HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
1. "Hold Tight!" by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich
2. "Surprise, Surpise" by The Rolling Stones
3. "Grass" by Animal Collective
4. "Jody" by The Dodos
5. "Wash Jones" by Squirrel Nut Zippers
6. "Never Tell" by Violent Femmes
7. "Mister Jung Stuffed" by Man Man
8. "(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet" by The Blues Magoos
9. "Candy And A Currant Bun" by Pink Floyd
10. "Gods And Gentlemen" by Drink Up Buttercup
11. "With A Girl Like You" by The Troggs
12. "Chick Habit" by April March

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
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What's this Muxtape business? A Muxtape is a quite genius, very simple, way to create and share mixtapes. Please share your own ridonkulously themed mix in the comments. Or ELSE.

*above photo of Spring in NYC taken by me in April 2005

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!

valentine's day Another week, another Muxtape! The second mix (mux) brings together themes of chicanery, pranks, shenanigans, jokes and fools in celebration of the most deceptive of days, April 1. Check out the songs featured in this mix listed below and check out/listen to the mix itself HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition
1. "April Fools" by Rufus Wainwright
2. "The Joker" by Steve Miller Band
3. "Show Your Hand" by Super Furry Animals
4. "I Started A Joke" by The Dirtbombs
5. "The Worst Joke Ever" by R.E.M.
6. "Fools" by Nada Surf
7. "Don't Take Us For Fools" by Graveyard
8. "Prank Calls" by Kelley Stoltz
9. "Don't Get Mad, Get Even" by Aerosmith
10. "Fools" by The Dodos
11. "No Surprises" by Radiohead

See our previous Muxtape HERE

As you probably know by now, a Muxtape is nothing more than a quite genius, very simple, way to create and share mixtapes. Feel free to create your own foolishly themed mix and link to it in the comments.

*above photo found HERE

valentine's day EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe

valentine's day EAR FARM's got a Muxtape*, obvs. You can check it out HERE. The first mix I've made is 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe (that's my cat's name, pictured above at his 10th birthday party, he'll turn 13 in a little less than a month). Check out the songs featured in this mix listed below.

EAR FARM's Muxtape will likely become a recurring thing with a new mix posted every week, so do check back. And enjoy the Joe mix.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
1. "Hey Joe" by Jimi Hendrix
2. "Joe's Waltz" by The Dodos
3. "Joe" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
4. "Soap Star Joe" by Liz Phair
5. "Joe" by PJ Harvey
6. "Harold and Joe" by The Cure
7. "Joe #1" by Fugazi
8. "Jimmy Joe Roche" by Dan Deacon
9. "Old Joe's Place" by The Folksmen
10. "Joe's Head" by Kings of Leon
11. "Hey Joe" by Patti Smith
12. "Cotton Eyed Joe" by Starsound Orchestra

*a Muxtape is nothing more than a quite genius, very simple, way to create and share mixtapes. you should create your own and link to it in the comments. go now.

valentine's day EF On The Road: SXSW Edition

valentine's day It’s been a while since we rapped at you, and since our last edition we made the not-so-far drive from Waco to Austin and into the Heart of Darkness itself, South By Southwest. As the recent flood of show recaps and pics might suggest, we saw heaps of music over the last five days, yet this recap is less about that (that's what our other posts are for) and more about the odds and ends going down since the last update.

In the interest of not boring you too much, we’ve broken this down into different subjects - or “talking points” - rather than a straight play-by-play because honestly, if we did that it would be something to the effect of “saw show, took pictures, drank beer” on endless repeat. So here we go:

Registration. Determined to avoid a repeat of CMJ registration difficulties, we uploaded badge pics of ourselves in advance with the hopes of expediting the whole check-in process. Such foresight proved only to complicate things further, as the SXSW minions put the wrong picture on my badge. Check out “Grumpy Fake Mike Stunt Double” after the jump...

valentine's day And, before I could even walk inside the Austin Convention Center to pick up my impostor badge, we first had to face one of the most difficult aspects of navigating SXSW: finding parking. After circling the building a handful of times, we decided to trade off running inside to get our badges while the other person kept circling. On my stint as getaway driver I had a chance to get a bit of a feel for things while cruising around the premises, gasping with horror at what would be the first of many enormous lines (at the FADER Fort) and getting accustomed to the distinct sound that would characterize our time there, a jumbled stew of muffled rumblings from about four different PA systems all bleeding out into the street and mixing together.

Commute. Having learned our lesson with the impossibility of parking at registration, we vowed to only walk from our hotel to the venues downtown for the duration of the festival if we could help it. As we saw it, we were hearty New Yorkers used to walking dozens of city blocks on a given day. Ten blocks is ten blocks, right? Well, yes, and also absolutely not. The commute was roughly "ten blocks" plus a few lateral avenues but these "blocks" were definitely longer than New York blocks. That in itself is fine, but factor in our walking path being the shoulder of Interstate 35 and the commute suddenly became significantly more daunting. Cars would whizz by and yell shit at us (where was my stunt double when I needed him?) and the heat from the highway was kind of unbearable; I saw one of those time and temperature signs on a bank read 95 degrees on Friday while walking into town. Matt actually took video footage of our entire walk home (a smidge over 26 minutes) from Saturday night. Future bonus EF material alert?

Making Friends. As Matt mentioned in our R.E.M. show recap, Dead Confederate and EF came together like Murtaugh and Riggs during Day 1 of the festival. The guys were nice enough to let us tag along with them for the day and shoot a bunch of footage of what - to this point - was the biggest day in their career: opening for R.E.M. at Stubb's. I think we may have been more nervous than they were. In any case, we had a blast and are eager for them to venture into Yankee territory this spring to keep the good times going. Some other people we tried to befriend (with varying levels of success):

Michael Stipe - Okay, so we were too star-struck to actually approach him but Matt has photographic proof that we were within a few feet of him backstage.

Jim James - I wish this were an interesting story but it basically just involved me cornering him after last call following the Tapes 'n Tapes show late Saturday and trying to convince him how sincerely, honestly, no, like for real, how much I really am looking forward to My Morning Jacket's Radio City show in New York in June. He was very nice about all the attention, nice and probably very scared.

Brian Posehn - Matt accosted his fellow metalhead (and hilarious comic) in line at the Torche show Saturday night. He's been remarkably tight-lipped about the whole exchange, which makes me suspect a deep connection was made...

Shirtless dude potentially on hallucinogens walking down Interstate 35 - The commute into town is bad enough, but when you're shirtless and running as fast as you can and jumping from embankments and rolling around on the grassy shoulder of the highway screaming to yourself and no on in particular, we imagine you could use a friend. We tried our best to help him.

A Word About Booze. Why were all the free booze offered during the day parties and not during the night? Wouldn't the opposite make more sense? You would think so, but no. During the day - and by day I mean starting at noon - everything from beer to Bloody Marys to Screwdrivers to Dewars on the rocks were free and for the taking depending on where you were. Scotch at noon? No thank you. Honestly, it was harder to score a bottle of water at some of these daytime events than a tumbler of Scotch. Factor in the scorching sun overhead and suddenly you've got a nice drowsy headache to go with your farmer's tan. I'm actually surprised I didn't come across more crazy shirtless dudes sprinting down the highway at midday.

As a final note, on the last night (Saturday) we headed back to the hotel at a reasonable hour after watching Goes Cube's showcase. We ended up watching that MSNBC special called "The Mind of Manson" on TV. It occurred to me then that Charles Manson - all long-haired, thickly bearded and covered in tattoos in a tight sweatshirt - looked pretty much exactly like every SXSW participant we came across. At least more so than whoever is on my badge....

UPDATE To This Update: We meant to get this posted earlier this morning but some weird technical stuff was happening on Blogger (we think our Tom Tom nav system was somehow behind it, she's been giving us a whole lot of attitude lately). Anyway, we had to hit the road in order to make our final BBQ lunch with Skatterman & Snug Brim in Kansas City (best meal yet?) and haven't gotten to a computer until now. Hope you enjoyed the belated update, we'll have a proper wrap-up when we return to New York.

valentine's day EF On The Road: Pre-SxSW (Raleigh to Atlanta to Memphis to Waco?)

valentine's day "I'm standing where my, uh, living room was and it's not here because my house is gone and it's an Ultimart! You can never go home again, Oatman... but I guess you can shop there."

That Martin Blank was right on the money. In the past few days I've spent time in both my hometown of Raleigh, NC, where I spent my formative years, and in Ft. McClellan, AL where I was born. In neither place was I able to reconcile the past (whatever that means) but I did manage to spend some money. Recession be damned! Allow me to explain, in bulleted list format, what our past few days have entailed. I'll highlight the extraneous spending in bold, yeah? Good. Because we both need some manner of loose framework for this post (to hang our brand new Indiana Jones hat on) and I think the above quote from Grosse Pointe Blank will work just fine.

Back to the old house with us then. I believe when we last left you we were sitting in a coffee shop in Raleigh on Friday afternoon...

Friday
- blogged at my favorite coffee shop writing spot (Cup A Joe at Mission Valley), bought one too many lattes.
- drove around in the rain and showed Mike a bit of where I'm from (had to fill up the gas tank in that behemoth you see above because of the "scenic tour") and did my best to explain to Mike a bit about both North Carolina and my own personal history along the way. He's currently jonesing for some sweet tea, biscuits, and a pickup truck - and knows very well the local axiom "if you want a saint, go to Peace; if you want a piece, go to Saint Mary's" - I think I did a pretty good job.
- bought tickets for the show on Saturday night for some friends at Schoolkids.
- got dinner with a friend, went back to another friend's house to play Rock Band all night long. Highlight: Mike drum-battling some random dude online on Expert to an Iron Maiden song. In my mind, I've already purchased this game.

Saturday
- BBQ lunch with The Rosebuds... great food, great company, fun times all around. Our treat. Can't wait to do it again.
- stopped by an auto parts store to purchase a cigarette lighter to AC outlet converter for the van.
- dinner at The Raleigh Times, amazing beer selection caused us to spend a little extra on Belgian beers.
- went to see Amy LaVere and Chatham County Line at the Lincoln Theatre... the crowd was of the loud-talking during the songs, cell phone on belt holding up khakis, we go see Jimmy Buffet every year set, so we left midway through CCL. As an aside, the Lincoln Theatre is the kind of place you could grow an entire city's music scene out of. How about someone buy the place from whoever runs it now and start booking some solid talent there on a regular basis, eh? Because the calendar simply does not match the potential of the venue.
- went to Slim's and caught The Apes and played entirely too many games of Donkey Kong.

Sunday
- drove to Atlanta, no death trucks, and bought lots of sunflower seeds for the ride.
- went to The Earl for Vampire Weekend and The Walkmen. Nearly couldn't get in because we weren't on the guest list as we were told we'd be, but things ended up working out.
- went back to the motel and work work worked.

Monday
- drove from Atlanta to Memphis and stopped to visit where I was born (Ft. McClellan, AL) on the way... I took a ton of pictures, found my old house (not replaced by a convenience store) and bought an Indiana Jones hat at a gas station in Anniston, AL for $20. I'm an adventurer now. More on this later.
- spotted no less than 10 different Bingo joints along US 78 in and around Jasper, AL. It was oddly exciting to see Bingo after Bingo after Bingo, each parking lot filled with cars.

Tuesday
- BBQ lunch with Amy LaVere and her band mates... more great food, great company, and fun times all around. Our treat once again.
- headed for Dallas (from Memphis) to see Goes Cube play a show... they get bumped up to 8:30pm which causes us to miss their set; which, all things considered, was probably a good thing given that they were kicked off the stage for being too loud after only two songs!!
- kept driving towards Austin and ended up stopping in Waco, TX for the night.

Wednesday
- today, right now, still in Waco and preparing to leave in one hour for Austin and SxSW.
- on tap for the rest of the day are a few Dead Confederate shows, namely one tonight in which they will be opening for that R.E.M. band. Can not wait. It's one of the few things that's locked into my SxSW schedule, another being to catch as many Billy Bragg shows as I can.

Apologies for the "just the facts" format here but we're on a tight schedule with a lot of things to do and see over the next few days. I'd post our probable concert schedule but we tend to like surprising you. So stay tuned, thanks for reading, and we'll either see you in Austin very shortly or back here on EF for your regularly scheduled content (mixed in with some bonus SxSW coverage).

Listen:
"Back to the Old House" by Billy Bragg (originally by The Smiths)