Oops. I'm still here.

Hi, I'm back. Sorry readers, my waning usage of the Internet (shocked, aren't you?) combined with an utter lack of any decent or otherwise entertaining inspiration has led to the slowdown of my blog. (Or... The new fall season of TV has started, and well, we all know what that means.) I'll try harder.

For now, all you so-called indie fans can check out CNN's special report on the indie scene. It's an interesting read -- from which I gathered what I've already known for quite some time: that the term "indie" basically describes nothing concrete or meaningful now -- and the "How Indie are You?" quiz is even better. I scored a 3 out of 10 which officially made me a "poser." I guess I already knew this, though.

Speaking of "indie," I will now a quick tracks of what I've been enjoying in recent days. There have been a few new releases in the past few months that I'm trying to catch up with and take in; here is one of many.

The Decemberists made their big-label debut (not so "indie" by definition) with the release of The Crane Wife (Capitol, 2006) earlier this week. Upon first listen, I was not impressed nor excited. But I kept it on repeat during my daily commute, and it started to make more sense with each listen, and it's even beginning to grow on me. At this point, I definitely don't think it comes close to their best effort (though many bloggers and critics are giving it rave reviews!) , but I guess they have to be commended for going out of the box. This album is more poppy (read: "mainstream" accessible) with spurts of classic rock that will surprise any old Decemberists fan. Check out Podbop's review for the album's background story (based on an old Japanese folk tale) and an awesome Lego depiction of the band.

Posted here is the first track of the album, which is not necessarily my favorite, but one of the stronger tracks that is shorter than 10 minutes long. Give 'er a listen and see what you think.

The Decemberists :: The Crane Wife 3


P.S. If you have not noticed, I'm now using the new and improved blogger beta which has tons of crazy features that I haven't learned to use yet. I'm working on getting all the old things from my template back, while also hoping to make it more snazzy and organized, too. Stay tuned.