Brooke Waggoner

{Brooke Waggoner}

Fresh Pair of Eyes

Brooke Waggoner stands out (If that is supposed to be her on the cover, then she certainly stands out with an old record player for a head). Her music has captured something within me besides the regular and mundane that come with the many guitar driven rock ballads. Besides from being an excellent pianist, her lyrics can be clever and reassuring. A nice combo if you ask me.

Strengths:

The piano in this album is no doubt the best and most intriguing part. I’m not saying that this album would be bad without the piano, or that the piano is the only thing holding it together, but that the piano exemplifies all the great stuff going on in the front and back lines. It’s the icing to the cake (since I don’t like frosting, maybe this analogy doesn’t work all that well).

Amongst the Sand

I’m sitting here in the computer lab pretty much by myself. About four computers over, there are two girls working on Chemistry homework. The windows to my left lend a cool breeze every so often, and I’m still tired (It’s only 7:57 AM). So far, my day has been desolate. All my friends have left on a trip and won’t be back for two days. I’m not looking forward to what lies ahead today because of the loneliness that might make itself known more so than normal.

Although the duration of this process of going to classes by myself (only to show up with barely anyone there), walking the halls myself, and spending a Friday evening without much to do is short in duration, there have certainly been other times in my life where the blankness of life has brought me down.

Sapling – White Winter Hymnal

“White Winter Hymnal“

Artist: Fleet Foxes

“White Winter hymnal” sounds exactly like it should be sung by a choir right in the middle of the woods on a snowy day. So, in essence, the title of the song fits very well to the style of the song, as well as its content. I just think it’s a beautiful song captured by style.

Download “White Winter Hymnal”

(Right click the link and select “Save Link As” or left click the link to just listen)

When The Wild Animals Become Too Numerous

Traveling up to the Adirondacks every summer has led me to encounter my fair share of wild animals. Bears, loons, raccoons, cardinals, etc. It’s one of the few places left on earth that is still wild, let alone, protected from development. It’s pretty intriguing to think about how the stunning smooth mountains and carpeting deciduous forests were once even wilder than we’ve ever experienced. It is a place filled with life, untarnished by acid rain or deforestation.

But imagine the opposite of that. Imagine a land filled with people and a bustling harbor. A land that’s been called home for quite some time, kinda like the Middle East. Wouldn’t it makes sense to say that if those people just got up and left (or got displaced for some reason), that the wild that once tamed the land would retake its previous position? Well, that’s kinda what I’m trying to get at.

Expelled

Creation and Evolution have been topics in my life that have created some (humble) conflict and controversy.

I’m glad that things have never escalated to a point that has hurt my relationships, but I am glad that there is finally a documentary out there addressing how our freedom is being taken away; that has certainly been my experience. Ben Stein points out that any questioning of Darwinian theory with even a mention of Intelligent Design is a big no-no in the scientific community.

Rue Royale

Parachutes and Lifeboats

Folk music has not always been on my playlist; It has not always been part of my music library or in my CD collection. Recently I stumbled upon this band and was pleasantly surprised by its folkesque ring. More accurately, Rue Royale’s music might considered as “pop-folk”, but any label you put on it won’t make much of a difference. I just like the stuff. The combination of harmonizing vocals, subtle and effective guitar, and soft indie style, give the music a nice feel. Not something you stumble across everyday.

Jon Foreman

Spring EP

It’s clear to see that the San Diego’s frontman has been well seasoned with his release of Spring, one of his three solo projects within a year. His previous works, Fall, and Winter, have been available for a while now, but Spring is a fairly recent addition to the acoustic cluster of Jon Foreman’s work.

The album starts out with a quite “bouncy” feel creating an almost polka type experience. He has added a small horn section that gives the song an almost sophisticatedly comical taste. It’s a light-hearted approach to the beginning of the EP that is pretty effective at generating interest.