Bleeding Cubbie Blue
Posted on 1 May 2008 | 4 Comments
So last night I was at Wrigley Field to witness my beloved Cubs blast the Brewers by a final score of 19-5. Great game and sure, the Cubbies hit a few home runs, but this ain’t your grandpa’s Cubs team.
These “new look” Cubs of 2008 play baseball the way that I’ve been hoping they would for years. They take pitches, they take walks, and they aren’t constantly swinging for the fences. All that leads to a hella high team OBP and a lotta runs scored. But then came this afternoon’s game and the return of Alphonso “The Selfish One” Soriano.
Why is Soriano batting in the lead off spot? Especially when you’ve got Reed Johnson, Ryan Theriot, or even Ronny Cedeno who could do that job better than Soriano. Lou doesn’t have a good answer for that one.
I know I’m rambling here, but I’ve got baseball on the brain. Kerry Wood blew it this afternoon and it drives me crazy. Carlos Marmol needs to be the closer. Ok. Here are some Cubs tunes.
MP3 | Steve Goodman – Go Cubs Go
MP3 | The Mountain Goats – Cubs In Five
MP3 | The Brothers Defino – WGN Radio Cubs Theme
MP3 | John Fogerty – Centerfield
MP3 | Steve Goodman – A Dying Cubs Fan’s Last Wish
MP3 | Cubs Singers – Hey Hey Holy Mackeral
MP3 | Harry Caray – Take Me Out To The Ball Game
Filed Under: Blog
Tonight! The Forms & Cloud Cult @ Schubas
Posted on 25 April 2008 | No Comments
Hey there fellow denizens of Chicago it is raining pretty fiercely here in the Western ‘burbs right now, but have no fear. You should go check out The Forms and Cloud Cult tonight at Schubas. The show starts at 10:30PM and I’ll be headed out after I play some moon sand with Hailey and jog on the treadmill for a little while. I’ll see you there.
Filed Under: Blog
Bloggy McBloggerson (or) A Florida Mix
Posted on 19 April 2008 | 1 Comment
So Amy is in Florida for some special Disney event where they’ve invited a bunch of mom bloggers from around the country to check out Disney World. Yeah, she’s pretty much the shit when it comes to mom bloggers. I (on the other hand) am here in Chicago with Hailey on a gray (but slightly warm) day. Bet you didn’t know we were a family of bloggers did you? Well, Amy didn’t have time to make a playlist for her flight to Orlando yesterday, so here is my crack at it.
MP3 | Jack Johnson – Better Together
MP3 | Modest Mouse – Florida
MP3 | Yael Naim – New Soul
MP3 | Sufjan Stevens – To Be Alone With You (Pocketknife’s Considerate Eagle Scout Remix)
MP3 | Old 97’s – Big Brown Eyes
MP3 | The Firebird Band – Beautiful
MP3 | Say Hi – Before We Were Brittle
MP3 | Reggie And The Full Effect – What’s Wrong
MP3 | Peter Bjorn And John – Start To Melt
MP3 | Alkaline Trio – Fire Down Below
Go f&%k yourself Baidu!
Posted on 12 April 2008 | 3 Comments
Hi kids. You may notice that none of the MP3 download links are working right now. That’s because my excellent hosting provider (Dreamhost has shut down my …/music directory where all the files are hosted. I can’t say that I blame them.
From what I can tell, sometime in the last two days the super-giant Chinese search engine www.baidu.com and their sub-site mp3.baidu.com have been hotlinking to many of the files I have hosted which is straining the Dreamhost server they are located on. Which (as you can probably tell) is not really cool.
So here’s a big fuck you to Baidu and all its patrons! It seems that the Chinese really like my series of 1990’s posts, so I’m going to take down (at least for now) all the 1990’s related MP3’s. Fuck those fucking fuckers.
I’ll let you know when things are back up and good to go.
Filed Under: Blog
Three months and a little effort
Posted on 11 April 2008 | 3 Comments
Howdy friends and strangers? How are you tonight? I just rattled off a little over 4 miles on the treadmill we keep in our basement and thought that I should share a few of the tunes that I routinely listen to when I’m jogging. I usually go for something fast and/or something powerfully inspirational to keep my pace fast and my spirits high.
I’ve certainly found those “go to” songs and albums over the past few months as I’ve increased both the intensity and duration of my workouts. Why have I been running so much? Well, because I was getting really fuckin’ fat and, as someone who ran the Chicago Marathon only 4 short years ago, I needed to get back into shape.
It seems to be working since I’ve lost just over 31 pounds since January 14th of this year and feel better than I have in some time. So here are two of the songs I like to listen to on my way back to a sub 20:00 5K. I’m nowhere near there yet, but ya gotta have goals, right? What do you like to listen to when you run?
MP3 | A Wilhelm Scream – 5 To 9 Career Suicide
MP3 | Rise Against – The First Drop Siren Song Of The Counter Culture
Filed Under: Blog
Hiatus
Posted on 7 April 2008 | 19 Comments
This is easily the most personal post I’ve written to date. I know this is a music site and most of you don’t give a fuck about who I am, but this will also most likely be the last post around here for the foreseeable future. I am taking a bit of a hiatus to focus on the things that really matter. Sure, posting MP3’s and reviewing albums is fun, but it doesn’t pay the bills.
So what does all this mean and why I am telling you? Well, it means that I probably won’t be posting here for awhile, and if I do it will be only intermittently. Yeah I’ve got a decent middle management job at a good company, but instead of spending my time blogging I need to focus on finding a better job that will help pay a few more of our bills. I’m telling you because I can and because I should. Remember that there are people and families behind each and every one of these blogs you visit. Most of you are probably doing okay, but at certain points in almost all of our lives, we will be struggling in some manner. We are all human.
As we struggle to make ends meet we are pretty typical (I think) of many American families who have over-extended themselves. Maybe we’re not typical of the blogging crowd but, let’s be honest here, this country’s economic problems are not going away anytime soon. I feel like a failure because even though we live fairly comfortably, we just can’t get ahead. This is not a sob story and I’m not asking for any sympathy. These are simply the facts of the story. And if you are near Chicago and might be interested in a copy of my resume, send me an email..
Filed Under: Blog
Me in Chicago, Her in New York City
Posted on 4 April 2008 | 1 Comment
What did I do this evening while my wife was hobnobbing with some blogger friends of hers in New York City this evening? After I tucked Hailey into bed with her 13 million stuffed Care Bears, I cleaned up around the house and then jogged 5.5 miles. Really exciting, huh?
I’m finally sitting down to relax a little; just me, some good music, and a glass full of Two Brothers’ Cane & Ebel Rye Ale. Good shit. “And the music?,” you ask. Well, some Paul Duncan (whose latest album Above The Trees is amazing), The Weight, and Lucero with Save The Day’s Through Being Cool on the treadmill. On that note, does anyone know where I can buy a copy of The Weight’s newest album? It just came out but the band’s site has zero useful information. Oh well.
Cheers.
Filed Under: Blog
Ta-Ra-Ra Boom De-Ray
Posted on 1 April 2008 | 3 Comments
Yesterday was my daughter’s first (ok, just a half day) of day care and my wife and I are struggling a bit with it. She’s only two-and-a-half and we have been lucky enough (or stupid enough) that Amy has been able to stay home with her for the majority of that time but now that Amy is going back to work it is off to day care for little Hailey. I plainly realize that Hailey has grown very attached to both of us and counts on us to always be there, but it is still very hard to watch her cry and beg for us to not leave her. Are we wrong to be so protective of our little girl? Are we doing more harm than good by trying to keep her within her comfort zone? Of course she cries when she is disciplined at home and doesn’t get what she wants, but that (IMHO) is different. She told my wife that she was scared when she dropped her off this morning, and that just doesn’t sit well with me. She’s just a little girl and we only want the best for her.
Here is her favorite song of the moment.
MP3 | Ta-Ra-Ra Boom De-Ray
Filed Under: Blog
Whatcha doin' there?
Posted on 29 March 2008 | No Comments
Filed Under: Blog
It came from the nineties (Vol. 13)
Posted on 23 March 2008 | 2 Comments
Happy Easter everyone. What better way to celebrate than a few great songs from the nineties? Well, my 2 and a half year old daughter has spent the first hour of the day finding plastic Easter eggs and eating jelly beans. I’m now just waiting for the crash.
MP3 | The Notorious B.I.G. – Hypnotize
MP3 | Dig – Believe
MP3 | Tonic – If You Could Only See
MP3 | Natalie Imbruglia – Torn
MP3 | Eve 6 – Inside Out
Filed Under: 1990's, Blog, Mixes
What's all this up in here?
Posted on 18 March 2008 | 1 Comment
Many of you that are reading this might be inclined to say, “WTF happened to Can You See the Sunset?” Well, this is the new CMS-based design powered by Textpattern. Most of the images are fucked up and still need to be resized and many of the links pointing to the old design might be broken. The margins outside the content area are uneven (anyone?) but there is much more usable functionality in this new layout.
First, Can You See the Sunset is now fully searchable via the input box over on the far right sidebar with a drop-down menu full of categories below that. On the main navigation menu, “Blog” will show you all the posts about more than just music (i.e. my daughter), “Reviews” will show you just that, and the others are pretty self-explanatory.
So this is it. PLEASE let me know of any broken/dead links, functionality issues, and shit that just doesn’t make any sense. I think I’ve worked through most of the issues, but this is a work in progress.
Cheers.
Filed Under: Blog
It came from the nineties (Vol. 9)
Posted on 3 March 2008 | No Comments
This is a fitting way to start another week off right. Back to work after a long but eventful weekend. Amy, Hailey, and I spent the weekend up in beautiful Minneapolis, Minnesota visiting friends we haven’t seen in quite awhile. We walked around Uptown, went record shopping, watched the kids play, drank some Surly beer, toured the city’s lakes, listened to the Once soundtrack, enjoyed a real happy hour, drank some good bourbon, and more. I’ll definitely have to move the Twin Cities to my short list.
MP3 | Bone Thugs ‘N Harmony – Tha Crossroads
MP3 | Stereo MC’s – Connected
MP3 | Lush – Hypocrite
MP3 | Alice In Chains – Would
MP3 | Gin Blossoms – Hey Jealousy
Filed Under: 1990's, Blog, Mixes
Hailey is a punk rocker
Posted on 27 February 2008 | 3 Comments
I’ve posted pictures of my daughter with headphones on before, so here’s a little update for y’all. Echoing the sentiments expressed in one of Grubbs’ recent posts, they certainly do grow up so fast. So fast that she can often be seen wearing a Clash t-shirt from Sandbox Threads and a frilly pink tutu. Cool beyond her years I think. Any guesses as to what’s playing on that iPod?
Filed Under: Blog
Changes changes
Posted on 17 February 2008 | 1 Comment
Hello y’all. You may have noticed a little “work” going on around here. If things look a little out of place, don’t worry. I’m smack in the middle of the long and tedious process of moving Can You See the Sunset from its current Blogger platform to Textpattern. With that will come improved searches and all sorts of other improvements. Just a little heads up for y’all.
And since you (the readers) will be impacted by this, let me ask a question. If you could improve something (anything) about Can You See the Sunset, what would it be? I’d love to hear from you.
Cheers.
-Eric
Filed Under: Blog
My daughter is sick but Kanye and Daft Punk are too
Posted on 12 February 2008 | No Comments
This post should have been written yesterday evening but is, instead, a day late. We had just put our sick little Hailey (who is, as of this morning, on antibiotics) to bed and I was jogging along quite contentedly on the treadmill and watching the Grammys and pondering, “What the fuck is this circus shit,” during the Beatles thingy.
Then Kanye West and Daft Punk came on and I stopped jogging long enough to watch what had to be the performance of the night (although Foo Fighters weren’t bad and Tina Turner looks damn good for 68). Anyhow, when I was done jogging I went upstairs to find Amy rocking Hailey on the recliner because the little one woke up crying due to the fact that she is filled with mucus and other nasty stuff and can’t breath for shit when she’s laying down.
So instead of posting last night I ended up rocking Hailey as she slept in my arms for about three hours and then bringing her up into our bed while Amy slept on the couch (her choice). What a night.
MP3 | Kanye West ft. Daft Punk – Stronger (Live) @ The 50th Grammys
MP3 | Kanye West ft. Daft Punk – Stronger Graduation
Filed Under: Blog
Lucero/Hot Water Music - 2/1 @ Metro
Posted on 5 February 2008 | No Comments
Un-freaking-believable. That is what Lucero opening for the first of two Hot Water Music reunion tour shows in Chicago was. It was actually quite strange to see Lucero in an opening slot. Instead of their usual 2 hour + sets, they played an economical 45 minutes but were still awesome. The touring pedal steel player added a little extra twang and a little extra awesome as well.
It was (however) obvious from the get go that everyone was there to see Hot Water Music. And why not? This was one of four (two in Chicago) “reunion” shows that the band was playing to promote their new release Till The Wheels Fall Off. Anyhow, Hot Water Music knocked my socks off and played for 1:45 and ripped through all the songs that I wanted to hear; “Hard To Know,” “Don’t Say You Lost It,” “Better Sense,” “Alachua,” and more. After the show Andy, Amy, and I all commented that we felt way younger than our true ages. I can only hope that this is the beginning of a new chapter in the HWM story. The pix below are (for the most part) courtesy of my wife Amy.
Barack & Roll
Posted on 5 February 2008 | 1 Comment
Is your state one of the Super Tuesday states? Did you vote? For my wife and I the answers are “yes” and “yes.”
Filed Under: Blog
Josh English/Ben Nichols/Chuck Ragan - 1/31 @ Schubas
Posted on 5 February 2008 | 1 Comment
Yes I did head downtown last Thursday night during the blizzard to catch what was an unbelievable show featuring Joshua English, Ben Nichols (of Lucero), and Chuck Ragan (of Hot Water Music) at Schubas Tavern.
Because of the snow it took me 1-1/2 hours drive the 12 miles from work to home and another hour + to get downtown so I (unfortunately) missed Joshua English’s set, but everyone who saw it said he was great. His latest record Trouble None is fantastic so I’m sure that live it would have been awesome.
MP3 | Joshua English – No Ready Answer, No Ready Reply
MP3 | Ben Nichols (Lucero – The War
MP3 | Chuck Ragan – See Yourself To The Door
I (however) only walked in the door as Ben Nichols was starting his set. As anticipated, it consisted of mainly Lucero songs, but Ben and the crowd were having a great time and loving every minute of it. It was nice to hear the songs in a more intimate setting with only Ben’s whiskey-soaked voice acoustic guitar, and a pedal steel accompaniment. It was simply fantastic.
Then came Chuck Ragan. He played songs from his assorted 7 inch records and from hsi full-length Feast Or Famine. It was amazing. Chuck was accompanied by fiddler Jon Gaunt from Whiskey and Co. (who Ben embarrassingly called Whiskeytown) on a number of songs in addition to his own gruff voice and snappy harmonica playing. Chuck also managed to play a few Hot Water Music songs (“God Deciding” and “Old Rules”) as well as “Bleeder” out of the Alkaline Trio’s catalog.
Despite missing Joshua English and spending over four hours in the car that evening, it was a great show that I’m glad I didn’t bail out on.
Fire Bruce Weber Now!
Posted on 3 January 2008 | No Comments
Hey Illini basketball fans. Are you are fed up with Bruce Weber as I am? I just watched the Illini lose to what looked like a very beatable Ohio State team. Fire Bruce Weber now.
Since he led the Illini to the Final Four and the NCAA title game, the program that he inherited from Bill Self has been steadily declining. Aside from almost running the table in 2005 with Self’s recruits, there has not been much positive news from Champaign on the basketball front.
First, Bruce Weber simply can’t recruit anyone. The list of top recruits that Weber has filed to land is long; Derrick Rose to Memphis, Julian Wright, Sherron Collins, Brandon Rush to Kansas, Eric Gordon to Indiana, and even Jon Scheyer to Duke. The same Jon Scheyer that played high school basketball for Weber’s brother. How bad of a recruiter do you have to be? Fire Bruce Weber now.
Even Matt Painter (another Gene Keady disciple) managed to land 4 top 100 recruits in his first year at Purdue. The Illini could have had Painter or even Thad Matta from nearby Hoopeston, IL. I would be thrilled with either of those guys right now which is why Weber needs to pack up and move on.
Despite the terribly embarrassing loss to USC in the Rose Bowl, the Illinois football program is headed in the right direction. Why? Because Ron Zook can recruit talented players. He might not be the tactician that Weber is, but you can’t teach talent. Hopefully the success of the football program will put some pressure on the AD to make a change. Fire Bruce Weber now.
All this leads up to an 8-6 start for the Fighting Illini this season that includes losses at home to Miami of Ohio, Tennessee State, and (again tonight) to Ohio State. Weber’s Illini team is not talented enough to compete with the best teams in the NCAA and will be lucky to come close to .500 during the Big Ten schedule. I’m frustrated. Fire Bruce Weber now.
Filed Under: Blog
The Main Drag covers All My Friends
Posted on 30 December 2007 | 1 Comment
My wife’s hometown (and the people in it) just got a little cooler. When I got married here five years ago, my brother asked for “the best beer” that the bar served and got a Labatt’s. Not a good start. There is now (however) a bar in this small central Pennsylvania town that serves brews from Victory, Dogfish Head, and even Bell’s. Heck, even the local brewery is making s Special Dark lager. Times are changing.
In music related new, one great new band that came to my attention in 2007 is Boston’s The Main Drag. In addition to an excellent debut album Your’s As Fast As Mine, they’ve recorded an amazing cover of LCD Soundsystem’s stellar single “All My Friends.” It may actually be better than the original.
MP3 | The Main Drag – All My Friends (LCD Soundsystem cover)
Filed Under: Blog
Listmania 2007 revisited
Posted on 17 December 2007 | No Comments
W I ran into a few more Best Of 2007 lists this weekend including one from Heather at Fuel/Friends and my man Eric from Theme Park Experience. Chris Gorilla vs. Bear has a list that proves I ain’t one of the indie tastemakers while Justin from Aquarium Drunkard liked many of the same records I did this year. Yeah, 2007 was a pretty good year for new music.
Filed Under: Blog
Listmania 2007 is here
Posted on 11 December 2007 | 6 Comments
We are firmly entrenched in December and that means that every single music blog has posted or is prepping their Best of 2007 lists (me included). Our friend Ryan at Muzzle Of Bees posted an excellent best albums list last week while Amy at Shake Your Fist posted her 50 favorite songs of 2007 list. Gonz from Get Over Yourself posted a killer top ten albums list and so did Frank Chromewaves and Moka. Even Dodge from MOKB posted his top 50 albums.
I was going to post mine next week. Should I feel compelled to post it sooner? Nah… In the meantime (however) here is a list of a four records that I was either totally disappointed in or wanted to (but just didn’t) understand.
Smashing Pumpkins – Zeitgiest
Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
Grinderman – Grinderman
Matt Pond PA – Last Light
Ok? Okay.
Filed Under: Blog, Year End Lists
Two for Tuesday
Posted on 4 December 2007 | 1 Comment
I forgot my iPod at home this morning and was forced to listen to (gasp!) conventional radio since my choices in the car are radio, iPod, or a shitty old Motley Crue cassette. Anyhow, while listening to WONC, I heard both the following songs and thought they would make a good twofer. It is currently snowing in Chicagoland and I want so badly to be near some mountains right now and wake up for a day of snowboarding tomorrow. I guess I can wish, huh?
MP3 | K’s Choice – Not An Addict
MP3 | The Breeders – Cannonball
More MP3’s at The Hype Machine or buy stuff from Insound | eMusic
Filed Under: Blog
Random slices of goodness
Posted on 16 November 2007 | 4 Comments
Wanna see my daughter Hailey sing a song from the latest album from The Weakerthans?
It also turns out that we here at Can You See the Sunset have been nominated for the Hey! Nielsen & Billboard.com Best Music Blog Contest. Vote for us if you feel so inclined. We’d really appreciate it!
Filed Under: Blog
Lucero & Bobby Bare Jr. show review
Posted on 16 November 2007 | 2 Comments
Last Friday night we headed out to the Metro in Chicago to catch one of our favorite live acts, Lucero. We the missed the openers Whiskey & Co. but arrived just in time to see Bobby Bare Jr. and his band of Young Criminals tear up the stage. Augmented by a drummer, Deanna Varagona on baritone sax and (perhaps) the world’s greatest keyboard player (does anyone know who this guy is?), he and his band impressed the hell outta me and the rest of the audience as well.
Lucero then proceeded to play a Jameson (note the bottle at Ben’s feet in the picture below) & Jagermeister fueled set that lasted well over two hours. They played just about every song everyone wanted to hear and it was amazing. And just like every one of the other half dozen or so times we’ve seen the band, they brought out the rowdy hooligans and a fistfight erupted right in front of us.
The band was joined onstage for their entire set by the mysterious bearded keyboard player from Bobby Bare Jr.‘s band. His awesome playing provided just enough extra oomph And while I can’t remember their exact set list, it was very comparable to the one from the show below that they played about a week and a half earlier in Richmond, VA. Go see ‘em on tour if you have the chance.
MP3 | 01. Intro
MP3 | 02. That Much Further West
MP3 | 03. I Can Get Us Out Of Here Tonight
MP3 | 04. Sixteen
MP3 | 05. 1979
MP3 | 06. Kiss The Bottle
MP3 | 07. Joining The Army
MP3 | 08. Last Night In Town
MP3 | 09. Slow Dancing
MP3 | 10. What Else Would You Have Me Be?
MP3 | 11. Hearts On Fire
MP3 | 12. Nights Like These
MP3 | 13. Bikeriders
MP3 | 14. Crystal Blue
MP3 | 15. Chain Link Fence
MP3 | 16. It Gets The Worst At Night
MP3 | 17. Tonight Ain’t Gonna Be Good
MP3 | 18. The War
MP3 | 19. All Sewn Up
MP3 | 20. Drink Till We’re Gone
MP3 | 21. Tears Don’t Matter Much
MP3 | 22. My Best Girl
MP3 | 23. I Don’t Wanna Be The One
MP3 | 24. Raising Hell
MP3 | 25. Old Sad Songs
Backyard Tire Fire at Double Door
Posted on 10 November 2007 | 2 Comments
If you live in Chicago and don’t have any plans for tonight let me suggest that you head out to the Double Door and check out the awesome rootsy-rock of Backyard Tire Fire. The show starts at 9PM and features both Phonograph and Chicago Farmer opening.
We went to see Lucero at Metro last night and they were (as usual) great! They played for well over two hours. We saw all the usuals (Andy, Julia, Em, Tim, etc…) except Moe and the band even gave a shout out to the mighty Catfish Haven. Additionally, their tour mates with Bobby Bare Jr. were amazing. Do they have a record out?
Filed Under: Blog
Back in business
Posted on 6 November 2007 | 5 Comments
Hi everybody! I just wanted to let y’all know that Can You See the Sunset From the Southside is officially back up and running. My old computer is dead and my new one is very much alive thanks in part to the following generous individuals:
Eric Grubbs
James Gonzalez
Andrea Martinez
Jason Dockter
Lee Henderson
Jonathan Crystal
Cruise Crenshaw
Solidarity Blog
You people are awesome. I’ll get back to posting music just as soon as I get my FTP program up and running. Thanks for hanging in there. In the meantime, check out the amazing video below of (perhaps) the world’s greatest Guitar Hero player.
Filed Under: Blog
A Halloween Birthday Mix for Amy (or) Thirty Songs for Thirty Years
Posted on 31 October 2007 | 9 Comments
Not only is today Halloween, it is also my beautiful wife Amy’s thirtieth (30th) birthday. That’s a milestone that means, “Damn we are gettin’ old!” At least I have a year to go. Anyhow, since I already had this post basically done prior to the death of my computer, all I have to do is hit the “publish” button and I’m done. Lucky me. Sometimes a little planning is a good thing.
Anyhow, here are thirty songs for thirty years. All specifically for my wife and all with some special meaning to her or just songs that she really likes. A fitting tribute (along with a visit to the salon) I think. Plus how cool is it that her birthday is on Halloween? It’s no wonder that candy corn is her favorite vegetable. Also, here is my daughter Hailey dressed up as a pink leopard (note the sweet shoes).
MP3 | Screeching Weasel – Totally
MP3 | Troubled Hubble – I’m Pretty Sure I Can See Molecules
MP3 | Cake – Sheep Go To Heaven
MP3 | The Queers – Punk Rock Girls
MP3 | Lily Allen – Smile
MP3 | Parasites – Refuge
MP3 | Hot Water Music – Rooftops
MP3 | Gratitude – Sadie
MP3 | The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up – A Toast To The Happy Couple
MP3 | No On 15 – Pass Me A Straub
MP3 | Minus The Bear – The Game Needed Me
MP3 | Weston – Mrs. Perfect Girl
MP3 | Lucero – Tears Don’t Matter Much
MP3 | Phil Vassar – Just Another Day In Paradise
MP3 | Death Cab For Cutie – The Sound Of Settling
MP3 | Bishop Allen – Click, Click, Click, Click
MP3 | Wilco – Handshake Drugs
MP3 | Paramore – That’s What You Get
MP3 | Jawbreaker – Want
MP3 | Interpol – Evil
MP3 | Rocky Votolato – Suicide Medicine
MP3 | Alkaline Trio – Clavicle
MP3 | The Promise Ring – Happiness Is All The Rage
MP3 | The Dead Milkmen – Punk Rock Girl
MP3 | Allister – Chasing Amy
MP3 | Gnarls Barkley – Crazy
MP3 | Smoking Popes – Pretty Pathetic
MP3 | Of Montreal – Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse
MP3 | Get Up Kids – (Oh Amy) Don’t Hate Me
MP3 | Gratitude – Sadie (Acoustic)
Help keep Can You See the Sunset alive!
Posted on 29 October 2007 | No Comments
Hello friends and loyal readers, it’s Eric here! We have a bit of a dilemma here at Can You See the Sunset From the Southside. My laptop (that was on its last leg already) officially died tonight. So I need a new computer, but with a new refrigerator first on our list of major appliances to buy, it may be a little while before posting gets back to anything resembling normal since without a computer this site may end up going the way of the dinosaur.
That news may really suck, but you can help! You can click the button below and donate via Pay Pal. Every little bit will help whether it is $1 or $100. And everyone that donates will get mucho kudos here on the site as well as somethingawesome that I haven’t yet determined.
So if you are feeling generous and would like a way to say “Thanks!” for what we do here at Can You See the Sunset From the Southside, feel free to click on the donate link below and give as little or as much as you want. Thank you.
Filed Under: Blog
I need a new laptop
Posted on 28 October 2007 | 9 Comments
Here’s the deal folks. My laptop is on the fritz and is only intermittently working. Posting may be a little spotty until I can get it fixed or replaced. Speaking of replacements, any suggestions for reasonably priced (inexpensive) and reliable laptops (non-Mac) would be welcomed.
This recent computer failure comes as no surprise to me since we live in what I affectionately call “Appliance Hell.” In the last two weeks we’ve replaced a microwave/range hood, replaced the pump in our washing machine, and found out that our refrigerator needs to be replaced due to a busted compressor.
Filed Under: Blog
An Unexpected Bloody Mess
Posted on 26 October 2007 | 2 Comments
So yesterday afternoon I was standing at a Citgo gas station filling up what Hailey affectionately refers to as “blue car” when something caught my ear. In between ads for taquitos or coffee or something, I heard this song:
MP3 | The Decemberists – O Valencia
That sort of thing isn’t supposed to happen in the suburbs (or anywhere) is it? It was a little weird, but excellent. In less excellent news, according to punknews.org The Blood Brothers have broken up. If you didn’t know it, their last album Young Machetes is totally balls.
Filed Under: Blog
Fuel For The Hate (Game On)
Posted on 22 October 2007 | 5 Comments
I just happened to be jamming No Division when I surfed over to the newly new and killer www.getoveryourselfbklyn.com and read that Hot Water Music is supposedly reuniting (read more). Holy fucking shitballs! I actually giggled like a little girl when I read that. Seriously. Amy will call me out on that one if you ask her. Oh yeah, that’s also her sweet HWM tat above.
Goodbye Lance Hahn
Posted on 22 October 2007 | No Comments
According to Austin360.com, punk legend Lance Hahn died yesterday after a long battle with illness brought on by complications from kidney disease. The former Cringer and J Church frontman was only 40 and will be missed. If you’ve got a J Church or Cringer record, play it today and think about Lance.
Two whole years (A Birthday Mix)
Posted on 21 October 2007 | 5 Comments
Tomorrow (Oct. 22) my daughter Hailey will be two years old. I know that I haven’t really written much about her on this blog as of late, but that doesn’t mean that she isn’t the inspiration for just about everything I do. From being born a month prematurely and spending a week in the NICU, to her rotavirus-induced seizures, and even her recent nosebleeds and subsequent cauterization, there hasn’t been a dull moment in our house with Hailey around.
I knew I would lay down and die for her the moment I first laid eyes on her two years ago. It has (however) taken me almost this long to realize that she’ll be breaking my heart every single day for the rest of my life. It’s the way she calls out, “Daddy! Daddy!” It is her incredible smile and the way she giggles. It is watching her learn and grow from day to day. So here is a big Happy Birthday to my little girl.
MP3 | Johnossi – Glory Days To Come
MP3 | Matt Pond PA – Locate The Pieces
MP3 | The Go! Team – Grip Like A Vice
MP3 | Klaxons – As Above, So Below (Justice Remix)
MP3 | Black Kids – I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You
MP3 | Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Alive 2007)
Todd and Wank
Posted on 3 October 2007 | No Comments
Hey readers! Last night my wife Amy and I were both featured on the Dads On Fire podcast and commented on the topic “Is it possible to be a hip parent?” We thought it was cool that they asked us to be a part of the show. Amy talked a little about her site Mums The Wurd and they focused (mainly) on my other site Dapper Dads. The site (although still in its infancy) is geared towards cool stuff for hipster parents, so if you fit the bill then check it out and keep checking it out as things will be changing often. That’s Dapper Dads.
Anyhow, check out Dads On Fire and download the podcast. Evidently 7000 people nabbed last week’s and with us on this week’s, how could this one not be loads better?
Filed Under: Blog
Go Cubs Go!
Posted on 28 September 2007 | 6 Comments
It’s official. My beloved Chicago Cubs have clinched the 2007 National League Central crown! I can not believe it! Thank the lord they don’t have to play Florida again. Let’s go Cubs!
MP3 | GO CUBS GO!
Filed Under: Blog
I can sleep
Posted on 19 September 2007 | 1 Comment
My beloved Cubs just won in very exciting fashion and I’m also listening to the phenomenal new Band Of Horses album. Because of both of these things, I’m having a pretty fucking great evening.
Filed Under: Blog
Not as easy as it seems
Posted on 17 September 2007 | 4 Comments
Making a baby is fun and having a kid is easy. Caring for a child (especially our little one) is fucking hard. Really fucking hard sometimes.
The little one hasn’t been sleeping well (both naps and at night) for about the last two weeks. She’s been crazy during the day and is now fighting bedtime when she used to be so easy to put down. She’s almost 23 months old and I can’t tell if it is just a stage she is going through or if there might be something else. Argghhh.
She’ll whimper and cry at night and call out for us to hold her. It breaks my heart to not go check on her, but I feel that she might just need some “tough love” here and learn to be independent. Am I wrong to feel this way?
She was the most pleasant little girl for the longest time. She slept well, she was agreeable, and she ate well. Now she protests all three of those things. It is almost as if she is a completely different child than she was a month ago. What gives? I know it will get better, but I’m just venting here. Thanks for listening. It is much appreciated. For more tales of our toddler woes head over to my wife’s blog Mums The Wurd. She also does hella great product reviews and (for the parents out there) is giving away over $500 in free stuff right now.
P.S. The Chicago Cubs are going to give me a heart attack and have been aptly nicknamed the “Cardiac Cubs.” What a win tonight!
Filed Under: Blog
A Bears lament
Posted on 10 September 2007 | 2 Comments
Fellow Chicago Bears fans, if you watched yesterday’s game like I did, I’m sure you’ll agree that I will probably not need to repost the Super Bowl Shuffle this year. Sad but true.
Rex looked like Rex, and that isn’t really a good thing. Mike Brown is injured and out for the season (again). Cedric Benson looked like the chump I’ve thought he was since the day he was drafted by the Bears. Where did all the magic go?
So I’ve been taking a bit of a brrrrrreak! to recharge the old blogging batteries. Mo’ music tomorrow. I promise! I’ll get those packages mailed out to contest winners (finally) and have a new one up courtesy of our pals at Equal Vision Records. I just need another day to get my head back in the game. That’s all.
Filed Under: Blog
Elizabeth Mitchell and family
Posted on 27 August 2007 | 3 Comments
Amy, Hailey, and I went up to Ravinia this weekend to catch a rare Chicago performance from our favorite children’s artist Elizabeth Mitchell. She performed songs from all three of her albums including many from her latest, You Are My Little Bird. For those that don’t know, she (along with her husband Dan) are both members of the superb indie-pop band Ida when they aren’t being parents and singing kids songs.
Elizabeth performed a few songs with a full band, but was mainly accompanied on stage by Dan and their daughter Storey who managed to pull off a few great harmonica riffs. Anyhow, the kids were dancing, laughing, clapping, and (of course) crying. We briefly talked to Elizabeth and Dan after the show and (much to our amazement) she sang a little lullaby of “Ladybug Picnic” directly to our visibly exhausted daughter Hailey. It was a wonderful little moment that made us love Elizabeth as a person as well as a performer. Support these wonderful musicians by buying their albums and seeing them live. They totally deserve.
MP3 | Elizabeth Mitchell – Freight Train You Are My Flower
MP3 | Elizabeth Mitchell – Ladybug Picnic You Are My Sunshine
A week of stormy weather
Posted on 27 August 2007 | No Comments
The weather here in Chicago last week was about as rainy and nasty as it could be and I think this song sums it all up pretty nicely. Let’s hope for more favorable conditions this week.
MP3 | The Pixies – Stormy Weather Bossanova
Filed Under: Blog
Holy Cow!
Posted on 23 August 2007 | 1 Comment
Winners for both the Warped Tour Giveaway and the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus contest have been picked, but another contest will be posted shortly.
Also, some readers commented on the fact that I didn’t post Harry Caray doing “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” for my Cubs songs post and thought it was blasphemy. Fear not fellow Cubs fans, the song is below. I’m pretty excited after two straight come-from-behind wins in San Fransisco. I can already smell the playoffs.
MP3 | Harry Caray – Take Me Out To The Ball Game
Filed Under: Blog
Killswitch Engage Warped Tour Pix
Posted on 16 August 2007 | 1 Comment
Of all the bands at the 2007 Warped Tour, I was most excited to see Killswitch Engage. And although their set was only 30 minutes long, the reigning kings of metalcore did not disappoint. And (yes) Adam D is totally hilarious. In between songs while the rest of the band was trying to get him to shut up, he said things like, “All you metalheads, turn to the emo kid next to you and punch him in the dick,” and “Emo kids, what are you crying about?” I almost peed my pants.
Filed Under: Blog, Hardcore & Metal, Live
Big Warped Tour Giveaway Update
Posted on 11 August 2007 | 7 Comments
This giveaway is going to run through Wednesday, August 15 and the prizes are as follows:
Mayday Parade Tales Told By Dead Friends CD (autographed by the band)
A Static Lullabye S/T CD (autographed by the band)
Hot Rod Circuit The Underground Is A Dying Breed CD
Chiodos All’s Well That Ends Well CD
Circa Survive On Letting Go CD
Mayday Parade A Lesson In Romantics CD
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Don’t You Fake It Deluxe CD/DVD
Bad Religion New Maps Of Hell CD
Revolution Mother Glory Bound CD
The Vincent Black Shadow Fear’s In The Water CD
A Static Lullabye black t-shirt
Mayday Parade poster (autographed by the band)
The Vincent Black Shadow poster & stickers
Fearless Records stickers
Get Warped! 2007 Warped Tour guide
+ a bunch of assorted goodies
How does all that sound? It looks like this:
You can enter the contest by leaving a comment (click on the number next to the post title) with who your favorite Warped Tour band is and why along with your email address.
Filed Under: Blog
Bad Religion Warped Tour pix
Posted on 6 August 2007 | No Comments
How cool is it that the guys in Bad Religion are still rocking well into their forties? If you’ve heard their latest album New Maps Of Hell and if you saw them at Warped Tour, you’d know that they show no signs of slowing down.
Alkaline Trio Warped Tour pix
Posted on 5 August 2007 | No Comments
Personally, I don’t think these Warped Tour picture posts are ever gonna end. These are of Chicago’s own (and new Epic Records artist) Alkaline Trio. They have certainly come a long way since the days when they crashed at our apartment in Indianapolis back in ’98.
MP3 | Alkaline Trio – Off My Mind (Smoking Popes Cover) ALK3/Popes Split 7”
Bayside Warped Tour pix
Posted on 5 August 2007 | 1 Comment
Here are some more pictures from last weekend’s Warped Tour in Chicago. These are of New York pop-punk/hardcore group Bayside as they play songs from their latest album The Walking Wounded.
MP3 | Bayside – Duality The Walking Wounded
Bear Down
Posted on 3 August 2007 | 1 Comment
This is a strange feeling for me. Lollapalooza starts today ans summer is still in full swing, so how can I be so giddy and excited about the Bears with all that going on and when my beloved Chicago Cubs are in first place in the NL Central? The Cubs have been playing great since the beginning of June, but the start of Bears training camp and the reports coming out of Bourbonnais have got me really excited. John Clayton from ESPN said that the defense looks great, but that it is the Bears offense that is turning heads. Clayton added that Devin Hester and Greg Olson are catching everything that is thrown to them and said, “Hester looks like Steve Smith but faster.” Doesn’t that get you excited?
Additionally, former Bears quarterback and current NFL analyst Jim Miller also likes what he has seen from the Chicago Bears offense. He went on record saying that he thought Rex Grossman was much improved and that he would throw at least 30 touchdown passes this year. Miller also stated that Grossman appears much more poised and that he is stepping up into the pocket after going through his progressions rather than winging the ball off his back foot.
Really, if the Bears collapse this season, I predict that it will be because of Cedric Benson. Can he stay healthy? Will he be an improvement over Thomas Jones? Speaking of TJ, I also predict that he will have a monster season with the Jets this year. He was pissed at losing his job to Benson here in Chicago and is out to prove that he is a top-tier running back.
It is all so exciting that it almost made me forget that two tracks from the upcoming Maritime album due out on the amazing Flameshovel Records have been leaked. They are both below for your listening (dis)pleasure.
MP3 | Maritime – Guns Of Navarone Hersey And The Hotel Choir
MP3 | Maritime – For Science Fiction Hersey And The Hotel Choir
BONUS:
MP3 | Cold War Kids – Hang Me Out To Dry (Ingo Star Cruiser Remix)
Filed Under: Blog, Indie Rock
Paramore Warped Tour pix
Posted on 2 August 2007 | No Comments
You are probably tired of all these pictures from the Warped Tour. That’s just too bad since there are a bunch more to come. These are of the fun and energetic Hayley Williams from Paramore.
