Category: Uncategorized

November 8

Week 26: “Marching Bands of Manhattan” by Death Cab For Cutie

Picking which Death Cab song to include on this list is like being asked to…

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November 1

Week 25: “Day Eight” by Explosions in the Sky

The Texas-based instrumental rock band Explosions in the Sky got their big break when their…

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October 25

Week 24: “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand” by Primitive Radio Gods

When he was 21, Chris O’Connor and two friends formed a band called the I-Rails.…

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October 18

Week 23: “Vocalise” by Rachmaninov (as performed by Bobby McFerrin and Yo-Yo Ma)

Family road trips have changed over the years. Today, things like iPods, PSP’s, and TV…

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October 11

Week 22: “Dayvan Cowboy” by Boards Of Canada

If you are Canadian, chances are you have seen the work of the National Film…

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October 4

Week 21: “The Water” by Feist

In the span of about 18 months, Leslie Feist when from being just another face…

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September 27

Week 20: “Les Deux Pianos” by Yann Tiersen

Keeping with the European theme of last week’s entry, this week we move west to…

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September 20

Week 19: “Live Long” by Kings of Convenience

Admit it. Part of you is fascinated by Scandinavia. I’m not sure how it happened;…

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September 13

Week 18: “Midnight Express” by Extreme

Yes, this is an entry about a song by Extreme. Yes, that Extreme, the hair…

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September 6

Week 17: “By The Way” by Big Wreck

There are two things that Canadian musician Ian Thornley is really good at: rocking out…

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August 30

Week 16: “New World” by Bjork

Though I recognize Bjork’s talent, I find it difficult to make it through an entire…

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August 23

Week 15: “The Crow…” by DJ Food

As explained in the liner notes of their brilliant 2000 album “Kaleidoscope”, DJ Food is…

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August 16

Week 14: “The First Ride” by Don Ross

By the time I was 18, I thought I was getting pretty good at playing…

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August 9

Week 13: “My Invitation” by Sarah Slean

Although she’s often categorized as folk, Sarah Slean is infinitely more musically talented than most…

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August 2

Week 12: “Tickets to Crickets” by Ferraby Lionheart

Raise your hand if you’ve ever been super excited to find out about a band,…

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July 26

Week 11: “Black Sands” by Bonobo

Bonobo is a solo musician from England whose latest album is, in my opinion, one…

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July 20

Week 10: “Independence Day” by Elliott Smith

I saw Elliott Smith in concert shortly after his popularity had exploded thanks to the…

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July 12

Week 9: “Roads” by Portishead

Music critics love coming up with names for new genres of music. Sometimes the name…

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July 5

Week 8: “Lodestar” by Sarah Harmer

If lazy summer afternoons had an anthem, this song would be it. Full of lyrics…

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June 28

Week 7: “Sleep” by Eric Whitacre

I first heard this song a couple of years ago at a choral concert close…

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