Ep. 9 – Swing and a Miss – June 30th, 2008

So i haven’t been hunting in a little while because i had to work a lot of day shifts the end of last week and the beginning of this week i was up north.  After spending some time up north i drove over to Big Rapids, where i am now, to hang out at school with friends for a little while.  While in BR i decided to stop by a pawn shop in town that i knew had some cds.  They had a pretty good deal going.  All cds were $4 or 5 for $15.  There was only one problem: all they had was crap!  Piles upon piles of Nsync, Backstreet Boys and Brittney Spears… i’m not kidding that is like all they had.  I found one tooth and nail sampler cd but i already had all the albums any of the songs were off of.  The only thing i found that was mildly good was the apathetic ep by Relient K.  I didn’t get it though because i’m only a little into Relient K.  So for the first time, i left a store empty handed and have nothing to show for my hunt… but that’s what i get or going to a pawn shop in a town like BR…

E.p. 8 – Rare Advance CD’s!!!! – June 25th, 2008

Today i went hunting for what will probably be the last time until i get back from a week-long trip i am going on soon (unless i decide to go hunting on the trip )  I went to one of the few record stores in my area i had yet to check out, Car City Records.  The place was nicely organized and a really great place to find Vinyl, but they really had nothing that was up my alley, i searched through a whole bunch of junk and found one album worth grabbing:

“The Alchemy Index Vols. 1 + 2: Fire & Water” – Thrice

I’ve liked Thrice for awhile.  After their last release “vheissu” i kind of lost interest in the band.  This new album (which is split into two 6 track discs) has redifined their sound and on the guidance of a friend i decided to give them another shot… i like what i’ve heard so far of “fire.”  Price Paid: $0.94 (you can see why i gave them another chance)

After the dissapointing search at Car City i decided to check out Record Time again… I had a few friends in tow and they wanted to browse…  First i went and grabbed an album that i’d been on the fence about for awhile but after doing some research i decided to grab it and the i discover the uber-clearance section… the cds nobody wants – me and my friends started looking through it as a joke but then one of my friends found an album that i was blown away by – they knew about the band through me so they pointed it out to me:

“How to Live With a Curse (Advance Copy/ Limited Pressing)” – Stavesacre

The only album by my favorite band that is not on the huntlist… why?  because i bought it the day it came out.  Today i stumbled upon the Promotional Copy and i just about had a heart attack.  It is tracked really weird with each song being split into like five tracks… it plays normal in the car but if itunes was on shuffle it would probably sound really weird… most likely i will never actually listen to this copy, i will keep it safe and scratch free.  I mean, i already have this album, but the mere fact that i found a rare promo copy of an album by my favorite band in a record store in michigan… oh man, i just had to get it.  Price Paid: $4

“Temptation Come My Way (Advance)” – the Showdown

This one is on the list!  Found the full-length, advance version at record time.  It doesn’t have the booklet with all the pictures and lyrics but just the cover and tracklist written on the back of the cover – good enough for me!  Price Paid: $1

“Easy Come, Easy Go” – Starflyer 59

This is a two disk, career-spanning compilation of sf59 goodness.  Disc one includes a “Best of” with 3 tracks off each of sf59’s first five releases… then disc two contains rareities, b-sides and live tracks!  Definately worth it for any sf59 fan!  Price Paid: $6

Good day of hunting!  Only paid $12 for four cds!  Not bad, not bad at all!

Ep. 7 – Remote Control Planes – June 23rd, 2008

I did some work for my grandmother this morning and she gave me some money so i decided to check out “Blast in the Past” again.  Once again upon walking in my ears were assaulted by the inane conversation of the store owner and his ded-head friends.  This time, i almost laughed aloud at their conversation.  They were having an in-depth, heated conversation about how 911 was a conspiracy… oh man!  They complained about all the people that said “I am so glad Al Gore wasn’t president when the planes hit” and they proceeded to explain their own theories on what “really went down.”  According to the owner, George W. Bush is actually responsible for 911, not only that but he was at the controls.  They claimed the planes were remote-controlled?!?!  How ridiculous!  Then they went on to claim that all the people that supposedly died on the plans were actually all targeted by the government and taken out ahead of time.  They brought many other ridiculous “points” that i just can’t seem to remember… i don’t know what kind of stuff these guys used to smoke (or still do) but whatever it was, it messed them up.  It is quite entertaining to listen to them though…  and by the way, they seem like good people, they just have some wacky ideas.

Ok, on to today’s finds:

“[A-->B] Life – Mewithoutyou”

I actually came across this one on my last visit but i passed it up.   When i got home i listened to my burned copy and i realized i had made a terrible mistake!  I actually tried to go pick this one up Sunday before work but only when i got to the door of BitP did i realize they were not open on Sundays.  So today i made sure to grab it.  Mewithoutyou has been one of my favorite bands for awhile now.  I first got into them early in high school…  i found a few of their songs on the Internet and i got really into them.  Then they released their second album, “Catch for Us the Foxes” and my drama team leader from my youth group, Emily, burned me both their albums.  I have loved mewithoutyou ever since.  I remember blaring the song “Gentlemen” in my room at my old house and screaming/yelling along because i could actually do a decent job at imitating Aaron Weiss’s interesting vocal style (at least i though i could, who knows )  If you have never listened to mewithoutyou then i suggest trying them out, they have a very interesting style…  It’s like hard rock with some ambient-rock thrown in, a little shoegazer, and little yelling, a harp, some metaphors… they are an experiment that at many times is just beyond words.  Give them a try, but if you do, i recommend either their second release, “Catch for Us the Foxes” or their third release “Brother, Sister” first.  Don’t get me wrong, this is a great album, but they have matured since this album and they keep making better and better music!  Price Paid: $9.50 (not particularly cheap, but worth it)

“The Light in Guinevere’s Garden” – East West

I downloaded this album awhile back with a couple of their other releases and of them all i liked this one the most.  They have a really good sound, kind of like a christian version of Korn, but not exactly…  I saw this one ever time I’ve been in BitP but i kept passing it up because it was priced a little high… it was sealed though…  I decided it was worth it today, I’ve been getting a lot of tips at work lately…  Price Paid: $12.50

I actually had a little more cash left over and some extra time before work so i decided to head over to record time since i hadn’t been there in a little while, i thought they might have gotten some new stuff in… they had, and i was lucky to find the best find of today:

“Summer of Darkness” – Demon Hunter

I have been a fan of Demon Hunter since they released their self-titled debut album.  They are a christian heavy metal band, and they are really good!  I didn’t buy one of their albums until they re-released their third album last year with a DVD.  That DVD/Album made me love the band even more, the DVD showed me just how cool the guys in the band are!  They are really outspoken about their Christianity and not at all ashamed of it, and that’s really cool!!!  When they released their forth album this year, it was actually one of the first albums i resisted the urge to download and waited until i could afford to buy it legally.  Ruckus helped.  Now i own three of their four releases, all i have to do is find their self-titled album now!  Price Paid: $4! (makes up for the other expensive ones today)

“Leave Here a Stranger” – Starflyer 59

I haven’t had much exposure to this record, but it is Starflyer 59 so i trust it’s good (it has to be since it’s not “the fashion focus” )  It is on the hunt-list because i did have a few tracks off it downloaded but never found the whole album.  I’ve actually known this was at Record Time since the first time i went there but have passed it up every time since i hadn’t heard it before.  I gave it a listen today and decided to shell out the cash for one more album today…  Price Paid: $8

All in all a good day of hunting.  See ya next time!

P.S. I pre-ordered Brave Saint Saturn’s new album today, their store is up — you can order it too, right here!

Albums I Am Eagerly Awaiting

Some of my favorite artists are busy doing what they do best, creating amazing music, right now and I am very excited for a number of upcoming releases, they include:

“Antimeridan” – Brave Saint Saturn, the third album, and most likely last album to be released by BSS.  Their website is extremely vague saying the album will be released June 2008… june is almost over and i’m going a little bit nuts!  Read more here: http://www.bravesaintsaturn.com/index.html

The boys at Stavesacre have mentioned some new material in the works but the Stavesacre front has been quiet for awhile, if/when the new material is released it will most likely be the last new material ever made by Stavesacre.  In one sense i am excited to hear more from my favorite band, but in another i will be sad to see them go.  Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stavesacre Check out this Video of a recent practice, (if they are practicing that means something right? Like the possiblity of a farewell tour… or atleast some shows… )  (there is some dead time at the beginning but trust me it’s worth it!

Mewithoutyou is in the studio recording what i know will be another amazing album: http://www.myspace.com/mewithoutyou

Anberlin is supposed to release an album in september also!  www.anberlin.com

Alot to watch for soon!  I am very excited!

Ep. 6 – A Couple Good Finds… – June 20th, 2008

I went back to “Blast in the Past” today.  I cashed a check and had some extra money and some time.  I went back to BitP because i realized that i had only looked through half of their used CDs, there was another whole rack i had completely missed.  I walked in and again, the owner was chatting away nice and loud with his other old coworker… this man really amuses me, i think he was quite the party-er back in his day because there isn’t much of him left if you get what i mean…  so again, chuckling to myself i peruse the racks, this is what i found:

“[Untitled]” – The Benjamin Gate

“

This album actually wasn’t on the list and before i got it today i had never heard it before.  I love “Contact”, the other album released by the Benjamin Gate so i decided this album was worth checking out.  So far i like it, very good lyrics – they aren’t cryptic, they come right out and talk about Jesus, and that’s really cool.

Price Paid: $5

“The Tick Tock Treasury”  – Joy Electric

I downloaded most of Joy Electric’s discography a few years ago and was into him for a while.  Joy Electric is an interesting project, its synth-pop music that is often reminiscent of early video game music.  (Another interesting fact is that Joy Electric is the brain-child of Ronnie Martin, brother of Jason Martin of Starflyer 59.  What amazes me is that both brother make very different music, but are both really good at what they do… anyway, i digress… )  This is either my favorite album of his, it’s between this one and “Hello Mannequin.”  Found this one today and was excited to pick it up.  Price Paid: $5

“Stereo Motion” – Stereo Motion

First heard these guys when i bought a flicker records compilation called “Flicker Rocks Harder” a few years ago.  I liked their songs so i downloaded there album.  They are comparable to the band “Jet” kind of a classic rock sound with some new influence as well.  Very solid record.  I was actually pretty surprised to find this one today.  Price Paid: $5

Again, succes… next time i will probably go back to Blast in the Past, atleast once more, but pretty sound i’m going to have to look for other record stores… i’ve found one more, but it is pretty far away, but hopefully i’ll make the trip one of these days… you never know, it might be worth it.

Ep. 5 – Un-freaking-Believable! Blindside, Brave Saint Saturn, and More! – June 19th, 2008

Today was pay-day, and my day off so i went out hunting…  I decided to check out some other record stores in my area this time so today i stopped by “Blast in the Past.”  It was located on gratiot (again), between Utica and Martin (i don’t know why, but there are three record stores within a mile of each other on gratiot, go figure…)   I liked the place, kind of a half was point between Record Time and Hot Hits…  It wasn’t as nice as Record Time but i didn’t get bad vibes from the place like i did from Hot Hits.

Today’s trip was hands down the most productive one yet!  I am still in shock over what i found.

So here goes:  I walked in the store and started browsing the rack and as i am i listen to this owner of the store talk to a couple other old guys.  They are reminiscing about the days when gas was $1 and White Castle Burgers were 12 cents.  Then he launches into a story about how he hitchhiked with these guys once and they where smoking weed in the car and they rolled a joint as “big as a cigar” and he got a contact high… They sat and reminisced more about the days when anyone would give you a ride if you just stuck your thumb out, i was mildly amused.  I could tell that they didn’t get new CDs in very often and that their regulars probably didn’t like the obscure bands i do because i found some real gems, check it:

“Silence” – Blindside

This album is one of my desert island top five for sure.  If you would have asked me a few years ago it would have been my #1!  I got into Blindside right around the time this album was released, right as i began high school.  I had my new best friend Andrew download this album for me, amoung others.  I was in love with this album for years to come, i listened to it so many times and i know the whole album front to back…  This album quickly made Blindside my favorite band and they stayed that way until early in college when another band i had also loved for awhile eeked their way to the top, that band, of course is the great Stavesacre.  Like I said, when i found this album today i was blown away.  And what’s more, it was unopened – never before used!  Price Paid: $5

“Tales of the Knife” – Lucerin Blue

This album is closely related to Silence by Blindside in my life.  My friend downloaded and burned this album for me on the same day as silence but i actually didn’t listen to it until atleast a few weeks later because as soon as i put silence in my CD player it stayed there for that long!  This under-rated album by what anyone in the world of popular music would call a “One-Hit Wonder” band, is one that i have loved for a long time.  You may remember the song “Monday in Vegas” getting some secular radio play back in 2003… i specifically remember one time it was on the radio while i was in the dark room of my high school photography class, i was shocked because i normally didn’t listen to the radio and i had no idea that anyone even knew about Lucerin Blue, let alone they were being played on secular radio stations… This is a good hard rock albums with some nice piano parts here and there, has kind of a rap-rock sound at times, but it is very good.  Found it today, unopened as well!  Price Paid: $5

“Adventures in Tokyo” – Calibretto 13

Not much to say about this band except that I’ve always liked their original sound (horror / surf punk) and the content of their lyrics.  Listened to them a lot last summer, now i finally own one of their albums! Price Paid: $5

“The Light of Things Hoped For” – Brave Saint Saturn

In the wake of the demise of (in my opinion) the best christian ska band ever, Five Iron Frenzy, i was sad… I mean really sad, you must understand how much i loved FIF…  In that post-mortem stage i desperately searched for something to fill that Five Iron shaped hole in my heart.  A few years earlier i had heard about a side project some of the band members had done (most notably Reese Roper) called Brave Saint Saturn.  The “Space-rock” band was an outlet for some of Reese’s sadder lyrics that didn’t quite fit with Five Iron…  I downloaded there albums because i wanted more FIF, i kept them because i love BSS.  I doesn’t really sound anything like Five Iron Frenzy, but their albums are beautiful!  I am proud to now own one of the two they have released (so-far ).  Also found this one unopened but it was a little more pricey.  Price Paid: $9.50 (it was worth it)

All in all this was they best day of hunting i’ve had since i began this project!  i saw a few other albums from the list there but i am out of spending money at the moment so maybe next week.  To some up my excitement let me just say that on the way back to my car from the record store i couldn’t help myself from periodically exclaiming “No Freakin Way!”

Ep. 4 1/2 – Ghoti Hook – June 17th, 2008

I made a stop by Record Time today and was in and out in two minutes. The past few times i went i saw an album on the clearance rack and i recognized the band but had never actually heard them so i passed it up. Last night i used ruckus (ruckus.com) the legal downloading software to listen to the album, after that i decided it was worth it, even though it’s not on the list…

“Retrospective” – Ghoti Hook

I had heard of this christian punk band a long time ago but never listened to them. For awhile i lost interest in punk music so i never did bother to get into them. I have spent this summer so far working at Subway where the majority of my coworkers are into punk music, so it is constantly on in the store (unless i can sneak one of my records in…) It’s kind of grown on me, so i thought i’d give Ghoti Hook a chance, i’m liking it so far… Price Paid: $2

Ep. 4 – Hot Hits and “Love” – June 16th, 2008

Today i decided to check out Hot Hits, another record store on gratiot not a mile from Record Time.  My first impression of the place was less than optumistic.  It was dirty, cluttered and disorganized.  It looked like a pawn shop with dvds and videogames lying around in piles, no prices on anything.  I decided to give them a chance and browse through the music they had.  I was actually surprised by what i found.  I suspect the reason i found what i did was because they get very few costumers, especially costumers looking for the obscure stuff i was looking for.  A few of the titles i found but did not buy were:  “Chase the Sun” – The O.C. Supertones (maybe next time), “The Adventures of the Orange County Supertones” – The O.C. Supertones, “On Your Feet” – Spoken (i was very surprised to find one of spoken’s very early albums since they aren’t very big… i’m not a huge fan of the album though, so i passed it up…), and “Payable on Death” – P.O.D.

I did find a few albums on the list that were worth getting at Hot Hits, sadly Hot Hits charges $7 for used CD’s instead of $6 like Record Time so I oly got a few:

“Satellite” – P.O.D.

This album and I go way back.  This is probably the first hard rock album i ever owned.  Back in the day (7th grade) when my top recording artists were MXPX, Audio Adrenaline, DC Talk, and the Newsboys (i know, i’m sorry, i was a kid… and everyone else liked them ) my friend Eric told me about this band, P.O.D. and he burned me their album.  I was in love right away, the music was so powerful… heavy distortion, screaming, i loved heavy music… now, i know people are like P.O.D.?  That’s your exposure to heavy music?  You can’t get much more mainstream than P.O.D… I know, but this album opened the door… and really if you give it a listen now, it is pretty heavy, you have to admit (especially in contrast to the Newsboys )  So this album has been a part of my collection since i started defining my musical tastes, so when i saw it, i had to pick it up.  Price Paid: $7

“Wake Up, O Sleeper” – Cool Hand Luke

I’ve already said how my love for cool hand luke has grown in the last six months.  I had all their albums downloaded and recently found “the Balancing Act” at Record time.  Well, Hot Hits actually had their second release, “Wake Up, O Sleeper” so i snatched that bad boy up!  Price Paid: $7

“Love” – The Juliana Theory

When i really started to get into the christian alternative and rock scene in high school, i found out about the Julianna Theory.  I gave them a listen, but at that time i was listening to bands like Underoath (early Underoath, with Dallas on vocals) As I Lay Dying, Extol, and Christian hardcore or metal.  What i heard of the Julianna Theory was not “heavy” enough for me.  Then somewhere along the line i downloaded some pack that had a bunch of christian albums in it and “Love” was one of them.  It found it’s was onto my ipod and stayed there for awhile, just waiting.  Waiting until i started college… every once and awhile a song from the album would pop up on shuffle and i would think “this is pretty good, who is this…” I’d look and it would be a song off this album.  When i compiled the hunt-list i decided that i would buy this album if i ever come across it.  I came across it today and I was pretty shocked, the only Julianna Theory album that Hot Hits (or Record Time for that matter) had was the only one i like!  Hah!  Price Paid: $7

After Hot Hits i made a stop by record time because i had a trade in.  I traded in a sealed copy of Bon Jovi’s “Slippery When Wet” (it was a gift) and got $3 store credit.

“Shadows are Security” – As I Lay Dying

Though my interest in metal is not as strong as it used to be, I can’t deny that this is a good album.  For $3 i couldn’t pass it up.  Price Paid: ($6 – $3 store credit = $3)

Pretty productive day.  Not sure if i’ll be going back to Hort Hits anytime soon, but the trip todday was worth it.  I found out about a couple more record stores in the area so i might try those sometime soon… after i get paid again.

Mark’s Response

I recently wrote a letter of apology to Mark Salomon, lead singer of Stavesacre (my favorite band) apologizing for illegally downloading Stavesacre albums in the past. He wrote back, this is what he said:

Well paint me pink and call me Sally. That’s a first!

Apology accepted and appreciated – and I’ll have to check out the blog – sounds pretty interesting.
Great email and a well-spoken point of view always go a long way towards mending fences. Cheers to you for having the balls to say what you need to say.

Take care of yourself, and please: don’t go broke buying music! Take yer time…
m.

Letter of Apology to Mark Salomon

So in light of recent events i sent a letter to Mark Salomon, lead singer of Stavesacre, my favorite band to apologize for the fact that i downloaded stavesacres albums in the past. Here it is:

Hey Mark,

My name is XXXXXXXXXXX and I’ve messaged you a few times before. More recently about some pretty hilarious movies, but anyway… I feel the need for an apology but first hopefully a semi-short explanation.

Stavesacre is one of my favorite bands, has been seen high school… i could go on and on about how awesome you guys are, how passionate the lyrics are and how you guys just flat out rock but i’ll spare you what you must hear pretty dern often and hopefully tell you something people probably don’t too often.

I have been a “Christian” since i was 7 years old but i never took it seriously. I played the good Christian boy in front of others for so long yet i was just a sinner like everyone else. God gave me a wake up call in college. I finally found out what it means to be a Christian. I went through most of my life and i rarely ever read the Bible… amazing how i claimed to follow something i never read… now i try my best not only to read my Bible everyday but to study and understand it.

In high school i was heavy into downloading music. I was poor and i really liked music so free music sounded like a good idea to me. I stole most of the stavesacre albums you release. I’m sorry, truly i really am. I am beginning to understand just how much time and effort goes into writing a record and with the click of the mouse i just steal all that hard work. I am sorry. I am truly repentant. I have learned that repentance is not only feeling sorry for something but turning from it and not doing it anymore. I have ceased downloading music and have actually began a project. I am going to purchase every album i downloaded, it’s my way of making things right, so that will include stavesacres albums, and i’m excited to own them.

If you want to read more, i keep a blog of my search for all the albums i stole here: barnavkristus. wordpress. com

but anyway, all of that was just to say that i am sorry i stole from you, Sam, Dirk, Jeff, Ryan — even Neil and Jeremy…

I love the music you guys write and from now on i will do my best to support you and any other band i like buy legally purchasing the music!

God Bless you Mark!

Jake