east sunlight

8 Apr

The head versus the heart.

Today’s Emo: Blood / The Middle East

‘and she’ll wake up in a cold sweat on the floor / next to a family portrait drawn when you were four’

Holy shit this is emo. In fact, if you listen to the words in Blood, it is arguably the most emo song I have yet to post. It is also one of the most beautiful, tracing the sad lineage of a sibling to a father to a grandfather, who has waited to die ever since his wife died because… ‘it was the only woman you ever loved / that got burnt by the sun too often when she was young / and the cancer spread and it ran into her body and her blood.’

Australian The Middle East creates such bone chilling songs with such a sweet sound, and this makes them all the more haunting. A song that lingers. #emo

Today’s Untz: Sunlight / Bag Raiders

‘don’t you know that / when I see your face / it’s like sunlight dripping’

OK OK a little light hearted untz to shake off that darkness and step into the sunlight of the weekend. Disco rhythms, smile inducing lyrics, and a laissez faire feel, the song is dripping with summer. Keeping up with today’s Aussie theme, this dance duo from Down Under played what I heard was an all out epic show at Rickhaw Stop a Thursday back (think clothes ripped off and beer showers in a good way). I am kicking myself for not catching them at my one of my favorite venues, but I know my workday on Friday appreciated my discretion. Next time. #untz

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swift first aid

6 Apr

Finishing up training for the Santa Cruz half marathon this coming Sunday. Regardless of what happens, a big thank you to the harem of gentlemen who have helped me train – James, Ted, Travis and Dana, as well as Florence + The Machine’s Dog Days and Born to Run‘s Caballo Blanco for inspiration.

Now it’s time to put together the perfect soundtrack. During my first half last November I made a terrible rookie mistake. At mile 10, when I was gearing up to put on some epic Tiesto for the final 3.1 I popped my nano into the top of my sports bra to secure my ponytail. Suddenly things fell quiet. My boobs broke my ipod… my decrepit player from college was no match to water resist the dew.  Thus the last three miles were ran in silent frustration, and while they were actually the fastest in all my training, they were oh so lonely.

This time I have a new nano that clips onto the side of my shorts, I know that peanut butter and banana on toast is good, coffee is bad, and preventative Advil is a must. And I have decided to take all the Untzes posted in the past few months as company. #bringit

Today’s Emo: White Blank Page (Mumford and Sons cover) / Taylor Swift

‘you desired my attention / but denied my affections / my affections’

We all have our guilty pleasures, and one of mine happens to be a squinty eyed twenty one year old country crooner who won me over in a particularly vulnerable point in my life with her first single, Tim McGraw (Oregon country roots can’t be broken). While I found her recent album release to be a disappointment with an angry rant of a song against John Mayer and another whiny yawn inducing lament about her break up with Taylor Lautner some December (a month that Team Jacob fans will celebrate forever) I am back on Team Swift with this heartfelt cover of Mumford and Sons’ classic White Blank Page.

The emotion is real, a female take on the vocals is sweet, and I will let the fact that she accidentally has a bit of a fake English accent in parts slide because I accidentally have a bit of a fake English accent after listening to too much Mumford. A chilling, beautiful song in its own right, it is refreshing to see Taylor make it her own and emote some of her boy angst in a way that I can still adore. #emo

Today’s Untz: Move for First Aid / Deadmau5 vs. Michael Woods (Kasade Remix)

‘waited all week just to get out’

I know I have posted a lot of Deadmau5 and Kaskade lately but I can’t help myself… I had some ideas for today’s untz, but when my friend Jenn sent this track out on an email thread, I dropped everything. Kaskade fold’s Michael Woods’ First Aid into Move for Me, turning the dreamy trance anthem into something a little more urgent and truly movement inducing.

I have seen Kaskade live a couple times now, and interestingly enough beyond having dashing good looks and mad talent, a young Kaskade practiced his mixing skills in the dorms of BYU. As in Brigham Young. A man who can get any party started was ironically raised as a Mormon and spent two years on a mission in Japan before bringing the untz world to its knees. I am glad that instead of creating a family of ten he is creating spectacular mixes like this to help me through my work week, and am open for consideration to be one of his future wives.  #untz

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easy zelda

4 Apr

Amazing weekend.

Today’s Emo: Easy to Love / the Jezebels

‘well I was the one to show you the sky / but you brought it down, down to my thighs / sadly believed every word I didn’t mean / about loving darkness’

I found this song via fortuitous accident while searching for Friday’s emo song of the same name. This Easy to Love is subtle but strong – arching vocals, sharp keys, and rolling harmonies. The Jezabels are a quartet that met at the University of Sydney, and I am totally sinking into the group’s delightful, mellow indie pop vibe. What a happy stumble. #emo

Today’s Untz: The Legend of Zelda Original Mix / Zedd

Zelda and dancing don’t usually go hand in hand, and that is why I can’t help myself in sharing this remix, an epically silly and fun and surprisingly good take on the old Nintendo classic. Not a lot of information about German dj Zedd out there – he only has two MySpace friends and one of them is Tom. However, Zedd knows his Zelda, and this remix of the A Link to the Past theme makes me want to send for my old SNES gathering dust at home in Oregon so I can run around Hyrule and sling some arrows, set some bombs, and own Ganon.

Nintendo nostalgia at its finest and the power of untz at its funnest comes with perfect timing – I know I am going to need a little play to make it through this Monday. Since I have my N64 in SF perhaps I can get an Epona ride in when I get home.  #untz

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falling in love is easy

1 Apr

I wrote a while back about the weight of the gift of music. Today it is the weight of the gift of an impromptu invitation to a show.  Instead of catching up on Glee on the couch on Tuesday, I found myself engulfed by friends, hipsters, twelve year olds with Sharpie X’s on the backs of their hands (all age show), and some serious bass at the Bottom of the Hill. Amazing live music and Sierra Nevada was consumed, and the aches of the work week melted away.

Today’s Emo: Easy to Love / Ivan & Alyosha


‘the sky turns black  / we know it will from time to time / and we’ve been through that / and we came out on top because / you’re really easy to love’

I stumbled across this song on Hypem a while back and then totally forgot about it until my friend Morganne shot out an email seeing who wanted to join her in catching an old friend of hers perform who plays drums for Ivan & Aloysha. She thought no one would be interested, and instead instantly got a replies from a really fun crew.

There is no one in the band named Ivan or Aloysha (which I thought sounded kind of Hawaiian?) but rather the name stems from lead characters in in Brothers Karamazov. I never got around to taking Russian Lit so I have little insight into why, but from what I have gathered the two have some serious talks on faith and god, and things get pretty emo.

I&A played some seriously fun upbeat stuff, but I am drawn back to what I was originally was drawn to on Hypem – the simplicity of Easy to Love.  A soft but steady beat, gentle guitar and warm vocals, it’s the kind of song you picture your secretly talented friends pulling together around a campfire with whatever instruments they happen to have on hand. Perfect music for nestling into before bed.  #emo

Today’s Untz: Falling in Love with Brazil (Kaskade mashup) / Haley vs. Deadmau5

‘it’s not like it’s a photograph / something to frame then hang it up on the wall’

Excuse me for trancing my face off and for my inability to miss any obvious opportunity to inject a song title into a post, but it’s hard not to fall in love with this song. All my favorite players in the untz  world combine their musical prowess to make sweet sweet music, this is a chill untz favorite of last year. While Haley has a beautiful voice, it is the first few minutes of the remix that have won me over… the subtle magic Kaskade weaves into Deadmau5′ already outstanding Brazil.

This feels like the perfect track for easing into summer and all of this sun, although the beats fall in trickles like rain. Suppose it works for San Francisco summer. #untz

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trembling justice

30 Mar

One of my favorite bands of all time, Death Cab, came out with a new single this week. Hooray… except I am not sharing it because I don’t really like it. It is an OK song, and I am excited for new material from them, but for my favorite artists of the past I have come to expect epic greatness or the music falls flat. I can’t help it. The trajectory of a band can vary so much, and my own tastes can shift so easily.  I have found that the idols I hold the dearest tend to fall the hardest (dare I say from Such Great Heights) in my eyes because I have set such high expectations. Foo Fighter’s Everlong is one of my favorite songs ever, but I am barely buzzed about their upcoming album due to lackluster recent releases. The newest Counting Crows album was purchased, listened to three times, and gathers dust, while August and Everything After remains on rotation forever after.

What do you do when your relationship with an artist has potentially reached its peak… do you linger around hoping they can somehow make things like they used to be, reignite that fire? Or do you remember the good times, smile because it happened, and move on? Today I choose the latter… but don’t worry DC I haven’t given up on you yet. May 31st.

Update: this BBC bit sums things up nicely.

Today’s Emo: Trembling Hands / Explosions in the Sky

This song lives up to its name… symphonies echoing upon symphonies, sound trembling on sound. The track is off Explosions in the Sky’s upcoming album, Take Care, Take Care, Take Care, and while that is a lot of taking and caring I can’t wait to have a new perfect soundtrack for both work and play. Like many, I first came across Explosions in the Sky via the television show Friday Night Lights. I have only caught a couple episodes, but the soundtrack stuck, especially after the group started following me around on Pandora like a lost puppy.

Friday Night Lights and EITS have Texas in common – although this sound sounds so far away from Texas. Explosions in the Sky could mean something terrible and destructive (bombs) or dazzling and full of light (fireworks). It wasn’t until writing this post and thinking about the group name that I realized I never thought anything but fireworks, which I’m sure is how they want it. Captivating, cinematic, electric. #emo

Today’s Untz: Civilization / Justice

‘the beating of a million drums’

Getting on the internet bandwagon that is going nuts over this track, because as with many bandwagons there is a reason so many have hopped on board for the ride. Justice emerges from a serious hiatus to drop a track in an Addidas commercial of all places, that happens to feature everyone and their mom, from Katy Perry to the Chicago Bulls to B.o.B. and some skater bros.

The song is so good I couldn’t care less, and it  instantly makes me forgive the French duo for the four year production break and less than organic reappearance onto the scene. There is something about the chorus that is so simple but still so captivating – untz at its finest. March to the D.R.U.M.S. Do the dance. #untz

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black ce soir

28 Mar

Epic adventures with old friends all weekend. No time to write.

Today’s Emo: Ce Soir / Monogrenade

With the exception of Sigur Ros’ Icelandic gibberish, and Shakira being way better of a singer and songwriter when she sticks to her native tongue, I like my music in English. Perhaps its because I am so lyrically conscious. I don’t speak a lick of French, but one listen of Ce Soir had me hitting repeat and going to freetranslation.com to try and figure out what this beautiful song was about. Something sad.

I thought it quite romantic to fall in love with a French song, but turns out Monogrenade is from Montreal. I guess French Canadians can be sexy too. Gentle guitar, silky vocals, and a steady beat, with a bit of a James Bond crescendo in the middle. Beautiful. Merci beaucoup. #emo

Today’s Untz: Black and Blue (Netsky remix) / Miike Snow

‘the dog is always barking at the mailman’

Miike Snow’s Burial came on at dinner the other night, and drove me to revisit the whole album, which I hadn’t done in months due to my over listening to things I love addiction. What a great revisit it was, track to track. Then I came on this sped up version of one of my favorites on Hypem and it felt like a sign for sharing. Hopefully the Swedes come out with some new material of their own soon so I can get sick of it. #untz

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girl eyes

25 Mar

Lilith Fair watch out, cause today’s post has a lot of lady in it. Perfect timing for two of my best girlfriends from college arriving into San Fran tonight. Shout out to Ms. Diaz down in Peru, you will be with us in spirit, and we will send you some love. Napa here we come, rain and all.

Today’s Emo:  Eyes / Still Corners (Rouge Wave cover)

‘I can handle a lot / but one thing I’m missing / is in your eyes / in your eyes‘

Chirping crickets, willowy vocals, this song makes me want to sleep under the stars somewhere warm and far away. I first heard Eyes in a LG cellphone commercial about a neighborhood coming together to fix an antique carousel (random, but kind of fitting). While Rouge Wave’s original version is sigh inducing in its own right, London Based Still Corners adds something soft and shimmery here that I want to curl up in. Beyond #emo

Today’s Untz: Stop Hey (Rusko remix) / The Sunday Girl

‘I’m afraid of tomorrow / when I wake up you’ll be gone’

This intro is so untzy and hard to understand that I thought I had stumbled onto something in Russian. Not so much.

I get jealous when people born in the same year as me are wicked talented at creating music, and Rusko is an amazing dj from Leeds who just turned 26. He injects serious beats into Sunday Girl’s pretty but kind of weepy sounding Stop Hey and turns it into a remix that makes me want to dance my way through the end of this rainy week La Roux and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs style. Happiest of Fridays, per usual. #untz

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friendly monsters

23 Mar

Big changes at work mean little time to find new tunes during the week anymore… with great power comes great responsibility. Luckily I had time to catch up on a lot of tracks while cleaning the crap out of my apartment last weekend. Dance music + swifter  made me feel like Pippi Longstocking when she taped scrubbers onto her feet and poured bubbles on the floor. I will always find the time.

Today’s Emo: Little Talks / Of Monsters and Men

‘we used to play when we were young and full of life and full of love’

Who needs mice when you can have monsters? I almost skipped over this track upon first listen because the intro sounds like a bad Mighty Mighty Bosstones song. Then the vocals chimed in and I thought I had fallen into a miscategorized  Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros track.  Upon further listening and a bit of digging through the interwebs I discovered Of Monsters and Men: an Icelandic pop group with clever male/female banter and a jamboree vibe. This is a great indie folk jam and the Oregonian in me can’t help but tap my foot along to the tambourine.

Thanks Iceland, I was losing faith in your musical exports after too many funny SNL clips of Bjork. #emo

Today’s Untz: Live Those Days Tonight / Friendly Fires

‘you claim  your history / is beyond a man like me / but I’ll live I’ll live I’ll live / I’ll live these days tonight’

Bad Enrique Iglesias song, or new indie dance band release? The latter, but sometimes it’s shocking how fine of a line it can be. I like dancing to bad Enrique anyway, especially with tracks like Tonight I’m Fucking You (so dirty you have to watch it on a Russian YouTube knockoff).

This Friendly Fires track may be a bit more subtle in its message, but it still stirs me up. I saw the group and fellow britts The xx play a show at the Independent a couple falls back and was impressed with the likes of Strobe and Skeleton Boy, so I am looking forward to May 16th’s release of their new album, Pala. If it has more tracks like this, I am sure to be catching them again and dmfo. #untz

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the sun, the ego

21 Mar

Music makes everything better. Good becomes great. Happy becomes happiness.

Today’s Emo: Anna Sun / Walk the Moon

‘your hands on my cheeks / your shoulder in my mouth’

Catchy. Guilty pleasure Monday. This takes me back to my Something Corporate/Taking Back Sunday days of musical naivety, and I love that I can still love songs like this.  These Ohioans are still playing the likes of venues like Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack, but have some serious heart and are sure to have 14 year olds weak in the knees in no time. Watch their music video and try not to smile, because clearly the lead singer can do nothing but. “Anna sun” in song sounds kinda like “innocent” and  I get it. Young fun free.

Live my life without coming up for air. #emo

Today’s Untz: Ego / Burial, Four Tet & Thom Yorke

‘I bet you hear this all the time’

A beautiful, chill collaboration. Four Tet and Radiohead make perfect sense. Settle into this song and feel the struggs of Monday wash away… earthy warm beats, it is the kind of song that can drift me into sleep with the volume down, or drive me to move with the speakers up. #untz

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dancing with the mau5

18 Mar

I am crankily finishing off a 3 day juice cleanse. Last weekend I decided I go out too often and eat too much crap and that I needed some focus in my life. After 72 hours of just veggie and fruit juice, eggplant broth, detox tea, coconut water, and the energy level of 90 year old, instead of feeling pure and inspired to live life green, I feel like I miss hamburgers, happy hour, and my friends.

My quest for perspective has had the opposite effect than I planned: fuck pro-biotics and aloe shots. I love my messy life, and I cannot think of a better way to break the fast than dancing my face off at Boys Noize tonight at the Mezz.

Today’s Emo: Dancing with the DJ (Campfire Acoustic Version) / The Knocks


‘I know good love is hard to find / when you’re dancing with the dj, dancing with the dj’

While The Knocks original version of this song makes me want to skate in a disco-themed roller rink, this striped down version makes me want to… strip. Listen to this slow jam and just try not to take your clothes off, maybe around a campfire. The producers-turning-artists Ben “B-Roc” Ruttner and James “JPatt” Patterson have remixed the likes of Big Boi, R2d2 and Calvin Harris, but have recently started releasing attention grabbing tracks of their own. Funny that I discovered them via something so chill. Pass the marshmellows.

Today’s Untz: HR 8938 Cephei / Deadmau5


Oh hai Deadmau5, thanks for randomly debuting an epic 10 minute opus of untz in the middle of the week with another nonsensical song name. When I wiki’ed ‘cephei’ I got a lot of scientific business up over my head, but gather it has something to do with eclipsing stars. The HR and random (?) four digits make the song name feel like some top secret government project in space. Fits the sound. All the elements of signature Mau5 that somehow never get old, I could have this on loop for hours. #untz

** Update from Nicole **

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