NewYearsDayProject | a song a day blog

  This year, The Juliana Theory released an EP presumably the first half of an album that will probably come out next year. The EP was released in May, which is a long time to wait for its second half; however, it seems that Brett Dettar and crew never rush the band's music. Long-term  fans of The Juliana Theory have suggested that the band's post-2005 Deadbeat Sweet-heartbeat  music doesn't fit with the band's direction, and while many fans like Still the Same Kids, Pt. 1 , they suggest that The Juliana Theory isn't still the same band. But that argument could be made for any band that stuck together consistently, updating their sound into the '20s music landscape. SHIT, I GET NOSTALGIC. I've heard that the Germans consider nostalgia as a kind of illness. If that's the case, the film, television, music, and fashion industries are sick. The pandemic reunited lots of bands to play reunion shows. Extra time at home had us revisiting the music of our past...

  Today, I listened to Good Christian Fun 's latest episode, a Second Service repost because the Kevin and Caroline were probably enjoying the holidays too much to record a new episode. In the episode, the hosts and their guests picked their favorite Christmas songs like a sports draft. One of the songs Kevin chose " River " by Joni Mitchell , a pick that was mocked by the others. However, since I heard the words, "It's comin' on Christmas," I haven't been able to get the song out of my head. I WISH I HAD A RIVER I COULD SKATE AWAY ON. Joni Mitchell is one of the great singer-songwriters of the '70s. "River" comes from her Blue album. Most of her catalog was pulled from Spotify, along with fellow Canadian Neil Young, in response to Seth Rogan's Covid misinformation. "River" is a Christmas moment on an album of many moods. It may be awkward to include a future Christmas standard on a general album--think of the future ev...

  It's not too late to listen to Christmas music, especially as I wrote the other day that my Christmas feels unfinished. American light rock radio stations start playing Christmas music before Halloween, so by December 26, we're ready to stuff the tree back into the closet. Of course those same light rock stations keep playing Christmas music until early January. Liturgically, we're still in the Christmas season. You should be receiving five golden rings on from your true love today.  HAPPINESS AND CHEER. I certainly won't be blogging much more about Christmas music, even though my family has delayed Christmas for my homecoming a month after the holiday. However, I thought that an inclusion of Rosie Thomas 's " Christmastime Is Here " is a worthy entry to my playlist. Like many households, Vince Guaraldi Trio 's A Charlie Brown Christmas was one of our holiday standards when I was growing up. It is the only Christmas album my dad likes, and " C...

  Coming to the end of the year, it's time to remember some of the musical highlights of 2022. I listened to a lot of music this year and maybe more new music than last year. But there certainly were albums that slipped under the radar. I had every intention of digging into  The Weeknd 's  Dawn FM   , but somehow I was never in that dark of a mood to resonate with the characteristics of that record. Today, I'm going to reveal my controversial list. Enjoy! #10 . The Loneliest Time  by Carly Rae Jepsen . The latest from the " Call Me Maybe " singer is a record that isn't immediately catchy and could easily fall between the cracks of all the big releases of this year. The diverse singles showed different camera angles of a maturing pop singer who has solidified her status in music nerd-dom and gay music listeners alike. And with her first explicit labeled song, Jepsen is distancing herself from former tween-friendly aesthetic. I'm sure next year I'll be d...

Beginning with a youthful momentum, transitioning from the piano-based pop-punk band Something Corporate to the alternative sounds of Jack's Mannequin , Andrew McMahon had a very busy 2005. Jack's Mannequin released their debut record Everything in Transit in August and the band was set to debut strong. Several of the songs from the album were featured in the WB hit show One Tree Hill , ensuring a built in fanbase.  IT'S GOOD TO BE ALIVE. But Andrew McMahon started feeling extremely tired at the time of launching Jack's Mannequin, more so than he had been as a touring musician with his previous ban. And it turned out that his  wan complexion wasn't from exhaustion. McMahon was forced to cancel Jack Mannequin's fall tour dates following their August release of Everything in Transit because McMahon had been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. But thanks to the singer's sister Kate, Andrew was able to receive stem cell treatment and was cured of his...

  Fiction  Family  was a side project found by  Christian Rock band Switchfoot 's Jon Foreman and bluegrass band Nickel Creek 's Sean Watkins . Eventual Switchfoot, Tyson Motensbocker producer Tyler Chester and Aaron Redfield also joined the group.  The band produced several folk rock recordings and a free Holiday EP on NoiseTrade (now Paste ).  The album is not available on streaming sites, so besides my YouTube playlist , I will include "California Christmas" from Switchfoot's latest release this is our Christmas album.  But I will include "I Don't Need No Santa Claus" because I think it nails the meaning of Christmas that I've been appreciating this holiday season. I DON'T NEED NO CHRISTMAS SONGS.  Christmas this year feels unfinished. There are some years that I'm in a holiday spirit from September to February. Other years I'm just glad that Christmas ended. But this year I feel as if Christmas didn't actually happen. Fo...

  It's important during the creative process to get feedback and look at your work from every possible angle.  Jim Adkins  reportedly hates his band name,  Jimmy Eat World , especially because of the band's acronym, J-E- you get the point. Today's song was released in 1950 and was inspired by the sound of the Salvation Army Santa Clauses ringing their  tinkling  bells. But when songwriter  Ray Evans  brought his work home, his wife said, "Are you out of your mind? Do you know what the word  tinkle  is?" And just like that, the song changed to " Silver Bells " and it wasn't the first Christmas song about pee. We'd have to wait for that, apparently. Google if you dare. CITY SIDEWALKS, BUSY SIDEWALKS. First recorded by William Frawley and popularized in the film  The Lemon Drop Kid  sung by Bob Hope and Marylin Maxwell , "Silver Bells," like most Christmas standards has so many recordings, it's hard to choose a favorite. The so...

  "I~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I. Don't want a lot for Christmas." *struggles to change the radio dial amid gridlocked holiday traffic* "There's just one thing I need" *hurry up with my damn latte! I think I'm going to die. Why the hell is Starbucks playing Christmas music in mid-October?* "I don't care about the presents" *internal Elaine monologue 'I think I'm going to die in this department store. Ma'am, why must you spray the perfume so close to my face. I can't breathe! What if the earth begins to shake and we're stuck in here forever underneath mannequins and holiday shoppers and that damn  Mariah Carey   song stuck on repeat?'* "Underneath the Christmas tree" "No" *raising a strict finger to students who should be studying in the back* "Not before Thanksgiving." "I just want you for my own/ More than you could ever know." Every year, Christmas music gets earlier and earlier. ...

  " My Favorite Things " inadvertently became a holiday classic when Julie Andrews sang the Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II song in a holiday special four years before the theatrical release of The Sound of Music . The song has been covered for various holiday albums from Tony Bennett to Kelly Clarkson . Radio DJ Bob Rivers   adapted the song in the style of  AC/DC  for the holiday parody " Jingle Hells Bells " and Family Force 5 included "My Favorite Things" on their Christmas Pageant record. Of course, there was the interpolation for Ariana Grande 's hit " 7 Rings ," for which the singer had to pay Rodgers and Hammerstein 80% of the song's royalties.  THEN I DON'T FEEL SO BAD.    "My Favorite Things" is a song designed to lift listeners out of the dullness of a daily existence and transform their banal or difficult days into something extraordinary. Perhaps it's that mood that Ariana Grande was trying to ...

  This year, Mariah Carey lost the right to trademark the name "The Queen of Christmas." Singer-Songwriter Elizabeth Chan filed an opposition when Carey applied for the trademark.  Chan writes Christmas songs year-round and thought that Carey's claiming of the title was unfair to give to one person. David Letterman declared Darlene Love "The Queen of Christmas" a year before Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was released.  YET IN THY DARK STREETS SHINETH. Then there's Amy Grant . The Contemporary Christian-pop crossover singer has recorded five Christmas records beginning with 1983's A Christmas Record and followed by 1992's Home for Christmas ,  which popularized the David Foster and Linda Thompson-Jenner holiday single "Grown-Up Christmas List." Grant's musical career started with the release of her debut record in 1977 when she was still a teenager. In the early '80s she mostly sang praise music and hymn...

  It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas today. The first snow of the season fell in the city where I live, though it fell the first weekend of the month when I was up in Seoul. Starting at 7 a.m. and continuing until about 11, thick flakes descended covering the ground, making the morning commute a little more perilous than the usual idiots, though my carpool driver is skilled in New England winter driving. School started a little late with some traffic preventing the buses from being on time, and when they got in, the students played in the snow, coming late to class--good for them! THEY KNOW THAT SANTA'S ON HIS WAY. I talked to my parents this morning when I couldn't sleep. It was hot in my place, and I went to bed early for two nights before that, so my body felt caught up on sleep. Nothing urgent at home, just mom wanting to make plans for when I go next month near the end of the month. I got to see the Christmas tree, and my mom dressed up in a Santa hat and some...