Howdy, all! I hope everyone had a great Christmas!

Cold weather brings with it the instinct to slow down. When you want to slow down on a chilly grey day, you might light a fire and jump on the couch with a book. My winter playlist is not that. You may want to refer to my Reading & Writing playlist, which I am continually adding to as we go along – its purpose is your couch.

The Winter list, rather, couldn’t just be a bunch of somber nap scores. It probably has a slower pace overall, but this season still brings me too much other pep to ignore.

Here’s the link to my Winter 2012/2013 playlist on Spotify (for why I use Spotify and instructions on how to follow along with my lists,read this post). This season’s list will also be added to until Spring, but for now, here are some of my faves, both new and not, in no particular order:

Lord Huron – The album Lonesome Dreams quickly sneaked into my favorites of the year. Makes me want to grab my horse and find my girl.

Haley Bonar – She’s been around a while, but I’m just now giving it a full listen. Digging it so far. Kind of reminds me of Neko Case. See what I mean.

Milo Greene – This was actually at the recommendation of Lynnea from the Summer post. I like it more each time. What’s The Matter - the best videos are the weird ones.

Birdy – Not wild about all of this, but there are some covers on the 16 year-old’s self-titled debut worth hearing. Here’s her doing Skinny Love.

Caroline Smith & The Good Night Sleeps – Mostly happy stuff with an unmistakable voice of a person named Caroline Smith. Here’s a cute one about a boy I guess she likes.

Jim James – The frontman of My Morning Jacket is coming out with a solo album soon, which I’m good with. This is his first release from it. There’s really nothing to watch in the video, so feel free to dance.

Also, I put the music from each 2012 season in one compilation playlist called 2012. I didn’t go through and take out any duplicates, so…

One last note: I’ve been enjoying the app, Songza. You likely know of it and use it often, but for those who want to know more, here is a good review of one of the best apps of 2012. My favorite feature: I can set an alarm clock to wake up to music based on my mood. Yep.

Happy listening all. I wish you a spectacular 2013.

Can I get a shout out for Fall? Leaves, smells, football, six dollar lattes… yes, please.

My condolences to our friends in the North, as I know you associate that first cool breeze with several coming months of slush and numb toes. As for the rest of us, namely where I stand here in Central Texas, we know the season has changed when your coffee is warmer than the air. The combination of the two triggers a nostalgic buzz from which my wife and I look at each other and say, “Aw, yee-uh”, and celebrate the absolute best time of the year.

Just as a beverage tastes better or a sweater suddenly makes sense, music fills a room with an entirely new mood in autumn. Open the windows and your mind just got blown (southerners know what I’m saying here). Needless to say, I love this time of year and am thrilled to breathe it in with a bunch of new tunes. Alas, I share them below in the form of a few lists.

Spotify Playlists For You

[Read more...]

Written by contributor Josh Henegar, our resident music guru. He zip-lined last week, btw. Find him on Twitter.

You’re likely in the same boat as most – that which presents few moments to yourself to enjoy a favorite activity. For some, it’s a book on the couch, others television or hot yoga or juggling or something. Perhaps it’s reading a blog like this one. To each their own.

At the top of my list is the perusal of music. Headphones, laptop, coffee, and I’m set. I enjoy the digging and occasional stumbling upon the treasure that is a new artist or song (or new to me), and often an older gem that needed some dusting off. Hours will fly by as I navigate the interwebs, sifting through a lot of junk, reading a lot of reviews, stacking up recommendations, and giving an earnest listen to a stranger’s art. That’s what I do for fun.

[Read more...]