Year in Music 2008 - My Tops

Favorite Albums

1. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend - Sweet pure musical fun. Vampire Weekend are an Indie Pop band from New York. They describe their music as "Upper West Side Soweto", and that certainly makes sense.

2. Amanda Palmer - Who Killed Amanda Palmer - Dresden Dolls singer-song-writer creates a phenomenal solo record with a little help from Ben Folds.

3. Miniature Tigers - Tell it To The Volcano - Phoenix/LA indie rock band create the most heart felt and vulnerable record since Weezer's Pinkerton, but while Pinkerton is painful in it's epic tragedy Tell it To The Volcano is fun retro camp.

4. Kings of Leon - Only By The Night - Nashville rockers create their best album yet. Only By The Night is a beautiful delicate album which still "rocks". The best atmospheric album since U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind.

5. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago - Bon Iver (pronounced "bohn eevair") is an indie-folk singer-songwriter named Justin Vernon. On For Emma, Forever Ago Vernon chanels difficult personal situations to craft a haunting beautiful work of art all self-recorded and performed while secluded in a small cabin in northwestern Wisconsin.

6. Beck - Modern Guilt - Beck's best album since 2005's Guerro. Produced by Beck and mastermind producer Danger Mouse.

7. Nine Inch Nails - The Slip - Trent Reznor continues his internally sour powered misery machine with another catchy enjoyable album.

8. Lykke Li - Youth Novels - Swedish indie singer crafts a beautiful gem alluding to and moving within the Bildungsroman(coming of age) literary format. Produced by Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John

9. Black Mountain - In the Future - Canadian psychedelic rock-band channels all that is weird about Vancouver and all that is weird about psychedelic rock for a strange but thoroughly enjoyable album. That alone is cool, but by day, three members of the band work for an organization (Insite) that meets the basic living requirements of the chronically poor, drug addicted and mentally ill near Vancouver's infamous Main & Hastings intersection.

10. Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles - Toronto based group create one of the most interesting if not best electronic record this year. Full of visceral meticulously composed dirty electro dance.

11. Portishead - Third - Portishead reunites and continues their streak of creating wonderful trip-hop, a genre name which should just be renamed Portished.

12. The Bug - London Zoo - Enlgish recording artist Kevin Martin's third album under his alias of The Bug. Kevin Martin with Alec Empire also put together some of my favorite digital hardcore under the alias of Curse of the Golden Vampire. London Zoo mixes various popular British electronic genres (dancehall, garage, hip hop, dubstep, and techno) with wonderful intelligent results.

13. The Raconteurs - Consolers Of The Lonely - Jack White backs off a bit to allow Brendan Benson more room to shine, even though the two frontmen's similar voices often blur into one another. It's full of hooks and guitar, and lots of instrumental power, and some of the most notable musicians in American music today.

14. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes - Genteal orchestral baroque folk pop music. Full of sweet hushed songs recorded with a roomy delicate charm and feeling.

15. British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music? - Brighton England 4 piece Indie Rock band create their best album yet. Do You Like Rock Music is full of beautiful modern post-punk anthems.

16. Clinic - Do It! - This Liverpool band has a sound which initially may sound a bit like a throw back, but with it's unique thoughtful chord progressions and original use of often vintage gear, they create a sound which grows on the listener.

17. Sigur Rós - Með Suð Í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust - Icelandic post-rock band trade-in epic minimalist soundscapes for a folk influenced sound of a fun summer day.

18. Cold Play - Viva La Vida or Death and All his Friends - Coldplay, the band I'd most like to go grab a pint with, have always, to me, been the band for other people. But on Viva, Brian Eno pushes Coldplay to create a less cliched sound for the most enjoyable Coldplay release since Parachutes.

19. TV on the Radio - Dear Science - TV on the Radio are a difficult band to listen to. Their relentless experimentation often hands you a lump of coal when you ask for gold, but this album is surprisingly accessible, and enjoyable to listen to.

20. Metallica - Death Magnetic - The Kings of metal return with their best album in 20 years. This album restores a bit of shine to their crown. The boring 4 on the floor arena crushers, are replaced with a return to their signature fast paced enigmatic complexity. Sure, this isn't as good as Ride the Lightning or Master of Puppets, but most things aren't.


Honerable Mentions:

The Via Maris - The Bicentennial - I'm not sure what it was about this disc, but it never quite caught on with me like their previous album. There are a lot of cool moments. Chad Sundin leads his recording project turned band now back to recording project to exciting higher energy moments, and beautiful reflective quiet parts. It's only flaw is how thorghly it regects modern music. It's actually exciting when it teases with moments of 70's folk rock. The anti-new treatment of this music actually makes it feel old. It's not that fun youthfull 60's retro old, but that stodgy grandpa's attic old. Sure there are lots of cool peices and well crafted, but it's obscured by the dust of time. I feel that bringing in a quirky hip modern approach to Chad's gorgeous songs could be quite amazing. I wouldn't be surprised if his next album did just that, as he's been working with uber tallented and fun producer Back Ted-N-Ted.
Counting Crows - Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings - A dazzlingly confusing record broken up into the sound of two different days. The album requires lots of patience, but pay offs in the end. This one is certainly only for fans.
Weezer - Weezer (RED) - I was hesitant to put this album on this list at all because it is not my favorite album. I can't put my finger on it, but I think it's something along the lines of the fact that this album is almost the anti-Pinkerton. Everytime their about to be vulnerable or geniune they throw up a weird snarky pose. It's like the geeky kid in class came to school one day in a suit straight out of a James Bond movie. However, Weezer is one of those bands which can pretty much get away with murder. Their singles are good, and their weak moments aren't that bad.
Smashing Pumpkins - American Gothic - EP/ G.L.O.W. - Single - Smashing Pumpkins ditch the album format to varying results. American Gothic is a nimble well crafted collection of acoustic songs, and the G.L.O.W. single shows them rocking with less words than ever before. However, none of these quite find the magic which propelled the Pumpkins through the 90's or even the song writing sweetness of Zeitgeist.

Albums I Wanted To, But Haven't listened to yet:
Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
The Hush Sound - Goodbye Blues
The Presidents of The United States of America - These Are the Good Times People
MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul

Favorite Artists (according to Last.FM)
1 Radiohead
2 Elliott Smith
3 The Smashing Pumpkins
4 Echo & the Bunnymen
5 Counting Crows
6 Weezer
7 Red Hot Chili Peppers
8 Nine Inch Nails
9 U2
10 The Via Maris

The Death of the Album

I think, the idea of a collection of songs as expansive as an album is quickly becoming an archaic idea. And why not! It's time to take music back to the Single/E.P.? I know I've talked about this before, but I think since I last spoke on this the topic has advanced so quickly that I'd like to explore it again.

I feel that it is time that musicians started creating one song at a time or at the most a very small collection of songs at a time. This will provides the artist more flexibility to record in various manners with a natural progression of sound. Most people don't listen to albums anymore; they fill their iPod with a lots of songs from different artists. Since each piece is more than likely listened to separately it is better to treat each song as a separate thought. If a song has to be with another song you can merge the two together, and not separate them into separate tracks. At the end of the year bands and solo artists could reward fans with a boutique physical releases, and the lurkers/outsiders can simply enjoy the pieces they've already purchased or buy more.

For those who want/need the strong visuals that coincide with an album release there could still be visual tie ins to the recorded product. There could be micro-sites/blogs for each song. Since the focus is on the one song, more attention would be paid to creating the best works possible in the smallest amount of time. Since people's attention spans are shorter now artists can work at utilize every second possible. Artists could still create epic expansive albums if they want, but they would be more akin to a box sets. The album would be a collection of singles digital and/or 45's (two songs) and/or other interesting variants (3 or more songs).

I think this has a strong possibility of working well. By musicians accommodating the consumer I think they're will be some interesting harmonious effects. As the switch to the album format in the 70's created some beautiful and in the same way some less exciting music, this will without doubt create similar results.

Because I'm Just Trying To Be Free

In my head I fear that everybody who "loves" me, has "plans" for me in their head.

They want me to do or be something. Nobody is just content with what I am or what I provide. They either want more or less or something different...

All I really want is somebody who will love me with an unconditional love and acceptance.

But I try... I try to be good enough, but despite that effort I never actually meet anybody's standards. I'm still... just me

Everybody cares, everybody understands
Yes everybody cares about you
Yeah and whether or not you want them to
It's a chemical embrace that kicks you in the head
To a pure synthetic sympathy that infuriates you totally
And a quiet lie that makes you wanna scream and shout
...

- Elliott Smith from Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands

This isn't to say I don't want to make all those people happy. I really do. I want to give them all what they want, but sometimes I can't. That's why it tears me up so much. In fact, these days I'm continually baffled by people's kindness because I don't believe I deserve it. I question everything positive, but accept everything negative.

I delete the positive reviews in my head. I erase loyalty and magnify the critics...

I'm so worried about being naive that I've become even worse, I've become jaded.

How Do You Afford Your Rock & Roll Lifestyle

"Nothing pleases me more than to go into a room and come out with a piece of music."
Paul McCartney

Hello my name is Mark Mason and I play music. I'm not a fatalist. By the same respect, in truth, I don't believe in myself. I believe in you. I believe in the audience's power to support and grow artists. You have the power, and even though people may try to tell you how to use that power ultimately it is your power. You can make simple choices based on T.V. reality shows or radio programming, or you can scour the internet looking for obscure indie gems; however, it is your choice none the less. I believe that we as artists need to respect that choice. If we want to be recognized we need to earn that recognition.

I don't believe that immediate success is real success. I don't believe that monetary success should be the true barometer for musical excellence. I don't think that the number of units you ship dictates quality. I believe that music belongs to the people, and the best thing which my fellow musical composers and I can do is enrich and enliven your lives. In fact, the artists who refuse to evolve with the people are the first ones to be left behind. The Beatles' evolution wasn't special because it was theirs, or because it was the first time an artist evolved. The Beatles' evolution was special because the people allowed it to happen.

"Music is everybody's possession. It's only publishers who think that people own it."
John Lennon

I don't believe we're demigods, or the supreme beings of creative thought. I've watched my musical heroes kill themselves trying desperate to be something they were never meant to be. Icons. Kurt Cobain, Billy Corgan, Brad Nowell, Elliott Smith, Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon, they were (and are) just sad smart men who felt compelled to create heart-achingly beautiful music. And I'm sure you have your favorite musical icons as well. Often times the music is very easy to relate too. Just enough ambiguity and just enough precisely exacting lyricism allows us to bond with each others for at least a few minutes. It allows us to not be alone in misery or be boosted by the joy of a common love. A collective scream. A universal joy. Men who created something beautiful, but who were expected to represent that beautiful thing 24/7. It must be exciting at first, but then suffocating. For some it appears to be toxic. The art is good, but I think the personality part... I think that's the dangerous piece. The culture of self is damaging. The culture of self is dangerous. The culture of self deludes you into thinking that you're not in charge of the music. That you're not a part of the collective direction of it.

Arise sleeping giants, you're better than the computer generated recordings. You're better than celebutantes dancing in pretty clothes. You're smarter than you think you are.

This is yours. What do you want to hear today?

I Love You,
Mark

Musican Vents

How the heck am I supposed to continue this if people steal my music?

This is a serious question. I play mid line gear, and I play for a mid-sized audience.
I recorded in a mid-line studio, and published my album in mid-line formats at a mid-line price.
Yet, I've heard through the grape line of several fans bootlegging my music to their friends. I'm not in Metallica. I can't make money from tours based upon music created in an era sustained by album sales.

Everything cost money.

To play a show the venue has to make enough money from tickets to pay the staff, and mortgage first. Sometimes we make just enough money for there to be money paid to the bands. However, everything my band makes goes into a fund we use to create more products. This model works very well enough for an up and coming band. We have figured out how to make just enough money to grow the band. We are moving in the right direction. However, it all falls apart when people start pirating our music.

The recording process is costly. Proper recording requires proper acoustics and proper gear to capture the sounds. The sound which people have grown accustomed to hear from their CDs requires large amounts of time and monetary investment to create. It requires a studio. We built our own for our album, so it was much cheaper than most pay it cost us $3k+ worth of gear and the monthly rent for our house. It requires a mastering engineer. We got a screaming deal on ours; we only paid $1000 for it. CDs require duplication. That cost money too; the bare basic duplication is usually around $1000 for 1000 CDs. Needless to say it's a rather large investment.
We create the CD so that the band will eventually be able to make enough money to be more than an expensive hobby. Maybe we’ll have enough money to play nicer guitars. Not 1960’s Gretsch White Falcons, but maybe a Gibson Les Paul and acoustic. Maybe we could buy nicer amps or more effective effect set-up so it sounds more like what the CD sounds like. Maybe we could make enough money so that we can tour, or enough so that we’re able to put out another CD. Or maybe, just maybe we’re able to hire a producer to help us make that magnum opus we feel we can make.

When people decide to copy and distribute the music on the CD for free it becomes harder to sell our music. We loose any financial leverage that we'd need to improve the art we're creating. Now that people have our studio music for free on their computer some of them even feel there is less reason to go hear the music live, because they can just listen to the recordings. Money from the fund invested results in a zero return. Maybe they’ll buy a t-shirt because they think that is a way to support us, but the hilarious joke is that because we’re not a touring band we can’t sell them for a price that will actually make us any money.

So do us a big favor and don’t steal our music just yet. Wait till we’re called a platinum selling artist or we get nominated for a Grammy. If you have please buy the CD.

If You Think You Should Come To California

I would have missed him if my alarm hadn't gone all funky. The CD I burnt a long time ago that was sitting in my alarm to wake me has been skipping and then dying all week. I usually just wake up, but this morning I was so tired that when the CD player stopped I just went back to sleep. Once I woke up I was in a terrible chaotic mess trying to get to work, and I was too stressed/tired to listen to my normal station, NPR. Once I plopped it onto the Edge (The lame-o Alternative station out here) Adam Corolla's voice came on and I might have changed it except for he said Arizona comedian, yes I admit I still have some geographical ties to this sand pile, so I listened. All without invitation, he drove all the way out to LA (6 hours) to be on the Adam Corolla show. It was completely randomly and beautifully desperate . Much like the movie Joe Dirt. He wasn't insanely funny, but his story more than made up. Interesting fellow, kind of funny, serious story. I think all of my hopes and dreams of exiting this sad sun stained city were all sitting in his awkward nervous jokes. I laughed a few times. He isn't a genius, but he's a genius by Phoenix entertainer standards.

The New Album

This is a good time for me right now. People are actually responding really postively to the latest product I've been involved in. My band's CD is now being enjoyed by those around me and the response is very positive. I devoted quite a lot of time to creating it, and it is so good to see it starting to reciprocate. Seven Car Pileup - Seven Car Pileup was my love child. I really belive there is something on there for almost everybody. We cover quite a range of alternative flavors of American rock and roll. Saying it is alternative is more saying it isn't verbatim copies of those genres, but more a Tempe based rock band having fun with composition and a farily diverse amount of arangement styles. There are quite a few things I'm proud of. Hell, why don't I go through each song and say what I love the most about it... I never do anything like this so hummor me.

Sucker Punch - My best lyrics, maybe ever. A ego-less vulnerable exploration of what it means to be a twenty something in today's America.

Outta My Mind - The funkiest song my band's ever done. Makes you want to shake your money maker.

The Apprehension of Hope - Maybe the most heart-felt exploration of politics ever recorded. This is a lot of people's favorite song on the album. I'm completely blown away by that, but in some ways I'm not really.

Oxymoron - I think this song is great. It could possibly be a year or so ahead of it's time, but I don't care.

Steve McQueen - A riff-rocker, my first one that worked, and just snarky enough to not be taken too seriously.

Lets Be Hippies - A really beautiful sentiment that I think a lot of people can relate too.

In Your Pocket - Possibly the hardest song to write on this album. The lyrics are me writing from somebody else's perspective and at the same time my perspective. It's so mixed up and jangled of the life that was happening around me at the moment that it can't be interpreted as anything else than a bitter explosive abstract ballad.

Control - This song is about a concept that I think nobody ever talks about: the idea of how we attempt to create systems of order in our lives when things are completely out of our control. It may be the hardest song to get on the album, but when you do I think it's possibly the most poignant song on it.

New DNA - I'm so proud that this song follows Control. This song is talking about the power of grace and forgiveness in our lives, and how it doesn't come from within our selves, but from somewhere/one higher.

Cardboard Nation - A punk-rock tirade speaking to America's excessive consumerist culture, and the packing supply of choice.

2' (two foot) Ponds - A shallow love song with a groove that just won't stop, and a very heavy fun chorus.

Windless - Maybe the first ever punk bossanova. I love this arrangement style. I'll have to try and convince the band to write another song in this vein.

Funky Sounds in the Bathroom or Love Loss in a Bathroom Stall

Tonight in Tucson (the land of enchantment), I'm going to go see Ben Kweller. My girlfriend (Meg) and I have decided that there would be no better time than to start our spread the funk grassroots gorilla marketing scheme. We'll be placing copies of CD-R's, with a song or a few songs off of Seven Car Pileup's eponymous debut album, in bathroom stalls at Club Congress. In addition, we'll be giving a few copies to Meg's sister Emily to hand out around the Tucson area. It's a completely random and cheap way to spread the music around. I'm sure we'll do the same thing in Phoenix as well. It's a random reason to go to some of my favorite venues around town. Don't be too surprised if a copy of it shows up at the Modified, Last Exit, Yucca Tap Roon, and Hollywood Alley. As well as various mall bathrooms, movie theaters... ect.

Uncertain Times

Seven Car Pileup Advertisment

Revernd Guitars

So I've decided that I need a new guitar, more in the vein of the sound/style I'm growing to love. I want a mid-weight set-neck Double Humbucker. I would love something that looks like a Les Paul but a little different.

I think I'm going to get myself a Reverend. They're still enough below the radar that they're not overpriced yet, and they have some design attributes which makes sense for players more comfortable with Fenders but who want that Gibson sound.

I'm torn between the
Warkhawk II HBand the
Roundhouse HP (gold-top)Although I'm not dead set on a set-neck Their bolt on necks seem interesting enough.

The Jetstream just might be the one which would do the job.
Reverend has a dealer in Scottsdale, Guitar Gallery, and as well Rainbow guitars in Tucson sells them as well.

Seven Car Pileup - Seven Car Pileup

My Band (Seven Car Pileup) is releasing our debut eponymous album. Seven Car Pileup's album features a wide range of musical styles all funneled through our trade-mark high energy rock.

Seven Car Pileup is made up of
Mark Mason (me) - Vocals and Guitar
Jess Pruitt - Bass Guitar
Mike Vigil - Drums

To listen to a song off of the album you can go to our online store [shop.7carpileup.com] to download a free copy of a song off of the album. The song is titled Outta My Mind.