20 years in music

There is a temptation in music polls to vote for songs you like which you know are likely to rate well, rather than honestly voting for your absolute favourites. Unfortunately, whatever you do, The Verve will still somehow make it into the top 10. I'm the sort of person who listens to a whole CD at a time, so picking out individual songs is frustrating. Anyway, all of this is to explain why nothing I voted for made it into the Hottest 100 of the last 20 years. The good news is that unlike democracy in the real world, nobody dies because of music polls.

Here's what I put down...

A Perfect Circle - The Hollow 
The genius of Billy Howerdel's composition is a kind of instrumental minimalism and carefully engineered texture.

Pearl Jam - Thin Air
I spent highschool listening to Ten, but this may be one of their best.

Powderfinger - D.A.F

Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
So many late nights working on uni projects, listening to Siamese Dream and Pisces Iscariot.

The Cinematic Orchestra - To Build a Home
Reprising the D A E motif again in 'That Home' brackets Ma Fleur into an album that wants to be played end-to-end. It's a beautifully understated record.

Modest Mouse - 3rd Planet
I'm trying to limit myself to one song per band, but choosing a favourite Modest Mouse song is like being asked to choose a favourite child.

Mid Youth Crisis - Happiness and Authority
I guess it was either this or Between The Lies for the Network sample. My mum used to call MYC 'that shouty band'.

Audioslave - Cochise

Godspeed You Black Emperor - East Hasting
I know, this is more of a movement than a song. What a chilling build-up.

David McEldowney - Stupid People
I don't know how many times I heard this song before he recorded it. All that time, this song wanted to be slightly more reggae.

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

A Silver Mount Zion - 13 Angels Standing Guard 'Round the Side of Your Bed

Neutral Milk Hotel - Oh Comely
When François described music as 'really important', he didn't mean it in the hollow, critical post-modern sense, but the personally meaningful thing-that-describes-life sense. This song was important to him; I couldn't listen to it for about two years after he died.

Matthew Dewey - Orchestral Suite No. 1
This was a triumph. The English language is missing a word which means "the vicarious pride one feels when a friend achieves something great".

Ben Harper - Forgiven

Muse - Hysteria
Took me ages to transcribe this into my ancient Nokia brick as a monophonic ringtone.

Apocalyptica - Faraway
Not bad for a Metallica cover band.

Michael Franti and Spearhead - We Don't Stop
I didn't really know Michael Franti's work at all (well, other than Television the Drug of the Nation)  before seeing him with Spearhead at Falls Festival 2003. Clare and I listened to 'Everyone Deserves Music' a lot when we started going out.

Radiohead - Like Spinning Plates

The Beautiful Girls - Let's Take the Long Way Home

Hottest 20 of 2000!

Running every year since 1993, Triple J's Hottest 100 is Australia's biggest music popularity poll. I really enjoy spending my Australia Day listening to the countdown, but I only attended my first Hottest 100 party in 2003 after I had been in Tassie for a year. Before this I had not had much, if any, exposure to Triple J. The town I grew up in was so rural it didn't get reception. Instead, I grew up on a diet of radio-friendly pop and mainstream music. My taste in music has improved dramatically, although I'm not sure my Dad would agree.

Anyway, this year marks 20 years since Triple J started the annual Hottest 100, hence the out-of-season 20 year retrospective Hottest 100. Having to choose 20 songs from 2000 has been a hard task*. It has been also quite time consuming. I choose songs that 1.) left an impression, 2.) I had listened to over and over again, and can repeat all the lyrics, and 3). brought back some kind of memory, be it happy or sad.

Based around the above criteria, I ended up with 60 songs on my list. So came the difficult job of cutting the list down by 40 songs. With great thought and consideration, I am now going to share with you my top 20 songs of the last 20 years. I hope people don't judge me too harshly on my decisions. Daniel is+ also going to share with you his top 20 with you. I wonder if our lists will have any common songs?

*I know the rules said that you where able to vote for any song within the time frame of 1993 to 2013, but to make it simpler, I only choose songs from the Triple J's hottest 100 lists from the last 20 years. If I was to make a list with any song in this time frame I think the list would probably look quite different but that's a post for another day.

2010 Birds of Tokyo: Plans

2008 Children Collide: Farewell Rocketship



Regina Spektor: Real Love 2007
I found it really hard to choose just one Regina Spektor song as I am a fan of all her songs.



2007 Feist: 1234

2005 Xavier Rudd: Messages

2005 Clare Bowditch: Divorcee by 23

2005 The Beautiful Girls: Lets Take The Long Way Home

Daniel mixed this song and Pearl Jam's ... and proposed to me by getting down on one knee, playing his guitar and singing this to me...how can it not be a favourite :)

2005 Emiliana Torrini: Sunny Road

Such a beautiful song of longing.

2003 Hilltop Hoods: Nosebleed Section
This is an odd one for as I am not a massive fan of hip hop but I choose it because it brings back great memories from the many Falls Festivals I've attended where they have played, especially the first in 2006.

2004 Lior: This Old Love

2004 The Waifs: Bridal Train
I first heard this song while I was doing the washing up in 2006. I cried.


2004 The Polyphonic Spree: Hold Me Now


2002 The Waifs: London Still
Love the Waifs. This was the first song of their's that I ever heard, and it's still an old favourite of mine.

2001 Augie March: There Is No Such Place
Usually One Crowded Hour is the favourite Augie March song. This one is much more beautiful and whimsical.

2001 Muse: New Born
Saw these guys live in 2010. It was awesome!

1999 Powderfinger: These Days
You can't not have a Powderfinger song in your list. They are a truely great and talented Australian band.


1999 Red Hot Chilli Peppers: Around The World

1997 The Living End: Prisoner of Society
Great for all those angsty teenage years :).

1997 Radiohead: Karma Police

1996 Bush: Glycerine

Did you vote? If not, what are your favourite songs from the last 20 years.

W is for Tom Waits and The White Stripes

This is the first Tom Waits song I ever heard. I driving to Margate at the time and I was just taken by Tom Waits' deep gravely and yet compelling voice, his passion and the darkness of the song. I was just left with an overpowering feeling of needing to listen to more of his work.




Often not a lot of big bands make their way to Tassie when touring around Australia. There is definitely a market for it and the bands would certainly get an audience but sadly we still miss out. Many years ago though, The White Stripe came to Tassie and Daniel bought us tickets. We got to the gig early and stood up the front, often holding onto the bars, so as not to be dragged back into the crowd. It was an amazing night. So much energy and passion. I certainly wouldn't have the energy to stand for hours at a gig anymore.

Seven Nation Army:


And a cool version of it done by C. W. Stoneking.

Little People

Nicholas and I have been attending a few little people's birthday parties this past month, so I made a few little presents and cards.

First I made another cap, but this time a size bigger and in brown corduroy. So cute.

I love this little hat. I think I am going to have to make one for Nicholas.

Then made another pixie hat, and a colourful card for a cute little girl I know.

For the last first birthday we attended, I made this card...

and gave the little one year old a wonderful children's CD by Holly Throsby called See. This is a great sound track which is super kid friendly. The songs are catchy and easily stick in your head for days afterwards, which is a problem when you don't know all the words yet. They are carefree and have a childhood naivety about them which I love. And even with winter drawing in when I listen to it, it reminds me of summer. Nicholas always bops up and down when he hears it. I have even been singing one of the songs during swimming lessons at work, "I'm going to buy you a motor boat and we'll go 'put put', over the ocean...". It seems quite appropriate. This is the only song I can find that has been put up on YouTube so far. I hope you enjoy it.

Musical Monday!

Being Christmas, I have been listening to a bit of Christmas music lately. However, finding decent Christmas music that it is enjoyable can be difficult. As kids the only Christmas album we owned was John Denver's 'Christmas Like a Lullaby', and it was played every year on Christmas Eve as we open up our presents. I can't say it is my favourite Christmas CD, but having listened to it every year since I can remember, it brings back lots of good memories.

This year I have been listening to three Chirstmas albums. First is Sufjan Stevens 'Songs for Christmas'. I love this album. It has fives discs, produced from 2001-2006, with songs ranging from Amazing Grace to Jingle Bells. If I had to choose a favourite though, it would have to be Come Thou Font of Every Blessing.



The second is 'A Very She and Him Christmas'. Patty from The Plaid Cupcake suggested it to me, and I am glad she did. It is just so sweet and lovely.



And the third, of course, is Handel's 'Messiah'.



What have you been listening to this Christmas?

Seeker Lover Keeper

For the first time in almost seven months Daniel and I left Nicholas with my Mum and went out for the night. I was both excited and apprehensive about the evening. I was excited for obvious reasons...I was going out without Nicholas. I wasn't nervous about leaving Nicholas with my Mum. I fully trust my Mum and her ability to take care of Nicholas. I was more worried that Nicholas wouldn't sleep, and would cry a lot. This is actually the one reason why Daniel and I haven't been out together alone before tonight. It just seems too stressful to leave him with someone else. Plus, I'm not really keen to inflict that pain onto anyone else. Thankfully, Mum is patient and was happy to work around Nicholas, and made it work :).

It felt strange being out without Nicholas actaully. I am so used to having a little person come everywhere with me now. As such, I found it a little difficult to relax at first, but after realising I didn't have to deal with crying, dirty nappies or feeding for a few hours I began to enjoy myself, and that was certainly easy to do, as we went to see Seeker Lover Keeper on their Heavenly Sounds tour at St. David's Cathedral.

It was such a great gig and I am so glad we made it, even though we got there just before it started and could hardly see anything. This didn't matter so much though because the sound was good (especially being in a Cathedral) and we could hear everything beautifully.

Seeker Lover Keeper is made up of three solo musicians: Sarah Blasko, Holly Throsby, and Sally Seltmann. These women are all great musicians, and if you asked me whose music I enjoyed the best I wouldn't be able to tell you, as I think they are all fantastic. If you have the time you should listen to some of their songs, I highly recommend all their music.




I am so glad that Daniel and I are starting to have a little more freedom. I might even ask Mum to babysit again in a few weeks time, as we have an engagement party and another gig to go to :).