Wednesday Morning Playlist

I had a birthday this weekend! And as a present to myself, I bought one of my favorite albums on vinyl to add to the small (but growing) collection of records that my boyfriend and I have been cultivating. Gregory Alan Isakov is an amazing performer (if you have the chance to see him live, don't miss it) and a very nuanced storyteller. His songs are layered and evocative, pulling from themes of travel and journey and growth.

He is about to release a new album at the end of next week (June 10, 2016) that is a collection of his songs arranged with the accompaniment of the Colorado Symphony. He has performed with the Seattle Symphony in the past and due to the fulfilling nature of that endeavor has set out on a national tour with accompaniment from varying regional orchestras. This is so cool.

On YouTube — Wednesday AM Playlist: June 1, 2016

1. Big Black Car (from "This Empty Northern Hemisphere")
2. 3 a.m. (from "That Sea, The Gambler")
3. The Stable Song (from "That Sea, The Gambler")
4. Amsterdam (from "The Weatherman")
5. Dandelion Wine (from "This Empty Northern Hemisphere")
6. If I Go, I'm Goin (from "This Empty Northern Hemisphere")
7. Evelyn (from "This Empty Northern Hemisphere")
8. Suitcase Full of Sparks (from The "Weatherman")
9. Saint Valentine (from "The Weatherman")
10. Virginia May (from "This Empty Northern Hemisphere")

Wednesday Morning Playlist

It's been a weird week so far, and it's only Wednesday. Yesterday our middle schoolers were wackier than usual, and had lots of questions ranging from "What's your last name?" to "How much do tattoos cost?" This might explain why this playlist is mostly atmospheric folk with random sing-along-friendly pop strewn about. Does that explain where my brain is right now?

1. Gregory Alan Isakov, That Sea, The Gambler
2. The Avett Brothers, Swept Away (Sentimental Version)
3. Sara Bareilles, King of Anything
4. You+Me, From A Closet In Norway (Oslo Blues)
5. James Vincent McMorrow, Red Dust
6. Sky Flying By, Irreplaceable
7. The Lumineers, Gun Song
8. Lennon & Maisy, Call Your Girlfriend
9. Gabrielle Aplin, Light Up The Dark
10. Gregory Alan Isakov, This Empty Northern Hemisphere

On YouTube - Wednesday AM Playlist: May 25, 2016

Wednesday Morning Playlist

Let's be real, this weekend was about Lemonade. This playlist is so random, forgive me, but my ears have eclectic needs. That's why it starts with Beyoncé, leads to Vampire Weekend (Ezra Koenig and Father John Misty made headlines this weekend for their minor credits in Lemonade), dives right into some current radio pop and ends up settling among some of my favorite songwriters.

1. Beyoncé, Formation (Explicit)
2. Beyoncé featuring Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, ***Flawless
3. Vampire Weekend, Diplomat's Son
4. Carly Rae Jepsen, Run Away With Me (Patrick Stump Remix)
5. The Middle East, Blood
6. Ruth B, Lost Boy
7. Angus & Julia Stone, And the Boys
8. Gregory Alan Isakov, Amsterdam
9. Ben Howard, Old Pine
10. The Tallest Man On Earth, The Gardener

The linked videos for Blood and The Gardener are both KEXP performances. KEXP is a great place to discover new music and awesome performances!

On YouTube - Wednesday AM Playlist: April 27, 2016

Hello (from the other side)

Mural of famous movie stars on building, Los Angeles, California

I'm Larissa and I've been the Teen Librarian at the DFL since the beginning of the year. It's been a great experience so far, and I'm looking forward to all of the new adventures I'll get to go on — like taking over this blog from Michael as he departs onto a new adventure of his own.

Music has always been a part of my life, between growing up with a musical grandmother, and later being a part of my high school band. Now, I've settled into certain sounds and writers that truly speak to me. Some of my favorite bands and performers are City and Colour, Gabrielle Aplin, The Avett Brothers, Gregory Alan Isakov, The Weepies, William Fitzsimmons, Sufjan Stevens, and The Head and the Heart.

One of my best friends once told me that she didn't trust people that only liked one kind of music. And this stuck with me, so I try not to close myself off to music. This is part of why I also enjoy Taylor Swift and Adele, Frank Ocean and Chance the Rapper, and all sorts of other seemingly random music.

Movies have also been a natural obsession for me. I love stories, and I love a well-scripted film or show just as much. This is part of why my boyfriend and I became friends a few years ago. He studied film at art school and together we just completed production on a full-length documentary last summer. This mostly means I've spent more time in the last year making a movie than watching movies, but I'm excited to have more time to indulge, and this blog is as good an excuse as any.

I hope you'll keep reading, because I'm going to keep updating this based on what's going on and hitting the shelves at the DFL. Stay tuned!