Buy this album

C'mon. You won't regret it!

Just go on out to iTunes and click buy. This is one of my favorite finds of the last several years. I havn't enjoyed a discovery like this since Hem, or maybe Sufjan.

Simply put, this is happy music. It's joyful. It's playful. It puts you in a good mood, and makes you want to dance like a 3 year old.

You can watch a video here (for some reason, Youtube removed the embed option).

I discovered Owl City (just one guy from MN, actually - some city) via iTunes song of the week - by far the best lead iTunes has ever given me.

Jon Troast redefines the "Intimate Show."

Our friend Jon Troast (he's almost family - I think we need to coin a term for 'my cousin's brother-in-law) is doing something that is adventurous, enterprising, and just plain cool.  

See, Jon is a musician who does most of his concerts in living rooms.  For $100 dollars you can have Jon give a one hour concert in your living room and invite some of your friends (or people you'd like to become your friends!).  That in and of itself is pretty cool.  But right now, he's doing 100 concerts in 100 days as he drives around the country.  You can get a sample of how it might look by watching this bit from youtube:

I've found 6 of these 8-or-so minute montages of his tour on youtube.  You can also check out his website here, or his myspace page...

My parents and sister hosted Jon for a concert last year, and they enjoyed it.  We couldn't make it for obvious reasons.  My personal two cents is that this is a really fantastic experience, and a great way for folks to come together and enjoy the magic of music and community together.  I wish him the best of luck.  If you are looking for something unique to do with your friends, check him out.  You can contact him through his site above.  I'm not aware that he has any plans for a European tour, but if he does, he'd have a stop in La Coruña.  

Oh yeah, his music's pretty good too :-)  You can sample it as he's giving away a free download every week on his site.  If you are interested you can find his 5 albums on iTunes, among other retailers.  

"You have been king of my glory, won't be my prince of peace"

Phil Keaggy is one of my (many) favorite artists and musicians. And not because I listen to him every day (I don't), and not because I try to see every possible concert I can (also don't). It is because every time I DO listen to his music, and every time I DO see him in concert, it is special. There is nothing like listing to true musical genius.

The last time I saw Phil in concert was some years ago at an intimate show at my brother's church. He closed the show out with one of Rich Mullin's (many) best songs - Hold Me Jesus. Rich is also one of my (many) favorite artists and musicians. Tragically, he died in a car accident some years ago. Phil's version was warm, magical, and unforgettable. I still harbor hopes that it will make an appearance in one of Phils future studio recordings.

This is why I was excited to discover this on YouTube today:

Too late for Christmas Music?

I'm not sure if it's too late already to talk about Christmas music, but I thought I'd share three good finds from this year. If you shop on iTunes, all are economical buys: one is an EP, and the other two are currently available for eight bucks.


Bebo Norman: Christmas... From the Realms of Glory.
Bebo is not exactly a find that no one has heard of. He's been making quality CCM music for years. This is a quality album. The traditional tunes are unique enough in their arrangements, and I really like most of the original material. It definitely strikes me as a more worshipful Christmas album than I've heard in a while. (Why is it I feel compelled to describe it this way? That description is a sad commentary all on it's own).


Mindy Smith: My Holiday
This is one of my more pleasant finds. I've been reading good things about this artists music for a couple of years. She has two other albums out. This Christmas album was reviewed well, and I was looking for some new holiday music - at eight bucks, I took a chance, and have been pleasantly surprised. I think you'll like it too.


Hem: Peace at Last
This is a three song EP that I found on iTunes, and cannot find an image of it online anywhere else. Since I have not figured out how to get my iTunes album covers into this blog, you'll have to go to iTunes if you want to see the cover. Hem has been one of the bands I have been telling people about for several years now. I love their music, and their short 3-song EP was a nice addition to my Christmas music selection.

Merry Christmas and happy listening!