Suffice it to say, I kind of forgot that I was writing a blog. Life gets in the way sometimes. 

I've been listening to a lot of ECM jazz lately. When their catalog appeared on Spotify a few years back, it was a huge influx of great music, especially as I am a lifetime Keith Jarrett fan. I grew up listening to Koln Concert, and the "ECM sound" is pretty firmly fixed in my mind as the epitome of clean, crystal-clear, modern jazz recording. 

So I've been working my way backwards through their catalog, from the most recent releases backwards. There are some revelations for me of people I have somehow missed during the last 30 years or so: Manu Katche, Vassilis Tsabropoulos, Marcin Wasilewski, et al. I've been attracted to the sound of Scandinavian jazz for a while - especially the feather-light drumming pioneered by Jon Christensen and others, but I also find that sometimes it's too clean, too cerebral. But when you're in the mood for it, ECM really delivers. Here's a track that I can't seem to stop listening to:​

Welcome to STUCK.  I never thought I'd have a blog, and perhaps I won't after this week, but "they" say we should live in the moment, so here I am, blogging.  I generally have a lot to say, and especially a lot to say about music. However, I've never been good at keeping a regular journal, although I do find writing things down cathartic, when I remember to do it.  

One of the things that made me think about starting a blog was the experience of coming across some great new music this week.  To clarify: I come across great music all the time, but only rarely does something sound truly new and fresh to my ears. If you're at all like me, this kind of discovery is a relatively rare occurrence, and is usually accompanied by the kind of excitement that makes you want to share the entire plot of a really captivating novel with your friends.  Of course, the problem with that is that you can't experience it the same way vicariously. That said, this venue gives me the opportunity to share my excitement. I plan to share a selection or two from the earworms that have invaded my head each week in this forum, and my hope is that over time it will be an interesting look at the course of one person's eclectic listening habits.  

A couple of nights ago I was reading in the New Yorker about a young singer/songwriter named Maggie Rogers. Intrigued, I looked up her debut EP on Spotify and ended up listening to all of it, as well as combing through YouTube and the Google for other tidbits about her work.  Maggie Rogers was the beneficiary of a viral video of a masterclass at NYU with Pharrell Williams which shows Williams agog over her song "Alaska."  His facial expressions, mainly of incredulity and awe, are actually quite endearing, and make you forgive the hip social-medianess of the moment.  The New Yorker article describes Rogers' dancing in her "Tonight Show" debut as "unguarded," a word which could also be used to describe her songwriting and singing style.  There is a rawness and realness to her voice, which, while close-miked, is not studio-enhanced in the ways that many pop artists are today.  But what caught and held me, in addition to the clever lyrics and mesmerizing sparseness of her arrangements, was her use of soundscape and sound effects.  "Alaska" features various field recordings and nature sounds, as well as a snippet of conversation from a Moroccan street scene.  Since my own work as a composer has recently been more sound design-oriented, this felt a bit like kismet.  Take a listen below and see what you think.  I'm guessing you'll end up on Spotify, just like me, checking out the rest of her EP.  
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​That's what I'm stuck on this week.