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Music Monday: Hosted By 412 Lax

Avid readers of 412 Lax know I am a big time trance and progressive fan. As such, it was a bit of shock when I was invited to host this week’s Music Monday, because we all know Lacrosse All Stars was founded by two kids from some school in the Pacific Northwest and Dead Heads don’t care for electronic music.

Anywayitiswrongtousestereotypes, I took this opportunity to present some other musical genres that I enjoy when I’m not getting ready for practice or a coaches’ meeting. These songs have been with me for quite some time so you know they are good and most importantly Bieber-free. I think you’ll find that I am partial to debut albums and the piano.

LCD Soundsystem may technically be electronic music but this song is pure piano and no song makes me want relocate quite like this ballad even though the lyrics warns against such an activity. Just when you think it is over, the song wakes up for a rousing finish. This is the second most played song on my iTunes and I may or may not have heard it for the first time on Gossip Girl.

LCS Soundsystem “New York I Love You”

[fvplayer src=”https://youtube.com/watch?v=5JkBiP7rPt0?fs=1″ splash=”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/5JkBiP7rPt0/hqdefault.jpg” caption=”New York I love You”]

Back in my day, we used to listen to a Sony Walkman on the way to school. Weezer’s debut album by the same name, affectionately referred to as The Blue Album by fans, got me through freshman year of high school. (Yes, it came out in 1994, but I didn’t know about it until later.) Nothing was more heartbreaking than listening to Rivers get half way through “Say It Ain’t So,” have the batteries die, and still have five minutes left on the walk to homeroom. One of the saddest songs about alcoholism you’ll ever hear.

Weezer “Say It Ain’t So”

[fvplayer src=”https://youtube.com/watch?v=ENXvZ9YRjbo?fs=1″ splash=”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ENXvZ9YRjbo/hqdefault.jpg” caption=”Weezer – Say It Ain’t So”]

Nirvana came out when I was in elementary school and the long hair, head banging, flannel, and naked baby on the album cover made me super nervous. On top of that, the kid that suckered me in to my first after school detention was a huge fan of the band. Needless to say, didn’t care for the band. Fast forward to being an English major in college and the need to understand Kurt Cobain’s lyrics overcame my contempt for my haunted past. Perhaps more than trance, I love a good piano cover of a popular song. Why not ask a choir accompanied by a piano to perform Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit?” Scala & Kolacny Brothers took it upon themselves to make a song from my past even creepier and even awesomer.

Scala & Kolacny Brothers “Smells Like Teen Spirit”

[fvplayer src=”https://youtube.com/watch?v=Ui2a2KTx60s?fs=1″ splash=”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ui2a2KTx60s/hqdefault.jpg” caption=”Smells like teen spirit – Scala & Kolacny Brothers”]

One of the more memorable girls at Wooster introduced me to the Tennessee based My Morning Jacket. Disappointingly, we also shared a Maroon 5 “Sunday Morning” phase. But, that’s neither here nor there. I’ll be forever in debt to this bonnie lass for bringing the gentle lyrics and big sounds of Jim James’ band into my life. If the first eighty some seconds don’t set your heart on fire, you’re probably a writer for The Walking Dead, because that show is a frozen train wreck.

My Morning Jacket “One Big Holiday”

[fvplayer src=”https://youtube.com/watch?v=cOXgGzDYmhU?fs=1″ splash=”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/cOXgGzDYmhU/hqdefault.jpg” caption=”My Morning Jacket – One Big Holiday (live)”]

I don’t recall when I started listening to Ben Kweller but I do remember listening to his debut album on the way to visit my aunt who was dying of lung cancer. On a happier note, seriously, an ex girlfriend drunk dialed me from France after seeing a Ben Kweller show and wanted to thank me for putting her onto his playful melodies. He’s that good. Kweller is a more mellow version of Ben Folds without the abortion story. This is the final song off his debut album “Sha Sha.”

Ben Kweller “Falling”

[fvplayer src=”https://youtube.com/watch?v=o4K-SPnZJOU?fs=1″ splash=”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/o4K-SPnZJOU/hqdefault.jpg” caption=”Ben Kweller Falling”]