NPR + iTunes = free concerts

This might have already been common knowledge for others, but today I discovered that iTunes has free downloads of live concerts from the All Songs Considered NPR program.

I am currently listening to Radiohead's show from August 28th in Santa Barbara and giving the Internet a virtual chest bump.

Other concerts downloaded:

Animal Collective
Arcade Fire
Arctic Monkeys
Ben Gibbard (of Death Cab for Cutie)
Devotchka
Fleet Foxes
French Kicks
The Good, The Bad, & The Queen
Iron & Wine
The New Pornographers
OK Go
The Raconteurs
Spoon
Swell Season
Walkmen
Wilco
Yeah Yeah Yeahs

My plane and train rides in Germany will be spent listening to concerts and learning useful German phrases courtesy of Rick Steves.

Hat jemand gefurtz? Did someone fart?

Sie sind ein Engel, von Gott gesandt. You are an angel from God.

Ich habe keine Krankheiten. I have no diseases.

Iche habe viele Krankheiten. I have many diseases.

Ich habe mein Geld/meine Handtasche/meine Brieftasche/meinen Glauben an die Menschheit verloren. I've lost my money/my purse/my wallet/my faith in humankind.

Finer Things Club SUGGESTIONS

This American Life, Season One on DVD

BIG

NPR has done a few brief shout-outs to BIG - a collaboration between Big Boi from Outkast and the Atlanta Ballet who joined together to produce a performance that combines ballet with hip hop. Naturally, I was very much drawn to this idea.

I searched around on YouTube and found a bootleg-looking clip of the show and an official-looking rehearsal video:





We don't have a lot of famous rappers in DC. I was trying to think of who the National Symphony Orchestra could collaborate with...
1. 9:30 Club
2. 9:30 Club with a rock band
3. 9:30 Club with a rock band, and the rock band is British

Please hold your judgement, there are no dumb ideas in brainstorming.

Bryant Park Project

I wrote an anti-NPR post a couple of weeks ago. This week, I read about an NPR show on dooce.com (Amanda introduced me to dooce. Changed my life, I swear. ) The show is called The Bryant Park Project, and it is a two-hour morning show that has news, interviews, movie reviews, book club picks, etc. every weekday. I listened to the Friday show this morning, and unfortunately think that is all I will have time for every week. Devastating.

Friday's show included a story about the Democrats pouncing on McCain for a sound byte from January in which he said he would stay in Iraq for 100 years, an interview of an interesting 2-man band called The Dodo's, and a book pick - The God of Animals by Aryn Kyle. Definitely adding this show to my iTunes podcasts.

Also, I promised Kristin I would give Terry Gross's Fresh Air another try.

Gotta love the finer things word of mouth.

Finer Things?

Today on my solo lunch trip to Whole Foods part deux, I picked up a copy of the Economist. Now there are some things out there that I would agree are "finer" or more cultured, but I have just never been able to fully endorse them. One such item is the Economist. Another is NPR.

In all honestly, the Economist is really difficult to read from cover to cover. Call me a bad person, but I just can't get excited about articles on soaring food prices in Egypt or Venezuelan illiteracy. Perhaps if I were dating a Venezuelan migrant worker or was planning to move to the KPMG Egypt office (either one of which are sounding kind of appealing right now), I would be more inclined to know about Egyptian economics or my illeterate Venezuelan paramour's reading problems. Papa T definitely thinks highly of the Economist, and I used to bring him my unread/barely- read back issues from my subscription, and he would be mighty pleased and actually devour them cover to cover. But I'm probably just a bad person.

NPR is another one of those media sources widely regarded by intellectuals. I most certainly consider myself an intellectual, and I have tried to listen to Fresh Air with Terry Gross, believe me, I've tried. But does anyone else think she sounds inexplicably patronizing (and her questions sometimes silly)?? Fifty Cent, please tell us why you believe it is moral to be "popping them th[i]ngs"? Did you listen to your parents' records growing up?

All I know is: Every hood we go through, All the gangstas around know my whole crew.