Okkervil River is an indie rock band from Austin, Texas. Formed in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya. Okkervil River consist of Scott Brackett (Trumpet/ Keyboards), Brian Cassidy (Vocals, Electric Guitar, Mandolin), Travis Nelsen (Drums), Patrick Pestorius (Bass), Will Sheff (Vocals/Guitar), Justin Sherburn (New Member) and Lauren Gurgiolo (New Member). Former member, Jonathan Meiburg (Vocals, Keyboards, Accordion) left the band to pursue as a singer and songwriter in his new band, Shearwater. The band has garnered positive critical reception, especially noted are each song’s lyrics, intricate instrumentation, and thematic albums. Okkervil River play songs that are heart-felt and all songs written by them are actually beautiful poems that ought to be remembered for a long long time. Clever lyrics combined with music that are full of emotions and touch everyone’s heart upon listen. They are as big as the Amazon River.

The Stand Ins is such a matured album that even Adult and Elderly People will fall in love with it. It’s definitely a perfect album for my parents’ wedding anniversary. It has 3 tracks which are pure instrumentals.

“Stand Ins, One” is just 48 seconds long and is the intro to The Stand Ins. It started off slowly and gradually picked up and got louder. Accordian can be heard throughout this song and at times, it sounded creepy to me. Nonetheless, this track will get you ready and build up the tempo and excitement in you for the next track.

What i love about “Lost Coastlines” apart from the awesome lyrics is its music. Patrick Pestorius’ playing of bass gets my head nodding each time i listen to this track. Not only that, the mandolin and trumpet also created an atmosphere as if i’m watching a big group of orchestra performance. As Will sings, “But we find the maps he sent to us don’t mention lost coastlines…”. he knows that they are lost on the shoreline.. And when it comes to the end, it will not be long when you finally find yourself singing along with Okkervil River.. “La, la, la…”

The beginning of “Singer Songwriter” resembles “Ain’t No Easy Way” by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club”, and it tells the story about a girl who has everything that she could ever ask for.. But due to this very same fact, she failed in everything she chose to do.. And nothing’s gonna change her world.. It’s also one of the loudest track on The Stand Ins where various guitar playings can be heard throughout this track. Beautiful country rock song where you can imagine a group of elderly people enjoying and dancing to this power-pop country rock track. Love it!

“Starry Stairs” should have been the last track on this album. It just has the quality to end an album. Will sings as if he is sad.. “If you don’t love me, i’m sorry”. It’s the most memorable moment on this track. As he goes on, he sings about how a girl that he loves, lied to him. He has no choice but to say goodbye.. All the Starry Stairs seem to be falling apart as he climbs.. Definitely a track to look out for on The Stand-Ins! Play this song if you found out that your girlfriend is lying to you or hiding something from you! Make her know that you’re saying goodbye..

Clocking in at over 6 minutes long is “Blue Tulip”. The longest song on this album. Blue Tulip, again sings about a girl who lies.. “Hats off to my distant hope, a little lie, a puff of smoke…”, sings Will, and as he sings, i feel the pain he’s in. I feel sorry for him. Such a sad song that it’s impossible to ignore this powerful ballad which sings the way to your heart. And it’s one of the reasons Okkervil River is famous for!

“Stand Ins, Two” is another instrumental. A slow guitar plucking and piano playing. As if Okkervil River is taking a brief break from this album.

As its title suggests, “Pop Lie” is about lies. A story about a man who lies in his pop songs. Thus, Pop Lie. Damn, Okkervil River is good at it! They write songs that’s so complicated until i have to listen countlessly to Pop Lie before i could figure out the real meaning behind this song. A man who has so many fans, from kids to adults, lies whenever he sings. Is this the real world out there? You be the judge. Anyway, it’s a guitar-power-packed song that is so radio friendly! Cheers to Okkervil River!

“On Tour with Zykos” is specially written for Okkervil River’s past member, Jonathan Meiburg. Will wishes him all the best on his future undertaking… “Roll your crew on down the road, to the next sold out show… ” I really love the piano playing of this song. I can feel the friendship shared between Okkervil River and Jonathan. And it reminds me of the friendship shared between Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon. Incredible farewell song to Jonathan!

“Calling and Not Calling My Ex” is a very radio-friendly track. At first listen, i already knew i would like this song. The beat and tempo of this song is just perfect that it’ll make you go on remembering this song, especially the beginning of this song. “God knows i’m feeling really stupid now, forever having said goodbye…” is the phrase that i always recall whenever i listen to this song. And another praise for the piano of this song. I just find it very appealing and infectious..

“Stand Ins, Three”, another instrumental. Violin can be heard throughout this track until it subsides where it jump to another track… More or less, it’s the prelude to the next song…

“Bruce Wayne Campbell Interviewed on the Roof of the Chelsea Hotel, 19793 is the track that closes The Stand Ins. Before ending The Stand Ins, Okkervil River managed to close this album on thematic and anthemic note. This song is a slow ballad that Will sings, “Pull down the shades, let’s kill the morning…”, as if he’s disappointed and despair in love. But like most closing song, it ended on a high note, high spirit, trumpet, guitar and drums all came in together to make this a memorable one. Okkervil River have done it again!

Rating: I’m speechless… I’m totally impressed with the lyrics written by Okkervil River. The have this ability to write songs with lyrics that are so cryptic that we have to think through the words in order to understand the real meaning behind those lyrics. Not only that, their music landscape and genre is so focused that they are becoming the pioneer in what they are doing. Beautiful and heart-felt songs all in The Stand Ins, i honestly give it 7.5 out of 10. Cheers!

Stand-Out Tracks (My Picks): Lost Coastlines, Singer Songwriter, Starry Stairs, Calling and Not Calling My Ex, On Tour with Zykos.

Cheers!
Darren Tan
Avid Indie Music Fan

Darren Tan

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No wonder the person who doesn’t like music is a non-living object according to many! And rightly so! However, the people who love music also have many problems pertaining to their love for music. Though most of the CDs and DVDs are available nearby us in shops, some CDs and DVDs have to be downloaded and for this, we need to search for good music download sites. No doubt, this is a tricky job and many of us get deceived because of our inability to choose the right site.

Why we get deceived?
•    We do not perform a comparative study of different music download sites
•    We do not understand the importance of some of the unique features of authentic download sites like 24-hour customer support, quality of music, price range, and other options like fast downloads, volume of song, etc, thus opting for site that doesn’t have these features
•    We do not find a site that gives comparative study of various sites at a glance

Whatever it is, at the end, we suffer because we opt for music download that is not worth of our time and space. After we download, we find many lacunae in the downloaded CDs or DVDs and later we repent for having opted for specific site. This is the reason to satiate our music buds, we need to search first for an authentic site that has good number of features mentioned above so that we experience quality download.

How comparative study helps us get good music download site?

The comparative study of different music download site helps us understand unique features of each site better. We tend to overlook certain features like quality of music and lifetime pricing unless we perform a careful comparative study. The study also helps us understand the loopholes of the sites from which we might have downloaded at times. This helps us avoid such sites in future too.

Though comparison helps us know better about cheap music download, it’s difficult to carry out comparative study without the help of someone who helps us achieve our goal. How good it is if some site helps us carry out the comparative study of different music downloads sites at a glance! Yes, there are sites which help us do this and make us understand the uniqueness of certain popular yet cheap music download sites like Flickr, Unlimited Download Center, Unlimited Media Access, and Klito Pro. Through this study, satiating our music buds is more authentic and pleasing our senses no doubt!  

Seif Sel

aeiouaeiou100http://gdata.youtube.com/feeds/api/users/aeiouaeiou100Gameshow, to, make, record, edit, runescape, music, video, movie, film, rsmv, save, high, best, quality, definition, help, guide, goodHow to Make, Record & Edit – A Runescape Music video / movie (RSMV)

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Autism is a complex issue and needs to be handled with the utmost care and understanding. If you find that your child has symptoms of autism, this will pose a challenge to you, and you may find that your child is not behaving like other children, in which case you will need to go to your family doctor so that he can assess the child and if he feels the need, he will refer you to specialists in the field who will be able to diagnose and treat your child.

Signs Of Autism That You Need To Be Aware Of

One of the earliest signs of autism is the fact that the child does not interact socially and is incapable of expressing emotions normally – the child also does not have a feeling of closeness with family and friends as normal children do. Children with autism shy away from bonding or touching other children.

Another sign that you need to be aware of is a communication problem especially with their same age group. Sometimes they are unable to speak and only sounds emanate from them and they gesture to others. There are certain cases where the child talks but mostly they repeat words that they hear and are unable to talk on their own – also if they do speak, it is in a monotonous manner and well below their own age group.

You will need to assess the effect of sensory stimulation on your child. Sometimes children get nervous and agitated at sounds, and at other times they may have a fixation on a certain sound or light for a length of time. It is necessary to consult a pediatrician if your child displays any of these signs.

There are certain rituals that a child with autism may do on a regular basis. If this is not done, the child may be greatly agitated – for instance a child may only eat a particular type of food and desire to wear only certain type of clothes, and if this is not adhered to, will get into a temper and behave in an extremely agitated manner.

It is important to note that if your child displays any of these symptoms, you should consult your doctor who will make an analysis, and advise you as to how you need to handle the situation. If he finds it necessary, he will refer you to a specialist in the field who will be able to make a more detailed analysis, and put your child on to treatment immediately, so that you will be able to give your child the correct treatment which will enable him to live a better life.

Abhishek Agarwal

RhineStoneTshirtshttp://gdata.youtube.com/feeds/api/users/rhinestonetshirts27.994401931762695 -82.4853515625Howtohow, to, produce, rhinestone, tshirts, t-shirts, shirts, shirt, machine, make, transfer, crystal, rhinestud, setting, design, video, dtg, technology, fashion, arts, crafts, beauty, dance, sports, music, drink, finance, fitness, gardening, health, food, homehow to produce/make Rhinestone T-shirts video2008-04-01

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We were up to about our 7th song in the set when I noticed our rhythm guitarist had broken a string. About 60 seconds later I myself break a string. No problem, me thinks I will get my spare Gibson SG, be playing again in 45 secs. I look around. No SG- my rhythm player grabbed it for himself, too lazy to change a string on his guitar!!! Ok, so I think I will very quickly change my own string with the help of our stage roadie. Another 20 seconds goes by. Old mate breaks another string on MY spare guitar. The drum and bass extension solos, singer doing a bit of improvisation over the top, no problem until bass player blows his A string. As many of you would know most AC/.DC songs are in A. He switches to the E string 5th fret- not as nice a sound but it’s cool enough in an emergency. We are going to be okay I thought until the drummer has broken his snare skin!!!! This can’t be happening!! Just can’t be!! Apollo 13 didn’t have this much coincidental bad luck!!! By now my string is replaced so we have a 3 string bass, one guitar, a singer looking remotely pissed off and looking for a rock to hide under, and a drummer gesticulating widely for help with his snare but the show goes on. Old mate rhythm player is back on deck and the bass player is going to play 3 strings for at least the next 2 songs until, the roadie goes to truck and get the spare bass (not often bass players break strings!!).

Finally the snare skin is replaced   all guitars are back working. We start up exactly in the spot where we first lost a string and continue as if nothing happened. Never break the song, just pile on the improv in the middle section because the show must goes on!!! Ironically, the song we were playing was “Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be.”

Now I can see everyone with stage experience saying “well they should have changed their string before the gig!’ Truth was we changed our strings every night, bass strings every 6 gigs!!! We all bought our strings from one supplier and we just got a faulty batch. 

The moral:
always have spare strings closely accessible, a spare guitar where possible, drummer, at least a spare snare skin or maybe a spare snare drum and also spare kick drum skin and a singer who can remain nonplussed when all hell breaks loose around him!!

Because the show must go on!!

Axebay

I couldnt believe what I did next. I think I did it out of desperation, I needed Nick. Life was worthless without him. M: (gets on her kness) Nick PLEASE (calmly) I BEG you! On my knees! I BEG YOU! At leat out of pity give me a chance! (Hugs his legs) N: Miley please (Tries to pull her up) dont make a fool out of yourself! I dont love you! M: Please Nick, you dont know what you are saying! (my dead world, died once again) N: (pulls her off of him forcefully) Bye Miley (leaves her crying) ~~~ Okay, this was just one of the worst day of my lives. Our first real gig, and this girl needs to come! Why would Nick kidnap her? And why does she pretend to hate him? It is OBVIOUS she is drooling over him. It makes me so jealous, during the whole ride I said nothing, except for the few times that Rick tried teasing me. *At the club* S: You must support my father, and please lather the infurigle because- M: Oh god! I cant stand this (turns around and heads in to the club in the backdoor) I walked in and bumped into Nick who was setting up all the instruments. N: (rolls his eyes) Where is Selena? M: Outside N: You left her outhere? Alone? M: Yes, yes I did! N: Why? M: Because she was driving me insane! She called me a poor uneducated girl? How can you love someone like that? N: (drops the drums) Miley! How could you be so stupid! (starts to walk towards the exit) M: (rolls her eyes) Oh yeah, I am the stupid one. dont worry Nick, I’ll go get her, just finish setting up I went outside <b>…</b>

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What is the main reason for getting a dog? If it is for the kids in your house, you have to remember that children cannot possibly take full responsibility of the dog. Once the novelty of a cute puppy wears off, this responsibility is pushed to the adults (and this happens most of the time). It is important that you educate your child on the importance of being a responsible pet owner. The job doesn’t end after the dog has got its dinner. It’s a lifetime commitment.

Can you afford the time to take care of your dog? If you don’t, getting a dog isn’t really a good idea. Dogs require as much attention as we humans do. They love companionship. That’s why they say dogs are man’s best friends. Are we able to reciprocate the kind of friendship they are offering us?

Are you able to take of it financially? There are many dog expenses, such as dog food, toys and clothes. You have to take it for vaccinations as well. On top of it, your dog should also have a regular checkup. And if it ever falls sick, there is also the medical fees to worry. Your dogs should also be sent for regular grooming to maintain its cleanliness and overall well being.

Do you know how to train your dog? Most of us don’t. So it brings us to the next question. Are we willing to learn how to train our dogs? Do we have the time? Do we need to engage a professional dog trainer, the services which might otherwise be expensive?

As long are you are committed to do the job well, I don’t forsee any difficulties. But you must bear these questions in mind before you get a dog. An impulsive decision might result in undesirable consequences.

George Yeo

(2008 UPDATE) A friend and fellow slave wrote a very good article for people, who have ever thought of getting ducks as pets. mrflapper.com ) Many of you have commented on this video, lots of questions regarding keeping ducks and what not. Let me explain a little about this video.. This video was taken over 2 years ago when I got my first ducks. It was a bad experience overall. These ducks were ordered from a Hatchery, delivered through mail, the first mistake of many to come. I was lucky to receive all my ducks alive and well, but not so many ducks have this luck – I ordered 12 ducklings, a friend of the fam wanted some to so I figured we could share the order. 7 of the 12 were given away once fully feathered, most of which did not survive, many drowned others got sick, they were living pretty much wild on his property and these ducklings are all Domestic Animals. They need your care. Of the 12 I kept 5, one of which, my favorite was killed and eaten by “nice” dog.. It was devastating, he somehow escaped the pen and got too close to the dog, who was just being a dog. 4 Survived and grew. All was ok till one of the, the Pekin suddenly became sick, when I noticed she was sick it was way too late, She had ingested what we think was the avocado leaves from our tree and it poisoned her. I noticed her in a corner not eating or moving. She let me pick her up which she never did and started having seizures. she died in my arms at 4AM. I was devastated. So much so my parents started to worry and picked any excuse to get rid of them. If you know anything about ducks is the mess they produce and back then my family wasn’t putting up with it. Even though I slaved over them, cleaning their pens sometimes 4 times a day! They decided there were too many fly’s for their comfort. Even though our dirty neighbor whose house was full of cats was to blame they blamed it on the Ducks and I had to give them away. The remaining 3 ducks, went to another family friend with a private pond. Time pased and they got older and got friends all was well till one day the 2 Cayuga’s (black ducks) went missing. They did not come back to their pen that night.. The following morning they found one of them, dead. Hidden under a bush injured. Something had got him and he tried to hide, instead he just died from the injuries. A day later they found the pile of feathers and innards of the other. This experience has really taught me a lot, and I hate it that it took the ducks poor life to make me learn. Ducks are probably the hardest most time consuming, most expensive pet to keep! I have 2 ducks now, a couple years later. Both were rescued in their own way. I’ve had the oldest for almost 2 years now. This time around the ducks are my priority, everything I do or think to do revolves around them. Looking and learning more ways to make sure everyone is okay with their presence. They own me, I don’t own them. No one understands this. Animals are NOT disposable! They are NOT experiments! Sure they are cute babies, but wait till they get older.. Sure! it was only 3 bucks in the feed store.. Get ready for the the thousands of dollars you spend. Their predator proof pen alone is cost over 400 dollars and its not even what I would want it to be! 50 dollars for food everytime they scraf down a bag, Ducks CAN’T live off bread. All I am saying is, think carefully before getting ducks as a pet.. Infact forget about it. Unless you’re willing to sell your soul, don’t.

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You heard me correct. You take your dream and enter the field as a valid and credible studio singing source for multiple producers and session work. Just how will you go about that? – Great question. Let’s spend a few minutes looking at some ideas and concepts to get you on the road to success and get you into the studio as a professional studio singer.

Singing talent is obviously at the top of the list, but let’s spend a few minutes talking about vocal qualities. There are a number of different types of singers – the blender who sings on a variety of session work, but doesn’t sing on that many lead spots. Those are usually reserved for more gritty and husky singers who can carry the lead. Then you have the husky or gritty singer who is asked on occasion to sing in a group sing to give the group a little more bite. This singer usually sings on quite a few leads that are up in your face commercials and backup vocals that require a big sound. There are also a core of what I call specialty singers who don’t fit either just discussed and tend to be very unique and used on very specific spots and background vocals. Neither of the singers I’ve just described is any better than the other in terms of work, they are just called on for different session work. Where do you fit in? You need to get that figured out along with your degree of giftedness. Just be honest – studio singing isn’t for everyone, no matter how much they want it. But I would guess that there is more opportunity out there for a lot of singers if they chose to go after their dream.

In order to attempt to get into studio singing you are going to have to have a few key items in place – namely a good deal of practice, an incredible demo, and a follow up with great people skills. Most artistic individuals I know usually have fairly good people skills counting out those who either know it all or those with a bad attitude. I’m guessing you have fairly good people skills, will probably need a little help in being consistent with your follow up and will need an incredible demo tape. At ReelMusician.com we specialize in singer’s demos and specifically those wishing to enter the jingle singing market. You’d be surprised at the demos we receive on a regular basis that are not up to par. I’ve stated in other articles, that your demo has to sound like you’ve already arrived on the singing scene with numerous credits. It is our experience that most don’t have a real clue as to how to write and market their voice to compile a singing demo tape that will actually get listened to and if it does, won’t garnish the work that they are looking for. There are a number of reasons for this, but in the simplest of terms, there is too much competition out there to be dealing with fairly good or even pretty good demos – they have to say the word “Incredible.” For any questions on this at all, please don’t hesitate to contact us at ReelMusician.com for further advice, articles or just to just plain ask us a question. We’re more than happy to answer any questions you might have. Our goal is to help singers make their singing dreams and careers come true.

Now starting with the assumption that you have credible singing talent, are practicing everyday, are either working on or are preparing to have an incredible jingle or session singer reel written specifically for your voice, and are ready to take the plunge into the session singing world, I will give you some ideas and tips to get you motivated and hopefully moving towards a rewarding career as a successful studio singer.

Once you have your incredible jingle reel in hand, marketing will be key. You will want to submit your reel to jingle producers in your area, various industrial music houses, and general music production companies. You will want to get to know other jingle and session singers in your area and genuinely get to know them and hand off a reel – keeping in mind that you will want to hand off reels to other singers that you are not in direct competition with. Your follow up with these individuals will be key. Stay in touch with email, letters, birthday notes, etc and keep all of your potential singing clients in the fold. Make sure that you have a follow up reel within a short period of time. You will want to cross the desk of certain producers a couple of times to reacquaint yourself to them. Keep detailed records of who you talk to, when, contact numbers and any misc information. In time, with the right singing reel and follow up, you should start bringing home some singing work. As time grows, so should your reputation and work. In closing, if you will stay focused with a great attitude and voice supported by an incredible jingle reel, you should be well on your way to a successful studio singing career!

Tom Gauger

1980) Diane “Diana” Ernestine Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American twelve-time Grammy and Oscar-nominated singer, record producer and actress, whose musical repertoire spans R&B, soul, pop, disco and jazz. During the 1960s, she helped shape the sound of popular music and the Motown Sound as lead singer of The Supremes before leaving for a solo career in the beginning of 1970. Since the beginning of her career with The Supremes and as a solo artist, Diana Ross has sold more than 100 million records. During the 1970s and through the mid 1980s, Ross was the most successful female artist of the rock era, crossing over into film, television and Broadway. She received a Best Actress Academy Award nomination for her 1972 role as Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues. She won a Golden Globe award for Lady Sings the Blues. She won American Music Awards, Garnered twelve Grammy Award nominations, and won a Tony Award for her one-woman show, An Evening with Diana Ross in 1977. In 1976, Billboard magazine named her the “Female Entertainer of the Century.” The Guinness Book Of World Records declared Diana Ross as the most successful female music artist of the 20th century with a total of eighteen American number-one singles: twelve as lead singer of The Supremes and six as a soloist. Ross was the first female solo artist to score six number-ones. This feat puts her in a tie for fifth place among solo female artists with the most No. 1s on the Hot 100. She is also one of the few artists to have two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame–one as a solo artist and the other as a member of the trio “The Supremes.” In December 2007, she received a John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Honors Award. Including her work with the Supremes, Ross has recorded 57 studio albums.

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