War by Sebastian Junger

Everyone has that friend that just makes golden recommendations. You know when that person says something is good in whatever field is their expertise – cars, books, music, exotic pets – you’d be amiss not to give that recommendation a shot. So to put an end to this drivel, and to reel this paragraph in full-circle: my friend who knows good books recommended War and I really loved it.

It’s not about the politics of wars in overlying ways. But how does a book about war get written without it becoming at least somewhat involved in the politics of the conflict. Or even in politics of the organization.

This book deals with the men of the 2^nd platoon in the Korengal Valley. It’s one of the deadliest places in the war in Afghanistan. The soldiers take fire pretty much daily which is abnormal for a unit. There are some drier seasons but they are constantly getting shot at and the soldiers live for it. It gets their adrenaline going, it’s exciting and they’re really good at it. The soldiers are good at going to war and fighting. They are up against an enemy that can often be right in front of their eyes but they can’t shoot at because of the rules of engagement. They’re also up against enemies they can’t see from snipers hidden in dense forest or mortars firing over a ridge. Or even bombs being detonated from remote locations.

It’s such a rush that it can be hard to go back to civilian life sometimes. It’s almost impossible for me to grasp that during war, there’s such a high chance that anything you do might be your last. Digging a seemingly meaningless ditch or taking a nap could be the soldier’s last act.

There as a story about an intelligence officer who for no reason, changed the direction he slept one night and a bullet came through his tent. It hit him in the leg. It’s a hell of a pain to get shot but he messes with a person’s mind even more to know that their head would normally be in that spot where his leg was.

It’s such a well-paced book and it’s unbelievable to learn about all of the crap these have to deal with daily. And just as importantly, the crap they don’t have to deal with. How often do you think these guys have to go grocery shopping when they’re deployed?

Miami Horror - Holidays

This is a song you should be blasting while driving a boat, or from my experience, it also works well in a car. It has such an upbeat feel to it. “Holidays” has a sound that is almost reminiscent of Cut Copy. There’s the synth combined with an auto-tuned, but not overly done, voice and a fast pace. It’s music that gets you excited and puts you in a good mood.

The guy in the song played against the Pretty Blonde Rule that you might have seen in “A Beautiful Mind”. He went for the girl that everyone was gunning for and beat the odds. He’s pretty about her but we don’t really know anything about the girl except that the guy is the only one she calls now. I feel like one person has more invested in whatever relationship they have. But that’s like most relationships.

Fanfarlo - Finish Line

“Finish Line” by Fanfarlo has the potential to be one of those songs that I listen to over and over again. The way it almost dances into your ears with its melodic introduction has serious relistenability. It is sublime. It’s instant emotion whether to evoke something or merely calm you down.

In some ways, it feels so pessimistic. The song talks about waiting for, “the flag to fall” and for what? He ends up walking to the edge of town for a waste of time. Later he wants it to end, and thinks it will but not from experience.

“I’ve read enough to know,

It will end”

But he recognizes that what he read may not be true as he can only guess that there’s a finish line. It sounds like he’s trying to get over a girl.

Ra Ra Riot - Boy (RAC Remix)

There’s a lot of Rs in there. This is one of my favorite remixes I’ve heard in a long time and RAC – the Remix Artist Collective is one of the best places to go for remixes. Ra Ra Riot’s version of this song is still good but it sounds like such a different song than this remix. It’s much slower.

The remixed version adds something that the original just couldn’t include and makes it feel like a complete song. And I feel like the RAC didn’t even do too much to the song to do that. It’s a little quicker and there’s some other instruments added. Of course, if Ra Ra Riot made their original like this, I’m not sure how it would’ve fit on their CD, “The Orchard.” A lot of that CD is much mellower. An exception of that might be “Too Dramatic,” which is worth a listen.

Albert Hammond, Jr. - Victory at Monterey

There’s such a good hook to this song that makes you want to listen to the whole thing. I think it could be because of the bass in there. It just kind of sucks you into the song. You can always tell with solo projects from Strokes members what band they all came from. Albert Hammond, Jr.’s “¿como te llama?" is no different. It has that lingering Strokes sound.