Beirut

      Beirut is an American indie folk/balkan band that was originally the solo project of Zach Condon. This Sante Fe native started his own project and then it later expanded into a band. He is the lead vocalist and the horn player.
   I had actually ran into this band when I was on my way to Montreal. I usually bring an array of magazines on this trip to see my cousins. I was flipping through the "Associated Press" magazine, and in the "New Albums" section, I came across Beirut. Since I am of Lebanese descent, this caught my eye (Beirut is the capital of Lebanon.) I decided to check them out, any band with your homelands capital should be interesting right? I automatically fell in love with this band, the first song I heard was Santa Fe, and this song illustrates Zach Condon's long hours and days in his hometown.
       Zach spent countless hours in his room playing his trumpet, burning out his chaps (chaps is slang among trumpet players for lips). He was feeling something was missing, that he didn't enjoy his life too much. I often find myself in Zach's place at times, sitting in my room, blowing into my trumpet, rejecting calls, rejecting invitations to parties, and solely sitting in my room with just me and my instruments.
       Condon attended Santa Fe High School, where he later dropped out when he was 17. According to an interview with David Dye on NPR, being in Santa Fe exposed Condon to Mexican music such as mariachi. He travelled with his brother to Europe for some months, exploring wonders. When he went to the Balkans, he fell in love with the music.
       Upon his return from Europe, Zach enrolled at the University of New Mexico, where he studied Portuguese and photography. He also worked at a cinema that showed foreign films which piqued his interest in Balkan music, first hearing Goran Bregovic.
       He released his first album, Gulag Orkestar, in Santa Fe, where he was stuck in his room playing and rehearsing, going back and forth from the studio. Zach's musical legacy also stemmed to his brother who also is in a band in Brooklyn. I find myself in Zach's place here, I influenced my sister's musical taste so much. I had introduced her to punk, ska, and indie, and she really getting into it. I also started playing instruments at a young age, and my sister decided to followup as well.
      Beirut and Zach Condon especially influenced me to play the trumpet, and its beautiful Balkan sound. I have been playing trumpet for about a year now, and I practice for about 1 hour everyday.
   

468 words.

By the Waters of Babylon literary essay

     Throughout our normal American lives, or what we perceive as normal, we all go through different experiences that shape us. Humans are like clay pots, we start out small, and different layers of our lives sculpt our personality. In the story, By the Waters of Babylon, the main protagonist, John, goes through different Rites of Passages, having him be more brave, knowledgable, and mature.

The Lost Symbol Approach Paper

   I.  The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown, had Robert Langdon, the main protagonist of the story, as a Harvard Symbologist on a quest for human enlightenment. His mentor, Peter Solomon, entrusted him in a small, concealed case, and to open it "when the time is right." Mal'akh, kidnaps Peter Solomon, and the encased box was an invitation from the assailant. Mal'akh is then later revealed to be Peter Solomon's washed up, cast-away son. This kind of knowledge was created by the Masons, a hidden message, a message of human enlightenment and powerful knowledge. Questing for this message brought Dr. Katherine Solomon to aid Robert Langdon, with her great Noetic Science research. They had revealed that the secret message was metaphorically buried, it will arise when the time is right, and will manifest a new human era of human thinking.


II.
Characters:
Robert Langdon: Harvard University symbologist who is skeptical, sarcastic, and investigative.

Katherine Solomon: A Noetic scientist who is haste, smart, and gracious, also the sister of Peter Solomon.

Peter Solomon: A Freemason, billionaire philanthropist, Smithsonian secretary who is humble, loyal, and proud.

Mal'akh: A Mason covered in tattoos, later revealed as Peter's long estranged son, main antagonist of this story who is complex, mischievous, and radical.

III.
Discussion Questions:


1.What are some examples of symbolism in this story? How do these symbols help the novel progress?

2. Is this book "The Lost Symbol", like any other Dan Brown books? If so, in what ways?

3. What advice would you give to readers learning this book? Is there any necessary prior knowledge needed before reading this novel?

IV.
Key Passage:


"America’s intended destiny has been lost to history.
The forefathers who founded this capital city first named her “Rome.” They had named her river the Tiber and erected a classical capital of pantheons and temples, all adorned with images of history’s great gods and goddesses — Apollo, Minerva, Venus, Helios, Vulcan, Jupiter. In her center, as in many of the great classical cities, the founders had erected an enduring tribute to the ancients — the Egyptian obelisk"- Chapter 20


The forefathers who founded Washington wanting it to be great, to be the most amazing and complex city in the world. By naming the city "Rome", shows that this city was built to be a major super power, as was Rome a thousand years ago. This obelisk is larger than Cairo's and Alexandria's, rising 555 feet.  This is proclaiming thanks and honor to the demigod to whom this capital bore the name, Washington.

Operation Ivy

        This band is possibly one of the most influential ska-punk bands, and leading to the most influential punk bands ever to skank and rock. This is obviously not indie music, but I felt this post was necessary. The frontman, Tim Armstrong is rocking right now as I write. He is at the House of Blues with his band Rancid.  Skanking out of Berkeley, California, Operation Ivy was formed in 1987 by Tim Armstrong. This band ran the underground punk scene, consisting of Tim Armstrong (guitar, vocals), Matt Freeman (bass, vocals), Jessie Micheals (lead vocals), and David Mello on drums.

        Successful mainstream bands such as Sublime and Green Day were greatly influenced by this hardcore punk band. In the early days of Green Day, cover songs such as "Knowledge" were played. This band shares a lot of my views, including vegetarianism and the strong distrust of mainstream conformist culture. 

        Punks and moon-stompers were very upset to see this band break up. They did not gain much popularity, and then later split. Matt Freeman and Tim Armstrong broke off and took a few years off, doing associated acts with Dance Hall Crashers and Social Distortion on their current and biggest project, Rancid. Why? Why would they break up one would ask. "Started in '87, Ended in '89, Got a garage or an amp, we'll play anytime. It was just the four of us, Yeah man the core of us, Too much attention unavoidably destroyed us. Four kids on tour, 3,000 miles, in a four door car, not knowing what was going on. We got a million years, of tourin' out like this, Hell no, no premonition could have seen this!" -Tim Armstrong. This band obviously lacked sales, any band, no matter what, needs money. Even indie bands that try to be as minimalist and humble as possible, still need a considerable amount of money. 

       This band mains message was a strong and vociferous struggle for social justice. Songs like "Take Warning", share stories of street fights, and "Unity", portraying all the wars, and for them to stop. A quote for one to think about. 

      "Music is an indirect force for change, because it provides an anchor against human tragedy. In this sense, it works towards a reconciled world. It can also be the direct experience of change. At certain points during some shows, the reconciled world is already here, at least in that second, at that place. Operation Ivy was very lucky to have experienced this. Those seconds reveal that the momentum that drives a subculture is more important then any particular band. The momentum is made of all the people who stay interested, and keep their sense of urgency and hope."

—Jessie Micheals

450 words.

Main Theme of "The Interlopers"

     The Interlopers by Saki teaches us an important lesson, hold bad grudges against someone could lead into something dangerous, or better yet, regretful. These two men, von Gradwitz and Znaeyms' families are bitter enemies. They have fought over and even filed a court law suit over a strip of forest, where hunting is plentiful. To their despair, they encounter each other in the forest, and talk to each other in resentment and disgust. These two could not stand each other, with their rifles ready aimed. What more could have made this situation worse than immense tree comes crashing down on them. Both get stuck under the tree, and do not realize what is yet to come. They both confess and make up, saying that they would be friends. Maybe if one would have been the more mature man, they wouldn't be in this situation. At least they were slaughtered without any grudges bearing on their Rumanian hearts.

of Montreal

        There is a common misconception in this band's name, they are not from Montreal, they are actually from Athens, Georgia. This band was named after the frontman, Kevin Barnes, failed romance with a woman, "of Montreal". This band has evolved from Beatles psychedelic style, twee pop, and vaudevillian styles to indie pop, indie rock, and funk. Their main influence is David Bowie. This band sticks out to me because of their unique sounds that change throughout their albums. They take you on a sad indie rock journey, often a depressing one, with highs and lows. In their first few albums, The Gay Parade, and, Aldhils Arboretum, discuss controversial topics such as Gay Marriage and many others. Once you hit Satanic Panic in the Attic, you soon realize you are listening to some psychedelic pop, some early Syd Barrett Pink Floyd, and early Beatles. I enjoy this, not only because it is extremely versatile, but the chorus' in these albums give me the shivers. I discovered them surprisingly on the radio, this is surprising because they usually don't play good music (my kind of music) on the radio.
       A huge concept that this band tries to portray is its fictional characters. "Jaques Lamure" and "Mimi Merlot" are just a couple of the extensive amount of fictional characters. These characters come alive in their songs, and their stories are told through the music. Another major concept in this band is telling humorous and personal stories through their music, such as "Advice From a Divorced Gentleman to His Bachelor Friend Considering Marriage." and "Tim I Wish You Were Born A Girl." This kind of system helps the band get more ideas and improve there style.
      An apparent characteristic in this band is their gloomy lyrics and often accompanied by upbeat melodies, and hooks. In songs such as "Doing Nothing" and "Old People in the Cemetery.", portrays apathy, loneliness, and death, while the instrumentation remains upbeat. Earlier I mentioned their very strong but yet depressing lyrics, here's an example: "Father will we starve today? Father will we starve?/No my child there are wild women in here and a fleshy catch am I/ Will our quarters be the sunken earth deep beneath the meadow?" -Withered Debts, of Montreal.


390 words.

Junk-Food Heaven

Brysons article was full packed with irony. He ventures with his wife to the super-market. Every single sugar coated, having fat, cholesterol filled product caught his eye. He bought as many as his wife and his body would allow him to eat for the next 4 months. Everything looked so good to him, from toasters strudels to breakfast pizza. The ironic part is that, after buying all that junk and unhealthy food, he dreaded eating every bite of it. He was disgusted, and his adamant wife made him eat every last morcel of what he bought. Bryson definitely learned his lesson, sometimes food products taste so good, but after eating the same product for awhile, it becomes bland and tasteless.

Corry

I truley believe that Corry was on that planet for no reason. Sometimes the american judicial systems choices are very unfair. His punishment is an example of cruel an unusual punishment. Cruel in the sense that this man, if his his punishment was never pardoned, would have no communications with any human beings for 50 years. Through these states loneliness, people become insane, in despair, and at time suicidal. What a horrible tragedy it would be if the police after 50 years come to pick him up, and to their despair, he ia rotting on the cold, hard desert ground.

Conclusion

     American Idol is the most judgemental and most pathetic show on television. Sure it has talented singers, but it's the biggest joke after Storage Wars. So many talented singers make it to Hollywood, but a lot get voted off. Looks play a big role in Hollywood, if you want to succeed in this mainstream, judgemental country that we live in, one must have good looks. Look at the Top 5 contenders of American Idol, they are all very good looking, but I am sure that previous contenders got voted off, not because they have no talent, it's because of their looks. From Season One up to now, American Idol is still the most judgemental show that has ever aired on television.

Arctic Monkeys

   Arctic Monkeys, one of the most famous, indie rock/post-punk revival band there is. They rose up from England, and they formed in 2002 in High Green, a small suburb in northern England. The band consists of Jamie Cook (lead/rhythm guitar), Alex Turner (lead vocals/rhythm guitar), Matt Helders (drums/backing vocals), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar/backing vocals).
   Their band history is like a great dream for starting groups. Their first gig was at their city-centre, and from then on, they sparked. They weren't very advanced in their distribution, and they were very surprised to find out that someone had made a Myspace page for the band, giving out songs for free. The band was very happy, they were set off that their songs were free, because they had already given out discs for free at their gigs. They had signed many record deals, and one was a hit. One million euros.
   Arctic Monkeys released their first album, Say I am, That's What I'm Not, released in 2006, and sold  363, 735 copies in the first week, and reached #1 in the United Kingdom album charts. Can you imagine that? First album, #1 on the United Kingdom charts, there has to be something in this band. I myself have been in a few bands, but none have been even slightly successful. The biggest gig that I took part in was at a friends birthday party. Since little people in the area like my kind of music (ska, indie, punk), it is extremely hard to form a band. All bands start out struggling, but this one band, exploded on it's first album. This band was highly criticized by many critics. The album cover shows one of the band members friend, smoking a cigarette. The critics say, this album cover is offensive and shows that smoking is ok. It's just a guy smoking a cigarette, are you kidding? Most people at that time in England had smoked cigarettes, and you call this offensive.
   This band is very unique. Most bands rise up in different ways, but in summary, similar. This band on the contrary started up in a small suburb, and exploded in a months on getting a one million dollar record deal.

365 words.
 

Arcade Fire

   Bringing you another Canadian indie band. Their name is Arcade Fire. This band is an indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec. I am going to Montreal over April vacation, and I hope to see them. This band consists of  instruments such as guitar, drums, bass guitar, trumpet, piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, xylophone, glockenspiel, keyboard, French horn, accordion, harp, mandolin, and hurdy-gurdy. All these instruments combined is said to be baroque pop.
    They formed in 2001 and released their first major album in 2004, Funeral.  The album Funeral, had an abstract message, we are all in this together. There were many disputes in the band prior to this album, and they got over it, and created that album. Their new album The Suburbs, released in 2011, won the Polaris Music Prize. This album, The Suburbs, really sticks out to me. They talk about their boring days and useless days when they were teens, growing up in the Canadian suburbs. I can relate to this because I have lived in this small town of Holliston for so long. I grew up living in the city, in Boston. When I was 10 I moved to Holliston, and my life became gradually more boring over the years. They all grew up in small, Canadian towns, and they made an album about it. I listen to this on boring weekends, when I am waiting for something, wanting something, or waiting for something fun to happen in Holliston.
   I also really enjoy this album because I play the cello, guitar, bass guitar, and trumpet. All of these instruments play an extensive part in this album. I often listen to the music, with my instruments beside me, and I try to make out which notes to play.
   This band is great, they are earthy, funny, and calm. They try tour as much as possible, and interact greatly with their fans. They also have many songs in french. I fully understand their french songs since I am in the French Immersion program. This tests my french skills, and I love it. Listening to songs in another language is like magic, something that one is not used to, something different.

363 words.

Tearjerker- Indie band.

As I was surfing through sites, I came across this band, Tearjerker. This band is from Toronto, and is associated with many indie rock scenes in Canada. This band is not so well known, but they are trying. They offer free songs on their website just to get the word out about their band. They also featured on the infamous website, hipstermusic.com. This website features good bands but, alot are mainstream, and the word "hipster" is not so accepted by the indie crowd. Anyways, this band featured in many Canadian concerts such as, Toronto's Loveless. This band waqs created in 2008 until now. Their new album Rare, came out in November, and it is their bands most sucessful album. This band is great, since I have a first cousin that works at Urban Outfitters, I asked her if they could play their album, Rare, in her store, and it played. All the employee's were asking. "Who is this band?, They're amazing!"
http://tearjerker.bandcamp.com/

What is an essay?

According to Bing Dictionarry, an essay is a short analytic, descriptive, or interpretive piece of literary or journalistic prose dealing with a specific topic, especially from a personal and unsystematic viewpoint. Now, "essay" comes from the French word "essaie". Essaie means to try, and onemust try to suceed in an essay.