.michal maciej karcz.

…run towards the light…

a record that has been apart of my favorites for the past few years is the glow pt. 2 by the microphones. sincerely, whenever its getting towards the mid-end of summer… i take this out and dream about the fall. something visually comes alive in the music .. new changes, new beginnings, all those different colors of leaves, cool-warm air breezes… and that good feeling like yr able to breathe and start all over once again. for those who need some good ole inspiration, this is truly a beautiful low-fi homemade masterpiece.

from olympia washington, the microphones is all inside the creativity of one man, phil elvrum. completely full of delicate acoustic guitars, flashes of cello, horns, distorted drums and haunting organs, the music provides some of the most fragile and flawless sound driven experiments tested. unafraid to show feelings that range from melancholy to pure bliss, phil’s lyrical quality is absolutely poetic building cold tension into passionate release.

without any further hesitation, the song that left a first impression was “the glow pt. 2″ sharing a personal reflection of the afterglow of depression and being let in to feel every lil piece. every time i listen, these familiar emotions runaround inside of me. always sitting in a humbled silence towards the end, i cant help but cry and laugh at the same time, needing to repeat this song over and over and over again.

“i took my shirt off in the yard. no one saw that the skin on my shoulders was golden. now it’s not, my shirt’s back on.i forgot my songs. the glow is gone. my gliding body stopped.
i could not get through september without a battle. i faced death, i went in with my arms swinging. but i heard my own breath and had to face that i’m still living.

overall, throughout this entire magical album is an adventurous rollercoaster ride that works on an absolute sense of story-telling perfection. it is highly recommended and intended to be heard through a pair of headphones, just so you may notice the lil details of imperfections and special sounds moving from ear to ear. for some, it may take several listens to completely understand the genuine beauty and for others, they may immediately turn it off, never looking back.

however, if yr in the mood to give into something meaningful…. please, please, please take a chance and experience this.

• the glow pt. 2
• the moon
• the gleam pt. 2

im telling you. this lil mixer, arty fufkin. he keeps bringing me back. i dont know what it is. the heat wave we’re about to be experiencing.. my already consumed deliriousness? possibly maybe. but nonetheless, just like arty’s past mixup of kelly clarkson vs thom yorke’s atom for idols, his mashup of gnarls barkley’s crazy vs supertramp’s logical song vs the who’s go to the mirror boy vs rockwell’s somebody’s watching is very nicely done.

c’mon now..
who do you who do you who do you
who do you think you are
ha ha ha
bless yr soul
……
you really think yr in control?

i think yr crazy
just like me.

recently i was sent some music from sweden’s tobias froberg‘s 2nd album *somewhere in the city* and decided to take a listen. i was taken back at first… as i truly enjoyed one of the songs — love & misery — this doesnt always happen very often. his collaboration with ane brun is one of the prettiest and most painful tracks ive heard all summer long. the way her voice mixes with his, its truly magical.

this is true i am fragile just like you
you and me, we are love & misery

through simple acoustic guitar patterns, tobias produces a similar sensitivity throughout the entire rest of his music. its almost like secretly reading an old dark journal that is so sad, it becomes beautiful. the new release *somewhere in the city* will be available in the usa thru cheap lullaby and in the UK on poptones.

in 2005, tobias froberg’s debut *for elizabeth wherever she is* won sweden’s singer-songwriter album of the year. his good friend, jose gonzalez won the year before.

she doesnt want to save the world
she just wants to be remembered
grace
[from for elizabeth wherever she is]