Portugal. The Man - Sleep Forever

Portugal. The Man is a strangely punctuated band from Alaska, and by far one of my favorite bands of all time. They've got so much soul it hurts and a groove to match it. John Gourely's vocals are as smooth as a bowl of pudding. Chocolate probably. Maybe butterscotch. Or a combination of the two. Chocoscotch. Either way he can match wits with any singer from the motown era and easily give them a run for their money.

Their new album In the Mountain, In the Cloud is fantastic. Its got a grandiose, infinite feel to it that leaves you feeling fulfilled and OK with the world. This song "Sleep Forever", the closing track, solidifies that feeling of acceptance with the idea of existence and what it means to be human, even if this means coming to terms with the fact that we aren't immortal.

As I finally meet my end

I won't be scared, I won't defend

The things I've done

I don't need him like you do

I don't fear him like you do



As the world revolves the sun

I hope the light that I become can

Sleep for once

I will leave it like you do

I won't lead it like you do

I won't leave it like they do

I don't need him like they do



I just want to sleep forever

Never see tomorrow

Or lead or follow

I don't want to work forever

Know what I know

Or beg or borrow



Just like our mothers

Who gave us our homes

We'll be just like our fathers

And go out on their own

'Cause we are the colors

Of all that you see

We'll be just like our brothers

And take to the streets

Take to the streets



I just want to sleep forever

Never see tomorrow

Lead or follow



As my world it hides behind

The words only your wars define

They read a lot like news

But I fear it more than you

I fear it more than you

Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com 


I just want to sleep forever

Never see tomorrow

Or lead or follow

I don't want to work forever

Know what I know

Or beg or borrow



Just like old lovers

Who never leave home

We'll forget the city

And forget the roads

'Cause we are all rebels

Never do what we're told

We may not grow money

But man we grow old

Man we grow old



I just want to sleep forever

Never see tomorrow

Or lead or follow

I don't want to work forever

Know what I know

Or beg or borrow



Just like our mothers

Who gave us our homes

We'll be just like our fathers

And go out on our own

'Cause we are the colors

In all that you see

We'll be just like our brothers

And take to the streets



'Cause we are all children

Yeah, we are all man

It may not be much

But we do what we can

Don't need no preacher

To make us believe

That everything's perfectly

Fucked up like me

Antlers - Parentheses

The Antlers are a Brooklyn based bunch of buddies who have been in the spotlight since their debut full length Hospice. I personally couldn't get into it that much because it was extremely artsy. But their new album Burst Apart is rather good. Its still pretty artsy, but their are some catchy pop influences that burst through. Get it? Burst.

Anyway, this song is a mysterious head-bobber that glitters about with synths and high pitched guitar effects. The bass comes in at the perfect moment creepily throbbing through the noise and high pitched vocals. Then. The chorus. Oh the chorus. If you want to call it that anyway. Its a rough radiohead-ish riff with sloppy distortion that makes you want to place a smug look on your face and and nod slowly in some dark corner like a future version of Strider from Lord of the Rings. Im a nerd.

One broken wing, 
Soaring and suffering, 
Arm in a sling, 
I don't owe you anything.

I'm a bad absentee, 
You know when I want to leave.

So close up your knees, 
And I'll close your parentheses.

I'm a bad amputee, 
With no phantom memory.
So close up your knees, 
And I'll close your parentheses.

Andrew Bird - Skin is, My

Andrew Bird is a virtuoso. Not just at violin, but at guitar. and whistling. and just about every other instrument he picks up. I want this talent badly. Relinquish your powers to me, Bird.

This is a cool rendition of the song "Skin is, My" off of the album Andrew Bird and the Mysterious Production of Eggs. The album's cover is hilarious to me for some reason:

Anyway, the song sounds like it belongs in some saucy lounge on a Caribbean island with its Bossa Nova rhythms and its jazzy drums. I love the part near the end where it just rocks out to the line "Oh what a lovely sound! Oh how it shakes the ground!"

My skin is
White as parchment
Drier than a downtown office building
Where the air is tight
There's time spent
Resting on her bones
Waiting for the telephone to ring
Ba-ring ba-ring ba-ring . . . 
Bo-ring bo-ring bo-ring . . . 

My skin is
Cold as her toes on the bathroom floor
Run back to bed and slam the door
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh how it shakes the ground
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh what a lovely...

Skin is my
It's the only thing
That doesn't really fly in my land
And love, oh love 
Is my love is
It's the only thing that
Butterfly in Thailand

Let it be printed on every t-shirt in this land
On the finest of cottons and the hippest of brands
[- From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/a/andrew-bird-lyrics/skin-is,-my-lyrics.html -]
In bolder letters than the capital I
It's the only thing, it's the only thing
It's the only lonely, whoa

My skin is
White as parchment
Drier than a downtown office building
Where the air is tight
There's time spent
Waiting for that
Macrame bird of prey
To come down and sing
La-ling la-ling la-ling...
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh how it shakes the ground
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh how it shakes the ground
Oh what a lovely sound

Oh what a lovely sound
Oh how it shakes the ground
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh how it shakes the ground
Oh what a lovely sound
Oh, oh what a lovely sound