Singing Along

It's probably pretty clear from previous posts that music plays a pretty big part in my life. My grandfather is the proverbial leader of the band, so I think it's in my blood. I need near constant music, and if I'm not actually listening to any, chances are I've got a song stuck in my head to keep myself entertained.

There are so many bands I love and have loved, I can't even really count them. Probably, the mainstay bands I've loved most of my life are U2 and R.E.M. I barely remember a time I didn't love those bands, and I particularly remember falling in love with U2 when I was eight.

For the past few years, my favorite band has been Dashboard Confessional. I kind of stumbled onto them in 2002, when a friend of mine made me a birthday mix CD and put 'The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most' on it, and then around the same time, my gym kept playing the 'Screaming Infidelities' video. The next summer, I listened to 99X in Atlanta on line at work, and they would play 'Hands Down' in pretty heavy rotation. I went out and bought A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar and their unplugged CD...and my love affair with their music was officially on.

If you aren't already aware, this week they released their new album, Alter the Ending. It's as close to a perfect album as I've come across recently. Every song on it is a home run; heartbreaking and gorgeous. I literally cannot get enough of it. And the band has been on TV quite a bit, promoting the album. Generally, they've been playing the first single, 'Belle of the Boulevard' which is just a fantastic song.

I realize that as posts go, this one's not all that interesting, but trust me when I tell you...if you're looking for an album to get hooked on, this one's a good bet.