Shuffleboard 12

1. "Prelude from Suite No. 1 for Unaccompanied Cello in G Major" by Yo-Yo Ma from Sounds of Yo-Yo Ma
Note: composed by Bach
Nothing better than a great cello. Yo-Yo Ma is the cello, as far as I'm concerned. Like Itzhak Perlman on the violin and John Coltrane on the sax, Ma is the definition of a great cellist.
This is one of the more popular Bach cello pieces. It's definitely written solely for a cello, and Bach certainly challenges the player to play some great sixteenth-note runs. In fact, the song is pretty much one long sixteenth-note run. Ma has exceptional emotion and dynamics throughout the shortish track, and you can't help but feel distinguished just by listening to it. Phenomenal.



2. "Impacilla Caprisung" by The Ting Tings from We Started Nothing
No idea what they're saying, but it's catchy. That encompasses most Ting Tings songs. They're a strange duo of girls from the UK, and have had a few songs play on 96.5 , so I decided to pick up their album from the library.
This is one my least favorite tracks on the album. There's a few other songs that are much more catchy, but this one is still pretty fun. Fun drumbeat, some woodblocks (?), and minimalist guitars behind some gibberish words make for a unique track.
Again, they're pretty strange.


3. "I Never Woke Up In Handcuffs Before" by Hans Zimmer from Sherlock Holmes
Man, Zimmer pulls another good one. His score for Sherlock Holmes was second-to-none. Erratic, fast-paced, and out of tune, just like the detective himself. This particular track starts with an accordion and tuba, which is then overshadowed by bongos and a screeching, erratic, and almost violent violin. The Violent Violin is the star of the whole score, embodying Holmes insane behavior.
This track is a lot of fun, and lightens the mood a bit. Other tracks in the Holmes score are pretty dark and creepy. But then again, so is the movie. And yet again, so is Holmes' mind.


4. "How He Loves" by David Crowder Band from Church Music
Another Crowder hit. This track, "that hurricane song," received the most airtime before Church Music came out, probably because it was the most radio-friendly.
Not to say that it isn't a great song, but Crowder has such a unique range. I love his weirder stuff.
Anyways, musically speaking, it's a pretty standard Crowder praise song. Soft at the beginning, gets louder and builds to an emotional climax. But what sets it apart from the Bill Gaither/Hillsong-esque praise music is the lyrics. Crowder can write like nobody's business.
This track speaks of God's extraordinary love for us. "If His grace is an ocean, we're all sinking," one line in the climax says. It's a great song to listen to when you start getting selfish and wondering why God isn't doing things your way.
The Truth to remember is that He does indeed love us, and that alone should be enough. He even sent His Son as a sacrifice to redeem us to prove that love. Yet sometimes, in the storm of life, we need songs like this to remind us that He does indeed love us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCunuL58odQ (watch this version; it's worth it)

5. "Selfish Man" by Flogging Molly from Alive Behind the Green Door
Every time I listen to Flogging Molly, I wish I was Irish. Folk-celtic-punk is by far the weirdest genre I have in my strange iTunes library, and I love it.
Every song I have makes me want to get up, grab a pint, and dance.
"Selfish Man" is a surprisingly honest song about selfishness. One verse confesses:

Walk around me not before me 

I'll pretend not to ignore ye 

But I'll compromise if I realize you can do something for me 

I'm ugly and you know it, but you think that I'm a poet 

So I'll keep the rhyme if I feel in time, it gets me where I'm going

Deep stuff. And this is sung by a mad angry Irishman. I love it. Unfortunately, like the equally surprisingly-honest song "Something's Missing" by John Mayer, the song falls short of finding a solution to our jacked-upness. One more verse about Jesus, and they'd have it.