MY NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

Happy new year!

It's two weeks into 2009, and you guys haven't heard from me since the New Year hit. Sadly, between school, work and technical difficulties, much of what I wanted to do that was tBoS-related has come up against walls so far. I still carry the flame in my heart, however, and I want to tell you guys my plans for the immediate future.

1) Finish the Top 100 Tracks of 2008 By January 31st: In 2007, by far my most popular feature was my Top 100 of 2008 list. I've got it written up... in another city, on a format this computer can't read. But, damn it, I'm going to have them all posted with my fancy download links and write-ups if it kills me. Or at least faster than last year, where it bled into March.

2) Review at least 2 albums per month: Besides being a good exercise in 'music journalism', rather than 'whatever the hell I feel like writing', it's also the think that tends to draw people's interest. One of my best-known posts still seems to be my in-depth Flavors of Entanglement review, after all, even though the general public seems to have declared Alanis Morissette on the verge of being a has-been. I'm not necessarily going to keep to just-released albums, as I find my reviews half-baked without some steeping time, but they'll happen. I've been listening a lot to Franz Ferdinand's Tonight and Morissey's Years of Refusal, plus some older stuff I still haven't shared with you guys, so hopefully I'll get a start on that soon.

3) Set up 'thebringerofsong.com': Yes, my good friends, I already own thebringerofsong.com. courtesy of a great Xmas gift. Once I get the technical aspect down, tBoS will be a whole new ball game. Except, really, the same old ball game. Just better.

4) Write at least one showcase/discovery a month: These are almost always my favourite posts, and yet I haven't written many in the past months. Next in the pipeline is most likely Travis, as they've had a storied career that doesn't get half the notice it should.

5) Hone my skills: I'm still developing in this arena, as though I don't know music I like to think I've got a decent knowledge of human feeling. This year, I'd like to learn a little bit more about music and how to 'read' it. I also want to deepen and widen my music knowledge by digging into music before my birth, and since it; I know that delving into the 90's has given me a couple of great listens like Radiohead.

So, that's the plan for the immediate future. And, to keep you guys interested, here's my current favourite from Franz Ferdinand:

Franz Ferdinand - No You Girls [Tonight, 2008]