bon iver - "skinny love"

My best discovery last year in music was Bon Iver.  His album, For Emma, Forever Ago was a revelation to me. Every nuanced sound, verse, moment seemed quietly screamed from his soul. Cathartic, expansive, truthful.

If you don't know the story, he went off to a cabin alone in the Wisconsin woods to basically reclaim his life from all the "stuff" that had been happening over the last few years. He created this elegy to that life and a space for hope for the future one. I have listened to at least one song, usually the whole album, at least once a day since I got it last August.

I selected the video below for it's quiet power and while it may seem an odd choice for Valentine's Day, I'm sure it will resonate with some.

You should also go to concerts a emporter on La Blogotheque to see some more videos done in Paris.  They do these great live short films of bands performing songs in very different, often impromptu locations like someone's living room, walking the streets or maybe even the tour van. Really intimate. Check out Bon Iver's, Part I and Part II. The a cappella section of the title song is fabulous. Enjoy.

stanstedt 6

copyright © christopher barbour 2007-2009

vernazza lagoon, liguria, italia

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

a southern duke and duchess

from the series, 519 central ave

copyright © christopher barbour 2005-2009

free download - today's top tune

KCRW, the independent radio station here in Los Angeles, offers a free song download Monday through Friday. I have discovered a lot of great music this way and I applaud them for promoting often under-heard artist. Imagine my glee, when Today's Top Tune was Animal Collective's "My Girls". So if you like the song and video I posted Saturday, you can download it for free today only, I think until 12:00am PST. Go here. 

I check it every day, but you can also subscribe, listen in itunes and delete what you don't like. Enjoy.

yes, venezia again..

No, this is not a theme, Venezia on Tuesday.  I promise.  I'm posting this in honor of a friend headed there for the next 17 days to document Carnivale and just enjoy la dolce vita.  Oh the envy...

I truly loved my time in Italia.  Definitely one of the greatest experiences of my life. 

twilight, venezia, italia

copyright @ christopher barbour 2003-2009

eurhythmy no.5

from the series, eurhythmy

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

light leaks magazine

I have a new image from my series the known world published in Light Leaks Issue 12. It just came out. Support this magazine. It gives fine artist a great place to showcase our work. 

In Los Angeles, you can pick up copies at Freestyle Photographic Supplies 5124 Sunset Blvd. Hollywood, CA. It is also available at Photoworks in San Francisco, CA, The Photographer's Gallery in London, and Vancouver Art Gallery in Vancouver, BC, Canada. There is a complete list of stockist in the online preview or you can subscribe online here.

more music - broken social scene, "churches under the stairs"

This is another song I can't get out of my head. I love this band. Another great Canadian art rock collective. Check here for more great videos and songs by them.

Also, this has to be one of the greatest collaborations and performance ideas ever. The Godfather of Soul and Luciano Pavarotti... no joke. ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!

introducing music - animal collective, "my girls"

I grew up surrounded by music. My parents played a lot of Motown, a lot of shag music and my sister and I loved it all. We, of course, went on our own journeys and after growing up on The Godfather of Soul himself, playing in the marching band and wind ensemble, I am not embarrassed to say the following... yes, I embraced Prince wholeheartedly as a thirteen year old and I own every album today. What thirteen year old boy wouldn't like songs such as "Do Me, Baby", "Jack U Off", "Lady Cab Driver", or "International Lover"? That's a cornucopia of hormonal bliss even if I had no idea then. I saw Breakin', Beat Street and Krush Groove probably more times than anyone in my small southern hometown far removed from New York City, and I know way more about b-boying than any of you who know me now would imagine. Let's just say many battles were had and won. I became the Grandmaster Flash of my small town, and I loved deejaying... holding sway over the crowd, making mixtapes, and yes, that does mean I know the beauty of vinyl and scratching. Certainly, I am not Grandmaster Flash, but I was pretty good back in the day. There were many times when my childhood pals, Johnny, Chris and I would drive the streets of our small town firing away our parts to "No Sleep 'til Brooklyn".  Me... I was Ad-Rock. 

At college, I deejayed at a bar and while I discovered all types of new musical genres, I never stopped loving the old school music and rhythms of my youth. The Kid-n-Play kick step with Keith and Vince was a mainstay in the dorm and on the basketball court. Then of course, there is the jazz education. I didn't really know jazz before college. I discovered I LOVE JAZZ. Coltrane is a god. Miles... miles ahead, what else can you say. Honestly, I could listen to Kind of Blue every day for the rest of my life. And of course, there's Mingus, Monk, Ornette, Bill, Chet, Cannonball, McCoy, Wayne, Herbie, and many many more.  I have embraced so many types of music I even enjoy bluegrass now which I was surrounded by in the hills of southern Virginia growing up. I wasn't so keen then. Prince, early rap, and bluegrass didn't really mix. Now it all sounds great. I imagine the mixtapes I could have made had I only known then what I know now.  

So why am I am telling you all of this? I miss introducing music to people on a broader scale. My close friends get to hear me talk about all kinds of new music finds. I decided to share them here. My taste is pretty much everything, and I don't think myself some highbrow music-know-it-all that only listens to the most indie music I can find. Some of it is, and some isn't. I like what I like. If you like it great, if you don't, then you know you don't. Fine by me. Today's heavy rotation often includes extensive amounts of world music, jazz, Sigur Ros, singer/songwriters like Bon Iver and Alexi Murdoch, the British clans of Elbow, Radiohead and the massive similar, but rarely equaling bands, all sorts of film score music and classical. Oh, and Wilco, certainly can't forget them. Checkout the roadcase section of their site to listen to live shows online. I wish more bands did this. Seriously, I'm everywhere. It is a broad spectrum mostly based on my emotion of the day just like my art. 

Right now, I LOVE this song and can't seem to get it out of my head.  It just makes me happy and think of spring which is just around the corner here in Los Angeles. Although, being from the east coast and growing up with seasons, it often always feels like spring in LA. Plus, these guys are from Baltimore, where I lived ten years ago before moving here. So I'm supporting the pseudo-hometown in some ways. Enjoy the video and if it doesn't sync well, go here. Its much better if in sync.

Animal Collective "My Girls" from Chad von Nau on Vimeo.

end of the week

Well, it's Friday. First week posting daily images and I've enjoyed looking back through my work to find them. Its a bit daunting, I have so many images and I really need to buckle down and edit so this is serving a great purpose for me. I have a plan now for many more and I look forward to sharing these with you in the weeks to come. I think what I have decided is to post a daily image Monday through Friday and then on the weekend post items I find interesting... music, quotes, books, random thoughts/happenings. So look for this and some career-related news coming in the near future. With that, I thought this was a great image to end the week.  Enjoy and thanks for stopping by.

between you and i

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

and what will the day bring you

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

we see things as we are

from the series, unraveling the tapestry

copyright @ christopher barbour 2005-2009

two for tuesday - for anthony

I watched Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations episode on Venice tonight.  It made me long for Italia and I couldn't decide between these two so you get two images for Tuesday.  Enjoy!

the boatride, venezia, italia

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

gondolier, venezia, italia

copyright © christopher barbour 2003-2009

let the daily image post commence...

so the plan is to post a daily image from new work or from the archive. some will be from series, some in search of a series and some just outtakes. i hope you enjoy. here's the first one:

i shelter here some days

copyright © christopher barbour 2008/2009

btw, the limited edition print sale continues so look below for details or contact me.