Albums for Living and Living for Albums #1

Wednesday, 12-6-17

Justin Nozuka- You I Wind Land and Sea (2010)

Impetus for Listening: A long-delayed pledge to a friend.

Let me tell you about Cory Muse. Cory used to work outside with me on the parking lot and he is one of the most talented people I’ve ever met. He sang (quite well), he rapped (really well), and he had a thoughtful perspective on life that he imbued in the music that he made. I’m tempted to call Cory a dreamer but I’ve met more people who fit that description than I’ve met people who did not. Quixotic is probably a better word for Cory. He not only imagined himself a knight, he actively rode off in pursuit of knightly adventures. Last I heard from Cory, he was living in New York, pursuing a music career and sleeping on the subway when he could find nowhere else to lay his head. I don’t know if he’s still there. I don’t know if his dreams have come any closer to fruition. I haven’t spoken to him in years and all I have is memories of conversations that we had quite a while ago. One of the last things I remember speaking to him about is this album. To the best of my recollection, I recommended Justin’s first record to him and he recommended this second one to me. I know that he raved about it and I told him that I would check it out, but I don’t remember anything else. I just know that at that time, a few years ago, this record connected strongly with him, and that today I connected with it and thought about my friend and what he must have drawn from it.

The Day: Frustrating to cathartic.

A customer fell fifteen feet off some steel yesterday. This is what can happen when things are wrapped on the shelf above but not stocked on the shelf below. He was climbing to retrieve some deli containers and attempting to hold himself up, with one arm, while prying a box off of a tightly wrapped pallet, with the other. He hit on his feet and stumbled backwards where I braced him. Worst case, he would have rolled on to his back, and he appeared burly and durable enough to have handled it. Either that or he could have busted his head open on the concrete floor, and I would only be telling you now about something that you already heard about on the news. Best case, he got the thing that he was seeking plus the satisfaction that comes from getting away with a reckless, masculine act (I was asked if I would have performed the same irresponsible action, were I in his situation. I can only say confidently that, if I had, I would aimed to get a foothold before prying. All else is speculative). It all worked out as well as it possibly could have and much better than it might have.

I’m just telling you this to let you know that there can be a certain pressure involved with getting things stocked in your local store. There’s no need to apply more by yelling at your local stocker. When you tell them that you have a need for a particular item that is of life and death urgency, the more concerning thing is not that they DO NOT believe you, it's that they may ACTUALLY HAVE REASON TO. We know that lives are potentially at stake. We already know. So, there was pressure this morning to get stuff stocked and then to get trash cleared off before the actual opening and then to help get online orders done before the customers arrived and then to double back in the midst of order-pulling and help clear more trash and finish order-pulling in time to go outside and cover the parking lot. So, the real lesson here is-

-Stay in school, kids. Retail life can be tough.

 I didn’t listen to Mr. Nozuka until after work by which point the soothing qualities of the album retroactively washed away much of the tension of the earlier day and I realized, belatedly, that I could have used this for the entirety of my day.

Pulse and Stress Factor: What’s stress?

I often say that are only really two genres of music: pulse-lowering music and pulse-raising music. This here lies solidly in the first category. Think John Mayer or Jack Johnson’s music with a vocalist more indebted to R&B. If you like either of those artists, you’ll probably dig this. It’s mellow and smooth and consistently midtempo, almost like the pop rock version of quiet storm. If you’re missing a little groove, you can find it politely bopping away behind the acoustic guitar. If that sounds unappealing, you should probably pass on this. If it sounds intriguing, pull up a chair and order a coffee. Your latte will go down nice with this, I promise.

Who I recommended this to: My friend Nicole.

She introduced me to Mayer's music years ago and is sure to dig this. Surely. If she doesn't like it then, we will remain friends but, I won't know her quite as well as I thought I did.

Workout-ability: Decent

Cardio session today followed by the sauna and this served fine for both.

Write-ability: Better than decent.

 This feels better as a soundtrack for this current sentence than the mandatory minimum I serve daily at the gym.

Fitcamp-adaptability: Perhaps…

After this, I’m heading to play volunteer, laptop music for a workout class and I’m thinking of “Carried You” for the opening stretching section. It’s probably the groove-iest thing on the record and has a warm, atmospheric (read: strings are all over this album and if that sounds intriguing, I’m still holding your chair) quality that I think should set a good opening mood. We’ll see though. I gotta figure out what I would play after and, no, I am absolutely, unequivocally NOT over-thinking this gig.

Suggested sample track: Probably “Heartless”.

At least for right now, which earned the cleanup spot in the track listing and sounds like it could have been a single. It feels equally familiar and welcome and is a good overall demo for what you’re in for on the whole ride.

Overall rating: Pretty high and trending upward.

Third trip through is definitely the best one yet. These songs have a same-y quality at first that works well for background music but the hooks definitely sink in with repeated listening and variety is your reward for sticking with it. Lyrics definitely lean towards the hopeful dreamer side of the spectrum and uplift is the thing I feel more than anything else. I suspect that Cory may have felt the same. If I talk to him again, I plan to ask.

Sweet dreams, ya'll.