the blisslist

fist to the sky! {July 31, 2009}

San Francisco has endured a rubbish week encased in fog and cold mist. Ah, summers in SF.... bah, inclement weather, I shall defy you and play outdoors regardless of your curmudgeon! After an early morning of hiking and an afternoon of BBQ noshing & lolling (rain or shine, it's my friend's birthday!), I plan on spending Saturday evening sipping beers & giggling with Roger as we relax and take in performances by Mason Proper and Stellastarr* at Slim's. 

I'm looking forward to this particular pairing. If you nest in the Bay Area, consider buttering up your ears & joining the audience. We promise we won't block your view! This will be Michigan-based Mason Proper's first appearance in San Francisco, and they deserve a warm welcome. (Stellastarr* has traveled out west several times. I saw them perform back in 2008—love, love, love the nostalgic retro-gleam of their older stuff, particularly "My Coco" and "Somewhere Across Forever"). And if Mason Proper plays the very good, very bay area appropriate tune, "Fog," I will be a pleased Liz Frith, indeed!  

Fog - Mason Proper | purchase   
My Coco - Stellastarr* | purchase    

You can also get Mason Proper's new! free! remix EP from their label right here. 

I hope everyone has a bit of fun over the next 2 days—whether it's cosy & couch-bound or conversely adventurous. It's Friday at long last, fist to sky!

(image by leo patrone)

think before speaking? {July 30, 2009}

I love this image. On this morning's train ride I became rather thinky about myself, specifically ruminating upon all of the things in my life left unsaid—how over time, we all have an army of blank speech bubbles following us around, the scenes unforgotten & marked with vivid technicolor.

I am going to work on keeping this burgeoning bubble collective under control—though my bubbles are cute and I like their style!   

But still, I should speak up more often.

Here's two more poppish-delicious tunes from the 500 Days of Summer soundtrack. I listened to both of them on repeat this morning and I am trying to ween myself away! The Temper Trap is Australian and they're riding a happy up & up progression (they played at SxSW earlier this year and their debut album will drop on August 13); while conversely, Mumm-Ra is British and opened for The Killers before sadly disbanding in 2008. (Lone tear of sadness!—though most of the band members are pursuing other creative projects.)

Be well my dears, hope you are having a lovely Thursday. I'm going to bake a pie tonight with my new pyrex pie plate. Tomorrow's breakfast = pie!!!!!

Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap | purchase   
She's Got You High - Mumm-Ra | purchase   

(artwork by Rivane Neuenschwander, via bad banana blog)

stay down, champion, stay down {July 28, 2009}

I'm noshing at my desk, typing and stopping to pick apart a slice of bbq pizza. Today's lady who lunches is making a dreadful mess of gooey cheese & crumbs and being lazy! There are so many things to write about and busy-bee myself over. I have a band interview to finish, an intimidatingly large collective of new submission tracks in my inbox, many blogs to check up on, and several emusic credits that are about to expire.

Yet all I want to do is listen to The National and read lyrics and be thinky.
I'm especially stuck on The Virginia EP's "Tall Saint" this afternoon.

Tall Saint - The National | purchase  

A new album is supposed to drop in 2010! I've already heard several new live tracks—"England," "Karamazov," "Blood Buzz Ohio," "Vanderlylle Cry Baby," "A Thousand Black Cities," "Wake Up Your Saints," "Big Red Machine" with Bon Iver from Dark Was the Night, and A NEW COMPILATION TRACK, "Ashamed of the Story I'm Told." (mwah mwah, dear readers who continue to alert me of songs.)

England (Live) - The National | Video
Karamazov (Live) - The National | Video
Blood Buzz Ohio (Live) - The National | Video
Vanderlylle Cry Baby (Live) - The National | Video
A Thousand Black Cities (Live) - The National | Video
Wake Up Your Saints (Live) - The National
Big Red Machine (Live) - Bon Iver and Matt Berninger | Video (thx, mister Listenerd)

And some additional finds that have been floating around for awhile:

Brainy (Alternate Version!) - The National
Dynamite Walls (Live) - Hayden backed by The National
Warm Singing Whores - The National

Listen, listen, sink, pace, putter and flutter goes Liz ....

(Graphic: Giraffe by Denise Simon)

(bitch.) {July 26, 2009}

"The boy, Tom Hanson of Margate, NJ, grew up believing that he'd never truly be happy until the day he met The One. This belief stemmed from early exposure to sad British pop music and a total misreading of the movie The Graduate."  — opening lines of 500 Days of Summer

I lolled away my pretty Saturday with one of my best guy friends. We strolled 7 miles around San Francisco, splitting a delicious sandwich, skipping down the Mission's sunny sidewalks, and shopping uptown for soft, plaid shirts & summer garb. I made him dinner, too. See, I was trying to be a good friend and distract him from an evolving "boy-meets-amazing-girl / boy-really-likes-amazing-girl / dating-dating-dating-hurray! / boy-realizes-affections-are-not-equal-ARGH / more-dating-dating-dating-ensuing-misery / girl-is-emotionally-destroying-boy-with-noncommittal-aloofness-oh-my-god-STAB-TO-THE-EYE!" situation of awfulness.

I thought a movie would be a fun way to conclude the day, so we went to see 500 Days of Summer. I didn't know anything about the plot. I chose it haphazardly—based solely on the inclusion of lovely Zooey Deschanel (holy platonic girl crush!) and a bevy of glowing reviews. It deserves every accolade. It's one of the best movies I've ever seen. I am not going to tell you how it ends, but 500 Days of Summer is a very clever, whimsical anti-romantic comedy that made me smile, sigh, and tear up more than a few times. I was very touched. 500 Days  deals with an unfolding boy-meets-girl situation of devastating unrequited love, which (in my opinion) is among the most hellish things to go through, ever—second only to someone dying. I've experienced the intense pain of being "Tom," though I've definitely been a muted-down version "Summer" too—aloof, independent, flirty, noncommittal, and unintentionally hurtful. I think many of us have experienced both roles, and there's much wisdom to be extracted from these life experiences. There's always a silver lining. My experiences have made me a better person, without question—here's to having your heart broken and filled back up again. Because eventually, it will.

So yes, this is my happy 4-star review. 500 Days of Summer is quirky, thought-provoking, funny, and packaged up & presented impeccably—ah, the editing! It's also speckled with several very sweet, romantic scenes inducing awwws and upturned lip-corners. It's definitely worth your time & dollars .... unless you are trying to cheer up your best friend who's fallen for a girl who's amazing and beautiful but goddamn effing (!!!) emotionally unavailable. Then you are an evil bitch and your name is Liz.

Sorry, J.

Love,

The evil bitch.



I promptly purchased the film's soundtrack before falling into bed last night. It's wonderful—featuring tracks from The Smiths, Regina Spektor, Simon & Garfunkel, She & Him, The Black Lips, Doves, and Feist. Here are two of my favorite songs. Enjoy, friends!

Vagabond - Wolfmother | purchase  
Us - Regina Spektor | purchase  

OH, BLOG! {July 23, 2009}

When my blog grows up it wants to showcase Marc Johns illustrations every day!

It also wants to eat ice cream with candy bits for dinner, drink ungodly amounts of ginger ale, and watch NYC Prep on Hulu.

Bad blog, bad!

14 Forever - Stars | purchase  

pay attention to me {July 22, 2009}

Quick post, rapid-fire! Pew pew pew!!!!!!!!!!!!

Go here. Check out Beck's excellent interview with Pitchfork's Tom Breihan. I'm late to this, but his new project, Record Club, is simply fascinating. Record Club is "an informal meeting of various people to record an album in a day. An album will be chosen to be reinterpreted and used as a framework. Nothing rehearsed or arranged ahead of time...."

Tracks are being uploaded weekly. Check out his website for more Velvet Underground and Nico covers. Next up, a collaboration with Wilco! They've recorded a cover of Skip Spence's Oar.

Omg, when will it be here?

Femme Fatale - Beck (Velvet Underground cover)
Missing You - Beck (my fav Beck song of all time) | purchase  
Do You Realize - Beck (an old Flaming Lips cover)

ps. In other completely unrelated happenings, I must share that I'm completely marveled & obsessed with Julia Child's My Life in France. I picked up her memoir after reading a fascinating article in The New Yorker a couple weeks ago. I've spent the last few evenings reading it into the wee hours and then rousing at 6 am to hike to the top of cold, fog-encased Twin Peaks, listening to French podcasts & reciting unfamiliar pretty-sounding phrases along the way. I will write more about Julia Child, my ruddy-cheeked morning hikes, and what it is all doing to me very, very soon.

pps. Pew, pew!

(fog & french & freakin' early!)

bitten {July 19, 2009}

Half Dome is over. I thought there would be pleas to Jesus and messy snorts & sobs of frustration along the way, but the entire trip was a lot of fun. I did it, I lived.

I climbed the entire thing in a blue plaid shirt, a ridiculous cowboy hat, and my shiny aviator sunglasses—my summit-conquering hillbilly garb, y'all. Moreover, it was an gorgeous day trip—I hiked 15 miles with a 4,800 ft elevation gain to nearly 9,000 ft, resulting in a chipped tooth (sigh), a 400 ft cable climb, 5 tattered fingers, and a black bear encounter. (Roger & the boys got within 15 feet of it as the girls scurried up the trail, plunging onward.)

Mum's "Marmalade Fires" reminds me of what it felt like at the top of Half Dome—an exquisite, post-glow exhaustion making itself comfortable in my bones, setting up happy residence as we marinated in the sun, ate m&ms, and gazed upon the Yosemite valley floor. "Marmalade Fires" is expansive, fugitive, and sweetly whimsical. I am listening to it now, overcome with inspiration and sentiment. It's a marvelous, vivid tune.

I want to drink from life in big gulps. Time to ready myself for something new, something harder. The Grand Canyon? Colorado? Zion National Park? I'm still awake and puttering around the internet—researching, scheming & dreaming out loud.

My, my, I'm bitten.

Marmalade Fires - Mum | purchase    (xo, Letters Have No Arms! Thanks for reminding me of their upcoming release!)

(afraid.) {July 14, 2009}

Conversation with mister best friend as we drove to our final training hike at Mission Peak:

Me: I'm still scared of Half Dome!

Mister best friend: Liz, you will be fine. You are a kick-ass hiker.

Me: ...........

Mister best friend: ...........

Me: You might have to coach me to the summit. Will you do that?

Mister best friend: ...........

Me: ........... Eric!

Mister best friend: Fine, fine, yes, I will coach you.

Me: You don't sound very happy, Eric. I want you to WANT TO coach me to the top.

Mister best friend: Oh my god!!!!!!!! Why do girls say ridiculous things like that?

Me: You are right. I don't know who I am anymore.

This will be my only post this week. I'm driving to Yosemite and climbing Half Dome on Friday, and I am being a big baby about it—fretting and worrying and talking to myself on the sidewalk and buying lots of life insurance along the way. My co-workers have endured repetitive ruminations on slippery 45 degree angles and well-trodden death granite in our weekly meetings. I have terrified everyone, quite unfairly. Thousands & thousands & thousands of folks have successively summited Half Dome without sliding to their demise.

It will be fine. I will have the best time ever! Epic fun w/o death and dismemberment, hurray!

I will now go back to distracting myself with the new, o-so stellar Dodos album, Time to Die. Umm .....

Fables - The Dodos (stream the entire album here, thx for the tip, fork/knife fellas!)

(graphic by Marc Johns)

good luck, i love you {July 10, 2009}

A lovely prezzie to get this weekend off the ground: Imogen Heap's new single, "First Train Home," is streaming on Stereogum!

Yep, it's very likely to play in the background of an awful Grey's Anatomy episode. I do, however, love Imogen Heap and I like her new tune. Her songs are distinctive, beautifully constructed & unabashedly girlish—with blips, pops, floating vocals and layers capturing those droplets in the time, those moments where blood floods & flushes our cheeks—the moments that stay fixed in our minds forever, both good & bad.

I'd be hard-pressed to find a girl that could listen to Imogen Heap without falling into a series of sighs. Get ready, her new album, Ellipse, will be out next month.

Have a great weekend, let go and do something really fun. Your reality is malleable, xo!

First Train Home - Imogen Heap {update: Hurray, I found the mp3!}
Goodnight & Go - Imogen Heap | purchase 

(One day, I will own this large mixed media piece by Bread and Butter. Want want want, save save save!!!)

unfit mother {July 9, 2009}

Rosemary no. 1 died last night.

I may pick up a Rosemary no. 2 this weekend, but if she ends up dying within six days like Rosemary no. 1, I am definitely giving up. My massive fish bowl might be re-purposed & re-imagined as a terrarium. A hat holder, maybe?

I will not be a poster girl for fishocide.

The Next Time Around - Little Joy | purchase   

(photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt, via Cup of Jo)