But Until Then...

So, I can check e-mail and even post a blog, but I have yet to learn how to do all the fancier little things that make a blog more personal (besides the writing itself). I don't know how to make a space for "What I'm Listening To" or "What I'm Reading", though I'd like to do both. Any friends looking to give a tutorial this week? Let's grab coffee (on me).

But until then, let me just tell you what I'm listening to and what I'm reading.

The Apples In Stereo. Frankly, I'm not sure how I missed this band. They're apart of the whole Elephant 6 thing, and I'm obsessed with Neutral Milk Hotel and I love bands that excel at the art of pop rock (Beatles meets Beach Boys w/out ripping off either) and all that to say that I REALLY should have discovered these guys sooner than a few months ago. They have a new album coming out tomorrow. Go pick it up. It's fantastic.

Peter Adams. If I were a young and aspiring musician, I'd have to struggle not to hate this guy. At 21, he records this brilliant album in his dorm room. You'd never know it. It's one of the most lush homemade indie productions I have ever heard and one of my favorite albums in awhile. You can't buy it in stores. Go to his website and get it there. It's worth it. I'd make Andrew Bird/Jeff Buckley/Radiohead/Neutral Milk Hotel comparisons if I didn't think that would turn you off.

The Arcade Fire. Specifically the album they are releasing in March of this year. It is fantastic. More of the same, but not in a bad way. Actually, one difference: this was the first time that they reminded me of Springsteen. No, not in a bad way (I never mean that in a bad way you "too hip" indie kids).

So, that's what I'm listening to. That and the new Shins and The Good, The Bad, and The Queen, both of which you can read about anywhere and don't need me to tell you about. They're both excellent. And I've always got something by Springsteen or The Kinks or Van Morrison or The Beatles playing.

As far as what I'm reading...

Snow. Written by Orhan Pamuk. I haven't read much by Pamuk (Black Book was good, but didn't have me running out for more), but I'll be reading more now. This book is incredible. Magical. Lyrical. Rich. Like Garcia Marquez or Saramago.

Acts of Faith. Philip Caputo. Less personal than What Is The What (which is, in my opinion, the best book out there about the current situation in the Sudan), but a better overview of the Sudan as a whole. I recommend reading WITW and AoF back to back. I found it rewarding. I will certainly be picking up Caputo's memoir on Vietnam. He reminds me of Graham Greene.

How (Not) To Speak of God. This book is frustrating me, but who says you should always read books you agree with (I'd say just the opposite, in fact). This is one of the authors I was referring to a few posts back (on the limitations of God). The guy is crazy smart and innovative. I like the way he thinks, even if I don't draw the same conclusions.

I'm always reading whatever I can get my hands on by NT Wright (quite a bit) and Peter Forsyth (harder to come by). Wright's new one on evil is as good as you'd expect it to be (which is very good indeed).

I've got a reader for the new Michael Chabon that I am excited to start. I love the initial premise (what if the Jewish state were established in Alaska instead of Israel, as Franklin Roosevelt once suggested?). Also thinking about rereading Franny and Zooey. Again. And am always dipping into old favorites like Flannery O'Connor and Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Let's do this again sometime. At least until that tutorial.