Do You Hear The Music?

Oh 2012 where have you gone?!  This year has been a crazy, wild, fun and exciting year in music for me.  The only thing I would have liked to do more is get a bunch of additional posts on the blog.  In what is now an annual (three years running), here are some of my favorite music moments of the year.

• I took the position of Head of Music & Live Performances with Life Is Beautiful, a two-day music, food and art festival coming to Downtown Las Vegas in the fall of 2013.  I can’t wait to share this with everyone.  Getting to work with incredible individuals and create an experience unlike anything Las Vegas has ever seen is an amazing opportunity that I am proud to be a part of. LOTS of details to come so stay tuned
• I had the opportunity to spend 15 minutes speaking with the godfather of reggae, Jimmy Cliff, for an interview in Vegas SEVEN.  15 of the coolest minutes of my life
• I returned to Bonnaroo and had the greatest four days with amazing friends.  Being in the middle of nowhere Tennessee with 80,000+ people is true paradise but you have to go to understand why.
• Lollapalooza 2012 was such a quick in-and-out visit to Chicago for me this year and it was as expected too much fun with great friends
• I made my first visit to Treasure Island Music Festival in San Francisco.  Such a cool venue for a festival and a lot of great talent performed over two days
• I kept up with posting playlists throughout the year and hopefully provided you with some new tunes and new bands to get into.
• In January posted about San Cisco, Clement Marfo & The Frontline, Of Monsters and Men, Avalanche City and The Jungle Giants
• February brought The Lumineers, New Navy
• March – Royal Teeth, Buxton, Alex Clare
• April – Zach Heckendorf, Emile Sande,
• May – Baywood
• June – Vacationer, King Charles
• July – Milo Greene, The Dunwells, The Weeks
• August – Family of the Year
• September – Youngblood Hawke
• October –Wild Cub
• November  – Foxygen, Chvrches
• December – Black Handed Kites, The Very Wicked
• Fell in love with the bands above including Jump into the Gospel, Ball Park Music, Zach Deputy, Rubblebucket, Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds, Haim, Jukebox The Ghost, White Arrows, First Aid Kit, Antonio Paul, Champions, Burning Hotel, The Cads, Company of Thieves, The Wheeler Brothers, The Big Pink, Theme Park, Satchel Grande, Gentlemen Hall, Electric Guest, Bag of Toys, The Kingston Springs, St. Lucia, Viva Viva, Diamond Rugs, Wild Belle, Hospitality, Dirty Ghosts, Divine Fits, Los Campensinos!, The Heavy, The Ton Tons, Little Legends, Arkells, The Amends, Wildcat! Wildcat, Stepdad, Capital Cities, Crystal Fighters, Set Sail, Friends, Kite Party, Ghost Beach, Tango in the Attic, Memoryhouse, Courrier, Monsters Calling Home, I’m From Barcelona, Wild Child, Millions, Pink Mountaintops, JJAMZ, Esme Patterson to name a few J
• Thankful for The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas’ Entertainment Team for hiring me to be their interview talent during Sunset Sessions and having the opportunity to interview: JJAMZ, Courrier, Angels Landing, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown, Faulkner, Joel Piper, Olivia Olson, Clay Priskorn, Cheating Daylight, Beware of Darkness, Michael Bernard Fitzpatrick, SLATER, Doris and Feral Vinca.
• Said goodbye to some incredibly talented musicians including Adam Yauch, Whitney Houston, Etta James, Robin Gibb, Don Cornelius, Levon Helm, Dick Clark, Davy Jones and a whole lot more
• Caught legends in concert – Bob Dylan, Kenny Rogers, ZZ Top, Santana
• Attended another Dave Matthews Band show and for the first time finally heard “The Song That Jane Likes” live!  It’s my favorite DMB song and I have been to 20 shows and never had heard it.  Plus “Say Goodbye” made it into the set; I got the two songs I never heard live in one show!  Meant to be, I guess.
• Interviewed Christian Zucconi of GROUPLOVE for Vegas SEVEN
• A private Of Monsters and Men concert on a Chicago rooftop may have been one of the top shows I have ever seen
• Reviewed countless concerts including Robert Randolph, Paper Route, Bob Dylan, Vintage Trouble, Portugal. The Man, Lenny Kravitz, Florence + The Machine and more.
• Had the chance to meet Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino and he couldn’t have been any more down to earth
• The Smith Center opened! AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING for Las Vegas
• Was super impressed with A$AP Rocky live and became even a bigger fan when he stopped the concert to halt a fight and let everyone know that doesn’t happen at his shows because “we all family in here”
• My third time seeing him, was witness to the growth of Wiz Khalifa as a performer and can’t wait to see what 2013 holds for him
• Saw Die Antwoord in concert twice this year and was floored by how amazing their live shows are
• Am thankful I had the chance to see Garth Brooks at Encore Las Vegas before his two-year run ended, incredible show
• Thanks Coldplay for teaching me about xylobands
• The Daft Punk rumors
• Django Django
• Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – I totally get it.
• Blak & Blu by Gary Clark Jr. fantastic record I hope everyone has listened to
• Bruno Mars one of the best live performers around and his Unorthodox Jukebox, thanks for channeling MJ
• The Dirty Guv’nahs, finally finally got to see them live and they sure as hell didn’t disappoint
• Of Monsters and Men, The Lumineers and Alabama Shakes thrust into the spotlight and all well deserved.  Can’t wait to see how 2013 unfolds for each of them
• Kendrick Lamar and Danny Brown, glad they are starting to blow up as the hip-hop scene rises once again
• Listening to The Mowgli’s – Love Is Dead EP – look out for them in 2013
• Night Terrors of 1927 oh yes!
• Cayucos
• Best band name discovered: FUCK ART, LET’S DANCE!
• Another big one for 2013, HAIM.  Oh those sisters!
• Have you listened to Big Boi’s latest?! WHOA AMAZING
• Them Swoops, another Aussie band that is coming state side with San Cisco, Millions and The Jungle Giants
• Great music coming out of South Africa
• “Shuggie” by Foxygen is on repeat in my head, still.
• Finally getting to see Walk The Moon get the radio play they deserve
• Thank you Daytrotter.com
• Another year of stellar music performances and collaborations on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
• Mariachi El Bronx = one of the best live performances you can see (I caught them twice this year)
• Give me a “D,” give me an “Arkness” – Justin Hawkins of The Darkness – amazing show!
• Crazy to think just a year ago fun. were playing tiny venues and are now the “it kids,” kudos to them – I still wish The Format were around
• It took a while but not only did I get to see The Gaslight Anthem once but twice this year! Love me a little bit of Jersey rock and roll!
• New Donavon Frankenreiter
• Lupe Fiasco you’re still the man
• “Charleston” by Set Sail is my GIVERS “Up Up Up” of 2012

And I know there are countless other musical memories of 2012 but I could keep writing well into 2013 if I did that.  Did you have any amazing music moments of the last year?  Let me know.