PCR Podcast Ep36: Fitting The White Album Onto 1 LP & 2016 Year In Review

My friend Trey Mowder and I spend this episode trying to narrow down The Beatles' White Album onto a single disc (which means we have to cut out songs, as if such a thing were possible!). For reference, our full song lists and some explanations on how we made our choices can be found here: Fitting the White Album onto one record. On top of that, I also give my year end best of lists (music, TV, films, podcasts) and some highlights for PostConsumer Reports from 2016 (You can read my full end of year list here). You can listen to our previous Beatles episode here: A Commentary on the Documentary 8 Days a Week.


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Related Beatles Articles:
Lessons Learned From the Beatles
Post Impressions #1: The Beatles Blackbird

Past Podcast Episodes

Episode 15: Mike Foster Tolkien Scholar and Author

Episode 32: An Interview With Mitch McVicker

Episode 16: Dialogues With Brandon: How Big Is Your Soul?

PostConsumer Reports Year in Review: 2016

Featuring podcasting, blogging, music, TV, & film, and a look back at the year for PostConsumer Reports.

So, it's the end of 2016. And everybody hates you 2016. You're not invited to anymore parties. No one feels safe around you. It's time to seek serious help. The only people remotely happy with 2016 are those who think Donald Trump should be our president, but I assume even they are more than saddened by all the great artists who died as well as apprehensive about the many troubling issues facing our nation and world (assuming they are paying attention).

What I Learned Listening to New Worship Music For An Entire Year Part 2: (no) clapping!, over-the-top bridges, worshipping in the round, less music please, tricked by slick production, Hillsong is meh, and none of us are missing out

This is part 2 of my reflections on listening to new worship music for an entire year.
You can read part 1 here.
You can read my Best New Worship Music list here.

What I Learned Listening to New Worship Music For An Entire Year Part 1: no melodies, beards, cuss words and Mumford and Sons ripoffs

Let's play spot the differences: One of these images is of Mumford and Sons, one is a worship band, and one
is of Civil War soldiers. Can you tell which is which? It might be harder than you think.

I have intentionally listened to new "praise and worship" music over the course of the last year. Here is my initial listening list: The Great Worship Music Binge of 2015. And here are the songs that made my final list of songs I plan/hope to sing in my church: The Best New Worship Music.

I had hoped my experiment would only take a couple of months, but I felt compelled to keep listening and listening in the hopes of being fair to all the potential "new" music in existence. The process soon became overwhelming and my ears grew weary and tired. I decided to have short but concentrated listening sessions: an evening here and there, a few afternoons right in a row.

Eventually, I came to a consensus of songs I liked, though I still feel like I have done a gross disservice to the numerous songs I have failed to even get to. Oh well...

Throughout this process I began to make a number of observations and reflections on what I was listening to. Here now are my thoughts.

The Best New Worship Music (According to PostConsumer Reports)

Off and on for the past year I have spent concentrated times listening to "new" worship music for my church to sing. I am listening to "new" music even now as I type this, feeling like I am cramming for a final! This process has been intense people!

There is so much worship music and hymnody out there it is impossible to even attempt to get to it all. To illustrate I will tell a parable.

Happy PostConsuming!: The Best Music of 2015—Part 2

2015 was a boring year for new music with me.

I am coming to the realization I am an old dad now in my mid-30's and it is a struggle to keep up with new sounds and new releases. On top of that I am continually discovering old music that I find more compelling and worthy of me purchasing (more on that in a bit).

So, in many ways 2015 was a failure as far as listening to what was released. Nonetheless, I continued to seek out "new" music, even if it was decades or perhaps centuries old.

Therefore, my best of 2015 list contains only a few new releases, and instead is more a chronicle of my listening tastes over the past year.

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR (RELEASED IN 2015)
Let's start with what I think are the greatest works released this past year that I spent a significant amount of time listening to. (You can read a more comprehensive end of year list here: Part 1 of the Best Music of 2015, written by Aubrey England here.)

Happy PostConsuming!: The Best Music of 2015—Part 1

My friend Aubrey England listens to a lot more new music than I do. And his tastes are a lot more exploratory. For that reason I asked him to write up a "Best of 2015" music list for PostConsumer Reports. Aubrey plays electric guitar during worship at my church and he also dabbles in some singer-songwriter stuff himself (perhaps one day he will put out some music of his own). Lately, (based off of pre-worship practice sound checks) Aubrey has been challenging himself to learn some of the more difficult Radiohead songs (e.g. "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi") and some of the more iconic U2 hooks (e.g., "Bad"), and I hope him and I have many more music discussions in the future. (You can read my own year end albums list here)

The Best Music of 2015—Aubrey England (in no particular order)

PostConsumer Culture Club #3—The Week of September 13-September 19

PostConsumer Culture Club: A list of everything we at PostConsumer Reports have been digesting this week, with brief commentary. Hopefully, we can culture something good in you. Happy PostConsuming!

Here is what we watched the week of September 13 through September 19.

PostConsumer Culture Club #2—The Week of September 6-September 12

PostConsumer Culture Club: A list of everything we at PostConsumer Reports have been digesting this week, with brief commentary. Hopefully, we can culture something good in you. Happy PostConsuming!

Here is what we watched the week of September 6 through September 12.

TV: Late Show With Stephen Colbert
I made a plan to watch every night of the first week of Stephen Colbert's turn at the Late Show helm. So far I have not missed a show yet and so far I am really enjoying myself. I posted a longer review, which you can read here: The First Week of Late Show With Stephen Colbert.

PostConsumer Culture Club #1—The Week of August 30-September 5

I'm not exactly sure what the next year will look like for me.

There is the potential I could start writing a book (Lord, open that door), I have a number of articles on worship music already written that I am going to share starting in November (whoops, I just shared one a couple of days ago), and I would really like to flex my interviewing skills and do more podcasting (I have lots of ideas...). I am also in the (slow) process of being ordained as an Anglican Priest. And so I am going to attempt putting out a weekly article that is simple for me to write but hopefully fun and informative for everyone else. I am calling it "PostConsumer Culture Club".

Here's the description:
PostConsumer Culture Club: A list of everything we at PostConsumer Reports have been digesting this week, with brief commentary. Hopefully, we can culture something good in you. Happy PostConsuming!

The Great Worship Music Binge of 2015

2015 will be the year I look back on as the time I consumed more worship music than could ever be deemed healthy or even sane.

You see, I have a lot of catching up to do.

Ever since graduating seminary in 2010 I have hardly listened to any new worship music or even taken the time to learn "new" old hymns. 
(UPDATE: If you are curious what songs made my final list, you can find them here:
The Best New Worship Music (according to PostConsumer Reports) )

Ask a Worship Pastor #2: The top 5 worship songs from the past 10 years

This is part 2 in the "Ask a Worship Pastor" series. Part 1, which asked "What is the biggest misconception about your job?" can be found here. My followup thought to the Top 5 list can be found here.

Over the past 20 years the worship music industry has grown to be quite expansive.

Summer Reading List (2013)

I always get very excited for my summers, for with the end of the school year comes the opportunity to do all (or some) of things I had no time to do in the midst of the busyness of it all (such as writing blogs).  Last year I made a to-do list (a decent amount of which I accomplished) and a reading list (most of which I never got to).  I have decided to make a reading list yet again, and I have high hopes to finish most of it this time (My current list is much shorter and I am only watching one television show right now [Battlestar Galactica] which hopefully will not distract me too much).  This list is similar to last year's list but with a number of variances.

I am excited about this list!  I share it with everyone in the hopes that you will all discover some books you have never heard of before or to motivate you to read some of the books that are on your own lists.

Reading is so much fun and is so rewarding! I say this not as a teacher but as a human. Yay reading!!!

Summer To-Do List Part 1: My (hopeful) Summer Reading List

Since I am a school teacher and headmaster, summertime basically means one thing: I finally get to do all the things I have not had time for throughout the year.  So far, I have done a lot of around the house type things, like installing some built in bookshelves but also some fun things like competing in a tennis tournament and stringing my first tennis racquet.  One of my big projects this summer is releasing some of the music I have recorded online as well as recording some new music for another project I am starting (more on this in a future post).  But one "project" equally important as my music is my summer reading list.  During the school year I simply have no time to read the books I want to read.  Nearly all of my evenings are caught up in lesson planning and reading ahead for my Literature/History/Bible class (which we assign the fancy-schmancy term of “Omnibus”). 

Lists 2011--Week #3--Absolute Favorites and Book Lists

Welcome to our last week of lists over at PostConsumer Reports. This week we have my book lists for the year as well my absolute favorites, that is, the most favoritest things I consumed this year out of everything that was consumed. I also include a list of my biggest disappointments in consumption.








Absolute Favorites—2011—An assorted list—In Order

1. Fernando Ortega’s Come Down O Love Divine—For a few months we were listening to this album everyday of the week in my household. His music really has become deeply ingrained in our lives. I also really enjoyed teaching myself his setting of “Trisagion” on piano and then teaching it to people at a women’s retreat as well as to my church. His music is truly a blessing.
2. Louis C.K.—Both his standup and his FX tv show “Louie.” Is there a funnier more sincerely revealing comic out there? Is there a more creative comedic television show currently on air? No, there certainly is not. (Please note his comedy is quite often more than a little crass. You were warned.)
3. Rev.—This British sitcom about a Church of England vicar/priest/pastor/whatever is a really refreshing and heartfelt take on Christianity, and Tom Hollander is just brilliant in the lead role.
4. Friday Night Lights—It was the last season of this stellar show. It made me so sad to have to say goodbye to Coach Taylor and Tim Riggins.
5. “The Only Living Boy in New York” (Simon & Garfunkel), “Cruel” (St. Vincent), “Bizness” (tune yards), and “Trisagion” (Fernandon Ortega)—My biggest earworms of the year.
6. WTF Podcast—I have tremendously enjoyed these interviews of various comics. As a comic himself Marc Maron is a great interviewer and it is fascinating getting inside the heads of these people who make us laugh. Louis C.K’s and Judd Apatow’s interviews were probably my favorites. (Again, a warning: this is not exactly the cleanest of podcasts.)
7. The Drew Marshall Show—A Canadian Christian radio talk show. Drew has basically the best guests you could imagine for a show covering Christian topics, and his naturally curmudgeonly nature forces his to ask some great questions.
8. “My Soul Magnifies the Lord” by Chris Tomlin off of his Christmas album Glory in the Highest—This is just a great Advent/Christmas worship song. I really hope it starts to catch on in the churches.
9. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky—I cannot believe I actually made it through this book (and I still hardly know what it all means). I will have to read it again in ten years.
10. Community--The third season of this show has just been spectacular. It is really hitting its stride. Heres to hoping it will last a few more seasons.

Biggest Disappointments of the Year—An Assorted List—In Order

1. Life’s Too Short—British sitcom---Oh Ricky Gervais, art thou getting too full of thyself? Warwick Davis is actually really good in the lead role, but the rest of the show is just a poorly done Extras retread.
2. 10,000 Reasons by Matt Redman—Worship album—Meh…
3. News that Sufjan Stevens was not going to release a live version of his Age of Adz tour on DVD, as well as the fact that he still has not officially released any new Christmas music for like five years now and we all just KNOW he is recording new songs every year.
4. The Office—U.S. version of the tv sitcom—What an awful show it has become (even before Steve Carell left).
5. The new Winnie the Pooh movie—This was certainly not a bad movie; it just failed to capture the magical innocence of the original film(s), which I had really hoped it would do.

Books—Since most of my reading is done for the teaching I do at school, my booklist for this year is more of a wishlist.

The First Five Nonfiction Books I Would Read Right Now If I Had All The Time In The World

1.The New Testament and the People of God--N.T. Wright
2.God’s Empowering Presence--Gordon Fee
3.A History of the Church in England--JRH Moorman
4.The Apostolic Fathers--The Apostolic Fathers
5.Commentary on the American Prayer Book--Marion J. Hatchett


The First Five Fiction Books I Would Read Right Now If I Had All The Time In The World

1.Infinite Jest--David Foster Wallace
2.Blood Meridian--Cormac McCarthy
3.Tristram Shandy--Laurence Stern
4.Shame--Salman Rushdie
5.Moby Dick--Herman Mellville


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Related Articles:
Lists 2011!: Week #1: Music
Lists 2011!: Week #2—Movies
Lists 2011: Week #3—Absolute Favorites and Books
Summer To Do List Part 1: My (Hopeful) Summer Reading List
Summer Reading List (2013)

Lists 2011!--Week #2--Movies

I love movies--don't you? Here are my movie lists for 2011, some having to do with movies coming out this year or at least movies I saw this year for the first time and the rest consisting of topics of personal interest, because, well, lists are just fun to make!

Lists 2011!: Week #1—Music

It is nearing the end of the year and is therefore time for everyone to start putting out their year end lists for anything they can think of. As a longtime lover of lists I have decided to join in the fun. I, however, certainly do not have the time nor the resources to have watched all the year's new movies or listened to all the year's new music, so there's no way I could ever come up with a "Best of" list for 2011 in any category. My lists, therefore, will be purely idiosyncratic. Over the next three weeks I will do some music lists, some movie lists, and some book lists.

Up this week: Music

List #1--Artists Whose Music I Love But Too Much Time Has Past For Me To Actually Start Buying Their Records

1. Sigur Ros
2. Iron and Wine
3. Larry Norman
4. ELO (Electric Light Orchestra)
5. Queen
6. Bill Withers
7. Lilly Allen
8. LCD Soundsystem
9. Bjork
10. Calexico
11. Cat Stevens
12. Gnarls Barkley
13. John Lennon and Paul McCartney (solo records)
14. Muse

List #2--Artists Whose Music I Know Very Little About But Whom I Want to Know More About and If I Had Any Expendable Time or Income I May One Day Start Purchasing Their Records (donations are not being accepted at this time)

1. Tune Yards
2. Wye Oak
3. Avett Brothers
4. Imelda May
5. Janelle Monae
6. Joanna Newsom
7. Duke Ellington
8. John Prine
9. John Tavener
10. Juana Molina
11. Knaan
12. Raphael Saadiq
13. Kraftwerk
14. Mastodon
15. Nellie Mckay
16. Neu!
17. Devotchka
18. Godspeed You Black Emperor
19. A Tribe Called Quest
20. The Legendary Shack Shakers
21. Toumani Diabate
22. Mariachi El Bronx
23. Jordi Savall
24. Hildegaard Von Bingen
25. Afro-pop music (to use a very general, non-helpful term)

List #3--Artists That Others Love and Adore Whom I Absolutely Cannot Stand (Believe me I’ve tried)

1. Pink Floyd (top of the list)
2. David Bowie (I hate Bowie only 90% of the time, but that 90% is very intense)
3. The Rolling Stones
4. The Flaming Lips
5. They Might Be Giants
6. The Doors
7. Tom Waits
8. James Taylor
9. Elvis Costello

List #4--Artists Whose Music You May Not Listen Too Whose Music I Think You Should Start Buying (If you already know these artists then don’t bother with this list)

1. Andrew Osenga
2. Keith Green, Rich Mullins, and Fernando Ortega (of course!)
3. Over the Rhine
4. Explosions in the Sky
5. Brooke Waggoner
6. Burlap To Cashmere
7. Vince Guaraldi
8. Charlie Peacock
9. Jeremy Casella
10. John Reuben
11. Josh Garrells
12. Waterdeep
13. Loney, Dear
14. Elbow
15. MuteMath
16. The Normals
17. Phil Keaggy
18. Randy Newman (He’s written a lot of stuff OTHER than the Toy Story theme song)
19. Steve Reich
20. Taize
21. Steven Delopoulos
22. Steve Taylor
23. J.S. Bach (I’m serious about this one. Go and listen to Bach. Now. Actually, we all should just go listen to Bach right now.)

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Related Articles:
Lists 2011!: Week #2—Movies
Lists 2011: Week #3—Absolute Favorites and Books
Summer To Do List Part 1: My (Hopeful) Summer Reading List
Summer Reading List (2013)