Why is it that for me, sadness seems more beautiful than joy? Both are true reflections of what we have in this world; the fullness of creation, flowing over our heads in a heavenly blue and likewise as deep in unfathomable waters, bounds with joy. The brokenness of creation, the knowledge that something is wrong, that we haven’t seen it all yet – all of this is soaked in sadness.
It is morning in Baltimore, and I do not know if I will ever know love in its fullness. Yet I am cognizant of it; she calls. Sometimes she brings inspiration. Other times she washes over the land in a liquid morningrise; other times the day is utterly lost.
Slowdive’s 1991 Morningrise EP, on Creation Records:
This next one is for a woman I haven’t seen in over 10 years named Jody. We traded a few messages on Facebook, and she asked me for some recommendations. So here we are. My abiding memory of Jody is that she used to ride around campus in the coolest Range Rover. In spite of that she was still nice to me. In fact, once I sat in that Range Rover, parked, dark outside, a spring in the air, and we…
…listened to Slowdive. I was doing the squee thing before I even knew there was such a word. That music went straight to my melancholic soul. Jody kept laughing so naturally and delightfully, like she always did, just enjoying the sight of me being so blown away.
Well, Jody, for you it seems appropriate to share a couple of clear, peeling bells, which aren’t shoegaze, but which do follow up that shimmering Slowdive aesthetic rather nicely. The first is the Australian band Howling Bells, including a track off their brand new album released this month. The second is a Russian singer/New York resident named Olga Bell, who has a recent EP that’s extraordinarily hard to find but equally as rewarding. Oh, and as a bonus track, I have to include some rare Slowdive as well.
Catbirdman answers to the name of Peter Beyer when the government, a co-worker, an ex-girlfriend, an alter-ego, or a Man on the Street calls. Many people also call him Pete.
As it is Catbirdman himself who is typing this, and as Catbirdman feels weird referring to myself in the third person, we are therefore gradually (and clumsily) transitioning this sentence into a first-person account of ME.
I was born in Pennsylvania, did a spell in The Midwest, camped out awkwardly in our second smallest state, Delaware, and finally found a home in Baltimore, MD, the Greatest City in the World (or so it says on the park benches). I like it here quite a lot.
I work at a direct marketing agency in Glen Burnie, and I have been involved in the direct mail industry for about 10-15 years. I enjoy my work, and though it is not my central passion, I make every effort to do well and to treat people well.
I write songs and am working on a full-length album called “Kitty’s First Words.” My favorite music ever is the body of work composed by Lee Mavers from 1986-1990 for the La's. After that, it would have to be Brian Wilson's SMiLE music, and after that, My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless.
Music, and sharing the same with friends, drove me to start this blog. We'll see where it goes from here.
