New Music, New Adventures 2025 #3

Dream away...

New Music, New Adventures 2025 #3

January 30, 2025

One of the great things about spending the winter in Palm Springs California is that the weather is generally sunny and warm (although not so much this week.) As a result, everyone I know who’s not already here seems to want to come out and soak up the warmer temperatures. For Frank and I this can be challenging. While we’re choosing to “live” here in winter, others are coming to “vacation”. There is a distinction there. As such, we don’t have a lot of days without anything planned. Literally every week we are here, friends or family members come to town. (We have a detailed document with who is coming when and who is overlapping with whom.) The house we rent is the perfect size for the two of us. We made a rule last year that anyone coming to town must find their own place to stay. If not, we’d be hosting people all winter. Still, we plan dinners, coordinate social meetups, and visit various tourist sites. We are basically busier here than when we are back home in the Chicago area! It’s a great problem to have but it can be exhausting.

This past week we had the great pleasure of spending time with two friends, Rich and Dave, that we met on a cruise over a decade ago. They were in from Philadelphia and being with them felt naturally warm and special as we enjoyed a nice outdoor lunch at Lulu’s.

Also, our great friends Jeff, Lauren, Tom, Angela, Ingrid, and George arrived for an extended weekend. It was a major birthday for Lauren, so this meant some celebrations including one at the new Thompson Hotel. Our Chicago friends Jim and Loren remain here for most of the year, Marco and Elise are here for about five months and Steve and Pete have lived here year-round for the past ten years. So, they all know a lot of the same people and are included in many such events. The temperatures on Friday night were a bit chilly and I was feeling like I was coming down with something. Nevertheless, this was one of THE big nights, so I made myself attend. The evening turned out to be pretty wonderful. How often do people get the chance to be with a large number of their favorite people while away from their home? I get that Frank and are extremely lucky in this regard.

Tom and I

Pete, Frank, Loren, and Steve

Then the “big chill” occurred. I started shaking uncontrollably in the car as Frank and I started heading home. The bug that I came down with has knocked me out for several days thus keeping me from spending any more time with this great group of friends. Watching movies and television were the only things I could get the energy to do. One of the surprising films I watched was La Cocina featuring Rooney Mara as one of the servers in a busy New York restaurant. It may be the best film I’ve seen since Anora. Review to come soon.

As such I didn’t listen to as much new music as I normally would during a week. I dove into more cuts from some of the recent big releases.

New Music from 20^th Century Hitmakers that Boomers and Gen X’ers Might Like:

A Flock of Seagulls – Some Dreams

Last week I wrote about another song from the new album by 80s New Wave band A Flock of Seagulls, Him. This one is even more in line with what one might expect from the band. Some Dreams has a powerful synth drive and a catchy hook. If you still have the same dreams you did in the 80s, check out Some Dreams.

New Music from Contemporary Artists that Everyone Should Check Out:

Franz Ferdinand – Everydaydreamer

Another song about dreaming comes from Franz Ferdinand who first splashed onto the scene with their self-titled album in 2004. So, less “contemporary” than other artists, the band falls somewhere between then and now. At the time, so much of their music sounded fresh yet with a strong 80s new wave tinge. I’m really enjoying some of the tunes on their latest The Human Fear. The beats and production are both solid on Everydaydreamer, and of course, the lyrics feature a great hook. So, dream away again: