[playlist] Wedding Music Done Right

A Wedding Playlist

When I created Three Colours over 2 ago, the music was always the focus. Up until now, I've never really shared anything personal about myself; however, due to my long hiatus, I feel like it's only necessary to provide a little explanation for the few readers that follow this site. The month of Rocktober was quite transformative for me, and after all the excitement has settled from two major milestones, I can now be called Dr. Husband.

One of the major elements that can make or break a wedding reception is the music, and when it came to planning the song selection for our wedding, a DJ was never an option. And while I have faith in my musical preferences, creating a playlist that works for a full spectrum of generations is no easy task. This same practice was implemented for our beer selection: we understand not everyone is a hop head, so in addition to an amazing IPA, there were also a domestic light and an amber in the mix. But I digress...

The motivation behind this post is to provide a music playlist that works. I understand that some of these songs have special importance within our groups of friends, but overall, this should provide a good starting point for anyone hoping to forgo the DJ route and attempt a DIY wedding song selection. Of note, all songs were trimmed and crossfaded (6 seconds) using iTunes to ensure smooth transitions and zero lulls in the night.

Our wedding wasn't the most traditional, and the focus was all about us. While I won't go into the details of the ceremony itself, I will say that the venue was a theater/concert hall, allowing the music to be a powerful tool for creating the desired ambiance. The music featured during the ceremony included arrangements from Peter Broderick, Fleet Foxes, Arcade Fire, The Black Keys, and The Budos Band. As a side comment, I think more weddings should be held in theaters. Weddings are theatrical, so why not use a venue engineered for an entertainment experience? After the ceremony, we moved onto a different location, which hosted a cocktail hour/dinner and a dance party.

By design, the cocktail hour and dinner playlists showcased more of the music we wanted to hear. Pulling heavily from the new wave covers by Nouvelle Vague and the worldly sounds by Zach Condon's Beirut, the cocktail hour had a very "smooth celebration" feel to it. Once dinner started, the music picked up a little momentum. After our first dances, the dance party portion kicked off with MJ (can't go wrong with the King of Pop!). The early songs of the night were chosen in hopes of pleasing both older and younger generations, which helped to fill the dance floor immediately. As the night proceeded, it slowly evolved to target more of the younger audience. Anyway, these songs worked great for our guests, and the night was a blast. Below are the playlists for each portion of the night - I hope you enjoy.

Cocktail Hour / Dinner Playlist

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Beirut
Taken By Trees
Nouvelle Vague
Feist
Nouvelle Vague
Feist
Nouvelle Vague
Fleet Foxes
Nouvelle Vague
Taken By Trees
Feist
Spoon
Fleet Foxes
Blitzen Trapper
Plants And Animals
The xx
New Order
Dr. Dog
Nouvelle Vague
Fleet Foxes
Edward Sharpe
Nouvelle Vague
Little Joy
The Black Keys
Fleet Foxes
Little Joy
Feist
The Black Keys
New Order
Taken By Trees
Brazos
The xx
Mates of State
Spoon
Taken By Trees
Grizzly Bear
Spoon
Yo La Tengo
Beirut
Dr. Dog
Jason Collett and Zeus
Beach House
Beirut
Plants And Animals
Bon Iver
Beirut

La Llorona
Watch The Waves
A Forest
One Two Three Four
Just Can't Get Enough
I Feel It All
The Killing Moon
White Winter Hymnal
Ever Fallen In Love
Julia
My Moon My Man
The Delicate Place
Ragged Wood
Furr
Good Friend
Islands
Ceremony
The Old Days
Dance With Me
Blue Ridge Mountains
Home
I Melt With You
Brand New Start
Howlin' For You
Mykonos
The Next Time Around
Sea Lion Woman
Tighten Up
Age Of Consent
My Boys
Day Glo
VCR
Long Way Home
The Underdog
Day By Day
Two Weeks
Everything Hits at Once
You Make Me Feel Good
Postcards from Italy
The World May Never Know
Every Night
Used To Be
The Akara
Kon Tiki
Skinny Love
My Wife

Dance Party Playlist

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Michael Jackson
Prince
Tommy Tutone
KC and the Sunshine Band
Sister Sledge
Stevie Wonder
Hall & Oats
Dexy's Midnight Runners
Berlin
Michael Jackson
Journey
Talking Heads
Rick Springfriend
Kenny Loggins
OMC
George Michael
Bon Jovi
Def Leppard
Clash
Rick James
Salt 'N' Pepa
Human League
The Weather Girls
The Hit Crew
A-Ha
Marky Mark
Bobby Brown
Prince
Gap Band
Journey
Ray Parker, Jr.
Michael Jackson
Bon Jovi
Outkast
Neil Diamond
Madness
Foundations
Michael Jackson
Gnarls Barkley
KC and the Sunshine Band
Journey
The Gourds
Max A Million
Sir Mix Alot
Lady GaGa
Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes
Huey Lewis and the News
Cutting Crew
Madonna
Matthew Wilder
Fine Young Cannibals
Prince
Men At Work
Outkast
Justin Timberlake
Culture Club
INXS
Stevie Wonder
Bananarama
Michael Jackson
Jay-Z
Franz Ferdinand
Europe

Wanna Be Starting Something
1999
Jenny (867-5309)
I'm Your Boogie Man
We Are Family
Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
You Make My Dreams
Come On Eileen
Take My Breath Away
Billie Jean
Any Way You Want It
Once in a Lifetime
Jesse's Girl
Footloose
How Bizzare
Wake Me Up Before You Go-go
Shot Through The Heart
Pour Some Sugar On Me
Rockin' the Casbah
Superfreak
Push It!
Don't You Want Me
It's Raining Men
The Chicken Dance
Take On Me
Good Vibrations
My Prerogative
Let's Go Crazy
You Dropped A Bomb On Me
Faithfully
Ghostbusters
Thriller
Livin' On A Prayer
Rosa Parks
Sweet Caroline
Our House
Build Me Up Buttercup
Beat It
Crazy
Boogie Shoes
Don't Stop Believin'
Gin and Juice
Sexual Feeling
I Like Big Butts
Poker Face
(I've Had) The Time Of My Life
The Power Of Love
I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight
Like A Prayer
Break My Stride
She Drives Me Crazy
Kiss
Land Down Under
So Fresh , So Clean
Sexy Back
Karma Chameleon
Eleganty Wasted
Isn't She Lovely
Venus
The Way You Make Me Feel
Big Pimpin
Take Me Out
The Final Countdown

[mp3] Spoon - "Nobody Gets Me But You" (demo) October Bonus Track

New Bonus Track from Spoon

Once again, Spoon has released a new bonus tracks at their website. This month's treat is a very Beatles-sounding demo of "Nobody Gets Me But You" off Transference. I definitely prefer this version over the album cut. Check it out below.

MP3: Spoon - "Nobody Gets Me But You" (demo)
(October Bonus Track)

[tour dates] Plants and Animals w/ Frightened Rabbit

Plants and Animals Return to Seattle!

After touring across the Atlantic, Plants and Animals return to the US for another leg of the La La Land tour. Fantastic paired with Scotland's Frightened Rabbit, the tour kicks off here in Seattle this Thursday (Oct 7) at the Showbox Market (tickets here). Don't miss this show, and be sure to catch these dudes in a city near your. A full list of tour dates are posted below.

Plants and Animals tour dates:

Oct 7
Oct 8
Oct 9
Oct 10
Oct 13
Oct 14
Oct 15
Oct 16
Oct 17
Oct 19
Oct 20
Oct 21
Oct 22
Oct 23
Oct 26
Oct 28
Oct 29
Oct 30
Nov 1
Nov 2
Nov 3

Seattle, WA
Vancouver, BC
Portland, OR
San Francisco, CA
Los Angeles, CA
San Diego, CA
Anaheim, CA
Las Vegas, NV
Tempe, AZ
Dallas, TX
Austin, TX
Houston, TX
New Orleans, LA
Gainesville, FL
Athens, GA
Philadelphia, PA
Boston, MA
New York, NY
Washington, DC
Pittsburgh, PA
Detroit, MI

The Showbox~
The Vogue Theatre~
Wonder Ballroom~
The Fillmore~
Mayan Theater~
House of Blues~
House of Blues~
The Beauty Bar~
The Clubhouse~
The Loft~
Stubb's BBQ~
Walter's on Washington~
Tipitina's~
Common Grounds~
40 Watt Club~
Starlight Ballroom~
Paradise~
Terminal 5~
9:30 Club~
Diesel Club~
Magic Stick~

~ w/ Frightened Rabbit

[new music] Tapes 'N Tapes - Outside

Sweet Jorts!

After Tapes 'N Tapes blasted into the mainstream with their masterfully crafted debut The Loon, they succumbed to the sophomore slump and released an absolute borefest: Walk It Off. The band has apparently gone back to the sound that made me fall in love with them in the first place, and they've put together a new album entitled Outside. Not much is known about the album as of now, but we do know the release date is January 11, 2011 via Ibid Records. The LP was recorded in Minneapolis at the Terrarium and mixed by Peter Katis. Back in June, TNT performed one of the new tracks "SWM" on MTV2 (video below). A track listing is below:

Tapes 'N Tapes - Outside
1. Badaboom
2. SWM
3. One in the World
4. Nightfall
5. Desert Plane
6. Outro
7. Freak Out
8. The Saddest of All Keys
9. Hidee Ho
10. People You Know
11. On and On
12. Mighty Long

"SWM" (acoustic) on MTV2

[new music] White Denim - Last Day of Summer

Free New Music from White Denim!!!

According to James of White Denim:

howdy folks,

we hope that you are doing well today. the band has been straight up busy in the studio this summer with a fairly large collection of songs. we are pleased to share a handful of them with you right now. this record is something we made as a little summer retreat from our ongoing work on the third full length. many of these tunes have been bouncing around since the formation of the band back in 06. we were super pumped to utilize a few fresh and casual musical approaches on this record. we hope that you find something that satisfies you within this body of work. if you enjoy the music and feel compelled to support the group, please notice the support button beneath the download link and the image. we are going to be heading out on the roads this october and would greatly appreciate anything that you would feel comfortable contributing.

i would also like to add that we are still hard at work on the as yet untitled third lp. we expect to be wrapping that record at the end of the month. we can’t wait to play loads of this new material for you folks this winter and next year. at the moment i am writing all of the album info on a limited run of cd copies of ‘last day of summer’ that will be lovingly hand packaged and available at our fall shows. can’t wait to see you soon!

all the best,
james

So to sum that all up, White Denim is almost done with LP#3, but they're releasing an additionally album right now at their site (here) for free. Go get it.

White Denim Fall '10 Tour Dates:
Oct 16 2010 // Antone’s Blues Bar // Austin, TX
Oct 18 2010 // The Loft // Dallas, TX
Oct 19 2010 // Opolis // Norman, OK
Oct 20 2010 // The Bottleneck // Lawrence, KS*
Oct 21 2010 // The Waiting Room // Omaha, NE*
Oct 22 2010 // Fox Theatre and Cafe // Boulder, CO*
Oct 23 2010 // Fox Theatre and Cafe // Boulder, CO*
Oct 27 2010 // Club Congress // Tuscon, AZ
Oct 28 2010 // Clubhouse Music Venue // Tempe, AZ*
Oct 29 2010 // House of Blues // San Diego, CA*
Oct 30 2010 // El Rey Theatre // Los Angeles, CA*
Nov 1 2010 // The Independent // San Francisco, CA
Nov 2 2010 // Spaceland // Los Angeles, CA

*with Portugal the Man

[review] Local Natives @ Showbox (9-24-2010)

Local Natives play to their home away from home

When guitarist/vocalist Taylor Rice professed his love for Seattle as the band's favorite concert destination, the eruption of cheers from a very energetic crowd made it seem like The Local Natives were playing to their home crowd. And to then tell us Paseo was their favorite tour food in the entire country, I was almost convinced that these dudes were truly locals...

Last night, the Showbox hosted a sold out performance from a trio of harmonizing indie folksters. The evening began with a fantastic performance from The Union Line. If you haven't heard these guys, check out their MySpace page and their Daytrotter session. I picked up a copy of their Cernido Sonidos EP at the show, and it's been on constant rotation all morning. Following up with another quality caliber set was NC's The Love Language. It really got the sold out crowd excited for the Local Natives.

But the main event proved better than any reviewer can try to put to words. The Local Natives kicked off their set with a very powerful rendition of "Camera Talks" and immediately captured the crowds' energy. Based on the viewer reaction, it's amazing that the band only has one album to their name. However, when you don't have a weak song on your debut, it's not a problem to play your entire album for a show. And that is exactly what the Local Natives did, shuffling the order of Gorilla Manor's track listing.

And whether they're playing instrument roulette or switching between the band's dual lead singing capabilities (either Taylor Rice or Kelcey Ayer), to see these dudes live is a real treat. The three-part harmonies made possible from guitarist Ryan Hahn only add to the amazing live experience. And the rthym Highlights of the night included the performances of "World News," "Wide Eyes," "Shape Shifter," and "Airplanes." After a quick encore, the band returned with "Cubism Dream" and a very wild, crowd participating "Sun Hands." Overall, I was very impressed and pleased with the show, and highly recommend catching these guys live in a city near you. A set list is posted below.

Set list - Local Natives (9-24-2010):
Camera Talks
World News
Warning Sign
Cards & Quarters
Sticky Thread
Wide Eyes
Shape Shifter
Stranger Things
Airplanes
Who Knows Who Cares
Encore
Cubism Dream
Sun Hands

[reminder] Local Natives @ The Showbox (9-24-2010)

Friday Night!

Autumn has officially commenced, so go and celebrate the coming of rain by staying indoors! There's two great shows going on in Seattle tomorrow night: The Blakes @ Sunset Tavern ($10) and Local Natives @ The Showbox Market ($16). Sadly, you can't go to both, but at least you've got options. I'll be at the Showbox, rocking out to such songs like the one above and below. Details for both shows:

Friday - September 24, 2010

Local Natives @ The Showbox Market
Doors @ 8:00pm
w/ The Love Language and The Union Line
Tickets: $16 (here)

The Blakes @ Sunset Tavern
Doors @ 8:30pm
w/ Mal De Mer and Kids and Animals
Tickets: $10 (here)