Oh, Miike Snow - you're an animal.

Familiar with the Swedish pop sensation known as Miike Snow?? If not, do take notice.

We have a real problem. Seriously. Once we started listening to Miike Snow's music, we simply could not stop. So damn infectious.

This complication started a few months ago upon listening to several of Miike Snow's remixes of his pretty much amazing jam, Animal, on repeat until our ears went numb. Well, we were temporarily cured and had not even thought of the song since. . .that is, until we heard Animal on Gossip Girl (admittedly) last night. We both perked up when this tune was played during a pivotal scene and smiled - apparently, this song was not going to go down without a fight. Needless to say, it has been ruthlessly ingrained in our heads all day today.

So, here you go, we're hoping that we'll remedy our hopeless affinity toward this song by spreading the word and sharing it with you all:

Diclaimer: Listen to at your own risk.

[Mp3] Miike Snow - Animal (original) The kind of song that leaves you holding onto (or longing for) the warm weather that is about to slip through our fingertips. . .A true essence of Peter Gabriel is evident, making this song something that fans of Vampire Weekend will undoubtedly fall head over heels for.

Our favorite remixes:

1. [Mp3] Miike Snow - Animal (Mark Ronson Remix) For being on the chill tip, this one is ON FIRE. Between the staxx record style horns and the dubb beats, it's BEYOND infectious.

2. [Mp3] Miike Snow - Animal (Treasure Fingers Remix) We are both absolute suckers for synths and adore the new wave vibrancy. This track makes us want to get up and dance, even though we (both) cannot dance, if you know what we mean.

3. [Mp3] Miike Snow - Animal (Peter Bjorn & John Remix) Great use of xylophone-esque keyboard melodies with upbeat echoed and blurred vocals. The most similar to the original, yet definitely takes the song to another level.

Bonus: Would you like to hear a different song, rather than like four versions of the same one?

[Mp3] Miike Snow - Silvia

TONIGHT: Sufjan Stevens or Bell X1?

It's always quite the dilemma when two superb shows are playing in your town on the same evening. Some might say that it's a good problem to have, but what is one to do???

Well, it does tend to make the decision really easy when one of the shows has been sold out pretty much since the day tickets went on sale. . .

But here you go:

Who: Sufjan Stevens
What: Serene acoustic beauty meets enthusiastic chamber pop
Where: The Beachland Ballroom
Why:
[Mp3] Sufjan Stevens - Casimir Pulaski Day (KCRW Morning Becomes Eclectic)
[Mp3] Sufjan Stevens - The 50 States Song (live in Denver)

vs.

Who: Bell X1
What: Talking Heads meet Snow Patrol (yeah, weird, but true)
Where: The Cambridge Room at The House of Blues
Why:
[Mp3] Bell X1 - The Great Defector
[Mp3] Bell X1 - Rocky Took a Lover

Enjoy!

Saturday was too nice to stay inside so we went for a ride :)

Kelly and I are ready to ride
Note: I am rocking my wrath arcane t-shirt (Oh, and that it's absolutely impossible to look cool while wearing helmets)

As I'm sure you remember, this past past Saturday was beyond gorgeous. The temperature was in the mid 70's, it was sunny and there was not a cloud in the sky -- hopefully this is a sign of things to come with fall quickly approaching (first day will be tomorrow actually). With the weather being as nice as it was, we trekked down to Peninsula to go for a bike ride on the tow path trail. We had never done this before and thankfully Erin and Todd were there to guide us, being avid riders and the ones who encouraged us to take the plunge in the first place. Kelly and I were both rather hesitant because neither of us had ridden a bike in the last few years (for me it had been over 6 years) but with the promise that the bike ride would be followed by a trip to The Winking Lizard, we were sold.

The end result of this experience is that we had a blast -- it was such a great day to be out riding a bike and enjoying this weather. The tow path trail is beautiful and truly is a gem. We understand now why sooo many people hold these trails with such high regard -- what a treasure. As far as our ride of this day, it was only 10 or 11 miles round trip, but we are already looking forward to the next time so we can challenge ourselves more. Another nice thing is if you don't own a bike (like us), you can rent one from Century Cycles for only $8 an hour.

Afterwards, as much anticipated, we headed over to Peninsula's Winking Lizard which is conveniently located across the street from the bike rental shop. There we enjoyed a delicious glass (unfortunately The Lizard was already sold out of the complimentary glasses) of the Beer of the Month: Thirsty Dog Brewing Co's "Barktoberfest." Mmmm just talking about it right now is making us thirsty for another one.

Here Todd is helping Kelly to put on her helmet. We both had to wear them, for own good we suppose.

Look at how blue that sky was, it was a wonderful escape

Away I go!

Kelly and I by the falls, basking in the sun and in our tiny victory over our lack of coordination. Neither of us fell off of our bikes.

With the lovely canopy and scenery of nature, it felt like we could have ridden all day

Kelly and Erin saying "prost!" with their nice cold glasses of Barktoberfest after the completion of our ride.

The Slew = SICK!!!!

What do you get when you take the amazingly talented DJ/producer/turntablist that is known as Kid Koala, put him on six turntables (if that was not sick enough to begin with) and combine that with the former rhythm section of Wolfmother??

This potent mix is the goods that make up The Slew.

They are on tour this fall (limited dates, unfortunately none near c-town) -- if they come to your town this is not something to be missed. I have been a fan of Kid Koala for years, going back to his projects with Bullfrog and Deltron 3030 and even his contributions to Gorillaz and Lovage. Something like this project will not do be done justice by a studio recording. It is definitely music that needs to be experienced live.

Check it: (mp3) The Slew - It's All Over
Bonus: The entire album, 100%, is available for free here

Good Times on the Good Time

This past week Wednesday evening, along with several hundred other Greater Cleveland young and established professionals, we took a trip on the Goodtime III.

First off, I don't think either of us had been on the Goodtime III since high school maybe even longer. Second, whatever happened to the Goodtime II, did it sink? We think it did. Third, and most importantly, the reason for this trip was to listen to Mayor Frank Jackson outline and give insight throughout a tour of what the future holds for Cleveland's waterfront development.

There were 11 proposals that the Mayor discussed in total - and, while we did enjoy hearing about them, we mostly found ourselves simply getting caught up in the beautiful evening and scenery that surrounded us.

This event was the first in a series titled Envision a Sustainable Cleveland. This vision is a nice one, is it not :)

Future site of the North Coast Harbor Pedestrian Bridge

Whiskey Island Coast Guard Station: hopefully they will be able to fully bring this great building back to life. The view of the city from this location must be spectacular

Now that they have changed the name back to its original, let's bring back Nautica alllll the way back and remove that roof so that it no longer obstructs the phenomenal views of the city

We are very excited for The Bridge Project in two weeks - it is going to be a great event

Jose along with Eradin and Frank taking in the sights. All are part of the Young Latino Network's Executive Board

Experiencing this beautiful sunset makes us recall the crazy gorgeous ones we saw last year at Wendy park during The Ohio City Blues Festival. This year's OC Blues Festival is coming up next Saturday, September 19th.

We need to have a Fog Raw Night @ The Q this season

You also have to love the early 90's vibe to it, the clothing straight cross colours looking, NWA ish garb and the best part Mo's jheri curl and 6 fingers. I think that Fog Raw would be an excellent idea for Halloween costume this year. I don't know where one would get that bad ass ring he is sporting though? I myself I am thinking about going this year as Chuck Bass from Gossip Girl I just gotta get a bow tie and I will be set.

and Kelly will be going as Blair Waldorf

Recap: Sundays are for Dim Sum!

On Sunday, we had the opportunity to finally experience our very first DIM SUM. We had the pleasure of doing so with a couple of friends at Asia Town's Bo Loong. It's about time, right?! Dim sum is actually something that we've talked about doing for years but for whatever reason this simple brunch plan just never materialized, probably due to a slight case of intimidation.
The meal started of boldly, especially for Kelly, with none other than chicken feet aka foon chow. Sensing Kelly's hesitation, our friend (and dim sum guide) Chieh-Chen advised her to view the chicken feet as if it were watermellon, spitting out the bones as you would seeds. This metaphor most definitely helped us dive in and enjoy the beginnings of our brunch.

From there, we transitioned smoothly to a variety of dishes, each more tasty than the last. We dared to try the hot sauce, with that we promise a little goes a "loong" way, no pun intended ;)
Above: Sue My (shrimp, pork, mushroom wrapped in a wonton skin wrapper), Har Chung (thick rice noodle stuffed with shrimp), and Fun Goa (steamed dumpling stuffed with chopped vegetable, shrimp, and pork)
Wait, there's more: Gin Bough (steamed bun stuffed with BBQ pork), Nor My Guy (sticky rice stuffed with pork, sausage, duck, and egg wrapped in a lotus leaf), and misc. remnants.

Not pictured: Radish Cake (we should have written down the real name, soo good, probably our favorite. But of course it's not on the menu and you have request special, in Chinese. . .)
Cannot neglect to mention: Some vegetables thrown in just to try and be healthy as well some comforting jasmine tea.

Also: Kelly consumed more meat at this meal than she most likely eats in an entire year.
We finished off our meal with yet another first: delicious bubble tea at KoKo Bakery in a refreshing strawberry flavor. As you can see evidenced above, we smashed it -- gummy tapioca balls and all. Since KoKo is also a bakery, next time we go we will have to get some Sweet Bean Buns -- Kelly (and her friend, Sarah) have expressed their love for these "bundles of joy" during their time in Seattle while Jose has yet to understand the magic of the bun.

For now, be sure to check out a variety of fun cuisine options in Cleveland's Asia Town with this very informative listing.

Perfect, Unfolding Melodies

On the most beautiful blue-skied and bright afternoon, it always pays off to have some favorable tunes to accommodate the mood. In Cleveland, we were all blessed with that kind of day - a slight chill in the air, the occasional white cloud, crystal clear horizons, the sun beaming proudly.

Below is my mini-playlist I basically had on repeat while basking in this day's beauty:

1. [Mp3] DJ Tiesto (ft. Tegan & Sara) - Feel It My Bones Hypnotic and emotionally charged, beyond infectious!
2. [Mp3] Anjulie - Boom Smooth, sleek vocals and tones composed with a mysterious energy
3. [Mp3] The xx - Shelter This band is soo hot right now, and for good reason. Drawn to the peaceful calm of this particular track, truly comforting.
4. [Mp3] Julie Peel - Unfold Melancholy and serene, this female musician is someone most definitely to keep your eyes on.

Bonus (for this evening):

5. [Mp3] Rural Alberta Advantage - The Air Guitar strumming, delicate piano chords paired with soft, nasal (in the most fitting way possible) vocals. Love it.

ps - Pretty photo above, compliments of Pairaschut