Lunar Boulevard

Bruce Springsteen has announced the release of a new album, High Hopes , which is slated for a January 14 release. This would seem like exciting news, and I suppose it is in a sense, but the tracklisting leaves a lot to be desired. For starters, we have several covers, including the title track, "Just Like Fire Would", and "Dream Baby Dream". That fair enough but there are also a few tracks that may look familiar. That's because they are and have appeared throughout Bruce's career in form or another. "American Skin (41 Shots)" has been played at concerts for years and there's enough controversy surrounding it that I don't need to go into any more details. "The Ghost of Tom Joad" is also on here, supposedly as full band version. Other tracks are unreleased or older tracks that haven't seen the light of day. It's hard to say how this will play out but I do find it curious that this is being touted as a new alb...

After four and a half years we finally have a new song from U2. "Ordinary Love" is a beautiful slice of pop and a welcome return for a band that has been absent for far too long. Written for the film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, it already appears to be drumming up anticipation for the film and curiosity from fans and newcomers alike. All of the U2 hallmarks are here: Bono's passionate vocals, Edge's shimmering guitar, Larry's consistent beats, and Adam's subtle yet groovy basslines. The lyrics are upbeat and inspiring, lending themselves to different interpretations, another U2 trademark. It's a fun and poppy tune that embodies the deep and bright spirit that U2 has always brought to their music. The only real complaint I have is that the song stays on a pretty straight path and doesn't have any real surprises in store. Having more guitar from The Edge would have been nice too, although by now listeners should know he prefers a more subtle ap...

Following up a stellar debut like August and Everything After had to have been daunting for Counting Crows. The album had shot them into superstardom seemingly overnight and clearly frontman Adam Duritz was having trouble dealing with it. He may have sung about wanting to be a star in "Mr. Jones" but Recovering the Satellites finds him possibly regretting getting what he asked for. I should probably start out by saying that this album is well-regarded by fans and even Adam Duritz himself as stated that he thinks it's their best record. It may be a stretch to call this album underrated but compared to their debut it seems to be sidelined by all but their hardcore fans. One thing that makes this album stand out is the heavier sound. Those who loved the tender ballads of their debut must have been more than a little surprised by the distorted guitars of "Angels of the Silences", the snarling vocals of "I'm Not Sleeping", or the crashing drums...

We all know that space suits are vitally important for survival. However, apparently you can go without one for a brief moment. Humans can survive for around 30 seconds while being completely exposed in space without permanent injury.  I still wouldn't recommend it.

I know I've covered this before but it bears repeating once again: tolerance and acceptance are not the same thing. Unfortunately our society continues to link these two together and they've become practically inseparable in today's world. As Christians it's vital that we understand these implications and define exactly how this relates to sin. Let's begin by looking at how God sees our sin. He loves each of us dearly and eagerly welcomes anyone into His kingdom who accepts Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. This wonderful gift is offered to each and every one of us. However, that grace doesn't give us a Get Out of Judgement Free card to go and sin as much as we please. We're new creations and should desire to have the Holy Spirit transform us from the inside out. God loves us but He also hates our sin. He loves us in spite of it but that doesn't mean He's apathetic about how we conduct ourselves. As believers we need to take this ...

It's hard to believe it's been almost a decade since The Killers first burst onto the scene. I remember when Hot Fuss and its singles were everywhere, seemingly coming out of nowhere and surprising all of us with their energetic and passionate performances. This collection celebrates the band's first decade together and it's exactly what you would expect from a basic hits collection. From the big hits like "Mr. Brightside" and "When You Were Young" to newer masterpieces like "A Dustland Fairytale" and "Miss Atomic Bomb", everything here does a solid job of representing the band's radio singles and popular tunes. The one surprise comes with "The Way It Was", which was never released as a single but it's a track I've always loved so I can forgive its inclusion here, as well as "Be Still", which closes the deluxe edition. It's another wonderful track that seemed like an underdog on Battle Born...

Sometimes it's easy for us to say we care. It's often harder to really understand the connotation behind that and the responsibility we carry when we begin to try and feel someone's pain. Often we sympathize when someone loses a child or is diagnosed with cancer but unless we've been through those experiences ourselves we can't really fathom what they're feeling and the swirl of emotions that come with that. This weekend God brought this lesson to me and taught me just what it means to "mourn with those who mourn", as the Scriptures say. At some point you've probably experienced tinnitus. Don't know what that is? The simple explanation is a ringing or humming sound in your ear that occurs even when there's no sound creating it. It comes from inside your ear and can be caused by everything from exposure to loud sounds to stress to internal health problems. It happens to everyone at some point but it usually lasts a few seconds, mi...

If you're reading this then I have a message of the utmost importance: THANK YOU. Recently this tiny blog eclipsed 20,000 views, in no small part because of you and your curiosity, devotion, or accidental discovery. We've come a long way since that old blog that started randomly back in 2009 and hopefully God will continue to use it as He sees fit.  If you've ever read, commented, or just stumbled across any of these pages then thanks for stopping by. It wouldn't be possible without you.

Need another reason to stay away from black holes? If so then this nifty fact might help you. If you were to fall into a black hole (how you got there is your business) you would be stretched like spaghetti. That sounds both tasty and incredibly painful.