I Went and Did It Again

treeSometimes I wonder how I survived this long after my wife and I had our first child, my daughter, in late 2010. Then, we went and did it again. Our son was born only a few weeks ago on December 8th. He just survived his first apocalypse, so I’m very proud of him.

My name is Brian Zalewski. I think I’m finally getting that hang of this father thing, though I have a lot of thanks to give to the mother. I am now 32 years old, though that will tick up one number in under a month. I’ve been an avid lover of music and video games since I was a young boy. I usually lean toward the heavier rock and metal music, personally. As for video gaming, I play games across the board, from blockbusters to small, under-the-radar indie games. I also have some other hobbies like genealogy and family history. It’s something I got into about a decade ago. It satisfies my need to solve a mystery and dig through old documents, I guess.

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I’ve also been blogging on and off for over a decade now, back when Blogger just started. I’ve written on personal blogs, gaming blogs, genealogy blogs, and parenting blogs.

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I love the community it builds.

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My daughter is now a few months beyond the 2-year mark. She’s starting to gain interest in things like her favorite music and TV shows. It’s mainly Yo Gabba Gabba! all the way for her, but she does leave her comfort zone to enjoy things like Dora or Sesame Street. I told her she should not take Netflix for granted as Daddy had to wait for his favorite show to be on and he had to get up to change the channel.

I hope you enjoy my upcoming posts as a dad. I will try to let you know about some of the neat things my kids are enjoying and my journey along the way. Thanks for reading.

CD Review: Justin Roberts – Lullaby

Justin Roberts LullabyAnd The Song Goes:
don’t you worry I’m following right behind
‘cause if you’re caught in who knows where
then I’ll be your polar bear

CD: Lullaby
Artist: Justin Roberts
Audience: Humans
Sounds Like: Justin Roberts channeling James Taylor and Van Morrison.
Buy fromJustinRoberts.org
Random Thought: If Coca-Cola doesn’t offer Roberts a boatload of cash to use “Polar Bear” in their  Super Bowl polar bear commercials, they’re fools.
Tweet Sized Review: Justin Roberts makes a bad ass 70’s soft-rock Lullaby record.

I doubted Justin Roberts. A lullaby record from the guy who rocks out like no other from the family music set? I second guessed it and should have known better. The Dan Wilson of the family music scene can simply do no wrong. Lullaby is his ode to 70’s soft rock giants James Taylor, Van Morrison and others. Forget those annoying Rockabye Baby CDs, this is how a lullaby record should sound. This is how a lullaby record needs to sound.

Justin Roberts was the first ever Kindie artist I heard. Back in 2009 I was sitting with my two week old daughter listening to Music Choice on my TV and I was 30 seconds away from turning the kids channel off because they were playing something awful. But I decided to wait for the next song. “Song for You” by Justin Roberts was the next song. I downloaded the track about 2 minutes later.  The song and moment has stuck with me ever since. Had I been less patient, I may have never found the kindie music world.  I love kindie music because it helps create moments for our family that I’ll always remember. Whether I’m in the car with my daughter dancing in our seats to Lucky Diaz or The Pop Ups, its all about creating those special moments.

The morning my second daughter was born in October of this year, I had an email with a link to listen to Lullaby. We, as in my wife  & daughters, sat around my iphone and listened to a stream of the record from start to finish. It was one of those moments that will stick with me forever.

Mr. Roberts doesn’t take the easy route. Many albums are produced and recorded at a pretty bare bones/rapid pace by  artists today. Voice, guitar, hit ‘record’ and be done. The days of “Big Budget” records are gone. Except in Justin’s world. And we as listeners get to reap the rewards. The sound on this record is impeccable. Roberts and producer Liam Davis have created a ridiculously lush sound for this album. Horns, harps, plus strings from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, they pay attention to all the little details that take an album from being good to being great. Lullaby has no business being so damn compelling. Frankly, it’s the one and only time I’ll ever call a lullaby record, bad ass. But it’d be a shame to call it anything else.

So Justin Roberts, I’m sorry for doubting you. I won’t let it happen again.

If you don’t have this record set for your child’s stocking, do it right now there is still time. It’s practically a gift for yourself.

BONUS – Audio geeks! The album is being released on 180 gram vinyl early in 2013!

Neighbor To Neighbor: Family Music For Sandy Relief

Good music for a good cause. It was the goal and now the end result of Neighbor To Neighbor: Family Music For Sandy Relief  a new music compilation from some of the best that the kindie music scene has to offer. It’s now available for pre-order and will be released in the next day or so. Assuming the world doesn’t end tomorrow.

Here are the exact details about the project – A compilation of children’s music to benefit victims of Hurricane Sandy. All net proceeds will go directly to neighborhood organizations that have been engaged in ongoing relief & recovery work in the Rockaways and on Long Island, via the Neighbor to Neighbor Fund, administered by The MARK Project, an Arkville, NY-based 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit organization.

If you’re curious about how the idea was started, read the details here.

You can pre-order the album and preview two tracks straight from the bandcamp site.

Here is a track list for the album:

1. New Is The New Old – Gustafer Yellowgold
2. Smiling – Grenadilla
3. The Night The Lights Went Out – Uncle Rock
4. Green Grass of Summer – Dog on Fleas
5. Row de Boat – Kim & Reggie Harris
6. Squeezebox Bus – Story Laurie & Ira McIntosh
7. Solartopia – Pete Seeger, Dar Williams, David Bernz & The Rivertown Kids
8. It’s So Good – Key Wilde & Mr Clarke
9. Cuida el Agua – Dan Zanes
10. Bull Frog – Professor Louie & The Crowmatix
11. Pretend Your Hand’s A Puppet – Ratboy Jr.
12. It Really Isn’t Garbage – Danny Einbender
13. I Will Be Your Friend – Guy Davis
14. This Little Light of Mine – The Saints of Swing
15. Under One Sky – Magpie
16. Sing Me the Story of Your Day – Tom Chapin

It’s the season of giving, so please consider helping those families who were impacted by Sandy.