Well hello there, readers! I apologize for the lateness of my post. It has been a long, long day.

I am truly honored (as well) that Laurel asked me to guest blog while she is away but even more honored that she chose me for her traditional Thursday music post! She and I are musical soul-mates. As referenced in her blog title about my visit, “Sisterhood of the Traveling iPods”. But, my lovely Jukebox friend far surpasses my knowledge of music, if nothing else, by the sheer volume of her music library! So it was a compliment to me that she viewed me an appropriate author for this post.

I thought a lot about which artist or genre I would post about but since Laurel and I line up so perfectly, she’s covered everyone I love the most! So I decided that I would take this opportunity to blog about a band that I really think everyone should be listening to.

I digest music in a really strange way. I have a limit for new music - it’s almost like my brain is a funnel and I can only allow so much in at one time. I want to chew on every lyric and memorize every melody before moving on to something else. I think that’s why I sit on one record for months and am perfectly content. I remember the first time I heard Room for Squares, nothing else went in my CD player for six months. It’s just how I do things. Mild obsession followed by mild obsession.

Anyway, I have been listening to this record for a couple months and it is still fresh and exciting with each listen. I give you, I Nine’s “Heavy Weighs the King”.

I was introduced to I Nine at a trio of shows in Atlanta during Christmas 2005. They were hand-picked to open for John Mayer when he returned to Eddie’s Attic. I Nine hail from South Carolina but had a kick-start to their career in Atlanta. During those special nights, Carmen completely won me over because she was genuinely nice to us offstage. On stage, she is a force. Watching her sing live is completely different than listening to her through car speakers or headphones. I can’t explain it but there is something organic and raw about her that is pretty infectious.

Their acoustic EP was for sale at Eddie’s (and had been recorded there) and I had been living off that raw sound until “Heavy Weighs the King” fell into my lap a few months ago. Along with their record deal came a bit of a pop makeover. Their acoustic quartet expanded into drums and electric guitar in the studio and it gave them a whole new sound. “Heavy” touts a list of new songs written specifically, I assume for their “debut” album. Also included are songs from their live EP with an infusion of their new sound.

My favorite tracks are “Don’t Wanna”, “Beckon” and “I’m Alive”. Since I am not a master of media like Laurel, you’ll just have to go to their MySpace to take a listen! “I’m Alive” is an old song that got remastered for the new record. It’s not on their MySpace so I’m including a YouTube of them in the studio finishing up the song. It’s mildly amusing and you get to hear the entire song! I hope you all take a minute to check them out. I promise, the album is stellar from start to finish. You won’t be disappointed!

Thank you, Laurel, for allowing me to pimp my band of the moment! Hurry home! Can’t wait to hear all about your time off the grid.

- Heather Bee