Weekend Playlist...

Tim Fite - Big Mistake
- I love when a song can just make you smile…and this one does that for me. It’s got a childlike simplicity to it that just connects with you from the first time you hear it. Listening to this song on the drive home from the airport was my “high of the day” for Tuesday.

The Dodos - Fools
- I hear a little Andrew Bird in the vocals, Tokyo Police Club in the driving rhythm, and a little Yeasayer in the shouts...all good things...but what I really dig about this track is that it gets your heart pumping. It makes me want to leave my cube, lace up, and hit the road for a long run. I can’t wait to pop it on my shuffle and run my brains out to this track.

Beck - Chemtrails
- Beck + Danger Mouse = Duh!

Afternoon Dee-lite

I'm really trying to stay positive, but I’m seriously bummed I’m not on the beach anymore. I’m felling very lazy today, so today you only get one song...and it's kinda a downer…suck it.

MP3: The Magnetic Fields - I Dont Believe You (Live at KVRX)

Okay, it's not really a downer song...it's actually kind of sweet when you listen to it. I've listened to it about 100 times today. For some reason it just reminds of me of my last week of doing absolutely nothing...which makes me very happy.

Team Robertson Summer'08 Mix

Grab your Wayfarers, throw on your trunks, and don’t forget the SPF65 - summer is finally here! Let the 20 tracks of the Team Robertson Summer'08 Mix serve as the perfect soundtrack for the next three months of soaking up the sun by the pool. Enjoy.

1. MMJ - Off the Record
2. Cut Copy - Feel The Love
3. Tegan and Sara - Back In Your Head RAC Mix
4. MGMT - Electric Feel
5. Phantom Planet - Do The Panic
6. Tokyo Police Club - Tessellate
7. The Wombats - Moving To New York
8. Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks - Gardenia
9. Nada Surf - Blankest Year
10. The Ting Tings - Great DJ
11. I'm From Barcelona - We're From Barcelona
12. Coconut Records - Easy Girl
13. The Afternoon Naps - Clean Bill of Health
14. Jamie T - If You Got the Money
15. Jack Penate - 1234
16. DCFC - I Will Possess Your Heart
17. Architecture In Helsinki - Heart It Races
18. The Arcade Fire - Rebellion
19. Interpol - Evil
20. Bob Marley - Stir It Up

(If this is your first time...Just right click on each track and click ‘Save As’. Each song is labeled with it’s track number in its title so just upload the tracks into your iTunes, toss them in a playlist, and they should all sort by name…1-20. Now you’re set! Also the mix fits perfectly on a blank cd; so seriously, you have no excuse not to download it.)

Weekend Tunes...

The Teenagers - Homecoming
- Finally something comes out of France that doesn’t just completely suck. This song is funny because if you take out the vocals it’s a really, really good song. I think the lyrics are hilarious, but I just think they make song campy. This is this years’ Nada Surf – Popular.

Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes
- I like this song, but I don’t think there’s anything you’ve never heard before. It’s one part Gwen Stefani, one-part Nelly Furtado, and one-part Yeah Yeah Yeahs. It’s fun track that is tough to not jam to.

Lil Wayne ft. Kanye West - Lollipop Remix
- Kanye kills it in this track…favorite line: "Don’t worry how my wrists got so freeze, tell that chick like Doritos “That’s Na-cho Cheese”

Morning Glory!

Dr Dog - Heart it Races (Architecture in Helsinki Cover)
- Blerg! This is a tremendous cover. You’ll be seeing this track again on the highly anticipated Team Robertson Summer’08 Mix, due out next week.

No Age - Eraser
- Okay…this track has a ton of distortion, which I’m normally not a fan of, but somehow I feel it works in this song. Plus as you all know, I’m a sucker for a good long intro.

The Decemberists - Engine Driver
- This track is 3 years old, but I’m a big, big fan of this song. It has that characteristic chill sound and depth of layers of almost every song produced by Chris Walla. I’m planning on listening to this on repeat for hours while lying on the beach next week. Suckers.

Friday Fun Time...

Two Tracks for you to add to your weekend playlist...something old and something new. Enjoy.

Mp3: Nada Surf - Blankest Year

-I just love this song, and it never got enough play when it came out. It's the absolute perfect song for a beautiful Friday...just like today! If you've never heard this song, get ready becuase you will listen to it 50 times today...I promise.

Mp3: Bon Iver - Skinny Love
-This dude is blowing up. He just has a chill and soulful vibe that is impossible not to like.

Rainy Day Tunes...

I hate these overcast, sprinkle for 3 minutes and then nothing the rest of the day kinda days! Geez...Either rain or don't rain!

Here are a couple of fun and upbeat tracks to get you out of this rainy day funk. enjoy.

MP3: Wolf Parade - Call It A Ritual
-This track is kinda goes over the place as you move through it, but I think its cool how it remains to be all bound together by the pounding piano riff.

MP3: Bloc Party - Banquet
-Probably my favorite Bloc Party song ever…

MP3: Walter Meego - Wanna Be A Star
-Super nerdy electro…it’s fun though.

MP3: Paper Route Gangstaz - Bama Gettin' Money (Diplo remix)
-Ghetto ass rap music just sounds so much better when you throw in a Wham! sample…

Never Met a Cheese I Didn't Like...

THE REVIEW - Rise No.1



I’ll admit, I was a bit apprehensive about dining at Rise No. 1. I mean this place is a French styled restaurant, drenched in classic French tradition, predominately serving the French-iest of French food – the soufflé. Newsflash: The Robertson family is not the biggest fan of the French. Anyone that has ever met my father would know how tough it was for me to even step in the door of this place.

Despite my fathers words of warning of the French being a pretentious and smelly group of people that don’t bathe or shave who needed the US to bail them out of WWII and yet they treat us like crap; Linds and I decided to forego my Pop’s opinion, trust our palates, and give Rise No. 1 a shot. Boy…I'm glad we did.

Linds and I started off our evening at Rise No.1 with a glass of Presecco ($10) at the cozy little wine bar in the back. Tad bit expensive for a glass of Presecco, but then again it’s bubbly. Good Move No. 1- The bar was small and a group of old ladies were taking up a ton of room, which made it tough to order. The bartender notices us failing at trying to politely eek our way through the grandma perfume and sequins. He walks out from behind the bar, hands us a menu, and introduces himself. He said he could tell it was going to be tough for us to order over the people at the bar, so he’d just come to us. That was a first. Service like that, unfortunately, just doesn’t happen at most places..

As for the drink menu, no surprise, it’s extremely wine driven. There are at least ten different 4 glass flights to choose from and prices range $8-15 per flight…very, very reasonable considering the quality and pour you get with each wine. Linds rocked the "We Never Drink Alone" flight which was made up of "sweet and sassy" whites: a Pinot Gris, Alsace Riesling, German Riesling, and a Gewürztraminer all for only $10. As a tipsy Lindsay later told me, "I freaking loved every glass." I opted for the "4 Rhone’s Make it Right" flight which was a four glass tour of the Rhone Valley featuring a Blanc followed by 3 fruity reds ($12). Nicely done.

On to the food…
APPETIZERS:
Good Move No. 2 – Get the Chariot de Fromage. I’ll say it again…if you only get one thing at Rise No. 1, get the Chariot de Fromage. You’ll thank me when you see the dude wheel out a cart with 8-10 different cheeses that are a veritable who’s who line-up of the cheese world. All the major players are there and even a couple of up and comings you’ve never heard of. Never meeting a cheese we didn’t like; we chose the Chevre (Blackened Goat), Brie with layers of Blue, and a nameless White Semi-Soft with chucks of white truffles. I’m not one to curse, but MF’er, I could eat this every day for the rest of my life and be totally happy.

ENTRÉE:
Soufflés take 17 minutes to make at Rise No. 1, apparently the fastest soufflé in Texas, so we ordered the Rise Salad ($5) to tide us over before our Truffle Infused Wild Mushroom Soufflé ($15) arrived. The salad is basically the same signature salad from Maguire’s (baby greens, blue cheese, roasted pecans, Granny Smith apples, and Walnut vinaigrette). Linds thought this version of it was better though…I think she said it was sweeter. Either way, Mark Maguire (the chef, not the baseball player) does a salad right, so why not bring it over to Rise with him?

Good Move No. 3 - Truffle Infused Wild Mushroom Soufflé. Soufflés are typically so heavy that you get tired of eating it before you’re half way though; not the case with the Wild Mushroom. Linds and I split this, but I easily could have eaten the entire thing. It was light, crispy, and full of earthy goodness. Every bite had great balance of all of the flavors, which really left you wanting more after each spoonful. I highly, highly recommend this soufflé. Other notable soufflés on the menu: fresh crab, jambon and Gruyere, and Fromage de Chevre.

DESSERT:
We’d heard the dessert soufflés were just okay, so we picked the Chocolate Lava Cake at $9. I’m no expert on Lava Cakes, so I must defer to Lindsay’s proclamation as this being the "best lava cake ever." Did I mention her wine flght…

Good Move No.4 - Highlight of the dessert for me though was the coffee…individual French Presses. Glorious presentation aside, it was a very tasty cup of coffee.

OVERALL:
Rise No. 1 is somewhere that Lindsay and I are already chomping at the bit to go back to. This place was nothing like what I expected…It wasn't pretentious, it had a cool laid back upscale casual vibe, wasn’t crazy expensive ($125 total bubbly/wine flights/food/tip), and oh my God the cheese plate…

I’d honestly rank Rise No. 1, as my No. 2 favorite place in town right now. Ya, see what I did there with the No.? I'm a tool, I know.