iPod shuffle-age ...

I just have not been in a specific music/artist mood lately. To quelch my musical needs, I've been turning to iPod's shuffle feature lately. Just because I can, I thought I'd share the suffle-age.

(Beginning from #12 because that's where I'm at right now)

1. Dear Girl by The Steinways (feat. Hallie from The Unlovables) - "p.s. where the fuck's my sweatshirt?"
2. My My Metrocard by Le Tigre - I wish I liked Le Tigre half as much as I love Bikini Kill but I just don't ... "next stop: Atlantic Avenue"
   
3. Basket Case by Green Day from Bullet In a Bible (Live Album) - I love Green Day for not editing this album (which I know because they occasionally fuck up and you can hear it)
   
4. Even Angels Fall by Jessica Riddle from the 10 Things I Hate About You soundtrack - um ... love this song ... love the movie ... sad but true
5. Sick Boy by Social Distortion - I wish Mike Ness, in his old fat age, wouldn't hit on girls in the audience anymore ... it's getting kinda gross. sorry but it is. in other thoughts: this song. great. classic.
6. Help Save the Youth of America by Billy Bragg - I can only tolerate Billy Bragg's brit-rockness (I know it's wrong, I just can't help that post-the 60s and not including The Clash, I kind of hate British rock) because he's just so fuckin' talented and awesome.
7. Volvare - Dean Martin
8. I Wanna Live - The Ramones - dude! this is the 3rd Ramones song I've heard! I love them but I think Apple could improve their shuffle algorithm. To be fair, they have released A LOT of albums and we have all of them.
9. Anchor Grill by The Descendents - This album (Cool to be You) was such a phenomenal dissapointment. 'Merican was an awesome teaser EP and then ... the 'Merican songs were the only good songs on the actual album.
   
10. Educated Guess by Mxpx - awww ... it's my high school era fake-boyfriend ... haven't listened to this for years.
    
11. Teenage Labatomy by The Ramones - See!
12. Four-Eyed Girl by Rhett Miller - He's so freakin' cute especially when he does his butt-shake-dance on stage ...
13. O Holy Night by Mariah Carey - uh, skip. this is only semi-ok during Christmas.
14. Breathless by Wanda Jackson - if you get a chance to see her live, do it. she's ADORABLE!
15. A Man Can Cry by Freddie Fender
16. You Do It So Well by Name Taken - this is from my sister and I am reserving judgement ...
17. Billy Be Bad by George Jones - I don't actually know who this or where this came from but it ain't bad ... a little Hank 2 pop-country-ish ... ultimately, it's skipper ...
18. No, All! by The Descendents - Does this even count? It's 2 seconds long!
19. 30 Days by Run DMC - Skip! It's only very very very occasionally that I have any desire to listen to rap ... no disrespect to Run DMC though, he's the cream of the crop ...
20. Gonna be a Blackout Tonight by The Dropkick Murhpys

That's all for tonight kids!

once upon a time pitchfork media reviewed los angeles is burning ....

Read the article here.

"The irony of it all is that the band's call-and-response vocal arrangements are straight out of a Baptist church house, as are the rich harmonies and the reliance on one man-- in this case, Graffin-- to testify to (and for) the congregation. Bad Religion's magic doesn't stem as much from their political lyrics as from the airtight arrangements and thick, sweet harmonies that bring the lyrics to you, and interestingly, are also the antithesis of the social rebellion the band advocates. A case could be made (and sometimes I make it) that the band resorts to the very things it deplores in order to get across a message, and that in the process, they demand a kind of allegiance that a cynic might call unhealthy. But if Graffin and Gurewitz are willing to return to the well to help the innocent climb out, the end certainly justifies the means. "

Um, what?

Just because they use musical techniques developed in a church (which ps - everyone does because that's how music developed) doesn't mean they "resort to the very things [they] deplore"? I don't even understand what they are talking about? You can't have airtight arrangements and harmonies if you are an indie band or advocate for a social rebellion? The formualic songs written by record company execs in no way resemble Bad Religion. Pop music isn't evil in itself. I mean who doesn't like the Beatles? Have you heard the Ramones? Have you listened to Buddy Holly at a really fast speed … oh wait, that IS the Ramones.

Punk rock and social rebellion are about creating the world you live in and not just going along with the corporate, powerful, self-serving way. That does NOT mean doing something just because it's against authority. It means thinking about the actions that you take, the way you vote, the things you say. Sometimes those things may be in line with "authority;" sometimes not. The key thing is that it involes thinking and thoughfully doing things your way. And that's exactly what Bad Religion does and has done for 18(?) years.

Perhaps ironically, blink 182 said it best: (I'm paraphrasing here) a kid who won't listen to anything because it's on the radio is just as bad as a kid who will only listen to something because it's on the radio.