shuffling in under the wire

even though my shuffleathon cd sender ian has gone walkabout, removing his blog from the net, i promised to have my review posted by the end of march.... which is today! 

i received the cd in january. ian wrote on the outside of the track listing to "listen blind," so i did. 

side 1: 

the first song was made for me!

tales of girls, boys and marsupials - wombats

i love a song about marsupials! i'd heard of the wombats, but never heard them. of course to me, the wombats will always be the band in the movie starstruck. 

intro - a sound clip from high fidelity (and i was only one day away from meeting john cusack in port douglas. damn me to hell) where they choose their top 5 side 1's track 1's. where jack black says smells like teen spirit isn't obvious at all.

smells like teen spirit - nirvana

that's not obvious at all! reminds me what it's like to hear great rock and roll -- something that, for me, is missing in the 00s. freaking awesome. oh! and ian has literally MIXED his mix cd -- the songs segue into each other. ian must be a professional!

the sas and the glam that goes with it - earl brutus

i don't know this one -- but i assume it's also a side 1 track 1. seems a sort of dancey industrial glammy song. it's a little bombastic for my taste.

overload - sugababes

it's a chick singer, but thankfully she's not nails-on-a-chalkboard chicky. it's got a great driving beat and lots of guitar kicks in, too.

into my arms - nick cave

"i don't believe in an interventionist god...." i think this is a nick cave love song, but i've never been great with lyrics. this reminds me of my time down under, when my first date with an australian was with john, the massive birthday party fan. 

beautiful noise - neil diamond

i do love the neil, though the last time i saw him live it seemed every song could be sung with the "sweet caroline" lyrics.

take california - propellerheads

i don't know this song either, but it did get my feet tapping. reminds me of the song i was forced to play at the thrashers games by the chemical brothers. i should be dancing in club ra at the luxor with dennis rodman.

oblivious - aztec camera

ahhhhhhh.... what a great song. delicious.

all i want - lightning seeds

this sounds familiar, but i can't place it. pet shop boysy. britpop.

side two:

intro - another high fidelity clip where john cusack sells 5 copies of the beta band.

dry the rain - the beta band

i always wanted to like the beta band, with so much cusack cred and everything, but i just never got them.

sunday morning - velvet underground

this song reminds me of the movie love and other catastrophes. i don't think i knew it before i saw it.

i wanna be adored - stone roses

pretty much the only stone roses song this yank knows.

so young - suede

another unknown, angsty british? assumed side 1 track 1. with some lovely piano at the end that saves it.

yes - mcalmont and butler

wow how many songs do i not know? ian's trying to enlighten the yankie wombat, apparently. it's got a 70's vibe and i think it's a chick singer (but apparently it's a guy, i find out when i google the band later). eek!

here comes the music - fixed stars

90s britpop again, i realise my musical knowledge ain't all that.

since yesterday - strawberry switchblade

they sample beach baby, it can't be all that bad!

take on me - a-ha

again with the australian memories for me, as i did get to see a-ha's very first concert ever there. i still love this song.

freak like me - sugababes

slightly techno, totally dancey in a good way. right up my alley.

after listening blind, i looked up most of the songs and discovered they were indeed a bunch of side 1 track 1s. thanks ian! shuffle on!

when i grow up, i want to be.....

after seeing a month in the country and especially after the handmaid's tale, i used to answer that question: natasha richardson. after she married liam neeson? forgetaboutit. beautiful, luminous, talented, and married to liam. natasha was spectacular.

so what word means crazy tragically+? scary everyday accident, and she's gone. it's so sad. i know demi moore has already twittered this, but i've just got to say it too. life is short. be happy. love hard.

incapable of stringing coherent thoughts together

i am obsessed with which wich.

the tub of antiseptic wipes at the door in the grocery store is for cleaning the handle of the grocery cart -- not for cleaning your hands, stupid texas guy.

if this rumor comes true, i swear to allah i will stop watching american idol: According to the New York Daily News, an unnamed female "Idol" employee has been going around telling a "group of people that the last four are going to be Danny Gokey, Lil Rounds, Adam Lambert and Alexis Grace." The woman added that "the producers really want it to be Danny or Alexis. They think they’re very commercially viable, have a good image and a great story."

and speaking of ai, i must go on record as saying that shouty mcscreamerson himself, adam lambert, is about as "relevant" as getting vd from the bass player in cinderella in 1989. and this is coming from a rocker chick who had kip winger sign her breast. (though i did do it ironically.) my favorites this year? kris allen, allison iraheta, and anoop desai.

there's a lot to hate about texas. but one thing the state does have going for it: nights. nights in texas can be very nice. even during the really hot and nasty summer, the nights are usually cool and breezy and just really pleasant. of course it doesn't hurt that at night, you can't see the bleak and boring landscape.

merrell makes the most comfortable shoes.

my boss got fired last week. she of the great baked ziti smackdown. she seemed to be a really nice person -- and one of the worst managers ever. and i've known some doozies. i hope her absence will enable me to transfer to another job sooner. like next month.

now that i've finally decided to buy one, dell has stopped making the sunshine yellow laptops. bastards.

feral cats make great subjects for photographs:

facebook, while still evil, can sometimes be vaguely entertaining.

i will get my shuffleathon review posted before the end of march. i'm still bitter that my sender has gone walkabout.

oh, and the folks at aig should find good company with the folks from mci in hell.