I'm not just a Hopeless Romantic, I'm a Tragic Romantic

I'm definitely mood driven when I choose my music. If I'm in a dorky mood, some nerd-y songs about One angry dwarf and 200 solemn faces would do. If I'm angry, some Rage against the Machine works well for me. However, there are a few songs that no matter what mood I'm in, I will listen to them.

Death Cab For Cutie I Will Follow You Into The Dark

Morrissey - Everyday Is Like Sunday

the smiths - how soon is now..

We Will Become Sillhouettes

Yeah it's not just me being in love with love, but I'm all about the love that is eternal. I know morose but romantic, right?

What is the turn of the Millenium music?

Each decade has a music scene that can only be defined in nostalgia or if the music was so radical that it was history in the making. The 70's gave us disco. The 80s have new wave. the 90s is grunge. But what about when we hit 2000? Was there something there that defined this musical generation? Taking a look back should help understand what's happening between 2000 and 2010.

The 70s popular music was disco. For at least a decade or two, the 70s was looked back with a cringe on the face. I think for many they wanted to forget the bell bottoms and platform shows and disco was very much associated with that. As we all moved forward, we began looking at the 70s with a goofy look on our collective face. It was no longer, "ack! what were we thinking," it's now more, "OMG! what were we thinking LOL." Disco dominated, but other musical styles made a move. Rock was there in all its forms, from the whole arena style to glam to alternative - though alternative was never really given the name until later. The B-52s and Talking Heads were so different the only thing is to call them alternative. Punk was also coming around giving the middle finger to pop culture. The 70s also gave rise to funk. Though to varying degrees funk was what brought disco around, funk was also the precursor to hip/hop and rap.

As the disco era began to fade in the 80s, a new pop music phenomenon made its mark on the decade. New Wave music, with the heavy use of synthesizers, odd hair styles, and colorful clothes churned out the hits. Most of the alternative styles of music fell into that catagory. For instance, the B-52s were thrown in there with Kajagoogoo. But no matter how much we were told we were too shy shy, we decided to stay in the Love Shack with the B52s and let them make more records even to this day. Rock decided to take elements of its arena days, throw in the glam of David Bowie and the campyness of new wave and gave us those dang hair bands *blech!* I disdain, but i have my guilty pleasures. Hip/hop and rap also became more mainstream in the 80s, towards the later part of the decade gangster rap became a dominating force in the hip/hop movement.

As the 90s approached, new wave music began to ebb, the hair bands were being looked at as a musical effrontery, and hip/hop rap became less about the hardships of life and more about the life of a rockstar. Early on in the decade though, a style of music took precedence among all - grunge. Take some heavy metal sounds, throw on a flannel shirt, and look disillusioned and you have grunge. It's probably that disillusionment that fueled grunge. I definitely found myself brooding and sarcastic during those times and it wasn't a response to the music, it was more the music resonating my feelings. As grunge faded, music took a weird detour as popular music leaned to boy bands and female pop artists like Britney Spears. I can trace this phenomenon with two words: Spice Girls.

So where are we now musically? The whole boy band thing faded for now... but they always seem to come back. There seems to be no giant movement either commercially or underground. Country for a while had mainstream success, but nothing awe inspiring. Something I have noticed is a retooling of music. Rather than creating a musical movement, it seems like artists are tweeking what we have now. Some artists Popular music now spans many genre. One day the most popular song could be hip hop, the next it could be a country song - Black Eye Peas to Taylor Swift. A few years back, I said that music seem to be stagnant, that nothing is happening. Now I'm beginning to wonder if this is a transitional decade. With everyone mixing up musical genres and experimenting with what we have now, I think something is on the horizon.

I've always said...

...to my man that life is not always about unicorns and rainbows.

To which he retorts, "yes it is," and points to a rainbow. I hate when we have this argument in the rain.

Now a new bar is opening up in Capitol Hill District of Seattle, The Unicorn. And of course every time we go down there now, my man will point out that at least for Capitol Hill, it IS about rainbows and at least one unicorn.
Does this post make me look gay?










As Chris Hardwick would say, "gayer than cum on a mustache."

Taking it all in stride.

I would be afraid if I were in a garage by myself and I encountered these people.

Fall TV Season has started: Are you watching the right shows?

Here are some of my favorites this season:The Season opener Road to the Multiverse was great.

I can't help it, I think Mike Rowe is hawt! Him getting dirty just adds to the appeal. Of course, I'd need him to take a shower... that dirty, dirty man.Sad to say I just started getting into this one. I feel like they are speaking my language.

If you need to know what others you should be tuning into, here is a Monday through Sunday break-down of the shows you should be watching; not that I'm promoting everyone to sit on there butts all night and watch the shows:

Click-y for details.

Might I recommend getting a DVR so you can watch TV on your own time.

Quote of the day.

First shalt thou take out the Holy Pin. Then, shalt thou count to three. No more. No less. Three shalt be the number thou shalt count, and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither count thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out. Once at the number three, being the third number be reached, then, lobbest thou thy Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch towards thy foe, who, being naughty in My sight, shall snuff it.

-Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Best Opening Tracks. EVER!

KEXP.org did a great thing the other day. They went through a countdown of the best opening tracks voted by the listeners. I had nothing to do with the voting process but I definitely enjoyed quite a few tracks. I blipped some, listened to others on the way to work, and looked at the stuff I didn't know.

The ones in bold print are some of my favorites:

Rank	Opening Track	Band	Album
110	Caribou	Pixies	Come On Pilgrim
109	Is There A Ghost	Band of Horses	Cease to Begin
108	It Was There That I Saw You: Source Tags and Codes	And You Will Know Us By the Trail of the Dead	Source Tags and Codes
107	Cowboys	Portishead	Portishead
106	Song Remains the Same	Led Zeppelin	Houses of the Holy
105	Love Burns	Black Rebel Motorcycle Club	Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
104	I Will Follow	U2	Boy
103	Packed Like Sardines In a Crushed Tin Box	Radiohead	Amnesiac
102	To Bring You My Love	PJ Harvey	To Bring You My Love
101	The District Sleeps At Home Tonight: Give Up	Postal Service	Give Up
100	Never Let Me Down Again: Music For The Masses	Depeche Mode	Music For the Masses
99	Love Vigilanties	New Order	Low Life
98	Leave Them All Behind	Ride	Going Blank Again
97	Secret Meeting	The National	Alligator
96	New Year	Death Cab For Cutie	Transatlanticism
95	She’s In Parties	Bauhaus	Burning From the Inside
94	Drive	REM	Automatic For the People
93	Kissing The Lipless	The Shins	Chutes Too Narrow
92	Baba O’Riley	The Who	Who’s Next
91	Speed Trials	Elliott Smith	Either/Or
90	Nebraska	Bruce Springsteen	Nebraska
89	2+2=5 (The Lukewarm)	Radiohead	Hail To the Thief
88	Rhymin & Stealin	Beastie Boys	License to Ill
87	Whole Lotta Love	Led Zeppelin	Led Zeppelin II
86	Message in a Bottle	The Police	Regatta de Blanc
85	Everything Hits At Once	Spoon	Girls Can Tell
84	Beautiful Day	U2	All That You Can’t Leave Behind
83	While You Were Sleeping	Elvis Perkins	Ash Wednesday
82	Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)	Kate Bush	Hounds of Love
81	Summer Babe (Winter Version)	Pavement	Slanted & Enchanted
80	Jimmy James	Beastie Boys	Check Your Head
79	15 Step	Radiohead	In Rainbows
78	Bombtrack	Rage Against The Machine	Rage Against the Machine
77	Bridge Over Troubled Water	Simon & Garfunkel	Bridge Over Troubled Water
76	Caring Is Creepy	The Shins	Oh, Inverted World
75	The Queen Is Dead	The Smiths	The Queen Is Dead
74	Fake Empire	The National	Boxer
73	Planet Telex	Radiohead	The Bends
72	My Name is Jonas	Weezer	Weezer
71	New Day Rising	Husker Du	New Day Rising
70	Finest Worksong	R.E.M.	Document
69	Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough	Michael Jackson	Off the Wall
68	I Saw Her Standing There	The Beatles	Please Please Me
67	I Am Trying to Break Your Heart	Wilco	Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
66	In The Flowers	Animal Collective	Merriweather Post Pavillion
65	The Stars of Track and Field	Belle and Sebastian	If You’re Feeling Sinister
64	Bittersweet Symphony	The Verve	Urban Hymns
63	Age of Consent	New Order	Power Corruption & Lies
62	Untitled	Interpol	Turn on the Bright Lights
61	Radio Free Europe	R.E.M.	Murmur
60	I Am One	Smashing Pumpkins	Gish
59	Help!	The Beatles	Help
58	Disorder	Joy Division	Unknown Pleasures
57	Know Your Rights	The Clash	Combat Rock
56	3rd Planet	Modest Mouse	The Moon and Antarctica
55	Respect	Aretha Franklin	I Never Loved A Man the Way I Love You
54	I Will Dare	The Replacements	Let It Be
53	Good Times Bad Times	Led Zeppelin	Led Zeppelin I
52	Up A Beach	Jane’s Addiction	Nothing’s Shocking
51	Sympathy for the Devil	The Rolling Stones	Beggars Banquet
50	Tangled Up in Blue	Bob Dylan	Blood On the Tracks
49	Rid of Me	PJ Harvey	Rid of Me
48	Space Oddity	David Bowie	Space Oddity
47	Welcome to the Jungle	Guns & Roses	Appetite for Destruction
46	We Will Rock You	Queen	News Of the World
45	Let’s Go Crazy	Prince	Purple Rain
44	Foxy Lady	Jimi Hendrix	Are You Experienced
43	Sgt Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band	The Beatles	Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
42	Boys Don’t Cry	The Cure	Boys Don’t Cry
41	Cherub Rock	Smashing Pumpkins	Siamese Dream
40	Plainsong	The Cure	Disintegration
39	What’s Going On	Marvin Gaye	What’s Going On
38	Who Loves the Sun	Velvet Underground	Loaded
37	Hells Bells	AC/DC	Back In Black
36	Search and Destroy	The Stooges	Raw Power
35	Taxman	The Beatles	Revolver
34	Fight Test	Flaming Lips	Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
33	Burning Down the House	Talking Heads	Speaking In Tongues
32	Blitzkrieg Bop	Ramones	The Ramones
31	Hell’s Bells	AC/DC	Back In Black
30	Search and Destroy	The Stooges	The Stooges
29	Come Together	The Beatles	Abbey Road
28	Gloria	U2	October
27	Wouldn’t It be Nice	Beach Boys	Pet Sounds
26	The Stone Roses	The Stone Roses	The Stone Roses
25	Get Up Stand Up	Bob Marley and the Wailers	Burnin’
24	Imagine	John Lennon	Imagine
23	Pink Moon	Nick Drake	Pink Moon
22	Only Shallow	My Bloody Valentine	Loveles
21	Devil’s Haircut	Beck	Odelay
20	Head Like a Hole	Nine Inch Nails	Pretty Hate Machine
19	Rusty Cage	Soundgarden	Badmotorfiner
18	Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’	Michael Jackson	Thriller
17	Sympathy for the Devil	Rolling Stones	Beggars Banquet
16	Sunday Bloody Sunday	U2	War
15	Gimme Shelter	Rolling Stones	Let It Bleed
14	Bone Machine	Pixies	Surfer Rosa
13	Angel	Massive Attack	Mezzanine
12	Break on Through	The Doors	The Doors
11	King of Carrot Flowers	Neutral Milk Hotel	In An Aeroplane Over the Sea
10	Just Like Honey	Jesus and Mary Chain	Psychocandy
9	Teenage Riot	Sonic Youth	Daydream Nation
8	Everything in Its Right Place	Radiohead	Kid A
7	Where The Streets Have No Name	U2	The Joshua Tree
6	Like a Rolling Stone	Bob Dylan	Highway 61 Revisited
5	London Calling	The Clash	London Calling
4	Debaser	Pixies	Doolittle
3	Airbag	Radiohead	OK Computer
2	Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)	Arcade Fire	Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
1	Smells Like Teen Spirit	Nirvana	Nevermind