iTunes Shuffle All Live Blog Challenge pt2

The second installment of iTunes Shuffle all challenge.  I've added another 30 or 40 songs since the last time bringing the overall total of possible tracks to 4,860.  I also decided to rate the songs on a 1- 10 scale to gauge them.

Death of a Martian- Red Hot Chili Peppers.  I don't think I've heard this song before, but it sounds boorishly familiar.  Sadly a lot of the slower songs on this album sound a lot a like.  It reminds me of the early 2000's punk pop that sounded so much alike.  It's not a bad song, but it's also not a good song nor does it do anything to distinguish  itself from the other lame songs on this album.  Anthony Kedis and the guys wrote way better music when they were addicted to herion, but I guess it's kind of selfish to hope for a relapse.  I'll just go listen to Mother's Milk later instead.  Very Meh. 4

Your Home- Jimmy Eat World.  I like this song.  It has a catchy beat and I used to play the whole CD on drives from Austin to Dallas.  If I were to hear it for the first time now I probably wouldn't have the same reaction but I still like it.  It starts to pick up in the 3rd section where he breaks the melody like chorus that was part of the first two sections of the song.  Average 5

Enemy of The World- Four Year Strong.  The most brittle viking in the world, Austin Erikson, gave me this CD.  I loved it right when I heard it.  Kind of like Comeback Kid and the whole Victory records scene around 2004, they sing fast and loud but you can understand the lyrics pretty well so it isn't too Scream-O.  It's a nice pick me up from the other two slow songs.  Also a good showing from a more obscure band that most people won't know.  It makes me want to go bomb down some trails on my mountain bike or start skating again. 6

Kill Yourself- Timbaland.  I think shuffle played this one last time (checked).  Yup.  What the hell iTunes,4,860 songs in my library and you play the same one I listened to last time on shuffle all.  I'm not sure how I felt about it last time but right now I'm over it.  The creepy opera style in the back ground works since it's All Hallow's Eve (as horror movies call it) but right now it just isn't doing it for me. 4

It's All Good- DMX.  Hell Yes, I love this song.  I was in the Army when "Flesh of my Flesh" came out and we wore it out in the barracks.  So many good tracks; 'Damien' with Marilyn Manson, 'Ain't No Way', and 'Slipping'.  Not really a lot to it but I do like it, not the best one on the CD but I have good memories or riding around with Sanders listening to this. Ah DMX, too bad he's sitting in jail in Arizona now for stealing a kit kat or something else stupid.  Poor Earl.... 6

Blind- The Getaway People.  This was one of Yulie's CD's she gave me when they burned everything to an external hard drive.  I added about 15 hispanic CD's, this one, and a few other random CD's that I figured why not.  Hearing it for the first time I guess it's alright.  I don't really know what to think about it.  Maybe like Jamiroquai or something like that when the white dudes were trying to sound Jamaican and do a flow kind of rap and light rock sound but not really do or say anything?  I don't know really how to explain it.  Yup, there is a Jamaican singing right now, I knew it would happen.  I bet this dude grew up in the upper middle class suburnd of his state state and said "Mon" a lot while wearing a reggae beanie with a Bob Marley shirt.  It's just boring enough to still play on Jack FM. 3

Snapbacks and Tattoos- Drizzy Graham.  Ya, a good song!  Such a killer club song.  Nemo and I used to jam this a couple summers ago when it came out.  I never heard anything else he put out but this one was tight.  Tattoo's I like, snapback hats aren't that cool.  Bringing back an inferior product isn't something I really care for.  I'll still play this and shake the shoulders when I hear it come on.  "Nice whips, fly chicks, all that cause cash rules.  Show off your hats, show off your tats".  Listening now I'm pretty sure the bass was the sole reason I received a noise complaint the second night I moved in during pants off dance off time. 7

Her Voice Resides- Bullet For My Valentine.  Scream-O makes it's first appearance on the list.  Tears don't Cry was a favorite of mine in 2009.  Now it's good as a novelty when I'm in certain moods or SAS is driving me cra.  Next.... 6

Pennyroyal Tea (Live)- Nirvana.  Nirvana was another band that I had to come back around to.  I saw them in the 5th grade live and then BOOM everyone went from MC Hammer to Nirvana.  I didn't like that, I liked it better when there were a few of us that loved Soundgarden, Pear Jam, Primus, and Nirvana.  Then everyone in the world fell in love with everything out of the Seattle scene.  Smells Like Teen Spirit is still on my shit list for being on everyone else's "best of" list.  It was groundbreaking but I also liked so many of their other songs (Rape Me, Lithium) better.  This unplugged album is fantastic, my favorite song is the cover of 'The Man Who Sold The World'.  Eventually I'm sure I will be able to listen to 'Smells Like Teen Spirit', but right now its sitting at table 9 with Pearl Jam's 'Jeremy' and 'Black Hole Sun' from Soundgarden.

A Decade Under the Influence (Live from Bamboozle)- Taking Back Sunday.  Probably my favorite band of all time.  I have every album and I've seen them in concert more than anyone else.  "To hell with you and all your friends.... I've got a bad feeling about this.... Close your eyes, just settle, settle."  Mustache Andrew and I went to the show a few years back at the Palladium Ballroom with Amberlin opening and All American Rejects headlining, as always, Adam (the lead singer) put on a great show for the local fans.  I took Riki and she wore gloves that said "Talk Shit" on the right hand and "Get Hit" on the left hand.  She also had 4 shots of Jack and 4 beers before Amberlin was finished opening and throwing up before TBS came on stage.  I think we all had a great time ;)  9

Counterfeit- Limp Bizkit.  I have a confession.  I still listen to Limp Bizkit on a weekly basis.  'My Generation' and 'Break Shit' are on my running playlist.  Early in the year my friends David, Nathan, and I went to the concert at House of Blues as well.  I had zero expectations going into the show but LOVED every minute of it.  Fred must be close to 300 lbs right now, he was wearing a hoody, pants, MX gloves, and a Red Texas Rangers Hat.  Wes was painted all in black with an LED mardi gras mask but still had his guitar skills.  They played this song and the crowd was going wild.  I think they only played one or two songs from albums after the Chocolate Starfish and they covered Rage Against the Machine's 'Killing in The Name of'.  What can say, I'm still a closeted Limp Bizkit fan.  9

Goodnight Elizabeth- Counting Crows.  In the early 2000's I saw Counting Crows and Live at the Bronco Bowl on my birthday.  The company was perfect and the show was great; things came together magically.  That's what I feel when I hear Counting Crows.  'Angels of the Silences' is probably my favorite song of theirs followed closely by 'Walkaways', 'Colorblind' from Cruel Intentions is also a very intimate favorite of mine.  Definitely an underrated band thanks to their horrible 'Big Yellow Taxi' cover, those stupid dreadlocks, and 'Mr. Jones' being over played a thousand times.  7

Numerate- Circle Traps.  Ummmm.... I don't know how this got on my computer but it's just kind of basic Electronica.  Not too UNTZ, UNTZ, UNTZ.  More of the background to a scene with cars racing in the city or multiple shots in fast forward.in a Bourne Movie.  Still better than some of the stuff that's been queued. 6

And with that I think I'm done for the night.  I just downloaded some songs from The Glitch Mob off their Drink the Sea release and I'm going to listen to them as I put up laundry.  By the way, when the hell is my dryer from the Jetsons coming that folds or hangs my clothes right from the start arriving?  I want that!  We can synthesize the human genome but we can't make a dryer that does the word chore ever for you?  If any one wants to do this for me I'll do your ironing, I don't mind ironing, but putting up clothes is the Bane of my existence.  Never mind, I'm not going to put up laundry, I'm going to watch Vice TV.  You're my hero Shane Smith!

Random "Best of" List

I have confusing interests.  I also have love to review and test things while secretly rating items that are so subjective you can't have a definitive opinion about them.  The List of Random 'Best of"...

Best place to get a great bottle of wine cheap- World Market
After travelling to Spain this past summer I've come to love Spanish wine as much or better than Napa Cabs or the Willamette Valley Pinot's.  World Market carries some great wines in the $8- $12 range, they also have Catena Vineyards Malbec, a few nice pinots from the Russian Valley, and the typical Napa Valley Cab's.  They also win the award for Best Halloween Hello Kitty Selection, Most flavors of Gnocchi, Best Affordable Chocolate Selection, Most likely to find hot recovering hippies working the cash register and best place to find a day of the dead wine opener.

Best fast Mexican food- Pollo Regio
Depending on who's working the register a basic knowledge of the Spanish language is needed.  If you don't know Spanish then point at the picture or just say "Numero Dos por favor" and you will be set.  Also winning the award for Best green sauce that might kill you, best orange sauce that will kill you,  most likely to eat with day laborers award and most likely to have a Spanish dubbed 90's movie playing award.

Best place to find a dark corner while having an impressive beer selection- Londoner Addison.
It's definitely not cheap to drink here.  But the dark pub with a great beer selection allows you to find a table off to the side and order Chimay Blue, Lakewood Punkel, or Peticolas Rye with your fish and chips.  They have a jukebox, but the music is never overpowering, sit back and talk to whoever you bring and enjoy their company.  Best Fish and Chips, and Best place to watch soccer too, unless you like the stupid stupid ticos- then go someplace else.

Best Samich- Jimmy's Food Store
When you order the samich directly from the butcher you automatically win.  They grind and case their sausage in house, they cut their steaks in house and they make their meatballs on site.  All their bread, cheese, and veggies come from local producers so you know they are fresh.  By far the best samich I've had in a long time.  They also carry fresh and recently flash frozen pastas.  Seafood Cannoli, lobster ravioli, 4 cheese, meat stuffed, all of this looks wonderful and the prices aren't crazy.  Also Best Olive Oil selection, Best place for Eucalyptus Honey, Best place to find pasta sauce made with real cream and butter, and best reason to go to the hood.

Best Happy Hour- Like I'd tell you, I don't want people going to my spot.  Go some place like Sherlocks or any spot in Uptown where I won't be.  Keep paying $4.25 for your coor light and $6 for a well vodka tonic because people tell you the place is a cool spot.  While you're doing that I'll have a $4 20oz draft of St. Arnolds, Rouge, Sam Addams, or Dos Equis at my spot.  Suck it!

Best Razor- Dollar Shave Club
It's anywhere from $1- $9 depending on what kind of blade you use, I was paying $25/ month for that freaking Gillette Fusion Power but now I pay $9 with their razor that has the same amount of blades and arrives on the 3rd of the month like clockwork in the mail.  They have disposables for $1/ month if you just need that- either way your saving a ton of cash and the sticker shock pain each time Gillette or Schick decide to raise their prices.  Best wet wipes too, called One Wipe Charlies- get em!

Best cable service- uhhh... none.  They all suck and they all cost too much for a bunch of crap no one watches.  If I could get a package with only sports and HBO I'd be in heaven.  I don't even want those other channels available or displayed.  10- 15 channels and I'm set.  Sadly it's not an option and you're stuck with turd warner or Att Usuck.  Easiest place to be put on hold for an hour plus, easiest place to be transferred 4 times without ever actually accomplishing anything, and best place to find a guy lying about his name.  Rajiet, we know your name isn't Micheal, just say Rajiet because no one cares.

Best place to Find Douche Bags in addison- Sherlocks
Sadly, Duke's and Blackfinn closed.  When the douche trifecta was open all the cool bars had the right amount of people, never had DJ's playing untz, untz, untz music with lasers and people knew their spots.  With the closing of two of these places in such a short amount of time the 30K millionaire's of Addison were confused.  They didn't know where to go to over pay for Heineken and Corona, or where to lines in the bathroom, or hit on large groups of "Woo girls" with a lick their lips lear.  For the love of humanity will someone please open these bars back up!!!  Wins best place to find a women past her prime hitting on a young guy next to a guy in his 50's wearing Affliction and True Religion jeans talking to a young girl.  Best Place to see Jager Bombs every 5 minutes, Best place to see fights breaking out, and Best place to fake a conversation with a band who thinks they are great playing way to loud as both the women past her prime and Affliction 50's guy sing Foreigner in unison.

Observation as the Muse

There are very few moments in the day that we aren't bombarded by sight and sound.  TV, radio, commercials, billboards, everything geared to make you feel or want something someone decides you need and don't already have.  It's rare I hear an advertisement, a new song, or even a movie that makes me feel anything but melancholy.  Doesn't it seem strange that with all of the stimulation of our senses that, for the most part, we don't really notice the details in everyday life any more?  We aren't inspired to do anything.  You hear a song and you like the beat but you don't pay attention to the lyrics, you like a movie because it made you laugh or smile but did it do anything except kill the last hour and a half for you so you wouldn't have to fold those three loads of laundry sitting in the clean pile on your floor?

I have a wide range of musical tastes, it covers the wide spectrum of everything you can imagine.  Some of it has meaning which takes me back to special times in my life, others sound beautiful, and a few are just fun to listen to.  When I find a song that I've never heard or skipped past that comes on right at the time when I'm in a comparable mood to the lyrics and melody when the song was written it's very special to me.  I'll wear a song out in a week  as the music correlates to my mood.   I believe in her (music) like I believe in literature and art; it's an interpretation and it's my interpretation.  She calms me, she motivates me, she knows me. Four people can listen to the same song and come away having completely different feelings.  I might listen to a song like Living Legends 'Nothing Less' with an eerily calm smile reflecting about my mistakes in life.  Listening to +44's 'No it Isn't' today felt right to me when I was thinking about a recent multi-faceted relationship situation.  I made plans earlier in the week to have lunch with a friend of mine today at an amazing Italian market and meat store in Dallas.  The day was kind of overcast but in the low to mid 70's- for Dallas that means the yuppies break out their The North Face vests to complement their Sperry boat shoes- On the twenty minute drive to Jimmy's Food Store I played two songs on repeat as I thought about the week's revelations.  I downloaded (ripped using an Mp3 Converter, potato, Pa-tato) both today and both were by +44.  The previously mentioned 'No it Isn't' and 'Make You Smile'.  We ordered our food, sat outside and people watched for about 30 minutes.  Afterwards we ended up in Preston Center sitting on a bench people watching while dissecting their lives from their clothing, cars, and demeanor.  A mother in her mid 50's and a daughter in her mid 20's; both wearing recently purchased raw denim jeans, almost identical new Tory Burch shoes, the same Louis Vuitton handbags and brightly colored shirts.  Older women in groups of three from old Dallas money with chico's-esq attire adorned with antique Cartier and recently purchased David Yurman jewelry worth more than my car.  We watched and speculated about recent divorcees, women obviously frightened about losing their youthful looks at the same time discussing what was going on in our lives.  I continued to listen to the same two songs after we parted ways on the drive home.  The sun was partially out and I needed to figure some things out.  I threw on the 'Dummy' Album from Portishead, went outside and watched the city from above while getting lost in my mind.  A thunderstorm came in, the rain stated, lightning was crashing and I couldn't be happier.  I hit pause on Beth Gibbons mesmerizing voice and ingested the night with a glass of Tempranillo; alone with my thoughts in between lightning flashes.

In last couple years there have only been three movies that motivated me to evaluate myself and the themes of the movie for days after watching them.  Don't get me wrong, I've seen a lot of great movies the past few years but these three stuck with me.  Silver Linings Playbook, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Skyfall.  Two of the movies share a focus on mental health while the third is an action movie.

I watched Silver Linings Playbook on a flight from Barcelona to Philly.  I was about 2 beers in and a 1/2 bottle of Rijoa into the long haul when I decided that I would lay my seat "near flat" and either relax to the movie or sleep as my traveling partner was sound asleep and providing zero entertainment for me.  Ten minutes in I raised the seat up to a more vertical position and had my glass refilled.  This was the first movie I had seen that dealt with Mental health issues in a very realistic form.  Most movies portray a character suffering from bi-polar disease as a killer who forgets that he just chopped up a slew of prostitutes or blew up a post office for Satan the Dog.  David O Russell captured the lead character of Pat perfectly.  His everyday struggles, the tension it creates in his life, how his friends and family deal with it were all done in the most realistic fashion that I've ever seen.  There was no magic pill to fix it, no "AH-HA" moment where one thing corrects his imbalanced brain forever, there was just his life ruled by his pendulum swinging emotions and the inability to effectively control them.  I came away with so much from it.  Most of all was that I wanted to write more on here.  Not for anyone else's benefit but for myself.  Similar to music, writing calms me while providing me with a level head and quiet balance that is next to impossible to find outside of my other vices of music and literature.  And red wine.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower has so many elements of 'Catcher in the Rye' in it without being Catcher in the Rye.  I loved the book the first time I read it in Junior high and I still love it.  In fact I own a copy given to me from an old friend that has basset hound chew marks I refuse to give up.  I don't even know if she knows I took it from her, but I'm never giving it back ;)  I don't relate to it in the way that I do Silver Linings Playbook.  I didn't have a hard time in highschool, I was never the outcast or ate lunch alone with no friends.  The reason I like it so much has to do with the characters and the line I hear over and over again from the movie: "We accept the love we think we deserve".  When I heard those words spoken I believed it 1000%.  The scope of friends I've had or known, including myself, where this applies is significant.  When Paul Rudd's character utters the words Stephen Chbosky wrote faces instantly appear and previous relationships flash through my head.  Current friends with failed marriages, friends in relationships just going through the motions afraid to admit they made a mistake and are unhappy, all of this flooded my brain.

Skyfall- I know, I lost all (if I had any to begin with) credibility when I included Skyfall with the above two pictures.  It takes a stronger worded explanation than I can give as opposed to the feeling Skyfall gives me.  It's hard to explain without watching it as a trilogy.  The dynamic between James and M, the amount of non-verbal communication involved in the film, and the reflection of a soldier's life make it amazing.  It has layers of depth that exceed Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy by not voicing them or wrapping the ending up in a nice tidy studio bow; aging, self doubt, failure, closure, consequences, and finality are all demonstrated by facial expressions or silence.  If it were a song it would be Miles Davis' 'Autumn Leaves'.  It's beautiful, it's fast, it's raw, most people won't understand the beauty of it without being told of it's genius.  It moves with purpose and intent that can be loved at face value but the depth puts it on a different plane than what the masses are used to in an action movie.  Now go watch it.  Watch Casio Royale, Quantum of Solace, and Skyfall like you would the Dark Knight Trilogy and revel in it.

The Muse.  She was art, dance, theatre, and literature in ancient Greece.  She was the motivation and inspiration.  Not all entertainment inspires us but I choose to believe that if we look hard enough.  If we dive a little deeper into every day things that we see and listen to I feel it will help to inspire us.  Maybe she'll give you that different view to see the project at work from a different angle, maybe she'll have you pull up some music on YouTube that you normally wouldn't have, or maybe she'll have you buy Munster cheese instead of American for your sandwich this week as a different kind of artist.

*Random note:
A few things I'm currently wearing out on my playlist:

• No It Isn't- +44, When Your Heart Stops Bleeding
• Crime (with Kendrick Lamar)- Mayer Hawthorne, Where does this door go
• Furthest Thing- Drake, Nothing was the Same
• Showtime- Nelly Furtado, Loose
• She Needs Me- Kendrick Lamar, Good Kid MAD City
• Saving Grace (Live Acoustic)- Everlast, More songs of the Ungrateful Living
• Sweet Misery- Amel Larrieux, Infinite Possibilites
• Mysterious- Portishead, Dummy

Things I'm Too Old for but Still Like

In a random conversation at work today with The Giant Hello Kitty (GHK) we were discussing a tweet she posted.
"Things I'm too old for but still like: Shots, Forever 21, dance music, dancing while drunk, hello kitty, the desire to wear crop tops"

That got me thinking.  There are a lot things that I definitely like and I'm much too old for.

1. Shots- I definitely agree with GHK on this one.  Shots are the gift and the curse of the night.  They take the night and turn it up a few notches.  My poison of choice in this wonderful nectar is either a Vegas bomb (which in itself, any shot with the word bomb in it and red bull should be a sign that I'm too old) and Rumple.  Ahhh... Rumple.  Another good quote from GHK regarding Rumple : "No one over 23 should ever drink Rumple".  That's gospel when it comes to Rumple.  Never to be taken lightly Rumple manages to work it's whoreish spell on the unexpecting virgin and whisper sweet nothings of the blackout nature.
2. Dick and Fart jokes- it's still hilarious to me when it's quiet at work and you hear someone trying to sneak one out and the trumpet goes up a notch.  It also cracks me up when you see someone crop dust an area of a local bar and the results unfold on the unsuspecting patrons.  Along those same lines when you're in a serious meeting and the presenter calls up "John Cocksly" to discuss the synergy of team development.  hehehe- Cocksly, Butkiss....
3. Chili Cheese French Fries- Burger house preferably, but there are a few places places that can almost compare heir chili cheese fries.  My day brightens up when I plop my fat ass right in front of some freshly fried fries, add some nacho cheese and then some chili topped with tabasco or cholula.  
4. Pac Sun- I shouldn't shop here.  The target age is about half what my drivers license says yet I'm still drawn to DC, Monster, Fox, and Volcom.  It could be the bright colors and trying to relive the days out on the lake in Austin but throwing on a DC hoodie with jeans or some checked Vans and shorts is one of those guilty pleasures in my life.
5. Hats- Pretty similar to above I love wearing hats.  New Era made a great business decision a few years ago by tricking up the standard colors of the MLB.  Adding a grey and black Texas Rangers hat, a baby blue Pirates and similar color schemes have me constantly looking to see what's been released lately.
6. Toys-  As a man gets older his toys become more expensive and vast.  I don't know where I heard that line but it's true.  I'm not a complete gadget nerd like some people but I keep up with the various reviews on CNET; I have a 70" LED 3D TV wall mounted in the living room, a 50" plasma in the bedroom, a couple laptops, a few ipods, an iPad, and more headphones than a Bestbuy.  Toys are nice and gadgets are fun.  I like to justify most of the items with an ease of convenience but we all know they are just big kid toys.
7. Doing Dangerous things, Just because-  I've broken the same arm 3 times.  I've torn a muscle in each calf muscle, cracked a few ribs, broken a collarbone, and gone through at least 3 concussions.  This summer I still ran with the bulls and have aspirations to base jump and wing suit while mountain biking on a semi-regular basis.  The rush of adrenaline combined with the new experience has always fascinated me