Cee Lo Green - FUCK YOU (Official Video)

shit. it's almost 2011?

so many good intentions, so many non-posts....

just today I had the good mind to actually do some writing and work on that for a while. Not concerned about an audience (if you're actually reading this - thanks! I apologize for this not being audience-driven, cuz I don't know who you would be...haha)

I have compiled an obligatory (because it's what my mind just does and I am inevitably influenced by the pop culture LIST obsessions that surround me) year-end list of music that made a big impression on me, things I just love/d this year, 2010....

here is that list, in no particular order:

"Cameras" Sidewalks - Matt & Kim

Still loving this song, never sick of it (yet) when I hear it on

the radio. The dancey riddem and shoulder/boob-shake-worthy beat drives the whole thing - 80s revival, all the way. But my fave bit is that killer melody line, in the chorus, that grabbed me in the first place. The, "no time for cameras, we'll use our eyes instead ... we'll be gone when we're dead.. I see flashes of go-oh-oh-ld.." oh yeah, *golden* pop!

"O.N.E." Odd Blood - Yeasayer

Just watch the video on this bugger.

Gawd, talk about your 80s, New Order revival to the max. Still loving this one, too.

"It's hard having fun/it's much easier said than it's da-hone" - how can you not love the acknowledgement of the ol' Crazy Heart mentality ("If there's such a thing as too much fun/This must be the price to pay/Funny how fallin' feels like flyin'/Only for a little while") in a popped-out, dance, electro, tribal beat number? That "you don't move me anymo-a-hoor/And I'm glad you that you don't" bit is pure ode-to-New Order for me, which is why I placed it right after "Bizarre Love Triangle" on ye olde Wedding Dance Mix. This song got one of the best responses, joy-fueled dance-wise at the par-tay...and this was one of my ultimate highlights/memories from Lollapalooza, too. Double-percussion dance party in the park!!

"Shark in the Water" Traveling Like the Light - V.V. Brown

This was a Bust (mag) discovery, at first for me. I was blown away by her look (see image above and note 9 foot gams) and her roots (She’s a Brit and of is Puerto Rican and Jamaican descent she’s a genius, and ended up declining offers from top universities (including Oxford. yeah.) to follow her musical heart. Love that.) Then I finally heard her on the radio, and got totally hooked by this hook. The rest of the album is great, too.

"Fuck You," The Lady Killer - Cee Lo Green

Almost as brilliant as "Crazy"? Yeah, I kinda think maybe it is. I am *in love* with this song and the humor, the spite and catchy groove. Add the sentiment for these hard times, "I guess the change in my pocket wasn't enough/Now, ain't that some shit?" Ain't that some shit? The video is also amazing. (See previous post, above)

"Detroit Detroit," Keep it To Yourself - Erik Koskinen

Another perfect anthem to suit us all and address that current, somewhat bleak state of American life. A rollicking, country bar rally cry to go out, "take your money" to the Motor City and party like there's no tomorrow, cuz that might just be true. Bleeding jobs, homes lost, bleak outlook in Detroit, you say? Fuck it. Let's rock this city.

"American Slang," - Gaslight Anthem ...see more...(June post)

"Wait So Long," Palomino - Trampled by Turtles

Finally, TBT get the production they deserve. Oh, and the exposure! Perfect album for it, too. Shows off the best of what the boys can do.

BLACK KEYS - BROTHERS - THE WHOLE ALBUM - SEEING THEM AT LOLLA - WHEW.,

"I got your name tattooed inside of my arm..."

Well, hi, there.

How bad, bad, bad...been so damn long, I think my writing muscle has atrophied. Well, let's hope not.

Lots of stuff has happened in my life. (don't worry - I don't want to turn this into THAT kind of blog. MUSIC and pop culture are still the point of this thing - because that's what drives me to write.) humph.

I have a new (well, since freaking February) job...it's pretty great, and it beats the old one, which is always good...I can listen to music, most days, now...and that really makes life better. Always.

I'm a freaking homeowner now... so, I can play Madonna REALLY loud and not have to face neighbors down the hall with shame. Those days are over, man.

I lost a good friend in April and it's really shaped everything that's happened since. Not a day goes by that I don't think about you, Sarah...

The Gaslight Anthem crept into my consciousness at the same time we lost Sarah... and the song, "American Slang" was just about the most perfect thing to comfort me, and it seemed to be about Sarah, to me. In that way that when you hear a song at a certain moment, and it just speaks to your pain ("want to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me" style). Even if the lyrics aren't *really* about it, specifically...it just suits the moment, suits where you are in your life.

I just needed something emotive and *earnest*, I guess. That's Bruce....and then, you hear these young Jersey punks pulling the same thing...oh, and it's on the RADIO, and then you hear it when your in the shower, or at work, or in the car...and it puts its stakes in ya.

The thing about Sarah, you gotta know, is that she was magic, when it came to bringing people together and making plans, and just LIVING life to it's total fullest. She loved music, partying, baseball, UK football, kickball, animals, and she loved making us all happy - making us all laugh. And when I hear that line, "you told me fortunes in American slang," I just think of everything she brought into my life and all the music I saw with her and all the smiles and hysterical laughter...So, it really fits - I s'pose I created the connection, myself, but I know that's exactly what songs (and ART, really) are all about. It's written and it's put out there ... and then it reaches the individual and it will touch us all in different ways, we all get something different out of it...

and there's the line that Fitzy calls the real kicker...

“I got your name tattooed inside of my arm,”

It’s the way Brian Fallon sings it, it’s an angry, defiant cry, and it’s the ringing guitars and heavy, pulsating beat behind it all. It’s full of pain and it sure seems like he’s telling someone who isn’t there anymore…The word that keeps on persisting in my head during the song is *indelible*. Sarah left an indelible mark on all of us – we will always have her spirit/personality/light she gave us, especially when we're all together (all of her friends that she bonded together – she was the *glue* holding us all together)….and some of us took it to another level and got tatts. Those who partook got tattoos of nautical stars. Sarah had 8 red stars on her arm. It made sense to us who got them, right away – it was gonna have to be permanent – just like what she left us…this song sure speaks to that...

So, I dig the Gaslight Anthem, now. It really has a helluva lot to do with when the single "American Slang" hit the airwaves...and now I am loving the album, American Slang - been a lil' obsessed with it, lately...

Here's a cool Brian Fallon-solo-version of the song:

ze best of 2009

ahhh! so much good music, it almost surprised me! (hard to distill down to this, even)

Here is my mix of the stuff deserving attention and praise in 2009:

Get On Your Boots, 2009

1. "Fresh Air" Brother Ali, Us
2. "Hysteric" The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, It's Blitz!
3. "Hang You from the Heavens" The Dead Weather" Horehound
4. "Cornerstone" The Arctic Monkeys, Humbug
5. "While You Wait For the Others" Grizzly Bear featuring Michael McDonald
   
6. "Get On Your Boots" U2 No Line on the Horizon
7. "The Wrestler" Bruce Springsteen Working on a Dream
   
8. "Something Is Squeezing My Skull" Morrissey Years of Refusal
9. "Ulysses" Franz Ferdinand Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
10. "Fire" Kasabian West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
11. "Home" Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Up From Below
12. "Beyond Here Lies Nothing" Bob Dylan Together Through Life
13. "!Viva La Gloria!" Green Day 21st Century Breakdown
14. "Head Full of Doubt, Road Full of Promise" Avett Brothers I and Love and You
15. *bonus track*: "Red Right Hand" Arctic Monkeys Crying Lightning single
    

why (I don't really need an answer)

HOW is that some music just sinks in immediately, and other stuff takes a whiiiile to marinate?

Is it better when it takes longer?

Is the quickly pleasing stuff that's easier to digest lacking in some way?

But what about the Beatles?

ha.

video for Cornerstone -- bizarre and wonderful

why I am so happy

the Arctic Monkeys are just a few short hours from hitting the First Avenue stage.

they just played a live in-studio with Mark Wheat.

Wheat said he asked Alex what his favorite Beatles' record was, he said Rubber Soul.

Wheat speculated that the lads "might just do a Beatles cover tonight."


!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Moz-like?

ok, so maybe they were right...I read several references to Moz when it came to this beaut of a song...(actually did take a bit to grow on me) then I got finally got the joke of it, and went with it. (the Moz melodrama of how Alex draws out the line, "I eeelooong-ated my lift home"... I'd like to hear that old man cover that shit.

Cornerstone

I thought I saw you in The Battleship but it was only a look alike
She was nothing but a vision trick under the warning light
She was close, close enough to be your ghost
But my chances turned to toast when I asked her if I could call her your name

I thought I saw you in The Rusty Hook, huddled up in a wicker chair
I wandered over for a closer look and kissed whoever was sitting there
She was close and she held me very tightly until I asked awfully politely
"please can I call you her name?"

I elongated my lift home
I let him go the long way round
I smelt your scent on the seat belt and kept my short cuts to myself

I thought I saw you in The Parrot's Beak messing with the smoke alarm
It was too loud for me to hear her speak and she had a broken arm
It was close, so close that the walls were wet
And she wrote it out in Letraset
"No, you can't call me her name"

Tell me where's your hiding place
I'm worried I'll forget your face
I've asked everyone
I'm beginning to think I imagined you all along

I saw your sister in The Cornerstone on the phone to the middle man
When I saw that she was on her own I thought she might understand
She was close, well you couldn't get much closer
She said "I'm really not supposed to but yes, you can call me anything you want"

no, it's not Bah...

inevitably, I am fully hooked to the newish (got it at midnight on August 23...) Arctic Monkeys' record, "Humbug." The title is a name for a popular hard candy found 'cross the pond. From what I hear, it involves peppermint and is said to have a "warming effect" -- cause it's a Christmas candy. (nothing to do with Mr. Scrooge, although the lads are "fully aware" of that connotation.

It's so layered and dark and sexy. Alex Turner really has matured. His voice is deeeeeper, sexier, more measured...he takes his time now, musically and vocally... teases it out. Which, goes behind the idea of the album title and feel as a whole, really -- take your time with it and it slowly reveals itself to you -- this was what they are saying their intent was. For me, I sunk in pretty hard quite fast. The melodies were infectious almost right away. Helders' drumming is even more impressive and unrelenting than ever before -- driving the frenzied beats behind the heavy dark geetars. That makes it sexy, too. More than they ever were before. I like this. It's something I actually didn't foresee... well, that and the possibility of drugs in the desert with Josh Homme. Turns out it's a brilliant move and I love hearing that adventure in the music.

I was probably able to digest this one more quickly because we had JUST seen them (twice!!) in Chicago for my birthday weekend, at the Metro and at Lollapalooza.
[A monumental and magical weekend, full of amazing music and love... James and I got engaged. Lou Reed serenaded us as we made the decision to get hitched. pretty spectacular...whew.]

So, the Arctic Monkeys played heavy on the new stuff (seemed like hardly any songs from the debut record) and I wasn't into it immediately...but the second go, at the festival -- they had a certain, far more urgent and intense and grand-scale vibe to it, They pushed it out on the huge crowd hard and heavy. The people were diggin it. Lot of range of ages over there, too. My favorite image was a tiny tot bouncing with his fist in the air to the rockers. It was precious.

"biggest crowd we've played to in America..."

the stuff of legends

I feel like this has been an amazing season of music for me and Fitzy. We have been more determined than ever to see as much as we can -- grasping life by the balls, man! hehe. Specifically, we have seen some downright *legends* when it comes to pop culture/music...

saw Bruce in May

saw The Dead in May

saw X in June

saw Elvis Costello in July

gonna see LOU muthafuckin REED in August (my first time!)

((I feel like I'm finally ready to see Reed...I think I appreciate him more than I ever had before AND I had just re-read all those wonderfully fucked up meetings he'd had with Lester Bangs. Quite a history those two had...))

...and I get to see my beloved Arctic Monkeys (soon to be considered legends, of course...) in both August (on my birthday!?!?! what!?!? yes.) at the Metro AND at Lolla! AND in September when they come to First Ave. how cool is that? wonder if Mr. Costello will make another appearance and come to MPLS to see the lads again...that would be incredible.

MCA - get better quick!

So, MCA from the Beasties has cancer. (check out their website -- MCA and AdRock have a lil' video message up).

So....they're cancelling their slot at Lolla....

the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are replacing them.

this could be interesting...

Here's hopin for a successful surgery for MCA...love to you, man.

right now....

REALLY diggin the Green Day epic....I was dubious at first, too. but it's really powerful, catchy, angsty and articulate. Billie Joe keeps evolving -- kinda makes me think of Strummer, even. Like The Great Joe, as he becomes more in tune with what makes him angry ("anger can be power - did you know that you can use it?") Billie Joe seems to be taking that sentiment and fusing it (brilliantly) with his trademark powerfully poppy punk rock that can reach the masses (in a totally anthemic, fill the bleachers-way, to boot!). The great, ol' make 'em think whilst you make 'em dance/pogo/thrust-fist-in-air trick. Love it, and always will.

Also just recently read the RS interview with Green Day -- (and BJ is just as real and as great and as focused as I hoped he'd be) and he's all bout the East Bay still (reminded me of the manner in which Bruce still resides in Jersey). And Billie says that "A Quick One While He's Away," one of my all time fave Who masterpieces (the mini-rock-opera that never became the full epic that Pete had intended) is one of HIS all-time fave, influential pieces of music. I am listening to Green Day's version they recorded right this very moment and it is making me very happy. A total homage to Pete and the boys. 21st Century Breakdown, a three act, sprawling narrative about the characters *Gloria* (yeah, wtf. so damn cool for me) and Christian does the spirit of the Clash, the Who, Patti Smith and all the passionate punks proud.

Check your prejudices at the door and check this shit out.

This is my fave.

East Jesus Nowhere

Raise your hands now to testify
Your confession will be crucified
You're a sacrificial suicide
Like a dog that's been sodomized
Stand up! - All the white boys
Sit down! - All the black girls
You're the soldiers of the new world

Put your faith in a miracle
And it's non-denominational
Join the choir we will be singing
In the church of wishful thinking

A fire burns today
Of blasphemy and genocide
The sirens of decay
Will infiltrate the faith fanatics

Oh bless me lord for I have sinned
It's been a lifetime since I last confessed
I threw my crutches in
The river of a shadow of doubt
And I'll be dressed in my Sunday best

Say a prayer for the family
Drop a coin for humanity
Ain't this uniform so flattering?
I never asked you a goddamned thing

A fire burns today
Of blasphemy and genocide
The sirens of decay
Will infiltrate the faith fanatics

Don't test me
Second guess me
Protest me
You will disappear

I want to know who's allowed to breed
All the dogs who never learned to read
Missionary politicians
And the cops of a new religion

A fire burns today
Of blasphemy and genocide
The sirens of decay
Will infiltrate the inside

giving the Yeah Yeah Yeahs another shot

(best album cover I've seen in a while, dude)

I heard the song, "Hysteria" on the Current this eve....and DAMN, if it didn't sound DAMN good. I had to pull "Fever to Tell" off the dusty shelf and give it a spin. It made me remember that I really didn't *hate* the Y Y Ys, I just never took it more than mildly entertaining performance art that sometimes rocked. "Maps" hooked me into liking them more, but it kinda hit a dead end, and I never fully embraced them.

But when I just put on "Fever to Tell," It rocked me hard.

Made me feel like I felt when I used to headbang to the sounds of PJ Harvey and the Ramones in my formative years.

So, I had to go and get the new one (cover above), "It's Blitz!" and it's really solid -- layered, sexy production. Karen O's vocal not too tweaked, and sounding better than ever. Got me right away, especially the beautiful, thoughtful and melodic "Hysteric." Sweet, dancey, a bit crazy ...and there's *whistling.* It's fuckin great. There's also an even more lovely acoustic version...really made me feel so silly for ever dismissing them! her voice over acoustic geetar and strings..sexy and oh-so-pretty.

Speaking of sexy and pretty...I feel like I haven't been fair in my interpretation of Karen O and her "persona." I used to hate it. (The hair in the eyes completely, the re-dick fluorescent fishnet look, the drunken show "art" performance, yadda, yadda. It seemed like such shtick. blek.) I hate to even admit it, but early on, before I heard much, I thought she was a total hack that was coppin' a complete Chrissy Hynde vocal AND bangs cambo. ...but I see it now, her references to females and males of rock past and her own twist on it all. I can dig it. I think she's sexy, pretty, brave, funny and smart.

The radio single, "Heads Will Roll" I had been slowly accepting (after disregarding it pretty quickly as absurd -- almost a caricature of themselves). I flat out like it, now (!) haha I am loving the stupid/smart beat-driven dancedancedance shebang with my fave lyric right now:

"Glitter on the wet streets/ silver over everything/ the glitter's all wet / you're all chrome" -------- sublime.

I even have had a change of heart about their bloody NAME. I used to hate it. It was just annoying to three-peat all the time. I get it now. It's so simple, but the yeah yeah yeahs are everywhere in pop music and have been since the beginning. I get it, you guys and I love it. I love how Ramones it all is...yeeeeeeaah. (yeah, yeah)

still feels like a dream...

did I *really* see "Rosalita" last night?

Yes. Yes, I did.

and this epic set:

Setlist:
Badlands
Radio Nowhere
Outlaw Pete
No Surrender
Out in the Street
Working on a Dream
Seeds
Johnny 99
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Raise Your Hand
Good Lovin'
Prove It All Night
The E Street Shuffle
Waitin' on a Sunny Day
The Promised Land
I'm on Fire
Kingdom of Days
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born to Run
* * *
Hard Times
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
Land of Hope and Dreams
American Land
Bobby Jean
Rosalita

morning tastes better with Fountains of Wayne

specifically a rad, in-studio, Mary Lucia requested "Red Dragon Tattoo" -- one of my all-time-faves from FOW.

And I was *just* thinking how the Live Track of the Day at 7 in the morning is usually kind of a drag, and it's rarely a band I really like...and WTH!?

It surprised me and delighted me. (I especially loved the rocker piano bits!)

Lollipop and Fountains of Wayne frontman creates more pop magic in a lab

Hi.

I've been *so bad* ... I know this.

But, here are my thoughts of late:

* went to the Sound Opinions (with Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot) shindig at the Cedar on Monday. It was mostly awesome. Town hall-style, forum about the state of music and how the future (and the present) of technology changes everything. Thought they had some great points made about how fucked the record industry has been for...ever (they have a pont when they rhetorically ask: think of one great artist since the beginning of pop music that hasn't been fucked over by the industry in some way. Start with Robert Johnson and move your way though time, really).

SO, the cliche: the more things change, the more they stay the same kept coming up again and again...which was vaguely comforting, actually. Another comforting and awesome little factoid: Treehouse Records, my local record shop, has had a huge increase in sales of vinyl in recent months. Doesn't that make you feel warm and fuzzy inside? It does for me.

DeRogatis kept using Lil' Wayne's "Lollipop" as an example of "how much is a song worth?" and how a pop song can be both stupid and great (or was it stupid and clev-ah...??haha) at the same time. Me, having my head in the sand to some degree when it comes to a lot of popular music, right now (again, yes, I know...I've been bad) had NEVER even heard it. So, I got it and listened to and...it was pretty damn good. And silly. And I thought, at first, DAMN, that is sick. SO fucking graphic, man. And then, in the next second, I thought: well, shit, think of LITTLE (Lil'??)Richard and his lyrics to "Good Golly Miss Molly." (Y'know...she sure likes to *ball* and when we're rockin' and a' rollin'...doin' the deed, y'know...can't hear yo mama call....cuz of all the loud sex and such. So, what's the damn dif?

Love that you can always bring it back home like that.

*Have you heard the new Dylan single, "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'" yet? It's kinda amazing... I fell in love with it instantly which hasn't happened with "new" Dylan for me since...prolly "Things Have Changed." It rocks, it's weird, it's catchy and it has great doomsday lyrics.

*dig this concept: Taylor fucking Hanson (yep, from HANSON) fronting a band with James Iha from the Smashing Pumpkins and Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos. WTF, right? Who the hell came up with dis? Well, who the hell else but mad scientist of pop and rock, Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger. LOVE him. His brain is up there with Brian Wilson, I'm tellin' ya...

They're called Tinted Windows and I guess I'm slow on the uptake about this thing, but it sure sounds cool...or horrible. Can't say until I hear it now, can I? heh.

U2 FEVER

Do you got it (yet)?

I got it.

BAD.

just...can't...stop...listeningtothenewrecord!!!!!

(more later...)

it sure FEELS like Spring....and LOOKS like Spring...

So, I'm listening to the Stone Roses self-titled album because it is so very linked to Spring for me, I believe it will truly conjure up the season....right?

Ryan Bratty Adams and the problem with music journalism

Fuck journalism, man. Well, not really. I still have lots of love... but all the music journalism I consume has got to have some ill consequences, right?

I always seem to tell people about the way I got into Oasis. I seem to always have to preface it --defend it-- with, "Well, I HATED them at first." That's not entirely true. I liked "Live Forever"--which was the very first Oasis song I ever heard. I even saw 'em do it on Letterman. Then, since I was bout it, bout it for all Brit mags, I was hit with the barrage of infamous quotations from the Gallagher brothers. My take on them, like many other observers, was: these lads are fucking wankers. So full of shit, soooo arrogant! It was maddening. It was enough to make myself close-minded and resist the pleasures of the Oasis sound until my dad made me realize that the boys could write some damn fine rock anthems. It's funny, because, although my dad got me into a lot of the rock base...(the brit bands, etc.), it took his insistence for me to get into something that should've been a no-brainer for me. (British, young, brash and loved the Sex Pistols? My dad does not care for the Sex Pistols, or any punk at all.) In fact, it was the linking to the Pistols that made me understand and accept the Gallagher brothers' attitude.

So it went with one young, brash, arrogant Ryan Adams. I was inundated (again, my own fault--can't stop!) with negative, obnoxious press about the kid before I heard one note of music. Especially his infamous, bratty on-stage breakdowns and diva drug dramas. I tried to distance myself from him and his music.

I remember waking up from a jet lag nap in London (Catu and I were visiting Racho..this is 2002, mind you) and seeing Adams' album Gold. The beautiful Irish flatmate of Racho's (goddammit, can't remember her name, now) was playing Achtung Baby. And all I could think was, areyoufuckingkiddingme? Irish chick plays U2 whist cooking dinner in her London flat and I'm here right now? wtf. But, Gold was sitting there. I thought, damn, he's huge, isn't he? People just adore his music. Maybe I should finally give him a chance. But, no. I was still so turned off by everything I had heard about him -- and it was a lot of shit, too (remember what Westerberg said?). And, really, that album cover!? Upside down American flag...come. on.

OK, so I realize how *shallow* it sounds-- to base my judgement on poor Ryan Adams on the bullshit and not the music. Well, I had heard the music...and I was drawn to it...a bit.

"Burning Photographs" (off of Rock'n'Roll) is something that I couldn't resist, even though you could say that it was slightly overplayed in the radio world (not exactly true, but I head it more than any other Ryan Adams song...besides "Stars Go Blue," but it wasn't even his version that I heard). That song and "New York, New York," from Gold were both very familiar to me, but not enough for me to investigate his music any further. It took an extremely random moment of catching the beginning of the movie, "Old School," (a Will Farrell vehicle....?) and his song off of "Heartbreaker"** called "To Be Young..." and I knew I had to give the music a chance. It was such a perfect song. I dug how raw and 60's (albeit very Bob Dylan of him) it was...it sounded old and new and I didn't know it was Adams...but I did. I figured it must be him. All the ("whooo, man!"s...) old slang, man. From what I knew of him, it fit.

I saw him in December, opening for (who else!?) Oasis! He didn't say a damn word. He shut up and sang and played (how many fans had shouted that demand, I wonder, over the years...?) His set was varied and entertaining, if not low-key. One of the most impressive things about Adams is how much he can change his voice and his persona and his genre and still make it work. It's almost disarming how he can alter his sound--but it's a beautiful thing (Neil Young is the master of this, for me, of course). Sometimes he is too sad-bastard for me. Sometimes the harmonica is overused. But I am liking him more and more. (Alicia, I have you to thank very much for all of this, too!) The man is talented. Interviews with him lately have been very intriguing (lots of press of late, with the release of Cardinology). (Like learning that Gold is simply about the making of Heartbreaker, essentially. makes total sense. they are companion pieces.) He's supposedly sober (after years of alcohol abuse and doing fucking speedballs everyday. yuck.) and working with Phil Lesh a few years ago apparently changed his life--musically and otherwise. In interviews, nowadays, he comes across as a manic, passionate, eccentric total musichead nerd. I love it. And he calls his older (drugged and drunken) self an "asshole" and "prick" and says he used to be "full of shit." So, I guess I was right...

**I just read this: (from Rolling Stone)

Not only is Adams a huge fan of the R&B singer, he named an album after a Mariah Carey cut. "My manager called and said, 'You have 15 seconds to name this record,'" he says. "My eyes focused on this poster of Mariah wearing a T-shirt that said HEARTBREAKER. I just shouted, 'Heartbreaker!' Daydream is one of my most played records. People need to reinvestigate Glitter. I'm settled enough in my masculinity to say I don't see anything wrong with Glitter."

Randomania

*This morning I flipped on the Current (it was before 6:30 am, I know this) and I was dog tired. My spirits were immediately lifted with the sound of the Faces doing a (live?) version of "Maggie May" I had never heard before. It was awesome. THEN Seel busts out the most riff-laden, rocker Ryan Adams tune of late, "Magick."

*I still feel a giddy burst of joy when I hear ANYboday say the words PRESIDENT Barack Obama.

*Shuffle brought me some Chris Isaak today and listening to him always makes me think of the following things:

-moderate, fake, guilt-pleasure in even liking him.

-thoughts of Twin Peaks (he was in "Fire Walk With Me" and Audrey. Rarrrrr.

-the video for "Wicked Game" which was easily the most erotic thing I had ever seen at a very young age. (So, in turn, hearing that song makes me think of a nekked Helena Christensen

-I used to think he was kinda sleazy and not very good lookin', now, in my older age, I think he's kinda UglySexy.

-and he will always, unavoidably, every time, make me miss and love Roy Orbison.

*Have you heard of Glasvegas? I hadn't until recently. I heard comparisons and refs to Bruce Springsteen, the Jesus and Mary Chain and Phil Spector, so I had to check 'em out. I am still really undecided on them. My shuffle helped me today. I heard "Daddy's Gone" and then "Richard" by Billy Bragg, and it made more sense to me. Gawd, I wanna be a DJ.