Songs 181 to 190

I just got back from a few days at a meeting in DC. It was in Dupont Circle, which I have to confess is one of my fav DC areas (and not just because of Kramerbooks). I like to wander around the embassies and neighborhoods with all the wonderful front gardens (lots of hostas!). And, I like all the little restaurants spilling over with life. In the few hours between my landing and walking into (no kidding) two 8 hours-straight days of meetings, I got to catch the renovated Phillips, such a lovely space, with the fabu Klee show and then a super cool Greek Isles embroidery exhibit at the Textile Museum. The latter particularly struck me, and I stood for some time thinking about the hours spent not just completing the embroidery but calculating how to get some seriously stunning visual effects with a simply needle and thread. I think the president went past my room twice. It was interesting to watch the serpentining SUVs from above. Being in airports and on planes also gave me a chance to catch up on my reading, so I finished Ishiguro's absolutely heartbreaking Never Let You Go (gosh that book has a fascinating narrator, so well done) and started Goodman's Kaaterskill Falls--which has been quick going and beautifully observed thus far (I'm coming to this only after reading Intuition, which I think did not get the press it deserved). Before leaving, I downloaded this weird iTunes compilation called "Indoor Picnic"--it was just $3.99. So, all of these songs come from that; I've never heard of any of these artists, so these are all first impressions.

Song 181: Abigail Washburn, "Fall on My Knees." Very O'Brother-y, but the pickin' feels a tad new age-y, too. That about says it.

Song 182: Trespassers William, "My Hands Up." Starts fairly ambiently; then it gets a Sundays-like vocal layered on. Pretty sweep to the music, but it's more background than foreground--and is long.

Song 183: Hem, "Not California." The name of the band reminds me of the secret Caruso-country in Heavenly Creatures. Pretty girl vocals over standard alterna-folk instrumentation. It has some nice harmonies that add to it and some anger. Quite listenable but a bit formulaic.

Song 184: Venus Hum, "Pink Champagne." Art school electronica that's a little robotic and seems to have some kind of pretension to hip-hopishness. Lots (wait, LOTS) of sounds, but this kind of song was a lot better sans-electro in the Waitresses days.

Song 185: Kirsty Hawkshaw, "Reach for Me." Brit-girl alterna-pop. Catchy and full-on radio friendly without being Natasha Beddingfield (thank god).

Song 186: Be Good Tanyas, "Scattered Leaves." Super cool name, less cool song. Like a lower register trio of Melody-s. Too earnest and warbly for me. Canadian.

Song 187: Griffin House, "The Guy that Says Goodbye to You is Out of His Mind." Super cool song name. Very folky in the 70s sense. Has a nice nostalgic feeling (kinda "It Ain't You Babe" vibe). Also, you've got to read his website bio. I believe this is completely serious. And, the minute I read that Bill Flanagan loved him, it all made sense.

Song 188: Leigh Nash, "Angel Tonight." Poppy girl vocal number. I think I've heard this before--maybe on a show or romantic tv movie or something. Fairly by the numbers but pleasant. Oh, okay, I just visited the website and this is the chick who used to lead Sixpence None the Richer. That's why it sounds familiar.

Song 189: Adrienne Pierce, "Arizona." The instrumentation has a weird ominous tone to it that doesn't quite match the vocals, which are fairly derivative of about a million other girly girl singers. Apparently she's both like an Arizona desert and the Hoover dam. I get that all the time.

Song 190: Old Crow Medicine Show, "Down Home Girl." This is related neither to the fantastic album by the Dream Syndicate nor to Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show. Still, it's a bit entertaining. Vaguely Dylan-esque vocals with a harmonica emphasis. Certainly different from all the MOR emo out there, I'll give them that.

175 to go (over half way home!!!)

Songs 171 to 180

In a recent post, mrdardy mentions that he visited my family with his son. The power of my children is such that within mere hours, they had converted a child who readily goes to sleep each night around 8:30 (that would be lil' mrdardy) into a nonsleeping zombie (a la my two). I have a remarkable number of pictures of my children sleeping considering how infrequently they do it. This--among other fears for my longevity--has led me to begin waking by 6 am (ew!) so that I can walk each morning. In addition to leaving me feeling energized (which it actually and surprisingly does), my walk provides me a wonderful opportunity to listen to the massive number of songs I've downloaded. This is usually quite fun, except when I have the iPod on shuffle and suddenly Captain Feathersword pops up (btw, my children have reached the stage that they request the iPod be taken on trips for musical entertainment--and they loooove "Amos Moses," which actually once ended my son's 10 minute screaming fit within about 10 seconds, enabling me to order a much needed venti latte at the SB drive-thru). The walk also gives me a chance to hold an ongoing internal dialogue about which of my neighbors have lawn/garden services. I'm praying that a great many do, for if they don't, it says something rather horrid and depressing about my landscaping abilities.

Song 171: The Hives, "Hate to Say I Told You So." An older song, but rockin' good news, nonetheless. I love rock with snotty, angry, and entirely unjustified attitude--and this song hits all three in spades. Nice cymbal work, too!

Song 172: + / -, "Summer Dress 1." Oddly, this is classified as "rock" by iTunes. It's not; it's more like alterna-folk/pop. The lead singer's voice has a refreshing difference about it; the song has the same swirly feeling that the Badly Drawn Boy song of earlier did. Maybe this is one of my new favorites subgenres: swirly pop. The lyrics do a great job of setting a scene and a place with longing. Pretty.

Song 173: Muse, "Supermassive Black Hole." Distorto-rock with falsetto vocals. Maybe this is what would happen if Steve Albini produced Prince. It also has a weird, Sweet-like 70s feeling. All in all, it certainly doesn't sound like most of what's out there now. Good layering. There's something about it that keeps the distortion from sounding threatening in any way (unlike, say PJ Harvey or Tricky).

Song 174: Brightblack Morning Light, "Black Feather Wishes Rise." Slow, druggy sound--like a freight train moving through aspic--that stays constant throughout. Sit back and mellow out, dude readers. Has some interesting percussion about halfway through that rises and then disappears. Would have been better a bit shorter.

Song 175: The Roots (f/Cody Chestnutt), "The Seed, 2.0." This is an older song, too, but I really wanted it on my iPod. I love The Roots; they're so laidback cool. The song moves along to a great backing track (cymbal-on ?uestlove!) with some intriguing distortion of its own. A true headbopper.

Song 176: Burt Bacharach & Elvis Costello, "Toledo." My husband informed me we own this on CD, but it's a pain to upload these, so I dropped 99 to get it. I like the song, especially the bit about the source of the city name and how blissfully unaware we are about the past that's evoked by a place (for example, I live down the block from a subdivision filled with palm trees called "Cambridge Forest"). I also love the hushed BB production--so soft focus.

Song 177: Koop, "Waltz for Koop." I swear I've heard this song before. It's one of those continental revival tunes--very lounge 60s. Think montage of Vegas or Monte Carlo signs with a lovely couple: she in a mega upswept coif and venetian gown; he in big bow tie, tight tux, shiny shoes. Very non-America and, yes, swirly!

Song 178: josh kramon, "Supernatural Supergirl." Really, really jangly guitar and a wah wah and harmonica to boot. Kinda Beck-y. Partially delivered through a megaphone, lots of vocal shifts and effects, heavy 70s feel. Fun summer song.

Song 179: Thrice, "Atlantic." Starts like an updated "Tubular Bells," then goes into a standard electronica-loop with lost boy vocals. Picks up after the opening but in a kind of standard way. Nothing particularly wrong about it. Easy listening for the aughts, I guess.

Song 180: Office, "Wound Up." This is new wave-y, retro pop. Lots of instruments--kind of overwhelm the vocals. Very percussive, including handclaps near the end.

185 to go.

Songs 161 to 170

Wow, long time no post. First, I had to put the wraps on a book chapter so that I could quickly fall behind on the next one. Then, I had to squirrel away in my garret to work on my first two dissertation chapters. And, somewhere in between, I had a vacation ruined by a tropical storm, had my refrigerator die and then be resurrected, planted an entire garden of hostas, started a morning walking ritual, kept the house clean, read Jancee Dunn's book (very, very satisfying!), read some article in the local paper about some odious new parent classification called grups (guess what guys, your kids are supposed to be cooler than you, don't try so hard), drove all over the state for various meetings, and continued to avoid my blood work. I'm certain there's more in there somewhere. Oh, yeah, I ordered a bundt pan in the shape of a sandcastle that I saw in Cookie magazine, and amazingly, the cake does come out exactly like a sandcastle. A huge hit around la casa! As is Supergroup. God luv ya, Bas! Also, I apparently owe the orange from television an apology. I am absolutely certain his friend's band is the perfect fit for some, just not me. (Gosh, now I sound like that Brit-guy from "So You Think You Can Dance" apologizing to that dishrag girl for saying she was like the Corpse Bride.) And, anyway, I've come to the sad realization that about 75 percent of all alterna-bands sound exactly alike, making it difficult to download anything without thinking, "Have I heard this already?"

If I have any dear readers and they have any dear suggestions for bands of note, I'll take them!

Song 161: New Edition, "Can You Stand the Rain." No, I'm not that desperate for songs; I was just hit with a major nostalgia for the NE boyz because this album was super big when I wrote my Master's Thesis--as were fades, which I see KW is attempting to bring back. It is a completely fantastic song, though, and one can actually buy the entire NE Heartbreak CD on iTunes for less than $7. From such great heights.

Song 162: Headlights Headlights, "Everyone Needs a Fence to Lean On." Slo-mo, emo initially, then it perks up a bit. Nice driving beat. It is true that "everybody's got their enemies," as I can testify! It ends downbeat again. Okay.

Song 163: Badly Drawn Boy, "Once Around the Block." Okay, I've heard about BDB (not BBD, fade out) for a while and avoided them for the too-cool factor. That name, so precious. But, this is a kick booty song. It's swirling and fun, life affirming! Good vocals, fore and aft, riding the wave. Nice scratchiness. Well done, BDB, I stand corrected. You are just cool enough.

Song 164: Broken Social Scene, "7/4 (Shoreline)." This is a bit too samey. I've heard these drums, this hum before. It has an interesting mix to the vocals and roughs up a little as it goes along. But, still, I feel I've heard this before. The loud to soft; the overall distortion. I have the sense it would be better to see this band live; it's probably some collective experience.

Song 165: Islands, "Rough Gem." Wow, the opening of this song sounds like a Prince song (If I Was Your Girlfriend, specifically) through a kiddie organ and drum kit. This is a peppy little number though I'm not sure the energy is served by the song itself, which is kinda all over the place (maybe this is intentional given the title--but it's a fine line between bathos and pathos). Much as with Prince these days, an editor would help.

Song 166: Busta Rhymes, "Touch It." As were all over-forty mothers of two who should be working on their dissertations, I was watching the BET awards last weekend and caught the one-off awesome performance of this song by Busta and his dozen friends (including Em, himself!) . This is an interesting piece; sometimes it sounds like old school Busta and then at times Panther-era LL. The chorus is definitely hypnotic. The song has about six remixes already. I went for the original version.

Song 167: Lil' Jon, "Snap Yo Fingers." I love Lil' Jon! He is so perfect a creation; plus, my son does a dead on LJ, sans dreads. This song absolutely fascinates me. It seems to reveal the minimalism of its composition so intentionally. As if Lil' Jon were daring himself to make a hit out of the lamest few notes possible and get all of us to krunk along. And, of course, he does. I lift my full-on white suburban mom goblet (that would be the Starbucks latte cup) to salute you, Lil Jon! (Fun fact--liljon.com takes one to a site of a port-a-potty manufacturer.)

Song 168: Kate Havnevik, "Sleepless." This is a beautiful song. She sounds a bit like an accessible Bjork, but this seems more a function of the song's arrangement than her voice. (Though the geography has a some kind of spooky influence, to be sure, on all those Iceland/Norway triangle folks.) The lyrics are more straightforward (no volchainos), and her voice is more upper register, no growling. But, it's clearly the voice of an adult--a break from all the little girl losts out there. Nice.

Song 169: Rachel Yamagata, "Be Be Your Love." Another grown-up woman song. Nice sense of longing, anger, and loss. The song almost leans forward into itself trying to reach something. It has a post-chanteuse feel.

Song 170: Asobi Seksu, "Thursday." Supposedly the next big thing, what with the coming of the Asian cultural revolution. (Hey, if that means I can look like Maggie and be lovingly photographed by Yimou Zhang, I'm all for it; if instead it means some Blade Runner-y thing, I'll pass). This is more like vintage shoe gaze with an upbeat march feel that's quite conducive to a number of 80s dances. Odd combo.

195 to go.

Songs 152 to 160

I swear I am listening to music. I'm just not writing about it. I even took my iPod to the Pres's Retreat and fell asleep on a swing on the porch looking at the Gulf while listening to the Pride and Prejudice soundtrack and then wowed everyone at dinner by using my iTrip to pipe in music to eat by . We're about to head off for a few day family-vaca-at-the-beach, just in time for a tropical depression to ruin it, so I thought I'd write again. I actually have been listening to a bunch of new songs while finishing quilting one of my billion-piece tops from when I had time to thoughtfully compose 63 stars from about 900 different fabrics. Those were the days! Anyway, I've now decided that I must have been loony and will no longer make anything bigger than a lap. Of course, this work was done in avoidance of working on either my dissertation or my book. I've also been avoiding this work through reading. On my most recent business trip I did finish On Beauty, which seemed overpopulated, overlong, and bereft of anyone worth one's investment of time. Too bad. I'm still slogging my way through the expanded The World is Flat--one word: editor. And, I just ordered a bunch of trashy summer stuff, including Jancee Dunn's auto and the new Tilly Bagshawe (I finished her Adored in Charlotte last summer when I was stuck overnight at the airport--fabu!). And, over a month into my new clean home ethos . . . it's still clean. Plus, we resorted to paying someone to put together the big toy in the backyard which was worth every penny. So, I'm now out of excuses and after this short trip, I'll return to the doctoral grindstone. And, on to the music!

Song 152: Tally Hall, "Good Day." Kind of Queen-ish--especially the beginning and very much the end. It seems a bit overpacked, like they're trying to show you all they can do in one song. It does sound different that most of the pressboard alterna-emo out there, I'll grant you that.

Song 153: Pinback, "Penelope." I like this song. It starts nicely sing-songy and fey-folky then the drums kick in and add some depth and a wooshing movement forward. This is also different than a lot of what I've heard. Has a cooling hypnotic quality.

Song 154: Her Space Holiday, "My Girlfriend's Boyfriend." If Weezer weren't such a post-downer now, they might sound a bit like HSH. (They both seem like one man outfits.) This is a peppy I'm-a-loser song with a nice sampled structure and a regularly interrupting guitar mash. Fun!

Song 155: Finley Quaye, "Even After All." There's a Clef-quality to his vocals but without the self-aggrandizing. Nice voice, mellow vibe; perfect for rhythmic head bobbing and swaying. Groovy romantic sadness.

Song 156: Robinella, "I Fall in Love as Much as I Can." Very vintage, perfect for a romantic comedy feel to this one. Upbeat, bouncy, clever. My daughter is snapping her fingers and dancing to it as I write this--what more can I say?

Song 157: Nobody and the Mystic Chord of Memory, "Coyote's Song." This is an odd admixture, kind of like a Native American Polyphonic Spree tune. It's catchy in a weird way. I can't really find a website for the act, which seems to be a one-off collaboration. Interesting.

Song 158: Katie Melua, "Just Like Heaven." Yep, it's the Cure song. She moves it in an AOR direction that actually brings out the delicacy of the songwriting. I do have a sense, though, that her voice would grate if I had more than this one song on my iPod.

Song 159: Tunng, "The Pioneers." This completely reminds me of someone, and I'm wracking my brain to think of who it is. I do like this song; the enunciation is so precise and distancing. The electronic adds a sheen of creepy cool.

Song 160: Corinne Bailey Rae, "Put Your Records On." She's got a bit of a buzz about her now, and this song justifies it. It's mellow brit-soul with nice sing-song phrasing; a very summery song (think floating sundresses and breezy curtains).

205 to go.

Songs 141 to 151

Back for more post-mani/pedi and pre-bedroom cleaning. Before moving forward, let me say that I find Taylor Hicks really odd; he looks like the weird every-age guy who works at the Lil' Champ, and he sounds like Michael McDonald. This is the next big thing? Perhaps on QVC. At least that McPhee chick has a Mandy Moore-ish quality; maybe she can be on Entourage this season. On another note, I can't believe that I've now listened to 151 songs, almost all by artists I never knew existed. This has been so fun. And, dear reader, buy the Weepies CD; it is a real keeper. My son and I shared the iPod-phones and danced around to them yesterday whilst watching the rain fall heavily outside. The grin on his face was absolute magic!

Song 141: The Album Leaf, "Twenty Two Fourteen." I don't think I realized this was an instrumental when I downloaded it. It sounds a bit like Sigur Ros for those who are afeared of Hopelandish. (Wow, I wrote this before seeing on their website that they record with SR musicians at the SR studio. I'm so with it--and they're so treading the line between homage and theft.) Kinda trancey and long.

Song 142: Asylum Street Spankers, "Breathin'." The name intrigued although the use of the apostrophe frightened. The song is a nice retro number: think rolled hair, red lips, seamed hose, and print dress. This is classic dinner party music: pleasant but not intrusive. I'd listen to more.

Song 143: Charlatans UK, "Blackened Blue Eyes." Yes, they are totally still around and totally sound the same. Full on Manchester in the house! This song offers the same mix of snotty brit and bright light ecstacy dance that we know and love. Fun nostalgia that still rocks.

Song 144: Earlimart, "All They Ever Do Is Talk." A bit slow moving, which I'm guessing is the band's style since they seem very comfortable in it, but it leaves me slightly bored. The song picks up a little in the chorus, though this particular sonic rush seems a little cribbed from so many others. Eh.

Song 145: Embrace, "Ashes." This has a post-anthemic feeling--driving beat, assured but longing vocals, rounded up chorus. A style of music that seems to me particularly English, made for big soccer stadiums and much arm waving. Think Robbie Williams' "Angels." Of course, after I wrote this, I found the Embrace website and learned they've recorded an official World Cup song. Told ya!

Song 146: The Faders, "No Sleep Tonight." Another sexualized female empowerment rocker. This one has a nice driving drumbeat that move it forward. It kind of has a threatening inevitability about it rather than a fun sassiness though. A joyless anthem for the Girls Gone Wild world.

Song 147: The Glands, "When I Laugh." Opens kind of folky before moving into pop-ish rock, and the lead singer's voice is nasal-y and Dylan-y. But it seems purposely so and is a bit to affected. It's catchy but disposable. I can't find any official Glands site, but it seems they're from Athens. So you can probably drive over and find them there; if you do, tell them their webmaster needs to write better code so that their site can be located. (While searching, I found the official website for the Universal Zulu Nation, who knows why, so what the hey, here it is.)

Song 148: Ivy, "Edge of the Ocean." This song veers near the Enya riptide but is saved by some mild electronica. It's a bit Dido-y but rockier and more soundscape-y. It's good music for background, but from this song, I'd say a little goes a long way.

Song 149: Louque, "Art." This is a good song. I don't know anything about the band (it seems to come from Lousiana). The chorus is catchy; its got a soul/hip-hop/electronica vibe that I would usually peg as British. It almost feels like an updated SoulIISoul; a new house vibe.

Song 150: Michelle Featherstone, "Sweet, Sweet Baby." A very pretty and touching song. Her voice is clear and rides nicely over the instrumentation. It's not cloying or precious. There is an element of Sheryl Crow here I think, but Ms. Featherstone is not trying so hard to be ripped and cool. I like this.

Song 151: West Indian Girl, "What Are You Afraid Of." Not this song (get it?). This is a nice update of the vein mined by Lush in the 1990s. There's a real sense of musical place here; someplace other than where I'm sitting, some aural plane. It's cool and trippy. I like the song, though the text on the band's website creeps me out only slightly more than its photos.

215 to go.

Songs 136 to 140

Wow, being a single parent is tough. My husband was away for a week and a half, during which I decided that I would become a whole new person . . . well, at least as it concerns housecleaning. So, for over 2 weeks, I have kept my house "up" on a regular basis and have been amazed at what it does for the psyche. But, whew!! Between that, work, writing, and running after my children, it kinda takes away the blogging time. Still, I have been listening to a passel of new songs (mostly in my car and again while whipping out a new porch quilt once my husband got home), so here goes. Oh, I discovered the NPR book podcast, which is nice "binding a quilt" listening. Oh, and I changed my numerical format for the titles as part of my lifestyle streamlining. Oh, and this is the all-J edition of SAFTBRC.

Song 136: Jeannie Ortega, "Crowded." A free iTunes download that's disposable fun. She completely sounds like J-Lo and Papoose sounds like Jay-Z. But, the song has a cool, Indian-ish opening and a very funny shout-out to R. Kelly. If repurposed, it would actually make a great Bollywood song.

Song 137: Jens Lekman, "Black Cab." This has a Brit-Replacements feel--hung-over ennui played out over a kind of Mersey beat instrumentation (but I think he might be Canadian). It's catchy in a downer way. The content really reminds me of the end to Elizabeth Bowen's "Demon Lover," which I'm sure is what he was going for.

Song 138: Jon Brion, "Knock Yourself Out." I Heart Huckabees has been on a bunch this month; I really love Marky Mark's performance in that movie. This song is from the film and is nicely hum-able in that Jon Brion way, where the lyrics are undercut by the music (or vice versa). Short and sweet.

Song 139: Jose Gonzalez, "Heartbeats." I know this is from an ad, but I can't remember for what . . . something involving a car. It's really beautiful and simple, kind of hypnotic actually. This song can cure high blood pressure, I'm certain. Put it on a loop and sit back.

Song 140: Jaymay, "Gray or Blue." She really reminds me of Nellie McKay: kind of precious and quirky. Still, the song is appealing--a tale of love thwarted by friendship that still leaves room for the longing and hope. The music perks along nicely and fits well with her vocals.

225 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Thirty Two to Thirty Five

Happy Mother's Day Weekend! In celebration, I downloaded two complete albums today--to show I'm old(er) and hip(per): the new Paul Simon and Beirut albums. You'll find a song from each below. We're heading off to a watermelon festival in a little bit for good, sticky, old timey fun, so on to the music. Oh, I'm supposed to tell everyone that we watched the Tom Sawyer-end of an HD Rush concert last night, and Geddy Lee was playing through a front loading washer dryer. I'm betting this would have made some sense if we had tuned in before the last 5 minutes, but then again, I would have had to watch more Rush. Yeah, that's fine.

Song 132: Ashley Monroe, "Satisfied." This is the free download of the week. If Anna Nalick were twangy, younger and slightly less talented, this could be her. Hey, it's free! And, the answer is that nobody ain't satisfied because we live under capitalism. See iTunes.

Song 133: Beirut, "Scenic World." Found this under new releases, and it's totally awesomely beautiful. A world music soundscape complete with accordians, synthesizers, and plaintive vocals. To my ears, it seems fairly original, which is a novel idea in today's indie landscape. I have no idea who this group is, but they rock!

Song 134: Paul Simon, "Father and Daughter." I love Paul Simon, can't help it. This is a very touching song, especially on a family weekend. I don't particularly like Brian Eno, but there's a nice wash of sound textures to this and other songs that can likely be credited to him. This song reminds me a great deal of Richard Wilbur's "The Writer"--a poem that like this song makes me tear up.

Song 135: The Rakes, "Work, Work, Work (Pub Club Sleep)" I don't remember downloading this. It has an overly long intro, standard 80s retro rock feel (with more cursing, though). An okay though basically forgettable song. If you lived in London, you could see them "play in a cave whilst eating a kebab." I admit that would pick this song up--a lot!!

230 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Twenty Five to Thirty-One

Ack. I don't know where I am in this thing, but whilst I wait for my son's underwear to dry for an overnight at the local gym (Note to self--buy more underwear for son, for god's sake), I'll knock out a couple tunes. But not before adding that it seems wrong that all my "vacation" days are spent on doctors' appts and laundry. At least I got a pedicure.

Song 125: The Spinto Band, "Oh Mandy." Not the Barry Manilow song--more twee (can you imagine?) and with faux-mandolins, I think. Turns "Mandy" into a three syllable name at points. Very post-post. I heard a bit today on the radio whilst driving to the doctor about some online emo band name generator. I thought of it during this song. Here are two: http://members.aol.com/Valdes379/EmoGame.html and http://emo.t-error-ist.de/index.php?l=en

Song 126: Deerhoof, "Twin Killers." This is an awesome song. The opening guitar is backed by a landing flying saucer, and the little girl singer is balanced by perfectly angry, retro rock. It sounds like Cake without horns, fronted by a girl. Well done.

Song 127: Brendan Benson, "Cold Hands (Warm Heart)." Pleasant post-MOR. The instrumentation has a nice lyrical quality at points but at other points it's a bit overcooked. Listening to this, I can tell that Jack White is the king of the Raconteurs, since little of Mr. Benson seems to emerge.

Song 128: Rosa Chance Well, "Bell's Inn." This is a pretty song. It reminds me of another artist, but I can't place it right now. It has a slight alt-country flavor but takes this in a non-pandering direction that's nice. Their official website seems to have died, which doesn't bode well for the band, I guess.

Song 129: The Delgados, "All You Need is Hate." What a great slogan. The song begins with a wonderfully positive swell that is undercut by the lyrics--which are too, too true: "hate is all around." The dissonance between lyrics and music is reminiscent of "Dear God." The band has recently broken up, so maybe they needed a bit more than hate. Still, it's a cool song!

Song 130: Rogue Wave, "Publish My Love." The song balances its emo-ness with a wall of sound in a good way that adds some depth--though it has a hint of Coldplay about it. Very guitar-y. The singer seems in angry, guitar-y love with another, a love that cannot be "published." Clearly, they've never heard of the Star.

Song 131: Gnarls Barkley, "Crazy." I downloaded this song a while back pre-the Gnarls Barkley fever, based solely on the name. Who doesn't love Sir Charles? Though I would argue one could form a tribute band around him, as we all know now, this is a Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo project. Absolutely awesome!! It's driving, lilting, surprising Brit-Soul feeling. Out of all the songs in this post, it is the must listen.

234 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Twenty-One to Twenty-Four

Time to play catch-up again. It's been a busy week, and now it's time for a clean-the-house and build-a-big-toy weekend. The aforementioned big toy has been sitting in the garage for two weeks in three gi-normous boxes that were dropped off by a real life huge Yellow semi. The very nice guy who dropped them off told me he built one in an afternoon, but he was also able to execute a three point turn in my cul de sac while driving a truck the size of my house--to my applause, so his results may not be typical. On another front, I got invited this week to speak at a conference later this summer based on a to-be-published article, which was nice. And, I've given up my briefcase lust and traded it in for phone lust. Searching the web for the best price on an unlocked razr phone provides a nice break from writing memos and cutting budgets. Kind of offers a cool techno blue light at the end of the tunnel. Now, onto the music . . .

Song 121: The Dears, "Lost in the Plot." Starts out kind of techno then the instrumentation gets fairly familiar. The lead singer seems to be the surrogate-carried son of Morissey and Robert Smith. The band is from Canada, but on their website, they've trademarked their name, which seems a very unCanada thing to do. The song itself doesn't really hold together; it seems to be several different songs stuck together with homemade paste.

Song 122: Oasis, "Lyla." Okay, I'll admit up front that, though I only own one Oasis album, I just adore this band. Why? Let me turn to the band's website: "Noel is writing songs about queuing too long for a pint of milk and Liam is a whirlwind of inspiration and wondrous bullshit." Yay! I caught part of a recent concert on some HD station the other night, and it was grandly dysfuntional. This is a recent song, and it's standard Oasis and pretty good. I know they're having a resurgence in the UK, and this song makes me understand why. It's updated their sound a little, but the sneer of the disaffected and drunk remains. Ocassionally, when I'm away from home, my husband has called and left me random Noel or Liam quotes on my phonemail. Just another reason why I adore him, too.

Song 123: Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris, "Beyond My Wildest Dreams." I read about this album in EW, and thought I'd give a song a try. (Note, the link is to a story about the album.) It really isn't nearly as good as it should be. The musical track is formulaic, and neither one is pushing any envelops vocally. Why get together to do something this mediocre? I guess this is kind of a Traveling Wilburys for the duet set. Disappointing.

Song 124: The Raconteurs, "Steady as She Goes." This is the free iTunes download this week. I love the White Stripes, all the anger, artifice and studied oddness. Jack White is part of this post-super group. The Raconteurs share the artifice (check out the website) but move musically in a slightly different direction. The song is acoustic yet dense and shares a lot of the White Stripes' production qualities. The most notable difference is the percussion (duh!) and a bit of mandolin-ness. The vocal harmonizing is nice, too; plus, this track catches Mr. White chuckling a bit. And, it's free!!

241 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Nineteen and Twenty

We took the kids to an ol' timey festival today, complete with churned butter, homemade biscuits, wagon rides, and fiddlin' and circle dancin'. We even threaded the needle! Great fun for all. But, this has left me behind on several home and work projects, so after blogging, I got to kick it in gear. I did manage to do some planting, edging, cleaning, and laundry yesterday--plus we went to the park and I snuck across the street during nap time to check out the new houses on the parade of homes (if only to reassure myself that our home value is going up, up, up). I had to drive to a small neighboring town yesterday morning for a work event and found a cool farmer's stand on the way back, so Sunday dinner will be roast eggplant soup with a caprese salad starter and berries and cream for dessert. As RR would say, yummo! Now, onto the tunes. Here's a fun one for 119, the Mad Caddies' "All American Badass." Cursing and an accordian--how can you go wrong? It reminds me of the polka fests of my youth about halfway through a day of drinking at the beer tent by everyone's parents. All dancing and singing until a beer gets bumped or a look gets thrown, then church fair or no church fair, it starts a flyin'. Who knew there was music for this? Another fun tune for 120, Amerie's "1 Thing." First, apparentely Beyonce never sued, so this can be seen as an homage (take that Opal Mehta-girl). Otherwise, this is essentially "Crazy in Love" sans Jay-Z. It's as danceable as they come, plus I swear she says "gooble, gooble, gooble" throughout which doesn't happen in a song every day. Very beach in the summer heat.

245 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Sixteen to Eighteen

A while back, mrdardy wrote that I should know Postal Service because the band was featured on the OC. Dear reader, I do not watch the OC. I barely have time for my TIVO'd 8th & Ocean (Oh, Vinci, will you never learn?). Plus, I only watch two pre-10 pm shows (The Office and Amazing Race) because my children do not fall asleep before 10. Notice I did not say, "do not go to bed," because they actually go to bed around 8:30. But, bed does not equal sleep. And, while it is remarkably cute to peek in on one's daughter expecting her to be asleep, only to find her wearing her light-up Minnie ears so that she can practice her letters in her dark room, it does put a damper on one's ability to do much else. Even when there's absolute silence upstairs, I will often find not a sleeping son but a son at work on a jigsaw puzzle . . . in the near dark. Somehow, our children inherited my type-A qualities and my husband's nocturnal tendencies, which will likely benefit their future employers immensely (uber workers for the flat world). Ah, but back to the OC, iTunes now has the official OC mix, from which the next two songs are drawn. Song 116 is Diefenbach's "Favourite Friend." How could I not download an "ou-favourite" song? This is has a vaguely Duran Duran feeling, something like Duran crossed with that band that did that song from the car commercial about the guy break dancing outside a diner (you know what song I mean). An okay tune. Song 117 is "Shuffle Your Feet" by the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. I actually became aware of the BRMC because they were on the reverse cover of an issue of Fader featuring Outkast (I was using it in a chapter on buzz marketing). This is quasi-60's folk, complete with harmonica and tambourine, and sing-a-longs. It's catchy, but you can really tell this is a "club" and not a gang. Maybe it's the tambourines. Song 118 is "Dimension" by Wolfmother, late of the recent SXSW buzz machine. It's currently a free(bird) download on iTunes. Man, download this song, slap on the big white headphones, turn on the black light, and chill whilst waiting for The Midnight Special to come on. Wolfmother is this side of the Darkness in that I think they're full on post-serious 70s rockers, with at least one white-guy 'fro. And, on their site, you can also hear a song called (I kind you not) "The White Unicorn." I so want to watch Dazed and Confused now.

247 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Fourteen and Fifteen

Ah, a day off. By off, I, of course, mean that I took the kids to school, ran to the grocery store, cleaned the house, worked on the book, and then--finally--had some "me" time to watch several TIVO'd 8th & Oceans (best non-reality reality show ever!) and Gilmore Girlses. I'm also keeping an eye on an auction for a Coach briefcase. I really thought I had worked through my lust for this bag by going to the Coach store and breathing in the uber-expensive leather, but then this week, I attended a coupla days of meetings with our mayor and espied her Coach briefcase. The exact one I have always wanted. Now, like a moth to a flame, I've fallen off the Coach-wagon. Well, we'll see what develops. So, before throwing the ol' flank steak on the George Foreman, I wanted to start catching up on some tunes. Song 114 is "Nature Anthem" by Grandaddy, which I think is also on the Commercial iMix. It's a sway in your seat celebration of all things groovy. The singer would like "to walk up the side of the mountain," which I did once in Wales--quite invigorating. The song kind of accumulates activities throughout, perhaps making it a great campfire singalong. This is truly hypothetical as I am philosophically opposed to camping--though I think my grandaddy was a camper. The song is fun and fresh. Song 115 is "Bang, Bang to the Rock and Roll" by Gabin. This has a rev'd up, quasi-continental feel. Did you ever notice that almost every song with "rock and roll" in the title is from not-America? Gabin is an Italian conglomerate--though not one involving any distaff Agnellis as far as I can tell. I can picture people dancing to this whilst either clapping or snapping. The drums themselves have an artificial clap to them. The song is processed and big headphone-cool.

I also wanted to stop to pause. Now that I've listened to songs by over 100 artists, I find that a few have really stuck with me. One is the Weepies, "World Spins Madly On." I recently made it through a few trying meetings by replaying it over in my mind. I would definitely buy more of their stuff. Music really is wonderfully powerful.

250 to go.

One-Hundred Thirteen

It's super-quiet at the ol' Homestead. The children are napping and my husband ran in to work to finish a project, so it's just me deciding which cookbook to pick up to plan Sunday dinner. The day is sunny and warm, so I'm thinking Giada de Laurentiis will win out. I can't believe she actually eats, but her recipes are certainly delicious. This is a lazy Sunday, sans cupcakes and Chronicles, and while perusing the NYT this morning, I learned that in Germany, I would be a Rabenmutter: their lovely term for a woman who leaves her children to return to work. I would have been depressed if my latest issue of Cookie hadn't also arrived yesterday--full of lovely consumables that showed me why I'm working, well that and the whole "I have my own identity, intellect, and esteem, bucko" factor. No wonder I don't own any German cookbooks. So, there! In the spirit of all things anachronistic and oppressive, today's song is Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoff's cover of "Run to Me." Ms. Hoff's voice has always been squeezed into vintage-y uses, so this seems a natural. I have to confess to being unfamiliar with Mr. Sweet's work outside of the Austin Powers movies. (Though, my husband did once proclaim his hatred of Mr. Sweet because he had better seats--two row up--than we did at an Elvis/Brodsky concert, yet looked disaffected and thus undeserving of said seats.) This is almost a simulacra-cover--so close to the original, as I remember it, as to be either almost pointless or the thing itself. But, I do love me that thick production, much in evidence here, and it sounds pretty.

252 to go.

Songs One-Hundred Eleven and Twelve

How could they have canceled Cooking with Celebrities? Is there no justice? I'm getting Nancy Grace on this . . . pronto. Urgh, I'll bet Thicke is pissed. I missed yesterday's post because it was my daughter's first gymnastics "show," 90 minutes of full-on preschool energy wrapped up in a bug-theme. This girl has someone else's genetics--on both sides. It was so wonderful that I actually teared up at several points. Being a parent is so frequently amazing that one really needs to sit and think about it every once in a while. The children are now engrossed in the underrated and remarkably beautiful, William Joyce-realized Robots, enabling me to quickly blog and then start a top-to-bottom overhaul of the house in advance of visitors arriving this evening. It's not so much dirty as it is laundry-filled. Sigh. Oh well, on to the music, I stumbled on an iMix of songs featured in commercials, so today, I'll be blogging about two. Song 111 is Nikka Costa's "Everybody Got Their Something," the title of course being a callback to Shaw's use of "their" to refer to the singular everybody/everyone (right?). Actually, it's a funky, Sly Stone callback, necessitating much head swaying and rump shakin'. Very catchy, mapping personal empowerment to a synth-y horn section and organ. Think scarves, 'fros, and platforms. Song 112 is Iron and Wine's "Such Great Heights," which I think is from the M&M's commercial and is apparently a cover of some other indie-band-I've-never-heard-of's song. Very breathy, hippy/trippy, Donovan-y. I can completely imagine rocking my baby to sleep to this on an upscale, cool parents lullaby CD (Martha Stewart's Baby anthology was my full-on fav). Seems like just mellow guitar--maybe mandolin--and vocals, and everything does look perfect from far away. Can't argue with that.

253 to go.

Song One-Hundred and Ten

It's been a long day, like the longest day but without a beach view. But, before retreating to bed with On Beauty (I'm hoping it will pick up; if it doesn't in a couple more chapters, I'm moving on) to await the replay of the Cooking with Celebrities finale, I will dutifully write my blog. Tonight's song, song 110, is "Daft Punk is Playing at My House," by LCD Soundsystem. I dig the synth-y cowbell; also, as mentioned previously, I'm a sucker for the disaffected sneer delivery--especially with reverb. Dance, dance, little techno machine. Plus, the title is awesome.

255 to go.

Song One-Hundred and Nine

After dinner with a friend tonight, I was inexplicably drawn to Payless Shoes where--because of their BOGO promo--I actually purchased 6 pairs of shoes for $60. How is this possible? Oh, unfair labor practices, you do make my feet look stylish. And, I got home in time to give the children a bath while watching Cooking with Celebrities, or whatever it's actually called. Gosh, Tom Arnold sweats . . . a lot. It's the third night for this brain-resting-spot; in the "with celebrities" pantheon, it falls somewhere between "dancing" (high) and "skating" (low). My money's on Ashley Parker Angel in the finals. Go, O-Town! Now, I'm waiting for "Babysitting with Celebrities," starring TomKat, Brangelina, Bennifer2, the Paltrow-Martins, and the Trumps. The show will really pick up when the engrams, tatoos, Starbucks, free trade stickers, and baby combovers start a'flying. Ah, onto the music, tonight's song is Morningwood's "Nth Degree." The would-be-saucy pun in the band's name is really rather lame. The song is cold-perky 80s, sounding like many new wave-y bands--Missing Persons, Berlin, Devo, M, add your own here--with a bit of the Bay City Rollers woven in. There's something cynical in its cleverness that's off-putting.

256 to go.

Song One-Hundred and Eight

Wow, I can still write one more quick post and catch the elimination on Top Chef. I have very pedestrian needs, people. So, let's blog about Matt Pond PA's "Brooklyn Stars." Plaintive, vaguely tired vocals--another victim of the great ennui of the aughts, I guess. This is a pleasant song, but it's of a piece that runs into another like a giant West Elm tone on tone quilt. Where are the Kaffe Fassett bizarro colored vegie-prints? The poison greens and cheddars? The freaky mix of corduroy and wool? We cannot live by Real Simple alone, dear reader.

257 to go.

Song One-Hundred and Seven

Whew, back in the swing of things! Two things since I last blogged. It suddenly struck me whilst driving to work today that I know the "Let Him Fly" song from a Dixie Chicks album. Yep, I own all of them--there's your trouble! Also, Jerry Reed is a big hit with the kids: cowbell = children's joy! So, now onto a new song, O. A. R.'s "Hey Girl." I'd describe this as power-pop-y. Jangly guitars, bouncy. It's fairly commercial and directed. Fun with a summer-song vibe. Oh, and I learned that OAR stands for "of a revolution." I'm not completely sure which revolution comes with a website that lists the band's gear or includes a guy named Benj. Perhaps the OC revolution. It's coming, dear readers. Beware!

258 to go.

Songs Ninety-Nine to One-Hundred and Six

On my marathon plane flights I got to catch up on my reading, and it wasn't all Program Review Policy drafts or meeting briefs, either. I finally got to read Allegra Goodman's Intuition, majorly great. If Edith Wharton wrote a novel about a cancer research lab, this would be it. Realizing how quickly I was tearing through the book, I picked up a complete trash novel, Gigi Levangie (Mrs. Brian) Grazer's Starter Wife at the airport, way fun; a Judith Krantz for the aughts. At one point, the heroine realizes she's become the Prince-listening version of her mom, sending a shiver of recognition through this blogger. Moms, waxed or unwaxed, we are the world. And, then I started Marilynne Robinson's Gilead, which is achingly beautiful and definitely not the book to read if you've been away from your children for five days--unless you want your row to witness you in tears for 6 hours. So, I switched to People. Apparently, Julia Roberts is unbelievably happy these days, and Matt LeBlanc is a dog. Ah, showbiz. Okay, more songs.

Song Ninety-Nine: Colin Hay, "Waiting for My Real Life to Begin." I hit the celebrity playlist of Ms. Mandy Moore and found this song. (Perhaps inspired by Z. B.'s tastes?) Who knew the Men at Work guy would have a second act? He has a really solid voice, and the openness of the song lets it work clearly. This could be shorter.

Song One-Hundred (enter celebration cake blog right): Elton John, "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters." One of the times I was pregnant (they were very close together and seem like one continuous two year period), we were obsessed with Untitled, the director's cut of Almost Famous. This is a great movie. And, I became obsessed with this song (and cried everytime it played . . . hormones, dear readers)--but not obsessed enough to buy an Elton John album (being out of junior high and everything). So, when I realized I could buy it on iTunes, yippee!!! A fantastic song and a great 100 milestone. [Elton John? Where'd you park your time machine?]

Song One-Hundred and One: Patty Griffin, "Let Him Fly." Another Mandy Moore cut. (Hey, she was really good in that movie about Christians with Macauley Culkin, Sarandon's daughter, and other marginal celebristars.) I know I've heard this song before but don't know where. It's a good song, and she has a grown-up voice--which is nice for a borderline folkie.

Song One-Hundred and Two: Boz Scaggs, "Heart of Mine." One of the cool things about iTunes is that one can buy just the one or two songs you remember loving in one's feckless youth. On my drive back from the airport last time, I heard another Boz Scaggs song on the radio and was completely transported back to the Southridge Mall. So, given that--as my husband noted--I am in possession of a time machine, I decided to download a couple Boz Scaggs song. You can't go wrong; they are so over-produced that you need a steak knife to slice through, plus killer drum fills, and his smooth, smooth voice. Full on cool!

Song One-Hundred and Three: Jerry Reed, "Amos Moses." I found this on an iTunes Essentials pre-mix entitled (no joke) More Cowbell! Well, it doesn't get more cowbell than this. I actually just flipped through one of those Smokey and the Bandit movies the other night, the one with an elephant. Gosh, the 70s were some time. What other decade could produce such a freaky spectrum of music--and Famolare shoes? This song is awesome. Insert rainbow here!

Song One-Hundred and Four: Low, "Monkey." Very scary opening--like Rob Base crossed with P. J. Harvey. Heavy drums, sonic depth. You can feel this song in your chest. Apparently, according to the lyrics, the "monkey" is dying this very evening. I'm not certain what that means, but it's certainly spooky and reverb-y! Has a very Eli Roth feel.

Song One-Hundred and Five: Ida, "Late Blues." Down tempo remembrance of things past with an organ, I think. Long musical break is pretty, melancholy, but the song is eventually a bit boring. I feel pained rather than feel their pain. Probably not what they're going for.

Song One-Hundred and Six: B. C. Camplight, "Richard Dawson." I'm not sure if it's that Richard Dawson, but let's pretend, dear readers. Very peppy song, 70s-style horn breaks--that completely recall Love American Style--and 80s-style drums. The lyrics amount to nothing but purposive rhymes. Quite disposable but fun.

259 to go.

Songs Ninety-Three to Ninety-Eight

Back again after a hiatus, though I have actually been listening to much music. Taking two 9 hour trips sitting next to odd individuals whom one very much wants to avoid will do that for you. As will buying an iTrip, which is some space age device that converts the notes that come out of my iPod into radio waves and then into sounds that come out of my car radio. All with no cords or connections whatsoever. Very Willie Wonka! I'm looking forward to a similar device that can convert my desire to purchase objects into the cash that's required to buy said objects--or even into the objects themselves. Ah, nirvana! Okay, I'm 14 songs behind, so this here entry starts the full-on catch-up.

Song Ninety-Three: Roisin Murphy, "Ramalama (Bang, Bang)." Nice big, big drums, as might be suggested by the title. The song has lots of texture and layers to it, kind of like a 70s shag cut. The chorus doesn't really kick-in until the last third, which is interesting. Prior to that it doesn't even seem to have a clear throughline outside of the drums (which seem synth-y). Fun.

Song Ninety-Four: The Weepies, "World Spins Madly On." The opening music of the song screams VW-ad circa 2000s. I like this song a lot. It has a melancholy feel (perhaps not surprising given the group's name) with clear, lovely vocals. The melding of the male and female vocalists is quite nice, too.

Song Ninety-Five: Madeleine Peyroux, "Careless Love." I remember reading at some point about her going missing (a la Roddy Frame) then turning up. This is a vintage-y song. If Norah Jones had more depth to her voice, this is what she would sound like. The tune itself is not especially deep, but Ms. Peyroux voice has a warm, smoky feel. But, it also sounds a little too much like a Billie Holiday cover show. Nice, but why not just listen to Lady Day.

Song Ninety-Six: Jamie Lidell, "Multiply." Total blue eyed soul, dear readers. Welcome to the world of Otis Redding if he lived in Notting Hill, ate take-away, and went to boarding school. This is not to say the song is bad; it actually is quite catchy. And, it has some electronica bits thrown in for reasons known only to Mr. Lidell, I think. Could be a little shorter.

Song Ninety-Seven: The Chalets, "Sexy Mistake." The song has a girl group feel with an Elastica sound, down to the backing tracks. Kind of a musical take on girls gone wild--pub version. Peppy, disposable, retro pop.

Song Ninety-Eight: Psapp, "Tiger, My Friend." I think I got this off of a Grey's Anatomy soundtrack. It's been so long since I downloaded this batch of songs. It has a mellow vibe to it, with a kind of liquid sound (difficult to describe, but you'll hear it if you have the song). It could use less repetition of the vocals. The last 40 seconds are literally whispers and rain. I guess this is avantgarde, or else someone left the microphone out in the rain (with that cake that so depressed Richard Harris).

267 to go.