off-topics

I like to keep lists of things. Even more, i love to enumerate just how much i love said things on said lists. One such list is that of every CD i own. In times of boredom i go through it and rearrange my collection based on sheer love, whether or not i sing along, replay value, and recent listens. Bonus points are awarded to albums that i often sing or play on guitar. So, that’s what those current CD’s are. Obviously a few favourites got left out due to my ranking system; the days of the immaculate collection have come and gone, but i have been crushing heavily on Madonna recently. Otherwise, Pawn is one of the better CD’s in my collection, choirgirl will never leave the top10, and mulvey and difranco always have one cd on the list. Beautiful Creature is a disarmingly good album, elastica is my lo-fi alternative to garbage when i need a teeny break (oh, and they’re incredible. Do you want to go to their concert with me?), and veruca salt’s cd is just good [at parts]. And, some idiot tv commerical has been playing bowie’s “watch that man,” which is about all it takes to get me to pop in Aladdin Sane.

But, speaking of Elastica, have you ever listened to their first album? I can’t even describe it to you. First of all, Elastica has no preconceived notions about choruses, bridges, guitar tone, or the length of songs. My favourite song on their album is 1:33 long, and i tend to listen to it in quantities of ten. Their sound ranges from bopping poppy punk, to slow build guitar solos, to songs that are just great. With 16 tracks packed into 40 minutes i can get a little lost regarding the names of the middle eight, but i do know i like every one of them. Especially intriguing (especially when viewed as part of the whole album) is “Indian Song,” which contains (sometimes all at once) a slightly eastern throb, distorted electric guitar riffing, hand claps, slightly multi-tracked vocals, and an rhythm guitar that i can’t quiet put my finger on. Sorta Kula Shaker-y, i suppose. I find it interesting since is launches the album into some of its more punk songs. But i digress. If you are a fan of slightly at-times low-fi rock, UK guitar rock (blur, garbage, sleeper), or female lead bands, go buy this album! If you’re as smart as me you’ll be able to find it used for less then $8, which just adds to the lo-fi vibe. Run, don’t walk! Ahh… and now All-Nighter is on…

Speaking of Elastica, can i just say that music in America sucks fat hairy ass? Elastica’s new album has been out for months overseas, and it came out in the US last week. LAST WEEK!!! I realize that they never had a huge hit in america, but Elastica is a damned good band who toured heavy to earn an american following (and who have made another great hard-to-peg album). Yet, they aren’t pop (obviously), and aren’t really in any current radio format, so they’re useless to their original lable Geffen. Meanwhile, what has Geffen got going for them right now? The owner of a local record store stopped by the coffee shop today and said he thought the awesome Weezer may have been dropped from Geffen as well. How stupid do you have to be to drop Weezer? I can’t even imagine what’s running through David Geffen’s head right now. Not to mention the little mutiny that Courtney started recently. All hands on deck! Geffen is sinking fast! (:

current top10 cds

1.fiona apple ~ When The Pawn…

2.tori amos ~ from the choirgirl hotel

3.peter mulvey ~ The Trouble With Poets

4.madonna ~ The Immaculate Collection

5.ani difranco ~ To The Teeth

6.tracy bonham ~ Down Here

7.david bowie ~ Aladdin Sane

8.juliana hatfield ~ Beautiful Creature

9.elastica ~ Elastica

10.veruca salt ~ resolver

Sometimes i find myself with free time on my hands, just staring at my website. Since my site is very much based on content that is in some way artistic, i often have the will to work on it but nothing to work on. New layouts are always fun, but i don’t usually have graphics on hand to do them with. In fact, my site was never graphics intensive (aside from the IF backgrounds) in any of its incarnations. Right now i am at a sort of impasse: i am working on new songs but not ready to demo any of them, i have no new poetry, and this is the currently active part of Crush. What i am working on right now is some fiction, both totally original and fan-fic. Expect to see a section for it coming soon. Otheriwse, i am hoping the new school year will bring some inspiration along with its hustle and bustle.