let this be the end, let this be the last song

Primitive Radio Gods - Fading Out Yes, I am. I am finding that I...

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:50:20 -0500

Primitive Radio Gods - Fading Out

Yes, I am. I am finding that I am somewhat mini-manic right now, with bursts of excited energy and bouts of tiredness, lethargy, depression, and a sense of wanting out.This is all job relate, although a lack of sleep may play into it.

RJD2 - Final Frontier Doing something a bit different tonight,...

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:50:31 -0500

RJD2 - Final Frontier

Doing something a bit different tonight, to celebrate finals being over. My tastes are wider than they may appear. ;)

Parva (Kaiser Chiefs) - Vending Machine Today is a day of study...

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:55:17 -0500

Parva (Kaiser Chiefs) - Vending Machine

Today is a day of study groupage. Typically associated with study groups is the idea of the study snack. Yum, yum.

Keane - Sunshine This song is dedicated to the day off tomorrow...

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:38:00 -0500

Keane - Sunshine

This song is dedicated to the day off tomorrow that I had and unwisely gave up, because I have trouble saying no. I did it under the idea that my classmate would be working tomorrow and we could study together. If it should turn out he’s not working, I will be pissed.

EDIT: Squeaky wheel gets the grease, I guess. I called my boss to see about trading a day, and she told me to never mind tomorrow. Ironically, it may have almost been better for me to work tomorrow and not Thursday, but no matter.

Amelia’s Dream - Be My Hero We all need heroes in our...

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:39:00 -0500

Amelia’s Dream - Be My Hero

We all need heroes in our life. Or at least people we can rely on. It feels good to have, and to be, those people. The responsibility may be a large one, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

PS: Sorry about missing the last two days.

Songs of the day for those days:

December 12, 2009 - Blur “Song 2”
Because I rocked this out. I don’t care what the people at the bar thought.

December 13, 2009 - The Beatles “Birthday”
Sort of a cheap way out, but it is my brother’s birthday. If only he liked the Beatles…

Weezer - Can’t Stop Partying The party...

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:44:09 -0500

Weezer - Can’t Stop Partying

The party starts…now.

Also, I noticed that my post for yesterday got posted on my blog rather than songjournal (D’oh!). I guess I rushed it…no pun intended. But it is somewhat ironic I suppose.

Blue Man Group f/Traci Bonham and Rob Swift - Shadows Part...

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 23:21:06 -0500

Blue Man Group f/Traci Bonham and Rob Swift - Shadows Part 2

Today I was supposed to shadow my coworker during my first day. Things didn’t work out exactly as planned, through no fault of his.

The Paper Jets - Goodbye On Tuesday “How about some local...

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:45:57 -0500

The Paper Jets - Goodbye On Tuesday

“How about some local music?” he asked.

“Okay,” said tumblr. “What’s this in reference to?”

“To what is this referring,” he corrected.

“Alright, you bastard, just answer,” tumblr grumbled.

“Papers, the last of which will be…”

“Jets?”

“Done on Tuesday,” he smiled.

“Oh,” said tumblr.

The Shins - Phantom Limb Just like the song says,...

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:16:58 -0500

The Shins - Phantom Limb

Just like the song says, “There’s no connection.” Rather than another mopey paper-angst song (I was going to choose Zutons “Pressure Point”), I figure today should just have a modern gem to give people something to sing along to on a dreary Monday. Enjoy!

The Rentals - Life Without A Brain A song bemoaning the paper...

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:19:47 -0500

The Rentals - Life Without A Brain

A song bemoaning the paper writing process. Prepare for three days of paper angst, starting now.

Guster - Mona Lisa I am still sitting and watching the pouring...

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 14:26:17 -0500

Guster - Mona Lisa

I am still sitting and watching the pouring rain. On and off. And back home again.

Had a realization about my beliefs and work today. I don’t want to be another person in society who causes others to feel bad about themselves. I - with Andrea’s copious help - caught myself labeling people today, and it was heartbreaking to realize that I was acting like someone who I would despise. Today was a cleansing thoughts day, and I returned from my morning rituals with a renewed sense of self and purpose. :)

Dogs Die In Hot Cars - Man Bites Man Today’s song comes for two...

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 21:21:14 -0500

Dogs Die In Hot Cars - Man Bites Man

Today’s song comes for two reasons. One, I’ve been having crappy days and just need to laugh. And two, the refrain lies. There is a taste. It’s a weird one. Don’t ask me how I know. And don’t call the authorities. Plz?

Elizabeth & The Catapult - Taller Children Today’s...

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:30:44 -0500

Elizabeth & The Catapult - Taller Children

Today’s thought is about maturity. I’m looking to move out in a few months, and at this point last year I would not have been ready. This year I feel that I have matured quite a lot. Yet, I still have a way to go. I’m still oversensitive and reactive in many ways, and often do not filter myself when it comes to opinions or language.

But we are in a way taller children, aren’t we. Each of our stages of development have been stretched thanks first to college, and then to a general overprotective feeling in our culture. Also, the anonymity of the internet has allowed us to spew vitriol and hate and be passive-aggressive, further delaying our maturity.

OK Go “Shortly Before The End” Ah yes, the end of...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:17:00 -0500

OK Go “Shortly Before The End”

Ah yes, the end of the semester. When everything comes to a head and it’s time to defecate or remove yourself from the porcelain throne. This song, in its sad epic glory, could represent the deadline sneaking up as a snake hunting its prey or a mongoose hunting that snake. And the “hours of dying” could be said to be the actual process of writing a paper, which is what I should be doing right now and soon will be.

Metric “Sick Muse” Ah, it’s December 1st, and...

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 01:49:00 -0500

Metric “Sick Muse”

Ah, it’s December 1st, and I’ll be taking over for the month.

Figure that the best way to start this is with a song that’s been on constant rotation for the past few weeks. Thanks to my lovely fiancee Andrea for really getting me into Metric.

I was going to play “Help I’m Alive” but sadly the file is .9 MB too big, so instead here’s “Sick Muse” to start us off. I find the title fitting at this moment because I’m dealing with health insurance annoyances. Plus, it’s just an awesome song. Enjoy!

Sometimes shit just doesn’t work out, you know? You can...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:15:09 -0500

Sometimes shit just doesn’t work out, you know? You can try and try and try, but you get distracted, or life gets in the way, or it just doesn’t end up the way you had hoped. Clearly my plans for this month are a nice example of this. My reign on songjournal was something I really looked forward to, and there are about 9 or 10 songs that never got the treatment I intended for them, and that’s a little frustrating, if for no other reason than that it’s pretty much all my fault. That’s kind of what this song is about. It’s also about fucking up so bad that you can’t even believe that you were capable of doing it to yourself.

This is my desert-island all-time absolute hands down favorite song of all time, and no matter how much shit people have talked/will continue to talk about the band who wrote it, the fact that they created this easily puts them in my top five favorite bands ever (not to mention the three classic albums and three flawless EPs). It’s tough to think of a band who’s had as personal an impact on my life, and beyond that a song that so easily brings me to the verge of tears every time. My favorite part though is that I’ve never been able to tell if it’s because it makes me sad or because it makes me happy.

Aesop Rock - “9-5ers Anthem” Fumble outta bed and...

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 03:31:12 -0500

Aesop Rock - “9-5ers Anthem”

Fumble outta bed and stumble to the kitchen
Pour myself a cup of ambition
Yawn and stretch and my life is a mess
And if I never make it home today, God bless

So yeah, another song about working from a guy who’s had one steady job in two years. I wanted an Aes Rock song, and “Daylight” seemed a little too predictable. Plus, the idea of working and being a contributing member of society is about all I’ve thought about in the last two years.

Aesop is pretty responsible for my continued interest in rap music, and though I’ve always been an advocate of the genre, Mr. Bavitz (along with Company Flow and Can Ox) certainly made it easier to digest after the reign of Bad Boy and Cash Money and No Limit records. I know, it’s a little safe, and a little “white”, if you wanna think about it like that, but Labor Days is a bona fide classic. At the time that Aes released this album, there wasn’t anything like it, and backpacker hip-hop has yet to bridge the gap between “social consciousness” and braggadocio the way this album and this song did.

As an MC, he was the perfect blend of self-defeating and Messianic, and his stream of consciousness flow was half Faulkner and half Geisel. He was rooted in reality while still being otherworldly, and as terrified of life as he was death.

Modern Life is War - “D.E.A.D.R.A.M.O.N.E.S.” Sore...

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 21:54:06 -0500

Modern Life is War - “D.E.A.D.R.A.M.O.N.E.S.”

Sore back, sore feet
A ragtag army and we’re sick in the heat
We’re not pretty and we’re not rich
We’re gonna have to fucking work for it
It’s our lives, we do what we choose
Black jeans, black shirt, black shoes
Mom and Dad still don’t approve

This one’s pretty self-explanatory. Far and away one of the best songs of this decade, one of the most honest and vitriolic hardcore songs since Damaged, and a song that hits hard for anyone who can’t tell the difference between fun and dangerous. Mom and Dad still don’t approve of what I do, but ordinary isn’t my life, and I love the things that make me happy way too much to even imagine stopping them.

Ghostface Killah - “The Champ” Niggas want me dead,...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:46:00 -0500

Ghostface Killah - “The Champ”

Niggas want me dead, but they scared to step to me
Rip they guts out like a hysterectomy

ATTN: WHITE POST-ADOLESCENT MALES

LISTEN TO THIS SONG AND RAP IT AT YOUR FRIENDS WHILE DRINKING MALT LIQUOR AND POSSIBLY PUFFING THAT ILL WEED.

The first time I listened to Fishscale in full was after the last day of finals my sophomore year of college, and it was probably one of the last albums I bought in a record store and not at a show. Andrew and I were driving to Cherry Valley (greatest deli in the history of delis), and I threw this album on, and as the tracks started going by, the volume knob turned louder and louder and louder, and the next thing we knew, it was six months later, and we had gotten drunk and rapped along to this at least once a week every week. While the song itself doesn’t leave a lot of room for sentimentality, I hope someone plays it at my funeral and Andrew Sansone and Rob Whittier rap it at my lifeless body.

LCD Soundsystem - “New York, I Love You, But You’re...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:47:00 -0500

LCD Soundsystem - “New York, I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down”

New York, you’re perfect
Please don’t change a thing
Your mild billionaire mayor’s still convinced he’s a king
So the boring collect
I mean all disrespect
In the neighborhood bars I once dreamt I would drink
New York, I love you, but you’re freaking me out
There’s a ton of the twist, but you’re fresh out of shout
Like the death in the hall
That you hear through the wall
New York, I love you, but you’re freaking me out

I’m not a native New Yorker, but this song easily translates state lines. It’s a song about being disillusioned with your hometown, and whether it’s New York or suburban Maryland, the sentiment remains the same. “All My Friends” might be the more obvious choice from this album, but “New York” is the real heartbreaker. Everyone gets older, and everything changes, and things don’t turn out the way you expect them to. Your town changes to accommodate the younger generations, families, and the twentysomethings are left by the wayside because they’re contributing nothing to the economy outside of service industry jobs. I do love New York, but the anonymity and the expense and the constant feeling of drowning are bringing me down.