A fraction of the sum

I'm still in a Red State (not metaphorically), but since my well of fresh ideas runneth dry, I will compose a brief [editor's note: this ends up becoming a filthy lie in a few paragraphs] England playlist. I'm glad that something came of my suggestion - I enjoyed reading all of your posts (despite the fact that YOU RUINSED MY IDEA).

Each Coming Night by Iron and Wine - this was my goodbye to America song. I became obsessed with the song while living in Raleigh, then grew more obsessed after seeing Iron and Wine. By Boston, it was virtually all I listened to; it was the last song I played on my computer before boarding the plane and the last song I played on guitar in the U.S.

Saddest Vacant Lot in all the World by Grandaddy - not sure. I don't listen to Grandaddy much, but that song plays in my head whenever I think of the pre-internet period at Regent Street.

Crazy Love by Van Morrison (Bob Dylan version) - simple: the song kicks ass. The duet was so good that I listened to it fanatically. Easily the best song I burgled from Sarah.

I Want Wind to Blow by The Microphones - I listened to this song a lot in the early days. I always wondered why it didn't seem to catch on with anyone; this is such a Nathan Hill song.

Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes by Paul Simon - anyone at Regent Street would have to put this song. It blasted through the house 1239489187290341023 times and is the Sarah Baker song.

For Wicked Gil (demo) by Band of Horses - little did I know that the album would have one of the best songs of the last 30 years on it, but the demos were still excellent.

Sophisticated Fuck Princess by Carissa's Wierd (sic) - over Winter Holiday, I became a cashier once more (poverty...). The break was fantastic, but this depressing song became the Publix 2005 anthem.

The District Sleeps Alone Tonight by The Postal Service - the Morocco song. Crazy bus rides.

Heard 'em Say by Kanye West - when Loni and I were in Italy, the only English came in the way of music videos. This was the only video (well, besides that horrid Pink song. Yeah, she's making fun of crappy female artists; how ironic since SHE IS ONE).

One With the Freaks by The Notwist - Nathan reawakened my The Notwist obsession from three years ago.

Let's Trade Skins by Great Lake Swimmers - this reminds me of Civ 4 during Spring Vacation. When I finished traveling during that break, I needed relaxing music; I was spent.

This Beard is for Siobhan by Devendra Banhart - regrowing the beard/street musician license.

These Days by Nico - one of the main England songs. Specifically, it was the Scotland NO DEAL theme song, and I mainly identify it with the two weeks Matt was in town.

Angeles by Elliott Smith - I've listened to this song religiously for 7 years, but the frequency I listened to it/played it in late May-June was mentally ill.

Wake Up by The Arcade Fire - this is bonfire song. Not Bonfire Night (which was Band of Horses, The Microphones, Van Morrison, and Grandaddy), mind you. This song is the essence of backyard bonfires.

Carry the Zero by Built to Spill - Greece. I can't hear this song without DYING to go back. But I will agree with you, Alyssa: it was a blast singing Wish You Were Here on the bus, and the song does remind me of you and Greece. Still, Pink Floyd was "just sooo high school."

Waterloo Sunset by The Kinks - The end of England, specifically the day mentioned in the previous post. The expression, "I need to go to the woods" is synonymous with Waterloo Sunset. Is that not the vibe for the song?

I realize that this is an incredibly boring/long post. HA! I enjoyed it. I'll post my current list in a week or so. For the next post, I will describe how my train to a phd program was derailed by cruel fate (incompetence).

So long, Marianne

I was going to hop on the waggon train and do my own songs of the year, but there was a slight problem - namely that pre-15 my music taste was embarassing, post-15 my music taste was similar to Nathan's and now I'm over 19, my music taste is Nathan's (with a lag of a few months since he introduced me to most of my favourite bands).

The only notable exception is a deep rooted love of Pink Floyd, the Kinks and Leonard Cohen¹ as well as a nostalgic adoration of the Offspring.

I do have a slight problem with music, though. And I know I've got a follower in this one (you an' me both, brother). If I get hooked on a track, I'll listen and re-listen to my own delight and to the despair of my neighbours until I physically can't bear it any more. Example from my iTunes:
Caring is creepy by the Shins, play count 2.
New Slang by the Shins, play count 41.

On another note, if only this blog had a zippy little thing like Livejournal where you could write what music you're listening to right now, and choose from a whole range of smileys to describe your mood aptly and succinctly. Wouldn't that make life more fun?²

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1. Not since Ashlee Simpson has one person achieved so much with so little. Listen to him - he can't sing! But it's still brilliant.
2. Maybe this is sarcasm.

Dogs that love the rain

Being a soulless scientismist, I am less aware of music. Consequently, I've decided to take Pete's concept in a bit of a different direction. Here are a few litmus-paper tracks taken at different depths of history.

Music I was raised with: Buffalo Soldier by Bob Marley and the Wailers. My exposure to any Reggae or Ska apart from the patron saint is pretty limited, and this isn't even my favourite track of his. I listened to it a whole lot as a child, though.

The first music I purchased included You're in the Air by REM. My abiding affection for REM is attested by the fact that I included this track in a custom playlist I made a week ago. (It was called "Bishop Princes".) It's not the intention, but I don't know a track that better summarises the haze of angst and confusion that is being a young teenager.

The teenage years were dominated by REM and my trajectory through Radio 1's key demographic, and consequently I listened to rockstars like Coldplay and Stereophonics: Pick a Part that's New is as good an illustration as any. When I arrived at university, pretty much the first thing I did was to stick in REM's Monster album and mash play: Track one is What's the Frequency Kenneth.

Association with indesque types gives my mid-years litmus: I fought in a war by Belle and Sebastian. This will always be associated with the chronic friction between me and the indesques based on my two most unpopular opinions: poetry is just bad prose and CS Lewis's arguments blow chunks. Hard.

There was a fairly distinct discontinuity at the end of my third year, because most people graduated. Going into the fourth year entailed a lot of realisations, like "I have no ambitions beyond graduation" and "Some of my friends are sub-editors now". One summer-vacation track is The Lord God Bird by Sufjan Stevens (download), introduced to me by the rebirth of music radio. The song was played as a requiem for London, which gives it more staying power in my mind because I was on the Tube later that same day.

Another track I first heard on that podcast was Woman King (download) by Iron and Wine, which might be considered the seal on my process of musical americanization. The actual nod for my fourth-year title track, though, is going to go to The Trapeze Swinger, if only because it reminds me of all the funfairs we went on.

What's the track for The Loughborough Year? I don't know, though Calexico's Black Heart is looking strong.

As long as I gaze on Waterloo Sunset, I am in paradise

I met my step-family from 8 years ago today. They're nice people; also, being French, they make excellent crepes.

But more importantly, a music update. On one of my last days in England, Nathan and I went to a pub after a tremendous trip to a forest ripe with bunny rabbits. As we sat outside drinking beer, a band began practicing Waterloo Sunset by The Kinks - quite well, I might add. When I returned to America, I realized that the song was my defining end of the journey song (much like Carry the Zero by Built to Spill was the Greece song, and The Greatest Adventure was Bilbo Baggins' song during his trip to the Lonely Mountain). This prompted two things: 1) I set about making mix cds for the last several years of my life and 2) I began furiously listening to The Kinks. Way to go, England. After acquiring Something Else by the Kinks and The Village Green Preservation Society, I decided that Ray Davies is a badass. This also led to a recent fling with The Zombies and The Clash. In case you were wondering (which you weren't), This Will be Our Year by The Zombies is my defining song of the new year and absolutely incredible.

But on to the point. While I do not have the mix here (as I am in Houston, TX with my father and co.), I intend to post my most memorable songs from last year. I think that it would be interesting for you to do the same. If you don't feel like it, I understand (but will hate you). It was enjoyable for me, and I therefore recommend it. Also, that pub trip day basically summed up everything I enjoyed about England.