I thought this might be a fun idea for a thread. (I actually ripped it off from the Metacritic.com forum.) Anyway, the idea is you put your music player on random, write down the first 5 songs, and write a short blurb about why the song is on your hard drive. I'll go first:
Bjork - "Enjoy": I honestly don't know how this song goes. I bought Post second hand a few years ago; it's one of those albums that I've listened to only a few times (probably while doing something else, like dishes).
Silverchair - "The Door": Haha, a favorite from my teen years. I think lead singer/songwriter Daniel Johns is one of the most underrated musicians in modern music. I think the three guys in the band were around 17 when this came out.
Radiohead - "The Gloaming": Murrrh. I hate this song. I like Hail to the Thief, but I always skip this one.
Ryan Adams - "Two": Yesss! That's better. The best song from Ryan Adams' latest album. It's only 2'39", but doesn't need to be a single second longer. I don't know what song is coming up next, but I'm already giving this song the top spot for this batch.
John Lennon - "How Do You Sleep": Again, another song that I have no idea how it goes. I bought the album for "Imagine" and ripped it to my computer. I guess I haven't gotten around to listening to it.
I'll give it a shot.
Manu Chao - La Vie A 2 : I listened a lot to Manu Chao 5-6 years ago. I first bought Proxima Estacion Esperanza, and then later Clandestino, where this song is.
Razorlight - Rip it Out : It's from an album I borrowed from a friend. I don't really like Razorlight, so I haven't listened to it very much, except when my friend is visiting.
Vangelis - West Across the Ocean Sea : I really liked the movie 1492:Conquest of Paradise, so I always wanted to soundtrack to it. Bought it in a record store in Galati, Romania.
Elvis Presley - Help Me : Didn't know I had this one. It's from an Elvis album called Ultimate Gospel. Never listened to it, beats me how it's ended up on my computer.
22 Pistepirkko - Lost Lost Love : One of the bands I have most CDs of. Seen them live twice, and they're great. This is from Kings of Hong Kong, the cd of theirs I've listened the least to, but listening to this song I definitely have to listen again.
1. Pin - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs. I love the energy of this song and everything else on the album. I must admit I havent listened to it in a long time so thats a nice start.
2. Whats the ugliest part of your body? Reprise - Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. Brilliantly mad, and the damn thing is over before I,ve even finished typing.
3. Walken - Wilco. Not to keen on this one.
4. Day of the Lords - Joy Division. Great song, but I,m really not in the mood for listening to such melancholy music (I shall resist the temptation to skip). Please let the next one be a bit more upbeat.
5. In the Ghetto - Elvis Presley. I was Athens (the greek one) a few weeks ago on a holiday with one of my flat-mates and in an effort to save a few quid we stayed in the cheapest hotel we could find. The place was ok but the street outside was frightening to say the least (poice in riot gear I think says enough). This song became our official anthem for the week so I,m laughing quite hard right now.
Oh yeah, I dont really have a reason for why they are on my hard-drive other than I bought the albums containing the above songs at some point.
The Books - Fralite
I downloaded the album after buying the Pitchfork 500 in which I really loved Take Time. Fralite is too short a track to be really great but is quite pleasant however.
The Avalanches - Summer Crane
Quite cohesive after the Books, the bands share the same spirit. I find the Avalanches more solid however, Since I Left You is a real pleasure to go through, it mostly sounds like one long track more than like an album.
Mylo - Destroy Rock and Roll
Rémingway - Angora
Rémingway is a French rock band I really enjoyed live on my college years ; I bought the 2 albums just after the show. The second one sucked but the first has some very pretty songs, like that slow final song.
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals - Burn One Down (live)
The idol of my late teen (between 18 and 20, during my "maths sup/Maths spé" years), I still enjoy his 4 first albums and that live, with great moments of communion such as that song.
Not very representative of my playlist!
Take Pills- Panda Bear: Once i learned of the Animal Collective due to MPP i quickly ate up as many related AC albums as i could buy on my meager teenage allowance. Doesn't the beat sound like a skateboard?
For Your Love- Yardbirds: When i realized that i didn't have any songs by such a seminal band i bought this one off itunes immediately
Hot Poop- Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention: He's so weird, what a disgusting name. good thing its over now
A Little Priest- Sweeny Todd: I really loved this film adaptation of the musical and also the lyrics of this song are so clever and ingenious.
Magnificent Seven- The Clash: In my cheapness to not buy the full album (before i REALLY cared about getting full albums) and knowing Sandanista as inconsistent i purchased a few songs off the album, including this one.
Don't Worry Baby - Beach Boys:Ripped it off a greatest hits from the library. My favourite of their early stuff,should probably get around to getting those early studio albums some time...
Dominion Road - Muttonbirds:Bit of a classic NZ song,essential knowledge for NZ'ders. Ripped this from a library compilation as well...
Men Are From Mars,Women Are From Venus - Curve:Haven't really listened to it yet,got a few of their albums thrown in as part of a bulk lot in an internet auction.
Tonight - New Kids On The Block:
Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind - Lovin' Spoonful: From a cheap compilation of theirs I got a while ago - like their stuff,should look into a bit more of it...
(1) I Will Never Marry - Ralph Stanley & Emmylou Harris: On my hard drive because Emmylou is sweet and Ralph is a legend.
(2) The New Soft Shoe - Polly Parsons: Weird. Another Gram Parsons connection. This one is his daughter singing on a tribute album. Nothing special.
(3) Fake Friends - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts: Cool song. On my i-pod because I'm from those days.
(4) Dom ("Don't") - Krzysztof Krawczyk: This one's on my i-pod because Krzysztof Krawczyk is THE POLISH ELVIS and I sometimes hang out at a Polish bar in Detroit that plays him on their CD.
(5) Generic America - Blue Mountain: I have no idea how this one got on here. Standard rock fare.
I Got The Feelin' - James Brown -- Because JB isn't all that bad. You know, somewhere in the top 4 or 5 artists of all time or so. (A very nice, funky number.)
Easy Love - Gorky's Zygotic Mynci -- I was interested in checking them out when I read some positive things about them in the context of reading about their fellow Welshmen, my beloved Super Furry Animals. And you know I kinda like light pop of this sort. They never really grabbed me, though.
Home - Louis Armstrong -- Because Satchmo isn't all that bad. You know, somewhere in the top 4 or 5 artists of all time or so. (Not such a fan of this song... a minor Cole Porter number, and an overly schmaltzy string arrangement.)
We Are Your Friends - Justice vs. Simian -- Because I went on a buying spree after the Pitchfork 500 list came out. Being a big fan of Daft Punk, I wanted to see what Justice are all about.
Saajan Kahan Jaoongi Main (Beloved, Where Would I Go?) - Kronos Quartet -- My wife bought me an album put out by Kronos Quartet of songs by the Bollywood composer R.D. Burman. Different than any of the stuff I usually listen to. Most of the tracks have Asha Bhosle, who I really enjoy on this album. Unfortunately, she is not on this track. While I have enjoyed other stuff from Kronos Quartet (my old roommate used to listen to them a lot), I don't really like their arrangements of these classic Bollywood numbers.
OK, I'm game:
Karen Peck and New River "God Still Answers Prayer": To try and keep myself "well rounded" musically, I try periodically to relisten to genres I don't think I like. In this case, it's what's usually called "Southern gospel"..vaguely country style instrumentation with 4 part (usually male) vocal harmony on top similar to what Elvis Presley would have heard at the "all night sings" he went to in Memphis as a kid. While I've learned to appreciate some Southern gospel now, this particular tune is pretty draggy and drab. In fact, I think I'll be deleting this one.
Ben Harper and the Relentless 7 "Keep it Together": Ripped from a CD at the library. Sounded quite different to what I had thought Harper sounded like since the tunes I'd heard from him before sounded really folky..almost like Cat Stevens or Ray LaMontagne. This one is definitely a full-bore guitar rock album with lots of 70s era distortion sound to them. (Think the guitar solo in the Guess Who's "American Woman".) This is the first time I've heard this song since ripping. I'm indifferent towards it..
Muse "Knights of Cydonia/Close Encounters of the Third Kind" Live cut from their H.A.A.R.P. album. Instrumental guitar cover of the theme song to the 70s alient flick gives way to a rollicking version of a song that always reminds me of stampeding horses. One of the best examples of how great Muse sounds doing "bombast" is the acappella "No one's gonna take me alive..." break which reminds me of Queen in all their "Bohemian Rhapsody" glory.
George Strait "West Texas Town"- Pretty decent Western swing number from his last outing.
Rolling Stones "Flip the Switch"- I don't remember liking BRIDGES TO BABYLON that much when it was new but it's grown on me over time. This is a good rocker off that Don Was produced "comeback" album.
I'll do another one.
I am Kloot - Proof : I bought this album on eBay years ago, and haven't really listened to it.
Dirty Pretty Things - Bang Bang You're Dead : It's from my girlfriend's collection, but she never listens to it. It's quite pleasant.
22 Pistepirkko - Save My Soul : More from the Finnish band. They're an excellent band.
Moby - 7 - I remember buying that Moby album when it came out, playing it to my friends, and they were all like "nah". I listened to it, and amazingly 18 months later, it became a big seller. Then I was like "nah".
Grifter City - Psycho - Downloaded from the South by South West webpage.
1. The Streets - It's Too Late (from Original Pirate Material) - great album, but i love this song in particular. too bad his last 2 albums have not contained anything that sounds remotely like this
2. Roosevelt Franklin - Keep on Trying (from My Name is Roosevelt Franklin) - LOLZ. roosevelt was a black character on sesame street in the early '70s (before he got kicked off for being "too ethnic" - but not before he made this awesome album!) it's pretty generic '70s funk, with the franklin family, including roosevelt, baby ray, and mary francis, and their best friend mobity mosely, singing songs about numbers and letters, etc., and dropping references to collard greens, fish fry, etc. hilarious.
3. Dissection - Where Dead Angels Lie (from Storm of the Light's Bane) - mediocre swedish metal band. decent song, but i never listen to the album.
4. Frank Zappa - City of Tiny Lights (from Make a Jazz Noise Here) - pretty stupid song, but man do i love to hear him play that guitar. he shreds for a solid 5 minutes on this one. not sure what album this song's originally from. jonah?
5. Joe Henry - Stop (from Scar) - henry is madonna's cousin and he wrote some great liner notes for the jayhawks' 2nd album. nowadays he's producing more than recording i think, but his last album was great. a very underrated songwriter.
I'll give it a go. (please don't pick any embarassing songs... my girlfriend put her ipod on random while we were on a long drive and the pokemon theme came up lol. poor girl)
outkast - ghetto musick
glad this came up. i love this track. when i first got speakerboxxx/the love below, i only liked the andre 3000 side, but big boi's stuff has really grown on me. they're both amazing musicians... damn, i want to keep listening to this. sucks that i've got to listen to 3 more random tracks before i can come back to this.
the arcade fire - in the backseat
great album, but not a great track for me to write something about it. it's not bad, but it's not great either.
the white stripes - fell in love with a girl
is this realy one of their best? i don't hear it. sounds pretty average to me.
bad brains - return to heaven
wish it picked one of the earlier tracks on the album, but i quite like this one too. black guys playing punk... who would've thought?
Here's my go at this:
Broken Social Scene - 7/4 (Shoreline)
It's really not a bad song, but the other album (You Forgot It in People) is much better. This was just me checking out the second album.
The Divine Comedy - The Frog Princess
Great song. Neil Hannon is who Scott Walker wants to be. I love "Casanova" and I've been meaning to check out more by The Divine Comedy. The only problem is that their albums are hard to find.
Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
Not one of my favorite songs by them and not one of my favorite albums either. This is alright though, although "Mellon Collie," "Adore," and even "Machina" is better.
The Microphones - I Want Wind To Blow
Someone recommended this to me, saying it was a better Neutral Milk Hotel. It's ok, but Neutral Milk Hotel is much better.
Talking Heads - Love --> Building on Fire
All I have of the Talking Heads is a greatest hits CD and "Stop Making Sense." Their music is pretty interesting, but it doesn't really want me to go into their catalog.
I actually have Today! I've got all their albums from 65-71 but I'm not sure which is better to go onto next - pre-'65 or post-'71. Haha,I've never heard anyone analyze a track from NKOTB before as if it is quality...
Actually, Joe Henry is married to Madonna's sister.
This thread should be revived, so I'll go ahead
Bob Dylan - "Desolation Row": Originally because Highway 61 is a great classic, but this play is from the RSM 500 list (I have the song twice on my iTunes). So I guess you could say I have it because Rolling Stones Magazine thinks it's a classic
Van Morrison - "Moondance": RSM 500 twice in a row? What a let down...
Talk Talk - "Ascension Day": I've not listened much to Talk Talk, though I know I should, but sad to say, this is the only song I have from them, and I have because it's on the Pitchfork 500. Man, what's up with the lists today
Sufjan Stevens - "The Tallest Man, The Broadest Shoulders...": From Illionoise, which I haven't listened to in a while. It's not one of my favourite from the album, so I haven't listened to the song in a VERY long while. Finally a nice surprise
Foals - Two Steps, Twice: I guess I downloaded Antidotes just to check it out. It didn't do anything for me. I believe I've never even heard the song before.
Phoenix - Countdown (Sick For The Big Sun): I think Wolfgang... is mired by "Love Like A Sunset" and "Rome", and the greatness of "1901" and "Lisztomania", which means I usually change artist after listening to "Fences". I should rearrange the albumlisting, so I can get to songs like this one and "Lasso"
geeze, what are the odds I get all 90s songs?
Pavement - Range Life (CR,CR) : one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands. laid back country vibe, the video's alright too.
Royal Trux - Fear Strikes Out (Thank You) : I first discovered Royal Trux while watching high fidelity, which i think is a little bit of a weird way to find them. like a lot of royal trux songs this one thrives on energy and attitude, its good.
A Tribe Called Quest - Award Tour (Midnight Marauders) : not great, but a solid song, fits in well with the rest of the disc.
Blur - You're So Great (Blur) : i didn't recognize this one when it came up, but i really like it, just a guitar with some solos thrown in. "you're so great, and i love you" is a cheesy lyric, but it didnt really take anything away from the song for me.
Kyuss - Writh (Blues For the Red Sun) : Awesome song, written by Josh Homme, has some nice thunderous guitar riffs.
The Who- Barbara Ann: God I forgot they covered this; a decent cover at any rate.
Wilco- Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(Again): A great song from one of my favorite albums of the 90s, by one of my favorite bands of all time. Total win.
The Smashing Pumpkins- Tear: Not really a fan of anything the Pumpkins did after 1995, but this is pretty decent. I love the synths.
The Streets- Has it Come To This: A little more dance oriented than I usually go for, but I have a special place for this album/song as it reminds me of a really good semester of college.
Neil Young- I Am a Child: I've been taking an interest in Neil's first album lately, but I haven't gotten around to buying it. This is a version from one of the live albums. Good song.
The Beatles - Hey Jude. This one's obvious. Not one of my Beatles favourites but is a must for the music library, off the 1 album.
Bob Dylan - If Not For You. One of the most relaxing Dylan tracks to listen to. Off The Essential Bob Dylan, which I got from a friend.
Bob Dylan - It's All Now, Baby Blue. This doesn't seem very random.
The Beatles - Help! Even less random.
Simon and Garfunkel - Peggy-O. I have the Simon and Garfunkel remastered collection. I personally think Wednesday Morning, 3AM is underrated as an album.
Well, that wasn't a very good mix, but I played by the rules.