Tapes 'n Tapes - Badaboom

I am liking the newest album a lot more than their last.  It's a good close to the month.


I'll be your upstart cowboy...or maybe it's "hot star cowboy."  whatever, it's a cowboy; bedtime.

enjoy: Tapes 'n Tapes - Badaboom

Bill Withers - Lean On Me

Mr. Withers blew everything else out of the water today.  Random didn't serve up a whole lot of good stuff.

Bill Withers - Lean On Me

Spoon - Anything You Want

This song led me to purchase everything Spoon had recorded up to 2008 after I heard it the first time.

Spoon - Anything You Want

Throwing Muses - Shimmer

There's no sound at the computer I'm at right now, so I'm hoping this is the song I remember from today.

Throwing Muses - Shimmer

Laura Veirs - Don't Lose Yourself

Don't let yourself be lost.


Laura Veirs - Don't Lose Yourself

The Beatles - Things We Said Today

This is no where near the best Beatles song, but there wasn't a lot that I listened to today that was very good.

If I was cheating, I would put "I've Just Seen a Face" here, but I didn't listen to that today.  Perhaps another day.

The Beatles - Things We Said Today

Ben Gibbard - All Is Full of Love

Twist your head around; it's all around you.

It isn't laziness that brings a Bjork song back within the same month.  This song gave me chills today.  I'm tired and don't feel like looking for the solo Gibbard version that I heard today, so here's Death Cab doing it.

Death Cab for Cutie - All Is Full of Love

Forgetters - Too Small to Fail

I just heard the EP that this song is from; I haven't been so excited about an EP since high school, when I picked up the Tuesday and Alkaline Trio EPs.

I don't mean to imply that it's groundbreaking, but it goes back to good memories of long drives, and long walks in Chicago listening to Jawbreaker and Jets to Brazil.

Forgetters - Too Small to Fail

Luna - Sweet Child of Mine

It was a close one, between this and another cover.

Luna - Sweet Child of Mine

song for 1/23

Nick Cave - Dead Man in My Bed

She breathed in the future by breathing out the past; the die is done, the die is shook, the die is duly cast.

Nick Cave - Dead Man in My Bed

Alkaline Trio - Armageddon

Armageddon, let the light in.

Alkaline Trio - Armageddon

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Hysteric

The cinders, the cinders, they light the path.

This song sounds amazing if played in a round with multiple browser windows.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Hysteric

Stars - This Charming Man

I hadn't heard this cover in a long time.  This is 1/19/11's song.

It's gruesome that someone so handsome should care.

Stars - This Charming Man

White Lies - Strangers

I only listened to new music today.  The songs at the top were by Tapes n Tapes and White Lies.  Second listens to the top tracks had White Lies come out ahead.

The song isn't listed anywhere to preview right now.  There was a YouTube link, but it has since died at the request of the user.

This link doesn't work, but perhaps it will soon.

White Lies - Strangers

The Clash - Straight to Hell

Clear as winter ice, this is your paradise.

I believe sampling this song is 95% of the reason why MIA's Paper Planes sounded great.

The iPod has been serving this one up recently, and got me driving home in the snow tonight.

The Clash - Straight to Hell

Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express

Yep.  Trans Europe Express.  Deal with it. TEE!!

Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express

Backdate this to yesterday; again out all day.

The National - Abel

Abel come on man, gimmie the keys man.  Everything has all gone down wrong.
The National - Abel

Buddy Holly -- Not Fade Away

Can't go wrong with mr Holly.

 Buddy Holly - Not Fade Away

Mark Eitzel - Proclaim Your Joy

It is important throughout your life to proclaim your joy.


Mark Eitzel - Proclaim Your Joy

This is actually the song for 1/13/11.  I've been out of the house since 6 am and just got home.

The first several times I heard this song I misheard the chorus as:
"Easy boy, turn out your light to proclaim your joy."

Hüsker Dü - Books About UFOs

She tells the same old story to everyone that she knows
She's just sitting in her room reading books about UFOs


This song has come up through random twice in less than a day.  Pretty remarkable, considering the iPod was pulling from 20,000 songs.


Husker Du - Books About UFOs

Tori Amos - Time

The Tori Amos version of "Time" is one of very few Waits covers that come very close to surpassing the original.  This was one of the first songs that I heard that got me interested in checking out more Amos.  For your listening pleasure, here are both versions.

Tom Waits - Time

Tori Amos - Time

The things you can't remember tell the things you can't forget that history puts a saint in every dream.

Red House Painters - Michigan

They're true, all the good things you say.

Red House Painters - Michigan

Explosions In the Sky - Remember Me as a Time of Day

Explosions in the Sky was one of those bands that I really just didn't get.  I saw them years ago at the Fireside Bowl and was bored out of my mind.  I found one of their discs super cheap at Newbury Comics in 2006 and gave them another chance.  Again I wasn't too excited about it.

Recently, several of their tracks have come up and I have not wanted to skip past them.  I think I really need a break from music with vocals, and they do fit that bill.

Explosions in the Sky - Remember Me as a Time of Day

Pretty Girls Make Graves - This Is Our Emergency

When you're lost, someone else is always found.


This Is Our Emergency

Bruce Springsteen - Hungry Heart

Everybody needs a place to rest.
Everybody wants to have a home.

I usually have a problem with backup singers outside of Motown tracks, but they fit here.

Bruce Springsteen - Hungry heart

Erin Mckeown - Fast As I Can

You're gonna make it, gonna make it, gonna make it girl.

Erin Mckeown - Fast As I Can

Japandroids - Sovereignty

Oh it's raining in Vancouver.

Coltrane should probably have rights to the top song of the day, but I snoozed to almost all of the 6 hours of Coltrane that played this morning.

Japandroids - Sovereignty

Architecture In Helsinki - Maybe You Can Owe Me

I thought today's song was going to come down to sending Ane Brun and Solomon Burke into the Thunderdome, where two enter, but one leaves.  Right before that showdown, Maybe You Can Owe Me came up.

and, here it is:

Maybe You Can Owe Me

Okkervil River - Plus Ones

This pulled me wide awake out of the random tide of music on my computer, turning up the brightness on my laptop, and doing all the hard work required to generate a link.

I listened to this album very little when I received it years ago, but each time one of the songs comes up on random I want to listen to the whole thing.

Okkervil River - Plus Ones

Nearly a four way tie

Today's best all came in a big chunk while I was trying to find the motivation to keep going past mile 5.  I didn't really want or need to break that barrier, since there's no marathon any time soon that I'll be running in.  Doing 10 mile runs is somewhat counter productive.

So for a view of the contenders (song titles will not be disclosed, since they still have a chance to win the day in the future):

Big Bill Broonzy
Elvis Costello
LCD Soundsystem
The Supremes

The only connection I found among 3/4ths of those songs for today was that they were longer than they needed to be, but didn't get boring.  The Costello song should have been boring by all rights, considering there are no new lyrics once you're 40 seconds into the song and there are no significant changes past that point either.

I'm listening to all the songs again to make a final call.

Big Bill, you win big.  Here's your e-laurels.
Careless Love

Damien Jurado - Medication

Medication
Pre-dawn may jump the gun on the song of the day, but I'm already two hours into listening for the day.  If something outshines this song, I'll call it a tie.

This song led me to purchase everything Damien Jurado has ever recorded.  As a free promo that we wouldn't buy at the used shop I worked at in 2001, this album is one of my favorites that I never paid for.

There are so many chilling points in this song that resonate.  I always think of a small town with nothing but bars for a main street, a gas station, a grocery store, and dirt roads when I hear this song.  The first and last lines bookend each other so well.

"It just so happens I have many concerns."

Bjork - Bachelorette

On a cold night driving around Elgin, this won the day.

Bachelorette

365 songs of 2011

All songs selected will be chosen from a random selection played during that day.  I won't be looking for a specific song, ever.

So, from the average of 50-100 songs heard per day, I will put up a link to the one that is perfect for me on that day.