r.e.m.

The Dunce Cap: Week of Dec. 19, 2011

in: heavy rotation

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 40: You were right about the stars. Each one is a setting sun. (click on link to listen to mix via 8tracks or play above)

1. “Young Pilgrims” – The Shins
2. “Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam” – The Vaselines
3. “Sketchy Metal” – The Hold Steady
4. “Jesus Christ” – Brand New
5. “Jesus Christ” – Big Star
6. “Jesus, Etc.” – Wilco
7. “Shine On, Sweet Jesus” – The Flaming Lips
8. “Superbowl Jesus” – The Hood Internet
9. “God Only Knows” – The Beach Boys
10. “Me and Jesus Don’t Talk Anymore” – beulah
11. “Jesus the Mexican Boy” – Iron & Wine
12. “Doubting Thomas” – Nickel Creek
13. “I’m Not Jesus” – The Ramones
14. “Above the Waves” – The Jealous Sound
15. “Chocolate Jesus” – Tom Waits
16. “God’s Comic” – Elvis Costello
17. “I Have Forgiven Jesus – Morrissey
18. “Jesusland” – Ben Folds
19. “Let It Be” – The Beatles
20. “Spirit in the Sky” – Norman Greenbaum

Tebow-kily dokily, folks! I’ve spent the day in the throes of full Tebow fandom, a fact I am not embarrassed to share with the whole of the Interwebs, or, y’know, Jen and Bryan, but this slow-movin’ dino-computer has kept me from sharing my thoughts with the world. I’ve been wrestling with a new 8tracks uploading interface for the last four hours, and I’m a bit ornery with technology, so instead of continuing to attempt to post something, I’ll leave you guys with this. This playlist should whet your appetite for what is to come, namely a discussion of Tim Tebow, faith, religion and history’s favorite son.

For this playlist, I’ve chosen twenty superb songs about god, religion and/or lackthereof, none of which are considered “gospel” – unless you count Norman Greenbaum’s fantastically catchy, “Spirit in the Sky,” which I always remember from that one John Travolta movie, “Michael,” where he plays an angel. There were so, so many songs to choose from, and this smattering represents some of my favorites. The Hold Steady, in particular, employs a great bit of biblical imagery (see: “Citrus,” “How a Resurrection Really Feels“), so if you’re looking for more, I suggest you check there first. There were a few honorable mentions (Bright Eyes, “When the President Talks to God,” Butch Walker, “Closer to the Truth and Further From the Sky,” R.E.M., “Losing My Religion“) I would also recommend, but this is a decent place to start.

I’m still having some trouble with the 8tracks interface, and I’m about to crush the computer screen in frustration, so I will attempt to make the edits in the morning, with the promised post forthcoming.

For now, and as always, happy listening.

The Dunce Cap: May 31, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Photo courtesy of super-creepy paparazzo

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 10: I command you to dance. It’s such a sweet sensation. (mix via 8tracks)

1. “July, July!” – The Decemberists
2. “Stole My Heart” – Little and Ashley
3. “Gone Daddy Gone” – Gnarls Barkley
4. “Good Vibrations” – Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch
5. “Airplanes” – Local Natives
6. “Home” – Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
7. “Map of the World” – Monsters of Folk
8. “Shiny Happy People” – R.E.M.
9. “Kiss” – Prince
10. “Girl” – Beck

Look at that little girl. Yes, it’s Suri Cruise, and yes, it’s already been established that I am kind of obsessed with her, but seriously. Just look at the joy captured on her face. So, sure, she’s cute, but why is she the new Maybelline maven of The Dunce Cap?

Well, frankly, I’m tired of my simple explanations that these mixes are brimming with happy songs, blah blah blah. I’m letting Suri say it instead. Try to look at that face without grinning. Really. I dare you. Triple dog dare.

This mix is fist-pumping (yuck) with hip-shaking, high-fiving tracks from artists like The Decemberists and Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch (so much yammering love about to happen in the coming days).  There’s a really great Violent Femmes cover from, of all people, Gnarls Barkley (Cee-Lo!) and my favorite Prince track ever. There’s even a reminder of home, a track from Athens’ own R.E.M.

So give it a whirl, and I hope your face lights up like Suri Cruise. And if you really do cheese that much, please send me photos.

Happy listening.

Book Club: May DVDs

in: on queue

Blu-Ray Hooray!:

The cast of MTV's Daria.

La la la la la, Daria boxed set on DVD today!

In the mid-to-late-90s, Daria captivated our hearts with her no-nonsense attitude and unpopular misanthropy. She had a kooky cast of friends, from her airhead sister Quinn to her arty best friend Jane and all of the goths, jocks and rock stars (Trent, dreamy!) in between, and her life was set to a damn good ’90s playlist. Daria was truly the anti-hero of television girldom. She spoke in monotone, spoke almost solely in snarky quips and rolled her eyes – a lot.

Adapted from “Beavis and Butthead“, Daria was everything the original MTV cartoon wasn’t – intelligent, relatable, actually watchable. Plus, Daria lived in Lawndale, a town that, as The Frisky points out in their list of the Top 10 Reasons to Love Daria, could be anywhere – including my lovely hometown of Snellville, Ga. (motto: “Where Everybody’s Somebody”).

It’s about time the series finally be released on DVD. The show went off the air in 2001, and it’s finally resurfacing today with an eight-disc set. The set features all five seasons plus special features and the two Daria movies and is loaded with lots n’ lots of extras. I’m already scouring the web for cheap deals on the box set, which I’ve been coveting for a pretty long time. The only problem? MTV couldn’t secure the rights for the original music – think R.E.M., Alice in Chains, etc. – so the DVD replaced the tracks with bland background music. H-hey.

I’m pretty sure that little snag won’t keep me from purchasing this gem. Must have for my collection – I do love awkward and dated shows about outcasts, etc. Plus, “Sick Sad World” is my favorite cartoon-within-a-cartoon, rivaled only by “The Itchy & Scratchy Show.”

Check out the first episode of the series, “The Esteemers,” below from MTV.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

The Dunce Cap: April 26, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Image courtesy of Buzz Sugar

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 5: And when the flowers grow, just know you’re still in my heart.
(mix via 8tracks)

  1. “Losing My Religion” – R.E.M.
  2. “Mr. Jones” – Counting Crows
  3. “Big Me” – Foo Fighters
  4. “Faded” – soulDecision
  5. “Why Don’t We Do it in the Road” – The Beatles
  6. “Closet” – Pete Yorn
  7. “Desperately Wanting” – Better Than Ezra
  8. “Far Away From Close” – Butch Walker
  9. “I Want to be Buried in Your Backyard” – Nightmare of You
  10. “Everyday I Write the Book” – Elvis Costello + The Attractions
    *Special bonus track for Foom!*
  11. “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” – Paula Cole

Hi kids, sorry this is so late. The Foom (a.k.a. Mother Keevan) was in Chicago for ΑΦ’s Mom’s Weekend, and I was a bit sidetracked from the usual posting. In lieu of a normal “what I’m listening to”-themed mix, I’ve opted for a trip down memory lane. My efficacy for musical knowledge comes from my mother, and, to celebrate both her visit and Mother’s Day, I’ve compiled this list of tracks – in chronological order! – of sing-a-longs from my youth, brought to you by the lady Foom.

The playlist begins with the heavy sounds of post-grunge R.E.M. and the lighter Counting Crows, followed by long hair, short ditty, late Nirvana/early Foo Fighters Dave Grohl and even the dirty, raucous pairing of soulDecision and The Beatles‘ “Why Don’t We Do it in the Road?” (the latter of which was a requisite Friday pick-me-up on local alternative station Z93/Dave-FM and thus the regular tune to my middle school mother-daughter carpools). There’s tracks I introduced to her, including the morosely sweet Nightmare of You single, and songs that tiptoe the line of exchange (anything Butch Walker, really). And, finally, I rounded off the smattering of songs with Paula Cole‘s “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?,” a track clearly better than her saccharine “Dawson’s Creek” theme song and one I’d all but forgotten until this morning.

For the album art, I chose a picture of Sophia and Dorothy from “The Golden Girls” to depict the quirky mother-daughter relationship I share with my own mom. She’s a special lady, that one, not too different from Estelle Getty‘s kooky Sophia, casually-unfurled acerbic tongue.

So, to the Foom, an ode to the woman who gave birth to me and to a wonderful weekend with that crazy ol’ woman.

Don’t forget to wish your mother(s) a happy day, and happy listening!