Music-Happiness

Lately, I’ve been music-happy, what with my brand-spankin’-new iPod (of the “Classic” variety) and all of the coolness that it embodies. It is beautiful and silver and shiny and colorful and it actually works. And it can house 80 gigabytes of whatever media form I want to put on it. (Still tackling the video download thing, but I’ll get there—eventually.)

And here, in honor of my currently purple iPod (do you really think I wouldn’t buy something to protect my most valuable possession, and I am most definitely not exaggerating? My iPod and my glasses are my most prizes possessions.), I give you a shuffle. Prepare to have your mind blown away!

“With a Little Help from My Friends” by The Beatles. A new addition. After seeing Across the Universe (and if you haven’t it’s out of DVD the first Tuesday in February, whenever that is), I really enjoyed comparing the originals with the movie’s adaptations. I know it’s probably sinful to say this, but I like Joe Anderson’s and Jim Sturgess’s version better. But this is also pretty darn good.

“Oh Yoko” by John Lennon. Okay, the music gods are definitely trying to make me feel guilty for just giving the shaft to John, Paul, Ringo, and George. Regardless, this is a pretty great song, and probably because of its repetitiveness, not despite that.

“Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite” by Eddie Izzard. Okay, this is definitely a sign. Honestly, I do prefer the original over this, although this is just seems to me a wonderfully insane song that played at an equally wonderfully insane part of Across the Universe. Right after it got pretty trippy.

“Into Dust” by Ashtar Command. I really love Chris Holmes. He’s produced some Joshua Radin tracks, but he also has a really nice voice (soft like Radin’s) and Ashtar Command is his “side project.” But this nine-minute-plus song played on The OC in really what is one of the most significant moments of the show. I won’t rant on about stuff that probably nobody else but me remembers, but I’ll just say that it was the moment when Ryan finally understood that it in fact was not his destiny to save Marissa. It was the end of their story—his moment of closure. And what a wonderful way to mark it with this great cover of the Mazzy Star track. (Edited to add: God, I do talk about these people as if I knew them. And the sad part is that I kind of wish I knew them. I mean, don’t we all want a Seth Cohen in our life to add unnecessary humor to a tragic situation? Or a Ryan Atwood over whom we can quietly brood in true Atwood fashion? Or a Kirsten Cohen who will offer perspective in the most troubling of situations? Or a Marissa Cooper with whom we can compare our lives and be thankful that we don’t have it that bad? Or even a Julie Cooper, because don’t we all wish we were that awesome?! I know I’m not the only one, whatever you may think.)

“The Pageant of the Bizarre” by Zero 7. You know, I really am a click-happy music fan, and this, as well as so many other songs currently occupying my iTunes Library, are products of that habit. This song is as well, but at least it serves a purpose and contributes to my mega-OC playlist, which really does need revising. Still, it’s a decent song.

“The End of the Road” by Boyz II Men. It’s on The OC playlist, so don’t go assuming I listen to artists that put a “z” where there should be an “s” or “II” where there should be a “to.”

“All You Need Is Love” by The Beatles. This is like how you put my mom’s iPod on shuffle and 75 out of 100 times a Billy Joel song will come up. When you have the room to put it on your iPod, you put it on. And I’ll say it again (despite my prediction that 8 other Beatles songs will pop up after this and/or my DVD of Across the Universe will mysteriously not work), but I prefer this song when it plays in Across the Universe. But that’s merely a product of the moment when it plays, as well as Dana Fuch’s catchy “love is all you need”s throughout the middle of the song. Okay, the song’s about to end and it’s…

“Get What You Need” by Jet. Jet is one of those bands that makes catchy really loud, but really catchy songs. Still, watching Kate Winslet do a weird jig-thing in The Holiday is seriously cringe-inducing. Sad.

“Girl” by The Beatles. What is this?! Agh. On the bright side, at least it’s The Beatles that occupy a lot of my iPod and not Fall Out Boy or some other equally terrible band that fill the iPods of some of my peers.

“Loose Lips” by Kimya Dawson. Dawson, a member of The Moldy Peaches, an indie/alt-folk group (I think I read a description similar to that somewhere, but if it’s not accurate, whoops!), is features heavily on the soundtrack for Juno, which, by the way is AMAZING, and I feel sad that it probably won’t win Best Picture or Best Actress at the Oscars, even though it totally should. Ellen Page is amazing in the title role, and the movie as a whole is the best that I've probably ever seen. Diablo Cody, the screenwriter (and also a fellow blogger), is my hero. I hope one day I can write a script as charming, funny, and generally awesome as Juno. Anyway, back to this song, it’s basically a lot rambling, as the title implies. And also some extra Bush-trashing.

“Boy’s Gone” by Jason Mraz. Again, a product of having 80 gigs of free space to occupy. Still, I have to credit Jason Mraz for his style—he blends hip-hop, acoustic beats, and radio-friendly pop to create his own sound. He also provides great commentary on the many VH1 nostalgic programs.

“Evil” by Interpol. Interpol must be pretty freaking amazing if The OC and Friends both felt they were awesome enough to be featured on their shows. If they’re good enough for the geniuses behind those shows, they’re more than good enough for me.

“Make This Go on Forever” by Snow Patrol. You know, I really like Snow Patrol. I think lead singer Gary Lightbody has a really incredible voice and the rhythms and lyrics are really just so memorable that a random Snow Patrol song will occasionally pop right into your head even if you haven’t heard it in a long time. And that’s a real feat.

“Cliquot” by Beirut. I really love Zach Condon’s voice. It sounds sort of foreign to me, so it’s a bit surprising that he’s from Santa Fe. Still, he’s managed to really impress me with “Postcards from Italy,” “A Sunday Smile,” and “The Penalty,” the last two of which are featured on his latest album, The Flying Club Cup.

“The Magic Number” by Blind Melon. Of “No Rain” fame (you know, the 90s hit with the bee girl video?), Blind Melon takes on School House Rock. And I have to say this is just so less annoyingly catchy than those songs were—but I guess that’s how you get kids to remember to “unpack [their] adjectives,” or remember the Preamble to the Constitution (and how many of you are trying to recite it right now?). I was actually first introduced to School House Rock in the fifth grade. And I remember not being able to sleep because that dumb adjective song was stuck in my head. I think I cried that night.

“No More Empty Words” by The Thrills. I really enjoy The Thrills, what with their Irish accents and upbeat sound. I really enjoyed their most recent album, Teenager, but I think “Big Sur,” off of So Much for the City, is probably my favorite song of theirs. It’s that OC factor.

“Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car” by Iron & Wine. Man, I love Iron & Wine a bunch. Especially Sam Beam, he of the massive beard, and his airy, wispy voice. Perfect.

“Embryonic Journey” by Jefferson Airplane. You’d think I’d be a major dork for having Jefferson Airplane on my iPod, but seeing as how this was the final song played on the first television show that I loved (okay, obsessed over), it only seemed appropriate. It’s a really nice acoustic piece and really fitting for the final go-around in that wonderfully purple apartment. It must be a skill of mine to pick the shows with the best closing songs.

“Good Life” by Kanye West featuring T-Pain. I don’t care what you say. I love Kanye West. I love how he’s not some thug that raps about the most insignificant things. I love how he has creativity in his music. I love how he dresses. I love his innovation in his music videos. I love how he embraces and takes inspiration from other areas of music (he’s worked with Adam Levine from Maroon 5; he sampled Daft Punk on “Stronger”—that’s all I know of, but I’m sure there’s more examples of his diversity). I do, however, hate that I was too stubborn to take notice before.

“Little House of Savages” by The Walkmen. I only vividly remember The Walkmen playing on The OC because they did during the episode when one of my favorite songs plays, the EP version of Rachael Yamagata’s “Worn Me Down.” That ending sequence is wonderfully depressing.

“More than Fine” by Switchfoot. As poppy as this song is, I really do appreciate Switchfoot’s other, more mellow songs. The Beautiful Letdown was an album that, a few years ago, I played on repeat, and I still remember every single word for every single song. And you know what? I still enjoy it. Funny how the brain works.

“Heretics” by Andrew Bird. My favorite song of this past summer. This song has so many layers and sounds—it is constantly transforming. In the beginning it sounds orchestral, then Bird’s voice comes in, and the drums kick in, and there are some deep backup vocals, and then some light, airy vocals, and then everything kicks in at once. And then he comes back with some cheeky vocals, and some cool guitar riffs, and then the strings are emphasized more, and then everything kicks in again at once, and then Bird leaves us with some mellow vocals. And it’s all pure genius.

“Scarecrow” by Beck. Much in the same way that I appreciate Jason Mraz, I also appreciate Beck. His sound is really just so different and I really just enjoy it.

“Honey and the Moon” by Joseph Arthur. Wow, I love Joseph Arthur, and this song always leaves me nostalgic. As wonderful as the end of “The Pilot” episode of The OC is, it’s made ten times better by this song. This was before Josh had the brilliant Alex Patsavas to supervise music selections, but Josh isn’t too shabby himself. The boy has good taste.

“Honest Screw” by Patrick Park. I first discovered this song on YouTube, searching for Patrick Park music videos (of which there are none, but I can most definitely accept that he is just too brilliant for such things), and I stumbled on a video montage of Patrick Park on a tour set to this song. It’s a wonderful video and it makes me love Patrick Park more than I already do. It’s just such a wonderful song by my favorite artist and favorite lyricist. My love for this man really knows no bounds.

And I’m leaving it at that, because things have just gotten too good for them to keep up that way. Thanks for reading, and really give some of these songs a listen. Embrace click-happiness!