30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 13

Day 13 – A song that is a guilty pleasure

"Hit 'em High (The MonStars Anthem)" B-Real, Busta Rhymes, Coolio, LL Cool J, and Method Man, "Space Jam" soundtrack

Yeah, I know. It's a blatant marketing gimmick: get five popular rappers to do a collab for a movie about basketball. Get it? Five guys? Because there's five guys on a basketball team?

Yeah, totally doomed to fail, right?

Well, I'd be right there along with you... if this song weren't so damn catchy!

I mean, here you have five all-stars of rap in their prime: B-Real of Cypress Hill, Coolio, Method Man of the Wu-Tang Clan, LL Fucking Cool J, and Busta Fucking Rhymes. Big names doing what is, really, a silly song celebrating the movie's villains, the MonStars. They could easily have just phoned it in and called it a paycheck.

They fucking killed it!

The only one who sounded like he might have been just paychecking it was Coolio, but with him it's hard to tell.

Seriously, on paper, everything about this song screams "Bad! Fail! Avoid at all costs!" But, to paraphrase ESPN anchor Kenny Mayne: songs aren't played on paper; they're played inside boom boxes.

Listen to it. Give it a chance. You'll be bouncing as early as the first line.

In fact, give the whole soundtrack a shot. Seal's cover of "Fly Like An Eagle" is amazing, and, of course you can't badmouth R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly". Just about every track on there is at least good, most great.

...but, of course, that's because all the suck was taken up by "Buggin'"

Yeah. That.

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 12

(Thanks to Blogger taking an extended dump last night, I'll be pulling a double for this one)

Day 12 – A song from a band you hate

There are actually few bands that I actually hate (other than Creed, which I've already covered). I can tolerate most music, and even if a group's music is bad, bland, or just stupid, I don't necessarily hate them.

Even the easy hate targets I can't say that I hate. Nickelback? I like some of their harder stuff, and "Rockstar" is just too much fun not to sing along to. Daughtry? His/their stuff is pop pablum, sure, but it's listenable.

Even Van Hagar doesn't inspire hate for me; I still dig on Van Halen's old stuff, and listening to the stuff with Sammy Hagar as lead makes me more sad than angry. And Gary Cherone? I'll have a special episode based around that ill-conceived pairing.

So, I'm going to have to go outside my normal genre-based comfort zone and pick on music I don't normally listen to: country.

Again, I don't hate country as a genre. I like a few country songs as well, and a few country artists. And seeing as how if and when I go to Lone Star Steakhouse for my semi-regular dose of their ranch dressing that I HAVE to listen to it, I've learned to tolerate it, and make fun of it - not out of hatred, but because I'm just a smartass like that.

But there is one guy that inspires just as much hate if not moreso than Creed, and I'm fairly certain you'll agree:

"I Love This Bar" by Toby Keith

In the world of uber-patriotic, chauvinistic, unabashed rednecks, Toby Keith is king. If ever there was a man who would drive me to renounce my American citizenship, it is Mr. "We'll Put A Boot In Your Ass; It's The American Way" here.

The thing is, he's not really that intense of a singer. Even when he's flying the flag at full staff and getting ready to chow on raw venison, his vocal style comes off as... well... bored.

I chose this song specifically for two reasons: 1) it's the song of his that's freshest in my mind, having heard it at a bar very recently, and b) it's a good example of what his songs are like lyrically and vocally. It comes off as having a trait most people associate with rednecks: laziness. Like he's not even trying.

And that's what infuriates me the most: How can you have that much bombast, that much over-the-top militaristic love of God and country be that fucking boring? And, worse, how does he still have fans?!

/sigh/ There isn't much else to say... primarily there isn't much else to it. Rest assured that this is my last foray into the realm of country music. I can't go back there. I won't go back there.

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 11

Day 11 – A song from your favorite band

Had a lot of material to pick from, so I went with the aweXome:

"Lookin' Down the Barrel of a Gun" by the Beastie Boys

The Beastie Boys are my favorite music thing, person, group, and/or menagerie ever. Looking forward to their new disc, but I thought I'd go back in time to a disc that many have said was their crowning work: Paul's Boutique.

You can feel the energy in this piece from the first drumbeats all the way to the last lines, in the bell ring that precedes each verse, and in the half-second sample of the opening guitar from Mountain's "Mississippi Queen" at the start of the second verse.

The shout-outs come fast and furious in this one, even moreso than most other B-Boy songs. I may be wrong on this, but I think "Barrel" has more shout-outs per capita than any other B-Boy song outside of Hello Nasty's "Dedication", which doesn't really count, since it's song entirely composed of shout-outs.

Anyway, bask in the awesome that is Ad', D, and MCA.

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 10 (Day 11 Edition)

Sorry this is late; I fell asleep last night. Anyway...

Day 10 – A song that makes you fall asleep (Ironically enough)

"A Horse With No Name" by America (Listen to it here)

Not much to say about this one: the combination of acoustic guitar, droning lyrics, and almost no variation of tone make this song a snoozer. It's like an acoustic cover of Nelly reading the dictionary, only not as potentially entertaining.

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 9

Day 09 – A song that you can dance to

"Party Up (Up In Here)" by DMX (Listen here: normal explicit)

I had completely forgotten about this song until I pulled my copy of "...and Then There Was X" out of my visor and popped it into my car CD.

I was bopping, head-shaking, and moving as much as I could safely while driving.

I love DMX (trivia: "DMX" stands for "Dangerous Man of the Unknown"). I only know of a few of his songs, but this CD is pretty good, and his rap style comes off like a Rottweiler: he talks, you better fucking listen!

This track, and really, DMX himself, is unique because, although I hate edited tracks with a motherfucking-ass passion, he doesn't fuzz or blank them out; he fills them in with his voice going "Woo!" or "What?!" and other stuff. I put both versions up so you can hear how both versions are sweet in their own way.

The driving beat, DMX's flow, and the sweet, sweet horn track make this a get yo' ass up and shake it song!

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 8

Day 08 – A song that you know all the words to

Now, there's a hole with no bottom. Well, with so many to choose from, I decided to go with one that's fun for me to sing:

"Brian Wilson" by Barenaked Ladies (Listen to it here)

I may perform this song later; I'm just not up for it today. Let me know in comments or by message if you want to hear it.

I'm just to messed up to make witty comments right now. Suffice to say that I like this song and this group - mostly their old stuff up to and including Stunt.

30 Songs in 30 Days - Day 7

Day 07 – A song that reminds you of a certain event

"Monty Got a Raw Deal" by REM (Listen to it here)

Back when I was in college, I was on the fencing team... back when there WAS such a thing as a fencing team, and during away meets, I brought along my trusty tape player and my copy of Automatic for the People (Fluorescent yellow plastic FTW, yo!) And this, by far, is my favorite track on that album.

I love the minor-chorded gutiar opening, the mandolin-laced transition between the verses and the chorus, and Michael Stipe's voice is just awesome.

So, yeah, to me, REM = fencing. Sweetness.