The Pandora Experiment: Part II

I'm predicting that this part of the experiment -- in which we see how well Pandora judges my preferences in rock music -- will be a little trickier than hip-hop. There are a lot more sub-genres of rock, for one, and even within the same sub-genre chances are even Pandora has a hard time determining what's decent from what's shitty. For example, let's say I create a station for Rage Against the Machine. RATM is typically classified as rap/rock, which unfairly lumps them in with such mindless crud as Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. And who's to say that, if I were to create a station for radiohead, Pandora wouldn't play some Matchbox 22, or Good Charlotte? That is a rhetorical question, my friends, because the program has already done so in the past.

Another problem for me is that most of my favorite bands sound little or nothing alike. I love The Smiths, for example, and other bands which Pandora feels sound similar to The Smiths I can't bloody stand, for the most part. If I create a Smiths station, I don't want to hear bands that sound as though they were influenced by them, and who in turn are second-rate when compared to them; no, I want Pandora to play music from a group which is or was as musically innovative as they were, even if the two bands sound nothing alike. I realize this is difficult, but it beats listening to There is a Light That Never Goes Out, followed by Sarah McLachlan or some shit.

With that said, I decided to pick the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, whose 2003 album, Fever To Tell, is in my opinion one of the best (if not the best) rock albums of this decade.

1) Pin, Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Oh hell yeah. See, that's what I like: when I create a station for a band and they play that band's song right off the bat. Incidently, their new album was released this week. I've yet to pick it up or hear any tracks, but as soon as I get a chance to I'll cop it. About fucking time they dropped another one. What's up with the 3 year wait? Nick Zinner is a motherfucking warrior on the guitar, by the way.

2) Breathe, Max Cady. Max Cady's the name of the bad guy in Cape Fear, right? Fast, propulsive guitars. I don't know; the guitars are kinda overwhelming, in a bad way, and dude's singing is kinda weak; sorta emo, even. This sounds way overproduced. Keep it simple stupid Max Cady. I'm not going to select "I don't like this song; this isn't what this station should play," but I'm not impressed. I'm not wowed or anything. I'm certainly not wowed.

3) Dress Stress, Paris, Texas. This is Paris, Texas, and not simply Texas, right? One of my self-written rules is don't trust a band that uses a comma in their name. Commas are so fucking not rock-and-roll, man. And, no, the irony isn't lost on me. This is better than that last song, but not by much. The singer starts to sound like Blink_182's lead guy at one point. This is a meandering song with no real redeeming qualities, save for the fact that it's short.

4) Just Like Me, TSOL. What does TSOL stand for, I wonder? These Songs Of Love? I doubt it. The singer sounds like a watered down version of Lemmy from Motorhead. This is the best track Pandora's played since the first one. By no means is that intended as a compliment. Color me unhappy.

5) Pin Remix, Yeah Yeah Yeahs. OK, I have to admit that I was secretly hoping the fucking thing would put on another YYY song. But c'mon! A remix for Pin, which it's already played? I don't know what album this is from, but it sounds like it was remixed by Sigur Rios or something. Interesting best describes this "remix". Interestingly unnecessary.

6) Why Do You Love Me, Garbage. Shirley Manson can't hold a flame to Karen O. What is Garbage doing these days, I wonder? Butch Vig? By the way, if Pandora puts on anything by Hole or Courtney Love, I'm going to defenestrate my monitor and hard drive. What a schitzophrenic song.

7) Ain't it the Truth, The Gossip. This I can get into. Although I'm a little offended, as a woman, that Pandora has chosen to play Garbage and this track solely because Karen O is the female lead singer of a garage rock band, and so are (sorta) Shirley Manson and whatever The Gossip's lead singer's name is. I think "lazy" is an apt word to use when describing how Pandora's music geniuses determine what plays well together. Those drums are fucking awesome.

8) Head South, Pretty Girls Make Graves. OK, yes, the lead singer's a girl. Again. But this also isn't half bad. Still, I pity the guy who dares to venture into a relationship with her. She sounds as though she'd pull some "Mildred in Of Human Bondage" style crazy ass shit on any guy foolish enough to raise her ire -- which probably doesn't take much. I bet she'd have a megrim if her boyfriend were to do something trivial, such as forget her birthday, or use one of her sanitary napkins as a beer coaster. By contrast, Karen O's a sweetheart. This chick sounds like a nut-punch personified. Still, nice song. I'd definitely seek out more from this group. If I weren't so goddamn lazy, that is.

9) Warrior, Yeah Yeah Yeahs. A song from the new album. Dig it! The new CD is called Show Your Bones, but with the small pic of the album cover it looks as though it says Shoot Your Boss. Come to think of it, that's an excellent title for an album. I wonder if it's been used before. Probably. This is much more accoustic than most of their other stuff, save for the last album's final 2 songs. Still very nice, though. Is this the single? My anticipation just increased tenfold.

10) L.O.V.E., Shoplifting. Yet another group headed by a female singer. I wonder, if I were to create a station for Queen, would it play a bunch of songs by groups with homosexual lead singers? Just saying. Not a bad song.

11) Jetsetter, Morningwood. Uh oh, I have a bad feeling about this. Chewie, prepare to make the jump to lightspeed: we may have to hit the eject/panic button here. It's a close call, but I stick with it. What an awful song.

12) Sunny In California, Aberdeen. At least the lead singer isn't screaming her head off. That gets old pretty quick, let me tell you. This isn't bad. I dunno, if this song were a day old slice of pizza, I might consider eating it in the morning, even though it does sound appropriate for an episode of Dawson's Creek. But I wouldn't make it a meal or anything. I definitely wouldn't make a meal out of it.

Scoring: Pandora played 3 songs I really liked, 1 1/2 songs I sorta dug, and 7 1/2 I either disliked or hated.

Grade: D