Day Thirty: All but One of the Eskimos Perished That Day

Day 30 - Your favorite song at this time last year

Because, because, because... He didn't have the heart to say that she wouldn't have the heart to stay. Truth be told, she never did (get it).

One EskimO - Chocolate

Given that this evening's post is the final day of the 30-Day Song Challenge, I figured I'd share a few of the almost-made-it songs.

Day 01 - Your favorite song: Our Lady Peace - Happiness & The Fish

Day 05 - A song that reminds you of someone: Foo Fighters - The Best of You

Day 13 - A song that is a guilty pleasure: Hadouken! - Turn the Lights Out

Day 18 - A song that you wish you heard on the radio: Dragonette - Pick Up the Phone

Day 25 - A song that makes you laugh: Robbie Williams - Millennium

Day 29 - A song from your childhood: Duran Duran - A View to a Kill

Finally, I'd like to add my own category, just because it's me.

Day Zero - A theme from a video game to serve as your personal BGM: Mystery Music*


* If you can identify the game from which this music was lifted, you're officially awesome.**

** You're not allowed to play, Avis, but don't fret: you're cool enough as is.

Day Twenty-Nine: Tomboy's Been Hanging Out with Some Petty Heartbreakers

Day 29 - A song from your childhood

So many choices! As an MTV kid with two elder siblings, I was literally inundated with aural and visual stimulation of, at times, questionable standards (as any longtime reader of this blog could attest). Be that as it may, it stands to reason that today's challenge would be difficult insomuch that there are just so many songs from which to choose; an equally arduous task was to select a song that people wouldn't expect. I mean, if one were to ask my sister, for example, she'd probably suggest Sammy Hagar's 'I Can't Drive 55' on account of the fact that there was a period in which I was convinced that anything the Red Rocker touched turned to solid gold (red gold!) and while true -the part about my feelings, not Hagar's abilities- it's simply too obvious. Similarly, my brother would probably shrug and propose Weird Al Yankovic's parody of The Kinks' 'Lola' entitled 'Yoda' but it's pretty stupid (well that, and I don't have the song to upload).

As stated before, my preoccupation with MTV colored my musical preferences at the time and so, if anything, today's song had to be one that was a part of my childhood with regards to both sight and sound. Along those lines, I contemplated the Greg Kihn Band's 'Jeopardy' since, really, the video creeped me out as a child and had lasting effects on my view of marriage but the thing is that I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this on PK before, so that's old news, you know?

Yeah, that song was out, sure, but it did get me thinking about other videos that poked and prodded my impressionable mind, and while not frightening per se, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' 1985 hit 'Don't Come Around Here No More' is one of those addling experiences. The video itself (and you can find it on YouTube) consisted of, amongst other things, Tom Petty as the Mad Hatter and Alice being eaten as cake. Tell me that's not surreal to a kid and I'll tell you that you're surreal as a person. Half-facietiously, of course.

Speaking of surreal, here is the song's origin, courtesy of Wikipedia:
The original inspiration was a romantic encounter that Stewart had with Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac. On The Howard Stern Show, Dave Stewart explained that the title's phrase was actually uttered by Stevie. She had broken up with Joe Walsh the night before, and invited Dave Stewart to her place for a party after an early Eurythmics show in Los Angeles. Dave didn't know who she was at the time, but went anyway. When the party goers all disappeared to a bathroom for a couple of hours to snort cocaine, he decided to go upstairs to bed. He woke up at 5am to find Stevie Nicks in his room trying on Victorian clothing and described the entire scenario as very much reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland. Later that morning, she told Walsh, "Don't come around here no more". (link)

Tom Petty? David Stewart? Stevie Nicks? Joe Walsh? Victorian clothing? Cocaine? I mean come on! That's a recipe for pure strangeness.

Anyway, here's the song.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Don't Come Around Here No More

Day Twenty-Eight: One for the Killers, Villains, Lovers and Heroes

Day 28 - A song that makes you feel guilty

Sometimes drastic measures are necessary; the kind which challenge conventions of integrity for the sake of efficacy, even if such maneuvers elicit notions of remorse. Said actions produce the desired result and yes, the outcome is for the best, but you still can't help but wonder if the end justified the means - and the End is all that remains, yet here you are.

Ozymandias: I did the right thing, didn't I? It all worked out in the end.
Dr. Manhattan: "In the end"? Nothing ends, Adrian. Nothing ever ends.


The Killers - Jenny Was a Friend of Mine

Day Twenty-Seven: Night of the Power Chord Rangers

Day 27 - A song that you wish you could play

A song I wish I could play? There are quite a few of those (as you'd imagine) but one that stands out in my mind is:

Night Ranger - Don't Tell Me You Love Me

And I'm talking specifically about the ability to play an electric guitar at that level of skill. Don't get me wrong: there are plenty of better guitarists out there but nevertheless 'Don't Tell Me You Love Me' is a good example what I wish I could accomplish with a six-string in these hands of mine. Just think of what people would say!

Sling, would you play guitar at our twentieth wedding anniversary? After all these years, Sister Christian is still our song.

I've been asked to teach a course entitled 'Awesome 1982' and I'd like for you to be a guest speaker. Bring your guitar.

Hey Sling, would you wail on your ax for me right here, right now? Never mind that we're in the middle of my child's eighth birthday party.

Sling? This is Harrison Forbes. I'm forming a shitty Eighties revival band, nay, supergroup comprised entirely of people I deem 'super' and guess what? You're in.

Look, Sling, I said I loved you and that was a lie, I admit, but I needed a laptop, you know. Nevertheless, I've always thought of you as an amazingly talented guitarist, simply amazing, and while we're on the topic of awesome, it would totally radical if you could give me your credit card number.

[Feel free to add a few statements of your own in the comment box]


Ah, to be a talented musician...

Day Twenty-Six: It Would've Been So Great (for Us to Have Seen the Northern Lights Together)

Day 26 - A song that you can play on an instrument

Have I ever told you that as a youngster I could play the piano?* Not well, mind you, but yeah, I could play a few tunes. Granted, today's song wasn't one of them but the piano portion is simple enough that even I could pull it off with a bit of practice; and it's a good thing, too since I'd hate to mess up such a fantastic song.

Great Northern - Our Bleeding Hearts


* I may have, but it's important to note that I've been posting on Psychedelic Kimchi five years come this November and I'll be damned if I can remember what I posted yesterday let alone fifty-six months ago.

Day Twenty-Five: They're Beasties, Yes, but Only because They're Boys

Day 25 - A song that makes you laugh

Ah, the Beastie Boys. Not only are they proof that Generation X used to be cool, they're also living testament to the notion that white boys can do something hip - and there's nothing derisive about my statement whatsoever. I fondly recall evenings spent in the basement of one J.T. Yenter,* during which time there were discussions about -amongst much else- the best song on the band's debut album, License to Ill. My stance then, as well as now, is that No Sleep till Brooklyn wins hands down for no other reason than that the video features a motherfuckin' gorilla wailing on his motherfuckin' ax; and while that may not make me laugh, it does make me smirk.

Beastie Boys - No Sleep till Brooklyn

* "Don't you know who I am? I'm J. fucking T. of S.T. fucking C."

Day Twenty-Four: (Insert Title Here)

Day 24 - A song that you want to play at your funeral

This one's a weird one for me, considering that I don't spend much time contemplating death, let alone a funeral. Granting that, I think that when I finally reach the end of it all, I'll pass on a funeral since, after all, who'd want to sit though that boring shit, anyway? Cremation, perhaps, or maybe a pyre would suffice lest I return from the grave, only to feast upon the brains of those I once loved.

'Kidding' aside, I don't think I'd want a funeral playlist or some crap like that, but I would like people to remember how I -often- felt about life (and my place within its folds).

Local H - Hand to Mouth

Hey! You already used a Local H song!

Yeah. Is that against the rules? If so, I'll be dead anyway.

Hm. Was the song meant to be poignant, profound, or pestilential?

None of the above. Now sit still and let me chomp on your brain.

Day Twenty-Three: Björk There, Done That?

Day 23 - A song that you want to play at your wedding

I've never given any serious consideration to marriage. Okay, that's a lie: I once thought about it wholeheartedly and without reservation, but maybe I was too stupid to carry out my desire. Perhaps the two of us were thickheaded and unwilling to compromise or, perchance, unable to dissolve the differences that separated the two of us as seemingly intelligent individuals. Then again, perhaps it was my fault alone. I may never know for certain, but I do know that had we been married, we could have agreed upon the following song. Hopefully.

Björk - Unison

Day Twenty-Two: Play It on the Radio - Just Don't Play It for Me

Day 22 - A song that you listen to when you’re sad

The sound of the river is inaudible 'cause we don't flow.

Playradioplay! - Forgiveness, the Enviable Trait

Day Twenty-One: Take Out the Garbage, Dude (Shit's Startin' to Stink)

Day 21 - A song that you listen to when you’re happy

Your good friend and mine, Tiberious aka Sparkles aka Harrison Forbes aka Eion Fobres* has observed that as of late, I've been a bit of a bitchy grouch (or a grouchy bitch!) and I suppose he has a point; though such admissions have a tendency to swell up his heads and so, in the interest of keeping the sun from being blocked out by our good friend's extremities let's just say he's not entirely mistaken. I've been in a funk these past few weeks, 'tis true but that doesn't mean I'm unable to crack a smile or, dare I say it, enjoy life! Of course I can, silly, and when I do, I crave music that accentuates the mood. One song that does so excruciatingly well is 'Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go!)' by Garbage because, well, the lyrics are somewhat goofy, somewhat trashy, somewhat catchy and honestly, that shit makes me smile!

Garbage - Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go!)

* That's how the Ex spells his name. No foolin'.

Day Twenty: For When a Local Hotshot Kicks You in the Face

Day 20 - A song that you listen to when you’re angry

Don't you hate it when this sort of thing happens? You try to be nice (or merely cordial) to someone and bam! you get kicked in the face, or you do something nice for someone and bam! you get kicked in the face. Maybe someone's spreading lies about you -which is bad enough- and to make matters worse, bam! they kick you in the face just because they can. Perhaps a person just can't help themselves because their brain is broken (or, to be charitable, they're damaged goods) and while somewhat pitiable in their lunacy, it doesn't change the fact that bam! you get kicked in the face; and the worst part is that sometimes you just keep coming back for more.*

This is a song for one of those days:

Local H - Deep Cut

* Until you don't.

Ed. Note. This is not a post directed at any one person. It's about people and the way we act toward one another at our less than best moments. I include myself in that collection of people, too since I -like most everyone else in the world- have a broken brain in some way, shape or form.

Day Nineteen: You'd Think She Were Daft, Wouldn't You, Punk?

Day 19 - A song from your favorite album

Favorite, favorite, fa-vor-ite!* You, of all people, should know by now that I'm deficient in that regard; which is not to say I don't relish some albums more than others but like you should have figured out by now, what is good is not necessarily what floats my boat and, conversely, what floats my boat needn't be all that good, yet (yet!) sometimes one simply has to go with the flow and what flows in this vacuum is what makes me feel good, and what makes me feel good is mammalian mutilation Daft Punk's Discovery. Say what you will about the album (and you'd say a lot if you knew me better), the band or, hell, its audience (and you'd be spot on, perhaps) but this much is true: I could listen to Discovery once a month for the next ten years and still be enthusiastic about the next encounter - and that's saying quite a bit when it comes to my relationship with humanity music.

Daft Punk - デジタル・ラブ**

I'll be the first to admit that the song -along with the album as a whole- is more than a tad cheesy, but what's wrong with a bit of Cheese Whiz in life? If anything, experience has taught me that the majority of people who claim to be enamored with chic, deeply-hip indie music (that truly expresses the nature of their tortured souls! blah, blah, blah) are anything but. And you wanna know what's even cheesier than the music? The videos! (Different song, but you get the gist.)




* Or favourite if you're a Commonwealth Kid, and that's cool.
** The version of Discovery I own happens to be the Japanese edition (don't ask) so I felt it best to keep the katakana intact.

Day Eighteen: In Exactly 30 Seconds We'll Be Exiled to Mars

Day 18 - A song that you wish you heard on the radio

If we were still in 2002, there would be a decent chance of hearing 30 Seconds to Mars' 'Capricorn' on the radio but, for better or worse, we're stuck in the present otherwise known as 2011.* Since I don't have a time machine (one I'm willing to share with the general populace, at least) we'll have to make do with the next best thing: music. And unlike a DeLorean DMC-12 set to hit 88MPH, there aren't any disgruntled Libyans involved (unless you're into that stuff, in which case such things could be arranged, I'm sure).

30 Seconds to Mars - Capricorn (A Brand New Name)

(As a friendly reminder, I'd like to note that this song, alongside any of the others posted, can be downloaded free of charge as an MP3 file by right-clicking the artist/title and saving linked file as... or whatever.)



* Now I'm not saying 2011 has been a total wash thus far, but you get the idea.**

** If this were another blog -one that shall remain nameless- my post would have been removed for telling the truth.

Day Seventeen: Stone the Lovers at the Temple but Spare the Pilots

Day 17 - A song that you hear [often] on the radio

I had to put the word 'often' in brackets because I don't listen to the radio all that much -while driving, if ever- and thus I've deemed 'often' to mean 'more than twice in a single week'. That being the case, I've heard STP's 'Trippin on a Hole in a Paper Heart' at least twice this week, which isn't such a bad thing though (along with many of the other tunes I've been exposed to via FM radio) it causes me to wonder if radio has changed all that much since the mid-nineties...


Stone Temple Pilots - Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart

Day Sixteen: To Boston and Back

Day 16 - A song that you used to love but now hate

I have something to tell you, something incredible. I hope you're sitting down for this. Once upon a time, I thought Boston was a pretty groovy band, but that's not the shocker so stop wetting your pants already. The kicker is that I positively adored the band's third album, the cleverly-named Third Stage. (You may now return to darkening that skirt of yours, guy.) Worst of all, I even considered the final track, 'Hollyann' a great way to end such a fantastic assemblage of sonic beauty. That was 1986, mind you, and to be fair, weren't we all total chumps in 1986?*

Beyond that, I think the fact that I've listened to the album a total of infinity plus twenty times has something to do with my revulsion of its final track. Also, let us consider such riveting, gut-wrenching** lyrics as Hollyann, we made the dark into light / We saw the wrong and the right and I still hear guitars in the air / As we sat in the sand, oh, Hollyann.

Jesus. I can only wonder two things at this point, the first of which being 'What the fuck were you thinking, Boston?' followed by 'What the fuck were you thinking, Chicken Wire?'

Boston - Hollyann




* Some people still are, of course, but for them, it's not just Memory Lane that's lined with feces.
** More akin to food poisoning than anything else.

Day Fifteen: An Electric Six-Shooter Pointed Toward the Feet

Day 15 - A song that describes you

Personally, I think today's challenge was designed to throw people a curveball or, if one ascribes deviant tendencies to the the challenge's designer, it's an attempt to highlight folks' flawed desire to be associated with something that was never intended for them; and not in the Carly Simon theme song to The Spy Who Loved Me You're So Vain way, but more of an I wish this song encapsulated my existence! sort of thing. Such longings are understandable of course, as I would love to submit the Allman Brothers Band's Midnight Rider as my song (on account of it being awesome) but I can't, given that I own the clothes I'm wearin' (to say nothing of the fact that I haven't a silver dollar in my possession).*

So in lieu of anything dramatic, personal, revealing or meaningful:
Electric Six - Down at McDonnelzzz

Now whether or not the song describes me in some way is a question best left to people who'd like to think they know shit about shit; and if you're reading this blog, chances are you're not one of those sanctimonious individuals.



* Take that to be metaphorical as well as literal.

Day Fourteen: Savage Errands amidst Lunar Gardens

Day 14 - A song that no one would expect you to love

If anything, this task has been the most arduous yet and the reason is simple: for all intents and purposes, there's bound to be someone, anyone, or everyone out there who would be aware of songs I adore, for I tend discuss such matters with friends, enemies, and fictitious personalities alike. Thus, it's virtually impossible to present a song that catches all by surprise, though the forthcoming tune should baffle more than a few astute souls.

Before unveiling the song in question, I'd like to get a few things out of the way:

1) PK alum dnzmtc will cry himself to sleep tonight on behalf of the Australian continent, people, and culture
2) I lack a theory about the bitter one
3) I'm not waiting for the right kind of pilot to come*
4) I wouldn't fly to the moon and back, but
5) I may put you on trial for crimes that were never defined

Savage Garden - To the Moon & Back



* But you never know!

Day Thirteen: (Marky) Marked for Death by a Funky Bunch of Misfits

Day 13 - A song that is a guilty pleasure

Guilt. Pleasure. Guilty pleasure. A blogger craves not these things and neither do I, but here's a song for you anyway.*

Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch - Good Vibrations

* But what about you? (Without the guilt, of course.)


Bonus Round (Marky) Mark III

This song was suggested by not one, but two readers as a guilty pleasure of sorts and just between the sixteen of us, they have a point. Third Eye Blind's 'Never Let You Go' is, much like STP's 'Interstate Love Song' a tune that strokes my soft spot for tall, dark and venomous pop/rock (or power pop, if you prefer) songs, and why shouldn't it? Short, sweet (or not), and full of catchy riffs is how I like you... I mean, it. Yeah, it.

Third Eye Blind - Never Let You Go

Day Twelve: The Black Box System of a Downed Airplane Stuck Up My Ass

Day 12 - A song from a band you hate

To say that I hate stuff is a bit of an exaggeration. Sure, there are plenty of things I mock regularly (coffeehouse fuckheads, The Rebel Alliance, The Mars Volta, yuppies, Wolverine, organic markets, idealjetsam, John Carpenter's career after the Eighties, etc.) but that's just for fun, really, and it's a far cry from hatred. Even now, when prompted to highlight a song from a band I hate, it's easier to think of something I simply loathe, and that band is System of a Down. Fuck, does that group drive me up the wall; and if anything, System of a Down is the perfect storm of shitty instrumentals, shitty vocals, shitty Look at us! We're so outspoken! do-gooder ideology, and perhaps worst of all, shitty hairstyles. Congratulations, Serj Tankian & Co. You win the Inane Bullshit with Twisted Sister Hairdos Award.


I hesitate to even post a song by this mangled set of hippo testicles, so let's go with a cover of Berlin's 'Metro' instead of something atrociously original.

System of a Down - Metro

Day Eleven: When You Get to the Arcade, Toss Him into the Digitized Fire

Day 11 - A song from your favorite band

Back again (weekends don't count, you know) with a song from my favorite band or, at the very least, a band that I consider really fucking good; and the standard by which I judge this band to be 110% awesome is that every album they've produced I enjoy immensely, be it a month, six months, or a year after the first listen. The band in question? Arcade Fire. Funeral was a work of genius, Neon Bible magically delicious, and The Suburbs was -metaphorically speaking- like a rock-hard boner or a shot of semen to the mouth regardless of your sexual preferences.*

One song doesn't really do the situation justice, but those are the rules.

Arcade Fire - Black Wave / Bad Vibrations

* Or, as would be the case for some people, quite literally. But we'll save the spunk for later.


Another Bonus Round!

This one's courtesy of none other than Psychedelic Kimchi's very own Maestro of Masturbation, Tiberious aka Sparkles aka Harrison Forbes, a man who was positively certain that I'd include a song by PK mainstay The Killers. Chances are that he'll be proven correct in his omniscience, if only for today.

The Killers - Sam's Town

I should also take the time to note that another PK mainstay, the most enduring of Constant Retards known as Avis knew this was coming as well, just as another, former (and thus, less than constant) Retard could have foreseen a Killers inclusion, too (had she a better memory).