Barrett

In the space of two days (in March ‘10), I saw three Barretts mentioned in a variety of places. There was an intern named Barrett whom I saw on the SPIN masthead; later that night, pouring over Rise of the Ogre, I saw Syd Barrett listed as an influence of Gorillaz; and, atop a web forum, in one of the pre-show ads for the Oscars, a Tweet authored by Spencer Barrett reigned supreme. Finally, Barretts, our status has risen above that of a solitary mention a month, or from that of “D. Barrett”, the random cardholder in that Chase ad.

And, no, I’m not plagued by neuroses when it comes to last names. Why ever do you ask?

The Ultimate Christmas Playlist

... practically hinges on the inclusion of one song. Do yourself a favor and play "Fairytale of New York" today, in honor of Christmas.

Carving A Niche

In my kiss off to the Aughties, I would like to first thank one man, a poet skilled in the sixth-form style.

It was in the magazine aisle that it happened— I was looking for the newest issue of SPIN (the one featuring Kings of Leon) and had to settle for Wired, when I was assaulted by the colorful swearing of another individual, perhaps on his cell phone: "You didn't? Well, shit! Keep trying."

It was then that I realized this could well be the unofficial motto for not only the coming year, but the new decade. Though I shall carry on with my entry below, I think it's best to remember that you should always keep trying. Uh, just don't shit, though.

[And, in a last minute burst of humor, I'd like to also dedicate it to two people in line beside me at another Wal-Mart the other night. (Wal-Mart has fast become my favorite store, if only for the odd stuff that happens there. "People of Wal-Mart" exists for a reason, you know?) Anyhow, I tried to discretely follow their interesting conversation topic—"that movie where they guys get in a fight in the sauna, and you can see all of the man". They went on to debate the title of the film, something with Eastern in it, which they both agreed on.

He mused aloud. "Yup, it's Eastern somethin', alright. Kawm Prawmissus. Eastern Com Promises."

It reminded me of the last time I went to Applebee's. A table mate commented on the "desert" shooters. (This isn't a war, I thought in response.) I swear, I don't bring this up to make fun of people; stuff like this just makes me giggle and brightens any low spots of my day.]

On to the post!

***
Everyone, when it comes to music, has their own individual taste. When it comes to the radio, even if you hate the performers because they suck the marrow out of the music, most of it is undeniably catchy. Of course it is; it’s designed to be that way. Just because something is commercial, that doesn't make it good. In recent years, everyone from alternative bands to Miley Cyrus have been subjected to a fate atop the same funeral pyre: commercial airplay makes them popular, which, to some fans is basically the kiss of death.

As everyone tries their damndest to be different, fans are lost as listeners search for a new alternative: their own little niche. Some of us, however, have already developed fallbacks, "pocket bands" and the like. Sometimes, when the outside roaring for a favorite or undeserving band gets too loud, it's a place where you can momentarily bury your head and your headphones.

For example, the people I associate with are as alternative as alternative in the J.P. can get (we don’t live near a major scene like Louisville—so we can’t claim My Morning Jacket, although we can somewhat claim Cage the Elephant.) When I started high school, I thought I was different. But now, after having classes with kids from different grade levels, being on the school paper, and working with other kids, I’ve come to the conclusion that I naturally gravitate towards the hipsters, nineties-junkies, and alt-kids.

And yet, like your bass-playing punk brother who holds a candle for West Coast hip-hop, it isn't always one-hundred percent alt or indie for me. I have two other niches: Britpop and house music.

For instance, I've attempted to organize my favorite house-dance-electronic-trip-hop bands and performers. What links these together, as opposed to all of a certain genre being filled with skuzzy guitars or something, revolves around the keyboard manufactured beats and keyboard samples. I always knew there was a reason Candida was one of my favorite members of Pulp. Without further ado, here are the groups who fit well into my second niche:

*Underworld
*Massive Attack
*The Chemical Brothers
*M.I.A.
*Bingo Players
*AIR
*Girl Talk
*YACHT
*Hot Chip
*Robots In Disguise
*The Prodigy
*Basement Jaxx
*Cassius
*SebastiAn, Justice, and Ed Banger Records
*Uffie
*Etienne de Crecy

And I’m sure there are a multitude that I’ve left off, in my haste.

But back to my first niche.

PULP- Anyone would do himself or herself a favor by listening to the sheer genius that is Pulp. It’s catchy on the noise-side yet nuanced on the lyric-side, personal yet seemingly as though it could happen just as easily to you. Whatever other Britpop bands could only try to do most of the time, Pulp succeeded at. They were less discussed than Blur and Oasis, and yet I still don't feel like I could write anything to adequately describe them. If I could write a little sub-headline for them, it would say, "Keeping it real...” Really entertaining. Common People have always L.O.V.E.D. listening to Pulp, whether on Acrylic Afternoons or strung out on Es and Whizz. That's also a primer on some of their best, by the way. My favorite band, my favorite lyrics... Jarvis Cocker rocks, from 1978 to now.

BLUR- A band not comprised of Charmless Men, Blur (a favorite of Girls & Boys alike) made it ran the rat race of Britpop and lasted To The End. Which was pretty much the end of Cool Britannia, no?

SUEDE- Suede was set on taking [you] over with a dose of music stronger than Animal Nitrate. A bunch of Beautiful Ones, that group.

OASIS- If Blur and Oasis were to Acquiesce, maybe Britpop would have Lived Forever. Or maybe not. Perhaps they’ll be back later, so long as Liam and Noel don't get into another Wibling Rivalry.

Other amazing bands that could have been classified as Britpop: Radiohead, Supergrass, The Longpigs, Sleeper, and Elastica.

In conclusion, I hope I've "created a little holiday magic" by spreading music and joy. Hooray, I say! Do not judge me as an aspiring hipster based on the high iTunes play counts I've tallied for the Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, and Kings of Leon. Instead, take note: influences and feelings come from everywhere, and it’s important to always take notice. Spread yourself out, but don't spread yourself thin. I have proudly become diversified.

NOTE: While on that topic, I am also not an outright enforcer of music and music labels: the kind that try to push their taste on others with absolutely suffocating force and then scream when that band is accessible on the local pop station. I am not a preacher by trade, anyway...

That said, a polo shirt might stand out at a metal concert.

EDIT: As of 2011, I tell people as such: “My top three favorite acts are Cassius, Cream, and Pulp. Other favorites that barely missed the top three are Air, Phoenix, Blur, and of Montreal. And, yes, I do listen to Kanye for fun!”

The Best of Radiohead: A 50 Word Review

As a Sunday penance from my abscense of blogging, I "challenged" myself to post a fifty word review of a CD. Here lies my attempt at reviewing Radiohead's best:

The Best of Radiohead, true to its title, has all the beloved standards. It’s a great jumping off point for anyone who wants to dig further into the spacey-depths of Radiohead. Noticeably absent: “Sail To The Moon”, which “Pyramid Song” evokes; otherwise, its apparent why other stellar songs were included.
-S.B.

I Just Lost The (Football) Game

Graves County v. Mayfield: This game was the highlight of my weekend. Even though we lost. (Photo courtesy of me, SB, and an excellent Canon Powershot.)

The Best Books I Have Read (So Far)

As lifted from my MSN-favorites list:

The Great Gatsby , F. Scott Fitzgerald: The greatest book of all time. If you've heard what Rebel, Inc. said about Trainspotting... That's what I believe about this book. So many moving thoughts, so much beautiful language, and it's all told in a relatively small number of pages. My favorite book, and what I hope will be my all time favorite. The beginning of a trinity of my most cherished books.


The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath: The second part of the trinity. Sylvia Plath was a tortured one, to be sure, but her writing can make you see tiny bits of yourself in her, or wonder how she comes up with such moving or crazy explanations and turns of phrase. Good writing is like a windowpane, and you feel like you get a glimpse of something genuine in this book.


Finding George Orwell in Burma, Emma Larkin: The last part of the trinity. The best nonfiction I've ever read.


The Last Tycoon, F. Scott Fitzgerald: Even when he was dying (though unbeknownst to him, I'll admit), Fitzgerald's ability was never squandered.


Saving Francesca, Melina Marchetta: One of the only recent teen-lit books that I think has a genuine story behind all the fun.


Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris: "Mr. Sedaris" takes the prize (along with J.D. Salinger, as discussed below) for writing a well-thought out short story, and he beats Juby (though she still is terribly funny!) for the book I've laughed aloud most at. I read the shortest story in there, and it still made me shake with laughter. I'm also never going to get over the guitar teacher story.


Trainspotting, Irvine Welsh: As of the end of July, I've only just started it, but Welsh wrote what is likely the epitome of Cool Britannia literature.


The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, Carson McCullers: McCullers was an emotional genius. If you want to start an obsession with Southern Gothic stuff, or if you dream of running tragic around Lee's Alabama or Faulkner's Mississippi, then you have to read this book.


To Kill a Mockingbird , Harper Lee: Scout Finch reminds me of one of my cousins. Atticus Finch reminds me of a strong willed, brilliant person I've yet to meet, but would like to. Though it's the only book Lee wrote, you can see that talent ran in the family, and not just on Capote's side. Would you believe it's been banned? It's a necessary read.


Tender is the Night, F. Scott Fitzgerald: More from the mind of Fitzgerald. I read it on vacation, by the ocean. It's the perfect vacation book. Plus, it always makes me think of the Blur song "Tender".


A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Betty Smith: Like Seinfeld-the show about nothing-"not much" happens in the plot of this book. And yet, everything that has meaning happens. It's a brilliant study of life.


The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger: What a phony. I'm only kidding, of course, because it's on this list.


Nine Stories, J.D. Salinger: The best book of short stories. At first, I thought Salinger was over-hyped, but even if you can't stand Holden Caulfield, this book was a nice read.


Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction, J.D. Salinger: Further adventures of the always real Glass family.


Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, Lewis Carroll: It isn't just the writing; it's the mathematics and poetics, too.


Miss Smithers, Susan Juby: Some of the best humor I've read so far.


Les Misérables, Victor Hugo: Eponine and Jean Valjean. Even though I know I'm supposed to say "the other two".


Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert: I've already decided-though I began Tolstoy at a later date-that Flaubert's Bovary is the French Anna Karenina. *sigh* Those Victorian-Napoleonic-Romanovian Europeans!


Gone With the Wind, Margaret Mitchell: Holds a secure spot in important Southern Literature.


Pale Fire , Vladimir Nabokov: A wonderful post-modernist book, written by a fellow synethesian.


Emma, Jane Austen: The best Austen ever wrote (including Pride and Prejudice). Well, this and "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies".


Little Women, Louisa May Alcott: This is one of the first "classic" books I ever read.


1984, George Orwell: What a story! This is the book that began my fascination with both the life of Orwell and the lives of those in Burma/Myanmar.


Animal Farm, George Orwell: What may just be required reading for you is a wonderful book, to me.


Thursday Next series, Jasper Fforde: These books were written by the master of "allusions". (Get it? It's a joke about alluding.)


Tao of Pooh and Te of Piglet Boxed Set, Benjamin Hoff: A neat way to understand the tao/calming principals-by imagining them applied to the life of an A.A. Milne character.


Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid, Lemony Snicket: This should be your personal guide book.


You Don't Love Me Yet, Jonathan Lethem: I love the book, though.


Ellen Foster, Kaye Gibbons: The writing is exceptionally fresh; the story is worthy. Gibbons is another person to take cues from in writing.


The Far Side ® Gallery, Gary Larson: Need a grin? Get a "laugh".


A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess: Just read it. But before you do, make sure you get the one with the legitimate final chapter, not like the one that they originally printed in America.


Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson: Even if you're reluctant to read teen lit, it's an amazing lesson in storytelling, in my opinion. It's also written in a believable way.


Castro's Daughter: An Exile's Memoir of Cuba, Alina Fernández Revuelta: A superb memoir, written with conviction.


The Golden Notebook, Doris May Lessing: I originally read this because a group of people I heard about online were reading it, but it still has scenes-hunting in Africa, communist party activity in London-that stand out in my mind.


Schott's Sporting, Gaming, and Idling Miscellany, Ben Schott: The ultimate in miscellany. Besides miscellanies.info, of course.


The Complete Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi: Necessary reading for anyone interested in: comics, the Middle East, and/or life.


Confessions of Georgia Nicholson, Louise Rennison: Witty and British. What could be more pleasing?


13 Little Blue Envelopes, Maureen Johnson: Maureen is quite witty and hilarious. If you don't get the chance to read one of her books, at least check her Blogspot for a bite of humor.


Teach Me, R. A. Nelson: A moving book. It certainly makes you think, and it's a treat if you like Emily Dickinson.


Chicks with Sticks (Knit Two Together), Elizabeth Lenhard: Like knitting? Like Chicago? Like a dirty sounding title? This book is for you.


Uglies Series, Scott Westerfeld: Sci-fi for people who don't like sci-fi.


The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath, Karen V. Kukil: An inside look at Sylvia's mind.

Good Night and Good Luck Moon

From now until the end of what I define as summer, I'll revisit and review one book from my childhood, specifically, one book that I really enjoyed. This review is over the classic-that's-almost-impossible-to-properly-review Goodnight, Moon.

In my immediate family, we accumulate an extraordinary amount of junk for the average American family. I mean it- we have three different buildings for storing stuff. Two are sheds/garages, I'll admit, and are naturally used for storage, but we also own a house where nothing but loads of furniture and unworn clothing resides. Something else far too important-and yet truthfully forgotten about-that "resided" in storage? My copy of Brown's Goodnight, Moon.

As I said in my intro, it's hard to review a book like this. I don't feel like I can say enough glowing stuff about this book. Even if it is a simple read, and the longest page in the book has seventeen words*, it's great because it's simple and effective. I feel like I'm at a workplace management program in the early nineties, and all of the seminars are printed on an itinerary in Kredit font, when I say something like that. I mean it, though. Truth be told, if I were using the Rolling Stone-approved rating system, this is the only book I've "reviewed" (read: started to review, but trailed off into a story about myself) that I think deserves all five stars.

This book was hard to review, anyway: in lieu of a real review, because I was busy packing for a vacation-of-sorts, I just compiled a list of thoughts on the book together, to keep in mind in the event of a review. Here's some of what I eventually came up with:

"I've never really thought much about baby clothes and baby shoes the way other girls do, running past the groceries and clothes sized for them to faun over a tiny diaper. Still, I would gladly have a houseful of screaming and children if I knew I would be able to let them enjoy this book. Quite possibly, the best children's book ever. Once, I remember, some site or reviewer said how nihilistic and trippy the "goodnight nobody" section is, while I think the Sartre-ish "illustration" on that page alone makes the book.

Nevertheless, this is probably apt because of the Perseides coming up. Even if you miss the light show, you still have a chance to savor the night with a book like this."

*The similarly-titled K.O.L. song popped into my head at this point, thus making it the official song of this book. In fact, below, I've compiled all the artists or songs mentioned in this series into a teensy playlist below. Enjoy!

The Official KBR Playlist, By S. Barrett
(You better give me credit for this, too, buster, if you plan on using it anywhere, even in your car. Write my name on the CD in big, clumsy Sharpie-letters if you have to—but just know I picked these songs, specifically, for you to enjoy. A mixtape from me to you...)

Radiohead-“Sail To The Moon”
The Whitlams-“You Sound Like Louis Burdett”
Darden Smith-“$2 Novels”
The Gaslight Anthem-“’59 Sound”
Aqua-“Barbie Girl”
Hot Chip-“Ready For The Floor”
Serge Gainsbourg/Briggite Bardot-“Comic Strip"
Gorillaz-“Tomorrow Comes Today”
Led Zeppelin-“Black Dog”
Leonard Cohen-“Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye”
Kings of Leon-“17”

**Also, on the issue of tagging this post, this book is, indeed, a vice, and something I have to save for posterity.