#42: Friendly Fires

These guys have been in my playlist for far too long without recognition. So I'm starting with the song that first addicted me to them.

I'll continue with quite possibly my favourite:

and the best ever remix:

Followed by the most melancholy:

The most get-the-fuck-up-and-dance:

The most awesome:

And the coverest:

...You get it. These guys are awesome. But it ain't usually my thing, so what the hell happened to make me addicted to them? So, I'll start with Kiss Of Life. Apart from the fact that it's been used by The Aston Shuffle (love!) in one of their MoS discs, it's one of those things where there's a lot of people singing (or it sounds like it, at any rate) and a lot of people singing sounds awesome. Something I call sound saturation. Two things make sound saturation: lots of music, or lots of voices. In this case, it works both ways, except the voice aspect is more prominent. It's like hearing a choir that makes you tear up, except this don't make me tear up. It makes me... um, want to get up and dance and, um... it evokes... emotions of... um... alright fuckit, when I'm in the right mood I tear up at this too. But it ain't a bad tearing up, nor a sad one. It's the best damn tearing up I ever did, and it's all happy emotions.

I just tried to pause it right now so I could move on to the next song. The silence sounded crap.

So what's so big about Paris? Apart from the Eiffel Tower, I mean. I can start with the fact that they love Au Revoir Simone (love!) enough to include them as backing vocals in the original, then they sang the lead vocals in the Aeroplane (love!) remix. It's pretty obvious that there's a huge difference and my gods, it's amazing. Well, they're both amazing in their own way. The Aeroplane (love!) remix is seven minutes long, and at ~4'16" it drops into moar sound saturation! The only gripe I have is that it's ultra slow, but hey, it means there's more time to listen to the liquidness that is the music. Otherwise, I melt whenever I hear Au Revoir Simone (love!), no matter what the song is. They have such beautiful voices. And beautiful... aw hell, they're all beautiful all over. But anyway. I wouldn't mind finding that French girl, but hell if I wouldn't mind five minutes with one of the girls from Au Revoir Simone (love!). But pressing on, and ignoring my hormones.

I love Hurting. Somewhat literally too. The best feeling in the world is making myself feel lonely (without actually being alone). It's the same kind of catharsis as punching a pillow just to get rid of excess rage and testosterone. Hurting isn't one of those songs, so I will say no more on the topic. Hurting is an amazing synthpoppy tune that gripped me as soon as I heard it. Melancholy lyrics <3. Matter of fact, take a Gem Line award for "Gotta let this go, gotta feel some warmth on my own." This is what you must do after a heartbreak. Stay single. Heal thyself. Possibly have a bit of fun in the meantime. Not a bad thing to be able to do that. And also the video is kinda cool.

There's no Friendly Fires song that inspires more energy in me than Hawaiian Air. Year or so old - in fact, I remember waltzing up to my friends' place in my suburb last year (they don't live there this year) with this playing on the radlio. It runs along similar lines to Zimbabwe by New Navy (love!) - take a fuckin' holiday. I wouldn't mind a bit of Hawaii. It's also just so dancy. Fast dancy, but I ain't complaining about that. Also wouldn't mind hearing this song on repeat for a little while. In fact, I'mma go do that after this review is done. And then I might grab a glass of freshly-squeezed orange juice in one of those tall glasses and ice and an umbrella... and you know the rest. BEACH. SUNSET. ORANGE JUICE. Who doesn't love that stuff?

So what of Blue Cassette (Tiga Remix)? Well, I gotta confess, I never heard the original. But in all honesty, I don't need to. There isn't much about this song that isn't awesome, though probably a bit bass-heavy at the start of the song, then it melts into a beautiful summer song. And it mentions cassettes! I mean, hell, who uses cassettes any more? Okay, so vinyl is making a re-surface, but cassettes aren't. Vinyl was the bomb, so faithful. Cassettes weren't. The tapes twisted and stretched (though some funky sounds were made when that happened). Don't get me wrong, I loved cassettes (video and audio), but I was relieved when they took a step back for CDs and mp3s. Much love for Blue Cassette (Tiga Remix). Not overly fond when it gets bassy again near the end, but I can cut that out if I ever want to use it.

Wow. One to go. And what better way to end than by covering a cover? IMO this sounds better than the Lykke Li (love!) version, but that's probably a matter of taste more than anything. Hell, it's piano and it's a dude whose falsetto is actually not too bad. Don't ask me what the cover was in aid of, mind; it completely escapes me. It also escapes my best Internet tracking efforts (at 2am). I am happy that the song is this fun and pianoey, but it's over way too fast. Sad now. Which means the review is also over. Very sad now. But hey, there's heaps more Friendly Fires stuff. In fact, I'll just leave this here and begone.

My only gripe with Friendly Fires is that Ed Macfarlane can't dance well in the videos. But he looks like he's having fun so I'm not complaining any more.

#41: Polar Opposites

Let's go from one extreme to the next here.

Number one was heard on the radio the other morning. Stayed in bed for a few minutes longer than I usually do (which is usual), deciding "I'll get up after the next song" - which just happened to be this one. After the song, however, I couldn't get up. I had melted. Simply melted away at the beautifulness of Bat For Lashes and this probably best ever song from their lineup. It even beats out the haunting Daniel. I'm also going to say this is gonna be in my best songs lineup for a long time, as well as a song that I really want to learn how to play myself. The song, seemingly about a superstar who just wants to be human, has echoed and resonated in me like nobody's business. For different reasons, obviously, since I'm no superstar. But hell... I ain't complaining. Anyway. If you want to melt, this is probably my Melting Song Of The Year. Also, have a Gem Line award: "you're the train that crashed my heart". Mwah. So much love. And speaking of love, let's jump to the other end of the scale for a bit.

I AM A NINETIES BITCH. I CRASHED MY CAR INTO THE BRIDGE, I WATCHED, I LET IT BURN. I DON'T CARE. I LOVE IT. Can you imagine anyone more badass? No, because Icona Pop are just as badass as Nathan Fillion, Morgan Freeman and the fucking honey badger. I fell in love with this song and it has just been playing nonstop on my speakers for the last hour. Non. Stop. Hurry the hell up and get your album out Icona Pop, because I seriously want to hear more of this amazing stuff. This may be a short, sharp shock of a song, but hell if I'm complaining. Sometimes all you need is short, sharp shock. At least they don't drag crap out - it hits you, then instead of being all "ooh, lookit me, I'mma hugely popular song so I'll make a longer version of myself and outstay my welcome", it leaves you aching for more. And more you shall receive, as you play the song non-stop for an hour like a crazy sumbitch of a song should be played. I don't think I'll get sick of this song either.

#40: Beng - Rob Pix

@0'0": Dafuq is this? This song is brilliant!

@0'30": Dafuq is this? This song is shit!

@1'54": Dafuq is this? This song is brilliant!

@2'24": Dafuq is this? This song is shit!

You get the picture. This song is quite obviously two songs rolled together in the space of one, and unfortunately Rob Pix has decided to take the worst elements of one song (the hard electro) and make it the minority of the final product, while relegating the very best elements of the other song (the staccato piano) to about one minute of playtime. Seriously, as if we haven't heard enough of this shit already. Bring back classic house! Bring back big house! Bring on electroswing! Dance music should not drop crap right into the middle of a kickass song. This is the problem that David Guetta has suffered from for far too long. Not only that, but there's a handful of other artists who do the same thing. I will grant Swedish House Mafia clearance, but only because they keep epic songs epic and actually add substance to their music. If they start making music with the same template that is displayed here (classic housey tune, drop in the fucking bullshit bass, back to classic housey tune, back to the fucking bullshit bass, et cetera ad nauseum) I am divorcing them and taking 80% of what they own. It's bad enough that genuinely shit artists are making this music... but it annoys me when genuinely good artists like Rob Pix come along and churn out this garbage. Even worse, it sounds like it's going to be an excellent song, then the grindy bassy shit comes in. You get the picture - I'm annoyed. Please, Mr. Pix, make me a version - five minutes long, at least! - which has none of the bassy stuff and all of the piano awesomeness. Also, I'm sorry, but I can only give this song a maximum of three stars. If you're lucky. I'll bump it up to five if I ever hear a remix with just the piano bit. (And obviously some beats and styles attached, obvs... otherwise it's just a looped piano.) Alright, I'm done here.

#39: CJ's Addictions 7

Alright, let's get this shit going. I've got a lot to catch you up on.

I really want to play the song "Runaway (Yelle DJs rmx)" by Mr. Little Jeans, but there is no YouTube Link. I'll just say that it is markedly bouncier than the original and leave it at that. Instead, have these three:

We'll start with building a pyramid. This song fits in perfectly with the CJ Song Pattern - which means obviously that I love it without question. Having said that, there's a lot about it that works quite nicely. Key changes - perfect. Dancy rock - perfect. The only gripe I have is that the lyrics can get a bit incoherent at times, but I suppose that's half the point. And it's an interesting song too: "I'm counting crystals in my sleep while you're sitting there on that broken chair. I don't even know what colour it was. While we're still young, let's echo, echo..." gets a Gem Line award. Well played Nightbox, well played. Nothing wrong with this addiction. Now bring on the next one. Something even more incoherent.

Older. But Australian, and quite brilliant. Sampled from a bunch of different places, including an orchestra; fun music, including the word "rannygazoo"; visually funny, including a fucking coconut. CRAZY IN THE COCONUT. You can tell I love this song. A lot. I want that coconut. Who knew such an old(ish) song was so awesome. First came across it via a flash video which turned into an obsession to find the song which was actually satisfied rather quickly. And now I want to know how they made everyone look black and white with those spotlights. Suppose I'll find out one day. This is a lot of fun to listen to, despite being terrible to dance to. Triple J have gotten something right yet again. Winning!

Last one for now. Bit of cognitive dissonance (again).

"She mixed paint at Menard's". A freebie with WinAmp, and probably the best freebie I've come across, short of Evaporate by Rocket Empire (which was with my HTC). Despite the fact it's rap, it's also electronic and minimalistic. And it tells a lovely story about becoming friends - possibly even more than friends - with someone met in a hardware store. Ordinary, average love. Not fairytale stuff or mopey melodrama, just pure, unadulterated love. (Also I give props for "(mixing) the perfect black" because I love the colour black, but that's a different story y'know.) And I love the fact that the girls in the background are laughing. They're not laughing at him, they are genuinely laughing with him as he enjoys his new-found awesomeness with the girl who mixed paint. Your face when this song weaved its way into my collection, heavily laden with house and trance, but I love this song to bits. And that's pure, unadulterated love too.

#38: Starships - Nicki Minaj

Now, here we have a prime example of why I can't stand pop music. This song is particularly notorious because it can't decide what it wants to be. First, it sounds like it's going to be a poppy guitar track, reminding me of Hawai'i for some reason. Then not ten seconds in, she starts rapping and it sounds like it's going to be another crappy Rihanna-style RnB track. Shortly after, it becomes apparent that all Ms Minaj wants to do is remind us a million times that "starships were meant to fly". Good golly miss Molly, next thing you know she'll be telling us that the Pope is Catholic. Seriously. Either way, all that starship stuff is accompanied by a shitty electronic beat that is exactly what David Guetta has been doing wrong for the last few years. Except the buildup is practically non-existent. Which makes it worse. No buildup, the drop is too heavy for the song, and there's nothing heard of the only good bit in the song (the first six seconds that sound like it's a direct ripoff of Moves Like Jagger. Minus the whistling. I don't understand what gets people off about those electronic beats. A buildup that is practically formulaic, that breaks down instantly (and predictably), and breaks down into absolutely nothing. No substance behind it, nothing. Except DISCHORD. Then she goes back into "fuck who you want" and other fucking stuff like that. I understand a bit of language in a song, but seriously, that shit is fucked. No fucking context and no fucking sense. In other words: Worst song of 2012.

#37: CJ's Best Addictions

My favourite numbered post deserves my favourite songs that I haven't yet posted. So, have these: three songs that have some kind of importance to me and have been my biggest addictions evar. First things first: the song that is most played in my playlist.

Should NOT be confused with the alarmingly similarly-titled "Sunday (The Day Before My Birthday)". This one is more upbeat and fun to listen to than the mopey (but no less artistic) "Day Before My Birthday" and my god, does it sound brilliant just before sunset. I love the way the background noise wobbles at a slightly faster rate than the beat of the song. No idea why it's a good thing, but it is. First time I heard this song, I honestly thought it was a fake song, but one Shazam later and it's confirmed that it's Sunday from Moby's B-sides. It deserves to be an A-side. Seriously, Moby, get on it. Unrecognised brilliance, right here. Unrecognised brilliance that is in at least three of my five major playlists and is the most-played individual song in my library. Time to turn to some brilliance a little more recognised (though I suggest not watching the video unless you are decidedly NOT a bigot):

I post this video merely because it's the radio edit and gets the point across quickly, not because of the hot chicks (although no complaints about the hot chicks!). The song is one hell of a reminder of summer, and in particular summer of 2010-11 (when things were amazing and I bought Wii Sports Resort, which this song constantly reminds me of and vice versa). And hell, the video has hot chicks. And one hell of a message. Note the flag that one girl drapes around her at ~0'23". That, there, is the message. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people exist and aren't going to stop existing, so get used to them and start giving them the same rights that OTHER normal people can take for granted. Yes, I said OTHER normal people, because those people are normal people too. ...ahem. On that note, finally:

It MUST be the Amp&eacute;re remix, otherwise it is Simply Not Good Enough. This song has managed to get me through a million and one nights in Melbourne and out. And it has infected my brain for just as long. The best bit, of course, is the bit from ~3'0" to ~4'50. (Wow, it lasts nearly two minutes?! Amazing! Thought it was longer!) I love it to bits and I will never lose sight of this song. In fact, I will never lose sight of any of these songs. Big house, tropical house and microhouse were never better than these three songs. And I have many many more addictions... soon to come. Have a break from my rambling.

#36: Microhouse

I can't believe I haven't written this one up yet.

I went through a microhouse phase a month ago. First, we have an experimental minimalistic track called Heaven Can Wait, made up almost entirely of radio samples. In fact, to the point where there are over 2,000 on the one album. How the hell does one get that many radio samples? Either way, this guy's well worth his salt. Hell, it takes skill to take fraction-of-a-second bits and pieces from the radio and turn them into something resembling music, let alone a track that makes you think of the city late at night and your old college room that rocked your socks off and GODDAMN FRESHLY SQUEEZED ORANGE JUICE and those nights where things just seemed to go right. Soundscapey stuff. And oh man do I love soundscapes. And hell, the title of "Heaven Can Wait" is a bold enough statement - I ain't dying yet. In fact, if heaven won't have me, then you and the rest of the world better hope that hell is damn well ready for me. Best bit IMO is at ~4'19" where the end bit starts, and suddenly it's a 6/8 beat instead of a 4/4 beat and suddenly life has changed to relax, and get some sleep. Oh man, this song is amazing. And speaking of amazing, have this:

I don't know who the hell Julian Jeweil is, and I don't know much about Markus Lange. This song came to me purely by accident, as when I thought I was getting In Search Of Sunrise 9 I instead snaffled a copy of Rave On Snow 16. Man that album has changed the way I see life. But let's get onto this song. The only reason I clicked on this song in the first place was for its title¹. So, does it sound like a perihelion? I don't know, but it sure as hell sounds like a summer song. I wanna listen to this, fully, out on the Hill one day in the middle of a summer mix. It belongs there. Bizarrely enough for microhouse, it really doesn't belong at 3am when you're chill-banging (apologies to Min) and there's very little light and you're just reflecting on life, the universe and everything. Save that for Akufen and Felix Laband. And on that note:

Something a tad different. I listened to this last night, as opposed to throughout most of Jan and early Feb. Man did it bring back a flood of memories, because this chirpy piece was released in 2005. Taran first played it for me in 2007. I was instantly hooked and instantly associated it, quite rightly so, with the house we were in at the time. Good times. Light, chirpy, minimalistic soundscape² that brings back memories and makes you think of fairies. Anything that makes you think of fairies that isn't absinthe has gotta be pretty cool. The whole song is pretty much the same thing, but it's a good "same thing" and it evolves quite nicely in the 3'26" it's been given. Now, one more, and then I'm gonna go comatose from a minimalism overload.

In lieu of "Lick Drop" by the same artist, I present Escape From New York. I would almost classify this as electro house, were it not for the slightly slower, more hypnotic beat, and the fact that it came directly from Rave On Snow 16. Man did that compilation win hard. Harder than I can ever mix. But we'll discuss my compilation later, because Escape From New York is smooth enough that it would belong in Rave On Snow, Discotek, or even Destroy if it wanted to. As is, it's only been on one of those. I'm sure its liquidy³ goodness will come to me, wrapped up in a nice neat little package of awesomeness within a year or two. So cool, and so smooth. And it's a Melbourne song, which fits well with the "Escape From New York" thing. And speaking of Melbourne, here's my own microhouse/minimalistic techno playlist.

1. Abi 99 - Joachim Spieth
2. Droplets (Early Night mix) - Dubshape
3. In Aller Freundschaft - Reinhard Voigt
4. Perihelion (Julian Jeweil rmx) - Markus Lange
5. In White Rooms (Dubfraction rmx) - Booka Shade
6. Heaven Can Wait - Akufen
7. Alcoolic (Matt Tolfrey & Inxec's "Priorities" rmx) - Popof
8. An Index Of Corporate Art - Bronnt Industries Kapital
9. Come Into My Life - Jürgen Paape ft. Alison Degbe
10. Polar Shift - Trentemøller
11. Cucuma - Stephan Bodzin
12. Lemon - Dettinger
13. Trauermusik - Partial Arts
14. Palestine Child - Remote
15. Tonite - Superpitcher

Clocks in at 79'37" when it's done right. I consider it a win.

¹For boffins who aren't so boffiny and don't know what "perihelion" means, it means "when an object is at its closest point in its normal orbit to Sol" - that is to say our sun. And we get about 91 million miles away from it at the closest point (compared to roughly 94 million miles at the opposite, or "aphelion").
²I find it ridiculous that the spellcheck doesn't accept "minimalistic" or "soundscape". Or "spellcheck". Or "microhouse". How dare it.
³Liquid music is the best music ever. Full stop.

#35: Contact High - Architecture In Helsinki

So this is 2012... Meh. First review of the year comes from not so much a challenge, but a Facebook status that turned into a thing. And we all like things.

I received a comment that this is a very bizarre song for me to like, simply because of the recurring themes of the mystical and magical, which counteracts my logical mind. Interestingly enough, some of the lines represent my mental state at certain points of my life (often multiple points, in fact). So I'm going to break it down for you. And after I'm done dancing, I'm going to rip the song to shreds, and the shreds reveal:

• my vision is gone and magic's to blame: the first example of the mystical, i.e. magic. Too easy. Next.
• you'll hold the thunder while I bring the rain: Caution: Gods At Work
• you've got a strange infatuation with elements in the air: science! Energy! Science! Energy!
• I'm done dreaming that we can fly: two in one here. Dreaming and flying. Flying is probably the ultimate motif of the mystical.
• mystical forces are circling me: like vultures?
• lost in the æther with no one to blame: well, you can't blame anybody but yourself for getting lost ANYwhere.

Why, then, do I like this mystical, magical song? Because it's not all about the (somewhat whiny-sounding) lyrics. I love the electronic experimentation of it all, and I loved the idea that, when they rocked up for Like A Version, Architecture In Helsinki were able to make an acoustic version of it. Mwah. Much love for acoustic versions. At any rate, I enjoy it simply because of that. Not much else. But, again, that's my tiny little logically-hardwired brain speaking, and I'd be inclined to say it's a ridiculously good song if I was a little more of an artsie. Or, less of a logician. Credit where credit's due, the video is also kinda fun. I wish I could be that guy. I'd be loving it.

#34: 2011 Wrap-Up

So, here we go with another end-of-the-year. I'll be honest, I don't like years ending. I don't like anything ending. But, hell, might as well make the best of it and have a bit of fun. So I'm posting my twenty favourite songs from 2011, with the following rules:

• The songs must have been imported into my library in 2011.
• The songs must not have been imported in any other form before 2011. Including remixes.
• The songs must have Gem Lines in them. (This does NOT mean I am awarding these songs Gem Line awards. Yet.)

See how un-strict I am? The songs need not be produced in 2011 either. Bizarrely, that does limit my library a bit. But, I've rustled up twenty songs, in no particular order:

• ANYTHING NEW - BIBIO
  Almost too catchy, but still with some very well-written lyrics. I enjoyed this song as soon as I heard it. That doesn't happen often.
  Gem Line: "I saw you dropped a note to self, I picked it up and it read 'I can't learn anything new'"
• EYES BE CLOSED - WASHED OUT
  I don't think there is anything to dislike about this song. Bordering on ambient, with a very epic (remember: "epic" means "heroic" in CJ-land) climax at about 3'33".
  Gem Line: "See the world clearly now"
• AMANÆMONESIA - CHAIRLIFT
  You are infinitely invited. I seem to be attracted to bizarre songs, and nothing can get more bizarre than the video of a woman looking like she's C'thulhu.
  Gem Line: "Mistaken for magic"
• STREET - JAMIE WOON
  Deliciously minimalistic. Also paints a perfect picture of a city street, specifically La Trobe Street (for me, that is). Or Bourke Street near Southern Cross Ln. Either way, beautiful song.
  Gem Line: "I'm wishing you were here with me, walking on a city street"
• FEATHER - LITTLE DRAGON
  A more recent find. I was attracted mostly by the key, and the lyric "you've got silver rays". Possibly the best-sung line of the song, because it stands out.
  Gem Line: "Will it ever float? Will it ever soar alone?"
• SUTPHIN BOULEVARD - BLOOD ORANGE
  I love blood oranges. And this song, though set (most likely) in New York City, belongs squarely in Melbourne. Don't ask me where.
  Gem Line: "Funny how it only seems to work at night"
• MIDNIGHT CITY - M83
  Again, a bizarre enough song to attract me immediately, and keep me absolutely hooked. Mostly because of the title. I love midnight and I love the city.
  Gem Line: "Looking at the mutating skyline"
• I WROTE THE BOOK - SIMIAN MOBILE DISCO & BETH DITTO
  Almost deliciously snarky song. I do like these kinds of songs, and especially any song where Simian Mobile Disco is involved.
  Gem Line: "Paradise is full of lies"
• SKY & SAND - PAUL KALKBRENNER
  Yep. An older song. Nope, I haven't seen Berlin Calling. I do intend to. It also resonates within me, for some reason.
  Gem Line: "In the night time, when the world is at its rest, you will find me in the place I know the best"
• FOREIGN LANGUAGE - FLIGHT FACILITIES ft. JESS HIGGS
  A pretty sweet follow-up to Crave You, and though nothing can beat the original I do like the direction Flight Facilities headed in this time. Disco for the win.
  Gem Line: "I can't let you go if you won't let me know"
• EMBODY - SEBASTIAN
  There's definitely something about me and bizarre or unintelligible songs. Hell, look how much of a Presets fan I am.
  Gem Line: OK, I can't tell, but it's a good enough song.
• A.I.M. FIRE! - ART VS. SCIENCE
  Much more my style of music than its predecessor, Parlez-Vous Francais?. Also takes a remix very well, as shown by the Immigrant remix.
  Gem Line: "I like a journey way into the night"
• ZIMBABWE - NEW NAVY
  A fun, boppy song that falls short of being catchy in the same way as We No Speak Americano was. Also embodies the ideals of every human being. Well, almost.
  Gem Line: "Leave the city for the open highway"
• AIN'T WAITING - TALIB KWELI ft. OUTASIGHT
  I still say this sits squarely in my collection, rather than standing out. The thing about hip hop is that it does fit in with mostly any other genre, apart from (say) classical.
  Gem Line: "I don't want to spend the night trying to figure out how to spend my time"
• TREEHOUSE - GOLD FIELDS
  Straight out of Victoria. Winning. I like its cheeky, playful nature as well as the niceness of the lyrics, as well as the fact that they are Victorian. ...OK, that was lame.
  Gem Line: "Do you know how far we are from the moon? Do you know how fast we are?"
• BOOM - LO-FI-FNK
  Another reasonably recent find. I like the fact that the band name starts with "lo-fi". Better than the pretentious wankery of "hi-fi" these days.
  Gem Line: "Those crazy summer nights"
• NEED YOU NOW - CUT COPY
  I am in love with the Architecture In Helsinki version. Absolutely in love. One of the best songs from Cut Copy, by a long shot.
  Gem Line: "Run for the last train, one of them will get you home"
• GABRIEL - JOE GODDARD ft. VALENTINA
  No idea whether this song is about an actual person or not, but that's irrelevant. Bizarre song, again, with some very different lyrical structure. Which is probably why I enjoy it.
  Gem Line: "He was stronger than I was, but it's strength you can't sustain"
• JONA VARK - GYPSY & THE CAT
  Not a huge obsession, but well worth a mention by a long way. Bordering on epic, and with some stirring words, along with an uncharacteristically nice remix by Tommy Trash.
  Gem Line: "She walks on the street, alone in the dark"
• AN ARGUMENT WITH MYSELF - JENS LEKMAN
  MELBOURNE. Well and truly iconically Melbourne, from the perspective of a Scandinavian. Love it to bits.
  Gem Line: "So rich on summer and so sweet"

Of course, this list doesn't include other jewels in my collection that I unfortunately had to cull, such as:

• Start Again - The Aston Shuffle ft. Lovers Electric
• The Call - Raized By Wolves ft. Tom Smith
• The Phoenix Alive - Monarchy
• Destroy Everything You Touch - Ladytron
• Hits Me Like A Rock - CSS
• Your Love - The Aston Shuffle
• The Island - Pendulum (parts 1 and 2)
• Look Inside (Izmabad rmx) - 4Hero ft. FACE
• Swoon (Boys Noize rmx) - The Chemical Brothers
• Niton [The Reason] - Eric Prydz

This list of 30 has been shortened from a list of 54, which has been shortened further from 214. Painfully hard, I can guarantee it. But, that's 2011 in CJ Curry's music collection. Have fun!

#33: An Index Of Corporate Art - Bronnt Industries Kapital

Are you reading this, Fenella?

Right. This is the most brilliant index of corporate art I have ever seen. Not that I've seen many. It's a piece of music essentially in three parts: one that reminds me quite thoroughly of a music box that is normally associated with kids. It's got that certain, uh, something to it that brings you back to childhood. Not quite ambient, because it's a bit fast-paced, but I like it anyway. Memories of when I was three years old and not quite grown out of the eating-sheep-shit stage. Though it also brings to mind a sunset over Melbourne. That part ends at ~2'48" and brings us into the most mellow piece of music I've heard outside the soundlab in 2011, which immediately brings to mind Melbourne's skyline at night. Loving it, and loving it hugely. To be honest, though, I'd prefer it without the electric guitar whine in the left speaker. In fact, I routinely listen to it with just one speaker for this reason. Then at ~4'16" we jump into the grittier bit, that feels more like a person's mindset while walking through Melbourne's streets at night. Spot the pattern, anyone? Yes, the pattern is that the parts of the tune are proportional to phases of night.

In all seriousness, this song is perfect for a warm - say, 22 degrees - night, taking a stroll through Melbourne. There are those who disagree and say it's a winter song. I say, this song is way too cool for them (seewhatIdidthere?) and brush them off so I can listen to this song with awesomeness. Seriously. Much the fun.

#32: Look Inside - 4Hero ft. FACE

Alright guys, I said I'd feature it last post. Here it is: 4Hero's deep house track Look Inside, in three flavours: original, Izmabad, and Nu:Tone.

Honest opinion: in comparison to the others, the Plain version is what it says on the box. A bit bland. But this wasn't the first version I heard. This was:

The Izmabad remix. And a hell of a win it was too. As I said last post, I blame Nando's Bundoora. I heard it, noted the lyrics "searching every pot of gold, running out of rainbows". And here is the result of an extensive Internet search afterwards:

So what is it about this liquid music that attracts me, again and again, like a motherfucking magnet? Apart from the fact that it's liquid music? I'd say the memories associated with the songs. Each and every one makes me think of summer (tick), Melbourne (tick), spicy chicken (tick) and being happy (HUGE TICK). Simply because I was happy in a Melbourne summer, eating spicy chicken when I first heard this. And kept hearing it all throughout summer '10-'11. Winning harder than Charlie Sheen (which isn't hard. But still).

I love Melbourne. I have an entire playlist, 150 songs long, devoted to it. I have also mixed two 1h20' sets based on thirty-nine songs from that playlist. I also love summer. Same deal, except no mixes and a playlist that is 100 songs long. The fact that both are miniscule compared to the size of my library (nearly 9,000 songs) is offset by the sheer amount of times I have played those songs. And hell, those playlists are totally incomplete. One thing's for sure: this song is in them all.

Finally, I mentioned the lyrics before: "searching every pot of gold, running out of rainbows". This gets a Gem Line award. Just like that. And I'm retroactively awarding one to Feather by Little Dragon, for the line "You are airborne, you've got silver rays". Enjoy.

#31: CJ's Addictions 6

With the release of a new chillout album comes some awesome kickass music. And I am obviously going to pour nothing but sweeping, inappropriate love and praise over the following songs, which are way beautiful and only lead to amazingness and... *sigh* I'm not making sense. I blame this, liquid music.

So we'll start with a song that, as soon as I heard it, went straight into two playlists: Melbourne and Utopia. It's a Melbourne song. (See the end of this post for a list of other Melbourne songs and you'll see a pattern emerge.) Regardless of the fact that they're Swedish, it's a Melbourne song. Much love, respect and ♥ for this song. I fell in love thanks to the chords they use, and the fact that the background synths are nice and sweeping. Minor key? Maybe. Delicious key? Definitely. As I say, it's not the first time I've fallen in love with such a song, and it won't be the last. But music is like that. I picture a sunset over the city and that glass of freshly-squeezed orange juice that I keep mentioning in my hands as I overlook the city from goodness-knows-where (because one can't get up that high without at least an aeroplane). I'M MELTING. THIS SONG IS AWESOMENESS IN A NUTSHELL AND IT IS MAKING ME MELT.

...ahem. My bizarre thought process aside, on to the next two. Here is a song by Bibio:

And here is le video of Le Bump:

What connects these two, other than the fact that they both are awesome? They're both ridiculously catchy in exactly the same way. And that way is the right way. Granted, Anything New is a bit slower and hellish to dance to (beyond a bizarre tribal dance), but it's really nice to just sit there, listen to and maybe click your fingers in time to (fuck grammar up the arsehole. Seriously). Bibio will go far in my playlist. In contrast, Le Bump is unfortunately predicted to go the same way as We No Speak Americano (ridiculously overplayed in and out of clubs and radio stations and hence annoying as HELL to listen to after a few months), but for the moment I'm not complaining. Le Bump starts by sounding like grungy house but it pleasantly surprised me when I first heard it, because it's anything but grungy. Good to see Yolanda Be Cool fucking the trend that Afrojack, Angger Dimas and LMFAO are perpetuating. Fuck them. I have Yolanda Be Cool. As for what the songs individually sound like: Anything New sounds like it comes straight out of The Sims (the original one, when it still had the isometric views and Sims didn't age) and Le Bump sounds like it comes straight out of Yolanda Be Cool. Wait...

Last: I really love this song.

Allow me to flash back for a bit. If you're allergic to flashbacks, please turn off for the next half a dozen lines or so. Last summer, I had my first ever summer Nando's experience. The chicken was pretty sweet (well, it was spicy actually) and the atmosphere was deliciously summery. But it wasn't those that sold me on summer peri-peri chicken, it was the music. Apparently they play deep house in certain Nando's restaurants during summer, because they did it again not two weeks ago. I learned to love a song by 4Hero (which I will feature next time I do deep house) and I found three more kickass ones two weeks ago. So I guess you can say summer is my time for deep house phases. And I'm going through one right now and I really love this song as a result. In fact, I love it so much I'm going to repeat myself over and over for a little while until either the message sinks in, I get bored, or you get so annoyed that you track me down based on my IP address and beat the living shit out of me. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. I really love this song. That's all I can really say, because it is - like Feathers and Anything New from before - absolutely delicious and meltworthy. Someone get a mop. I'm now a puddle on the floor.

#30: The Call - Raized By Wolves ft. Tom Smith

You want to hear good house? This is it:

These guys are relative newcomers to the house music scene, having just sprung up out of Manchester. In fact, they're so new that they don't have a Wikipedia page yet. Somebody should really get on to it (SHOTGUN NOT). They've jumped on to mau5trap Records, along with the little wizard of progressive house, deadmau5. Which immediately says to me "awh yeah progressive house". It's not quite correct, because this is halfway between progressive and straight-up electro house, but hell if I'm complaining. It's a beautiful song in its own right, but borrowing the talents of Editors singer Tom Smith sure as hell didn't hurt it. I loved it from the initial synth line at the start, because of its minimalistic nature that couples brilliantly with Smith's voice; when it gets into the sound saturation stage (~1'22") it's gone through fifty different kinds of transformations and it has evolved nice and early. So there's one big huge tick from me. I'm also in love with the fact that it's not grungy, despite the huge potential (and, I'm sure, temptation) to do so. It brings them into line with acts like the Swedish House Mafia, who are exceedingly good at that kind of music (for those wondering, yes, the Swedish House Mafia - Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello - are all Swedes and amazing producers of house music. They could give The Bloody Beetroots and The Aston Shuffle a run for their money). So, everyone got that? Comparison with David Guetta, Skrillex or LMFAO = bad. Comparison with The Bloody Beetroots, Swedish House Mafia or The Aston Shuffle = good. Comparison with The Bloody Beetroots, Swedish House Mafia and The Aston Shuffle = very good. I should feature all three one day. Or something like that. Anyway, this song is delicious. Liquid music. Hear it, love it, give me money.

#29: Children Of The Sky - Mike Batt

Please ignore the shitty quality here.

They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care,
They pursued it with forks and hope,
They threatened its life with a railway-share,
They charmed it with smiles and soap.

So begins Children Of The Sky, by acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt. The poetry is borrowed stolen liberated from Lewis Carroll's The Hunting Of The Snark, a famed nonsense poem that was turned into a musical¹ in the mid-1980s by - you guessed it - acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt. A little history lesson: the musical originally included such names as Cliff Richard, Art Garfunkel, Deneice Williams, Captain Sensible, John Hurt, Billy Connolly and acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt. The album was twelve songs long, a huge part of my childhood, and I've suddenly come across Dancing Towards Disaster by acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt featuring the vocals of Deniece Williams. So I rediscovered Children Of The Sky, performed by acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt himself, and I thought I'd share it, and the fact that this is epic music, with you all. I say "epic" in this post to mean "heroic". Not that Children Of The Sky isn't awesome. I just mean "epic" a little differently here. In any case, I do have a soft spot for epic music. Movie music, if you will. I much prefer it with vocals, which is why I love Children Of The Sky. I also love it because of its disconnection with Snark, meaning it can work as a standalone song, as part of a concert, as part of a musical, or as just anything really. There are two other songs on the same album that don't have narration or mention the Snark at all - Dancing Towards Disaster and The Snooker Song - both of which are also pretty cool, just not epic. Okay, this one started off with narration, but hell, it bizarrely works. Also, it's not hard to Audacity out. My apologies to acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt for that, but again, it's purely in the interest of making the song completely standalone. Also, can someone PLEASE share a music video or MP3 of this song in better quality, without the thing skipping or fading out WAY too early? Quality notwithstanding, this is an amazing song, and full credit to acclaimed pop-rock artist Mike Batt for making it.

¹Yes, it's a musical. Yes, I like it. There are actually a few musicals I will willingly sit down and watch. Short of older Disney movies, the ones that come to mind are The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Cats, Avenue Q, The Blues Brothers, and this. If I think of any others, I'll post them.

#28: Best Party Ever (Flight Facilities rmx) - Toecutter

First, let's clear up any and all preconceptions about the original version of this song. I reckon Corey Worthington is the kind of guy who gets wasted on Heinekens and Jäger Bombs, with his collar popped after getting a new haircut. In other words, a total douche. So, when I heard the Shazam version of this song - first, before the original - I had no idea that Toecutter had sampled the most infamous interview I've heard in a long time.

So. I'm posting this version because I like the Shazam version, was going to play it briefly on YouTube, and didn't find it but found the Flight Facilities version instead. I think I like Flight Facilities' style. It's a nice contemporary disco style, and as I've mentioned before I think it's what's going to bring disco into the 2010s. Hopefully. So what if it's sampling another ridiculously old song? It's a pretty sweet song and one that has been ridiculously underrated. But in any case. The original is pretty cool too, short of the samples of Corey and what's-her-name off of Channel 9 giving each other hell. I enjoy the song itself. Even better, the Shazam remix - which I can't find easily on the YouTubes - doesn't mention either of them. Which I appreciate. A lot. It's like both Shazam and Flight Facilities both killed the worst elements of the original and made something... awesome. Win.

#27: Trance

Time for something new, and time for something different. I'm going to jump into an area I haven't touched on much in this blog, and explore the world that is deep/progressive trance. First things first: the ultimate progressive trance anthem.

If you're interested, there's also a vocal version made by Miro here. I prefer the vocal version IMO but the original version also has massive amounts of charm, and so it should. This was a 1998 release, and while it didn't kickstart the progressive trance scene (which was some five years earlier) it sure as hell epitomised it. Why? The beat is hypnotic, if you listen to it in the right way. The bassline is hypnotic, if you listen to it in the right way. The vocals are delicious, no matter how you listen to them. Finally, the song has been mixed, remixed, re-released, covered, and practically everything else under the sun ever since it was released. The most famous cover was by Those Usual Suspects a few years back, and while I wasn't exactly a fan of it, I could tell fom that just how influential this song has been on the trance music circuit. It's good as background music because of its minimalistic approach, but because of the hypnotic beats, it's also good for house parties. I love it as a late-night listen, especially the Moonwatcher remix. I see it as a party-starter if you're sick to death of LMFAO and David Guetta, and I see it as a classic that will still be listened to in 2045. Also I totally love the video. To me it says the guy's life is flashing before his eyes, but also that stuff makes sense when it's backwards. Gah, listen to me waffling out philosophy like a beatnik.

From a prog-trance classic to a deep classic:

Someone (I think it was Ishkur) said that without deep house, house wouldn't exist. Or something along those lines. I'm going to say that without deep trance, there is nothing. This is the kind of music that should be listened to when you're trying to escape from the world because it just oozes emotion. Not necessarily bad emotion either. Solar Coaster reeks of beaches and sand and sun and a rollercoaster in the sun. OK, maybe not, but it always brings to my mind that semi-euphoric state where you're happy and almost in tears because of that happiness but not quite all the way to true euphoria. That feeling is absolutely delicious and I get it all the time thanks to sleep dep. That feeling where half the time you almost feel like jumping around yelling "neeeeeeeen" in a high-pitched voice for absolutely no reason, or you start laughing hysterically at absolutely nothing. I get that a lot. And Solar Coaster drips that exact feeling from its sweeping synths.

Two classics, now I'm going to show what has become of trance since the glory days of the 1990s and early 2000s.

Oh I love it. OH BOY do I love it. The compilation album that this came off is pretty damn sweet, too. Eight songs in a row in this style but all still different enough so that they're kickass in their own way, then they let loose with TAURINE. (See below.) Winter. In My Heart. Wait For Me. Venice Dawn. Solace. Swing 2 Harmony. No One On Earth. Out Of Asia. TAURINE. See? Again, the emotions contained in this song (coupled with the beautiful use of tension-and-release - see below) send a person who knows what they're doing to a state beyond euphoria (if you'll pardon the pun). Yes, I play this at the start of every winter. No, I have no shame in admitting this. The sweeping synths contribute to a sound saturation that isn't a cacophony. The sweeping strings help. Oh boy oh boy, get me a broom, I need to make some sweeping strings myself. Of course, trance isn't always sweeping strings, though they do help.

What have they done with my song? They've funktafied it! Alright, confession time, before now I never heard the original mix of Taurine but my God they're both amazing. I guess the Super8 remix makes it more hard-trance than the original while retaining the amazing progressiveness. Beautiful. It's not too bad condensed into three and a half minutes, either. I love how very little was changed but Super8 got rid of that really annoying audience-cheer bit that tries to make it sound like live music. Which is good. Because it failed. Miserably. Apart from that the song's brilliant and every time it comes onto my iPod I wet myself a little with anticipation of awesomeness because I know the tension-and-release bit is coming. This concept - foreign to most non-trance listeners is essentially just that: tension (building up a tune just after a breakdown) and release (a sound explosion just afterwards). Theme, breakdown, buildup, anthem. Good music producers should know exactly how to handle tension and release and good DJs should use it, instead of fucking us around with dubstep and LMFAO. Seriously. Those champagne showers are getting old and ridiculous.

Finally, my face when Taurine crops up somewhere.

#26: Why Must I Cry (Tosh.0 rmx) - Reh Dogg

Mike sent me this along with a "Problem, officer?" so I'm treating it as a challenge.

At first, I listened to this song, and I thought "OSHIT MY HEAD IS FULL OF FUCK". But that was the first ten seconds or so and I, like a juvenile, switched it off because of the graphic and gratuitous use of Vocoder and very quiet lyrics. Then, after about a minute, I realised that this is the entire point of this beautiful, haunting, and all in all impressive song.

It's minimalistic in terms of music (despite the amazing juxtaposition of the rap with the sweeping strings) because the guy's obviously trying to place emphasis on his lyrics: a song about a guy who, quite obviously, is sick of crying over his losses and his life. He's also made the lyrics deliberately unintelligible, because clearly he's trying to show just how bad he's feeling by making it sound as if he's actually struggling with his life. You know, like a singer crying during a song, except Reh Dogg is taking it a step further and making it sound like he's doing more than cry (which is layer #1 of the song) - he's also struggling to understand why he's crying (layer #2), struggling to come to terms with this lack of understanding (layer #3) and crying out about the fact that he's struggling and crying and struggling (layer #4). Four layers of emotion, all wrapped up in one neat tiny little fun-sized package called Why Must I Cry. Hauntingly beautiful, and well deserving of a mention in the next Grammy or ARIA or whatever the hell music award this thing deserves, presentations. In fact, I'm gonna say that the line "why must I cry why must I cry why must I cry" is a Gem Line.

Also, here's one other special gift from me:

#25: CJ's Addictions 5

It hasn't been long since I posted an addictions post but what the hell, I've just gotten hooked on a bunch of songs lately. For different reasons.

The first thing that should strike you is the weird start to the song, almost á la Odessa (by Caribou). Which is probably what hooked me. The second thing is that it's called Midnight City - two of my favourite ideas smashed together in one beautiful song (I like black and cities). I still don't know the lyrics but I don't care. That's not the point of the synthy goodness that is Midnight City. The point of it is to listen to the kickass awesomeness and get lost in your own little midnight city. (Oshit, I'm turning Zen all of a sudden: CJ + sleep dep = Zen.) Anyway, this song is pretty awesome. I love the sax bit starting at ~3'2". I wish I knew what song it reminded me of. I can hear the other song in my head, but I can't work out lyrics or a title, or an artist. Or a song. Fuck.

I reckon this sits almost perfectly with Odessa as one of my songs of 2011: I first heard it in 2011 and it reminds me of exactly this year. Awh yeah. Loving them song memories. I wanted to start a project whereby I looked at every single song in my library, and wrote a short memory associated with that song. Problem is, at nearly 9,000 songs, doing a hundred songs a night would take three months. And my collection is expanding. So I'll settle for remembering events along with musics whenever I hear the songs. And speaking of which:

Yes. This is me all over. The song's about music (I'm So Meta, Even This Acronym) and my gods yes, I agree with the philosophy exactly. An old song addiction coming back to life in a few years' time is not only plausible, but it's happened to me fuckloads this year. Not just this year either. Hell, it's been happening for the last few years. I actually have a log (of sorts) of those addictions - see here for more. But back to topic. Apart from the fact that it's synth(pop), which I'm slowly beginning to enjoy more (thanks largely to bands like Au Revoir Simone and La Roux) it fits almost perfectly with my ideal song pattern. For reference:

• two verses maximum
• no bridge, or a bridge that can be integrated as part of a verse, or a single bridge between verse 2 and the second iteration of the chorus
• no chorus, or a chorus that does not mention the song title, or mentions it in passing
• EVOLUTION
• the entire song does not mention those self-promoting bastards, the bands themselves

Yes, I'm freakin' fussy, but I really mean it when it comes to that last point. I know of one song that I like that names the band explicitly in the song lyrics - Domino by the Bloody Beetroots. This excludes artists with self-titled songs like Flower Power, The Screetch and The Drill - all of which are instrumental, incidentally - because that makes sense. It also excludes artists or bands that mention other artists or bands in their lyrics - Duck Sauce did that with Barbara Streisand and Zuper Blahq went through about half a dozen others in I'm In The House (although he did mention himself as well... fuck. So, bearing that in mind, I don't hear the lyrics "cansei de ser sexy" in Hits Me Like A Rock so it passes my non-douchiness test. The only thing that fails it from being a perfectly-patterned song is that the lyrics go "hits me like a rock" over and over. Not a bad effort though.

Let's drip out one more tune.

I first heard the Armand Van Helden remix of this on some MoS compilation - I forget whether it was Clubber's Guide or Annual. Probably the Annual. So, let's run through the checklist. Music: synth and beat, but not grunge. Check. Bag Raiders: check. Song pattern: good enough. Check. Evolution of song: not so much, but it's passable. Check. Decent video: cute girl, interesting plot, band doesn't appear. Check. The song can take a remix: fucking A it can. It loves Armand Van Helden. Check. Conclusion: a few flaws, but hey, nobody's perfect. I want to make music like this. Wish I could make music at all, for that matter. But hey, nobody's perfect. Hey, um, wait. That's the whole point of the video, isn't it? I suppose, though, if you strive for perfection you're gonna get part way there and fall a fraction short, which is a little bit above average anyway. So. Drop me a tune and I'll tell you how close to perfection it is. This one is damn near and that's why I've spent the last stupid amount of time not only addicted to it, but also ripping it to shreds and finding... not much. Join me again soon when I accept another sisterly challenge.

#24: Titanium - David Guetta ft. Sia

Sarah gave me this a while back. Bring the fuckers on. No mercy.

Right. I've bagged out David Guetta before in this blog and I'm sure as hell not going to let up now without a valid reason. So here goes. David Guetta's style of late is pandering to the lowest common denominator by combining semi-grungy house with generic progressive house and adding in a splash of the shittiest hiphop artists out there. So it would seem that this song is a little different because Sia is by no means hiphop. In fact, I do respect Sia. But I don't respect David Guetta any more and I certainly don't respect this song. It does, admittedly, rate higher than a lot of his other junk.

My main issue with this song is that it breaks down too fast and builds up too slow. Not only that, but it's repetitive without evolving. Sorry Sia, but even your voice gets on my nerves after a while, especially when it's the same thing over and over without any changes. Four minutes of annoyance without any letup is not, strictly speaking, fantastic. I do agree that it's not as grungy as LMFAO, as annoying as Kelly Rowland, or as trashy as Akon. ...Hey, there's an idea. Mr. Guetta, why don't you team up with all those guys and try and make them sound better OH WAIT YOU DID AND IT FAILED. Well, bugger that for an idea. Also bugger David Guetta for an idea. He has transformed nightclubs into something I don't like (oh wait, they were already pretty piss-poor). Well, he's transformed dancefloors into something I don't like (oh wait, I don't dance beyond the Nutbush). Well, um, he's transformed parties into something I don't like (oh wait, I barely party as is). Well... shut up. As long as I don't hear any more David Guetta from down the hall in my dorm I'll be OK. I'mma go listen to some Booka Shade now.

#23: Forever (Live And Die) - Orchestral Manœuvres In The Dark

OMG, it's OMD! Yes, I spelled it "Manœuvres" and not "Maneuvers" because "maneuver" looks FUCKING WEIRD. Besides, I've been really pedantic about the œ and æ ligatures and accents in Latin-based languages. On that note:

What the hell is it about this song? I found it when I was watching reruns of Daria - with the music in it, for the most part - and I took a shining to it. I reckon I've worked out why - I guess it's because the song is all that was good about 1980s electronica. Which, of course, is the precursor to contemporary EDM. And I love it. For me, disco began in the 1980s and not the stupid seventies. Hell, music in the 1970s didn't exist.

My prejudices aside, this is a pretty nice song that has been very underrated of late. I have two 1980s electronica compilations, and while Orchestral Manœuvres In The Dark appears four times, this laidback melancholy beauty doesn't. Annoyance. It wasn't so underrated back in 1986 when it charted everywhere (OH FUCK I'M TALKING ABOUT CHARTS. HELP ME.) but I guess other songs have eclipsed it since. That said, I was kinda shocked to learn that they're still going in 2011. Shocked and surprised, but not disappointed. I do like these guys. And honestly, the only complaint I have about this song is the bit from ~3'33" to ~3'55". It doesn't fit with the rest of the song. I'm all for evolution and all but that's just a bit strange. And speaking of evolution, no, this doesn't evolve much but it does stop short of being cheesy muzak. It's easy on the eardrums for the whole thing and it plays on your sense of time. Oh, listen to me, waffling on about all that crap when I could just as easily be picking apart the fact that the lyrics are repetitive and boring. Reality is, they are, but it only feels like the song runs for about 3'30" so that's fine. It puts it above hiphop, where the same three words are repeated ad nauseum for five minutes: "MOTHERFUCKING BITCHES SHAKE DAT ASS". In every single song, by every single hiphop artist, five minutes of that crap. OK, I'm exaggerating but it certainly feels that way. And that's why I listen to OMD.