every word of it.

This Friday night I will have to make a tough decision. Do I see the Yeah Yeah Yeahs or Kings of Leon?

I think Kings of Leon would be a better festival band. But, I do like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs more. Loads more. And I have a feeling that they will put on a fancy show. But Kings of Leon, I think their primary function is to play outdoor festivals. What would you do?

Favorite Yeah Yeah Yeahs song – Y Control (Great video directed by Spike Jonze)

Favorite Kings of Leon song - My Third House (On Call B-side)

You know what’s great about having a much younger brother?

They ask you questions like this.

But seriously, I envy Kian. He’s going to listen to Ok Computer for the first time. His life will change forever.

Ok Computer for me really signified the break between 106.1 KISS FM Raishad and 88.7 KTCU Raishad.

I remember I bought it from Hypermart. I had heard Karma Police on the radio. It was a huge single. And after school one day, I asked my mom to take me to Hypermart to buy it. And after listening to it, it was a situation where I wanted all music to be like Ok Computer.

Ok Computer wasn’t my first CD, that was Green Day’s Dookie. But it did start a change in my approach to finding new music. I wasn’t so dependent on major commercial radio. This was 1997. Napster didn’t come into existence until 1999. And I was still accessing the internet using a modem. So the internet wasn’t a big influence – at least not until I found The Perfect Song Facsimile. So it was luck/necessity, I found college radio and 88.7 KTCU. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The next playlist challenge idea was something I stole from The Word Magazine Podcast. I forget the exact situation/podcast, but the idea was to pick a song that you would use to introduce a band to someone who has never heard of that band. The idea being, if they like that song, then they will like the band.

It’s a fun game. Do you go for a hit single that sounds nothing like the rest of the band’s catalogue or a deep cut? If I were doing Blur, would I pick ‘Song 2’ or ‘Tracy Jacks’? Song 2 sounds like nothing else in Blur’s repertoire, but it is one of their most well known singles and would surely win hearts and minds.

So for this playlist challenge, the bands were picked beforehand.

1. radiohead
2. The Beatles
3. Massive Attack
4. Björk
5. Modest Mouse
6. The Smiths
7. Belle & Sebastian
8. New Order
9. U2
10. Jay-Z

Here are my choices

radiohead – Million Dollar Question

I couldn’t pick an album track. I would lose all my street cred. So instead I went with a Pablo Honey B-Side.

The Beatles – No Reply

I stole this song from The Word podcast. They used this as an example – if you like ‘No Reply’, you’re gonna love The Beatles. I didn’t know this song before that podcast, and since listening to it – I think it may just be my favorite Beatles song as well.

Massive Attack – Unfinished Sympathy

What do you think of when you hear the name Massive Attack? A track with a nice heavy beat and female vocals. And that’s what ‘Unfinished Sympathy’ is.

Björk – Hunter

I’m pretty sure ‘Hunter’ was the first song by Björk I ever heard. It was on The X-Files movie soundtrack which I, of course, purchased. And I think it’s a good introduction to Björk. Hey, it worked on me.

Modest Mouse – 3rd Planet

Modest Mouse will never make another album like The Moon & Antarctica. 3rd Planet is everything you want in a Modest Mouse song – Isaac Brock shouting over guitars.

The Smiths – This Charming Man

What makes a song a Smiths song? Easy, jangly guitars and morose lyrics. Any of their songs would’ve worked. So I picked ‘This Charming Man’ because it’s one of my favorites. The version I picked is one they recorded for John Peel and was released on Hatful of Hollow and probably not the version you’re most familiar with.

Belle & Sebastian – Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying

I used to really be into Belle & Sebastian. This was a hard choice. I picked this one because every few months I catch myself humming ‘get me away from here, I’m dying’ and I have to listen to it again. It sticks with you. The version I used is from their live recording of If You’re Feeling Sinister.

New Order – Temptation 7" Mix

I’m not really familiar with New Order. The easy choice would be to pick ‘Blue Monday’ and call it a day. But I didn’t want to do that. Luckily I had rated ‘Temptation’ 4 stars at some point, so I gave it another listen and realized I was right. ‘Temptation’ is a great track and could only be done by New Order.

U2 – Sunday Bloody Sunday

U2 is a band. And honestly, I’m not really that in to them. So, I picked a single because I couldn’t be bothered to listen to all of their albums to do some digging.

Jay-Z – Big Pimpin’

I’m not really familiar with Jay-Z aside from his singles. So I picked his best. This is from his MTV Unplugged album.

Remember Spring Break?

For Spring Break I flew to Washington, D.C and drove to Boston. Driving music was required. So I made a playlist.

The only requirement was that I fill an 80 minute cd. With rental cars, you never know if you’re getting one with an AUX input.

So here it is.

1. The Proclaimers – I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
2. The Jam – Town Called Malice
   
3. The Coral – Dreaming of You
   
4. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – The Impression That I Get
   
5. The Muslims – Extinction
   
6. Fear of Pop – In Love
   
7. Mystery Jets – Two Doors Down
   
8. Shout Out Louds – Hard Rain
   
9. The New Pornographers – Use It
   
10. The Pipettes – Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me
    
11. The Rumble Strips – Time
    
12. Jens Lekman – Friday Night At The Drive-In Bingo
    
13. TV On The Radio – Wolf Like Me
    
14. Ted Leo – Since U Been Gone
    
15. The Libertines – Horror Show
    
16. Ben Folds – Such Great Heights
    
17. Arctic Monkeys – Fluorescent Adolescent
    
18. Maxïmo Park – Our Velocity
    
19. Pete and the Pirates – Mr Understanding
    
20. Those Dancing Days – Those Dancing Days (Radio LXMBRG Remix)
    
21. Patrick Wolf – The Magic Position
    

The rental car was a Dodge Avenger, and what an unsatisfactory car. My biggest issues, poor visibility and terrible turn stalk. Though it did have an AUX input.

The next challenge – the official Jack Donaghy Psyche Yourself Up Mix.

This was a difficult one to compile. I had no clue what I wanted. Originally I was just putting together songs that were fast and loud. But late last week, I think it sort of clicked. I can be proud of this one I think. Unlike the previous Wake Up Mix. That one was horrible.

Are you going to step up?

1. Ash – Kung Fu
2. Bloc Party – The Prayer
3. Superchunk – Hyper Enough
4. Elvis Costello – No Action
5. Hard-Fi – Hard To Beat
6. Ned’s Atomic Dustbin – Saturday Night
7. Manic Street Preachers – Stay Beautiful
8. The Jam – Going Underground
9. ¡Forward, Russia! – Eighteen
10. The Hives – Die, All Right
11. Longwave – Everywhere You Turn
12. Heartless Bastards – All This Time

People love twitter.

Some of those people love radiohead.

And of those people who love twitter and radiohead, they also like woot.

The Evidence:

Today’s Woot is a radiohead box set. As of 9:51AM CST, it’s sold out.

Head on over to TwitterSheep and search for radiohead

These are the results

As an aside – I didn’t purchase this, because I have all of the albums offered in the box set.

I have the special editions of Amnesiac (Library Book), Hail to the Thief (Road Map), and In Rainbows (Awesome). And my non special edition of Kid A has a hidden booklet.

My one regret in life is not purchasing the special edition version of Kid A when it came out. But I was in high school and didn’t have $30 to spend on a cd.

The next theme in the Playlist Challenge – a morning wake up mix.

1. iLiKETRAiNS – Joshua
2. Múm – Green Grass of Tunnel
   
3. The Boo Radleys – Wake Up Boo!
   
4. British Sea Power – Waving Flags (Wandering Horn Instrumental)
   
5. El Guincho – Antillas
   
6. HALFBY – Man & Air
   
7. The Smiths – Asleep

This was the hardest. Because not only did it have to be good, it also had to serve a purpose – getting you out of bed.

So for one, it couldn’t be too long. It’s about 30 minutes long, which is usually how much time I spend in bed before getting up (I’m lazy).

My reasoning – I wanted something gentle, yet strong enough to wake me up. That’s why I started with Joshua, an instrumental track that is all build up. Then I cool things down with Múm. It’s the next track that I use as my alarm tone – Wake Up Boo!. Waving Flags through Man & Air, is my final attempt to get myself out of bed. And then I end things with Asleep. Because at this point, just stay in bed.

Who likes terrible covers?

No one.

So why do bands release them?

They need filler for singles.

Here is a terrible cover of Road to Nowhere by the Editors that manages to suck the life and energy out of the original.

Cover: Editors – Road to Nowhere

Original: Talking Heads – Road to Nowhere

The next Playlist Challenge – create a playlist containing music you listened to during high school.

Easy

1. At The Drive In – Star Slight
2. Asian Dub Foundation – Black White
   
3. Pavement – Elevate Me Later
4. R.E.M. – Why Not Smile
5. Modest Mouse – Polar Opposites
6. Idlewild – When I Argue I See Shapes
7. Blur – M.O.R.
8. Super Furry Animals – Northern Lites
9. Pulp – This Is Hardcore
10. Starsailor – Good Souls
11. Jurassic 5 – Concrete Schoolyard
12. The Ataris – San Dimas High School Football Rules

Yes, Top 12. I felt that 10 just wasn’t enough.

1. Los Campesinos! – My Year in Lists
2. The Black Ghosts – I Want Nothing
3. Those Dancing Days – Run Run
4. Mystery Jets – Young Love
5. Friendly Fires – Jump in the Pool
6. Black Kids – I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You
7. Holy Fuck – Lovely Allen
8. The Teenagers – Feeling Better
9. One for the Team – A Better Job
10. Billy Bragg – I Keep Faith
11. ¡Forward, Russia! – Spanish Triangles
12. Flight of the Conchords – Leggy Blonde

And yes, I know that Lovely Allen was released in 2007 on the album . But the single for came out in 2008, and that’s when I first heard it. So deal. If you can’t stand it, you can sub in MGMT – Time to Pretend.

For your convenience.

Now about this list – I’m not pretending it’s written in stone. It’s a collection of songs from 2008 that I really liked that are in no particular order, other than to have a nice flow. Overall, I really like it (and I should).

I should make these sort of Top 10 playlists more often. It was really fun to compile. That last one I did was for Chris, way back on July 22nd.

So what’s your Top 12 of 2008?