God doesn't always have the best goddamn plans, does he?
Mood:  crushed out
Now Playing: Reconstruction Site - Weakerthans
Topic: Wolf Parade
Wolf Parade is one of those bands that shouldn't need an introduction. They've released a fantastic album, Apologies To The Queen Mary. They've toured with the Arcade Fire. They're from Montreal; everyone knows that Canadian citizenship automatically invests a band with five extra points of indie cred. In some alternate universe, kids are walking around their high schools proudly wearing Wolf Parade t-shirts and calling themselves as Lycanthropozz and Lycanthropettezz. This is the same alternate universe in which Stephin Merritt is widely recognized as the Messiah.

Wolf Parade is comprised of
Dan Boeckner,
Spencer Krug,
Hadji Bakara, and Arlen Thompson, and they think you should listen to their music.


In particular, they (as well as I) think you should listen to I'll Believe In Anything and Dear Sons And Daughters of Hungry Ghosts.

It's impossible to resist singing along:

Well I've got a hand
So I've got a fist
So I've got a plan
It's the best that I can do.
Now we say we're using god's hands
But god doesn't always have the best goddamn plans, does he?
La la la la la la.

you are the rocket fuel to my rocketship
Mood:  crushed out
Topic: 63 Crayons
Well, everyone knows that there are 64 crayons in a box of Crayolas. That might lead you to believe that a band called 63 Crayons is not quite... all there. I mean, almost, but not quite all there. I happen to think 63 Crayons is just as well as a whole box, really. The color missing is probably one of those horrible shades of regurgitation-colored green-browns, in which case the box is better without them.

Good People is a good album, most definitely! I mean, how many OTHER bands actually use a glockenspiel? None that I know! Not to mention all those other random jingly-jangly noises going on. I'd especially listen to this album if you were feeling like a regression to childhood might be a good idea, as the main themes seem to be rocketships, kiddos, and sharing McNuggets. Most of the vocals are done by Charlie Johnston, and some others by Suzanne Allison.

I uploaded two tracks today, because I'm not always lazy. Mice And Feathers is my favorite, it's super cheery. Well, they are all really positive. I just happen to be feeling positively positive!

Mice And Feathers // 63 Crayons
Walking // 63 Crayons

you'll never be discovered, never have to show yourself
Mood:  party time!
Topic: Smoosh
It's true. I love Smoosh. I would say something like, "I just want to pinch their little ickle baby cheeks!" But that would just sound stupid, even if the two girls were ten and twelve at the time of recording their debut album, She Like Electric. It is true, they are preteens.

It is also true that I am unlikely to have their talent by the time I am thirty.

On the keyboards and doing the vocals is Asya. So yeah, you might think, "that sounds like a little kid singing." But you'd be wrong, because it isn't a little kid singing. It is a preteen, okay? On the drums is Asya's sister, Chloe, who is ten.

I'm probably mentioning their ages too much, huh? Well, here are some things not related to their ages: pretty keyboard melodies, nice drumming, and generally good indie synthpop. Hey, they've played with Death Cab and Sleater-Kinney.

Massive Cure // Smoosh

PS: e-mail me at arcade fireballs@aol.com if you want to post here or IF YOU WANT TO SEE ME NAKED, okay? Well, just the first thing, really.

Let's find some beautiful place to get lost!
Mood:  cool
Now Playing: With Whom To Dance? - Magnetic Fields
Topic: Thumbsucker soundtrack
Hey, poppets. Childrenzzz. Mud-soaked honeylovelies--whatever you want to imagine I'm addressing you as is your own business.

Faithful (or particularly observant) readers of this weblog will notice that it has not been updated much (i.e., "at all") recently. This is because Kate's computer recently decided to "pass on." As I write this from a borrowed laptop, I can't help but shed a few tears in memory of my old friend. Oh, sure. I hit her around. She ate my compositions. We both did a few things to each other that I'm sure she now regrets as she sits in pieces on my bedroom floor. But it was a good run, blahblahblahsentimentalcakes. The point is, Bebop Golems has, sadly, fallen by the wayside in the wake of this tragedy.

Not to mention that Trish is only one girl, despite the many medical documents that state otherwise. We admit that it is POSSIBLE that PERHAPS we could use a few people to alleviate the pressure in such times of crisis. If you feel that you are a capable candidate who would contribute to our continuously convalescing internet sensation, email us at arcade fireballs@aol.com with your name, qualifications, hobbies, top five favorite whatevers, bribes, etc. The winner/most qualified applicant/person with the best bribes will update whenever they feel they need to. Or when we ask them to. The end.

Now that I've managed to bring the tone of the entry down elevenfold, I'll pull out today's mp3's.

On Thursday night, in order to push the sight of my gutted CPU out of my mind, I went to see the movie "Thumbsucker," starring Luscious Lou Taylor Pucci, Vincent D'osomething from one of the Law & Order spin-offs, Keanu Reeves, Vince Vaughn (as a pop-psych dentist and so-obviously-gay debate teacher, respectively), among others. It's the story of seventeen year old boy who sucks his thumb, to the chagrin of his father. Blahblahblah, teenangst, blahblahblah, sexual experimentation, blahblahblah, personal growth, jealousy, suspicion, drama. Despite all the ways it could have sucked, it was actually a good movie. With a good soundtrack! What are the odds that this could happen!?

Though Tim DeLaughter (you probably know him as "That Guy From The Polyphonic Spree") was in charge of most of the score, Elliott Smith (who was involved in the early stages of the screen adaption of Walter Kirn's novel of the same name, before his untimely demise) managed to sneak some songs on the soundtrack as well, such as Let's Get Lost, which appeared first on his CD "From A Basement On A Hill."

The Polyphonic Spree slapped together some "pretty wicked awesome" music for Thumbsucker, but just because I feel like it, I'll end this post with a song from their CD, "Together, We're Heavy" called Section 12 (Hold Me Now).

Did you learn something today? Probably not.
But we had fun, didn't we?

I want you to feel what I feel.
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Lo Fidelity Allstars
I think you have to hand it to any band that can name their album Don't Be Afraid Of Love and not seem cheesy. Lo Fidelity Allstars pull this off quite remarkably, though.

The first record, How To Operate With A Blown Mind, was released in 1998, and this sophmore one is slightly more recent, from 2002. The vocalist from the last disc, Wrekked Train, isn't on this, leaving room for guest vocalists on Don't Be Afraid.

This track, "Feel What I Feel," almost encourages me to ditch my cynical view of life and love in general. Well, not really. But the band does make really diverse, trip-hoppy electro/rock, slightly remniscent of Sneaker Pimps, or Portishead

Feel What I Feel // Lo Fidelity AllStars.

Come on, don't be afraid of love.

Some boys take a beautiful girl and hide her away from the rest of the world.
Mood:  irritated
Now Playing: Headlock - Imogen Heap
Topic: Chipettes
American History. Oh, sure, it's interesting. Who doesn't love hearing about how Alexander Hamilton was an angsty bastard-child who spent most of his time making controversial decisions and making people feel testy? Who doesn't love thinking about Ben Franklin: diplomat, inventor and lay-dies man extraordinaire (invention patents = free French Sluts)?
But it's not useful.
I mean, when I'm living under a bridge with my mp3 player and a bunch of feral dogs, knowing facts about the Great Gaspee Affair really won't help me wrestle that moldy steak out of Bingo's greedy jaws.

What does American History, impending tests, and my lack of a future have to do with the music I'm posting?
Nothing whatsoever. Which is why I'm posting it. When the working day is done, girls just want to have fun, damn it.

The Chipmunks and Chipettes were my childhood heroes. It's impossible not to love them: if not for the the high-pitched voices and the frothy pop music, then most certainly for the ability to rock out and mock Miami Vice in one episode.

Having already typed this out twice (Dear blogpublisher: They are "entries," not "entrees." Quit eating them), I feel the need to say: If you have no idea who I'm talking about, read about them on Wikipedia, or Progressive Boink and don't make me type anything else.

The first song comes from their first feature-length film, "The Chipmunk Adventure." Oh, it had its faults; for instance, some might think that a movie with gender wars and diamond smuggling isn't the best material for "growing minds." Poppycock, I say. I never smuggle on school nights, and when I smack around my male prostitutes, they're damn happy about it. It had some great music, like The Girls Of Rock And Roll and We're Off To See The World!

Plus, it opened the door for a cover of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, without which the world would cease to exist.

Love these songs as I loved them. Because they are the only true thing in this world.
You're right, Brittany.
I do want to be the one who walks in the sun. Oh, I just wanna have fun.
!!!

You dance like your dad at a disco, What would Morrissey say?
Topic: Help She Can't Swim
So, you're sitting around at home, staring at your homework, and you think, gee. This isn't really something I'd like to be doing right now. I know the feeling.

Music is always a good distraction. And good music is a double distraction, because listening to bad music makes you think of depressing things, such as homework.

Help She Can't Swim (or Help! She Can't Swim, if you really like exclamation marks) will really distract you. Once with their smart and funny lyrics, (What Would Morrissey Say?) and twice with a variety of only slightly screechy male/female vocalists.

If you still feel like procrastinating after downloading this track, My Own Private Disco, how about you go buy their album, Fashionista Super Dance Troupe? And while you're at it, look for their new EP in November, Committing Social Suicide. The official website would be located here.

My Own Private Disco // Help She Can't Swim

Yes, only love can break your heart.
Mood:  sharp
Now Playing: Four Left-Feet - Ditty Bops
Topic: Saint Etienne
The Half-Price Bookstore is great for so many reasons. It's not just the people, like the twenty-something guy with hair that looks similar to how mine did in 9th grade (long, burgundy). It's not just the low, low prices. It's not just the atmosphere.
It's not the fact that while it clearly says, "Bookstore" in the name, it also sells a lot of periodicals, calenders, videos, and CDs.
It's that if you wait long enough, you can be sure that someone will bring in the CD you've been waiting for all of your young life, and that another person (possibly the guy with long, burgundy hair) will slap a little yellow price sticker on it and shove it in with the rest of the CDs for you to find.

Because of this, I go to the Half-Price Bookstore often, and browse the music section. I haven't found the love of my life yet, but hopespringseternalinthehumanbreast and so on. I've still managed to find some pretty hot material.

For instance, not long ago I came across Saint Etienne's first album, Foxbase Alpha. I could talk for hours about great it is, and how much I love Sarah Cracknell's voice, and how much I wish I was a member of Saint Etienne, but for brevity's sake, I'll just give you the link to their succulent cover of Neil Young's Only Love Can Break Your Heart, and go to bed.

ooh la la
Topic: Pink Martini
You know every time that Tresemme commercial comes on, and the French woman tosses her hair lustily, while ooh la la music is playing in the background? That's kind of like Pink Martini. Part cocktail lounge, part love affair, part sexy language and demeanor. That's why the ensemble can appeal to such a wide variety of people.

Their debut album, Sympathique, came out in 1997. It has sold more than 650,000 copies worldwide, and has been used in various soundtracks such as The Sopranos and Josie & The Pussycats.

Speaking of international, Sympathique is a blend of Spanish, French, English, and Italian. Think of buying the album as a lesson in languages.

Sympathique is easily the standout track, and the one which makes me recall that Tresemme commecial so strongly.

Sympathique // Pink Martini

They've also released a sophomore album, Hang On Little Tomato. You can read more about Pink Martini on the official site, and buy the records on Amazon.

Fame! I'm gonna live forever!
Mood:  on fire
Now Playing: Stormy Weather - Echo and the Bunnymen
Topic: Veronica Mars
So, I'm a huge fan of Veronica Mars. I mean, how often do you run into a show that is on UPN and good?

In celebration of the fact that tomorrow brings a brand new episode, I thought it would be a good idea to post two of my current musical obsessions, ripped right from Rob Thomas's (No relation to that guy from that band) lovingly complied Veronica Mars Soundtrack.

Most recently, Veronica Mars fans heard Long Time Coming by the Delays, which played in the background of Duncan/Donut's stalking/"winning-back-Veronica-by-pretending-not-to-be-hanging-out-at-her-workplace-like-a-stalker-while-sitting-around-at-her-place-of-work-for-hours" sequence.

According to the Delays, it's a song "...about watching people you love losing their innocence and the naivety that you shared when you were younger, falling into the kind of adulthood you swore you never would, and wishing you could've done something about it. It's a loss of innocence and also of spontaneity and people becoming really guarded and jaded. Friends stuck in jobs you know they don't wanna do, living in houses they don't wanna live in."
It's worth mentioning that this song reached #16 on the UK charts last January, making us all wonder, yet again, if perhaps US Top Forty music is actually just a strange sociological experiment.


Next, let's dig into a song from last season, Momentary Thing by Something Happens, which played at that oh-so-dramatic moment in history when Veronica and Logan engaged in their first steamy liplock/cutesy chickenpeck.

Rob Thomas: "My band opened for the Irish band Something Happens when they played Austin many, many years ago. Great band. Great guys. When I lived in Ireland while writing Satellite Down, the guys in Something Happens showed me a very good time in Dublin. I LOVE the song Momentary Thing."


And finally, for those of you who just can't get enough Veronica Mars, an mp3 of Veronica Mars (aka, Kristen Bell) performing her solo from Fame! at the Emmy's.
Come on, people. If you weren't convinced to watch the show after hearing this music, you have to be convinced after seeing a picture of Kristen Bell in ugly 80's sweats. Resistance is unconstitutional!

UPN, Wednesdays, 9/8c.