my raison d'etre

music is irrefutably a drug. my new morning drug of choice, and possible depressive and/or joyful anthem, is the song "modern girl" from the new s-k album. i am a modern girl, and that cd sends me on a trip.

i'm going to do more album commentaries, for those days when my predilection for bitching about life and america and capri pants is ebbing, as has been the case lately. a legend:

• riyl = recommended if you like - other bands that sound like this one, genres, whatever.
• rating = 10-point scale
• favorite tracks = guess

probably i won't even write much about every album, just the above three nuggets. personally i detest some of the writing critics do in regards to new cd's - it's hard to get through all the hyperbole and obscure metaphors - and i want to avoid hypocrisy at all costs. i'll just offer up the "meat", so to speak.

nine inch nails with teeth
maybe it's due to my immersion in long-term anger and irritation (especially of late) - a mood always fueled by industrial rock - that i like this album. despite the bitter haze i've been in, i believe in all seriousness it's a great cd. after pretty hate machine i harbored that respect-but-not-enamoured-with feeling towards nin records, but this one, for lack of a better word, rocks. and getting shunned by mtv for having a quasi-political inference is marvelous. kudos trent.

rating: 7.8
favorite tracks: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7
riyl: nine inch nails. come on, you know what they sound like

queens of the stone age lullabies to paralyze
i've never been a huge qotsa enthusiast. although i hear dave grohl played with them on one record? ad nauseum - any time dave grohl contributes to a record it becomes an instant did-you-know topic of discussion among modern rock poseurs (see: cat power). whatever. they were on snl a few weeks ago and impressed me (especially with the will ferrel blue oyster cult cowbell contribution).

rating: 7.2
favorite tracks: 2, 3, 6, 7, 12
riyl: foo fighters, weezer, dinosaur jr., stone temple pilots

kaiser chiefs employment
sincerely i believed this band would find only moderate success (among the millions of fans in my own mind) simply because of "i predict a riot". it is a terrific track, but then i sat down in my recliner, put the album on repeat, and listened a few times. as it stands "riot" is maybe my 5th or 6th favorite song off the record. buy it now.

rating: 8.6
favorite tracks: 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11
riyl: the clash, bloc party, the london suede (a.k.a. suede)

if you have comments - dissent or recommendations or naughty thoughts - let fly you fools.