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I was put to the test the other day; a High Fidelity challenge of sorts. I was asked to name the best rock & roll band of all time. All. Time. People. My brain nearly hemorrhaged at the thought of it. Let me put this in perspective for you. In my world, choosing only one favorite band is like choosing between having your fingers or your toes cut off. The answer is neither but it’s not the kind of choice you ever have to make. Luckily, the question was limited to “rock & roll”, which isn’t really the genre of music I listen to regularly. Had I been asked to name the best band of all time or the best album ever made, my brain would have surely short-circuited and I’d be lying lifeless on the floor.
But you throw a challenge my way and all good sense flies out the window and I seem to be incapable of resisting (case in point… I’ve made it to day 29 of this insufferable nablopomo challenge) so I took the bait and banged my head against the wall for many hours.
Greatest rock & roll band of all time, eh? Well, I’m pretty sure these bands would top most lists: Beatles, Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Doors… and although they are indeed legendary… they are not my favorite rock & roll band of all time. As a 33-year old, rock & roll begins in the 80s for me (I know, sacrilege right?). So I guess I would have to say U2. They have been reinventing themselves since the 80s and have consistently pumped out new sounds over the years. The voice, the riffs, the lyrics and Bono, what more can I say? Sure, it’s clean rock and roll without the sex and the drugs… but if there is going to be rock & roll in my collection, U2 will be leading the pack.
And this is totally non sequitur, but since we’re on my favorite topic (music) and I just got back from a run… here is a band that will kick your ass into high gear. Should you ever need a boost, Metric does the trick for me every time. I saw this band at the Osheaga Festival; the lead singer wore an shiny electric blue skin-tight mini dress on stage and she was rocking it. I think I would like to be her for a day.
Monster Hospital (the video is a little freaky but let me tell you, this song will make you run faster than Forrest)
Empty (don’t let the slow beginning fool you)
Dead Disco (if you don’t move to this, you might be a little dead inside so you may want to check your pulse)
Speaking of moving, I’m going dancing with my friend Sylvia tonight. Woot! It’s her birthday today and not just any birthday. Syl is joining the 30’s club. A girl needs to drink a cosmo and bust a move on her 30th, wouldn’t you say? I wish her the very best birthday and year and decade and life a girl could ever ask for. I love you, sweets! This one is for you.
In the half hour it takes for me to get to work via bus and subway, I am the silent observer.
I tune into my music and spend my commute in a movie-like state, with my own little soundtrack. I sometimes read but for the most part, I’m too fascinated by the world around me. I see forlorn frames and scenes filled with beauty. Extras board the bus and disembark, each playing their little part. I see them all. I don’t stare, I’m too shy to stare and besides, I hear it’s rude. However I may look at you for a long while until your eyes meet mine, at which point I’ll manage a half assed smile, which pairs perfectly with my beet red face and I’ll look away. I might even put a finger to my mouth and gaze towards the upper left corner of my mind, feigning a pensive look. And when something strikes me as funny, I’ll probably dip my face in my scarf to mask the laughter or, if I’m lucky, I’ll find someone who is willing to share a smile.
Today’s feature presentation went something like this.
Soundtrack (Depending on the day, I’ll either put it on shuffle and let fate dictate what I need to hear that morning or I’ll be a little more selective, matching the music to the scene that is playing out in front of me.)
Death Cab for Cutie – Marching Bands of Manhattan
Patrick Watson – The Great Escape
Coldplay – Warning Sign
Radiohead – Videotape
The Postal Service – Suddently Everything Has Changed
Act 1: November morning in 2008, on the 535
A flock of black birds against a cyan sky reflected in the window of the bus behind us, a bridge tinted orange by dawn’s yawning sun, a long line of cars, a girl with java in a red paper cup, a boy studying at the corner of Pine & Parc, a black dog with one blue eye, a hot guy with funky dreads, an old man with hands a maze of wrinkles, his face a creased map, a big black woman talking to herself on the way up the escalator, a homeless man crossing the street in jeans soaked with his own urine.
The bus tells tales, whispers of a thousand inner voices subconsciously expressed through subtle gestures, looks, sighs. Lives crisscrossing, everyone living different realities, different worries, different pains, different joys… and yet we are all on the same bus.
It’s Friday night, it’s been a long week and gin just met tonic… the sparks are flying and the only thing I’m remotely capable of doing at this moment is chiiilllllling out. I made some pizza (spelt crust, pesto, onion, tomato, garlic, broccoli and cheese), rented season one of Gossip Girl and I suspect red wine will be joining the party any minute now so I’ll keep this post brief.
I’ve never seen Gossip Girl before but it seems to be on many people’s guilty pleasure list so I figured I would give it a shot. So far, I’m 10 minutes into the Pilot episode and all I have to say is you know you’re getting old when you’re crushing on the dads in the show as opposed to the students.
Having said that, I’m afraid I might already be hooked. Why, you might ask? Is the dad that cute? Is it the witty repartee? I can’t say for sure yet… but if the past is any indication, the line was cast in the first few riffs of Peter Bjorn & John’s song Young Folks and they are reeling me in, people. It seems to be a thing with me .. Scrubs, Grey’s Anatomy, The OC… they might be fluff shows but dang do they ever play good music and that just gets me every time. I’m a sucker for a good soundtrack, what can I say?
xo
