This doesn't sound like me at all

(h/t Sonya)

Song of the Day: "Unless I'm Led"

Mates of States released Mountaintops last September but they're having continued success. They made a video for this, the fourth single released from it, only you can't see it here. You can see it here, should you be interested.

That's about it today. Stay out of the sun. Especially if you're a vampire. Unless you're a vampire I dislike.



Song: "Unless I'm Led"
Artist: Mates of State

Song of the Day: "How Do I Know?"

Did I mention that metric system hipster haircutting dude from Monday and I had a conversation about math rock? We did. I earned major cred by commenting on how the song that was playing sounded like Minus the Bear to me.

And that's who it was.

My later guesses may or may not have been as spot on, let's not dwell.

If you find any merit in math rock as a genre, you might dig Here We Go Magic. And if you find no merit in the concept of math rock as a genre, you might dig Here We Go Magic. Either way, really. In fact if you have no idea WTF I'm talking about when I use that term, that I may have just made up right here on the spot (I do that shit all the time), you might dig Here We Go Magic.

They're from Brooklyn and A Different Ship is their third album. I'm not even going to mention krautrock as a genre of music. Aside from that there.



Song: "How Do I Know?"
Artist: Here We Go Magic

Tell mom you love her with workstation virtualization software

(h/t David in HK)

Nothing says "Mom" like best of breed virtualization

This is a real offer (here).

I don't know if they have rush delivery to get it to your mom by Sunday, but it's probably worth trying if you haven't sent a card yet.

Song of the Day: "Walt Whitman"

Midge shows off her Bell Biv Devoe-inspired summer haircut

Yesterday we talked about how Great Lake Swimmers fit nicely in the big folkie combo sound of bands like The Head and the Heart and Blind Pilot (for reals, see here) -- Trampled by Turtles does that and hits the fringe of alt country that Avett Brothers rule. Stars and Satellites is their sixth album and I'm taking a risk, buying on a whim since it's $5 at Amazon. So far I'm feeling good (much better than MDNA). And I've added some older albums to my liberry queue (viva Socialisms!).

Why the picture of Midge, who is still hanging in there thank you very much? Because Randall (RIP) had a lovely yellow lab named Whitman, after Walt. Duh.



Song: "Walt Whitman"
Artist: Trampled by Turtles

Congratulations North Carolina

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It's not quite the Constitutional amendment we know you really wanted--I'm pretty sure the old amendment from 1875 would pass again if someone got it on the ballot.

Kudos to Joe Biden and the Daily Show for making Obammer's position on teh gayz marriaging so obviously political maneuvering. And crappy, unartful maneuvering at that. Bitch please.

Now when do I get to marry a snake?! That's what this secretly was all about, me marrying a snake. (A snake named Colin Farrell...)

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Song of the Day: "New Wild Everywhere"

Great Lake Swimmers seem to be all over my youtube videos in that there is an ad for their new album layered on whatever song I'm looking for. I think I first heard them in a commercial for the Honda Insight. Which is totally not a Toyota Prius, despite, you know, its appearance.

They fall nicely into a big folkie combo sound, so if you like The Head and the Heart or Blind Pilot (Darrin, Jared), give them a shot. They're Canadian, so how bad could they be? (Answer: Avril Lavigne)

This is the title track from their fifth album, in case you're curious.



Song: "New Wild Everywhere"
Artist: Great Lake Swimmers

That's seven full days of survival (and counting)

Right this minute marks a week from getting home after leaving Midge at the animal hospital. And I believe she's doing pretty well. This video is from Tuesday morning:


But I was a little surprised to see that she's posing for Mother's Day cards. If I weren't still working on a project for work I'd rotate that, but you can see it's her, clearly. OBVS!

Song of the Day: "Youth Without Youth"

I got a haircut yesterday at one of Portland's hipster rock and roll barbershops. Because it's trying to be hipster it's actually not (which is why I was eligible to get my hair cut there). I asked for "number 4 clippers" for the sides and back, like I have for 10+ years now, and dude said "wha?"

Helpful girl dude cutting hair next to us said "half inch guide" (or guard, whatev).

But because original dude was European that didn't help him. And because I'm a 'Mercian, I don't know the metrics for shit. I mean, if surrenderer Jimmy Carter had his way, we'd all be working on solar powered communes and only talking in litres and eating organic endive. Which is not what Ronald Reagan wanted or would allow.

Ronald Reagan: he stopped the commies! So what if he armed Iran and lied to Congress. You've got to break some laws if you want to make an omelet. Or have the million or so illegal aliens you just granted amnesty make you an omelet. Whatever. The real Ronald Reagan is soooo different from the idealized Ronald Reagan of today that it's almost quaint. Of course as a, cough, 27 year old I'm sure I don't remember him at all. "You mean the guy who hosts the dog competitions on USA Network?"

Here's the band Metric from their forthcoming Synthetica.

And 0.5 inches in 12.7 millimeters. Jimmy Carter told me so.



Song: "Youth Without Youth"
Artist: Metric

Song of the Day: "Big Girl"

Pooping here is so
much nicer

By not posting any update for Midge over the weekend I may have given the impression that she isn't doing well. She's hanging in there -- in fact her disappointment was palpable when I told her we weren't going for a ride last night when I went to shut off the dome light in the truck and let her come with me to enjoy her front yard privileges (front yard privileges are like the lavatory in the front of an airplane: it's reserved for the first class passengers; the back yard is available for all the other passengers and also for first class passengers if they want to take a really smelly crap discreetly because no one cares what the people in coach think).

She sat down and gave me an exasperated sigh that is probably quite similar to whatever it is I do when I become impatient, bored or otherwise find disdain for other humans (you know, days that end in "y"). Based on that, I can understand why I'm not everyone's favorite person.

I figure that if she has the energy to get indignant with me, she's doing okay. She's eating and, aside her obvious disappointment with me, seems generally happy. The current plan is to assess her situation on a daily basis (which for me will be twice daily cause I'm really good at judging) and react to that appropriately. It's called living with the Specter of Death and it totally rocks! (sigh)

Pet Cheaters, coming soon to FOX

That being said, I was really surprised to see Midge on TV this morning, two-timing with some other family (the Harlots, I believe is their name). She denies that it's her, claims that it's some kind of identical cousin (AS IF!!!) but look at that picture.

That is totally her.

As Dr. Dog says in today's song "she's a big girl now she can't be your baby anymore." Hopefully the Harlots provide some kind of an address where I can send the vet bills. It's another track from Be the Void, their seventh album.

With seven albums Dr. Dog is due for a major label bidding war just like the one Virgin Records won over Mariah Carey had 10 years ago. Good luck with that!

Song: "Big Girl"
Artist: Dr. Dog

Song of the Day: "The Only One"

If you close your eyes when you listen to the song, you might be transported back to the dance remix heyday of Everything but the Girl (which is to say the later part of their esteemed career)--it sounds like it's right out of 2000's Temperamental to me.

Turns out it's DJ Morgan Page with Coury Palermo providing vocals. Wait, are your eyes still closed? You can open your eyes back up. Once you've been transported to the good old days, you know, booming economy and impeaching the President, get your ass back here. Shit's going down soon, or so I've been told. The looming Zombie Apocalypse is real, only, get this, we're the zombies! Already! We're the walking dead, we just don't realize that some nebulous cataclysmic event is looming and the powers that be are taking care of themselves (they'll be heading to Denver, headquarters for the new world order, duh).

Or not. Sometimes the predictions don't come true entirely. But I did think you should experience what I hear on a daily basis.



Song: "The Only One"
Artist: Morgan Page/Coury Palermo

The continuing misadventures of the Manning boys

Peyton Manning / The Manning Family Singers / Eli Manning

Previously on the Rebel Agenda we discussed Peyton's hysterical faux PSA on a recent episode of Saturday Night Live (here) and cousin Bradley's hijinks with the WikiLeaks (here), so this is just a continuation of that. Last night Eli hosted SNL with pretty solid results. I didn't laugh as uncontrollably as I did when Charles Barkley (inexplicably) hosted back in January, but he's far improved over Michael Jordan (who, I'm pretty sure, played Michael Jordan in every scene): the motion capture skit, Eli in drag, and Eli on trial using a series of increasingly embarrassing text messages as his defense in a murder trial were all pretty good. 

But it's his response to Eli's PSA that made me smile, mostly because I realized I could trot out shirtless pics of the bros.