Buses Are Cool

This morning was glorious. Dropped off the car at Mister Tire for the oil change. Jumped the 3A bus to Rosslyn. From there jumped the 38B to Farragut Square. This meant no time at all spent in the hot nasty underground. The nice thing about taking the bus is that you actually get to see Washington, and on my route, Georgetown. You don’t get to do much in the way of sightseeing underground. The other nice thing is that, for both buses, I had a seat.

Got to my office in good time and purchased a bowl of oatmeal, fresh fruit, and an ogret, and I don’t feel like I have that subway ooze on me. This may become the regular morning routine. It is much nicer than the subway, that is for sure.

Randamn Thots

John Lennon had this great ability, especially on Abbey Road, to make his arrangements sound like a gimp dragging a foot but in a lovely way. Was listening to Lenny Kravitz on the B.O.N.K. today and realized that Lenny at least stylistically understood this and how to make it sound like that. There’s even a drum fill in “I Built This Garden for Us” that sounds eerily familiar. I like Kravitz a lot. Though he, like a zillion other brothers won’t get their due like Mike Jackson. I’m especially thinking of Billy Preston, who was just…damn. They didn’t line up for miles when Billy died, but they should have.

I have always believed that Jackson angered the Muses by scarfing up the Beatles’ catalog, and that all of his misfortune can be attributed to their wrath upon him. At any time, had Jackson simply returned the catalog free of charge to Sir Paul, his boils would disappear, his wealth would return, his schnoz would grow back, and he would have a brand new family to boot.

I have also always believed that Jackson could have robustly rejuvenated his career had he simply given up the stage at age 35, followed in the footsteps of his mentor Q, and become a producer. Can you imagine what he could have accomplished with his money and his gravitas behind it?

Or, what if he’d made this move in concert with Hurricane Katrina?

He could have single-handedly created a brass-band RAGE across America. He could have had teenage girls across America throwing their panties at tuba players.

Dare to dream.

eMusic Discovery of the Month: Balkan Beat Box

Every month, I scan the eMusic, waiting to hear that one piece of music that makes me get up out of my chair and insist on downloading the entire damned album without sampling any piece of the rest. I never know when that discovery will come, but I always hope that it will because trying to find 30 new killer single tracks in a month is harder than you’d think.

This is, allegedly, going to improve in July. eMusic is saying it’s expanding its catalog. I do hope that means its indie selections won’t suffer. eMusic is the online equivalent of digging through the cutting bin hoping to find that obscure awesome treasure for $4.99, that ska comp you’re willing to gamble on or Mazarati, or whatever.

I have found lately a great affinity for some acts who are taking distinctively ethnic music and turning it out. There are the Celt rock bands like Flogging Molly and such, and then there’s Beirut, chillingly beautiful music, full horns, fully arranged, with lovely vocals by this Zach Condon kid. Here, go listen.

And let’s not even talk about Gogol Bordello. But of course, that’s what led me to Balkan Beat Box. Which is the one that forced me to download the entire album. Just listen to those chants and those horns, and what is 9/4 actually the time sig? Shit.