no longer relevant ...
I mostly listen to my iPod on the Metro and at the gym. On the short Metro ride, I generally listen to specific songs, but at the gym, I usually hit random and hope for the best.
About six months ago, I had over 2,500 songs loaded in my iPod and I found that this amount wasn’t conducive to my iPod’s health since all the skipping I was doing was killing the charge. I had to whittle down my selection for my battery’s well-being.
The first pass was easy; instrumentals from the soundtracks were the first to go and then the numerous comedy tracks from Chris Rock, Chappelle and Sedaris (how many times can you listen to them before they aren’t funny? – once, maybe twice, tops).
The hardest cut was next, but I had a plan. I started with the Dave Matthews Band since I had most of their albums loaded. By the by, it’ll be many years, maybe never, before I stop using the term album. And a second by the by, what is the deal with DMB re-re-re-releasing the same album year after year? Do we need another live version of Crash Into Me.
I decided to keep five songs from each album, but that still left me with too many. I decided to be more aggressive and got it down to the 40 songs I liked best, and after a third pass, I was able to get it down to 20 songs I loved best.
I applied the same criteria to all of the artists and was able to get the number of songs down to 1300. My iPod was lean and mean and my battery loved its extended life potential. Then something happened ... what was loaded started to sound stale. I wanted ... no ... needed new songs to replace the old ones.
The last album I actually purchased (I got many freebies when I worked for McBooks) was Green Day’s American Idiot, which is pure genius. The last album before that was ... I have no idea. I’m one of those people who refuse to pay $17 for an album containing only a couple of hits.
I asked my friends if I could borrow their CD collections in order to “rip” songs from them (huh-huh-huh ... he said rip). They mocked me for thinking that they even owned new CDs. They suggested I download the music I like from iTunes or Napster.
What I like ... that's easy ... what’s new ... clueless.
I used to listen to WFUV and WLIR (the old one at 92.7) religiously when I lived in NYCity during the 80s and 90s. I knew all the new artists, their album release dates, and even when they were playing in town. I gave up reading Rolling Stone because their news was old news by the time it hit the stands.
I’m not sure when it happened, but sometime, between 36 and 40, my relevancy switch was flipped off; probably due to the fact that I don’t listen to the radio (too many commercials) and I don’t watch MTV (also too many commercials). Nowadays, if I read Rolling Stone (loaded with way too many ads and subscription card droppings), I'm overwhelmed by the number of genres, artists, and new releases.
I gave iTunes a shot and was pleased to find several great songs that I have been playing non-stop during my commute and workouts. I stumbled across them in the essentials section, which is clearly designed for the no-longer-relevant trying to be relevant. I found most of what I downloaded in the radio stations section (there was even a list from WFUV).
This is my latest playlist that gets me through an hour’s workout:
Green Day – Jesus of SuburbiaAbout six months ago, I had over 2,500 songs loaded in my iPod and I found that this amount wasn’t conducive to my iPod’s health since all the skipping I was doing was killing the charge. I had to whittle down my selection for my battery’s well-being.
The first pass was easy; instrumentals from the soundtracks were the first to go and then the numerous comedy tracks from Chris Rock, Chappelle and Sedaris (how many times can you listen to them before they aren’t funny? – once, maybe twice, tops).
The hardest cut was next, but I had a plan. I started with the Dave Matthews Band since I had most of their albums loaded. By the by, it’ll be many years, maybe never, before I stop using the term album. And a second by the by, what is the deal with DMB re-re-re-releasing the same album year after year? Do we need another live version of Crash Into Me.
I decided to keep five songs from each album, but that still left me with too many. I decided to be more aggressive and got it down to the 40 songs I liked best, and after a third pass, I was able to get it down to 20 songs I loved best.
I applied the same criteria to all of the artists and was able to get the number of songs down to 1300. My iPod was lean and mean and my battery loved its extended life potential. Then something happened ... what was loaded started to sound stale. I wanted ... no ... needed new songs to replace the old ones.
The last album I actually purchased (I got many freebies when I worked for McBooks) was Green Day’s American Idiot, which is pure genius. The last album before that was ... I have no idea. I’m one of those people who refuse to pay $17 for an album containing only a couple of hits.
I asked my friends if I could borrow their CD collections in order to “rip” songs from them (huh-huh-huh ... he said rip). They mocked me for thinking that they even owned new CDs. They suggested I download the music I like from iTunes or Napster.
What I like ... that's easy ... what’s new ... clueless.
I used to listen to WFUV and WLIR (the old one at 92.7) religiously when I lived in NYCity during the 80s and 90s. I knew all the new artists, their album release dates, and even when they were playing in town. I gave up reading Rolling Stone because their news was old news by the time it hit the stands.
I’m not sure when it happened, but sometime, between 36 and 40, my relevancy switch was flipped off; probably due to the fact that I don’t listen to the radio (too many commercials) and I don’t watch MTV (also too many commercials). Nowadays, if I read Rolling Stone (loaded with way too many ads and subscription card droppings), I'm overwhelmed by the number of genres, artists, and new releases.
I gave iTunes a shot and was pleased to find several great songs that I have been playing non-stop during my commute and workouts. I stumbled across them in the essentials section, which is clearly designed for the no-longer-relevant trying to be relevant. I found most of what I downloaded in the radio stations section (there was even a list from WFUV).
This is my latest playlist that gets me through an hour’s workout:
(9 minute roller coaster ride)
Queens of the Stone Age – No One Knows
The Killers – Somebody Told Me
Postal Service – Such Great Heights
Caesars – Jerk It Out
Franz Ferdinand – Take Me Out
Weezer – Hash Pipe
Fountains of Wayne - Stacy’s Mom
Simple Plan – Welcome to My Life
Jimmy Eat World – The Middle
Scissor Sisters – Take Your Mama
Kelly Clarkson – Since U Been Gone
U2 – Vertigo
I’m open to other suggestions. I likes ... rock (or is it now officially called alternative?), dance (as long as it’s a remix with vocals), standards (Buble, Cincotti, Midler, but not Stewart), latin (especially salsa, merengue and some pop), and world (these make the best dance mixes).
If you like what I’m listening to and you have the time, email me a list what you’re listening to (addy at the bottom).
1 comment:
nice blog :)
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