my careless contagion

Nothing fascinated me musically as much as the band Bad Religion. I used to spend so much time researching the band and its members, even talking to Jay Bentley on internet relay chat (IRC), #badreligion on undernet. The fascination really took hold when I was in college. I was bored, technologically inclined, and a wee bit malcontent.  No band is as misunderstood as Bad Religion, and some fans like it that way. It's a barrier to the band becoming massively popular (they are more popular outside the U.S.), but it also makes you feel like you're in on the joke. Others don't understand. That's the reason hardcore and punk rock were important to a lot of people. It was a way of excluding those who excluded them from society. When our bands became too popular (a subjective thought if there ever was), we called them poseurs and fled to other, lesser-known bands. Gotta keep it real. But I was always into Bad Religion and remained a fan (even though I didn't share their po...

I sat on the floor of the top-floor apartment in Bowling Green, Ohio, I shared with my then-girlfriend and listened to this song, poring over the lyrics and staying quiet the entire 8-plus minutes, wanting only to hear the music and whatever it meant. (At the time, this song was barely more than 10 years old, as it came out in 1989.) I was drunk, but not too drunk to appreciate the sentiment. "That's a beautiful song," I said when it was over, seemingly to no one, but Mike, my then-girlfriend's friend who slept that night on the couch, heard. (I never did ask if he and her had a relationship in the past. Some things were better off not known.) And he agreed like it was always so. Yet I had just discovered it. Music no longer holds that sort of meaning for me. I'm all angst-ed out. You can say the same about pictures. I don't fetishize them either. Maybe working with photos for 7.5 years as a graphic artist and much longer as amateur photographer weaned me off ...

Now for some real music! Haha, okay, what is a guy who grew up on hardcore posting a euro-dance hit from the 90s? Because it's awesome!  (The kids say it slaps.) I would flip back and forth on the radio between alternative and dance in the 90s. A lot of kids were into one or the other, but I craved all of it. I love music, and this song is still a favorite. It may not be the best Real McCoy had to offer, but we all heard this back in the day and danced a little in our econobox cars on our way to the future. And here we are in the future. Some of us still remember what life was like back then. Are we where we thought we'd be all these years later?  Honestly, I didn't think I'd make it this far. Thought I would be dead. No joke. Having the opinion of a foreshortened future is a symptom of PTSD gained from childhood trauma/abuse, which I endured. Common with everyone who endured longterm trauma. So, I can't complain. Pay stubs and bandaids. Paying bills and doing dishe...

Lewis Capaldi released this song in 2019. He is afflicted by Tourette Syndrome, when a person's body has uncontrollable tics. I remember a customer at a job I worked was very nice but then he'd devolve into tics, including flipping the bird repeatedly. And then he'd be kind again. Anyway, if you look up live performances of this song, you'll see Lewis struggle to sing, then the audience sings it for him. It's rather touching, but also sad because the poor man can't even sing his own song.  Sadness should be what you feel when you hear this. That's the odd thing for me. Given my past and inability to find love (even though it was probably right in front of me), I should be overcome with some sort of emotion. I'm not. I am completely unaffected by this song, its sentiment, lyrics, music, etc. It's a well-crafted song, though I feel nothing. Perhaps the fact that it says, "used to being someone you loved" instead of something like "someon...

Holiday Road is synonymous with the National Lampoon movies, as it was was created for the original film's soundtrack and ended up on the rest. I recall watching the original couple movies as a kid. They were a bit raunchy, but I'm sure some of that was edited out, as we watched on network TV. I wouldn't let my kid watch them today. How times change.  No one cared what we did back then. Maybe should just speak for myself. Did anyone even know what we were doing? Generation X is sort of the lost generation, sons and daughters of Baby Boomers who were busy enjoying their lives and ignoring the fact they had kids. I was a latch-key kid, independent and resourceful. As I got older, I realized I missed out on a lot by being raised that way. How would I have turned out had I had a loving, tight family instead of being raised by wolves?  It's not that my family didn't love me, it's just that they erased that love with their harsh words and behavior. I am a strong perso...

Hang on. This may be a rambling, sprawling, insipid post. I'm sick and about to dig into some Theraflu. Normally, I don't stay sick for long and bounce back quickly, but whatever this is took hold and continues to waste me week after week. I need someone to take care of me. So, this post may not make a whole lot of sense. Or it may be brilliant and you will give a standing ovation! Insert wacky emoji here. Regardless, I plan on feeling good momentarily. Got my heater on my feet. Got myself looking out a window at the sunshine. Let's go. I say I'm sick, but I'm not laid up in bed. I'm quite well enough to do everything I need to do and many things I want to do. But it's also clear it's gone on too long and avenues to fix it elude me. It may have a psychological basis, but I also can't figure that out. So I gave the situation to God. I'll be fine.  Thunderclouds is not a new song, but it is fairly recent. LSD is considered a supergroup of talented,...

Before I begin, let it be known I was into Creedence Clearwater Revival before I saw The Big Lebowski. Anyone who saw that movie knows The Dude loves CCR. With that out of the way, let us begin.  I love John Fogerty's voice. It was a perfect fit for its time, and it still resonates. The songs are actual songs, and not the nonsense on popular radio now. This is beyond oldies (people are calling music from the 2000s oldies now). There is a deep humanity in this music. Okay, so this song came out in 1971, so why does it have a video? No such thing was done at that time. Certainly not by CCR. This is something my mom would have listened to, so why am I discussing it? I read a bit about the meaning of this song from Wikipedia and it struck me how some people aren't happy with everything they've worked for, even if it surpasses their wildest dreams and expectations. It makes no sense, and it brings to mind passages from Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Anyway, here is what it said.  ...

Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley is forever ensconced in pop-culture for a number of reasons. It's a simp anthem.  It's infinitely meme-able . It's white people acting white. It's catchy. It's relatable. It's some impressively well-styled ginger hair. And the song is impossible to hate!  Go ahead and watch! The manly voice and boyish face are a cartoonish mismatch. This song came out in 1987 (Rick was 21), but it remains a part of popular culture. Kids today would probably pronounce it "cringe," but that's okay. There is a difference between good cringe and bad cringe. This is good cringe. Feel free to indulge. My favorite part of the video is the barkeeper. He really enjoys it when the goofy, white folks are getting down and can't help but show off.  This song is basically an auditory version of this blog. Pause and consider the lyrics. Haven't I said all of those things a million times? Is this blog good cringe or bad cringe? Admitt...