Wednesday, May 21, 2008

These Hard Times

I don't often write about politics or the state of our Union, but with things going the way they are in this country, it's hard to sit by and say nothing. I just heard on The Nightly News that many professionals in the energy and oil business strongly believe that gas prices will hit $6 a gallon, at least, by the end of this summer. That is ridiculous.

Because of the rise in oil prices, American Airlines has decided to charge for any checked baggage, a service that has always been free. People will no longer be able to travel period if this continues. It's only a matter of time before bus, train and metro prices rise to level of airfare.

Truckers are using cocaine and speed to stay awake so that they can make more deliveries because the gas prices are so bad. So now when we are driving to work (which we soon will not be able to afford) we are at risk of getting killed by a coked-out truck driver trying to deliver cases of oil to Jiffy Lube, whose Signature Service will most likey soon rise to $400 every three months.

All of this while companies like Exxon-Mobile and BP report record profits in the tens of billions! BILLIONS! Yet, Americans can't not buy gas. Even if we take public transportation, it takes gasoline to get a bus or train moving. No one is proposing a viable alternative to oil as an energy source. Why? Because oil makes people ridiculously rich and as long as those people are rich, they will have power...power to keep things running exactly the way they have been and will be for years to come. We need to find a better way to do things before we're all forced to give up entertainment, Christmas, cell phones, general hygiene products, food and Nintendo Wii. If we don't, we are all going to die of ragey-rabies sooner than we think!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Mid-Year Music Checkup

Wow...this has got to be the most unoriginal blog post title to date. Anyhow, 2008 is almost halfway over so I thought it would be a good idea to check in on what's rocked my lobes so far this year. With most of my money going towards gas these days ("Don't get me started, don't even get me started"), I haven't had the chance to buy a lot of music this year. Luckily, Coldplay came to the rescue by giving their first single, Violet Hill, away for free. This brings me to my top pick of the year so far...

1) Coldplay! - I love this band, and from the sounds of the two songs I've heard so far, all of America is going to fall in love with them too (if they haven't already) with the release of their fourth studio album, Viva La Vida. Strings?? Church Bells??? Synthesizers???? Awesome!

2) Gavin Degraw - Not sure about the self-titled album title, but the material on his sophomore effort is rock solid. In Love with a Girl is as hooky, yet lyrically sound as ever, but the hidden gem on this record is Let It Go.

3) I'm Yours by Jason Mraz - If you bought Mraz's second album on iTunes in 2005, you likely know this song. It was included as a bonus track and among the better songs on the entire album. Remixed and with a more upbeat tempo, it's now the lead single on his third album We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things. Somehow the lyrics are more fitting now then they were when the song was originally released.

4) Sheryl Crow - I've blogged enough about Sheryl this year, but this album is definitely worth purchasing. Some of you may be shocked that she only lands at #4 on this list. To be honest, I've stopped listening to the CD and it's only been three months! I think I listened to it way too much the first month and needed a serious Sheryl break. I promise I'll start listening again soon. If you don't feel like buying the entire album, at least purchase Diamond Ring and Make It Go Away (Radiation Song), songs that will never reach radio but are definitely worth your hard earned 99 cents.

5) Singles - I'm digging Take A Bow (Rihanna), Sweet & Low (Augustana), Nine in the Afternoon (Panic at the Disco), Falling Slowly (Oscar winners Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova), Stop & Stare (One Republic), Realize (Colbie Caillat), Trying to Stop Your Leaving (Dierks Bentley), Laughed Until We Cried (Jason Aldean), Say (John Mayer), How Far We've Come (Matchbox Twenty).

Things I'm over:

1) Madonna and Mariah. Stop making music, please.

2) The word Shawty (Shorty, Shortie, etc.) in every freaking song! Having that word in your song does not make your song good. Stop using it. Immediately.

3) Taylor Swift. Such a dilemma here - she's a talented songwriter and pretty hot, but has anyone else noticed that she can't sing? Isn't that a problem for a professional singer?

4) Sara Bareilles' Love Song - She's awesome and the song is great, but that doesn't mean it needs to be used in every commercial, movie soundtrack, Valentine's Day highlight package, etc. The song is over. Move on, please.

5) British People besides Coldplay - Corrine Bailey Rae came along and sounded cool. Then Lily Allen, who wanted to be the opposite of CBR, came onto the scene. Then Trainwreck Winehouse won a whole bunch of Grammy's. Now there's Duffy and Adele. They are all the same person and all fighting to sound cool with a throwback sound. Newsflash - you all sound the same, which makes you uncool. How about some originality?

That's it for my half-year roundup. Feel free to leave me some comments and tell me what you are listening too.