I am terribly sorry for the complete lack of substantial posting today. I’ve no excuse; the explanation is that, between the current grotesquerie that is Chicago spring weather and the amount of work involved at my “actual” “job,” I just didn’t feel like it. Today was a “fuck the world” sort of day.
Thus, today’s FRT will be scored according to how closely each song hews to the ideal of fucking the world.
1. “Two-Timing Touch and Broken Bones,” The Hives, 2004. All neo-punk is more or less world-fucking, right? I have no idea what the lyrics to this song even are. 5/10
2. “13 Months in 6 Minutes,” The Wrens, 2003. My favorite song from The Meadowlands, one of the key indie albums of the 00’s. And it’s pretty damn disengaged: the narrator clearly gave up on life a while ago. 9/10
3. “Rock-A-Bye Baby,” Big Mama Thornton, 1952. One of the great rarities in music: a happy blues song. A good one, to be sure, but again: Blues. Happy. 2/10
4. “Child Star,” The Unicorns, 2003. This song makes no sense to me and never really has. The word “hate” is used several times. 6/10
5. “Truckin’,” The Grateful Dead, 1970. I don’t believe it…I have to give it 0/10, because this song kind of encapsulates the opposite of fucking the world. Depending on our definition of “fuck.”
6. “Tattoo,” The Who, 1967. A pretty bleak song about kids getting being idiots. Works for me. 8/10
7. “Salvation,” Elton John, 1972. Look at the title; look at the artist. God damn you, sir. 1/10
8. “Awaiting on the Wall,” George Harrison, 1970. An optimistic little ditty about loving everyone from the Spiritual Beatle. But he’s not Elton John, and that counts. 2/10
9. “Faithless Love,” Linda Ronstadt, 1974. She does “sad song about abandoned lover” as well as anyone from the seventies…either you like her voice or not. It’s a bit pretty to fuck the world. 6/10
10. “Shepherd Moons,” Enya, 1992. Yes, I own Enya, fuck you very much. And what says fuck the world more than cod-celtic folk? 10/10
Total: 4.9/10. iTunes likes life a lot more than I do at the moment.
Bonus: “Upon this Tidal Wave of Young Blood,” Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, 2005.
Special Super Bonus: Today I received something very special in the mail…let’s just say that I have a very long-threatened anticipated follow-up coming soon.