Workout Music for you New Year's Resolutions

Yes, the comic was the first thing that popped up when I googled "workout." I recently joined the gym, and I know that with New Year's coming and resolutions in the air, many of you may not be far behind me. Music really helps keep me going through my workout, so I thought I would post this workout mix.

Freak Of Nature [mp3] - Anastacia - "Freak of Nature" (iTunes) - Start out with this slower, sexy song to get yourself warmed up. It's a good tempo for doing crunches or starting off slow.

Ghosts [mp3] - Ladytron - "Ghosts (Single)" (iTunes)

12345678 [mp3] - The Hard Lessons - "B&G Sides Vol. 3" (iTunes) - A song that makes you want to yell along with it (and which you can, instead, use to channel that energy into your workout).

Love Shack [mp3] - The B-52s - "Cosmic Thing" (iTunes) - A classic to energize you as you speed up your work out and get your heart pumping.

Jique [mp3] - Brazilian Girls - "Talk To La Bomb" (iTunes) - A sexy song to remind you of your sexy results as you continue to increase your work out intensity.

Worked Up So Sexual [mp3] - The Faint - "Blank Wave Arcade" (iTunes) - You are now reaching the peak of your work out, so the next few songs are super fast-paced and full of energy.

Dancing With Myself [mp3] - Billy Idol - "Billy Idol's Greatest Hits" (iTunes) - This is one of the best work out songs ever (and best dance songs ever).

Deceptacon [mp3] - Le Tigre - "Le Tigre" (iTunes) Just doing the dance in this music video is a really great workout (albeit a short one).

10 Dollar [mp3] - MIA - "Arular" (iTunes) - Basically any MIA song just about would work here, but we're going to start slowing it down a tiny bit as you prepare for cool down, while still keeping it fun and upbeat.

That Great Love Sound [mp3] - The Raveonettes - "Chain Gang Of Love" (iTunes)

Ghost Under Rocks [mp3] - Ra Ra Riot - "The Rhumb Line" (iTunes) - This one slows it down a little more and has some drama to push you through to the end of your work out as you start to get tired.

I Am In Love With You [mp3] - Imogen Heap - "Speak For Yourself" (iTunes) - Slower still, but with some attitude and a dash of sultriness.

Spoon [mp3] - Spoon - "Gimme Fiction" (iTunes) - And a slower but bouncy fun finale to a work out well done.

Sleepy Songs on a Sunday

Ok, Lisa, this one's for you - I'm not doing it as a Theme Thursday since I already did "dreams" as a theme, but my twin Lisa requested I post some good sleepy songs. But so, keep leaving me suggestions for Theme Thursday!Sleepyhead [mp3] - Anni Rossi - from a Perpich music concert in 2002/2003 (iTunes unavailable). I don't actually know if that was the title of the song, but that's what I named it. This one maybe isn't actually the best for nodding off to because the piano gets a little intense - I can see the dissonance and minors causing nightmares, or just waking you back up - but maybe listen to it earlier in the playlist and it will get you set up for listening to the more lullaby-like songs later. Oh and set your iTunes to cut off the song before the clapping starts since it's a live performance.

Rubber & Soul [mp3] - Ane Brun featuring Teitur - "Duets" (iTunes). This song is so simple, just her sweet voice and a guitar. It's both exquisite and melancholy.

Sleep [mp3] - The Dandy Warhols - "Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia" (iTunes). I posted this song a long time ago in my post about The Dandy Warhols, but it is seriously the best sleepy song ever. It's so pretty and calm and steady. I used to listen to it almost every night before I went to sleep. I still do sometimes. The Dandy Warhols are a really good sleepy song band. They have a lot of songs that are basically just them jamming that are really slow and constant (they have a lot of great upbeat songs too though, don't get me wrong). But this one is the best and the prettiest.

Cape Canaveral [mp3] - Astronaut Wife - "Flying Saucer" (iTunes). This song is not necessarily slow, but it relaxes me. It's a perfect song for driving on a sunny day with the windows down. Or for laying in bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking. It's also a little melancholy I suppose. I love the instruments and sounds they use. And Lisa - I think I've played this song for you once a long time ago because I know I always thought it would be a neat song for you and I to sing together.

Sleep [mp3] - Imogen Heap - "i Megapone" (iTunes). Another song I used to listen to before I went to sleep a lot. So calm and slow.

Fault Line [mp3] - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - "Howl" (iTunes). Normally, I like BRMC because of their upbeat rock music and I tend not to like their slower songs, but this song is really pretty. Another simple song. Simplicity works really well sometimes.

Hope everyone has had/continues having a great weekend! I'm off to McCarren Park Pool to see The Thermals, Birds of Avalon, and Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, which will most likely not be a sleepy experience (at least I hope not). And maybe Junior Senior after that? I kind of doubt it though because I work tomorrow morning. And it will be my first week working full time since May. So I should be well rested. Either way though I have a long day of concerts ahead of me. Tata dahlings.

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Theme song of the moment

Two posts in one day?! Or actually, technically it's Wednesday. Sweet. Who knows. Maybe I'll post again tomorrow (today) after I've slept.

So, this song came on my iPod on shuffle and I realized that (for the moment) it is my theme song - meaning it pretty much describes the way I feel about all aspects of my life right now - so I had to post it right now or it was going to haunt me. I've always loved this song, but I hadn't listened to it in a while, so I hadn't thought of it until it came on by chance. It makes me feel better when I have a song that fits my feelings/mood perfectly. I know I've already posted two Imogen Heap songs, but I guess her music just speaks to me. This song really is beautiful though. I would say "stormy" is an appropriate word for it.

The Walk by Imogen Heap, from her album "Speak for Yourself" (I seem to like this album more than her others apparently, though I love them all):

Inside-out, upside-down,
Twisting beside myself.
Stop that now,
'Cause you and I were never meant to be.
I think you'd better leave.
It's not safe in here.
I feel a weakness coming on.

Alright then, (alright then.)
I could keep your number for a rainy day.
That's where this ends.
No mistakes no misbehaving.
I was doing so well.
Could we just be friends?
I feel a weakness coming on.

It's not meant to be like this.
Not what I planned at all.
I don't want to feel like this. Yeah.
No it's not meant to be like this.
Not what I planned at all.
I don't want to feel like this.
So that makes it all your fault.

Inside-out, upside-down,
Twisting beside myself.
Stop that now.
You're as close as it gets
Without touching me.
Oh now don't make it harder
Than it already is.
I feel a weakness coming on.

It's not meant to be like this.
Not what I planned at all.
I don't want to feel like this. Yeah.
No it's not meant to be like this.
Not what I planned at all.
I don't want to feel like this.
So that makes it all your fault.

Big trouble, losing control.
Primary resistance at a critical low.
on the double, gotta get a hold.
Point of no return, one second to go.

No response on any level,
Red-alert, this vessel's under seige.
Total overload, all systems down, they've got control.
There's no way out.
We are surrounded.
Give in, give in and relish every minute of it.

Freeze or make it forever.
I feel a weakness coming on.

It’s not meant to be like this,
Not what I planned at all.
I don’t want to feel like this. Yeah.
No it’s not meant to be like this,
It's just what I don't need.
Why make me feel like this?
It's definitely all your fault.

The Walk (mp3) - Imogen Heap ("Speak for Yourself") - iTunes

These boots are made for walkin'

On Saturday morning, around 9:30am, I went for a very lovely stroll to the grocery store (which is not close by the way). The sun was shining, it was relatively cool still, and the streets were quiet. As usual, I was listening to my iPod. The song My Moon, My Man by Feist, from her album "The Reminder," (iTunes) came on. Turns out, this is the perfect "going for a walk" song. The tempo is just right so that I walk briskly but without too much effort. I listened to the song a few times over to keep my perfect pace going. If there was no one else on the street I was on, I even sang along. Then I decided to look for other good walking songs. Here are 10 songs (in no particular order) that I think are great walking songs.

Consider This, by Anna Nalick, from her album "Wreck of the Day" (iTunes). Not quite as perfect as the Feist song, but still good. Plus it's beat is kind of funky/jazzy so it puts a little dance in my step.

Le Disko by Shiny Toy Guns, from the album "We Are Pilots" (iTunes) makes you feel like you're walking down a run way. It's a very sexy rock song. It makes you want to stop and pose for the cameras. Luckily, I resisted this urge and kept the fact that I was walking down the streets of Brooklyn in mind.

I am in Love with You by Imogen Heap, from her album "Speak For Yourself" (iTunes) is another sexy walking song. Maybe a little bit slow, but if you're in the mood for a more leisurely walk then that's fine.

Mayan Pilot by Splashdown, from the album "Redshift" (iTunes unavailable). Another kind of jazzy/funky song, it's hard for me to walk to this song without singing along and grooving. When I worked at the Gap years ago, they played this song and it was one of the only ones they played that I didn't get horribly sick of after hearing the same 20 songs looped over and over and over. Although, I must admit, that first half of the summer, they had a pretty good compilation CD going. I had never heard of any of the songs they played, so it actually did take me a while to get sick of them. Other artists I discovered from this compilation include The Magnetic Fields and Elefant (both of whom I started hearing a lot of like 2 years later, so props to The Gap for being ahead of the times with the music).

Beware of the Dog by british pop artist Jamelia from her album "Walk With Me" (iTunes unavailable), which is along the same vein of Rihanna's "SOS." Jamelia samples the music of "Personal Jesus" by Depeche Mode (and covered by greats like Johnny Cash, Marilyn Manson and Tori Amos among others) but then takes the song and basically completely re-writes it and makes it her own. I really like this whole re-invention of 80s songs trend. It's sexy but still has rock flavor, and I am not sure I could take one more straight cover of "Personal Jesus."

And now for some male influence (although there are men in Shiny Toy Guns), Spread Your Love by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, from their self-titled album (iTunes). There's a reason they're called BRMC. This song definitely makes me want to ride a motorcycle. But since I don't have a motorcycle, it's a great song to take a walk to.

Then we have Unconditional by The Bravery, also from their self-titled album (iTunes). The lyrics in this song ring a little too true to me sometimes though, so if I'm not in a really good mood this song can be detrimental to my emotional state. Still a great song with a great beat nonetheless.

Pretty much any song by Teddybears, but I particularly like Different Sound (iTunes) or Little Stereo (iTunes), from their album "Soft Machine" and I think they have great rhythm for walking. The other great thing about Teddybears is that all their songs sound so different so you can listen to their whole album on a walk and feel like you were listening to all different genres of music. The only thing all their songs really have in common is a great upbeat rhythm.

This is song #11, but it's a song I have already posted and I posted two songs by Teddybears, so I'm not counting it: Get Off by The Dandy Warhols, from their album "Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia" (iTunes). This song is so... bouncy. I don't know if that makes any sense to anyone but me, but that's just the word that comes to my mind when I hear this song. It makes me bob my head up and down and puts a little bounce in my step. Bouncy. I don't mean it in a negative way. This is one of my favorite songs of all time.

Man, there are so many more that I want to post... But I will stop here. Enjoy. Stay out of the rain. Tata dahlings.

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One of those days

It's been "one of those days," so bear with me if my post is even more incoherent than usual. Since I'm too tired to think of an organized theme for the day or one particular artist I really want to highlight, I think I will just post some random songs that I really like at the moment in no particular order. Again, I'm at work so I won't be able to check if these links work until later. My apologies if they don't.

First is The Moment I Said It by Imogen Heap. I know she's become quite the sensation, particularly her song Hide and Seek, but I feel like The Moment I Said It hasn't gotten any acknowledgment (as evidenced by the fact that I couldn't find it anywhere on the internet) and it is my favorite of all of her work (though I must admit I like most of her stuff a great deal) and one of my favorite songs of all time. This song is really dark but so beautiful. About saying things you regret and fighting with you loved one, it's really chilling - especially the part where she kind of re-enacts a fight musically.

Second is Stuck to You by Hellogoodbye. This song is sexy and danceable. While a lot of their music is danceable because they tend to have kind of an electroinca/techno-y sound, this song is not techno-y at all, which is nice. It's actually a pretty decent rock-n-roll song (or as I like to call it, dance rock). And like I said, it's sexy - a quality which their more techno-y songs lack.

Third is Girl Anachronism by The Dresden Dolls. This is another favorite of all time. From their self-titled 2003 album, one of my favorite albums of all time too, this song is a piano frenzy. Amanda Palmer (the singer and piano player) is a genuis. Her piano playing is always so complex it sounds like there's a full orchestra or something. You forget that the band is only piano, vocals and drums (my three favorite instruments). I played piano for 12 years when I was younger, so I love songs with complex piano parts. It is one of my goals to start playing the piano again and learn this song. I bought their piano book, and it is the best song book I've ever bought. It is actually what she plays (as opposed to other piano books which simplify the piano parts a lot for the mainstream) and there is tons of cool extra stuff in it too. Plus there are funny notations on the music about how to play it or the history behind a certain part. I also tend to love songs that require singing/speaking really quickly, so I am definitely predisposed to like this song. But I think it's really very fun and I love the part where the whole song slows down ("just let her crash and burn, she'll learn") and then just kind of stops for a moment and she speaks "the attention just encourages her" in such a perfect, condescending tone.

Ok, I guess that's all for today kids. Sorry for any incoherence. I wanted to post something. I'm trying to post every day. Plus I'm just sitting here at work anyway, so I might as well post something even if it's slightly incoherent. Tata dahlings.