Flight of the Conchords - "Sugar Lumps"

OMG - this is my new favorite song! I heart Bret and Jemaine! And the best part is that you can buy this song on iTunes! Hooray!

Posted via email from bigepaz is eileen

The Presidents by Jonathan Coulton

Do you know all the U.S. Presidents -- in order?

Jonathan Coulton's original version is slightly edited to reflect the recent election - yay! Thought this was appropriate to post since inauguration day is just around the corner.

It's funny, I remember right before the holidays a few of us at Revision3 tried to name all the Presidents. We put the names up on the white board in the conference room, and with maybe 6 of us trying we got 70% of the names. We certainly didn't get every president in order.


The Presidents from Eileen on Vimeo.

This was recorded last night at the Great American Music Hall, and while it was the second take it was a good one. Enjoy!

Posted via email from bigepaz is eileen

The Beast is back and why I watch It

You love it, or you hate it. But let's face it. the Beast is back! Randy, Paula, Simon, Ryan and new judge Kara. I'm talking of course, American Idol.

Me? I love it. I love a good competition, especially a good karaoke competition. Most of all, it's another avenue for me to devour music.

I believe this show is my greatest guilty pleasure and I feel like I'm admitting a drug addiction. I've watched every year since Miss Kelly Clarkson took the crown. I vote by text for my favorite singers. I read fan blogs. I know, I am an insane freak.

What can I say, I'm one of those suckers who sings in the car, sometimes in the shower, sometimes in one of my rooms with headphones cranked up on high. I'm not any good, but music moves me to burst out in song once in a while.

Seriously, who doesn't at one point in their life want to be a musician? My idol growing up was Olivia Newton-John. You have no idea how many times I've watched Xanadu. I wanted to be in an all-girl band like the Go'Go's or the Bangles. I secretly wanted hair like Suzanne Hoffs, but wanted to rock out on the guitar like Jane Wiedlin. Yeah, that was a fantasy of mine, but the kids on this show might actually *be* the next Olivia Newton-John or rock out in a band like the Go-Go's

When I go to Karaoke, I scream with glee when I hear someone interpret "Call Me" with the same tone as Deborah Harry. I drop my jaw when I hear someone sound like Robert Plant. And yes, I have been known to grab the mic myself to sing with subtle applause shortly after my song ends.

I'm sensing you are starting to understand why I love this show.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

This year we were introduced to the newest judge, songwriter Kara DioGuardi. She's penned tunes for Idols like Kelly Clarkson, David Cook, and Carrie Underwood. In my opinion, she's a welcome addition to a show that seems to have run its course. Her challenge to "Bikini Girl" is probably the water cooler talk of the day. Listen closely. Oh yeah, she did call that girl a bitch.

Feel free to hate on the industry that manufactures pop stars and chews them out as soon as they no longer sell copies of J-14 or Seventeen. Plus, the show is cheesy. Come on, Neil Diamond and Andrew Lloyd Webber theme nights? Honestly, it funny to watch the kids on the show struggle and admit they have never heard a Beatles song, till they were forced to sing one. Still, more power to you if you can walk away and not watch a single episode.

Seriously, there are a lot of things wrong about the show. I don't disagree that there are phony moments, and the title is rather smug. For some, it perpetuates celebrity worship when there are firefighters, doctors, and teachers that deserve more attention.

So why bother?

Still, within the beast of the show are real stories, and real people, just trying to make something of themselves, doing something that they love - singing and playing music. Sometimes I envy that, although I would never want to subject you to my version of "Eye of the Tiger" -- even though that happened on New Years Eve as I sang lead while playing Rock Band.

Yeah, there's the "Bikini Girl" looking for attention, but then there's a family man, trying to change his life and stop working on a dangerous an oil rig.

Yeah, there are enough tone deaf singers that could shatter the Sistine Chapel while auditioning. Still, there's always that one singer who sings from the heart. Watch at the end when Seacrest tries to give him a high-five. Classic.

And yeah, even I'm tired of the same "Paula vs. Simon" and is "Paula drinking again" shtick, but there's always the singers who break out from their own comfort zone. Do I believe she didn't tell her bandmates about auditioning? Hmmm, I'm not so sure, but I still think she's got a good voice.

(I would have embedded videos, but Fox is super anal about content on YouTube. Lame.)

I'm about to break out the sap here, but those are the stories and singers I watch out for. They may not win American Idol, and maybe they are better off not winning. But they are the people that I root for, people that I want to see succeed. That's why I bother watching this beast of a show. And dammit, it's entertaining!

Pop Music (Pick of the week) - Top 25 songs of 2008 Mashup

I don't know about you, but I kinda like this. What got me was the video. Crazy town!

Happy New Year!

Here's the Top 25 songs according to Billboard:

Flo Rida Featuring T-Pain - Low
Leona Lewis - Bleeding Love
Alicia Keys - No One
Lil Wayne Featuring Static Major - Lollipop
Timbaland Featuring OneRepublic - Apologize
Jordin Sparks Duet With Chris Brown - No Air
Sara Bareilles - Love Song
Usher Featuring Young Jeezy - Love in This Club
Chris Brown - With You
Chris Brown - Forever
Ray J & Yung Berg - Sexy Can I
Rihanna - Take a Bow
Coldplay - Viva La Vida
Katy Perry - I Kissed a Girl
T.I. - Whatever You Like
Rihanna - Disturbia
Rihanna - Don't Stop the Music
Natasha Bedingfield - Pocketful of Sunshine
Chris Brown Featuring T-Pain - Kiss Kiss
Ne-Yo - Closer
Colbie Caillat - Bubbly
Mariah Carey - Touch My Body
Madonna Featuring Justin Timberlake - 4 Minutes
Pink - So What
Finger Eleven - Paralyzer

Pop Music Thursdays - Meiko

This week I thought I'd look back at my favorite new artist of 2008 -- Meiko.

I first stumbled upon Meiko, back in January, through one of my all-time favorite music discovery sites: The Sixty One. She even wrote a message on my wall when I complimented her - sweet! Ok, maybe she only wrote "Thanks", but at least she took the time to respond .

"Reasons to Love You" and "How Lucky We Are" and "Boys with Girlfriends" are probably her most popular songs. But I also really love "Sleep".

Meiko - Meiko

She's an emotional singer and that's probably the biggest draw for me. While she's singing about heartache and pain, I find some calmness when I listen to her music. My only regret is that I missed her at the Great American Music Hall, TWICE this year.

I'm curious to see where her career goes. There are a TON of female singer-songwriters in the music industry these days, but I really think she stands out in the crowd.