Next 5

In my several months of blogging, I can't believe I haven't done a next 5 post. These are pretty common, but I am going to put myself out there a bit and give a glimpse into my weird taste in music. I will list the next 5 songs on my iPod and explain why they are there.

"Breaking My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)" by Mint Condition - This is probably one of my favorite songs of all time. Great mid-tempo song, very clean-sounding, and it builds up as the song goes on. You can almost hear the increasing frustration in Stokely Williams' voice as the song goes on. I think we've all been where he was in that song.

"Campus" by Vampire Weekend - A friend from work introduced me to this band, and I got into them right away. I would have been quicker to get into them, but I haven't been listening to The Current like a good boy this year. Campus is not my favorite song on the album (that would be "A-Punk"), but it's a pretty good song. Another song of lament....

"Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns" by Mother Love Bone - This song is off the Singles soundtrack, which is one of my all-time favorite soundtracks. This song is the best song on the album ("Birth Ritual" by Soundgarden being a close 2nd). My favorite line: "I used to treat you like a lady, now you're a substitute teacher." The soundtrack version is better than the version on Mother Love Bone's albums, and it's because of the combination of these two songs and a great fade-out at the end. Spoken like a true music snob, I know. Andrew Wood is still missed....

"Solsbury Hill" by Peter Gabriel - This is essentially a Dear John letter to Genesis written after Gabriel left the group. The funny thing is, both Gabriel and Genesis had much more commercial success separate than together. When I was unhappy in my job a few years ago, this song popped into my head a lot.

"Around the World" by Daft Punk - Not a lot of lyrics in this one. This song has a time and place attachment for me. It came out in 1998, just as I was planning my triumphant return to Minnesota. I would listen to Daft Punk on my frequent bus trips between Appleton and the Cities. Actually, a lot of things were happening in my life in 1998. I won't get into all that here, but it's always fascinating how we have our own soundtracks.

So there you go. I want to do these every once in awhile...I would also love to have people chime in with their next 5, whether or not they have an iPod.