yeah, i still write songs. i just haven't been very inspired this quarter. that said, i'd like to present you with wolf 359 song #20, a little number i just finished entitled "instrumentally yours." try to guess the lyrical subject matter; i think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

i'm a pretty quick learner, usually. i take no small modicum of pride in my ability to not screw up in quite the same way twice (at least not in the same year). so i think i can safely say that this school year's take-home message, the one lesson that'll stay with me longer than the endless lectures and group projects, is 'don't hit on people who share your living space unless you're 99% sure you'll succeed.' this is because after your attempt to forge a relationship crashes and burns, whether with a bang or a whimper, seeing the object of your desire will bring the failure painfully back to mind. at least, that's how it worked for me this quarter; fortunately i only had to deal with it for five weeks instead of eight months. soon my troubles will be over, and i can look forward to finding new and improved ways of wasting my romantic attentions all summer long!

but in the meantime, it's much safer (not to mention far less emotionally deleterious) to lust after unattainable media figures. of course, being the super-deviant that i am, you couldn't very well expect me to fall for one of the typical 20something hollywood heartthrobs, whoever they are these days. even in the indie-rock world, i don't really fancy any of the usual suspects (laura ballance, liz phair, sleater-kinney, the donnas. . .), though i do find neko case quite attractive. nope, the rock queen i've got the hots for is meg lee chin, the mercurial industrial rocker and occasional pigface contributor. i dunno, it must be something in the way she deftly fashions her ideology into acerbic, static-laden shards of leftfield propaganda. her compositions invert the coy, kittenish sexuality of trip-hop into a dangerously sassy aural assault without sacrificing that crucial feminine element. maybe that's just the male pig in me talking, but i find such assertiveness and vibrancy incredibly attractive in a woman. i suspect that most western guys dig the average, sweetly soft-spoken type, the kind of girl who's easy to dominate. fuck that: i want someone i can lock horns with, dammit. someone who's not afraid to tell me i'm dead-wrong if that's what she thinks. someone who's candidly outspoken almost to the point of profanity. now i can only surmise a concept of ms. chin's personality from what i've heard on record and read in interviews, and what i've learned has me hooked. and the best part is; she's so unattainable, i'm not worried about the fact that we'll probably never even meet let alone date. also, i don't have to worry about her "real" personality disappointing me. it is, quite possibly, the perfect romance, entirely conceived and executed within the inviolable confines of my head.

whoa. for a second there usagainstthem had me scared they were taking the summer off with no notice. now i usually don't bother to discuss other blogs here, because i usually don't read other blogs, but i think i would have lamented the extended hiatus of mark, john, jeff and that other guy whose name isn't coming to mind right now. i mean, how could i do without their professional-looking promos, in-depth coverage of the sub-sub-underground, those delightful little listening parties, and oh--almost forgot--their gratuitous non-linkage of yours truly? and lest their fans get too incensed at my acrimony, well, if i really hated the site i wouldn't waste so much text on it, now would i?

here's a good axiom i heard once: "nature abhors imbalance." so, now that i'm through with the vitriol, here's some love. i recently checked out the recital's latest mp3, "blame the recital," which they have posted on their website. i should not have to mention (cuz you should already know) that the recital features michigan-based blogger adam kempa, who also doesn't link to me. i didn't want to like the song for that reason, and also because their older material didn't really blow me away, but this new shite is catchy. nick calls it "twee," but there's another label that means nothing to me. it sort of reminds me of nothing feels good-era promise ring with that jimmy eat world-style of dual saccharine harmonizing. i should hate the song, and yet i can't stop playing it. what can i say; it's a fun little number whose infectiousness can't be denied. so see 'em live, if you live in the midwest, and tell me if their show is any good.

and if any of what i've said today comes as a surprise, i invite you to check out the lyrics to the song "hater," if you haven't recently. it's sort of a personal zeitgeist manifesto, in case that wasn't clear.

mother-BITCH! i just underwent the weekend from hell. i spent it in MA attending my sister's graduation, and the complications are too severe and tedious to go into here. so as you might imagine, i'm adequately relieved now.

my little vacation wasn't a total loss though. i met two guys on the plane, best friends from college, and i managed to sustain a stimulating conversation between the two of them for most of the trip. we touched on religion, independent music, our academic backgrounds, and the psychology of persuasion. but probably the most interesting idea to emerge in that conversation is my intention to create a web-based information source on the black presence in rock (esp. indie) since the 70s. not many people are aware that blacks actually play rock 'n roll these days, especially when pop and hip-hop are so much more lucrative, but they are out there. i'll put it together at some point, hopefully this summer, but i do realize that i'll be narrowcasting in the truest sense of the word, as my audience will probably consist of just me. but i never let that stop me before.

well, i just finished mixing down an instrumental demo from a home studio session featuring monosyllabic songwriter nick mirov. the one song we cranked out isn't quite complete yet, so i'm not going to post it, but i really do enjoy it quite a bit. i can only claim production and engineering credits though, as nick brought it in mostly complete. the song is a soft, somber slab of infectious indie-pop spiked with roland beats which kinda reminds me of latter-day superchunk with more complex bass, or perhaps yo la tengo. but my comparisons are probably a bit off because my knowledge of the genre is a tad lacking. if nick thinks it's a good idea, i'll post it for you.

mr. monosyllabic contacted me last week about the possibility of forming a band, and of course i could barely contain my excitement at the prospect. he dropped by the house monday afternoon, and we shot the breeze for awhile on topics including politics in music, the new breed of pitchforkers, the pros and cons of blogging, and reasons why gang of four is better than propagandhi. right now it looks like our band aspirations will take flight upon my return to california in september. nick said he plans to spend the meantime searching for like-minded co-conspirators in the bay area interested in creative noisemaking. all i know is i need a seriously in-the-pocket drummer to faithfully reproduce the rhythms in my songs. sorta makes me wish i was staying here for the summer, but whatchagonnado. . .

check out the official wolf 359 listener's guide.