is:
“The Mariner’s Revenge Song” by The Decemberists
You might not think you like The Decemberists at first. And maybe you don’t. But they tell such vivid, unusual, captivating stories; if you can manage to pay attention to whole way through (and have dictionary.com open in a seperate window) I’m willing to wager you may be a convert.
I recently purchased the new Decemberists album, “The King is Dead”, via electronic form from Amazon MP3. Yes, I know, I am a big stickler for physical media, but I do occasionally buy an MP3 album from Amazon for ease of use as well as Amazon often having craaaaazy deals for MP3 albums (I think I paid 3.99 for the entire Decemberists album)….anyway, the point of all this is that I recieved a very strange e-mail this morning. It was from Amazon, and the subject line said “Your Promotional Credit”, and this is what the e-mail said:
We recently received a new version of the Decemberists song “This Is Why We Fight” that more accurately represents the artist’s vision. You can use the code below to download the updated version of the song at no additional charge.
Here is your promotional code:
Is this weird or what? I haven’t downloaded it yet. What does it say about me that before I wanted to hear the song, I wanted to blog about it?
We are two mariners,
our ships’ sole survivors
in this belly of a whale;
it’s ribs are ceiling beams,
it’s guts are carpeting.
I guess we have some time to kill.
You may not remember me.
I was a child of three
and you a lad of eighteen.
But I remember you
and I will relate to you
how our histories interweave.
At the time you were
a rake and a roustabout,
spending all your money
on the whores and hounds.
You had a charming air,
all cheap and debonair
my widowed mother found so sweet.
And so she took you in,
her sheets still warm with him–
now filled with filth and foul disease.
As time wore on you proved
a debt-ridden drunken mess,
leaving my mother
a poor consumptive wretch.
And then you disappeared,
your gambling arrears
the only thing you left behind—
and then the magistrate
reclaimed our small estate
and my poor mother lost her mind.
Then one day, in spring
my dear sweet mother died.
But before she did
I took her hand as she, dying, cried:
“Find him, bind him,
tie him to a pole and break
his fingers to splinters,
drag him to a hole until he
wakes up naked
clawing at the ceiling
of his grave.”
It took me fifteen years
to swallow all my tears
among the urchins in the street
until a priory
took pity and hired me
to keep their vestry nice and neat.
But never once in the employ
of these holy men
did I ever once turn my mind
from the thought of revenge.
One night I overheard
the prior exchanging words
with a penitent whaler from the sea.
The captain of his ship
who matched you toe to tip
was known for a wanton cruelty.
The following day
I shipped to sea
with a privateer
and in the whistle
of the wind
I could almost hear…
“Find him, bind him
tie him to a pole and break
his fingers to splinters
drag him to a hole until he
wakes up naked
clawing at the ceiling
of his grave.
There is one thing I must say to you
as you sail across the sea:
always, your mother will watch over you
as you avenge this wicked deed.”
And then that fateful night
we had you in our sight
after twenty months at sea.
Your starboard flank abeam;
I was getting my muskets clean
when came this rumbling from beneath.
The ocean shook,
the sky went black,
and the captain quailed,
and before us grew
the angry jaws
of a giant whale.
Don’t know how I survived.
The crew all was chewed alive.
I must have slipped between his teeth.
But, oh! What providence!
What divine intelligence!
That you should survive
as well as me.
It gives my heart
great joy
to see your eyes fill with fear,
so lean in close
and I will whisper
the last words you’ll hear.
Some of you may remember, about a year ago I made a list of my 100 favorite bands in order (that post is here). Well, here’s a list of my 100 favorite albums! This list follows (roughly) the same rules and principles as the bands list. To re-cap those principles:
1. This is a list of my favorites. It is not meant to be a definitive “best” list, hence there are no right or wrong entries and you can’t exactly argue with the list, though disagreements are encouraged.
2. How I made my choices: I pretended I was on a desert island with all 100 discs, then imagined I could only have 99. Which would I get rid of? And so on, down the line. This method creates interesing and unexpected results.
3. Unlike the bands post, the albums list is not limited to only bands. However, I did not allow live albums, compilations, or other such anomalies.
4. Much like the bands list, it is clear to me that this list must be in a constant state of flux; this is far from my “permanent” list of favorite albums. I can’t encourage you enough to do this yourself periodically, it really does reveal sea changes and trends in your own personal tastes. Without further ado, here is the list:
100. Rage Against the Machine, Evil Empire
99. Woodpigeon, Treasury Library Canada
98. Do Make Say Think, You, You’re a History in Rust
97. Death Cab for Cutie, We’ve Got the Facts and We’re Voting Yes
96. Nirvana, Nevermind
95. Drive-By Truckers, The Big To-Do
94. Working For a Nuclear-Free City, Businessmen & Ghosts
93. Radiohead, In Rainbows
92. Seven Mary Three, day&nightdriving
91. Cold War Kids, Loyalty to Loyalty
90. Phish, Farmhouse
89. Pink Floyd, Wish You Were Here
88. Kings of Leon, Because of the Times
87. The Decemberists, Picaresque
86. The Ghost is Dancing, The Darkest Spark
85. Pearl Jam, Binaural
84. Seven Mary Three, The Economy of Sound
83. My Morning Jacket, It Still Moves
82. Barenaked Ladies, Gordon
81. Pearl Jam, Yield
80. The Frames, Fitzcarraldo
79. Death Cab for Cutie, Something About Airplanes
78. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Nocturama
77. Radiohead, OK Computer
76. The Presidents of the United States of America, The Presidents of the United States of America
75. Neil Young, Everybody Knows This is Nowhere
74. Pearl Jam, Riot Act
73. Explosions in the Sky, All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone
72. Modest Mouse, Good News For People Who Love Bad News
71. Tracy Chapman, Tracy Chapman
70. Nirvana, In Utero
69. The Cribs, Ignore the Ignorant
68. Sven Gali, Inwire
67. Fire on Fire, The Orchard
66. The National, High Violet
65. The Pixies, Surfer Rosa
64. Mogwai, Come On Die Young
63. Emily Wells, Dirty
62. Pelican, The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw
61. Radiohead, Hail to the Thief
60. Phish, Billy Breathes
59. Mooney Suzuki, Have Mercy
58. TV on the Radio, Dear Science
57. The Arcade Fire, Neon Bible
56. We Are Scientists, Brain Thrust Mastery
55. LIVE, Mental Jewelry
54. Primitive Radio Gods, Rocket
53. Indigo Girls, Swamp Ophelia
52. Godspeed You, Black Emperor!, F#A#
51. The Beatles, Revolver
50. Hey Rosetta!, Plan Your Escape
49. Seven Mary Three, Orange Ave.
48. Pearl Jam, Pearl Jam (The Avocado Album)
47. Grinderman, Grinderman
46. My Morning Jacket, Evil Urges
45. Editors, In This Light and on This Evening
44. Bush, Sixteen Stone
43. The Postal Service, Give Up
42. The Cape May, Glass Mountain Roads
41. Pearl Jam, Ten
40. Rage Against the Machine, Rage Against the Machine
39. Dave Matthews Band, Under the Table and Dreaming
38. Yeasayer, Odd Blood
37. Eddie Vedder, Into the Wild Soundtrack
36. Pink Floyd, Meddle
35. Stars, In Our Bedroom After the war
34. Stone Temple Pilots, Purple
33. Death Cab for Cutie, Narrow Stairs
32. The Beatles, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club
31. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Lyre of Orpheus
30. Silversun Pickups, Carnavas
29. Neil Young, Mirrorball
28. Kings of Leon, Only by the Night
27. The National, The Boxer
26. Chris Walla, Field Manual
25. Pearl Jam, Vitalogy
24. The Cribs, Men’s Needs, Women’s Need’s, Whatever
23. Cold War Kids, Robbers & Cowards
22. My Morning Jacket, Z
21. Phish, Rift
20. Pink Floyd, The Wall
19. Explosions in the Sky, The Earth is Not a Cold, Dead Place
18. Modest Mouse, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
17. Death Cab for Cutie, Transatlanticism
16. The Airborne Toxic Event, The Airborne Toxic Event
15. LIVE, Throwing Copper
14. Seven Mary Three, American Standard
13. Radiohead, Kid A
12. The Decemberists, The Crane Wife
11. Godspeed You, Black Emperor!, Raise Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennae to Heaven
10. The Arcade Fire, Funeral
9. The Beatles, Abbey Road
8. Pearl Jam, Vs.
7. LIVE, Secret Samadhi
6. Death Cab for Cutie, Plans
5. Explosions in the Sky, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever
4. The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album)
3. Pearl Jam, No Code
2. Seven Mary Three, RockCrown
1. Hey Rosetta!, Into Your Lungs (and Around in Your Heart and on Through Your Blood)
So, let me stop you before you post the comment…no, I do NOT have “too much time on my hands”! This is just what I decided to do with the time on my hands!
OK, with that out of the way…yes, you are not reading that wrong. I have in fact ranked my one hundred favorite bands in descending order. You may ask…why, and how?
Well, I’ve just always been curious how my favorite bands would rank if I spent the time to do it. I mean, I pretty much knew what 1,2 and 3 would be, but after that, it was a bit hazy. So I figured I’d devise a way to rank the top 50. I brainstormed my favorite bands randomly, and when I counted the brainstorm results, there were seventy-some, so I figured I’d shoot for the stars and go for the top hundred.
I also figured I needed a way to narrow down who I could use. The only criteria was they had to be bands, not just musical artists. No solo artists or R&B groups. This meant I could use Neil Young and Crazy Horse, but not Neil Young.
This is the method I used for ranking them: I thought about a desert island situation, and then I thought, If I could only take one album from these bands, which band do I choose? I didn’t spend any time pondering WHICH album it would be, just…which band would I want an album from? Then after a band was chosen, I crossed them off and asked myself the desert island question again, but now had to choose from the remaining bands. When thinking about Neil Young and Crazy Horse (or, say, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) I only allowed myself to consider the work of the collaboration. So, I could have Everyone Knows This is Nowhere, but not After the Gold Rush.
Now, I am open to the fact that I may have missed something and may have to revise this list, so please, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts, but remember, this is not a best list, but a favorite list, so you can’t really argue with the list, but I am actually afraid I forgot something, so please point out anything that seems amiss. (But for the record, I did NOT forget: Tool, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Led Zeppelin, or The White Stripes—I just don’t like them all that much. And post-rock fans: I didn’t forget A Silver Mt. Zion, Surface of Eceyon, or Mono. Just not my favorites).
I hear you….why should you care? Well, you shouldn’t care about mine, necessarily, but may I suggest you do something like this yourself? It’s more interesting than you may think. You can discern changes in yourself by analyzing your list. For instance, 15 years ago, Dave Matthews Band would have been in my top 5. Now, they’re 41. What would they have been 8 years ago? 25? So they’re on a slow slide. Does this have something to say about changes in me beyond simple musical taste? I’m not sure, but it’s fun to think about. And some bands will pop into and out of my life quickly, as I’m constantly on the prowl for new music. It’s intriguing to look at this list and wonder which bands will soon not make this list, and which bands that are currently in the 80s or 90s will be in the top 20 next year. It’s certainly not a concrete list, I’m sure it is in constant flux.
Oh, and here’s a fun thing: you’ll see it appears to be a list of 101 bands. That’s because one of them is a fake band name, made up by me, right now. If you are the first to identify which of them is the fake, I’ll send you a prize!! And it will be a real prize, not some mix disc I made or something. Good luck!
I’ve also linked to a few bands here or there, to some interesting or awesome song, video, or website, if you ever find yourself terribly bored with extra time on your hands.
Without further ado, the list:
101. MGMT
100. I’m From Barcelona
99. Oppenheimer
98. Invert
97. Constantines
96. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
95. Mother Mother
94. Hollerado
93. We vs. Death
92. Interpol
91. I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness
90. Thursday
89. Stone Temple Pilots
88. Mooney Suzuki
87. Razorlight
86. The Great Depression
85. The Two Koreas
84. The Mercury Project
83. Tea Leaf Green
82. This Will Destroy You
81. Iron & Wine
80. Band of Horses
79. The Stills
78. Jefferson Airplane
77. Monsterpants
76. The Walkmen
75. Drive-By Truckers
74. Black Mountain
73. Pelican
72. Animal Collective
71. dd/mm/yyyy
70. Cage the Elephant
69. We are Scientists
68. TV on the Radio
67. Tegan and Sara
66. Yeasayer
65. Editors
64. The National
63. Islands
62. Library Voices
61. Caribou
60. Stars
59. Grizzly Bear
58. The Presidents of the United States of America
57. Fuel
56. Low
55. The Talking Heads
54. The Hold Steady
53. Kaiser Chiefs
52. Mogwai
51. Arctic Monkeys
50. Bush
49. Franz Ferdinand
48. Do Make Say Think
47. Jets Overhead
46. The Ghost is Dancing
45. Architecture in Helsinki
44. Fire on Fire
43. The Emily Wells Trio
42. Creedence Clearwater Revival
41. Dave Matthews Band
40. The Shins
39. Deerhunter
38. Primitive Radio Gods
37. Barenaked Ladies
36. Nirvana
35. Sven Gali
34. The Trews
33. The Cribs
32. Doves
31. The Cape May
30. Man Man
29. Indigo Girls
28. Sigur Ros
27. Neil Young and Crazy Horse
26. The Violent Femmes
25. Grinderman
24. Rage Against the Machine
23. The Postal Service
22. Fleet Foxes
21. Kings of Leon
20. The Frames
19. Cold War Kids
18. Silversun Pickups
17. The Airborne Toxic Event
16. Modest Mouse
15. Hey Rosetta!
14. The Decemberists
13. My Morning Jacket
12. Phish
11. Pink Floyd
10. Godspeed You Black Emperor!
9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
8. Radiohead
7. The Arcade Fire
6. Explosions in the Sky
5. LIVE
4. Death Cab For Cutie
3. The Beatles
2. Seven Mary Three
1. Pearl Jam
Notes From the Fire