By the way, I claim this as my intellectual property

I spend a lot of time thinking of names for things (especially recently, for some reason. Hoo-hah, procrastination!). Books I'm unlikely to write, (containing artfully named characters I'm unlikely to write about. . . I really should try to hone my writing/blogging frequency over the summer. Over the past few months I've had the excuse of being actually busy, but no more. This is going to change.) bands I know for a fact I will never be in, things like that. It's a shame, I think, that all these brilliant titles are put to no use and eventually are forgotten. So for this blog post I'm going to be focusing on the latter.

Decent names for hypothetical bands: (see also this video)

1. Freaky Lemon

Style: Electronic dance-y music, what they play in clubs nowadays.

Additional gimmick: All song titles must include a color. When a song is played in da club, corresponding color strobe lights are flashed.

2. The Pun-ishments

Style: Pun-based musical comedy/parody

Explanation: Por ejemplo, a song called "Bad Hare Day" would be this epic storytelling hard-rock ballad about a rabbit attack. For a converse example of punning, both the title and tune of "Comfortably Numb" would be used, but the lyrics would describe having a tooth pulled.

3. The Electric Collective

Okay, I had originally thought of this just because it sounded cool, and apparently I'm not the only one who thinks so. They're a real band, from Switzerland nonetheless. The Eclectic Collective is even famous enough to have their own Wikipedia page. And here I thought I was clever.

4. Them They Suck

Style: Old-school punk rock

Additional gimmick: The verbal confusion caused by The Who, The The, The Band, etc., plus a hearty sense of self-deprecating humor.

5. Indigo Solitude

Style: Anything moody/indie/suitably hipsterish. The sort of thing that gets put on the soundtrack to a movie featuring Michael Cera. (Note: As with #3, this returned some Google results. It's apparently the title--separated by a slash--of an old Duke Ellington EP.) The words just sound good together.

Thoughts? If any musicianly types are browsing this blog: 1.) Out of curiosity, would you use any of these? 2.) This indicates to me that you are of the Internet nerd/Google-randomly-and-see-where-it-takes-you type, and you identify as musicianly. Marry me now, please and thanks.

The Feasibility of Romance in Mental Institutions

Teen mental hospital romance is kind of becoming a genre. And, as formulaic as they kind of are, I like them. (More than, say, Sarah Dessen's brand of formulaic-ness.) Examples:

It's Kind of a Funny Story--Ned Vizzini (possibly started this whole thing)

Get Well Soon--Julie Halpern

Recovery Road--Blake Nelson

The first and last are arguably more serious, and the second is the funniest ipso facto the best (did I even use that correctly? Dammit Latin, why do you make things sound better without making any logical contextual sense?). It's so good that I'd kind of like to commit myself because it's gotten in my head that I will meet a cute/unstable boy there. This is probably untrue, I'd be too busy trying to get my shit together to notice any attractive Joey Ramone lookalikes. (More bonus awesome points for this book. Anachronistic music nerdiness FTW.) None of it seems realistic to me, but I wouldn't say no to something like this conversation:

A Sample Dialogue Between Teenaged Crazies

"Hey."

"Hey."

"What're you in for?"

"Bipolar. You?"

"OCD."

"Mmm, sexy. You wanna make out?"

"Sure." *commence kissing* *stop kissing* "Wait, now I have to kiss you six more times or my lips will be unbalanced." (Note that this would either be a fantastic excuse to kiss this hypothetical guy more, or a mortifyingly probable situation.)

Sometimes I do honestly think I have a slew of mental illnesses: OCD, Schizotypal personality disorder, dysthymia. . . (I could go on from here and I know this is mostly irrational and ineffective but I'd venture to guess at least the OCD diagnosis via Dr. Internet is correct) *music plays* The More You Know. Thanks, Google! And then some part of my brain goes "It's hormones, bitch. Get over your damn self, the fictional characters are worse off than you."

On a "this is the Internet"-type level, I also like that I managed to find Julie Halpern's blog (and that it's relatively frequently updated) instead of my only recollection of the author as a person being something like this:

Amanda McPseudonym lives in Wyoming with a pack of wolves and a man she claims is her husband. This is her first novel. You can read more about the book by going to the publishing company's website but you're probably going to forget it in a day and a half anyway. You read it already, what are you nosing around the back cover for? Piss off.

Because, you know, most of them *do* sound like that. Who even writes author blurbs? (. . .to Google!)

Popular

Crap, I haven't blogged in more than a month. So, fixing that now. iPod meme, anyone?

MY LIFE IN ITUNES

**NOTE: Format stolen from Libba Bray's Livejournal. All song titles and subsequent comments courtesy of my taste in music/brain.**

1. Put your iTunes/iPod, Windows Media Player, etc. on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
5. Everyone tagged has to do the same thing. (Except only if you want to, adds I.)

(But whatever happened to four?, the inquisitive, observant readers will ask. You'll never know. *sinister*)

IF SOMEONE SAYS 'ARE YOU OKAY' YOU SAY? Do You Believe in Magic? (Yeah, I can answer a question with a question, what of it?)

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF? That's Not My Name (Identity crisis. Ask again later.)

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL? Glass Onion (Hmm.)

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY? What a Wonderful World (Yup. Today is awesome. =))

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE? I Can't Decide (You have. No idea. How accurate this is. Lulz.)

WHAT'S YOUR MOTTO? Don't Stop Me Now (Hell yea.)

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? The KKK Took My Baby Away (What are you implying? That I'm a white supremacist, or that I'm likely to be abducted? Either way I take offense. :P)

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? I Will (. . .will what?)

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? Crazy Little Thing Called Love (Oh, so true. I'm a teenage girl, what did you expect?)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND? Firework (*cough*pyromaniac*cough* This is our sense of humor in a nutshell, really.)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? I Wanna Be Sedated (XD. Accurate, yes.)

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile (Dentistry? *shudder*)

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? I'm Going Home (I'd seriously consider this. Hands down.)

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST? A Well Respected Man (Heh. Hehehe. . .)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR? No Children (Meaning, my hypothetical infertility, or the possibility that humanity will be destroyed and there will eventually no children in the world? The latter.)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? For Good (Wait, what?)

WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW? Maybe (The best non-answer in the world. Maybe I want some unspecified thing, maybe I don't, and you'll never know.)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS? Blackbird (I must save your poor broken souls! *heroic music* Nah, this one is complete nonsense.)

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS? Popular (Sure.)

Things you know about me from this:

1. I am a huge nerd for music older than I am, and musicals.

2. I am easily bored.

3. I am undecided and apathetic and all manner of other things, sometimes.

4. I might be a closet member of the Klan.

And with that, I bid you adieu. :D