People Who Hate People - Nov. 22, 2005

This is NOT a sad bastard mix. Oh sure, it's got some sad-bastardy material. But really it's all about the times when people are brought together by hate. It's an ode to people who hate people. Because we all do.

Side A

1. The Avalanches: "Undersea Community" (At Last Alone)
I like the way this song opens: a soft fade-in; an unagressive beat that drops quickly; a tease of the rap... and then it blows up.

2. Mu: "Paris Hilton" (Out of Breach (Manchester's Revenge))
After all, this album includes a shout-out to "haters"... and it just might have the best bird call ever.

3. Death From Above 1979: "Black History Month (Alan Braxe & Fred Falke Remix)" (Romance, Bloody Romance)
I love the sincerity at "your best friend's parents are leaving, leeavvvinggg!" Because I still have friends who throw hot parties when their parents are out of town.

4. Alan Braxe & Fred Falke: "Penthouse Serenade" (The Upper Cuts)
When I listen to these guys, I get a mild urge (heavy on the mild, light on the urge) to go to a snooty Euro-trash club, buy $15 drinks, and watch those look-don't-touch bitches move.

5. The Juan MacLean: "My Time is Running Out" (Less Than Human)
This track makes it despite how much I hate the name "The Juan Maclean". If your name was John MacLean, why change it? To me, it's as good as being named Jack Bauer, Dale Cooper, or Jimmy McNulty. (As a side note: McClane belongs in the Mount Rushmore of great film/TV law enforcement officials: Bauer, Cooper, McNulty, McClane?... this is a future Cosmodrome column, undoubtedly.)

6. Prince: "The Ballad of Dorothy Parker" (Sign 'O the Times)
Sex? (And the best use of the term "fruit cocktail" in a song, ever.)

7. Dawn Penn: "No, No, No" (Studio One Rockers)
Great song for wallowing.

8. Jack Scott: "Goodbye Baby" (Diner Soundtrack)
I really do apologize if this song gets stuck in your head more than you want it to. I love it, so when this song stayed in my head for months, it was ok.

9. Gil Scott-Heron: "Home is Where the Hatred Is" (Ghetto Style)
The best thing on the Kanye West albums, possibly apart from the beat drop in Diamonds.
GIL! SCOTT! HERON!

10. Ice Cube: "It Was a Good Day" (The Predator)
(Insert your own choice for the best line of the song here - any phrase works, really.)

Intermission

11. Martiel Solal: "New York Herald Tribune" (A Bout de Souffle)
Yes, I did write the French version of the title there.

Side B

12. ESG: "Erase You (Hollertronix Remix)" (T5 Soul Session Vol. II)
If you hear this song, and think I just included it for the intro, you're partly right. I was going to use ESG's "You Make No Sense", but then figured I could combine my interest in asking, "Who are these assholes?" and my interest in ESG, at once.

13. Siouxsie and the Banshees: "Happy House" (Kaleidoscope)
Go to the Happy House.

14. The Electric Light Orchestra: "Showdown" (Strange Magic: The Best of Electric Light Orchestra)
I nearly put (fucking lamewads) Belle & Sebastian's "Your Cover's Blown" on here. Consider this song its uncle.

15. The Rolling Stones: "It's All Over Now' (Forty Licks)
The rare instance where I like the cover better than the original (by Bobby Womack).

16. Johnny Cash: "One Piece at a Time" (18 Truck Driving Classics)
I'll probably never be this working class.

17. Freddy Cannon: "Palisades Park" (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Soundtrack)
To the Jerzee boyz and girlz, and the 14 year-olds Chuck Barris was probably thinking of molesting when he wrote this song.

18. Positive K: "I Got a Man" (MTV Party to Go, Vol. 3)
If I can find a girl who can do this song karaoke with me, and do it well, I'll stop looking.

19. Hall & Oates: "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" (Private Eyes)
I think this was recently sampled in a major rap song. I don't know what song that is, and I don't want to know. How could you improve on this?

20. Jay-Z: "Feelin' It" (Reasonable Doubt)
For those of you that listened to this album a billion times, I'm guessing you've just hit that little right-facing-triangle-with-a-full-stop button. This is for the rest of you.

21. Jens Lekman: "People Who Hate People" (Rocky Dennis Demos)
People who hate people... come together!