Pete's Log: Arun Rocks
Entry #1077, (Music)(posted when I was 23 years old.)
Arun, a.k.a. the omnibenevolent, rewarded my 23 years of survival with two CDs: Devo - Greatest Hits, and NOFX - So Long and Thanks For All the Shoes.
I've been familiar with the music of Devo for some time now, I think it's some of my favorite mainstream 80s music. But after Arun brought a Devo tape back from Berkeley, Devo became forever music I associate with Arun. For a while, any trip in Arun's car was accompanied by Devo. And now with this gift, the association between Devo and Arun has been permanently engraved in my mind. Since I'm already familiar with the music on this CD, all I really have to say about it is Devo rocks! I love every song on the CD.
NOFX in many ways embodies punk to me, and ranks highly among my alltime favorite punk bands. Yet despite this, I'd only owned one NOFX album until now. Most of the songs on So Long are similar in nature to the music on Punk in Drublic, the other NOFX CD I own. Angry punk rock full of political and social commentary. Very good stuff. There are a few very fun tracks, though. The song "All Outta Angst" features a quick, fun ska beat and very funny lyrics. One verse talks about moving to Pakistan ... "It's difficult to think about getting laid when you don't even get to see her face" ... the next verse considers moving to Mongolia. The song "Eat the Meek" is funny in a disturbing kinda manner and features a funky reggae beat ... But best of all is the cover of "Champs Elysees." When I was very young, One of my favorite albums in my parents' record collection was a record by Joe Dassin which featured this song. The cover manages to capture the musical essence of the song well, but infused with punk attitude. However, the french pronounciation is pretty bad. It's hilarious. I love it. Thanks Arun!