With the weather (gradually) turning warmer, I have realized two things:

1) The air conditioning in my Uick still doesn't work. Putting the defroster on cold doesn't help much.

2) On the days my CD player decides to work, it's very important to play music that will not embarrass me (too much) in front of other drivers because I will be driving with both driver's side windows down in order to avoid boiling to death. I would drive with all my windows down, but that would require all of them working.

This can only mean one thing: it's time for a summer mix CD.

1) Gloves 2 Ali - Ghost Style, Initial D movie soundtrack

There's no better way to kick off a summer driving mix than with a song from a movie about street racing. This is an actual clip from the movie, so the song doesn't kick in until about 0:30. Takumi drives down Mt. Akina early in the morning to deliver tofu from his father's shop to restaurants at the base of the mountain.

This light, breezy rap song captures Takumi's laidback attitude towards street racing and the inner peace that comes to him on the wings of the morning as he makes his deliveries. Or something.

Anyone else feeling the urge to try this out on the curve coming off of Exit 2? Come on, I can't be the only one here with grandiose, utterly unrealizable dreams of smoking the SUV that just cut me off. 

2) Get to Heaven - The Electrics

As far as I know, The Electrics don't have a big presence in the U.S. With their energizing blend of Celtic/folk rock and fun lyrics, though, they definitely deserve one. You can check out some mp3s at the above-linked Web site.  

3) Hummel Gets The Rockets - Dreamtale

Speaking of bands that don't have a big presence in the U.S. and deserve one, here's Hummel Gets The Rockets by Finnish melodic metal band Dreamtale. Last I knew they were taking a break, so there hasn't been anything new from them for a while. This is off their first album, Beyond Reality.

This clip is actually a love letter from one Dreamtale fan to his girlfriend, so just ignore the amorous text and enjoy the song.

I don't know why this song is referred to as The Dawn on YouTube. It's clearly labelled as Hummel Gets The Rockets on my CD and on every discography of theirs I've seen. This song was composed by Hans Zimmer and was originally in the movie The Rock. 

You may have noticed that Hummel Gets The Rockets sounds a little cut off at the end. That's because it segues into

4) Memories of Time - Dreamtale

I had to keep the family together.  

5) Red Will Dye These Snows As Silver - Joy Electric

I've already discussed Joy Electric at great length here. This track is still up on Ronnie's myspace page.  

6) Highspeed Alien Drum Bunny - Edguy

I've also already expounded on Edguy. This song is possibly my favorite of theirs because the highspeed alien drum bunny of which they sing bears a strking resemblance to the Energizer Bunny.

If they don't play this at their show in September, I will yell until they do. Or perhaps I'll just chuck a stuffed rabbit at Felix (the drummer) and hope they get the hint. I could make a pun with Felix' last name (Bohnke), but for once in my life, I am going to resist the easy-cheesy joke.     

7) Sennichite - Koyasu Takehito

The original clip from Saber Marionette J to X does not do justice to the version I have. So, we're going to try it like this.

- Watch the below clip.

- Imagine this song being sung after Koyasu (the voice actor for Hanagata) has had five bottles of sake all by himself. Somehow, he's gotten his hands on a harmonica and coerced everyone else in the bar into singing backup for him. He will end the song by collapsing face-first into his sake cup and sobbing. That is what the version I have sounds like.

Awesome, isn't it? The imagination is a wonderful thing. I also know the words well enough to sing along, which adds a whole new dimension to the experience. Sounding like you're having a drunken karaoke party in your car while you're sitting in rush hour traffic is super fun. 

8) I Fought The Law And The Law Won - The Clash

I love you, The Clash. I just have to be careful about where I am when I play this song. The last thing I want is to get pulled over while I'm blasting I Fought The Law And The Law Won - it makes me seem guilty. At least it's better than blasting The Dead Kennedys' version (I Fought The Law And I Won).  

9) Livin' In The Night - Pamsy

It's a summer mix CD, ergo, there has to be eurobeat. It's just the way the seasons work. It'd be like trying to have winter (and fall and spring) without snow.

10) Mr. Flutter - Terry Scott Taylor

This track from Terry Scott Taylor of Daniel Amos and Lost Dogs fame is easy to sing and easy to relate to. When you're bogged down in the mundane and surrounded by everyday problems, it's hard to believe that there's anybody upstairs looking out for you. Fortunately there is, whether we can actively feel it or not. Check out the lyrics here - it's the second song listed.   

11) Rock 'n' Roll High School - Ramones

I treasure Rock 'n' Roll High School, both the song and the movie it's from. I accidentally discovered the movie on TBS when I was in high school and have just loved it ever since - everyone loves a little old-fashioned teenage rebellion. If you haven't seen this movie, drop everything you're doing and go watch it right now. Tell your boss Teresa told you to. They'll understand.

The clip below is the end of the movie (where The Ramones play Rock 'n' Roll High School) and is also one of my favorite scenes. See if you can figure out why.

I doubt you could make this movie today, so I'm glad they made it when they could. Don't worry - everyone evacuated beforehand. Except for the freshman, but he's nigh indestructable, so that's okay.

And because I love the song so much, here's the original music video.

Thank you, YouTube, for showing me that there are two arrangements of Rock 'n' Roll High School. I feel all enlightened now. And inspired to do some CD shopping.  

12) So What (VNV Nation remix) - Philip Boa

I picked this up during my Audiogalaxy phase in college. I don't really download music anymore now that I have a dial up connection, but I'm very happy to have  found this little gem beforehand. As the title indicates, it's a remix by Goth club favorite VNV Nation of So What by Philip Boa of Philip Boa and The Voodoo Club, an influential German band that's been going strong since 1985. You can download some of their live tracks here and listen to snippets of VNV's newest album at the above-linked site.   

13) Shining Blue - Cascade

I think they've all gone their separate ways now, but this song remains a stellar example of what happens when you let someone other than the lead singer sing. The vocals are a little thin, a little weak, and a little out of tune, but the instrumentation is beautiful.

I also appreciate this song because I can understand some of what he's saying. "Dude, he just sang the days of the week! I *know* those!" I like to celebrate the little things in life.  

14) Easy Busy - Kiki and Kika

High-octane eurobeat. Excellent for getting the Uick up to highway speeds on a groggy summer morning. 

15) Sexy Sexy Sexy - Ken Martin

This song sparked a goal for me. I already had Sexy Sexy by Cascade before I came into posession of this track. Now I need to find a song called Sexy Sexy Sexy Sexy to round out my little collection. Finding a song called Sexy would serve the same purpose, I guess, but wouldn't be nearly as fun.

The "dancing" in this clip is called parapara and is basically a choreographed routine that Japanese eurobeat fans learn from videos or live demonstrations so that they can do it themselves (along with everybody else) at the club.

I've never understood parapara. I mean, it can be fun to do a routine with your friends, with everyone in synch and everything, but whatever happened to just dancing? These moves aren't terribly imaginative. What if I really want to boogie down? Will they throw me out of the club? 

16) Wake Up Your Heart - KENN with The NaB's

I have no idea what KENN (yes, you spell his name with all caps) is chanting in between verses - it's either "what" or "rock." I admire his energy. I wouldn't have been able to sing that whole song after running around the stage like that.

Then again, KENN also played Yuuta in the musical adaptation of The Prince of Tennis anime. He had to play tennis and sing at the same time, so a few laps around the stage is probably nothing to him. 

17) Koigokoro - B'z

I apologize in advance for the leather jacket and the leopard print hot pants with white socks. I wish I could offer some kind of explanation as to why Koshi is dressed this way, but really, I'm at a loss.

 

Lesson learned from this video clip: When you're a rockstar and have sold as many albums as B'z has, pants are optional. 

18) I have no idea

This is what happens when your friend burns you a mix CD and neither one of you can read the title of one of the songs. Darn complicated kanji. According to a three year-old Post-It note stuck to the case of said mix CD, the musician is someone by the name of Chisato. This is not quite so helpful in retrospect. It's a very good song, but I guess you'll have to take my word for it. :)

19) Shock Treatment - Shock Treatment film soundtrack

I've seen Rocky Horror a handful of times, but I must've seen Shock Treatment (the sequel) at least 20. It's just such a surreal flick.

Brad and Janet are back in their hometown of Denton (which is inside a TV studio) and are struggling with their marriage. Well, Janet's struggling with Brad - she thinks he's dull, and after they appear on the Marriage Maze (a marriage game show), she lets a sibling team of "mental health professionals" (Riffraff and Magenta's actors) take Brad away for "treatment."

The siblings, along with Brad's evil twin (no, I'm not kidding) try to convince Janet that she's better off without him and make her into a celebrity - Miss Mental Health. Can true love conquer insanity? Um, maybe.

In this clip, Brad is the one in the straitjacket and Janet is in the sparkly black dress and picture hat.

Does the gentleman whose sunglasses they take off and stomp on look familiar? If not, try imagining him in a wig and a dress. That's Barry Humphries, otherwise known as Dame Edna. 

20) How Many - Rick Altizer

Just how many church services *has* God been to? Just how many people's names has he committed to memory? This song asks a lot of questions along those lines, and the short answer to all of them is "a lot."

And yet, in spite of his busy schedule and everything he has on his mind, God still has time to get me through merges and right-on-reds unscathed, for which I am extremely grateful. Some days I think the only thing holding my car together is divine intervention. Check out Rick's official Web site here.   

21) Honeymoon - Bon Voyage

Shoegazer rock with breathy female vocals. Bon Voyage is Starflyer 59's Jeff Martin's side project and features his wife Julie on vocals. I can't find any Bon Voyage clips, so here's I Win from Starflyer 59. They have a similar sound - just replace the male vocals with female ones.

That's not Starflyer 59, by the way - those are actors playing the band. Another bit of interesting indie trivia: Jeff Martin is the brother of Ronnie Martin, the electronica mastermind behind Joy Electric. That's one talented family.  

 
22) Fighters - Feel So Bad

And we close with my favorite female-fronted Japanese rock band. Fighters actually isn't sung by Daria - it's sung by one of the guys - but it still rocks. Again, I couldn't find the song on YouTube, so here's Feel So Bad's Bari Bari Saikyou Number One (Rip Roaring Almighty Number One) instead.

This is the shorter version, which was used as the opening song for the anime Jigoku Sensei Nube (Hell Teacher Nube). Nube is a school teacher whose frightening hand posesses awesome powers and who fights all kinds of beasties on behalf of his students.

Well, that wraps it up for Teresa's mix CD, summer 2007 version. If you've read all the way to this point, I salute you - I didn't write this all in one go, so I'm impressed if you read it all in one go.

As a special bonus, in the event any of you would like a copy of this CD with which to confuse your fellow drivers, I will give a copy to the first person who e-mails me at tsantoski@nashuatelegraph.com. I can mail it to you or you can pick it up at one of our bureaus, whichever's easiest for you.