I'm almost done with my summer mix. I've got about 105 minutes and CDs are only 80 minutes long. I might do like one 60 minute disc and one 35 minute disc to cover songs with cursing (like the Weeknd and Shabazz Palaces). Then I won't have to cut so much.

When previewing some of the songs last night, CER asked me about rapping. What is rapping? How is it different from singing? &c. I didn't really know how to explain it: singing without melody but more rhythm, talking with a beat. I figured it'd be easier to show her, so I filtered my iTunes to Hip-hop*, sorted by year. The earliest I have imported is Eric B and Rakim's Paid in Full, and that's all I have for the 80's (somewhere, my Slick Rick is sitting on a shelf, waiting to be imported). So I pulled up the title track and showed her the prototypical rap flow. After that, I skipped forward to Das EFX "They Want EFX", the Pharcyde "Passing Me By", and Cypress Hill "Loco en el Coco"**.

*I'm very diligent about genres in my iTunes. I keep it under a dozen. So, no distinctions between indie rock, classic rock, country rock, lo fi rock, prog rock, punk rock, folk rock, modern rock, etc. Just rock. (Though country rock might end up in country.)

**No need to screen for lyrical content if it's in Spanish.

I'd like to share more with her, maybe with a CD I could burn, or an iPod playlist (she borrows my wife's iPod -- full of P&W and folk-rock -- from time to time). It should all be clean in lyrics and subject (so nothing like the radio edit of "I Want to Get High"). I'm not even sure if what I played was halal enough. You got any suggestions? (It doesn't need to be stuff 20 or more years old like my first few there, newer stuff is just as good, I just don't know any of it by heart enough where I can make it to the skip button about two lines before the cussing, violence, drugs, or sex begins.)

Or, if you've got nothing (Cheaptoy, Rob, Beau), just drop your own random dozen.

It's been a busy week for me, with only four days to get everything done. I haven't had time yet to read free's Pretenders review nor to take in any of Chuck James's greatness. This weekend should lighten up, but I've yet to see my "honeydew" list.

Got any music thoughts? Or just send your random list.

I'm in a bit of a musical funk right now, between enthusiasms. Maybe some randomness will get me going agin.

I've put all my music thoughts into my VJ week.
I'm kindof bummed, but I don't think I'll get to playing Fovea Hex, Coil, the Meat Puppets, James Blackshaw, Stars of the Lid, So So Radio, or Marit Bergman.

If you let your digital media player randomly select your VJ week (+3), what would it give you today?

I'm guest DJ in the video booth next week.  I need to edit.  I've got nine good days of Ha Ha Tonka, but a week is only seven days!

Drop your list.

I'm hoping to see Zola Jesus at the Seventh Street Entry tomorrow night, but damn do I have a lot to get done for that to work out.

Go ahead and give us a random taste of your taste (as evidenced by the music you have on hand)...

I would have also accepted "Earth Day Music Day, 2011."

When I was twelve, there was a big hullaballo about the 20th Earth Day, so I ended up with some other teens and pre-teens pulling junk out of the Minnesota River down at Minnecon Park in New Ulm.  It actually wasn't in that bad of shape, although I do remember tires.  But, it's the Minnesota River, it wasn't gonna polish up like some beach or something.  It was still just a muddy river bottom, annually inundated, only now with less garbage in it.  Still smelled like river mud and cottonwoods.

You got any songs about removing litter from public areas?  Or whale watching?
(I was going to ask if anyone had songs topical to Good Friday -- I've probably got one or two -- but then I remembered P&W music and "Contemporary Christian" so it's possible some folk have hundreds of topical songs.)

Share your lists of randomness.  I'll be in transit to the in-laws (Glenwood MN), so I might not have much to say until later.