1TO10REVIEWS

My Review: 9

I love this song.  It’s funny, it’s poignant, it’s well written.  It’s written in 3/4 time and played as though it were a waltz itself.  I just think it’s brilliant.  Willie Nelson wrote it and published it first on his concept album “Shotgun Willie” in 1973, one of his very best albums in my opinion.  Cake covered it on their 1996 album Fashion Nugget, also an amazing album.

I really like both versions.  I’m running a poll to see which version people like better.

You can listen to the Cake version here.  You can listen to the Willie Nelson version here.   You can also listen to each in the Box.net widgets below, and the one on the right side.  The album art below links to Amazon’s MP3 store.  If you don’t own these albums already, you should buy them.

My Review: 6

I like muxtape.com.  Sol told me about it (more or less) when he sent me a muxtape that he had made.  It was good (we like similar music) and it inspired me to make my own.

The idea is super cool.  You can upload as many as 12 .mp3 files to muxtape, name the “set,” and even configure the header bar color.  Then you can share it with friends.  They can opt to buy the songs on your set list (presumably the founders are getting a cut.)  It’s neat.

However, it’s also sort of cumbersome.  It would be a huge improvement if you could pick multiple songs and do a bulk upload.  The current setup requires you to upload a single song at a time, which is annoying.  I also found that quite a few songs failed.  I don’t know if it was because the files were corrupt somehow, or if maybe the meta data was too ugly to deal with, or what.  There are clearly stated restrictions that it must be a .mp3 file, and that it must be under 10 MB (all the files I attempted met those criteria.)  Having my chosen songs be un-uploadable was annoying.

They have a blog up on Tumblr and seem very interested in and open to feedback.  I like that openness a lot, it’s the right way to go.

The UI is pretty plain-jane, but I kind of like that. It certainly wasn’t confusing, and that is a huge plus in my humble estimation.  I think the concept rules, the product is cool, and the implementation is pretty-ok-kinda-good.  A solid 6, though the idea is really an 8 or a 9.  Just needs some more work.

UPDATE:

You know what else would be sweet?  There should be some kind of “Number of times this mix has been played” hit counter.  Currently there is an RSS feed meter that tells you how many people have favorited your mix, but not a total number of times it’s been played.  Everyone thinks their own mix is rad.  Muxtape should take advantage of that.  Come on muxtape, feed my ego.

My Review: 8

CBS recently started airing a television sitcom called The Big Bang Theory. The show centers on two physicists living in LA; both are nerdy and socially stunted. They live next door to a very attractive woman, and shenanigans ensue. The show is actually pretty funny, but it is not the subject of this review.

Rather, I wanted discuss the theme song for the show. The first time I heard it I said to myself “that sounds like the Barenaked Ladies.”

And I was right. BNL wrote and performed the song which describes the development of the Universe and the human race in one minute and forty-five seconds. I love BNL and have since I was 16 and Sol played Gordon for me for the first time. (Gordon is their first album, and probably still their best.)

So I decided I really wanted the song. I searched around a bit, but I couldn’t find it on iTunes or on my favorite Russian site. Then I remembered that my good friends at Amie Street had struck up a deal with BNL to sell their music through the site. Sure enough, I found the song there. Currently it is selling for $0.83. I believe I bought it for $0.79. The Amie Street model is a market-driven one; all songs start at $0.00 and each time they are purchased the price goes up a little bit, until it reaches the maximum price of $0.99. I love Amie Street.

I think the song is awesome. It reminds me of their older, more goofy style (similar to what you find on Gordon.) Today they are a very slick pop band. The music is still good, but I miss the more laid-back silly style. The song also reminds me a little bit of They Might Be Giants’s pseudo-educational music, songs like Mammals and Why Does The Sun Shine.

I uploaded the song to my box - if you look to the Box.net widget in the right hand column you will be able to listen to it. It is fast paced and the lyrics come rapidly. The content is fun and funny. I think the song deserves and 8 out of 10. So that is my rating. Listen and enjoy.