More Reasons Why Being Deaf Sucks/Rocks: The Horror

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OK, so a couple of months back, I recounted that my cousin had rediscovered some old mixtapes that she’d made and one rather unfortunate one that I’d made.

A quick recap: I made this mix for myself to listen to on the bus ride from Baltimore to Pennsylvania. It’s composed mostly of songs that I was either digging at the time or singles/albums that I’d recently picked up. Here’s the pretty respectable hip-hop side.

But there’s also an unfortunate alternative side that hasn’t aged nearly as well. In honor of Halloween, I present: The Horror.

The Verve – “Lord I Guess I’ll Never Know”
Much like everyone else in America, I was impressed by The Verve’s only hit. So much so, that I picked it up as a single; this song was included as a B-side. And I’ve always been a fan of forlorn wailing, so this song just hit a chord with me.

Foo Fighters – “My Hero”
I still love this song. I can remember being in my best friend’s dorm room, watching MTV2 and being completely slayed by this video. I never get tired of this song; in fact, while listening to this unearthed tape, I had to force myself to fast forward though it, because I love it so much. This song is pretty much the reason I’ll buy any Foo Fighters album.

David Bowie – “I’m Afraid of Americans”
I remember when I used to be infatuated with Trent Reznor. The guy could do no wrong. This is an example of that era. I only bought this because of Trent’s involvement. And this song sounds so dated now.

Weezer – “Say It Ain’t So”
This is another one of my all time faves. I can’t hate on my past self for including a song that I’ll sing along with at the top of my lungs.

The Verve – “So Sister”
But I can totally hate on my past self for including this much of The Verve. This song is just as melancholy as the tape’s opening track, so why are they both here? Two songs from the same artist, equal in virtually every measure. There’s no need for both.

Foo Fighters – “Everlong”
This is the other reason I’ll pick up any Foo album. I love every version of this song. I love the acoustic version. I love the 8-Bit version. I love the video version. I even love the version they played on Friends, when that white couple got married. And again, I had to force myself to fast forward though it.

Ben Folds Five – “Evaporated”
I miss this band, and I don’t regret this song. (For some reason, complete unfiltered Ben Folds does nothing for me.) In fact my cousin pointed out that I was one of the first people she knew who was up on Ben Folds Five. I wear that like a badge of honor.

Radiohead – “Talk Show Host”
This is the song that convinced me to jump headfirst into Radiohead. If it wasn’t for the soundtrack to Romeo & Juliet, I might be one of those people who doesn’t understand why people love OK Computer. Instead, I don’t understand why people love OK Computer, more than The Bends, which is the superior Radiohead album.

Third Eye Blind – “How’s It Gonna Be”
This song made me cringe. Third Eye Blind might be my biggest musical regret. I really genuinely liked them and I can’t figure out why. Maybe it was the pop sensibilities. Maybe I was going though a tough time in my life. Maybe I was just young and stupid. (On a related note, I almost bought their latest offering, Ursa Major, on a whim the other day, but didn’t, because I feared how lame I’d look to the cashier at The Sound Garden.)

The Verve – “Bittersweet Symphony”
I swore that the tape had reached its low point with Third Eye Blind, when I heard the THIRD song from The Verve. This is ridiculous. First off, I don’t really remember being that much of a fan of theirs. Secondly, who the hell includes three songs from the same group on one side of a tape? What was wrong with me?!

And there you have it. I’m sure that everyone’s got lamentable mixes that they’ve made. I know I have dozens more residing in shoe boxes in Tucson. But this is one that I’ve decided so share with you. It’s a glimpse at how wack my ears were 11 years in the past.

(I’ve immediately regretted writing this column.)