Two days late, my bad. Friday involved some school stuff all night, and Saturday was consequentially labeled “Sleep”. Anywho, here we are. Just thought I’d do a random mix this week.

The Clash – The Guns of Brixton (1979)
One of bassist’s Paul Simonon’s lone writing contributions that also happens to be one of the band’s best songs. Painting a vivid portrait of the discontentment of 1970’s Brixton, Simonon’s paranoid lyrics are backed by a killer bassline and a beat sampled in numerous rap tracks. Not bad for a bunch of punks.

Soundgarden – 4th of July (1994)
Soundgarden always flirted with heavy metal, but “4th of July”s slow, crunchy riff sounds like something straight out of drone metal. But what really sells this song is the interplay in Cornell’s layered vocals; the lower one keeps the song’s feet on the ground while vocal track #2 is Cornell’s trademarked wail in all its glory.

Pixies – Monkey Gone to Heaven (1989)
Ignoring “Where Is My Mind?” and “Velouria”, “Moneky Gone to Heaven” is one of  the Pixies’ more popular songs (“popularity” of course being very relative). It’s also one of their most bizarre; vaguley environmentalist verses give way to the “This monkey’s gone to heaven” chorus backed with piano and strings…then the hilariously surreal “If man is five…” bridge.

David Bowie – Starman (1972)
I’ve only ever bought one Bowie album, but when you get something as good as The Rise of and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, one is all you need. And “Starman” has so many great parts: the gorgeous chorus, the off-kilter intro, and that final solo. Great stuff.