Music meme, days 7-12

[lederhosen]

Day 7: One band/singer you're ashamed to admit you like.

...well, if I don't nominate GnR myself, I'm sure Rey will do it for me. So, all ten minutes of 'Coma'.

(I looked a lot like Axl at one stage - or at least, we were both redheads with mullets - although I have never owned a pair of bike shorts.)

Day 8: One band/singer whose popularity you will never understand.

I don't think I can answer this one. "Band/singer who you will never like", yes, plenty of those. But I can at least see some explanation for why they're popular, even if it's just "huge promo budget".

Day 9: A song that reminds you of an ex.

Sehnsucht versteckt
sich wie ein Insekt
im Schlafe merkst du nicht
dass es dich sticht

It's odd: I only know what that means because I looked up an English translation, and yet the English doesn't seem to do it justice. I had this running through my head for a long time after we broke up.

I know plenty of snarky ex songs*, but while I enjoy that stuff, I prefer not to associate it with people I know.

*It's hard to go past Leonard Cohen's 'Closing Time': "I loved you for your beauty, but that doesn't make a fool of me/ You were in it for your beauty too".

Day 10: A song that reminds you of your father.

Hard to say. He is one of those quiet, good people, and I'm not sure anybody writes songs about people like that. Well, except for country songs where they get screwed over by The Man, but that doesn't really fit here either.

Day 11: A song that reminds you of your mother.

Anything from Handel's 'Messiah'. My mother loved this and would play it over and over every Christmas; she wasn't religious or anything, just loved her Handel. She also loved Paul Robeson.

But I'll put up John Murphy's "In The House - In A Heartbeat", which is an instrumental from near the end of '28 Days Later'. I listened to this over and over after I found out my mother was dying; if I'd thought of it yesterday, I would probably have picked this for 'song that makes you cry'.

Day 12: A song that makes you want to have sex.

Adam and the Ants, 'Physical'.

Or for something more upbeat, Die Arzte's 'Sweet Sweet Gwendoline'. Er, not suitable for work, even if your workmates don't speak German.