Friday, May 20, 2011

Music of my wayward youth: AKA What About Prom Blaine?!

There is this radio station on the XM satellite that plays "First Wave" music, which is essentially the stuff we listened to if we were slightly "alternative" back in the 80s.  I didn't LOOK it, but I so felt it.  I was listening to a song that they were playing this morning and it made me think of the soundtrack of that time period. 
Back then, I was prone to heart wrenching crushes on people that I would never tell them about.  I wrote poems and secretly sent them to the crushes and was really kind of shy.  I stayed that way for so long and I think it's kind of funny now, but there were guys who probably had crushes on me and why didn't they ever approach?  I don't know but it was kind of lonely.

I was in drama, and French club, and never had money to do fun things even though I had a serious job, too.  School was way too easy, and yet, I still made Cs sometimes because I didn't bother doing the work.  I loved being in band but it didn't exactly make me the coolest kid, and I never got invited to the fun parties for some reason (I so would have gone, by the way).

I think I identified most with the Molly Ringwald character in Pretty in Pink, and yet I would have dated Duckie instead of the rich guy. 

Songs by Psychedelic Furs, http://youtu.be/S2R3FJyT1rc or Simple Minds, http://youtu.be/CdqoNKCCt7A   (there's a reason this is my phone ring tone) or the Cult http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8I8mWG6HlmU  throw me right into a nostalgic tailspin.  Sigh.  It makes me want to write bad Emo poetry right. this. second. 

Also, Charlie Sexton.  Oy, oy oy!!  http://youtu.be/uCRtHVEroQ0   I'm all verklempt.  And for some reason, speaking Yiddish. 

But the point here is that for some reason, this tone, this sound, these bands and songs are how I hear my high school years, my young adulthood.  Yes, somewhere in there is Bon Jovi & Duran Duran and even Janet Jackson (one of the first albums I ever listened to nonstop was her Control album.)   Also, Prince plays very heavily on rotation, but somehow in a different way. 

Anyway.  I kind of feel like putting on some Esprit clothes and wandering around a mall listening to my Walkman playing cassettes now.  Or maybe just remembering a time when that's what we did.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

The Siren Gets a Haircut

Really. She couldn’t explain
why
it was such a relief
to spend fewer hours
combing through those
salty green tresses
with starfish combs
and pinning
it up with mother of pearl pins.

This short
sassy
bob with bangs
made her head feel
     light.

She seemed to think more
     clearly.

Like, for example:
why waste so much time
singing sailors
into the rocks?

Maybe, instead, she could
      read a book
      write some poetry
      take a lover
who didn’t
drown immediately.

Learn something
      about the sky,
for once.

Already she could hear
   the strains of
      Revolution in the air.

Kaw.... May 2011