UltraNormal

I listen to music almost all day every day during work. If I'm at my desk, I've got my headphones on, and I'm listening to something. My pared down library (I backed up a bunch of stuff I never listen to) in iTunes is over twenty-five gigabytes.

I'm no music critic, but I know what I like, and I like a lot of different weird stuff. I go on binges, listening to a band's entire catalog for a week, a month, sometimes longer (my Massive Attack and Morphine binges lasted years). Right now, I'm in love with The Constantines. It's funny, I've been gobbling up Canadian alternative rock since discovering the CBC Radio3 podcast. The Constantines are only the latest victim in my Canuck buying binge (I like to think of them as Morphine on 78 with a guitar player instead of a saxophone - the bass is that good).

When you hear the band for the first time, it's easy to get lost in the feedback, gravel-voiced garage rock of it all. But, after a couple listens, the layers start coming out. Their lyrics, even on the balls-out rockers, are intricate poems of love, loss and depression. The bass player is amazing (and it sounds fantastic through headphones). Sometimes, I listen just to pick out the bass line.

If you'd like a sample of their stuff, I highly recommend:

• St. You, Soon Enough and On to You: Their slower stuff is gorgeous. The guitar is still there, but the lyrics and melody are awe-inspiring.
• Working Full-Time: This song kicks all the asses in Canada - at the same time. I love how the intro builds on the simple snare and guitar riff into a smashing crescendo of ass-kicking rock goodness. And then when the bass comes in... you'll get chills.
• Poison: Fantastic bass line in this song. Your head will bob along like hula doll on a gravel road. Not a barn burner, but that bass line keeps me coming back for more.
• The Long Distance Four: There's a lovely harmony between the guitar and bass in this song that shows up in several other numbers, but I really like this one (*Justice* is another good one).

I need to get back to work, but I've posted too many consecutive bummer posts... so I had to post something resembling happy - and music certainly makes me happy.