Hi all -

Happy holidays! I am so excited, as I have finally gotten my hands on a digital camera. Look out - there will be lots of naked pictures coming of me soon.

Not.

For those of you in L.A., did you catch any of those winds last night? Talk about the "winds of change". It was sort of amazing with the air all brisk and powerful. I definitely felt the strong-willed determination of Capricorn energy in the air. Yes, you all know that I love me some astrology. And this is my modern astro-guru's column for this week, which touches on the new year for us all. For us Aries, it's playing the fool to the utmost degree. I can do that. In fact, I embrace it! The winds of change have blown in!

So here they are. Enjoy. Integrate. Live.

Free Will Astrology
by Rob Brezsny

December 27th, 2006

ARIES (March 21–April 19): "When the first settlers arrived in the New World, they were terrified by the vast open spaces," says Peter Anastas in the film Polis Is This. "They wanted to remake this unkempt paradise into a big English garden." This is a scenario you should not imitate in 2007, Aries. Wander out into the unknown with a cracked grin and a wild heart. Let it work its elemental magic on you. Don't be too eager to turn the frontier into a comfy hangout.

TAURUS (April 20–May 20): Though millions of other people may be flirting with glamorous badness and crafty nastiness in 2007, I bet you'll have a minimal attraction to negativity, no matter how interesting it might allegedly be. Drama kings and drama queens may try to seduce you into the crazy chaos they stir up through their addiction to pain, but you'll be pretty immune to their temptations. Seemingly reasonable people might hope you'll buy into their gloom and doom, but you'll be too smart for that. Congratulations in advance for your determination to be free of the stupid suffering that so many people love to entertain themselves with.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20): "Dear Rob: Did you ever hear of that monstrous experiment in which a monkey actually died from lack of touch? I often feel like that poor creature. For a while I thought I was being selfish to want more love, but now I'm sick of that idiotic intellectualized self-denial and refuse to pretend I'm a self-sufficient saint who can go through life feeling a chronic gray bathwater haze of half-assed passion. Is there any hope?—Deprived Gemini." Dear Deprived: Good news! The possibility that you'll be inundated with love is higher in 2007 than it has been for years. Here are two tips to make it more likely that you'll be in the right places at the right times to capitalize: (1) Make yourself supremely lovable. (2) Increase your capacity to give love.

CANCER (June 21–July 22): I nominate you to be the zodiac's most successful complainer in 2007. According to my analysis of the omens, you could excel at formulating brisk critiques and constructive dissent. You may even have a genius for bringing the bracing intelligence of the heart to bear on situations that are paralyzed by mind games. If you manage to fulfill the potential I'm prophesying, you'll set in motion far-reaching ripples of benevolent change. More power to you, Cancerian! May your grumbles and squawks and protests be imbued with lyrical persuasiveness.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22): My beautiful and talented Leo friend Alisha had a traumatic experience early in her romantic history. At age 17, she fell in love with the garbageman who hauled away her family's trash every Saturday. Through her persistent efforts, the two of them started dating, even though her parents hated his surly vulgarity, his permanently dirty fingernails, and the fact that he couldn't read. After a whirlwind affair, alas, he broke up with her. Ever since, even as she learned to make better choices, Alisha has carried the tragicomic embarrassment of having been dumped by a mean, illiterate garbageman. But I predict that in 2007 she'll be healed: Delightful adventures in love will utterly expunge that old twinge. Moreover, I believe many of you Leos will find comparable romantic redemption.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22): In kabbalah, the tree of life is the primary symbol of the universe. In Norse mythology, the world tree links heaven to earth and shelters all living things; beneath it lies a magical well with water that confers special powers on those who drink it. The ancient Chinese spoke of a peach tree that bore a single fruit once every three millennia and provided immortality to anyone who ate it. In the mythic tradition of modern science, trees have a crucial role in maintaining the ecological health of the planet. I mention all this, Virgo, because in 2007 you'll benefit tremendously from deepening your relationship with trees—both the actual and mythical kinds. Get to know them better. Learn from them. Plant some. Put a picture of a favorite tree on your altar. Hug one now and then.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22): According to The Onion, the Catholic Church has abolished the traditional "blessed" status of the meek. The new official story is that the meek shall not inherit the earth. One church official was quoted as saying, "Everything about the meek, from their quiet demeanors to their utter lack of can-do spirit, goes against Church philosophy." I can't confirm the accuracy of The Onion's report, but it does underscore a point I want to drive home to you in 2007: It'll be a favorable time for you to get tough with the docile, submissive aspects of your own psyche. Humility's fine; that can stay. But you should take aggressive measures to lose any tendencies you might have to be passive. Capitalize on the fact that events in the coming months will help you tap into reserves of courage that have previously been inaccessible.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21): In 2007, you'll need to find the power to do the half-right thing when it's impossible to do the totally right thing. To help you do that, remember this advice from Abraham Lincoln: "The true rule, in determining to embrace or reject anything, is not whether it have any evil in it; but whether it have more of evil than of good. There are few things wholly evil, or wholly good. Almost every thing is an inseparable compound of the two; so that our best judgment of the preponderance between them is continually demanded."

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22–Dec. 21): Not everything you'll feel in 2007 will be new, but you'll have a lot more novel emotions than in a typical year. Not everything you'll do will be creative and imaginative, but I suspect you'll often be improvising your way smartly through experiences that have no precedent. You may not be relentlessly reinventing yourself, but I bet you'll be imitating your old shticks and tricks less than you ever have before.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22–Jan. 19): Your sins are pretty mild, Capricorn. Still, you have from time to time violated some of your own highest standards; you have on occasion failed to live with impeccable ethical integrity. That's the bad news. The good news is that in 2007 you will have the best chance ever to atone for past mistakes. If done well, your corrective actions will win you a permanent vacation from the hell that those mistakes have sometimes trapped you in.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20—Feb. 18): There are still places in China where plagues of locusts periodically descend in biblical proportions. A few years ago, farmers in the region of Xinjiang fought back, gathering an army of 10,000 chickens in anticipation of the invading hordes. The bird soldiers were trained for two months, and when the showdown came, they proved themselves admirably. This vignette is an apt metaphor for a challenge you'll face in 2007. While in general the year should bring an abundant amount of sweet luck and high adventures, there will be a locust visitation or two. I urge you to assemble your own personal equivalent of a chicken army. What might that mean, practically speaking? Here are some possibilities: (1) Be well prepared for natural anomalies. (2) Ally yourself with the enemy of your adversary. (3) Get others to help you fight your battles.

PISCES (Feb. 19—March 20): You're not wearing a chastity belt now, right? You don't have on shoes that are so tight they constrict your sense of adventure? And please tell me you're not lugging around toxic beliefs about the impossibility of experiencing authentic joy in this "sick, twisted, miserable world we live in." But if by chance you have victimized yourself with any of the debilitations I just named—or any other form of self-torture, for that matter—please take this opportunity to unburden yourself. The time has come for you to explore the mysteries of pleasure, happiness, and outright euphoria. I hope that in 2007 you will fully exploit the new title I now anoint you with: Bliss Warrior.

Want to know more about Rob, or look up past horoscopes? Visit freewillastrology.com.

I hope that you all got something out of this. The new year is upon us, and it is always a time to enact change.

So let's get on it, yo!!!

What do you think?

So I wrote about entire CD’s of music (yes, I have graduated from calling them “albums”) in my last post. Now, here is my take on songs. Not just any song, but songs that made it out into the world. Songs that made me smile when I heard them blasting from a co-worker’s desk or on a dance floor. Certainly there were songs that I never saw on MTV or heard even once on KCRW that I still loved. And there were songs on CD’s that came out but weren’t released as singles. Beyond that, there are other songs that didn’t make this list but will make the year-end best-of playlist. But here I wanted to look at fifteen songs that I feel permeated the culture and had an impact either socially or creatively.

Can you tell I want to write for a music fan-nerd blog in an alternate universe?

Here we go.

15. REHAB, AMY WINEHOUSE – So this is my first and only lie, as this song got like no play anywhere. I don’t even think it came out in the U.S. yet. But it is just so good, that from the second I found it online, it was love. “They tried to make me go to rehab, and I said no, no, no.” Some say this is a very autobiographical tale for Amy, and her passionate delivery adds to that idea. Also the 50’s era sound and production is a stark contrast to the very present story line. It’s like a song from the past with the subtext on its sleeve. So good. So excited for her entire album to come stateside in March. Look for it.

14. TOO LITTLE TOO LATE, JOJO – Now this would be number one in my ‘guilty pleasures’ countdown, but since I don’t have one of those, number fourteen here will have to do. And I am okay with that, as there is something to this pop radio creation that I found so sweet. JoJo’s slightly synthesized voice and the manufactured to please chorus just begged to be sung along to. In the end, it all took me back to my days in junior high when I had Teen Beat magazines and cut pictures out for my walls. Not that I do that anymore.

13. WIND IT UP, GWEN STEFANI – The yodels. The Sound of Music samples. The self-promotion. The tongue-in-cheek delivery. Oh, and the beats. It’s all about the beats with this song. Seriously, after hearing it about ten times, I was so into it. And on the dance floor, it kills. Like she says, “Let the beat wind you up and don’t stop till your time is up.” In all honesty, I think some people got this one, and some people didn’t. And I don’t think that it is for everyone. But it was so for me. And I just think Gwen is music royalty now, and we have been losing that sense of “stars” in music. I’m glad she brings it still.

12. PROMISCUOUS, NELLY FURTADO W. TIMBALAND – Right before this song hit its zenith, I couldn’t escape it. Every cubicle was blasting it. It was in commercials. Somehow Nelly Furtado had gone from this sweet girl from Canada to a marketing machine. And she had the goods to back it up. The tune is addictive. The back-and-forth vocals seductive and fun. Now would I want my 12-year-old singing along to this in the car, if I had a 12-year-old? No. But for now, I’ll get up and groove to it.

11. MY LOVE, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE W. T.I. – Sexy. Completely sexy. The music. The lyrics. His delivery. Sexy. One of the best tracks from his new album, My Love certainly demonstrates why J.T. is going to be around for a long time. There is something to the chant of “My love…my love...” where it’s layered to sound like a small chorus of people are backing him up on it. Like it wasn’t enough for him alone to tell the girl that she’s his love. He had to hire a choir to help. Now, that’s the kind of man that I am looking for. Sexy. Completely sexy.

10. IRREPLACEABLE, BEYONCE – When I first got this album, Irreplaceable was the song I kept gravitating to. It’s still the one that sticks out to me with having the most charisma and mass-appeal. And given its simple guitar licks and biting words, it also seems to me to be the one song on Beyonce’s new album with a deep resilient soul to it. Sure, other songs jump. But this one jumps and sinks in. Ms. B is all about the benjamins for sure, and she makes no excuses about it. Still there is something pure in her honesty that rings true here.

9. FIDELITY, REGINA SPEKTOR – The beat plucks out so sweetly in this mainstream introduction to an alarmingly powerful songwriter. Our heroine learns that her inner thoughts are distracting her from connecting to love in her actual reality. And this self-realization is heartbreaking, as to cause one’s own emotional demise is sad. Um, hi. Relate much? To recognize and see the steps she took to get beyond it to find love is beautifully transcendental.

8. CRAZY, GNARLS BARKLEY – Ok, so who didn’t cover this song? I feel like everyone was doing their own version just seconds after this original hit the streets. And rightfully so. The sound is fresh in its utilization of classic rhythm. The lyrics are funny and cut deep as they celebrate the reality of insanity and how we all have it. This song asked us to embrace our insanity and recognize it. At this point in time, there could be nothing better or more refreshing. Plus, it had one of the best videos this year, hands down.

7. NUMBER 1, GOLDFRAPP – Driving home from work one night, this song came on Metropolis, KCRW’s amazing evening music show. At the time I didn’t know who it was, but I was incredibly grateful when they told me it was a Goldfrapp tune. I bought it on Itunes the next day, and it quickly moved into my Top 25. The music is romantic and languid. It makes me feel like a kid in the 80’s staring up at the stars. And I look forward to finding the man who will be my favorite moment, my Saturday.

6. MANEATER, NELLY FURTADO – The beat here is dirty and fun. The music for this one grinds. Like a car revving its engine. And Nelly just spits the lyrics out. It’s not the prettiest of tunes, but it’s a damn good time at the speakers. And it really demonstrated Nelly’s distinct sound better than Promiscuous did. You can certainly taste the Timbaland here. But there’s something to the vocal’s passion that really gives it a distinct persona that is all Furtado’s own.

5. AIN’T NO OTHER MAN, CHRISTINA AGUILERA – “Do your thing, honey.” And damn, she does. This track mingles classic horns with some bouncing drum tracks so seamlessly. And Xtina wails like her life depended on it. Like her house was being robbed. Like she was trying to alert dogs in a distant county of her presence. It was a great return for her, and for me, it was the dance jam of the summer. This song moves with a speed like nothing else this year. And sometimes you just need to move like your life depended on it.

4. NOT READY TO MAKE NICE, THE DIXIE CHICKS – Written as a direct response to the hoopla surrounding their anti-Bush statements at a UK concert, this song speaks truth from both a personal and universal place. The title alone shows how the group has taken a stand in the current political landscape. Not Ready To Make Nice is a modern protest song that told listeners that they were “mad as hell” and with just reason. We are a country that so easily demonized them when they decided to point out our own stupidity in electing our officials. This song certainly helped them gain the right fans. And it was well-done too.

3. WHEN YOU WERE YOUNG, THE KILLERS – This is by far the best song to sing along to while driving. With its religion-laden lyrics and emotional delivery, this song talks of how childhood dreams fade as adult reality finds its way in. How when we’re young, anything seems possible. For some, Jesus is the man we’re meant to be in love with. But then we grow up, and Jesus doesn’t come. So we look for a savior elsewhere. And we hope that when we find him, he is more than we ever could have imagined.

2. SAY IT RIGHT, NELLY FURTADO – This one just hypnotized me upon first listen. The music sounds like weathering a storm. The lyrics speak of the fear that exists when you’re letting someone in, and deals with wanting to let that fear go. And there is a sexiness that flows throughout the entire song. Above all, Say It Right takes Nelly Furtado to the next level in her career. This song could have existed on her last CD, but Timbaland’s production displays how she is looking towards the now. And how ready for it she is.

1. JUMP, MADONNA – I have written about this one before. How it is my favorite song from the last album. How it may be one of my favorite songs Madonna has ever recorded. How it makes me feel how I could take on the world. So is there any question that once it got released as a single, it would be my favorite song of the year. So Warner fucked up the campaign and the single was buried at radio. And the video was less than what it could have been in my opinion.

Still, it’s a damn good song and a mighty motto for the year.

Now I know I may not be ready to conquer the world, but I sure as hell need to take on 2007 with my fists out and my balls swinging.

What do you think?

So, it’s the end of the year, which means it’s time to reflect and think back upon the people we have shared our time with, the events that have occurred, and of course, the music that we have listened to. I am all about the music. I think it scored life and the most necessary of times. Some view it as distraction in certain moments. I always view it as an elaboration to a moment. Music heightens our emotions, our reactions. It feeds the creative fire within us all. And when chosen correctly, it can even help you score.

Here are the ten CD’s that came out this year and held a firm place in my Ipod. Though none helped me score, they certainly scored my life. And of course there were others that entertained (Beyonce’s B’day, the fabulous Lupe Fiasco’s disc, Destroy Rock & Roll by Mylo), these became staples in my days of 06.

10. SUPERNATURE, GOLDFRAPP – There were days that danced and days that sought peace. Supernature had music for both those days. Though not every song leapt into the psyche’s stronghold, the ones that did burrowed in deep. And Allison Goldfrapp’s voice has the capacity to carry one away into another, more ethereal place. 06’ was surely a year that called for an occasional sensory vacation.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: Number 1, Ooh La La, Beautiful

9. CORINNE BAILEY RAE, CORINNE BAILEY RAE – Every year seems to have its ingénue. Like India Arie, Macy Gray, and Erykah Badu before her, Corinne came in and brought her lyrical enchantment to the radio waves. Her voice is reminiscent of ladies from the blues era, and her lyrics speak of heartbreak and empowerment with a firmness that encourages the notion that we’ll see more of her to come.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: Like A Star, Choux Pastry Heart, Till It Happens To You

8. BRING IT BACK, MATES OF STATE – This was such a find. I read about them on a music blog and then days later ran across their CD and Amoeba. After previewing just a couple of the tracks, I was hooked. Bring It Back was a soundtrack for much of my summer. The perky rock beats of their up-tempo tracks mixed kindly with the sad sway of their slower songs. And listening to this married couple harmonize so sweetly sealed the deal on what is a complete indie classic.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: Think Long, Fraud In The 80’s, Running Out

7. THE SWEET ESCAPE, GWEN STEFANI - OK, so the first single has her yodeling and sampling The Sound of Music. And on first listen, it’s just stupid. But on tenth listen, and on the dance floor, it’s a solid jam with a sense of humor. And that’s Gwen at her best. Now not everything on this album is as risky, or as successful. But like her last album, when she gets it, she gets it so right, it’s completely sweet. And when she’s wrong, well, it’s just wrong. Still the woman is no fool, and I give her props for spreading her original sense of creativity like a wide net over our pop culture.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: The Sweet Escape, Early Winter, Yummy

6. FUTURESEX/LOVESOUNDS, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE - This was an album I wanted to hate. The first single seemed to me overboard and pretentious. But it infected me, and I gave in once I heard the entire album. I do think that it falls apart some towards the end. But that’s solely because the first half flows with such smooth sensuality and flair. If you listen to this with a hottie and some candlelight and don’t want to get down, there’s a problem. JT is some serious talent.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: My Love, Lovestoned, What Goes Around…Comes Around

5. TAKING THE LONG WAY, THE DIXIE CHICKS – This is about as country as I get. And from the opening moments of Taking The Long Way, there is a sense that the listener is in for a ride that surpasses the typical country terrain. Knowing the path that these women took to get to this CD (death threats, sales declines, boycotts), one cannot listen to it without feeling a greater sense of the world around them affecting the music. It’s still the “down-home” sound that is accustomed from the band. But there’s a sense of power and grace here that most musicians only attempt to create. The Dixie’s succeed.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: The Long Way Around, Not Ready To Make Nice, Lullaby

4. BEGIN TO HOPE, REGINA SPEKTOR – I came late to this party. But I’m okay with that. It’s one of those parties that was still going when I got there, and I’m glad I came, even if I missed the pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. This CD rolls casually along and harkens me back to days when I first met Fiona and Tori. The songs here are heartbreaking. Poignant. Funny. Rich. And her voice plays along with control and resonance. The more I listen to BEGIN TO HOPE, the more I want to welcome hope in.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: Fidelity, Better, Summer In The City

3. SAM’S TOWN, THE KILLERS – This came out to mixed reviews, and I can see why. Some called it overblown and bombastic, and at times it could be. But the more I listened to this disc, the less I cared what others said. And after their amazing show at The Wiltern, I was sold. Call me overblown and bombastic. I won’t deny. The lyrics here are broad and grand. The melodies arena-size and anchored in emotion. And the lead singer delivers with the tortured vibrato we have not heard since Morrissey. But the sum of its parts makes all the pain, and the redemption that follows, feel so sweet.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: When You Were Young, Read My Mind, The List

2. RABBIT FUR COAT, JENNY LEWIS AND THE WATSON TWINS – This one came out right at the start of the year. And thankfully so, or else this year would have not have opened so well. Jenny is one of the best modern songwriters working today. She has a way of delving into the lyrical landscape of her songs in a way that delivers rich compositions of storytelling. The characters of her songs exist somewhere in the ether. They have hearts and lives that can at times relate to ours. And when they do, it connects with such feeling. I look forward to her going back to the band, Rilo Kiley. But this was a great pause that I met with gratitude.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: The Big Guns, Rise Up With Fists!!!, Born Secular

1.LOOSE, NELLY FURTADO – No album played more in my car, at the gym, or at home. This one was love at first listen. It helps that I am already a fan. But this is nothing like the last two albums. And frankly, I felt it was nothing like I heard this year. Sure, there was the Timbaland connection with Justin’s album, and one can recognize his production stamp easily. Yet still, Nelly brought her own personal flair to the record that at times reminded me of old-school Madonna, and at other times of my trip to Puerto Rico. The lyrics are simple, but telling. The beats are hard, but emotional. And the disc is certainly not perfect, but for me, the best of the year.
SONGS FOR THE IPOD PLAYLIST: Afraid, Maneater, Say It Right

Music is of course relative to the personal journey that we’re dictating daily. It’s imperative to find your groove and own it.

This is solely my journey, and my groove.

What about it?