Rush - The Analog Kid: I always liked this song from Signals.

Jeff Beal - The Mark of the Beast: Haunting track from the Carnivale soundtrack.

Thymme Jones - Disjunct: I like songs that make me think something is wrong with the iPod (unless there was something wrong with the rip...never can tell with these things).

Philemon Arthur & The Dung - Goda Grannar: As wacky as ever.

The Flaming Lips - Placebo Headwound: Quiet, odd lips is just as fun as loud, odd lips, I think.

The dB's - Neverland: One of their fastest, bounciest songs.

Toad the Wet Sprocket - Brother: During my Toad phase during the blizzard earlier this year, I ordered a live album that I previously didn't know existed. The majority of the songs on it were from Pale and Fear, which are my two favorite and most familiar releases. Can't say I know this song, but it is striking me as a bit dull.

Boom Bip - Popsicle: A band I've kinda gotten into lately along with similar groups like Themselves and Subtle. I'm not sure what the connection between them all is yet (haven't spent the 2 minutes researching it online to figure it out), but all the music is really fun.

Almost Thursday...but the two year anniversary for the Random Eight.

Deerhoof - Sophie: From the wacky first album that isn't really reflective of how good the band is today.

Stewart Copeland - Samburu Sunset: From Copeland's African music inspired The Rhythmatist, this is a bit more random than most of the tracks.

Painkiller - Tortured Souls: There is no stopping the pain in one's ears with this tune.

The Flaming Lips - Suddenly Everything Has Changed: Certainly not the Lips of old, but I really liked The Soft Bulletin which was probably the last time I really got into the band (minus their recent cover release of Dark Side of the Moon).

The Velvet Underground - There She Goes Again: Yea Velvets.

Robyn Hitchcock - Queen Elvis II: The electric version from the great Eye album.

Sonic Youth - Pink Steam: Admittedly I've pretty much ignored a lot of new Sonic Youth songs even though they all reside on the iPod. As if I'm hearing it for the first time, I kinda like this tune.

Those Bastard Souls - Curious State I'm In: Really fun song from the 90's band comprising of players from multiple indie bands at the time.

Sugar - Judas Cradle: A dismal song from the Bob Mould-led band from the early 90's.

Afghan Whigs - Fountain and Fairfax: The morning is starting to have a 90's misery feel to it.

Jay Reatard - Waiting for Something: Two weeks in a row for the loud, angry punk.

Pit Er Pat - Vultures Beware: For some reason the Random Eight is making me very happy today.

Sebadoh - Unseen Waste: One of those screaming wacky tracks that made this band lots of fun in the early days.

Alias - Sixes Last: One of those bands/tunes that I just have no recollection of purchasing or memory as to why it caught my attention. It is fun, though; kinda bouncy in a slow, methodical way.

The Crystal Method - Wild, Sweet and Cool: Quicker than the last song, but cut from a similar cloth.

Nuno Canavarro - Alsee: A short (and titled, which is actually rare) track of bips and boops from Plux Quba.

The Ex - IP Man: Let us start the morning with mania and noise.

Jay Reatard - Oh It's Such a Shame: One of my favorites from his short catalog.

Deerhoof - Running Thoughts: A bit more manic from Deerhoof than normal, but still true to their typical offbeat, compelling presentation.

The Paper Chase - My Death: Two weeks in a row from the creepy, dismal band that I enjoy immensely. Plus I never grow tired of minor-key piano riffs.

Genesis - Visions of Angels: Well, it was only a matter of time before the trend of hearing songs written and recorded this century ended.

Robyn Hitchcock - Freeze: I've probably stated before how I think the live Storefront Hitchcock captured Robyn at my favorite stage of his touring career; I saw him numerous times during this era and still remember the shows fondly.

Chainsaw Kittens - Bliss (We're Small): From the band's first album, Violent Religion, which I was extremely excited about years ago after playing to death a cassette of Tyson Meade's previous band, Defenestration. Since then, I've actually found another punkish band called Defenestration in a clearance CD bin; I guess it isn't a band name that lends itself well to extreme commercial success. Nevertheless, I've never been disappointed by the Kittens.

The Boomtown Rats - Blind Date: Not really the most memorable song from the Rats, but it doesn't stray from their bouncy sound.

The Locust - Halo Of Pubic Hair And Earwax Manufactured For The Champion In All Of Us: I suspect they just make up these titles to make people feel stupid when they have to write them in a random play post.

The Paper Chase - So, How Goes the Good Fight: A few years older than the band's really fun stuff, but still very miserable.

Archers of Loaf - Scenic Pastures: Great tune from the All the Nation's Airports album.

Stan Richardson - Shika No Tone: Take that, you noisy Locusts.

Rollerskate Skinny - Shallow Thunder: I back-followed this band through Kid Silver after really liking his Dead City Sunbeams album. This has a very similar feel; a little odder at times which is, of course, fine by me.

Black Dice - Gag Shack: One of the better "let's make a bunch of noise" bands out there today.

The Crystal Method - The Winner: One of the lesser inventive tracks from the band.

The Boomtown Rats - A Second Time: From the sometimes crazy and confusing world of bonus tracks.

Yo La Tengo - Stockholm Syndrome: A sign of mellower days to come from the band.

Yoshinori Sunahara - ROBOT: It's not Bender, but it is pretty close to what a robot would be if it were a song.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - By the Candle Light: Lengthy bouncy track from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's crossovers to pop / electro'ish genres.

The Locust - Practiced Hatred: A short, loud, screamy opposite of the last tune.

The Red Krayola - Pride: Another tiny tune, barely time to get the Krayola's typical groove going.

Genesis - In Your Wardrobe: The old Gabriel-sung weird tune that was probably the most accessible of all their prog-rock nuttiness.

Brian Tyler - Thank You Very Much: Bubba Ho-Tep returns.

Nico - Evening of Light: Mesmerizing track from The Marble Index.

Robyn Hitchcock - One Long Pair of Eyes: Fine song from Robyn to start the morning.

The Flaming Lips - Psychiatric Explorations of the Fetus with Needles: Towards the last of the very, very crazy Lips releases.

Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Dang: Another pretty crazy track...just a different kind of crazy.

Yo La Tengo - Daphnia: Mellow piano track with just a dash of distortion.

Pixies - Hey: A song that I always think will blow up into a wall of noise, but it never quite does.

Frequencies - Untitled: One of a number of Mick Harris noisy soundscapes that made its way onto the iPod during a phase years ago. Good stuff, but I tend to always forget about it unless it pops up on the Random Eight (so, good for the Random Eight).

Radio Thailand - Blow-Dried Pop Collage: Another fun, if not a little goofy, radio broadcast collection.

Nirvana - Here She Comes Now: From an old Velvet Underground tribute album, I think this was released long before most people knew who Nirvana was. I've never been much of a Nirvana fan, but this is a fun version of the song and, unlike most tracks on the CD, one that doesn't ramble on twice as long as the original tune.

Everly Brothers - All We Really Want To Do: A safe way to start the morning.

Genesis - Broadway Melody of 1974: Moving within 30 years of the present.

Dreadnots - Known Friends: Hey, a song written this century. The Pittsburgh-based band hits another strong tune with this one from Money Machine Music

The Kinks - Set Me Free: Eh, okay Kinks song.

Grifters - Blood Thirsty Lovers: Always full of fun, this band is.

Archers of Loaf - Underdogs of Nipomo: From a very manic Vee Vee album, my first real exposure to the band and seemingly very reflective of the 90's "indie" trend.

Boomtown Rats - Rat Trap: Once again, a band who as aged very well for me.

Amon Tobin - Ownage: A final saving grace that I don't live completely in the past.

Motorhead - Kingdom of the Worm: Fairly mean track from Lemmy's metalheads.

The Kinks - 20th Century Man: Really, a song that works for any century.

Yo La Tengo - Tom Courtenay To me, this is Yo La Tengo at their peak.

The Dead Milkmen - Conspiracy Song: Well, that's less serious.

Philemon Arthur & The Dung - Goddag Gosta: Short vocal weirdness.

Chainsaw Kittens - She Gets: From back in the Tyson Meade loud days.

Marillion - Fugazi: I've always considered this a trademark song of the band.

Pigalle - En Bas, En Haut: French punk and punk and punk

Alone on tree leaves, tiny white specks kept catching my eye during a hike last week. It was simply an accident that I was looking closely enough to see one moving. I figured it was either an insect or mobile bird poo - either way, it warranted further investigation.

It wasn't until I was able to zoom in on the shot that I realized I was looking at a tiny creature carrying eggs on her back. I'm still unclear as to what species this is, but she certainly is remarkable.

The Paper Chase - I Did a Terrible Thing: They usually do.

Talking Heads - Electric Guitar: I'm not sure I ever thought better of a Heads album than Fear of Music

Deerhoof - Eaguru Guru: Good to hear another one of my favorite current bands this morning.

Gang of Four - To Hell with Poverty: This band ages very well I think.

Clint Mansell - Stay With Me: From the very emotional The Fountain soundtrack.

Robyn Hitchcock - Listening to the Higsons: Whoa-oh-owa.

Thuja - Track 3: Again from The Deer Lay Down Their Bones, a fine collection of creepy ambient noise.

Deerhoof - My Purple Past: I think I'm going to be inspired to listen to Deerhoof all day now.

While on a walk this morning, I realized I was being watched. This is pretty remarkable for me; usually when I see a fox, by time I get the camera up to my eye, she is about two counties away. This one kept a long distance from me (this shot is a significant crop from a long zoom), but she watched and watched until doggie-ing away.

It made for a fine morning.

Jesus Lizard - Then Comes Dudley: Always a fun, crazy band.

The Beta Band - Needles In My Eyes: And yet, they play on.

Skinny Puppy - pedafly: Not quite as vicious as tunes from The Process which I know I always rave about, but this one still has a good rip to it.

Tom Waits - Long Way Home: Quiet Tom from the Orphans triple disk release.

Sebadoh - Temptation Tide: Softer song from Bakesale.

The Boomtown Rats - Talking in Code: Going further and further back in time.

Jeff Buckley - Jewel Box: Lesser known, but great track from the second disk of the posthumous Sketches release.

The dB's - Soul Kiss (Part Two): In a world awash in crummy outtake and b-sides releases, Ride the Wild Tom Tom is probably one of my favorites, being a fun history of the band. This, however, is just a silly outtake of the real version of the song.

The day may come when I see an ant and don't blurt out "Blaaah, Ants" the way Homer did "Deep Space Homer."

But that day is not today.

Michael Petak - Reign or Fall: One of many opening acts I was introduced to (for Love Spit Love around 1994) that I have enjoyed for many years to follow.

Cursive - In the Now: This will likely put Mama, I'm Swollen back in my head for a few weeks.

Boredoms - ?: Taken from a live recording, this is one of many great Boredoms tunes that doesn't really map to any studio release, but captures the energy of the band's live performances.

Tom Waits - Woe: Mellow tune from Blood Money.

Sebadoh - Crisis: Loud loud loud.

Cabaret Voltaire - Burnt to the Ground: Crazy sounds from the crazy version of the band.

Nuno Canavarro - Untitled: From a collection of compelling bips and boops on Plux Quba

Tomorrow is Already Here - Favorite Son: Hi Garret.

Lou Reed & John Cale - Work: From the fantastic Songs for Drella memorial for Andy Warhol, Reed and Cale rip out a vicious tune expanding on their often cantankerous relationship with the artist.

Cursive - Mothership, Mothership Do You Read Me?: A fairly crazy, somewhat miserable tune from the band.

Sebadoh - Happily Divided: Goodness from the lo-fi world.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Intoxicated: From a bouncy recording with Ali Khan's vocals.

Knut - Genoa: From a loud recording that would be with a bear's vocals had it not been instrumental (maybe the bear was sleeping).

Marillion - He Knows You Know: Can't accuse the Random Eight of not being diverse today.

Built to Spill - Stop the Show: My peak of interest with the band was with this release, Perfect From Now On.

Husker Du - Dreams Reoccurring: A short introduction to the longer manic noise conclusion on Zen Arcade.

Knut - El nino: Early morning scream!

Pit er Pat - Evacuation Days: A haunting, fun tune.

Mozart - Requiem in D Minor Offertorium Hostias El Preces: Not as much screaming in this one as the Knut song.

Tom Waits - Yesterday is Here: Another great Tom tune for the Random Eight.

Boom Boom Satellites - Dub Me Crazy: Out Loud is one of the most fun albums I own.

Toad the Wet Sprocket - One Little Girl: Go 90's.

The Residents - In The Dark: I've enjoyed The Residents over the years, but lately their releases seem pretty hard to get into. This, from The Voice of Midnight, is a CD that just hasn't had much playtime for me.

Sunny Day Real Estate - J'Nuh: Go 90's.

The season has progressed to the point where I can no longer comfortably stray from the trails to track insects as the mosquitoes have claimed territory I typically like to explore. Before a hike yesterday, I used bugoff spray, but it just wasn't enough to stop the full-blown assault and I pathetically cowered to the paved bike trails (plus I really came close to wiping out in thick mud while crossing a small stream...I'm sure it looked as graceful as something that is totally not graceful).

Fortunately, insects are everywhere, and I've managed to train my eyes to see them even off the main asphalt trails. It is, admittedly, a little harder to find unique scenes and, overall, somewhat less fulfilling. But, the bites are less as the mosquitoes generally seem content to concede that ground to the lumbering humans.

Nonetheless, today has been an itchy day.

All that said, I really enjoy how the fly is holding on to the leaf in the shot above. Examine how the middle legs are strategically placed in the depression of the leaf vein.

Sonic Youth - Heady Jam #1: From the self-issued SYR 6, one of the rambling ambient / noisy releases reaching back to the band's experimental side.

Chan Chaya - Sak Kra Va: From the City of Ghosts soundtrack, a traditional Cambodian tune.

Venetian Snares - Des Plaines: A rapid, chaotic electronic track from the vicious Meathole album.

Pit Er Pat - The One Dot: A much calmer song than the last from this unique sounding band.

Mozart - Le Nozze Di Figaro: My adventure into the Figaro opera. I think I'm expecting Bugs Bunny to show up.

The Kinks - Don't Forget to Dance: A recent re-fascination into The Kinks had me load up their songs on the iPod; as I think I've said before, this is a band who has aged very well for me.

Tom Waits - That's the Way: Short tune from The Black Rider.

Flaming Lips - Brainville: A fairly silly song from a fairly silly band.

Mark Lanagan - Hit the City: I actually never listened to Lanagan before the Gutter Twins release with Greg Dulli, but I really like the few albums I've purchased since then.

Deerhoof - Basket Ball Get Your Groove Back: Sometimes Deerhoof is a little silly.

Robyn Hitchcock - Egyptian Cream: I've heard so many live versions of this song that it is weird to here this studio track from Fegmania! Still, a very classic Hitchcock tune.

Bob Mould / New Age - New Day Rising: Recorded at the All Tomorrow's Parties event last year, Bob Mould turned twenty years younger playing beside New Age and ripped out a great set including this manic masterpiece.

Yo La Tengo - Attack on Love: A bit more of a transitional tune from my favorite album of the band, Electr-O-Pura.

Quasi - Seven Years Gone: A quick search shows that this would be the third time this song has appeared on the Random Eight. I'm okay with that.

Everly Brothers - Cuckoo Bird: Pretty standard Everly tune.

Ondar - Little Yurt on the Prairie: And, thanks to Google, I now know what a Yurt is (although I suppose I should have figured it out from the song title...but I couldn't get past thinking Yurt was slang for a goofy little kid).