Random 10 for February 18, 2009

I had to rebuild my music library over the past few days, shove it into a new computer and resync the Podsie, so I’ve been unable to do a random for a while.I found about 2,000 songs in strange files that probably had not been touched since the 2001 rush of “definite article” bands. Yes, that’s how old that particular computer was — just before it started making death rattles and emitting toxic fumes.

1. Tahiti 80, “All Around.” More beautiful melodies and simple sentiment from the French perfect-pop band, which released its latest disc, Activity Center, last year. Those familiar with the two-year wait for a domestic release of Fosbury, be prepared.

2. Eels, “Agony.”

3. Curtis Mayfield, “Junkie Chase.”

4. XTC, “That’s Really Super, Supergirl.”

5. Peter Murphy, “A Strange Kind of Love.” One of those artifacts that came out of my digital excavation, but it gave me an excuse to post this video with Murphy performing the song with Trent Reznor. Nice.

6. The White Stripes, “St. Andrew (This Battle is In the Air).”

7. Nina Simone, “Rich Girl.”

8. Amy Millan, “Baby I.”

9. Mates of State, “So Many Ways.”

10. Fight Bite, “Swissexlover.” A stunning song from a Denton dream-pop band that richly deserves an immediate record contract with 4AD.