Hello Kitty Airline, Airport, Soap Dispensers, Barf Bags May 2, 2008

Well apparently this isn’t new news but since I just learned of it a few minutes ago, it’s news to me and I’m really just at a loss for words.

There are actual Hello Kitty airplanes that fly in and out of cute, cuddly, cartoonishly-feline airports that carry on board chairs, soap, food, people, entertainment, sugar, napkins, toothpicks, and barf bags bedecked with the white, bow-adorned Hello Kitty that apparently has reached idol-worshipping proportions. No, really. God should be getting worried. I understand that there’s a pretty major commandment regarding having no false idols or something along those lines - are there airplanes bedecked with His image*? That within it contain chairs, soap, food, people, entertainment, sugar, napkins, toothpicks, and barf bags also bedecked with His image?

I wonder how Hello Kitty feels about gay marriage.

Also, apparently I’m not at a loss for words.

*Such airplanes/airports/in-flight accessories do not exist. I googled both “jesus airline” and “god airline” and the only results worth noting were an article about a pilot promoting Christianity on a flight (American spokesman: “That would be against our policy”), and an article explaining that officials at Nepal’s state-run airline sacrificed two goats to appease the hindu sky god. The only conclusions I can draw from this are as follows:

• There are no airlines to my knowledge bedecked in God’s image
• Too bad that pilot wasn’t in Nepal, he probably would have gotten a kick out of the goat-sacrificing
• I’ve had too much to drink tonight

Annie’s New Album Is Apparently A “Complete Modern Masterpiece” May 1, 2008

The neener-neenerheads of Popjustice have somehow managed to hear the new Annie album, ‘Don’t Stop’, and apparently it’s really fucking good. I don’t know how they’ve managed to hear it… I’m pretty jealous. But that’s neither here nor there. This is what’s important: there’s a song with call-and-response vocals between Annie and fucking Girls Aloud. That song also apparently features guitar work by Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapranos, which I only mentioned as a sneaky name-dropping technique for those of you FF fans out there.

Here’s the video for the first single, ‘I Know Your Girlfriend Hates Me”:

Here’s my favorite song from her last LP, ‘Anniemal‘:

Here’s another amazing song from Anniemal:

Mixtape Tuesday: Betty’s First Quarter Faves, Part Two April 22, 2008

Here is the second installment of my First Quarter Faves. A few things to note: 1) The first and last songs on this list are dripping with the 80s (in the best possible way), 2) If you like Sigur Ros you will probably like the Ólafur Arnalds song, 3) Say what you will about ‘Does it offend you yeah?’ (a 2.3, Shitfork? Really?), but Dawn of the Dead is a really fucking awesome song, and 4) The artwork above is by the enormously talented Matt W. Moore and you can see more of his work and purchase awesome stuff here, and, 5) Songs marked with ** are highly recommended.

11. Gentle Touch - Once You Used to (myspace)

12. Lykke Li - I’m Good, I’m Gone (myspace)

13. Sian Alice Group - Sleep (myspace) **

14. Sleepmakeswaves - One Day You Will Teach Me to Let Go of My Fears (myspace)

15. Olga Kouklaki - Getalife (myspace)

16. The Delano Orchestra - Lucky Star (myspace) **

17. Justice of the Unicorns - Jesus Had a Sweet Girlfriend (myspace)

18. Taken By Cars - The Blackout (myspace)

19. Ólafur Arnalds - Fok (myspace) **

20. Does it offend you yeah? - Dawn of the Dead (myspace) **

Mixtape Tuesday - Betty’s First Quarter Faves April 15, 2008

Just like Rob in High Fidelity, I have become obsessive about lists. I nurture my Favorite Albums of 2008 list just as I would a precious houseplant or a child. I thought you might enjoy a sampler of my favorite songs on my top 10 albums. I’ll probably also do another one soon with my favorites in the 11-20 range because it’s not that the albums taking those slots don’t have amazing songs, it’s just that they aren’t quite as consistent as the top ten. Anyway - enjoy!

1. Ladyhawk - Night You’re Beautiful (from the album Shots)

2. The Helio Sequence - Keep Your Eyes Ahead (from the album Keep Your Eyes Ahead)

3. Liam Finn - Second Chance ( from the album I’ll Be Lightning)

4. Have a Nice Life - Hunter (from the album Deathconsciousness)

5. Baltic Fleet - Castellon Theme (from the album Baltic Fleet)

6. Spiritualized - Baby I’m Just A Fool (from the album Songs in A&E)

7. The LK - Yellow Ribbons (from the album Vs the Snow)

8. Pete and the Pirates - Come on Feet (from the album Little Death)

9. The Raveonettes - Aly, Walk With Me (from the album Lust Lust Lust)

10. Why? - The Hollows (from the album Alopecia)

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There Will Be Bud March 7, 2008

And just in case you’re wondering - no, I probably won’t stop posting these parodies until people stop making awesome ones.