I Know You Owned This

So I stumbled across www.nintendo8.com at work the other day (I promise, only on my lunchbreak) and discovered the best cache of fully working java clones of 8-bit Nintendo game classics I've ever seen. And I can still say that Mega Man 2 may be the best video game of all time (seriously).

There were a whole bunch of games I didn't recognize, but one in particular caught my eye:

Spiritual Warfare!

My 9 year-old self could have kicked some serious A in Sunday School if I had had the chance to hone my chops on this Legend of Zelda-style classic. From the Wikipedia Article:

"The player controls a young Christian whose town has been infested with demons apparently under the command of Satan himself. His task is to purify and convert the denizens to Christianity. Strewn about the town are the Fruit of the Spirit, taken from Galatians 5 and represented allegorically by five fruits (pears, pomegranates, apples, grapes and bananas). The player may use these to defeat enemies by hurling the fruits at unbelievers who repent immediately upon contact. In order to free the town of the influences of "ultimate source of evil," the Christian must collect each of the six pieces of the Armor of God, which are guarded by "bosses" that are particularly resistant to conversion. Along the way, the player may collect other helpful Biblical items such as Samson's Jawbone and Anointing Oil."

I mean, who needs the tri-force when you've got the Trinity?

Perhaps best of all is the music: classic Protestant hymns in all their 8-bit glory! Must be heard to be believed...

Exploding Dog

I have no idea where Sam Johnson, creator of the Exploding Dog webcomic, is coming from theologically, but there seems to be a lot of gospel in his drawings, particularly in the identification of sin and our crushing inability to self-improve. If he doesn't explicitly identify with the gospel, then his work is all-the-more an affirmation of how universally applicable these themes are. Check out all his work at www.explodingdog.com. Here are a few of my favorites:

"I Knew She Was a Liar, but I Loved Her Anyways"

"It Is Such a Chore to Get off the Floor"

"I Want to Be a Better Robot"

And my personal favorite:

"Take It Everywhere"

Update: He just added this one yesterday. Talk about the bound will!

"It's Always Been a Choice, but I Need to Go Fast"

A True Mockingbird Moment

After over a year of being involved with this blog, I have started to see things that scream to be posted. I'm sure many of you can relate! Even so, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this book at a New Jersey Turnpike rest area:

My favorite part is the back cover blurb:

"You can be positive--no matter who tries to bring you down. Unfortunately, the world is full of screwed-up people. But the good news, says Elizabeth B. Brown, is that your world no longer has to revolve around them. With brilliant insights and a keen sense of humor, this trusted author shows you how to: take back the power from the difficult people in your life, respond productively when confronted, remain poised and in control when everyone around you loses it, win fairly in unfair battles, let go of the past and live triumphantly now. Dozens of real-life success stories, brief diagnostic tests, and practical tools are included to help you assess your own unique situation and gain the confidence to live successfully with screwed-up people. You can stop being the victim of others and start loving life in spite of them."

So basically, you're not screwed up (thank goodness), but everyone else is. Here's a roadmap to dealing with them.

I have nothing to say that hasn't already been said on this blog, but COME ON!

Puttin' People on the Moon

Over Thanksgiving my wife and I strayed from the NYC metropolitan area, which meant one thing as far as she was concerned: country radio. Song after song oozed sentimentality for a red state existence, an American car, family, and of course, Christianity, or at least "good Christian values," and I have to admit it felt inspiring. But what does Nashville idealize? According to Montgomery Gentry in "Something To Be Proud Of,"

That's something to be proud of
That's a life you can hang your hat on
You don't need to make a million
Just be thankful to be workin'
If you're doing what you're able
And putting food there on the table
And providing for the family that you love
That's something to be proud of
And if all you ever really do is the best you can
Well, you did it man

This was immediately followed by Lee Ann Womack's new cover of Trent Willmon's "There is a God":

Stop and think about what you don't understand
Things like life and love, and how the world began
Hear the doctor say he can't explain it, but the cancer is gone

There is a God
There is a God
There is a God
How much proof do you need?

In theory I don't disagree with either song. I'm thankful to be working and blessed in many ways. I often marvel at the ways God reveals himself to me through creation. I even know a friend whose cancer miraculously disappeared in the face of a very grim prognosis.

But as I was driving down I-95 all dosed up on sentimentality (or maybe just Tryptophan), something started to bug me about those lyrics. Yes, I do know an against-all-odds cancer survivor who was the beneficiary of some serious prayer, but what about our family friend who was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and, despite our whole church rallying around him, was dead in three months? What goes wrong when God doesn't come through?

The Drive By Truckers have released a number of excellent Southern rock albums--more Skynyrd than country, and subsequently full of dark imagery of a broken southern existence; the polar opposite of what I quoted above. This song might be equally cliche in its opposite way, but it's certainly not out of the realm of the real suffering that exists in America, not to mention the rest of the world. (Note: coarse language below.)

"Puttin' People on the Moon" - The Drive By Truckers

Mary Alice had a baby and he looked just like I did
We got married on a Monday and I been working ever since
Every week down at the Ford Plant but now they say they're shutting down
Goddamned Reagan in the White House and no one there gives a damn
Double Digit unemployment, TVA be shutting soon
While over there in Huntsville, They puttin' people on the moon

...
Mary Alice got cancer just like everybody here
Seems everyone I know is gettin' cancer every year
And we can't afford no insurance, I been 10 years unemployed
So she didn't get no chemo so our lives was destroyed
And nothin' ever changes, the cemetery gets more full
And now over there in Huntsville, even NASA's shut down too

Another Joker in the White House said a change was comin' round
But I'm still workin' at The Wal Mart and Mary Alice, in the ground
And all them politicians, they all lyin' sacks of sh#t
They say better days upon us but I'm sucking left hind tit
And the preacher on the TV says it ain't too late for me
But I bet he drives a Cadillac and I'm broke with some hungry mouths to feed

I wish I'z still an outlaw, was a better way of life
I could clothe and feed my family still have time to love my pretty wife
And if you say I'm being punished, ain't he got better things to do?
Turnin' mountains into oceans, Puttin' people on the moon

The Truckers' view of God is what happens when the country worldview encounters real suffering. It doesn't hold up when the American dream turns sour--jobs lost, money scarce, sick people not getting better. This is why the real Gospel has power where the prosperity gospel does not--it is true in ALL situations.

Thank God (literally) we have a better gospel to turn to.

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God...

If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he now also, along with him, graciously give us all things?...Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Romans 8:18-21, 31a-32, 35, 37-39

Carolina Liar Tells the Truth

I downloaded "Show Me What I'm Looking For" (any U2 similarities are purely coincidental?) by Carolina Liar a few months ago for free on iTunes, but didn't pay much attention to what it said until I heard it on a preview for the Time Traveler's Wife yesterday.

While the verdict is out on any intentional Christian meaning, I don't think it matters. The lyrics are pure Gospel, and even the video, depicting the singer in his best v-neck tee wandering forlorn through Atlantic City, seems to suggest this man gets his inability to fix things for himself.

The last chorus, where he turns the opening line "should have done better than this" into "I can't do better than this" says it all...

Oh, and it's really catchy. Enjoy.



Wait, I'm wrong
Should have done better than this
Please, I'll be strong
I'm finding it hard to resist
So show me what I'm looking for

Save me, I'm lost
Oh lord, I've been waiting for you
I'll pay any cost
Save me from being confused
Show me what I'm looking for
Show me what I'm looking for…oh lord

Don't let go
I've wanted this far too long
Mistakes become regrets
I've learned to love abuse
Please show me what I'm looking for

Save me, I'm lost
Oh lord, I've been waiting for you
I'll pay any cost
Save me from being confused
Show me what I'm looking for
Show me what I'm looking for…oh lord
Show me what I'm looking for

Save me, I'm lost
Oh lord, I've been waiting for you
I'll pay any cost
Just save me from being confused

Wait, I'm wrong
I can't do better than this
I'll pay any cost
Save me from being confused
Show me what I'm looking for…oh lord

4.5 B-Side Albums for the Holiday Weekend

Filling in for DZ this weekend...

Typically, b-sides are b-sides for a reason. An artist writes 15, 20, or even 70 songs, and keeps the 11 or 12 best. Because of this, it's pretty rare to find a b-side album worth what you paid for it (IF you paid for it), particularly not one that is solid, cohesive, and inspired from end to end. Sparked by the Green Day post a few days ago, I thought I would list my five favorite b-side albums in no particular order.

1.) Green Day - Shenanigans

Compiling some great vintage material that tracks discarded songs from Dookie all the way through Warning, there are some real gems on here. Excellent covers of the Kinks' "Tired of Waiting for You", and "I Want to Be on T.V." by Fang pay homage to Green Day's Brit-rock (is it fair to call the Kinks pre-punk?) and California punk influences respectively. "Suffocate", "Desensitized", and "You Lied", are all standout tracks as good as many of those off Dookie, Insomniac, and Nimrod.

2.) The Killers - Sawdust

Like Shenanigans, Sawdust is a chance for a great songwriting band to pay homage to its influences and also release some excellent material that didn't quite make it onto the original LP's. Singer Brandon Flowers clearly draws heavily from both Lou Reed and Ian Curtis, and he doesn't waste any time making those influences clear, as the album opens with "Tranquilize", sporting a guest appearance by none other than Lou Reed himself, and moves straight into a spot-on cover of Joy Division's "Shadowplay". Other highlights include, "All the Pretty Faces", "Leave Your Bourbon on the Shelf", and an entertaining cover of Dire Straits' "Romeo and Juliet".

3.) Sufjan Stevens - The Avalanche

As if the original 22 tracks on Illinoise weren't good enough, Sufjan Stevens released this b-side compilation of 21 more to top it off. If he ever intended to complete his quest to write an album for all 50 states, he shouldn't have wasted this much good material on a second album for Illinois. The songs are, on the whole, a little quieter and more introspective than on Illinoise, reminiscent in places of earlier albums like Michigan and Seven Swans. The title track is a winner, along with "Springfield, or Bobby Got a Shadfly Caught in his Hair", "Saul Bellow", "No Man's Land", and all three alternate mixes of Illinoise hit, "Chicago".


4.) Rivers Cuomo - Alone: the Home Recordings, (Vol. 1)

This isn't officially a Weezer b-side album, but Rivers Cuomo's reputation for being a control freak with his band certainly shows given his solo, home performances on all the instruments (the demo"Buddy Holly" isn't lacking much). From a rockstar who so publicly admits his total lack of self-confidence, this record is completely worth it purely for his candor in offering a chance to see his unbridled silliness when no one is looking. Five ridiculous tracks highlight Songs from the Black Hole, the space odyssey Weezer album that never was. Additional favorites include "Wanda (You're My Only Love)", "Lover in the Snow", and "This is the Way", Rivers' take on R&B that surprisingly works.


4a.) Bloc Party - Another Weekend in the City

The fact that I have to cheat on two of the five to come up with a list of five solid b-side albums probably says something about my premise for this post! This one isn't technically a b-side album in the sense that it was never released, but for their second record Bloc Party had recorded enough solid b-side material to warrant this fan creation. In fact, the fan reviews almost unanimously (and I'd say, unfairly) considered these tracks better than the a-sides from A Weekend in the City. You can find assorted tracks scattered around the blogisphere and on iTunes, though it probably only exists in complete form on the torrent networks. See my first Mockingbird post on the track, "Cain Said to Abel" for thoughts on my favorite song from this collection. Additional hits include, "Rhododendron" and "The Once and Future King".

Britain's Got...Grace?

The video speaks for itself. Watch the faces as the judges and everyone in the crowd realize how judgmental their preconceived notions were. Even Simon couldn't find anything wrong with it.

Susan Boyle on Britain Got Talent

Favorite Web Discovery of '08?

It's possible that this isn't my favorite web discovery of the year (the "Who Has the Biggest Brain?" game on Facebook is in close contention) but it's definitely up there. Drop anything you want into the box on www.wordle.net and see it come out in a diagram, emphasizing words used more often. This is Mockingbird's frontpage today:


(click for larger image)

Along with the obvious ones, I love the prominence of "Spiderman", "Bond", and "Axl".

A Little Perspective...

Cain Said To Abel - Bloc Party

I am frequently amazed at how unpopular the popular, post-enlightenment idea that humans are basically good seems to be among rock musicians. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (flashback!) by the Smashing Pumpkins is a classic example of this -- look no further than hit singles "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" and "Zero" to hear Billy Corgan probe the depths of his emptiness and loneliness.

Along these lines, I've recently started collecting 7" vinyl singles, and was struck by the lyrics in an unreleased b-side by the band Bloc Party. In the song, called "Cain Said To Abel", singer Kele Okereke imagines a confession from Cain to Abel, using it as a backdrop to explore his own brokenness. Two dynamics in the lyrics instantly struck me.

First was the dynamic of outside judgment directed at the singer: "this self obsessed sinner, I hear he loves to drink...I hear he loves a fight.” It is a striking reminder of how quick we are to label the sinfulness of our peers--always in condemnation, never commiseration. Splinters and logs, anyone?

Second, and most powerful, were the lyrics at the end of the song. "You look up, you look over, you can see it/Disappearing, disappearing instantly/Literally, literally, telling them/They'll be different, They'll be special singer, They'll be better..." Kele is trying to reconcile his experience with what he wants to believe about himself, and about the world. He has reached the realization that he is not special, different or better, and, despite his attempts, sees that dream "disappearing, disappearing instantly." Like with Susan Sontag (see DZ's post a few months ago), the veil has been lifted, and the mirror shows the truth. Be it sin, sickness, or anything else, the human condition eventually reveals itself.




Cain said to Abel
"Brother I've been bad
Killed a fleet of angels
With my bare hands"

Cain said to Abel
"Brother I've been bad
And I can't find my glasses"

This self-obsessed sinner
I hear he loves to drink
This self-obsessed sinner
I hear he loves a fight

Success has been cruel
This year has been hard
Falling out of love
With the one thing I had loathed

This self-obsessed sinner…

Discipline, discipline, disappearing
Echoing, echoing, exiting
Disappearing, discipline, disappearing
Nothing there, nothing works, nothing matters
Every time, every time, I look over
Everything, everyone, every time
Family, family, shredded by
Liberty, liberty, literally

You can be, you can be, you can see
Eventually, literally, instantly
History, history, disappearing
Echoing, echoing, exiting
You look up, you look over, you can see it
Disappearing, disappearing, instantly
Literally, literally, telling them
They'll be different
They'll be special
They'll be better

This self-obsessed sinner…