Let me welcome everybody to the wild, wild west, it's
CALIFORNIA WEEK
here on CSOTD!
An entire week of songs devoted to The Golden State. The land of my birth.
See, Friday's post about all the great musicians coming from New Jersey got me thinking about other states and the musicians and musical styles that are associated with them. Some states, like New York obviously, have a rich and historic tradition. Other states, like Ohio, have DEVO and, well, that's about it.
Then I thought about California. And I kept thinking about California, and thinking more about California, and pretty soon it was a done deal.
Now, obviously, the proper way to do a week of music about California would be to look at music thats normally associated with California, like Surf Music, or like the Psychedelic Sounds that San Francisco made famous. Maybe look at some LA and Orange County punk bands, and ultimately move through the state as a kind of geographic primer as well as a musical journey. That would be the way to do it.
That would also be boring as hell, and I've no interest in it.
See, I'm not that interested in California as part of these United States, but in California as an idea. An abstract. The real California will pop up during this week, sure, but more importantly we'll be looking at peoples interpretations of California; California as an abstract notion, a wishful longing, a mythology that overpowers all its appalling, disfigured reality. We'll be California Dreaming, so to speak.
I promise you two things this week: first, it's going to be a wild ride and, second,
NO F&%$!#G KATY PERRY!
Ain't no party like a West Coast party, so let's give it up for Cali-forn-eye-aye!
No, not that California:
