I'll make no excuses for liking this...

phoenix - if i ever feel better

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Before I start, I just want to say thanks for the comments. I'd probably do this even if no one was listening, but the fact that there's someone paying attention makes it feel alot more rewarding.

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About the time I decided to join a gym, I also decided it was vital that I find upbeat music to work out to. Instead of the standard gym fair of 20-something men either singing about a) why they lost the girl b)the dad never loved them or c)I AM STRONG! AND ANGRY!, I go a different route, one that involves dance music and possibly french people.

One such album I stumbled upon was Erlend Oye's DJ Kicks album, a mix I've enjoyed perhaps more than any other album in the past six months. But to be honest, I've never really listened to it past the 11th track (of 18, I think). I'm not sure why that is, except that perhaps I try to limit my gym visits to an hour.

In order to keep myself entertained during the monotony that is eliptical training, I like to view my training as a form of dance. I've never been a big fan of dancing or dance music in particular, but during my trip to Tokyo two or three years ago, I visited a dance club and actually spent some time on the floor.

While I'm not claiming to be able to dance, I will admit that in that instant I didn't really care. I had alot of fun, and it opened another musical doorway for me. Suddenly I understood the why of dance music.

I realize that some people think of pop music as trash, and I can see both sides of the argument, but what gets lost is that maybe it's supposed to be. If pop music is junk food for the masses, then so what? Everyone likes a Kit Kat from time to time. And if they don't, they're a boring killjoy anyway. I was a boring killjoy for a long time, but I'm working on it.

The track I've put up today is by a group called Phoenix, who shared a similar sort of sound to Jamiroquai, at least to my ears. But please don't let that put you off. Apparently this track was pretty popular amongst the DJ set, but because I'm playing catch-up I'll post it anyway. It's track four of Erlend Oye's DJ Kicks album, but this is the original version from Phoenix's year 2000 release, United.

And it's groovy.