There's a riot in the lion's den...

... and it's me. Well me storming through translations of poetry, trying to get this thesis done. I worry that it won't be done on time, because i haven't really worked on it much during last semester and that's caught up to me (big surprise). In any case, I gotta do it, I gotta love doing it too.

On another note, music has been in the background during this process. Some albums worth checking out:

1
Justin Nozuka's Holly. I caught onto him last year when JuJu was blasting him while pregaming to go to a party. I thought his song "After Tonight" was a hot guitar-driven booty-shakin' anthem, to which i foolishedly danced to until I bothered to listen to the words. He's something: A voice like Justin Timberlake, and the guitar skills of Charro, which is phenomenal to say the least. He writes a lot of his stuff, and it's gushy, but it's relateable and relevant to me considering things of the recent past, and this thesis circulating around romantic texts.

2


The new Kelly Clarkson album, "All I Ever Wanted" is pretty amazing. I've liked her past albums, in particular "Breakaway." Though she had released "My December" during the summer of '07, it wasn't fun. It was good, but it wasn't fun, driven by ancst and rage. The new album takes it back to "Breakaway," and I'm really diggin' "My Life Would Suck Without You" (very "Since You've Been Gone" Kelly), "Impossible," "I Do Not Hook Up," "I'm Ready" and "I Want You." I want you has this 60's sugar-pop feel, and the lyrics are adorably written.

3
Lady Gaga - The Fame. Enough said.

4


Utada's new album, "This Is the One," which i sneakily acquired online (seeing as it came out this week in Japan, and won't be available for here in the states for another 2 weeks digitally, and in May as a physical copy.) Anywho, it's her 3rd english language album, and her 8 overall. Although Utada's Japanese stuff is amazing, Her English material I look forward to. With the-Dream and Stargate at the production-side of this endeavor, I think this could really be the one that may get her acknowledged in the US music scene beyond "Simple and Clean," the theme to Kingdom Hearts. Her first attempt to get on the scene stateside was "Exodus," which was very experimental as far as pop went, and although creatively rich, it wasn't something that would otherwise click with the masses. I liked it, and I've been looking forward to this album (TITO) since rumours were bubbling around the web last year. "Apple and Cinnamon" (A beautifully-written R&B song), "Me Muero" (picante and latin influenced track) and the clubbin' and boozin' potential anthems "On and On" "Dirty Desire" are some of the songs that I'm really liking.

Pop has made a tasteful return.