Q101: 2002

How did we get here?

2002 (Or, the year that Q101 was a glorious companion on all those trips to and from JJC)

5. “Get Over It” – OK Go

Aren't you such a catch? / What a prize, got a body like a battle axe / Love that perfect frown, honest eyes / We ought to buy you a Cadillac

Ohhh, there’s so very much to say about this song, which probably helped it crack my top 5.  Long before these guys became famous for playing on treadmills, there was “Get Over It.”  There was some spirited discussion between myself and my best friend Tom over what exactly a battle axe body was.  I’m still not sure I know.  It means she has blades growing out of her skin, right?  This song will also forever be associated with the discovery of Matt’s (my other best friend) girlfriend and (now) wife.  Tom drafted a contract to verify the female’s existence and I reviewed it.  It was also somehow decided that I needed to get the female’s number so a thorough line of questioning could be administered.  This all ties back to OK Go because “Get Over It” was stuck in our heads and Tom continually hounded me to “get get get the number.”  Matt and Shannon have been happily married for years now.  I guess he gets the last laugh.  Me?  Well, some of us are better suited for writing little-read blogs.

4. “Crawling In The Dark” – Hoobastank

Help me carry on, assure me it's okay / To use my heart and not my eyes to navigate the darkness / Will the ending be ever coming suddenly? / Will I ever get to see the ending to my story?

I don’t have a ton to say about this one.  It’s a good song to get you pumped up.  It’s better than “The Reason.”  The song was featured in a Mountain Dew commercial, which is a product I enjoy on occasion.  Dave’s health tip of the day:  changing nothing else in your diet except cutting out pop, or severely limiting it, will go a long way towards losing weight.  It worked for me.  I guess I could focus on the lyrics.  Um, yeah, will I get to see the ending to my story or is this as good as it gets?  I’m a pretty patient guy but even I’ve got my limits…

3. “Here Is Gone” – The Goo Goo Dolls

I'm not the one who broke you / I'm not the one you should fear / We got to move you, darlin' / I thought I lost you somewhere / But you were never really ever there at all

For years, this was my favorite Goo Goo Dolls song among many favorites.  It has lost its place perched atop that list but it obviously still ranks pretty high.  The Gutterflower album was a strong offering from one of my top artists.  Musically, I’m a huge fan of those sinewy guitar riffs.  Lyrically, it’s a song I can readily identify with.  When I’m left wondering where I lost it in my pursuit of someone, “Here Is Gone” can provide some soothing justification.  It’s a lot easier to convince myself that I never had a real chance.   

2. “Blurry” – Puddle Of Mudd

Everyone is changing / There's no one left that's real / To make up your own ending / And let me know just how you feel  

Puddle of Mudd is a band that I had higher hopes for back in the early 2000s.  They gave us a few other popular songs but the bar was simply raised too high with the Come Clean album.  Nonetheless, “Blurry” is an enjoyable song with an attractive opening.  Fun fact:  this song is about lead singer Wes Scantlin’s longing for his son.  Interestingly enough, that’s also his kid in the video.

1. “Sweetness” – Jimmy Eat World

I was spinning free, woah / With a little sweet and simple numbing me / Stumble till you crawl, woah / Sinking into sweet uncertainty

Cool.  Mandie and I shared the same top song for 2002.  I dare anybody not to sing along with this catchy tune when it comes on.  Jimmy Eat World is another of my favorite groups and Bleed American is obviously a fantastic album all the way around.  I was a custodial engineer cleaning schools for the Peotone School District for several summers in high school and college.  With all due respect to Applied Systems, it’s still probably the best job I’ve ever had.  I could write a hundred stories about the antics we pulled and the memories I have from that job.  One of them is of Jason Thomas pushing a broom at 5:30 AM.  I was half awake but I remember “Sweetness” blaring out of our little stereo and Ja bouncing along to the beat.  Go ahead.  Sing it back, woooooaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Contract of the Holy Quest

When you got down to it, our high school gang was a bunch of jerks to each other.  But we did it in our own lovable way.  We particularly liked to give my best friend Matt a hard time, which was fine by me because it diverted the attention away from me.  Most of our group had stayed in the area to attend JJC AKA Peotone High School Grade 13.  Matt had gone away to EIU so we weren’t as up to date with his social life.  Therefore, we couldn't believe it when he proclaimed to have found a girlfriend at EIU.  If anyone was less likely to have a girlfriend than me, it was Matt.  At least that’s what I told myself for moral support.  

Our disbelief and jackass nature led to the creation of this document back in 2002.  I'm unearthing it from the archives for your viewing pleasure.  Its purpose was to verify the female’s existence and gain some intelligence on her (you know we love you, Shannon).  The initial draft was created by my other best friend Tom.  I then reviewed the document and offered my own suggestions.  We got the entire group (names at the bottom) to sign the document and I still have a signed copy of it to this day.  Tom and I were taking a Business Law class together at the time.  We decided to have our professor review our “contract.”  After reading it and confirming for the third time that this is actually something we wasted our time on, his reaction was something along the lines of, “You guys really are assholes.” Yes, Professor O’Neil, yes we are.  I’d say things turned out alright for Matt though; he and Shannon have been happily married for years.

 
            Being of Unsound Confusion and Intension, The Group, Founded in the year nineteen hundred and ninety-one during the period of Third Grade, Does hereby present this Declaration of the Mission to identify and possibly remove the suspected Girlfriend as related to Member of The Group Matthew Richard Meinheit if and when a noted Member of The Group chosen as an Agent verifies her existence.

            Upon the date of 10 September in this year 2002, the message containing the words “meet my girlfriend, yeah, that’s right” written by Member of The Group Matthew Richard Meinheit himself was received by Member of The Group Joshua Bult, a known and respected member since The Group’s establishment in Peotone’s own Elementary School. At the time of the message’s influx it was immediately conveyed to Member of The Group David William Younker, Team Leader in Charge of Meinheit Surveillance for nearly two decades. Upon receiving the message Member of The Group David William Younker immediately put the questionable document into circulation to the remaining affiliates of The Group and the following plan was formulated and condoned with full knowledge and support of all parties.

The Agent chosen to infiltrate the compound labeled Eastern Illinois University will be required to undertake the following and gather the desired information:

1.    Verify the existence, or lack there of, of the female in question,

2.    Extrapolate a reasonable hypothesis as to why she has chosen Member of The Group Matthew Richard Meinheit

3.    Observe and Record the behavior of the couple in question to verify if it is in fact indisputable

4.    Provide evidence to support any findings in the form of:

a.      Photographs of the couple engaged in actions to substantiate Member of The Group Matthew Richard Meinheit’s claim,

b.       In addition to photographs, acquire live video to ensure the possibility of her being a mannequin is not possible,

c.       Attain DNA and finger print samples to allow for background checks in an effort to be made to search for any history of mental illness,

d.      If necessary, which will be discussed and deemed so by examination of presented evidence by The Agent, bring the female in for questioning,

5.    If The Group deems it necessary by examination of presented evidence brought forth by The Agent, it may be obligatory and mandatory for The Agent to eradicate any threat presented by the Union of Member of The Group Matthew Richard Meinheit and the other Female,

As a viable contract of a Crusade ordained by The Group itself, this parchment does hereby give The Agent full power to carry out previously stated tasks with possibility of Amendment and altered interpretation due to unforeseen circumstances such as:

1.    Said female is larger than The Agent

2.    Said female is meaner than The Agent

3.    Said female is smarter than The Agent

With the signing of all present Members of The Group this parchment becomes law and shall be feared as Gospel. No one without expressed written consent through a unanimous decision of The Group may disobey the evidence found by The Agent. With signatures below, The Group as a Brotherhood agrees that this contract is pertinent, righteously envisioned, and urgently needed for The Group’s own survival,

So Say You One,

So Say You All

With Signatures presented, may fortune guide The Group

May Luck smile on The Agent,

And to whomever the woman in question may be,

Good Luck to her as well,

For she prepares to boldly go where no woman has gone before.

Original Members

From the Founding Elementary School

Of the Peotone 207-U District

3^rd Grade

Joshua Bult                                                                David William Younker

 

Jonathan James Solita                                                Thomas Andrew Coursey

 

Ryan Thomas Herbert                                                  Ryan Joseph Van Ham

 

Added Affiliates of Later Years,

 

No Less Part of The Whole

Richard Matthew Boskey                                                Timothy John Reyling

 

Charles Thomas Korenic                                                 Clayton James Thompson

 

Robert Neil Geiger                                                         Keith Michael Krysowaty

 

                                                                              As an Unspoken Choice

of Action and Agreement,

Agent of the Group

Thomas Andrew Coursey

Q101: 2001

How did we get here?


2001 (Or, the year Hybrid Theory reaffirmed that alternative music was still in good hands)

5. “Movies” – Alien Ant Farm

I want you to be free / Don't worry about me / And just like the movies / We play out our last scene

“Smooth Criminal” would have been the obvious Alien Ant Farm choice but I’ve preferred this song over the years.  Somewhere along the line, I downloaded a slightly different version that I prefer to the linked version, but I promised videos when applicable.  To be honest, “Courage” is actually the song off of ANThology that evokes the best memories.  It was included on the soundtrack for the PS2 game ATV Offroad Fury 2.  The game had this add-on hockey mini-game that was incredibly addicting.  You tried to push an oversized hockey puck into a goal while riding your 4-wheeler.  Back in the day, we’d have tournaments and play that game until the wee hours of the morning (Hey, is it getting light out?).  Here’s what I’m talking about (no need to watch the whole thing).

4. “Flavor Of The Weak” – American Hi-Fi

Her boyfriend, he don’t know / Anything about her needs / He’s too stoned, Nintendo / I wish that I could make her see / She’s just the flavor of the week

This is another one of my adopted jams that I’d lean on when wondering why women I knew (and may have liked) continued to be oblivious to the fact that their boyfriends were giant douche-y jerks.  Fun fact:  the video parodies the heavy metal documentary Heavy Metal Parking Lot.  “New music?  Man, all these bands are just ripping off Judas Priest.” – Otto

3. “One Step Closer” – Linkin Park

Everything you say to me / Takes me one step closer to the edge / And I’m about to break / I need a little room to breathe / Cause I’m one step closer to the edge / And I’m about to break

Whoa, who are these guys?  Linkin Park’s mix of alternative, metal, and rap was a welcome arrival as the alternative landscape was beginning to shift.  Hybrid Theory became my 1^st album of the 2000s decade to be played over and over; it remains one of my all-time favorites.  “One Step Closer” is just what the doctor ordered when I’m feeling angry or frustrated and want to blow off some steam.   Yell your lungs out, Chester Bennington.  On another note, if any of you can find this version of Linkin Park, I think we all want them back.

2. “Hanging By A Moment” – Lifehouse

I’m falling even more in love with you / Letting go of all I’ve held onto / I’m standing here until you make me move / I’m hanging by a moment here with you

In most years, this song would have topped the list, but 2001 had a lot of fierce competition.  Lifehouse has a way of peering into your soul and producing music that you can completely relate to.  It’s even more impressive when they compose those songs in 5 minutes as lead singer Jason Wade did with this song.  I’m instantly taken back to senior year in high school when I hear this song.  Even now, at this very point in time, these lyrics still ring true.  As someone who often waits for the other half to make a move, I’m constantly hanging by that proverbial moment.

1. “Be Like That” – 3 Doors Down

‘Cause in his life he is filled / With all these good intentions / He’s left of a lot things / He’d rather not mention right now / … If I could be like that / I would give anything / Just to live one day / In those shoes

This is another nomination for my Mount Rushmore of songs.  The song skyrocketed up my personal charts when the song was included in one of my favorite movies:  American Pie 2.  In terms of movie soundtracks, you’d be hard pressed to convince me of a better one.   Check out the list top to bottom.  Even the music video (sadly, not the linked one) contains movie footage.  Who among us has not sat down and wished we could be like somebody else for just one day?  I’m not looking to be a Hollywood star; my wishes seem a lot more realistic.  Maybe one day…

Q101: 2000

How did we get here?


2000 (Or, the year you still listened to Creed and weren’t ashamed to say so)

5. “Boyz-N-The-Hood” – Dynamite Hack

'Cause the boyz in the hood are always hard / Come talkin' that trash and we'll pull your card / Knowin' nothin' in life but to be legit / Don't quote me, boy, I ain't said shit

Despite being a strong year overall, 2000 offers up a fairly weak top 5 relatively speaking.  This list was weakened by the fact that my top 3 songs were ineligible for this year’s list.  So here we are with an acoustic cover of a hip-hop song.  I get a kick out of the way this song mocks the original, which is further punctuated by its video.  I always felt like this song was a win for alternative in the world of terrible cross-genre covers.   

4. “Stellar” – Incubus

How do you do it? / You make me feel like I do / How do you do it? / It's better than I ever knew

In the late ‘90s and early 2000s, Incubus had a steady stream of radio hits.  Incidentally, it’s what I would call their prime.  I always liked their stuff but never loved it, so I was surprised to see one of their songs crack the top 5 upon revisiting.  I feel as though I never gave Incubus their full due back then but I’ve gained a stronger appreciation for their work over the years.

3. “Take A Picture” – Filter

Could you take my picture? / 'Cause I won't remember

Apparently this song was based on actual life events.  The lead singer got drunk on an airplane, took off all of his clothes, and fought with the flight attendants.  I suppose you would want visual evidence of those proceedings.  “Take A Picture” has a dreamlike aura and its chorus was catchy enough to hook me in.

2. “Californication” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

Space may be the final frontier / But it's made in a Hollywood basement / And Cobain can you hear the spheres / Singing songs off station to station / And Alderaan's not far away / It's Californication

Instantly recognizable by the opening guitar riff that repeats itself over and over.  It’s a fun music video as you get a third-person view of the band members in a video game.  There are a lot of references in this song and if you blink, you might miss some.  Just in the snippet provided, you’ve got a shout out to the moon landing conspiracy, a mention of Kurt Cobain and a David Bowie album, and a Star Wars reference.  I tend to go through phases where I grow weary of the Chili Peppers but this is one of their songs I can always find time for.

1. “Adam’s Song” – Blink-182

I never conquered, rarely came / 16 just held such better days / Days when I still felt alive /… I couldn't wait till I got home / To pass the time in my room alone

I professed my love for Enema of the State in the previous year’s installment.  This is about as serious as Blink will get.  I feel like my life is finally starting to turn around but I spent much of my 20s mired in depression.  I often wondered if high school was going to be the highlight of my life and everything was just going to be a slow decay.  Those sure seemed like better days.  I’m still a homebody and I enjoy my alone time but it doesn’t feel like I’m rushing home to enter my tomb any longer. 

Q101: 1999

How did we get here?

1999 (Or, the year Napster turned me into an insatiable song-acquiring beast)

5. “Learn To Fly” – Foo Fighters

Run and tell all of the angels / This could take all night / Think I need a devil to help me get things right

Foo Fighters were the only group to crack my top 5 in three consecutive years after looking back at this project.  Spoiler alert:  this may not be the last we hear from them.  This is a fun music video.  How many different characters can Dave Grohl play?  We even get cameos from the fellas from Tenacious D.

4. “What’s My Age Again?” – Blink-182

And that's about the time she walked away from me / Nobody likes you when you're 23 / And you still act like you're in freshman year / What the hell is wrong with me?

This is the song that introduced me to Blink-182. From that first listen in my old Bonneville, I knew I had found a group that would tag along for the ride in my life.  I’ve heard all the knocks against Blink and their limited musical talents.  Whatever.  I don’t care.  Enema of the State is still one of my favorite albums.  It doesn’t have to be sophisticated music.  I like to think I’m making grown-up decisions now but I’ve still got a lot of immaturities.  I don’t want to completely abandon all forms of my youth.  When the time calls for it, I can pop in some Blink and forget how old I am.  

3. “My Own Worst Enemy” – Lit

It's no surprise to me / I am my own worst enemy / 'Cause every now and then I kick the living shit out of me

I feel like if I could get out of my own way, or my own head, things would be so much better for me… Alright, enough serious talk.  This is another song that doesn’t require too much work for the old brain cells.  I’d nominate this song as one of my go-to’s when I’m looking to play something on the jukebox and turn back the clock.  Who doesn’t enjoy a little Lit?  I haven’t met that person.  My high school memory of this song revolves around giving a couple “popular” kids a ride home after practice one day.  The ride was pre-arranged so I tried to stack the deck of coolness in my favor.  “My Own Worst Enemy” was a really popular song and it wasn’t the Backstreet Boys.  I had the song on a mix cassette tape and I queued up the song so that it would just be starting when we got in the car.  The idea, of course, was that I would be seen as someone with good taste in music.  Word would spread and doors would open.  In theory, it seemed like a brilliant idea.

2. “Everything You Want” – Vertical Horizon

He says all the right things / At exactly the right time / But he means nothing to you / And you don't know why

I should have copied & pasted the entire song in here.  Truer words have never been echoed for the way I feel almost all the time.  I’ll talk to a single girl I have a crush on and she’ll seemingly enjoy the conversation as much I do.  I’ll wait for someone to push us together or push us apart.  The girl never does ask me to hang out.  WHY?  I’m everything she wants and everything she needs.  Maybe she just doesn’t realize it.  Or maybe she does but the feelings just aren’t there and she can’t explain why.  And that’s where this song fits in.  It’s the justification I use when I’m convinced I couldn’t have said things any better during our conversation.  On another note, Vertical Horizon may be the nicest group of famous musicians out there.  My friend Tom (who’s in the radio business) met a guy whose band was the opening act for Vertical Horizon on some tour.  Apparently, VH went out of their way to befriend the random guy’s band.  They even helped the random guy’s band set up on stage beforehand when I’m sure there were plenty of lackeys to do that sort of thing.  Therefore, I have been charged with holding Vertical Horizon as the gold standard for musicians when it comes to being friendly and accommodating.  You may have met some musicians that were really nice, but you’ve got to ask yourself, “Were they Vertical Horizon nice?”

1. “Slide” – The Goo Goo Dolls

And I'll do anything you ever dreamed to be complete / Little pieces of the nothing that fall

I’m not really a big concertgoer, perhaps because I don’t have the necessary appreciation for live music.  My brother is probably even less likely to attend a concert than I am, but even he got to see the Goo Goo Dolls and even has one of their guitar picks.  I’m a little jealous.  “Slide” tops them all in what I consider to be a pretty strong top 5, all years considered.  The Goo Goo Dolls do happen to be one of my favorite groups and Dizzy Up The Girl happens to be my favorite album by them.  For whatever reason, I never drew the connection that this song was about a young couple deciding between abortion and marriage.  I guess I just got swept up by the song and never questioned why.

Q101: 1998

How did we get here?


1998 (Or, the year I looked forward to hearing Natalie Imbruglia’s “Torn” on the school bus radio just a little bit more than I’d really like to admit right now)

5. “Iris” – The Goo Goo Dolls

And I don't want the world to see me / 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand / When everything's meant to be broken / I just want you to know who I am

Alright, Dan, you win.  I DO like “Iris” despite my refusal to acknowledge that fact in your presence.  I have a tendency to inflate a song’s value if I also enjoy its corresponding music video.  However, there are rare exceptions when the video hurts the song.  I hate hate hate the video to “Iris.”  I don’t really have a strong reason why.  I guess the sight of Johnny Rzeznik rolling around in a chair inside a tower and peering out various telescopes like some creepy Peeping Tom stirs up some negative feelings inside me.  As such, I held this song down for a while.  I suppose the video makes a lot of sense when you consider the lyrics, and I can certainly sympathize with those lyrics.  I write this blog; I reveal things.  And yet, there’s still part of me that doesn’t want the world to see me.

4. “I Will Buy You A New Life” – Everclear

They might make you think you're happy / Yeah maybe for a minute or two / They can't make you laugh / No they can't make you feel the way that I do

That pretty much sums up my plea to women.  Forget those guys with the chiseled good looks or fat wallets; I will make you laugh (sometimes not even at me) and that’s what will make you the most happy.  So Much for the Afterglow was always near the front of my album rotation in high school, so this song’s inclusion is well earned.  The album accompanied me during many bus rides and pre-game warm-ups for soccer.  Despite the claims of my portable CD player, anti-skip protection didn’t seem to be something it was capable of providing. 

3. “Closing Time” – Semisonic

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end

Now this is a cool music video.  I always had this dream of becoming a major league closer and using this as my intro music.  Sure, “Enter Sandman” or “Hell’s Bells” would do much a better job at providing the adrenaline rush these closers live by.  But I’m a mellow guy and the suggestion that ‘I’m coming into the game to shut it down so you best get ready to go home’ always appealed to me.  With all the changes happening in my life, this song is a good reminder that one beginning must end for another to begin.  And yet, I can’t help but be reminded how some beginnings never end.  Just last night, I was at an after-work gathering enjoying some frosty beverages.  One by one, the group dwindled down to me and another guy I barely know.  Everyone else had left with someone or to go to someone.  So, I’ve become the guy who represents the last man standing.  I guess somebody’s has to do it and I’m just the guy for the job.

2. “My Hero” – Foo Fighters

Too alarming now to talk about / Take your pictures down and shake it out / Truth or consequence, say it aloud / Use that evidence, race it around

Back to back top 5’s for Foo Fighters, which isn’t surprising given the strength of The Colour and the Shape.  Mandie and I almost had the same top song for 1998.  This song will forever be linked with the climatic final game in Varsity Blues.  Back in high school, my pal Josh (he of the hundreds of albums) did me a nice favor.  He took a stack of post-it notes and wrote a new song on each one.  He told me to think of it as a “Song of the Day” kind of thing.  Each day, I’d tear away the previous note and see what new exciting song awaited me.  My goal was to familiarize myself with the song and, ideally, add it to my music collection.  That story isn’t unique to this song but I’m sure “My Hero” was one of the presents I got to open.

1. “Shimmer” - Fuel

She calls me from the cold / Just when I was low, feeling short of stable / And all that she intends / And all she keeps inside isn't on the label

This song was an instant favorite from the moment I heard and it has remained that way ever since.  I remember getting it onto a custom mix CD and listening to it on bus trips to compete in Scholastic Bowl.  When you’re riding down to Clifton, you need something to get you through.  I just love everything about this song – the lyrics, the way it builds slowly and shifts its pace to something more up-tempo, even the cello that you can distinctly hear in parts of it.  I think we can all understand the struggle of letting someone back into your life even though you know it might cause you pain again.  What exactly are their intentions this time?  You vow to move on and you may even believe that you have.  Boom!  They reach out to you again and suck you back in.  It almost doesn’t seem fair.