'Bip Bip Bip Bip Beep'

Have you noticed that the chip and PIN machines always tell you that your PIN is 'OK'? It's like being told that it's a good sequence, but there's room for improvement. Perhaps you could have entered it with more style, a bit of rhythm, jazzed it up a bit?

'With a few more purchases, you could have a chance to represent your country in the 2012 Button Pushing Olympics!' A fascinating event, including 'Security code entry', 'Channel flip' (Freeview and Sky events) and a category devoted to controls for industrial processes.

I hear the competition between Norway and Peru is intense for the 'CD tray eject' event.

[click]

In Rainbows

It's all over the interblag, so therefore, I must talk about it in order to stay in line with all the other blogs in the world. Radiohead have released their seventh studio album for the bargain price of "insert price here". I paid £5, but I know many others who paid nothing because they're "poor students", or probably they don't listen to Radiohead, but wanted to know what all the fuss was about. I think it's worked out for the band though, because all their fans (at least the ones I know) have paid at least something towards it, some even going for the £40 discbox.

Listening through the album, it's not bad. The first track involves a lot of samples and drum machinations, and then the second gets some traditional distorted guitars in. I warmed to these tracks immediately. The rest of the album, which is a bit quieter, took a couple of listens, but it got better each time. I have seen a review comparing "All I Need" to "Roygbiv" by Boards of Canada, and I see what they mean. Simply reminds me I should get some BOC myself.

In other news, I have discovered a way of attaching posters to walls without blu-tack or pins, thus getting round the 'no posters' rule in my house. I will divulge my secrets in a future post after more research.

[schemes]

Album Album Album

Three albums came through my door, so I think I'll try my hand at album reviewing.

I received the Klaxons album, "Myths of the Near Future" first. It actually took me a few listens before I decided I really liked it. Track by track, the opener is brilliant, and then is followed by the first track I heard from them, Atlantis to Interzone and their biggest tune (commercially) Golden Skans. From listening to the album playback on Xfm, I learnt that Golden Skans is a reference to a light popular at raves in the early nineties. Well, they did describe themselves as "Nu Rave".

The rest of the album is a delight with lyrics that make little sense but melodies that work very well. A pity that I like some of the demo versions better than the album tracks, in particular "Four Horsemen of 2012", which sounds much rawer on the demo version.

Speaking of disappointments, I received the Long Blondes album ("Someone to Drive You Home") on Thursday, and noticed that the singles were different to the album versions. "Separated By Motorways" was produced by Paul Epworth in the single version, but not on the album, and actually suffers from it. It's just as danceable, but doesn't have the same kick to it. The rest of the album is still good, but there's the lingering sense they were let down in production slightly.

The third album that turned up was Bloc Party's "A Weekend in the City". It shouldn't have done, as it isn't released until next week, but it does make me feel a little privileged. As I write, I'm on my second listen, but already it sounds good. It's much more in the vein of the softer tracks on "Silent Alarm", and so there's more of an epic sound. Not surprising really, as they used the same producer as on Snow Patrol's last two albums.

Politics and social comment are quite heavily featured, with references to terror attacks and the Daily Mail, and "Uniform" a track about how all the people with their Converse boots and odd hairstyles are just commercialism dressed up as a rebellion. [Looks guiltily at Converse shoes next to chair] Apparently this album is much more a product of Okereke than the previous album, which was more influenced by Moakes and Tong. I can't actually think of anything to say other than go and buy it, because it is good.

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I've finished my exams! [General huzzah] Unfortunately they've already scheduled a lab for Monday afternoon, so there's no rest. Now is the time to sleep, as this was originally drafted at ten to three in the morning after a night at Jesters, and I need to calm down. Urrgh.

What do I say?

How do you start a conversation with people? I'm fairly sure all the conversations I've been in with people I don't know were the result of introductions or they talked to me.

Worse is the fear of talking to people who I know (I've met and talked to them a couple of times), but I can't seem to start a conversation outside of a dark, smoke-and-alcohol filled room. It may just be I'm in a hurry for lectures. But I avoid them, I don't know what to say. It does feel wrong to stride past them on the way to campus, but I can't face them somehow.

I shouldn't post this late, sleepy time awaits. [snore]