A couple new awesome items on iTunes this week:
First up is the latest album from one of my top 5 all time favorite bands: Alkaline Trio’s This Addiction. (My last.fm profile actually lists Alkaline Trio as my #2 most listened to band since 2005.) If you’re already an Alkaline Trio fan, it’s different enough that you don’t feel like you’re listening to the older stuff and it’s familiar enough that you don’t feel like you’re listening to a whole different band (*cough* like say Panic! at the Disco’s disappointing second album). If you’re not already an Alkaline Trio fan, check them out because they’re awesome.
Next up is seasons 1-4 of Criminal Minds. (The current season 5 was added a few weeks ago.) Finally! This series took forever to come out on DVD too and is rarely rerun. It has always come on at 10pm and I love sleeping so that’s usually my bedtime at the latest and while I’ve caught and loved a few episodes here and there, I’ve never been able to keep up with the series. Now’s my chance. Next we patiently await Cold Case.
I also see they’ve added Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred which some of my blogging friends are loving right now. It’d be a little intense for my health right now but maybe I’ll be able to do it some day.
Disclosure: Some links in this post are affiliate links and I will receive a small compensation if you make a purchase after clicking through them. Affiliate links are an easy way to support Carrie Actually at no additional cost to you.
I’m personally a bit underwhelmed by the iPad and don’t foresee getting one. I would like to see Apple bring iWork to the iPhone because I’m still on the hunt for a really good spreadsheet application that I can use on my iPhone.
Here are my favorite links for this edition of Link Love:
The other day, I was desparate for a quick mix and decided to give genius mixes a second chance. Previously I had lamented about how I had been given multiple iterations of only 3 genre based mixes rather than a true 12 different mixes.
Much to my surprise, there has been a significant improvement in variety. Rather than 4 alternative and punk, 6 rock, and 2 metal mixes, I am now graced with:
- Emo based on Taking Back Sunday, The Academy Is…, and Jimmy Eat World
- Alternative Pop/Rock based on Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jack Johnson, and The Smashing Pumpkins
- Indie Rock based on Cobra Starship, Cartel, and The Killers
- Christian Rock (yeah that’s weird because I’m an atheist but has some of my favorite bands in it) based on Anberlin, Mae, and Relient K
- Adult Alternative Rock based on John Mayer, Coldplay, and The Fray
- Alt Metal based on System of a Down, Staind, and 30 Seconds to Mars
- Adult Alternative Pop based on Maroon 5, Eagle Eye Cherry, and Dido
- Power Pop based on Jack’s Mannequin, Fountains of Wayne, and Letters to Cleo
- Ska based on Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Real Big Fish, and Homegrown
- Mainstream Rock based on Tourmaline and Bruce Springsteen
- Classic Rock based on Three Dog Night and Creedence Clearwater Revival
- Nu Metal based on Linkin Park, Rage Against the Machine, and Papa Roach
I’m still disappointed that there is no default easy way to rate songs playing in a genius mix while listening to them, but I have found a work around for that as well. If you’re using the last.fm Scrobble plugin on a Mac and you have Growl installed, you will get a box in the upper right hand corner of your screen as each song starts and you can easily rate it there without having to leave the application you’re currently working in.
