X-Files continued 10-6

Earlier, I posted my my favorite X-Files numbers 25 - 11 with the promise that i would post my top ten in the future. Well, the partial future is here, because i have the next half of my post... with Episodes 10-6!!! I know, i know, PACO IS JUMPING WITH GLEE!!!!!! As a recap:
25. Ice
24. Hollywood AD
23. Humbug
22. Kill Switch
21. Our Town
20. Kaddish
19. Irresistible/Orison
18. Signs and wonders
17. Monday
16. Millennium
15. Paper hearts
14. All Souls
13. Unruhe
12. 1st Person shooter
11. Anasazi/Blessing Way/Paper Clip
now.... the next 5 of this very long POST.

10. Small Potatoes (4x20 – Vince Gillian)

“the birds and bees and the monkey babies, mulder”: Part One
There is never a lack of creativity with story lines with the writers of The X-Files. Some episodes amaze me with different characteristics – this episode makes me laugh all over the place.
“Not unless they have trailer parks in space”: Part Two
I really like the Villains who aren’t villains, just people who are in some way extraordinary, even if they have the guise and live the life of completely ordinary. Eddie VanBlundht, who at first meeting with Mulder, Fox rolls his eyes, is just this wonderfully crafted type of stand alone character. He’s amazing, he’s witty in his dullness and most of all, he’s got “personality”. Darin Morgan, writer of “Clyde Bruckman” and “Humbug” plays Eddie and his talent in pulling off this con-artist’s persona is just as stellar as his writing ability!
“Scully, should we be picking out China patterns or what?”: Part Three
There is a theme with me, if you haven’t noticed – I happen to, like any normal X-File lover, roll around in the glory that is Mulder and Scully’s relationship. Their chemistry is phenomenal and the other types of tension happen to be brought out to light during a candlelit rendezvous with… er.. mulder? Noteworthy scene: Mulder’s apartment scene after the investigation wraps up.

9. Triangle (6x03 – Chris Carter)

“How’d you like to see the stars on the American flag” :Part One
You know that feeling when, at the very beginning of something, you can tell it’s going to be awesome? That’s the beginning of this episode. September 3rd 1939 is being relived in the Bermuda Triangle and the history pours forth X-Files style. Fox Mulder has his chance to stand up to the Nazis and to make sure history’s course stays on track.
“There are spies everywhere.. Trust no one!” Part Two
Speaking to the theme of evil living on in every era, this episode carries out, in a very Wizard of Oz-espe style, that yes, in fact, we hold those we love and trust close – and those we don’t , those who have betrayed us and those who are down right nasty, have been and probably always will be.
“in case we never meet again”: Part 3
Mulder acts on intuition – this episode is no different. With the fate of the future resting on his decision, he decides to trust the OSS Scully – who, of course, doesn’t let him down. This episode is brilliant with few cuts and beautifully executed ship shots. Sometimes I feel claustrophobic watching this. Two more things, Scully is fluent in German in this epi, harking back to season four’s “Unruhe”. Secondly, the Noteworthy scene is the ballroom fight – who doesn’t like to see Nazis getting their ass’ kicked?

8. all things (7x17 – Gillian Anderson)

“time passes in moments”: Part One
Sometimes I run across something that reminds me of me – the themes and macro ideas of this very intimate episode resonates in my soul of souls, the questions asked and the dialogue held have oft been my quandaries and personal conversations.
“When we hold on to shame, guilt and fear – it creates an imbalance, makes us forget who we are”: Part Two
I love, love, love the take on Eastern religions/healers and sickness of this episode – tackling the hard lesson of embracing who and what we are for the sake of striking a balance with the universe, no matter how small we are.
“How many different lives would we be leading if we made different choices”: Part Three
Finally, Scully has to go on this journey alone. We see that in this series from time to time, but it is a rare gem to behold, but she had to embark alone on this spiritual, profound journey alone because we all have to do that. Questioning choices, she wonders if she’s really happy of is she’s just going through the motions. I believe the end of this episode wraps up our questions just fine. Let’s not forget to mention about this episode, the entire 45ish minutes is beautiful; wonderfully shot, manipulating and gorgeous. Noteworthy moment: the temple scene.

7. The Field Where I Died (4x05 – Glen Morgan and James Wong)

“At times I almost dream I, too, have spent a life the sage’s way..”: Part one
Doesn’t the age old question ask if we survive death – and if we do, why and how and where? This episode strikes something deep in my soul and makes me unspeakably sad. I believe this X-File does so much more than investigate the paranormal, it investigates humanity while journeying into the spiritual. Another X-File lover describes this epi as “poignant” and “heart breaking” and “romantic” (http://www.munchkyn.com/xf-rvws/field.html). And I agree on all three counts.
“Souls come back together…different…but always together.” Part two
David Duchovny and Kristen Cloke (the Melissa Reidel-Ephesian) give superb renditions of bereaved and devastated people ripped apart by death – Mulder reminds us that, though separated now, “love, love, ..souls mate.” This X-File is eerily beautiful and painstakingly pitch perfect on many levels. Noteworthy scenes include any scene in the field.

6. The Unnatural (6x20 – David Duchovny)

“I don’t wanna be a famous man… I just wanna be a man”: Part One
This is a heart string plucking episode that makes the all-American girl in me sing from the mountain tops. Jesse L. Martin is fabulous as Negro League Superstar Josh Exley – he carries this X-File on his back with his never ceasing smile and humble persona. He is easily one of my favorite outside actors - he is strong, brave, graceful and what everyone wants in a hero.
“Maybe you should start paying less attention to the heart of the mystery and more attention to the mystery of the heart”: Part two
Mulder is passionate and driven and so devoted to his life’s work that I forget he probably has days off from the FBI. It was nice to see one of Mulder’s Saturdays. I love the sense of wonderment Fox encapsulates during Arthur Dale’s story – it’s all kinds of inspiring – when he stops trying to figure it out and just listens.. and is.
“Life ain’t like baseball, is it, Arthur?”: Part Three
This episode has mass appeal – it’s a sports themed tear jerker, motivation to be true to one’s heart and inspiring to love and love without foul. Even the demise of the hero is amazingly heroic. And as far as I’m concerned David Duchovny has, you guessed it, hit a home run! Noteworthy scene: The final scene makes my heart explode.

My Top Games!

Now here's a list you're gonna love! I'm really into board games starting this year, so I thought I'd put together a list of my ten favorites.



10. Elfenland

Description: "A group of fledgling elves (the players) are charged with visiting as many of the twenty Elfencities as they can over a short period of time. To accomplish the task they will use various forms of transportation such as Pigs, Elfbikes, Magic Clouds, Trollwagons, and Dragons."

My Thoughts: This is like a better version of Ticket to Ride. It has a bit more complexity and a turn progression that I like more.



9. Bohnanza

Description: "As card games go, this one is quite revolutionary. Perhaps its oddest feature is that you cannot rearrange your hand, as you need to play the cards in the order that you draw them. The cards are colorful depictions of beans in various descriptive poses, and the object is to make coins by planting fields (sets) of these beans and then harvesting them. To help players match their cards up, the game features extensive trading and deal making."

My Thoughts: I don't usually like card games that much, but this one is an exception. It's short, and card trading element is very fun.



8. Stone Age

Description: "Players struggle to survive the Stone Age by working as hunters, collectors, farmers, and tool makers. As you gather resources, and raise animals, you work to build the tools needed to build your civilization."

My Thoughts: I've only played this once, but I really liked it. It's a typical worker placement game that seems to be very well implemented.


7. Citadels

Description: "Players seek to build a collection of districts worth from one to eight points. Once someone has built eight districts, the game is over after that round ends and the player with the highest total value wins. However to facilitate the process (and make the game interesting), players sequentially choose a character from a rapidly dwindling pool of eight each turn. The characters give players special abilities for the turn."

My Thoughts: Another card game exception. The key here is the character cards, which are selected secretly each round. This makes for a good deal of poker-like thinking/guessing.


6. Formula D

Description: "Formula D is a fast-paced racing game in which the cars' top speeds are limited by having to end a certain number of turns in each curve of the racetrack. This can be tricky, because although players can regulate their speeds by choosing which gear to be in and each gear allows a certain range of movement, the exact amount is determined randomly."

My Thoughts: You'd think a racing board game would be lame, but it's not! It's exciting, and features lots of fun dice-rolling.


5. Galaxy Trucker

Description: I can't find a good description for this one. Basically, there are two phases to this game. The first consists of players simultaneously grabbing tiles that are used to build a spaceship. The second phase involves sending these ships out into space and hoping they survive.

My Thoughts: This is another game I've only played a few times but really like. It's a fun combination of intense thinking and total chaos. You plan so hard in the first phase and then just sit back and watch your creation be blown apart.


4. Pandemic

Description: "You are specialists at the CDC/Atlanta where you watch several virulent diseases break out simultaneously all over the world. The team mission is to prevent a world-wide pandemic outbreak, treating hotspots while researching cures for each of the four plagues before they get out of hand."

My Thoughts: This game has a great feel that matches the theme. It always seems like you're on the brink of losing.


3. Ghost Stories

Description: "Ghost Stories is a cooperative game in which the players try to defeat the spirit of Wu-Feng, the lord of hell, and his legions of ghosts before they haunt a town and recover the ashes that will allow him to return to life. Each Player represents a taoist monk ghost hunter who is working together with the others to fight off waves of spirits and other beings mostly inspired by eastern mythology."

My Thoughts: A common trait of a lot of these games is that the player has a limited amount of information and a limited number of actions to accomplish goals. To me, using actions efficiently based on the available information is really fun!



2. Puerto Rico

Description: "The players are plantation owners in Puerto Rico in the days when ships had sails. Growing up to five different kind of crops: Corn, Indigo, Coffee, Sugar and Tobacco, they must try to run their business more efficiently than their close competitors; growing crops and storing them efficiently, developing San Juan with useful buildings, deploying their colonists to best effect, selling crops at the right time, and most importantly, shipping their goods back to Europe for maximum benefit."

My Thoughts: I love a game that gives the player lots of options. Puerto Rico offers an almost limitless number of winning combinations.


1. Agricola

Description: "In Agricola, you're a farmer in a wooden shack with your spouse and little else. On a turn, you get to take only two actions, one for you and one for the spouse, from all the possibilities you'll find on a farm: collecting clay, wood, or stone; building fences; and so on. You might think about having kids in order to get more work accomplished, but first you need to expand your house. And what are you going to feed all the little rugrats?"

My Thoughts: Oh boy! What a good game. So much to do, so little time. This game lets players build their own farms. That's so fun! Don't you love it? Also, there's so much hard thinking. Don't you guys love thinking and farms?

So, there it is. Now come over to my house and play these with me.

Top 25 Albums of the D'Cade: 25-11

Alright, here's the first part of my list. Generally, my feeling is that music is good when it just is, and that to provide a set of conditions that account for its goodness is to invalidate the brute fact of its beauty. As a result, I hate writing descriptions for these lists. That said, I recognize that without the descriptions they are kind of boring. My compromise is that I'll just hit you with 25-11, and I'll try to provide some descriptions for 10-1.

Also, it should be clear that I do not claim that these are the best albums, just my favorite.



25. Damien Jurado - Ghost of David



24. Rogue Wave - Out of the Shadow



23. Modest Mouse - The Moon and Antarctica



22. Magnetic Fields - 69 Love Songs



21. Destroyer - Rubies



20. Of Montreal - Satanic Panic in the Attic



19. Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Master and Everyone



18. Solvent - Apples and Synthesizers



17. Sigur Ros - ()



16. Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway



15. Arcade Fire - Funeral



14. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion



13. The Innocence Mission - Befriended



12. Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans



11. Gui Boratto - Chromophobia


10-1 will follow shortly.

“The world didn't end.”

"No, it didn't."

After much debating and thought, I have finished composing my list of my top 25 x files episodes. Here are 25-11.

25. Requiem - I remember watching this episode when it aired, and trying in vain to tell all of my friends about it. I was in 8th grade and it was finals week. hah. I still think this should have been the series finale.

24. The Field Where I Died -

Mulder - “Dana, if, um, early in the four years we've been working together an event occurred that suggested or somebody told you that we've been friends together in other lifetimes always - would it have changed some of the ways we've looked at one another?”

Scully - “Even if I knew for certain, I wouldn't change a thing. Well, maybe that flukeman thing. I could've lived without that just fine.”

23. Tempus Fugit / Max – I don’t know why this isn’t higher on my list. Some of my favorite dialog between scully and mulder are in this episode:

SCULLY: Mulder... you have never remembered my birthday in the four years I've known you.

MULDER: That's the way I like to celebrate them...It's every four years, it's like dog years that way.

SCULLY: Dog years? Thank you.

MULDER: You're welcome. Oh, I got something for you.

SCULLY: Oh, you've got to be kidding me.

MULDER: It's just something that reminded me of you.

SCULLY: What, an alien implant?

MULDER: Two, actually. I made them into earrings.

22. All Souls - “Science only teaches us how, not why.”

21. Unruhe – There’s one reason I love this episode: HOWLERZ!! Hah I loved how mad scully gets when investigating Jerry… also I love Jerry’s crazy eyes.

20. Pusher/ Kitsunegari – Robert Modell is one of my favorite villains in the series. I would not want to get caught in a game of Russian Roulette with that guy.

19. Chinga – This Stephen King-written episode is probably one of my most watched episodes. I hate dolls, and the hokey pokey because of this. I remember being so scared when I watched it when I was younger.

18. Hollywood A.D. – Sometimes I just love the lighthearted episodes.

MULDER: (on phone) How about Richard Gere?

WAYNE FEDERMAN: (on phone) Ho! Yeah, okay. Uh, seriously. What if I said to you the name "Garry Shandling"?

MULDER: (on phone) Wayne, you're breaking up. It sounded like you said "Garry Shandling."

17. Irresistible/Orison - I love how affected by these cases Scully is. I think Donnie Pfaster is one of the creepiest villains on the x files. There's a great shot of him in his room with all the flowers from funerals. I love when scully is on the phone with mulder, and she says "anyway, you could use my help out there." and then he says "always"

16. Oubliette – I’ve always thought that some of the best x files are the ones where the case is very personal to mulder and scully. This one is a great Mulder episode. Also I think Lucy Householder is one of the best guest actors on the Show.

15. Triangle – “You saved the world Scully.” “Yeah, you're right. I did.” This is a just a very highly entertaining episode to me. Besides all of the great acting and wonderful plot, the technical side of this episode amazes me. I also love the Wizard of Oz reference near the end when Mulder wakes up.

14. Paper Hearts - Another very personal one to Mulder. I really loved the character John Lee Roche.

13. Millenium - “The world didn't end.” “No, it didn't.” I remember the first time I saw this episode. I had been watching the show every week for about 4 years. Finally they kissed. And the world didn’t end. Apart from the ending, I love pretty much everything about this episode. A gunfight with zombies in the basement can’t be bad? Can it?

12. Our Town – This is just an episode that has always entertained me, ever since I watched it as a kid.

11. The Anasazi/The Blessing Way/Paper Clip – I love everything about this trilogy. It answers a few questions in the series, but then just opens up even more. The CSM is great in these, I especially love his “BURN IT” line at the end of the Anasazi when Mulder is trapped in the boxcar. Another thing that I always love is the Native American culture in these episodes. I think that these are probably my favorite season enders and starters. Although Talitha Cumi and Herrenvolk, and The End and the Beginning are all good. However, I don’t care as much for Biogenesis and The Sixth Ex (stink) tions.

That’s it for now. 10-1 are going to be coming soon.

I want to believe... that this post will rule the school

For my first post of the year, I'm breaking it down for you Mulder style.
I have been toiling over my top 25 Favorite X-Files Episodes - and I'm happy to report that my 25 are written down and ready to be posted.
However, the reader should know: I am only posting numbers 25-11 now - and my top ten (although already chosen) will come along later with detailed descriptions as to WHY they are in the coveted top ten spots.

One more thing needs to be stated: these top spots are my favorites. I'm sure in your heart of hearts there are better ones and you will want to sing your own x-files song, and you should, but don't defile mine.

Without further ado, allow me to present this list:

Top X-Files:::: Alien chasing, monster racing, crime fighting team:::: ((according to me))

25. Ice (1x07 - Glen Morgan and James Wong)
This episode is excellent for many reasons, mind altering parasites, deep deep cold and sassy smarties all locked up together - however, my tip top reason for choosing this to start out my list is: this was the first major show of apparent walking out on a limb trust between these two wonderful agents. Scully trusted Mulder and a beautiful relationship ensued.

24. Hollywood AD (7x19 - David Duchovny)
An X-file within a movie within an X-file -- pretty clever, David, pretty clever. Favorite scenes include Garry Shanding asking Fox Mulder "which way he dresses in the morning", Scully telling Mulder they have the Bureau credit card for a night of Hollywood fun, and of course, the zombies....

23. Humbug (2x20 - Darin Morgan)
Freaks, geeks and a pretty red head eating a cricket - I love the side show aspect and how theirs is the normal among their own. I mean, the dog faced boy is the sheriff - really.

22. Kill Switch (5x11 - William Gibson and Tom Maddox)
Oh man - this episode made me all kinds of crazy when I first saw it. It's creepy and disturbing, but oh so good - complete with sexy nurses and a kick ass Scully. Oh, the detailed touches with Twilight Time add that extra ounce of thoughtfulness that X-File lovers come to expect.

21. Our Town (2x24 - Frank Spotnitz)
I'm a sucker for conspiracies and people abusing their power story lines (duh!??!), and these items about 'big food' (so to speak) is right up my alley. Puh-leaz. Voo-Doo always strengthens a story line, too.

20. Kaddish (4x15 - Howard Gordan)
Maybe deep down, really far deep down, I'm a gushy romantic laced with a tad bit of wacky. But I think it's sweet Arielle would craft a golem just to wear the wedding ring her daddy made in a concentration camp. Call me a weird-o

19. Irresistible (2x13 - Chris Carter) and Orison (7x07 - Chip Johannesson)
Donny Pfaster is a scary son of a bitch. I mean, scary. Besides that, I love when a television series can have on-going story lines, but the episodes they appear in can be strong enough to gravitate alone. This two-fer does just that. (Actually, most X-Files do just that, but I just love this one) Not to mention, every minute of Orison, from start to finish just creeps me the hell out. And X-Files should be about creepy, at least most of the time.

18. Signs and Wonders (7x09 - Jeffrey Bell)
Structured religion, even if that structure is a little insane, can be a serious tool for destruction - this episodes shows both sides and definitely leads one astray with the ever lasting question "who done it". Plus, giving birth to snakes???? SICK

17. Monday (6x14 - Vince Gilligan and John Shiban)
This very taxing take on Groundhog's Day allows the viewer to ponder between fate and predestined actions. It's good. A good food for the brain - also, Pam played by Carrie Hamilton, makes me believe she has suffered and suffered and suffered the same day for too many to count. She's an amazing actress.

16. Millennium (7x04 - Vince Gilligan and Frank Spotnitz)
Probably the best of the best of this episode gets lost with the KISS. BUT OH MY GOD, THAT KISS MAKES ME TINGLE EVERYWHERE.... Moving on - apocalypse theories are strong and i'm sure Millennium fans were happy to have closure.

15. Paper Hearts (4x10 - Vince Gilligan)
Mulder shows weakness here, in the middle of this epi - i like that, but what i like better is his ability to get back on track. Tom Noonan is a good villian, his blank stares and the whole killing little girls, those things can get ya' big creeper points. Noteworthy moment, when Mulder swishes a jump shot (what a stud).

14. All Souls (5x17 - story by Dan Angel,Billy Brown teleplay by Frank Spotnitz and John Shiban)
I do have a weakness for the religious episodes. I love the way the church can flip flop the two agents' point of views, I love, as in Signs and Wonders and also Revelations, that the people who one would think committed these treacheries are most definitely not the people who did. Call me predictable, but i like what i like.

13. Unruhe (4x04- Vince Gilligan)
Mulder is so smooth under pressure. He saves Scully so many times, but yet, my heart never tires. Scully is impressive in this one - I have seen this episode so many times, and re-learning that Scully is nearly fluent in German still makes me wanna go gay for her. She's so deep and round as a character. This show, and this episode, never let's a person down.

12. First Person Shooter (7x13 - William Gibson and Tom Maddox)
Sometimes when I watch an x-file, I just wanna revel in their relationship. I love it. I love to have fun with these two and jump up and down when they succeed. Seeing Scully destroy that vixen let's me know that it's not always about beauty, it's about beauty and who has the biggest guns.

11. Anasazi/Blessing Way/Paper Clip (2x25, 3x01, 3x02 - Chris Carter and David Duchovny)
I don't have many cut and dry mythology arch episodes, but this one (a combination of three) blows my mind. Blows it clear out of this earthly sphere. Native American folklore, extra terrestrial conspiracies, government denies knowledge - this is what makes a great x-file. So early in the series, Chris Carter is laying it all on the table- blowing through the stops and making us fall in love with even the most despicable of cigarette smoking villains.

10-1 coming soon. don't lose hope.

prepare ye the way of my lists.

i'm just letting everyone know --

i'm starting my lists.

i actually started one last week. and this year, i've changed.
here's a self portrait.

Long Forgotten List of Sweet MP3 Resources (Forums, Blogs, Sites, Etc...) Pt. 1 of 2

So if anyone chances to pass by this way they will come across my long promised but never done list of MP3 gettin' resources.

Now by this point in time everyone is well aware of the lineage of file sharing, beginning probably with some unknown thing, then another unknown (usenet groups, which I was not old enough or geeky enough to be into) then Napster came and things broke wide open and then on and on, Kazaa, etc... My personal fav. was Audiogalaxy which seemed to have everything I ever searched for and was fast even on HC's terrible wireles. Unfortunately at that time I was only into sampling and so just downloaded a few tracks instead of whole albums. It was all for the better however because most of the music I downloaded at that time (Freshman year of college mostly) I do not really listen to now.

On and on and on, they all got shut down until today when as much as the vile RIAA is doing thier worst, don't seem to be shutting anything down any more really. This probably also has to do with the fact that I am out of the loop and downloading obscure ambient tapes not the lastest sweet jamzzzz from john mayer or whoever. In fact despite the ridiculous laws which the RIAA passes and tries to pass and the other absurd wastes of time they are engaged in, today the file sharing world is better than ever before. If you know what you are doing and you have some time to waste, or love wasting time. you can find nearly all the albums you ever were looking for and countless more that you never knew existed which are actually better than that crap you first started looking for.

With all this utopianism, that isn't to say that thier aren't limitations, dangers, or drawbacks, but screw them, this is a list about sweet resources not a thesis about file sharing or the internet.

So how do I find my dreams? How do I find what I want or what someone else tells me that I want? Well, I don't claim to have exaustive knowledge on this and I am finding new info everyday. However from my internet expeirence, there are 5 primary ways of going about getting your gem jam gems: P2P progams, Torrents, Ripping Crap from your friends and the library, Online Forums and message boards, and Blogs. While not all routes are created equal with all these in hand you are off on the road to serfdom. So what gives regarding?

1. P2P
To be honest I have not kept up with what programs the kids are using these days. I also don't care what people are doing on windoze computers so I don't know whats happening over there. But according to me the two best routes are Soulseex (Soulseek on PC) and only occasionally Limewire (or Frostwire or any other gnutella client. mmm nutella...). I'm not going to spend much time on these as I think people already know what is up here.

Limewire et al
Basically the worst always unless you want to find a random song, preferably a fairly popular one. Then you are good to go and its pretty quick.

Soulseex/Soulseek
An old standby, as far as I know that last really good P2P client for finding full albums on any platform. I used to use this religiously and almost exclusively. It works for some stuff and doesn't work for other stuff. It requires lots of patience (as in queing stuff and then forgetting about it for a while maybe even several days). It can be a good tool for finding obscurities, but also there are lots of things it doesn't have. Probably the best thing is that you can browse other people's libraries to learn about other cool stuff. But don't take too much, or you'll get banned! The program itself is mildly poorly designed and also for mac hasn't been updated since like 2006, a long time in computer years. Basically while its still a nice thing, I haven't used it in several years, and neither have a lot of other people, some of those people having the sweetest jams. It also requires either sharing all your crap (annoying, potenially dangerous legally, and bandwidth slowing) or being a jerk and probably being banned by the best people.

P2P Conclusion: if you really have to or can't find it somewhere else, or are going somewhere for several weeks and leaving your computer on, then cool. otherwise avoid.

2. Torrents
Lots of people don't understand torrents. I'm not going to explain it here, if you really can't find out then talk to me in person or on the phone.

Torrents are awesome for movies and programs. Basically the only really good way (in america, I know some good korean routes) to get large files, unless you have a paid rapidshare account and lots of time to click stuff (I don't).

Torrents for Music? Not so awesome. In my opinion, too much work is involved in searching for downloading and then seeding torrents to do that with something as small as music files. The only time it really makes sense is if you are downloading huge whole discographies (something I rarely due, especially because most of the those easily available are like green day and metallica) or the occasional awesome find. (I got all releases ever by amazing label Sublime Frequencies. In on torrent. Awesome). No on super cool private member sites there may be cool stuff I don't know. but it still doesn't seem worth it.

Which torrent sites are cool? Aside from private trackers like demonoid and even more obscure ones, I don't really know. The Pirate Bay is good, otherwise just search around.

Torrent Conclusion: I guess its good to have options, but mostly don't waste your time unless you really need it and can't find it anywhere else.

3. Ripping Crap from your friends and the library
This is self explanatory and has been around since before the internet. Its still cool. But also sometimes takes a lot of effort that you don't need to spend. But still useful. Most only for older stuff though, like blues, folk, jazz, classical, etc...

Ripping Crap Conclusion: Mostly good for box-sets or if you want to be completist about making sure you have all the info possible about a release and also like holding physical things in your hand(s).

4. Online Forums and Message Boards

This way and # 5 both rely on the crop of new free webhosting sites such as rapidshare, mediafire, zshare, megaupload, etc. These are pretty fast although some of them have waiting periods and adds to try to make you pay them some money for those to go away. These links also are not necessarily permanent (can expire, be taken down, etc... but are easy to re-up) I tell you my prefs of these later.

This is one of the newer ways to do things and it is also one of the best for finding your hard to find findys, getting the newest sweet releases and leaks, and new artists/labels/albums you didn't even know about that rock you so hard you will have to cash in your spare rockers chips. Basically, in addition to number 5 I use this almost exculsively nowadays and have so much awesome music I can't add it to my itunes library fast enough and I am loving life. Also a lot of the people that post are actually in bands, some you know and love, so they are not all selfish pirates like me. But which one has all the cool rings? There are about a billion. Basically every message board has at least one download or YSI thread. Here are the ones I think rule that I know of and that I frequent. Most of these I stumbled on through gooogle, so sometimes thier actual purpose (not the forums) are wierd or hilarious things that I don't know or care about)

Top Tier

1. Hipinion

This one is fairly exclusive. I think its just a site for cool dudes to hang mostly music related. They don't let people join very often (I'm not a member, even though I applied) and they don't like you if you are a leecher (Don't post or upload, just download and lurk around, maybe occasionally asking for random things). Of course how can you help leeching if you aren't allowed to post because your not a member? who knows. They don't like that you link to them so I'm not going to directly. These things basically go for all of the forums I am about to mention. There are probably lots of threads there.

My top favorite is called Listening Party: Episode II - Attack of the Drones. It's mostly sweet tapes of Lo-Fi drone and psych noise rock and other underground experimental goodness.

Another is called Wierd/Outsider Punk. I actually haven't checked this out much. But it is what it says it is. all the noisy stuff pitchfork mildly loved plus the more underground stuff they don't report.

Finally like most forums they have a 2009 leak and latest thread, called: 2009 Leak Thread. It is what it is and is home to all kinds of goodies, some junk some sweet. Can be a little overwhelming to wade through it all, at least for me.

2. Primavera Sound

This is a spanish language site for some music festival I think (I don't know spanish). But these dudes love good music. Filtraciones '09 is the only link I really check as my spanish is not existant and therefore its really hard to wade through the other posts. Even though the dudes are writing spanish, the album covers are not always and also they usually post some small blurbs from somewhere usually in english. Sure sometimes you will be confused but its actually pretty easy to wade around. This one is all over the map but mostly sweet stuff. After you have read it for a while you will know various users avatars and then can know who posts the stuff you are likely to enjoy.

3. Fangs and Arrows

Fangs and Arrows is another exclusive one but one that I have just joined. Actually populated by a lot of guys in cool underground bands and runners of tape and other labels, they even have news updates from various label reps. I don't have a specific forum to mention as I have just discovered them, but you can wade around. They have some good discographies up of out of prints stuff from lots of small time tape and cdr labels.

4. Ateaseweb

This is a radiohead fan newsite. the forums have a music that's not radiohead section. This was the first forum I found out about and used to be great, especially thier noise/wierd/psych/etc 08 thread. But then some dumb guy came and started posting annoying messages on almost all the good threads (because apparently he didn't like the music or was just a tremedousy obnoxious guy. And so those threads all died because the people posting sweet crap all left. So I don't really check there much anymore. But there are still good threads to be had I am sure and I know they also have an overwhelming and huge 2009 leak thread.

Second Tier: These I don't really check.

5. Sound Opinions

I have gotten some stuff from here but don't really care about it. maybe you will.

6. Anyswing

Actually I just found out about this and it could be awesome. It is mostly old timey, jazz, blues, folk, ragtime, dixieland, old swing, etc... focused. But I have to check it out more. It may go up to top tier soon.

Random other ones I found some stuff on a few times by googling

7. Forum Sarajevo:

From sarajevo, again not in english but easy enough to get through if you can find a good thread. I think I found a dock boggs album here.

8. Phantasy Tour:

Actually a Phish fan site (hahahahahahahahahahahahahah) but found a thread with some good jazz.

Forum Conclusion: Almost entirely awesome, this is one your main sources for finding out about new and old music, downloading it, sharing it, and just having a good time. Downloads are quick, you always get the full album (if they say that) and they are usually labelled somewhat correctly. Its also easy to share links with friends. You also don't have to leave you computer constantly connected to some network. Plus its fun and educational.

Well Dang this is hard work!!!! I will finish up in part two with blogs, uploaders, and search engines, the main sites of fun!