Grizzly Bear: I think somebody needs a little wamp wamp!

I can't say I really understand the appeal of Clipse, which is a shame since it seems the indie rock community has anointed them the "token rap group for white people" of 2006. This happens with a few rappers every year--indie bloggers pick up on them and then play it off like it's normal for them to like rap, but secretly you know white people who like indie rock LOVE finding rappers who it's OK to like. I liked a couple Ghostface songs last year, so I'm going to call it a day. Plus I still love "Hate It or Love It" by The Game. Makes me feel like dancin'!

All that cynicism aside, I have to say that Girl Talk's mashup of Clipse's "Wamp Wamp" and Grizzly Bear's "Knife" (a song I love, btw) does sound pretty fucking good. And it's certainly less retarded than something involving the phrase "Wamp Wamp" should be. Apparently there's some Ying Yang Twins in there too, at least that's what the kids are telling me. Girl Talk aka Greg Gillis was responsible for last year's copyright nightmare, Night Ripper, which was basically one huge mashup. Also, for the record I think we should call this song "Wamp Wamp (Girly Bear Remix)" because it'd be more clever, but whatever.

Grizzly Bear / "Knife" (Girl Talk Remix)
Grizzly Bear / "Knife" (left-click)
Girl Talk / "Smash Your Head"

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I've been aware of what RSS is for quite a while--Foon insisted a couple years ago I turn on the RSS feed for this page so that he could more conveniently read it. Still, I never bothered actually using RSS to more easily read my favorite websites until last friggin week. That was when I stumbled on Google Reader, which is one of many RSS apps out there.

I don't know if it's the best (no youtube video), but it's got an interface similar to gmail, and it's easy to keep tabs on all your favorite blogs and news sites from one page. And if you need this RSS feed for this page, it's right here:

http//hello-cleveland.blogspot.com/atom.xml

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They're finally thinking about how to end "Lost."

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Phil Ball, my favorite Spanish soccer writer, provides the Spanish perspective on the Beckham signing and his resulting benching.

In terms of how all this impacts on Real Madrid, the truth is that the issue of his exclusion (not the transfer) has split the country down the middle. I was in Santiago at the weekend, and everyone was talking about it. Back here in San Sebastian, and I've just come back from the bar after watching Madrid beat Zaragoza, people were still talking about it.

One chap with a scary moustache, who'd spent the game muttering darkly about Van Nistelrooy's inability to either control or pass the ball - Es un buitre, joder! Que se dedique a esto, y nada más! (He's a poacher, for God's sake. He should just stick to doing that!) then began to chat with the barman about Beckham (who'd just appeared on camera, sitting in the stands watching his mates play). 'I can't understand it!' he shouted. 'So Madrid need to clean out the old ones, and start from new. I can understand that. But to punish the guy like that is just nasty. It shows a lack of class. Beckham's alright. He's always worked his nuts off. The club's gone to the dogs. You can't treat people like that'.

Radomir Antic, writing in the tabloid 'AS' said something similar, qualifying the action as symbolic of a dying institution, one that no longer has the dignity to even know who its most loyal servants have been. And he has a point. Ronaldo's sullen and unpredictable behaviour over the past two seasons should have guaranteed his exit long before now, but now Beckham has been lumped in with the 'clean-up', which includes the troublesome Cassano - a most unholy trinity, since the Englishman's behaviour has been exemplary.

The Bernabéu rate Beckham, however much the tabloid Marca desperately publish daily (unsubstantiated) vox-pops which claim to support Capello's actions. The Bernabéu have always rated Beckham. They recognise his limitations, but they still know that he's the best passer in their squad, a player capable of bringing out the best in the rest. But like any other player he needs continuity. He can't perform in a bit-part role. When he's had continuity he's played just fine and he's a better player than he was at Manchester United.

I stick with the words of Jorge Valdano, who knows a thing or two about football. His mis-translated phrase, that Beckham 'strikes' the ball better than anyone since Maradona, was in fact 'Desde Maradona, nadie trata el balon como Beckham' (Since Maradona, no-one has had the touch that Beckham has) seems a good enough testament to me.