Today I've been dealing with what seems like WAY more than the usual amount of weirdness. I kinda feel like one of them Y-Wing fighters from Star Wars: A New Hope; one of the Gold Squad which gets shot down in the trench by Darth Vader, while valiantly trying to stay on target. Naturally, as a way to alleviate my stress, I figgered creepin' Group/R&B 45s would help. It has, sorta. When it comes to R&B 45s, just window shopping via teh internet can be enough. C'mon, R&B is ALWAYS a PARTY! AMIRITE? ... hello? Anyways, as I was in creep mode, I happened across a 45 by the Teenchords. Perhaps you might remember this track; it was used in some Google TV advert this past December... I think. Whatever, the song is great, catchy as shit.

Like the all best Group/R&B "I'm So Happy" just sails, it's a dancer, and one that can make you feel like you have not a care in the world. Which, currently, is what I need!! If you're wondering why the singer for the Teenchords sounds a lot like Frankie Lymon, as in Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, it's 'cause Teenchords' lead, Lewis Lymon, IS Frankie Lymon's little brother. Tho' the Teenchords didn't have much of a career, I like 'em better than the Teenagers. I've never been too stoked on the Teenagers as they were too pop for my taste and Frankie ended up a grade-A asshole junkie.

Occasionally I get the tap to play records between bands or whatnot at shows and when I do I usually bring a long hair heavy/garage set. The kids are usually more interested in the bands, of course, not dancing. Anyways, one track that always gets a rise is the AMERICAN version of David Bowie's "Rebel Rebel"—it's a cut up and real effect-heavy version...it's great.

Right, very different from the slightly more square UK single and LP version. There is a bit of lore surrounding this mix—it's been suggested it was "played entirely by Bowie." Perhaps Spiders from Mars guitarist Mick Ronson was no longer a Spider from Mars and Bowie did play most all the instruments on Diamond Dogs...

"politicians never did shit for me except lie to me / distort history / wanna give jail time and a fine/ fine, lemme commit a real crime"

• Supply and Demand

What I Needed is out now on Supply and Demand. Invie also appears on the National's album Trouble Will Find Me, which 4AD plans to release on May 20.

Brad Paisley made a song about racism and invited LL Cool J to rap on it. The title of this song is such a fucking slow pitch.

Fuck the fuck-ass "rebel flag," there's no racist elephant in the middle of the room that we don't want to aknowledge. No, like Luke in his Tauntaun, we are curled up inside the carcass of that racist elephant for warmth, and have been for centuries upon centuries. Who gives a shit about the Civil War? It's deeper than that. The problem Paisley has here is a classic white guy party trick: let's clear the air so I can be more comfortable bro-ing down with you, LL—but I refuse to aknowledge or address that I benefits in some degree to this very day from slavery—and just as significantly, all the fuckery that's happened ever since. Can we just let "bygones by bygones"? LL of course, is the guy that says, COOL. No, wait, LL is the black man that says: RIP ROBERT E LEE.

"I can't even" with this, you guys, I'm going outside to breathe and take a relaxing walk to Manhasset, New York, so I can kick LL Cool J's roid-shriveled balls into outer space.

Early on in the set, it seemed, OMD played their super-mega Pretty In Pink hit “If You Leave.” All of the sudden they were playing THE SONG. My thought was, “Wow, the mega hit, already?” I thought they’d save it for the finale, or at least until almost the end. It brought to mind a question:

If you have one super mega-mega hit, do you save it for the end of the set? Are you blowing your wad if you play it early? Do you risk mass exodus if you go with it too soon? Because, isn’t that what a ton of people are there to see? (“So In Love” did well, but it wasn’t a mega-mega hit.) Or, do you get the mega hit out of the way, because you're sick of the one hit wonder association, and you want to prove to people you’ve done other things?

If you have a mega-mega super hit, and you play it early or mid-set, what are you closing with? Is that when you pull out your Prince cover? Or your electro-take on Bobbie Gentry's supernatural mystery "Ode to Billie Joe"?