Blog Posts by Robert of the Radish

As a continuing tribute to the upcoming Halloween festivities, I thought I'd do a 13 song playlist as an offering to all the evil ready to befall us. This one features songs about bad luck.

It's an eclectic list, but has a blues-heavy foundation. Although most intellectual types believe bad luck superstitions are for the weak-minded, or fans of American Idol, there are very real phobias associated with bad luck, like triskaidekaphobia, which is the fear of the number 13.

Seriously.

This may explain the reason behind tall buildings not having a 13th floor. Some people think the number is unlucky because there are 13 full moons in a year, which spurs fears of a lycanthrope-form Ozzy Osbourne lurking about for blood, or lycanthrozzophobia. However, most humans just accept centuries old folk tales, and could never explain "why" the number is bad.

In addition to the number 13, some other interesting "bad luck" superstitions include a black cat crossing your path, breaking a mirror (which

I thought I would throw this playlist out there for ya as we get closer to Halloween, but be sure to tune in next week for a plethora of ghoulish compilations that are sure to add flavor to your holiday.

The pentagram has a very long history that is now admittedly skewed. Technically, a pentagram is drawn with five straight stokes and creates a pentagon in the center. The star alone is also known as a pentacle or pentangle. The pentagram has been used in a myriad of religions including Christianity and Wicca, but it's use in Satanism has essentially robbed the symbol from any other association.

Metal music has used the symbol to the point where it's a laughable cliché, however non-metal bands have also used it. This playlist contains albums with pentagrams on the cover.

Anton LaVey - The Satanic Mass

I suppose if you are going to do a list of album covers that have a pentagram on them you need to start it with The Satanic Mass as performed by the founder and High Priest of the

If you're looking for the most efficient way to discover the best new music, look no further than this playlist.

To create it, we looked at the highest rated albums according to Metacritic.com, which applies a numerical rating to scores of music reviews across the spectrum of the web, and then averages them. This means that the albums on this list have a consensus of positive critical reviews, as opposed to the opinion of one person.

From this list of highest-ranked albums (score of 80 and above), we selected a stand-out track from each, and then compiled them into this playlist. All you need to do now is click the play button for a sampling of the current most talked about albums. And for you intelligent subscribers, you can listen to full albums for each track that catches your ear.

According to the critics, this is the current "best of the best".

The Playlist:

1. Boyz - M.I.A.

2. Brace Yourself - Les Savy Fav

3. You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb - Spoon

4. Frank & Ava - Suzanne Vega 

5.

Cabaret is a French-born form of entertainment (the first cabaret was opened in 1881 at Montmartre, Paris), and the word itself comes from the bars, or cafes where it was born. This artsy form of entertainment could feature music, comedy, theatre, dance, juggling, puppetry and basically all forms of entertainment that could be produced on a stage. A cabaret show is synonymous with a sexually charged, raucous, drunken, or drug-induced fun-fest.

This atmosphere of these original cabarets helped to mold the cabaret sound, which was influenced by gypsy culture and the avant-garde underground. The end result was an energizing sound meant to titillate and enthrall the audience.

Luckily, the cabaret mystique has survived within popular music, and this playlist explores modern songs with a decidedly "cabaret" feel.

Accordions, violins, poetic verse, and artsy weirdness can be found in this playlist, and it may give you an overwhelming urge to wear feathers, drink Absinthe and dance on a

If you have the desire to be a music critic, this playlist could be your first lesson. It contains some of the most respected and influential bands that never sold in meaningful numbers.

Truly great music usually finds consensus among critics and musicians and is ignored by the masses. There are many other bands that fall into this category, these are just the first 19 that popped into my head.

Please feel free to add more to the comments and help make this a definitive list.

If you're a commercial pop music addict who has traditionally found your music on television and radio, but are looking to expand your musical tastes. Or if you're just looking to understand what constitutes "critically acclaimed". This playlist is a good start.

If you don't get it after the first listen, listen until you do. You're musical salvation depends on it.

The Playlist:

1. Maybe Partying Will Help - The Minutemen

2. See No Evil - Television

3. Heroin - The Velvet Underground

4. Baby's On Fire - Brian

The first installment of the Star Wars universe hit the big screen over 30 years ago. At the time I was lucky enough to be in the single digit age group. A time when my young impressionable mind could be completely absorbed into the world created by George Lucas' Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Still to this day, no movie experience has left a bigger impact on me than that film did when I first saw it with my family 3 decades ago.

The special effects were truly groundbreaking (and breathtaking) for the era, but the film's stunning success was tied to much more than this. The music, the sound effects, and the timeless theme of good vs. evil all helped Star Wars transform into something much bigger than the sum of it's parts. And although we have had 5 more films since the original, none have had the same impact on me.

The franchise morphed into a multi-billion dollar industry to include 6 films, books, magazines, toys, video games, role playing games, board games, clothing and every

 Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller are probably the most important songwriters and music producers in early Rock & Roll history. They're not well known by the masses because the majority of their work has been behind-the-scenes. But this songwriting team's compositions have been big hits for the likes of Charles Brown, Wilbert Harrison, Buddy Holly, The Drifters, The Searchers, The Coasters, Dion, Peggy Lee, and most notably, Elvis Presley.

This playlist kicks off with Leiber and Stoller's very first hit, "Hard Times" by Charles Brown, and is followed by a long string of familiar chart toppers.

If you haven't heard of Leiber & Stoller, this playlist is a great sampling of their impressive body of work.

The Playlist:

1. Hard Times - Charles Brown

2. Kansas City - Wilbert Harrison

3. Hound Dog - Elvis Presley

4. You're So Square (Baby, I Don't Care) - Buddy Holly

5. Love Potion Number Nine - The Searchers

6. Save The Last Dance For Me - The Drifters

7. 3 Cool Cats - Ry Cooder

8. Smokey