While seasons never stop me from wearing whatever makeup I please, it may stop some of you. So if you’ve yet to tackle the vibrant summer night eye, let me help. Bright eye makeup is one of my favorite things, and I hope after this video it will be one of yours too!

If only everything else were so simple.

Remember when you were a kid and you mixed a bunch of different flavors of soda together and called it “suicide”? That’s kind of what this week’s new music releases are like. A mish-mash of randomness. I mean we have the lead singer of Bright Eyes, a former American Idol contestant, and an R&B girl sensation. That’s kind of like mixing Coca Cola, Orange Crush, and Dr. Pepper together.

So, your friends might give you strange looks if you play these three albums on shuffle at your next party, but as long as you have an open mind, you should be able to take each album for what it’s worth. And drink it up. Because, despite its name, “suicide” was always a ton of fun.

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band- Outer South

The whole time I was listening to Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band’s new album, Outer South, I kept thinking, “Why does this sound so familiar??” After listening to several songs, I finally had it. Conor Oberst is the lead singer of Bright Eyes and has an extremely distinctive voice.  On this album, Conor leaves his Bright Eyes friends and joins the guys from the Mystic Valley Band. And you know what? He sounds a lot happier with this band; many of the songs are a lot more upbeat. Some of my favorites include “White Shoes” and “Spoiled,” but to be honest, the entire 16-song album was very easy for me to listen to over and over. I actually really love the last song on the album, the hillbilly-ish “Snake Hill,” which is actually mainly sung by Taylor Hollingsworth. It tells the story of a man whose mother always told him to stay on Snake Hill because he had poison in his bite. When he left the hill, “I discovered that a girl/Was what my mother tried to hide from me/She could make you feel alive/She could make you want to die/And that’s exactly what she did to me.” Though the song wasn’t even written by Oberst, those are some lyrics you would find coming right from Bright Eyes.

Elliott Yamin- Fight For Love

While I love American Idol for the opportunities it gives yet-to-be-discovered-singers, I sometimes hate it for the stigma it leaves on them. Elliott Yamin has that stigma. I feel like he’s having a hard time really making it because people think he’s just another product of American Idol. But Elliott is one of the most talented singers American Idol has discovered and his new album, Fight For Love, proves that he’s here to stay.

From the first notes of “Let Love Be,” I could tell I was going to like it; very smart to put that song first on the album.  It was also at this point that I realized how much Elliott actually sounds like John Legend. Listen to “Let Love Be” and tell me I’m wrong. This is the ultimate in pop-y jazz. I was also extremely impressed with “Cold Heart,” which I can totally see as the next single, and “Can’t Keep On Loving You.” Though “Someday” was thrown as the last song on the album, it’s probably the most heart-wrenching for Elliott’s Idol fans. Remember Elliott’s mom who was in the audience of every show cheering him on? The two were extremely close and she passed away last year; he wrote this song for her. “How do I start to make sense of what’s left/Still carry the memory of you in my head/I’m just not ready to let you go yet/But I know you’re proud of the man that I am.” Tear. All in all, I hope this album helps Elliott break beyond American Idol and show the world that he’s an incredible singer, whether Simon is judging him or not.

Ciara- Fantasy Ride

Ciara’s long-awaited album, Fantasy Ride, is finally here. The strange thing is, I didn’t even realize it was coming until it dropped. Why haven’t I been hearing the singles from it? Usually Ciara’s all over the place and I shouldn’t really have to try hard to find her. But maybe its because the album isn’t very good?

Upon first listen to the album, I actually enjoyed the first single, “Never Ever,” which samples from Simply Red’s “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” one of the best songs ever (in my opinion).  But that is where my love for this Fantasy Ride ended. The album as a whole has some OK beats, but really lacks is fun that’s not cheesy. And, oh boy, is there a lot of cheesy. Take the lyrics  in “High Price,” for example: “I should be in Iraq, Shawty/’Cause I am the bomb/Booty look softer than a McDonald’s hamburger bun.” What does that even mean?

The only really spectacular thing about Ciara’s album is all the special guests she has on it. Between Justin Timberlake, Ludacris, Young Jeezy, T-Pain, and Missy Elliott, you’d think this album would pack a little more  awesomeness. To be honest, “Turntables” with Chris Brown is one of the best songs on the album. But it also involves Chris Brown, automatically removing its chances of being a single or even getting very popular. Really, this album should have been called “Ciara and Special Guests” and she should come out with her own “solo” album very soon.

I was also extremely depressed, dropped out of high school (only for a semester!) and spent three hours a week in intensive outpatient therapy.

However, times have changed and I traded in my razor blades for wine glasses and my sorry, pathetic teenage attitude for a much healthier, positive one. I became happy. Baggage-less, I thought. Completely devoid of any negativity from my past.

And then, as all love stories begin, I met someone who I had absolutely everything in common with and with whom I got along flawlessly for the first six months. I thought I was over my years of self-loathing and teenage drama, and if I could hold a healthy, (somewhat) adult relationship, then I was convinced.

Seriously, this relationship was awesome. We were like male and female versions of each other: We were in the same major (yes, boy magazine journalism major!), loved cheap beer and foosball and basically couldn’t keep our hands off of each other….any time, anywhere.

But, eventually my insecurities came to the surface and the relationship became a huge emotional mess, for both of us. I’m talking the whole screaming at each other in public and then pouring beer on each other to even the score kind of mess. There it was again; all that baggage I thought I tossed years ago, staring me right in the face, mocking what I thought was my new life and new super-happy relationship.

I might be an extreme case (in fact, I know I am), but after the failure of this relationship, that was all lovey-dovey, fairy-tale, red roses on the outside, I began to question, quite Carrie Bradshaw-esque-ly, if we can ever really escape our pasts.

Seriously, what the hell is baggage anyway? What does it include? It is just the bad stuff? The good and the bad? The good, the bad AND the ugly? And if it does include it all, then don’t we all have some baggage?

By the time we hit college, we all have some life behind us. We’ve all experienced some kind of hurt, heartbreak, betrayal, death – something that has contributed significantly to who we turned out to be. And as we get older and start to develop as adults, more and more stuff happens to us. It’s just inevitable. It’s just life. All that life creates feelings and I guess, those feelings are deemed emotional baggage – little trash bags of negativity that pile up in our once-pure hearts and threaten our future relationships – with both ourselves and others.

But if we all have it, then what can we use to judge what is normal or abnormal baggage? You hear stuff about it all the time. So-and-so had so much baggage. Another so-and-so can’t date right now because she has too much baggage. And even another so-and-so lied and said he had too much baggage because he didn’t really like the chick he was dating all that much.

Baggage = the death of relationships.

But, in defense of my once-crazy self, let me be the first to say that we ALL have baggage. The difference here is how you choose to deal with it. If the dude you are dating has a horrible emotional past – mother left when he was 4, dad was abusive, ex-girlfriend broke his heart & stole his money/apartment/car/dignity etc. – but he is able to hold his head high and still find joy in life, then by all means, let him have his baggage – and claim it, too

However, if said dude gets aggressive with you, makes you feel guilty that you’re gonna leave just like his Mother/ex-girlfriend/car did, THEN there is a huge problem – one you definitely need to get away from until the guy gets himself into some serious therapy.

Honestly though, there’s nothing wrong with a little baggage. Baggage makes us different, unique, interesting. Baggage is, in essence, what makes us – it’s what adds dimension to our life story. I’ll be the first to admit that I got some, in my proverbial trunk of life, that sometimes crawls it’s way out. I know you do, too. But it’s all about making a CONSCIOUS effort to be happy about TODAY, not dwell on the losses, ex’s and craziness of yesterday that separates awesome chicks like me and you from the rest of the crazies.

And if you do find yourself in a relationship with a dude with too much baggage, remember there’s not much you can do to help the situation (unless you are a professional therapist, of course)…besides locking your doors & putting in for a restraining order.

Seriously.

[photo from www.mikeblissett.com]

You want nothing more than to slap your boss. And then to quit your job. You want to spit in your professor’s face. You want to tell your parents you’re joining the circus to make money for crack…JUST TO PISS THEM OFF. Today is the day you tell your best friend that those jeans DO make her ass look big because HER ASS IS BIG. You want to list off all of your exes to your guy who have been better in bed. That’s right. This is what I refer to as a “SCREW EVERYONE” day.

And they should never be spent without a soundtrack. So me and my Ipod went and made a playlist for these days.

“Spent on Rainy Days” BRIGHT EYES (Indie)

“Blueprint” FUGAZI (Punk)

“Gravity” DRESDEN DOLLS (Rock)

“Today is the day” MOROS EROS (Indie/Experimental)

“The Egg” SHINER (Indie/Alternative)

“The Other” ISIS (Experimental/Metal)

“The Never Aftermath” THE END (Metal/Ambient)

“In The Belly Of A Shark” GALLOWS (Punk/Rock)

“Complete and utter confusion” FEAR BEFORE THE MARCH OF FLAMES (Experimental/Rock)

“Set fire to the face on fire” THE BLOOD BROTHERS (Other/Punk)

So instead of taking your Screw Everyone day out on the people around you…why not just put on these songs and let out your angst the old fashioned way? You know…like a 14-year-old who just slammed her bedroom door in her mom’s face. And then locked the door. And then wrote “Screw EVERYONE” in her blog.

1. My Alcoholic Friends – The Dresden Dolls

Pretty much all my drunken regrets can be blamed on one thing…my alcoholic friends.

2. Lua – Bright Eyes

It’s true – everything seems simple in the moonlight.

3. You Learn – Alanis Morissette

At least, we hope you learn.

4. Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight – Amos Lee

This song is peaceful, calm and reminds you that it really will be okay.

5. Shameless – Ani DiFranco

Ani never apologizes, so why should you?

6. Hey Jude – The Beatles

Classic.

7. Dry the Rain – Beta Band

I don’t really know why, but this song always makes me feel better.

8. You Gotta Be – Desiree

Take Ms. D’s advice and be bad, be bold, be wise…next time you’re drunk and in bed with a random boy.

9. It Don’t Matter – Donovan Frankenreiter

If it don’t matter to you, it don’t matter to me…mmkay?

10. Walk in my shoes – Emily King

And just remember if people try to make you feel bad for your decisions….nobody else walks in your shoes, so what do they know?