01. Ladies and Gentlemen (Saliva)
The theme from WWE's WrestleMania 23 (April 1, 2007) but Jen and I liked this song before it was used for that. This is sort of an arrogant song with just the right amount of attitude, which is probably why it appealed to WWE's mad-genius chairman. And it's a great opener, with promises of things to come.
02. Cold (Evans Blue)
Evans Blue gives you the impression you've heard this before, but there's something new and fresh about this song, from the intimate vocals to the catchy chorus. The rest of their album is pretty good - if you like this song and "Over", you should enjoy their album enough.
03. ...To Be Loved (Papa Roach) (as "Just Wanna Be Loved")
This is one of the rare occasions I will alter the name of a song if something else fits it a little better. Unlike the first track, I heard this first on WWE Monday Night RAW. This song took the place of their old theme, the now-defunct Union Underground's "Across the Nation", so I was inclined to dislike it, but it won me over after a couple times. This is actually the album version, with the cursing, an extended intro, and of course not cropped down to 30 seconds. It's a pretty loud song, but it's as good as anything Papa Roach have put out - and they've done some really good stuff - just see "Last Resort", "Getting Away With Murder", and "Scars".
04. Pain (Three Days Grace)
I hated Three Days Grace when they first came out. "I Hate Everything About You" and "Just Like You" were overplayed and I didn't like them to start with. I don't mind them now that other songs (*cough*Daughtry*cough*) are being overplayed, but Three Days Grace's newest album, "One X" is damned good.
05. Wasteland (10 Years)
I'll be honest with y'all: I don't really like this song. It's OK, but I don't have anything great to say about it. Jen really likes it, though, and I'll admit it's not bad to listen to in the background. But she listens to these mixes too, so I try to make it appeal to both of us - there's stuff up here I love that she isn't too fond of but puts up with enough.
06. Invincible (Crossfade)
I didn't much like Crossfade until I saw them live, at X-Fest in 2005, shortly after I moved to North Carolina. They put on an alright show, and around that time I started getting into a few songs from their self-titled album. In my opinion this is not up to par with singles from that album, but like the song above, Jen likes it a lot and it's not bad. Sometimes I actually dig it, depending on my mood.
07. Waiting (Trapt)
Trapt are just cool, at least judging by their singles. I loved their last album (with Headstrong, Stillframe on it) and this is at least as good, if not a hair better. The whole thing flows smoothly with just a little bit (but the right amount) of fun, and when he says "...in my head..." after the chorus, it reminds me of Tom Petty, and the song just picks right back up. Enjoy the ride.
08. Hips Don't Lie (Shakira, feat. Wyclef Jean)
Shakira caresses you down with her voice, the beat is good, and Wyclef Jean adds a funky aspect to the song. This is more of a dance number, but kinda fun to drive to as well, and it's a pick-up from the last three or four songs.
09. Again and Again (Jewel)
I've liked Jewel's singles since "Pieces of You", seems like almost 10 years ago. From folk to pop, Jewel has a seductive voice that's hard to ignore, and this may not be one of her best songs, but it's not bad.
10. Ordinary Day (Vanessa Carlton)
Another seductive-voiced singer, with a song that's easy to follow and sing along to. It's not near the caliber of her last single, "White Houses", but I like it better than her previous stuff (e.g. "A Thousand Miles" or something like that).
11. Keep Holding On (Avril Lavigne)
Avril's loudest stuff (barring "Girlfriend") is OK and what got her name out, but I dig these slower songs, this and "I'm With You". I was a little disappointed to hear this song used at the end of that [insert famous fantasy book/movie here] ripoff Eragon, but I was quick to forgive it. And it's a pretty amazing song.
12. Everything (Alanis Morissette)
I liked this song OK when I first heard it, but came to like it a lot more seeing it in Kevin Smith's "Clerks II", the ten-years-later sequel to the masterpiece which got him started. It's as good as anything Alanis did after "Jagged Little Pill". It doesn't quite have the energy of some of those songs ("Ironic", "You Oughtta Know") but it's as good as anything she's done in the last ten years.
13. Silly World (Stone Sour)
You wouldn't know it just listening to Stone Sour and not knowing anything about nu-metal, but Stone Sour share two band members with metal band Slipknot. They're nothing alike, though. This political song fits in with the rock songs on this album nicely.
14. From Yesterday (30 Seconds to Mars)
Actor Jared Leto's band's second single is right about as good as the previous one, a hard rock song with clear lyrics that's almost hard not to dig.
15. It's Not Over (Daughtry)
Yes, I picked this one up just as it started getting overplayed on the radio, but if I haven't heard it too recently, it still stands out as a great song. I listen to country radio more than rock/pop radio, so I'm seldom if ever tuned into the stations that overplay it. I hear it mostly at work, where I'm not in control of the radio. It's still a good one to have, though.
16. Heroes (Shinedown)
Another case of "not as good as the last single but still good" but especially so as the previous single, "I Dare You" is still one of my favorite rock/hard rock songs. Here we have a good hard rock song that sounds more like Soundgarden than Shinedown. I don't fully get the lyrics, but they sound good.
17. The Diary of Jane (Breaking Benjamin)
Breaking Benjamin is or at least seems to be new on the hard rock scene, but their singles (I think there's one I can't recall before this) are pretty good, bordering on nu-metal in the chorus, but still with a pop kind of feel to make for a fun song to listen to. I don't feel the lyrics, but they sound cool.
18. Miss Murder (AFI)
Jen and I are divided on AFI (which she tells me stands for A Fire Inside). She loves their first album, which I don't care for. This is all I've heard from their second or newest album, but I like it. She doesn't much care for it. It seems to have a trace of their emo/goth roots with a little more of a mainstream pop/rock sound. The song sounds like it's trying to be serious, but I don't take it seriously, I just find it to be a fun song to listen to - also good for driving.
19. Tear You Apart (She Wants Revenge)
This is the first and only single I've heard by She Wants Revenge, and I'm not much interested in checking out their other stuff, because this trance/new wave track reminiscent of the 1980s took a little time to get into, and as a genre it's not something I usually dig. But this song is alright with a nice smooth beat, cool vocals just as smooth, for a heck of a ride, with an interesting little twist at the end of the chorus.
20. It Wasn't Me (Shaggy feat. Rikrok)
The vocals are more Rikrok than Shaggy, who is always cool to listen to solely on account of his deep reggae vocals. I can't understand half of what he says, but he's got an awesome voice. "Angel", even "Boombastic", beats this for vocals
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