Lights going out and a kick in the balls - that's entertainment.

#14 Blondie, Rip Her to Shreds – 11 votes
defeats
#19 The (English) Beat, Tears of a Clown – 6 votes
(1 abstention)

Analysis:
“Weeping clowns? Are we talking about Julianne Moore's role in "The Ladies' Man" here? I would rather vote for "X Offender," but as long as it's not "Maria", I'll vote for Blondie.” - JZ

#11 New Pornographers, Letter from an Occupant – 9 votes
defeats
#22 Yo La Tengo, Sugarcube – 9 votes

Analysis:
“Yo La Tengo (Carl Newman annoys me, and the best thing about New Pornographers is Neko Case.)” – AH [Ms. L: You, me, and possibly Mr. Smith need to have a little chat about this.]

#10 New Order, Bizarre Love Triangle – 17 votes
defeats
#23 Laurie Anderson, O Superman – 1 vote

Analysis:
"New Order. The soundtrack to at least one relationship you had in junior high." - Mr. Smith

#18 Belle and Sebastian, Lazy Line Painter Jane – 9 votes
defeats
#15 The Police, Message in a Bottle – 9 votes

Analysis:
It's good to be queen. – Ms. L

“Belle & Sebastian. The perfect example of how a lot of their best songs are on the EPs. How anyone can vote against this is beyond me. The Police are OK, and maybe I'm a bit biased since B&S are probably my favorite band ever, but really now. Monica Queen is great on this track. Besides, B&S vs. The Smiths next round will be interesting, whereas there's no way in hell the Police would beat the Smiths. Right? Right? Sigh....” – Cokehead Matt

#19, Pulp, Common People – 11 votes
defeats
#14 Hole, Doll Parts – 6 votes
(1 abstention)

Analysis:
“Pulp. Shatner will never cover Hole. Nuff said.” – Mr. Smith

#11 Oasis, Supersonic – 10 votes
defeats
#22, The Cult, She Sells Sanctuary – 8 votes

Analysis:
“She Sells Sanctuary, just for showing up in GTA:Vice City.” – Cranky Uncle Greg

#10 Beck, Where It's At – 15 votes
defeats
#23 The Residents, Hello Skinny – 3 votes

Analysis:
“Beck scares me less.” – SRF
“Residents, *because* they scare me more.” – Cranky Uncle Greg

#15 Dead Milkmen, Bitchin' Camaro – 9 votes
defeats
#18 Black Flag, TV Party – 8 votes
(1 abstention)

Analysis:
“Dead Milkmen - I temporarily confused Black Flag with Big Black and was
going to vote against them because Steve Albini is a pompous, obnoxious,
self-aggrandizing jackass. Fortunately, the same phrase also applies to
Henry Rollins, so the vote stands.” – Canadian Dave

Hey, it's the second round! Possibly more songs that you have (or really should have) actually heard. Maybe not, though.

Voting for this round will end at 9:00pm CST Wednesday. Comment or email me. We'll post and tally the results then.

An important point: Consistency is not your friend. So you claimed to dislike a song last round, but it got through. It's okay to vote for it now. We won't mind. Well, maybe we will, and we'll yell about it, but I promise, we have no inconsistency corps dedicated to torturing those who change their minds between rounds.

That you know about.

From the Mid-Atlantic Regional, at the Middle East, Cambridge, MA

#1 Joy Division, Love Will Tear Us Apart (video)
vs.
#17 Jane's Addiction, Jane Says (video)
Happy times in this matchup.

#9 The Clash, Train in Vain (video)
vs.
#8 The Jam, That's Entertainment (video)
Tourmates for one month in 1977, long before either of these songs were released.

#5 The Buzzcocks, Ever Fallen In Love? (video)
vs.
#12 Television, Marquee Moon (video)
Do you prefer emotions expressed verbally, or through really long guitar solos?

#20 Liz Phair, Flower (video)
vs.
#4 The Ramones, Blitzkrieg Bop (video)
I don't have anything to tie these together. I'm just sifting through YouTube and want to point out that no one, NO ONE, asked for a fan video of "Why Can't I?" set to an imagined romance between Draco and Hermione.

#3 Lou Reed, Walk on the Wild Side (video)
vs.
#14 Soundgarden, Black Hole Sun (video)
Sampled by Marky Mark vs. covered by Steve & Eydie.

#11 Talking Heads, Life During Wartime (video)
vs.
#6 Public Image Ltd., This Is Not A Love Song (video)
Well, that's not a love song, either.

#7 Husker Du, Makes No Sense At All (video)
vs.
#23 Sonic Youth, Teen Age Riot (video)
Former SST labelmates square off.

#15 Joe Jackson, Is She Really Going Out With Him? (video)
vs.
#2 Weezer, Undone (The Sweater Song) (video)
I challenge you to find a more tunefully neurotic matchup than this.