A contest and a quiz

From Rolling Stone Magazine, The Almost-Impossible Rock & Roll Quiz. Seriously, they're not kidding. (My score of 30, out of 58 questions, labels me a "wiz" that should "read more liner notes"--though I'd still grovel myself for a D- in the old-fasioned school-grading system.)

Not big on trivia? ...Well, can you write a song?
Courtesy of Asthmatic Kitty:

It's Christmas time again! That means tightly bundled scarves, lively debates on the merits of real/plastic trees, a litany of Christmas television specials, and finding the perfect retro Christmas wrapping paper.

And gifts of course! Who could forget the gifts!

That's why Sufjan Stevens is busy working on a very special gift right now, for a very special person. And in the spirit of Christmas, that person will give Sufjan a similarly special gift.

Here's how it works: write an original Christmas song, record it, and email the song to us. Asthmatic Kitty will pick a winner, and that person will trade rights to their song for rights to a new Sufjan Christmas song.

Just like a gift exhange, Sufjan's new song becomes your song. You can hoard it for yourself, sell it to a major soft drink corporation, use it in your daughter's first Christmas video, or share it for free on your website. No one except Sufjan and you will hear his song, unless you decide otherwise. You get the song and all legal rights to it. We get the same rights to your song.

Contest begins November 9th, and all submissions must be in by midnight December 1st. We will contact and announce the winner on or around December 15th.

We are also placing Sufjan's 5-album Christmas set online for free until December 25th!

Go here for more details, and to listen to the full Sufjan Christmas album for free:
http://xmas.asthmatickitty.com

So there you go. You know what to do! Go do it! and remember your girlie friends at VK when you win!

The Madness Is Over! (For now...)

And we have a winner! The lovely Miss Allison guessed the most songs, and so to her will go the three super awesome and shiny mixes! It was very close though, with many people having guessed only one song less! So congratulations Allison, you'll be hearing from us here at Volume Knob soon!

And now, to the fun part! Below are all the answers with, by popular request, links to where you can download all of the songs featured.

And no, the fourth song was not Hallelujah.

1. Walk of Life : Dire Straits
   
2. The Cell: Part Seven : Jandek
   
3. Life on Mars : David Bowie
   
4. Don't Let Me Explode : The Hold Steady
   
5. Little Green Bag : George Baker Selection
   
6. Beauty Mark : Rufus Wainwright
   
7. Wolf Like Me : TV on the Radio
   
8. Take on Me : A-Ha
   
9. Mr Tough : Yo La Tengo
   
10. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) : Arcade Fire
    
11. We Used to be Friends : The Dandy Warhols
    
12. L.A. : Old Man River
13. Ghost : Neutral Milk Hotel
    
14. Born to be a Dancer : Kaiser Chiefs
    
15. Yeah! Oh, Yeah! : The Magnetic Fields
    
16. Hey Jude : The Beatles (guessed by only one person!)
    
17. No Rain : Blind Melon
    
18. Don't You (Forget About Me) : The Simple Minds
    
19. All The Pretty Girls Go To The City : Spoon
    
20. Seven Nation Army : The White Stripes
    
21. Black : Okkervil River
    
22. Sundress : Ben Kweller
    
23. Parachutes (Funeral Song) : Mates of State
    
24. Century of Elvis : Belle & Sebastian
    
25. At The Bottom of Everything : Bright Eyes
    
26. Sphagnum Esplanade : The Shins
    
27. Odalisque : The Decemberists
    
28. They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From The Dead!! Ahhhh! : Sufjan Stevens
    
29. Whiter Shade of Pale : Procol Harum
    
30. Young Folks : Peter, Bjorn & John
    
31. Dance Music : The Mountain Goats

Well done to everyone who entered! And keep watching Volume Knob for more Mix Madness competitions!

Mix Madness! (a competition for cool kids)

So what we have here is a two minute or so long clip containing 31 little song snippets. What possible reason could there be for this madness? It is simply a sign that Megan has just a little bit too much time on her hands? Well, yes. But, also, it's a competition!

Exciting, yes?

Simply download the clip, listen, and identify as many of the songs featured as you can, and then send an e-mail of these songs off to us here at Volume Knob, (volume.knob@hotmail.com). If it were any more simple, monkeys would be entering!

And what does the Volume Knob reader who guesses the most correct songs receive? They will get not one, not two, but three, yes, that's right, THREE mix CDs! Each one lovingly and thoughtfully complied by Jess, June, and myself.

Have you ever heard anything more awesome than that?

So quickly! Download! Identify! Enter!

Winners (and answers) will be announced one week from today, on Tuesday the 29th, so that gives you plenty of time to mull over it.

The 31 Song Mix Madness!

Sincerely, L. Cohen

Audiofile is running a contest for Leonard Cohen devotees. Email them and explain in 60 words or fewer what your favorite Cohen song is and why.
The winner will receive an autographed copy of Cohen's 2006 poetry collection, Book of Longing. One runner-up will win new remastered editions of Cohen's classic first three albums and another by Anjani (is it me, or is the runner-up prize better?).
Deadline is Tuesday, May 8.

See, I want to do this but it seems my two favorites, "Hallelujah" and "Famous Blue Raincoat" are both quote-unquote obvious choices. To relish my love upon them seems not only trite, but also potentially swimming in ample competition with those who can describe the gripping visuals and lamentful emotions expressed better than myself. But there's no harm in trying. After all, it's only 60 words, right? (This paragraph alone, save this addendum, clocks in at 78 words.)

Details here!