As of today, any tiny remnants of the word "closet" which might have remained have been blown to oblivion. I am no longer in denial. I am a Britney Spears fan -- pop cheese, mousey squeals, "baby baby" lyrics, and all! Hah! Deal with it.

(All content vultures are now authorized to collectively roll their eyes in unison.)

In accordance with this surprise realization, the following changes are to be implemented, effective immediately:

1. The use of the word "Antichrist" is no longer considered a valid reference when discussing she who is known as Britney. Its use is antiquated and repressive. If a title is required, this artist may appropriately be referred to as the "Princess of Pop".
2. The Princess of Pop shall be granted most favored artist status. For practical purposes, this mostly just means that Bitscape will buy and memorize all the major album releases available. This puts Britney among the illustrious company of acts such as Tori Amos, Alanis Morissette, Queensryche, Nine Inch Nails, Madonna, Marilyn Manson (well, actually I don't have all his older albums, but he still gets on the list), Enigma, and others I can't recall at the moment.

(Addendum to item #1: Yes, I realize that making this assertion will probably only lead to increased use of the obsolete terminology by unnamed individuals who have been known exhibit trollish tendencies when discussing the now Princess of Pop. However, I consider it worthwhile to make the statement anyway for the sake of posterity. If we stopped at every step out of apprehension over everyone else's reaction, how would we ever get anywhere?)

(Addendum to item #2: In accordance with this edict, I made a semi-surgical strike at Best Buy after work today. Since there were 2 cds in the canon I did not possess, I initially attempted to be temperate, debating with myself, "Do I get 'Oops...', or do I get 'Britney'?" Eventually, intemperence won out, and I went ahead and got both, as they were both reasonably priced, at least compared to typical record store prices these days.)

Having now ripped and given a listen to each, I think I can safely say that my favorite of the 3 is the most recent release, titled simply, "Britney". All the songs are solid, tight, and groovy, and there is a definite progression to the "theme" and "feel" of the music, as it is ordered on the album. This disc is certainly not a "1 hit for radio play and the rest is crap" deal. (Though I might, at least to some degree, make that assertion regarding her first album, "...Baby one more time". I liked about half the songs on it a lot, and the rest I could do without.)

Babble, babble, babble. In short: I liked "Britney" a lot, "Oops.." had some really good songs along with a few I didn't much care for, and "Baby one more time..." Well, I've had that one for a while, though I don't think I've technically ever openly admitted it. (See 2nd paragraph from the bottom.)

Now, I spent so much time on that scavenger hunt searching through my own ramblings to find the link above, I've completely lost of whatever it was I was talking about. (Which finally ended in me cheating, taking a db object dump, and running grep.) Oh well, that topic was about over anyway.

Switching topics... (sort of)

I haven't really made more than a brief side mention in a rambling yet, though it was a topic on irc the other night, and I know another content farmer wrote a changelog. The new Alanis cd, Under Rug Swept. (No, I am not a music junkie. Not me.) I may have set a speed record while acquiring it. According to Zan Lynx, my round trip time from the Castle Lair to Media Play and back was 8 minutes, 38 seconds. Rockin!

Listening to it again today, the song that really hit me was track 9: "You owe me nothing." Just an incredibly touching song. Classic Alanis.

Does the concept of truly unconditional love exist in this world? It's something I've been doubting a lot lately. Subconsciously or consciously, I think I have come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as a human interaction in which a person will give freely and abundantly without expecting (and receiving) some form of reciprocation. It just doesn't happen in this world, right? Well... this song presents another view. Whether I believe it or not, it grips me to the core.