I’ll start by admitting that the movies Empire Records and High Fidelity are two of my favorite films.

1. Empire Records because it immortalizes the peculiar breed of record store employees, by the likes of Ethan Embry (yay!) and Renee Zellwegger.

2.High Fidelity because of Jack Black histrionics, and the introduction of the concept of “TOP 5“: Top 5 Songs for a Funeral, Top Five Songs for a Breakup, Top Five Albums, etc.

I put No Doubt back on my iPod, and today while driving to work I listened to the song “Different People” off Tragic Kingdom.  Man, oh, man.  It sunk in.

If I died today I would take this CD to heaven.   It’s the one I listen to when I need to feel like a kid with a damn-it-all spirit.  I used to blast it, dream about being in a band, and dance around my bedroom pretending I was a singer, a bassist, a guitarist, and a drummer.

Just think, a bunch of kids out of the OC made such an impression, creating this bubbly, raw, and evocative ska music.  Dig it if you don’t.

Now I keep thinking about other possibilities for my list of TOP 5 ALBUMS.  Beatles? Hanson? Four Tet?  Not sure.  I’m going to wait for another cosmic signal while driving down the 110.