So it was said, so it is, so it shall be (back blogging)

Couple brief updates:

Diagnosis of degenerative arthritis is confirmed. The MRI also shows significant disc bulging into the T1-T2 range, which is depressing but unsurprising. The vertebrae themselves show spurring throughout. It's likely that imaging of other back regions would say the same thing, but unless there's a particular problem there doesn't seem to be a pressing need for more pictures. It wouldn't change what we do.

Lifestyle-wise, I need to avoid impact activities, which I generally don't do anyway. People with stressed discs are at much higher risk for ruptures under impact that wouldn't bother healthy spines. There are some things I don't do anymore that I wish I was doing more and maybe I shouldn't be doing. Sigh.

The Ortho and I discussed the prednisone effects I blogged about last time. He feels that the appropriate next step is to start working with a pain clinic that will help me treat the condition more holistically rather than reactively. So I'll continue the ibu-as-needed and get a referral to the pain clinic that'll take a couple weeks to set up. PT is a good plan in the interim.

Basically my back is fucked and it's going to be (more and more) fucked for the rest of my life. Go me.

Music makes me feel better

I've had some music things stacked up for a while, none of which were quite coherent enough to make a post. But I really want to improve my mood, so here I lay these bits and baubles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agA7ITuJn6k&feature=youtu.be
I was just going to link to yet another of the new Abney Park tracks. As I mentioned last time, the band's musical wanderings have landed them in a place where I'm starting to like their dark energy again. This track (The Casbah) has some fun dancing going on in it - there's definite tango bits and I love the violin parts. The video comes with its own outtakes/gag reel which is pretty funny to watch.

So I'm playing this in the computer room, and Pygment says, "Wait I know that!" Sure, I say, it's a pretty common tango... no, wait, it's something specific. I forget the precise back-and-forth, but she eventually digs up that it's "Hernando's Hideaway." Give it a listen, I'll wait.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC05YwDUmVg

Now I totally want to write to Captain Robert and ask if this was deliberate on their part or just coincidence.

https://soundcloud.com/beatsantique/bassnectar-so-butterfly-beats-antique-remix-ft-sorne
This is Bassnectar's remix of a Beats Antique tune and I link it not just because of its beauty but because I think it illustrates the problem I was talking about in my review of their show last fall. To wit, I think B.A. are still writing interesting music but they've been letting the stage show overshadow that. I was first attracted to them by the sounds that flowed into my headphones (via Pandora, iirc) and this Bassnectar remix is a lot like that - I just want the sounds to flow and yes, I can totally imagine Zoe Jakes dancing to this and it would be just exactly what I want.

https://soundcloud.com/fugged/wham-bam-hot-hands-darius-vs-ying-yang-vs-yung-wun
"Fugged" is a self-professed amateur who has produced a sort of interesting turbo-funk-laced mix that I'm enjoying. This three-way mash is bouncy and energetic and it's also pretty with lovely vocals intermixed into the hip-hop rhyming. It kind of slips in places - feels like it could use a polish pass from an experienced producer - but it's fun enough to be worth tagging.

https://soundcloud.com/djschmollimusic/american-uptown-funk
Very little can beat James Brown funk so here have DJ Schmolli doing a phat dance-tastic mashup of the master (Ow!) with Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars. There's also an extended mix you can grab if this is your sort of thing. Which if it isn't you can probably stop reading this entry right here, because...

https://soundcloud.com/ghettofunk/howla-b-side-sleazy-teacher
https://soundcloud.com/glitchhop/howla-silent-river-ft-jesse-royal
Here's a funky double-shot from Howla. The first track, done with B-Side, is pretty bangin' ghetto funk. It's heavy on the fuzz and high BPM but hey the whole point here is to pick you up out of the dumps and get you dancing. I don't care if I look like an idiot on the dance floor so long as it's stuff like this that's playing.

The second track is listed as "glitch hop" which is true but it's also very funky in its core beats. By the drop at 0:40 you could easily think you were listing to an electro-funk track with some nice reggae lyrical stylings overlaid on it. It's hot and dirty and dammit, this is what moves me.