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Another reason why I love Amazon...

Last weekend I downloaded the Crystal Castles album on Amazon.com. I was in the mood for some new tunes and this was a bargain at $6.99 (and it's a FANTASTIC album). Anyway... after listening to it a few times I noticed something wrong with the first track. So I emailed Amazon's customer service. It went something like this:

The Crystal Castle's MP3 album that I downloaded seems to have a problem with Track 1 "Untrust Us". Maybe I'm wrong, but the last 1-2 seconds of the song is some noise that seems out of place (it sounds like Death From Above 1979... if that means anything to you). Also, most other sources on the web have the song's duration as 3:05, but Amazon has 3:06. If there is a problem with the track, is there anything you can do about this? Can I get an uncorrupted version of the track?

They did more than that. Here is their email response... about 20 minutes later (no joke):

Hello from Amazon.com.

Thanks for writing about the problem you had recently playing "Crystal Castles by Crystal Castles" purchased from the Amazon MP3 Music Store. I've tested the file myself, and it appears that there is a problem with that file. I apologize for the inconvenience this has caused.

To help remedy the problem, I've issued a full refund for "Crystal Castles by Crystal Castles" in the amount of $6.99. The refund will be applied to the payment method used for the original purchase and should be completed within the next 2 to 3 business days.

Because there is a problem with this file, I've also alerted our technicians of the problem so it can be corrected as soon as possible. If you are still interested in purchasing a working copy of this song, you may wish to visit the Amazon MP3 Store again in a few days and see if a corrected version is available.

Again, I apologize for the trouble you had with this file.

Thanks for shopping in the Amazon MP3 Music Store.

Please let us know if this e-mail resolved your question:

If yes, click here:
Link
If not, click here:
Link

Best regards,
Dheeraj
Amazon.com Customer Service

Needless to say, I clicked yes!

(Dell, are you taking notes on this one?)


UPDATE (6/22): After making this post, my knowledgeable blogging buddy informed me that the CD release version of the album also has that "noise" at the end. It turns out that Crystal Castles sampled Death From Above 1979's Dead Womb in Untrust Us, and seemingly didn't edit the song properly. I don't know how this happens or if it was intentional or not, but the album is still outstanding and Amazon still rocks the world.

Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace

I'm not sure how this works, but Amazon has The Offspring's new album "Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace" available for download a week before it is released in stores (6/17). I don't know what the rules are on release dates, but I guess NIN, Radiohead, and Saul Williams have had MP3s available early. Very exciting!

And, by the way... I don't know what's wrong with me but I've been listening to The Offspring for over 12 years now and their harmonies and "whoa's" still do it for me. This new album sounds fantastic under first impressions too! No apparent silly songs either, like they've had on their past 3 albums (i.e. "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)", "Original Prankster", and "Hit That")

Stream it on imeem.

The "Super Genius" got super canned!

I've listened to Mark Madden podcasts off and on for a year or so now at 1250 ESPN Radio Pittsburgh, but he will be looking for a new job since he was fired for making a tasteless remark on the air. On the day that news broke about Ted Kennedy's cancer (5/20), Double M had the following comment:

"I'm very disappointed to hear that Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts is near death because of a brain tumor. I always hoped Senator Kennedy would live long enough to be assassinated.

"I wonder if he got a card from the Kopechnes."

What makes this story fascinating though, is that it appears that the only reason he was fired is because Bob Smizik of the Post-Gazette wrote a column about his disgusting comment on May 23rd and Madden's last broadcast was on the 22nd. So, this is how I see it... Madden made the comment on 5/20 and he gave an apology 2 hours later, then before he got on air on the 23rd, he got canned. The Post-Gazette hints at this in a follow-up column reporting Madden's "permanent removal." Amazing how influential mass media is, huh?

I can't say that I justify MM's comments, but I hope people realize that he was just playing a character on the radio. I don't know that he's not always an asshole, but I do know that he found a niche in getting 'Burgher's all riled up. He was the editor for Ric Flair's autobiography and he has other ties to the professional wrestling as well. So... Madden was what they call a "heel." Therefore, any hateful comments he had about Bettis or "Whines Hard" may or may not have been genuine, but he was certainly putting on a show. However, it seems he took it a little too far this time and the media attention didn't help.

zucchini boy

Achin'

I moved to Aiken, SC for the summer to do an internship at Savannah River National Labs. Seems to be nice enough so far. Aiken is very small, very historic, and very "southern"... more to come on that later. I've been terribly busy with traveling, moving, and conference crap, but that will slow down over the next few weeks. So until I can spend more time on a proper blog post, I'll leave you with this brilliant quote by Bill Simmons:

"All right, I'll ask: How come it took only three seconds to euthanize Eight Belles, but the WNBA is starting Year 12?"

fractals

quik lynx

OK... I meant "quick links"... not the cat, nor this, nor that.
I'm going on a summer internship in Aiken, SC next week and I'm pretty excited about that. It should be a good southern experience. I will be sure to share any atrocities with you (I miss using that word). But, that doesn't mean I don't have time for some good ol' fashioned links... so, without further ado:

- While you're out there spending hundreds of dollars on Monster Cables to wire your TV and stereo, keep in mind that some self-proclaimed audiophiles couldn't tell the difference between Monster Cables and coat hangers... and HDMI cables are now about 8 bucks.

- Speaking of audiophiles... did you know that your old PlayStation 1 could work as an audiophile-grade CD player, where an equivalent player could cost more than $6000! Crazy, right?!


- As I'm typing this, halogoggles shared this picture with me. Scary, right? I think my head will explode and I'm going to regurgitate on my brains.



- An interesting comparison of Dell to Ford of the 1920's. Essentially, Dell mastered the cheap mass-market product that is now losing ground to the more stylish, charismatic Apple product... which is how GM gained ground on Ford in the 20's. Also, check out this sales chart of laptop brands. Only HP and Acer are really going up... rise of the Mac?

- I said, "I'm outtie!" recently... so shoot me! But that gots me to thinking... didn't LL Cool J invent that phrase because of his Audi 5000? Well the urban dictionary has an interesting take on it:

"Audi's model 5000 sedan was plagued with a problem characterized by unintended acceleration, in which drivers' complained that the vehicle lurched forward when their foot was on the brake pedal. In reality, it turned out that the accelerator and brake pedals were unusually close together. This is why Audi 5000 is associated with leaving quickly."

- Now that the 2008 NFL draft is over with, we can now look forward to 2009! Picks of note from ESPN's predictions... Tim Tebow to da Bears and it is commonly believed that the Steelers will take a D-lineman next year... they say Tyson Jackson out of LSU.

- What's that?... NFL draft, you say? Rashard Mendenhall and Limas Sweed rockin' da 'Burgh! I adore those first two picks! Day 2 was a bit of a let down, but maybe training camp will get me more excited. I'm not sure if I'll write a proper review of the Steelers draft this year, so here is an excellent site with past and present Steeler draft grades.

- A couple of classics in the "hate the preppy, shaved chest, popped collar ass clowns" vein. Striped Shirt & New haircut. Please read the Striped Shirt column as you are very confident lystating facts. I don't know, I've developed this incredible voice for reading it. Makes me laugh. "I'll bet I can drive that pretend golf ball 600 fucking yards tonight!"

- Good website for traveling and mooching internet from restaurants and hotels.

- A super long column that I'm yet to finish reading... but it is a thorough history of football video games. Deion Sanders' Prime Time and Blitz... ah, those were the days!

- Bateman on King of the Hill... who cares?... BUT... it's coming, maeby.

comix zone

Since Iron Man is all the rave these days because of Robert Downey Jr.'s portrayal of Tony Stark, I thought I should share an Iron Man comic series with some stunning artwork. I'm not a huge reader of comics any more, but when I saw this Iron Man series in newsstands a few years ago, I was hooked! Comic book art has come a long, long way from what it once was (and so has the price!) Adi Granov is the artistic mastermind behind the previously mentioned series. Truly amazing! Check out some more of his work here. And for those who want to read more about Iron Man history, I recommend this site.

By the way, how does the world feel about Robert Downey Jr.? I'm thinking people accepted him as a good actor, but after his drug binge and emotional instability in the 90's we're all still a little weary. It's like a lovable dog that all of a sudden bites the hell out of your 5 year old nephew after snorting a line of coke (the dog, not the kid... nevermind). And then you're all like, "What the 'F' was that all about?!" So it's always in the back of your mind and you remain cautious. I mean, he's never going to be normal, like... Tom Cruise... umm... Johnny Depp... umm... Mel Gibson... OK, let's forget this conversation, deal?

Face to Face Kombat Remix

Probably the best punk remix I've ever heard. I remember downloading this one on Napster! If anyone has any other sweet remixes they like, please shoot them my way!