Stephen Mejias

I have a full-length commute. It lasts just about as long as an album. For instance, if I plug in the iPod and press play on Dinosaur Jr.'s Beyond just as I leave my apartment, the album comes to a glorious end exactly as I enter our office's elevators. This was a great discovery.

Now that I've loaded the iPod with lots of my favorite music, I've been enjoying its Shuffle feature. And, I wonder: Is the iPod even smarter than it looks? Because it seems to be the best DJ in the world, putting together songs that are thematically and stylistically similar, somehow making connections between artists and instruments and sounds.

I was so impressed when you paired Neil Young with Jason Molina, and again when you set The Afghan Whigs between Tindersticks, The New Pornographers, and Al Green. The warbling guitars, the blaring horns, the sexy lyrics. That was brilliant! How do you do this, iPod?

Today's morning commute:

David Russell: Bach, Suite #4 For Lute: Bourree
Lila Downs: El Venadito
The Magnetic Fields: Stray With Me
Andrew Bird: MX Missiles
John Fahey: Jesus Is A Dying Bedmaker
Tindersticks: Can Our Love
The New Pornographers: Stacked Crooked
The Afghan Whigs: Faded
Al Green: I Feel Good
Sufjan Stevens: One Last "Whoo-hoo!" For The Pullman
Daniel Reuss & RIAS Kammerchor: Mass: Gloria
CocoRosie: Terrible Angels
Liz Phair: Flower

You see: Brilliant!