As our editors prepare to (finally) release our Top 20 CDs of 2008 list, we thought we would correct a wrong and claim Midlake’s exceptional album “The Trials of Van Occupanther” an honorary best of 2006. We were just turned on to this fine concept album by our friends at the opium den known as PlanetRoz. I know why we skipped it 3 years ago: the title. Really? I hate/love goofy word mash-ups. Plus, they’re from Denton, Texas. Strike 2. However, I must confess I can’t take it out of the CD machine in my metal suit. Wowsie! It’s indie rock with all of the best elements of the 70s. Lindsay Buckingham guitar solos, Michael Murphy songs about horses, Steely Dan electric piano. Delightful, indeed.

It appears to be a concept album about either a European colonialist in Africa who has a dead, young wife, or an Appalachian miner. Kind of fuzzy on the details. But don’t let that deter you. Buy it. Today. Geez, I sure hope they release something new soon. I guess I could check out their MySpace page, but then I would have to go to MySpace.

Here are 3 gems to download: Roscoe, Young Bride,Bandits. Get started. While they get compared to psyche rock oddballs like Flaming Lips, Grandaddy and Mercury Rev, I’m not hearing it so much. While I enjoy all 3 of those bands, none have ever produced a record this good. Thus my mea culpa for excluding them from the party that was 2006.

Other new music news: Chancellorpink has released his latest, “Life Like Sad Music.” It is available through normal rock channels and www.chancellorpink.com.  Samples available on MySpace as well. Check it out and get back to us.

Readers of this site know that I am an unabashed fan of steroid and performance enhancing drug use in professional sports. That is why I was pleased to see Alex Rodriguez (pictured pre-roids) admit to using the juice. Why? Well, look at his statistics for starters. His numbers are astounding. He crushes home runs at an astronomical rate, while also hitting for average. Isn’t that why people pay big money to see him? To watch sports in general? I know that we at Le Philistine Media, Inc. do.

Professional sports means paying athletes to over-perform. These are the best of the best, so why shouldn’t they perform at the highest level possible. Now the baseball writers will whine about the unfair advantage it gives some players over others. Bullshit.  Jose Canseco speculated that nearly 90% of all major leaguers were using leaded gas. As I’ve said previously about the great Barry Bonds, if they were all doing it then why was he so much better? Because he and A-rod and Maguire et al. just happened to be better hitters.

Hall of Fame? Hell, yes. Stop writing Congress about the stimulus package and start writing baseball writers about being assholes. The Hall is for the greatest athletes, clean or otherwise. For G’s sake, Maguire and Sosa saved the game of baseball from dropping below hockey and soccer as a spectator sport. And who would want that to happen?

Note to Grammily voters: nice call on giving George Carlin a posthumous grammy. I forget, was that a duet album with Alison Krause.