Recently I got a mail from Al to the tune of:

[I'm] compiling the ultimate get pumped up for the gym,run,ski etc music compilation and would appreciate your top 5-10 rippin run till u puke psyched to the max choices.

I reckon you can tell a lot about a person by the music they listen to, so I figure this wasn’t a challenge to be taken lightly. So what would you have on your list? (Bloggers, lets see your list published!) Here’s what I came up with, in no particular order (written as: Artist – Track [Album]):

1. Linkin Park – Session [Meteora]
   It’s the variations in the electronic drumming between the different segments of this one that really get you firing. Especially cool towards the middle of the song when they go crazy with the stereo effects, and then the last 20 seconds with all the insane samples they have.
2. Pearl Jam – Go [Vs]
   Classic Pearl Jam… a bit of a slow intro, but then it fires right up for the verse. This song goes right off in concert.
3. Regurgitator – Everyday Formula [Unit]
   Hard and heavy right from the start, I’ve always loved this song.
4. Radiohead – There There [Hail to the thief]
   How can you go past that drumming at the start of the song? Sure it’s a bit slower paced than the others, but the beat is just so driving. Like so many other Radiohead songs, this one just “has it all”.
5. Rage Against the Machine – Wake Up [Rage Against the Machine]
   It’s hard to pick only a single R.A.T.M. song but I’d have to say this one is my favourite.
6. Muse – Hysteria [Absolution]
   The guitar, the distortion in his voice, the live experience… there’s nothing about this song you can fault.
7. Pantera – Five Minutes Alone [Far Beyond Driven]
   Definitely not one for the faint hearted. Sure, they yell, they scream, they go a bit nuts – but the guitar and drums are unparalleled. It’s especially good if you actually know what the dude is “singing” .
8. Jimmy Eat World – A Praise Chorus [Bleed American]
   This song has such an awesome pace. Jimmy Eat World have such a great feel about their music – I reckon Bleed American would be the first album I would re-buy if all my CDs got stolen.
9. Blink 182 – Feeling This [Blink 182]
   Blink’s latest album was heaps more mature than their earlier stuff. The earlier albums are kinda fun if you’re a teenager, but this album (and especially this song) is just a bit more lasting. I love the great bass thump on the transition from the verse to the chorus!
10. Sevendust – Licking Cream [Home]
    Like Rage Against the Machine, it’s hard to pick only a single Sevendust song. I had to go with this one because Skin (the ex-singer from Skunk Anansie) is guest vocalist, and man can she whail.

• Counter-Strike: Condition Zero – For all your first-person “terrorist v anti-terrorist” needs, you can’t go past Counter-Strike, the world’s most popular online multiplayer game. Condition Zero was released earlier this year as a single-player edition of the award winning game. I finally finished it today – on “Normal” difficulty. Fans of the original game should be most impressed by this modification. I found it both challenging and rewarding. At only $60, it’s definitely worth it.
• Gomez: Split the difference – The latest album from UK group Gomez was released a couple of weeks back. Gomez is one of only a few bands whose albums I would buy without actually hearing a single song on them. (Pearl Jam and Powderfinger are a couple of others). Anyway – this album has much less edge than their last one (In Our Gun). After a few listens, a couple of notable songs stand out – numbers 4 (Me, you and everybody), and 7 (Catch me up). Gomez have a very unique sound, which makes it difficult to compare them to anyone else. But fans of The John Butler Trio, The Strokes, and Radiohead will get a kick out of this CD.
• John Grisham: The Runaway Jury – Though it’s not the latest Grisham release, I started reading this book after seeing the movie with the same title. Though the case around which the story is built is somewhat different, both the movie and the book have a very similar story line. I’m about 2/3rds the way through, and am loving it. John Grisham is such a compelling writer – the type of dude where you think, “just one more chapter and I’ll go to sleep” – and it’s always after midnight when you finally turn off the light.