there will be a fish

So, I'm in New York! I went out to dinner with a friend and then spent like, two hours talking with her about her screenplay that I edited on the plane ride. (I also worked on Man From U.N.C.L.E. fic, almost finished my book, and occasionally stared at Robert Downey Jr without sound on the in-flight movie. It was a very productive trip.) Unfortunately, that means I didn't quite make storage unit hours of operation, which leaves my fan very usefully in a locked room several blocks away. Along with my sheets. And pillow. And ice trays. There's no A/C in this dorm room, it's humid, and my damn laptop runs hot.

Luckily, this SPN S5 promo is giving me chills (oh, you see what I did there...) But seriously, all y'all (*fingerguns at serialkarma*) should go watch that, like, NOW.

For those of you who aren't SPN fans, or don't want spoilers, you get to download this song file.

Because while I am excited about the teasing little glimpses of S5 (OMG MAKE IT THURSDAY ALREADY), the song is making me very very happy and geeky. I mean, it's super creepy and reminds me of the Watchmen trailer in the best way possible, but it's also a really awesome cover. Allow me to explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up: I am a bit of a music history geek, and I love old school blues/bluegrass/country/folk/traditional music from the early 1900s -- if it's scratchy, I like it. :D I will talk your ear off about Robert Johnson and Alan Lomax (see also the Library of Congress collection *draws hearts*) even if drinking and hanging out with cute boys at a ridiculous New York penthouse apartment (uh...not that I did that? :D?), which means I spent the SPN ep "Crossroad Blues" flailing at the TV and the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack makes me the happiest little clam.

Which brings me back to my point! Which is that one of my favorite songs on the soundtrack is Ralph Stanley's a capella version of "O Death". I used to skip the track when I listened to the album, because it really gets to me. The lyrics are truly eerie, and his voice is haunting. He's got that waver to his voice that old men get; you listen and feel as if death really has come for him, and he's begging for his life without much hope. It's a brilliant performance -- just his voice, no instrumentation, not even clapping, but you don't notice any lack.

But I love the cover of "O Death" on that SPN promo LOTS. It's very appropriate for the material, but it's an excellent interpretation of the traditional song in its own right. The lyrics she picked out focus more on the conceptual threads in the song, which is interesting. And the lyrics she added at the end make for a nice creepy punch. :D

A copy of Ralph Stanley's version from the OBWAT soundtrack

A link to Jen Titus' version, again

And just for the heck of it, have a bonus song! That's the McIntosh County Shouters doing "Sign of the Judgement," an old ring shout. I kinda want to vid SPN to it, but it also gives me chills, and always has. It seems counterintuitive, but I find old music far more apocalyptic than something like Metallica...

And now, let's talk about the actual content of the promo:

- They're going to bring back the plague stuff from Croatoan! Witness my glee at successful continuity (I'm looking at you, LOST).

- Also, how creepy was Castiel lighting that fire circle? I wonder what the story is there. On a shallower note, CAS! First time I've seen footage of him from the new season. He's standing awfully close to Dean in that shot where the windows blow in lighting my fire looking good. :)

- The demon knife with the blood on it? Anyone else getting Buffy S3 "Bad Girls" flashbacks? Doesn't look good...

- Nor does Evil!White!Suit!Sam. (Dream sequence?) Nor the Sam-exorcism with Jo and Rufus. D:

Is it Thursday yet? I haven't been this frustrated waiting for a season premiere in a while.