Music News from New York and Beyond


Indie Rock Baseball

Posted on August 14, 2007

baseball.jpgWhile listening to Interpol's Our Love to Admire with a friend of mine, we devised a way to turn album reviews into a fun little game. We appropriately titled the method 'Indie Rock Baseball.' Here's how it works:

* You start with two outs and no one on base.
* Each time you skip to the next track without finishing the one you were listening to, that's a strike.
* Each time you finish a song, that's a ball.
* Each time you actually *like* a song, that's a hit. Naturally. Or a single, if you prefer. This also resets the count (as would four balls). Now you would have a runner on. Another hit (or walk) would advance the runner, etc.
* There are multi-base hits for songs you really like. It does help open things up, but please use sparingly, as we don't want these things to end up being just another bunch of lopsided Yankee-Devil Ray games.
* A runner scores from 2nd on a hit. I guess this would also imply a runner on 1st would score on a double. Use your best judgment.
* Once a record reaches three strikes, it's OUT. Of your CD player (or preferred music player).
* Otherwise, you post the result (e.g. 1 run, 2 left on base).

For instance, Our Love to Admire, sporting ridiculous amounts of "empty church" reverb, struck out after four pitches. Of course, the 2nd song is titled “No ‘I’ in Threesome”, which probably should’ve gotten it tossed faster than Lou Pinella on a 100-degree day.

Quick, somebody give me a CD to review! Post your own album scores in the comments.

*UPDATE* - - Here is the first official Indie Rock Baseball match: The Cribs vs The Automatic Automatic

**UPDATE 2** - - IndieRockBaseball.Com is up and running!

Comments

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 20 - 2007 03:48:07 PM

    [...] latest Indie Rock Baseball match up pits Rilo Kiley against The New Pornographers. Read the rules HERE. Play [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 22 - 2007 11:47:54 AM

    [...] latest Indie Rock Baseball match up pits Hopewell against The National. Read the rules HERE. Play [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 21 - 2007 08:14:47 PM

    [...] promised here’s the Indie Rock Baseball review of Bloc Party - A Weekend in the [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 22 - 2007 03:28:45 AM

    [...] Swizz Beatz's debut album has a song that samples...Coldplay's "X&Y." [gag] • Indie Rock Baseball [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 20 - 2007 09:42:10 PM

    [...] Shuller pointed me to this concept called Indie Rock Baseball. [...]

  • Jens Carstensen
    Jens Carstensen posted on Aug 16 - 2007 12:49:49 PM

    Damn, Dan, you ever heard of a little word called "please"? Yeesh. You're gonna have a HUGE strike zone.

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 16 - 2007 12:55:44 PM

    [...] latest Indie Rock Baseball match up pits The Ponys against The Stalkers. Read the rules HERE. Play [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 15 - 2007 03:04:16 PM

    [...] It was a tough game, going into extra innings, but only one could emerge victorious. Click HERE for the [...]

  • Jens Carstensen
    Jens Carstensen posted on Aug 15 - 2007 12:53:51 PM

    I'm starting to feel bad using that record for an example. If only i had any idea people were going to read this, i'da done, i dunno, The Decemberists or something. Sorry, fellas! But, i'm posting a new one soon, featuring artists you might have actually heard of. Stay tuned.

  • NoJackson
    NoJackson posted on Aug 15 - 2007 08:52:03 PM

    Does a runner score from second on a single (like in real baseball) or does he have to make it all the way to third? Just a small clarification. Cool game.

  • Jens Carstensen
    Jens Carstensen posted on Aug 15 - 2007 09:03:09 PM

    I've been playing that they do. Also, multi-base hits (as you will see in today's post) open the game up a lot too. Lastly (this will be addressed tomorrow), "runners stranded" will here on in refer to tracks NOT PLAYED from a record. So, for instance, neither the Cribs nor Automatic stranded anyone; conversely, Interpol and that other band i reviewed stranded plenty. Glad you like it! We're still perfecting it as you can see.

  • rock girlfriend
    rock girlfriend posted on Aug 14 - 2007 06:42:16 PM

    "Each time you finish a song, that’s a ball." So true.

  • heche
    heche posted on Aug 14 - 2007 03:42:32 PM

    Upon second listen, it (interpol) would have been OUT on 3 pitches. I felt the umpire was kind of blind on that 2nd song and called it a WALK

  • Jens Carstensen
    Jens Carstensen posted on Aug 14 - 2007 04:54:39 PM

    I decided i’d better try this method out on a new record i actually like, so i gave the new LCD Soundsystem a spin. The result: 2 runs on 4 hits, with two men left on. Also, it occurred to me: a runner on 2nd should score on a hit. It only makes sense.

  • VinnieP
    VinnieP posted on Aug 16 - 2007 10:52:53 AM

    Awesome game. played it with Runaway Orange's The cutting room. 4 runs, and 2 left on base

  • Jens Carstensen
    Jens Carstensen posted on Aug 16 - 2007 11:45:06 AM

    Now for your perusing pleasure: IndieRockBaseball.com. New posts will also be simulcast here at the Lime Wire Music Blog, of course! Good game, everybody.

  • Dan
    Dan posted on Aug 16 - 2007 12:44:27 PM

    Review this album: Final Round - None of us Will Ever Leave A Legacy the whole thing is at www.purevolume.com/finalround

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 17 - 2007 02:30:14 PM

    [...] latest Indie Rock Baseball match up pits Blaqk Audio against LCD Soundsystem. Read the rules HERE. Play [...]

  • Anonymous User
    Anonymous User posted on Aug 22 - 2007 03:41:26 PM

    [...] folks over at the LimeWire blog [via Idolator] have come up with a pretty brilliant way to kill time during a rain-delay; while [...]

  • James
    James posted on Jul 19 - 2008 05:35:11 AM

    That's so much better than normal baseball.