Personal Dork Assistant

Haven't walked into Tower

Haven't walked into Tower Records for a long time because, frankly, their prices suck. On the other hand, buying CDs from big-box retailers and online stores have put me in a rut because I have to know what I want before I buy, so it's hard to try new things. I wanted some instant gratification for The Beauty of the Rain, and with gas nearing two bucks a gallon, it was probably cheaper to walk to Towers instead of driving to Best Buy for the disc.

So there I was, and it was nice to be in a store designed to display music instead of a store for TV, appliances, computers, and music. The listening stations were dominated by electronica of various sorts. That actually makes sense since they can't really push dance music via MTV or radio. Hey, it made me buy something. Can't believe that I'm taking music advice from Peter Gammons, but the new American Hi-Fi album was cheap, and it can't be all bad if Zito and Beane dig it.

Best ad copy at the listening station goes to Euro Dance Party, which is suppose to let you, "Experience a European club night without leaving the comforts of home!" Now I may be the most pathetic loner in the universe, but even I won't be popping in a second-rate mix CD and pretending to have a Euro dance party by myself.