Browser: Melody. Cylons. Vampires. Favorite Albums. Migraines. Radiohead. David Bazan. U2.

Suzanne Vega answers the question, “What’s a melody for?” And I rise to my feet to applaud.

2.
The original Starbuck hates the new Battlestar Galactica, and has interesting reasons. But Jason Morehead is brave enough to stand up and fight him like a man. Or a Cylon. You decide.

3.
My all-time favorite vampire movie is coming out on DVD this week. Read my reflection on the film here.

4.

NPR’s All Songs Considered already rates 2009 as a better year for music than 2008. What about you? What’s your favorite album of ’09 so far?

5.
I’ve noticed that stress can trigger my migraines. During the last few weeks, as I finished the first draft of Raven’s Ladder, the third volume of The Auralia Thread, I had a couple of them.

But I can predict 9 out of 10 of my migraines just by looking out the window. If a tide of dark clouds are moving in on a sunny day, it’s probably gonna happen. If a day of heavy rain suddenly breaks open into bright sun, it’s probably gonna happen. It’s all about air pressure and sudden changes in weather. I’ve been telling people this for years, and I’m thankful for the doctor who told me to pay attention. Now, I can prevent them, or catch them just as they start, with simple sinus-pressure medication (Sudafed, usually). Lo and behold, this understanding is starting to spread. It’s not the cause of *all* migraines, but I’ve noticed that on days when I get migraines, I hear the same report from several other friends who get them too.

6.

My favorite Radiohead album is being re-released in an attractive deluxe version.

7.

Word has it that David Bazan‘s next drops in August: Curse Your Branches. Keep an eye on his MySpace page.

8.
Rolling Stone: “U2’s Best By the Bands That Love Them”

Here are a few lines you can put in your pocket:

Taylor Swift: “His vocals on that song, somehow Bono has this way of evoking emotion that no one will be able to describe it.” Hmm. Her words in this statement, somehow Taylor has this way of speaking that no one will be able to diagram her sentences.

Fallout Boy’s Pete Wenst: “Every band wants to be U2 now, and I always wonder whether it’s sonically or career-wise. I think of it in terms of the unrelenting humanitarian stuff Bono does.” I will not stop re-reading these two sentences until I understand them.

Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst: “It falls in the pocket and Bono has made himself such a significant part of our culture and even our evolution as our culture. U2 has such a deep meaning behind it. … Bono always finds that perfect melody to put in the pocket.” I realize now that I won’t be cool until I start saying in the pocket!

Disturbed’s David Drainman: “The Joshua Tree — “Where the Streets Have No Name” — there’s so many great songs on that record and it’s such a beautiful collaboration of artistry. … I was a fan of War and the earlier records, but that album really spoke to a greater range of people and transcended them.” Transcended… the people?