I went to Tower Records today for three reasons: 1) The store closes in nine days; 2) Christmas is coming and I haven't done my shopping; 3) I need to turn in year-end lists and most of the music I heard this year ranged from "eh" to "Mon Dieu, how did this band get signed?!" Now I am here to tell you to get your ass to Tower. If you are in the Valley, go to the one on Nordhoff across from Northridge Mall. CDs are 60% off and since most people in Northridge have no taste, there is tons of good stuff. I think I paid $6 for a House of Love import disc. It was the last one. There are still stacks of this year's releases from Phoenix, Nine Black Alps, James Figurine, Mylo (domestic) and Editors (domestic). I was able to come home with fun stuff for me, indie rock for my sister, angst-filled smart guy tunes for my brother (i.e. more in line with Nick Cave than My Chemical Romance), Eurodance for my mom and even sci-fi for my dad.

Sadly, the anime section is bare, save for a few boxed sets of Ghost in the Shell, which I would have purchased had they not still been out of my cheapo price range at 50% off.