Binge

Bollocks. I've done it again.

There's a reason I don't go into Fopp. Pretty much the same reason I try not to go into bookshops too often. But I always manage to convince myself that I'll do better this time. I'll exert some self-control. Grow up a bit.

No chance.

I went this afternoon with a clear goal. I was focused. Having discovered The Mountain Goats this morning, through the wonders of the interweb (thank you, John Walker), I decided, after careful consideration - not on an impulsive whim - that it would be worth buying one of their albums. One.

It all went wrong when Fopp, for the first time that I can remember, failed me. They didn't have a single Mountain Goats CD. Fine. Turn round, head for the door. Past a Cat Power album with a '£5' sticker. And suddenly I'm at the counter, handing over my card, acquiring not only this bargain, but the new (full-price) Cat Power one it was sitting next to. I'm the victim of a very simple, very straightforward marketing trick.

That would still have been fine (what's a couple of albums once in a while?), except for the fact that I was still focused. At no point had I given up on acquiring the Mountain Goats album. So I went straight home and bought it on itunes. And then bought another one.

It's all worth it, of course - the new Cat Power has an excellent version of Nick Cave's 'Breathless', and the Mountain Goats stuff is just wonderful. But my bank account hates me.