Ruined Music

It’s a story on repeat: Boy meets girl, hears an addicting pop song and falls for both. Then boy loses girl, and he’s haunted by the memories embedded in the song. Those wrecked sounds are played out in America’s ear buds daily, just with different names and lyrics. For those reminded of coupledom by melodic couplets comes Ruined Music, a Web site for those seeking to reclaim songs or albums hijacked by the opposite sex. Readers submit 1,000-word essays chronicling a love knotted to an artist with the shot at releasing some memories and spinning “Two of Us” by The Beatles without remembering how the relationship went nowhere. Under the logo of a broken record, a punk rocker connects with Bruce Springsteen’s “Thunder Road” after a girl gives him Born to Run for Christmas, and a high school girl swoons for a boy with Bright Eyes’ “First Day of My Life” as the soundtrack. While personal liner notes could be as irritating as scratched vinyl, the two editors emphasize polishing the essays, and clunkers are hard to find, even if it is an ode to “Head Over Feet” by Alanis Morissette. Just like songs, you can’t choose what love gets stuck your head.