Every now and then there is something, whether it’s a toy, a phrase, a movie or a song that wins over fans of all ages. For your consideration, the Rubik’s cube. Not only is my spell check familiar with the word, but so is anyone who was alive in the ‘80s. Some people got it for their 40th birthday, some people got it for hitting a home run in little league, but we all loved it or hated it at some point. Also, “Ain’t no shame in my game.” I remember listening to Guru say it in the early ‘90s, and I just heard a sixty-something lady say it while she was cleaning up a campsite bathroom about a month ago. Consider further that Surf’s Up is one of the two best films ever made about penguins not only to me, but also to my 6-... read more >
I was born in a big town. Now I live in a small town. These are not the first two lines of a John Mellencamp tribute parody, but more or less my current musical situation. I could probably come up with a lengthy and comprehensive list of both pros and cons of big city versus small town, in which no clear winner would emerge. But in terms of musical culture, big city takes small town out behind small town’s very own red barn and gives small town a big city whoopin’. At least until last week, when small town enjoyed a fleeting but momentous musical victory, bestowing upon 300 lucky concertgoers the best show I’ve seen in at least 3 or 4 years.
The band responsible for this life-affirming experience was Bon Iver (though th... read more >
For once in my blogging life, I sat down to do a little research. I had an interesting idea, and rather than simply giving my own opinion and reinforcing it with even more opinion thinly veiled as some kind of fact, I figured it might be a good time to see if there were some numbers I could crunch or point to. The idea in my head sprung from thinking about friends I had in the real estate business. I’d heard that some of them were seeking second jobs or abandoning the practice all together because the housing market was stinking like the fish market. Well, I postulated, did this mean that hundreds, if not thousands of would-be Halls and/or Oates would cut their budding mullets and keep their day jobs and steer clear of the sinking... read more >
In one of my last album roundups of 2007, I ordered 3 relatively new CDs that I hadn’t heard a single song from. Two of them were new releases from artists I’d already heard, and the third was an action taken solely on a recommendation from a friend. He said it was the best album he had heard all year, and he thought I would be into it. Turns out my friend was absolutely right. In fact, the second track from this great album turned out to be THE GREATEST TRACK OF 2007.
And unlike the thrilling climax of a beauty pageant, we must not first deal with the first and second runners up. I wish I could say that I spent an entire year listening to music, creating a mental chart that saw change and upheaval as I introduced the ... read more >
By now you've probably heard the news about Radiohead's new album. You've probably had time to think about it, read about it what other people think about it, talk about it, and maybe you've even had exciting conversations about it. Me too. It's very exciting, scary, revolutionary, monumental, ground-breaking, unique, brilliant, brave, and maybe crazy. Actually, what's crazy is that I'm not even talking about the album itself. I'm a big Radiohead fan. I still count their show in West Palm Beach in 2003 as one of the most awe-inspiring (and I mean that as in awesome and inspiring) musical events I've ever seen. I'm sure their new album will be just as good as I expect it to be, but I haven't even really thought about what kind o... read more >
