Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Carl Wilson's written an excellent review of a book by a punk rocker-turned-policy advisor guy who is apparently well-known north of the border; I know I'm not making that very clear, but go check out the post, he explains it much better. It's kicked up some sort of shitstorm in which the book's author calls him gay, all because of something involving Canadian politics or something. The aforementioned shitstorm is mildly interesting in a way that sort of confirms what Wilson's saying, but it's all beside the point. I read and immensely enjoyed the review because it's ultimately less a criticism of the book itself (or the individual at hand) and more an extremely astute sketch of why folks like myself feel such ambivalence toward being "punk in spirit"--acting all punk rawk is great and all, but: Neo-cons hated the sixties, and punks hated hippies. In many ways punk anticipated the knee-jerk, know-nothing disdain for collective input and consequence that would become standard-issue conservative politics and culture - extreme individualism and atomized democracy.
How great a leap is it from barfing on old ladies to cutting their pension cheques?
Rush Limbaugh is punk, the Oxycontin-snorting, neo-con version of Henry Rollins. The blithely rude Paris Hilton is punk, kid sister to Courtney Love; much punk music now echoes her entitled, self-involved whine. Give it a read.
posted by Mike B. at 1:53 PM
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Good times in the Middle East: The death toll rose to more than 800 this morning after rumors of a suicide bomber led to a stampede in a vast procession of Shiite pilgrims as they crossed a bridge on their way to a shrine in northern Baghdad...
Health Minister Abdul-Mutalib Mohammed said on Iraqi television that there were "huge crowds on the bridge and the disaster happened when someone shouted that there is a suicide bomber on the bridge."
"This led to a state of panic among the pilgrims," he said, "and they started pushing each other and there were many case of suffocation." See, the constitutional process is working in Iraq--they've just learned a valuable lesson about the limits of free speech! Oliver Wendall Holmes is content.
posted by Mike B. at 11:59 AM
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Thursday, August 25, 2005
Thanks to The Fader, here is the letter I was a-talkin' about below.
posted by Mike B. at 7:10 PM
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Oh, and before I get rolling, one more quick note on Rehearsing... When I got the album from Jesse, he said he's had it on while he was working, but it hadn't really clicked for him yet. The first few times I listened to it, I listened to it pretty closely, either while riding the train or while cooking, but still really paying attention, and I liked it. But then I tried to listen to it on the flight home while I was reading and it totally didn't work--I got annoyed and turned it off. In this way it's a bit like Blueberry Boat, which I put on while I was working and let it play through in the background when I first got it, and while I didn't dislike it, it didn't really grab me either, certainly not like Gallowsbird's did. But it at least encouraged me to keep listening. But Rehearsing actively repels me when I try and listen to it casually, which could be a big hinderance. Now, I know this sounds suspiciously like it could morph into a "you just don't get it" argument, which I know was the message some people got from Blueberry Boat supporters. But I think to really give this album a try, and you need to sit down with it and listen. I'll never tell anyone that they are required to give the album a try, but I think if you are going to, close listening is required. Of course, I'm the guy comparing it to an opera, so maybe I'm wrong. At any rate, I can see this annoying the MP3 generation, but I can see it catching on among...well, I want to say "old folks," but I guess I mean "radio listeners." You could play this album on NPR and no one would think it was an album; it just comes off like a slightly avant-garde radio braodcast. Matthew says "This American Life" but it reminds me strongly of the books on tape I used to listen to as I fell asleep, maybe because of the breaks and the fragmentary nature of it. ADDENDUM: Don't know how I forgot to mention this, since I've been flipping back and forth to it for the last hour or so, but Troy has transcribed some of the songs. Man, "Rehearsing My Choir" is a good song.
posted by Mike B. at 12:08 PM
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I'm back from the vacay. On my drive to the beach, we saw a sign that said "THE DOLL'S HOUSE: Private Exotic Dancing." This sign pointed to a small, dilapidated ranch house, where, presumably, one lonely exotic dancer lived. Leading up to this house was a handicap-access ramp. Firstly, Mike Rosenthal is a-bloggin at the Eyebeam website, and it's well worth checking out. Secondly, here are more reviews by me. We have a local Athens band (Modern Skirts) and the solo project of the dude from the Rock*A*Teens (Tenement Halls). Also, Hillary's great Sufjan review. Now off to work.
posted by Mike B. at 11:47 AM
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Friday, August 19, 2005
I have now seen (thanks Jesse!) the press packet that is included with the promo of the new Fiery Furnaces album, Rehearsing My Choir. In it, there is a letter from Matt F., in which he tells the interested reader, among other things, what decade each song is set in. Hmmm...The album itself? Well, I've only listened to five songs so far, but yeah, it's making me smile a lot, especially "The Wayfaring Granddaughter," which is tuneful and weird and varied and naughty and hyper-endearing. If Blueberry Boat was a rock opera (and it kinda was and kinda wasn't), Rehearsing is an actual opera, or at least an avant-garde one. The best comparison I've got for this so far is Robert Wilson. Or maybe Robert Ashley. Lotsa Roberts. But, um, poppy! More later, obviously. But I am not mapping this one, goddamnit. ADDENDUM: More info at the thefieryfurnaces.net. They might do a deluxe edition that would include a documentary of their grandmother giving a tour of Chicago. Also, their grandmother is enunciating way too well to be doing Dylan, I'm sorry.
posted by Mike B. at 2:35 PM
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Those of you in, around, or sympathetic to academia will probably enjoy the 8-18-05 post from Chris' blog, which is a lovely little thing about why we pursue higher degrees. There's a tendency among grad students to impute selfish, pedestrian motives to themselves in both going to grad school in the first place and in their own particular field of study...Matt, who will be pursuing his PHD at Iowa this year, once told me that he studies German history because he likes German beer and he has lots of excuses to go to Germany and drink it. I'm setting up my own PHD program applications these days and it occurred to me just how disengenuous those purported motives are ("I do it so I don't have to get a real job" or "I like to read a lot" or whatever.) We do it because we're horribly, horribly ambitious. (emphasis mine) More at th'blog.
posted by Mike B. at 11:26 AM
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Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Things are a little nutso around the ol' cubicle farm right now, but I can point you toward three new reviews in Flagpole: Bob Mould, Geoff Reacher, and, uh, a Laura Ingalls Wilder tribtue. Also, Hillary's Lanois review.
posted by Mike B. at 12:52 PM
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Tuesday, August 16, 2005
We'll address the psychological implications of me being moved to tears on a regular basis by hyper-produced Swedish girl pop/rock later, but for now, here's a song I wrote about being in love with Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone": Snack Shop - Kelly (Claps 05 Recreation)
Some of you may know that I am currently in two bands, one of which is called Snack Shop. Snack Shop is actually on hiatus though, more's the pity, while we look for a drummer, but I missed this song so much that I decided to whip together a version just to have. And now you have it too, hey. I was responsible for very little of it myself, and as far as I know I mainly stayed true to everyone's parts, but of course I could not progam these parts as well as they could be played by those particular individuals, so this is but an inferior recreation (especially given that I should probably remix a number of things, but I'm not going to anytime soon, so meh). Still, it'll give you a good feel for it. Hope you like. (Also, I reserve the right to change the title at any time.)
posted by Mike B. at 11:33 AM
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I should, first of all, point you toward and encourage you to download the Bratz song posted at Poptext. But I should also, since I am somewhat responsible for it being up there, add a few things. First of all, for those who are unfamiliar, the Bratz are, um, dolls. They're very popular and were already tapping that Avril vein even before Avril herself, if I'm remembering correctly. But the thing is, the tracks are credited to the dolls. The dolls are the vocalists. And so the booklet has a few pages of credits, then a page each for "bios" of the girls, then "candid studio shots" done with the dolls and their accessories. Which are then followed by--speaking of which--a catalog of all the Bratz Rock Angels products you can buy. This catalog is 10 pages long with at least 4 items on every page. It's incredible. It's so blatantly commercial and so divorced from any actual personality or reality that any concerns of authenticity fall away, even vestigal ones pop-lovers might normally have. Once you've accepted that, yes, you're listening to a song ostensibly performed by a group of dolls (or, rather, dolls with attitude!), all you're left with is this song as an isolated thing. Or I am, anyway. Sample catalog items: book, DVD, video games, "Band Intrumentz" [sic], stage ("Plus Your Stereo Into the Real-Working Speakers!" [sic]), recording studio ("Special Microphone Lets You Record and Play Back Sound!"), cruiser, "Party Plane," tourbus, "Funky Fashion Makeover," video camera, single-use camera, foldable scooter, "Protective Gear" ("Your Safety Just Got a Bit More Stylin'!"), stationery. Keep in mind that all of this is not just for the Bratz as a whole, but specifically the Bratz Rock Angelz, i.e. the subgenus this CD's associated with. It's crazy and kind of wonderful. The other thing you should know about this is that there is a full album for the Bratz Rock Angelz, and now that I have had a chance to listen to that full album...well, here I face a problem. Because I won't deny that part of the reason the song (and the album) made such a huge impact on me was that I wasn't expecting anything; I mainly wanted the album so I could give it to Ar. So on the one hand, I don't want to get your expectations up too high. But on the the other hand, I do want you to actually go listen to it, which I understand may take some convincing, since, you know, it's an album made by dolls. Thus, I'm not going to say it's the album of the year (nor I am going to say it made me tear up a number of times), but I will say that "the beat in our hearts is the beat on the charts" is both a fine thing for someone to put on a t-shirt for me and genuinely indicative of the kind of thing you'll get from this album: unabashed pop music that seems to be coming directly from someone's heart to yours. Again, I think the fact this this is an openly commercial enterprise helps a lot, because there's no tempermental vocalist to try and please or justify; there's just a bunch of great Swedish producers indulging each and every one of their popalicious whims. This is as close to a producer's album as we're ever going to get from that axis, I assume, and wow, what an album it is. Once I get off my ass I'll write something more about the music itself, but for now I will say that "So Good" is, as it turns out, not necessarily the best song on the album, or rather that there are five other songs that are at least as good, and the rest ain't slouches either. One song is in 3/4, one song sounds like Lita Ford, and one is sort of 60s girl-pop, except metal. Oh, and then the "bonus track" is "So Good," but in Spanish. Aaahhhhh.
posted by Mike B. at 10:56 AM
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Saturday, August 13, 2005
I am currently hanging out at a friend's house, and she has Rhapsody, and here's what I have to say about that: in addition to being much, much faster than I would expect anything associated with RealPlayer to be , they have this great radio station function where you put in five (to ten, but five seems to work) artists you like and it produces a random-play radio station based on them. So, for instance, I put in a radio station with Motley Crue, the Pixies, PJ Harvey, and some other folks, and they give you pretty much exactly what you want--some great Motley songs, some louder indie songs, and a random selection of other stuff. (A previous station of the Fiery Furnaces, Annie, Kelly Clarkson, and Julez Santana produced more questionable results, but I attribute that more to the Clarkson having an inconsistent catalog than anything else.) At any rate, I know I've been neglecting you all, but hell, it's the summer, and I should have some actual written content throughout the week, lord willing.
posted by Mike B. at 1:35 AM
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Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Currently I'm going through a bunch of indie promo invoices from the last month or so, and on the bottom of one I see the following notice, a notice which, I might add, was not there the last time I went through these invoices. It reads: Notice:Nothing of value was given to a radio station or radio station employee in exchange for airplay. Well, pshew, that's a relief. It's a bit reminiscent of those "this software is being provided for evaluation purposes only" notices you'd find back when (um) our friends (um) used to download warez. Except I wasn't sitting in a cubicle until 8 at night doing hand-entry for warez. Thank god--most of those file_id.diz writers couldn't grammatate for shit.
posted by Mike B. at 6:18 PM
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The aforementioned Hard-Fi review is now up at Flagpole, along with four (4!) Hillary-penned reviews. I think mine would have been better if I wasn't quite so horrified. I listened to the Moldy Peaches CD this morning for the first time in at least a year. It's still one of the best.
posted by Mike B. at 10:51 AM
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Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Like I said. Yeah, Mick, I'm sure Keith is shaking in his boots, but I don't think from fear.
posted by Mike B. at 6:03 PM
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Monday, August 08, 2005
It's always nice when you want to comment on an article you wrote that hasn't come out yet, but then you check and it has come out. So: here is my Electric 6 review. Some of it is kinda nebulous, but the first paragraph is strong, although I say something that I realize may be controversial. I have lots more to say about it, but for now, if you are doubting me, let me just remind you about shit like this. ADDENDUM: Also, Dick Valentine on Rock Star: INXS, a show which I've been remiss in not commenting upon, to say nothing of RU The Girl.
posted by Mike B. at 10:45 AM
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Thursday, August 04, 2005
I had wanted to e-mail this to Sasha in response to his latest post, about why there are so few hip-hop best-ofs, but the address I have is not working, so I post it here instead. Well, there are two possible reasons: 1) Some contractural thing that's standard for hip-hop acts involving the provisions for release of a best-of. Being utterly unfamiliar with the niceities of those particular contracts (do they all require the label to release at leat two mediocre albums by their hangers-on, no matter how well those albums actually do?), I can't tell you if this is the case. 2) The fact that they'd have to re-clear all the samples, and/or that the sideartist clearances they got for one or more of the guest shots explicitly excluded the track's inclusion on a best-of, which often happens. Now, you can re-clear the sample, and you can renegotiate with the guest artist's label to get clearance for the inclusion, but this all takes more time and money. As you say, there's no reason for the label NOT to release a best-of in terms of sales; they'd probably do pretty well. So near as I can figure, this probably means that the catalog is selling well enough that the additional expense (mainly legal / A&R admin, especially the cost of the new royalty advances to get the publishing and sideartist clearances, but also committed marketing, etc.--it's oodles cheaper to press more catalog than do a whole new release) makes releasing a best-of economically inefficient. This may be granting the labels too much credit, but I know they run a cost analysis before green-lighting any new release, and as you point out, there's just so many hip-hop acts that should have best-ofs that don't for it to be just an oversight. Or, alternately, they are afraid that if they put out an album without any filler, people would stop buying the albums with filler. This seems ungenerous, though. (Apologies if this seems to be turning into "clap clap blog: music industry news and gossip!")
posted by Mike B. at 10:42 AM
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Wednesday, August 03, 2005
OK, I lied. I did an impromptu guest post at Fluxblog.
posted by Mike B. at 12:27 PM
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Two new Flagpole reviews from me: Nouvelle Vague and Evergreen Terrace. I hope Evergreen Terrace isn't actually good, because they really weren't my thing. You will also find a Keyshia Cole review from the Hster. Still in the hopper is my mean review of Hard-Fi. Sorry not much here from me lately; longtime readers should know by now it's a bit cyclical, and there'll doubtless be a deluge soon. Work's just kicking my ass at the moment, and I keep getting things wrong, which is never fun. Ah well. How are all of you? Having good summers? Here's hoping.
posted by Mike B. at 11:13 AM
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Monday, August 01, 2005
I still really, really like Juliet's "Avalon," and I still don't know quite why.
posted by Mike B. at 4:49 PM
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