Music

Dreamed of a Lego mosaic of Ella Fitzgerald’s Lullabies of Birdland descending a ladder. So Dali’s drug of choice must have been Cheetos.

“I feel like I’m on the boardwalk.” @ChamberMonster has gotten her first dose of Enforcer.

“For when I die, the universe will die with me.” When your sister makes you get up before dawn on a holiday, the soundtrack is Agalloch.

Playing the shit out of some “Amazing Grace” on my new ukulele, courtesy of my wonderful @ChamberMonster.

Whoa, one of Philly’s best bands, the long-dormant Technician, stirs! Fingers crossed for a new record and some shows. mysp.ac/fMRjGA

Just discovered NYC’s glam metal revival scene. I won’t begrudge them their fun, but the second time around just seems like a costume party.

In a career like this, it’s interesting to try to pinpoint the moment when the question changes from "How can I keep doing stuff I love to do?" to "How can I keep people paying attention to me?"

Oh man. A free four-song live EP from my favorite band, Low, in a Dutch church with an effing choir. Goosebumps. chairkickers.com/live-at-eindhove…

How did all these starry-eyed critics miss the irony that This Is Spın̈al Tap is about a million times more honest than Almost Famous?

The song is bland as hell, but the video is really, really well done.

I am so confused. How/why did this happen? Who the fuck are those three doofuses that keep popping up?

With the announcement of Grammy nominations comes the indictment of a culture addicted to hollow pageantry.

I would have omitted the Misfits logo, made the eyes completely black, and dialed the date back thirty years, but still, this is pretty rad.

Have the last 15 years taught me to get past Pretty Hate Machine’s trite teen poetry and enjoy it again on a sonic level? Let’s find out.

Jersey Boys seems proud that The Four Seasons were contemporaries of The Beatles. Analogy: Vanilla Ice was a contemporary of Public Enemy.

Six pages in, I’m seeing the guitar through new eyes. Fretboard Logic, where have you been all my life? You know, besides on my bookshelf.

♪ I woke up. Can’t wait to eat. Got my cereal. Boy was I beat. Opened the fridge, and to my dismay: There was no milk. My mother will pay!

Wishing old tour dates were better documented. The dozen or so shows missing from my archive are driving me crazy. last.fm/user/cowpiesurprise/event…

A crate of LPs is on the sidewalk.

Me: “Is someone selling those?”
Guy: “They’re up for grabs!”

Then he walks off with the whole crate.

Feeling pretty sorry for those of you that didn’t see Man or Astro-man and Dex Romweber Duo on the tour they’re wrapping up tomorrow.

Okay, Kanye is officially banished to my “I’m not listening” vault where he will share accommodations with Sarah Palin and Anne Coulter.

Completely outstanding @creativemorning talk from @zuckermanstudio today. musicthebook.com

Oh, fuck you.

For years, a Misfits song unknown to me was hiding in plain sight: “In the Doorway”, a previously unmixed Static Age track released in 1997.

Ouch.

Damn, IKEA, why your announcements gotta interrupt “Sk8er Boi”?

This ain’t no love-in. This ain’t no happening. This ain’t no feeling in my arm. instagr.am/p/BlVA

One of my favorite Samhain songs, but it has always bummed me out that the studio version sounds so terrible (as was the case with a lot of Samhain stuff, really). I think I’ll record my own version.

Just realized I never explored Television beyond Marquee Moon because what else was there to say?MM was such a singular, defining statement.

So, at the Neurosis merch table, does Steve Von Till manage the money? Nyuck nyuck.

My earplugs were no match for Swans.

The Sopranos S03E01’s surveillance montage mashup of Mancini’s “Peter Gunn” theme and Police’s “Every Breath You Take” is pretty fantastic.

I can’t put my finger on what I like so much about this poster. I do know that something about its seemingly random noise invited me to explore it, and that the actual information is easily discernible despite that noise, thanks to a clear focal point and succinct text.

♪ Hold back the road that goes oh that the others may do what you let me in just to pour me down their mouths

Man, I might have hoped A.V. Club would be above the whole “quote the snippet where he talks shit on the beloved famous people!” thing, but at least it linked to the rest of the interview, which is great. As much as Albini usually kinda comes off as a dick, I can’t say I disagree with him. And regarding his own past dalliances in the mainstream music biz, I’d really like to know what he… See more →

iTunes > Artist: Swans > Album: My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky > Repeat: All

Thanks for the heads up.

Juggalo culture is unlikely to ever hold any appeal for me beyond morbid fascination, but damn if this lengthy interview didn’t make make me go, "You do your thing, Violent J. High five."

Gobbling up concert tickets, nearly all of which are for reunion tours. Alternating between euphoria and self-loathing.

Dismemberment Plan. Webster Hall, NYC. 2011/01/29. Tickets on sale Friday at noon. May God have mercy on your soul if you get in my way.

Is my singing getting worse or is my self awareness improving?

Pleased as punch that Dio and The Smiths are coming to @RockBand next week. rockband.com/zine/singles-dio-hat…

Amidst all the Irish traditional tunes in Thin Lizzy’s “Róisín Dubh” arrangement, how did I only just now notice “Danny Boy”? Shameful.

As expected, seeing Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter was worth every penny of that overpriced Sunn/Boris ticket.

Designer’s block leads me to edit iTunes metadata which leads me to discover that the early Buzzcocks singles were very nicely designed.

Yes, it’s Brooklyn, but that doesn’t make spinning New Order in a BBQ joint any less wrong.