December 2008
When Will The Platinum Run Out?
Jacob Ganz posted earlier about how, according to the Soundscan figures on this wiki page about the best-selling albums in recent years, Coldplay’s sales have been incredibly consistent since the start of this decade. He only mentions figures relating to A Rush Of Blood To The Head and Viva La Vida, but upon further investigation, it seems that all four of Coldplay’s albums have gone...
Please listen to the December 30, 2008 episode of... →
Patton Oswalt calls in as a character in the first hour, and in the third hour, there’s an especially great Jon Wurster bit. It’s an amazing episode.
“My favorite on the release is “Golden Age,” a Beck-like funky track...”
– POPTRACKS: TV on the Radio: Why People Love ‘Em
Oh, embarrassing New York Post music blog! I’m pretty sure that this TV on the Radio tune is only being described as “Beck-like” because Beck also has a song called “Golden Age.” It’s very much in the way that...
Todd Gets A Drum Pad For Guitar Hero
Todd: Now I hate my parents for never signing me up for drum lessons. Who knew?
Matthew: They did. They knew you weren't meant for the rockin' life.
Todd: I would become a degenerate sticksman?
Matthew: You'd be in some shitty No Age type band, sub-Vivian Girls.
Todd: I like playing songs that swing a bit.
Matthew: You'd be a vegan.
Todd: Nah. I don't really like veganism, it is too doctrinaire.
Matthew: You'd be in a vegan drone collective, living in Silverlake, anemically dronin.' You don't rock anything with a face. You're the anti-Jovi.
"There's a party in his mind/And he hopes it never... →
David Allison on Marnie Stern’s music and Brian Chippendale’s comic/art book, Maggots.
The Comics Reporter interviews friend-of-the-blog... →
As it turns out, Sean and I are on pretty much the same wavelength re: Lynda Barry.
My Songwriting Adventure With Marnie Stern →
Rob Trucks on his collaboration with Ms. Stern. Very interesting, especially when she talks about lyrical concepts.
Olsson's Is Closed →
Awwwww, man. Out of nowhere, I kinda went off on this mental tangent that landed on me thinking about Olsson’s Books and Records, and so I checked the store’s website only to discover that they just recently went out of business. That’s so sad! When I lived in Washington, DC a little over a decade ago, I lived very close to the store just off Dupont Circle, and spent SO MUCH...
FLUXCAST #26
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There’s an xmas/nye theme up top, but the rest of this episode goes off on other tangents. You know the drill: Tracklisting will appear here later on, but for now, that info can be found in the metadata of the mp3.
How Bad Is Seven Pounds’ Ending, Anyway? →
Lane Brown reveals the big spoilers, essentially as a public service.
David Byrne compares the newspaper business of... →
(via alexbalk)
What It Meant To Be The Universe →
Kevin Fanning strikes again. As he describes it: “In Which We Prepare Ourselves For Refutation of the Afterlife.”
Distorte's Top 5 Albums, 2008 →
Year-end album lists are so boring and unimaginative. This one, however, is precisely the opposite. (Here is the list from last year. I totally owe him for turning me on to Dog Chorus #17.)
“Back in the 90’s when I was first starting to make 4-track tapes I had a...”
– Weird Energy Why?
Bradford Cox on what to do instead of leaking hotly anticipated albums. Also, apparently some creeps hacked into Geologist from the Animal Collective’s email, and sent out a plea for fans to find and leak their entire new album. I really feel bad for Animal Collective; they...
Douglas Wolk vs. Daphne Carr! →
Soundcheck has Douglas Wolk and Daphne Carr face off re: the relevance of music criticism in the current media landscape. Plus, of Montreal perform later in the episode! Soundcheck was apparently pandering to me yesterday.
The Fabulous Flameout and Remarkable Return of... →
Nice article by Matt LeMay on the MBV site.
FLUXCAST #25
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This is the third and final 2008 retrospective podcast. There are still plenty of things that didn’t get in, but between episodes 23, 24, and 25, you have a pretty accurate summary of where my taste in new releases has been in the past year. This is a double-sized episode, clocking in at just a little bit over two hours. As per usual, the full track listing will appear on...
Christmas in L.A. with Julia Roberts →
After spending all of 2008 on hiatus, the Cold Inclusive is back for a Christmas special!
"Grandpa, You Could Be My Sweet Daddy Bear" →
You like horror, right? Go watch this, and be horrified. Thank you, Lindsay Robertson!
What Is Happening?
Hey internet! Thank you for all these different versions of “What Is Happening?” by Alphabeat. I kinda needed a good jolt of happy this morning, so I really appreciate it.
Clipse responds to Tom Breihan's review of their... →
Though Clipse are being maybe a bit too touchy and sensitive about what is essentially a very positive review, I really appreciate that their comments here are thoughtful and well-written. If you’re going to publicly react to a review of your own work — which you probably should never do — this is definitely the best case scenario. Also: Tom Breihan responds on his blog.
“With the price of airfare, gasoline and, well, just about everything else these...”
– Don’t Forget Energy Conservation at Your Second Home - NYTimes.com
Gee, I wonder why so people assume that the New York Times is elitist and out of touch… (Via Matt Jacobs)
FLUXCAST #24
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This is the second of three best-of-2008 retrospective podcasts. The episode is extra-long, clocking in at just a bit over 90 minutes. The playlist will appear here in a few days, but until then, you can find that information in the metadata of the mp3. As always, feedback is appreciated.
Like I said, this is as close as you’re getting to a “list” from...