I once again returned to the radio airwaves at my beloved alma mater last night. Thanks to a substitution call from longtime pal who holds down a regular Sunday slot — not to mention current student leadership’s continued kind accommodation … Continue reading Radio Days — Then and Now: February 27, 2022
230. Concrete Blonde, Concrete Blonde (1986) When bassist Johnette Napolitano and guitarist James Mankey decided to form a band together, in 1982, they chose the name the Dreamers. They played a few gigs around Los Angeles and elbowed their way … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #230 to #228
Her Name Was Shirley by Dr. Reniqua Allen-Lamphere Writing for Esquire, Dr. Reniqua Allen-Lamphere traces the longterm negative impact the 1956 Life magazine article “The Restraints: Open and Hidden,” part of a series on segregation in the U.S., had on … Continue reading Outside Reading — The Restraints edition
So I’ll admit that my weekend plans might make me especially partial to song called “Back to the Radio” at this very moment. But it’s no mere convenience of personal association that makes the new single from the Brixton band … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Porridge Radio, “Back to the Radio”
As guided by first-time feature director Lin-Manuel Miranda, tick, tick…BOOM! is a thrilling tribute to the act of creation itself. Miranda, working with screenwriter Steven Levenson, adapts Jonathan Larson’s autobiographical stage work of the same name with a resolute determination … Continue reading Top Ten Movies of 2021 — Number Six
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. In 1966, three years before Sesame Street and a full decade before The Muppet Show, the first … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — The Ideal Muppets
Wuthering Heights (William Wyler, 1939). This adaptation of the classic 1847 Emily Brontë novel of the same name is a signature example of the epic sweep filmmakers could conjure up on soundstages during Hollywood’s golden age, well before it was … Continue reading Then Playing — Wuthering Heights; Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street; Logan’s Run
Directors Sushmit Ghosh and Rintu Thomas distinguish themselves as masterful storytellers with the documentary Writing with Fire. Like other crafters of nonfiction cinema, they had the good fortune to come upon a story worth telling. According to the filmmakers, it … Continue reading Top Ten Movies of 2021 — Number Seven
233. Pixies, Surfer Rosa (1988) Not long after the release of their debut EP, Come On Pilgrim, the Pixies got to work on their first full-length. After plans to simply duplicate the process of recording their earlier tracks were scuttled, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #233 to #231
The Truth About School Indoctrination by Jessica Valenti Writing for her own newsletter, All in Her Head, Jessica Valenti addresses the latest manufactured outrage of the political right, which at its most dramatic has led to genuine book burnings. More … Continue reading Outside Reading — Stuff Some Adults Don’t Want You to Read edition
Coffee for Two 