356. Translator, No Time Like Now (1983) When 415 Records, an independent label based in San Francisco, inked a distribution deal with Columbia Records, Translator was the first act they brought to the newly accessible masses. Heartbeats and Triggers, Translator’s … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #356 to #354
There are few things more insidious than the systemized retribution against survivors of sexual harassment who speak the truth of their experiences. When several women came forward to detail the serial abuse perpetrated by a British musician, he drew upon … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Solidarity Not Silence, “This Is Sisterhood”
These posts are about the songs that fell just short of crossing the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. The first song that Beatles took to … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “From Me to You”
This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. During my college radio days, we were always hungry to hear as much new music as possible. … Continue reading Radio Days — Certain Damage
359. The B-52’s, Mesopotamia (1982) After two full-length studio albums, the B-52’s had exhausted their backlog of original songs. Gary Kurfirst, the band’s manager, insisted that shouldn’t stop them from getting to work on a third record. His urgency to … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #359 to #357
Now that we’re more than a year past the point when practically the entirety of the live music business shut down, it will be interesting to see if there are discernible impacts on the release of studio efforts. Maybe Molly … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Molly Burch, “Control”
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. If Stevie says it’s an amazing music machine, I believe him. This commercial makes me crave the … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — Stevie Wonder for TDK
362. Martha and the Muffins / M + M, Danseparc (1983) With the band’s fourth album, guitarist Mark Gane finally got the name change he’d been agitated for. Well, almost. The Toronto band Martha and Muffins took on their moniker … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #362 to #360
365. The The, Soul Mining (1983) Matt Johnson was just a teenager when he posted flyers seeking musical collaborators who, like him, were inspired by Syd Barrett and Throbbing Gristle. The various collaborators who came into his sphere over the … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #365 to #363
For some reason, I started this week thinking about Liz Phair. I wasn’t obsessively dwelling on the indie-rock icon or anything like that. It was more of a case that she just sort of popped up in front of me, … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Liz Phair, “Spanish Doors”
