From the jump, Jack White always had the air of huckster about him. That he kept his music shiny and new through regularly applications of snake oil wasn’t a problem. Indeed, it was a major part of the appeal. Through … Continue reading The New Releases Shelf — Boarding House Reach
These posts are about the songs that just barely failed to cross the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. In the spring of 2007, few artists … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “Can’t Tell Me Nothing”
940. Dead Kennedys, Frankenchrist (1985) Frankenchrist, the third album from Dead Kennedys, should have been a celebratory return to recording for a band that helped define hardcore punk. The group had withdrawn from active engagement with making their own music, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #940 to #937
In the late nineteen-sixties, New Zealand club owner Ken Cooper wanted a house band. The patrons shuffling in and out of The Plaice were fans of psychedelic music, so that’s the sound Cooper sought, assembling a handful of local musicians … Continue reading One for Friday — The Avengers, “Everyone’s Gonna Wonder”
944. David Johansen, Here Comes the Night (1981) Being a legend is nice, but alone it doesn’t keep the debt collector satisfied. As the frontman of the New York Dolls, David Johansen could lay a claim to being among the … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #944 to #941
By 1997, I was desperate to hear music that didn’t sound like Pearl Jam. I admittedly tend to overstate the enveloping nature of the grunge movement on nineteen-nineties rock scene, but it was exhausting to endure the onslaught of bands … Continue reading One for Friday — 5 Chinese Brothers, Three Cool Guys”
By the official tally, There’s a Riot Going On is the fifteenth studio album from Yo La Tengo, and the band’s first of predominantly new material since the masterful and underrated Fade, released in 2013. It’s been over thirty years … Continue reading The New Releases Shelf — There’s a Riot Going On
952. Paul McCartney, Tug of War (1982) Although it obviously caused far less fan trauma than the band dissolution that took place roughly a decade earlier, the breakup of Wings should probably be seen as one of the pivotal career … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #952 to #949
I’ve spent this week spilling out personal lore associated with the annual staging of The World’s Largest Trivia contest by my student broadcasting alma mater. Until I revive the tradition next year, I have one more. Years ago, to fill … Continue reading One for Friday — The Kings, “Anti-Hero Man”
This coming weekend, I’ll participate in The World’s Largest Trivia ContestTM. As per tradition, this week is filled with idle reminiscing about memorable answers in past years. This time around, I’m focusing answers on the supplemental “Unplugged” version of the … Continue reading Trivia Answer of the Day — Pittsburgh
Coffee for Two 