This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. This week, I’m slated to participate in the eleventh annual staging of Reunion Weekend at my undergraduate … Continue reading Radio Days — “Ain’t Got You”
20. Echo & the Bunnymen, Echo & the Bunnymen (1987) By the time the self-titled LP Echo & the Bunnymen landed in record shops, three full years had passed since the release of the band’s preceding album, Ocean Rain. It … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #20
It’s been five years since the last Speedy Ortiz album, but the string of singles heralding their return have demonstrated no steps have been lost. Their latest, “Ghostwriter,” romps straight towards that sweet spot of buzzy modern rock that I … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Speedy Ortiz, “Ghostwriter”
BULLY Lucky for You (Sub Pop) — Now four albums deep into this boisterous Bully enterprise, Alicia Bognanno sure knows how to put together a crackling, crunchy rock record. For her second outing as as essentially a one-woman band, Bognanno … Continue reading Medium Rotation — Lucky For You; The Age of Pleasure
22. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Damn the Torpedoes (1979) The rutted path that was the early part of Tom Petty’s career sprang some especially deep divots on the Florida-born, California-based troubadour in the run-up to Damn the Torpedoes, his … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #22 and #21
Misery can have a touch of majesty to it. That’s one of the lessons that Mitski teaches, and it’s reinforced on her quietly staggering new single “Bug Like an Angel.” The music is mostly spare as she intones lyrics as … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Mitski, “Bug Like an Angel”
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. Marcus Bell and Mark Long spent several … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “Are You Sure?”
“I could just be me. Do what I love. Be imperfect. Be mad, even. I’m not a pop star. I’m just a troubled soul who needs to scream into mikes now and then.” I don’t want to start with the … Continue reading Sinéad O’Connor, 1966 – 2023
24. Tears for Fears, Songs from the Big Chair (1985) Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith were angry at themselves for compromising. Tears for Fears, the band led by the longtime friends from Bath, England, delivered a major hit with their … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #24 and #23
“The Way Things Go,” the new track from Beabadoobee, absolutely gleams. It recalls any number of indie pop acts who combined elegant melody, wispy vocals, evocatively emotional lyrics, and impeccable musicianship. It builds and builds, like a swirling funnel of … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Beabadoobee, “The Way Things Go”
Coffee for Two 