140. Nick Lowe, Nick the Knife (1982) On the official ledger, Nick the Knife is Nick Lowe’s third solo album. Considered in a more nuanced way, it’s his first outing on his own. The album’s two predecessors on Lowe’s solo … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #140 to #138
The new single from Meat Wave is exactly what I want, and indeed expect, rock music from Chicago to sound like. “10k” moves with a steady intensity and an obvious, inherent power, like an el train coming at full speed. … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Meat Wave, “10k”
Part of my process in becoming a proper part of my college radio station was learning the musicians who made stealthier contributions to the records that stirred the most awe for their resolute coolness. My previous music knowledge, shaped by … Continue reading Radio Days — Anton Fier
This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. At least in my era, I think the college kids who stewarded the airwaves at their campus … Continue reading Radio Days — Priority Emphasis
143. The Jam, Sound Affects (1980) As was becoming the norm, Paul Weller was not quite ready to go when he arrived at the studio to record the Jam’s fifth album, Sound Affects. Spurred in part by record company and … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #143 to #141
Not to get all Mr. Holland’s Opus today, but one of the enormous privileges that comes from working in higher education for many years (in my case, about a decade and a half) is watching the exemplary human beings you … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Ariel Bui, “Sixteen”
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. Plain and simple, I love every last bit of this 1967 radio commercial that features garage rock … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — The Electric Prunes for the Vox Wah-Wah Pedal
AMANDA SHIRES Take It Like a Man (ATO Records) — There’s a lot of backstory that can be weighed when listening to Take It Like a Man, the eighth solo album from Amanda Shires. By her own accounting, Shires was … Continue reading Medium Rotation — Take It Like a Man; Surrender
146. Talking Heads, Remain in Light (1980) “Remain in Light was a difficult album to make,” Chris Frantz, drummer for Talking Heads, told Rolling Stone magazine a few years after the release of LP in question. “We wanted to do … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #146 to #144
I suspect most people whose curiosity is piqued by the new band the WAEVE attribute that interest to the presence of Graham Coxon, famous for bringing all manner of wild invention to the band Blur. I’m also glad to hear … Continue reading This Week’s Model — The WAEVE, “Can I Call You”
Coffee for Two 