299. Iggy Pop, Instinct (1988) Iggy Pop was long a revered figure to those who rightly knew him as the Godfather of Punk. Unofficial honorifics don’t necessarily sell records, though. His underwhelming chart performance was enough of a damper on … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #299 to #297
Adia Victoria maintains that her new album, A Southern Gothic, is an act of reclamation. She takes back all that belongs to her and her kindred, in race, in culture, in gender, in every part of her identity that has … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Adia Victoria, “You Was Born To Die”
302. Duran Duran, Duran Duran (1981) “We’re Duran Duran, and we want to be the band to dance to when the bomb drops,” Simon Le Bon declared from the stage in 1980, during the first live performance by the configuration … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #302 to #300
I often hear the famous Toni Morrison quote “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it” modified to speak to the particular need to fill gaps in the … Continue reading This Week’s Model — MUNA, “Silk Chiffon (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)”
I’m hardly privy to all the information I would need to definitely determine why Billie Eilish’s debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, became an outright sensation. It’s sold more than four million copies to date, … Continue reading The New Releases Shelf — Happier Than Ever
This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. Not long ago, I eagerly thrust my hand skyward in response to my pal’s call for a … Continue reading Radio Days — Then and Now: September 5, 2021
305. Eurythmics, 1984 (For the Love of Big Brother) (1984) It was utterly logical for a major film adaptation of George Orwell’s most famous novel to appear in the year that made up the entirety of its title. By 1984, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #305 to #303
For those who are driven into recurring bouts of disappointment and misery because onetime titan of melancholy pop Morrissey now devotes his energy to finding novel ways to demonstrate he’s a wanker, I would like to remind you that Johnny … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Johnny Marr, “Spirit, Power and Soul”
308. Utopia, Adventures in Utopia (1979) Utopia was regarded as the side project Todd Rundgren started to give him and some like-minded cohorts a chance to make highly experimental music, separate from the commercial expectations tied to Rundgren’s solo outings. … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #308 to #306
Even Billy Joel Mocked ‘We Didn’t Start the Fire.’ I Loved It. by Lindsay Zoladz The Number Ones: Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start The Fire” by Tom Breihan This was quite a week for new writing about Billy Joel’s last … Continue reading Outside Reading — Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray edition
