Bait Taken — Vulture’s Every A24 Movie, Ranked
There are many building blocks of the internet, but the cornerstones are think pieces, offhand lists, and other hollow provocations meant to stir arguments and, therefore, briefly redirect web traffic. Engaging such material is utterly pointless. Then again, it’s not like I … Continue reading Bait Taken — Vulture’s Every A24 Movie, Ranked
Then Playing — Murder By Death; The Purchase Price; The Gold Rush
Murder By Death (Robert Moore, 1976). There’s always a risk in watching an adored movie from childhood, especially if the feature in question is a comedy that relies in part on some painful stereotypes. Murder By Death was a favorite … Continue reading Then Playing — Murder By Death; The Purchase Price; The Gold Rush
Laughing Matters — Andy Richter Stumps for Thin Lizzy
Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. Well before Conan O’Brien … Continue reading Laughing Matters — Andy Richter Stumps for Thin Lizzy
College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #155 to 153
155. Missing Persons, Spring Session M (1982) Some of the folks from Frank Zappa’s backing band were a little bored with the esoteric, intricate music they were charged with playing. They started Missing Persons when guitarist Warren Cuccurullo and drummer … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #155 to 153
Outside Reading — Green New Deal edition
She’s Smashing In Her New Role by Alex Soloski As a devotee of the Clone Club, I’m happy as can be to have Tatiana Maslany making weekly appearances on my television again. As the Marvel machine mandates, Maslany’s been making … Continue reading Outside Reading — Green New Deal edition
This Week’s Model — Carla dal Forno, “Come Around”
There’s always a lot of chatter about summer songs. Don’t the other seasons deserve songs, too? Just as the first tracks suited for accompanying bright, shiny days start appearing a few weeks before anyone would reasonable declare summer to be … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Carla dal Forno, “Come Around”
Medium Rotation —Versions of Modern Performance; Farm to Table; Remember Your North Star
HORSEGIRL Versions of Modern Performance (Matador) — It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that Versions of Modern Performance, the debut album from the Chicago band Horsegirl, starts exactly as it should: Gigi Reece’s thumping drums all alone for a few … Continue reading Medium Rotation —Versions of Modern Performance; Farm to Table; Remember Your North Star
My Misspent Youth — The Savage She-Hulk by Stan Lee and John Buscema
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. The CBS television series The Incredible Hulk was entering its third … Continue reading My Misspent Youth — The Savage She-Hulk by Stan Lee and John Buscema
Actors’ Director — Anthony Minghella
In retrospect, The English Patient looks like such a natural awards magnet, a quintessential prestige picture of the highest magnitude. In the moment, though, it seemed utterly improbable. It is based on a novel, by Michael Ondaatje, that was revered … Continue reading Actors’ Director — Anthony Minghella
Radio Days — Reunion 10
This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. Around a decade ago, an idea struck one of my fellow alumni of the student-run radio station … Continue reading Radio Days — Reunion 10
Coffee for Two 