College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #245 to #243
245. The Boomtown Rats, The Fine Art of Surfacing (1979) The Fine Art of Surfacing was the third overall album from the Boomtown rats and their second released in the U.S. It was while touring radio stations in support of … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #245 to #243
Outside Reading — Now Leaving Sunnydale edition
As a Former ‘Buffy’ Obsessive, Watching Joss Whedon’s Downfall Feels Crushing — and Inevitable by Caroline Framke The protracted implosion of Joss Whedon’s reputation and career has been painful to watch for those who found their empowered voice in part … Continue reading Outside Reading — Now Leaving Sunnydale edition
This Week’s Model — Homeboy Sandman, “Keep That Same Energy”
Built on a groove that is at once loosely easygoing and tick-tock steady, “Keep That Same Energy,” the new track by Homebody Sandman, radiates cool. Sure, it’s a pleasure to hear someone rhyme “less tension” with “George Benson,” but the … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Homeboy Sandman, “Keep That Same Energy”
The Art of the Sell — Wilson Pickett for Schlitz Malt Liquor
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. This commercial, from 1973, is truly as good as it gets. I don’t know if it fulfills … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — Wilson Pickett for Schlitz Malt Liquor
Then Playing — Don’t Look Up; Paper Moon; The Friends of Eddie Coyle
Don’t Look Up (Adam McKay, 2021). Following the inspired The Big Short and the unwatchable Vice, director Adam McKay continues his run as a satiric auteur of lefty outrage with this onion skin–thin allegory of political indifference to the climate … Continue reading Then Playing — Don’t Look Up; Paper Moon; The Friends of Eddie Coyle
Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “New Freezer”
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. In the music biz — like anywhere, … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “New Freezer”
Then Playing — Spencer; No Man of Her Own; The Southerner
Spencer (Pablo Larraín, 2021). Chilean director Pablo Larraín brings the airy, arty approach of his 2016 film Jackie to another iconic female figure on the world stage. As in the earlier drama, Larraín keeps the focus on a few days, … Continue reading Then Playing — Spencer; No Man of Her Own; The Southerner
College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #248 to #246
248. Culture Club, Colour By Numbers (1983) Culture Club made a hit record with their 1982 debut, Kissing to Be Clever. Early beneficiaries of MTV attention, there was no guarantee they’d be able to repeat the achievement with their follow … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #248 to #246
Outside Reading — Shame Game edition
In Defense of Shame by Julia Claire Writing for Gawker, Julia Claire makes the most important argument of our age, and she does it effectively and with enviable wit. The flagrant rejection of accountability and honest assessment of wrong social … Continue reading Outside Reading — Shame Game edition
This Week’s Model — Hurray for the Riff Raff, “Pierced Arrows”
Alynda Segarra, the creative wonder behind Hurray for the Riff Raff, knows how to pack feelings into a song. So when she explains that her new single “Pierced Arrows” is about felling discombobulated when knocked asunder by heartbreak, there’s little … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Hurray for the Riff Raff, “Pierced Arrows”
