Kanye West is back, back to being an artiste of merit, back from the depths of hell he was cast in after a disastrous VMAs appearance, back from South Park cracks and autotune-haters’ smacks. Or something like that. MTV reported that the short-film collaboration between Where The Wild Things Are director Spike Jonze and West, … [Read more…]
Found this little clip in a Red Eye review of the Jack Black-themed/curated video game Brutal Legend: Hmm… Is it simply appropriate to say “no comment” at any point? ‘Cause when a description like “rap-metal-emo” pops up, it’s so blandly all-inclusive that it renders all terms rather useless. (I tend to overindulge in genre-name-dropping, but … [Read more…]
I’m happy to post a selection from the ongoing email interview I’m having with one Darren Walters, co-founder of Jade Tree Records. As a majority of my America Is Just A Word interviewees happen to be musicians, it’s great having Darren on board to give some perspective of the other goings on that helped transform … [Read more…]
Overlooked in the Aughts is an ongoing feature focusing on some of the best albums from the 2000s that haven’t quite received the attention they deserved. Today’s post: Parts & Labor’s Mapmaker. Back in June, music writer Christopher R. Weingarten extolled the pains that have befallen music journalism at the 140 Characters Conference. Among many of his excellent … [Read more…]
So, your musical career is nothing but a joke, flush with riffs from a recent TV appearance. You’re tired of living a life on-and-off the road, not knowing where you woke up this morning and where you’ll be tomorrow. You’re anxious, tired and depressed. What do you do? Stage a fake balloon flight to freedom! … [Read more…]
Woodie. Whatever possessed mtvU to name their annual music award as such is beyond me. Is it supposed to be a joke aimed at their college audience? Cause I’m pretty sure college kids these days are smart enough to figure that one. Anyway, mtvU recently released the ballots for the awards show. What’s the big … [Read more…]
Fantagraphics Books reported one of the more curious potential TV pilots in recent years: Our own Peter Bagge has a development deal with FOX for THE BRADLEYS and the network has just ordered a pilot. For folks not familiar with Peter Bagge or The Bradleys, well, suffice to say the man is a legend in the underground comics … [Read more…]
Sorry for the lack of updates recently. I’ve moved to Chicago for grad school, and that’s sort of taken up a large amount of time the past few weeks. I’ll write something soon. In the meantime, check out my new blogging position over at True/Slant. It’s a pretty cool site – a combination of a … [Read more…]
Overlooked in the Aughts is an ongoing feature focusing on some of the best albums from the 2000s that haven’t quite received the attention they deserved. Today’s post: Danger Mouse & Jemini’s Ghetto Pop Life. When it comes to end-of-the-decade music lists, there’s got to be one titled “Best Danger Mouse Albums.” Danger Mouse, aka Brian Burton, burst … [Read more…]
Here’s the equation many in the world are trying to grapple with: Obama + Nobel Peace Prize = ? Of course, there’s no wrong answer, and don’t worry, you can’t get any points off for coming to your own conclusions. (In fact, well-though opinions on news items are often encourage.) Whether it’s celebration, outrage or … [Read more…]