Back in February, I presented my comprehensive1 analysis of 2011's musical offerings and now, several months later, it occurs to me that a handful of discussion-worthy releases were unintentionally omitted. Three of those overlooked albums, however, I could not resist discussing, even if somewhat belatedly. In a zombie-esque move, Lydia returned (in an altered state) [...]
Category: Music
2011: One Man’s Take On the Year In Music
Acknowledging that we live an age of excess but also an age of brevity, I have this to say about the 2,000+ word article that lies ahead: it is too short. Alas that time has not been given to me to write a 10,000 word article concerning the intimate details of a dozen different albums. [...]
Better Late Than Never: The Music of 2010
Due to incessant public outcry1 at my not having written a "Top Ten Albums of 2010" blog, I've decided to sack up and, at this temporally inappropriate juncture, put together a series of one-line reviews for the handful of releases from which I derived some enjoyment in 2010, a year whose musical offerings didn't quite [...]
The Paradoxical Illusion of Artistic Control
It's strange. I wasn't sure that I believed it when I first truly contemplated it in an English class in college. But now I'm sure it's true. Try as they might, firm as their grasp may seem, no author, no creator, can completely control the content of their work. There was a time when I [...]
My Top 50 Albums: 2000-2009
My peers and I are in a conspicuous position when it comes to reviewing the past decade in music: we began high school and likely completed college all within the confines of the decade. High school and college. Those are your prime musical-attachment years. Regardless of whether or not you are capable of keeping an [...]
My Top Ten Albums of 2009
2009 was a solid (if unspectacular) year for music, marked by two masterful (if not transcendent) albums and a whole slew of decent-to-good records. For some reason unbeknownst to me, nearly every band that released an album in 2009 released some variety of pop-album, even bands that had never before ventured into those sugary waters [...]
A Star Sign Out of Whack
Just a few short weeks ago, Third Eye Blind released their long-awaited fourth full-length album, Ursa Major. I was hoping to avoid reviewing this album until sometime around December or January, when I'll be posting my Top 10 Albums of 2009 article, but it seems that my hand has been forced. Frankly, I highly doubt [...]
When They Disappear, We’ll Know Why
Originally this was going to be a post about whether or not we are too hard on our musicians, whether we demand too much of them creatively while delivering not nearly enough support for their troubles, and in some respects I stayed true to that aim. But for the most part, I've let the first [...]
Songs & Stories 