Remove the Clutter!

I’ve been reserving this rant for long enough – it is time for some unleashing! Upon close listening and consideration on the Stone Roses‘ eponymous debut, I’ve realized that there are, perhaps, a few tracks that both versions (UK and US) could have done without and that, with the power of song deletion after ripping, you can practically remove from the record’s playlist. Beyond are a complete list and the reasons why I picked these songs.

Wonders from the Web : Top Albums Generator

Have a last.fm account? Wonder what your top, most listened to albums are? Too lazy to make your own list? Am I asking too many questions?

Well, in my defense you didn’t have to read any of that.

Travel over to the top albums generator and see just how many “guilty pleasures” make it into your top ten.

Top 10 Shoegaze Songs

The term “shoegaze” is controversial amongst fans and artists alike. There was a period more than fifteen years ago when the term was derogative, for it assumed that all the artists adopting the sound played their instruments with their focus on their effect pedals. You might be saying, well, if that’s what they did, then the term is only fitting. To that I rebut with, well, does the term “gay” not carry derogative implications? But this list is not about the is and is nots of shoegaze, just the songs that remind us of that other prominent 90s genre (alongside grunge and boy/girlband pop) that, for each fan, exist twice the detractors.

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Aboard ho!

Radiohead, the Industry and the Internet

It is likely too early to understand the full impact of the Internet on the music industry and the artists within it. Though music downloading via P2P software threatened the industry and caused general uproar among both executives and artists alike, it is becoming obvious that these issues were only the beginning.  While Napster may have dominated the realm of music downloading at one point, such file-sharing services are already largely obsolete and have evolved into more efficient technologies. Furthermore, the frustration from most artists towards file sharing has mostly dissolved into either support or apathy. This leaves only the record executives scrambling to continue generating high economic returns in order to maintain their once-prominent businesses.

Something for all of us is aptly titled….

So, on Tuesday, July 22^nd, I awakened to the sound of my roommate coming home around roughly 10:30am. This startled me, mostly because he didn’t bring me coffee or anything. What he did bring, however, was a copy of new Broken Social Scene presents record, this time featuring the understated noisiness of one Brendan Canning. The album, entitled Something For All of Us…, is the second release in the series, preceded by Kevin Drew’s solo debut Spirit If… Not only has Canning successfully made an album that allows his gift for song writing and collaboration to shine through, he’s made an album that works far more cohesively than it’s predecessor (if not the actual Broken Social Scene albums).     

Not a Review of The Dark Knight

Also, the following is not blind praise for the movie we all know needs no more of it. The following is more of an opinionated essay justifying the existence of The Dark Knight to those who are not sure why it’s so important. Given its many psychological, philosophical, and sociological themes, it’s a given that one person is going to leave the theatre with a different impression of what it all means than the person sitting beside them. There are also a number of people who will call this a boring film, or just overall unsuccessful Batman movie, having gotten not what they expected. Expectations, however, are often poorly founded, and I will argue as to why certain qualities should not be expected out of this particular take on the Batman mythos. I’m going to justify the film, its characters, its themes and mood for those who believe that the Batman they know and love – that giggly-camp version from the 60s and the last two films from the original series of films – needs to make a comeback.

So, if you already believe that The Dark Knight is a masterpiece, then you’ve heard all of this before, but for those who need justifying – for those not sure if they should enjoy or should have enjoyed the film – then this week’s Not a Review of is tailored written just for you! Oh, and I also rebut two specific reviews from Newsweek and Salon.com.

Rogers Picnic ‘08!

Toronto’s second annual Rogers Picnic was a rather interesting affair.  The diverse lineup provided a great mix of music while the weather prompted several strange moments.  Overall, it was a pretty great day.  Here’s my rundown of the bands and their sets:

 

Thanks to the world’s slowest ticket ripper I came just in time to miss The Carps.  There has been some buzz about this band and from what I heard they seemed to bring just the right amount of energy to kick the day off right.

 

Next up, Born Ruffians were given a strangely early time slot despite their growing popularity.  The band did a good job of entertaining concertgoers as they funneled into the park and almost managed to play clear of the rain.  Their set provided a solid foundation of things to come later in the day, infectious pop and unexpected experimental flourishes.  Born Ruffians were strong and tight for a three-piece and despite a short set, played enough interesting numbers to live up to the early hype.

 

Welcome!

Believe it or – no, never mind, believe it – it took me a long time to come up with the above header. After a few hours of tinkering, photo-mashing and cheap collage making, I decided that maybe I didn’t have to think of something overly complex to attract web-surfers. Essentially, I thought of something that would be cool, and a million things ran through my mind (the following is a short list): Jerry Butler, Bruce Wayne, porn, Animal Collective, Mario Kart 64, Max Payne, electric bass, Dirty Harry, Ryu Hayabusa, Flaming Lips, Mitch Hedberg, James Bond, Sean Connery as James Bond – I got it! And so the above header was born.