Joe Frazier, R.I.P.
Sean MurphyIn typical 21st Century American fashion, the sad news of Joe Frazier's passing was quickly eclipsed by other big news; this week the unfolding --and sickening-- Penn State scandal. R.I.P.,…
Huntsman is…Hip?
Hard to quibble with this: Huntsman: I'd have to say that I like Trout Mask Replica, which came out in '68, all the way…
The David Lynch Dilemma (Revisited)
With the 25th anniversary edition of the seminal/infamous/underwhelming Blue Velvet being released this week, it seems like an opportune time to revisit a topic certain to cause some consternation: David Lynch…
Charlie Pierce and the anesthetized fairy tales of reasonable men
That sound you hear is the joyful noise of Charlie Pierce's rhetorical 4-wood going upside the head of the insufferably smug and obtuse Tom Brokaw. Here is a snippet that…
Introducing Aram Bajakian
My review of Aram Bajakian's remarkable debut Aram Bajakian's Kef dropped yesterday at Popmatters. (check it out here). It's not too early to predict that this will end up as one of…
Aram Bajakian: Aram Bajakian’s Kef
Aram Bajakian’s Fractured Folk Tales You need to spend some time with this music. Fortunately, you will want to spend time with it. There are at least two excellent reasons…
Bill Buckner, Mookie Wilson and Me
I've never been able to appreciate the aesthetic perfection (that is to say, the perfection of baseball's most imperfect play; it's most jarringly incongruous moment) because it was too painful.…
Happy Halloween: Black Sabbath Style
This is (Black) Magic. Sabbath in '70, live. I've had plenty to say about Sabbath (here, here and here). If you are not the link-clicking sort, here are some key…
Drag the Dream Into Existence: Reassessing Rush’s Masterpiece
Moving Pictures, Thirty Years On Every band, if they are lucky, is able to create a definitive work—a document that embodies their unique qualities. Most great bands, at some point…