Billie Holiday Cuts to the Core on “Strange Fruit”
Autumn, 1937. Harvard graduate, now high school English teacher Abel Meeropol submits his newest poetic offering to local Union publication The New York Teacher in a bold and unapologetic attempt to shine a light southward and into the face of the ongoing atrocities that seem to stick like burweed into the fabric of Southern culture. […]
The The get “Infected” with a Sweet Disease
In 1989 English band The The released Mind Bomb, a luscious album that capitalised on everything its predecessor had promised. It’s a quiet masterpiece that still holds very strong today and is one of my favourite albums of all time. But the previous 1986 album was where I discovered this passionate, unique band. I was […]
Jake Minch’s Lonesome “Strip Mall” Pas de Deux
I love ballet. So, so much. So much, that after I had to stop for awhile, I couldn’t bear to look at a single dance because it made me miss it too much. My bloodied (yes, ballet is brutal) pointe shoes in the farthest corner of the attic, my youtube folder of videos deleted, and […]
Noah Kahan’s “New Perspective” is a Yearning For Simpler Times
We have seen a lot of change in the last few years. It’s throwing us off. We haven’t kept up with it. The pace of change has been exhausting, especially in places in which people were sheltered from a lot of change – or even a lot of difference in opinion and experience and lifestyle […]
Is Spotify Promotion Worth It?
My YouTube comment section is quickly becoming a gold mine for new posts. Honestly, most of the comments I get are really nice; even the somewhat-challenging comments are usually structured politely. So far, my videos have never elicited quite the reaction that Tom provoked from Johan*. (Tom was asking for it, I think.) But every […]
John Vincent III’s “That’s Just the Way It Is, Babe” Is a New Beginning
So, you find yourself sitting in the debris of some broken dreams. The dream house has fallen down around you. The shock is wearing off, and you’re becoming conscious of the dust on your clothing. You realize that you’re physically intact, and you find your love, also in one piece. For a while, the two […]
Jack Blocker’s “Big Jefe” & Cowboy Country
Good news and bad news. Bad news: I’ve been at a record low of my usual listening activity (yes, I’m obsessive and keep track on Spotistats). My usual favorites haven’t been hitting, the new stuff seems like it’s been done before, and a general malaise has been hanging heavy like a cloud above my Spotify. […]
Scottish Singer’s “Chapters” is a Head Turner
You’re bouncing along on a remote Scottish road, not another vehicle in sight, trying not to be distracted by thoughts of getting your car in for service to get the shocks looked at, because there are various upcoming bends to negotiate and potholes to avoid. You happen to look up into the Highlands. Well, they […]
The Half-awake Dream of Jörgen Kjellgren’s “On A Tuesday”
If you make music, if you put pen to paper and voice to tape (well… the electronic equivalent these days, but I’m being nostalgic), does the time of day or day of the week affect what comes out? Tuesday is the day of the week for music producer and singer songwriter Jörgen Kjellgren’s latest song, […]
How I’m Building a Spotify Playlist Network
So I’m in the midst of a fun little experiment… I’m building a playlist network. In this post, I’d like to tell you a little bit more about what I’m doing with the playlist network and how it’s going – because it’s kind of my pet project right now, and because I feel like I […]
