Gene Simmons decided to let his grumpy old demon out in a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine.
Lowlights: He doesn't find hip-hop music melodic, thinks Rock music is dead, and wants Lady Gaga to get off the stripper pole.
Here is my response to "grumpy old Demon" Gene Simmons
Read MoreBilly Corgan has started touting himself for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Well, technically, he said he was touting his "band" but I suspect he really means Billy Corgan.
I do love classic Smashing Pumpkins, but here are a bunch of artists who should be in front of him in line for induction.
Read MoreEvery Thursday I put out a new Spotify playlist.
This week, my playlist features William Onyeabor, Nots, Nobunny, BRONCHO, Egyptian Lover, and The Coathangers.
This week, the playlist trivia question is: Where did Broncho get their name?
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This week, the All-Time album is "Ocean Rain" by Echo and the Bunnymen. "Ocean Rain" is the 19th in my All-Time Album series (a new album is profiled every Wednesday).
I put this particular album off for a long time because it has been a very big part of my life for over three decades now. As always, I hope that I do it justice. Enjoy!
Read MoreHard to believe it has been 8 weeks of this feature already. In some ways, this is probably my favorite part of the blog.
This week my digital bin includes: The Modern Folk, Big Ups, Fake Boyfriend, Dame, and Stella Diana
Enjoy!
Read MoreThis is my recap of Episode 5 of Vinyl (HBO, "He Is Racist Fire")
I am calling my recap "Record Man" shows his true colors (again)
This week Richie shows that he is a racist, a sexist, and almost exposes that he is a murderer. So, basically, more of the same.
Read MoreVinyl is a television universe populated by musical ghosts.
Over the first four episodes I have pointed out nine "ghosts" who have appeared on the show to highlight or help demonstrate something about the characters on the show.
But each of these "ghosts" also represented a real figure in music history so I am using this article to bring some more attention to each of them.
Read MoreThursday means a new Spotify playlist. This week, I unofficially combined forces with Jason P. Woodbury to create a playlist that paid tribute to the music of Arizona from the 90's to now.
The playlist includes tracks from: Ohioan, Slow Moses, Sidewinders, The Piersons, Destruction Unit, Dead Hot Workshop, The Meat Puppets, and many others.
Read More"Sister" by Sonic Youth represents the 18th in my All-Time Album series. This post tells the story of how I used to find music back in the day, how I first encountered the music of Sonic Youth and their album "Sister," and why this out of the many great albums in the Sonic Youth canon.
Every Wednesday is another album in the series (last week was Power, Corruption, and Lies by New Order
Read MoreEvery Tuesday I release another Digital Bin (5 artists per bin). The idea is that each bin is a place to thumb through and listen to and discover new artists (just like when we used to thumb through curated bins at record stores).
This weeks bin includes Lightning Pill, Terror Pigeon!, A Shoreline Dream, Moondragon, and Thao & The Get Down Stay Down - ENJOY and support independent artists!
Read MoreOkay folks, this was one of those "busy" episodes. The kind of episodes where writers realize that they are already at episode 4 and have yet to develop like 10 of the plot points that they have already introduced in the first three episodes.
This episode (called "The Racket") opens with not one but two ghosts, Otis Blackwell and Richie himself (My suggestion is that "The Racket" in the episode is the game Richie is running on himself).
Read MoreEmily Nussbaum accused Vinyl of being “Rockist.” Is Vinyl guilty of “Rockism?”
A Rockist is someone who tries to preserve some perfect imaginary past glory of music that they use as an unfavorable comparison to all that terrible "new" music.
Vinyl is not a show lionizing “good old” music against the incursion of “terrible new” music, it is an argument about what makes music good, an argument about what has always been rotten at the heart of the music industry, and a celebration of great music through the ages.
Read More#VIVAElection2016
Because – awesome, right?
Yes, I am trying to start an “Ironic” hashtag on Twitter, but also to spark a discussion.
Anyway, trying to spark discussion with music (as always).
Just some videos that remind me of things I have been thinking about the 2016 elections (especially this week).
Just for fun, feel free to comment here or on Twitter about what you think about why I included each video or about what you think they might imply (not that I think I am being tricky at all).
Read MoreThis is one of my weekly Spotify playlists featuring the great Lead Belly.
Also featured on this playlist are Lucy Dacus, Santigold, Clipse, Shonen Knife, New Order, No Age, Cavern of Anti-Matter and many others.
This playlist also answers a Curt Cobain trivia question, do you know what that question is?
Read MoreEvery Wednesday is another All-Time Album.
This week the "lucky" album is New Order's Power Corruption and Lies. PC&L was the second album New Order put out after the death of Ian Curtis forced Joy Division to become New Order. This is still, all these many years later, my favorite New Order album.
Read MoreThis is my 6th Digital Bin. My Digital Bins are an attempt to create spaces for people to explore and discover music that they might not encounter otherwise.
This week, my digital bin includes: Dyr Faser, Skyjelly, Omodada, Lucy Dacus, and Santigold.
Dig In + Enjoy!
Read MoreThis is the recap for Episode 3 of Vinyl (HBO, "Whispered Secrets")I call it "Record Man vs. Music Man."
Every Monday throughout the season, you will find my recaps here early on Monday Morning. This weeks Richie remains in a drug-induced haze while everything continues to fall apart around him. You know...The usual!
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