“Band of Horses and Interpol Are Dead”

* There’s a 1966 play by Tom Stoppard referencing two characters from Hamlet, titled “Rosencrantz and Gildenstern Are Dead.” The titular information is provided, ipso facto, as a plain fact attached to no emotional undulation, such as, hearing, say, in true postmodern fashion, “Jimmy Kimmel is slated to host Sunday’s academy awards.”  .. Around the … Read more“Band of Horses and Interpol Are Dead”

“Pitting Seinfeld and The Simpsons Together as Cultural Foils, as Particularly Pertains to the Classic Rock Element of ‘Psychedelia’”

In the downtown area of South Bend, Indiana, my hometown, the State Theater sits conspicuously empty, and now, even boarded up. It’s a minor disappointment — probably not as grave as the giant, still-vacant College Football Hall of Fame, which, to my knowledge, hasn’t had any foot traffic in about 13 years or so. Still, … Read more“Pitting Seinfeld and The Simpsons Together as Cultural Foils, as Particularly Pertains to the Classic Rock Element of ‘Psychedelia’”

“Is ‘Dreams’ Poised to Become Our Subtly Trippy National Anthem?”

I had some professor one time, I think in grad school, who pledged this bizarre, incredulous allegiance to “kid a,” apparently a reference to the 2000 Radiohead album. That’s kind of like how Rumours is, Fleetwood Mac’s apparent commercial and artistic breakthrough from 1977. It’s like there’s this puzzling level of pride at mentioning “rumours” … Read more“Is ‘Dreams’ Poised to Become Our Subtly Trippy National Anthem?”

“The Correct Procedure for if Someone Plays a Song from Fear Inoculum on the Jukebox”

Well, first of all, take a deep breath. It’s gonna be a while. Grab a Snickers. If you need to go outside and smoke, or go to the BMV and get a new driver’s license, this would be a good time to do it.  Remember that this isn’t commensurate to TOOL’s catalogue as a whole. … Read more“The Correct Procedure for if Someone Plays a Song from Fear Inoculum on the Jukebox”

“On Get behind Me Satan and the Perils of Having All Substance and No Style”

It’s true: The White Stripes could pretty much do no wrong in 2005. They’d gone from cutesy garage-rock-revival also-rans to rock demigods with Elephant (2003), which bequeathed us the invincibly virile “Ball and Biscuit”; the lilting and gorgeous “I Want to Be the Boy to Warm Your Mother’s Heart” and its show-stopping steel guitar solo, … Read more“On Get behind Me Satan and the Perils of Having All Substance and No Style”