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• Live, Music, NYC, Review, Uncategorized

  Live: Frida Hyvönen; Church of Sweden, 11.12.08

  11.13.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Attendance, the flyer said, would be capped at 90. I’d guess that the chapel in New York’s Church of Sweden — on 48th Street just off Fifth Avenue, unobtrusive among financial offices and gleaming glass hotels — seated 75 at most, and a few songs into her set, Frida Hyvönen suggested that those standing come [...]

• Uncategorized

  Frida Hyvönen: take one

  11.13.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Coming very soon: a writeup on Ms. Hyvönen’s show tonight at the Swedish Church on 48th Street. For now: a live version of her song “Birds”.

• Uncategorized

  election night + 1h 40

  11.05.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  I’m feeling pretty good about America right now.
  [Postscript: this isn't something I say often: what Ross Douthat just said.]

• Music, Uncategorized

  music writing links for 10.29.08

  10.28.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Amy Phillips on Iceland Airwaves.
  Molly Templeton on Twilight, and its soundtrack.
  Cause Co-Motion on, among other things, wings. No, seriously. Well, kind of.

• Music, Uncategorized

  notes on album packaging

  10.26.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Picked up the debut full-length from High Places a few weekends ago. Both the CD and LP come in nifty gatefold packaging, which is definitely a plus. What threw me momentarily, though, was the lack of any sort of band information inside. I was reminded of picking up the second Sunny Day Real Estate album [...]

• Uncategorized

  10.10.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Heading out of town for a wedding. Posting will become more steady upon my return on Tuesday. Until then, this may amuse you.

• Books, Readings, Uncategorized

  live: rick moody; word, 09.24.08

  10.01.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Last Wednesday’s Rick Moody reading at Greenpoint’s Word Books was a fine example of the literary/musical intersection I’m fond of discussing. When he’s at his best, Moody’s work pulls off things that I can’t dream of doing: “The Carnival Tradition” (from Demonology) remains one of my favorite pieces of short fiction, and his essays on [...]

• Live, Music, NYC, Review, Uncategorized

  live: pigeons, air bombay, pretty & nice; pianos; 09.05.08

  09.15.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Pianos on a Friday night is a strange place to be. The bar portion, which one has to traverse in order to get to the venue in the back, was on this particular night full of well-dressed, well-off types making loud conversation. The actual performance space, which had added a bar since the last time [...]

• Uncategorized

  notes toward a potential review of school of seven bells’ ‘alpinisms’

  08.14.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Sitting on my desk right now is School of Seven Bells‘ debut full-length, Alpinisms. It’s a promotional copy, coated with black-and-white photographs of the band, contact information for relevant parties, and information that the album will be released on October 28th of this year.
  I’ve only had time to give the album an initial listen. I [...]

• NYC, Uncategorized

  in which I hawk saturday’s east river music project show

  08.13.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Curated by CounterstreamRadio.org and New Amsterdam Records.
  (NPR recently spotlighted the latter on All Things Considered.)
  2 PM | East River Amphitheater
  itsnotyouitsme
  Mark Dancigers
  Timberbrit
  Alex Sopp
  Matt Marks and the Li’l Death Band
  More information at the ERMP site or New Amsterdam’s site.

• Books, Uncategorized

  in which rick moody is discussed

  08.11.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  This week, Rick Moody’s Right Livelihoods ventures out into the world in its trade paperback form. Moody’s long been a favorite writer of mine — I think I’ve raved about his novella “The Carnival Tradition” here before, but it’s worth doing so again. His writings about music are also perennial favorites — he has a [...]

• Books, Music, Nonfiction, Uncategorized

  recommended music writing for the week of august 4, 2008

  08.04.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  I’ve posted here before about Da Capo’s Best Music Writing anthology, the latest edition of which is forthcoming in roughly a month. And while I’m definitely looking forward to reading it, the fine people at Idolator have effectively provided an appendix to the book by providing links to forty of the “Honorable Mention” pieces listed [...]

• Uncategorized

  in which your host cannot resist the perennial “ebooks:books::mp3s:CDs” debate

  07.08.08 | Permalink | 1 Comment

  Via McNally Robinson/McNally Jackson: Nick Hornby on ebooks.
  Attempting to sell people something for four hundred pounds that merely enables them to read something that they won’t buy at one hundredth of the price seems to me a thankless task.

• Uncategorized

  critical theory worth noting

  07.03.08 | Permalink | Comment?

  Matthew Perpetua lays out a roadmap for new bands seeking influences, and it begins with…Rhythm Nation 1814. Which may or may not dovetail with his thoughts on High Places, but regardless, I’m linking both.

• Uncategorized

  a quick note…

  06.12.08 | Permalink | 1 Comment

  ….to say congratulations to Todd and Susannah! Fine news from good folks…

the scowl