This week is the 29th running of the CMJ Music Marathon, in which bands and bloggers and media-types and music-biz bees (and even a few people who don’t fall into any of those categories) run around New York in search of free/sponsored beer, late nights, and the chance to say that they saw a band with 45 or so other people in a dank New York club. (A scenario that is often romanticized far out of proportion. But I digress.) Perhaps it’s because my tastes have shifted away from provincial “indie,” or because of the economy’s clamping down on budgets for big trips, or the simple fact that the Internet has so many damn media outlets it’s easier to cocoon into your own news cycle than ever, but news out of the festival seems sorta muted. MORE »
POSTS FROM "somethin 4 the weekend" CATEGORY
somethin 4 the weekend
CMJ: Unbadged
somethin 4 the weekend
Open “What I’ve Been Listening To Lately” Thread
Haven’t done one of these in a while, and I figure the night that I’m about to run out to the R. Kelly show in New York (yessss) is as good a time as any to do so. Also, I am currently in something of a (relative) listening rut, alternating between the Shakira record, my “2009 awesomeness” playlist (now at 32 songs! new additions include Alphabeat and Natalie Imbruglia!), and isolated listens to the new songs/albums that cross my transom. And not much else! So, feel free to plug your favorite music of right now here—there’s no limit on how old or new it is, obviously, MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
What Were Your Best Musical Experiences Of The Summer?
Oh man, it’s almost Labor Day weekend! Which means barbecues, earlier sunsets, and the close of summer in the American mind-set. (Not to mention the ever-closer encroachment of the Video Music Awards! Ack!) So what better time to look back? Feel free to share your favorite musical experiences of the Memorial-To-Labor-Day period in this space, while you are (I hope!) waiting to go outside and enjoy the last crackles of summer. My list—which ranges from shows to finding out bits of news—after the jump. MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
What Was Your Song Of The Summer For 2009?
I’m taking off a little bit early today because I’m going to tape an appearance on NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered, in which I will be quizzed about this year’s contenders for Song Of The Summer, and why this summer’s most-people-unifying songs probably weren’t ones that came out this year, let alone this decade. (Michael Jackson, duh.) (Well, Michael Jackson and the ever-atomizing nature of “pop music,” which is resulting in things like gym staples not getting anywhere near the pop charts and the Black Eyed Peas being the only force that can unify us all. Anyway, given that the sweltering season of this year is nearing its close, I figured I’d ask: What song defined the summer of 2009 for you the most? My pick, after the jump. MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
What Is Your Favorite Song From A John Hughes Movie?
John Hughes, a writer/director whose stamp on the movies he was involved with was so iconic his name was turned into an adjective, passed away yesterday at the age of 59. Hughes’ heyday coincided with the MTV era, and a lot of the movies that he had a hand in—which included The Breakfast Club, Pretty In Pink, and other totemic comedies of the 1980s—both shaped for the music tastes of the day and had scenes that could have been snipped out of movies and directly placed into MTV’s rotation. (Witness Matthew Broderick’s performance of the Beatles’ “Twist And Shout” from the 1986 movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, which Hughes wrote and directed.) Chicago Sun-Times pop critic Jim DeRogatis has a nice appreciation of Hughes’ love for music: MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
Who Would You Nominate For Your Home State’s “Most Mythical Artist” Crown?
Jess Harvell’s piece on The Misfits’ relationship to New Jersey earlier this week sparked some debate from out-of-state residents over which musicians deserved to be elevated to bard status as far as their respective homelands went. I wouldn’t try to speak for all of New York, because, well, doing so would be just silly (plus I think that as someone who still calls Rockland County “upstate” from time to time I’d be disqualified from that particular panel by anyone living north of the Bronx). But I do have one nominee for Long Island’s most mythical artist… and it’s not Billy Joel. MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
What Would Be On Your “2009 Awesomeness” Playlist Right Now?
As promised: The state of my “2009 awesomeness” playlist, in which I collect the songs that catch my ear as the year progresses in order to not make my best-of list a last-minute-of-December clusterfuck sort of thing. (It inevitably winds up being like that, but you know, I have noble intentions.) It’s after the jump, and has some contextual links added in. Feel free to make your own and share it here! MORE »
Format Wars
What Have You Done With Your CD Library? (If You’ve Done Anything With It?)
One of our wonderful commenters posed this question in the wake of finding out that people were actually plunking down money for digital copies of Michael Jackson albums: What are people doing with their CD libraries these days–keeping them, transitioning over to digital storage, shifting to vinyl, or giving up on the whole idea of “owning” music altogether and switching over to a streaming service? MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
Rest In Peace, Michael
A lot’s been said about the death of Michael Jackson over the past 24-ish hours, so I figured I’d just close out the week with one last song. Let the music speak for itself, because the world of pop–by which I mean, music and culture–will never see another like him again. See you Monday, everyone. [Dailymotion] MORE »
somethin 4 the weekend
Tell Me Something Good: Your Favorite Discoveries Of Recent Days
Friends, I have to be honest with you: Today is the first sorta-nice day in the general New York area in what seems like forever, and I have one eye on the sky and my mind on the book that I am tantalizingly close to finishing. So here’s my simple question for you: What’s your favorite discovery of recent days? It can be a new-to-the-world band, a recently minted album, or an outfit that’s been making music for a while but just came across your transom. Five of mine, after the jump. MORE »
