Monday, February 23, 2009

Mikkel Metal- Peaks and Troughs



After some slight technical problems over at PM this weekend, my review of Mikkel Metal's latest is up. Check it out. Some more great Echocord dub techno.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Flood Bank



I've got a new review published up at PopMatters of The Lines's second and final compilation. It's a mix of their two studio LPs, Therapy and Ultramarine. Listening to it, I kept thinking about how this could have easily evolved into a weird version of the early 4AD aesthetic (early Colourbox, the first Cocteau Twins LP). Only after reading the liner notes and doing some research, I found out that the engineers and bandleader Conning himself had actually played integral roles in the production of much of that music. Ultramarine especially seems to form a nice bridge between the guitar-based experimentalism of post-punk and ethereality of the aforementioned music.

Read the Review Here

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Musical Ontology

This is old and has probably made several rounds throughout the internet by now, but it was so spot-on that I had to repost it.

The Different Stages of Musical Ontology.

As for me, I'd like to say I fluctuate between stages pretty regularly, but usually find myself drawn to one rather than a combination of several.

RIP Lux Interior of The Cramps





Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Why We're Bankrupt (Morally and Financially)

Chalmers Johnson points out that the fattest free-floating source of waste in the U.S. Economy is not golden parachutes, tort, executive bonuses, or any of the other riffraff. It's something far more obvious, that far more prone to be casually overlooked.

"Many people believe that our military is the largest, best equipped, and most invincible among the world's armed forces. None of these things is true, but our military is, without a doubt, the most expensive to maintain. Each year, we Americans account for nearly half of all global military spending, an amount larger than the next 45 nations together spend on their militaries annually."