A Way of Ending
“Wallace became the chronicler of a world where it was ‘tough’ to be human, but not impossible. This was the subjective world of his readers, themselves animated by an anxious consciousness of their limitations and contingency. It was an article of faith for him that the educated person still came to serious literature for answers [...]
Old Dog, New Tracks
I’ve been using eMusic–a download subscription service–for over a year now. Each month, I’m allotted 30 downloads for $12. That’s a quarter a song, which is pretty much what I think MP3s are worth, so I’m happy with the arrangement. I’ve re-constructed the otherwise out-of-print and/or expensively imported Slowdive EP-collection-thing Blue Day, and I’ve collected [...]
What We Talk About When We Talk About Everyone
I was honored to be a part of friends Jessica and Jet’s “Not-a-Wedding” a couple of weeks ago. The State of Illinois doesn’t recognize their commitment yet, hence the name of the ceremony. I was asked to perform a song that they’d heard at me and Amy’s wedding, Ron Sexsmith’s “God Loves Everyone”–a song which [...]
“When You Were Young” One-Miker
The Killers are, to me, like the new Smashing Pumpkins. In interviews, Brandon Flowers always high-wires that line between plain- and endearingly-pretentious, just like Our Man Corgan. Also like the Pumpkins, his band can mine a startling directness–usually in their singles, which is pretty great and kinda rare. I always thought this one would be [...]
Like in Front of People
My last gig was half a year ago. Cruising the path of least resistance, I’d emailed the nearby coffee shop with my MySpace link, and when they said they had Halloween night open, I said sure. Some of my co-workers live near the place, and it was a Friday, and maybe it would be cool. [...]
