Essays and ephemera
Masters At Work saved my life one night. One Sunday several years ago, I forgot that I had to create a deliverable for work that was due Monday morning. At 9pm at night I fired up my laptop, made a cup of coffee, plugged in my headphones and got down to business as I burned the midnight oil.
I walk to the curb. The car’s windows are down and music is blasting. I step in.
“Need to get a coffee?” he asks.
“Nah – I’m good.”
“You like salsa music?”
“Sure.” I’m not sure if I’ve ever really listened to salsa music before.
The best Uber I ever took involved being in the seat of an Acura SUV as we blasted salsa music going down Wacker Drive during morning rush hour.
I just finished Miles Davis’ autobiography and it was insane. It’s easily one of the best autobiographies I’ve read and it is certainly the most entertaining biography I’ve read. Other than the excessive profanity, my favorite part is all the great names of people in his life. These are my favorite names from the book.
Continue reading “The Best Names in Miles Davis’ Autobiography”
The worst kept secret in music is that the Smashing Pumpkins are reuniting. But is it a reunion when the band is only 3/4 of the classic lineup? I have spent more time and money listening to the Smashing Pumpkins than any other band and this reunion news has given me a serious case of “the mehs.”
Continue reading “No, I Will Not See the Smashing Pumpkins Reunion”
Earlier this year I wrote about dissent in the arts, but specifically in music. In that post, I said, “I hope dissent in the concert halls and theaters across this land makes encourages more civil discourse because this country needs to understand one another more than ever.”
It may not have happened in a concert hall, but we need to talk about Eminem’s freestyle at last night’s BET Awards. It is straight up bananas.
It doesn’t mince words, but it doesn’t have to – it’s a rap freestyle. It’s supposed to make you uncomfortable. You’re supposed to rap and talk shit about your opponent. But Eminem does more than talk shit: he scorches the Earth. The ferocity of his verses, the herky jerky delivery, and the end where he tells his fans that if they support Trump they can fuck off is impressive. Eminem has always struck as a mad, perhaps madder than Onyx – who always sound pissed off, but the madness sounds sincere and palpable.
In these times of supposed culture wars where salvos come daily from Twitter, it’s incredibly refreshing to see a cogent salvo against those in charge come from a format outside of print and social media.