I’ve been listening to “Spanish Bombs” by The Clash on obsessive repeat all weekend. Even though London Calling is one of those albums that I’ve listened to a thousand times, “Spanish Bombs” always just acted as one of the songs that go into making the London Calling one of the best complete albums ever pressed to vinyl, no more important than the title track, “Lost in the Supermarket,” “Death or Glory,” or any of the other songs on the near-perfect […]
Band Booking: Judson Claiborne on Service Animals, Hypnosis, and “Endless Uncomfortable Conversations”
The first time I heard the music of Chris Salveter, it was in Low Skies, a band whose songs sat at some taut crossroads between the elegaic and the Gothic. Their 2006 album All the Love I Could Find remains a favorite, and I was thrilled, when listening to the latest album by Judson Claiborne — my first exposure to the band — to hear a familiar voice in the mix. We Have Not Doors You Need Not Keys is Judson Clairborne’s third album since […]
Band Booking: Talking Black Magic and Tape Labels With Speedy Ortiz
Last month I found myself in an almost dangerously sweltering show at Death By Audio in Williamsburg, contemplating the ongoing 90’s alt-rock revival from up close. The evening started off with the riff-heavy California X, whose crunchy guitar sound brings to mind a hundred different grunge and alternative singles from my early adolescence, and continued with Roomrunner, a group whose music is specifically designed to encourage headbanging. By the time headliners Speedy Ortiz took the stage, the crowd had entered […]
The Education and Redemption of an Iconoclast: Uncovering Al Jourgensen’s “Lost Gospels”
Ministry: The Lost Gospels According to Al Jourgensen by Al Jourgensen with Jon Wiederhorn Da Capo; 278 p. In the collection of moments of stylistic dissonance that is Stephen Spielberg’s 2001 film A.I., one choice stands out in particular. Partway through the film, the central characters end up trapped in a rural fair, the sort of place at which families attend as one, musicians play on homey stages, and unhealthy food is consumed en masse. (Admittedly, this county fair is […]
“Literature is Better if You Think With Your Ears”: Rick Moody on the Wingdale Community Singers’ Latest, the End of Maxwell’s, and More
Rick Moody’s fiction has touched on everything from industrial New Jersey wastelands to surreal Southwestern landscapes of the near future. He has been an advocate for iconoclastic artists ranging from Amy Hempel to The Feelies; a book of his writings on music, On Celestial Music: And Other Adventures in Listening, was released last year. This year brings with it the release of Night, Sleep, Death, the third album from the Wingdale Community Singers, Moody’s band with David Grubbs and Hannah Marcus. Via email, […]
Brief Thoughts on Rodan’s “Fifteen Quiet Years”
It’s been a few years since Touch & Go announced that they would no longer be releasing new music. And so, the occasion of a new release on Touch & Go — yes, I realize the paradoxical nature of that statement — never fails to be notable. I’m looking down at the cover of Fifteen Quiet Years, a rarities collection from the storied Louisville band Rodan; letterpressed and seemingly handmade, it could well have been an artifact from the early 90s, […]
Stories from Spy Rock: An Interview With Larry Livermore
If you’ve been paying attention to punk rock over the past few decades, chances are good that you’re familiar with Larry Livermore. He founded Lookout! Records, and his columns for Punk Planet took a satirical approach to challenging pretty much every punk orthodoxy you could think of. Earlier this year, Don Giovanni released Spy Rock Memories, Livermore’s account of his years living in a cabin in the California mountains, making music with The Lookouts, and starting the record label that would introduce thousands […]
Popular Noise’s Fundraiser: From Black Metal to Richard Avedon
Not surprisingly, I’m always up for good writing on culture. So taking a look at the Kickstarter page for Popular Noise, a new magazine with contributions from the likes of Zachary Lipez (and — if the images are any indication — a profile of Turing Machine’s Justin Chearno) offers a lot to like.