My Last R.E.M. Show
(I have probably written about this before, but I don’t care) When I was in my seat (or, more accurately, standing in front of it) at Merriweather Post Pavilion 13 years ago tonight, I had no idea it would be […]
Free Thoughts on ‘Hamilton’
Here are “free thoughts” on the cast and performance from Hamilton, which I recently saw in NYC: Michael Luwoye is a great Hamilton, but I wasn’t as blown away as I was led to expect from stuff I had read […]
A Fable Worth Re-Telling
Thirty years ago, R.E.M. released Fables of the Reconstruction. The album has taken almost mythic qualities among the band’s canon over time, mainly because no discussion can avoid the problems the band had during the recording process. In short, they were […]
Happy Birthday, ‘Life’s Rich Pageant’
On this day in 1986, something very special happened. I had no idea at the time. R.E.M. released Life’s Rich Pageant on this day 28 years ago, the band’s fourth album. I had yet to discover the Athens (Ga.) quartet at […]
Music in 2012
So all kinds of people have started to come out with their end-of-the-year lists. I took a look at a couple of ones related to music and realized just how old I am. On Pitchfork’s Top 100 songs for the […]
An R.E.M. Memory
Four years ago today, I faced one of the most important professional days in my life. I had to prepare for an event on June 12 which had to go perfectly. All the stress of that reality, however, gave way […]
Are Spotify Struggles a Surprise?
This story from the New York Post caught my eye online today because I sometimes use Spotify. The music service intrigued me because I have struggled with finding something which lets me stream/play my favorite music on multiple devices. While […]
ITEOTWAWKI: Garbage Time
I finally broke down and bought the (supposed) final album from R.E.M. I say supposed because Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982–2011 may be the last project the band works on together in the studio, but I really doubt […]
ITEOTWAWKI: Not Feeling It
In a couple of weeks, R.E.M. will release what it calls a definitive retrospective on their 31-year career, “Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage, 1982-2011.” The band’s website has started a number of initiatives to promote the release […]
ITEOTWAWKI: Getting There from Here
Obviously, I have thought way too much about the R.E.M. breakup this week. A few friends contacted me to say that I came to mind when they heard the news, which is touching, but I’m not distraught or anything. Since […]