Musical musings from the mind of Sunshine
Now that the last minute negotiations failed and the government is officially shut down, I know what you’re thinking — “If I can’t count on my elected officials to get things done, and civil employees aren’t allowed to come to my rescue now, surely I’m doomed.” And while I see the merit in that logic, …
Continue reading “The Sound of the Wrecking Ball — Parades, Gazes, and a Pile as Big as Texas”
A lot has happened in the past month — most of it utterly terrific — but rather than let the darkness totally envelop us, I thought I’d come through with a little cheer and some new songs to fill your ears. (Besides, we’re going to need some serious playlists to get us through the next four years — …
Continue reading “Empire’s Fall — A Trio of Twins from the Kingdom”
It being the country’s big day today — a country of which at least half is in an ever-escalating sense of panic and unease over the agonizingly bad performance the other night in the presidential debate and what it means for us moving forward — it felt right to pop in and set off some fireworks …
In honor of the big basketball tournament going on right now, I thought I’d weigh in with one of my own monster assemblies of items, this time in the form of a motley mixtape for the masses. (To add to the 15-year long version we’ve already got going on the right!) Serving as inspiration is …
Continue reading “Staring at the Sun(shine) – A Trip Down Memory Lane”
If this year had a slogan it was about the unbreakable attraction of opposites. What goes up must come down. For every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction. It’s darkest before the dawn. It was a year constantly characterized by its yin yang duo of ephemeral excellence and the persistence of pests. …
Continue reading “Wandering Through the Whiplash — The Best Music of 2023”
In order to complete the annual springtime trifecta of Thursday’s “May the 4th be with you” (which spawned this fantastic trailer, made even more amazing by the fact it was apparently created completely by AI(?!?)) and Friday’s Cinco de Mayo (celebrated with tacos, pambazos, and chicharrones like a good member of La Raza) it’s time …
Continue reading “Beast of Burden — Bonzo, the Lips, and a Pair of Perennials”
This year was something of an experiment. One that started with a massive leap of faith and morphed into a daily exercise in making sure the pain that jump caused (and continues to) was worth it and not wasted. It was an example of endless iteration and tinkering, of living one’s own words and leaning …
Continue reading “The Humpty (Dumpty) Dance — The Best Music of 2022”
We’ll pop in today in the midst of the Madness to talk about the latest album from alt-J, The Dream, which is emblematic of the mood and has been on repeat a lot lately. It’s their first in five years (their last being the disappointing Relaxer from 2017) and it’s a maddening affair. At turns …
Continue reading “Alt-ernate Reality: The Dream of Simplified Sincerity”
Finally recovered from the America-inspired bender I went on for the 4th, celebrating my freedoms and global superiority to the max — just in time to do it again for the Olympics! Before I go back down the rabbit hole, though, had a few items worth sharing to serve as an alternative to the anthem …
Continue reading “Got (Woodstock) ’99 Problems — Postcards from the Edge”
There’s been a flurry of solid writeups from the Stereogum staff lately on some excellent albums celebrating their birthdays, so thought I’d share before they stack up any further and give folks something to read with the morning paper tomorrow. First up, appropriately, is this one on the 10 year anniversary of Kanye’s masterful monolith, …