December 2011
4 posts
11 tags
Broken Bells: Broken Bells: Sailing to Nowhere...
Today’s Song Year: 2010 Fun Fact: I chose this song because it’s actually 3 songs squished into one by Gorillaz—excuse me, I mean Danger Mouse.  It starts with a James Mercer (The Shins) melodic which is then followed by a completely unrelated bridge and outro that could have come from a mid-70s Jethro Tull concept album. Despite these things, or because of them, I love the...
Dec 15th
4 notes
12 tags
Sufjan Stevens: Michigan: Flint (For the...
Today’s Song Year: 2003 Fun Fact: Singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens once planned to write an album for all 50 states. This, “Michigan,” was the first. He has written one more since 2003, for Illinois. He better hurry up.  In any case, this is the only song of his I like. Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid) by Sufjan Stevens on Grooveshark
Dec 14th
9 tags
Deerhunter: Halcyon Digest: Desire Lines (2010)
Today’s Song Year: 2010 Fun Fact: Yay! More Deerhunter! Desire Lines by Deerhunter on Grooveshark
Dec 13th
13 tags
Primus: Pork Soda: The Air Is Getting Slippery...
Today’s Song Year: 1993 Fun Fact: For most of you this song will be complete, weird nonsense. For the rest of you it will be pure nostalgic joy. The Air Is Getting Slippery by Primus on Grooveshark
Dec 12th
5 notes
November 2011
2 posts
10 tags
Say Hi To Your Mom: Numbers & Mumbles: She Beat My...
Today’s Song (Part 2: to make up for my delinquency) Year: 2004 Fun Fact: This song, by the same “band,” is about how he found the girl of his dreams and then had to break up with her because she beat his high score in a video game. You can see why I might identify with it.
Nov 4th
15 tags
Say Hi To Your Mom: Numbers & Mumbles: Super...
Today’s Song Year: 2004 Fun Fact: You can tell at first glance that bedroom-band Say Hi To Your Mom is going to have a fun take on its music writing. Eric Elbogen, the sole studio band member, writes great, accessible rock-pop with clever but simple lyrics.
Nov 4th
October 2011
10 posts
9 tags
Oct 28th
6 notes
15 tags
Interpol: Turn On The Bright Lights: Say Hello to...
Today’s Song Year: 2002 Fun Fact: “Say Hello to the Angels” exemplifies Interpol’s early sound: rhythmic, staccato guitar lines accentuated by equally rhythmic drums, and by the end of the song you have forgotten how it began because it sounds far darker, or brighter, than at the start. Interpol was one of the breakout “indie” bands from the NY scene that...
Oct 27th
15 notes
13 tags
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: B.R.M.C.: Awake...
Today’s Song Year: 2000 Fun Fact: From “BRMC“‘s debut album, “Awake” showcases the band’s ability to create great songs from simple rock progressions, and to give it a lot of attitude in the process. “Awake” also highlights the psychedelic influences that permeate most of their other albums to various degrees.
Oct 26th
12 notes
14 tags
Hospital Ships: Oh, Ramona: The Shots I Drank...
Today’s Song Year: 2008 Fun Fact: Hospital Ships is a one-man, “bedroom” band that sings sad songs in a light-hearted way, and with fun hooks. If you like this song check out “I Want It To Get Out.”
Oct 25th
11 tags
Boy Band Monday: Backstreet Boys: Backstreet Boys:...
Today’s Song: Boy Band Monday Edition Year: 1997 Fun Fact: This song didn’t need an extended version that is four minutes and forty six seconds. That’s four minutes beyond the average attention span of a teenage girl.
Oct 24th
17 tags
Black Sheep: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing: The...
Today’s Song: Friday Hip Hop Edition Year: 1991 Fun Fact: Black Sheep were part of the New York alt-hip hop scene in the late 80’s and early 90’s, and had close affiliations with A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, and so forth. It’s a pretty kickin track. The rest of the album, while it has its moments, is kinda weak, though.
Oct 21st
8 notes
18 tags
Liars: They Threw Us All In A Trench And Stuck A...
Today’s Song Year: 2001 Fun Fact: The avant-rock, dance-punk, experimental, shoe-gazing Liars are not for everyone. Hell, I don’t even like half of their stuff, but they write really interesting stuff if you’re interested in what music might sound like if it were produced by a woodland poltergeist. This is probably Liars’ most accessible track.
Oct 20th
11 notes
14 tags
Muse: Origin of Symmetry: Micro Cuts (2001)
Today’s Song Year: 2001 Fun Fact: This is one of my favorite Muse songs. And it’s sung entirely in falsetto. Now, that IS fun!
Oct 19th
17 tags
Youth Lagoon: The Year of Hibernation: Cannons...
Today’s Song Year: 2011 Fun Fact: I heard this song on the radio while traveling in Utah last week. Turns out the guy’s from Boise. Strongly recommend you check out the whole album if you like deep, atmospheric, melodic music.
Oct 18th
11 tags
ListenToday’s Song Year: 2000 Fun Fact: I posted...
Oct 17th
March 2011
4 posts
7 tags
This Hot Pockets commercial makes me want to barf...
Mar 22nd
4 tags
Mar 14th
3 notes
6 tags
Mar 13th
3 notes
6 tags
Chrome 10 is the new hotness
It’s also super geeky that I just posted this.  Chrome 10.
Mar 10th
February 2011
5 posts
3 tags
Off-center Fun Facts: Thermonuclear Explosion...
From the Environmental Protection Agency: How does cesium-137 get into the environment? Cesium-137 in the environment came from a variety of sources. The largest single source was fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s and 1960s, which dispersed and deposited cesium-137 world-wide. However much of the cesium-137 from testing has now decayed. ...
Feb 28th
5 tags
Problem solved: mapping to network share drives
Just in case I can prevent for one other person the hours of frustration I suffered figuring this out this post will be worth it.  The economy can thank me later.   For the past month I haven’t been able to connect to any of my share drives at work using VPN from home.  The weird thing is that using VPN I could connect to all the other internal things through my web browser.  Neither IT...
Feb 27th
3 tags
Fun and Taxes →
A pungent, uh, I mean, poignant, infographic about the distribution of American wealth
Feb 24th
5 tags
Feb 4th
4 tags
A People's revolt in an Arab country? That sounds...
What was the last Arab country to have a popular revolt followed by a transition to a secular constitutional democracy, as most Westerners are hoping for?  Hmm.  Well, there really aren’t any.  This current business in Egypt is reminiscent of the Iranian Revolution in 1979, except that I have no idea how sympathetic the young, unemployed Egyptians instigating the current movement are to a...
Feb 2nd
January 2011
1 post
5 tags
The EZ Smoker. I wish this weren't real. I really,... →
Jan 6th
December 2010
6 posts
Dec 30th
1 note
Dec 22nd
6 tags
A Beautiful Display of Mass Cognitive Dissonance
Two-thirds of Americans favor extending the Bush era tax cuts on wealthy Americans. I’m leaving the justifiability of those tax cuts aside entirely here.  So, it’s worth pointing out that the Congressional election—you know, the one held 36 days ago—was said to have sent a strong signal that “the American people ain’t taking it anymore” and want...
Dec 8th
4 tags
P90X
So in a late attempt to get in moderate shape for my ski trip out West in January I started doing the P90X routine yesterday.  Today’s day two and I’m definitely feeling it.  Essentially, it’s 90 straight days of 1-hour aerobic routines that works your body in different ways.  There are intermittent week-long breaks here and there.  Doubtless if I do 90 days of 1-hour workouts...
Dec 7th
Dec 5th
3 tags
Dec 1st
November 2010
5 posts
Nov 20th
Nov 14th
Nov 10th
Nov 5th
Nov 2nd
October 2010
11 posts
Oct 29th
Oct 25th
Oct 23rd
4 tags
Half-Life 2 = beaten, 6 years late
I finally beat Half-Life 2 last night, after a 2.5-month hiatus 80% of the way through the game.  The Half-Life series has one of the best, if not the best, storylines of any videogame franchise.  It’s blending of stylistic and thematic elements is brilliant, and the pace, mood, and tempo of the game is expertly controlled with stunning visuals, an unintrusive soundtrack, and plotwork.  My...
Oct 21st
Oct 15th
Oct 14th
8 tags
Well, thank goodness this glimmer of hope has...
Controversial reformist DC Public School Chancellor Michelle Rhee resigned today due to sitting-Mayor Fenty’s loss in the mayoral primary a few weeks ago, and what was widely expected to be strong disagreement in school management with her mayor-to-be Vincent Gray.   Way to go DC.  There are so many colorful metaphors here for the periodic self-immolation of DC voters it is difficult to...
Oct 13th
6 tags
oh, the places you'll go...vicariously
Video from a camera attached to a weather balloon that rose into the upper stratosphere and recorded the blackness of space. Visit www.brooklynspaceprogram.org for all the info.
Oct 13th
Oct 9th
Oct 9th
5 tags
4 Non Blondes earworm all up in your business
Sometimes I wonder what in the hell was going on during the early/mid 90’s.  Case in point: 4 Non Blonde’s hit “What’s Up.”  This song has the depth and feel of a Cher song but the band is clearly repping the grunge scene.  The lead singer chick who looks like Steven Tyler is trying to pull of a Slash+ look, the drummer could be with Natalie Merchant’s tour...
Oct 1st
September 2010
17 posts
3 tags
This rain system looks like South America; blame...
I envision Che Guevara standing atop his ancient citadel at Isengard, staff in hand, summoning the fury of nature into a black stormy froth and sending it northward to bombard the people of the United States as they journey through the Misty Mountains.
Sep 30th
5 tags
Sep 29th