SOUNDTRACK: QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE-“My God is the Sun” (2013)
After a six-year hiatus, QotSA is back with this slinky song. It has the sleazy feel that Homme does so well (how does he do that?). This song feels a little more guitar based (meaning it is a bit more trebly–with interesting echoes on the guitars). It’s not as immediately catchy as their bigger hits, but it’s got all the elements you look for from QotSA.
It opens with some slashing sounds and then the riff kicks in. The song is propulsive but somehow doesn’t feel as fast as some of their earlier tracks. Which is not to say it’s mellow at all. And once Homme starts singing, well, it’s like they never went away. There’s a lengthy middle instrumental section which is quite interesting and otherworldly, but it never gives up the propulsion, especially as the end gets faster and faster.
[READ: April 8, 2013] The Mays XX
This is another book that I saw at work and wanted to read (this job is wrecking my already long list of books to read). I had some difficulty cataloging it (for various reasons), which meant I had to pour over contents. And the more I looked it over the more I realized that I wanted to read it.
So The Mays Anthology publishes the best new student writing and art from Cambridge and Oxford Universities. Read more about it at their website. I’d never heard of The Mays before, but when I saw that John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats was a guest editor, I thought it might be a fun collection tread through.
Issue 20 features poetry, a graphic novel, photography and prose. The other editors are Andrew Griffin (general), Sebastiano Barassi (Visual Arts), Tao Lin and Toby Litt (Prose) and of course, Darnielle (Poetry).
I was really delighted with the prose in this issue. None of the stories are more than 1,000 words, which I decided is a wonderful length for a story. I’m going to talk about the stories, but not so much about the poetry or art.
Darnielle’s introduction to the poetry section was excellent and really resonated with me because of my ideas and fears about poetry (how we feel stupid if we don’t get poetry). He then explained the things that he looked for in this poetry and I imagined that i would love every piece here. I didn’t, but on the whole I really liked the poetry. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: FLEET FOXES-Sun Giant EP (2008).
My friend Jarrett introduced me to the Fleet Foxes with their self-titled CD. I recently picked up the Sun Giant EP and it is just as good as the main CD. It opens with a beautiful a capella introduction to “Sun Giant” in multipart harmony that melds into a nice folksy song.
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH: A Thousand Leaves (1998).
This CD actually ties to the book because the crossed out title on the CD is “mille feuille” and the first song is called “Contre le Sexism.”
SOUNDTRACK: The Best Albums of the Year
Andrew Womack, fellow 
It was a fun place to pick up reading. At the small paragraph where I left off, we learn that the Statue of Liberty’s book now advertises that year’s Subsidizer.
SOUNDTRACK: FRANK ZAPPA-Baby Snakes [the movie & soundtrack] (1979).
This is sort of a review of the soundtrack album to Baby Snakes, but really it’s a review of the film, which I just watched over the last 4 days. Baby Snakes (A Movie About People Who Do Stuff That is Not Normal) was not as depraved as the subtitle (and the history of Zappa) would lead you to believe. In fact, primarily it is a concert film. There are a bunch of other things in the film as well, but easily 3/4 is a live Halloween concert in New York City.
SOUNDTRACK: THE SHINS-Wincing the Night Away (2007).
The best example of a crassly commercial attempt to sell music comes in the movie High Fidelity when John Cusack states “I will now sell 3 copies of the Beta Band’s 3EPs.” Because the tone is right, and he’s in a store, and he’s obsessed about music, it all works. And, because the song is great, you really want him to sell those records. Now, I’ve no idea A) if the Beta Band paid to have this done or B) if Cusack or someone else just really likes the Beta Band or C) if the movie had any impact on sales, but it’s still a great moment in movie/music synchrony. In Garden State, the movie, Natalie Portman says The Shins will change your life. 
I Just Read About That... 