essay Archive
09 Sep 2009
So Much for Rockstock 09
I only heard about the Rockstock 09 “festival” a few weeks ago. I was quite excited to discover that the Smithereens would be performing. I’ve always loved their powerpop-meets-heaviness approach, […]
04 Sep 2009
Paste Magazine Got it Right. Sorta.
Paste Magazine has an online feature in which they go for the funny and gently mock themselves and their ilk. “The ’60s & ’70s Bands Rock Critics & Musicians Always […]
30 Jun 2009
Ray Charles = Genius. Michael Jackson ≠ Genius.
Against a backdrop of TV news/infotainment’s wall-to-wall, undeservedly reverential adoration for Michael Jackson, I found myself tasked with considering the meaning of the word genius. Here’s what I came up […]
23 Jan 2008
The Collection
It wasn’t shrinkwrapped, but appeared to be new. The cover sported a black-and-white photo of The Beatles dating from 1969. There was no title on the front. On the back, […]
03 Dec 2007
Profile: Lance Wille, Record Collector
Born: October 19, 1963 Education: Art studies at Northern Illinois University, Dekalb IL Avocation: Fairview resident Lance Wille is a busy man with diverse interests. He maintains a hand-cranked letterpress […]
02 Dec 2007
Todd Rundgren / Utopia / Nazz: A Critical Essay
Written in 2002(!) for Trouser Press and in need of a major update to cover an additional half-century’s worth of music — bk DISCOGRAPHY Todd Rundgren Runt (Bearsville) 1970 The […]
01 Dec 2007
Pink Floyd: A Critical Essay
Written in 2002(!) for Trouser Press with a one-sentence update in 2007. In need of a major update to cover an additional half-century’s worth of music — bk Pink Floyd […]