Latest from the Blog

Swift Bloat

So, where do I go to read or hear formerly devoted Taylor Swift fans who think she’s let them down by getting “too weird” or “too artsy” for them? Happened with Beatles, Motown, etc. — I’m sure they’re out there, but for some reason I never seem to come across them. So has social media…

Guilty of Noise Pollution: Blindfold Test #8

Did things a little bit differently this time — Instead of typing out notes while random-shuffling a 5000-song playlist at home, I handwrote out notes while listening to a 5000-song playlist in the car. (No I wasn’t driving at the time. I was waiting to pick my teenage daughter up from EMS Scouts.) In fact,…

150 Best Albums of 1990

In 1990 I turned 30, and 30 tends to be a major road-bump in many rock critic trajectories, the age when people who write about music start to wonder whether they’re in it for the long haul or they should switch to a more grown-up profession. I clearly chose the former, but not without the…