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April 12, 2006
Shorties
Some of the acts for Seattle's Bumbershoot Festival have been announced.
Damon Albarn talks to the Independent about his current music project.
"I've just finished making another record," he says, offhand. "I've been working with Paul Simonon from The Clash, and Tony Allen from Fela Kuti's band, and the guitarist Simon Tong, who was in The Verve and now plays with Gorillaz. The average age of this new band is something like 56. Simon's the youngest and I'm the second-youngest. But I think when you hear the record you won't be able to tell that it's made by old guys."
Actor Zach Braff talks to the New York Post about winning a Grammy.
It's very odd to win a Grammy Award. When I was a little kid dreaming about becoming successful in the business, holding a Grammy award wasn't one of the things that I dreamed about, but it was a great honor and a great testament to all of the artists and great music in Garden State. The Grammy was really for all of the artists on the film, but I just get to keep it at my house. I'm fortunate to have a lot of friends in the music business, a lot of musicians and they're always introducing me to new music and I love going on iTunes and finding new bands.
“The problem with trying to sustain a national magazine was too formidable,” said Bart Schneider, editor of Speakeasy. “Unless something is very well endowed or has some kind of angel, it’s kind of impossible.”
Schneider said he sometimes thought the magazine had more contributors than readers.
“I think it’s hard to get people’s attention,” he said. “Literary magazines are on the bottom. It reflects a movement, maybe away from more traditional literary reading.”
AskMen lists the top ten profitable dead celebrities.
Harp interviews Ed Hamell of Hamell on Trial about his song, "Coulter's Snatch."
Why did you write “Coulter’s Snatch”?
I saw an interview with [conservative talking-head and author] Ann Coulter where it became apparent to me that it was show business for her. It’s about sellin’ books—she’s selling her personality. And it made me angry, ’cause she affects people’s lives.
"Coulter's Snatch (live)" [mp3]
Episode #30 of the Bat Segundo Show has author Erica Jong talking about her poetry, the chick lit ghetto, and much more on the literary podcast. Now you can listen directly from the blog page if you wish.
Even a die-hard analog recording guru such as John Vanderslice was won over by their music. "The first time I heard 'Tokyo' from The Lemon of Pink, it made me want to record on a computer. They had completely fulfilled the promise of digital recording," he e-mails from Portland, Ore.
No Love For Ned has singer-songwriter Joel Plaskett as an in-studio guest on the streaming radio show.
The San Francisco Bay Guardian profiles the "indie DJ" (and offers some tips).
Associated with the so-called indie rock scene, these people go into club environments and attempt to be club DJs, because everybody knows that dance rock is the future of clubbing.
They spin the latest Top 40 or incredibly overplayed tunes like Cheryl Lynn's "Got to Be Real" or Tiffany's "I Think We're Alone Now." They're essentially wedding DJs with weird haircuts. Except wedding DJs are better because most of them can actually mix.
Silver Jews frontman David Berman is interviewed by Chicago's Metromix.
I read you were once hit on by Tina Louise (Ginger on "Gilligan's Island"). What's the story?
It was a party at the Whitney Museum [in New York]. All I can say is that I was there, and she wouldn't leave me alone. I was the guard, and she was a guest. We talked all night long. I wasn't physically attracted to her. I knew that she was Ginger, too. I'm pretty sure the first sexual feelings I had were from her slinky, white, sequin dress on the island.
MP3.com examines the "path of the maturing iPod" through he years.
Author J.M. Coetzee discusses graduate programs in creative writing.
"Should we be worried that the graduating students are equipped to write novels and stories and plays for today's literary market but not well informed about the history of these forms or about what has been achieved in the forms in the past?" Coetzee asked.
"If I asked the corresponding question in the realms of science and technology, a reasonable answer would probably be, no, it is nothing to be worried about, that someone could get a degree in astronomy without knowing about Ptolemy or a degree in engineering without knowing about Archimedes."
Papermag lists their "beautiful people 2006," and includes Rocketboom's Amanda Cogdon and Engadget.
