Category: Music

Born Slippy, Beyond Belief.

This appears to be the one week a year when I take advantage of living in NYC. A high school friend has procured me a ticket to see Underworld tonight at the Hammerstein, and then Tuesday I’m off to the Beacon to catch one of those acts on my must-see list for years, Elvis Costello and the Imposters. If the setlist is anything as ridiculous as Wednesday‘s, the show is going to be off the hook…Man Out of Time, Indoor Fireworks, Beyond Belief, Alison, Almost Blue, and I Want You?! Unbelievable.

Finally Here.


Two long-awaited (at least by me) releases dropped today…the special edition DVD of Amadeus, with 20 new minutes of footage (I’ll check it out tonight), and Peter Gabriel’s much-delayed release Up. I must admit, halfway through the first track (“Darkness”) I was wondering when Pete had started hanging out with Roger Waters, but after listening to the album once through I now think it’s definitely a return to form, with “Growing Up,” the remixed “I Grieve,” and “The Barry Williams Show” currently the stand-out tracks.

Star Power.

NASA finally goes ga-ga over Lance Bass. “What’s exciting about this is getting a creative person up there,” said Duane Carey, a space shuttle pilot and father of two teens. “Maybe some songs or some poetry or some type of inspiration can come out of it.” Um, I think it’s great that Bass is getting a chance to pursue his dream, but let’s not get ridiculous here. We’re not sending W.H. Auden or Bob Dylan into space…heck, we’re not even sending John Tesh. Expecting anything more than “Girl, you knock me outta this world!” from Bass is just wishful thinking.

Something More than a Machine.


Can anybody tell me if any of the rest of The Flaming Lips‘ oeuvre is any good? ‘Cause Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots is the best album I’ve bought in a long time (although I have high hopes for Peter Gabriel’s Up next month)…it’s a bubbly space pop classic right next to Moon Safari, and absolutely impossible to get out of your head. Her name is Yoshimi. She’s a black belt in karate…

Cover Me.

The Covers Project, via Pearls That Are In His Eyes. Great for use in association with Kazaa. To take just two examples, I didn’t know Scott Weiland covered Depeche Mode’s “But Not Tonight” (tho’ the original is still better) or that Elvis Costello riffed on Dylan’s country classic, “I Threw It All Away.” Good stuff.