Posts by Ken Double
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Abbaesque? Goddammit I'll never be able to enjoy "Sprawl II" again.
On a happier note, "Birthday" is one of the finest songs ever written in this country and one of the best kiss off songs you'll hear anywhere. I don't understand why those two Stereobus albums are so unheralded. They bristle with intelligence, fabulous melodies and tumescent guitars. Happy birthday indeed Mr Yetton.
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Hard News: The Crazy Gang Nation, in reply to James Bremner,
an $840 billion stimulus program that everyone agrees did not work
"One year after the stimulus, several independent macroeconomic firms, including Moody's and IHS Global Insight, estimated that the stimulus saved or created 1.6 to 1.8 million jobs and forecast a total impact of 2.5 million jobs saved by the time the stimulus is completed. The Congressional Budget Office considered these estimates conservative."
That's from Wikipedia by the way.
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Hard News: The Crazy Gang Nation, in reply to Lucy Stewart,
The Republican hold on Congress is largely possible because of Republican-controlled state legislatures - which can gerrymander the Congressional seats to a nicety.
Robert Costa, a reporter inside the GOP:
"When you hear members talk candidly about their biggest victory, it wasn’t winning the House in 2010. It was winning the state legislatures in 2010 because they were able to redraw their districts so they had many more conservative voters. The members get heat from the press but they don't get heat from back home."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/01/why-boehner-doesnt-just-ditch-the-right/
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If Boehner puts a clean bill to the House, apparently it has every chance of going through. But a mere 30 ultra-conservatives and another 40 or 50 garden variety reactionaries terrified of a primary challenge from the right are stopping him doing that. One faction of one party of one branch of government holds the world to ransom.
There's that old saw that conservatives claim government doesn't work, then they get elected and prove it.
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Well turds. We're stuffed now for any vaguely intelligent media criticism and analysis on television aren't we? I loved Media 7/3. Of all things it reminded me of good old Brian Priestley on Fourth Estate. Sophisticates laugh at telly but it enforces a bit of structure and concision and discipline and gravitas outside the online clusterfuck.
I blame the switch to those blue boxes and the library music of the future. If you'd stuck with the psychedelic green stripes and Disasteradio you wouldn't be in this mess I tell you.
Condolences to all concerned. "Gutted", as they say on the sidelines.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Craig Ranapia,
I’s probably not popular to say around here, but what I find most frustrating about Simon in troll mode is he’s capable of better. A LOT better.
Whew. I concur.
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I’d be very wary of fomenting any rivalry there
Totally the last thing on my mind Chris. You're spot on in that distinction. I still look to Si more for an entertaining thumbs up or down than a piercing deconstruction. His ears are pretty good.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Sacha,
Yes. (I'm starting to sound like I think he's Jesus or Greil Marcus or something. He certainly ain't.) You have to take him as whole. He fucks up occasionally - I agree on the Lorde piece top to bottom - but he's written other stuff too. Lots and lots of other stuff. Shitloads in fact. And I've actually read some of it.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Russell Brown,
Glad to have brought a smile Russell. I know many musicians, not quite so many in the business. I've written on music myself in the past (in a national magazine! prior to the internet!) and frankly I found it nerve wracking to review the local stuff with total honesty. I'm familiar with the subtle ways the biz wants to favour you if you would only say this nice thing. I'm not complaining - it's their job and the smart ones don't take anything personally. The dumb ones sure do.
I know musicians who are brilliant - Sean is one, he's a genius - but I know a few who are crap. I'm not going to tell them. Neither will their mates, their Mum or their handlers. In fact I don't know many people outside Simon who would dare go all the way in public.
The bottom line is, I'm a music fan. I don't really give a shit about anything but the songs and that's what I like about Simon. He pisses me off too - don't get me started on his opinions of Kanye - but it's robust debate about things that matter to music nerds. Most of the time anyway.
I understand your anger. It was a dorky piece and it was close to the bone for you. But it's not the whole of what he does, and if you take him away, if you remove his annoying, taunting, unreasonable voice, the whole environment just becomes that little bit more happy clappy.
Not all musicians hate him actually. Plenty enjoy the biffo and respect his consistency and advocacy for the stuff he DOES like. But most of the people chipping in here would happily string him up and that makes me squeamish.
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In what ‘context’ would it be anything but loathesome fact-free rubbish?
It was an article about the ways in which women and men differ in their musical taste. He wanted a response so he wrote a piece with a satirical male-advocacy point of view. I quite enjoyed it. It was knowing and edgy. As I recall facts were not involved, nor were they required.