MattZ

arcade fire - neon bible Halfway through the first listen. This band doesn't write songs, they write anthems.

Thanks.

Does anyone know what bizarre instrument(?) Regine was playing on the SNL performance? I already forgot if it was the first or second song and now it isnt on youtube anymore? For what it's worth, I am in the "they are the best thing going now" camp.

Owl - thanks for sharing the editorial on Lucinda vs. Bob. It was a fun read. I have to say, though, that the comparison is forced (at best). To say that Lucinda's career is following an arc similar to Dylan's because the last three albums have declined steadily is unfair. Lucinda never had the run that Dylan had from '64 to '68. Or even '68 to '75. Not even close. I am not familair with her work prior to Car Wheels, but everyone I know seems to think that's her masterpiece. It's a great album - don't get me wrong - but its not even in the same universe as Dylan's top 10 albums. To s

Thanks guys. That thing poured out of me this morning. I don't really know where it came from, but it was a bizarre and powerful experience. Means a lot to me that you liked it. Thanks again.

Yesterday I found a letter you wrote in a random drawer I never open. I was cleaning the apartment. But its not really cleaning, is it? When you move paper piles to other spots to deal with later? Which is probably why I found it when and where I did. It rained yesterday and I must have put it there the last time I cleaned on a rainy day. Assuming I

Haha, I suppose you are right. I may be overreacting, but I think the Phillies made some nice moves this offseason. I like Adam Eaton, and Freddy Garcia might have something left in the tank. Plus I think their two young stud players (Howard and Utley) are as good if not better than Reyes/Wright or Reyes/Beltran. All of that plus the Mets making no moves this offseason have me worried. But, you are right: Ya Gotta Believe.

When did everyone agree to start calling her Lu?

I suppose my point was that if universities were really so worried about students doing illegal things, then they would actually be monitoring things like fraternity parties much more often than they do. Students occasionally get caught (and yes, there are consequences), but I would bet there is underage drinking at virtually every fraternity party. I was never at a party in college where anyone was worried that the university officials were going to bust in. I don't blame the universities for doing this, nor do I blame the RIAA for trying to get other people to do their dirty work for the

I'll use a tortured analogy that I dont really agree with to play devil's advocate: Don't college students use university infrastructure (fraternity parties) to break the law (drink underage)? Sure, fraternities aren't quite university infrastructure, but they are part of the university experience; fraternities are governed by the universities at which they operate. Universities monitor parties on occasion, but they certainly don't do it with any sort of regularity. And underage drinking goes on at parties all the time. If colleges want to resort to a moral argument about their students

Hey! my post about neko case disappeared!! Was it inappropriate (and censored)? Or am I losing my mind?

Wow, thanks for that really awesome review. As an aside, I wonder how much input Jeff and the band really have with stuff like this. Its hard for me to imagine that the band would let something like this out, but then, I suppose the targeted audience may be casual listeners that want to play a song easily without being huge wilco dorks like we all are on here. I suppose viachicago has a way of warping my sense of reality when it comes to how many people listen to wilco and how many people want the tab for poor places in open C. (And yes, I love that we have poor places in open C on her

Do it. Thanks for posting the reviews solace... By the way, there was quite a bit of arguing over on brooklynvegan about the crowd at the show that I went to (the 14th) and it seemed that people thought the crowd was lame on both the 13th and 14th. As I mentioned in my review, Win was complaining that the crowd sucked too (i.e., wasn't loud enough). Solace, how were the crowds at your shows? any more comments from the stage?

when did neko case start posing for soft porn pics? yikes.

East: Phillies Central: Cardinals West: Padres WC: Mets East: Yanks Central: Twins West: Angels WC: Cleveland World Series: Mets vs Yanks Champs: Yanks Damn, I hate when it works out like that.

I suppose its a cliche at this point to rip on GnR, but are people expecting anything other than absolute trash?

God sat and when He stood there was the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. So the saying goes, but i am an alum so i can say it

Thanks for the reminder. I was at the show on the 14th.

for what it's worth, this is why i don't use oink. I know my fear of getting caught is completely unrealistic relative to the chances of my getting caught, but still, I can't stomach the risk. I definitely fall into the category of someone that would go buy the album when it got released so I am not the guy they should be targeting, but I feel like, with my luck, it'd be me on the front page of the local paper. Also, it seems silly to download something so i can hear it a month before it gets released to the public anyway. Hanging around these parts makes it much harder, tho (neon bible,

I suppose that makes more sense to me now. Oops.

that is some funny shit.

Wait, if Carols Mencia sucks, but he steals other people's jokes, why aren't we mad at the people who came up with those shitty jokes? If they had better jokes, Mencia would be funny. EDIT: ok, so that wasn't all that funny either.

While we wait for Beltmann's response, I'll jump in and say that I think I agree with the premise that a year-end critic list serves a different purpose depending on the audience: (i) for the die-hard fan, it spurs debate in bars and on message boards; and (ii) for the more casual fan, it serves as a road-map/cheat-sheet to music that he/she doesnt have the time to check out on his/her own. So, no, the purpose of criticism isn't to help people make up their mind. But these lists aren't really critiques, are they? And with the advent of the internet and the relative ease with which one ca

If perfect pitch and vocal range were the requirements for greatest singer in rock, then Mariah Carey would be in the finals. Dylan's voice has qualities to it that few other singers have. You either love those qualities or you don't. But no one else -- and I mean no one else -- could get the hair on my head to stand up singing Not Dark Yet or Sweetheart Like You or Visions of Johana. Dylan's voice has pain, anger, longing, etc. I know I am a biased fanboy, but his vocals are so much more complex to me than almost anyone else in rock. Ever. I dont think its crazy to say he's a great si