[contextly_auto_sidebar id="xANv3Jjm5ljwdEVoQbaPVK2EMGMYSFMx"] ONE of the most unexpectedly delightful records of the year is the new LP by psychedelic Brit Robyn Hitchcock. The former Soft Boy has been moving in a more romantic and understated direction lately, but the album -- produced by Joe Boyd, known for his work with Britfolk gods and R.E.M. -- took me by surprise. It's a low-key … [Read more...]
Archives for September 2014
James Ellroy: The Demon Dog is Back
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="J9S6BFoEKctFIUF9sCOFryBh5uvOWyC0"] AFTER completing his Underworld U.S.A. Trilogy and writing a memoir about his often tortured relationships with women, crime writer James Ellroy is back with a new quartet of novels that will serve as a prequel to his Los Angeles Quartet -- the four great novels that include L.A. Confidential. A few days ago, I hung out with … [Read more...]
An LA Novelist Pleads With Amazon
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="2X67n54jvsskEeTyvZeL9ZzPV0yO4y6x"] JANET Fitch, a friend whose writing I admire, has written an open letter to Jeff Bezos of Amazon about what the online bookseller is doing to the literary trade and the the nation's "intellectual life." Amazon's dominance means its decisions matter, she writes: "I'd like this profession of author to remain a possibility for young … [Read more...]
Alex Ross on the Physicality of Music
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="exXEgyg9vY0GhSt0xuo4Eqn9fO25Opza"] THE New Yorker's classical music critic is one of the least stodgy and most forward-looking of writers; he got in on blogging early and thinks classical music and digital technology are natural allies. But even he has reservations about the disappearance of records and CDs into the cloud. His new piece, about "The pleasures and … [Read more...]
An Interview with the Allah-Las
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="lc08pyxv3eSerUA4sZEPFYeA0ka8ZMiw"] ONE of the best bands going these days is an LA group who met at Amoeba Music on Sunset. Their records sound like lost tracks from the West Coast garage collection Nuggets. And unlike a lot of revivalists, these guys can put it across live and make the music sound not retro but somehow timeless. Your humble blogger corresponded … [Read more...]
David Lowery: The Internet is a Cargo Cult
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="6UAzCSm7AdyfFjCMRPoo70IpwVaaVVHl"] TODAY your humble blogger speaks to the musicians' rights advocate and gets into some new territory -- not just the way music streaming hurts artists, but the US government's complicity in the current mess, the feckless Department of Justice, and the irrational way people view the Internet in general. Here's Lowery in my Salon … [Read more...]