Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 10/25: John Williams & the Vienna Philharmonic: “Imperial March (from ‘Star Wars’)”
I suppose the fact that fascists have an underdeveloped sense of humor isn’t news, but it still drew media attention when a protester in Washington DC proved it. Sam O’Hara, 35, was detained by police when a member of the Ohio National Guard got pissed off about his form of protest, and he’s filed a […]
Song of the Day 10/24: The Who, “You Better You Bet”
The betting scandal involving a National Basketball Association player is about as surprising as the location of this morning’s sunrise, and most people have been quick to blame it on the cozy relationship between pro sports and legalized gambling. The problem with that conclusion: Gambling, legal or not, has always been a part of sports. […]
Song of the Day 10/23: Rush, “The Spirit of the Radio”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona Geddy Lee has spent more than 50 years behind a microphone and bass guitar with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band Rush, pride of Canada. But he’s also logged many hours in a seat behind home plate at Toronto Blue Jays baseball games, where he’s a season ticket holder. […]
Song of the Day 10/22: Ryan Adams, “Breakdown”
Ryan Adams, the prolific singer-songwriter and producer whose career was derailed by a #metoo scandal in the Before Times, has long been notorious for odd behavior in concerts – aborting songs halfway through, playing entire shows with his back to the audience, berating hecklers – but his recent tour Down Under has brought on another […]
Song of the Day 10/21: Dropkick Murphys, “Smash Shit Up”
The metaphors for Donald Trump’s destruction of the United States are getting a little too obvious, aren’t they? First he releases a video of himself flying a jet and dumping shit on Americans – quite a stretch of the truth considering there’s no evidence he even knows how to drive a car – and now he’s […]
Song of the Day 10/20: Prefab Sprout, “The Best Jewel Thief in the World”
Officials called yesterday’s broad-daylight robbery at the Louvre a professional job, but the bandits certainly aren’t the best jewel thieves in the world, or they wouldn’t have dropped a couple of the priceless artifacts on their way out. I visited that gallery last year, so I recognized the pieces of 19th-century jewelry they stole. Prefab […]
Song of the Day 10/19: The Offspring, “The Kids Aren’t Alright”
The “young” Republicans – mostly a bunch of chubby mooks in their 30s – revealed themselves as a bunch of wannabe Nazis, crystallizing the reality that demographics won’t save democracy. Offspring’s “The Kids Aren’t Alright,” sort of an answer song to the Who 30-plus years later, was written by frontman Dexter Holland after a visit […]
Song of the Day 10/17: Kiss, “New York Groove”
Ace Frehley, the original guitarist for Kiss, died yesterday at age 74, after suffering a brain bleed in a fall last month at his home recording studio. In a band known mainly for posturing and pyrotechnics, Frehley, a self-taught guitarist whose stage persona was the Spaceman, brought a measure of technical proficiency, even if his […]
Song of the Day 10/16: Sonic Youth, “Youth Against Fascism”
The fascists running the country now think it’s OK to proclaim their love of Hitler and the Nazis, as evidenced by the reaction of JD Vance to the exposed group chat among the Young Republicans. His claim that it was no big deal is the best possible way for him to say “I’ve said the […]
Song of the Day 10/15: Blood, Sweat & Tears, “Go Down Gamblin’”
It just might be that Trump and his MAGA movement aren’t as popular as the mainstream media would have you believe, because a lot of those clicks are from people who hate Trump rather than love him. The latest evidence comes in the form of a Trump specialty, bankruptcy, in this case of Dr. Phil […]
Song of the Day 10/14: Pulp, “Common People”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona Jarvis Cocker of the British band Pulp was once at a party when a posh girl asked him how to “live like common people do.” He felt a little insulted by the patronizing, but he got a tune called “Common People” out of it. It turned out to be the […]
Song of the Day 10/13: Curtis Mayfield, “We Got to Have Peace”
Give credit where it’s due: Donald Trump has managed to stop the slaughter in Gaza, at least temporarily, and because of his relationships with both Gulf princes and Netanyahu he’s probably the only one who could have pulled it off. Josh Marshall made this point last week: The key here is Trump’s extremely close relationships […]
Song of the Day 10/12: Paul McCartney, “We All Stand Together (The Frog Song)”
Everyone by now knows the story of the Portland Frog, who mocked the “war zone” narrative of Fox News and Trump’s Melting Brain by protesting in an inflatable frog costume, and got pepper-sprayed for his trouble. What you might not realize is that he’s spawned a group of imitators. So don’t be surprised if you […]
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