Can you promise me something? It’s not huge, I swear. It will barely even take ten minutes of your life. Do you want to know what it is, before you promise? Okay, I can do that. More »« Less

On Wednesday the New York Times posted this great fashion slide show, partially in homage to Mad Men.

It’s fabulous through and through, and photographer Douglas Friedman paid great attention to detail– the supersaturated colors, typesetting (aka fonts chosen), and even a photoshopped faux-magazine texture all really mimic contemporaneous ads. I love the colors of the clothes (green gingham!) and the expressions on the model’s face.

The most glaring difference between then and now, at least to me, was how ripped the model looks in the last ad. Models and movie stars in the 1950s and 1960s simply did not have six packs that (over)developed.

For example, check out this low-quality screen shot of William Holden in Sunset Boulevard: More »« Less

I know posting a clip from the Daily Show is pretty much just phoning it in, but this video is absolute gold:

“Fox News commentator” and “Republican Strategist” Noelle Nikpour does an amazing job of persistently digging herself into a deep, deep hole. Did you know that there are Twelve Days of Hanukkah? Shine on, you crazy diamond.

O Tannenbaum

I love Christmas music with all of my heart, and had a big expansive post about it planned for you. However, Christmas came early to my face this year, and my sinus infection is making it difficult for me to sit at the computer for any length of time. So instead, I present to you, with minimal no commentary (and even less graphical effort), 10 Great Christmas Songs of Varying Quality: More »« Less

The Minor Leagues live, 11/14/2009

Ben over at Almost Four Stars was kind enough to post my ten song end of year roundup on Wednesday. Since that’s taken care of, here are my top six favorite live shows of 2009, listed in chronological order:

• February 9th: The Pretenders at the Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor, MI
  Holy shit, Chrissie Hynde can still rock the fuck out.
• March 31st: Morrissey at the Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor, MI
  He came out wearing a tuxedo and I almost fainted on the spot. I felt an electrical charge just from being in the same room as Morrissey. I don’t even know if I can describe what it was like to be sitting in the front row/center of the balcony, in the same theater where I’ve seen The Maltese Falcon and Sunset Boulevard, and see someone that I’ve spent countless hours staring at (photos, videos, youtube, books, dreams) standing in front of me, breathing the same air as me, whipping a microphone cord around. I feel so, so, so lucky that I could see him live in my lifetime.


Moz live in Columbus

• April 1st: Morrissey at the Palace Theatre, Columbus, OH
  This time I went with Hilly and Ben (met them halfway), and Shiv and Stacey were also there. Supremely magical. I won’t tell you which one of us cried, because you wouldn’t believe it. I wish I could carry this night forever in one of my cheek pouches, like a squirrel.


Exene Cervenka

• June 17th: X at the Magic Stick, Detroit, MI
  Went with Jen and Gabe, two of the greatest friends a girl could have. It was supposed to be in the Majestic, which is huge, but there were few enough tickets sold that it was bumped to the Magic Stick, which is tiny. The stage is basically six inches off the floor. I was standing eighteen inches from Exene, and if I hadn’t been busy being jostled by every asshole punk boy in a 60 miles radius, I might have tried to kiss the hem of her garment. In love forever.
• July 20th: Future of the Left at the Southgate House, Cincinnati, KY
  Probably my least favorite of these shows, but I’m super glad I got to see FOLT live. LIVING LEGENDS.
• November 14th: The Minor Leagues at Mayday, Cincinnati, OH
  Smooshed right up against the stage with a handful of my favorite humans. Danced my ass off (I was sticky to the touch after, and my clothes were soaked through with sweat), screamed along to every word, and basically felt like my soul was aflame with refulgent splendor. You should consider seeing them live, if you get a chance.

And finally, a roundup of what I was listening to in 2009 that wasn’t new in 2009, but was new to me (or at least, in newly-heavy rotation): Scott Walker, Jacques Brel, The Wizard of Oz soundtrack, the Let the Right One In soundtrack, a lot of early Elvis, the Cocteau Twins (especially “Lorelei”), Margaret Leng Tan, Moondog, Sia, Young Marble Giants, Jo Stafford, Au Pairs, the 2008 Brideshead Revisited soundtrack, X, Emitt Rhodes, and Kronos Quarter Performs Philip Glass, to name the most prevalent. Phew. On to 2010!