TODAY this blog and its followers celebrate st. patrick's day, a holiday a lot of upper-middle-class people -- including many educated irish-americans -- scorn. slate ran its usual spoilsport/ contrarian piece pointing out that patrick himself didnt rid the country of snakes and wasnt even irish.i've read this story (which is quite well executed) ever year, and still love st. patrick's. i say this … [Read more...]
Archives for 2009
Wagner’s Ring Cycle vs. The Gods
ON wednesday night -- that's wotan's day to those of you who speak norse -- i caught "das rheingold," the los angeles opera's take on the first of wagner's ring cycle. it's directed by the avant-german achim freyer and has received quite mixed reviews in my circle. i found it intriguing in parts, hard to fathom in others; my former colleague mark swed mostly admired the production, here. and my … [Read more...]
Pinot Noir: California vs. Burgundy
VERY fine NYT piece today on a new trend in california pinots: a backing away from the power of the fruit bomb that has defined the regional style and toward the finesse and elegance of a burgundian style pinot. eric asimov, who wrote the story, here, is one of my favorite chroniclers of the vine, and he has the perfect blog voice -- he's a serious but somehow casual drinker, and there is no bs … [Read more...]
Michael Chabon, Genre and Literary Criticism
READERS of this blog probably need no urging on what a fine novelist michael chabon is -- and i direct anyone who doubts over to "kavalier and clay" or a number of his other excellent works of fiction.but literary criticism, even by as esteemed a talent as mr. chabon, tends to fly under the radar, and that's why it gives me great pleasure to highlight his essay/criticism collection "maps and … [Read more...]
Lambchop vs. Radar Bros at Club Largo
LAST night i saw radar bros. open for lambchop at club largo, the legendary (and newly relocated) venue that helped establish acts like aimee mann, grant lee phillips, master of ceremonies jon brion, and a whole wave of alternative comedy acts that i dont know as well. the old fairfax location, across from canter's deli, was a place you could, if you got the word in time, count on catching a … [Read more...]
Lang Lang vs. Vienna Philharmonic
THE other night i took a break from watching robert downey jr. in "iron man," which has a party scene in which downey and a cuter than usual gwyneth paltrow nearly begin making out on the balcony of walt disney concert hall, to run to disney hall myself for a concert by the vienna philharmonic. it was nearly as star-studded a crowd as the movie's scene (though i'm still trying to figure out what … [Read more...]
Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss
TODAY i'm wishing a happy 105th to one of the greatest writers this country has known, and one i've come to appreciate more as i've revisited him for the sake of my son. (i only regret that the good doctor did not have the good fortune to be born an aquarius.) there are many wonderful authors for little kids -- lucy cousins, eric carle, byron barton, ezra jack keats -- but for an adult who loves … [Read more...]
Eagle Rock and Bourgeois Bohemia Imperiled
ON a crisp winter day, with snow glinting on the san gabriel mountains, air cleansed by a recent rain, and mighty oak trees looming over the quiet streets above colorado blvd, eagle rock can seem like the kind of place '60s bands used to write songs about. but these days, people aren't singing -- or if they are, it's in a bittersweet key.over the last few years northeast LA has become a kind of … [Read more...]
Scott Walker: Icon of Obscurity
NOW HERE is a guy who made nick drake look gregarious. back in the 60s, scott walker was part of british boy band the walker brothers -- the most popular group, in their day, you've never heard of. but it's the moody, heavily orchestrated records he made after leaving the trio that made him a huge influence on everyone from david bowie to brian eno to laurie anderson and jarvis cocker. my story, … [Read more...]
Retro Rock Posters and The Small Stakes
OVER the last few year i've been turned on to a new wave of poster design that relies on '40s book jackets, minimalism and mid-century fonts for its effects. much of this stuff is rock posters, even though the visual language comes almost entirely outside rock n roll. i'll take it over the psychedelic nightmare of the fillmore school or the robert-williams blazing-eyeball-on-a-hotrod school -- any … [Read more...]