Lovelorn and loving it: Destroyer and Sam Smith

Destroyer – Ken Whatever else, Dan Bejar has perfected this shit: an incongruous mishmash of early eighties Cure synth pads and Dan Fogelberg daintiness filtered through a profoundly unlikable voice. The result? The most unsettling adult contemporary album in modern history; the only album by a major player I can think of that strives for

Worst Songs Ever: Lenny Kravitz’s “Fly Away”

Like a good single, a terrible one reveals itself with airplay and forbearance. I don’t want to hate songs; to do so would shake ever-sensitive follicles, and styling gel is expensive. I promise my readers that my list will when possible eschew obvious selections. Songs beloved by colleagues and songs to which I’m supposed to

This is why the GOP sticks by Trump

Buried in the Washington Post’s letter section is this reasonable little missive: I calculated the impact of the Republican Senate and House tax “reform” bills based on my 2016 income tax return and found that my wife’s and my tax liability would rise by 26 percent for 2017 over last year based on the elimination

Worst Songs Ever: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s “Almost Cut My Hair”

Like a good single, a terrible one reveals itself with airplay and forbearance. I don’t want to hate songs; to do so would shake ever-sensitive follicles, and styling gel is expensive. I promise my readers that my list will when possible eschew obvious selections. Songs beloved by colleagues and songs to which I’m supposed to

The best films of 1932

I wish I’d seen Me and My Gal, starring Joan Bennett and Spencer Tracy and directed by Raoul Walsh, which reading about has made the craving worse. 1. Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch) 2. Boudu Saved from Drowning (Jean Renoir) 3. Scarface (Howard Hawks) 4. Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg) 5. I Was Born, But…

Objectivity isn’t a suspension of judgment

Saturday’s NYT profile about an American Nazi who loves cookies and shopping at Target or whatever has inspired unusual, deserved resistance, and it underscores a tendency I see in journalism programs. We teach students objectivity, too often confused with lacking a point of view. Objectivity I regard as a limited kind of omniscience: the camera

Worst Songs Ever: The Cranberries’ “Zombie”

Like a good single, a terrible one reveals itself with airplay and forbearance. I don’t want to hate songs; to do so would shake ever-sensitive follicles, and styling gel is expensive. I promise my readers that my list will when possible eschew obvious selections. Songs beloved by colleagues and songs to which I’m supposed to

Worst Songs Ever: Spandau Ballet’s “True”

Like a good single, a terrible one reveals itself with airplay and forbearance. I don’t want to hate songs; to do so would shake ever-sensitive follicles, and styling gel is expensive. I promise my readers that my list will when possible eschew obvious selections. Songs beloved by colleagues and songs to which I’m supposed to

Singles 11/24

The week’s biggest singles boasted three superb female rap performances. Long may they, etc. Click on links for full reviews. Migos ft. Nicki Minaj & Cardi B – Motor Sport (7) Nadia Rose – Big Woman (7) SZA – The Weekend (6) Eminem ft. Beyoncé – Walk on Water (4) Selena Gomez x Marshmello –

Ask somebody how we flip the script: The best of A Tribe Called Quest

I wasn’t the first youngster for whom Q-Tip’s warm squirrelly burr was my introduction to hip hop. Few musicians give the impression that listening to a record is the aural equivalent of kicking it with a bro you don’t see often enough than Q-Tip does. And We Got It from Here… Thank You 4 Your

‘We’re committed to eating here every day…’

An example of what Reader’s Digest devotees would call life in these United States: In 2015, shortly after they got married, the Gartons purchased a “never ending pasta pass” from Olive Garden. The $100 pass allows customers to have unlimited pasta and Coca-Cola soft drinks at their local Olive Garden for a limited time. “We

Worst Songs Ever: Rod Stewart’s “Hot Legs”

Rod Stewart’s “Hot Legs” PEAK CHART POSITION: #28 in April 1978. I know readers will look at today’s choice and think, “Wha? Why not ‘Love Touch’ or ‘All for Love’ or ‘Do Ya Think I’m Sexy’?” Well, the Legal Eagles soundtrack hit is silly froth, while “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” works as decent rock-disco