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Good Taste in Bad Music — The Nineties

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I’ve noticed a theme in my writings for the Sun thus far this year. And it goes a little something like this (which, by the way, is a line from an Aaron Carter song): ahhhhhhhhhhhh! Holy f-ing shit! I have to join the real world so soon! Ahhhhhhh! Etc., etc., many exclamation points … you get the drill. I have decided the best way to deal with this is just not to think about it, as you might have gathered from how much I have done about applying to jobs and grad school, or studying for the GREs. Hint: it rhymes with hero. And it’s like the opposite of a hero. And I’m pretty sure that’s a line from Disney’s version of Hercules. Many inadvertent and ridiculous song references today. Odd.

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I Predict a Riot!

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Hey music lovers! Swine flu got you down? Never fear! We’ve got just the thing for you: Indie dance-rock maestros Ra Ra Riot, in concert at Castaways tonight at 9 p.m.! (Side effects may include head-bobbing, foot-tapping, uncontrollable laughing and crazy dancing. In some cases, these side effects may be severe. Please contact a medical professional for a foot-tap lasting more than four hours.) (Swine flu not included.)

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Fall's Biggest Jam Fest: The Positive Jam

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Some of you may remember my column last Friday when I waxed eloquent about the myriad of musical big-wigs who are en route to our humble town. You may also recall that included in that extra-ordinary line-up were two bands known respectively as The Hold Steady and Deer Tick, and that I gave a shout out to man-of-the-hour Dan Smalls, founder of Dan Smalls Presents, Inc. Well, this weekend, Dan Small Presents … the Positive Jam. Drawing a blank? Please, allow me to explain.

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Where to Rock Like You're on a Boat

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Hey-o spaghetti-o’s!! Welcome back! Or just welcome! Hope everyone enjoyed their summers and is now enjoying the second day of classes. Hope everyone listened to some super rockin’ music. Hope the freshmen have figured out how to get from North Campus to Mann Library (hint: it’s not as long a walk as you think) and that the sophomores haven’t collapsed getting up Libe Slope (hint: umm …. I got nothing, it just sucks) and that the juniors have as yet avoided heinous noise violations, which unfortunately cannot be said for the house across the street from me. Or perhaps fortunately considering the lack of actually falling asleep that went down in my room the last two nights.

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Music and the Mind: Why Listening is the Greatest

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Happy Slope Day Cornellians! I hope at least a few of you are still sober enough to read the Sun. And I hope that the actual sun is shining. Today is a more than usually auspicious day for my usually oh-so-humble column.
Why, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. The reasons are twofold. First, today, as you may know, is Slope Day. It is a day about music. Sort of. And admittedly less so this year than usual. (Though T.I.’s fake gunshots may have been pushing it as well.)

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From Indie Pop to Classic Rock: Summer Listening Assignments

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Last week, I did an unprecedented thing. I changed, for the first time in almost two years, the music on my iPod. I realize that this is a sad confession for a music columnist to have to make, but I blame it entirely on laziness. I even blame my reason for finally changing the tunes on laziness. I was procrastinating. As usual.

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Fanclub's Fantastic Five

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Buenos dias, Cornell peeps! Well. It has been a rather epic weekend for the arts on our campus far above Cayuga’s waters. Cornell designers wowed audiences at Once Upon a Runway, and Girl Talk presided over a massive dance party in Barton Hall (I, unfortunately, could not attend, but I hope ya’ll got to shake your groove things). However, there was another show this weekend that maybe many of you were not aware of — which is your loss, because the Fanclub Collective made a little bit of history Saturday night. I’m talking five bands for five bucks kind of history. What now, brown cow?

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Music Update: Funky Folk and Fanclub Collective

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My friends, I have done a bad thing. A super-confidential secret music source sent me the tracks from the new Akron/Family album, set to be released May 5, 2009, and I couldn’t help it — I listened. Forgive me Father, etc., etc.
Now that I have confessed, allow me to offer you some friendly advice. On May 5th, buy this album. Put in on your imagination pod. Play it over and over. You will like it (or I’ll know why). If at first you don’t succeed (in liking it, that is) try, try again.

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Branching Out To Mr. Casanova

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Hello Cornellians — the few of you who are still lingering in the corners of campus, clutching Daily Suns and awaiting the burning of the Dragon while all your friends fly for warmer climes. I hope you are doing well. And that you are being artsy. I had quite an artsy week this week. First, I got all my music back! External hard drive: working. 70 gigs: accessible once more. Then on Sunday, I spent two hours wandering the Johnson Museum, from where I headed directly to Barnes Hall for the iO String Quartet concert (the seven or eight of you who regularly read the Arts section may have seen my review on Monday — the concert was amazing!). I also saw one of the best worst movies I’ve ever seen. And I got into some awesome new music.