Turquoise Jeep’s short film/Kanye homage. It’s incredible.
Neil Gaiman gives a commencement speech. He’s the best.
So eMusic (which I write for) is doing these “Sound Minds” blogger/journalist panels. This is the first I’ve watched, and it addresses an important question: are bands being rushed into success? The answer is “absolutely,” but I think everyone but the bands are to blame. Which is not to say they’re not responsible for their actions, but if you have an opportunity to, say, play SNL or headline Bowery Ballroom off the strength of a blog single, you’re not going to say no. And given the speed of current trends, you’d be foolish to. (Ms. Del Rey herself can be partially blamed for not being prepared and credited for making a rapid course correction on Letterman.)
But look at someone like Kitty Pryde. She’s released a handful of promising but clearly amateurish tracks and within 48 hours of releasing a single YouTube video, she’s a media darling. Blogs caught a whiff of buzz, real or imagined, and rushed to it like sharks chasing blood: now she has an outsize media presence that correlates with neither her experience/talent level (no offense!) nor her actual audience. I mentioned before that she’s the first viral star to not actually go viral: jury’s still out.
Kitty will probably turn out fine, but there’s a moral component to this: 1) that blogs/sites are in effect inaccurate at best and lying at worst by positioning her as a viral star/rising rapper to boost their own tastemaking/temperature-taking credibility and 2) she’s essentially a newborn puppy being thrown out into the woods, rather than being gently led at a pace that will result in better things for everyone involved. Even the Backstreet Boys were a band for years before they became instant bubblegum stars.
On the other hand, the old system — where indie bands toured forever and maybe found a following and sold enough records to get by — was hardly optimal. The best of both worlds is the arc of bands like the National, who were able to be a band without attention for long enough to be prepared and great by the time people started noticing. But they were also stable, wealthy adults who could devote the energy to that without a timeline.
(Discussing this in terms of major label acts is a different animal: the trend there seems more in line with delaying albums, trying to find a single, industry showcases and generally babying artists or being less willing to take a chance on them than indie acts who are largely at the arbitrary mercy of a Best New Music/Track rating.)
I don’t think bands are being victimized by the current process, but they are being exploited. To some degree, they’re losing control of their careers instead of mapping them out stage by stage — one can see why Beach House or Arcade Fire keep such a tight grasp on what happens to their music, though I’d argue those bands’ choices are old-fashioned, even extreme. It would behoove everyone, listeners included, to turn the hype volume down and try to actually absorb music on its own terms instead of using exaggerated opinions on it as a wedge for pageviews or cred.
Related: I wish this video was 10 minutes longer. Hi, Amrit!
“This isn’t a car.”
1) If Carly Rae’s enthusiasm was bird flu, half the Internet would be in the hospital right now.
2) It’s gratifying to hear the song work as a song, no tricks, no Auto-Tune.
3) The generic Converse-wearing emo/indie kids who always back Carly, Taylor Swift and other MOR young pop artists are an interesting trend — one which demonstrates how the lifestyle image has surpassed the music as a signifier.
4) Can I buy this version on Amazon yet?
Oh my God how is this real
A radiant sunbeam direct to my heart.
Put This On Season Two, Episode 2: Eclecticism
Put This On, a web series about dressing like a grownup, visits New York City, where eclectic style is a way of life.
We go thrifting with Josh and Trav from the blog Street Etiquette. They’re known for their thrift-store eyes and their unique editorials. We drop some shopping and alteration knowledge and have a friendly competition: who can pick up the coolest stuff in three shops and two hours?
Visit Jay Kos, the eclectic boutique that fuses traditional style with a decidedly non-traditional palette. It’s a favorite of modern dandies because of Jay’s bold color sense and wild material choices. Here you can find traditionally-made trousers in green python or a fine Italian sportcoat rendered in a blown-up flannel shirting pattern.
Meet Lewis Lapham, the found of Lapham’s Quarterly and longtime editor of Harper’s Magazine. Lapham discusses why fine clothes suit the humble journalist, and compares a coat and tie to the pair of gold coins Flaubert carried in his pocket - they lend the bearer a sense of weight.
In our How It’s Made segment, we learn what’s inside your jacket. Tailor Leonard Logsdail tears open a few coats to show us their guts and compares the construction of pieces at a variety of price points.
Plus, the return of Rudiments with new host Dave Hill. Dave explains that a coat isn’t finished until it has been altered by a tailor.
This is the second episode in our six-episode second season. In this season, we visit the three greatest men’s style cities in the world, as chosen by our readers - New York, Milan and London.
It’s been a real pleasure this season to watch Put This On grow into itself — the first two episodes of S2 are sharp and broadly compelling but also full of details and clever tips. The thrifting section of this episode is really amazing. (Full disclosure: I gave them money on Kickstarter.)
Tavi forever
Oh, Charli. Seeing her come off so normal in this interview was sort of shocking. Before this I had only seen her in press shots and the terrific video for “Nuclear Seasons” where she always looks otherworldly. The fact that she’s so down to earth definitely makes me like her even more. Can’t wait for that album.
Yes. I love how she talks about music in terms of color. What a relief when the musicians you like seem like they’re charming and human.
