Odds & Ends as of Late

Nothing super important to report lately, just a few loose ends to tie or just mention, really.

Firstly, I just saw this on Pitchfork. The Kinks are releasing a box set entitled Picture Book on December 8th this year. It's 6 discs plus a 60-page booklet containing pictures, timelines, bios, etc. Looks pretty sweet, if you ask me. Though, I really don't want to see the price tag on that sucker. I think I'll just mop up the drool on my laptop and move on.

Secondly, it appears that the Fray are releasing their sophomore album, The Fray, Feb. 3rd, 2009. Why do I mention this? I was marveling at the fact that I don't really care, if that makes any sense at all. Recently it came to my attention that I didn't buy many albums this year and the reason is that I usually don't invest in a disc unless I think I might follow the band or singer in the future. Buying the kinds of albums that have less shelf life than a jug of milk only bolsters the record collection on a superficial level. Total waste of time and iPod space. When How to Save a Life came out in 2005, everybody bought it. They were plastered all over the place but when the hype died down, how many people continued to care? I sort of forgot they existed.

Thirdly, Stephen Colbert is releasing an accompanying Christmas album with his television special. I smell a new holiday favorite at the Musically Inclined.

Fourthly, I'm wondering why I haven't gotten into John Legend before. Both "Green Light" and Legend are about six kinds of cool. Happily, Legend will be on Colbert's special this Sunday.

Fifthly, is that a word? If not, it is now. The Killer's album comes out on the 25th. I'll buy it, but for some reason I'm preparing to be underwhelmed. We'll see.

Happy Friday

The Grammys Were...

After several years of sheer suckiness, the 2008 Grammys pretty much fell right in line with its predecessors. Awards shows are hard to take but the prospect of a gathering of so many artists can be tantalizing enough to make me keep hopelessly tuning in. It's gotten to the point where it feels like some unattainable dream, seeing power performances for free, one right after another without idiotic speeches and mind-numbing banter in between. Here's how it went down.

THE GOOD

YAY! FOR WINO: Despite an irony laden performance of "Rehab," Amy Winehouse sounded pretty good and hers was one of the few performances of the night that actually lived up to the hype.

TINA REMINDS US SHE'S BETTER THAN BEYONCE: No contest there, kids. A logical pairing but in the end...Turner is a powerhouse. Points for being able to move it like that at 68. There are 40 year olds who would not have survived the song.

ROCK GODS JOIN THE MORTALS: Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and John Fogerty brought a bit of clout to the show which hardly had any of the old guard present to show all these young'uns how it's done. Where was Chuck Berry?!

RHAPSODY IN BLUE: So excellent...but Herbie Hancock's win? Who saw that coming? Admittedly, I was rooting for Amy WInehouse. The more I think about it, the more I think she got robbed.

THE BAD

ANYTHING KANYE: The man is a walking ego trip-- scratch that--walking, glowing, ego trip. All swipes directed at West were well received here at TMI.

MAYER AND LEGEND GET SHAFTED: In possibly the most thankless roles in Grammy history, John Mayer played for all of 30 seconds at the end of "No One" and John Legend accompanied the(at best) mildly talented Fergie. What a waste.

THE BEATLES GET SHAFTED: 40 years after Sgt. Pepper and we've got circus freaks and a performance of a song off an album that wasn't supposed to be released in the first place? It would seem that if the Grammy people could get Ringo to show up, they'd ask him to perform because, you know...that would have been AWESOME and potentially redemptive.

ARETHA WON'T SHUT UP: Yes, she's super talented. Yes, there is such a thing as "too much of a good thing." No, a choir is not the most original concept executed at the Grammys

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS: So, here we have some of the greatest musicians to grace the planet and all we can afford them is a name mention and a five second montage. Can you feel the love?

WHO THE %$^%$# IS ELDAR?: I half expected a hobbit to traipse out on to the stage and sit at the piano. Oh, the levity...and lack of last name, apparently.

Good grief, I'm done. Stay tuned for a Sleep Through the Static review coming your way hopefully within the week.