Comments

Comparing Tillman to Wallace is weak. Not even similar concerns, writing styles, or sense of humors. Tillman's lyrics wilt in comparison to DFW. Just let it be its own thing, please.
Uh, a tragedy that they were a part of and survived? I don't buy it.
"Lake Song" is a gem. Undecided about the rest, definitely not taking to it like some of their past work. Sounds like it has too much Mumford & Sons bombast and too little Decemberists charm.
Shout out to 'Into The Music.' Perhaps not his "masterpiece," but an incredibly fun Van Morrison record.
Haven't listened to the lyrics that carefully yet, but I'm pretty sure it's a reference to the "Fresh Pond Cinema" in Cambridge.
Yes, the labels weren't forced into this, of course there's no disagreement there. The current version of the record store though? That is not correct. The distribution is not the same. The labels aren't selling product to Spotify which it turn sells it to the audience. Spotify is selling the Spotify product to the audience, turning around and sharing it with the labels. It's a different dynamic. It's also a dynamic generating less revenue than the record store model, and probably cannibalizing sales revenue. Like the Internet in general, it's a value black hole. "When nobody is willing to buy music any more, whoever builds the biggest streaming service will be king." And we will value the tech king more than the artists and labels, I suppose.
Spotify is taking 30% of value from artists and labels, is another way to look at it. It's not like Spotify is being generous by returning 70% of revenue to rights holders. Spotify is not generating their own value besides creating the architecture for a streaming service (which by the way, they're riding the coattails of Facebook for user accounts). They do not create (significant) content or value. Of course, album sales have been declining before Spotify got in the game. I'm not really able to crunch the numbers to say if Spotify has accelerated the decline for sales for artists and labels and rights holders, but I very much doubt that Spotify revenues are more than the expected sales revenue. Artists and labels should be fighting for better deals or better venues to distribute their music. Why should fans care about a bunch of techies in Sweden looking for their cut?
I demand more militant-ism, of all kinds.
Don't know if this is worth pointing out, but the "Boston" show is actually a "Mansfield" show... 40 miles South of Boston.
" Arcade Fire have been huge public advocates of aid to Haiti, but their decision to incorporate bits of Haitian music, leaves them very open to the sorts of cultural-appropriation charges that once dogged Vampire Weekend" Yeah, this is some weird strawman disclaimer. It doesn't need to be acknowledged, this isn't Paul Simon breaking apartheid here.
Like many Radiohead records, it sounds like the cover art. I think this is pretty underrated though. I'm perfectly happy about it not being fussed over.
At least Era Vulgaris had "Turnin' On The Screw." Now that's a sexy song.
Wait, people are going to dislike Bourgeois?
Hey, thanks for this. I'll see about catching these guys at Great Scott.
Some days I can convince myself that Transference is Spoon's best album. It has that whole 'ghost in the machine' feel on headphones, it's such a weird deconstructed ambiance. It's similar to Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga in that way, except they're not capturing the "studio," they're creating the attic in your mind that you're vaguely aware of. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga and Kill The Moonlight are probably better, but how dare you speak ill of Transference!
Very informative list. Thanks for the work. I think you'll find less argument over it, because how many people have listened to his entire discography?