Category: Uncategorized

July 16

Week 427: “One More” by Cymande

Bands get discovered in a lot of different ways; auditions, word-of-mouth, demo tapes. But music…

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July 9

Week 426: “Girls in June” by Dirty Art Club

One of the sad secrets of adulthood is that it’s hard to meet people. Once…

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July 2

Week 425: “Beautiful Love” by Nels Cline

“Beautiful Love” is another one of those 1930s standards that every jazz great has recorded…

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June 25

Week 424: “Le Depart (version acoustique)” by L’Imperatrice

There are three things I remember about going off to my first summer job as…

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June 18

Week 423: Passepied (Debussy) by Punch Brothers

Despite being contemporaries, Debussy and Tchaikovsky were different in many ways. Tchaikovsky, older by 22…

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June 11

Week 422: “Homesickness, part 2” by Emahoy Tsegue-Maryam Gebrou

Emahoy Tseque-Maryam Gebrou has led quite a life. To be fair, most people who live…

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June 4

Week 421: “Pater Noster” by Peteris Vasks

As well as being home to composer Peteris Vasks, Latvia is home to a waterfall…

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May 28

Week 420: “Ezra Was Right” by Grandbrothers

Pianos are miracles of musical engineering. Each one is a miniature wooden cathedral, filled with…

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May 21

Week 419: “Poses” by Rufus Wainwright

It’s a truism that fame doesn’t bring happiness, but it’s a tricky topic for songwriters…

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May 14

Week 418: “Same Dream China” by Gold Panda

Here’s a strange fact for you to start your week with: there’s a good chance…

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May 7

Week 417: “Night Song” by Steve Davit

The spring before I turned 21, I worked the night shift in a bank mailing…

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April 30

Week 416: “Lydia” by The Magic Lantern

This blog spends a lot of time discussing beauty, but rarely in the context of…

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April 23

Week 415: “Dirty Old Bossa Nova” by The Howard Roberts Quartet

Quick quiz: It’s Friday night. You’re getting ready to go out. What song do you…

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April 16

Week 414: “Graffiti On A Tuesday Night” by Neat Beats

Alvin Fenner’s stage name “Neat Beats” feels self-deprecating almost to the point of being comical.…

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April 9

Week 413: “Quand Vas Tu Rentrer?” by Melody’s Echo Chamber

On the last day of May 2017, Melody Prochet tweeted excitedly about her upcoming US…

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April 2

Week 412: “Lament” by Neil Cowley Trio

It’s rare that we are lucky enough, or aware enough, or perceptive enough, to recognize…

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March 26

Week 411: “Cut Up Piano & Xylophone” by Fridge

A fridge can tell you a lot about the household it inhabits. If you were…

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March 19

Week 410: “Twice” by Little Dragon

Surprising fact: the oldest form of puppetry is one that doesn’t involve puppets. Well, kind…

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March 12

Week 409: “Wind” by Jamison Isaak

Many people assume that working from home is absolute bliss. Make your own schedule. Work…

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March 5

Week 408: “Can’t Run But” by Paul Simon

By the late 1980s, Paul Simon had every reason to sit back, relax, and stop…

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