Musings on music, memories, and madness
2018 was an interesting year for music. It was like a mid-level playoff team – excellent depth throughout but few truly stand-out performers. There were quite a number of good releases to include on a best-of list, most of which I would classify as simply solid, but the few top tier albums were truly outstanding. I don’t like assigning absolute rankings (i.e., #1, #2, etc.), so I broke it down into the following salient categories:
Continue reading “2018 Music Recap”
This week in Showing My Age, I want to pay homage to a lost treasure of my youth: the cassette tape. In the modern world of MP3s and streaming, there are paradoxically both more and fewer ways to interact with music, especially as professionally (and probably simultaneously commercially) curated playlists and the ubiquitous “Shuffle” function come to dominate music consumption. But in my day – cue wagging wrinkled finger and old lady sneer – you had to really want to have that music on demand. And the cassette tape was really the only way to go about it.
For those who are unaware (dear god I am feeling older by the second), cassette tapes were seemingly insubstantial rectangles of plastic containing magical magnetic tape that was able to play back music on fabulous devices variously known as boomboxes, Walkmen, or, less creatively, tape players. In the same way that albums are sold in MP3 format on Amazon or iTunes today, which is itself becoming borderline anachronistic in the age of Spotify and Apple Music, or that CDs were sold a couple decades ago, back in the 80s and early 90s they were packaged for the public on cassette tape. But these were no mere passive devices through which to listen to music – oh no. They were much more than that. Continue reading “Stuff I Like: Ode to the Cassette Tape”
Vince Staples is the master of sharp left turns. His go-to move is to set you up with a line that leads in one particular direction only to deviate quickly into unexpected terrain, as he does with lines like “I need to fight the power but man I need that new Ferrari,” or, “My momma was a Christian, Crip walkin’ on blue waters.” In addition to this knack for startling juxtapositions, his delivery is dirty and deliberate and deadpan, painting distinctive pictures while leaving you unsure as to just how serious he is at any given time. In the lead-up to his last release, Big Fish Theory, he said of the album to LA Weekly, “It’s Afro-futurism. This is my Afro-futurism. There’s no other kind.” He followed that up with an interview with Trevor Noah of The Daily Show in which he completely blew that comment off, stating, “I like saying stuff about black people to white people.” When Noah persisted, asking, “So that doesn’t mean anything?”, Vince responded, “Of course not.” Continue reading “Stuff I Like: Vince Staples – FM! Review”
My response to the first La Liga victory under Solari against Valladolid:
The Kids Are Alright: The Case for Trusting the Youngsters
My attempt to reckon with the unattainably high standards of Madridistas:
The Weight of Club Culture: The Blessings of Unlimited Capital and the Burden of Greatness
And my appearance on the Managing Madrid Podcast discussing the 5-0 win over Viktoria Plzen (patron only unfortunately).
Managing Madrid Podcast: Viktoria Plzen Post Game
LA has been blessed with some of the best home team announcers. Along with Vin Scully, the absolute best was Chick Hearn, who changed the commentating game and invented terms like “air ball,” “triple double,” and “slam dunk.” His partner behind the mic in his final years was Stu Lantz, who will forever hold a special place in my heart for the love but also the impartiality with which he provided (and still provides) color commentary. He has always been full of useful tidbits of information that provide insight into the game.
One of the things Stu has always stressed is starting and finishing quarters. During the Shaq/Kobe era, we were absolutely the best at that. The third quarter, in particular was ours. We OWNED the first five minutes of the second half, and it made the difference so many times. I don’t know what Phil told them in the locker room, but they would use those opening minutes of the third to either turn the momentum to their favor or put a team away for good. It was goddamn inspirational and I miss it. I know coming up short in close games is a virtual inevitability with such a young team, as these guys just don’t have the experience to know how to close out games yet. But I will be much relieved when we figure it out and start winning some of these games where we have earned a W but end up losing because we stumble at the finish line. Continue reading “Lakers: Random Thoughts On 2-5”
Thoughts on the Eve of El Clasico
My hopes and dreams for our boys ahead of this crucial game
The fallout from the brawl in their second game of the season continues to be felt by the Lakers, but perhaps not in the way initially expected. With Rajon Rondo and Brandon Ingram suspended for 2 and 3 games, respectively, the question was who would step up in their absence, and would the team be able to scrap together any results without two impact players. After two straight wins without them, the situation has shifted somewhat.
The Lakers are 2-1 since the two starters were suspended and have bounced back well after starting the season 0-3. This is thanks in no small part to the play of Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma, who have done more than just deputize since the suspensions. Kuzma in particular has jump-started our offense and has slotted in perfectly next to LeBron. In fact, the two have looked so good together that Ingram’s formerly assured starting spot looks considerably more tenuous than anyone expected. For his part, Lonzo has performed capably at point in addition to – even more critically, considering LBJ’s ability to function as the primary play maker – playing some stellar defense. With Rondo and Ingram set to come back over the next two games, the question now becomes: do they get their starting spots back? Continue reading “Questions Surrounding the Return of Rondo and Ingram”
On Rebuilding and Rose-Colored Glasses
