I’m starting to worry that Ocelopotamus has become like that stock old-man character from sitcoms and things, who falls asleep for a while and then wakes up sputtering and tries to pick the conversation up wherever it was five minutes ago, as if no time has passed.
On the other hand, it’s heartening that I […]

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This one:
I guess all I’m really saying
is how I think you’re wrong here
and some things are worth the chaos
that they come along with
— Trembling Blue Stars, “Letter Never Sent” (which has a bridge worthy of Neil Finn)
 

(First installment in a possible recurring series … feel free to share your own favorite tear-jerking lyrics in the […]

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General Petraeus says that “victory” in Iraq will require 9-10 more years. I’m trying to imagine how ten more years of bloody occupation can possibly work out to a victory. More on that subject here.

A bill has been introduced in Venezuela to restrict baby names to a list of 100 approved choices. “The bill’s ambition, […]

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Crowded Freaking House, man.
Crowded Freaking House.
Last night’s show here in Chicago was everything I wanted it to be, with a few very pleasant surprises along the way.
In fact, the only downside to the evening was that it had to take place at the odious and uncomfortable House of Blurgggh (complete with worse and ruder […]

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The new Crowded House album, Time on Earth, was released last week in the US and the week before in the UK. It’s available for download from iTunes (with bonus tracks!) and of course you can get the CD from Amazon.
The band will be touring through December (including their two shows here in Chicago, […]

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POLITICS: The Washington Post brings us the fascinating story of how Cheney’s quest to undermine environmental science for political purposes led to a humongous pile of rotting dead fish. “… Because of Cheney’s intervention, the government reversed itself and let the water flow in time to save the 2002 growing season, declaring that there was […]

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Crowded House’s new single “Don’t Stop Now,” written with Johnny Marr, was released last week and is available from iTunes. (Click the record cover at right for a handy iTunes link.)
Meanwhile, I’m thrilled to report that I have a ticket for the Sunday, Aug. 19 show at House of Blues here in Chicago. (I got […]

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Profile of Newtok, Alaska: One of the first victims of climate change, a town gradually sinking into the mud. As the hardest hit of the 180 Alaskan villages suffering from erosion, “studies say Newtok could be washed away within a decade.”
Iceberg of Yuck: The Consumerist says, “Poison toothpaste, killer cough-syrup, and tainted pet food are […]

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The Rubber Nun is a big fan of this Random Ten meme-thingie and I’m a big fan of the Rubber Nun, so in honor of the elastic sister I thought I’d give it a spin myself.
Of course I think you’re supposed to do it on Fridays … but isn’t it still Friday in Singapore, […]

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It’s the foreign policy, stupid: This great post at Crooks and Liars takes apart the simplistic and unhelpful notion that terrorists “hate us for our freedoms.” As Michael Scheuer, former station chief of the CIA’s Osama Bin Laden task force, says:
“The fundamental flaw in our thinking about Bin Laden is that ‘Muslims hate and attack […]

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White light, green heat: LEDS aren’t just for clock radios any more. In fact, LED lightbulbs may turn out to be the bulb of the future instead of compact fluorescents. Thanks to a breakthrough in the 90s, modern LEDs can emit white light instead of just red or green. They last up to five times […]

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Posthumous releases are on the way from Jeff Buckley, Nick Drake, and Elliott Smith. (Wes Anderson, fire up your iPod.)
The Jeff Buckley compilation is called So Real: Songs of Jeff Buckley and will include a cover of “I Know It’s Over” by The Smiths, as well as a mix of studio cuts, live tracks, and […]

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I posted a little over a week ago about the forthcoming Crowded House album, Time on Earth, from Neil Finn and his bandmates.
But there’s even more Finn news: Last week also saw the U.S. release of a new solo album from the other Finn brother, Tim Finn — the founder of Split Enz and […]

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Earlier this year it was announced that Neil Finn was getting back together with bassist Nick Seymour and guitarist Mark Hart to reform Crowded House. The new version will of course be missing its original drummer, the late, lamented Paul Hester, whose duties will be taken over by former Beck drummer Matt Sherrod.
The band is […]

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