“Here, the Hold Steady retain the successful balance struck by Boys and Girls in America, with Finn again avoiding crowding the band as it continues to grow musically: the ballads are weepier, the rock songs more immediate, the attempts to diversify more striking. While they continue to prove themselves a more convincing classic rock act then should be possible in 2008, there’s a tension in this album’s lyrics between old-fashioned storytelling and breaking down the fourth wall. Stay Positive is their mostly successful bid to have it both ways.”
Posts for Monday, 14 July 2008
wow. striking image.Why America is ScrewedOuch.
yes/no for today
YES: - Einstein Bros. coffee early in the morning - Twitterrific - waiting to buy an iPhone - canoeing the Clear Fork River - MLB all-star games - PBR late in the evening - American Spirits - new job (goodbye academia, hello industry!!) NO: - overzealous co-workers - shitty wine - Julia Allison… anything by Julia Allison - no fantasy baseball until Thursday - packing up my apartment - driving from Ann Arbor to Dallas - missing my family
Yes.
- The return of the confoundingly, inarguably brilliant Mad Men on July 27.
- I Love Money
- Monster Ballads
- Jesus and Mary Chain, Psychocandy
- John Coltrane, Blue Train
- Spite and Malice (card game)
- The return of Julian Casablancas
- The Dark Knight (without question)
- 2 Days in Paris (a film by Julie Delpy with Adam Goldberg)
- The Strokes and Jack White performing together.
- The Kills, Midnight Boom
- Steve Carell, John Krasinski
- Gift cards to Banana Republic, Sephora or any book store.
- Healthy pets.
No.
- Any of these bands/acts: The Wombats, Bloc Party, The Kooks, Crystal Castles, The Fratellis, Vampire Weekend, The Futureheads, Dan Deacon, Battles, The Black Lips, Beyonce, Katy Perry, Usher.
- Wasting any moment of your life with The Hills
- Tucking your blue jeans into tall boots (I don’t get it, chicas!)
- Leggings
- Rising health care costs
- Knitting Factory leaving Tribeca
- Spending astronomical amounts of time blowing sunshine up the asses of self-important former employees (and current employees) of New York-centric blogs.
- Veterinarians who fuck up a sick animal’s emergency care by saying, “Oh sorry! Sorry! I was so crazed last night! I should have communicated better to you and my orderlies.”
+
-
- fresh flowers
- 90210 on DVD
- IKEA in Brooklyn
- free water taxis
- summer sales
- cinnamon buns (at IKEA)
- gossip girl returning on Sept. 1st
- walking 30+ blocks on a summer night
- street fairs
- bodegas that sell amberbock for $8 w/ no deposit fee
- food blogging
- prospect park bandshell
- exploiting your lying/cheating husband
- eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner at IKEA
- waiting in line for an iphone
- claiming to be a feminist, while in the process sexually exploiting yourself
- walking through times square at 11:30 pm on a Saturday night
- making fun of a social networking site you are on
- using the word FAIL in real life
- angelina/brad baby hype (have your children in the US goddamit)
- criticizing a trend in summer that only existed in winter
- claiming to be a ”style snob” because you write some obnoxious blog about “fashion” (that is like me claiming to be a blogger/writer because of tumblr)
- wearing a scarf in the heat of the summer
- roots
- thinking Domino’s is pizza
- believing the world revolves around you and only you
To all those Julia Allison & Friends haters out there, this one’s for you!!!
