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Sun, 13 Apr 2008

Vote for Rabid Gravy

Vote for Rabid Gravy or I will hate you for ever.

Posted at 19:39:59 by David Cantrell
keywords: music
Permalink | 0 Comments
Fri, 18 Jan 2008

Descent into Chavdom?

I just installed a Thing on my phone that lets me use MP3 files for ringtones. This is getting dangerously close to me being chav scum. Thankfully, unlike chav scum, I actually have pleasant tunes on my phone. For callers who are in my address book, it will play the Soviet national anthem. For those who aren't, Dueling Banjos.

But, even though I've not really descended, please keep an eye on me. If I ever start wearing jackets made of artificial fibre, or don't wear my hat straight, you have my permission to stab me in the face, to put me out of your misery.

Posted at 23:40:53 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | phone
Permalink | 2 Comments
Thu, 17 Jan 2008

The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust

I bought another album online. This time it's "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust" by Saul Williams. It is apparently hip-hop. Coulda fooled me, it sounds more like music. Not great music, it's true, but still enjoyable, and well worth the derisory 5 yankee-dinars that I paid. In fact, if they'd let me set my own price like Radiohead did a few months ago, I'd have paid more.

And yes, I did torrent the album first. Having torrented it, I decided that it was worth buying. If I'd not been able to "try before I buy" then I wouldn't have bought, precisely because it was erroneously classified as hip-hop - ie, as crap. Far from taking food from the mouths of Saul Williams's children as the music industry would want you to think, bittorrent enabled that sale to happen.

So anyway, it's not great music, but it's worth $5. Buy it.

Posted at 00:26:52 by David Cantrell
keywords: music
Permalink | 0 Comments
Sat, 20 Oct 2007

Radiohead "In Rainbows"

[originally posted 2007-10-11]

Radiohead have released their new album "In Rainbows" online, with punters being asked to pay whatever they think is appropriate. Even though I'm not a fan, I'm getting a copy - without the record company mark-up, it'll be cheap enough (I'll pay three quid) to see if it's any good, and then if it is good, I'll pay more for their next release, or go to a gig, or something like that.

Shame that the web site interface is a bit broken - some images don't always load, including those used for form buttons; use of images to display text with no text equivalent; confusing user interface for buying the bloody thing; use of idiotic non-word "pre-order".

OK, so that last one isn't a webby bug, but I see it all over the fucking place and IT MAKES ME WANT TO SET PEOPLE ON FIRE.

Update: meh. It's not musically offensive, but nor is it particularly good. There's certainly nothing original there. I'll probably never choose to listen to it again, but if my iPod randomly picks it for me I won't skip straight past it. Ho hum. Even so, the three quid I paid means that more goes to the band from my purchase than would have done if they were owned by a record company, which is good. And because I downloaded it from them, they had no manufacturing and shipping costs.

Posted at 16:29:59 by David Cantrell
keywords: music
Permalink | 1 Comment
Tue, 2 Oct 2007

Gig - who wants to come with me?

Carter USM and Sultans of Ping at Brixton Academy, 2nd of November. Lemme know if you want to come with me and I'll get the tickets.

Posted at 08:03:57 by David Cantrell
keywords: london | music
Permalink | 2 Comments
Wed, 25 Apr 2007

Slash slash

"Slash" is homo-erotic fiction written by fans.

Slash is also a guitarist.

I am most grateful that google can't find any Slash Slash.

Posted at 23:09:18 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | silly
Permalink | 0 Comments
Mon, 18 Dec 2006

Bastard Fairies

You! Yes, you behind the bikesheds! Listen to The Bastard Fairies now.

Even if you don't like the music, the name rules.

Posted at 00:10:46 by David Cantrell
keywords: music
Permalink | 1 Comment
Wed, 6 Dec 2006

Christmas music

It's December! That means it's time for Christmas music! So tell me what foolishness I need to add to my iPod.

I already have:

  • A Christmas Camel, by Procol Harum (which isn't very christmassy really)
  • Christmas Hangover, by the Arrogant Worms
  • Christmas in Heaven, by Monty Python,
  • The Night Santa Went Crazy, by Weird Al

I NEED MORE

Posted at 00:08:09 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | silly
Permalink | 1 Comment
Fri, 1 Dec 2006

Interwebnets roundup

Some things that got my attention in the past few days ...

David Cantrell's home burnt down and now he lives in an old bus, according to the Dallas Morning News. You too can get bizarre stories about your evil twins emailed to you with Google Alerts.

A retard tried to ban a couple's Christmas peace symbol because, well, clearly, Christ was only joking when he said "blessed are the peace-makers".

And finally, I owe the hip-hop community an apology. I have previously dismissed all their work as "illiterate shouty crap". But now Baba Brinkman, a Canadian student of Mediæval and Renaissance English, has set the Canterbury Tales to music. It's still shouty crap, of course, but illiterate it is not.

Posted at 21:37:51 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | religion | web | weird
Permalink | 1 Comment
Fri, 24 Nov 2006

Supernormal cultural happenings

Because you've been good boys and girls, have a couple of arty treats.

A prize for whoever figgers out what the hell the title of this post is about.

Posted at 21:50:00 by David Cantrell
keywords: culture | music
Permalink | 1 Comment
Wed, 15 Nov 2006

Air guitar T-shirt

Woo-hoo! Now I can play air-guitar for real!

Clive will be very jealous.

Posted at 00:12:15 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | silly
Permalink | 1 Comment
Fri, 25 Aug 2006

Advice to Buddhists

While I would be the first to agree with you that the music of Mr. Dave Mustaine and his troubadour friends "Megadeth" is jolly fine stuff, I don't really think that it's suitable listening for monks attempting to follow in the footsteps of the Enlightened One.

Posted at 15:50:09 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | religion
Permalink | 0 Comments
Tue, 1 Aug 2006

Even more new photos!

These are the last ones for a while.

Your homework for today is to compare and contrast:

making particular reference to the role of hair in Hippy-era comics. Use both sides of the paper.
Posted at 23:04:11 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | photography
Permalink | 0 Comments
Thu, 29 Jun 2006

With apologies to Flanders and Swann ...

'Twas some time on a Thursday that the gas man was meant to call
I worked from home all day and didn't go out at all
But he didn't bother to show up. The end.

Grrr, that's a day wasted.

Posted at 21:13:00 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | rant
Permalink | 0 Comments
Sat, 8 Apr 2006

Our police state doesn't like The Clash

A few days ago, someone was arrested for listening to the wrong sort of music. He wasn't listening to Skrewdriver, or to the Greatest Hits of the SS Brass Band or anything objectionable. He was arrested for listening to Led Zeppelin and The Clash. And he was arrested because a taxi driver didn't like the lyrics. I suppose in a way that I should be glad that the government's terror campaign (that is, their attempt to terrify everyone into being good little pod people by playing the terrorism card) leads to so much police time being wasted and so will ultimately be counter-productive. But it must suck for the polices' innocent victims like Mr. Mann.

Mr. Mann received neither compensation for his missed flight nor an apology. Which just goes to prove that the police are rude and inconsiderate (as well as being obviously stupid and racist) in Durham as well.

I might withdraw that last bit if the officers concerned are fired and then prosecuted for wasting police time, but until then I have to assume that their bosses think they did the right thing, and that such behaviour is encouraged.

Posted at 10:30:56 by David Cantrell
keywords: music | politics
Permalink | 0 Comments

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