The Null Device
2003/2/28
I stopped by PolyEster today and picked up the last Sneeze album, Lost The Spirit To Rock & Roll. The cover artwork is pretty doovy; the album itself, however, is not what I was expecting. It sounds nothing like the jangle-pop of their earlier stuff, and instead goes on a soul/gospel kick, with the singer trying to sound like Otis Redding or someone (and pulling it off reasonably well, even if the faux-American diction is a bit irritating). Not really my cup of tea; however, some of the songs (which have titles like "Too Much Man To Be My Woman", or "Deaf Girl, Dumb Guy, Blind Love") are amusing enough to possibly end up in DJ sets.
(Speaking of DJ sets, if anybody here knows of a smallish, living-roomy venue in inner-north Melbourne interested in hosting a regular music night (indie pop, a bit of electronica and a few oddities here and there), let me know. Especially if they have Guinness on tap.)
Anyway, I'm still waiting for Sneeze's earlier 41 Songs in 47 Minutes, which is due in a whammo.com.au order, along with Happy Supply's Crucial Cuts. (Their web site suggested that they had it in stock, but I'm beginning to have my doubts.)
(Speaking of things I'm waiting for, the UPS people tell me that my Archos Jukebox Recorder will arrive on Monday.)
A US Senator recently claimed that Bush is considering lifting the ban on assassinating foreign leaders, specifically authorising the assassination of Saddam Hussein "if we have a clear shot". Preserving the people of Iraq by killing their leader; truly an example of grandmotherly kindness.
And the Iraqi people who don't get blown up aren't the only ones to gain; it could also work out nicely for the US government. After all, a live Saddam Hussein blabbing to the media about his business relationship with Rumsfeld & Co. could be embarrassing. (And if they do capture Saddam, does anybody expect him to make it to trial alive?)
Recording companies using computer analysis to determine likely hit songs. The program known as Hit Song Science claims to detect the deep patterns which appeal to popular tastes; several labels are using it to help plan release dates, or decide whether to put money into releasing a song at all. Could this usher in a new era of conformism and stagnation that will make the late '90s seem like an explosion of creativity, and drive everybody looking for anything other than homogeneous bubblegum in genre drag into the MP3 underground?
Massive Attack frontman Robert "3D" Del Naja arrested for child pornography, as part of the same sting which netted Pete Townshend. Del Naja denied having downloaded child pornography; interestingly enough, the Graun article pointed out his involvement with the antiwar movement, as if to suggest that the arrest may be politically motivated.