Music!
I'm trying to get back into the habit of writing critically (or not so critically) about music. I've felt a bit detached from it all, really. Having one of those terrible nihilistic crises where nothing seems particularly important, but since a huge portion of my life gravitates around disseminating what many would call Horrible Opinions, I have to get over it one step at a time.

The first way to do so is narcissism. It is a truly beautiful vehicle. I am using myself as a bridge to talk about others! Ha ha!

Oh dear this isn't going very well.

The band's EP is nearly finished (scroll down a few entries, you may see something similar written in September last year). It's going out to radio on Friday, which is very pleasing indeed.

Now, to the music of others: I've been really digging the new album Alopecia by Why?

Why is an odd little bastard. Originally a fairly obtuse rapper, in the vein of (and the crew of) people like Dose One and their band of merry weirdos called Anticon. Somewhere around 2003, the guy decided he wasn't a weird rapper anymore. He was an indie rock vocalist!

This may sound terrible, but bare with me, because it actually works. Fatalist Palmistry, one of the tunes off it, sounds like a wonderful They Might Be Giants/Abandoned Pools (they did the Clone High themesong, but nothing else good) hybrid. It resonates, the vocals are earnest and I am addicted to the bassline for some reason. As a bassist, you think this would happen often, but it doesn't. This is because most bassists, like myself, are quite shitty at what they do or are at best complementary. I love it when the bass comes out of left field and carries an entire song.

I've also currently experiencing the most recent, but a little old, Mint Chicks album. It really is a great album and I am so very glad they are getting out of New Zealand to the land of Arts & Cheap Housing: Portland. Not that there's much wrong with our little island in the middle of the ocean, but it can get a bit stagnant for music after you've been at it for a few years.

Also, my father just got back from Los Angeles where he recorded an album in two days. It sounds quite beautiful and should be on the shelves within a couple of months (hopefully in time to bulldoze the New Zealand Music Awards).

Now back to this delicious caipirinha!