I Need That Record! The Death (Or Possible Survival) Of The Independent Record Store

By Less Lee Moore

I Need That Record! purports to be a “documentary feature examining why over 3,000 independent record stores have closed across the US in the past decade.” But it’s much more than that. In truth, the film does a splendid job of not only showing the causal links that led to this somewhat alarming situation, but also asking, answering, and ultimately, allowing its viewers to weigh in on what this really means.
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Let’s Get Associated Released For The Killola Army

By Christian Lipski

Dog tags are usually intended to identify the wearer as a member of a branch of the militia, but after March 2010, they’ll also be used to indicate that the wearer’s a fan of L.A. Band Killola. The do-it-yourself band have released their third album on a wearable USB drive in the shape of a dog tag, also including their previous two albums and much more.

The unique packaging is typical of a band who has made a reputation out of doing things their own way. From their beginnings in 2003, they’ve been doing their own recording, producing, and promotion, and have amassed a huge fan base, performing across the country as well as Europe.
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DEVO Song Study: Press The Red Button If You Feel We Must Repeat

By Matt Keeley

DEVO’s been proven right about everything, and now they’ve joined with Mother LA to focus group the future.

DEVO has long been one of my favorite bands. In fact, my original art collective, TODCRA, was almost killed in the womb when the co-founder and I discovered that DEVO’d been basically saying everything we were saying, but in a much better way and for longer. (But given the Devolutionary Oath, we kept on keeping’ on.) And, luckily, DEVO have also kept on keeping’ on, whereas TODCRA eventually sacrificed itself so Kittysneezes may live.

Finally, after initial studies about color and whether or not people would hold the new song, “Fresh” with their feet, we’ve come to the meat of it: the Song Study!
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What a Fun Trick: A Great Noisemaker!

By Matt Keeley

Photo © Adam Cantor

The Apples in stereo are such a great band: shiny retropop that just makes you happy, even when the lyrics are depressing. It also seems that they’re nice folks.

At a show once, my best friend and I got to talk with Apples member Robert Schneider, and not only was he one of the happiest folks out there, he gave us a hug, one that HE initiated. That is really awesome.
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Showdown At The Oscars

By Lisa Anderson

Image from
Awards Daily

As Oscar night grows near, two of the most closely watched nominations are for Best Picture and Best Director. Former spouses James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow are pitted against each other in both categories—Cameron for Avatar and Bigelow for The Hurt Locker. If Cameron wins, it will be a rare triumph for science fiction, one achieved despite controversy about Avatar’s content. Bigelow stands not only to score an upset victory against a blockbuster, but also to become the first woman to win the Oscar for Best Director.
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Top Ten News Stories of 2009 That Could Be Songs By Lovecraftian Apocalypse-Mongering Rock Band The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets

By Toren Atkinson of The Darkest Of The Hillside Thickets
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Do They Know It’s MIDI?

By Less Lee Moore

Since after nearly thirty years I still remain somewhat obsessed with Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” single (despite how ridiculously offensive it is), naturally I was overjoyed when Megashaun pointed me in the direction of this MIDI version of the song.
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Buzz Aldrin, Magnificent Desolation

By Emily C.

We’re all BFFs! REALLY!

As a kid I was absolutely obsessed with the Apollo missions from the late 1960s and early 1970s. As an adult, I still am.
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The Grey Zone: Or, Why Battlestar Galactica Is So Frakkin’ Good

By David Speranza

I admit I was a latecomer to the new Battlestar Galactica. But as someone who hasn’t had cable since 1999, I’m a latecomer to pretty much all the cool shows (with the record going to The Prisoner, which I’m still trying to catch up with—only 40 years after it first aired). So it’s a point of pride for me that after watching Battlestar Galactica’s first three seasons on DVD, followed by Amazon downloads of the first half of season four , I’m actually up to date on a current show (just in time, too—its final episodes start airing in January).
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With Facebook, Who Needs a High School Reunion?

By Laura L.

It’s almost summer, and that means many things: Strawberries are in season. Your nearby sno-cone stand is open. Baseball is in full swing (pardon the pun). And you may be planning to attend (or avoid) your high school reunion. Next year marks ten years since graduating high school, so I’m mentally preparing for my reunion. Or I would be, if it weren’t for Facebook.
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