The 99th gec

October 2025 Listening Report Emptiness abounds. Hand me your cup.

I wrote about Amanda Shires and the promise of emptiness over at Substack. Hope you enjoy.
open.substack.com/pub/sidneycw...

I think banks should just ignore your credit card purchases on your birthday. It’s just foolish to think my word is bond on my special day.

September 2025 Listening Report "let the piece sing. give it a melody."

In which I run on about $ilkmoney, while I wait to square dance with Willi Carlisle at the Champaign-Urbana Folk Festival. Hope you enjoy!
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Summer 2025 Listening Report More woke nonsense

I wrote about the new Tyler Childers and Willi Carlisle albums before my late summer roundup over at Substack.
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Vote for the best album of 1989 (it’s Rock N’ Roll!)

The Best Albums of (the first half of) the 2020's Thirty-six pretty good albums with occasional musings. (Don't fret: it picks up in the back half).

Decided to take a month of from my listening reports and write about some good music for a change. I’m very happy with some of the blurbs and It was a blast to take the time to relisten to these young classics. I hope you find something to love.
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(Exit) Knarr, by Ingebrigt Håker Flaten 6 track album

It's been a while, but since @sidneyterano.bsky.social ranked the first Exit (Knarr) among his fave albums of the 2020s so far in his latest Substack post, it prompted a revisit. As terrific as I remembered it and then some. Their new LP is out soon. #np ingebrigtflaten.bandcamp.com/album/exit-k...

*You see me marching and pumping my fist in time. Gradually you start to hear something…*

STONE ROSES SUCK! VOTE VOICE OF CHUCK! STONE ROSES SUCK!!VOTE VOICE OF CHUCK!! STONE ROSES SUCK!!! VOTE VOICE OF CHUCK!!!! STONE ROSES SUCK…

June 2025 Listening Report The Sazz & Joul Edition

I wrote about James Moody's 80th birthday bash and Tune-Yards' struggle to get through for this month's listening report.

I plan on skipping July's listening report: I need to do some more joyful listening and I hope to post about that next month. Enjoy!
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I won’t be able to participate in this tournament as much as I had hoped, so I want make one thing clear now…

The Mekons Rock N’ Roll is the best album of 1989 and it should win (but I will accept Paul’s Boutique in its place).

Do with that information what you will. Happy listening. 🙂✌️

May 2025 Listening Report Radio shows, DJ sets, a remake of a Keith Jarrett album, a live album with some funky editing, an album recorded in a single take... the album isn't dead, it's mutating.

Music from 5/7 continents in this months A-list. Emotions range from exaltation to misery. Act accordingly.
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Beastie Boys
The Cure
Pixies
De La Soul

April 2025 Listening Report A concert-logue double feature plus a few words on a few albums that bring me pressurized pleasure.

This special edition listening report contains a concert-logue double feature with a little love leftover for Backxwash, Deep Sea Diver, and Marshall Allen.
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Now that you mention it, I’ve always played the version with no feature. Eve isn’t bad, but placing her first verse at the beginning of the song should have been disputed. However, on the Eve version you do get 7% more song.

Indisputable #1

The Best Films of 2024 (and Other Forgotten Lists) This is one of those posts I tell myself I will definitely publish before I continue to kick the can down road on my many lethargic weekends in between listening reports.

Anybody else here still stuck in the past? Here are my favorite films of 2024 with some thoughts on Challengers, I Saw the TV Glow, and Alamo Drafthouse.
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Nom-worthy ‘89 hip-hop (that I know of)

Beastie Boys: Paul’s Boutique (duh)
Jungle Brothers: Done by the Forces of Nature
De La Soul: 3 Feet High and Rising
Roxanne Shante: Bad Sister
3rd Bass: The Cactus Album
LL Cool J: Walking Like a Panther
Queen Latifah: All Hail the Queen
Ice-T: The Iceberg

Songs for the Poor Man - YouTube

Remmy Ongala and Orchestre Super Matimila: Songs for the Poor Man

youtube.com/playlist?lis...

Notable albums (that I’ve heard) that people should listen to that I haven’t read mention of yet:

Remmy Ongala and Orchestre Super Matimila: Songs for the Poor Man
Pere Ubu: Cloudland (if you can find it)
The Neville Brothers: Yellow Moon
Marshall Crenshaw: Good Evening
Roxanne Shanté: Bad Sister

I know he is not to everyone’s tastes, but I always find Robert Christgau’s A-lists a helpful guide when exploring the music of years past, especially when I want to hear worthwhile music that is off-canon. Worth checking out before finalizing your nom lists!

www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg80/a...

The kids are now running around chanting “meat orb” over and over again, this may have been a mistake

AI art is the aesthetic of fascism

#5albums70s4

1. Television: Marquee Moon
2. Van Morrison: Moondance
3. Culture: Two Sevens Clash
4. New York Dolls: in Too Much Too Soon
5. Sly & the Family Stone: There’s a Riot Goin’ On

I will definitely be checking these out.

Also, fans of John Lurie (and others, if there are any) should hear his surprisingly good jazz group, The Lounge Lizards. Voice of Chuck is an ‘89 album per Discogs.

March 2025 Listening Report Patterson Hood, corook, Steve Lehman, NOBRO, and NoBro are all committed to a bit, just not the same one.

I wrote about Sad Bastard music and the newest underground hip-hop sensation over at Substack.
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The Best Album of 2000, Match #128 - The Final Match: OutKast vs. PJ Harvey This is the Best Album of 2000 match for Thursday, February 27th, 9:00am CST. It will be open for 24 hours, and the winner will be declared the Best Album of 2000. The losing album will be declared th...

The Best Album of 2000 Match #128 - FINAL MATCH TO DETERMINE THE BEST ALBUM OF 2000
#1 OutKast, STANKONIA
vs.
#2 PJ Harvey, STORIES FROM THE CITY, STORIES FROM THE SEA

forms.gle/SSVDr3XHS4Pd...

14yrold me didn’t listen to any hip-hop in small Midwest town, USA until my mom started playing the OutKast Greatest Hits cd, which prompted me to buy Stankonia. It alone helped me understand that hip-hop is an art form of supreme intellect. A masterpiece if better edited, but still a marvelous mess

This PJ album gives me an experience no other album does. Every time I play it, I think “maybe this isn’t as good as I remember” and then I get to the next song or she adds a new motif at the exact right moment to perfectly re-up the drama and I buy in again.

Give in to poptimism! I guess I’m just cynical enough to call em. I can’t fully sympathize bc I like those first two winners more, but Linkin Park SHOULD’VE won that round and respectably lost to Erykah Badu in round 2.

Yes!! I realized long ago it was a fool’s game to hope my favorite albums win these tournaments (this year is unusual bc the top 2 seeds are among my personal top 3 of 2000), so winning the prediction bracket is the ultimate glory. Happy to have one win even if I don’t secure a true victory on Wed.