Michael Azerrad

YouTube video by john carter THE REAL ROXANNE : BANG ZOOM ( Let's Go-Go )..

RIP Hitman Howie Tee, who helped create this 1986 godlike colossus of next-level hip-hop genius.

A few of the samples: John McLaughlin, the Isley Bros., "Buffalo Gals," Funk Inc., Billy Squier's "Big Beat" (natch) and... Bugs Bunny.

Can I get a hit, Howie? Thank you.

Although the web version is searchable, which is very handy.

Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out... takes Previously unseen footage from the classic 1970 Rolling Stones documentary Gimme Shelter tells its own fascinating story

I wrote a Substack about a really great 27-minute film made out of outtakes from the canonical Rolling Stones doc _Gimme Shelter_. One of the coolest parts of the movie is the _Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out_ cover photo shoot. And then there's the heliport scene.

"Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerer of death's construction"

RIP Ozzy Osbourne, who could be very life-affirming.

Michael Azerrad | Substack Unmarketable observations about different kinds of music. Click to read Michael Azerrad, a Substack publication with hundreds of subscribers.

I've got a Substack and I (think I) know how to use it.

So far: Devo, Miles Davis, Deerhoof, Sly Stone, Creedence, "Peter and the Wolf," _Einstein on the Beach_, Dirty Projectors & more.

Soon: John & Yoko, Animal Collective, the Rolling Stones, fictional rock movies.

michaelazerrad.substack.com

One of the more aptly titled albums in pop music history.

We can always count on Dan Goldman to do the wrong thing. For instance, he just voted yes on the ironically titled GENIUS act. He suuuuucks.

If you're curious to see "Beyond Basingstoke," the obscure 1984 Robyn Hitchcock short film I discuss in my most recent Substack, I just got permission to embed it in the piece. Take a look!

Robyn Hitchcock: Nowhere Man His 1984 short film "Beyond Basingstoke" and the inspiration of boredom

I did a Substack about how an obscure 1984 short film by alt-rock demigod Robyn Hitchcock — in which nothing much happens — makes a dandy metaphor for the conditions that lead to creative breakthroughs.

LYRICS, SCHMYRICS I'm with Brian Eno

I did a Substack about my weird relationship to lyrics. Or is it actually weird? Maybe there are more of us than I realize.

Also known as "splooting"!

2004's _Postcards from the Boys_ features postcards sent to Ringo Starr by the other three Beatles. I bet he was the only one in the band who got postcards from the other three. That's just one demonstration of how crucial Ringo was to the Beatles. Today is his birthday. ☮️❤️

RIP Bar/None Records CEO Mark Lipsitz. Mark's evangelical enthusiasm for his bands reminded that music can inspire a powerful joy. Music is an integral part of our existence, so Mark's teenager-level passion was inspiring beyond just music — it was inspiring about life. That's a great legacy.

Who Was the Great American Band? The answer may surprise you

In my latest Substack, I definitively answer the immortal and yet timely question, who was the Great American Band?

You're welcome.

From my beloved Deerhoof:

"We’re taking Deerhoof off Spotify.

'Daniel Ek Uses $700 Million of His Spotify Fortune to Become Chairman of AI Battle Tech Company' was not a headline we enjoyed reading this week. We don’t want our music killing people."

Funnily enough, I asked that very question at the recent book event for _Gabba Gabba We Accept You: The Wondrous Tale of Joey Ramone_ and Jay said it's for 8-to-12-year-olds.

I hereby plug _Gabba Gabba We Accept You: The Wondrous Tale of Joey Ramone_ (Drag City), a children's book about the trials and tribulations of young Joey and the lessons punk can teach about being your own person. Charming text: Jay Ruttenberg, lovely illustrations: Lucinda Schreiber.

20 years old is certainly not “newer,” especially in popular music. Imagine if, in 1974, someone called “Rock Around the Clock” “newer.”

There is a stunning amount of great contemporary music. One just has to be open-minded enough to truly hear it.

1. The 2000s were 20 years ago. Dispatch is not a new band.

2. Most rock has *always* sucked. But some of us begin to close down our taste as we get older, and out of vanity we dismiss entire eras of music.

The fact that different people claim music went downhill at different times tells me that it's completely subjective, probably due to when job and/or family obligations cut into free time spent on looking for music. In my experience, people usually say music fell off around the time they turned 30.

Except in the context of human history, those are not "newer artists." The Hold Steady's first album came out in 2003, Matisyahu's in 2004. Dispatch started in 1996. If you're not actively looking for great new music, it's pretty tough to find it. And it has _always_ been "hit or miss."

Deerhoof: There's Nothing More Punk than Doing It Yourself The punk rockness of the cover of the band's 2012 album Breakup Song

I did a Substack about how the whole ethos of punk is embodied the cover of Deerhoof's 2012 album _Breakup Song_.

That is the consensus of a lot of people. How old were you at that time?

Sounds like they're going sheerly on name recognition. Which might bode well for Mamdani in the big picture.

Note that they aren't voting for Adrienne Adams, whose district is, of course, in... SE Queens.

Sly Stone and the Unbearable Zeitgeist of Being The flight path of a cultural Icarus

Sly Stone actually had the sensitivity and artistry to assimilate the spirit of the late '60s and express it as music. But that might also have been his undoing: when you're that deeply tapped into the zeitgeist, you're also at its mercy.

You made a claim and then asserted there are "credible scientific sources" that support it. Now you can't supply them.

Samuel Johnson once said, "Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel." But maybe it's really when people say "do your own research."

Again, it’s not on *me* to back up *your* claims. Which you have repeatedly failed to do. If you can’t make your case, there’s no reason to believe it.

No, it’s not on *me* to back up *your* claims. Which you still haven’t done.

There are so many reasons one could concoct for not being able to fully appreciate _Pet Sounds_: never having visited Southern California, not knowing music theory, being unfamiliar with surf music, etc. As with any music, maybe it's best to just let it speak to you.

Ah, OK, so you don’t have any credible sources to support your claim and you’re trying to blame me for that. Got it.