The new Wilco album is finally here in my G4 tray and I can’t tell if this album, A Ghost Is Born, is ghastly or ghostly.
It feels like the band, for whom I have great respect as the inheritors of Radio(head) alt-rock, wrote up 12 songs that were substantial and melody-driven. They then took each and every song, pared down the beats, the melodies, the vocals, the content, and the cream of each one and then made a recording. I can’t tell what the hell happened with these guys as they colored everything gray and white, including the album cover itself.
Monthly Archives: July 2004
Saturnalia
The timing of the Cassini spacecraft showing beautifully detailed black and white images of Saturn’s rings couldn’t be better. These pictures show our solar system unfolding in improbably delightful ways.
But here’s the thing about the timing: Just when the United States seems to be at the point of self-parody, when much of the world is questioning the veracity of every U.S. foreign policy statement, and when the lies and fabulous assertions fall hollow (e.g. solving AIDS in Africa, sending humans to Mars, ending the Middle East crisis) — American ingenuity, resources, and technology bring us these images of our brother planet Saturn. It’s a relief to me, to know that Saturn’s rings are as magical as they told us they were in grade school. Happy Fourth.