:: Bluestarblog ::

:: Saturday, February 05, 2005 ::

All Good Things...

... don't always come to an end. I have decided to stop posting here once and for all, but I will resume be writing and blogging at my new (though temporary) site. Until I can make a more complete website, this blogger stuff will have to do. As cozy as this site was, I couldn't get around the light letters on a dark background. Longer pieces are much easier to read with dark letters on a light background and I couldn't think of any of my favorite sites where this wasn't the case. I needed a site that was a little tidier and easier to make a future transition from. I will continue to maintain this site for its wonderful linkroll (which I will need to clean up a little) as well as leaving the archives. The essay site and the reading room will remain, though both are in dire need of more material. Another sacrifice from all this time away has been my music site. This I have closed for good. Like my library indices, I will have to wait for my new site before I can do what I want to do with music and websites. There will still be music and guitar postings on my new site, and with the help of terrific sites like YouTube, maybe even some lessons (of my own!).

More than anything, this site has been a lot of fun, and I will continue the next one in the same vein.

Adieu Bluestarblog.


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American Psycho music reviews

I watched American Psycho the other day - meh, seven out of ten. One redeeming quality about the movie was the brilliant performance of Christian Bale as Patrick Bateman. For all the movie's letdowns, his character alone made it worth watching. His corporate android musings and sociopathic deadpan made his observations on some of the lamest music of the 80's a delight.


on Huey Lewis and the News...

Their early work was a little too New Wave for my taste. But then Sports came out in 1983, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to ELvis Costello but I think Huey has a more bitter, cynical sense of humor.

In '87 Huey released Fore!, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is Hip To Be Square, a song so catchy that most people probably don't listen to the lyrics. But they should because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity and the importance of trends. It's also a personal statement about the band itself.


on Genesis and Phil Collins...

I've been a big Genesis fan ever since the release of their 1980 album, Duke. Before that, I really didn't understand any of their work. Too artsy, too intellectual. It was on Duke where Phil Collins' presence became more apparent. I think Invisible Touch was the group's undisputed masterpiece. It's an epic meditation on intangibility. At the same time, it deepens and enriches the meaning of the preceding three albums. Listen to the brilliant ensemble playing of Banks, Collins and Rutherford. You can practically hear every nuance of every instrument. In terms of lyrical craftsmanship, the sheer songwriting, this album hits a new peak of professionalism. Take the lyrics to Land of Confusion. In this song, Phil Collins addresses the problems of abusive political authority. In Too Deep is the most moving pop song of the 1980s. About monogamy and commitment, the song is extremely uplifting. Their lyrics are as positive and affirmative as anything I've heard in rock.

Phil Collins' solo career seems to be more commercial and therefore more satisfying, in a narrower way. Especially songs like In the Air Tonight and Against All Odds. But I also think Phil Collins works best within the confines of the group, than as a solo artist, and I stress the word artist. This is Sussudio, a great, great song, a personal favorite.


on Whitney Houston...

Did you know that Whitney Houston's debut LP called simply Whitney Houston had four number-one singles on it? It's hard to choose a favorite track among so many great ones, but The Greatest Love of All is one of the best, most powerful songs ever written about self-preservation and dignity. It's universal message crosses all boundaries, and instills one with the hope that it's not too late to better ourselves. Since it's impossible in the world we live in to empathize with others, we can always empathize with ourselves. It's an important message, crucial, really, and it's beautifully stated on the album.


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:: Scot 2:30 PM [+] :: ::
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