It’s hard to a remember a time when the transition between two presidents was facing more scrutiny. The sitting president, Donald Trump, has been willfully and fruitlessly fighting off the results of a lawful election that saw Joe Biden selected to hold the office next. But Trump’s decision to litigate instead of concede has kept the entire nation rapt and watching how Biden and his team will handle the situation, and it also means that more people than ever are paying attention to Biden’s cabinet selections.
So tonight, when The New York Times broke the news that Biden is likely going to name Anthony Blinken as his Secretary Of State, research and commentary about this choice began to pour into my feed. As a music journalist, chief among the findings is that Blinken is definitely a music fan. Recently, Blinken was on TV segment and filming from his home as many are during the pandemic, and a guitar neck in the background drew some commentary:
It’s a Martin. Which I don’t deserve. And mostly blues and rock. Not good enough for bluegrass. https://t.co/WUWgtH1212
— Antony Blinken (@ABlinken) October 18, 2020
In fact, Blinken is more than just a fan, he also makes and records original music. Operating under the band name, Ablinken, a pretty straightforward band name made of his first initial and last name — which is also his Twitter handle — the purported nominee has a couple guitar-centric songs uploaded to Spotify. His Twitter bio also currently directs followers to his Spotify: “Follow Ablinken on Spotify.”
The music internet and political internet do tend to cross frequently, but this is one of those times where it’s a welcome crossover. Check out more reactions to Blinken and his band below.
Uhhhhhh https://t.co/WW93QqxWoz pic.twitter.com/j6adbP5XLI
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) November 23, 2020
no one:
Anthony Blinken proposed Sec. of State and former Director of the NSA: https://t.co/QY1zYxAQW6— ropa (@herbalspices) November 23, 2020
Please some publication let me review our next Secretary of State’s band https://t.co/tDChOIGGty
— Steven Edelstone (@ed_and_thestone) November 23, 2020
Biden’s Secretary of State nominee has a band that he founded that based off “Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers.” Honestly its pretty good. The song “Lip Service” is like a weird mix of Alan Parsons and Blue Oyster Cult.https://t.co/VK4DAg0k0X
— John Haynes
(@JohntheLib) November 23, 2020
Time to get caught upon the guy who’s probably be the next Secretary of State’s discography pic.twitter.com/u9tkpsWHTz
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) November 23, 2020
ok I listened to the Tony Blinken tracks on spotify and they’re not great but kind of a respect the effort for a middle aged guy with a serious job situation https://t.co/w9ioUobR3E
— Jacob Silverman (@SilvermanJacob) November 23, 2020
As a music critic, I’m happy to give my own take on the band. Blinken is the vocalist, and he has a deep voice with good tenor and just a hint of a polish, even if his phrasing is a little slow and clunky at times. The songs are both interesting melodically, but take a little too long to reach their groove. Ablinken sounds like a band with really good potential who needs to practice more and work on their lyrics. They cite ’70s classic rock and R&B as their influences, and that certainly rings true. The guitar solo on “Lip Service” toward the end, in particular, is great, but overall their slower number “Patience” is a little boring. Still, if they were playing in a little dive bar where I was having a beer, I wouldn’t leave. Hear Ablinken’s two tracks for yourself below: