It’s early February, which means that the annual post-Grammys furor arrived on schedule this week. At issue was Harry Styles beating out Beyonce for Album Of The Year, a turn of events that might end up being the worst thing to ever happen to Styles. Has the hunky British pop star just been Timberlake-ized? What does it mean to be Timberlake-ized anyway? Let’s hash it out.
Here’s something we did not expect this week: Steve Albini talking about how much he hates Steely Dan! But that’s exactly what the irascible indie legend did on Twitter, which sparked a lot of conversation both for and against the ’70s jazz-rock institution. While it’s not surprising that the man who is synonymous with abrasive and inaccessible rock music would not enjoy the tunes of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, it was funny to see a 60-year-old poker player from the Midwest earnestly start a sentence with “I’m the kind of punk who …”
Finally, we talked about a band that we can all agree is great: Yo La Tengo. The trio is back with another album this week, This Stupid World, and it’s one of their best efforts in years. Then again, has there ever been a bad Yo La Tengo record? We discussed what makes the new album good, and offered suggestions for newbies on where to start with the band’s big and impressive discography.
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