Mean to Seem Like

Now for an all music edition. First off, this semi-old article about Pitchfork from n+1 is an interesting read. And then this "American Mozart" piece about Kanye (and Jay Z). I didn't love it exactly, and was wondering who the author was, but after Googling around, it seems like David Samuels is a very respected long form journalist. Still, something about the tone of the piece just didn't sit well with me. All this was started off from Michael sending me a piece about knowing the stuff that nobody else does -- and how that aesthetic is declining.

I bet you've seen these 33 1/3 mini-books around. Each one focuses on one album by an artist. Truthfully, I've only read two of them -- the Tribe and Nas ones -- but I love the concept. I was trying to figure out which album I'd want to write about. I wish I had the sort of relationship to music that I could write about it well. I really enjoy reading about music -- and envy all good music writers -- but rarely have cohesive thoughts about the impact, meaning, and general feeling I get from them. I think it has a lot to do with my inability to listen/process lyrics. It's tough to even write about individual tracks, as I'm learning from my postings over at T.E.S.T. My music vocabulary consists of "it's good, I like it."

On the real, I think I'd do my 33 1/3 on Jagged Little Pill.

A few months ago Lilly told me about a game she and Jessica play. "Who would your hype person be?" Like the musician (usually a rapper) that would trail you around and just do things to make your life better. So far Lilly's answer is DMX and Jessica chooses Mystikal. Strong choices both. I've been trying to figure mine out for awhile.

I feel like Lil'Jon is a strong contender, but I'd want to go with Missy Elliot maybe. Or Ja Rule. Or Nelly. See how this game is hard? Actually I'd really like to see what Left Eye could do in a hypester role. I guess we'll just never know. ODB is a strong choice too but he's really Mariah's hype man so we should leave him be. Worst choice: Master P. Obviously.

Let's talk about how I'm six months behind on "Ni**as in Paris." Okay, let's not.

My friend Mels and I have gotten into the habit of going out every couple of weeks. Originally we met online through a writing group but now our friendship has transitioned to non-writerly things. Neither of us go out much but we keep each other young by testing out the San Diego dance scene once in awhile. I'll get a text from her at ten or eleven and whoosh, I'm off!

Afterwards, since everything closes so damn early, we'll sit around in the car and listen to my old R&B CDs, talking about what each track reminds us of. (The ones she associates with exes get the fast skip.)

It's kind of the best.

This past weekend, we both semi-sheepishly admitted, "Hey, I'm like finally getting around to Watch the Throne." We were hoping they'd play "Otis" and "Ni**as in Paris." When it happened back-to-back, we were ecstatic.