Welcome in

I have, since November of 2014, kept a log of songs that strike my fancy in the form of monthly playlists on Spotify. It was, in an era when I wanted so badly to be recognized for my public opinions and writing about music, a rare habit I kept only for me, solely to mark the days and aid my horrible memory when suggesting music, or when asked that clammy, exhilarating question: what are you listening to lately?

I am, these days, much more drawn to the bookkeeping of my music taste than the florid exhortation of it. I just want my friends to know, and myself to acknowledge, the songs and albums that mark the time of a week, a month, a year. And it has come to my attention that Twitter has outlived its usefulness in this regard.

These past few years, I have added two new practices to my monthly playlists: last.fm weekly collages and year end best albums lists / best of playlists. My social media presence has over time shrunk to just Twitter, and while the chud ratio on my timeline is getting dire, that is not what I most bemoan on the platform. What sucks most of all is that nobody sees my posts! Neither internet friends nor closest bosom buddies see my darn tweets.

Mariel pointed out that if i’m going to do all this work to catalog what I listen to, what I like, what I’d recommend, the least I can do is share it somewhere where people who care can be sure to see it. That is how I find myself here.

I plan to, from now on, or until I get bored, post at three frequencies:

1. Weekly, commenting on my last.fm chart

2. Monthly, commenting on my monthly notable and new-to-me playlist

3. Annually, annotating my year end Best Albums list and Best Songs Playlist

I have no idea if I will have something worthwhile to say at every junction of these frequencies, but I intend to keep it up with my honest appraisal of what I’m listening to, if only as an exercise in typing.

I have not been a music journalist in a long time, if I ever was. I have only ever a passing interest in the human drama of the music industry or the personal escapades of individual musicians. I am here to say, with limp and changeable conviction, what songs and albums I think are Big Hits on any given day. I would be honored if you wanted to take a peek, and chuffed if you wanted to argue it on any point.

A note on the attached image: I made my most recent Topsters while bored at work a few weeks ago, and I already have issues with it. Crack-Up by Fleet Foxes is the first thing I’ve remembered that is a glaring omission. I’ve been marking my spring with it, as I often do; I feel that the four Fleet Foxes albums map well to the seasons, and I make a point to listen to them accordingly.

Hejira is a bit of a lob. I like that album quite a bit but after many years I am still a Mitchell neophyte; is it appropriate to rate something so highly when I've only listened to it five or six times?

Tomboy by Panda Bear I feel self conscious about. I don’t think it’s Lennox’s weakest work by any stretch, but it is overly indulgent in its expansive, droning nature. But try as I might, I can’t undo what it meant to me to find that record in freshman year of college, at a time when it felt like every new person to talk to was a wing being discovered in music’s vast library.

Do people generally think the last Tribe album is one of the greats? I went deep on A Tribe Called Quest while reading Hanif Abdurraqib’s phenomenal book on them, and We Got It From Here… rocketed to my #2 slot for the group. I find it more rewarding on every listen. Nothing beats Low End Theory, but to come close at their big age - I can’t think of many other examples like it in hip-hop.

Finally, There Goes Rhymin’ Simon. That I put this, of all of Paul, at #2 behind Graceland, is perhaps a bit bold. After a lifetime of listening, I really do mean it. I think there are moments of lyrical clarity and painterly detail on Rhymin’ that rival even Graceland, and put plenty of his work, the good and the bad, to shame. Plus it’s a great deal of fun. Paul Simon has the type of sharp wit that is buoyant to listen to when good natured, and sour when directed in spite. There Goes Rhymin’ Simon is all the former, and is a lovely record to put on while alternating between cooking and dancing with someone you love.

Chow for now.