I love The Band. This blog is named after a song by The Band. My username is based on a song by The Band. Fans of The Band feel a little on the outside. The Band’s moment in the spotlight was short and unusual, and they don’t get the fanfare that many of their contemporaries … Continue reading In Review: Once Were Brothers
Music
Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2019
For five years I have memorialized the albums that spoke to me in a year-end blog post. The record of 2019 shows that I invested my time into no more than four albums and one EP. That’s it? That’s it. Out of the five recordings that meant something to me in 2019, here are the … Continue reading Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2019
Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2018
By January of 2018, I was burned out. I had spent each of the previous 52 weeks identifying, listening to, and evaluating a new album. Though I got a lot out of my 2017 music mission, I did not have the energy or interest to invest in a lot of new music. As a result, … Continue reading Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2018
Queen Harvest’s Top Fifty-Eight (58) Albums of 2017
Who doesn't love an arbitrary, subjective, poorly thought out ranking?
2017: Final Quarter Note
Call me Edna St. Vincent Millay's candle at dawn 'cause I am Burnt Out. For your reference, my impersonal rating system follows: ★★★★★ I listen to it regularly. ★★★★☆ I will listen to it again. ★★★☆☆ I wouldn't mind listening to it in a mix. ★★☆☆☆ If it comes on I won’t turn it off. … Continue reading 2017: Final Quarter Note
2017: Third Quarter Note
I feel like several years have passed since the second quarter of 2017. For reference, in the last three months I have graduated with a master’s degree, left my job of over three years, and moved across the country to start my career in a new landscape and climate, where I know no one but … Continue reading 2017: Third Quarter Note
2017: Second Quarter Note
Since my First Quarter Note I have diligently, doggedly, at times reluctantly, maintained a rigorous schedule of listening to a new album of music each week. There have been difficult dry spells when I felt burned out (See Weeks 17-19) and times of glorious abundance when I had the world on a string (See Week … Continue reading 2017: Second Quarter Note
2017: First Quarter Note
The first fourth of 2017 is mercifully behind us. Thanks to the recommendations of friends, strangers, and society-at-large, my weeks have been full of new music of all shapes and sizes. Every Sunday I choose an album to which I've never listened, and throughout the week I listen to it at least five times (to … Continue reading 2017: First Quarter Note
Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2016
This year was not my most musically adventurous. I spent a lot of listening time on podcasts (SSDGM), lecture series (Russia, Ulysses, Ireland), and Hamilton (again), and made minimal efforts seek out new music. I have decided to take action against musical malaise next year. I will listen to a new album every week, at … Continue reading Queen Harvest’s Top Five (5) Albums of 2016
Bob Dylan Wrote a Protest Album for 2016
He just released it in 1964. With its black-and-white cover, solo acoustic guitar, and old school folky title, The Times They Are A-Changin’ seems like an album stuck in the music and history of fifty years ago. Nevertheless, Dylan’s songs of anger and despair each point a finger at social, economic, and political issues that … Continue reading Bob Dylan Wrote a Protest Album for 2016
Put It In Your Hat 