You know that nationwide alert that went out in October 2023? Turns out, it's illegal to play that sound! The more you know.

I find myself in a real conundrum. I only recently became aware of The Pinkerton Diaries, a book of actual diary entries from Rivers Cuomo documenting 1994 to 1997; prime time for Weezer's rise to fame and his struggle with making the followup record. Along with that book was a batch of demo recordings called Alone III: The Pinkerton Years. It's streaming on Youtube of course.

My conundrum is this: both were released twelve years ago and in Internet time, that may as well be multiple lifetimes. In short, this is very old news to anyone that might care. Added to that, talking about Weezer in any form is a topic I attempt to avoid at all costs. Everything that needs to be said, has been said.

I'm not interested in them as a band now but my nostalgia for this era is undeniable. Additionally, I love a demo. Love a demo. So, yea, that's my conundrum. It's not an interesting topic to discuss but it is a good listen and, I suspect, a fascinating read.

Back in March of 2022, my beloved Bandcamp was acquired by Epic Games. I commented on it at the time but never fully felt like the match made much sense. A few journalists shared their thoughts on why it happened at all (Spoiler alert: Epic wanted to use Bandcamp as a weapon in litigation against Google and Apple) but, again, it really never made much sense to me.

Then, perhaps more shockingly, Epic announced a large round of layoffs and a divestment in Bandcamp. They sold it off to Songtradr, a platform aimed at helping artists distribute their music to streaming platforms and seeking licensing agreements for film and TV.

I don't know much of anything about Songtradr. I've read some complaints that they charge too little for licensing or behave too complicitly with the horrible royalty rates from streaming platforms but despite all that, they still make more sense than Epic Games as a parent company.

I mentioned this during the last acquisition but I still find the entire thing baffling. Supposedly, Bandcamp is a profitable company. They may not have as much growth or as much super profit as a corporation may desire but they aren't in debt. At least, so I've read. If that's actually true, I don't think I'll ever really understand selling at all.

All and all, I'm happy they are not under the wing of Epic anymore. I'm glad the new parent seems a bit more sensible. And I remain cautiously optimistic that history does not repeat itself and that the new parent company tries to change things too drastically.

Another tech mogul profile but enjoyably humble and hesitant. Still hugely problematic for one cult of personality to wield so much influence but at least he’s aware of it.

Honestly, the similarities between Musk and Trump are obvious and abundant. For some reason, being in tech gets him a pass more often. Anything he has accomplished was done despite him not because of.

an enjoyably scathing, well deserved, read

I have zero familiarity with Bill Willingham or his series of Fables comics with DC but I am impressed by his decision to release it all into the public domain. A great read even if you, like me, have no idea who this person is.

Speaking of Upright T-Rex Music and Justin Lawes; the two have collaborated together and released the self-titled album Computer Jazz. The songs were all written and recorded by Lawes, Wariner and Uhler together. Given that I've been listening to Wariner and Uhler make music for 15+ years, I can hear their influence very heavily but Lawes is definitely putting his own spin on that work.

If you like bleeps and bloops combined with sweeping movements; they got you covered. I am absolutely loving it.

Waaay back in 2017, I launched the portfolio website for Upright T-Rex, the production studio that my buddies Ross Wariner and Cody Uhler operate for sound & music design for all kinds of media. I am happy to announce that here in 2023, six years later, they have outgrown the site I built for them and relaunched the whole thing! Check it out at utxmusic.com and be sure to spend some time in each section - keeping an eye out for gems like "The Game That Never Was." To be clear, I did not build this new site but I am overjoyed to see their work maturing beyond what I provided!

Ross and Cody both make music independently as Uncle Skeleton and Cody Uhler, endeavors also worth you ears should you enjoy what you're hearing from UTX.

If you find yourself needing any sort of audio, you really should hire them - they do a bang up job.

Been a minute since I immersed myself in portfolio site but the work of Justin Lawes certainly deserved my time. I am particularly fond of the playful work, the behind-the-scenes insights and collaborations. There's a ton to see - go enjoy!

The most bizarre thing about this trailer for Poor Things is that its hosted on the Kodak Youtube account. That’s saying a lot considering how bizarre this looks! Early reviews confirm it's quite enjoyable too. Looking forward to it.

yes, I'm linking a New Yorker article. yes, it's actually worth a read.

I've long been a fan of Skyway Man (and his previous iteration, James Wallace and The Naked Light). He's got a new record on the horizon, Flight of the Long Distance Healer, and it seems he has stepped up his game - conceptually - quite a bit.

This incredibly impressive video for "The Holding On" feels authentically from its era. Realistically speaking, it's a clever use of old footage and brilliant color treatments of new footage but it just feels like an actual piece of lost cinema. There's a story unfolding in there too but I will let you dig into that if you feel so inclined.

If I had to place my bets on what the record sounds like before the album is released I'd say - sci-fi folk with an upbeat feel and an ominous overture. That's what the video is giving me and I suspect there's more where it came from. Can't wait.

Back in 2021, the song "Space Freeway" was released as a collaborative effort between electronic artists Eve Maret and Adrienne Franke; two artists that I greatly admire. I have patiently awaited more music to emerge from that meeting of minds and now the wait is over!

The collaboration is officially called Eardrummer and their debut self-titled record will be released on Oct 13, 2023. The first track "Hibiscus" is available now and likely streaming everywhere. I urge you to follow these two, their collab IG account @_eardrummer_ and buy the record. It's gonna be a good one.

Remember when you used to stumble upon a random website that had a 24/7 streaming feed of genre-specific music that ticked all the right boxes but you couldn't figure out how they existed as an actual business? DKFM is an excellent example of exactly that. The website has more navigation items than you can count, most of the content seems to stop at 2021 but the actual music feed is going strong and well worth listening to. Hit play, pin the tab and maybe buy a shirt to keep them going through this mysterious existence!

Look, YouTube is littered with garbage countdown lists but sometimes they are legitimate doses of entertainment. I don't know that I can call all of these "nightmare fuel" but there are some amusingly weird creations in here worth perusing.

Even if you don't read a word of this, the sketches, doodles and various visual ephemera are absolutely delightful.

just a lil fun puzzler. via @patrickmoberg

I know this guy is kind of old news but I am loving the latest unveiling. 404 Media brings the whole thing down to Earth but I am still entertained.

bookmark it. inspiration to infinity.