Musing

Website of the Year - Raspberry Pi Great project, great cause. So beautifully nerdy to watch this happen from the ground up. Book of the Year - Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus There was a whole lot of buzz surrounding Morgenstern's debut novel about this one-of-a-kind circus. I finally got it for my lunchtime reading break on my Kindle and devoured about 7-10% of it every day. It was absolutely worth every penny I paid. I've since ordered it in hardcover as well, since I think it's a book that's going to have staying power. While the plot is certainly better than average, it's the world that the plot is couched in that really makes me want to start reading it all over again. The novel is not intended to be a part of any series, so there's no commitment to anything greater than its own length. This was one of the most attractive things about it from the start, since a lot of my reading time is gobbled up by enormous books, enormous s...

Noel Gallagher's Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds Editor's Note: This is the 9th in a quasi-weekly series of reviews marking my favorite ten albums of 2011. The 10th edition is wrapped into the larger year-end post I call "The Ho Media Awards", which will be published next weekend. Stay tuned! Yes, even after my strong defense of Liam and Beady Eye in general, I still have to give the edge to Noel's solo album. He kept it to just the right length by culling his batch of 15+ studio tracks down to the ten that fit together best. The album grabbed me from the first track. He doesn't take any time to do any vocal warm-ups - this is Noel at his most emphatic from the first line of vocals. And what a deliciously dark opener it is! This is one of the reasons that Noel gets the edge. Dark sounds, minor chords, and lots of strings are going to suck me in every time. I'll admit that I was a little trepidatious after hearing the first single, ...

Radiohead's The King of Limbs Editor's Note: This is the 8th in a quasi-weekly series of reviews marking my favorite ten albums of 2011. New reviews go up every weekend through the end of the year. As I indicated in a post just after my first critical listen to this album, I was a little surprised at the direction taken with this album. The Radiohead Pendulum of Weirdness seemed to be swinging back towards something like "Amnesiac." In a way I was right, just not the way I expected. First of all, the disappointment from the short length of the album still hasn't worn off. Anything shorter than 10 tracks is still an EP to me. Several companion tracks have been released since the album hit the streets - "Supercollider" and "The Butcher" were emailed to all of the folks who pre-ordered the album through the band's site. "Staircase" and "The Daily Mail" were just released about a week ago as a one-off double A-s...

Beady Eye's Different Gear, Still Speeding Editor's Note: This is the 7th in a quasi-weekly series of reviews marking my favorite ten albums of 2011. New reviews go up every weekend through the end of the year. If there was an award category here in the Top Ten something like "Album That Gave Me The Most Relief After Fearing It Would Suck," DGSS would have won it. The first single, "Bring The Light," is a good track, but it's pretty standard Liam fare - short on imaginative lyrics and reliant on three chords or fewer. I think the idea that Noel was the only good songwriter in Oasis is blatantly false. All four guys have songwriting talent. Noel just happens to be the most versatile. After this first single, I was afraid the Beady Eye album would be 11 repetitive tracks. ("Ain't Got Nothin'" anyone?) So, after a good deal of brash build-up by Liam, DGSS hit early in 2011 to a lot of surprise. Those in the "Noel is GOD!...

Florence + The Machine's Ceremonials Editor's Note: This is the 6th in a quasi-weekly series of reviews marking my favorite ten albums of 2011. New reviews go up every weekend through the end of the year. As usual, it's hard to talk about the top few albums without talking about the reasons that they didn't make it any higher on the list. This year's albums fit themselves into three distinct groups. #8-10 are great, but not necessarily "must buys" for everyone. #5-7 should be picked up at your earliest convenience. #1-4 should be purchased before you buy groceries again. So Ceremonials finds itself right on the edge of transcendence. Why just the edge? Here's a better question. Why on the earth would such an enormously talented woman saddle her artistic statement with a song like "Never Let Me Go"? This is particularly astonishing when you listen to the b-sides that accompany her deluxe edition (I'm looking at you, "B...