Here I present a fandom that I've been meaning to nominate for Yuletide several years running. I don't usually do five-minute fandoms but you have to admit that this one is charming ( Read more... )

Went last night to see Britten's Turn of the Screw at Saint John the Evangelist, on Iffley Road ( Read more... )

Take your pick...

Guardian: Five songs about Margaret Thatcher

Vulture: 9 Not-So-Thrilled Songs About Margaret Thatcher

Louder than War: Top 13 Anti Margaret Thatcher Songs

BuzzFeed: 21 Incredibly Angry Songs About Margaret Thatcher

This entry was originally posted at http://naraht.dreamwidth.org/527317.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

Though I haven't had much time to devote to my Icelandic studies, I have been listening to lots of Icelandic music, which I suppose counts as productive engagement with the language. And I do love it.

Thought I'd share a couple of albums that I've been enjoying via Bandcamp...

Particular favourites here are "Út" and "Sköpun mannsins":

And here I ( Read more... )

Had a lovely evening in London yesterday, once I made it in through all the pre-Olympic travel chaos.

It's been unbelievably clear and warm for the last few days after a summer of gales and rain and changeability. Midday the heat and sun would have been too much for me but it was just perfect at 7.30 when I met
( Read more... )

Just finished reading Andrew Loog Oldham's Stoned, which turns out to be one of the best books I've read on the British music industry in the late 50s/early 60s. As a managerial memoir it rates as more honest than Cellarful of Noise (which was fairly honest, considering) and much less fanciful than You Don't Have to Say You Love Me. But it isn't a ( Read more... )

One of the occupational hazards of managing a band is getting name-checked in one of your group's songs when their frustration with your business methods finally boils over. The Kinks in particular spent a lot of time writing bitter, funny songs about the music industry, but they were far from the only ones ( Read more... )

Just got back from the Smyths gig and my ears are still ringing. It was upstairs at the Zodiac (as I will persist in calling it) and the audience was surprisingly small, but cheerfully enthusiastic. A couple of people had the foresight to bring flowers to throw. There was plenty of room for dancing. Lots of people danced with lots of other people, ( Read more... )

The Kominas are a Muslim punk group from the States. Super-catchy hooks and basslines even if you're not listening to the words. As for the words, they're equal-opportunity offenders--well, it's punk, isn't it? I must remember not to start singing this[YT] (any part of it!) while walking down the street ( Read more... )

Yes, I do occasionally read student handbooks for fun...

Bob Jones University Student Handbook
Liberty University Student Handbook
Highlights from the Liberty University handbook

BJU seems a lot more micro-managing in their approach. I was particularly interested in their attitude towards music:

BJU takes a conservative approach to music. While ( Read more... )