Overrated

The Guardian published the NME's list of the best 50 albums of the last decade a few days ago, and I've been meaning to comment.

The Strokes are over-rated -- they were highly derivative, rather like Beck was highly derivative ten years prior. My favorite band of the last five to six years is easily The Libertines, and while I think they deserve their spot in the rankings, a mate of mine commented down the pub last night that Karl, Pete, et al. owe a lot to the Strokes, which pretty much put me in my place.

So I guess I'm left with bitching about this. Third? When the Monkeys came out a couple years back, they were heralded as the next big thing. They weren't. Highly over-rated, and just not that interesting, and more critically, they didn't advance pop music one millimeter.

Discuss.

Read more...

Plebiscitarianism run amok

In the process of voting, I find myself pondering "King County Charter Amendment #1: Repeal of Section 350.20.30 and Portions of Article 9 - Transitory Provisions" Here's the text in full:

Shall those no longer relevant portions of King County Charter Article 9 relating to the county's prior transition to a home rule charter and King County Charter Section 350.20.30, relating to the county's transition to a metropolitan form of government, be repealed, as provided in Ordinance # 16484?"

If you're anything like me, you tried to read this several times, but kept falling asleep. Apparently, we're being asked to vote on whether outdated language that refers to another no longer present section of the charter should be removed. I was tempted to vote no as an irrational protest vote against the madness that is the King County Charter. There's a reasonable debate to be had about governing by plebiscite, but I can't really figure out what a defense of copyediting by plebiscite might look like.

In other news, King County people please vote! I think we'll win the big three (Yes to human rights and decency (71), No to disastrous state budgeting practices and Tim Eyman (1033), No to Susan "Sarah Palin II" Hutchinson) but these off year elections are somewhat unpredictable and losing any of these would drive me to drink.

Read more...