About Me
Charles Olney, Associate Professor of Constitutional Law and Judicial Politics at the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley (academic website). This is a blog about music, politics, and the law. I also write about women’s soccer at Backline Soccer and Stars and Stripes FC.
Bluesky: olneyce
Soundcloud: olneyce
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Recent Posts
Greatest Hits
- Beatles from worst to first
- Top 25 albums of the decade
- Top 50 songs of the decade
- Top 10 Bruce Springsteen songs
- Top 10 Modest Mouse songs
- Top 10 Tom Petty songs
- Top 10 Carissa's Wierd songs
- Top 10 Paul Simon songs
- Top 10 Bob Dylan songs
- Top 10 breakup songs
- Top 20 albums of 2005
- Top 30 albums of 2006
- Top 40 songs of 2006
- Top 25 albums of 2007
- Top 40 songs of 2007
- Top 25 albums of 2008
- Top 40 songs of 2008
- Top 30 albums of 2009
- Top 40 songs of 2009
- Top 25 albums of 2010
- Top 40 songs of 2010
- Top 15 albums of 2011
- Top 40 songs of 2011
- Top 20 albums of 2012
- Top 40 songs of 2012
- Top 30 albums of 2013
- Top 50 songs of 2013
- Top 25 albums of 2014
- Top 50 songs of 2014
- Top 30 albums of 2015
- Top 50 songs of 2015
- Top 15 albums of 2016
- Top 40 songs of 2016
- Top 25 albums of 2017
- Top 50 songs of 2017
- Top 30 albums of 2018
- Top 50 songs of 2018
Music links
- Hype Machine
- elbo.ws
- Music for Kids Who Can't Read Good
- Can you see the sunset from the southside?
- Hits in the Car
- A Certain Romance
- Herohill
- Speed of Dark
- Lost in your Inbox
- Vague Space
- Skatterbrain
- I Guess I'm Floating
- Largehearted Boy
- Neon Gold
- Another Form of Relief
- Cover Lay Down
- The Monsters Under the Bed Are Not Real
- Yellow Stereo
- Quick Before It Melts
- Knox Road
- Sand is Overrated
- Shake Your Fist
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Author Archives: olneyce
50 songs for 50 states: Alabama
A musical celebration of the 50 states. One song each week over the course of the year. Alabama Pines – Jason Isbell Today, we inaugurate this project with Alabama. For me, this was an easy choice. Alabama has a strong bench … Continue reading
Top 25 albums of 2014
A year with many great albums and one transcendent one. It wasn’t quite the cornucopia that we got in 2013, but was still a very good year for music. I could produce a list 50 albums deep with stuff I … Continue reading
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Top 50 songs of 2014
This was a good year for music. Quite a few disappointing efforts from some of my old favorites, but plenty of new material to fill in the gaps. My top 10 songs are a bit weaker than some other years, … Continue reading
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World Cup final – a somewhat belated post
Impossible Germany – Wilco Astute readers may have noticed that I never posted my commentary on the World Cup final. When I was informed of this (Hi, Hunter!), I was surprised since I remembered having written it up. But, it turns … Continue reading
World Cup semifinals – Blühe, deutsches Vaterland!
Two games. One: a blistering assault that produced one of the most shocking results in the entire history of the game. The other: a relatively lifeless 0-0 decided on penalties, in which some of the best attacking players in the … Continue reading
World Cup quarterfinals – we’re gonna party like it’s 1990
Yikes. Well these quarterfinals are a bit of a turd floating in the punchbowl of an otherwise outstanding World Cup. None of these games were good, and several of them were actually pretty terrible. These were almost certainly the two … Continue reading
World Cup day 20 – Team USA departs with heads held high
Belgium 2 – 1 United States (after extra time) Talk of noble defeats is always bittersweet. I’d much rather win ugly than be going home. But this tournament has been all about noble defeats, and the US offered another stirring … Continue reading
World Cup day 19 – the paths of glory
Two amazing games today. Filled with tension, excitement, and occasionally some real skill. This World Cup continues to deliver. France 2 – 0 Nigeria This was the best performance by Nigeria so far. They looked worlds better than the team … Continue reading
World Cup day 18 – more late drama
Two more enthralling games. Both featured goals in the final five minutes which radically shifted the game. The Dutch came from behind to win as the clock ticked down. And a 10-man Costa Rica lost their lead but just barely … Continue reading
World Cup day 17 – heartbreak for Chile, reprieve for Brazil
James – Ex Cops Brazil 1 – 1 Chile (Brazil win 3-2 on penalties) What a fantastic game, and a great way to start the knockout round. The skill on the ball wasn’t always perfect, and both sides could very easily … Continue reading