Author Archives: olneyce

The 10 best Christmas songs

Posted on December 16, 2013 by olneyce

10. Happy XMas (War is Over) – John and Yoko Sure, it’s a little hokey, but who cares? It has endured where so many other ephemeral songs have faded in part because the message remains just as vibrant and necessary as … Continue reading →

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There but for fortune, may go you or I

Posted on December 14, 2013 by olneyce

There But for Fortune – Phil Ochs Ezra Klein comments on Obama’s claim that inequality is “the defining challenge of our time.” Income inequality is easy to worry about. It offends our moral intuitions. Its tears into the fabric of the … Continue reading →

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Self-preservation is a full time occupation

Posted on December 14, 2013 by olneyce

Talk to Me Now – Ani DiFranco John Dickerson posits that Congress could be improved if its members were forced to play a cooperative ‘escape room’ game, like the one he played earlier this week: This week, I volunteered to be … Continue reading →

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Your voice is soft like summer rain

Posted on December 11, 2013 by olneyce

I would never have guessed that one of my favorite songs of the year would be a remix of a Dolly Parton song.  Or that another one of my favorite songs of the year would be a cover of a … Continue reading →

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You’re starting to break me, you’re on your way

Posted on December 5, 2013 by olneyce

Another Day – Carousel If you like feeling happy, you will like this song.  It has all the wonderful density of a great synth track combined with all the organic urgency of a classic pop song.  The touch is light, the … Continue reading →

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He’s the laureate of the Granite State

Posted on December 3, 2013 by olneyce

Pink-Slips – Okkervil River Let’s start by saying that The Silver Gymnasium is a very good album.  It reverses the decade-long trend of each successive Okkervil River album being slightly worse than the one that came before.  And while it still … Continue reading →

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No radio can drown it out

Posted on December 2, 2013 by olneyce

Come Back Big Brother – The Rutabega I feel like the dominant trend in music these days is the power of cool.  Synths, sleek rhythms, laid-back beats: these are the sounds of the millennium.  Even the return of disco, which seems … Continue reading →

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Praise the water under bridges, the time they say will heal

Posted on November 27, 2013 by olneyce

New Lover – Josh Ritter Of all the reasons to write a song, few make for better material than the broken heart.  Some of the all-time great records have been the soundtracks to the darkest days of crumbling relationships and divorce. … Continue reading →

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My long-stemmed loneliness, your beck and call

Posted on November 20, 2013 by olneyce

Oh Catherine, My Catherine– Widower The rain has finally come.  After what seemed like an endless summer of dry skies and sunshine, I’m reminded of what it feels like to walk through puddles, to feel the water dripping down my … Continue reading →

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And the angel’s body was bared, and he was clothed in light so that eye could not look on him

Posted on November 19, 2013 by olneyce

Isjaki – Sigur Ros I think this is the best Sigur Ros album yet. It still has all the features that have made this one of the most distinct bands in the world: the soaring incomprehensible lyrics, the sweeping soundscapes, the … Continue reading →

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