To start, I have no idea who Devon Rodriguez is, nor have any context on their popularity on social media. I am sure I have seen some of their videos just by virtue of being online but my familiarity is near zero. The same goes for writer Ben Davis, who wrote a review of Rodriguez's recent art show and got massively piled on his fans.
Fortunately, its not necessary to know who either party is to enjoy this opinion piece, The World’s Most Popular Painter Sent His Followers After Me Because He Didn’t Like a Review of His Work. Here’s What I Learned. In it, Davis spells out exactly what happened but more importantly provides the context around art criticism in general and how Rodriguez's internet fame is part of his art, whether he realizes it or not. It also touches on "parasocial relationships" - in which fans of a person think they are actually friends with that entity when, in fact, they are not.
It's a bit of a lengthy writeup but well worth the read. Soak it in and then go have yourself a meaty conversation with a real life friend about how weird the Internet is. It's so weird.
If you have been tinkering around on the Internet for roughly the same period that I have been, you likely remember a time when "Webmaster" and "Web Designer" were not titles that inspired chuckles. This piece from Heather Buchel - It's 2023, here is why your web design sucks. - it's a bit of an ode to that time. Back then, you could design a site and write the code for it; both requiring their own sets of skills but both very much dependent on one another.
My experience does not match those of Buchel's exactly but I entirely agree with the sentiment of the piece. There is a lack of understanding from "front end development" about how web design should be executed. Conversely, there's an equal lack of understanding from designers about how the web gets implemented; from the DOM to proper responsiveness. I hardly think of myself as a thought leader in this space but I can't help but feel a bit of pride that I came up in a time where knowing both was healthy.
Thanks to Nashville Galaxy, I spend a bit of time learning more about the history of Nashville than I have ever done before. Recently I stumbled upon this fantastic article - Coming Home: A History of Queer Nightlife in Nashville. It's exactly as the title suggests - a primer on LGBTQ+ focused clubs, restaurants, bars and more in the Nashville area.
"Nashville" has a long history of being combative and unwelcome to the LGBTQ+ crowd. The article touches on that a little bit but largely just celebrates the existence of these places. It's a great jumping off point to learn even more and you'll get plenty of visual treats along the way like that fantastic brand mark for The World's End!
Recently I've been enjoying the short films of Allison Inman; the Education and Engagement Director at our local indie theater powerhouse - the Belcourt. This particular 10-minute piece, Hi Tech Service, is a slice of life look at an electronic repair shop in Nashville on their closing day. It's a heartwarming little look at how a small spot can be an important part of a neighborhood.
As neighborhoods get gentrified and more corporate chain businesses make their way in, we lose these kinds of businesses. It's understandable that Hi Tech Service would close after a successful operation for several decades (you work to reward yourself with non-work) but you lose the personal vibe that actually make a neighborhood. Inman has done a wonderful job of capturing that.
Randomly stumbled on Ozean, a shoegaze / dreampop band from 1991 based out of San Jose. They played exactly one show and only three songs from their demo recordings have made their way out into the world - just enough to make the vinyl pressing go for $400.
Generally, I would say such a backstory was completely absurd as it sounds exactly like something an elitist record store clerk from High Fidelity would say. But listening to the recordings... they're good. Real good. Exactly what you want from a shoegaze / dreampop band from the early 90's.There was certainly some magic happening with the foursome that made the songs.
There's a 2017 interview with members Eric Shea and Lisa Baer talking about the history of the project, the surprise success of its Internet unearthing and what they may be up to next. Baer says she is going to Nashville to record vocals for the first time since the Ozean project, 25 years later. She does not say for what project specifically. A shame really because I'd love to hear that too.
Despite a number of highlyconcerning events with Bandcamp and their new owner, Songtradr - the Bandcamp Daily continues to publish for the time being. They recently released a piece of "Space Disco" and many of the unsung records that help form it.
Part of that article cites Cosmotropics, an album by German outfit Supersempfft. The 1982 album was, apparently, intended to be accompanied by an animated film but neither came to fruition. In 2020, the record was finally released and somewhere along the line, the animation was too. It is, unsurprisingly, an absolute trip.
It's certainly unfortunate it was never released when the artists intended it to be unleashed but it's great that it has eventually made its way into the world.
Having all of your pessimistic fears validated is not a great feeing! Vulture is reporting Bandcamp Hit With Layoffs Amid Sale to Songtradr and that's pretty much what everyone thought was going to happen. The article has all the necessary details but it looks like about 50% of the company was let go and only three editorial staff remain.
I've been a huge Bandcamp fan since 2008; fifteen years is a long time to be a fan of a service and not have them screw it up royally! Maybe that time has come to an end.
Doing my best to be optimistic on this one but layoffs of this size are not a good look.
Eardrummer is the collaborative project of Eve Maret and Adrienne Franke; two Nashville based electronic musicians that make some great work on their own AND managed to make something quite enjoyable together.
Dancey, Krautrocky and sometimes Ambient - an excellent blend start to finish.
Incredibly good rundown from Ryan Broderick of Garbage Day entitled Content Moderation Is A Failed Project, wherein speaks on social medias complete lack of usefulness for real time events and the unbelievable lack of moderation - both from the angle of shocking content and misinformation. This was my favorite bit:
When Musk bought Twitter a year ago, I naively believed that users, especially irl important ones, would react to the increasing noise on their feeds by simply leaving the platform. And, if my own following tab is an indication, many have. But what has actually happened is much more dangerous. Instead of X dissolving into a digital backwater for divorced guys with NFT debt, it has, instead, continued to remain at the top of the digital funnel while also being 4chan-levels of rotten. It is still being used to process current events in “real time” even though it does not have the tools, nor the leadership necessary to handle that responsibility.
