The best music scribes not writing about music

Jason Gross has his annual round-up of “great” music writing up at PopMatters today.

Caveat: If you want the gold, better write for a daily or be a famous musician. Another caveat: Write about the business, not the music, that’s all anyone cares about (despite the fact that the music is in much better shape than the business).



My review of Wall-E is also up at PM today.

Wall-E, with Ratatouille, The Incredibles and Toy Story, is that rare thing – a children’s film that transcends its category. Its opening third, mostly without dialogue, is a stunning achievement, a lyrical, magical evocation of an imaginary space that feels absolutely true to itself. In fact, the only time that Wall-E falters is when it tries too hard to be a children’s film, with cuddly humanoid characters, fast-moving plot and too-pat resolution. The final two-thirds of Wall-E are not bad at all…just a step down into popcorn fodder from an opening that felt like art.


Also a shortie on Push-Pull a goofball punk rock band from my home state of Indiana. Their first album has recently been reissued on Sick Room Records.


“Tans Taafl”