October 2006

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Robert Christgau: NPR Animal

From my email: ROCK CRITIC ROBERT CHRISTGAU JOINS NPR AS CONTRIBUTING CRITIC FOR ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. First Review Airs Today on All Things Considered. Washington, D.C.; October 19, 2006: Rock critic Robert Christgau joins NPR as a contributing critic for All Things Considered, NPR's afternoon newsmagazine. His first review airs today, Thursday, October 19, 2006, on the program. Christgau will contribute music reviews to All Things Considered several times each month. He will continue to be a featured guest on NPR's online-only music program, All Songs Considered, as a panelist for its shows on upcoming releases. The self-described "Dean of American Rock Critics," Christgau has been writing about rock and roll and popular culture since his first column was published by Esquire in 1967. Earlier this year he ended more than three decades with the Village Voice, where he served as a senior editor as well as the weekly paper's chief music critic. In that role he oversaw the paper's annual "Pazz & Jop" poll of the nation’s music critics, though he is best known for his Consumer Guide columns, which for the first time offered graded capsule reviews of new albums. To date, he's given more than 12,000 albums the treatment. Christgau has authored five books, including Grown Up All Wrong: 75 Great Rock and Pop Artists from Vaudeville to Techno, Any Old Way You Choose It: Rock and Other Pop Music, 1967-1973 and three record guides. To find local stations and broadcast times for All Things Considered, visit www.NPR.org/stations. The audio for today's review will be available after 7:30pm (ET) at www.NPR.org.

Posted by Peter S. Scholtes at October 19, 2006 2:27 PM | Comments (0)

 

'Robert Christgau: Rock 'n' Roll Animal'

This hilarious documentary about the Pauline Kael of rock critics, reviewed here by Keith Harris, screens tonight at 7:00 p.m. for whatever you can pay at Bryant-Lake Bowl in Minneapolis (810 West Lake Sreet, 612.825.8949) before a rare screening of Barbara Kopple's My Generation, a meaning-laden comparison of the '60s and '90s Woodstock festivals. Both films are a must for fans of popular music, not to mention fans of popular music criticism, and of the counterculture and left-wing political movements that rock criticism was once, and might still be, closely allied with. If you've never heard of Robert Christgau, read his last Consumer Guide, and check out his website and these other Christgau-related links:

Robert Christgau
http://robertchristgau.com/

The Dean Is Dead
http://www.gawker.com/news/village-voice/the-dean-is-dead-198022.php

X-ed Out: The Village Voice fires a famous music critic
http://www.slate.com/id/2148997/

Can't Stop the Music: The 'Voice' invents rock criticism
http://www.villagevoice.com/specials/0543,50thexgau,69321,31.html

Answers From the Dean: Online Exchange with Robert Christgau
http://www.rockcritics.com/interview/robertchristgau.html

Christgau lists
http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/christgau_p3.htm

Updates:

Christgau is on NPR (see entry above) and his Consumer Guide is on MSN (see comment below)

Consumer Guide
http://music.msn.com/music/consumerguide

Christgau on NPR
http://www.npr.org/search.php?text=Christgau

Posted by Peter S. Scholtes at October 17, 2006 11:27 AM | Comments (2)

 

The Monks reunite in Northern Minnesota Saturday

Adam Fesenmaier writes: "Before they head across the pond [European tour dates here] The Monks are playing a warm-up gig in Bemidji at a club called Jammers on Saturday, Oct. 14th. I tried to get 'em to play in Minneapolis but had no luck.... It'll probably never happen goddamn it!" It's no complete Monks reunion, not without late drummer Roger Johnston and retired organist Larry Clark, but any Monks fan who witnessed singer-guitarist Gary Burger's electrifying performance with the Conquerors at the Bryant-Lake Bowl not too long ago will know this is worth the road trip to see him reunite with banjo man Dave Day and bassist Eddie Shaw. "Mike Fornatallie is playing the organ and the Loons (San Diego) drummer is sitting in," adds Fesenmaier. And the nice thing about the Northland: cheap motels and beer.

Posted by Peter S. Scholtes at October 9, 2006 5:43 PM | Comments (0)

 

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