September 2010

There were 23 posts published in September 2010 (this is page 4 of 4).

Apple’s Latest Event

Apple had their first live streaming event this morning, and they took that opportunity to show off some interesting new products. While it’s all pretty much what everyone expected, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

That’s the iPod Nano over there. It’s square now, having become entirely touchscreen. Sure looks neat. Besides that, there’s a new iPod Shuffle, which has buttons again and now supports Genius Mixes. and the new iPod Touch is basically an iPhone 4, but without phone functionality.

There’s a new version of iTunes, iTunes 10, which features a new, CD-less logo. There’s some new technology, including better syncing and a tweaked interface, but the main attraction is Ping. Ping, besides sounding a lot like “Bing,” is Apple’s new social network. It will allow you to follow friends and bands. Basically Twitter/FaceBook for iTunes. I’m excited to take a look at that when it rolls out later today.

Then there’s the Apple TV. It’s a tiny little black box that you plug into your TV. You can watch Netflix, YouTube, Mobile Me and Flickr photos, content streamed from a nearby computer and even an iPad. You can also rent videos from iTunes. $5 for new movies, $1 for new TV shows.  So far only ABC and Fox have signed on. There’s no way to actually keep content, which I guess makes sense for the market Apple wants. The Apple TV is for people who want a simple way to watch digital content on their TV, not people who understand services like Boxee.

In the end, kind of a disappointing event for me. I mean, sure, that iPod Touch will be great for those people who want an iPhone but not for the phone part. And iTunes 10 looks pretty cool. But I thought Apple TV would become the next must-have item, and it didn’t work out that way. Like the iPad, it looks like a novelty.

C.A.T.: Loveless

My Bloody Valentine – Loveless (1991)

I’ll try to be brief with this CAT since it’s an album that has a pretty ridiculously prestigious reputation anyway, and because I’m pretty tired from flying back to SF and moving in and all that nonsense. In most indie circles, My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless is basically treated like it’s the greatest thing in the history of mankind. I’ve always thought it’s been a little bit overhyped, but really any way you look at it, it’s a pretty grand achievement.

A few CAT’s ago I talked about The Jesus and Mary Chain, who basically planted the seed for the movement known as shoegazing, and Loveless is more or less the pinnacle of the movement. After establishing a sound drenched in heavy droning guitars, dream-like vocals, and wistful melodies on 1988’s Isn’t Anything, My Bloody Valentine delved into an even deeper, immersive sound with Loveless. It’s really pretty amazing how unique of a sound was created with this album, as the whole thing is just basically one giant wave of music that spills over you, without really any one particular instrument ever popping out at you. Even the vocals seem to be used in a way more similar to an instrument than as a way of singing lyrics.
There’s one funny thing that this album always reminds me of. I remember a long time ago, Nancy told me that he had come up with the most revolutionary musical idea ever, to create an album completely recorded underwater. Well I just kind of laughed at him at the time, but this album actually sounds basically what I would imagine an album that was recorded under water would sound like. Maybe it wasn’t as dumb of an idea as I thought it was.
Favorite Tracks: “Only Shallow”, “Blown A Wish”, “Soon”