Camper Van Beethoven's unlikely major label debut Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart was released 25 years ago today. It is older than some people you know. Soon you will die.

The American Cancer Society was founded in New York City on May 22, 1913. (That's a hundred years ago today.) Back then it was called the American Society for the Control of Cancer. It's funny to think of "celebrating" in terms of a disease like cancer. And it sure would be better if there was never any need for an American Cancer Society in the first place. But here we are, left saying "fuck cancer" anytime someone like David Rakoff or Adam Yauch dies way, way too young, and so to the people who are working so hard to make it be so that we [...]

The Mighty Boosh's Noel Fielding turns 40 today, so this seems appropriate. And also this.

Once when I was driving on Route 80 in Pennsylvania, I passed a car being driven by a man holding a book open between his two hands on the steering wheel. It was a thick book, like a big novel, and he was reading it while driving 65 miles per hour on the highway. This seemed like one of the more dangerous things I had ever seen. So I hope Gunplay doesn't try to, like, look up any particular passages of scripture while he's rolling. But this is a great song.

Solid power pop, nice build to the finish, and a happy ending? I'm there. [Via]

Happy 70th to John Symon Asher Bruce, bassist and songwriter extraordinaire. Cream was pretty inescapable when I was growing up, but I've always enjoyed this one.

At this point we are pretty much all keeping our head out of the stove until the return of "Arrested Development," right? I am going to watch all those episodes so hard! In fact, I am not even watching this trailer, that is how fresh I would like to come to the show. But you may have a different way of doing things, in which case you should enjoy the trailer on your own time. In related "Arrested Development" news, did you know that Awl pal Will Leitch is the designated media expert on the show? Here are some other things you probably missed. See you [...]

Hands up who remembers 1998!

Kevin Patrick Shields turns 50 today. Remember a couple months back when everyone was all, OH MY GOD NEW BLOODY VALENTINE RECORD I'M GONNA DIE etc.? Do people still talk about it now here in the future? I'm actually asking, I don't get out much any more so I'm not sure what The Word On The Street These Days is. Anyway, many bloody returns.

Trevor Tahiem "Busta Rhymes" Smith, Jr. occupies a singular place in hip-hop history. He is a super-good rapper, blessed with a flow as quick and nimble and flexible as any we've ever heard. He's never put together truly great songs, though, or albums you want to listen to all the way through. He's perhaps most famous for his guest appearances on other peoples' songs—beginning with his jaw-dropping verse on A Tribe Called Quest's "Scenario" in 1991, he earned a reputation as the genre's greatest scene stealer. (Andre 3000 has since stolen that crown.) What Busta is, though, I think, is hip-hop's greatest video artist. He is the [...]

Does the world need another cover of this David Bowie classic? Sure, why the hell not. [Via]

They have been live for one day and already the people at Previously.tv are making this a better world.

"The psychological definition of loneliness hasn’t changed much since Fromm-Reichmann laid it out. 'Real loneliness,' as she called it, is not what the philosopher Søren Kierkegaard characterized as the 'shut-upness' and solitariness of the civilized. Nor is 'real loneliness' the happy solitude of the productive artist or the passing irritation of being cooped up with the flu while all your friends go off on some adventure. It’s not being dissatisfied with your companion of the moment—your friend or lover or even spouse—unless you chronically find yourself in that situation, in which case you may in fact be a lonely person. Fromm-Reichmann even distinguished 'real loneliness' from mourning, since the [...]

Here's the new video from one of our favorite young artists, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire. In it, the Brooklyn rapper raps two new songs, "Noble Drew Ali" and "The Cauldron." I don't know why he called the video "Nightfall at the Thames." But then, I went to school in New London, Connecticut, and there's a river there called the Thames. But it's pronounced with the "Th" sound like "the," and "ames" like it rhymes with "James." So who knows why anyone does anything the way they do it? Not me.

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Younger listeners who are curious about what the early-to-mid '80s sounded like could do worse than to just play this song over and over.

I got an email from my friend Matt last night that said, "Well, you won't have Ray Manzarek to kick around anymore." This was a reference to an argument we had, Matt and I and another friend, Dave, very late at night this past New Year's Eve. We've known each since grade school, the three of us, and we got into music together in the way that lots of adolescent suburban boys do: classic-rock-first. We all loved the Doors as kids, I had a poster of Jim Morrison in my room in front of which I used to bow my head in prayer. We all mastered the distinctive [...]

"A recent news story claims that Tim Dog 'may be up to his biggest scam yet'—faking his own death. WREG in Memphis interviewed Esther Pilgrim, one of the women featured in this Dateline story back in June of last year, who had been one of many victims reportedly swindled out of money by the rapper, and she alleges that a death certificate for Timothy Blair (the Dog’s government name) has not been found by a private investigator she hired. The news station also did some diggin’ and supposedly didn’t come up with anything either. And here’s the kicker: their P.I. did, however, locate an Atlanta address 'active' since last [...]

Writer/performer Victoria Davey Spelling turns 40 today. All my copies of her work are at the library in the summer house, so instead of giving you some of the more poignant excerpts from Uncharted TerriTori ("Having it all isn’t always easy—especially when you’re a perfectionist—but with the help of her unconventional family and friends, an underwear-clad spiritual cleansing or two, and faith in herself, she’s learning to find her happy ending. Because when you’re Tori Spelling, every day brings uncharted terriTORI") we will instead have to pay tribute by watching this collection of some of the choice dramatic moments from her pivotal role as Donna Martin on "Beverly Hills [...]

There's been plenty written about how great Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar's album, good kid, m.A.A.d. city is. So much that I'm left with feeling like I have little of value to add to any conversation about it. But the video for "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe," came out today and it inspired in me a thought(!) First of all, it's really good. Watch it. Secondly, jumping back and forth in tone as it does, it makes a nice point about how complex everything is—death, religion, fashion, mourning, partying, solitude, unity, nature, all this stuff. All sorts of paradox. Which starts to come as close to truth, I think, [...]

I still can't figure out what this reminds me of, but whatever it is, I like it. [Via]