looks like ryan and i aren't the only ones doing this "the greatest band" business. slate's in on it, too. rem? U2? i dunno... you pick!
by the way, i wholeheartedly regret saying publicly that _____ is the greatest band ever.
by the other way, i find it noticeably odd that so much of the so little time i've spent writing to/for/on/through/in (dave e) has lately been devoted to music. music writing intimidates me. that's a really exlusive genre, and it's easy to look pretty uninformed. i think i'll make an effort to avoid it for a while.
Posted by dave at October 18, 2003 5:21 PM | TrackBackDamn. I hate that that article is dead-on (except for its somewhat curmudgeonly take on *New Adventures . . . ,* which both of us agree is quietly brilliant).
What is perhaps more depressing is what it says about me (and to a lesser degree, you, Dave)--that I became an R.E.M. fan sometime at the end of their first decade, after *Rolling Stone* proclaimed them the Best Rock Band in America, after their legendary *Work* and *Green* tours, after they had already begn escaping the image of themselves as they "really" were.
Fortunately, most of it is still damn good music, smart and edgy still. I think I'll go play *Automatic for the People,* since, well, everyone seems to like that one.
Posted by: Ryan at October 19, 2003 9:33 AM | Permalink to CommentGo ahead and write about music, Dave. Music writers who flaunt their own knowledge to impress their readers usually suck, anyway.
Posted by: George at October 20, 2003 9:42 PM | Permalink to Comment