[Literature] 2014’s Best Books on Psychology, Philosophy, and How to Live Meaningfully

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Brain Pickings puts out a decent list of books for years end, but spoil it by including rubbish peddled by Sam Harris.

For a critique on the tantrum posing as a movement, read Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies by David Bentley Hart. A good debate is always appreciated, but it helps if the opponent doesn’t rely on building straw men and little else.

Tiny rant over.

That being said, to see Werner Herzog heading this list with A Guide For The Perplexed pleases me to no end.

Nice save, Ms. Popova.

[Video] Frank Zappa – Titties & Beer

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Frank Zappa loved to annoy. I grew up watching him battle the Parent Music Resource Center (PMRC), among whose more famous founding members was Tipper Gore, ex-wife of then Senator (and complete douchebag to this day) Al Gore. Though he was, and is, a sleazy huckster, his wife ended up making friends with Frank’s widow, Gail.

As lyrically inane as it was, Frank was one of the best musicians of his day. I miss him, as I’m sure millions still do.

[Podcast] A Miscellany of Tasteful Music – December 29, 2014

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https://www.mixcloud.com/widget/iframe/?feed=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mixcloud.com%2Frutwo%2Fa-miscellany-of-tasteful-music-december-29-2014%2F&embed_uuid=1e594da7-e825-4dc7-ad9b-a8fcaae6ddb8&replace=0&hide_cover=1&embed_type=widget_standard&hide_tracklist=1

A Miscellany of Tasteful Music – December 29, 2014 by Rudy Carrera on Mixcloud

It’s been awhile, but here’s the final podcast of the year! The track listing is as follows:

1. Peter Fox – Alles Neu
2. Hilarion Nguema – Gabon Pays De Joie
3. The Chambers Brothers – Time Has Come Today
4. Carlos Gardel – La Muchacha
5. Ennio Morricone – Dal Mare
6. Al Bowlly – Fancy Our Meeting
7. Genesis – The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
8. Peter Thomas – Raumpatrouille Orion
9. Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians – Auld Lang Syne (Film Version)
10. The Durutti Column – Tomorrow (Live, from the album ‘Domo Arigato’)

[Magazine] ProgressoR

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I love scouring the Internet precisely because I run into treasures like these.

Uzbekistan is not the first name one would think of when discussing progressive rock. The Central Asian republic is far away from any of the traditional power centers like the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy or the United States. It is several time zones away from Moscow and St Petersburg, where Russia’s small prog-rock scene is at its strongest.

Yet chaps from Uzbekistan (and a chap from Norway, apparently!), working out of London, do yeoman’s work in covering progressive rock releases for the website ProgressoR. These folks are passionate about the genre, indeed. Consider this a go-to site for those who love prog and its sub-genres.

[Article] Vinyl demand is so high, a record label opened its own factory to keep up

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Vinyl’s resurgance is a cause for celebration. I’m even considering investing in an audiophile-quality turntable to enjoy choice slabs of plastic on cold nights like this evening’s (okay, by California standards!).

Endgadget reports that Fat Possum Records has decided to invest in their own plant to satisfy demand. From the article:

Jack White and his Third Man Records imprint aren’t the only ones benefiting from the vinyl boom. Oxford, Mississippi-based Fat Possum Records took matters into its own hands, building a pressing plant to meet the demands of its avid collectors. After using other record makers and encountering issues with backorders and the headache of international shipping, founder Matthew Johnson (with a hand from others) bought used equipment and set up shop in Memphis. The plant is modest compared to other more established operations, but with the new setup, the goal is to crank out 13,000 to 14,000 records a day — plus it’ll keep everything in-house. Fat Possum’s vinyl releases include LPs from Modest Mouse and Waylon Jennings. If you’ll recall, White’s Lazaretto is the best-selling vinyl release in two decades, serving as more evidence that the classic format refuses to die.

These are wonderful days to be a vinyl junkie.