Beatles' Day is Upon Us!

So, it's finally here: the entire catalog, all twelve albums plus Past Masters, remastered in (I'm told) pristine quality. Allan Kozinn in the Times says that "this music has dimension and detail that it never had before, and the new packaging reflects each album’s musical and cultural importance. Over all, the new discs sound substantially better than the Beatles’ original CDs, which EMI issued in 1987. The most striking and consistent improvements are a heftier, rounded, three-dimensional bass sound, and drums that now sound like drums, rather than something in the distance being hit." Joy!

I don't want to get back into how Apple Corps. and EMI dropped the ball in waiting this long. I'm far too busy spending all my energy on not impulsively buying the entire box set (leaning towards mono so that I can pore over all the nuances) from Amazon.

Looking, for some reason, for more Beatles' coverage? Check out Pitchfork's reviews of the albums, both individually and as a collection. These at first seemed like a silly joke ("great, I finally know that Sgt. Pepper is a 10/10") but turns out, they're a really well written analysis of records that, if you're like me, course through your veins.

Finally, if you want to read Chuck Klosterman beat a dead horse of a joke, check out his "review" over at the Onion. It gets old fast, but it's got some pretty great zingers.

How are you celebrating Beatles Day?

Long and Winding Road, Repaved [nytimes]
The Beatles, reviewed [pitchfork]
Chuck Klosterman Repeats the Beatles [the onion]

In Which Pitchfork Makes Sense of Lady GaGa and Millenial Pop

Pitchfork's recent list of the top 500 songs of the 00's seemed a bit premature, as it's 2009. I'm sure it's just chock full of misplaced songs, missing entries, and love for artists who in no way deserve it. But to be perfectly honest, I haven't combed through the list at all, because the particulars don't concern me. I can't even think of 500 songs from the last 9 or so years, let alone rank them.

But if you're interested in what's been happening in pop over the last decade, then check out Tom Ewing's wrap-up essay, "The Decade in Pop." It's one of the best pieces of music crit I've read in a long time. He distills the list (I assume) into a thoughtful critique of just what the hell happened in the 00's, and how it shaped a new pop. I don't buy it all (the argument that American Idol is music criticism on a national scale seems a little flimsy to me), but what I kept thinking while reading this piece, which seems destined for next year's Best Music Writing anthology, was "this is on Pitchfork?!" Now, I don't hate Pitchfork as much as some, in fact I think it's a pretty alright central voice in online music writing, if at times a bit heavy handed. But aside from the odd well-written album review, I don't think I've ever read such a thought provoking piece on their site. Maybe it's that I haven't been paying attention all that much. Go check it out.

The Decade in Pop [pitchfork]
The Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s [pitchfork]

Upcoming: Dark Was The Night Live @ Radio City

Dark Was The Night is a double disc compilation benefiting AIDS relief organization Red Hot, produced and compiled by Aaron and Bryce Dessner (the National). It features outtakes and covers by Bon Iver, Arcade Fire, Spoon, Sufjan, Iron and Wine and Stuart Murdoch to name just a few, as well as collaborations like Conor Oberst/Gillian Welch and Feist/Ben Gibbard. The record skews towards the kind of indie buzz bands I generally avoid, but there are certainly a few artists on here whose work is strong enough that you'll want to investigate further. There are also some you may want to delete from your iTunes straight off the bat. Anyway, it's bursting at the seams and I'm not going to try to give it a track by track rundown, but check it out because there's really something for everyone and it's all for a good cause.

But what I'm really stoked about with this whole Dark Was The Night business is the show that WFUV and The Bowery Presents are putting on, May 3rd at Radio City Music Hall. David Byrne was just added to a lineup that already featured Feist, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, the National, TVOTR's David Sitek (also the producer of all three YYY's albums), My Brightest Diamond, and Bon Iver among others. And it's not just going to be a performance of tracks from the compilation, either. Says Aaron Dessner in an interview on Pitchfork that essentially sold me on the tickets:

We're going to have two halves. The first half will be songs from Dark Was the Night, and then there will be a short intermission. And then afterwards, there will be mini-sets by different artists and collaborations, both things that relate to Dark Was the Night and some that don't. Not every artist will do a mini-set, but most will. That's basically it. We're trying to keep the show manageable in length, you know, so it's not four-and- a-half hours or something. But it will be a lot of music.

Which, when combined with the idea of seeing Feist, Sharon Jones, and granddaddy-of-it-all David Byrne, was enough for me to plunk down the $38 for cheap seats. Tickets are still on sale.

Dark Was The Night live - tickets [bowerypresents]
Dark Was The Night (Red Hot Compilation) [emusic]
The National's Aaron Dessner on Dark Was The Night, New National Album [pitchfork]

The Year in Rock Writing

This PopMatters roundup, the Best Music Scribing Awards of 2008, is probably of interest to a lot of our readers. Broken into a few rundowns, there are bronze, silver, and gold medal categories for music writing and a not-to-be-missed worst writing of the year category, including that Black Kids review in which Pitchfork got even more obnoxious than usual.

The Best Music Scribing Awards of 2008 [PopMatters]