It goes without saying...

So, while this blog has mutated, one thing is still true- it's all about me. I don't mean that to be narcissistic - just realistic. For all the compliments I get from musicians, usually along the lines of "you really get it, man", I am not looking for you, or anyone, to think "Gosh, that Max is a great guy". No, the one constant is that I'm trying to honestly assess what it is that I like in pop culture. Hence the title still applies- I still don't see the point in "mass" culture, even if I like a few things that are hugely popular. I don't think you can truly please anyone, if you're trying to please everyone.
That said, I'm not looking to bore you. So, I have not mentioned Courtney Barnett before now, even though I've listened to her album about 20 times so far. It's really great, but if you so much as glance at any pop culture outlet, chances are decent that you've seen the name. About the only thing I can add, that you won't get elsewhere, stated better, is the debt her music owes to the mighty Tim Rogers.  99% of what she does would slip right between "Hourly, Daily" and "The Luxury of Hysteria" comfortably. So, given who I am, I have to say that I'm not trying to invalidate what she does, just augment it with a plea to scratch a little deeper- listen to her record, but then, dig out a Tim Rogers, or You Am I, Temperance Union, or T'n'T record.
Likewise, though it may not seem like it, I've not talked about the new Urinals record, because it's a bit too much "on the nose". Here's the thing, yes, I have been a paid musician. Beer money, sure, but still a paid musician. 75% of the reason for that is due to a couple of people on the Los Angeles punk rock scene, and John Talley-Jones is one of those people. So talking about the Urinals is like talking about my uncle or something- it's going to be all inside references, and idiosyncratic nostalgia- I cannot imagine anything useful to a reader. I can tell you that I think it's beautiful, and that it's the tightest garage rock you will ever hear, and that if you like a kind-of spikey or kind-of retro band from Los Angeles, post 1978, that band has a Urinals fan in their line-up. But, beyond that, anything I say will be all about Madame Wong's, The Vex, and Jeffrey Lee Pierce.
So, just because this is all about me doesn't mean I've forgotten about you.