Secrets of the City

Does anyone really care what anyone else’s favorite top X local albums are?

Does anyone in the Twin Cities actually possess enough clout with the general public to a point where the superlatives they apply to music matter?

Sorry to intrude on your question Max, but these are the questions that matter to me, and I’d be interested to know what people think.

The local album I’ve spun the most is The Overhead Left by The Alarmists, and if that’s a good indicator of favoritism, then I suppose that’s my favorite.

Hey, ask whatever question you like. Don’t bother me none.

Clout’s a funny thing, isn’t it? That’s a really good question borang is asking. I’m not sure tastemaking in the arts is a centralized process anymore (and maybe it never was). I’m guessing there’s a few dozen blogs, actually, that have as much or more clout than a daily paper critic.

I do know that there are a few critics in my field, the visual arts, whose superlatives I generally trust. They don’t write for the dailies, though, so I’m not sure if they have clout with the “general public” or not.

I like a list like that because it’s a quick way to discover a few new local bands I might like.

@ jeffk

Fair enough. Yet I’d like to point out that the calendars for the Uptown Bar, Turf Club, and 7th Street Entry (among others) are also really good for finding a local band you might like, and they’re updated more often than every six months!

The Uptown Bar calendar even links directly to each artists myspace page. Could it be any easier? As someone who makes it their business to know about the good stuff that all the local critics aren’t talking about, I’ve found these sites/calendars invaluable. They also don’t pick favorites.

Yes, this is a good observation. One theory I’ve used in the past is choosing a couple of favorite venues (in my case, Turf Club and 331) and looking up online whoever happens to be playing there each week. This works pretty well, but to be honest, sometimes weeks will go by without anything I find very appealing. This sort of list is a quick heads-up on local people that are getting a fair amount of attention, which at least correlates (admittedly not perfectly) to being good, interesting, and somewhat accessible.

Nothing wrong with picking favorites. If a person can make a reasonable guess whehtehr they might like something or not based on a reviewer whose tastes their familiar with (even if you don’t share the same taste), that’s a plus.

mommy, what’s an album?

I like the 757s’ Freeway Surrender. I dig the bar band-garage rock thing.