Now that Kanye West is making 35-minute videos for his songs, and every dense, new Lady Gaga clip must be endlessly dissected for cultural references, there is something undeniably refreshing about a simple, straightforward music video. In a recent ArtsBeat post, Dwight Garner confesses, “I was always a minimalist – give me a concert clip, or even a bit of straight-on lip syncing to a good song” and asks readers for their favorite no-frills videos. Commenters over at The New York Times came up with quite a few suggestions, but we couldn’t help but compile a list of our own (which overlaps slightly with theirs). Add your picks in the comments.
Jobs (or the lack thereof). Bills. Personal drama. Existential angst. It’s hard out there for 20-something creative types, struggling to make ends meet and still find enough hours in the day to work on our own personal projects. For the most part, here at Flavorpill, we tend to keep a positive attitude about balancing the stresses of our daily existence with the creative pursuits that make life worth living. But every once in a while, we can’t help but get sucked into the vortex of a mini-quarterlife crisis. And we’re pretty sure we’re not alone. Since music is at once the best catharsis and the best inspiration to get out of our own heads, we’ve compiled a list of 15 songs that feel your pain — including a few that might just help you get back to kicking ass.
You’ve probably seen the trailer for the new Beastie Boys short film all over the web for the last couple of days. The film features music from the band’s new album Hot Sauce Committee Part 2, a roll-call of celebrity cameos, and the, um, intriguing prospect of seeing Seth Rogen play Mike D. It’s one of a slew of most excellent-looking music-related movies that 2011 has to offer. We’ve rounded up a selection of the best films that are out now or have yet to drop. Read More »
Rolling Stone has just released an epic new issue listing its 500 greatest albums of all time. Jay-Z wrote a lovely introduction. We will likely have more to say on this soon. But for now, enjoy the magazine’s new cover for Dr. Dre’s immortal The Chronic.
Considering Chuck Klosterman kicks off his new book of essays, Eating the Dinosaur, with a piece about the inherent lack of truth in interviews, especially his own, it only makes sense to skirt the straight-up Q&A and angle for something the man might not want to lie about. Sure, there’s a risk Klosterman might not take the bait (“I don’t feel it’s my obligation to respond to anything…”), yet 99 times out of 99, he probably will (“still, I provide answers to every question I encounter, even if I don’t know what I should say”). So, instead of asking him to answer questions, per se, and risk a variable truthiness, we thought we’d get a better bead on the word-worker at work if he told us what music he plays while he’s reading and writing.
When the Financial Times reported that the number of workers claiming unemployment benefits in the United States reached a 26-year high last week, we knew that there was only one way to respond to the grim news — with a Flavorwire Playlist.
In case you’ve forgotten (we’ll admit, it has been a while), the idea is simple: we take a current event that has us feeling depressed, whip up a list of 10 tracks to help dull the pain, and ask you to best our creative genius in comments area. Bonus points if you quote lyrics.
Check out our playlist — which not surprisingly, is heavy on the oldies but goodies — after the jump.
, with a piece about the inherent lack of truth in interviews, especially his own, it only makes sense to skirt the straight-up Q&A and angle for something the man might not want to lie about. Sure, there’s a risk Klosterman might not take the bait (“I don’t feel it’s my obligation to respond to anything…”), yet 99 times out of 99, he probably will (“still, I provide answers to every question I encounter, even if I don’t know what I should say”). So, instead of asking him to answer questions, per se, and risk a variable truthiness, we thought we’d get a better bead on the word-worker at work if he told us what music he plays while he’s reading and writing.
