essential poptimist reading

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

I was originally going to write quite a long bit about this book, but then I thought I might save that up and just ask YOU LOT if any of you have read it.

Not everything in it rings true, but the core observations (mass/pop culture is getting more cognitively demanding), and the fundamental inference (our brains WANT to be challenged) are things that everyone here will probably agree with. It's never a good thing to agree wholeheartedly with an argument/book, at least it feels wrong/uncomfortable to me, but my disagreements here are minor to trivial.

indeed the "mass/pop culture is getting more cognitively demanding" thing is so obviously true, but he actually goes into quantifiable specifics in a nice way. plus it's nice to have someone actually bloody well saying so forthrightly and in public, rather than the usual crap "going to hell in a lowest common denominator handbag"

he doesn't actually touch on music much at all (i'm going back to find that bit, cos there was something ironically slightly rockist about singles v albums he mentions) but it's still poptimism.

anyway. anyone?

Reasons to heart Lily Allen #2879

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

She's done up her website at last - well, sort of. There is no text on it yet, hahaha! The important bit (ie the MUSIK) is up in the corner and HURRAH she has her mixtapes up! LDN --> Fix Up Look Sharp --> Beats International --> ohhh just go have a listen. It contains YODELLING!

Also something my plague-addled brain threw into the mix this morning, Poptimist MATHS: (John Lennon + Ne-Yo)x The Lex = Annie Lennox.