Hallowed and Hiding: Who Is Matt Drudge?

In a recent article titled, "Watching Matt Drudge," New York Magazine writer Phillip Weiss does his damndest to get to the heart of the man behind the internet's 7th most-viewed website. Granted, nobody close to Drudge will speak with Weiss, and even stalking the hiding creator of the Drudge Report can't generate an interview with the guy. Regardless, Weiss still paints a very detailed picture of the man who broke the Lewinsky scandal ten years ago. Drudge's childhood, his cloudy educational background, his rise to fame, and even his ambiguous sexuality are all touched upon with great care and insight. Is he a Republican or a Democrat? Gay or straight? Brilliant or crazy? Weiss leaves these answers up to the reader, and a case could be made for any of the above.

Bowery Bummer: R.I.P. Hilly Kristal

Hilly Kristal, owner of the famous New York City club CBGB, died Tuesday of lung cancer. Kristal opened CBGB in New York City's Bowery neighborhood in 1973, initially to feature country, bluegrass, and blues (hence, CBGB), but it became a second home for society's rejects, those dirty descendants of Lou Reed: punks. The Ramones, the Talking Heads, Television, Patti Smith, and many more influential artists were regular fixtures at the bar. You can learn much more about Kristal's Bowery scene birthing in Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain's fantastic (though slightly creepy) Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk.

Going, Going, Gonzo: Alberto's Adios & The Lewd Lawmaker from Idaho

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, the highest-ranking Hispanic in the history of the federal government, announced his resignation today. His controversial tenure will come to an end September 17th. While no successor has been named, it is believed that Michael Chertoff, the current Secretary of Homeland Security is the front runner. Other potential candidates include Senator Orrin Hatch, of Utah, Senator John Cornyn of Texas, and former Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson, who currently serves as general counsel to PepsiCo.

Under Gonzales' rule, which began in February 2005, the Department of Justice worked to strengthen executive privilege and became a partisan weapon for the Bush Administration. Officials are still investigating Gonzales' role (and possible perjury) in the firing of eight U.S. Attorney Generals.


Politico has an interesting take on how far President Bush will go to protect what is shaping up to be one hell of a legacy. But what could be more interesting than this gem of a story about Republican Senator Larry Craig? Craig was arrested in June for lewd behavior in a Minnesota airport. Allegations regarding Craig and same-sex relationships have surfaced before. I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that Larry Craig will not be on the list of potential successors to Gonzales.

Shameless Plug: Brother to Brother & Tributosaurus

With heavy heart in tow, The Daily Snooze reports today that Tributosaurus frontman (and all around good guy), Matt Spiegel and his wife and collaborator, Shana Spiegel, will be moving to Los Angeles to pursue new career opportunities. As anyone who has witnessed the musical mammoth that is Tributosaurus can attest, both voices will truly be missed. Don't know anything about Tributosaurus? Here's their story: each month, the group, with the help of friends and an array of Chicago musicians, morphs into a rock 'n' roll legend. They have been Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding, Van Morrison, Peter Gabriel, and countless others.

If you have not yet seen the Spiegels in action, you are in luck. Matt and his brother Jon's 11-piece band, Brother to Brother ("It's like the Commitments, but Jewish," says Matt) will perform at Martyrs (3855 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago) on August 28th at 9 p.m. Tickets are $8.

Tributosaurus, on the other hand, will perform its final two shows with Matt at the helm on Wednesday, September 5th, when the supergroup becomes John Lennon. The performances will take place at 7 and 10 p.m. at Martyrs. Tickets are $15.

Do yourself a favor and see one, if not all, of these shows. As for the Spiegels, the Daily Snooze wishes them nothing but the best, but we hope they can at least get us a Morrissey autograph when they get to Los Angeles.

Shut Up! I'm Talking: Give Me Your Tired...

Illegal immigrant Elvira Arellano, 32, was arrested Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, the Chicago Tribune reports. She was quickly processed and deported to Tijuana, Mexico, while her son, Saul, remains in the United States. You've probably seen her in the press lately. She often wears a battered t-shirt that says: "Who would Jesus deport?" Why does her brush with the law matter? Some would say it doesn't. But love her or hate her, Arellano's story has fueled the fire on both sides of the immigration debate.

In August of 2006, Arellano, the president of the advocacy group La Familia Latina Unida, sought sanctuary in Chicago's Adalberto Memorial United Methodist Church. Facing deportation by the Department of Homeland Security, she defied the federal authorities and publicized her mission. Arellano had illegally crossed the Mexican-American border for the first time in mid 1990s (the second came after she was arrested and deported in 1997). She has compared herself to Rosa Parks and claims to be the spokesperson for illegal immigrants facing the prospect of a broken family due to deportation separation.

Now she's gone. Some say good riddance. "She made everything worse... She's not a face of the immigrants. My family without papers, she doesn't represent them," Javier Salas, a morning radio show host on La Tremenda in Chicago, told the Tribune. It was feared that her public profile could only provide propaganda for the ICE and anti-immigrant groups around the country.

The press hasn't helped matters either. For example, most television reports on Arellano fail to emphasize the fact that she has been arrested several times in the U.S., or ignore it all together. Also left on the cutting room floor is any discussion regarding the role that Arellano's legal son plays in this debate. In a New York Times article from last year, Mike McGarry, the director of the Colorado Alliance for Immigration reform said, "She had an anchor baby, that's what she did. If she was so concerned about her child, she'd take him with her." However effective the image of an orphan is at raising awareness for the complex issues faced by illegal immigrants, this idea of using children as a draw for sympathy is immoral and sad.

More unjust and immoral, however, is the American government's unwillingness to reform the immigration system before the 2008 elections. Credit where credit is due: President Bush's failed immigration policy, though imperfect, was a start. Too many Democrats and Republicans who more or less agreed with the President's proposals refused to sign the Kennedy/Kyle bill into law because agreeing with President Bush is worse than swimming with sharks, conservative radio was all over the legislation, and quite frankly, ignorant Americans forget that their ancestors, too, were once immigrants. It's not new, but it is unfortunate that for all the talk about reinstating American values into the political process, for politicians, it's business as usual. Only when legislation is passed can the ICE perform its tasks more efficiently and potential illegal immigrants can understand the extent to which they are breaking the law. Only when legislation is passed can the racism and ignorance so evident beneath the surface of good ol' Americans everywhere be destroyed with the eloquent compassion etched at the base of the Statue of Liberty:

Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

This 19th century poem by American poet Emma Lazarus and the history it reflects should be at the heart of this debate. So, too, should the decision facing every man woman and child that crosses the Mexican-American border: Do you want to be Mexican or American? Illegal immigrants can't have it both ways, and neither could Elvira Arellano. She is gone, but the issue is here to stay.

Tried and True: The Who, Live at Leeds

Remember that one time when the music that topped the charts was generated by some of the most innovative and adventurous performers in rock 'n' roll history? Yeah, me neither. But I've read about it. And lucky for us, we still have the audio from this long past era. Though the paths blazed by the British Invasion bands of the 1960s are now paved in platinum and gold, it is sometimes easy to forget how truly groundbreaking their output was and still is. Our post-modern perception of these giants is undeniably affected by the countless musicians who have followed in their footsteps and made those original records all but ubiquitous.

Along with the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin in the late 1960s, The Who were gathering the ingredients (namely the Delta Blues and amplifiers, with a dash of hard living) for a recipe we know today as heavy metal. By 1970 the Who were at the top of their game. Their talent had yet to be overtaken by their ambition, and they had several albums from which to cull material.

Most importantly, with the wildly daring Tommy The Who had found their sound. With distortion and volume at their maximum, pop tunes became rock anthems and live performances combined a melodic sensibility with brute force. Nowhere is this more apparent than on their 1970 release, Live at Leeds.

In its original incarnation, the album contained three covers ("Young Man Blues," "Summertime Blues," and "Shakin' All Over") and three originals ("Substitute," "My Generation," and "Magic Bus"). But on Live at Leeds, these songs are nobody's but the Who's. In the start/stop brilliance of "Young Man Blues" listeners can hear the propulsive coherence of each of the instruments and how Roger Daltry's vocal swagger complements them all. It rumbles until it can't help but dissolve into an organized chaos. "Summertime Blues" is no different. Along with "Substitute," it is transformed from a cute pop diddy into chugging cruncher anchored in bassist John Entwistle's thick and scaling rhythms.

The two standouts, however, are indeed Who originals. On "My Generation" guitarist Pete Townshend goes to town, and he takes you with him. Alternating between delicate and demolition modes, you can almost hear his fingers bleed. And "Magic Bus" sounds nothing like its studio predecessor. Raw and funky, the first four minutes still sound unlike anything this side of Peter Green. And then Keith Moon happens. Let the John Bonham / Keith Moon drummer debate rage another day - on the night that Live at Leeds was recorded there was no better drummer than Keith Moon. And there was no better band than The Who.

I'll Do What I Want: South Park Turns 10

Monday marked the 10th anniversary of the show that keeps getting better: South Park. The Comedy Central cartoon has been making waves since it debuted in 1997, but its increasingly big-picture mentality (along with much-improved animation) has turned it from a simple haven for foul humor into one of the best platforms for social commentary in the country. From the Catholic Church to Al Gore ("I'm serial!"), no target is above criticism on South Park, nor should they be.

Ever wonder what show creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone were like as Colorado University film students before they made it big? Check out this vintage 1993 interview from Denver's own Westword. And don't forget to bring a towel.

Resignation Monday: Rove Out

In a move that has surprised many, White House deputy chief of staff and senior advisor to President Bush, Karl Rove, announced his resignation this morning, with the President at his side. The news broke hours before Rove's speech in a Wall Street Journal commentary by Paul A. Gigot. He is the latest in a line of close advisors to leave the Bush administration. No successor has been named.

While some expected a demotion or resignation from Rove after the mid-term elections in November, it was apparently White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten's request that senior aides wishing to remain at the White House past Labor Day commit their services until the end of President Bush's term that moved Rove to his decision. This is a dubious claim at best. The mid-term success of Democrats was a symptom of increasing American displeasure with many of the ideas and values of which Rove was a primary architect.

Regardless, it is difficult to argue against Rove's political prowess. Much has been, and will be made of his dirty electioneering tactics, his hijacking of religious faith, and his harsh treatment of those who dared challenge the opinions of the President (see Valerie Plame leak, U.S. Attorneys scandal, etc.). But dating back to President Bush's gubernatorial races over a decade ago, Rove continually established himself as someone who knew how to win elections, someone who could find a way to bolster public support for unpopular issues, and most importantly, someone who could change and manipulate the fundamental political landscape of America. Even if his political wishes had been fulfilled more effectively, it is hard to argue that his ends justified his means.

Though Rove's resignation signifies the conclusion, for the moment, of his political clout, the American public hasn't seen the last of him, by any stretch of the imagination, as Democrats pledge to continue their crusade against what they view as a legally deviant administration.

Agree to Disagree: Spoon's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

In this first installment of Agree to Disagree, wise sage and Daily Snooze pal Jim Curley helps us understand and appreciate the latest release from our favorite band of the moment: Spoon.

NICK: Hey Jim. On tap for our first online conversation is the latest release from indie rock quartet Spoon, titled Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, which debuted at #10 a few weeks back on the Billboard charts, selling around 40,000 copies. It's ironic that for our first installment of Agree to Disagree we probably won't clash all that much, because I can't see how anyone could avoid falling prey to the rhythm and soul on this album. Like its predecessor, Gimme Fiction, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga provides listeners with the perfect summer soundtrack. Containing ten lean and slender tracks and clocking in at just under 37 minutes, the group seems to be playing to their reputation as minimalists.

But this album continues a trend of expanding production values that began with the release of Girls Can Tell and the group's move to Merge Records in 2000. Longtime producer Michael McCarthy does Gimme Fiction one better and turns singer/songwriter Britt Daniels' voice into its own beat-machine. His delivery is so catchy and effective on "You Got Yr Cherry Bomb" that even the addition of horns takes a backseat to his vocals. But nowhere is the heightened production value more obvious than on "The Ghost of You Lingers." While it may have been the track's stuttered drilling of piano chords that gave the album its name, it's the three different angles from which Daniels' vocals hit you that differentiates this song from any other on the album. To me, it is THE central track on Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. The sonic landscape it creates blows me away. But feel free to disagree with me, Jim. I dare you.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

JIM: Congratulations on a very clever, albeit useless, tactic to goad me into attacking a succinctly well-crafted, sometimes adventurous pop record from Spoon. As I find myself (by default?) in the infinitely harder position as rebutter, I’ll do my best to avoid redundancies throughout the review. But disclaimers aside, here is the inaugural, and likely more interesting, 2nd half to Agree to Disagree.

This fifth LP is a well-blended showcase of formulaic but ever charming minimalism, accentuated with robust pop arrangements by the Texas outfit Spoon. Evidently, they have continued to outgrow their minimalist cowboy boots on tracks like the new single “The Underdog” and “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”, with a horn section earnestly affirming Brit Daniel’s plea “Life can be so fair/ Let it go on and on” to downtrodden indie maidens everywhere. In the same vain is the anthem “The Underdog”, which finds Daniel preaching to the delusional over acoustic guitar crescendos and galvanized trumpets and horns.

Lyrical analysis is often a masturbatory exercise because of the subjective nature of songs. However, while Daniel seems despondent and paranoid in his often abstract musings, his delivery is anxiously hopeful, especially on the groove infused “Don’t You Evah.” Bassist Rob Pope’s hooks will have you feeling headier than Al Gore III driving down the San Diego Freeway.

This is an undeniable catchy album, which is no surprise coming from a band gifted with an ear for accessible, interesting pop music and a vocalist whose set of lungs sounds sterling in studio. Here the band’s deft excursions into new sonic territory are commendable. Spoon’s formula is viral, and only strengthens any compositional digressions they attempt. But like any junky stripped of his reason by such potent sonic opiates, I demand more from my addiction. There is nothing truly daring about these songs. Yes Nick, “The Ghost of You Lingers” is the explorative linchpin on Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, and I’m disappointed in myself for not warming up to its spectral vocal layers and propulsive tension earlier. Does it neutralize filler like “Rhythm and Soul” or “Black Like Me”? Probably. Nothing on the record spans over four minutes, so boredom is virtually impossible. Regardless, with a musical canon as strong as Spoon’s, expectations and standards are the hurdles of the day, not their musical limitations and choices.

Ah, the age-old dilemma, keep going or change. Since Kill the Moonlight, these boys have been pondering that infinite question, with small and large tweaks to their subsequent releases. They never falter when endlessly trying to reconcile these two opposites, but when the line between them is shrunken past recognition, negotiation between each polar gets complicated. Sure it’s self-evident, but the progress or regression of this band is something to look forward to.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NICK: That’s a very nice little summary of the album, Jim. Any opportunity to use the word masturbatory is rare, so I respect its, um, insertion into your opinion. But frankly, I think that lyrical analysis is pretty integral when discussing a band that we both agree is one of the finest in the land. It’s taken me a while to digest the stylish utterances of Brit Daniel on this album, and I find myself a little disappointed. Daniel has always had a penchant for relating seemingly ultra-personal stories, detail by detail, to his audience, but on Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, he’s getting a little too cute. If it weren’t for his pitch-perfect delivery, I might actually hold him to the same standards that I hold some of his colleagues, such as Jeff Tweedy of Wilco and Jim James of My Morning Jacket.

For example, in the dancers’ call to arms, “Rhythm and Soul”, Daniel encourages us to get our hands out of our back pockets and do some twisting and shouting. Then, in the middle of nowhere, we get this stanza: “Here comes the man / you saw in Kazan / he just picks in his cold / rhythm and soul.”

I mean, honestly, what the hell? And “Black Like Me” is just as bad. While even some grown women with teenage hearts might find his pseudo-earnestness endearing, I find it contrived, at best. Luckily, “Finer Feelings” is one of the finest and most coherent pop songs Spoon has ever written, and like you said, “The Underdog” is an amusing stab at the ignorant, perhaps directed at the Ignoramus-in-Chief, himself. I don’t know, it just sounds a little political to me. That’s all I got. Any last words?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

JIM: Last words? Hmmm, let me count the ways you continue to overlook inherent problems with this disc.

Some new fodder for you and the myriad of readers who no doubt will stumble across “Agree to Disagree” to digest is these boys’ ability to translate songs in a live setting. Being in attendance for Spoon’s evening set at Lollapalooza Saturday, I was shocked to see the omission of “Underdog”, You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”, and “The Ghost of You Lingers.” While they were short a horn section at Lolla, I still wonder how thin these tracks would have sounded. Their performance was compelling and tight, and much stronger than I expected. Which only leads me to further wonder, why the omissions?

Prior to the set, I believed we had a modern day Steely Dan on our hands. No disrespect to Steely, but I want to feel these songs live and Spoon’s Indian-giving tendency at the Chicago festival was disappointing. They met me halfway. “Don’t Make Me a Target” and “Don’t You Evah” had the audience rocking and grooving respectively, but the gems were still missing.

Enough concert talk and back to the lyrics. Some of this stuff seems like lazy free association. Metaphors and characters materialize like ghosts, and just as quickly disappear. You nailed it when talking about the line concerning a man from Kazan. I’m not even going to go through the whole album, because it is saturated with even more “what the fuck” lines.

But the music is catchy and Brit has a pretty voice. So what can I say…

Cockblockery aside, I’m bad at playing devil’s advocate and really enjoy this album. Ring the damn bell. This one is over. At the day’s end, Spoon’s fifth disc remains impregnable from any shit I tried to sling at it. Over and Out.