Tag: music

by jad

#AdventWord 2018, Week 2

#Wild Today’s #AdventWord is ‘wild,’ and—with apologies to the theologians who made the selection—I’ve watched too much MTV over the years to associate that word with anything but a good time. Pictured here: Andrew WK at The Showbox, Kultur Shock at The Crocodile, and IDLES at The Sunset Tavern—these are some of the wildest nights I’ve had in this city thus far. They are also some of the most life-affirming artists I’ve ever seen in concert, who left me with a strong sense of their genuine love for their fans. Not pictured here, however, is probably my most memorable night … Continue reading “#AdventWord 2018, Week 2” →

by jad

The Kids Are Alt-Right

Neoreaction is nothing new. Revanchism—the politics of resentment and revenge—is a multi-headed hydra that seasonally slinks out from the depths like a b-movie monster that just won’t die. We’ve known the “Third Reich” and have been told about “Jihad vs McWorld,” so we should not be surprised when new dogs start barking about new wounds they’re licking, again and again. For every reform, a counterrevolution is hatched; with every social gain, a reconquista. But I can’t pretend to not be taken aback. “Fire and fury” is this season’s “shock and awe,” but it names a ferociously gleeful rejection of public … Continue reading “The Kids Are Alt-Right” →

by jad

10/10: World Mental Health Day

10/10 is World Mental Health Day because 10/10 is not a mark that too many of us can make that regularly. An important day for us all; if I were to make an educated guess, I’d say that ten out of ten is the percentage of us who have felt crushingly alone at some point in our lives. 10/10 is a good day to remember that at the very least nine out of the ten in my made up statistic might suffer a little bit less if we knew we didn’t have to suffer alone. Not in the generically abstract … Continue reading “10/10: World Mental Health Day” →

by jad

Seattle Signs & Wonders

It’s always creepy when a city plays to stereotype. On any given morning in Beirut, you will hear someone playing Fairouz; in Seattle, you’re going to expect Nirvana or Pearl Jam on the radio at some point. Maybe you’d expect Kurt Cobain’s name to come up in conversation, probably in a story from the old-timer wearing that original In Utero t-shirt from way back when. But only in your most morbid fantasies could you think that one day, you’d meet and hang out with the former police detective who was at his death scene. The best part is that this … Continue reading “Seattle Signs & Wonders” →

by jad

On Evil | طَأ طأطَأ طَأطَأتِينِي

There’s a reason why a taxi driver in Damascus ten years ago stiffened and fell silent when I jokingly said I preferred to put my seatbelt on, as “a good citizen,” despite ours being a very late-night ride to my hotel. That’s what authoritarian systems do to you. A quip like that could be a signal of something far more sinister. The walls may not have actual ears, but you hold your breath regardless. But the goose step doesn’t start there. You don’t have to wait for the garish banners to unfurl and the cultish anthems to ring to see … Continue reading “On Evil | طَأ طأطَأ طَأطَأتِينِي” →

by jad

Total Football! #WFC2018

You know what’ll make me post about futbol on social media? A self-governing island British Crown dependency playing a sometime-secessionist North American hipster bioregion. May 31: HALF TIME at the Cascadia v Ellan Vannin World Cup Match (Group A) match, kicking off the Confederation of Independent Football Associations #WFC2018 and the once-every-few-years season when I’m interested in the beautiful game. Also happening: Abkhazia vs Tibet, Western Armenia vs United Koreans in Japan, and Szekely Land vs Tuvalu. June 2: The Cascadia v Barawa World Cup Match (Gourp A) is about to start. You might have heard by now how Cascadia … Continue reading “Total Football! #WFC2018” →