Josh Ambrose

…and speaking of archive.org, they also have a great, recent performance by Low off of Radio France.

Think Innocence Mission with a much more somber feel (and even more minimalism) influenced by Mormonism instead of Catholicism, or think all of the best uses of negative space from Over the Rhine’s Good Dog era…

…think Nick Drake. If you haven’t heard him yet, you need to.

Watch some great youtubeidge here and here, courtesy of the great takeaway shows program.

And download a recent show from archive.org (just click the VBR mp3 link on the left for an easy way to download the entire thing).

Apparently, Wilco played a series of shows in Chicago recently…and ripped through every single they’ve ever released, accompanied by special guests, such as the good ol’ whistler, Andrew Bird.

And you can download the entire thing here, by clicking on the appropriate links. Which is pretty cool.

I’ve never really gotten into Wilco (’tho A Ghost is Born was good) so I plan to be playing this while I continue the job search.

From Rolling Stone: the Myth of the Surge.

It’s a thought provoking, well-written article. Which is weird, because (ironically enough) their music and film reviews suck. Majjjjor suck. Not to mention the magazine has also historically been a self-parody of liberalism–and I have many liberal leanings.

Regardless, I highly recommend reading the article, and not just writing it off because of its source. And I’d love to know your thoughts. The story of the children who compliment the soldiers to their faces and then curse them out behind their backs is particularly telling, on many levels.

I am confident that there is bias in the article and perhaps it isn’t the most accurate picture to come through. But speaking as someone who has traveled the Middle East just a bit, I tend to suspect there’s an awful lot of truth to it. If there is, the author’s contention that we are arming them for an impeding civil war is truly alarming.

I was talking to a friend yesterday about the biggest issue of the election (the war). He was contending that at this point, he thinks we are mucking up the situation so badly that it would be better for us to leave before we continue to complicate and ruin things.

After reading this article, I’m prone to consider that argument like I never have before.

Your thoughts?

Will either candidate be able to address the situation well? Do we really think Obama will get us out faster and smoother than McCain? Will McCain really be able to handle this with dignity and compassion, and effective military leadership that avoids another Vietnam?
I haven’t made up my mind yet on any of these vital questions, so I am not trying to lead you on.