Critical Wade Theory

Why, despite all odds, I am actually a bit (cautiously) optimistic about the future. 

Who hates The Cars? I don't and you probably shouldn't, either. In fact, they are my band recommendation of the day!

Poem! Retreats of the robust, Who have made their makeshift homes among the boulders And the deep shadows of the chaparral fronds. April is the cruelest month: Wind, dust, and blight, April is alone. In silence to a country house near, Where the aged servants live still, And sit without, through the endless night, Though the grass grow soughing under our feet, Until some sparrow-bells start to pea...

Is he cheating on you? Are you cheating on him? Ever notice how monogamy even sounds like "monotony?" Here I offer some sarcastic vitriol masquerading as advice, with maybe a few valid points peppered in, intentionally or otherwise. Kids, can you find them all?

I cannot pronounce French names, so feel free to listen to me butchering the name of this composer as I say what I have learned about one of his classic compositions. Yes, he was apparently embarrassed by it. 

Here is a winding road episode where with guest Troutface. We discuss holidays, birthdays, college life, the Vietnam War, spelling bees, chaos theory (butterfly effect), language misuse, Donkey Lips from Nickelodeon's "Salute Your Shorts," Ron Jeremy, Pearl Jam, Scrooge McDuck...and more!

Just a quick band recommendation if you want reggae aside from Bob Marley. Black Uhuru! NOTE: When I say "my preference is for Bob Marley," I don't mean I never listen to any other reggae, just that, if given a choice, I think BobMarley's stuff would dominate. Know what I mean?

Are Kurt Cobain's lyrics in "Smells Like Teen Spirit" just a random, nonsensical, stream-of-conscious mess? Here's why I think the answer is "Definitely not!"

I talk about August Landmesser, a German who refused to salute Hitler. I also discuss some thoughts and feelings about Hitler, authoritarian beliefs, and how tricky it is to resist deadly ideologies. Sorry for the few mistakes I made while talking, but I think I make my point. 

Just a few musical recommendations. I make no claims that this is some in-depth analysis...however, I do have a special announcement of an in-depth lyrical analysis episode coming up where I will actually try to bring my A-game. Will I give it the full Rick Beato treatment? Maybe not, but it will be as close as I can get to being a Beato!

I haven't uploaded anything here in a day or two, but here's a synth track to make up for it. Just goofing around on a synth, really. The image I used here is of Torgo from Manos: The Hands of Fate. 

As I have seen in recent years, there are indeed many deceivers out there, and dangerous people seeking power for themselves, taking advantage of the ignorance and sheer stupidity of the masses. And they get this power because there may be at least a kernel of truth in what they are doing, and they swoop in and manipulate people when they are vulnerable, make them feel special, then exploit the he...

Does Beach Bunny represent an American Dream/rags-to-riches dynamic or am I just assuming that because I was too lazy to do real, in-depth research? (Joe Rogan does that, so I can, too!). Anyway...Beach Bunny started off as a solo project by Lili Trifilio (Beach Bunny) but became a band that consists of Trifilio, Jon Alvarado, and Anthony Vaccaro.

Fun facts about Michigan, plus mid-term news nonsense (litterboxes, child sterilizations, fentanyl-laced Halloween candy moral panics)

CWT #123: Album review(ish): dälek's 'From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots'

1933? Hitler was around and he SUCKED.  Stalin was around and he SUCKED.

Did you know Mags from A-ha has interesting solo material? Well, now you know! This guy is not just known for "Take On Me" (though it's an extremely famous song from the '80s).

Originally recorded in 2021 and intended as a Youtube upload. Here it is for my podcast!  Hitler was a big deal in 1933. With neo-fascism on the rise yet again, this year seems all the more relevant.

 Famous (Honorary) Yoopers: Aghasi Manukyan, Olympic Greco-Roman wrestler!

I talk to my brother Ryan about Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3, Friday the 13th Pt. 7, Halloween Ends, our cousin Dale's fiendish horror-themed pranks, and our cousin Dale's encounter with Jeffrey Dahmer (NOTE: For skeptics on that claim, I get it. Still, there's one simple reason I kinda believe my cousin: He actually grew up in the West Allis/Milwaukee area!)

 They’re not selling the message. It's not just "Love is the Answer" kinda rhetoric, but they have to deliver more on policy and make it clearer when and how they have delivered when they do. Here are two issues they should have considered raising more in the race for the mid-terms. 

Goth it up, baby!

Magazine's work has been variously described as art rock, alternative rock, electronic rock, post-punk, new wave, progressive rock,  and new romantic. How influential were they?...

...And now, because we are heading to theocracy, I can imagine people arguing with co-workers about abortion rights. That's because some people are always wanting things either frozen in time or, just as often, they want to keep turning that clock back. And it's not normal nostalgia, either, in the way that fuddy-duddies like myself might miss the good old days of renting video tapes from Blockbus...

Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1979. Then again, I think this band's music poses that interesting general question of genre distinction; They have some songs that sound more traditionally punk (That's How I Escaped My Certain Fate is even featured on a collection of mostly old-school punk songs called Faster & Louder: Hardcore Punk, Vol. 1...