END OF THE RAIN
Between KEXP marathons, Purple Rain screenings, and roughly 100,000 online tributes (may be lowballing that number), Prince has dominated pop culture thought since the announcement of his death on Thursday. It’s clear that his unique talent meant so much to so many and seems to have touched them all in different, impactful ways.
To help put a bookended perspective on the man’s career, watch a young Prince strut his stuff in a full recording of a 1982 concert and follow it up with the audio from his final concert on April 14 in Atlanta.
And just to lighten the mood, here’s the classic Chappelle’s Show sketch “Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories – Prince” (which, despite seeming insane and implausible, actually happened, per Prince). Game, Blouses.
COUNTRY FRIED WAFFLES
While late night hunger can be quelled at a few choice Seattle spots (Beth’s, 5 Spot, Lost Lake, etc.), for a lot of the country (especially down South) Waffle House is the premiere haven of the drunken diner. If you lack familiarity with the chain, it’s probably because the closest Waffle House is roughly 1,000 miles away (road trip to Fort Collins!).
Fun fact about Waffle Houses: They house jukeboxes filled with songs about Waffle Houses (aka the mildest real form of dystopia imaginable). In an attempt to get a number into the Waffle House rotation, last week Stephen Colbert invited country star Sturgill Simpson on The Late Show to perform a new song entitled “No Shirt, No Shoes, No Knuckleheads.” The tune manages to be A) unsurprisingly funny B) actually good.
HARDLY ART, TOTALLY GARBAGE
Is there a band less fitting of its name than Garbage? On June 10, the terrific alt-rock act will release its sixth album Strange Little Birds via the band’s own indie label, Stunvolume Records. To get fans excited, the group released the new album’s first single “Empty” last week. With its edgy riffs and Shirley Manson’s searing vocals, the track sounds like it would’ve been right at home on any ’90s Garbage record.
BURR-Y-ING THE LEAD
While it wasn’t the HBO’s main draw last night (somethin’ about dragons or some such nonsense), Last Week Tonight with John Oliver continued to show why it’s the year-round anchor to the channel’s Sunday night lineup. The main story for the episode was Puerto Rico’s crippling debt, which has been exasperated by a slew of odd (and sometimes unexplainable) legislative loopholes due to its U.S. territory status. Stick around until the 19 minute mark for the clip’s real treat, a song written and performed by (now Pulitzer Prize-winning) Hamilton mastermind (and son of Puerto Rican parents) Lin-Manuel Miranda that succinctly encapsulates all the issues discussed in the segment.
|
|
|