1. For a band to be considered a supergroup, it must feature at least two well-known musicians. And unfamous members of well-known bands don’t count. We need successful solo artists or actual well-known members of well-known bands. How to define well-known? Gut check. For instance, in the Dead Weather example above: Dean Fertita, the rhythm guitarist of Queens of the Stone Age doesn’t fit the bill, but Jack White (duh) and Alison Mosshart, the lead singer of the Kills, do. I mean, Fertita is awesome. But could you pick him out of a police lineup?
2. The more well-known the well-known musicians involved are, the more supergroup-y the band is. A good litmus test here is Tinted Windows. Sure, it has Iha. But Zwan had Billy Corgan. Hence, Zwan trumps Tinted Windows, at least on the supergroup scale.
3. Equality matters. If one member is significantly more famous than everyone else, the supergroup smacks of a side project.
I’ll still be posting stuff here from time to time, and of course my blog archives, magazine clips and book info will always remain at johnsellers.com. But I am hereby moving most of the action over to my new page at True/Slant. If you could find it in your hearts to visit me there often, and sign up to “follow me” (click the badge under my photo and create an account), and RSS me, whatever the hell that is, I’d be much obliged.
I’m also a music columnist for The Faster Times now, so check me out there as well.
You are all the most incredible people in the world, and I’m not just saying that so you’ll click on the links above and boost my traffic at these other sites.
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
There hasn’t been a real Major League Baseball game for four days now. Withdrawal!
My interview with Tori Amos is now out in the same excellent issue of Spin as Brian Raftery’s oral history of Purple Rain and the mag’s Prince tribute album, Purplish Rain. (If only they had been prescient enough to have done an oral history of Thriller instead! Still, immensely entertaining.)
The comments under the Amos interview are absolutely worth reading, by the way. Lighten up, dude!
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
I am really neglecting this thing. (That’s what she said!)
1. The appeal of eggplant
2. The appeal of patchouli
3. The appeal of small, yapping dogs
4. The appeal of sandals for men, aka mandals
5. The appeal of the Upper West Side
6. The appeal of picnics
7. The appeal of farmer’s markets
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
The Smiths still haven’t gotten back together.
Yes, I am essentially nothing more than a Holy Taco shill today, but this is freakin’ awesome. It’s so awesome, in fact, that there needs to be a hybrid word combining freakin’ and awesome to describe it — frawesome? Yeah, this post is totally frawesome.
Pretty much sums up every other Thursday night I’ve had since early December as a founding member of the Every Other Thursdays with Cory drinking club, right down to the discussion about strap-ons.
I’m sure this thing went viral a few years ago (I’m notoriously slow on the uptake), so forgive me if you’ve already seen this failed 1967 pilot for a TV show adaption of Wonder Woman. (Readers of Holy Taco, where I found this today, certainly have.) Apparently, the creators of the old, campy Batman series wanted to do something similar here; luckily they failed — painfully so — or we might never have gotten an eyeful of Lynda Carter twirling the Lasso of Truth in star-spangled short shorts.
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
I am sore from playing softball, which just seems contrary to what the sport is all about.
Okay, this is pretty much the worst thing of all time. And I’m not talking about the product itself, although this contraption is certainly the second worst thing of all time, and yet another confirmation why all dog people are evil. No, I’m talking about the name. Poo Trap? That’s all you could come up with? What about Doggie Don’t? Or even Poo-B-Gone? Or what about Baggy of Your Hapless Dog’s Butt Mustard? But yeah, that last one’s a mouthful (not literally).
But surprise — it’s a Japanese product. Which only partially excuses the horrible name. Nothing will ever exempt this hilariously painful promo ad, however.
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
It’s a virtual monsoon outside. A monsoon, I tell you.
I was interviewed for this awesome story on today’s Times gadget blog about Michael Jackson’s video game collection, which had been up for auction until he pulled out recently. Check it out, homes — or should I say “homeses” (assuming that more than one “homes” is reading this).
My friend Rob Walker sent me this video yesterday, thank god.
I really want this same type of thing to be done with Beverly Hills, 90210. Which one of you will make that happen for me?
Meanwhile, it really depressed me when Gary Coleman got a little older and could no longer pull off being “the cute kid” and the producers decided to reload with a fresh-faced brat named Sam, who grated every nerve. His irksomeness might be best evidenced by this weird scene, in which a goon threatens to kill Mr. Drummond. Oh, no, he didn’t!
This is quite sad. One of baseball’s sweetest announcers, Phillies’ legend Harry Kalas, passed away today. I’m glad that he was able to see Philadelphia win one more championship. And I’m fortunate that I was able to interview him, let alone have him narrate as I ate a chalupa.
WHY I’M ANGRY TODAY
It really needs to get warmer now.
As previously mentioned, I’m posting regularly over on True/Slant. For instance, here’s a link to my Oral History of the Curb-Stomping Scene in American History X. Or how about playing the Roles John Hodgman Would Have Dominated game?
