WHILE I WAS WRITING the sentimental bit at the bottom of this post, I probably ran through A Sunny Day In Glasgow's The Sunniest Day Ever EP about six times. It stood tall against thoughts of futility and selfishness, playing like a well-timed reaffirmation of music blogging's importance to me. I discovered them through Fluxblog, and couldn't help but drop three dollars on their 4 (5!) song EP. Happily, the album ingratiated itself with me immediately via blown out sounds, warm and crystalline, that seem to originate from the tiniest thrumming. The album's beauty is consummate on "Laughter (Victims)," a too-short two-minute wash of middle-consciousness (I can't describe it without the generous hyphenation). This is perfect, enjoy.
At any moment, I've got ideas in my head about this blog and music blogs in general. Not all are positive, and most will remain in my head, but I'd like to mention something Ian wrote at Popsheep recently:
Sorry for the long gaps between posts lately, but I'm feeling less and less motivated to write these things. Perhaps its the unbearable, oppressive heat or just the futility of being one among a billion other MP3 blogs. Regardless, these are two great songs. Enjoy.
I sympathize completely with this statement, and with Ryan's comment at the bottom, though it saddens me to say it:
There may be a billion music blogs out there now, but they're mostly all completely worthless, in my opinion at least. Popsheep is one of the 3 or 4 mp3 blogs that I still actually read.
And it's good that you don't post every day, or, god forbid, multiple times a day. That's the worst. I'd rather get one gem per week than 50 of those quota-filling posts that bloggers these days seem to do.
There are a billion (and counting), and it's certainly disheartening to see how many are little more than hasty and depthless "mp3 mixes." My point is not to berate these blogs, but to say that it would be a shame if a site like Popsheep called it quits (which I don't suspect will happen, btw). There are blogs, big and small, with absolutely unquestionable heart, which I've drawn inspiration from since the beginning. And while I'm trying to find my own voice amidst the growing clamor, I can say with confidence that the most important ones won't ever be drowned out, even if they aren't the loudest.