Author: mike

Three-branch chandelier

Chandelier

Compared to the original Adelman chandelier, this one is flatter and doesn’t hang as far, better for a smaller room with a lower ceiling.

Main body:
– (1) BOLG3 Large cluster body
– (1) SV140 Adjustable swivel
– (2) BOT2 Tapered brass cluster body
– (1) PIBR06-0X8 6″ pipe
– (1) PIBR05-0X8 5″ pipe
– (3) PIBR04-0X8 4″ pipe
– (1) PIBR03-0X8 3″ pipe
– (2) PIBR02-0X8 2″ pipe
– (1) RE1/8FX1/4MS Reducer with shoulder
– Plenty of black and white wire (say, 10 feet each)

For the five fixtures:
– (5) SR0-3/8 Slip ring
– (5) CU578 Cup w/ 1/8″ hole
– (5) SO10045 Porcelain socket
– (3) BUEG16C40 Globe Edison clear bulb
– (2) BUET10C40 Tubular Edison clear bulb

For the canopy and hanging:
– (1) NE449NP Straight coupling
– (1) NI0-1/2X1/8 Steel nipple
– (1) CA34 or CA04 Black canopy

Nora’s Best of 2014

We listen to a lot of music with Nora, and every year I keep a running playlist of whatever she’s currently listening to and compile and save it at the end of the year. This year, for the first time, Nora actually made her own “best of” list with my help. Here it is! If you see some overlap with my list, well, we listen to a lot of music together. The influence goes both ways; how do you think I ended up with “Happy” and “Everything Is AWESOME!!!” on my list?

– Erasure – Blue Savannah
– Falco – Der Kommissar
– Pharrell Williams – Happy
– Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody
– New Order – Love Vigilantes
– A Tribe Called Quest – Ham ‘N’ Eggs
– The Cardigans – Lovefool
– Yaz – Situation
– Del the Funky Homosapien – Mistadobolina
– Phil Collins – In The Air Tonight
– New Order – Ultraviolence
– The Chemical Brothers – Swoon
– Erasure – Brother and Sister
– Eagles – Hotel California
– Tegan and Sara – Everything Is AWESOME!!! (feat. The Lonely Island)

The Sound of 2014

As I did for 2013, I’ve made a top 10 list for 2014. I made one change to my methodology — I’m posting it in January instead of August — but otherwise, same idea: it is music I discovered, rediscovered, or just listened to in 2014 (whenever it was released), and it includes 12 songs.

Again, over the course of the year, I kept a playlist of interesting songs I heard. At the end of the year, I made two more lists: The Sound of 2014, the stuff I listened to and enjoyed enough that they define the sound of the year for me, and The Best of 2014, my absolute favorites.

A strong theme in 2014 was retro (or retro-sounding) dance music: italo disco (Koto & Hipnosis), old club hits (Klein & MBO have been cited by New Order as an influence), and modern retro-sounding stuff (Hercules & Love Affair). In 2013, New Order’s Movement and PC&L were big, as Peter Hook toured on those albums; this year, songs on Low-Life and Brotherhood were big with me, for a similar reason. 2014 didn’t have a dominant album for me (like Jagwar Ma’s “Howlin” in 2013); The Juan Maclean’s “In A Dream” probably came closest, with Hercules & Love Affair and Caribou right behind them. And for some reason, I got absolutely obsessed with “In The Air Tonight” last year.

Here’s the list:
– Klein & MBO – Dirty Talk (Greg Wilson Edit)
– Koto – Japanese War Game
– Husky Rescue – Summertime Cowboy
– The Juan Maclean – A Place Called Space
– Hercules & Love Affair – That’s Not Me (feat. Gustaph)
– Paris – The Devil Made Me Do It
– First Aid Kit – My Silver Lining
– Phil Collins – In The Air Tonight
– New Order – This Time of Night
– Caribou – Our Love
– Liars – Mess On A Mission
– Sugardaddy – Love Honey (Electro Version)

In A Lonely Place

I listen to a lot of New Order, and I’ve noticed certain phrases that pop up in multiple songs: “in a lonely place”, “this time of night”, “you just can’t believe”. So, naturally, I decided to analyze New Order song lyrics to see what else I could find. I included the song title as part of the lyrics (since New Order often doesn’t) and didn’t consider phrases that spanned multiple lines. I found all the phrases of at least four words that appear in at least two songs. I eliminated near-duplicates and the less interesting. Here they are, along with their songs and the lines they appear in. My favorites are at the top.

“THIS TIME OF NIGHT”
– As It Is When It Was: The streets are so empty at this time of night
– This Time Of Night: This Time Of Night

“IN A LONELY PLACE”
– Face Up: It’s dieing in a lonely place
– In A Lonely Place: In A Lonely Place

“YOU JUST CAN’T BELIEVE”
– Confusion: You just can’t believe me
– Love Vigilantes: You just can’t believe

“HOW DOES IT FEEL”
– Blue Monday: Tell me how does it feel
– Someone Like You: How does it feel

“YOU WERE HERE WITH ME”
– In A Lonely Place: How I wish you were here with me now
– I’ve Got A Feeling: I’d say it to your face if you were here with me,

“WHERE WE HAVE BEEN”
– State Of The Nation: I think about where we have been
– Weirdo: I don’t care where we have been

“DOWN ON MY KNEES AND”
– Bizarre Love Triangle: I get down on my knees and pray
– Denial: To fall down on my knees and resume this charade

“I CAME TO YOU”
– Angel Dust: With open arms I came to you
– Shellshock: I came to you, I called in vain

“IN THE END YOU”
– Face Up: But in the end you lost your friend
– Sub-Culture: In the end you will submit
Continue reading “In A Lonely Place” →

The Biggest One-Hit Wonder

Overview

It’s much easier to define a one-hit wonder than the king of pop: a song by an artist who never hit the charts with another song in their careers. The biggest would be the one that spent the most time at the top of the charts; for my purposes, I’m counting weeks in the top ten. I analyzed my data to find songs by artists who never appeared for another song. However, since I don’t have full weekly top 40 or top 100 data, I had to take the top candidates and manually check for other hits. Here are the top one-hit wonders. Clearly, we have three definite winners; two of them are exactly what I think of when I think “one-hit wonder”.

Continue reading “The Biggest One-Hit Wonder” →

Who is the King of Pop?

Overview

One of the first questions about pop music that occurred to me was: is Michael Jackson truly the king of pop, as he was often called? If not Michael, who is the true king1 of pop? At an intuitive level, it seemed to me that being the king broke down to two main factors: the king should have the most hit songs of all time, and the king should have been a dominant presence on the charts for many years, such that you could barely listen to pop music without hearing one or another of his or her songs.

Continue reading “Who is the King of Pop?” →

50 Years of Pop Songs

Like many, I was deeply immersed in pop when I was growing up (for me, the 80s). I then abandoned it for more esoteric stuff for a while, spending the 90s mostly listening to industrial, techno, and electronica. In the last ten years or so, I’ve returned to pop with a new appreciation for the genius of a perfectly crafted pop song.

When I came back to pop, I formed a couple of crotchety-old-man theories about how contemporary pop differs from its forebears. I’m a cautious person though, so before ranting about the kids today, I decided to collect some data and test my theories. The result is an exploration of the last 50 years of pop songs. As it happens, I haven’t yet finished my original driving question about pop song meaning; my explorations of “popularity” are linked below.

Continue reading “50 Years of Pop Songs” →

The Sound of 2013

At the end of every year, pretty much every music critic, blogger, or enthusiast makes their list of top 10 songs or albums of the year. I usually don’t, but in 2013 I explored a lot more music than usual and decided to make a list too. There are a few differences between my top 10 list and most people’s though: (1) it is songs I discovered, rediscovered, or just listened to a lot in 2013; (2) it has 12 songs on it; and (3) it comes out in August instead of December.

In 2013, I made an effort to break out of my music habits of the last 20 years and listen to a lot of new music (thank you, KEXP, SoundHound, and Spotify). As I listened, I collected a mostly-unfiltered playlist of stuff I heard and tracked down. Toward the end of the year, I made two more lists: The Sound of 2013, the stuff I listened to and enjoyed enough that they define the sound of the year for me, and The Best of 2013, my absolute favorites.

Honestly, I probably could have just made Jagwar Ma’s “Howlin” the “Best of” list and it would be just as true. Howlin is easily my favorite album of the year and the best new thing I’ve heard in years. An old favorite, New Order’s “Movement”, makes an appearance as well, because I spent much of the year delving deeply into the sound of that album.

Anyway, for those without Spotify, here’s the “Best of” list:
– Jagwar Ma – Uncertainty
– Ana Tijoux – 1977
– The White Stripes – The Hardest Button to Button
– Wax Tailor – Say Yes (feat. ASM)
– Soft Metals – Tell Me
– Jagwar Ma – What Love
– New Order – The Him
– El Perro Del Mar – Hold off the Dawn
– Deltron 3030 – Pay the Price
– Weekend – Oubliette
– Phoenix – Everything is Everything
– Franz Ferdinand – Evil Eye

Adelman-inspired Desk Lamp

After I built my version of the Adelman Chandelier, I started experimenting with different designs, including this desk lamp.

Inquisitive desk lamp

Parts

  • 1 cluster body – item BOLG3
  • 1 8″ pipe – item PIBR08-OX8
  • 1 6″ pipe – item PIBR06-OX8
  • 2 5″ pipes – item PIBR05-OX8
  • 1 2″ pipe – item PIBR02-OX8
  • 1 1/2″ brass nipple
  • 1 nut
  • 2 balls
  • 1 switched lamp cord
  • 1 half silver bulb
  • 2 brass swivels – item SV140
  • 1 socket – item SO10045
  • 1 brass cup – item CU578
  • 1 brass reducer – item RE1/8FX1/4MS
  • white wire, black wire