ๅฐค้ (Yu Yar) is a pioneering figure of the Mandopop and Hokkien music scenes. Rendering her name variously as Yu Ya, Yu Yar, Yลซya, or Yuyar; international audiences recognize her as a foundational 'idol' singer. Her 1970 mega-hit, ๅพไบๅช่ฝๅๅณ, ("The Past Can Only Be Remembered") defined an era and paved the way for the image-conscious … Continue reading Introduction to the Music of ๅฐค้ (Yu Yar) for the Use of the English-Speaking World
Category: Music
Music Biographies โ Spade Cooley
In the 2000s, Amoeba Music enlisted an army of writers and data entry people to work on an ambitious website that was meant to be a sort of combination of Allmusic, Apple Music, Discogs, Wikipedia, and more. Despite investing a tremendous amount of time, labor and money, the site, as envisioned, never got off the ground. In 2020 โ without so … Continue reading Music Biographies โ Spade Cooley
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Music Biographies — Jobriath
In the 2000s, Amoeba Music enlisted an army of writers and data entry people to work on an ambitious website that was meant to be a sort of combination of Allmusic, Apple Music, Discogs, Wikipedia, and more. Despite investing a tremendous amount of time, labor and money, the site, as envisioned, never got off the … Continue reading Music Biographies — Jobriath
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A History of 1717 Silver Lake Boulevard
This post was born out of a shorter post originally written for the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council's "Ask Silver Lake" column. 'Ask Silver Lake' is dedicated to exploring the history and insights of our community. If you have questions or ideas you'd like us to consider, please drop a comment or send them to outreach@silverlakenc.org. … Continue reading A History of 1717 Silver Lake Boulevard
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The Stylers
INTRODUCTIONFor fans of a particular era of Chinese-language pop-rock, in particular the excellent Singaporean pop-rock of the 1960s and '70s, there's one name one finds written on records by many of the era's greatest artists -- The Stylers. They backed many of the Singapore's leading lights including Lena Lim, Lisa Wong, and Yao Su Rong. … Continue reading The Stylers
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The Most Popular Spotify Playlists
Although I have my issues with Spotify -- namely, it's run by two billionaires who enrich themselves off both musician's recordings and ads that feel like extortion -- I use it a lot. It has to be said, it's a pretty great product for consumers if not at all especially helpful for creators -- especially … Continue reading The Most Popular Spotify Playlists
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Daphne Oram
Daphne Oram was a pioneering English composer of electronic music and musique concrรจte and inventor of early synthesizers. Oram was an eccentric, too, interested not just in experimental music but in esoteric knowledge, time travel, plant intelligence, and mysticism. She was a member of the Research Into Lost Knowledge Organisation and student of New Age … Continue reading Daphne Oram
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Pan-Asian Metropolis — Q&A with filmmaker Elizabeth Ai about her latest project, NEW WAVE
If you're American and you recognize names like "Bad Boys Blue," "C.C. Catch," "Sandra," or "Modern Talking," there's a good chance that you, or someone close to you, is Vietnamese. For the uninitiated non-Viet Americans, those are the names of three German (and one German-Dutch) pop bands whose songs have been compiled, covered, and claimed … Continue reading Pan-Asian Metropolis — Q&A with filmmaker Elizabeth Ai about her latest project, NEW WAVE
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The Triffids
NOTE: Around 2009, I wrote a bunch of music biographies for Amoeba Music, which was then planning an ambitious project which ultimately never came to fruition. Some of the biographies I wrote about my favorite musical acts did eventually make their way onto Amoebaโs current, scaled back website โ although theyโre somewhat buried and often … Continue reading The Triffids
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Mantronix
NOTE: Around 2009, I wrote a bunch of music biographies for Amoeba Music, which was then planning an ambitious project which ultimately never came to fruition. Some of the biographies I wrote did make their way onto Amoebaโs current, scaled back website โ although theyโre somewhat buried and often donโt credit the authors. A lot … Continue reading Mantronix
Eric Brightwell 