Ouch!

I love critics.

From a 1996 publishing.

Emmet Swimming, a modern-rock quartet on Epic Records, makes its Nashville debut this coming Wednesday at 12th & Porter. According to Epic, Nashville has been marked as a breakout city for the band; in other words, the label hopes to use our city to establish a fan base at retail and radio. Those who enjoy listening to mean-spirited, spoiled college grads spew sardonic judgments and indulge in bad literary illusions won’t want to miss them. Sample lines like “Ivana’s a sculptor, but she’s tending bar, piercing her nipples in the name of art” might suggest misogynistic tendencies, but the band distributes its hatefulness equally. The focus, however, remains on the moneyed class, whose motto, according to the band, is “Be rich, dress poor...how’d we get so chic?” Emmet Swimming’s tone is relentlessly dour and spiteful, with guitar-driven arrangements that are just as detached and unmoving as the lyrics. Packed with diatribes and thinly masked self-loathing, the band’s new album, Arlington to Boston, is a Hotel California for East Coast preppies.

For the full article: http://www.nashvillescene.com/1996-10-17/stories/fitting-tribute/

My Job in a Mix Tape

Let the following songs pay tribute to those who dwell in tiny cubicle feifdoms, nestled between Metro stops and condos:

"The Business" These United States
//I've got a glorified leather lunchbox

"Hey Julie" Fountains of Wayne
//Hours on the phone making pointless call/ I've got a desk full of papers that mean nothing at all/ Sometimes I catch myself staring into space/ Counting down the hours 'til I get to see you face

"Day Job" Sunshine State
//Where did the weekend go/ I say to Steve/ As the elevator opens/ On the 7th floor of Hell

"Spider in the Snow" Dismemberment Plan
//Same VCR/ Same cats/ Different people at the very same job/Similar alley/ Different rats

"Arlington" Emmet Swimming
//Be rich/ Dress poor/ How'd we get so chic?