Ned Raggett
@nedraggett.bsky.social
Hi! I write about music at various spots (@thequietus.com, @thewiremagazine.bsky.social, Shfl and my Patreon, also in the past @allmusic.com, @pitchfork.com, @bandcamp.com etc. etc.). Plus podcasting about #Tolkien with friends at @bythebywater.bsky.social
Pinned
Ned Raggett
@nedraggett.bsky.social
· Nov 14
Given the very specific circumstances, I'd either check to see if I'm on drugs or if the baby is on drugs and if the latter find out where I could get some because clearly those are some gooooood drugs.
Well, it's time for some honest to god Bluesky lore.
A year ago, the site was still invite only, and one morning I posted something random and didn't think much about it beyond my own amusement.
This is the story about the #ChristianSkydivingBaby and how it completely took over @bsky.app (1/x)
A year ago, the site was still invite only, and one morning I posted something random and didn't think much about it beyond my own amusement.
This is the story about the #ChristianSkydivingBaby and how it completely took over @bsky.app (1/x)
Reposted by Ned Raggett
If you don't understand that New York City politics are unfathomably strange, please treat yourselves to this altogether amazing interview with erstwhile GOP mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa. Come for the pure Cuomo hatred and the savvy take on Mamdani, stay for...cats. And owls. Oh, and pigeons.
January 2, 2026 at 12:27 AM
If you don't understand that New York City politics are unfathomably strange, please treat yourselves to this altogether amazing interview with erstwhile GOP mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa. Come for the pure Cuomo hatred and the savvy take on Mamdani, stay for...cats. And owls. Oh, and pigeons.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Say what you want about Scott Adams (for example, that he’s a huge shitbag), but he’ll leave a great legacy behind.
Unfortunately for him, that great legacy is Kaleb Horton’s, but he should be happy to know he contributed in some small way.
kalebhorton.ghost.io/the-d-lbert-...
Unfortunately for him, that great legacy is Kaleb Horton’s, but he should be happy to know he contributed in some small way.
kalebhorton.ghost.io/the-d-lbert-...
January 1, 2026 at 10:54 PM
Say what you want about Scott Adams (for example, that he’s a huge shitbag), but he’ll leave a great legacy behind.
Unfortunately for him, that great legacy is Kaleb Horton’s, but he should be happy to know he contributed in some small way.
kalebhorton.ghost.io/the-d-lbert-...
Unfortunately for him, that great legacy is Kaleb Horton’s, but he should be happy to know he contributed in some small way.
kalebhorton.ghost.io/the-d-lbert-...
Reposted by Ned Raggett
TODAY: MOBY DICK WEEK continues! With @kimkelly.bsky.social in the high Arctic. “I love to sail forbidden seas and land on barbarous coasts, but more importantly, I was going to see a whale.” flaminghydra.com/r/e3e10391?m...
Rich legacy / Hidden knowledge
Today: Kim Kelly, author of FIGHT LIKE HELL: The Untold History of American Labor, and editor of the metal newsletter Salvo; and Amy Chu, artist and publisher of Camoot.Journal.
Issue No. 473
The B...
flaminghydra.com
January 2, 2026 at 12:46 AM
TODAY: MOBY DICK WEEK continues! With @kimkelly.bsky.social in the high Arctic. “I love to sail forbidden seas and land on barbarous coasts, but more importantly, I was going to see a whale.” flaminghydra.com/r/e3e10391?m...
Just alerting @catbus.phd that the new year is starting right in that there's a new Luster track.
Don't Need You, by Luster
track by Luster
lusterla.bandcamp.com
January 2, 2026 at 12:48 AM
Just alerting @catbus.phd that the new year is starting right in that there's a new Luster track.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
ALL Tanith Lee's "Tales from the Flat Earth" books
Book recommendations! I want to read more in the new year. Does anybody have any books I should check out.
Looking for books written in an especially interesting way. I'm less interested in topic than execution (ex. House of Leaves, which I still need to read).
Current or old is fine. Just gimme.
Looking for books written in an especially interesting way. I'm less interested in topic than execution (ex. House of Leaves, which I still need to read).
Current or old is fine. Just gimme.
January 1, 2026 at 10:34 PM
ALL Tanith Lee's "Tales from the Flat Earth" books
Reposted by Ned Raggett
It's worth reading the whole interview in full. It basically verifies that the NYT has spent the past decade-plus doubling down on top-down narratives for coverage, getting more intense over time.
Sulzberg personally picked & chose whom the news apparatus would target and whom it would kiss up to.
Sulzberg personally picked & chose whom the news apparatus would target and whom it would kiss up to.
In this in-depth interview Billie Jean Sweeney — a former editor at The New York Times — details how the paper shifted towards openly promoting anti-trans hatred, why this was directed from the very top, how some staff pushed back and the immense damage done by the NYT legitimizing bigotry.
'A directive from above': Former NYT editor lays out how the paper pushes anti-trans bigotry
In this in-depth interview, former New York Times editor Billie Jean Sweeney details how the paper shifted towards openly promoting anti-trans hatred, how some staff tried to stop it, how it's directe...
transnews.network
January 1, 2026 at 7:30 PM
It's worth reading the whole interview in full. It basically verifies that the NYT has spent the past decade-plus doubling down on top-down narratives for coverage, getting more intense over time.
Sulzberg personally picked & chose whom the news apparatus would target and whom it would kiss up to.
Sulzberg personally picked & chose whom the news apparatus would target and whom it would kiss up to.
"No thanks, we have the 'Black Hole Sun' video at home."
Stranger Things Season 5 "Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up". Directed by The Duffer Brothers
January 1, 2026 at 8:50 PM
"No thanks, we have the 'Black Hole Sun' video at home."
Reposted by Ned Raggett
What's going on in the Bay Area this week? Check out this snapshot of COYOTE's weekly calendar of hand-picked events to get you off the couch!
This week, we've got a new year's day hike, DIY spectroscopes, vision boarding, and more. To see the full listings, check out coyotemedia.org
This week, we've got a new year's day hike, DIY spectroscopes, vision boarding, and more. To see the full listings, check out coyotemedia.org
January 1, 2026 at 2:00 AM
What's going on in the Bay Area this week? Check out this snapshot of COYOTE's weekly calendar of hand-picked events to get you off the couch!
This week, we've got a new year's day hike, DIY spectroscopes, vision boarding, and more. To see the full listings, check out coyotemedia.org
This week, we've got a new year's day hike, DIY spectroscopes, vision boarding, and more. To see the full listings, check out coyotemedia.org
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Reposted by Ned Raggett
this is the big wrench in the Machines Ain't Music gripe: artists use computers to make music so that human beings can move in ways only humans can do
also as someone who has listened to his fair share of footwork, sometimes the mechanical distortion of an "organic" band's sound actually heightens the feeling of humanity because it results in an extremely human form of expression in dance
DJ Manny - Good Feeling ( Teklife Records )
YouTube video by DJ Earl
www.youtube.com
January 1, 2026 at 5:32 PM
this is the big wrench in the Machines Ain't Music gripe: artists use computers to make music so that human beings can move in ways only humans can do
Reposted by Ned Raggett
anyways I know rock's not dead because I heard this last year
Yoo II avec Nolan Potter, by Yoo Doo Right, Population II & Nolan Potter
5 track album
yoodooright.bandcamp.com
January 1, 2026 at 3:56 PM
anyways I know rock's not dead because I heard this last year
Reposted by Ned Raggett
at this point you'd think people would start noticing the paradox of lamenting that the health of a musical movement they love to depict as being unruly/rebellious/dangerous/scaring your parents should not be contingent on whether these genre's practitioners go 6x platinum
"The limited expectations for 21st-century rock may just have turned out to be freeing. For songwriters, musicians and — with luck — enough fans to support them, rock is far from played out."
Who Says Rock Is Dead? (gift link):
Who Says Rock Is Dead? (gift link):
Who Says Rock Is Dead?
In 2025, rock was still hanging in. As artificial intelligence infiltrates music, the genre’s handmade imperfections are more crucial than ever.
www.nytimes.com
January 1, 2026 at 3:48 PM
at this point you'd think people would start noticing the paradox of lamenting that the health of a musical movement they love to depict as being unruly/rebellious/dangerous/scaring your parents should not be contingent on whether these genre's practitioners go 6x platinum
Reposted by Ned Raggett
This is a great thread 🧵 about how to improve curling 🥌 uptake with the upcoming Winter Olympics.
A curling game takes about 2 and a half hours. A mixed doubles game lasts about an hour.
Because of mixed doubles and 4-person men's and women's, it means curling will be on a lot in the Olympics.
I heard that 40% of ALL TV coverage will be 🥌.
Because of mixed doubles and 4-person men's and women's, it means curling will be on a lot in the Olympics.
I heard that 40% of ALL TV coverage will be 🥌.
January 1, 2026 at 3:46 PM
This is a great thread 🧵 about how to improve curling 🥌 uptake with the upcoming Winter Olympics.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
There is an undeniable shared understanding in humanity. When people see "I hope this year it will happen" there is not a slightest doubt what "it" means.
January 1, 2026 at 5:26 AM
There is an undeniable shared understanding in humanity. When people see "I hope this year it will happen" there is not a slightest doubt what "it" means.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Contrary to what his cantankerous ass might say, I raise one for Kaleb Horton. This year sucked, I’ll miss the hell out of that man till I too shuffle off, but in the meantime: you are remembered, bud.
January 1, 2026 at 6:50 AM
Contrary to what his cantankerous ass might say, I raise one for Kaleb Horton. This year sucked, I’ll miss the hell out of that man till I too shuffle off, but in the meantime: you are remembered, bud.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
And to you and yours.
January 1, 2026 at 8:51 AM
And to you and yours.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Space needle has a certain Arrival vibe to it this new year's Eve.
January 1, 2026 at 8:20 AM
Space needle has a certain Arrival vibe to it this new year's Eve.
Time for the greatest NYE movie in the form of _After the Thin Man_, Powell/Loy, Jimmy Stewart in James Stewart days, San Francisco, nightclubs at midnight, and 30s comedy/mystery mayhem. Happy New Year all.
January 1, 2026 at 6:52 AM
Time for the greatest NYE movie in the form of _After the Thin Man_, Powell/Loy, Jimmy Stewart in James Stewart days, San Francisco, nightclubs at midnight, and 30s comedy/mystery mayhem. Happy New Year all.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Some real San Diego royalty here
I'll also add my other favorite thing that happened as 1989 turned to 1990, and this one WAS live -- the mighty Beat Farmers, the full NYE concert broadcast via KGB FM in San Diego (attention @brooklynmarie.bsky.social natch). In memory of Country Dick, Mojo N and huge Beat Farmers fan Kaleb Horton.
January 1, 2026 at 5:00 AM
Some real San Diego royalty here
And it ends with “Truly you have won all the strange things.” *John Williams fanfare plays*
January 1, 2026 at 4:37 AM
And it ends with “Truly you have won all the strange things.” *John Williams fanfare plays*
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Watching hockey for the first time in a year, and I guess I’m a little rusty. When does the sex start?
January 1, 2026 at 3:35 AM
Watching hockey for the first time in a year, and I guess I’m a little rusty. When does the sex start?
Reposted by Ned Raggett
While I ended up catching the B-52's the following June, on New Year's Eve 1989 I was seeing experimental combo Birdsongs of the Mesozoic at a free First Night concert in Boston. First time seeing any members of Mission of Burma (Martin Swope, in this case) perform live.
If you need something later to send this year packing, and in light of the various MTV music-only channels worldwide shutting down, why not when the B-52s put paid to the 1980s as a whole? (This was recorded November 1989 for later broadcast, but hey, you do what you can.)
B 52s - (Live MTV New Years 1990 Full Show)
YouTube video by VHS Music Rarities
www.youtube.com
January 1, 2026 at 3:26 AM
While I ended up catching the B-52's the following June, on New Year's Eve 1989 I was seeing experimental combo Birdsongs of the Mesozoic at a free First Night concert in Boston. First time seeing any members of Mission of Burma (Martin Swope, in this case) perform live.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
I Served the B52s room service around this time in the Tampa hotel where I worked. They were great, but not as memorable as serving Tiny Tim, who was NOT dead. Yet.
If you need something later to send this year packing, and in light of the various MTV music-only channels worldwide shutting down, why not when the B-52s put paid to the 1980s as a whole? (This was recorded November 1989 for later broadcast, but hey, you do what you can.)
B 52s - (Live MTV New Years 1990 Full Show)
YouTube video by VHS Music Rarities
www.youtube.com
January 1, 2026 at 2:30 AM
I Served the B52s room service around this time in the Tampa hotel where I worked. They were great, but not as memorable as serving Tiny Tim, who was NOT dead. Yet.
Reposted by Ned Raggett
Every so often a post like this comes through my feeds and I am forced to remember the time that Country Dick Montana kicked me (accidentally, I suppose) in the crotch during a Beat Farmers show in the 80s in Miami.
I'll also add my other favorite thing that happened as 1989 turned to 1990, and this one WAS live -- the mighty Beat Farmers, the full NYE concert broadcast via KGB FM in San Diego (attention @brooklynmarie.bsky.social natch). In memory of Country Dick, Mojo N and huge Beat Farmers fan Kaleb Horton.
January 1, 2026 at 1:59 AM
Every so often a post like this comes through my feeds and I am forced to remember the time that Country Dick Montana kicked me (accidentally, I suppose) in the crotch during a Beat Farmers show in the 80s in Miami.
I'll also add my other favorite thing that happened as 1989 turned to 1990, and this one WAS live -- the mighty Beat Farmers, the full NYE concert broadcast via KGB FM in San Diego (attention @brooklynmarie.bsky.social natch). In memory of Country Dick, Mojo N and huge Beat Farmers fan Kaleb Horton.
January 1, 2026 at 1:49 AM
I'll also add my other favorite thing that happened as 1989 turned to 1990, and this one WAS live -- the mighty Beat Farmers, the full NYE concert broadcast via KGB FM in San Diego (attention @brooklynmarie.bsky.social natch). In memory of Country Dick, Mojo N and huge Beat Farmers fan Kaleb Horton.