Category: Music

Music by Alex Sheremet
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A statue of Mao Zedong in a Chinese city, with the text "Mao vs. Russia," part of Alex Sheremet's translation of Vladimir Vysotsky's take on the Sino-Soviet Split, "The Earth has so many races..." (Владимир Высоцкий - Есть на земле предостаточно рас), for the automachination literary magazine.

TRANSLATION: Vladimir Vysotsky’s “The Earth Has So Many Races” (1965)

Vladimir Vysotsky (Владимир Высоцкий) wrote political songs, but they were not all rebellious. He was playful with the status quo, encouraging aspects of Soviet identity without relying on specific figures or ideologies. Commenting on the Sino-Soviet Split was among his more direct allusions, which reflected public opinion at the time.

By the 1960s, the Sino-Soviet Split played a major role in Russia’s imagination. Although ‘officially’ dressed in Marxist-Leninist orthodoxy, its true reasons were practical. Soviets criticized Mao Zedong’s cult of personality, reneged on nuclear weapons, and feared that much of their own Far East territory was ill-gotten. China was encircled by Western powers whereas the USSR was not, thus encouraging the USSR to avoid “Chinese wars”. Demographic concerns were particularly common, as were concerns about the world’s resources—and spoils…

Vladimir Vysotsky’s reference to Syngman Rhee is particularly telling, as Mao Zedong is being portrayed as a revisionist-imperialist conspiring with an anti-Communist: […]

Music by Alex Sheremet
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A shot of the Russian/Soviet poet, actor, and singer-songwriter Vladimir Vysotsky (Владимир-Высоцкий), smoking a cigarette, with a horse in the background, as part of Alex Sheremet's English translation of Vysotsky's classic song, "Capricious Horses" (Кони привередливые)

TRANSLATION: Vladimir Vysotsky’s “Capricious Horses” (Кони привередливые)

Vladimir Vysotsky (Владимир Высоцкий, 1938 – 1980) is widely considered to be the premier Russian bard, as he combined the typical, almost perfunctory guitar work with a unique voice and diverse songwriting. He not only had political music, but also love songs, fables, “criminal” music (blatnaya pesnya, блатная песня), songs without choruses or traditional structures, and much more. You can learn more about Vysotsky and the Russian bard tradition here, which features another translation of his earliest known song, 1961’s Татуировка (“Tattoo”).

His composition “Capricious Horses” (Кони привередливые) is among his most famous, with song collections, shows, and documentaries titled after it. Here is my English translation of it, which you can watch Vysotsky perform (shortly before his death) with English subtitles here. […]

Music by Su Zi
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A shot from a Liverpool Legends (The Beatles cover band) concert, as described by disabled and deaf art critic Su Zi.

Deaf Girl Listens to Live Music: The Liverpool Legends

Humans are communal creatures. We gather, we flock; to do so means that we array ourselves for the event: there’s a location and a time. Perhaps, certain circumstances might also be of influence—the lure of live music on a summer evening has been a pleasure of gathering humans for centuries. Some summertime concert series now have decades of fame.

There are now musical works of modern composers that have decades of fame and there’s merit in the investigation of how a work of art becomes resonant out of its creational context. Evidence of a work’s enduring merit exists in how that work becomes internalized in subsequent generations—how it is copied, included or imitated—how the work exists within the lineage of art, within or beyond its genre. Because modern times are what they are, one form of evidence to a work’s enduring qualities involves a form of theater generally called impersonation. Perhaps the impersonation exists in the manner of a small town, a historic theater, and a master of ceremonies who impersonates Ed Sullivan. There are some people who will have to research the significance of Ed Sullivan now: there are some people for whom memory is history. In the realm of impersonation, not as much research might be needed for a theatrical tribute to the musical works of The Beatles. […]

Music by Su Zi
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A classic, sepia-toned photo of The Rolling Stones in 1963, with the text "deaf girl listens...Rolling Stones", from Su Zi's essay on a disabled author listening to classic rock.

Deaf Girl Listens To The Rolling Stones

There’s music that we find personally significant, and then there is music we have in heavy rotation—over and over again.

It ought to surprise no one that any playlist would include the Rolling Stones, for theirs is a lifelong output, and many of their compositions have found their way to accompany a variety of circumstances. The list of significant songs is a long one, spanning in length that of those cultural revered in more classical canons. Everyone has a favorite Stones song.

There are those who might minimize the musicianship, even while acknowledging the solid ear of each of the core band. Nonetheless, the architecture of each song is held together, most of the time, by the steady hoofbeats of Charlie Watts: there is always some mathematical grounding based in a beat of four. […]

Music by Su Zi
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A painting of Sergei Rachmaninoff, with the text "a deaf girl listens to RACHMANINOFF".

A Deaf Girl Listens To Rachmaninoff

There are pieces of music that follow us our entire lives. Perhaps we have an echo of memory from pre-speech of music and light on leaves; or a fragment half-heard, half-remembered. Perhaps there are clues to memorable music, details that may resonate personally.

Often though, the listener might not have formal music theory education—even if they had some sort of training in the playing of an instrument. The listener might just have habitual genres for their music and occasionally stumble on a song they like. Sometimes, a tune does not stand up to repeated plays; the attracting elements do not sustain repeat experiences. And sometimes there’s the history of music itself: predating written history, often erased in colonization or cultural eradication, waiting like a seed to bloom to consciousness.

Perhaps it is a sense of atavism, some ancestral echo, that allows a four or five generation leap in temporal awareness to find fresh joy in a piece of music written over a century ago. Nonetheless, even Wikipedia acknowledges the longevity and complexity of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in C-Sharp Minor. Some listeners may have half-heard this music in a variety of films, including Schindler’s List, while the minor key might hark listeners back to folk music. […]

Music by Su Zi
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Two side-by-side shots, depicting Snoop Dogg's 2024 album, "Missionary", with album art showing a condom, next to a black and white photo of Snoop Dogg at a concert in 1998.

A Deaf Girl Listens To Snoop Dogg’s “Missionary” (2024)

Snoop Dogg ought to need no introduction, having crip-walked the Olympic torch in Paris. He is a modern mogul, collaborating to create products from shoes to children’s programs, and now part of a dynamic duo with craft and home icon Martha Stewart. Although also known as an icon for marijuana—with a clever advertisement for lighters that included both Martha and Willie Nelson (a Siri search will reveal a cannabis-focused investment firm, Casa Verde, with a distinct valuation)—the general sentiment toward Snoop Dogg is one of an acceptance that is especially ironic of a culture which seems so determinedly racist.

Known originally as a vocalist in the lyrical form of poetry known as rap, Snoop Dogg’s lifelong dedication is to the intersection of this art form with other means of artistic expression that speak to a specific way of life, a specific culture. Viewers of Snoop’s social media posts are treated to wide ranging considerations: classic cars, ridiculous behavior, awards ceremonies, travel vistas, and his fear of horses. As varied as these endeavors seem to be, we know Snoop for the music. […]

Film by Jessica Schneider
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A stylized sepia photograph of singer-songwriter Blaze Foley playing guitar, taken and edited by Will Land.

Portrait of Pathos: Reviewing Ethan Hawke’s “Blaze” (2018)

Most never wish to wallow in sadness, but for some, sadness is not only necessary but a part of their art. This applies to country musician Blaze Foley (1949-1989). Who? you are wondering. Of course you are, because I had never heard of him either before watching Ethan Hawke’s 2018 film “Blaze”, about Michael David Fuller, who went by the stage name Blaze Foley (portrayed in the film by Ben Dickey, a musician in his own right.) This isn’t to say that Johnny Cash doesn’t have his share of sad songs, mind you, but no one questions who Johnny Cash is. However, not the same can be said for Blaze Foley.

Who was this eccentric man other than an unknown outlaw country singer who frequented the dead-end, half-empty Texas bars? A minor legend—though few knew of him even among his music circles. And while it can feel encouraging to witness someone aiming for success, to continually be overlooked by his audience remained his disappointment. Granted, much of this was due to Blaze’s self-destruction, alcoholism, and his inability to control his temper in response to the heckling crowds, not to mention his stress due to his lack of finances. (Quite a different character than from someone like Rodriguez, who also went overlooked yet managed to live a long life and was a supportive father to his daughters.) This is not to say that Blaze was a bad person per se, merely someone with unending emotional needs, at least as portrayed in the film (which is based on his widow’s memoir, Living in the Woods in a Tree: Remembering Blaze Foley). […]

Film by Jessica Schneider
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The American singer-songwriter Judee Sill, smiling in orange-tinted sunglasses.

Finding Judee: Reviewing “Lost Angel – The Genius of Judee Sill” (2024)

I’m always receptive to stories about those artists who were overlooked in their lifetimes. Not that I deliberately seek out disappointment per se (a contradiction, I’ll admit), but if I happen to chance upon it, I’ll likely remember it. One such time occurred on a Friday afternoon while listening to a radio station called Simply Beautiful 91.3 KNCT-FM, which will play anything from Sam Cooke to Jim Croce, Glenn Miller to Glenn Gould, instrumental to swing, jazz, and random folk. (It can be assumed that most of Simply Beautiful’s audience is older, so it’s no surprise to hear this station playing while browsing in a local antique store.)

So, it was upon this Friday afternoon when I first chanced upon an unfamiliar folk song called ‘The Kiss’, followed by the DJ mentioning the name Judee Sill and the documentary Lost Angel. (Scribbling down the name and title, I misspelled her name as Judy.) It’s been said that Sill had a rough start in life, having been a heroin addict, a prostitute, and spending time in jail. However, despite these setbacks, Sill managed to create two albums (titled Judee Sill and Heart Food) both containing elements of country, blues, gospel, and Bach Fugues. An odd combination, I admit, and so afterward I immediately searched her Spotify channel and began playing what sounded like an ethereal mix of reflection, meditation, and religion. Then, upon watching the documentary Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill, her work and life became all the more illuminating. […]