Shona Winfrey Bio

Everything wrong with me can be traced straight back to seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show shortly after my first birthday, and through the day I publically announced I thought Iggy Pop was cool (I did it for shock value) and got myself labeled an outcast in my dinky-cowtown-middle-of-nowhere high school (obviously the shock treatment worked). I was a freak kid who carried a radio around with me and listened to American Top 40 back when AM was not an option, but the given. My parents used to take my radios and record player away from me to punish me, because it was the only thing that worked. Except maybe the whole ploy backfired, because just look how I turned out?!? I have rules about records. I break them a lot, and contradict myself.

My rules are something like this:

I like my records "slick" and over-produced, but quirks will make up for lack of technical prowess.

I love good vocals, but sometimes a sincere lyricist will make up for lack of vocal skill. However, if I hate your voice, I will hate your band and I will hate all of your records and I will tell everyone.

If it don't sound good on headphones, it ain't worth listening to.

Danger and excitement are always more fun than warm fuzzies in rock and roll, but I am a sentimental hack and cry over records a lot.

Feedback is good. Fuzzy bass is good. Reverb is good. Angst is good. So is a good sense of humor.

I am a musical sensualist and I really appreciate a record that makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck, or makes me feel like I'm floating or melting or enveloped. Records that cause visual hallucinations which impair driving are the best of all.

A top notch album has at least nine of twelve tracks graded B+ or better after ten listenings.

I'd rather feel as think, but sometimes sheer emotionalism must be balanced with a dose of the intellectual. There is no place where this is more true a statement than trying to review an album.

I still love the Beatles and the old version of ELO. I love XTC, Todd, Neil Young and Steely Dan. These are my biggies. I love the Posies and Teenage Fanclub and Sloan and Weezer and Ben Folds Five and the Charlatans and Jellyfish and Elliott Smith. I love Hum, Failure, Tool, NIN, Incubus and a lot of other hard rock/metal bands that would make me a laughing stock were I to make a full disclosure and come clean about my dirty habits. I also love old Motown, R&B, and disco is not dead. I love techno and acid jazz.

I love music.

I'd rather starve to death as give up my hearing. Just because I proclaim an album the 'best' of a year, doesn't mean it's my favorite. It means I think the album will become important historically for its technical and creative contributions to popular music.

There is nothing worse on God's green earth than an innocuous record.

I will be flamed. I do not care.

love and big phlbbbbbbts, y'all!

shona

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Shona's Reviews: October, 2000

Shona's Review: November, 2000

E-Mail Shona

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