The Useless Critic 2.0

I think I promised some Lana-related blabbing, so here it goes. I've been traveling a lot these past several days, which has left me quite some time to enjoy music. And by music I mean 90 percent "Norman Fucking Rockwell." This and "Cinnamon Girl" are, to me, the standout tracks off this album. There's really not a dud among the group - some songs are a little more subdued than others, I will say - but the songs that stand out are like, shit people will be listening to in 20 plus years.  Now, for "Mariners Apartment Complex," there's two reasons it is - without a doubt - one of her top tracks. First of all, it's a classic throwback ballad dressed up in modern production (the help of Jack Antonoff.) This sounds like something that emerged directly for radio play in the '70s. Without the production that is undeniably contemporary - imagine a stripped-down acoustic version - "Mariners" would not be out of place in the singe...

Memo to self for the future: DO NOT LET DOMAINS EXPIRE DURING PERSONAL CRISES. Get your self TOGETHER and renew that damn domain. Geezus. Not dead, internet, not dead. I got royally screwed by this whole situation, and now my OG domain - theuselesscritic.com - is worth a whole boatload of money. Please learn from my errors, and never do such things. So we have entered the part of my life where this is no longer actually "The Useless Critic" but "Useless Critics." This largely does not matter, but I prefer to be candid. Just realized apparently I am wearing part of my bath bomb on my face. This is a good look. As a brief recap, I've been swamped all summer, so I've been putting off bringing back the UC for oh quite a while. Summertimes in Phoenix are uniquely hard due to the unbearable heat, so I did indulge in the "summertime sads" a bit. But September is a good month for me. I'm fresh off from seeing THE NATIONAL and will soon be seeing Ph...