James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Some monsters in there. Great stuff! First Banshees record I bought (Swimming Horses), I listened more to the B than the A (Humming Wires/Let Go). I was 13 and didn't understand a thing but I was fascinated. 011
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Picking up Billesley felt like the impossible dream. Very happy about that! 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/04/2026I agree. I listened to a bit and figured that if I gave it a bunch of listens, no doubt there’d be some value there but, you know, as you said, life’s just too short… 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 06/04/2026I suspect that L is very right and that if we really knew how many people honestly couldn’t give a damn about music, it would feel like The Bodysnatchers out there. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 01/04/2026In general agreement but if add that M&S/Waitrose have limited choice and can be pricey. I’d put Sainsbury’s above Tesco, but there’s not that much in it. Lidl marginally better than Aldi nowadays. Iceland, although awful, very good for stocking frozen stuff every month or so. 090
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 16/02/2026Phew! As proof of dodgy taste, I offer my obsession with late period Suzi Quatro LP, Rock Hard, that I dragged my mother all over the place for (I think I saw her in Tiswas or something) 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 16/02/2026Man, feeling exposed here. I had a few dozen albums by 11 on record and cassette. I’m making no claims for great taste, but Blondie, ABBA and Adam & the Ants would have been top of my list. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 15/02/2026I’d have definitely bought this if it was available on CD. Frustrating! 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 24/01/2026Oh look, that thing everyone said would happen following introduction of these technologies, somehow happened.bbc.co.ukWomen filmed in secret for TikTok content - then harassed onlineSo-called manfluencers wearing smart glasses approach women and then post videos to TikTok. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/01/2026Actually , reading this back, I’ve been super unclear. I hope my point comes through! 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/01/2026Last comment: the best things about the ‘70s for me (arts and culture aside - very subjective) were the socialist dimensions that made everyday life better (welfare type stuff). I don’t have time for the sorts of racist answers to this question that focuses on culture wars type stuff. 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/01/2026So I think the answer to the question depends on where you start to answer. Perhaps there’s been a more thorough analysis that takes ALL of these things into account, but I’ve not seen one yet. (I’d be genuinely keen to, though) 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/01/2026Social media, employment far higher, no qualification inflation. But of course (no less important), rampant racism, intolerance, domestic violence. The affordable and connectibility of technology. Scientific advances. 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 18/01/2026I think it depends a lot on the prism that you are looking through. Some things are immeasurably better in the 2020s, some things are worse. For instance, working from home after hours, being available all hours, wages were enough to raise a family single-handedly back then, no internet bullying… 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 17/01/2026Look after yourself, Rob. That’s the most important thing! Take it easy! 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 10/01/2026I noticed it was going to be ten years since Bowie passed so I wrote a post revisiting his discography. It's subjective and not to be taken too seriously, but I really enjoyed it - it was a fantastic excuse.jameswriteslife.wordpress.comDavid BowieI just noticed that it is almost ten years since David Bowie died – January 10th 2016. It doesn’t feel like ten years, but a lot has happened so I guess it is. I’m not one for han… 030
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 01/01/2026I’m sorry, I couldn’t carry on reading beyond: “A full stop (or period, to my American friends) at the end of the sentence that was soul music.” It’s just too awful. Soul music is not a sentence. If anything, it’s a lot of sentences (many not compatible) and SOTT (awesome) offers no full stop. 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 27/12/2025This sounds good. No doubt further research is needed and I’m very grateful that you put it up. However, I’m very frustrated that government messaging is so poor that you have to do this sort of thing. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 14/12/2025I suspect that no-one will be all too worried by this but here are my albums of 2025 (New, Reissues and New to me). Not the best - I can't make that judgement - but they have made me happy. jameswriteslife.wordpress.com/2025/12/14/2...jameswriteslife.wordpress.com2025: A Year in CDsIt’s been a fairly slow year for me CD-wise, especially regarding new 2025 releases. The trend for records that I have bought over a year has been downward over the last few years anyway. I&#… 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 14/12/2025I read it (and just re-skimmed it - I am forgetful). I agree with some of your points, esp. ranking and expecting the list to mean anything. All the same, I do write a post with a sort of list (more a bunch). It’s more a journal piece than an assessment. Just a bunch of things that made me happy. 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 15/11/2025I was but I was 8. In my teens I put them away as thought I was supposed to, but slowly came back around in my 30s (largely thanks to picking up Gold in a charity shop and falling in love again with SOS). 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 28/10/2025I’m in Morrisons and over the store radio comes The Cramps with Human Fly. Well, that is an unexpected pleasure! 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 28/10/2025I dashed off a few words summarising my thoughts regarding that Guardian article where the Head of Bloomsbury proposed writers used AI to combat 'writer's block'. jameswriteslife.wordpress.com/2025/10/28/a...jameswriteslife.wordpress.comA.I. Files #9 – AI can help authors beat writer’s block, says Bloomsbury chief [Extended Commentary]Lauren Almeida, News Report, The Guardian, 27th October 2025 [Edited from article] “Nigel Newton, the founder and chief executive of [Bloomsbury], said the technology could support almost all… 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 27/10/2025You see so many of these alleged ‘articles’ that feel like little more than press releases from tech companies desperate to make a name for themselves. Depressing. 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 26/10/2025I enjoyed it. One of my favourites for the year even although I think it needs a few more listens to embed before I’m sure. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 26/10/2025Again - all agreement. Even Dylan, perhaps the greatest lyricist in the past 70 years, had to write (or at least borrow) a good tune first. Despite all the gushing directed at his lyricism (arguably deserved), people often forget his musicality. And that, to me at least, is what matters. 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 26/10/2025Completely agree. I sympathise (to a degree), it's hard to write about music - it's a completely different language - and people do like a good story. But, put crudely, I've never bopped to good lyrics. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 26/10/2025I agree with much of what you write here, but I'm not sure I've ever agreed with you so emphatically as I do when you say 'pull yourselves away from the fucking lyrics.' Lyrics are fine (of course) but they are one component of many, and rarely the most decisive. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 25/10/2025I’m pretty sure I listen to far more albums per week than your average - probably something like four-six per day (I work from home at the moment) - so ~42 a week. 22 records would mean that I’d not properly absorbed them all *plus* not listened to anything else. How’s that good? 100
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 20/10/2025That is awful. If the article itself wasn’t banal enough… 120
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 19/10/2025I enjoyed the Sudan Archives. I’ve only given one listen so far. Very club heavy, but fun. Time will tell if it stacks up. I’ve not listened to the Mozart Estate just yet. I’ll try to this week. Lawrence is someone I’ve not given enough time to. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 09/10/2025That final question. I think about it often and it really seems that the answer is no. To them, Britain appears irredeemably broken and their appeal to voters relies upon them pointing out the ways in order to generate anger and despair. What must it be to live like that? 000
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 05/10/2025I find sometimes that it incentivises not buying stuff on release date. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 30/09/2025Just re-joined the gym. I did 20 minutes on a treadmill, not even running (just fast-ish, up hill walking). Got off dizzy, sweating a bit. I’m more unfit than I thought. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 30/08/2025The amount of our lives we place on these platforms can be significant. I stepped away from FB deliberately - I just couldn’t stomach Meta any more - but there was a lot of weird regret and sadness to see that much of my personality go to the wind. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 30/08/2025Sadly, I’m not surprised re: unhelpful chatbot. They’re just not that bothered about people as people - it’s just data, advertising and attention farming for them, I think. 110
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 30/08/2025This week it's a weird mix of French pop, 80s, 90s indie rock and early Warp. I do my best.jameswriteslife.wordpress.comHalving my Collection: Session #108What is this blog about? Back in 2004, when I was still hosting an internet radio show, one of the big albums on the ‘station’ was Willy Mason’s Where the Humans Eat, specifically… 020
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 30/08/2025Given that I am no longer on FB, this is my only social account (bless it). So even fewer (nobody?) will even see that I have posted on my blog. I'm reluctant to keep bothering you with it, but perhaps one last time: I revisit 12 albums from my bloated collection with the goal of 6 in, 6 out. (1/2) 230
Reposted by James MacLarenNot (A.) I. @aerialeverything.cryptoanarchy.network · 28/08/2025If you have a teenager in your house, you know how dangerous AI on social media is. Teens tend to live a range of secret lives w part of their metamorphosis into adulthood consisting of spending hours alone & potentially online in their rooms, at an age when social lives hang in delicate balance. 0306
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 28/08/2025The negative impact of this sort of thing on epistemic trust is incalculable. There is a need for serious intervention, which won't happen, of course. 030
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 17/08/2025A sad read but a good one. With that qualification, I enjoyed it. Thank you. 010
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 16/08/2025I dashed out a blog post about my decision to permanently delete Facebook. jameswriteslife.wordpress.com/2025/08/16/f...jameswriteslife.wordpress.comFarewell then, FacebookI have finally, after many, many empty threats, permanently deleted my Facebook account. I’d been talking of it for years. A few years ago I almost deleted my account on account of how it mad… 020
James MacLaren @maclaren.bsky.social · 15/08/2025Oh, great. The future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades…nytimes.comThey’re Stuffed Animals. They’re Also A.I. Chatbots. 010
Reposted by James MacLarenSalomé Viljoen @salome.bsky.social · 11/08/2025Just as AI critics need to acknowledge when AI works, AI boosters need to own the fact that much of AI's value prop is stuff like this. AI is profitable when it serves as an accelerant for exploitation and enshittification, and that's obv relevant to evaluating the net social merit of AI 1349