So, my friend Sean McArdle made a record called Northern Charms. It's elegant and earnest. Needless to say, it is a success.
Earlier today, I came across some mindless drivel produced by a "music critic" over at Muzik Reviews. Read it here.
Of course, I couldn't resist snarking back. My response is below:
Dear Mr. Hannaleck,
I came across Christen LaFond's review of Northern Charms on your website. I normally respect the opinions of critics, even if I don't necessarily agree with them. However, LaFond's remarks displayed such thoughtlessness and egregious flaws in logic that I can't help but comment.
Judging by the opening sentence, LaFond clearly read up on the artist. One would assume she understands that Sean McArdle, being a self-described "punk recluse waxing melancholy", is a man who has experienced loss, heartbreak and disappointment and whose worldview has been shaped by those things. Fittingly, Northern Charms is a record that explores such existential anguish and each song expresses it in an exquisitely simple way. For her to say that there is no creativity in simplicity shows her undeniable ignorance regarding the difficulty in unambiguously expressing complex emotions. In her trite analysis of "Joy", LaFond fails to see that the song is indeed about joy. Not the possession of joy, but the loss one feels seeing it slip away. The honey was snatched from the bee. That's the point.
Throughout the review, LaFond seems to be wishing that Sean McArdle was an entirely different musician. The job of a reviewer is to possess an understanding of the point of view of the artist, then form a critique based on the artist's success or failure in expressing that particular view. LaFond's review is unabashedly colored by her personal musical preferences for "blissful and energetic" tunes. She does not possess the critical distance required to produce a serious and worthwhile commentary.
Asking someone like Sean McArdle to write songs about "sunshine and lollipops" would undeniably result in a record deserving of a dismal 1.5 star review. It would be like asking Ernest Hemingway to write like Dan Brown. Or asking Gloria Steinem to see the world through the eyes of Carrie Bradshaw. Better yet, it would be like asking Christen LaFond to write a thoughtfully considered critique.
Sincerely yours,
Alexandra Gibson
Earlier today, I came across some mindless drivel produced by a "music critic" over at Muzik Reviews. Read it here.
Of course, I couldn't resist snarking back. My response is below:
Dear Mr. Hannaleck,
I came across Christen LaFond's review of Northern Charms on your website. I normally respect the opinions of critics, even if I don't necessarily agree with them. However, LaFond's remarks displayed such thoughtlessness and egregious flaws in logic that I can't help but comment.
Judging by the opening sentence, LaFond clearly read up on the artist. One would assume she understands that Sean McArdle, being a self-described "punk recluse waxing melancholy", is a man who has experienced loss, heartbreak and disappointment and whose worldview has been shaped by those things. Fittingly, Northern Charms is a record that explores such existential anguish and each song expresses it in an exquisitely simple way. For her to say that there is no creativity in simplicity shows her undeniable ignorance regarding the difficulty in unambiguously expressing complex emotions. In her trite analysis of "Joy", LaFond fails to see that the song is indeed about joy. Not the possession of joy, but the loss one feels seeing it slip away. The honey was snatched from the bee. That's the point.
Throughout the review, LaFond seems to be wishing that Sean McArdle was an entirely different musician. The job of a reviewer is to possess an understanding of the point of view of the artist, then form a critique based on the artist's success or failure in expressing that particular view. LaFond's review is unabashedly colored by her personal musical preferences for "blissful and energetic" tunes. She does not possess the critical distance required to produce a serious and worthwhile commentary.
Asking someone like Sean McArdle to write songs about "sunshine and lollipops" would undeniably result in a record deserving of a dismal 1.5 star review. It would be like asking Ernest Hemingway to write like Dan Brown. Or asking Gloria Steinem to see the world through the eyes of Carrie Bradshaw. Better yet, it would be like asking Christen LaFond to write a thoughtfully considered critique.
Sincerely yours,
Alexandra Gibson
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