Rumble 5.2

It's been a while since I posted a rumble post, but do not worry -- I have indeed been reading! And you, too, should have been reading! Right-o ... I've got a few things here!
Who doesn't like Nic Harcourt (the "Morning Becomes Eclectic" DJ)? He just published a book, Music Lust (read a Tiny Mix Tapes review), and it looks pretty good! The book is a comprehensive guide to the modern world of music, featuring 80s various lists, many essays, and plenty of pictures to boot! I would like to read this guy!
I have not yet finished reading this excellently written paper, but I plan on it ... Everything Went Pop! (.pdf file), written by a University of Lund student. I am enjoying reading this essay because it is a truly comprehensive history of the C-86 phenomena ... so, next time you all talk or write about C-86, you'll really know what it means!
We have all been told, at some point in our life, that classical music really does matter. I guess I always agreed ... having taken 11 years of classical piano lessons, I have grown to appreciate classical composers because of the foundations that they created. But, in our present, self-prescribed "post-modern" society, us listeners are having a harder time grasping the importance of a style of music that has long since passed away. We're interested in the stuff that represents our time, our emotions, our ideals and ideas, our society. So -- this PopMatters essay, VARIATIONS ON A THEME: A Historicist Manifesto: Why Classical Matters was very meaningful and worthwhile for me to read ... it asks all of the questions I used to ask, and answers them in a fair and just way ... definitely worth a read!