I had somehow managed to avoid hearing Big & Rich before this morning, when I read the NYLPM Mafia losing their shit over "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)". I've since spent the better part of the day dredging the internet for their stuff. Holy shit, dudes, Big & Rich totally own! I am so buying that album on the way home from work today.
 
Artscape, the City of Baltimore's annual big, sloppy free summer kiss to its population, was this weekend, and it was way awesomer than usual, mostly because the temperature remained under 90 for the better part of the weekend and most of the nostalgia acts actually existed as artistic entities during my lifetime. De La Soul's greatest-hits set was sort of disappointing - those dudes don't exactly crackle with charisma onstage. They brought out Busy Bee, who looked sort of ridiculous in wraparound sunglasses and dreads and bounced after doing absolutely nothing for two seconds. Dudes, if you're going to bring out my favorite old-school rapper, like, ever, please let him rap! Thank you! The Violent Femmes may be the second-whitest band in the world ever (after They Might Be Giants), but their greatest-hits set was totally generous, inclusive, and enjoyable. "American Music" is my jam! And most of the frat boys didn't even storm off in a huff when they did a song dissing Bush! Yeah Artscape!