Steve Albini Way

November 27, 2024 6:34 AM

In honor of the street outside Steve Albini's Chicago recording studio being named Steve Albini Way, Jeff Tweedy, Fred Armisen, and the Mekons’ Jon Langford and Sally Timms performed as the Belmont Adjacents, also known as the Electrical Adjacents. More about the event from Rolling Stone here, and watch the unveiling here.
posted by carrienation (8 comments total)

This was pretty beautiful.
posted by From Bklyn at 7:07 AM on November 27

I grew up in New Jersey, obsessed with punk rock and all things English, and the Mekons were one of my favorite bands. Now I live in Chicago and I run into Jon and Sally sometimes, just sitting at the bar. It's really hard for me not to start gushing when I see them!! But I play it cool.
posted by crazy_yeti at 5:02 PM on November 27 [2 favorites]

Thank you carrienation! This is a nice pairing with my AskMefi today (seeking a CD boombox) because the CD collection I got most certainly has some Albini stuff in it.
posted by intermod at 7:11 PM on November 27

It continues to bewilder, disgust, and enrage me that the media, and music lovers in general, ignore Albini's love of, and promotion of, CSAM. Like it's a forgivable quirk. I love Nirvana too, but like, what the FUCK.
posted by Stoof at 6:43 AM on November 28

I ❤ Mekons.
posted by elmono at 10:49 AM on November 28

Nothing to ignore - I didn't/don't know anything about Albini's love and promotion of CSAM. Admittedly I don't really know anything about him, really, beyond the most superficial: he was an asshole, he publicly apologised for being an asshole, he had a very reasonable, straightforward way of doing business. Why wasn't he ever brought up on charges? (An old, old acquaintance, a pastor in the end, was convicted for CSAM (! a surprise/ not much of a surprise - ugh - his computer was 'loaded' with it: the FBI heard about it/him, investigated- this has informed my understanding of the whole legal side of the issue.) Googling, there was a cite from a zine/essay from the 80's, (which was horrific) is there more/other instances? (I'm not reading anymore ) (one defence proffered that I read was that he was saying shit, trying to shock: from experiences with 80's punk rock, yeah, that tracks - but... well, after that I don't want to know that much about this. He's dead now. )
posted by From Bklyn at 4:22 AM on November 29 [1 favorite]

That's a lot of words to excuse the continued lionizing of a man who consumed and promoted CSAM.
posted by Stoof at 2:56 PM on November 29

No, I am not and will not lionize the guy. Where there’s smoke there’s fire/ the truth will out.
posted by From Bklyn at 10:22 PM on November 29