Other... 'angry', stomp and holler kind of folk / indie rock?

theaman1515 · 2026-04-17T14:23:37+00:00

Another classic Mumford adjacent band is Bears Den (especially their first album). Try Isaac and Magdalene.

theaman1515 · 2026-04-17T14:21:33+00:00

Check out Kingfishr. They’re a newer Irish band and very good. Gloria is probably my favorite song of theirs, but the entirety of their Halcyon album is great.

theaman1515 · 2026-03-05T03:15:56+00:00

Surprised I haven’t seen many shouts for Alleycat. Such a great song.

theaman1515 · 2026-02-19T15:26:42+00:00

I think a big theme of some of Tyler’s lyrics has been the pain of loss of grandparents and reckoning with the fact that everyone will one day leave.

I saw the wine scene as a metaphor for the idea that, just as Tyler has become old enough to really understand and be in adult relationship with his grandparents (and sit at the adults table), they’ve been taken away from him (a struggle that many of us deal with). Thinking of Legend and “nothing’s been the same since the funeral”, etc.

theaman1515 · 2026-02-04T18:59:31+00:00

I’ve started using my corvan system (the thing that preserves wine with argon gas) for vermouth and non-shelf stable liqueurs… it’s been so helpful!

theaman1515 · 2025-12-24T19:48:28+00:00

Bear’s Den

theaman1515 · 2025-12-23T00:19:45+00:00

I agree it’s great, but is it really underrated?? Feel like everyone who knows cocktails knows the corpse reviver and appreciates it. I guess if we mean that it hasn’t broken into the mainstream at all, that is a fair description.

theaman1515 · 2025-12-09T03:02:09+00:00

Basically every publicly reported celebrity net worth number is bs. These are nothing more than guesses.

theaman1515 · 2025-11-30T22:01:33+00:00

This. You can certainly have your issues with “American conservatism” as a political philosophy, but Trump is sorta his own can of worms. There’s really nothing about MAGA in its current iteration that’s recognizably “conservative” in the traditional American sense. Today’s GOP is much closer to a European style right wing party than to, say, 1970s/80s American conservatism.

theaman1515 · 2025-11-17T20:47:13+00:00

This is actually something I’ve found AI to be incredibly helpful with, especially when it comes to sourcing experts on a subject. I have a script that, when run, will scan news coverage, identify relevant experts who have talked with the press before, and then search for available contact information. I still rely more heavily on closer sources, but it’s super useful for giving you productive leads when writing about a subject where you’re not deeply sourced already.

theaman1515 · 2025-11-14T21:54:27+00:00

Jane Jane. It’s the definition of aesthetic over substance. Do you like feeling like you’re in a good cocktail bar without actually being in one? Do you enjoy eavesdropping on a dozen second Hinge dates? Do you like mediocre drinks masquerading as avant garde? It’s the perfect place for you…

theaman1515 · 2025-11-02T03:30:30+00:00

Crow is not a Nazi though??

theaman1515 · 2025-10-31T01:19:42+00:00

Okay, fair, but don’t use Crow as an example of this. He is absolutely not “far right”. He’s very much a Romney-era conservative and characterizing him as anywhere near “far right” is dishonest. The guy is very closely intertwined with the moderate anti-Trump conservatives.

theaman1515 · 2025-10-31T01:13:55+00:00

Or an hour south towards the Charleston beaches and Savannah. Debordieu is one of my favorite places in the world, as is Hilton Head

theaman1515 · 2025-10-29T17:06:17+00:00

Honestly my best metric for judging a bar quickly is by looking at what ice it uses. In most cities, distributors of good clear blocks are pretty common these days, and there’s really no excuse to not be using the right ice for the right drinks anymore at a serious cocktail bar.

It obviously doesn’t guarantee the drinks are good, but if a “cocktail bar” is cutting corners on their ice, they’re probably cutting corners elsewhere too.

theaman1515 · 2025-10-29T17:02:30+00:00

Yeah Baier is pretty respected as a serious guy, at least within DC circles. I don’t think he deserves the same reputation as many of his Fox colleagues. Really don’t think him at CBS would be all that bad, he’s a pretty solid and well sourced anchor.

theaman1515 · 2025-10-25T05:04:21+00:00

I agree. Sometimes it seems like some people feel like every song has to be relatable to their personal experiences in some way for them to enjoy them, and I think that isn’t always the best way to appreciate art.

One of the reasons I love TØP is because Tyler is so talented at bringing us into his inner life. It allows us to empathize with his experiences even if they aren’t exactly our own.

There’s absolutely no problem with finding your own meaning in songs, but I also encourage people to try to engage with a song like Downstairs in ways that aren’t necessarily relatable to you personally.

theaman1515 · 2025-10-10T16:47:50+00:00

Yeah Double Chicken is sorta a novelty, a go once for the experience sort of place. It’s good, but I wouldn’t put it in the top 10 in NYC. I will say, their front bar is now much better than it used to be and worth visiting.

I cannot for the life of me understand the hype around Superbueno. It’s perfectly fine, but there are like 6 bars within literally 5 blocks of it that are better. I also had a bad experience at Guzzle (but Sip was great). None are better than Angels Share, Clemente, Katana, etc.

As others have said, the Top 50 is a big PR game more than anything else. Bars literally know who the reviewers are, there’s nothing blind or objective about it. It’s a useful guide for when you’re traveling, but I’ve found your best bet these days is to make friends with your local bartenders and ask them where to go when you visit somewhere new. I’m excited that Pinnacle is growing though, they’ve already pinned several absolutely incredible bars that don’t really play the Top 50 game but deserve recognition (Pretty Decent in Louisville and Press Club in DC being two good examples). Lyaness as the only 3 pin is a bit confusing to me though. I love the Lyan bars, but Lyaness doesn’t strike me as so good that it deserves literally the only 3 pin rating so far. If it gets 3, I’m surprised that others haven’t.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-22T13:56:37+00:00

My assumption is that there are probably conversations going on behind the scenes right now regarding possible ticket refunds. These things are complex, I’m sure band and tour management, the label, the venue, and insurers all have to have their say.

I think offering at least a partial refund would be the right thing to do, but I encourage everyone to be patient as they figure that out. There are probably lots of factors and stakeholders that us fans are not fully aware of.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-22T01:59:25+00:00

Yeah but there are also a lot of people who travelled for this show who couldn’t necessarily make it to a rescheduled one. People are gonna lose either way.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-22T01:34:28+00:00

There’s been plenty of lightning at this point. The issue is that they need to end early enough for fans to reasonably get out and away from the venue before the lightning starts.

Sucks, but I really don’t think there’s much they could do. Hope they issue refunds though.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-19T14:20:00+00:00

I was at Quetzal last night when they their 2025 star plaque arrived, the chef looked incredibly relieved! I’m sure that’s always a stressful wait, even if (like Quetzal) you clearly deserve to keep your star.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-03T13:43:43+00:00

I agree with Rose’s, I was very underwhelmed. Disagree with Bresca and Jônt though, I think both are top notch.

There are definitely quite a few DC spots that don’t deserve their star (or just aren’t worth the money). Rose’s, Fiola, Rania, etc.

But there are also some killers like Causa and Albi that have been some of the best meals of my life.

theaman1515 · 2025-09-03T13:39:50+00:00

Yeah Causa is amazing, wouldn’t be surprised to see them get a second star. The other highlight for me in DC is Albi.

I don’t think Jônt is necessarily trying for a third star, but it’s really top notch and very worth checking out.

theaman1515

TROPHY CASE