Jason Tate
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Jason Tate
This website is supported in part by readers. Please consider becoming a supporting member. Oh, and I have a weekly newsletter.
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Liner Notes (June 5th, 2020)

street
Jason Tate

Some weeks feel like years. This was one of them. In this week’s newsletter, I look at music and entertainment I enjoyed last week, share a playlist of ten songs I liked, and all the other usual stuff. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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Back to 2005 (Re-Ranking the Best of Lists)

Back to 2005
Jason Tate

Last week I was able to recreate and re-add all of the AbsolutePunk.net end of the year lists into our database from 2005 onward. This hit of nostalgia was paired with me shaking my head at not only the outcome of the staff lists but trying to figure out just what I was thinking on my lists as well. For the next few weeks, I’d like to deconstruct some of these lists and add some of the context and memories I have from this era of the music scene. And this week, I’m starting with what could arguably be one of the most significant years in our little emo-pop-punk world: 2005. 2005 was absolutely stacked with albums that have gone on to be regarded as scene classics. Albums that I still listen to and albums that helped define the music scene for years to come.

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Pride Merch Available for a Limited Time

Chorus.fm Pride Merch
Jason Tate

Like last year, in celebration of Pride Month, I have put the “pride” version of the Chorus.fm merch into our store for the month of June. This year sees the addition of stickers, buttons, and magnets featuring the logo as well. I will be donating all of the proceeds from all merchandise sold in June to various charities at the end of the month.

If you’re curious about materials and sizing: this is a good starter on shirts, and this is good for fit.

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Liner Notes (May 29th, 2020)

Sky
Jason Tate

This week’s newsletter has my early first impressions of Phoebe Bridgers’s new album, Punisher. You’ll also find more thoughts on all of the best of lists that hit the website this week and my plans for their future, and my usual commentary on music and entertainment I enjoyed this week. And, of course, there’s a playlist of ten songs I liked as well. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

Read More “Liner Notes (May 29th, 2020)”

This article is available exclusively to supporting members of our website. Join now for as little as $3 per month and get access to exclusive content and a variety of other great perks (like removing all ads and unlocking a dark mode theme). Plus, you'll be helping an independent publisher. Learn more here.
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Canvas Prints Make Good Wall Decorations

Hayley Williams
Jason Tate

Over the weekend, I shared a photo of one of the walls in our home on Instagram. The photo is of the large wall in our living room area adorned with three large canvas prints of some of my favorite musicians. I first did this when I moved downtown in August of 2012, and I shared some of the photos and process back on AbsolutePunk.net and my old Tumblr (remember Tumblr?). After all of the questions and comments on the social media posts, I realized I didn’t have a good article to link people to that answered the basics any longer. Plus, phone cameras have come a long way since 2012.

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Liner Notes (May 22nd, 2020)

More Love Less Fear
Jason Tate

It’s a 1975 album release day, so let’s talk about that. In this week’s newsletter, you’ll find my thoughts on their new album and some random thoughts on other music and entertainment I consumed this week. There’s also a playlist of ten songs I loved this week, and this week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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Building Chorus.fm 3.0 – The Design Process

design
Jason Tate

It’s been a little over a week since I launched the new version of Chorus.fm and I’ve been pretty blown away by the positive response. I think it may be the best reaction to a redesign of any website I’ve ever built. For fun, I pulled out a bunch of the initial sketches I made during the process, as well as some of the various other designs I played around with before actually building the website. I thought some might find the entire process interesting.

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Liner Notes (May 15th, 2020)

Liner Notes
Jason Tate

I’m writing this week’s newsletter on not much sleep, but that doesn’t mean I’m short on opinions. In this week’s issue you’ll find thoughts on music and entertainment I enjoyed this week and a playlist of ten songs I loved. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

Read More “Liner Notes (May 15th, 2020)”

This article is available exclusively to supporting members of our website. Join now for as little as $3 per month and get access to exclusive content and a variety of other great perks (like removing all ads and unlocking a dark mode theme). Plus, you'll be helping an independent publisher. Learn more here.
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Introducing Chorus 3.0

Chorus White Logo
Jason Tate

I started designing the new version of Chorus.fm before the COVID-19 shit hit the fan. My initial sketches were in the middle of last year, and I began playing around with things in Sketch not long after that. My first commit, for the version I’m calling 3.0 of the website, was on February 19th, 2020. However, it was this last month or so of quarantine where the vast majority of the work got done. With not a whole lot else to do beside buckle down and attempt to turn anxiety about the world into productivity, I put together the new website you’re looking at now.

April of this year was the fourth anniversary of this website, and I’ve been itching to take another run at the design and feel of the website for a while. When I first launched the site, it was my first real foray into the world of WordPress, and it was done on a very tight timeline as I knew I needed to make the transition from AbsolutePunk.net by a specific date. I’ve always been happy with what I put together, but I also knew it was never quite right. This new version of the site is virtually everything I’ve always wanted my website to be and was written from the ground up to fulfill my vision of what a music website or blog should be. My design goals were to keep a similar aesthetic to the current website so that things felt familiar while also focusing on new features, simplicity of use, and an obsession with speed and a great mobile experience. I’m proud of what I came up with, and I’d like to highlight a few of the changes.

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Liner Notes (May 8th, 2020)

Pizza
Jason Tate

This week’s newsletter revisits Fall Out Boy’s discography after realizing it’s been fifteen years since the release of From Under the Cork Tree. I also share some things I enjoyed around the internet this week, as well as my thoughts on music and various entertainment I consumed. And, as always, there’s a playlist of ten songs I loved and your usual sarcasm and snark mixed within. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

Read More “Liner Notes (May 8th, 2020)”

This article is available exclusively to supporting members of our website. Join now for as little as $3 per month and get access to exclusive content and a variety of other great perks (like removing all ads and unlocking a dark mode theme). Plus, you'll be helping an independent publisher. Learn more here.

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Liner Notes (May 1st, 2020)

Flower
Jason Tate

In this week’s newsletter I offer my first thoughts on Hayley Williams’s debut solo album, share some articles around the internet and two-person board games I liked, and then go through my usual music and entertainment rundown of the past week. There’s also a playlist of ten songs I loved this week and some unfunny jokes. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

Read More “Liner Notes (May 1st, 2020)”

This article is available exclusively to supporting members of our website. Join now for as little as $3 per month and get access to exclusive content and a variety of other great perks (like removing all ads and unlocking a dark mode theme). Plus, you'll be helping an independent publisher. Learn more here.

(Current members can log in here.)

Liner Notes (April 24th, 2020)

Beach Night
Jason Tate

I’m here writing another newsletter, so I guess it’s Friday again. This week I look at the music I enjoyed throughout the week, including a nostalgic remembrance of Home Grown and a re-listen to Yellowcard’s discography. I also go through my usual media diet rundown, and there’s a playlist of ten songs worth your time. Also, I’ve started answering some questions via the newsletter, so if you have any of those you’d like me to tackle, let me know. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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Liner Notes (April 17th, 2020)

Jason Tate

Friday already, huh? This week’s newsletter has thoughts on new music, my favorite things I saw online this week, and a rundown of my quarantine media diet. There’s also a playlist of ten songs I liked this week, and this week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here. I hope everyone is staying safe out there.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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Liner Notes (April 10th, 2020)

Jason Tate

This week’s newsletter looks at the aftermath of last week’s bracket and plays another viral game that will probably get someone mad at me. Then I share some articles I found interesting last week, as well as thoughts on music and various entertainment. And, of course, there’s a playlist of ten songs I liked last week. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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Liner Notes (April 3rd, 2020)

light bulbs
Jason Tate

This week I fill out my Early 2000s Emo/Pop-Punk Bands bracket and go through all the matchups and my picks. I discuss the upsets, the never had a chances, and why I went with a slightly different champion than you might expect based upon the bands involved. I also share some articles I enjoyed this week, go through music and entertainment I consumed, and share a playlist of ten songs I liked. This week’s supporter Q&A post can be found here.

If you’d like this newsletter delivered to your inbox each week (it’s free and available to everyone), you can sign up here.

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