Liner Notes (November 2nd, 2018)

Jason Tate Nov 2, 2018

November is here. Leaves are now covering the ground and the switch from spooky movies to holiday cheer can begin. I’m already getting excited about Thanksgiving and itching to decorate the place for Christmas. I want to take a quick moment to encourage everyone reading this to make a plan to vote, vote early if you are able, and get your friends involved as well. The mid-term elections are extremely important.

This week’s roundup has me ranking Yellowcard albums (it was time), talking about the new iPads announced this week, and going through my usual weekly media diet. Some good movies were watched, some great music was heard. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Liner Notes (October 26th, 2018)

Jason Tate Oct 26, 2018

It finally got cold enough to where I had to turn on the fireplace — only to find out that the pilot light wouldn’t ignite. Which, of course, meant I had to wait to have it fixed. After a few days of being sad, it has been fixed, and I’ve turned it on for the first time this season. It’s gloriously warm and the cats are cuddled up next to it like it’s the only thing in this world that matters. They may just be right.

This week’s roundup finds me ranking Anberlin albums and going through my usual media diet. There’s also a playlist of music I loved this week and some way-too-early talk about holiday decorations. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Liner Notes (October 19th, 2018)

Jason Tate Oct 19, 2018

I blame Federico Viticci over at MacStories for going on a deep dive of playing around with Siri Shortcuts all week. Once I start down the path of automating things or organizing my phone, I always end up going overboard. Still, it was a fun way to spend a few nights.

In this week’s roundup, I look at a few new apps I’ve been using and explore the Siri Shortcut stuff I’ve been playing around with. I also share my first thoughts on the upcoming album from Saves the Day, go through my usual media diet from the past week, and share ten songs I loved this week. There’s been lots of Halloween and fall-themed entertainment in our household recently. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Liner Notes (October 12th, 2018)

Jason Tate Oct 12, 2018

Bring on the weekend! We’re moving into “pumpkin-spice-everything” territory, and I’m getting excited to start watching some of my favorite Halloween movies, breaking out the festive beers, and making all kinds of warm foods in the ‘ol Crock Pot.

This week I rank albums from Andrew McMahon, give the first impression on the new Laura Jane Grace album, share a playlist of ten songs I loved this week, share what I’ve been working on behind-the-scenes, and go through my weekly media diet. Some outstanding albums out this week you shouldn’t sleep on. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

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Liner Notes (October 5th, 2018)

Jason Tate Oct 5, 2018

Well, this week has been a real piece of work. All this stuff in the news is overwhelmingly depressing on a level that’s hard to find the words to describe. The impact the 2016 election will have on our country’s courts will be felt for a good portion of my life. Next time someone tries to tell you voting doesn’t matter, smack them upside the head. It’s been a trying week. I just feel overwhelmingly tired.

Along with this week’s media diet I include some thoughts on the “dynamic desktop” feature of macOS, baseball, and a playlist of ten songs that got me through the week. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Liner Notes (September 28th, 2018)

Jason Tate Sep 28, 2018

After having done these roundups for almost three months now, I’ve finally decided to make them a little more official. What started as me just putting together some bullet points each week about new music being released has turned into a much lengthier and more thought out endeavor. I use them to talk about things I found interesting throughout the week, music I listened to, movies and TV shows I watched, a playlist of songs I enjoyed, and other observations. They’ve become a fun way to recap the week and hit my personal goal of trying to write more this year.

With that, I’ve decided to give them their own name and tag. We did a brainstorming session in the supporter Q&A thread, and after a bunch of suggestions, I landed on “Liner Notes.” So, for now, that’s what I’m going with. I’ve updated the past entries with this tag as well.

Usually these roundups are exclusive to supporters; however, I’ve decided to make this week’s free for everyone to give an example of what these end up looking like. This week ranks Jimmy Eat World albums, looks at the new macOS’s “Dark Mode,” and has my usual media diet roundup for the past week. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Friday Thoughts (September 21st, 2018)

Jason Tate Sep 21, 2018

Another week is in the books. The weather continues to get colder out here on the west coast, but it’s once again reminded me just how much I love this time of the year. Everything feels refreshing and beautiful.

This week’s roundup has my ranking of Blink-182’s discography, some first thoughts on the new EP from William Ryan Key, my usual weekly media diet of music, movies, and TV shows, and a playlist of ten songs I loved this week. The Q&A post can be found here for supporters.

Friday Thoughts (September 14th, 2018)

Jason Tate Sep 14, 2018

I woke up this morning cold. It looks like summer is over. I’m ready for it. Give me some long sleeves, hot drinks, and all the Portland rain. I’m also looking forward to my musical habits moving away from the pop and toward the some more subdued tunes. Reflecting back on the past few months, however, it was a damn good summer of music. And this week brought with it quite a few albums I know I’ll be spinning for the next few months.

This week’s update contains: More thoughts on the new Thrice album (including, oh boy, my current album ranking), some thoughts on the new albums from Good Charlotte and The Living End, my weekly media diet roundup, and a playlist of ten songs I loved this week. The supporter Q&A post can be found here.

Friday Thoughts (September 7th, 2018)

Jason Tate Sep 7, 2018

I should probably figure out a better name for these weekly roundup posts now that I’ve been doing them consistently and they’re getting longer. What started as me just tossing out a few sentences about new releases each week has grown to be pretty hefty. If anyone has a better name than “Friday Thoughts” please let me know.

This week looks has my first thoughts on the new album from Direct Hit, some thoughts on Sum 41’s catalog, a few recommendations for organization and everyday carry, and the regular media diet rundown from my past week. The Q&A post can be found here for supporters.

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Friday Thoughts (August 31st, 2018)

Jason Tate Aug 31, 2018

I thought the new format for these “Friday Thoughts” worked really well last week, so I’m going to use it again this week. They’ve slowly been becoming longer and more fleshed out. Not quite a weekly newsletter yet, but almost.

This week looks at new music from Alkaline Trio, Pale Waves, Young the Giant, The Night Game, and more.

Friday Thoughts (August 24th, 2018)

Jason Tate Aug 24, 2018

Another Friday is here. I hope everyone has a good week as we move toward the end of summer. I’m not ready for it to end. I’m ready for it to be less hot though. The temperature finally dropped here the past week. That coordinated nicely with the smoke coming in from all the fires. Been pretty gross air-quality-wise lately. I’ll take a few days in the 70s for a while. I’m looking forward to fall. Fall’s my favorite season. I love the weather, the crisp feeling in the air, and I like wearing fall clothes. I feel too hot all the time in summer. I like being able to put on long sleeves, and jeans, and wear shoes. Bring on the sweaters I say.

I’m going to try something a little different today and attempt to organize this round-up a little more.

Friday Thoughts (August 17th, 2018)

Jason Tate Aug 17, 2018

This week seemed to go by very fast. I feel like I was just typing one of these up and now I’m back again.

Friday Thoughts (August 10th, 2018)

Jason Tate Aug 10, 2018

I hope everyone had a good week. I spent most of my week working on this stupid posting bug where the posting box goes behind the keyboard, but everything I’ve done to fix it ends up causing a headache in a different and new way. It’s driving me fucking insane. So, I’ve decided to pause that until next Monday and do some other maintenance things today. Take a step back for a bit and see if that helps.

Friday Thoughts (August 3rd, 2018)

Jason Tate Aug 3, 2018

This post is made weekly in the supporter only Q&A thread on our forums. I share thoughts about new music out and various other things going on in my life.

This week went by insanely fast. I feel like I was just getting into a groove, and now it’s already Friday. Damn. Bring on the weekend.

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Friday Thoughts (July 27th, 2018)

Jason Tate Jul 27, 2018

This post is made weekly in the supporter only Q&A thread on our forums. I share thoughts about new music out and various other things going on in my life.

Oh Friday! I am so glad you’re here. Been a long week, but a good week all-in-all.