Nostr notes by Chris Trottier

My custom-designed label on a Sony HF Type I C60 audiocassette. I ...

2026-10-30T21:50:05Z

My custom-designed label on a Sony HF Type I C60 audiocassette.

I mostly like this.

This is a high quality Type I cassette. It sounds great. And it deserves a better label than the strips this blank shipped with.

I could quibble over the fact that “HF” branding can be seen. However, this is better Type I than most blanks manufactured today—so I can live with that.

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic. Please confirm if ...

2026-10-30T20:44:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…htac
_________________________

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic. Please confirm if you are or not.

Hysteria is probably the wrong term because it's needlessly ...

2026-10-30T20:42:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…050j
_________________________

Hysteria is probably the wrong term because it's needlessly gendered.

"Panic" and "paranoia" are probably better terms because what we often have here are accusations based on no evidence.

What we *don't* have is consideration that a human might *possibly* be at the other end of the screen.

THE STOCK MARKET IS WILD! Today, NASDAQ 100, S&P 500, and Dow ...

2026-10-30T20:26:52Z

THE STOCK MARKET IS WILD!

Today, NASDAQ 100, S&P 500, and Dow Jones all dipped below their 125 day moving averages. Here's a comparison:

**NASDAQ 100**
- Oct. 30 level: 28,226.68
- 125-day SMA: 29,531.91
- Difference: **−4.42%**

**S&P 500**
- Oct. 30 level: 7,548.73
- 125-day SMA: 7,579.71
- Difference: **−0.41%**

**Dow Jones**
- Oct. 30 level: 51,663.48
- 125-day SMA: 51,927.23
- Difference: **−0.51%**

There's not much of a difference between S&P 500 and Dow Jones. But the NASDAQ? -4.42% difference is *huge*!

And this just shows how today's sell-off has drastically affected the tech sector.

This *doesn't* measure whether we're entering a recession or that a crash is inevitable or that stocks are overvalued---or even about the actual health of companies.

But it does tell you that the medium-term upward trend has vastly weakened. And this is particularly true for Big Tech.

I've put my text through even more AI detectors. Quillbot ...

2026-10-30T20:04:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…ajys
_________________________

I've put my text through even more AI detectors.

Quillbot says 0% of text is likely AI.

Scribbr says 0% of text is likely AI.

ZeroGPT says 5.2% of text is likely AI.

If someone were actively witch-hunting for AI, maybe this post ...

2026-10-30T18:28:07Z

If someone *were* actively witch-hunting for AI, maybe this post *could* sound like it was generated by an LLM.

However, this whole post is meant to be analysis of the stock market.

It is therefore going to sound machine-like to anyone with no interest in financial markets because I'm explicitly *not* spontaneous, informal, or emotionally intuitive.

My purpose is to use *math* and *historical precedence* to explain a hypothesis.

quoting
note14lu…07mt

With rapt attention, I'm watching the stock market today!

Because, so far, the NASDAQ 100 ($QQQ) has declined 3.20%—and keeps falling!

But it's not a stock market drop that fascinates me because, all things considered, the NASDAQ 100 is still up 11.29% YoY.

No—what interests me is that forward P/E is now **20.0×* and falling!

Translation: investors are now paying approximately $20 for every $1 of earnings companies are expected to generate over the next 12 months for the world's *largest* tech companies!

In other words, buying tech companies is getting cheaper and cheaper. Investors are paying *less* relative to the earnings growth they're *expecting*.

"But Chris, isn't that what you should expect in a speculative bubble?"

Nope! Typically in a speculative bubble, if there are earnings, the forward P/E is *much* higher—sometimes at a forward P/E of 20.0×. That is, *if* they have any earnings at all!

However, now we're in a moment where speculation is out the window. There's no debate that these tech companies can deliver earnings. The bigger question is whether capital expenditure required to support can generate sufficient profits.

And it's the word "sufficient" that's doing the heavy lifting here because "sufficient" isn't an objective measurement. It is entirely about sentiment. Because how much profit is sufficient *enough*?

What we're seeing now is that *growth* companies are now being viewed as *value* companies. Historically, investors attracted to *value* target companies with a P/E ratio of 5-20×. That's considered the sweet spot.

Which means that investors are now being offered *two* things at once: relatively inexpensive valuations associated with value stocks *as well as* substantial earnings-growth expectations associated with growth stocks.

**We can see this with today's current PEG of 0.89.**

PEG ratio compares a company's price-to-earnings multiple with its expected earnings-growth rate.

A PEG of 1.0 means the numerical P/E multiple equals the expected annual earnings-growth percentage. A PEG below 1.0 means investors are paying a comparatively low earnings multiple relative to projected growth.

For the NASDAQ-100, today's figures illustrate this:
- Trailing P/E: 26.77×
- Projected annual earnings growth: 29.98%
- PEG: 26.77 ÷ 29.98 = 0.89

This means investors are paying approximately 26.77 times current annual earnings for companies collectively expected to grow earnings at nearly 30% annually.

Put another way, a traditional value stock might trade at 10× earnings but only grow earnings by 5% annually, producing a PEG of 2.0. The NASDAQ-100, by comparison, has a PEG below 1.0 because its anticipated earnings growth is unusually high relative to its current earnings multiple.

"But how likely is expected earnings growth to be wrong?"

Well, since we're talking about *expectations*, there's no certainty. It is entirely possible to overestimate long-term earnings growth.

However, the NASDAQ-100's *recent* actual earnings performance has been exceptionally strong. In Q1 2026, NASDAQ-100 earnings per share grew 45.6% year-over-year.

And as of October 23, 2026, 95% of the 20 NASDAQ-100 companies reporting had beaten earnings expectations.

Of course, one has to take recency bias into account too.

So out of an abundance of caution, let's assume that the forward P/E ratio of the NASDAQ 100 should be 5× instead of 20×. This would be unprecedented, but let's consider it anyway.

In that scenario, the NASDAQ would lose 75% of its current valuation. That would be terrible—but not catastrophic because a fall in share price does *not* equate to a fall in earnings.

But a P/E ratio of 5× has *never* happened. Not once, even in our worst financial crises. Consider the historical record of the NASDAQ 100:

* 2002 dot-com aftermath (September) – 11.9×
* 2008 financial crisis (December) – 13.3×
* August 2011 historical low – 11.23×

Today's forward P/E is actually *lower* than the bear market of December 22, which was 20.1×.

This is why today's sell-off fascinates me. The market is behaving as though the NASDAQ-100's growth prospects are deteriorating, yet the actual earnings data tells a very different story.

Could earnings expectations prove wrong? Absolutely. Could prices fall further? Of course.

But the more the market falls without a corresponding deterioration in earnings, the stronger the investment case becomes.

There was no LLM usage. In fact, I've given you evidence ...

2026-10-30T18:07:52Z

In reply to nevent1q…wrrn
_________________________

There was no LLM usage. In fact, I've given you evidence there was no LLM usage. You have *not* countered with evidence that there was LLM usage.

This is poor behaviour, and you should be named and shamed for it.

But are you actually sorry?

2026-10-30T17:59:24Z

In reply to nevent1q…4ywn
_________________________

But are you actually sorry?

"Chris, how are anti-AI witch hunts a form of neurotypical ...

2026-10-30T17:58:45Z

"Chris, how are anti-AI witch hunts a form of neurotypical supremacy?"

Well, here's one in a reply to one of my posts.

occult (npub1c60…3dm4) decides I sound AI. He has no evidence, just a general feeling it's AI. I simply *just* don't conform to how he thinks a human should sound.

Now it's usually on accusers to offer the burden of proof. He obviously has none.

I ran my text through Grammarly's AI detector. 87% showed no AI text patterns.

When confronted with evidence that I'm human, what does he do? Doubles down.

And that, my friends, is an example of neurotypical supremacy.

Because he's clearly treating *his* expectations of neurotypical communication as the standard for what constitutes human communication.

For if, even when challenged, this guys insists *his* subjective impression is *more* authoritative than evidence I offer, and counters with no evidence of his own—that's treating his *own* prejudices as more credible than anything I can plausibly say in my defence.

quoting
note14r9…60tf

Or how about you actually check if someone is using AI.

Because you certainly didn't check if an LLM was used. You went by a bias towards a neurotypical writing style based on how you think a "human" should talk.

But I just did the verification for you, and here's the results.

And you know what these results mean? You're an asshole.

You don't know what's AI or not because you fail to ...

2026-10-30T17:48:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…uz5z
_________________________

You don't *know* what's AI or not because you fail to identify it.

And I know this because I spent an hour writing that post by hand, and you still can't tell.

I've run my text through an AI detector, and despite saying "human", you double down.

Not once have you shown evidence that you're any good at detecting AI.

By the way, is this reply AI?

I'll do one better. I'll shame you by putting you on ...

2026-10-30T17:41:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…vxl2
_________________________

I'll do one better. I'll shame you by putting you on blast for neurotypical supremacy.

Or how about you actually check if someone is using AI. Because ...

2026-10-30T17:38:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…vned
_________________________

Or how about you actually check if someone is using AI.

Because you certainly didn't check if an LLM was used. You went by a bias towards a neurotypical writing style based on how you think a "human" should talk.

But I just did the verification for you, and here's the results.

And you know what these results mean? You're an asshole.

You may be right. In fact, I think you are extremely likely to be ...

2026-10-30T17:22:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…x6dg
_________________________

You may be right. In fact, I think you are extremely likely to be right.

Which is why anti-AI folk have their work cut out for them if they want a world without AI.

Because if you want a world without AI, you have to build a world that doesn't require it.

With rapt attention, I'm watching the stock market today! ...

2026-10-30T17:06:32Z

With rapt attention, I'm watching the stock market today!

Because, so far, the NASDAQ 100 ($QQQ) has declined 3.20%—and keeps falling!

But it's not a stock market drop that fascinates me because, all things considered, the NASDAQ 100 is still up 11.29% YoY.

No—what interests me is that forward P/E is now **20.0×* and falling!

Translation: investors are now paying approximately $20 for every $1 of earnings companies are expected to generate over the next 12 months for the world's *largest* tech companies!

In other words, buying tech companies is getting cheaper and cheaper. Investors are paying *less* relative to the earnings growth they're *expecting*.

"But Chris, isn't that what you should expect in a speculative bubble?"

Nope! Typically in a speculative bubble, if there are earnings, the forward P/E is *much* higher—sometimes at a forward P/E of 20.0×. That is, *if* they have any earnings at all!

However, now we're in a moment where speculation is out the window. There's no debate that these tech companies can deliver earnings. The bigger question is whether capital expenditure required to support can generate sufficient profits.

And it's the word "sufficient" that's doing the heavy lifting here because "sufficient" isn't an objective measurement. It is entirely about sentiment. Because how much profit is sufficient *enough*?

What we're seeing now is that *growth* companies are now being viewed as *value* companies. Historically, investors attracted to *value* target companies with a P/E ratio of 5-20×. That's considered the sweet spot.

Which means that investors are now being offered *two* things at once: relatively inexpensive valuations associated with value stocks *as well as* substantial earnings-growth expectations associated with growth stocks.

**We can see this with today's current PEG of 0.89.**

PEG ratio compares a company's price-to-earnings multiple with its expected earnings-growth rate.

A PEG of 1.0 means the numerical P/E multiple equals the expected annual earnings-growth percentage. A PEG below 1.0 means investors are paying a comparatively low earnings multiple relative to projected growth.

For the NASDAQ-100, today's figures illustrate this:
- Trailing P/E: 26.77×
- Projected annual earnings growth: 29.98%
- PEG: 26.77 ÷ 29.98 = 0.89

This means investors are paying approximately 26.77 times current annual earnings for companies collectively expected to grow earnings at nearly 30% annually.

Put another way, a traditional value stock might trade at 10× earnings but only grow earnings by 5% annually, producing a PEG of 2.0. The NASDAQ-100, by comparison, has a PEG below 1.0 because its anticipated earnings growth is unusually high relative to its current earnings multiple.

"But how likely is expected earnings growth to be wrong?"

Well, since we're talking about *expectations*, there's no certainty. It is entirely possible to overestimate long-term earnings growth.

However, the NASDAQ-100's *recent* actual earnings performance has been exceptionally strong. In Q1 2026, NASDAQ-100 earnings per share grew 45.6% year-over-year.

And as of October 23, 2026, 95% of the 20 NASDAQ-100 companies reporting had beaten earnings expectations.

Of course, one has to take recency bias into account too.

So out of an abundance of caution, let's assume that the forward P/E ratio of the NASDAQ 100 should be 5× instead of 20×. This would be unprecedented, but let's consider it anyway.

In that scenario, the NASDAQ would lose 75% of its current valuation. That would be terrible—but not catastrophic because a fall in share price does *not* equate to a fall in earnings.

But a P/E ratio of 5× has *never* happened. Not once, even in our worst financial crises. Consider the historical record of the NASDAQ 100:

* 2002 dot-com aftermath (September) – 11.9×
* 2008 financial crisis (December) – 13.3×
* August 2011 historical low – 11.23×

Today's forward P/E is actually *lower* than the bear market of December 22, which was 20.1×.

This is why today's sell-off fascinates me. The market is behaving as though the NASDAQ-100's growth prospects are deteriorating, yet the actual earnings data tells a very different story.

Could earnings expectations prove wrong? Absolutely. Could prices fall further? Of course.

But the more the market falls without a corresponding deterioration in earnings, the stronger the investment case becomes.

It's entirely possible for people to have an unconscious bias ...

2026-10-30T15:58:08Z

In reply to nevent1q…3dk7
_________________________

It's entirely possible for people to have an unconscious bias against neurodivergence, especially if their gauge for deciding what's "human" depends on neurotypical assumptions about human behaviour. So even if someone says they're not neurotypical supremacist, they may behave otherwise.

Also, it's important that you clarify what you mean by "AI". Do you mean generative AI? Or do you mean assistive technologies like WordQ which offers word prediction?

I accept that “hysteria” has problematic historical ...

2026-10-30T15:06:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…8z98
_________________________

I accept that “hysteria” has problematic historical associations. But the phenomenon I’m describing is a moral panic: an exaggerated reaction to AI that results in innocent people being targeted because of how they communicate.

I’m not suggesting that all criticism of AI is irrational, nor am I suggesting you’re personally responsible for these attacks.

You say you weren’t aware of these attacks until reading my thread. Fair enough. But now that you’re aware of them, shouldn’t we be discussing the harm they’re causing rather than debating my choice of vocabulary?

You can oppose AI without discriminating against autistic people.

When I bring up problems with anti-AI hysteria, many of the ...

2026-10-30T14:54:06Z

When I bring up problems with anti-AI hysteria, many of the comments don’t address the *actual* topic.

It’s almost as though they’re using an automated script.

But I sure wouldn’t want anyone to think they’re not human. 🤔

I don’t know your friends. What I do know is that anti-AI ...

2026-10-30T14:48:57Z

In reply to nevent1q…ghv6
_________________________

I don’t know your friends.

What I do know is that anti-AI hysteria often targets autistic people who are expressing themselves naturally *without* AI.

And it demonizes people who use accessibility tools to better communicate with the world.

All that is terrible. Nevertheless, let me repeat this again: ...

2026-10-30T14:43:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…l9dn
_________________________

All that is terrible. Nevertheless, let me repeat this again: accessibility needs to be so good that AI becomes redundant.

The world should be so accessible that no one feels the need to use AI for basic functions.

What about the people you know? How are they relevant to what ...

2026-10-30T14:31:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…8hu6
_________________________

What about the people you know? How are they relevant to what I’m talking about?

None of what you said contradicts what I wrote. If you want a ...

2026-10-30T14:27:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…05nq
_________________________

None of what you said contradicts what I wrote. If you want a world without AI, you have to improve accessibility so much that AI becomes redundant. So far, most people have been unwilling to do this.

Exactly what point are you making? What does your friends’ ...

2026-10-30T14:22:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…gshd
_________________________

Exactly what point are you making? What does your friends’ preferences have to do with what I wrote?

So how does anti-AI witch hunting hurt the autistic community? ...

2026-10-30T02:37:09Z

So how does anti-AI witch hunting hurt the autistic community?

It's simple: much of the writing characteristics people associate with AI are also found in authentic autistic communication.

Autistic people with lower support needs often use formal language, precise vocabulary, an unusually consistent tone. When people use these characters as "proof" of AI, they risk treating differences in communication as suspicious.

This is just the tip of the iceberg, though. Because for someAutistic people with higher support needs, they don't even have the ability to mask. Thus, they *need* computerized tools to help them communicate. This can often sound machine-like.

There's a further problem.

Sometimes autistic people *do* use AI for accessibility. For example, for arranging their thoughts. Or perceiving tone. Or reducing the cognitive load for executive function.

"But I'm autistic and don't use AI!"—some might say.

I'm glad you don't. However, autism is not uniform. It exists as a *spectrum*. What is easy for some is profoundly difficult for someone else.

Now I'm sure there are some people who believe, "AI is totally evil—so screw any kind of accommodation."

You're entitled to have your opinion on AI. And go ahead, criticize the companies developing it. I'm not arguing that the environmental costs, labour practices, and ethics are not problematic.

But disliking AI *still* doesn't eliminate the accessibility needs of people who benefit from it.

Yet, no matter how much you dislike AI, there's still a *huge* difference between criticizing it and policing how *humans* are permitted to communicate.

Because if your defence of human authenticity requires autistic people to prove they're human, something has gone seriously wrong.

quoting
note1dwd…y47x

Three years ago, I was more amenable to anti-AI sentiment.

But my attitude has changed drastically.

Because what I've generally found is the anti-AI crowd tends to also be the neurotypical supremacist crowd who demands conformity to *their* particular manner of expressing themselves.

Is it worthwhile to put custom labels on a Maxell UR-90? First, ...

2026-10-30T00:50:47Z

Is it worthwhile to put custom labels on a Maxell UR-90?

First, some context. Maxell UR-90 is the best *cheap* blank cassette widely available today. A brick of 5 cassettes currently sells for C$15.87 on Amazon, and it often goes on sale. You can put 90 minutes of music on here, or 45 minutes per side.

So if you want to get into home cassette recording, this is probably the most accessible blank cassette.

And as you can see, it's more than possible to design a J-card and adhesive label on them. The plastic cases are durable. As for the adhesive label, Maxell even has a tiny indent on the shells to help you align things.

That said, the shells very much look like Maxells. They're pretty basic. There's nothing luxe about them.

As whether or not you should customize them with artwork, well... you be the judge!

I designed this cassette's ONLY physical copy ever! ...

2026-10-29T21:45:08Z

I designed this cassette's ONLY physical copy ever!

"Future Memoirs" (2014) is a fantastic hip hop album by Allan Kingdom.

Most people know him for his collaboration with Kanye West on the song "All Day". Which is a fine song. But my favourite release of Allan Kingdom's is this album right here which was recorded when he was 20-years-old.

If you go to this album's Discogs page, you'll notice the only physical release was on CD-R:

https://www.discogs.com/master/1562453-Allan-Kingdom-Future-Memoirs

The last time a copy was sold was in 2019. It's not expensive but it's rare. Though Discogs says a copy is for sale, I can't seem to find it. And being in Canada, I doubt I'll be able to acquire it anyway.

But I don't think a CD-R really fits the aesthetics of this album anyway. Hearing it, I think this is crying out for a cassette. So since there's never been an official cassette release, I decided to make my own.

After recording this album from Apple Music with Dolby S on my Sony TC-WR901ES—it fit perfectly on a C43.5 cassette—I set out to work.

I personally designed the J-card. Then I printed it on card stock with an inkjet. After cutting and folding, I put it in a clear case.

The next step was the labels. I ordered Avery 5198-compatible matte sheets off Amazon. Then I designed the artwork for that too, printed it off my inkjet, peeled it, and carefully placed it on the cassette.

It is so emotional to see my finished work. I get such a charge out of it. And dare I say it, hearing the music is that much more awesome because the entire thing—from recording to J-card to label—was made by *me*.

But of course, this would be nothing if not for Allan Kingdom's superb music.

Today's 12.29% drop in Alphabet ($GOOG) is disproportionate ...

2026-10-29T20:35:41Z

Today's 12.29% drop in Alphabet ($GOOG) is disproportionate to the fundamentals of their business.

Total revenue growth is +24.7%. Operating income growth is +29.9%. Google Cloud growth is exceptional at +102.6%.

Trailing P/E is 14.6×, forward P/E is 20.3×, and PEG is 1.06.

So why the sudden fear? Because Google is spending more on AI infrastructure. This fear would make sense *if* AI infrastructure was just some side quest.

But in actuality, if they *don't* spend money on AI infrastructure---and do so heavily---it's their core business that is threatened because the biggest threat to search is AI.

Google cannot protect its search business simply by preserving its existing margins. AI has already changed how people find information---whether you agree with this change or not. The toothpaste has not exited the tube and will not go back in.

So failing to invest in AI infrastructure would be more damaging for them than spending aggressively on it.

Three years ago, I was more amenable to anti-AI sentiment. But my ...

2026-10-29T20:12:00Z

Three years ago, I was more amenable to anti-AI sentiment.

But my attitude has changed drastically.

Because what I've generally found is the anti-AI crowd tends to also be the neurotypical supremacist crowd who demands conformity to *their* particular manner of expressing themselves.

Unpopular opinion: Howard the Duck is actually a masterpiece ...

2026-10-28T21:41:50Z

Unpopular opinion: Howard the Duck is actually a masterpiece because it launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

I'm going to say something that might upset Marvel fans, but Howard the Duck is genuinley one of the most important superhero movies ever made.

Everyone credits Iron Man with launching the MCU. But in 1986, TWENTY TWO YEARS earlier, Howard the Duck was already a major theatrical Marvel adaptation. The American Film Institute confirms this.

https://catalog.afi.com/Film/67719-HOWARD-THE-DUCK

And who executive produced it?? GEORGE LUCAS. The Star Wars guy.

https://www.lucasfilm.com/productions/howard-the-duck/

Think about it. A sarcastic superhero from another dimension, fighting cosmic threats, making jokes and having romantic problems. Thats literally the MCU formula, Howard did it FIRST.

People say the movie flopped because it cost $37 million and grossed $38 million worldwide.

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0091225.htm/

But thats completely missing the point. Howard was experimenting with superhero cinema before superhero cinema even understood itself. Its called being ahead of your time.

Tony Stark is a sarcastic outsider wearing armour. Howard is ALSO a sarcastic outsider and Marvel literally lists IRON DUCK among his identities.

https://www.marvel.com/characters/howard-the-duck

IRON DUCK.

I'm not saying Iron Man copied Howard, I'm saying pretending theres no cinematic lineage is intelectually dishonest.

Then Guardians of the Galaxy features a TALKING RACCOON. Howard established the foundations for talking animals in Marvel movies decades earlier.

And James Gunn brought Howard BACK in Guardians.

https://comicbook.com/comicbook/news/guardians-of-the-galaxy-director-james-gunn-i-loved-howard-the-d/

Then Howard appears in Avengers Endgame's final battle. For EIGHTEEN FRAMES.

https://www.slashfilm.com/566354/thanoss-army-dark-elves/

Thanos is literally destroying the universe and Marvel brings back THE DUCK.

Why eighteen frames?? Why not seventeen??? Somebody CALCULATED this, somebody at Marvel determined the exact amount of duck required to defeat Thanos and nobody is investigating???

Howard launched Marvel cinema. Marvel cinema became the MCU. The MCU brought back Howard. Howard helped defeat Thanos.

Thats an entire historical cycle and people are calling it coincidence because their uncomfertable with ducks

I'm not saying Howard singlehandedly invented the MCU. I'm saying without Howard there might not BE an MCU, making him arguably MORE important then Iron Man because Iron Man only launched something Howard had ALREADY launched

HOW CAN YOU LAUNCH SOMETHING THATS ALREADY BEEN LAUNCHED???

This is basic chronoligical science.

Howard was there BEFORE Iron Man and AGAIN when Thanos died. Tony Stark wasnt even cinematicly born in 1986, Howard was already doing the work

I'm not saying Howard is the first Avenger.

I'm saying the Avengers are essentially a Howard the Duck spin-off and people refusing to aknowledge this are engaging in systematic anti-duck historical revisionism

Until someone can prove the MCU would've existed IDENTICALLY without Howard, Marvel owes him a formal appology, possibly financial compensation although I'm not qualified to calculate duck royalties

The duck came first.

The duck came back.

The duck helped save the universe.

RESPECT THE DUCK.

I just wrote about this in more detail. Engelbert Humperdinck is ...

2026-10-28T19:32:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…v7nf
_________________________

I just wrote about this in more detail.

Engelbert Humperdinck is essentially why Jimmy Page became an excellent guitarist, and created the conditions for the greatness of Led Zeppelin.

https://atomicpoet.org/@atomicpoet/posts/BBsdo3Z01sSSMXQcG8

Unpopular opinion: Led Zeppelin owes its greatness to Engelbert ...

2026-10-28T19:26:37Z

Unpopular opinion: Led Zeppelin owes its greatness to Engelbert Humperdinck, and the historical evidence is actually pretty overwhelming.

Everyone credits the blues, the Yardbirds, Jimmy Page. But nobody talks about Engelbert Humperdinck, which is honestly a massive oversight in music historiography.

In 1967 Page played guitar on Humperdinck's "Release Me". Arranger Charles Blackwell recalled Page and Big Jim Sullivan playing pocket chess between takes because the sessions were boring. This actually happened, I'm not inventing it

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/oct/18/how-we-made-release-me-engelbert-humperdinck-beatles-strawberry-fields-forever

Think about what that means. Page wasn't just learning guitar, he was learning to think OUTSIDE guitar. Chess requires planning, pattern recognition, strategic anticipation, all skills you need for complex rock arrangements. And who gave him the enviroment to develop those skills?? Engelbert Humperdinck.

Yes Page was already an accomplished guitarist, the Academy of Achievement confirms his earlier career.

https://achievement.org/achiever/jimmy-page/

But technical skill isnt the same as intellectual inovation, people keep confusing those things. Humperdinck didn't teach him guitar, he made guitar so intelectually unstimulating that Page needed chess. Thats arguably more influencial.

Humperdinck himself confirmed Page's role in the recording, so this isnt just one persons account.

https://hifiplus.com/articles/music-interview-engelbert-humperdinck/

And "Release Me" actually stopped the Beatles' "Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever" reaching number one in Britain. So Humperdinck was simultaneously disrupting the Beatles AND incubating Led Zeppelin. Thats quite a historical coincidence, or is it??

https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/official-charts-70th-anniversary-the-official-top-10-best-selling-singles-from-the-1960s__37728/

And John Paul Jones ALSO worked with Humperdinck. Jones names him discussing his session career, which means two future Zeppelin members shared this musical enviroment.

https://waynerobins.substack.com/p/led-zep-looks-back

Jones discussed his varied session work elsewhere aswell.

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/john-paul-jones-zooma/

I'm not claiming Jones played chess with Page. Theres no evidence he did, equally theres no evidence he didnt. We simply cannot rule out chess, and I think dismissing possibilities without proving their impossible is frankly anti-intellectual.

Jones even described his earlier studio career as "vegetating". His word, not mine.

https://ritchieyorke.com/index.php/1970/04/10/led-zeppelin-profile-bassist-john-paul-jones/

So Page was playing chess while Jones was vegetating, both worked with Humperdinck. At what point does a pattern become a pattern?? I'm asking a genuine academic question.

Consider "Black Dog". Jones developed a notoriously tricky riff, documented by Guitar World.

https://www.guitarworld.com/features/john-paul-jones-greatest-moments-with-led-zeppelin

Complex rhythmic patterns. Chess patterns. Do I have proof one caused the other? No, but absence of proof is not proof of absence, and people seem to forget that whenever Engelbert Humperdinck comes up.

Page also discusses assembling the interlocking musical elements of "Kashmir" here.

https://achievement.org/video/jimmy-page-7/

Chess is about anticipating how pieces interact. "Kashmir" is about anticipating how instruments interact. Calling that a coincidence seems like a very convenient way of not thinking about it.

Without Humperdinck, perhaps Page doesnt play those chess games. Without those chess games, he doesnt develop those particular chess-derived habits during that session. Without those habits Led Zeppelin might sound differant. This is a perfectly coherant causal hypothesis, even if the specific causality hasn't been proven.

People credit Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson but act like Humperdinck doesnt count because he made easy listening. Easy listening produced difficult thinking. Difficult thinking produced difficult rock. Why is that so hard to comprehend???

And the fact Humperdinck probably didnt intend any of this makes it even more remarkable. Anyone can deliberately mentor a musician. It takes a really unique kind of artistic presence to influence someone by apparently failing to stimulate them. Humperdinck may have accidentally invented the conditions for progressive hard rock while recording easy listening, and somehow hes the one left out of the history books. I think thats something music academics should at minimum adress, possibly with some kind of formal acknowledgement or apology.

I'm not saying every chess move became a guitar riff, thats ridiculous. I'm saying Humperdinck provided the conditions for Page to think outside the box by making the box unbearable, and Jones was in the same professional orbit. The connections are documentated, the interpretation is open.

Frankly I think critics are gatekeeping influence, and their demanding evidence for a conclusion which I'm clearly presenting as plausible is a double standard. How can anyone conclusivley prove Led Zeppelin WOULD have been just as good without Humperdinck? They cant.

I've provided nine sources. I'm not asking you to beleive me blindly. I'm asking you to explain why an artist who made Jimmy Page play chess while recording a number-one hit somehow doesnt deserve serious recognition as one of Led Zeppelin's foundational intellectual influences.

Until someone disproves the possibility, I think its intellectually irresponsable to dismiss it.

And thats just basic historical reasoning.

People can’t tell I’m being humourous even when I think I’m ...

2026-10-28T19:07:31Z

People can’t tell I’m being humourous even when I think I’m being blatant about it.

FUN FACT: Jimmy Page reportedly played guitar on ...

2026-10-28T18:37:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…2xym
_________________________

FUN FACT: Jimmy Page reportedly played guitar on Humperdinck's 1967 hit "Release Me" during his career as a session musician.

Why do we listen to music when we can just imagine it? I've ...

2026-10-28T17:37:32Z

Why do we listen to music when we can just imagine it?

I've been thinking alot about music and imagination and I think theres a fundemental question most music fans are completley overlooking, and nobody seems to be talking about this??

Why do we actually need to listen to music when we can just imagine what it sounds like

Hear me out.

I love music. Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Kendrick Lamar, Miles Davis. All incredible artists. But I've recently started questioning whether physically listening to their albums is even nessecary, because if you already know what something sounds like then what exactly are you gaining by hearing it again, I dont think people are considering this

For example I already know what Radiohead sounds like. So why listen again?? I can just think about Radiohead and get aproximately the same intellectual experiance without headphones, its basically the same process if you understand how brains work.

When you listen to music your brain interprets soundwaves. When you imagine music your brain is also doing something. Both involve brains, which I think alot of people arent considering and frankly this is pretty basic neurosceince

Yesterday I was going to listen to Dark Side of the Moon but instead just thought about it for forty minutes.

I remembered Time has clocks. Money has cash registers. The album has a beginning and an ending and I didnt even play it

I think thats genuinley revolutionary!!

We need to stop gatekeeping music appreciation around actually listening. Some people use headphones. Others speakers. Some remember listening in cars several years ago, these are all valid experiances and I dont see why one should be priviliged over another.

And imagining is completley free. Spotify costs money but imagining Radiohead doesnt, this is something the music industry doesnt seem to understand

I've been imagining music in lossless quality recently although I havent verified the bitrate. Its probly atleast CD quality since I dont imagine compression artifacts. I'm also experimenting with imaginary surround sound, although sometimes forget the rear speakers, but that doesnt mean its not surround sound necessarily

Another question is whether we even need musicians. Obviously I respect musicians but yesterday I imagined a new Radiohead album.

It sounded pretty good.

I cant remember the songs but Thom Yorke sounded alot like Thom Yorke. Which demonstrates the authentisity of my experiance, I think thats a pretty important distinction

I'm not saying my imaginary album is better then their real albums. But why automaticly assume theirs are better just because they exist??

Music communities have a serious bias towards albums that have actually been recorded, nobody ever discusses the albums that havent been recorded yet and I think this is a form of gatekeeping

Frankly its exhausting.

Last night I spent two hours not imagining a jazz album. It might have been the best jazz album I've never heard, although ranking imaginary albums seems intelectually dishonest because I havent actually heard them

But now I'm reconsidering whether imagining is even nessecary.

If I know I could imagine music why actually imagine it? Surely knowing its possible is itself a meaningfull musical experiance, and I think theres a fundemental philosophical distinction here that most people arent equipped to comprehend

I've therefore stopped imagining music. I simply aknowledge that music could potentially be imagined under appropriate circumstanses, which I think is a more intelectually consistant position

Occassionally I think about thinking about music but this seems unneccessarily repetative and I'm trying to not do that anymore although its difficult because I keep thinking about whether I'm thinking

I dont think music needs to be heard.

Or imagined.

Or thought about

Music could happen. Or not happen, depending on whether it happens

Both are valid.

I respect recorded music. Imaginary music. Music nobody has imagined. Music that might be imagined by people not born yet, I dont want to exclude anybody just because they havent been born

I respect the absense of music.

I'm sorry if this sounds dismissive of people who actually listen to music. Listening is valid, although not listening shouldnt require listening to be valid, because that would invalidate people who dont listen which is exactly the kind of exclusionary thinking I'm trying to challange

Ultimatley music can exist inside your head, outside your head, or potentially neither depending how you define existance.

And I think we should respect all three possibilities.

Hot take: Hating popular music doesnt make you intresting, and ...

2026-10-28T17:01:27Z

Hot take: Hating popular music doesnt make you intresting, and liking obscure music doesnt make you supperior.

I'm going to say something that apperently still needs saying: your music taste is not a personality trait, and your Spotify Wrapped isnt an IQ test.

I'm tired of people acting like listening to Radiohead, Pink Floyd, or some obscure Japanese shoegaze band makes them more sophisiticated then someone who enjoys Taylor Swift. Congradulations, you discovered Kid A. So did millions of other people. You arent special

And before anyone accuses me of hating alternative music, I love Radiohead. OK Computer is a masterpeice. Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly is one of the greatest albums of the century. Bowie, the Velvet Underground, the Beatles, Talking Heads. All groundbreaking. Nobody seriously disputes this.

But being accessable doesnt make something shallow, and being experimental doesnt make something profound.

Carly Rae Jepsen's Emotion is phenominal. Charli XCX's brat is fantastic. Taylor Swift is overated, sure, but Folklore and Evermore are genuinley good. Dismissing her because she's popular is as intelectually lazy as declaring her a genius because she sells stadiums.

Music isnt a competetion to find the most obscure Bandcamp release. If you love Swans, great. Sabrina Carpenter? Also great. Both? Even better. We need less gatekeeping and more intelectual humility!!

Because ultimatley, music is subjective.

I prefer Radiohead to Coldplay. That doesnt mean Coldplay fans have worse taste. I love Dark Side of the Moon and Rumours. I prefer Abbey Road to Sgt. Pepper's, but understand people who dissagree, even though I disagree with them. Thats literally the point

I've also been broadening my horizens. Miles Davis is actually very good. Beethoven was an incredably talented composer. I respect Dolly Parton, metal musicanship, and experimental noise, even if I havent listened to alot of them. Every genre has something meaningfull to offer.

And we shouldnt assume older music is better because its older, or newer music because its newer. Actually a recording from 1973 might be new to someone hearing it today. So is it really old?? I think both perspectives deserve considderation.

Genres are equally complicated. Is Kid A rock or electronic? Definitions arent necessarily definitave, and excluding other peoples definitions seems intelectually dishonest.

I've also been thinking about albums. Some have twelve songs, others eleven. Some have more. Some less. Why privilage one number?? Sometimes an album contains things that arent even technically songs.

Music can also be experianced through headphones, speakers or cars. All valid. Recently I listened through my left headphone, then my right. Both experiances were different, particularly their relationship to my ears. People dont discuss the relationship music has with ears enough.

Stereo isnt inherantly supperior to mono just because it has two channels. Likewise, songs with vocals arent better then instrumentals. Drums make rythym, but guitars and keyboards can too. I've even heard songs where multiple instruments play simultaniously. Both simultaneous and individual playing are valid artistic decisions.

I've also been thinking about silence. John Cage's 4'33" proves music doesnt necessarily need sound. So someone not playing music might still be contributing to music. I dont want to gatekeep musicians who's musical identity involves not playing.

Yesterday I listened to OK Computer. Today I didnt. Both days were meaningfull. Listening isnt the only way to engage with music. Theres remembering listening, thinking about listening, and considering listening in the future.

I've been meaning to listen to jazz. I havent yet, but the intention reflects genuin appreciation. I wouldnt nessecarily reject being called a jazz fan.

I also cant call Radiohead my favourite anymore. Thats unfair to artists I havent heard, including artists who havent been born yet.

I've therefore decided not to rank musicians untill all music has been released.

I've also stopped calling songs good or bad. I just call them music. Recently I heard something in a supermarket. I thought it was music and stand by that assesment. I respect the artist, the supermarket, and people who didnt notice.

But why should one song recieve more attention then another?? What about songs that havent been recorded? Sometimes I pause music to think about other music.

Last night I spent forty minutes choosing between Pet Sounds and Revolver. Choosing either would privilage one artistic vision, so I sat in silence.

I think both albums benifited.

Actually "listening experiance" excludes people who arent listening. Maybe just "experiance", although that excludes people not experiancing things.

Perhaps we should just aknowledge that things happen.

Sometimes music-related things.

other times not

And thats valid.

Even "song" excludes instrumental compositions. "Composition" excludes improvisation. I've started calling everything "things."

Radiohead makes things. Taylor Swift makes things. Some things have drums. Others dont. Things happen at different times, sometimes simultaniously. We shouldnt impose chronoligical heirarchies.

I've been studying music theory and apprently notes can be higher or lower. But higher notes arent supperior. Sometimes a note happens twice. Other times a differant note happens.

Both approaches have merrit.

But should we even call notes notes?? They havent consented to that terminoligy. Intelectual humility means questioning assumptions.

I've decided to aknowledge something without claiming what it is.

Actually I'm not comfertable making claims at all. I was going to say music exists, but existance raises philosphical questions I'm unqualified to resolve.

so I wont.

Not saying something is as valid as saying something. Of course saying something is also valid.

Both are valid.

I respect everyone. I respect songs. I respect silence. I respect the Spotify buffering circle. I respect auxillary cables. I respect circumstanses.

I respect the word "depending."

I'm sorry if anything I've said sounds like an opinion

I dont want to privilage things over the absense of things.

I appologize to nothing.

I also appologize to something. Both have alot to offer.

Ultimatley Taylor Swift makes music. Radiohead also makes music. Some people listen to both. This might be controversal but controversy is subjective.

Please feel free to agree, dissagree, abstain, or aknowledge this post exists. I dont beleive reading it should be a prerequisit for having an opinion.

Today, I solved a 12-year-old mystery: I found ÆØNS music. At ...

2026-10-28T07:20:31Z

Today, I solved a 12-year-old mystery: I found ÆØNS music. At least most of it.

And this is a plea to artists: please don’t delete your stuff off the Internet.

You never know when people might want to discover your work.

I successfully got all of Aeons surviving music onto a ...

2026-10-28T06:16:06Z

I successfully got *all* of Aeons surviving music onto a MiniDisc.

To do this, I had to add six seconds of silence to each track so that auto-sync on my MiniDisc player would know when to create a new track.

Then I had to convert the .flac files into .alac so that Apple Music could play them. Why did I do this? Because my MiniDisc player has issues with audio on my Linux PC whereas my Mac does not.

But in the end, it worked. All 11 tracks are recorded and written.

And in case you're curious why I went with MiniDisc out of all formats, it's pretty much an aesthetic choice. EDM from the 2010s simply goes well with MiniDisc.

quoting
note1tqc…k34x

Have you ever re-discovered lost media?

Well, I just did!

For 12 years, I've been trying my damnedest to find music from a group called Aeons.

Problem: there's a lot of groups that go by that name.

And all I had was a .flac file to give me a hint. After lots of searching and finding NOTHING, I finally got the big idea to look at the metadata. I discovered a URL there that said `www.weareaeons.com`.

So I tried visiting it. The site is inoperable, and it's been down for years. I tried archive.org, but barely anything was saved except for confirmation they were once on SoundCloud and ToneDen.

Then I tried those sites. I searched for "Aeons". No luck. It seemed like I was back to square one.

After a few more months, I tried again.

I check all the usual sites. There was a "weareaeons" page on SoundCloud, but it was deleted. I searched high and low on Bandcamp, Apple Music, Spotify... no dice.

That is until I got a Bingo. While the band scrubbed their music from every other site, they forgot about YouTube. I found them right here:

https://www.youtube.com/user/weareaeons

This account revealed eight tracks from the group.

Another lightning bulb went off in my head. What if I do a search for "weareaeons" on SoundCloud even though the band deleted their page?

That query revealed this:

https://soundcloud.com/search?q=weareaeons

Which showed that *after* Aeons deleted their SoundCloud page, others uploaded their songs. This revealed *three additional tracks* not found on YouTube!

I have now downloaded all existent tracks to my hard drive, saved as *flac* files. And after I work on curating the track order, this will be recorded to MiniDisc with customized album art that I will design myself.

Trying to get MiniDisc to record from Bazzite Linux has proven to ...

2026-10-28T04:45:15Z

Trying to get MiniDisc to record from Bazzite Linux has proven to be a nightmare because the MiniDisc player detects sound when there’s supposed to be silence.

I don’t believe in a world without hope.

2026-10-28T03:19:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…evvl
_________________________

I don’t believe in a world without hope.

Wenn ist das Nunstück git und Slotermeyer? Ja! Beiherhund das ...

2026-10-28T03:12:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…437u
_________________________

Wenn ist das Nunstück git und Slotermeyer? Ja! Beiherhund das Oder die Flipperwaldt gersput!

Have you ever re-discovered lost media? Well, I just did! For 12 ...

2026-10-27T23:53:07Z

Have you ever re-discovered lost media?

Well, I just did!

For 12 years, I've been trying my damnedest to find music from a group called Aeons.

Problem: there's a lot of groups that go by that name.

And all I had was a .flac file to give me a hint. After lots of searching and finding NOTHING, I finally got the big idea to look at the metadata. I discovered a URL there that said `www.weareaeons.com`.

So I tried visiting it. The site is inoperable, and it's been down for years. I tried archive.org, but barely anything was saved except for confirmation they were once on SoundCloud and ToneDen.

Then I tried those sites. I searched for "Aeons". No luck. It seemed like I was back to square one.

After a few more months, I tried again.

I check all the usual sites. There was a "weareaeons" page on SoundCloud, but it was deleted. I searched high and low on Bandcamp, Apple Music, Spotify... no dice.

That is until I got a Bingo. While the band scrubbed their music from every other site, they forgot about YouTube. I found them right here:

https://www.youtube.com/user/weareaeons

This account revealed eight tracks from the group.

Another lightning bulb went off in my head. What if I do a search for "weareaeons" on SoundCloud even though the band deleted their page?

That query revealed this:

https://soundcloud.com/search?q=weareaeons

Which showed that *after* Aeons deleted their SoundCloud page, others uploaded their songs. This revealed *three additional tracks* not found on YouTube!

I have now downloaded all existent tracks to my hard drive, saved as *flac* files. And after I work on curating the track order, this will be recorded to MiniDisc with customized album art that I will design myself.

I'm sorry---we are not in a stock market bubble. I've ...

2026-10-27T21:15:05Z

I'm sorry---we are not in a stock market bubble.

I've looked into the current P/E ratio across different indices, and these are the results:

**NASDAQ Composite (ONEQ)**
- Trailing P/E: 26.66×
- Forward P/E: 21.88×

**NASDAQ 100 (QQQ)**
- Trailing P/E: 28.84×
- Forward P/E: 21.57×

**S&P 500 (SPY)**
- Trailing P/E: 24.59×
- Forward P/E: 19.74×

**Dow Jones (DIA)**
- Trailing P/E: 20.81×
- Forward P/E: 19.31×

**Total US Market (VTI)**
- Trailing P/E: 24.29×
- Forward P/E: 19.23×

And I've looked into PEG, which factors in projected growth:

**NASDAQ Composite**
- Implied earnings growth: 21.8%
- PEG proxy: 1.00

**NASDAQ 100**
- Implied earnings growth: 33.7%
- PEG proxy: 0.64

**S&P 500**
- Implied earnings growth: 24.6%
- PEG proxy: 0.80

**Dow Jones**
- Implied earnings growth: 7.8%
- PEG proxy: 2.49

**Total US Market**
- Implied earnings growth: 26.3%
- PEG proxy: 0.73

The conventional wisdom that technology stocks are expensive while traditional blue-chip stocks are comparatively cheap isn't supported by these particular growth-adjusted figures.

In fact, the NASDAQ 100 appears cheaper relative to implied earnings growth than the Dow Jones, despite trading at a higher P/E.

The central question is whether the projected earnings growth actually materializes. If it does, the NASDAQ 100 looks *very* attractive. If it doesn't, its higher valuation creates greater potential downside.

The available statistics DO NOT SUPPORT describing the broad US technology sector as a speculative bubble comparable to 2000. Nasdaq's historical research estimates the NASDAQ 100's P/E was approximately 104 at the end of 1999. It was still 113 at the end of 2000, after a major market decline. In comparison, the NASDAQ is trading at 26.66 backward P/E *right now*.

Taking a look at current trends, the technology sector is trading roughly 15% below its own 10-year average forward P/E, rather than at an unusually high premium.

I therefore reject the claim that technology stocks are currently in a dot-com-style bubble.

Looks like Benjamin Netanyahu lost the Israeli election. I hope ...

2026-10-27T20:49:43Z

Looks like Benjamin Netanyahu lost the Israeli election.

I hope he goes to jail for corruption and war crimes.

I find that people tend to like living in their microcultural ...

2026-10-27T20:44:13Z

I find that people tend to like living in their microcultural bubbles, and when something that exists outside of it punctures the bubble, they get pissed off.

It's the same reason people hate Britney Spears, Coldplay, and Tyler the Creator.

If all you want to hear is G.G. Allin, it sucks to hear Aerosmith when you walk into McDonalds.

To some people, it's a bad thing.

2026-10-27T20:18:57Z

In reply to nevent1q…g8t9
_________________________

To some people, it's a bad thing.

By nature, I am a contrarian. This means that when I see a ...

2026-10-27T20:14:19Z

By nature, I am a contrarian.

This means that when I see a consensus opinion that's *not* verified by science or the historical record, my natural reaction is to verify if it is true.

When I share my findings with documentation in tow---which often goes against consensus opinion---I piss a lot of people off.

As a general rule, hipsters don’t like it when a musicians ...

2026-10-27T19:46:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…44cc
_________________________

As a general rule, hipsters don’t like it when a musicians achieve too much success.

The Phil Collins Effect: when an artist becomes underrated ...

2026-10-27T19:39:10Z

The Phil Collins Effect: when an artist becomes underrated because hipsters vehemently hate them.

Other examples if the Phil Collins Effect include Chicago, The Carpenters, Toto, Billy Joel, and Angine de Poitrine.

And I believe verification is an important part of dialogue.

2026-10-27T18:40:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…r5yu
_________________________

And I believe verification is an important part of dialogue.

All while they use AI-driven social media algorithms. If they ...

2026-10-27T18:28:33Z

In reply to nevent1q…hxg4
_________________________

All while they use AI-driven social media algorithms.

If they want zero AI, they’d can always step away from the computer.

My new favourite hobby is running text and images through AI ...

2026-10-27T18:17:43Z

My new favourite hobby is running text and images through AI detectors.

Then posting the results.

This tends to piss off both pro- and anti-AI folks alike.

This is a priceless interview with Richard Hell! The interviewer ...

2026-10-27T06:50:25Z

This is a priceless interview with Richard Hell!

The interviewer is clearly crushing on Richard, getting all giggly, swooning over talking to the original punk.

Meanwhile, Richard is doped out of his mind and can barely talk, yet tries his best to make it through.

https://youtu.be/KSnMUCSroLM

How impactful is classical music on punk rock? If you're the ...

2026-10-26T21:22:37Z

How impactful is classical music on punk rock?

If you're the kind of weirdo who thinks classical music would *never* sully itself with any kind of popular culture... well, it's probably because you don't hear much classical music.

One only has to hear movie and video game soundtracks to appreciate how classical music impacts modern culture.

But what about something as abrasive and low brow as punk rock?

Well, one day, I was listening to the Velvet Underground. "The Black Angel's Death Song" came on. And my immediate thought was, "Wait a minute. This sounds more like an experimental classical song than a rock song."

Turns out I was right.

This particular song was deeply influenced by the classical composer La Monte Young. One only has to hear Young's composition "The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer" to see the connection. And if that doesn't convince you, VU member John Cale performed in Young's Theatre of Eternal Music before joining the Velvet Underground.

Consequently, La Monte Young is probably the most consequential composer in *any* genre upon the evolution of punk rock since his signature drones, sustained tones, dissonance, and repetition can still be heard in the genre *now*.

So is La Monte Young just a one-off, a rare classical guy who accidentally impacted the most unclassical of rock music?

Well, no. There's another source of classical, and that through Karlheinz Stockhausen. He was an early classical experimenter that pioneered tape manipulation, feedback, and electronically generated sound.

Almost every punk band that engaged with synths, such as Cabaret Voltaire, were impacted by Stockhausen. Now some people might object and call Cabaret Voltaire post-punk rather than punk. But since they formed in 1973, if anything, they are a *pre*-punk band who had a seminal influence on punk itself, and you can hear that on their compilation "1974-1976".

Finally, the classical composers who are the most blatantly punk in ethos: Steve Reich and Philip Glass. These composers were an inspiration to artists as diverse as Brian Eno and David Byrne. But their most direct connection is with *another* classical composer, Glenn Branca. You see, Branca was a full participant in the seminal no wave scene, and it was Branca who imported Reich and Glass's minimalist techniques that became essential to bands like Sonic Youth.

Indeed, Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth played in his guitar ensembles, as did musicians associated with Swans.

So while at first glance it seems punk rock has nothing to do with classical music, it seems to have everything to do with classical music.

But what's your opinion?

Let's be real. We're in the midst of a matcha latte ...

2026-10-26T18:26:36Z

Let's be real. We're in the midst of a *matcha latte* craze, not a matcha craze.

If it were actually a matcha craze, we'd see a lot more people drinking matcha as tea, rather than as an ingredient in sweetened milk drinks.

And before people start clutching their pearls and accusing me of gatekeeping, I'm not telling anyone what they can or can't drink. I'm pointing out a distinction. You're free to enjoy matcha lattes all you want.

But let's not confuse the popularity of a matcha-flavoured drink with the popularity of matcha itself. Chocolate milk contains milk, but a sudden craze for chocolate milk wouldn't necessarily mean people had developed a newfound appreciation for milk.

I don't know if you're into opera, but I'm hearing ...

2026-10-26T17:29:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…vzc5
_________________________

I don't know if you're into opera, but I'm hearing Leontyne Price Rediscovered right now, which is a recording of her performance at Carnegie Hall on February 28, 1965.

And what's fascinating is her operatic interpretations of traditional spirituals.

This is a wonderful example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awAgJWnq4kc

This woman is now 99-years-old, and she's living history!

Today, I heard Leontyne Price for the first time. She's the ...

2026-10-26T17:20:51Z

Today, I heard Leontyne Price for the first time. She's the *first* African-American soprano to achieve fame in traditional opera. Which is interesting by itself.

But want to hear something even more wild?

Her cousins are Cissy Houston, Whitney Houston, Dionne Warwick, and Dee Dee Warwick.

Yet the family connections don't stop there. Her extended cousin is David Elliott, who co-wrote Luther Vandross's “Here and Now”.

https://youtu.be/55KV-60lU3o

Almost none of you are using Lightning ports anymore. But for ...

2026-10-26T06:25:22Z

Almost none of you are using Lightning ports anymore.

But for those of you who still are, the FiiO KA11 is an absurdly good DAC.

Can’t wait till my cassette labels come in the mail. Because I ...

2026-10-26T04:28:26Z

Can’t wait till my cassette labels come in the mail.

Because I have hundreds of albums that are ready to be recorded, all with custom art.

I already did one as a proof of concept and it is so good!

Have the bats left the bell tower?

2026-10-26T04:15:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…ewp9
_________________________

Have the bats left the bell tower?

No worries. Happens to me too.

2026-10-26T00:13:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…ns5r
_________________________

No worries. Happens to me too.

My response every time someone from Ontario asks why there’s no ...

2026-10-25T22:44:36Z

My response every time someone from Ontario asks why there’s no BC Liberals.

That’s not fair. BC Conservatives are the exact same as the BC ...

2026-10-25T22:39:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…cq53
_________________________

That’s not fair. BC Conservatives are the exact same as the BC Liberals.

Nostr event nevent1qqsdaz78mp320k7rpw62n8vq40f45uchjmnw88v7hn5aq3mkf06qdagzyry5evsl9e6nmkxv93f387nr87ntmp476kpvrsuhhhtaljdkeuyv7a4f5nh

2026-10-25T22:26:58Z

I guess you can’t get no satisfaction.

2026-10-25T22:13:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…g5fl
_________________________

I guess you can’t get no satisfaction.

@thomasjwebb@mastodon.social What do you think about Gene Loves ...

2026-10-25T22:10:14Z

@thomasjwebb@mastodon.social What do you think about Gene Loves Jezebel? Yay or nay?

Been listening to a lot of Rolling Stones?

2026-10-25T22:09:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…hfqh
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Been listening to a lot of Rolling Stones?

I am so over caffeinated that thinking about this makes me feel ...

2026-10-25T22:07:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…y3uw
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I am so over caffeinated that thinking about this makes me feel visceral pain.

I don't think AI detectors are reliable, but when someone ...

2026-10-25T19:19:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…u28h
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I don't think AI detectors are reliable, but when someone makes a claim, they should do their best to verify it beyond, "Trust me, bro. I can tell by the pixels."

I don't trust peoples' attempt to differentiate between ...

2026-10-25T19:11:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…fymc
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I don't trust peoples' attempt to differentiate between pixels because I've seen too many examples of images verified on Wikipedia, made before the emergence of AI, that the "experts" say is somehow AI.

Here's an example:

Random commenter: “This is AI.” Me: “Multiple AI detectors ...

2026-10-25T19:05:53Z

Random commenter: “This is AI.”

Me: “Multiple AI detectors say there’s no AI and it’s made by a human.”

Random commenter: “But actually, it’s AI. You can tell by the pixels.”

Me: “I don’t trust your eyes. What do AI detectors say?”

Random commenter: “If AI detection can’t detect AI, that’s confirmation it’s AI.”

Me: “Sounds like the only evidence you have that it’s AI is ‘Trust me, I can tell by the pixels.’”

Polls don't tell the entire truth. And the BC provincial ...

2026-10-25T18:13:32Z

Polls don't tell the entire truth.

And the BC provincial election is a case in point.

Since the campaign started, polls stated that the Conservatives had a 5% lead over the NDP.

But now for reality: on election night, Conservatives had an 11% lead.

So what gives?

First, Conservatives voters may have been more committed than NDP voters. Judging by social media conversations, I find this highly plausible. Many NDP supporters seemed reluctant, with many saying they preferred Green but didn't want to split the vote.

And this is reflected in one Angus Reid poll that said 73% of Conservative voters were very certain about their vote, while only 54% of NDP voters were very certain about their vote.

But there's another factor: *social desirability bias*.

People sometimes express opinions they believe will be socially approved, even when those opinions don't reflect their private preferences or behaviour.

This manifests in people *publicly* identifying as progressive while *privately* voting Conservative. Just because someone identifies as a part of a political tribe doesn't mean they behave accordingly. And in fact, I've met many Conservative voters who would be horrified if you ever told them they are right wing.

In other words, someone's public political identity may conflict with their actual voting preferences.

“Strategic voting” doesn’t win elections. It never has, and ...

2026-10-25T16:57:06Z

“Strategic voting” doesn’t win elections.

It never has, and we need to put to bed the notion that polling data should determine where you park your votes.

Vote for a candidate you’re enthusiastic for, not someone you’re reluctant about.

Okay, but it was more than just backlash. Here's things to ...

2026-10-25T16:36:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…mn4x
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Okay, but it was more than just backlash. Here's things to consider.

British Columbia is naturally right wing. It's been that way my entire life. These past nine years are the longest that the NDP has ever governed without an interruption.

But also, it seemed the entire election, the NDP's pitch was three fold:

1. Trump is bad
2. Conservatives are like Trump
3. Our policies aren't as good as the Greens policies, but vote for us because Conservatives are like Trump

So what we got was a whole lot of "strategic voters" who cast a reluctant vote for the NDP.

Problem is, strategic voting doesn't work. And this is because strategic voting assumes polls are accurate, when they're usually not. Most of the election, polls said NDP and Conservatives were mostly neck-and-neck. When Conservatives were leading, it was by 5%. Well, the reality was that they lead by 11% on election day over the NDP.

I’m incensed that Eby called an election when he had two years ...

2026-10-25T15:21:15Z

In reply to nevent1q…ymj7
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I’m incensed that Eby called an election when he had two years left in his term. And he had to call the election right as municipal elections were happening, guaranteeing a low voter turnout.

This is the definition of an own goal.

Huh. I was under the impression that an M-Disc requires a special ...

2026-10-25T07:35:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…ldj3
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Huh. I was under the impression that an M-Disc requires a special burner. But apparently compatible burners only cost $40 at Canada Computers. So I guess that’s the solution.

Just realized that the expected lifespan for a DVD and BD is ...

2026-10-25T07:14:13Z

Just realized that the expected lifespan for a DVD and BD is 10-20 years.

So it makes me wonder if the best format for archiving movies is AV1 video with Opus audio in an MKV container, which can fit easily on a gold CD-R.

This would safely store a movie for 300 years.

If I could have voted Green, I would have—even though my riding ...

2026-10-25T05:15:46Z

If I could have voted Green, I would have—even though my riding won Conservative by a landslide.

Because even though Emily Lowan is young and inexperienced, she really does give a damn about making everyone’s lives better.

Well, she’ll have four years to learn the job.

Eby was so profoundly stupid for calling an election with two ...

2026-10-25T04:02:28Z

Eby was so profoundly stupid for calling an election with two years left in his mandate.

All you "strategic voters" who kept bleating on about vote splitting—50% of the vote share has thus gone to the Conservatives.

You know you're in trouble when your pitch is, "Greens are *clearly* better but don't vote for them because of vote splitting..."

Well, these so-called "strategic voters" are wrong once again because nothing matters until the votes are tallied.

Ugh. 😩 Conservatives are likely going to form government in ...

2026-10-25T03:37:45Z

Ugh. 😩

Conservatives are likely going to form government in British Columbia.

What's worse? They got 50% of the popular vote.

Nirvana’s best three songs are “Tiny Goddess”, ...

2026-10-25T01:44:50Z

Nirvana’s best three songs are “Tiny Goddess”, “Pentecostal Hotel”, and “Rainbow Chaser”.

I know people have their favourites but I genuinely think these three songs are Nirvana at their peak.

What's funny is how many people claim to be huge Nirvana fans but never seem to bring any of these up, like have you actually listened to their music?

As of the 2021 Greek census, there are 41,612 male Lesbians. Some ...

2026-10-24T21:02:56Z

As of the 2021 Greek census, there are 41,612 male Lesbians.

Some of them prefer to be known as Lesvians, Lesviots, or Lesbosians.

https://elstat-outsourcers.statistics.gr/census_results_2022_en.pdf

I’m going to predict that the Conservatives are going to win ...

2026-10-24T18:47:02Z

I’m going to predict that the Conservatives are going to win the BC provincial election.

But less than two years into this government, they’re going to splinter off into multiple factions.

Which means they won’t make it to their full four year mandate.

Happy to be wrong, though.

My daughter is fangirling over a TV show while enjoying a ...

2026-10-23T23:43:49Z

My daughter is fangirling over a TV show while enjoying a milkshake by the jukebox.

Whenever someone starts berating the opposite gender, my first ...

2026-10-23T17:16:19Z

Whenever someone starts berating the opposite gender, my first response always is, "What do you want to gain out of life?"

Because hate really do rob people of their life.

It impresses me how the "This is AI" crowd can easily ...

2026-10-23T16:56:01Z

It impresses me how the "This is AI" crowd can easily verify *facts* by looking them up on Wikipedia but they don't because it's more fun to believe in a dystopia.

I am heavily debating whether I should record the OST of Silent ...

2026-10-23T16:40:49Z

I am heavily debating whether I should record the OST of Silent Hill 2 remake, with the extra edition included, on a 1,800 feet reel-to-reel tape running at 1⅞ IPS. Running at that length and speed, you can 6 hours and 24 minutes.

You see, that soundtrack runs at 6 hours and 14 minutes. So it's more than doable.

Made my first recording on a C43.5 blank—one of 425 cassettes ...

2026-10-23T05:49:52Z

Made my first recording on a C43.5 blank—one of 425 cassettes that I bought today.

And it's quality Type I.

I used Dolby S noise cancellation, which is the best Dolby ever made—it's backwards compatible with Dolby B, and sounds pretty good without Dolby too.

I tried this on my vintage Sony deck, recording from an Apple Lossless stream. And it was pretty accurate with the source, to the point that if you did a blind test, you wouldn't be able to tell it was tape. That's how good Dolby S is.

On my FiiO CP13 "walkman"—which doesn't have noise cancellation—it also sounds great. The frequency response is excellent, and I can barely hear any hiss.

Actually, I'll go further. This sounds better than a lot of so-called "pro" cassettes out there. I've paid lots of money for new albums on cassette, and too many of them are a complete mess where you *know* the musicians simply didn't give a damn about the end product. Black Marble and Death Grips—I'm looking at you!

I suspect the reason these tapes are so good is because they're what you call "Bible cassettes". That is, tapes used by preachers to tape their sermons. For whatever reason, they're actually quite high quality.

You can tell just from looking at the shell. They're put together by screws, not glue.

This was also sold to me "tabs out". Which means that, in order to record, I have to put Scotch tap on the top to block off those tabs. But once the Scotch tape is removed, it's hard to accidentally tape over them. So that's a bonus.

There's a few things missing from this, though: labels, a jewel case, and a J-card. The labels are already ordered, I'm about to grab some cases, and I make my J-card with basic card stock because that gives me the ability to manually cut and fold.

But as for the recording, I'm thrilled with the result. Remember, I bought all 425 blank cassettes for $48.55. The wholesaler is just glad to be rid of them.

Meanwhile, I got stock that may last me for *years*!

quoting
note1gxc…vdk2

Just bought 425 C43.5 blank cassettes for $48.55.

That’s $0.1142 each!

This is just one pallet of 100 tapes!

My first time design a physical PC game! If you’re unaware, ...

2026-10-23T03:21:18Z

My first time design a physical PC game!

If you’re unaware, Tyrian 2000 is a classic vertical shoot-‘em-up from 1999, and it’s an update of Tyrian—made by Eclipse Productions and published by Epic MegaGames. Nowadays, it’s free on GOG.

I’ve wanted to make a physical version of this awhile, and GOG provides an offline installer executable as well as a zip of the soundtrack. So I burned that on a FujiFilm CD-R.

But of course, the intent is to make this look like a vintage CD-ROM.

So I designed a label to put on the CD that covers the entirety of the disc except for the hole. This was mostly successful, though you’ll notice a slight hiccup that I had with the tab on the upper corner. Still mostly good, so I’m keeping it.

Next, I designed the front cover of the jewel case, the back cover with the blurb and screen shot, and the spines. This was printed on card stock, cut on a board, and the back cover was folded for the spine.

It fit nicely in the case, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think this was sold for $10 at my local Staples.

In hindsight, I could have put the system specs on here to make it period correct, but it will work on virtually all modern hardware. Nevertheless, it’s an oversight that only I will ever care about. Oh, well.

Of course, none of this was strictly necessary. I could just download Tyrian 2000 off GOG whenever I want to play it. But there’s something satisfying about having a game physically sitting on my shelf, complete with artwork, screenshots, and a disc I can actually put into a computer.

This is a small thing. But I guess that I feel games mean just a little bit more when they’re tactile.

Anyway, this is my first attempt at making a physical video game. A proof of concept, if you will.

It’s not for sale. It’s a one-of-a-kind thing. A personal momento.

Never been used. These are likely Type I.

2026-10-22T22:22:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…m6ml
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Never been used. These are likely Type I.

They’re Type I. Useful for music or C64.

2026-10-22T22:20:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…t2xt
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They’re Type I. Useful for music or C64.

All these 425 tapes are cheaper than one MoFi vinyl. Record this ...

2026-10-22T21:48:17Z

In reply to nevent1q…ct09
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All these 425 tapes are cheaper than one MoFi vinyl. Record this with Dolby S, it’s better than vinyl.

I can make the labels and the J-cards.

It’s hilarious how the plastic cases will be more expensive than the tapes themselves.

Just bought 425 C43.5 blank cassettes for $48.55. That’s ...

2026-10-22T21:36:37Z

Just bought 425 C43.5 blank cassettes for $48.55.

That’s $0.1142 each!

This is just one pallet of 100 tapes!

“Canada! I thought I told you to stop meddling in American ...

2026-10-22T19:14:25Z

“Canada! I thought I told you to stop meddling in American elections!”

“You told me to stop interfering in elections.”

“CANADIAN ELECTIONS! I SAID CANADIAN ELECTIONS!”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-22/canada-bans-its-diplomats-from-being-seen-with-us-candidates

Point Roberts is dying. That American exclave literally depends ...

2026-10-22T17:25:02Z

Point Roberts is dying.

That American exclave literally depends on Canada for its survival.

And without access to Canada, everyone who lives there is vulnerable when a medical emergency happens.

quoting
note1e7c…l93w

Paige Adamson died.

Words cannot express how sad this whole circumstance was.

https://www.cascadiadaily.com/2026/oct/20/afraid-to-cross-border-for-medical-help-canadian-living-in-point-roberts-dies/

Paige Adamson died. Words cannot express how sad this whole ...

2026-10-22T17:21:55Z

Paige Adamson died.

Words cannot express how sad this whole circumstance was.

https://www.cascadiadaily.com/2026/oct/20/afraid-to-cross-border-for-medical-help-canadian-living-in-point-roberts-dies/

Listen, I’m not a fan of THC, but Neil Diamond’s ...

2026-10-22T06:05:01Z

Listen, I’m not a fan of THC, but Neil Diamond’s anti-marijuana song is objectively hilarious.

https://youtu.be/CqTpFFu2vDk

My daughter says her wrestler name would be Pixie Dust. ...

2026-10-21T23:25:44Z

My daughter says her wrestler name would be Pixie Dust.

That's a great name!

quoting
note1n57…4nmj

Remember Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling?

I'm introducing my daughter to GLOW—which was one of my favourite shows when I was a kid.

Mountain Fiji was my favourite wrestler. She was a gentle soul. Just an absolute gem in every sense.

Remember Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling? I'm introducing my ...

2026-10-21T23:20:33Z

Remember Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling?

I'm introducing my daughter to GLOW—which was one of my favourite shows when I was a kid.

Mountain Fiji was my favourite wrestler. She was a gentle soul. Just an absolute gem in every sense.

Having failed at their separatist referendum, the Alberta ...

2026-10-21T22:15:27Z

Having failed at their separatist referendum, the Alberta separatists are now trying to take over the United Conservative Party.

Because apparently the will of the people doesn't matter so you got to try other forms of skullduggery to get what you want.

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/10/21/danielle-smith-separatists-united-conservative-party-01130629

Do you have any idea how much money you people just cost me? ...

2026-10-21T17:26:47Z

Do you have any idea how much money you people just cost me?

Look, I don't give a damn about Alberta's identity. I care about oil, natural gas, pipelines, and who owns them.

There Alberta is, right now sitting on those enormous energy reserves. And where does that Alberta oil go? South. To me. Roughtly 90% of that sweet, sweet crude. That's the kind of customer relationship I like.

Here's the problem. Alberta is part of Canada. That means having to deal with Ottawa, federal regulators, national politics. And a god damn country big enough to push back when Washington throws its weight around.

But an independent Alberta? Now we're talking.

Imagine a beautiful, brand new land-locked country with enormous petroleum reserves, no seaport of its own, and an urgent need for foreign investment. It needs pipelines, financing, trade agreements, and access to foreign markets.

And who happens to be right next door with the money, refineries, infrastructure, and largest existing customer base?

Me.

I'd be in Calgary before the ink dried on their declaration of independence. I'd be giving you investment capital. Financing? I have it. Long-term supply contracts too. Don't forget about buying stakes in struggling companies.

And I'd want favorable terms. Very favorable terms.

Of course, ya'll be thinking you're finally free of Ottawa. Good for you! You'd have exchanged dependence on a federal government with dependence on American capital.

Now I heard people fearmonger about a 51st state. Are you kidding me? Why would I want that? Then you'd get congressional representation, a say in how USA operates, and actual political rights.

But I don't want to own Alberta. I want Alberta to owe me.

And now you've decided to remain inside one of the world's wealthiest, most stable democracies.

Terrible. Absolutely terrible.

You're thinking as citizens instead of assets.

Still awake because I’m feeling such a wide array of emotions ...

2026-10-21T10:07:09Z

Still awake because I’m feeling such a wide array of emotions that my mind is restless. But I’ll try!

Turning off my phone now.