Random over analyzation of Spin magazine. Or, can you tell I flew today?

I'm back in T-Town. I flew out of L.A. this morning, took a shower when I got home and went straight to work.

I am very tired, and I'm probably going to fall asleep as soon as Leno's done with Headlines. (Yes, I watch Leno. Only on Mondays for about 10 minutes as he reads crazy headlines, etc. Otherwise, it's one of the most consistently unwatchable shows on TV. Especially the monologue.)

I picked up the new issue of Spin, the one with the Strokes on the cover. Dan left me a message saying there was a little blurb on Paul Westerberg talking about how he bought a guitar at Wal-Mart because it's "cheap, loud and flashy, just like rock 'n roll ought to be." I guess that was worth the $3.99, plus tax.

But what the hell happened to this magazine? Ten years ago it was full of long-ish pieces on rock and related stuff like Scandanavian death metal and the war on drugs. There were a ton of record reviews, and many of them were also pretty long.

Now, it's physically smaller, and all the articles are short and have boxes with fun facts(!!). The writing is sorta ho-hum, and the subject matter seems kind of stale. A Fiona Apple live review? A (very) brief oral history of the Beastie Boys tour with Madonna? I dunno, it's like Spin has become Mojo-lite: fun to look at, but reinforcing all your long-standing musical likes and beliefs. Cat Power? Brilliant. Any mainstream rock recorded between 1997 and 2001? Bad.

And what is the deal with gaunt, sleeve-less guy in the Strokes? He's looks like some anonymous "rock" guy who plays in a Guns and Roses cover band (but also covers Buckcherry because, you know, that one song is totally awesome). I guess I haven't been paying attention for the past five years, but I just don't remember him. Does he play guitar? Did he just wander into the photo shoot?

One thing I do like about the "new" Spin: Chuck Klosterman's writing.