I was browsing around the site reflecting on how far we’ve come and couldn’t help but notice the wealth of inspiration and content we’ve got in the SpearTalks archives. So, I figured I’d round them all up for easy consumption. Whether you like fashion, technology, art, or just about anything else– with nearly 40 incredible interviews, there’s something for everyone thanks to our very own Carmel Hagen. Go, dive in, it’s just a click away.

Several months ago, I wrote an embarrassingly impassioned post regarding a music blog. It was a sappy, raison d'etre-style diatribe, involving too many adjectives, too many hallelujahs, and way too many myspace references. I don't think I was drunk when I wrote it. Anyway, being blessed with a good editor, the post had hardly left my email box when it was returned with a gentle reminder that “We're not in the general habit of publishing love letters,” and “Could you please cut it down to about 200 words?” [Ed note: Think slobber-soaked, pre-teen romance; that's about half as sloppy as that love letter was. -H]

I did cut it down, and you can still read the slightly saner post here. However, in all honesty, I still have shamefully strong feelings for the music blog Catbirdseat, and equally strong feelings for Catbird Records, the related indie record label whose pure love for music represents just how closely sound is analogous to art.

We chatted with the man behind both Catbird Records and Catbirdseat about how it is that he runs such un-average enterprises, and decided we were right all along: Ryan is the cat(bird)s pajamas.

Joshspear.com: Which came first – Catbirdseat or Catbird Records?

Ryan Catbird: Catbirdseat begat Catbird Records, and I think ‘begat’ is definitely the right word there because the relationship remains a very much Parent/Child one. Catbirdseat.org came to life in 2002, essentially as a means for me to share my listening habits with my friends (who were always asking, “hey, what are you listening to these days?”). READ MORE…

We know that Ryan Catbird gets the job done when it comes to advising Williamsburg what to stick their ears into, but can our favorite un-Pitchforky music blogger and head of Catbird Records make a killer wish list? Um.. yeah. Make the hipster in your life happier than a thirteen year-old with a backstage pass to a Fall Out Boy concert by following some of Ryan’s great gifting advice.

Holiday bonus: Listen to Catbird’s December mixtape here.

Destroyer – “Thief” Vinyl LP

As Destroyer is my favorite musical artist, it’s a given that I need to have all his albums. And being a big music nerd, of course I need them all on vinyl. Over the years I’ve managed to collect all of the vinyls (including the just–as-rare-if-not-rarer Streethawk) but this one particular release continues to evade me. Sure, $230 seems a bit steep… but I can remember back when it was only $172.50.

Distressed Felt Fedora by Eugenia Kim

I am *not* a hat guy. Never really have been. Oh, you know the type: there’s the guy you see at all the shows who’s always wearing a cabbie hat; there’s that weird kid in your eighth grade class who wears a fedora; there’s the guy with the prematurely thinning hair who maintains a huge collection of baseball caps. I’ve just never really been one to stroll down the block with a jauntily perched hat atop my head, but I tell you, i tried this one on, simply as a goof, and I was surprised as anyone that it actually looked (ahem) “totally fly.”

Apple TV by Apple

I know this isn’t the newest or sexiest Apple product, as it doesn’t fit into the palm of your hand, or have a touch screen, or make you the coolest guy on the bus, but the fact is, I really need this. As it is, when I want to watch any movies or TV shows I’ve downloaded (uh, through 100% legal means, of course), I have to either (a.) burn and/or recompress and then burn them onto a disc that may or may not work when I finally put it in the player, or (b.) haul my laptop over to the tv and rearrange a bunch of plugs to try to get the output onto the TV. With Apple TV, I can wirelessly just blast that junk straight over to the TV. Sounds like a dream.

I trust Ryan Catbird with my ears. Ever since we first mentioned him and his indie (no, but seriously. Indie.) label a few months ago, I’ve been watching his music blog, Catbirdseat, like a stalker, and have panther-pounced a nice percentage of what he recommends. Therefore, while there may be debate as to whether I am worthy of telling you what to listen to, I feel totally comfortable telling you that you should listen to what he tells you to listen to… and the latest word from Catbird states that you need to stick your ears into the music of Clear Tigers. In fact, the man not only recommended we listen to them, he also “veered off towards hyperbole land” in saying that we will soon refer to them as our “new favorite band.” For those of you unfamiliar with music snobbery, to use a term of that strength is sometimes analygous to dumping at least 80% of your musical street-cred right down the gutter (unless, of course, you can back it up). I’m going to have to wait until I listen to the entire Clear Tigers EP for the final verdict, but I already am leaning towards “cha-ching,” because that’s how it normally works with the stuff he recommends. You can get our own copy for a pleasantly un-risky $3 here, but move quickly; like most of the releases from that place, the CD has been produced in a tiny little run of 200, and will probably be swarmed upon by throngs of blood-sucking hipsters, stat.

And while we’re on the subject of pretentious clouds over the music scene….

If you, like me, have been feeling a little too sickened/jaded/abused to pursue new music with the same passion as you used to, I highly recommend checking out Catbirdseat, the mp3 blog of Ryan Catbird. As head of indie label Catbird Records, Ryan certainly knows his stuff about today’s industry, but more importantly, his pure and transparent love for music is helping me to remember why I used to spend so many hours searching for it in the first place. Catbird’s voice and attitude (which is easily discernible in both the blog and via the unique way his label functions) is perfect for those of us who have started to give up on music because of what other people have made of it, and the mp3’s that litter most of his entries powerfully authenticate his words. If you still need convincing, download one of the mix/podcasts that he posts on a monthly bases, or listen to a sampling of the bands that are signed to Catbird. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself feeling a little bit…saved… because, in case you need reminding, that’s what music is here for.