Here’s a series of pieces my buddy Dan Solomon has been writing, typically ambitious (he’s a Taurus). He has been one of the main inspirations for me, over the years, to continue writing, to believe in myself and to do my thing. He pushes and he prods and he provokes – he’s a Texan, in the strict, no-bullshit sense. He tells it like it is, in language anyone can relate to. He can even make you care about football, which is no mean feat. His journalism is cutting as well as personal, which is something i’m striving for on this site. He’s doing something interesting and unique, and this series has a spiritual kinship with what i’m doing with the 66.6 series, showing why and how to give a shit about music and pop culture in 2012, while we’re drowning in sounds. Hear him talk about Nick Cave, Jeff Buckley, Saul Williams, Nine Inch Nails, and remember why we gave a shit about these songs, any songs, in the first place.