As some of you know, I have a Tori Amos fansite, MandaTori Amos. It's a review site, where I critique what I feel are Tori's best songs. It was incredibly challenging, trying to put into words what her music made me feel. And as any "best of" list is subjective, the irony in trying to be as objective as possible was a constant impediment to what I wrote. And then there was the small matter of lacing any sort of understanding about music--compsoition, structure, terminology, etc. But, overall, I think my reviews turned out quite well; well enough for any Tori Amos fan to read them and understand what I was talking about. And I've been fairly confident that my reviews almost make me sound like I know what I'm talking about.

But then I found Glenn McDonald's The War Against Silence and I'm ashamed to have even thought I knew how to write about music.

McDonald's site is mesmerisingly addictive. His reviews make my blog entries the eptiomy of brevity. His reviews are part music review and part biography. McDonald relates to music autobiographically. Specific songs and bands relate to specifics moments in his life. You read several paragraphs about his life fifteen years ago because the only way he can describe the music he's planning on writing about is to describe how that music reminds him of what happened fifteen years ago. and, as he freely admits, if you wonder why half the time he describes music by describing other music, it's because that's how he relates to it. Everything is relative, both figuratively and literally.

There aren't that many Top 40 artists here. But, in an attempt to provide interest to my loyal readers, please note there are reviews for: Tori Amos, Alanis Morisette, U2, Sarah McLachlan, Echo and the Bunnymen, Megadeth, the Goo Goo Dolls, Savatage, Smashing Pumpkins, and far too many bands I never heard of.

So go on. The War Against Silence. Go read.