Stephen Mejias

She nodded her head yes and lied when I asked her if she was alright. Her brown eyes blinked a song in perfect time to keep from letting loose tears. My lovely friend was sad.

Today is my birthday; it's the blog's birthday, too.

Another year older, stronger, healthier, happier. Thanks for sharing it with me.

Saturday, May 19, 11am–6pm: The Brooklyn Flea Record Fair will be held at Smorgasburg.

August is here, which means it’s time for The Cable Company’s Annual “Summer Against Hunger” fundraiser. This marks the 15th year that The Cable Company collaborates with CARE, a leading humanitarian effort battling global poverty, with a dollar for dollar donation on purchases of sponsored products in the month of August.

We're lucky. There's always an enormous amount of great live music to be enjoyed in New York City, but this week is especially crammed with sound. The CMJ Music Marathon is here. As I type, our very own Mikey Fremer is moderating a discussion titled "Hi Fidelity for the Future." Panelists include NYU professor Jim Anderson; David Chesky of Chesky Records and HDTracks.com; D&M Holdings' Jeffrey Cowan; and the Audiophiliac, Steve Guttenberg.

Mark your calendars: The Winter Edition of the vinylicious Collect-i-Bowl Record Show will be held at Brooklyn Bowl (61 Wythe Avenue, Brooklyn), from noon to 6pm, on Sunday, December 4th.

Admission is free. For more info, visit Brooklyn Bowl. And be sure to bring your appetite: The food at Brooklyn Bowl is heartstoppingly good.

This cream-colored version was my first choice for our September issue cover. Though it has a certain quiet elegance, we decided to go with the bolder, less subtle combination of yellow, red, and gold. I think we made a good choice, but I still sort of love the cream version.