Introducing "Record Lows"

For months, I'd considered archiving Andre Sider af Jackson A. Ragg III and starting a new blog because of technical issues. I've since sorted those issues, but I still wanted to give this blog a minor facelift, and the onset of a new year felt like an appropriate time to do so.

I renamed this blog mainly because I grew tired of not having known how to pronounce "Andre Sider af", especially when people asked me my blog's name. I also grew tired of explaining the title: "I don't know how to pronounce it, but it means 'Other Sides of' in Dutch. It's from a Sonic Youth album, and 'Jackson A. Ragg III' is an online name I use."

I've chosen "Record Lows" because of the polar ways the term can be interpreted. My gut reaction, which I'm sure most people share, is to interpret "record lows" negatively: "record low sales." But the term can be positive too: "record low murder rates." I'm also fond of the term's potential to distract - even deter - readers from the blog's content. If they can't (won't) read the title critically, they likely can't (won't) read the blog critically either; they'll likely be unreceptive of most of the art I share. Such readers are not my ideal audience.

Initially, "Other Sides of Jackson A. Ragg III" made sense: With music as my main subject, I talked in ways many people probably didn't know I could. But after four years, which sometimes felt like a milestone, I'd largely outgrown the title: My "other sides" had long been in the open; I don't even use pseudonyms anymore. My blog needed a title that held more current personal meaning. My 2013 was perforated by personal "record lows," but they were filled by and overflowed with professional "record highs," some of my proudest - and often least expected - experiences, opportunities, and accomplishments, hence the polar word "record."

I don't have plans to update Record Lows' layout, diversify or streamline its content, or post more frequently, but that could all change at any time.

Thanks for reading, listening, commenting, "Like"ing, etc.