The Merlin Show

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Merlin talks with Google’s Chris Wetherell about working from the road, the surprisingly modest stakes of touring, opportunity costs, and failing utterly at email.

Note: This is the second segment of a 2-part interview with Chris; don’t miss part one

• Chris’ blog is Massless.org
• Chris plays drums in Dealership (Download MP3s) and Citizens Here and Abroad (Download MP3s)
• Chris is too polite to point out that while Merlin is talking about the video for “Appearances,” he is clearly (and quite badly) singing the chorus from “Microphone.” The Merlin Show regrets the error.
• “Appearances” was used in “The Perfect Storm,” an episode from the fifth, and penultimate, season of The O.C.. Merlin thinks the first couple seasons of The O.C. were really quite swell.
• Wikipedia says: “Within the music industry, a mechanical license gives the holder permission to create copies of a recorded song which they did not write and/or do not have copyright over.”
• GMail uses POP rather than IMAP, but Google “looks forward to announcing other new features as they become available.” Notwithstanding, Gmail Mobile is pretty cool.
• “Bukkake” will not be linked from here, but it’s still a pretty good metaphor for feeling overwhelmed by IM and email, don’t you think?
• Joel Spolsky says “a schedule is like wood blocks”
• Wikipedia says an opportunity cost is “the cost of something in terms of an opportunity forgone.”
• Chris claims that his power move — such as it is — is to be okay with an overstuffed email inbox. Merlin calls this “compartmentalization”
• Citizens Here and Abroad’s latest recording is Waving, Not Drowning, available from Amazon, and elsewhere
• Dealership’s latest recording is Action/Adventure, available from iTunes, Amazon, and elsewhere
• Chris’s bands’ videos are beautifully directed by Jason Koxvold:
  • Video: Appearances by Citizens Here and Abroad
  • Video: You Drive and We’ll Listen to Music by Citizens Here and Abroad
  • Video: All the Kids by Dealership

Video for “Appearances” by Citizens Here and Abroad