Derek in PASTE and at Infuzemag.com

Another Friday, another set of reviews for you to check out. (Maybe we should make this a Friday tradition?)

The first, actually, is currently only available in print form. The June 07 issue of PASTE Magazine, which is in stores now, features a whole lot of Mr. Webb. His name is on the front cover (tucked perfectly under “Wilco” and beside “Nine Inch Nails”), a full-page picture adorns the table of contents on page 4, and their review of The Ringing Bell can be found on page 69.

The review itself is a glowing one, calling The Ringing Bell a “pop masterpiece” and saying that it is “easily one of the year’s best records”. The album is rated 5-stars (out of 5-stars we’re guessing), and “I Want to Marry You All Over Again” is the second song on the Paste Sampler CD that comes with the issue. You can pick up your copy at any good bookstore for $6.

Over at Infuzemag.com, they’ve got an interview with Derek up as their cover story right now. A few notable quotes from Derek in the interview:

“I just want to sing and write. I just want to make good art. I just wanna be able to get to sleep at night. For me, it’s blue collar work. So that’s it. I wanna make excellent art. I want to do the best that I can. I wanna follow my instincts.”

“I also feel that as I get more liberal with sharing my music and giving away my music for free, which the freederekwebb.com campaign gave away 80,000 copies, I also wanna try to take the burden on to make the physical artifact more compelling. If people want to take the music for free, that’s totally fine. Take it. I’m the copyright owner and the artist, so take it. Do what you want with it. Share it. The FBI is taken out of that equation and the relationship is just the artist and fan. There is an important component to the retail side and getting people to engage with the physical side. But it’s not the fan’s fault. It’s the artists’ fault for not making compelling artifacts. If all we have to offer people is round pieces of plastic, it’s no wonder that people are going online to get it. That’s not compelling.”