WHAT IS SEMI-TWANG?
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semi-twang: a definition
Main Entry: semi-
Pronunciation: "se-mE, -"mI, -mi
Function: prefix
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin; akin to Old High German sAmi-
half, Greek hEmi-
1 a : precisely half of: (1) : forming a bisection of (2) : being a usually
vertically bisected form of (a specified architectural feature) b : half in
quantity or value : half of or occurring halfway through a specified period of
time
Main Entry: twang
Pronunciation: 'twa[ng]
Function: noun
Etymology: imitative
Date: circa 1553
1 : a harsh quick ringing sound like that of a plucked banjo string
2 a : nasal speech or resonance b : the characteristic speech of a region,
locality, or group of people
3 a : an act of plucking - twangy /'twa[ng]-E/ adjective
Put them
together and what do you get?
Semi-twang: A weekly radio show hosted by me, Paul Hefti; wherein the roots of music are wide-ranging and always growing. These roots include classic country, no depression, Brit-pop, new wave, old wave, blues, folk, bluegrass, soul, jazz, and whatever the heck else I can dig out of the 99 cent bin of your favorite record store.
Your favorite music
Well it just makes you sad.
But you like it 'cause
You feel special that way.
Eef Barzelay of Clem Snide - Your Favorite Music
People worry about kids playing with guns, and teenagers watching violent videos; we are scared that some sort of culture of violence will take over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands-literally thousands-of songs about broken hearts and rejection and pain and misery and loss. The unhappiest people I know, romantically speaking, are the ones who like pop music the most; and I don’t know whether the pop music caused this unhappiness, but I do know they’ve been listening to the sad songs longer than they’ve been living the unhappy lives.
- Nick Hornby - high fidelity (1995)
