Like “Beyond (Don) Delillo”
@cbiondolillo.bsky.social
Artist & author; government auditor (really); reluctant rural hermit; really into travel, vultures, diagrams, kdramas, fiber, photography, and my doggo.
At least I don’t have to post *my* (ukulele) cover of FinD, now.
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoMARCH SADNESS 90S EDITION ROUND 2 DAY 2 FINAL SCORES ALANIS MORISSETTE 89, Bonnie Raitt 82 BEN FOLDS FIVE 187, Mazzy Star 178 COLLECTIVE SOUL 168, Des’ree 142 BUSH 148, Paula Cole 109 Today’s games just tipped off at marchxness.com
In The Little Prince, the pilot says, “it is such a secret place, the land of tears.” We’ve tried valiantly in @marchxness.bsky.social to open that place up to one another. Mazzy was never up once that I saw, all day, by even one vote. But I appreciate everyone who voted & sent notes or messages.
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoMARCH SADNESS 90S EDITION ROUND 2 DAY 2 SCORES, 120 minutes to go (yeah) in some VERY tight games: Bonnie Raitt 74, Alanis Morissette 72 Ben Folds Five 177, Mazzy Star 155 Collective Soul 118, Des’ree 115 Bush 136, Paula Cole 88 120’ to go; vote by 9am AZ time Friday the 13th at marchxness.com
These games! I am giving up the ghost on my Paula Cole essay, and want to encourage you all to go vote for @cbiondolillo.bsky.social & MAZZY STAR!!!
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoMARCH SADNESS 90S EDITION ROUND 2 DAY 2 SCORES, 120 minutes to go (yeah) in some VERY tight games: Bonnie Raitt 74, Alanis Morissette 72 Ben Folds Five 177, Mazzy Star 155 Collective Soul 118, Des’ree 115 Bush 136, Paula Cole 88 120’ to go; vote by 9am AZ time Friday the 13th at marchxness.com
Collective Soul & I have pulled ahead but we're getting serious pushback from Des'ree & could still use your vote! VOTE Collective Soul "The World I Know" by NOON ET!! marchxness.com#/2ndround-co... (And while you're at it, vote Mazzy Star / @cbiondolillo.bsky.social too!) @marchxness.bsky.social
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoMARCH SADNESS 90S EDITION ROUND 2 DAY 2 SCORES, 120 minutes to go (yeah) in some VERY tight games: Bonnie Raitt 74, Alanis Morissette 72 Ben Folds Five 177, Mazzy Star 155 Collective Soul 118, Des’ree 115 Bush 136, Paula Cole 88 120’ to go; vote by 9am AZ time Friday the 13th at marchxness.com
A little levity amidst all the sadness is not a bad thing.
Ander Monson@angermonsoon.bsky.social · 7mo agoSuper good matchup in late-night @marchxness.bsky.social action. I don't find either of these songs particularly sad, and think both essays are BANGERS. I kinda hate Bush but I like Thayer. That @erindorney.bsky.social's essay is funnier too, it got my vote: marchxness.com#/2ndround-co...
The last paper Chris drafted was supposed to be an astrophysics primer. He told me I’d inspired him to revise the title to smth “whimsical.” I never got a copy, but he sent pics of the front page and first footnote. It remains unpublished. @marchxness.bsky.social marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
For the @marchxness.bsky.social crowd. I was going to save this fun toy for later, but I am pretty wrung out by the ratio, so here you go (headphones on and it's better on a full screen): www.alancowen.com/music
Emotions Evoked by Music Across Cultures — Mapping Emotion
Central to the meaning of music are the subjective experiences it evokes. We examined the feelings evoked by music in both the US and China. We discovered that music evokes 13 kinds of subjective expe...
alancowen.com
Like sketching a falling star just before it burns out, @cbiondolillo.bsky.social captures the intoxication of new love and the devastation of loss. Beautiful and absolutely gutting @marchxness.bsky.social essay on Mazzy Star (and the Little Prince and Chris). marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Vote Mazzy!
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Jen Borkowski@jenmaicha.bsky.social · 7mo agoYour Mazzy essay was fantastic! Really wonderful job braiding together so many strands, to cradle a very particular sadness 🖤
i am still sobbing (sobbing & posting) on my couch after reading this beautiful essay by @cbiondolillo.bsky.social —vote mazzy!
Like “Beyond (Don) Delillo”@cbiondolillo.bsky.social · 7mo agoIt would’ve been a lot cooler if my round two @marchxness.bsky.social game had been on the 13th (the date of our hello) instead of the 12th (the goodbye we didn’t even get). Chris and Mazzy can’t seem to pull ahead (so far). I hope that changes soon! marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
Mazzy is falling behind, and I’m torn between wanting to continue to try—to do all I can, and also wanting to look away because I can’t bear it. Even though we are supposed to vote “which is sadder” —this essay losing doesn’t mean my grief wasn’t griefy enough. @marchxness.bsky.social
Katie Moulton@kjmoulton.bsky.social · 7mo agotbh i put off reading @cbiondolillo.bsky.social on mazzy star bc i knew how hard it would hit. "In science, specifics are required for any story. Sometimes it can take thousands of people to tell an incredibly short story, because of how much can happen in the proverbial blink of an eye."
"If you could choose how to spend your last year, would you pick falling in love?" @cbiondolillo.bsky.social on Mazzy Star. on love. on everything. marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Been a rough 1st half for me & Collective Soul & our backs are against the wall...but in the words of Ed Roland, "you don't know what good feels like until you feel bad." We're gonna regroup at half & come out ready to go! Plenty of time to READ & VOTE COLLECTIVE SOUL! marchxness.com#/2ndround-co...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Raitt's sad. But, she said, in dramatic, I'm voting for the more wrenching @marchxness.bsky.social essay. @lelascottmacneil.bsky.social & a complicated Alanis: "I told myself I needed nothing, but it wasn’t true & I’m grateful I don’t listen to that voice anymore." marchxness.com#/2ndround-mo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Down by two. Two! 💔 Vote for Flowers! @marchxness.bsky.social marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo... Anyway. Here are some memorial flowers, even though it’s only March.
Like “Beyond (Don) Delillo”@cbiondolillo.bsky.social · 7mo agoInstead of razzing or obsessing over the scores in some (unfortunately unpredicted!) transference of grief, I bought Chris’s flowers a day early and will draw them. Tomorrow could’ve been happy month 20! but will be instead sad month 8. marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo... @marchxness.bsky.social
I had Mazzy going deep in my bracket, BEFORE i read @cbiondolillo.bsky.social's essay, and now...I can't get more sad about a song and someone's story than this right now. I wanna see them in the finals. marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
If you're in the mood for a good cry, and I mean a GOOD cry...read this essay on Mazzy Star by @cbiondolillo.bsky.social . I'd love to see it get some more votes marchxness.com/2ndround-fol...
3/12, 2nd Round: (6) Ben Folds Five vs (14) Mazzy Star — March Sadness 90s Edition
marchxness.com
Instead of razzing or obsessing over the scores in some (unfortunately unpredicted!) transference of grief, I bought Chris’s flowers a day early and will draw them. Tomorrow could’ve been happy month 20! but will be instead sad month 8. marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo... @marchxness.bsky.social
Erin Dorney@erindorney.bsky.social · 7mo agoIt's time for "So many of the people I’ve shared this story with have heard, seemingly, a different song." vs "He read my book cover to cover between our first and second dates." @marchxness.bsky.social
With Mazzy down allll day so far, this is normally the point of Xness wherein I’d start (good-naturedly!) razzing my opponent. But even though I don’t like Brick, I can’t fault Cecily’s essay. marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo... I don’t know how else to campaign for the sadness of lost possibilities.💔💔
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoGot some big second-rounders today tipping off! Games are live. Will the Cinderella stories continue for Des'ree and Mazzy? Cole vs Bush is a coin flip. Will a pissed-off Morissette take down Bonnie Raitt? You decide. Games on now at marchxness.com. Vote by 9am AZ time 3/13
It would’ve been a lot cooler if my round two @marchxness.bsky.social game had been on the 13th (the date of our hello) instead of the 12th (the goodbye we didn’t even get). Chris and Mazzy can’t seem to pull ahead (so far). I hope that changes soon! marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
I'm 100% CollSoul this @marchxness.bsky.social round. Romeo+Juliet is a kind of sad (frustrating kind, to my old lady mind) and Emily makes a good case for Des'ree's wailing. But I could use the sliver of redemption Jam offers in that dove & personal coda of sobriety. marchxness.com#/2ndround-co...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
I linked this playlist in my @marchxness.bsky.social essay on Mazzy Star, but here it is directly: open.spotify.com/playlist/0Yd... The one contribution I was allowed at Chris' Celebration of Life (organized by his ex-wife) was to play this in the background. It's a mix of his faves & songs abt him.
en memoriam
open.spotify.com
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoGot some big second-rounders today tipping off! Games are live. Will the Cinderella stories continue for Des'ree and Mazzy? Cole vs Bush is a coin flip. Will a pissed-off Morissette take down Bonnie Raitt? You decide. Games on now at marchxness.com. Vote by 9am AZ time 3/13
It’s time for space time and stars and exactly one year of love. Thank you for reading. @marchxness.bsky.social marchxness.com#/2ndround-fo...
March Sadness 90s Edition
A yearly March Madness-style tournament of essays about songs we love (and occasionally loathe)
marchxness.com
Erin Dorney@erindorney.bsky.social · 7mo agoIt's time for "So many of the people I’ve shared this story with have heard, seemingly, a different song." vs "He read my book cover to cover between our first and second dates." @marchxness.bsky.social
Even though (my) ghost (and all time fave @kristinhersh.bsky.social) is getting my vote again, @aesb.bsky.social is making it tough. B&S “understood just how delicious melancholy was, and how the place of sadness was always better as a place you built in your mind.” Yes! @marchxness.bsky.social
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoNo rest for the dismal! Round 2 games are tipped off! We have Celine vs REM, Gill vs Loeb, Belle vs Hersh, and Sade vs No Doubt on today's slate. Read, listen, vote by 9am AZ time 3/12 at marchxness.com (and get in your votes on today's games in the next 83')
I was and I do know it! #thesadness #theglasses
Austin Grossman@grossman.bsky.social · 7mo agoMaybe Lisa Loeb *wasn't* all that sad in the 1990s, wearing those tortoiseshell glasses in Ethan Hawke's enormous SoHo apartment. But YOU were, and you know it! #marchxness #marchsadness marchxness.com/2ndround-gil...
I would like to reiterate that country is not my jam (with exceptions). But damnit @mossyair.bsky.social “grief is the price we pay for love”—did I already pull that quote? It bears repeating! Sometimes grief is our only evidence of love. (NB: My fave poem says it, “the wages of dying is love.”)
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoNo rest for the dismal! Round 2 games are tipped off! We have Celine vs REM, Gill vs Loeb, Belle vs Hersh, and Sade vs No Doubt on today's slate. Read, listen, vote by 9am AZ time 3/12 at marchxness.com (and get in your votes on today's games in the next 83')
Because of my own essay, this @marchxness.bsky.social has been particularly weird—like I’m repping a song & a person & a relationship. The latter two being gone. So sometimes I cast a vote for Chris. Tonight it’s for his absolute favorite band, REM, and “It’s crazy what we could have had.”
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoNo rest for the dismal! Round 2 games are tipped off! We have Celine vs REM, Gill vs Loeb, Belle vs Hersh, and Sade vs No Doubt on today's slate. Read, listen, vote by 9am AZ time 3/12 at marchxness.com (and get in your votes on today's games in the next 83')
Round 2 of @marchxness.bsky.social is seriously no rest (for those of us wickedly skipping Aristotle homework). We’ve got @mfitejohnson.bsky.social making it tough with lines like “We know it will hurt, but the hurting reminds us we’re still here” summing up so much of what I love about sad songs.
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 7mo agoNo rest for the dismal! Round 2 games are tipped off! We have Celine vs REM, Gill vs Loeb, Belle vs Hersh, and Sade vs No Doubt on today's slate. Read, listen, vote by 9am AZ time 3/12 at marchxness.com (and get in your votes on today's games in the next 83')
I didn’t have time today, what with day job, philosophy class, and moving prep… BUT, I got my votes in before the buzzer! <yawn> amazing round one, everyone. So much sublime sadness and vulnerability in so many of the essays.
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 8mo agoMARCH SADNESS 90S EDITION DAY 7 FINAL SCORES WILCO 164, Tori 137 CRANBERRIES 110, Cat Power 68 GRANDPABOY 94, Clapton 60 NIRVANA 118, Sinead 116 Last day of the first round games just went live! Vote by 9am 3/11 at marchxness.com
Even though Last Day is a key track in my personal "sad bastard singalong" playlist (actual name), Gravley's @marchxness.bsky.social makes a harrowing and convincing case for the stakes of the sadness in Nirvana's Sappy.
March Xmas 2026@marchxness.bsky.social · 8mo agoRound 1, round 1, round 1, I'm beggin of you please don't take my man Listen, read, VOTE! marchxness.com#/1stround-ni...
