# caspian (blogs) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 3 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover caspian. Page: Feed: --- ## [Steve Hackman Brings Radiohead/Brahms Fusion To Ravinia](https://music-defined.com/2026/08/15/steve-hackman-brings-radiohead-brahms-fusion-to-ravinia/) _2026-08-16 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ After living in Chicago for 16 years, I finally made it to Ravinia to see a show. It’s a beautiful venue, with a huge park and sculpture garden on the grounds along with a newly renovated pavilion. A mere 30 minute train ride from my home, I did not envision such a wondrous landscape. And what event lured me all the way up to Ravinia? … ## [DOWNING TOOLS FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST](https://johnhelmer.net/downing-tools-for-the-month-of-august/) _2026-08-02 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with Every year at this time, as certain and regular as the Moscow city administration turns off the central hotwater boilers for cleaning, we close the office, postpone the flow of Dances with Bears, suspend the tweets. But just as surely as Muscovites install electric water heaters for substitutes during the profilaktika (профилактика \[ \] The post DOWNING TOOLS FOR… ## [“IT IS RUSSIA’S TREATY DUTY TO DO FOR IRAN TO DO TO US FORCES WHAT TRUMP HAS TOLD PUTIN TO STOP” — THE TEHRAN TIMES INTERVIEW](https://johnhelmer.net/it-is-russias-treaty-duty-to-do-for-iran-to-do-to-us-forces-what-trump-has-told-putin-to-stop-the-tehran-times-interview/) _2026-08-02 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow, with Sahar Dadjoo, Teheran @bears\_with In an interview and video recorded in Teheran on Wednesday, Sahar Dadjoo asked the questions and these are the answers published on August 1. In focus is the US-guided Ukrainian drone attack on the Iranian cargo vessel Ana in the Caspian Sea which occurred on July 25. \[ \] The post “IT IS RUSSIA’S TREATY DUTY TO DO FOR IRAN TO DO TO US… ## [TRUMP’S BOILING FROG STRATEGY AGAINST PUTIN](https://johnhelmer.net/trumps-boiling-frog-strategy-against-putin/) _2026-08-02 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By Oleg Tsarev, Crimea, introduced by John Helmer @bears\_with The current restrictions imposed by the Trump Administration and NATO on Ukrainian drone and missile strike options against Russia reflect a strategy known as boiling the frog in warm water. This is a strategy of gradual escalation, the timing of which is measured stepwise – so western \[ \] The post TRUMP’S BOILING FROG STRATEGY AGAINST… ## [MICHAEL NEEDHAM – THE WHITE HOUSE HACK TELLS ALL](https://johnhelmer.net/michael-needham-the-white-house-hack-tells-all/) _2026-08-01 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with The appearance this week of an unrecognized man (lead images, top right, bottom 2nd from right) standing next to General Dan Caine and behind Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is a signal that the days of President Donald Trump as peacemaker are \[ \] The post MICHAEL NEEDHAM – THE WHITE HOUSE HACK… ## [JOHN MEARSHEIMER IS TRYING TO KILL RUSSIA WITH KINDESS — SOFT POWER EQUALS HARD HEAD EQUALS WRONGHEAD](https://johnhelmer.net/john-mearsheimer-is-trying-to-kill-russia-with-kindess-soft-power-equals-hard-head-equals-wronghead/) _2026-07-31 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with It doesn’t take much time to compile from the works of John Mearsheimer a file of his mistakes of prediction, miscalculations of US and Ukrainian operations, and strategic misjudgements about the US war against Russia in Europe. And yet, despite the plainness of this record, Mearsheimer is treated as a valuable \[ \] The post JOHN MEARSHEIMER IS TRYING TO KILL… ## [MOSCOW BELIEVES IN SUCCESSION BUT NOT IN TEARS](https://johnhelmer.net/moscow-believes-in-succession-but-not-in-tears/) _2026-07-31 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with As tactics for warfighting against Russia go, drones are a new one, and if measured by Russian public opinion, they are more effective for the time being than old tactics like Alexei Navalny-type operations, or Trojan Horses like Mikhail Khodorkovsky, or Fifth Columnists like Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina and the \[ \] The post MOSCOW BELIEVES IN… ## [THE TRUMP-ZELENSKY ATTACK IN THE CASPIAN SEA IS A PULL ON THE ESCALATION STRING FOR RUSSIA, IRAN, AND CHINA TO MEASURE – THEN WHAT? HERE’S WHAT](https://johnhelmer.net/the-trump-zelensky-attack-in-the-caspian-sea-is-a-pull-on-the-escalation-string-for-russia-iran-and-china-to-measure-then-what-heres-what/) _2026-07-29 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with How long is a piece of string? The recorded history of that question began in a New York newspaper in 1885. At the time and ever since, asking the question implied the answer that there is no limit to the string. The answer in the lead images, a Jeff and Mutt \[ \] The post THE TRUMP-ZELENSKY ATTACK IN THE CASPIAN SEA IS A PULL ON THE ESCALATION STRING FOR RUSSIA,… ## [Post. Fest 2026](https://music-defined.com/2026/07/28/post-fest-2026/) _2026-07-29 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ First and foremost let me say thank you to the organizers of the Post Festival for their hard work getting everything together. We went to the event at Hi-Fi Indy and the Hi-Fi Annex for one day, and it was absolutely wonderful. Not only was the music great, but the venue was clean and welcoming, the other festivalgoers were polite and courteous, and the dang … ## [THE ODYSSEY – WHOSE BLOC IS BUSTED](https://johnhelmer.net/the-odyssey-whose-bloc-is-busted/) _2026-07-26 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with In the wartime succession stories now screening in your neighbourhood – that’s President Donald Trump’s and President Vladimir Putin’s the money does the talking which the special effects on the Imax screen cannot. At the London BFI Imax cinema, the Odyssey film is booked out through its scheduled run from now \[ \] The post THE ODYSSEY – WHOSE BLOC IS BUSTED… ## [8.1% APY Plus Free Stock (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/0A36VVyCBrTJ) _2026-07-26 · **Sponsored**_ Claim 8.1% APY and up to $1,030 in SK hynix and Nvidia stock. ## [TRUMP’S BLAME-RUSSIA ALIBI IS LAUNCHED AS THE BODY BAGS FROM IRAN WAR COME HOME TO VOTE](https://johnhelmer.net/trumps-blame-russia-alibi-is-launched-as-the-body-bags-from-iran-war-come-home-to-vote/) _2026-07-26 · Editor · Dances With Bears_ By John Helmer, Moscow @bears\_with The real reason – that’s to say, the White House election campaign reason – for Marco Rubio’s request to meet Sergei Lavrov in Manila for thirty minutes last week was this. Click to view or listen to the new podcast with Martin Sieff and Pelle Neroth Taylor, Capitals Uncovered Episode 138. \[ \] The post TRUMP’S BLAME-RUSSIA ALIBI IS LAUNCHED AS THE BODY BAGS FROM… ## [The Wilder Flower Coming To SPACE 7/29](https://music-defined.com/2026/07/23/the-wilder-flower-coming-to-space-7-29/) _2026-07-23 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ I haven’t been able to open my phone for over a month without seeing something about Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. So, naturally, my mind has been drifting to my favorite telling of that story, The Coen Brothers’ O Brother Where Art Thou? So it seems to be kismet that I would receive an email about an upcoming show featuring a bluegrass/americana band playing nearby. The … ## [The Post. Festival, July 24-26](https://music-defined.com/2026/07/16/the-post-festival-july-24-26/) _2026-07-16 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ A couple of months ago I bought one-day tickets to The Post. Festival. I was born in Indiana and spent my first 22 years there. Never in that time did anything this cool take place. Three days of music, all in the post-rock/metal genre. I’ll admit, post-rock isn’t my favorite genre. However, looking at the lineup, this fest has managed to collect a whole bunch … ## [Smidley-Capstone](https://music-defined.com/2026/07/02/smidley-capstone/) _2026-07-02 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ I was lucky enough to catch one of the four farewell shows put on by Foxing as they kicked off their indefinite hiatus. I immediately wondered how long it would be until they started releasing music with other projects, and as it turned out, not long at all. Smidley has been the solo project of frontman Connor Murphy for about a decade now. Last week … ## [Margaret Glaspy-That Rose](https://music-defined.com/2026/07/01/margaret-glaspy-that-rose/) _2026-07-01 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ Since it was announced a couple months ago, I’ve been getting more and more excited for the Evanston Folk Festival. A handful of my favorites are playing, including Margaret Glaspy. Her last album, 2023’s Echo The Diamond, landed on my best-of list and I saw her put on a fantastic show at Sleeping Village. She’s back with a new album coming soon. Today she released … ## [Perennial-What’s New On The Beat Scene?](https://music-defined.com/2026/06/17/perennial-whats-new-on-the-beat-scene/) _2026-06-17 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ For the second time in the history of Music.Defined. a New England band has managed to stay off my radar for years despite being right in my wheelhouse. The first, a twee group from Vermont called The Smittens that recommend checking out. And now, Perennial, a fun mod group out of Connecticut. The latter just put out a new single, ahead of a full-length that … ## [The Top 20 Films of the Last 15 Years](https://music-defined.com/2026/06/09/the-top-20-films-of-the-last-15-years/) _2026-06-09 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ We took a trip to the cinema yesterday to see the new Boots Riley film, I Love Boosters. Absolutely terrific movie. One of those rare pieces of entertainment that reminds you just how powerful the medium can be. Below, what I think are the best 20 films to come out since this website started in 2011. As always, limited to one entry per filmmaker. 20. … ## [Wynd-The Shores](https://music-defined.com/2026/06/05/wynd-the-shores/) _2026-06-05 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ It’s impressive what a skilled musician like Morten Larsen can do with a 4-track recorder. When my high school band, Tax Evasion, put together a tape using my dad’s equipment, our cassette was a hissy, garbled mess. Larsen, who performs under the name Wynd, weaves together a dazzling triumph of sound on “The Shores.” It’s a beautifully written song about memory and how it changes … ## [Temp Wishes-Flash Fantasy](https://music-defined.com/2026/05/29/temp-wishes-flash-fantasy/) _2026-05-29 · joshterzino · Music. Defined._ I’ve known the name Josh Chicoine for a long time now. Back in 2008 he co-founded CIMMFest, a movie and music festival that I covered a couple of times. He’s been working in the Chicago area for decades, and he’s back with a new band called Temp Wishes. The members all have a strong Windy City pedigree: Edward Anderson (1900s, Mazes), Colby Starck (Mar Caribe, … ## [Is caviar my story of power?](https://salttraces.substack.com/p/is-caviar-my-story-of-power) _2026-02-03 · Salt Traces · Salt’s Substack_ Ruminations on why we hold on to the caviar in telling the story of the Caspian. ## [Transcript-Driven Stock Discovery (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/5Q2RZxZQbrqh) _2026-02-03 · **Sponsored**_ Ranked, evidence-backed watchlists from indexed executive transcripts for 1–2 quarter horizons ## [Two Pens, Two Shores](https://salttraces.substack.com/p/two-pens-two-shores) _2025-08-25 · Salt Traces · Salt’s Substack_ Gentle comeback to the Caspian from the shore of the Mediterranean