Howard Wolfson: Political talking head by day, indie rock blogger by night

Sure, everyone knows that NBC's Brian Williams is into Feist, but we were surprised to learn that another (recently) familiar face who covers politics on television also has decent taste in rock music.

Former Hillary Clinton communications director (pictured, left) and current Fox News commentator Howard Wolfson isn't exactly the expected face of an indie rock music blogger. Yet the rising Democratic pundit recently launched a music and politics blog called Gotham Acme, where he has so far explored everything from Brooklyn's buzzing  Grizzly Bear to Barack Obama's recent VP pick.

We talked with Wolfson a few days ago about a number of topics, including his thoughts on the new Hold Steady record (he's not feelin' it), who he is excited to see in Denver this week, his thoughts on Clinton's taste in music and more after the jump ...

Why did you decide to start a blog?

I’ve been an avid reader of music blogs for a long time. The end of the campaign gave me an opportunity to indulge the real passion of my life, which is music.

What blogs do you read on a daily basis?

Brooklyn Vegan, Idolator, Saidthegramaphone, some D.C.-based blogs like informationleafblower.

Any writers in particular you like?

The guys at Saidthegramaphone are great at finding previously unknown music, and I’m impressed with their site.

How often do you see live shows now?

When the campaign ended, I fled the country for a few weeks.  I went to the U.K. I saw a band called Wild Beats who are really good. More recently with my family, I went to Wales to see this unfortunately obscure Welsh band led by this great singer, Julie Murphy.  It’s been incredibly satisfying so far to write about all of this.

How has the traffic and feedback been so far for Gotham Acme?

Traffic has been decent, and I've had good feedback. It’s funny, I’ve gotten a number of e-mails from people who say, "I saw you on TV during the campaign. I’m a big Obama supporter and didn’t appreciate what you were saying, but I like your taste in music and I’m going to read your blog.”

What are you listening to at the moment?

I’m wearing Glasvegas out. I think they’re gonna be the next big thing. I think Grizzly Bear is great.  TV on the Radio is great ... I've seen them a bunch of times in New York. I’m also a big Beirut fan. I just saw the Feelies reunite recently too.

A lot of those artists are from the New York area.  Do you have any love for bands from the Midwest or West Coast?

It’s funny, I always was more of a fan of East Coast music!

But didn’t you go to school in Chicago?  You’re not a Wilco fan?

I was a huge Uncle Tupelo fan, but I’m not a big Wilco fan. I really liked the first Son Volt record, but that’s about it.

What about Liz Phair?

I actually saw her playing in New York recently, and I think it was Greg Kot who wrote a bad review of her Chicago show, but I thought she was good. People liked it here in New York. I was impressed. I also like Sleater-Kinney … they are from the West Coast.

Are any of your political contemporaries into indie rock?

You know who has good taste in music is [former chief media adviser and strategist for the Bush-Cheney campaigns] Mark McKinnon. He is a former musician who was with McCain until very recently. He was McCain’s main guy during the primaries and he is a big music fan. When I was in Austin on business, we went record shopping together.

We have to ask: Is Hillary Clinton into indie rock?

[Laughing] I’m not sure my taste and her taste in music necessarily overlap. I fought a loosing battle to try and get a KT Tunstall song as our official campaign theme. [Editor's note: Céline Dion’s “You and I” was eventually chosen.]

What will the ratio of music posts to political posts be going forward?

I’ll blog mostly about music, but I’ll blog about politics from time to time. I’d say 70/30 music to politics right now. So far, the people who are coming [to the website] are into both music and politics. The notion that somehow, people can’t be passionate about both is silly.

Finally, any shows you are looking forward to seeing in Denver this week?  There seem to be quite a few.

Are Drive by Truckers playing? If so, I'm there.

-- Charlie Amter

Photo courtesy Howard Wolfson/Fox Nexs