Bostonist had the wonderful luck to talk to some big-time talents in all fields this year. And, no, we're not sure how we tricked these people into talking to us. Here's a look back: Authors Diane Rapaport, The Naked Quaker, 11/20 Jonah Lehrer, Proust Was a Neuroscientist, 11/13 John Fulton, The Animal Girl, 10/22 Jonathan Messinger, Dollar Store Series and Hiding Out, 10/9 Shalom Auslander, Foreskin's Lament, 10/9 Steve Almond, Not That You Asked, 9/11......

Tim Blane Gregory Douglass Paradise Lounge Tonight, 9 p.m. doors, 18+, $10 MySpace Boston singer-songwriter Tim Blane isn't just the kind of musician who goes out of his way to talk about his music, he's the kind who will take a phone call when he's enjoying a day off in Florida - on his birthday. He won't mention this to a caller until the interview is already underway and laughs when the secret is revealed.......

Have you played a show in Boston over within the last 18 months? Have you ever crashed on a Boston couch? Do you know someone who did? If so, check out the Boston Music Award nominations. You or they just might be nominated. Listen, we actually enjoy the fact that local musicians are honored once a year through the BMAs. Sure, it's always dominated by the usual suspects (Aerosmith, Dropkick Murphys, Dresden Dolls and, most......

Fans of the local Boston music scene always have an abundance of tunes to be able to check out, given the ever-deepening pool of area talent and multitude of venues. Usually, things work out in the listeners' favor: one can't miss band one night, another the next. But sometimes the fates align themselves and cackle a bit as a potential audience member realizes she can't be two places at once. A musical cagematch emerges, with......

By now you're probably either planning your strategy for Saturday's WBOS EarthFest or figuring out how to avoid Storrow Drive like the plague over the course of the weekend. With predictions of weather in the low 80s and partly cloudy skies, it appears that the folks over at BOS have picked themselves a beaut of a day to devote to free music and environmental friendliness at the Hatch Shell. For EarthFest attendees, it might seem......

Fall seems to have set in, at least for now. the temperatures are dropping and people all over the metro have been forced to put their flip-flops away for some more sensible footwear. At least until it gets warm again in another week. Or so we hope. Music abounds again this week and we're listening. Tuesday, 9/12 Branford Marsalis Quartet Braggtown CD Release Concert Berklee alum Branford Marsalis created Cambridge-based (and Rounder distributed) Marsalis......