About

This blog is curated and designed by Zack Shapiro, a self-proclaimed music fanatic. I currently reside in Boston with my girlfriend, Staci, and our chubby dog, Lola.

Like many bloggers, I started the hotonehundo simply as a way to get myself to write more. The original idea for this blog would be to write about the #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (hence the name) as a writing prompt. I try to write in different ways, though I’m not always successful on that front – I’ll sometimes interject a story or personal experience about my life into my writing, but since I hate writing about myself (it often comes off as too cliche), this blog constantly remains a work in progress. I’m hoping that in the years to come, I can expand my writing style even more.

I’ve been writing standard “album reviews” on Sputnikmusic.com for about six years, and while I found that my reviews often got a lot of attention on Sputnik, the site itself was unreliable (the servers constantly crash), and is too restrictive in what I was able to post about. With a blog, I’m able to write more about the individual songs that matter to me, create lists, post my seasonal playlists, or dig deeper into my listening habits. I still use Sputnik as a way to rate albums on a 1 to 5 scale (nearly 1500 albums rated as of early 2019!), but that’s something I strictly try to avoid doing on this blog. If I do write a formal album review, I’ll often cross-post onto Sputnikmusic, but this site represents my main portfolio of writing.

Besides compulsively listening to and writing about music, I enjoy interjecting quotes from the Simpsons or Spaceballs into otherwise serious conversations, arguing with people about The Beatles, hanging out with friends, watching and playing sports, and pretending to be funnier than I really am.

Requests for reviews or articles are always welcome! I love hearing from people who actively look at my writing – it motivates me to keep going and to try new things. Please reach out, even if it’s just to say “sup.” Thanks for reading!