It hadn't crossed my mind that someone reading the Dylan piece would consider the Ashlee reference a joke. Nothing in the way it's written suggests it's one. My guess is that the Paste readership is a bunch of old stodges (or young stodges); few of whom will have much actual familiarity with Ashlee's work, which won't stop 'em from having opinions, and a lot will dismiss her out of hand; but some will see my reference to her as new information, to take into account, maybe even to the point that they'll realize she's a subject for further research. Also, the Ashlee ref. may well help the smart reader to comprehend that not knowing one's place à la Dylan means something other than sitting in a latter-day Dylan place, and will take this back to Dylan 1965, realize that there was no comfortable Dylan place then, either.

I wouldn't say the piece was either reverent or irreverent. It was too deep inside his skin for that. "Full of hate and wanted to feel good about hating" is problematic, actually, as is "you die out on the street."