Best Fist-Pump Anthems of '08 ... so far.
When listening to a song and I can instantly visualize myself at the concert, pushing through to the front of the crowd, beer in one hand, the other arm vigorously pumping in the air, while screaming the lyrics at the top of my lungs ... this song gets added to my Fist-Pump Anthem playlist. read more
All Tomorrow's Parties 2008: Day 3
[Above: His Holiness Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine]A new flyer went up around Kutsher's late on the second day of All Tomorrow's Parties' New York debut. Earplugs would be available, for free and in large quantities, for everyone. Smart people (like me) had already brought their own: the unofficial reports from My Bloody Valentine's London shows was that they were reaching 132 decibels during their set, which is just slightly softer than a jet taking off.... read more
The Story of the 2008 Presidential Election in Song: A Playlist (Part 1)
In honor of this Friday night's presidential debate between John McCain and Barack Obama (the first of three)—and my obsession with politics as full-contact sport—I've compiled the following playlist to tell the story of the 2008 election so far. Whether you're red, blue, independent or other, enjoy.Part I: The Primaries “Changes” - David Bowie The Thin White Duke sings about what us young (and old) Americans want in Washington this year. ... read more
The Story of the 2008 Presidential Election in Song: A Playlist (Part 2)
Part 2: The Conventions/The General Election Begins “Nearly Lost You” - The Screaming Trees A blistering grunge-rock anthem for the almost-barred Michigan and Florida delegates, who—after much heated debate—were finally seated at the Democratic National Convention. Nearly lost you - Screaming Trees... read more
The Story of the 2008 Presidential Election in Song: A Playlist (Parts 3-5)
Part 3: The Media “You’re The Best” - Joe Esposito CNN claims it’s got “The Best Political Team on Television,” while Fox News claims it’s got “The Best Political Team Ever.” With slogans this superlative, how come the coverage sucks so bad? Youre the Best Around - Joe Esposito... read more
David Byrne - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheatre - 9/20/08
Photos taken at Chastain Park Amphitheatre by Jordan Warren.... read more
All Tomorrow's Parties 2008: Day 2
[Above: Thee Silver Mt. Zion]Day 2 of ATP began with a scare: there was a rumor, spread over Blackberries and touch-and-go Internet access, that Kutsher's and the surrounding Catskills hotels near the festival site had severe bedbugs infestations. It was hard to determine which was scarier: the idea of carrying bedbugs back to our homes, or standing too close to the stage during Les Savy Fav's set.... read more
TV Detail: Fringe review. Episode 3—The Ghost Network
Fox has paired its new show Fringe on Tuesday nights with House, and each show's best character is a somewhat misanthropic doctor. Both are played by foreign actors—Dr. House by Englishman Hugh Laurie and Dr. Bishop by Australian John Noble. Laurie's character is among the surliest anti-heroes on TV since E.R.'s Dr. Rocket Romano was abusing everyone he came in contact with. His bedside manner can best be summed up by words like "mocking," "cruel" and "uncaring." But even he never implanted human test subjects' blood with a metallic compound that would years later intercept transmissions through a biological communications... read more
Fantastic Fest - Day Two - Pig with Rice, Not Lipstick
Tim League of the Alamo Drafthouse joyfully serves as ringleader of the festival. If he's not introducing a film he's out in the lobby chatting with fans and filmmakers. Inspired by the world premiere of Seventh Moon League came strolling into the theater as a Chinese monk and blessed the film with sacred incense in one hand and a can of Foster's in the other. Accompanying him was a roast pig. A real roasted pig, similar to what was seen in the film. Director Eduardo Sanchez (The Blair Witch Project) and much of the cast, including the beautiful Amy Smart (Road Trip,... read more
Birdmonster tour diary - Well, sure. But I still love The Secret of N.I.M.H..
I'm always conflicted before a long tour. While most of me is overjoyed at the prospect of trundling across America with my three closest friends, playing music nightly, and clogging our arteries with all manner of regional grease, there's that other part that hyperventilates over the loose ends and responsibilities I'm leaving behind. Have I saved enough money for rent? Why hasn't my absentee ballot come? Should I get that fungal bloom behind my ear checked out? These are the important issues.And so I began the perfunctory week-before-tour last Friday. Uncharacteristically, I'd made a list of to-do's, a two page... read more
Gary Louris and Mark Olson perform at Americana Music fest
More of Louris meeting Olson As a general rule, in latter-day Jayhawks lineage Mark Olson has been the one playing stripped down, loose-limbed shows, while Gary Louris has hewed closer to pop hooks and full-band polish. And they’ve each done it without the other. But recently, they’ve dipped their toes into writing and playing together, and their new part-acoustic, part-ragged folk-rock duo album, Ready for the Flood, will soon be out overseas. Which means European audiences are getting a tour promoting the new album, while we have slim pickings on this side of the pond. (That will be remedied in... read more
Where Is The Prog Love?
It's gotta be the shimmering robes. Once again the Prog wing (Yes, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Genesis, Jethro Tull, and if we're feeling rationally self-interested, Rush) has been snubbed by the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame.Granted, Rick Wakeman (the keyboard player for Yes pictured here) is the poster child for Modern Elfwear, not for the snarling adolescent rebellion for which rock 'n roll is known and loved. And yes, it's hard to imagine Galadriel and the Hellcats. But still ... those bands made a lot of great albums and played a lot of great shows. No, really. And it's... read more
Fantastic Fest - Day One - Kevin Smith brings porno
Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) cast their porn filmTake the nation's greatest movie house--THE Alamo Drafthouse in Austin--and then host films centered around the unusual, the horrifying, the outrageous, the unloved, the unexpected, the futuristic, the disturbing and the demented and you have the ingredients for a unique film watching experience. And that, my friends and fanboys, is Fantastic Fest!ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNOKevin Smith's new film Zack and Miri Make A Porno may not be your typical Fantastic Fest film but I gotta say that as an opening film it was a pretty fantastic idea. My... read more
TV Detail: Heroes Review. Season 3 Premiere "Villains"
Heroes looked to put its sophomore slump behind it and return to its first season greatness last night. Aside from last year’s additions of Maya (Dania Ramzírez) and Elle (Kristen Bell), it also looked like a return to the original cast and, to some extent, the original plot (save the planet from a future giant explosion). Despite the fact that the first half of the new season is called “Villains,” the two episodes that aired back-to-back last night, “The Second Coming” and “The Butterfly Effect” relied on Sylar as the bad guy until the jailbreak towards the end.But even with... read more
Rhymes With Five: Most confusing moments of the 60th Emmy Awards
I watched last night's Emmy Awards ceremony while unpacking from a weekend out of town, and only then because there were no Law & Order SVU re-runs on. (It's another story for another day, but man, I love unpacking in the company of Benson and Stabler, et al. Something about that particular brand of completely predictable yet oh so compelling melodrama really helps one unwind from a long drive and focus the mind on eliminating that strange stale/rotten smell that cropped up over the long weekend.) Occasionally, something would rise above the droning mess of forced jokes and awkward... read more
Indie Roundup - Querulous Barking Edition
I’m a guy who likes idiosyncratic - some would say bad - singing. Tom Waits and Bob Dylan are my heroes. But even I have my limits. These three indie bands push me to the brink. None of the albums are horrid, and all of them have their moments of inspired creativity. But oh, those voices. ... read more
All Tomorrow's Parties 2008: Day 1
[Above: The Meat Puppets]Two firsts are happening simultaneously at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival this year: it not only marks the return of My Bloody Valentine to the United States, but it also mark's the first East coast festival for the UK based ATP, who has previously staged festivals in both London and Los Angeles. MBV is headlining the final night of the three-day, all-indoor festival, which kicked off with ATP's "Don't Look Back."... read more
TV Detail: True Blood review. Episode 3—Mine
In the second episode of True Blood, our hero Sookie (Anna Paquin) was visiting her friend Bill the Vampire’s house at night. The show ended with a trio of vampires greeting her at the door, baring their fangs and looking ready to bite. I was all prepared for Episode Three to open with Sookie holding her ground and the vampires having a good laugh and backing off. In other words, I expected them to be wicked, but much more complicated than just pure evil. I was hoping the story would once again mess with stereotypes and reveal nuance and complexity.... read more
Front to back, and a little bit more: Ben Folds Five reunites in Chapel Hill
One song into Ben Folds Five's first show in eight years, the regrets were already pooling up. "If I'd known about this gig, I'd have sequenced the album differently," Folds heaved, grabbing for a water bottle as the last notes of "Narcolepsy" were swallowed by the crowd's applause. Fair enough: The song works beautifully as the opener of The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner, the band's last album, which they played in its entirety last night at UNC Chapel Hill's Memorial Hall at the behest of MySpace and for the benefit of Operation Smile. But in terms of ideal set-list... read more
Plant & Krauss, Joan Baez, more win at Americana Awards
[Above: Alison Krauss and Robert Plant]Alison Krauss & Robert Plant—the roots-music queen and the former Led Zep banshee—pulled down Album of the Year and Duo/Group of the Year honors Thursday night at the Americana Music Awards, a loose and congenial affair held at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, the so-called “mother church of country music.”... read more
The 50 Best Movies on Netflix Instant
The 25 Best Movies of 2012 (So…
The 50 Best Movies of 2011
The 30 Best TV Shows on Netflix…
The 50 Best Movies of the Decade…
