September 2006 Archives

Wikipedia rocks the free world for many reasons, not the least of which is the following excerpt from the article on Kool-Aid (don't ask why I was reading about Kool-Aid at 10:30AM on a Tuesday):

Kool-Aid was invented by Edwin Perkins in Hastings, Nebraska. Its predecessor was a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack.

A liquid concentrate with "smack" in the title? Fucking awesome.

As last year, LoveParade was an amazing experience and even though I was only there for 5 hours, I feel like it was a much better experience (in some respects, last year's still has its shining moments). There were far more naked men this year. Last year there was a group of four, but this year there were at least ten. What cracked me up was the way everyone seemed to react to them. You'd think that they'd never seen a naked man before. If that was, in fact, the case, I ought to be kicking myself right now for not introducing them to a naked man personally as the vast majority of people staring/pointing/taking pictures (yes, that's right) were ridiculously attractive women.

Next year I hope there are naked women attractive naked women.

All in all, though, a beautiful experience. I recommend everyone goes at least once, if only for an hour. It's free!

That's right, kids. It's time for LoveParade 2006! Actually, it's LoveFest this year to due licensing issues caused by the Berlin-based compnanies that organize LoveParade, but whatever. Same event. It's still 2 days off and I'm already amped. Those of you who like electronic music I highly recommend coming out to the event. Details can be found here, but expect a lot of free dancing to pretty much every genre of electronica known to man starting at around 11AM Saturday and ending 4AM Sunday. Jungle, drums'n'bass, progressive (house|trance|), trance, techno, and so on. Yours truly will be attending as I did last year. I recommend the official after party mostly because there will be more talent under that one roof than in the entirity of the world. Dieselboy, ABove & Beyond, Junkie XL, Oakenfold, DJ Dan, Bad Boy Bill, and more! Those of you interested shoud give me a call.

LoveParade. Gotta love it.

I have experienced a lot of art recently. Some of it new, some of it not so new. To give you all some insight into what I've been doing lately and how I entertain myself, I will catalogue it all here with a short review. Enjoy!

• Crank
  • This "summer blockbuster" had more going for it than spoiled dilettante child's coke habit at a Robert Downy Jr.'s Less Than Zero release party, but it still fell flat on it's face. Marcia blogged on both this film and The Last Kiss (which I'll get to in a moment) and I have to say I agree. A lot of the film seemed like it was written by a high school freshman. It was 2.5 hours of a movie that ought to have been 1.5 hours long. Pretty disappointed with rehashed action scenes, jokes, and the worst most unintentionally convoluted story I've seen in a while. Oh, and Napleon Dynamite's own Efren "Pedro" Ramirez has a supporting role as a dullard gay who gets hanged for no reason.
• The Last Kiss
  • Again, Marcia blogged on this. Since my comment on her post was longer than most of her recent entries combined, I'll repost it here.

    Having watched this fine example of Hollywood afterbirth, I feel I should expound upon certain points ad naseum to further relay to you the complete and total lack of impression this film left on me.

    All things considered, I really think Zach Braff is a talented actor. His work on Scrubs is great. Garden State was an excellent film (although it was about coming to terms with yourself and taking control of your life, which seems to be a character role Braff enjoys playing). And there were scenes in this movie that really came off as though the characters were seriously conflicted. Perhaps that's why I was so disappointed with it.

    The conflict the main characters go through, as Marcia alluded to, centers around Braff's character sleeping with a college student while his pregnant girlfriend thinks he's out with friends. But there's no reason for the conflict. In fact, there's no motivation for Braff's character to even be adulterous.

    The film essentially opens with a monologue by Braff's character stating how much he loves his girlfriend and how great she is and how "...if you were going to settle down, she's the kind of girl you want to settle down with." Poorly worded at best given that this is supposed to convey to us, the viewers, that he is having doubts. Shortly after this intro Braff meets the femme fatale and relays to her that his life no longer has any surprises.

    And that's it. That's why he cheats on his girlfriend and mother of his child. Now, don't get me wrong. I can understand lack of surprises being a reason to freak out. But, it doesn't match up. He hasn't married the girlfriend because it seems "final" yet his willing to have a child with her? He knows how great she is and spent a decent amount of time telling us this. So, why the cheating?

    There's seemingly no motivation for him to be unfaithful other than a few weak monolgues and conversations. Beyond that we're expected to take it on faith that he's feeling trapped. Because of this, it's hard to relate to the character and if one cannot relate to the main character of story, then there really is no reason to tell it.

    Beyond this main "conflict," the secondary characters all seem as though they were considered as an afterthought. One guy, recently dumped by his girlfriend, sees her at a wedding, freaks out, buys a motorhome, and convinces another friend (one afraid of commitment) to drive to South America with him. Neither of these characters show up often and the only reason to have them in the film is, I assume, to physically display the emotional escape Braff's character seeks.

    Another character is married with a son. After dealing with his crying son for 3-5 minutes he decides his marriage is too difficult and he doesn't want to take care of his son so he joins the aforementioned morons on the trip to South America only to give up on them 15 miles into the trip. By both accounts, he is a quitter. Again, I feel he is only there as an physical example of what Braff's character is doing at the point in the film.

    The thing, in it's entirety, is pretty awful. Character motivations are poorly conceived. Every character is given a subplot, most of which are weak. Worst of all, the main plot is based on the premise that Braff is feeling trapped and seeks an escape yet we're offered no insight as to why he feels trapped beyond the few words he offers and the escape, a 20-year-old college student, offers him nothing except sex with someone new. Yet, there are scenes in the film that shine. I feel the younger actresses (Braff's pregnant girlfriend and Affleck's wife) did an incredible job with their roles. Both were extremely well done.

    In the end, it's a wholly unbelieveable story due almost entirely to poor writing which created characters that were difficult, if not impossible, to relate to and in a film that attempts to tap into the minutia of everyday life and exploit it, getting the audience to relate to the characters is the most important thing. I expected more some the screenwriter of Million Dollar Baby who adapted an Italian film.



• Marvels, by Kurt Busiek
  • This four-part graphic novel retells the exploits of various heroes from the Marvel universe (X-Men, Daredevil, Fantastic Four, etc...) from a more human point of view. Phil Sheldon, freelance photographer, chronicles his life and experience taking pictures of various superheroes and the world's reaction to them. An interesting idea that, for me, fell short because of the enormous amount of history I'm missing. Every 4 pages a landmark in Marvel history is introduced. For example, when the Silver Surfer shows up and is followed shortly by Galactus. The story arc this portion of Marvels was based on was created in 1966. This happens frequently and it gets tiring reading 5 pages only to check Wikipedia and read 7 more pages fidning out a hero or villains history.


• Artificial Soldier, Front Line Assembly
  • Excellent album from a classic industrial artist. The last album I purchased, Epitaph, was alright, but had moved in an entirely differnt direction from their earlier works. Apparnetly since the Implode (which I remember seeing in stores and was tempted to buy, but didn't) FLA had been sucking more and more. With Fulber's departure in 1997, this made a lot of sense in FLA had been Fulber and Leeb since 1987 or so. However, Fulber returns for Artificial Soldier and it's obvious he's what the group had been missing. The album returns some classic FLA style while moving forward in composition and an updated sound. Great stuff for stomping around in a dark club.


• <Axis of Evil, Suicide Commando
  • The title track from this album is what got me into Suicide Commando, but it's pretty damn hard to find any electronic music worth listening to in U.S. music stores (and it's hard to justify spending $30 in gas to drive to Amoeba knowing you're going to drop about $150 there anyway). So I bought Mindstrip and while it's a decent album, it just doesn't have the refined sound Axis of Evil does have. Check it for the title track, "Sterbehilfe," and "One Nation Under God (Anti U.S. Mix)." Angry, distored vocals? Check. Industrial minimialist bassline? Check. Danceable beats? Check. As above, totally appropriate for stomping around in circles. Also good for scaring the crap out of yuppies on your way home from work.


• Chimera, Delerium
  • Delerium's popularity skyrocketed in 2000 with the release of a number of remixes of their 1997 track "Silence" which featured vocals by singer/songwriter Sarah McLachlan. Their earlier work is very dark ambient while their work since Karma has been moving slowly more towards a poppier ambient sound. Chimera marks an interesting experiment, at times, for the group (which, oddly enough, is comprised of both Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber of Front Line Assembly). Where the album prior to this release, Poem, had a very worldly sound, one track being sung completely in old Middle English (thanks to Medieval Baebes) and others featuring non-Western instrumentation and arrangements, Chimera is very toned down (also funny is that Conjure One, Fulber's ambient side project, had their first release sound very worldly only to have their second sound very toned down as well).

    Some tracks are reminiscent of Poem while others sound very much like Air's disappointing sophomore and later works or Zero 7's (more on them later) The Garden. It's an interesting album that may have marked a new direction for the band: moving towards the increasingly popular chillout music. The two "chillout" tracks on the album are, however, a bit lackluster and sound calculated. The remaining tracks are Delerium in nature, but also feel calculated. Disappointng fare from a group that has been known for blending genres and experimenting with sounds. Good album, but not great.



• Eyes Open, Snow Patrol
  • Yay for alternative rock! I heard the single "Chasing Cars" on the radio a couple weeks back and though I might check out this groups latest release. The DJ summarized the entire album better than I could saying, "This album is like the perfect mix tape for me to give to Jessica Biel." I don't really think Jessie's all that hot, but it's true. The entire album is a mix tape. There's some really good stuff on here. "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" is another great track. I recommend it, which is saying something since I generally think anything on the radio is great...FOR ME TO POOP ON! Oh, Triumph, how I love thee. Seriously, though, give this stuff a listen.


• Feeling, OBK
  • A friend introduced me to these guys who I can best describe as Spanish depressing synthpop. At least I think it's depressing. My Spanish definitely isn't what it used to be. Honestly, the first time I listened to "A Ras de Suelo" I thought, "Okay. What in the fuck is this?" But by "Amar Siempre Es Sufrir" ("To Love Forever Is To Suffer") I was a fan. Honestly, it's great music to sing along to (if you can pretend you know the words) and totally fun to dance to. If you like synthpop, check it. If you don't like synthpop, check it anyway and tell your friends it's some dense-ass Spanish concept album about Camus' "The Misunderstanding" and people will think you're cultured (which you obviously are not given the simple fact you are reading this blog)>


• Going Somewhere, Colin Hay
  • I know what you're thinking. "Colin Hay has done stuff since Men at Work?" or, more like, "Who are Colin Hay and what's Men at Work? I hate Charlie Sheen movies." Turns out, Hay's enjoyed a successful career since Men at Work broke up. Going Somewhere showcases his talent in a decidedly contemporary adult-genre sort of way. Why would a 24-year-old male listen to adult contemporary? Why not!? I got into Hay after hearing a couple of this songs on the TV show Scrubs. "Beautiful World," "My Brilliant Feat," and "Waiting for My Real Life to Begin" are the awesome tracks on this one. The others...well...it's adult contemporary. Go to a shoe store and listen to the music playing over the speakers. That'll give you a good idea of the rest of the album.


• Les Chansons Neurotiques, Neuroticfish
  • Dumbass band name? Sure, but EBM never sounded so good. Electronic Body Music, or EBM, is what happens when pop music and dance club music have a baby. Great dancing music that you can sing along to. I've follow Neuroticfish for a while. The music is well composed even if it doesn't break new ground for the genre (note: it will sound pretty new to anyone who hasn't listened to any synth-based music other than Depeche Mode). Lyrically it's well done. Good stuff for driving fast and screaming along at the top of your lungs while hoping no one drives alongside you, points, and laughs. Fun!


• No Instruments, Neuroticfish
  • Earlier album by the group that brought you Les Chanson Neurotiques and, in my opinion, the better work. Despite it's being a big more rough around the edges as far as production is concerned, the music here is top-notch. Great composition and lyrics. Took the genre in a bit of a new direction, too, though still not groundbreaking (hard to break ground in style of music where all the subgenres tend to overlap). Features the track "M.F.A.P.L." which, coupled with VNV Nation, Icon of Coil, and some others, got me into synthpop and EBM.


• Nuages du Monde, Deleierum
  • Where Chimera fell short this work picks up. Returning to the decidely more Poem sound, Delerium teamed up with Medieval Baebes and returned to old friends for guest vocals on their tracks. A bit more pop-influenced than Poem, but not such a drastic departure from their core (or, rather, what their core has come to be in the last decade). Big fan of "Extollere" and "Indoctrination." If you enjoy even 5 seconds of any song on this album, buy Poem.


• Simple Things, Zero 7
  • Heralded as Britain's answer to Air's Moon Safari, Zero 7 carve out their own niche. Their single "In the Waiting Line" was featured in Zach Braff's Garden State and the rest of the album holds up to what you'd expect. As deep Air's freshman release, but without the lulling-to-sleep quality nearly every track on that album has, "Simple Things" is chillout for hanging out around the house on a Sunday. Complex composition layer over minimalist beats to produce some down-tempo you can listen to any time.
  
  
  • St. Elsewhere, Gnarls Barkley
    • Right off the bat, fuck you if you're judging me. "Crazy" is a great song and you know it. DJ Dangermouse (of Grey Album fame) and vocalist/hip-hop star Cee-Lo (confidant of Andre 3000) combine their efforts like Voltron to rock your socks off with probably some of the best (what I will call, regardless of whether the genre exists or not) Nu Soul. Characterized by Dangermouse's ability to mix the crap out of anything on wax and Cee-Lo's incredible vocals, this album surprised me. I honetly didn't expect to like anything other than the single, but St. Elsewhere has some solid tracks on it. "Go-Go Gadget Gospel" and "Just a Thought" being two of my favorites. Though it has met harsh criticism from Violent Femme fans, "Gone Daddy Gone" is a great cover, as well. I'm looking forward to future releases from this project.
  
  
  • Standard Issue, Dismantled
    • Meh. That's about it, really. From a guy that set out to replicate Skinny Puppy, Front 242, and Front Line Assembly's sound, he sure sounds a hell of a lot like angst-ridden Pretty Hate Machine-era Trent Reznor. Ironically, the only track I really enjoy, "Breed to Death," is the one frontman Gary Zon wrote to make fun of all the bullshit industrial club music. Other fans have said this album is less-than-perfect and wouldn't make a good entry-level impression to the new listener. Until I can scrounge up a copy of his first release, Dismantled is so-so industrial.
  
  
  • The Coral, The Coral
    • Proof positive you shouldn't buy an album just because you liked a single. "Dreaming of You" is great and fun to sing along with/dance to, but the rest is only so-so. Must listen to it again. Maybe I missed something on the first two tries.
  
  
  • The Garden, Zero 7
    • Their third album to date (I'm going alphabetically by album titles), Zero 7 down plays their chillout roots for a more pop feel. A great album if you try and imagine that all the original members died in a plane crash and this is a completely different group. The minimalist synth that drove Simple Things shows up here as backing the melodies rather than taking center stage. "Throw It All Away" reminds me of driving along 580 on my way to Oakland and is a pretty decent example of just how much their sound changed between their first work and this one. I also enjoyed "This Fine Social Scene." Overall, a great album, but so different from the first (unfortunately) and the second (fortunately) that it's hard to consider it canon.
  
  
  • Transcendental Highway, Colin Hay
    • Far more adult contemporary than Going Somewhere, I really only bought this album for the epically titled "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You." That's not to say Hay is without talent. More that I just don't care for the vast majority of the work on this album. I'll listen to it a few times and, if I don't care for it, I'll put it on the shelf until I'm in my mid-30's with kids, a BBQ, and a polo shirt tucked into my khaki shorts.
  
  
  • When It Falls, Zero 7
    • The band's second release and boy is it a crapfest. Consider this a warning to all chillout groups: release one album, then break up. Air, Groove Armada, and now Zero 7 have all suffered the same terrible luck with their sophmore releases. Rather than playing it safe and making one or even two steps in a new direction, this album seems to leap head first into unknown waters. Muddy composition that seems, at times, patched together with string and wood glue. While not as heart-wrenchingly disappointing as 10,000Hz Legend, When It Falls is lacking something and it shows
  
  
  • White People, Handsome Boy Modeling School
    • Rife with Dan The Automator's obscure references, there is some pretty solid hip-hop on ths album. Tim Meadows reprises his role as the Ladies Man (though he's never actually referred to as this since I'm sure SNL owns that character) on some skits and, of all people, Father Guido Sarducci makes some appearances. "Rock and Roll" is a good track featuring the psuedo-rapper guy from Linkin Park and John Oates (that's right) does guest vocals on "Greatest Mistake." My favorite has got to be "I've Been Thinking" featuring Cat Power (though I dislike her actual solo work). Worth checking out simply for the variety of sound on the album though not as impressive as 1999's So...How's Your Girl?
  
  

  And that's that. Awful lot of interesting music, though some of it was less-than-impressive. Still, I was introduced to some great bands who have earlier releases I can check out. Any suggestions?

These both make me want to cry. I wish I was kidding.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWuJR8VVBek
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwapbmLscYM

I've been seeing a lot of this t-shirt lately:

You know what it says to me? "I Fear Commitment" Maybe, in some circles, this passes for cute and witty. For me, it just makes me want to sell my "Nature's Paperweight" t-shirt design to someone (Tracy, Marcia, you know what I'm talking about).