Fuzzy Thoughts

Moving on...

2007-01-01T16:57:00.000-06:00

Yes, I've finally moved... the new site is going to be tweaked continuously, but it's up and running. Check it out at the following link and be sure to change your favorites and RSS feeds so that they correspond with the new address!

http://fuzzythoughts.wordpress.com

Best Music of 2006: Part II (The Top 25 Albums of the Year)

2006-12-21T18:54:00.000-06:00

25. Sound Team "Movie Monster"
This is an album that will most likely require a few listens before it all finally comes together, but when it does, it's really quite an experience. They definitely have more of a swagger live (not to mention rock harder than this album would leave you to believe), but that's not really the point of this particular album-- it's all in the subtleties. While it will take another solid release for me to make an official announcement, Sound Team is well on their way to being the next big Austin-based indie rock sensation.

24. Murs & 9th Wonder Murray's Revenge
Unfortunately, this album will probably be overlooked by most, but this is yet another great collaboration between Murs and 9th Wonder. While certainly not as good as 2004's 3:16 The 9th Edition, Murs & 9th Wonder are still tight as ever. If this album suffers from anything, it's that it's too short, clocking in at just over a half hour. Even if you're not necessarily a hip-hop fan, this is an album well worth checking out.

23. J Dilla/Jay Dee Donuts
If nothing else, J Dilla certainly went out on a high note with his posthumous release Donuts solidifying his status as being one of the best DJ's/producers around. It's a shame though that he would only be so widely publicized after his untimely death earlier this year, because J Dilla was a true talent in every sense.

22. Herbert Scale
Scale emerges as being one of the most provocative listens in quite awhile, particularly in the electronic genre. From beginning to end Herbert presents something that is truly unique while staying true to his eclectic trademarks. Particular highlights are the well-orchestrated opener "Something Isn't Right" and "Moving Like a Train." It may not be the best pick for a dance party, but Scale is definitely the album to get for your chillout moments.

21. Pearl Jam Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is the perfect example of what a highly talented veteran band can accomplish once they're completely refreshed and motivated to complete a project. This is the most inspired sound Pearl Jam has produced in years and somehow, they avoid any kind of formula on this album. If nothing else, Pearl Jam is solid through and through and offers up some of the best rock moments of 2006.

20. M. Ward Post-War
While M. Ward has been making quality albums on his own for some time now, Post-War is surely his most assured album yet, which can be seen particularly on songs like "Chinese Translation," and the title track. Moreover, M. Ward also throws in anthemic tunes like "To Go Home" and the ridiculously addicting "Magic Trick" (which features My Morning Jacket's frontman Jim James). Whether quiet or loud, M. Ward's latest is good at the very least no matter what.

19. Wolfmother Wolfmother
Like the opening shriek on their eponymous album, Wolfmother came to America with a bang-- and just in case you didn't hear them the first couple times via the festival stops and the "Love Train" iPod ads, they've been hard at work touring since. Nothing on here is particularly original (but these days, what is?), but they perform with a bravado that hasn't been seen since five plus years ago-- at least not this convincingly. At the very least that you'll get a huge kick out of listening to this album, especially when it comes to tunes like "Dimension," "Woman," and "Apple Tree."

18. Belle & Sebastian The Life Pursuit
Belle & Sebastian has been making catchy albums like this for so long, it's difficult to remember when these guys weren't good. Effortlessly delivering songs such as "The Blues are Still Blue" and the Motown-tinged "Funny Little Frog," The Life Pursuit manages to be all over the place without ever coming off as being totally unfocused or overwhelming. Instead it plays into the band's strength of their musical dexterity. It's not their best album, but it's definitely one that should be in heavy rotation.

17. Ghostface Killah Fishscale
Easily one of the best hip-hop albums of the year, and at its best, shows exactly why Ghostface Killah should be considered one of the best artists around right now, if not the most consistent. The only thing that prevented me from putting this album any higher is the fact that there's a bit too much filler that bog down an otherwise outstanding hip-hop album. That being said, there are too many highlights to mention, as Ghostface definitely kicks the energy up a few notches when he really does put out like on "Shakey Dog" and "Be Easy." Highly recommended.

16. Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium
As much as I loved both Californication and to a lesser extent By The Way, I really missed the rowdy Red Hot Chili Peppers of old. Here, on their two-disc effort, they combine the best of both worlds, providing lots of funky rollicking tunes that would satisfy any older Chili Pepper fan, while also having a number of ballads that have become the standard for newer albums. Yes, it's a mess like nearly all double-albums, but there are way too many good tracks on this album for it to be ignored.

15. Lupe Fiasco Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor
If it isn't difficult enough to have as much hype going into your debut as Lupe did, imagine having to overcome various internet leaks of your works to boot. Frustrated, Fiasco then retooled the album, wanting to provide his audience with a fresh perspective that would also lessen the demand for bootlegs. What turned into an incredibly tedious waiting period for all fans quickly turned into one of the few albums in recent memory that was well worth the delayed waiting time. As his hit single "Kick, Push" (which is centered around the life of skateboarding) would indicate, Lupe is hardly your typical rapper, and that's a very good thing. Careful narratives and thought-provoking works are the name of the game here, and there's lots of inspiration to go with it.

14. Beth Orton Comfort of Strangers
Beth Orton's latest is surely the best album of her career. She's always displayed immense
talent, but not until this album had she showed such consistency. Centered around the summery single "Conceived." Orton's Comfort of Strangers is folky pop at it's absolute finest-- and for the die-hard Orton fan, be sure to opt for the special edition of this release which features a bonus disc full of worthwhile b-sides and demos.

13. The Hold Steady Boys and Girls in America
The world's greatest party band is at it again, and this time they've got even beefier lyrics to back up the riff-heavy instrumentals. No longer occupied with only sharing seemingly off-the-cuff observations about killer parties or shady friends, Craig Finn's vocals this time around are fully developed stories that often fringe upon becoming metaphor, and this album is a lot more fun to boot. The breakthrough album of The Hold Steady's short career, I'm betting their next album will be even better.

12. Mylo Destroy Rock & Roll
Who knew so much could be done on an old Mac computer? Mylo's Destroy Rock & Roll is this year's LCD Soundsystem, an electronic album that not only changes the way we think of the genre, but also remains accessible enough to those that fall outside of the core audience. Shamelessly blending 80's pop with more typical electronic beats, Destroy Rock & Roll feels a bit like a trip down memory lane. By far, this is the best electronic album to come out this year.

11. Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere
And I thought that DangerDoom would be as good as it gets. While "Crazy" is the song that gets all the attention, it's songs like "Go Go Gadget Gospel," "Smiley Faces," "The Last Time" and Violent Femmes' cover "Gone Daddy Gone" that really make St. Elsewhere shine. If I had to wish for anything on this album, it would've been interesting to see what would 've happened if Cee-Lo offered a bit more in the rap department besides the abbreviated "Feng Shui," but that just gives me something to look forward to when their second album comes out.

10. The Rapture Pieces of People We Love
"People don't dance no more, they just stand there like this. They fold their arms and stare you down and drink and moan and diss." These are the words spoken at the end of the delightful "Woo! Alright Yeah... Uh Huh," and reflect the consistent wry bravado that's exhibited by The Rapture throughout the album. Unlike Echoes, Pieces of People We Love is much more refined dance rock, and that's a very good thing. Songs like "Don Gon Do It," "Get Myself Into It" and "The Devil" are all examples at how far the Rapture have come sonically. Easily one of the most fun albums to come out this year.

9. Phoenix It's Never Been Like That
From the dance floor to the rock hall, Phoenix has finally come to releasing not only their most fully realized album, but also the first album that plays to all their strengths. As always, their singles are superb ("Consolation Prizes" and "Long Distance Call"), but it's on songs like "One Time Too Many," "Lost and Found," and most notably, "Sometimes in the Fall" that Phoenix shows that they are in fact a band capable of doing a lot more than noteworthy singles. It's Never Been Like That is easily one of my personal favorites of the year.

8. The Flaming Lips At War With the Mystics
Nothing can really prepare a person for a new Flaming Lips album. As a matter of fact, the only thing anyone can count on is that it will almost certainly be strange in one way or another. Perhaps it's excess, but At War With the Mystics is a beautiful album that takes time to allow for the band to develop each of the songs to the point that they all flow effortlessly within each other. While not the ideal concept album that Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots was, At War With the Mystics still offers a lot to love.

7. TV on the Radio Return to Cookie Mountain
Much like their debut album, Return to Cookie Mountain is an acquired taste that takes a number of listens before you really begin to fully appreciate what these guys have done. While they probably just could've rehashed what they did last time around, they've seriously pushed the envelope and kicked their musical aspirations up another notch this time around, something that holds true even for their single "Wolf Like Me." Hauntingly beautiful, TV on the Radio proves to be among the best once again.

6. Yo La Tengo I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
Yo La Tengo's latest is such a sprawling masterpiece, that it's hard to know even where to begin. Both their eleven minute opening and closing tracks are outstanding, as are their addictive pop pieces like their Belle & Sebastian-esque "Mr. Tough," "Beanbag Chair," and the quieter "Sometimes I Don't Get You." Who knew Yo La Tengo could kick ass so effectively?

5. Spank Rock YoYoYoYoYoYo
From the moment I first heard "Backyard Betty," I knew this Baltimore-area duo was something special. Upping the ante from British acts such as the Streets and Dizzee Rascal, Spank Rock presents a hip-hop that is built around a mosh-posh production filled with video game effects and gritty beats to create a sound that is unmistakably original. To make it all the more effective, the witty humor of the rhymes, especially on "Sweet Talk," make the album even more fun to listen to. It's not all fun and games though, as "Bump" shows off the lyrical skills that Spank Rock provide.

4. My Chemical Romance The Black Parade
I'm still amazed to this day by the leap this band took from their previous effort. In addition, I'm still surprised by how good The Black Parade is from beginning to end-- whether it be quiet or loud, fast or slow, there is certainly no dead weight here. Songs like "Teenagers" and "Mama" shine as My Chemical Romance has really upped the ante this time around.

3. Muse Black Holes and Revelations
Muse has been one of those bands that has always had the pieces in place, but have never been able to click on all cylinders long enough to create the masterpiece they're capable of. Finally, on Black Holes and Revelations, they've done just that, and it just so happens to be good enough to easily be among the top albums of the year. The influence of 80's rock is a lot more heavy-handed on this album than it has been previously, but it helps in generating the darker tone that the album attains. Always having a flair for the dramatic, Muse now also has the musicality to back it up.

2. The Roots Game Theory
Game Theory is not only the darkest album the Roots have ever made, but it's also their most pertinent. Black Thoughts rhymes are as tight as ever, and Malik B. is finally back on a few tracks as well to provide even more hard-hitting lyrics. ?uestlove and the rest of the band are as tight as ever, collectively stirring the listener into a paranoid musical universe that hasn't been uncovered in quite some time (if ever). If you're one of the many that are tired of the trivialized cliché most hip-hop has become, do yourself the favor of at least buying this one album and immerse yourself in the smartest hip-hop act around.

1. Bob Dylan Modern Times
Accusations of plagiarism notwithstanding, Modern Times is yet another incredible achievement in Bob Dylan's epic career. Love him or hate him, there's no denying his ability as not only a songwriter, but a storyteller. Even with his raspier-than-ever voice there is still so much beauty to be had in his songs that you can easily forgive it and Dylan and his backing bands musicianship has certainly not lost a single step either over the course of time. It may not necessarily stand out as being the best album this year, but you'd be hard pressed to think of a good reason for it not to be.

Best Music of 2006: Part I

2006-12-20T23:49:00.000-06:00

As usual, since it is coming up to the end of the year, I've finally come up with my top 25 albums of 2006, along with a few other lists for your enjoyment. If nothing else, it will give you Christmas gift ideas if you're the last minute-shopper type. Look for the top 25 list to pop up sometime tomorrow, but in the meantime there's plenty else to look over. Before getting to that though, here's a quick look at who made it to my top 25 last year (if you'd like to revisit the whole list please feel free to browse the archives):

25. Art Brut Bang Bang Rock & Roll
24. Erin McKeown We Will Become Like Birds
23. Atmosphere You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having
22. One Be Lo S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M
21. Of Montreal The Sunlandic Twins
20. Bright Eyes I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning
19. Nic Armstrong & The Thieves The Greatest White Liar
18. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Howl
17. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals Cold Roses
16. Sleater-Kinney The Woods
15. Beck Guero
14. Common Be
13. Wolf Parade Apologies to Queen Mary
12. Dangerdoom The Mouse and the Mask
11. Stars Set Yourself on Fire
10. Gorillaz Demon Days
9. Andrew Bird The Mysterious Production of Eggs
8. The Go! Team Thunder, Lightning, Strike
7. Broken Social Scene Broken Social Scene
6. Bloc Party Silent Alarm
5. Kanye West Late Registration
4. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
3. Sufjan Stevens Illinois
2. Spoon Gimme Fiction
1. My Morning Jacket Z

After reviewing last year's list, it's pretty easy to see that 2005 can (and should be) remembered as being one of the better years music-wise in quite some time. The class of 2006 unfortunately isn't as strong as last year, although there are certainly a fair share of very noteworthy albums. That being said, here are my categorical winners and losers of the year 2006:

Best Rock Album

Muse Black Holes and Revelations
Honorable Mentions: The Flaming Lips At War With The Mystics, The Hold Steady Boys and Girls in America

Best Indie Album
Yo La Tengo I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
Honorable Mentions: TV on the Radio Return to Cookie Mountain, The Rapture Pieces of the People We Love, Phoenix It's Never Been Like That

Best Mainstream Album
My Chemical Romance The Black Parade
Honorable Mentions: Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere, John Mayer Continuum

Best Hip-Hop Album
The Roots Game Theory
Honorable Mentions: Spank Rock YoYoYoYoYoYo, Lupe Fiasco Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor, Ghostface Killah Fishscale

Best Electronic Album
Mylo Destroy Rock & Roll
Honorable Mentions: Herbert Scale, Nightmares on Wax In a Space Outta Sound

Best Debut Album
Lupe Fiasco Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor
Honorable Mentions: Corinne Bailey Rae Corinne Bailey Rae, Wolfmother Wolfmother, Kenn Starr Starr Status

Most Overrated Album
Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
Honorable Mention: The Raconteurs Broken Boy Soldiers

Biggest Surprise
My Chemical Romance The Black Parade
Honorable Mention: Bob Dylan Modern Times

Biggest Disappointment
The Strokes First Impressions of Earth
Honorable Mention: The Streets The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living

There are two burning questions that I've had for the majority of this year that have still not been answered: First, what the hell were The Strokes thinking when they released First Impressions of Earth? Two, who managed to convince millions of people that the Arctic Monekys are any good? I suppose I can understand The Strokes move, you can only remake Is This It? so many times and they pulled a Radiohead and came out with the album that made every rock mag claiming these guys to be the savior of good music cry. For the record, I'm not comparing these guys to Radiohead,. Rather, they did what Radiohead did when they released Kid A after OK Computer (a move which served as a mindfuck to just about everyone, even those previously unfamiliar with Radiohead). The problem is that since The Strokes have far lesser talent (which isn't a slight to The Strokes, you could really take most of the music today and still not add up talent-wise) they were only able to come up with First Impressions of Earth. Still with me? Good. The Arctic Monkeys on the other hand seemed to be a case of the world (and by world, I mean England, which in turn effects the music snobs in America, which in turn effects... you get the idea) searching for a sign of life after watching The Libertine's frontman Pete Doherty singlehandedly destroy his band. Presumably finding the first set of blokes walking down the street, we were greeted with the Arctic Monkeys and forced to like them, whether we liked it or not. That's not to say that all hope is lost, as I've actually enjoyed a couple of their b-sides (the couple being "Chun Li's Spinning Bird Kick" and "Settle For a Draw"). Really though, any band that generates this much hype should be something more than what the listener is left with when listening to the Arctic Monkeys. Maybe that's why they named the title of their debut Whatever Everyone Says I Am, That's What I'm Not-- despite what everyone else said, they already knew they sucked.

Continuing with lowlights before I get to the highlights, I would like to say that the other band (or I suppose pseudo-supergroup in this case) that people need to get over is The Raconteurs. Yes, I love Jack White and nothing makes me happier than hearing him shred a guitar until your ears aren't sure if they should bleed or orgasm. Yes, I've even heard of and love Brendan Benson, a man that not only has a knack for, but actually seems comfortable with the idea of, writing good pop songs. Somehow amongst all that talent, including a couple of members from the Greenhornes to boot, Broken Boy Soldiers felt like an awkward demo tape that perhaps would've been better left an EP. Speaking of supergroups, Gnarls Barkley was originally going to make it to my overrated list, and judging by how many times these guys have already appeared on top 10 of 2006 charts, I probably wouldn't be far off in that assessment. After all, having one hit song (one hit song I should note that was played so many times by so many different bands that if it weren't for the fact that it's actually good would be frowned upon in a few years the same way the "Macarena" and "Who Let The Dogs Out?" are today) doesn't mean squat for an album. However, I look at Gnarls Barkley as being the way in which both of these guys (that being Napoleon Dy-- I mean, Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo) finally get their due. Danger Mouse has easily been one of the hottest producers around, and Cee-Lo has finally broken into the spotlight after making two really solid solo albums and previously spending time with the Goodie Mob.

Speaking of guys getting their due, I'm not sure how much longer it's going to take before The Roots get theirs-- but I hope it's soon. Outkast finally broke through bigtime when they released Stankonia, and many others have followed suit, but the Roots are still stuck in the shadows. Game Theory is not only one of the best albums to come out of 2006, but also next to Things Fall Apart is the best album of their career. It's about time more people take notice because these guys are making some serious music. Other artists/bands that are surprisingly being looked over this year are Mylo, M. Ward and Wolfmother, all of whom churned out exceptional albums this year and were initially very well received.

Getting off of my high horse, I will say that this has been one of the more interesting years in recent memory of music. While the big stories last year involved a lot of DIY indie-rock fairy tales come true and hip-hop artists proving their worth, this year involves a lot of veterans kicking ass once again-- whether it be The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Roots, Bob Dylan or Yo La Tengo. Even more interesting however, is that this is probably the first year where there was really no definitive #1 album-- I've honestly reshuffled my top 5 about five or six times before coming to a decision, and that's something I've never had to do before. All in all though, this has been a very good year for music, and I can't wait to see what 2007 has to offer. Once again, be sure to check back tomorrow for the full list of my top 25 albums of 2006.

My Morning Jacket live

2006-11-27T23:16:00.000-06:00

My Morning Jacket
Opening Acts: Catfish Haven and The Slip
The Riviera- 11.24.06

Setlist
One Big Holiday
What A Wonderful Man
The Way He Sings
Off The Record
The Dark
It Beats 4 U
Wordless Chorus
Phone Went West
Lay Low
Lowdown
Golden
Dondante
Run Thru
They Ran
--------------
Bermuda Highway*
At Dawn*
Just One Thing*
Gideon*
Mahgeeta
Anytime

*performed with Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra

Well, My Morning Jacket had already won me over when they released Z, an album that was selected as the #1 release to come out last year, and they continued to impress me when I had the opportunity to see them at Lollapalooza this past August. Now, after seeing them for a full two hour show, I have to say that if you still haven't hopped on the bandwagon, do join in now because you're about to witness something special. My Morning Jacket's performance was astounding to say the least, the band's energy was there from the beginning and Jim James' stage presence was as large as his skeleton platform boots. The band started off with my personal favorite song of theirs "One Big Holiday" and kept the pace throughout, with highlights including "Off the Record," "Wordless Chorus," "Phone Went West." and "Dondante." Performing the first half of the encore with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra was also a treat, although the Riviera's shoddy acoustics at times rendered the orchestra inaudible. Also interesting was how well the band performed all of their old songs. On album, some of the material doesn't stand out at all, but in hearing them live, they're performed with such confidence that new life is brought to each of those songs-- most notably with the aforementioned "Phone Went West." Where this is most apparent is with frontman Jim James, whose tin-can vocals on each of the pre-Z albums are hardly representative of what he can do live. On each song that he performed, his voice was just as good if not better than what it was on album, and his passionate falsettos are simply chilling. After seeing their continuing growth and maturity in just these past two years alone, it's exciting to think what lies ahead for the Kentucky-based group. In the meantime, do yourself a favor and purchase their concert tickets while they're still cheap, or at least buy their latest album.

Stranger Than Fiction

2006-11-22T00:18:00.000-06:00

As sweet as it is thought-provoking, Stranger Than Fiction is the sleeper hit of the year.

There have been plenty of movies like this before, sure. One could even look at Stranger Than Fiction as being a mix of many of the "big question" art-house romantic comedies that have been invariably making their respective marks for the past five years straight. However, what none of these films were able to accomplish, and perhaps this is most a credit to the cast (or, at least the writer Zach Helm), is the ability to take these complexities and package them in such a way that they're not dumbed down, per se, but rather perfectly abbreviated to the point that no filler remains. Will Ferrell hardly overpowers the screen, his notoriously aloof character has been reined back to the point that he is almost dwarfed on occasions by Maggie Gyllenhaal's presence. Ferrell has already shown once that he can be a formidable actor (he single-handedly saved Woody Allen's Melinda & Melinda), and he's leaps and bounds better here. Similarly, Gyllenhaal, Emma Thompson, and Dustin Hoffman all put out their best efforts as they seemingly embrace their respective characters despite not being the main character of the film. With added chemistry amongst the cast to boot, in addition to the stellar writing, the movie immediately clicks. That being said, and what probably works best about the movie, is how, as Crick's sense of self is tested and fate questioned, the film makes note of the same exact questions that are always asked by us in our own daily lives-- are each of our acts pre-destined or do we get to choose our own fate? These questions coincide with the film suturing the audience into the world of Crick. Seeing these ideologies unraveled in front of our very eyes as written through Emma Thompson's character (writer Kay Eiffel), constantly plays with our emotions and fantastically puts those fears of who and what we are in life on display and toys with the very fabric of those insecurities. Will Ferrell might be the first comedian in some time that comfortably pulls off the transition to serious acting (Jim Carrey notwithstanding), and if nothing else, to see him play this role is well worth the price of admission. If you're up for it though, there is so much more than that to enjoy, and that's what makes Stranger Than Fiction all the better.

Overall Rating: 95

Damien Rice and Trail of Dead reviewed

2006-11-15T19:17:00.000-06:00

Damien Rice 9

Damien Rice's follow-up to the outstanding O, is unsurprisingly disappointing, but still has its strong points.

Somehow, Damien Rice created the longest three-year wait for fans and critics who wanted more after hearing Rice's debut album O-- easily one of, if not the best album of 2003. Unfortunately, Rice does suffer the notorious sophomore slump. While the first two songs are absolutely gorgeous, especially with the heavenly strings on "The Animals Were Gone," there are too many songs on this album that lack any sort of artistic progression from O and, at times, feel like b-sides. While "Elephant" brings the prototypical heartwrenching storytelling that can be expected from Rice, it is little more than a rehash of "The Blower's Daughter Part 2." "Rootless Tree," despite its intentions, has little to offer with Rice's melodramatic curse-ridden chorus. There are other highlights though, most notably "Grey Room" and "Accidental Babies," but the problem with this album (like all other sophomore slumps) is that it is too similar to his debut, and as such the songs are automatically are going to be compared. As such, this album is the weaker effort of the two, and while that may not serve as a fair comparison (a nearly perfect album to a simply good album), there's very little way of getting around it.

Overall Rating: 82

...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead So Divided

A tad all over the place, but still thoroughly enjoyable

Trail of Dead's follow up to their lukewarm Let It Dive, is an interesting experience to say the least. A much sleeker production has erased much of the excess noise (for better or worse) that was on their earlier albums, and to replace that is a new level of strangeness that hasn't been seen from these guys since their debut album. Sometimes it works, and when it does, it works really well like on "Stand in Silence" and "Naked Sun." However there are moments like "Life" where a seemingly well-executed song (at least in concept) appears to lose it's way, meander, trudge, and meander some more before finally ending. That being said though, I do give them credit for pushing boundaries, if nothing else. Also, it isn't readily apparent that the band is trying too hard either, so none of the songs feel trite or forced. All in all, this is a very strong effort, that at times equals Source Tags and Codes, but the moments where the album indulges a bit too much drag down the overall experience.

Overall Rating: 88

Kings of Leon/Bob Dylan at the Sears Centre and more

2006-11-07T22:04:00.000-06:00

New Look!
In case you haven't noticed, the website has undergone a bit of a change cosmetically. Look even closer and you'll notice a few other changes. First and foremost, all posts from the past few weeks on have labels, so that way if you wanted to go to any specific category (i.e. "News") you can click on that tab and you'll find a full list of posts related to that category. Also, the new sidebar makes it a lot easier to backtrack to older posts if you need to. I hope you like the new changes, and I will continue to tweak things on the site (per usual) as needed.

Bob Dylan
Opening Act: Kings of Leon
Sears Centre- 10.27.06

Although it was far from a sellout crowd, those that were on hand had a chance to appreciate an almost totally satisfying experience with Bob Dylan. While much of the crowd was too old to appreciate what the Kings of Leon had to offer, and consequentially spent the opening set time discussing whatever sense of nostalgia being at a Dylan concert did for them, the younger counterparts used their time to dance along as the Kings of Leon thrashed out a solid 45-minute set. Playing a relatively tight set that centered around their singles (namely "Molly's Chambers," "The Bucket," and "Four Kicks"), Kings of Leon may not have scored high for risk-taking, but as an opening act, they more than held their own, and gave a good taste of what they bring to the table for those that aren't familiar with them.

A brief break between sets gave everyone a chance to check out the brand new Sears Centre, which held its first event only a few days prior, and, at least for concerts, this place is great. Something like a miniature-Allstate Arena, the Sears Centre offers incredibly intimate seating for an arena, and there really isn't a bad seat in the house.

Once the house lights went back off, the crowd went nuts-- something that would only exist to greet Dylan, as much of the older audience spent most of their time seated afterwards. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to hear Bob Dylan play the guitar due to his arthritis, so instead his band was forced to do their best to fill in for him. That in itself is a bit of a tall order, but they did make due by sticking to the basics and letting Dylan get his solo kicks via the harmonica. While anyone with a pair of ears knows that Dylan's voice has been pretty much shot for some time now, what's amazing is how much of a presence and command he has despite (or maybe even because of) that. Sometimes, it made song identification a messy venture, but besides that, hearing Dylan even performing hits like "All Along the Watchtower" and "Like a Rolling Stone" was thoroughly inspiring as it sounded just as fresh and new as ever. While some, as one woman pointed out behind me after the show, may feel that Dylan's best year are behind him because "he sounds nothing like he did [when she was younger]," I think they're missing the point. The fact is that a 65-year old legend is still able to perform everyday at a caliber that may very well not be what it was when he was at his peak, but is certainly an enlightened experience that could come from very few other artists, past or present.

Kanye West MTV follow-up
For those of you that didn't have a chance to catch Kanye making a fool of himself at the MTV European Music Awards, I thought I would post the video for it. I know there are people claiming that it was a joke on Kanye's part, but even if it was (which I know isn't true anyway), it was still a classless move on Kanye's part.

New Music Tuesday
There really isn't much to talk about this week. For you casual Dave Matthews Band fans out there, or perhaps the people that have yet to really be exposed to any of their work, their first installment of their greatest hits collection, aptly named, The Best of What's Around was released today. The tracklisting was more or less chosen by fans, and has one disc dedicated to the DMB's studio efforts and one disc dedicated to their live performances. While it's hard to recommend this to any die-hard fan (there are no extra-perks involved that you wouldn't be able to access otherwise a la The Roots' most recent hits collection), it's a great starter kit for a newbie, if you will, to gain some exposure to the band. Also out today is The Road to Escondido by JJ Cale and Eric Clapton. Eric Clapton has always had great admiration for JJ Cale, so it is fitting for them to be featured together on this album. While in an adult contemporary setting, the album seems to be relatively good, there is really nothing here that sets it apart, unfortunately. If you're a fan, however, especially with Clapton's more staid work, you will probably have a lot of fun listening to this album.

"High Five!" Borat shocks it's way to #1!

2006-11-05T19:00:00.000-06:00

Borat has nothing to fear this week, his movie is #1 in all the US & A.

Yes, there is justice in the world of Hollywood on occasions. Despite showing on only a fourth as many screens as The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, Borat still beat out the final installment of the kiddie trilogy by a solid $6.4M margin. Posting a mightily impressive $31,511 per-screen average, it'll be intersting to see how the movie does as it begins to be released in more theatres and also gains the ever-valuable word of mouth publicity. As if that isn't enough, Sascha Baron Cohen's brainchild film has made it's way to #167 on IMDB's top 250 movies already. As Borat would say, "NICE!"

Full weekend results posted below:

Movie             Revenue   Screens  Wks  Average/  Pct     Total
             (Millions)                 Screen    Chg      Mln
1. Borat          $26.4     837      1   $31,511    --      $26.4
2. Santa Clause 3  20.0     3,458    1     5,784    --       20.0
3. Flushed Away    19.1     3,707    1     5,152    --       19.1
4. Saw III         15.5     3,167    2     4,894    -54      60.1
5. The Departed     8.0     2,785    5     2,873    -19     102.3
6. The Prestige     7.8     2,305    3     3,377    -19      39.4
7. Flags/Father     4.5     2,375    3     1,895    -29      26.6
8. Man Of The Year  3.8     2,388    4     1,600    -19      34.0
9. Open Season      3.1     2,458    6     1,261    -47      81.4
10. The Queen       3.0     387      6     7,778     58      10.1

The Good, The Bad and The Queen and other News

2006-11-04T19:22:00.000-06:00

The Good, The Bad and The Queen on tour in UK, release "Herculean" single

I suppose having Blur and Gorillaz and a formidable solo career isn't enough for Damon Albarn. As mentioned a little while ago, The Good, The Bad and The Queen are Albarn's latest side project, and they're well underway with their new album, as they've been performing the songs that will be featured on next-years release in the UK with very positive results. In addition, their single "Herculean" can be heard on their MySpace page. While the single is very, very impressive, it'll be interesting to see what the rest of the album will be like as the song alone doesn't seem to be a huge departure from anything that Albarn has done previously.

Here is the tracklist for their upcoming album:
1. History Song
2. '80s Life
3. Northern Whale
4. Kingdom Of Doom
5. Herculean
6. Behind The Sun
7. The Bunting Song
8. Nature Springs
9. A Soldier's Tale
10. Three Changes
11. Green Fields
12. The Good, The Bad & The Queen

Once again, the album will be released in early 2007.

Kanye West anything but a class act at EMA's

Kanye West is probably in my list of top three celebrities that I never ever want to meet. The reason for this is because I know if I ever did, I would despise him, and this is precisely why. I'm not sure what it will take for him to get off his high horse, but he needs for it to happen now before it gets any worse. After losing to Justice and Simian for Best Video in MTV Europe Music Awards, Kanye West crashed the stage, furious that he didn't win. If it wasn't bad enough for him to say that if he doesn't win "the awards show loses credibility," he also threw in that he should've won because it "cost a million dollars, Pamela Anderson was in it" and that he "was jumping across canyons." Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. In other news, Evel Knievel decided to protest MTV as well stating that his stunts were worthy of a lifetime achievement award. Maybe West's accountant should recommend that he spend his next million on a Louis Vuitton muzzle.

Everyone Wants More Gnarls

Is your regular version of St. Elswhere just not doing it for you anymore? Have you listened to "Crazy" so many times that you can sing it backwards without even blinking? Or could you possibly be one of the people that (gasp) hasn't even bought St. Elswhere already? Well, you're in luck because you're going to get even more Gnarls Barkley for the holiday season. In addition to the regular CD, you'll also get all-new packaging, a 92-page booklet (I'm pretty sure when you get to that many pages it's just a book) featuring all new artwork, and a DVD featuring all of your favorite Gnarls Barkley music videos. Still not enough? Well, you also get an alternate version of "Crazy" and a live performance of The Violent Femmes' "Gone Daddy Gone." The deluxe version will be available this upcoming Tuesday, the 7th of November.

Nas releases single for highly anticipated Def Jam debut

Nas' Hip-Hop is Dead (which comes out December 19 if you've forgotten), now has a single that can be heard and downloaded here. Entitled "Where Y'all At," I'm hoping that this is possibly one of those songs that has to be heard in context of the rest of the album, because as of right now it seems to be lacking. As if the fact that it's Nas' Def Jam debut isn't enough pressure, with backing talent like Damian Marley, Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and more, you would hope that Nas can finally reclaim his form, but only time will tell.

My Chemical Romance and John Legend Reviewed

2006-11-04T18:12:00.000-06:00

I've been wanting to post these two reviews for quite some time now, as both albums have created much excitement in similar ways. My Chemical Romance announced well before the release of their latest album, The Black Parade that the release would be a departure from everything they've done previously, and not only have they accomplished that much, but I think they might've even outdone themselves. John Legend, after successfully winning over darn near everyone a few years ago with his debut album and singles like "Ordinary People" and "Used to Love U," is back with a sophomore release that isn't so much a departure as much as a supreme maturation over what he'd done previously. So, with that in mind, here are the reviews:

My Chemical Romance The Black Parade

Hands down, the most surprising album I've heard all year.

Color me impressed. I've never been a My Chemical Romance fan (and that's really an understatement), and truthfully, despite all of the great reviews, I still didn't think that this album would be anything special. Not only is this album special, but this thing is so good that they managed to beat Green Day at their own game and made American Idiot look like crap in comparison. Cynics are probably thinking to themselves, "Most emo relies so heavily on overly-dramatic premises anyway that it was probably only a matter of time before a band was smart enough to channel that energy into a rock-opera album," and they're probably right. At the same time, these guys pull it off really well-- not only is there not a single weak link in the album, but at the best moments you would think you're listening to the 21st century Queen. From the minute the album begins with the enthralling "The End." you realize that this isn't your typical concept album, and that if you didn't take them seriously before, you probably should start doing that now. From "Dead!" on, it's pretty much non-stop rocking, and while the themes are incredibly dark (which can be assumed given the album title), each song is a lot of fun to listen to. Some of the highlights include the title track, the spectacular "House of Wolves," which at times seems to have a hint of White Stripes going for it, and the bizarre rocker "Mama." The true anthem song for the album however is the absurdly catchy "Teenagers," which will probably serve as the "Teen Angst" anthem for this decade if there's any justice in the world. My Chemical Romance impresses whether they're playing loud or soft, and they take more risks on this album than most of their contemporaries have made in their careers. Not only do I now know better than to sell these guys short, but I swear if they continue to make albums that are even remotely like this one I'll be their biggest fan.

Overall Rating: 100

John Legend Once Again

While it's a "two steps forward, one step back" type of effort, it's Legend's maturity that makes this release worthwhile.

John Legend's debut studio effort, Get Lifted, despite it's finer moments had some serious issues. Firstly, I'm pretty sure there's an unwritten rule about how many times you can sing about cheating before it gets to be obnoxious (okay, I get the point), and secondly, Legend hardly ever mixed things up, causing a lot of tracks that weren't necessarily bad (although some certainly were), but simply got lost in the shuffle with everything else on the album. This time around, it seems as if he's expanded his horizons a bit, as indicated on the seemingly Sergio Mendes' influenced single, "Save Room." The one two punch of that track and the subsequent "Heaven" shows a formidable promise on the album that isn't entirely carried through on the rest of the tracks. When Legend is on, he's really on, between the aforementioned tracks, "Each Day Gets Better," and "P.D.A. (We Just Don't Care)," and there are many other moments where he uses the Motown-influenced productions to his advantage. However, there are other times where the album is so incredibly boring that it has very little purpose other than background music. As interesting as "Where Did My Baby Go" seems when the track begins, it becomes so dull and cliched as the song meanders on that you figure she probably just went into a deep sleep. That being said, Once Again is largely better than Get Lifted, it just still finds John Legend as a work in progress. Once he gains some consistency in his songwriting and takes more chances with his music, he'll be in the position to be one of the better talents in his genre.

Overall Rating: 79

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

2006-11-04T16:25:00.000-06:00

Easily the funniest movie of the year, and quite possibly the smartest comedy made this decade.

Is it offensive? You bet, but not in the way that everyone is making it out to be. Beyond being the most hilarious recently-made mockumentary that wasn't made by Christopher Guest, Borat is also a biting political satire. What really makes this film so truly brilliant is that Cohen and director Larry Charles managed to create a film that is accessible to all, despite these underlying political messages and general damnation of consequence. Sure, it happens frequently in the world of television, most notoriously within the world of South Park, but to have a non-animated 90-minute film dedicated to following a faux-Kazakhi as he experiences the often-hidden and dark underbelly that we all know exists in America, but would never admit it, is an incredible feat. When the film isn't making political statements, it's just as funny though, and there are many scenes in particular-- including an absolutely ridiculous wrestling scene-- that are so hysterical that I only stopped laughing because my body was too tired to go on laughing, not to mention I couldn't breathe. Lastly, and possibly most importantly, Borat is a film with a heart of gold, and that's truly the selling point of the film. It's easy to pull off a silly and crude comedy that exists for the sheer pleasure of being silly and crude, but when you're sutured into the life of an outsider that is trying to live out his own (albeit strange) version of the "American Dream," you genuinely care about the guy, and see him not as the cookie-cutter caricature that attackers of the film make him out to be, but rather a relatively sympathetic character. While this film surely isn't for everyone, it is bound to offend just about everyone in some way, but if you get beyond the surface of things, you'll understand why this is such a landmark film. Congratulations Sascha Baron Cohen, beyond being the only person in recent memory to single-handedly piss off an entire nation based on a stage character, you've also managed to create a landmark film-- who's been able to say that about a movie based on sketch character recently?

Overall Rating: 100

Blogger issues

2006-10-31T21:13:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the delay in posting, I've actually been having technical issues with Blogger. Since transferring to their new Beta service, my usual blogging publisher hasn't allowed me to publish any new articles. Consequentially, I'm in the process of figuring out a way to either get it (or another product) to play nice with Blogger Beta, or finding a way to write directly in Blogger that will work well as far as formatting is concerned.

"For relaxing times, make it Santori time..."

2006-10-20T23:28:00.000-05:00

There are a number of other music reviews that I'd like to get through today. The theme this time around are albums that are perfect for the nighttime. Though not necessarily depressing, they're certainly introspective and evoke a certain kind of solitude that make you want to curl up and have a hot chocolate.

Greg Laswell Through Toledo

From the moment I heard "Sing, Theresa Says," I knew I had to have this album. I don't think any song has made such a personal first impression upon me since I heard Elliott Smith for the first time. The song is seriously perfect, and if it weren't for the strength of the majority of the tracks that follow, it would certainly overpower the rest of the album. However, there are other strengths in the songs "Amazed," the bittersweet mid-tempo rocker "Worthwhile," and the sleepy title track. Unfortunately, Through Toledo starts to drag by the end of the album, but for a debut album it is rare to see something so incredibly emotional (the songs were written right after Laswell's divorce) and focused on a debut album.

Through Toledo's rating 86

The Whitest Boy Alive Dreams

Erlend Øye continues to impress with his chameleon-like musical flexibility. The Kings of Convenience front-man first churned out a successful solo electronic pop album Unrest and now has come up with this side project that is some of the most stripped down rock music you'll ever hear. Although simplistic, Dreams is hardly ever boring, with particular highlights being the opening "Burning," the beautiful "Don't Give Up," and the steady rocker "Golden Cage." While it won't be nearly as popular, The Whitest Boy Alive seems to accomplish for rock what The Postal Service did for the indie-pop genre. Strip the atypical sound to its bare essentials, and despite the seemingly electronic roots, manage to make it accessible for most audiences. Once again, Øye manages to impress, Dreams is a very worthwhile album indeed.

Dreams' rating 85

Floyd the Locsmif Divine Designz #1.2: Re-Discovered

An almost entirely instrumental hip-hop album, Floyd the Locsmif lays down some pretty impressive beats here, especially on "Still Luv' Huh," "Speechless" and "One for the Fam." The couple tracks that do have vocals are also very good, and show Floyd the Locsmif's potential as being a producer, especially on "Always Bless." Overall this is a great late-night album, and while it does suffer from a bit of monotony (hardly a surprise for this kind of album), there's a lot to like about Divine Designz.

Divine Designz #1.2: Re-Discovered's rating 82

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Fuzzy Musings

2006-10-10T01:54:00.000-05:00

Jamie Lidell- Most overdue breakthrough

Thanks in part to Grey's Anatomy & iTunes, "Multiply" has gone on to be a very successful single. The album goes far beyond Otis Redding-influenced blue eyed-soul, however, as "Multiply" might suggest. The "Purple Haze"-esque "The City" and the equally addicting "What's the Use" prove that Lidell is anything but a fluke. Sometimes Lidell suffers from going a little too crazy on the production end, to the point that you're not sure if an epileptic seizure is going to ensue from merely listening to his more abstract songs, but on the whole Multiply is a really fun record. Why it's taken me over six months to mention him is beyond my personal comprehension, but better late than never as they say-- definitely pick up Multiply.

Multiply's rating 83

Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor

Easily one of, if not the feel good story of the year, Lupe Fiasco's debut album is pure gold. Take Kanye West and erase the now abrasive bravado and you get the hottest rapper around right now. Exquisitely conscious much like Common's Be was last year and the recently released Game Theory from the Roots, Food & Liquor doesn't try to do too much, and contains no filler whatsoever. Singles "Kick, Push" and "I Gotcha" (which is easily my favorite Pharell collaboration in recent memory) are immediate standouts. "Real," "Sunshine" (which features Jill Scott) and the politically loaded "American Terrorist" are also incredibly accomplished songs. Fiasco's strength is that he does not try to act out any sense of vibrato, and truly speaks from his heart. His introspective and provocative lyrics make for yet another outstanding hip-hop release to come out this year.

Food & Liquor's rating 95

Other artists worth listening to-

Sound Team

Ever since I saw them at Lollapalooza, I haven't been able to stop listening to their Movie Monster release. "Born to Please" and "No More Birthdays" in particular paint incredibly dense yet beautiful soundscapes that are seldom heard in today's rock music, particularly when it comes to American bands.

Movie Monster's rating 89

Under The Influence of Giants

Take the BeeGees and ABBA and mix them up, throw them in a time machine to the 21st century and leave the result a little rough around the edges for good measure. That, in a nutshell, is what Under the Influence of Giants' sound is like. Granted, they're not as overtly pop-- so sweet that you get cavities just from listening to their songs-- but they do indeed seem to have a knack for making 70's pop rock music rather catchy. Take a listen to the opening "Ah Ha," "Got Nothing," or the surreally sweet "I Love You" to find evidence of such talent, as the band not only manages to make catchy pop music, but also meaningful pop.

Under the Influence of Giants' rating 90

The Village Green

Crank up your speakers and turn on "Wrap Your Love Around Me" and witness an incredibly underrated band at their best. If they had come out a few years ago they probably would've stolen some of the thunder from bands like JET and The Vines, both of which have faltered miserably since their debut albums. Instead of relying on raucous balls to the wall rock for kicks though, The Village Green know how to write good garage rock songs, as the single shows. Other highlights include "Bullet to the Head," "Country Road," and "Rosa Glynn." The album isn't perfect, but the band shows a ton of promise.

Feeling The Fall's rating 86

Random Covers

As all of you know (or should know) by now, I have a bit of a cover song fetish. The reason for that is long and complicated, but to put it in the most simplistic terms, cover songs generally find artists at their most vulnerable. It is their declaration of admiration for the artist they're covering, and consequentially, seeing that they know that inevitably their version of said song is going to be immediately compared to the original version, it provides an opportunity of personalization. Long story short, artists almost always show their true colors when they perform a cover. In honor of that, I have a few cover songs that I've recently come across for one reason or another that I'd like to share.

The White Stripes- "Walking With a Ghost" (originally by Tegan and Sara)

If you've ever listened to the original version of this song, you're probably already starting to unconsciously rub your ears in pain. No, Jack White's falsetto is never pretty I know, but this is an interesting cover regardless. I can't say I recommend it based on the quality of the performance, just for the fact that it's really interesting to hear.

The Flaming Lips- "Knives Out" (Radiohead cover)

It should be well noted that The Flaming Lips are really, really good at cover songs (take one listen to their version of "Bohemian Rhapsody" or countless others that they've performed to find that out), but taking on Radiohead-- especially note for note-- is a whole 'nother animal. Somehow, Wayne Coyne is able to put his Thom Yorke face on and pull off an outstanding cover, that's almost as haunting as the original-- that's pretty scary.

Nickel Creek- "Toxic" and "Just" (originally done by Britney Spears and Radiohead, respectively

I'm really going to miss Nickel Creek, although I was glad I did have a chance to see them live at Lollapalooza before they broke up. Despite that, they managed to perform a few of their ever famous covers when I saw them-- "The Weight" by The Band, "Toxic" by Britney Spears and "(Nice Dream)" by Radiohead. Obviously fans of The Bends album by Radiohead, it seems that Nickel Creek also do a smashing cover of "Just" which is one of my all-time favorite Radiohead songs, and actually do it justice without the crunching electric guitar solos. "Toxic," on the other hand, is just plain fun in the purest sense. Nevermind the fact that it's simply mindblowing that Chris Thile is able to sing high enough to even hit half the notes, but the fact that you've got a bluegrass trio with enough chops (and balls for that matter) to perform a production-based wonder like "Toxic" is amazing.

Nickel Creek- Just (Radiohead Cover)

Nickel Creek- Toxic (Britney Spears Cover)

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NMT Preview

2006-09-18T23:51:00.000-05:00

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Adding a new wrinkle to the Fuzzy Thoughts webpage, I'm going to come up with previews of the album that will be released on Tuesday the day before, as well as use it as the time to serve up any other reviews/news I may have. That being said, I'm considering changing the format a bit of Fuzzy Thoughts. By that I mean, I'm considering adding on a Fuzzy Thoughts podcast. The podcast would feature all of the same news and reviews as before, with the webpage serving as more of a summarized version of what's covered on said webpage. The advantages of this switch would be that you could actually follow along with all the latest news/reviews on the go. Also, as a subscriber you'd get instantaneous updates on iTunes if you so choose, rather than having to check the RSS feed when you remember to. Of course, this is all up to you guys, the readers, so please send back your comments and let me know.

Jay-Z Officially Back

Jay-Z has officially announced that he is returning to the mic once again after a brief retirement. Despite my previous report, the new album will be entitled Kingdom Come. Look for an all-star backing as always (including a collaboration with Coldplay's Chris Martin [huh?]). A specific release date has not been given, but expect it to come out this fall.

Coming Tomorrow

The big release tomorrow is the long-awaited Food & Liquor from Chicago's own Lupe Fiasco. After several setbacks, months of waiting, and an almost complete overhaul by Lupe after having the original version pirated, the day has finally come. From the hit single "Kick Push" and his more recent release of "I Gotcha" with Pharell, I'm very confident that this will be the debut album of the year. Also coming out will be Fergie's The Dutchess, an album that should sell incredibly well based on the popularity of "London Bridge" alone. Shifting gears a bit, Ben Kweller will be releasing his latest eponymous album, and if the single "Sundress" is any indication whatsoever it should be a dandy. Kasabian will also be releasing their sophomore effort, Empire. I'm not really sure how this one will pan out-- drastically changing your sound after a first album usually doesn't work-- and the early reviews have been very lukewarm. Finally, Diana Krall will be releasing her latest album, From This Moment On.

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New Music Tuesday: September 12, 2006

2006-09-12T22:49:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's that time again and there's lots to talk about. Yo La Tengo has released an epic cd that if nothing else has the best title of any other album to be released this year, I Am Not Afraid of You And I Will Beat Your Ass. John Mayer released his highly-anticipated Continuum LP which features some interesting talent backing him up (Roy Hargrove and Ben Harper anyone?). The Rapture pull off the surprise follow up of the year with Pieces of the People We Know. If all that isn't enough, Lupe Fiasco (finally!), Mos Def, Ben Kweller, Ambulance LTD, Sean Lennon, Ludacris, Beck, Trey Anastasio, DJ Shadow, The Dears, and Jet all have albums coming out within the next few weeks. Talk about a busy fall, and we're just getting started. Before all that though, here's a bit of news...

Black Thought + Danger Mouse= Dangerous Thoughts

The long talked about Black Thought and Danger Mouse project will be called Dangerous Thoughts. I suppose neither party wanted to name themselves after a celebrity for the sake of confusion (if you still haven't gotten it yet, it's Gnarls Barkley not Charles). That being said, they have apperently laid down a few tracks already. Here's hoping this project works out and doesn't go the way of Black Thought's previous attempt at a solo album (which ended up as the Roots' Phrenology LP).

The Roots Already Working on Next Album

As if coming out with the best hip-hop album of the year wasn't enough, The Roots have started work on their next album, which has the rumored title of The Long Count. Interestingly, the album is slated to come out next year (talk about quick work).

Jay-Z Going Back to Rapping

While rumors continue to fly as to whether or not Jay-Z is leaving (on his own or by force) his post as President of Def Jam Records, there is some relatively solid information about his upcoming album. Yes, the man that supposedly was retiring for good has decided to pull a Michael Jordan and will be dropping a single next month entitled "Show Me What You Got," and his new album, rumored to be titled Presidential Gala is said to be released November 21.

Now with that bit over and done with, here are the reviews:

John Mayer Continuum

Although not nearly as daring as I think he intended it to be, especially in comparison to Try!, Continuum is still a very good album.

Musical progression is a funny thing, and sometimes the harder you try to get away from what you're used to, the easier it is to fall into certain traps. It happens to almost any artist, sure, but with a platform like Try! I have to admit I was expecting a hell of a lot more out of Mayer. All that talk of him wanting to play the blues and playing his guitar have resulted in an album that while really good anyway, is hardly a stones throw away from Heavier Things. That's not to say it's bad, John Mayer is still and always has been a very good songwriter, but between the incessant ballads and slicker-than-satin-sheets production, a lot is lost in the translation to the point that it sounds like nothing more than muzak. The first three tracks of this album prove that point marvelously, particularly with the absolutely sickening "Waiting For The World To Change", a song so horribly ripped off that I'm sure Curtis Mayfield and Marvin Gaye simultaneously roll in their respective graves every time the song is played. "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" and "Belief" are also very generic and despite Mayer's sharp as ever guitar solos, they're void of any real emotions thanks to the production. Mercifully, Mayer flips the switch and puts out on the rest of the tracks. "Gravity" and "Vultures," both from the Trio's Try! album are just as outstanding on this album as they were live. "The Heart of Life" and "Stop This Train" could be two of the most beautiful songs Mayer's ever written, and truly show how far Mayer has come as a songwriter both lyrically and musically. Where Mayer finally shows his chops is on his cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Bold As Love," which is ridiculously good to the point of being scary. What is particularly interesting is how Mayer manages to somehow walk along the line of blues-rock and straight pop, not to mention he rips a great guitar solo. Finally, the closer "I'm Gonna Find Another You" is a really great take on the slower motown-generation of music with just a dash of blues. This album certainly is not Try! and for anyone that might've been hoping Continuum would be the quantum leap everyone was claiming it'd be, I'd say wait for the next album. Otherwise, prepare yourself for some very well-developed songs that only get better as the album progresses. It's just unfortunate that some of the songs lose their luster due to too slick of production which weigh down the overall quality and character of some of the songs-- and particularly hurt at the beginning.

Overall Rating: 85

Yo La Tengo I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass

Nevermind the old cliche, I Am Not Afraid... is as much fun as it's title would have you believe.

Believe it or not, Yo La Tengo has now been around for 22 years. Even more incredible, is that this album is just as good as their best early works, if not better. The album begins with the absolutely insane 11-minute epic "Pass The Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind" which centers around a basic yet effective bass hook, while guitarist Ira Kaplan is essentially given the green light to run wild on the guitar. The result is a surprisingly engaging and atmospheric groundwork on which the band builds on with its following tracks. The radio-friendly "Beanbag Chair" is a very well-executed pop song that makes bopping along hard to resist. Another lighthearted highlight is the incredibly fun "Mr. Tough" with its one-off salsa percussions, horns and falsetto vocals it'll immediately put a smile on your face. "Sometimes I Don't Get You" is another outstanding free-flowing piece, while "Watch Out Ronnie" is a rollicking blast that at some points seems like a lost outtake from an old episode of American Bandstand. On the slower side Yo La Tengo doesn't disappoint either with the hauntingly beautiful "Song For Mahila," the somber "I Feel Like Going Home," and the incredible 9-minute "Daphnia." Appropriately, the album closes with yet another song of epic proportions (so you get one for the beginning, one for the middle, and another for the end) entitled "The Story of Yo La Tengo." The noisy rocker makes for a fitting ending of the album, as like the rest of the album, it may sound messy at first but once it all comes together it's quite a beautiful mess. An outstanding effort, it's too bad that these guys will more than likely be overshadowed most notably by Bob Dylan when it comes down to award time.

Overall Rating: 100

The Rapture Pieces of People We Love

So they weren't a fluke after all.

"Well, maybe I overshot a little, because I was aiming at just enough to keep you from walking out." Yes, apparently Echoes wasn't As Good As It Gets for The Rapture. Pieces of People We Love is not only better than its predecessor, but it's light years away from anything they've done previously. From the opening "Don Gon Do It" it's apparent that these guys have taken their approach much more seriously. Going beyond the simple mash-up of seemingly ungodly sounds and throwing in enough beats to make it danceable, everything on this album feels much more focused, not to mention structured-- which is a good thing. Inherently, The Rapture change from being a very good dance group to a rock group that is easy to dance to-- case in point being the lead single "Get Myself Into It," which is just as good if not better than "House of Jealous Lovers" (possibly for it's addictive hook alone). Other goodies are "The Devil" and the wickedly smart and fun "Whoo! Alright Yeah... Uh Huh," which has a superbly snide ending of "People don't dance no more, they just stand there like this. They cross their arms and stare you down and drink and moan and diss." Surprisingly enough, even though there were two camps of producers working on different tracks (Paul Epworth and Ewan Pearson did eight tracks, while producer extraordinaire Danger Mouse did the remaining two), the songs are very consistent and there's a great sense of cohesion throughout. So mark me as being one of the many people that are eating their own words for thinking that The Rapture wouldn't be able to go anywhere after their previous release and that "House of Jealous Lovers" would be as good as it gets. Not only can these guys make you groove ("Gotta Get Myself Into It," "Whoo! Alright Yeah... Uh Huh") but they can also rock out quite a bit too ("Calling Me" and "The Devil"). This will surely be somewhere in the top 25 by years end.

Overall Rating: 89

Pete Yorn Nightcrawler

A return to form and then some.

Nightcrawler is a very misleading album at first listen. The incredibly dark and haunting opener "Vampyre" is a disengaging opener that doesn't completely make sense until you get through the rest of the album. Truthfully, that can be said for many of the songs-- individually they seem inconsistent and, with it's incredibly large soundstage and slick production, is hardly anything a Pete Yorn could ever identify with. However, previously released "Undercover" is a definite highlight, as is "Policies" and "Maybe I'm Right." Once you get through the album and play it again, you actually get a better idea of the album as a whole. While it certainly isn't a concept album, it's more of an acquired taste. Once the album hits it stride with its incessant rockers this point becomes all the more clear. Unlike his previous effort, Day I Forgot, Pete Yorn doesn't fall into any shortfalls in attempting to recreate the magic he made on Musicforthemorningafter. Instead, he has carved out a new mark for himself and it works. With that it seems that thankfully Pete Yorn really hasn't lost his touch, and it's nice to see that not only is he doing something different but he (at least he seems to be going by this record) is also enjoying himself. A very solid effort indeed.

Overall Rating: 87

Coming up, I'll be previewing the aforementioned upcoming albums!

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Idlewild Review

2006-09-09T22:43:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's a beautiful movie. Outside of that, there isn't much to go wild about.

Going from the small screen to the big screen is never easy. While there are guys like (most recently) Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry that'd be more than happy to disprove that, they had mastermind Charlie Kaufman to rely on for an outstanding starting point. With Idlewild, everything is up to the collaborative thoughts of Outkast and music video director Bryan Barber. Smell trouble yet? Let me put it this way, you've got a guy that hasn't had to worry about keeping an audiences attention for more than five minutes and two (granted, vastly talented, but still) rappers making a two hour movie. That being said, the movie is all style over substance in all the wrong ways. All of the atypical musical spectacle scenes are pretty much destroyed thanks to either poor editing, bad mixing or, in many cases, both. Even if you didn't like the film Chicago, you can at least admit that it had a flair about it that Idlewild often wishes it had. To make matters worse, the plotlines surrounding Big Boi and Andre 3000 never fully intersect. So what's left is a jumbled mess of a movie that doesn't even come close to living up to what it should be. On the positive side, there are some absolutely beautiful shots in this film, to the point where Barber seemed to spend more time in finding "the perfect shot" rather than developing any form of a storyline or plot. This movie is pretty much the blueprint of what can happen when a good idea goes terribly wrong and there's no one around to right the ship. What we're left with is a maddening mosh-posh of five minute interludes that hardly constitute as a movie. It may not the worst movie of the year, but it's certainly the most disappointing.

Overall Rating: 55

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OK Go - Here It Goes Again video

2006-09-04T16:05:00.000-05:00


It's been going around the web, but in case you haven't seen it here's the latest (and ridiculously cool, mind you) video from Chicago's own OK GO. More OK Go: http://okgo.net http://myspace.com/okgo

Two of the most anticipated Hip-Hop albums reviewed

2006-08-30T20:24:00.000-05:00

I wanted to get both of these reviews out earlier (Idlewild on Friday--hoping I'd get to review the album and movie at once-- and Game Theory yesterday), but unfortunately it's a case of better late than never. I still haven't been able to see the film Idlewild yet, but expect a review soon. Anyway, without further adieu I give you two albums that were well worth the wait.

The Roots Game Theory

Funny to think that a move to Def Jam Records would spark The Roots making their most eclectic and innovative album. With that said, if you haven't bought this album already, I don't know what you're waiting for.

After releasing back to back masterpieces with the releases of Things Fall Apart and Phrenology in 1999 and 2003, respectively, The Roots scratched a ton of heads when they released The Tipping Point. Any whispers from fans of how the group wasn't the same without Malik B. when Phrenology was released became roars after The Tipping Point. While Malik B. certainly brings the most out of both the band and fellow MC Black Thought, BT himself is no amateur. Certainly one of the most underrated MC's out there, I've yet to understand why everyone dogs him as being hardly more than mediocre just because he doesn't have the persona like many of the other more outspoken rappers possess. If the fans weren't talking about that, though, they were talking about which record label The Roots would end up with next. After news of signing to Def Jam, there was a noticeable split in public opinion-- did this mean that The Roots were going mainstream? Will they finally get the marketing support they've always deserved? There were so many questions that had yet to be answered, and given the disappointing Tipping Point, going to work on Game Theory had to have been one of the most challenging missions for the band.

Now, after finally getting my hands on Game Theory, I can say without a doubt, that this is The Roots at their absolute best. If it weren't for the masterpiece Things Fall Apart, this would be considered their best album ever, hands down. This album also happens to be their darkest album ever, which is apparent from the opening track "False Media," which really brings The Roots' oft-hidden social and political commentary to the forefront. The following title track, which marks the return of Malik B. (who also appears on a couple other tracks), is an immediate highlight as the interplay between Malik B. and Black Thought over ?uestlove's well-executed beats makes you forget that these guys ever spent time apart. "Don't Feel Right," "In the Music," and "Here I Come," all of which had been previously released on both the Pre-Game EP and through independent leaks are also highlights, as is the single "Long Time."

The main difference between the eclectic energy of Game Theory and Phrenology can be best exemplified on the tracks "Take It There," "Atonement," and the closing "Can't Stop This," which serves as an outstanding dedication to Jay Dee. "Take It There" starts off much like some of the other funkier Roots tracks before the music spins off into a heavily abstracted piano riff that works wonders with Black Thought's meticulous rhymes. The result is a very poignant piece despite clocking in at under three minutes-- compare this to some of the more meandering experimentation that occurred on Phrenology. "Atonement" is a real treat, as it uses a sample of Radiohead's "You and Whose Army?" as its foundation and churns out one of the most somber and effective hip-hop tracks I've heard in a very long while. Speaking of effective, the eight-minute closer "Can't Stop This" is an extremely touching tribute to J Dilla. The song samples "Time: The Donut of the Heart" from his Donuts album-- the last album that would be released during his lifetime-- and also includes commentaries about J Dilla in both the beginning and end from various artists.

While an incredibly dark and gritty affair, Game Theory is a beautiful masterpiece. Easily, the most gripping hip-hop album I've heard. It elevates the gene to yet another notch, and, as always, The Roots prove that their at least five years ahead of the game.

Overall Rating: 100

Outkast Idlewild

This might be the first album they've released since their debut that can't be considered great. Still, being really darn good isn't bad either.

Welcome to the world of Idlewild: Big Boi and Andre 3000 still hardly work together on this album, but this time, the old-fashioned roots add a new dimension on Outkast's music, and that's really what separates this album from Stankonia/The Love Below. That's both a blessing and a curse, as it forces the ever-eclectic Dre to actually focus on a single idea, but it confines both artists to a certain extent, not to mention some tracks sound a bit like they might've been leftovers from their previous effort. All of these elements culminate into what is essentially a very good, but messy album. Both the lead single "Mighty O" and "Peaches" suffer from the familiarity factor. Sure, both are equally solid, but "Mighty O" has a few too many shades of "The Whole World" going for it, with the Cab Calloway based chorus to dress it up, while "Peaches" essentially blends in with everything that was on Speakerboxxx. It's from "Idlewild Blue (Don'tchu Worry 'Bout Me)" on that things really start to get interesting. Dre pulls off a relatively successful blues song on this track, and while he's certainly no Muddy Waters, it's an addicting and fun song nonetheless. Big Boi's best contributions come afterwards with the tracks "N2U" and the infectious college band-driven "Morris Brown." These are by far the best tracks on the album, and bring out the best aspect of the album, it's incredibly fun and always addicting. "The Train" is another standout, with its soulful horns and solid beat backing Big Boi's highly refined raps.

So what about Andre Benjamin you ask? Well his best moments besides "Idlewild Blue" come in the form of "PJ & Rooster," which gets an extra boost from Big Boi's rapping, and the cliched yet sweet "When I Look In Your Eyes." While it might be disappointing for most that Dre doesn't rap on any track outside of "Mighty O," both of the aforementioned standouts from him are a lot of fun and hold their own against Big Boi's best. These are clearly more directly related to Idlewild as well, with the sound heavily steeped in traditional ragtime, blues and depression-era musical genres. Another fun track from Dre is the ridiculously silly "Makes No Sense At All," which features PJ from the movie clearly improving a song for lack of having any music. As the title indicates, the song makes no sense at all, but it's a lot of fun and is something I think only Dre would be able to pull off. As per usual, Outkast's album ends with the epic "A Bad Note," which is also an appropriately titled song. Besides that it sonically comes out of left field, the song never really goes anywhere, taking about six minutes of a distorted electric guitar before the George Clinton vocals come in. This song easily hearkens back to Stankonia, unfortunately it's not as good, and really doesn't make for a good note to end the album on. Overall this is a good album, and if it weren't for the fact that Outkast had been spending the past ten years making perfect music, I don't think it would be considered as much of a blemish. Instead, as it is, Big Boi and Dre need to start figuring out a way to work together again, because you can only release so many two-disc solo projects as Outkast albums before people start figuring it out..

Overall Rating: 85

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Bob Dylan's Modern Times

2006-08-29T01:38:00.000-05:00

Bob Dylan Modern Times

It's positively astonishing how good this album is. Outside of Johnny Cash, I can't think of an artist (at least in recent times) that has managed to not only maintain a prominent position in music, but also continuously release some of the most important music that can be heard for years to come.

For anyone that might've even had a passing thought that Bob Dylan has fallen off as of late, I dare you to listen to this record and not thoroughly enjoy every waking second of it. The voice may not be the same, but from the minute "Thunder on the Mountain" begins, you know this is Dylan at his very best. His lyrics are as poignant and clever as ever, and his band sounds just as inspired. Uptempo numbers like the aforementioned opener, "Rollin' and Tumblin'" and "Someday Baby" are all as good as ever. "Spirit on the Water" is another great love song that Dylan can add to his collection. Its bouncy beat matched with the airy electric guitar blend perfectly with Bob Dylan's sweetly sincere lyrics. While all of these songs are semi-familiar territory for Dylan (with somewhat of an exception going to "Spirit on the Water") it's on the slower songs and ballads where Dylan truly impresses. His dark, smoky vocals match his equally dark yet often-inspirational lyrics now more than ever, and songs like "Workingman's Blues #2" show just how pertinent Dylan can be for not just his followers but all audiences even today. This is a complete masterpiece from start to finish, and is an album that stacks up well to some of Dylan's finest early accomplishments and is superior to his last acclaimed album, Love and Theft. The real surprise is that Dylan is able to maintain focus for the entirety of the album, despite each song being over five minutes long. Finally, when you factor in his age, and how few artists are able to overwhelm expectations every time as their career goes on, this album should stand as a true testament to not only his ability but also his drive. Highly recommended.

Overall Rating: 100

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Movie Roundup: Talladega Nights, Little Miss Sunshine, and Snakes on a Plane

2006-08-23T22:45:00.000-05:00

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

While certainly not as funny as Anchorman, the combination of Will Ferrell, Gary Cole, and John C. Reilly make for a very fun hour and a half.

Talladega Nights can attribute its success to its supporting cast, a statement that can't be as easily made about Anchorman. While Ferrell's antics (most notably the unfortunately overexposed scene in which his character, Ricky Bobby, thinks he's on fire), can and do mark great highlights in the film, it's the timely comedic acting of Gary Cole (as the father Reese Bobby), John C. Reilly (as friend Cal Noughton Jr.), and others that made the film as enjoyable as it was. Also a plus, all of the racing sequences were shot incredibly well, giving a surprising shot of adrenaline to the film. While the film suffers from a few slow points, it is quickly revived by the last half of the movie, which focuses on a much older Reese working with his son once again to regain his confidence in the only way he knows how (which leads to a few scenes of very humorous situational comedy) and, finally, the interaction between Ferrell and his rival within the film played by Sascha Baron Cohen. Oddly enough, this would have to be the most normal role to date for Cohen (of Da Ali G Show and Borat fame) as frenchman Terry Cheveaux. That's not to say he's tame, as he pushes the French stereotypes about as far as possible, but he's hardly an outlandish character. All in all, the unneveness slightly hurt what was an otherwise fun but semi-forgettable film, which is something that can't be said about any other Will Ferrell movie that I can think of. That being said, it's probably the most interesting a NASCAR-themed mainstream film can get.

Overall Rating: 81

Little Miss Sunshine

In a summer season where even decent films were hard to come by, Little Miss Sunshine finally gives us the great summer indie film we were hoping for.

Perfect from beginning to end, Little Miss Sunshine is the kind of movie that only comes along once every few years. The film features a perfect mix of acting and writing, along with stellar performances from the entire cast, most notably Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette and Steve Carell. While the movie surrounds the story of Olive, played wonderfully by Abigail Breslin, the road movie shows an uncompromising depth in that it allows for each of the family members a great amount of freedom to individually grow and avoid the many pitfalls that most ensemble comedies fall into-- most notably one-dimensionalism. Instead, the backstories for the most part are well-developed and while the family originally comes off as being one more bad seed away from a possible Springer show guest appearance, their heart and own individual warmth that they shared (especially at the end) really speaks volumes about not only the ensemble casting but also the outstanding writing job by Michael Arndt. Top it off with a couple of completely unexpected turns and you've got by far the best film of the summer, and possibly the best of the year so far. Highly recommended.

Overall Rating: 100

Snakes on a Plane

For better or worse, I can pretty much guarantee that-- barring a severe case of amnesia-- Snakes on a Plane is a movie experience I will never forget. While the box office numbers may not show it, Snakes on a Plane will probably go down as one of the most noteworthy cult films in recent history.

I walked in knowing what to expect: snakes on a plane, Samuel L. Jackson yelling ("No I can't stop yelling, 'cause that's how I talk!" As the joke goes) and kicking ass, bad acting, worse dialogue, and, of course, a rowdy crowd. What I didn't expect, however, is just how much I would actually enjoy the movie, not to mention how much of an intense gross-out fest it would be. While I color myself surprised, I'd like to check whatever credibility I may have and say that Snakes on a Plane represents what should be at the core of every blockbuster movie, and once upon a time, was at the core of every blockbuster-- and that is the simple fact that Snakes is a fantastically fun movie. The movie doesn't make any sense at all, and has plot holes the size of many large countries, and of course the acting is bad, but just like Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill series, all of these "mistakes" are so obviously intentional given the large number of self-referential material (how many movies add lines and scenes based on comical blog responses?) that as long as you check your brain at the door, you'll enjoy every waking minute of the movie. That's not to say that it's all fun and games with Snakes on a Plane as it does carry a bit of (no pun intended) bite as well, and does hold its own as a horror/thriller movie in the crudest form. The snakes are definitely cool, and the death scenes are about as painful and/or gross as possible, which adds to the perpetual tension that continues throughout. As icing on the cake, it's obvious that Samuel L. Jackson is loving every single minute of being in this movie, and you have fun being a part of the magic with him. The supporting cast adds enough flare through their ridiculous quirks that the movie is just about as entertaining and ridiculous as it can get on all sides. I can't shake the feeling that this movie is going to be something that's talked about for a very long time, for better or worse. Between its absolutely genius marketing and unforgettable moviegoing experience, Snakes on a Plane, at the very least, will be known as the first great cult classic of this decade.

Overall Rating: 90

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Dirty Pretty Things reviewed

2006-08-18T01:44:00.000-05:00

Dirty Pretty Things Waterloo to Anywhere

A very significant album, Dirty Pretty Things are almost good enough on this album to make you forget about the Libertines. (Key word though, is almost.)

While Pete Doherty has ridden his Babyshambles project, not to mention his own life, into the ground and then even further, ex-Libertine bandmates have released a commendable album under the name Dirty Pretty Things. The band is as vibrant and tight as ever before, with Barat filling in superbly on vocals. The single "Bang Bang You're Dead" is easily the highlight of the album, showing what great potential the group has-- something that should be easier to reach without Doherty's antics to hold them back. That's not to say there aren't other very good tracks though. "Gin and Milk," "The Enemy," "You Fucking Love It," and "Wondering" are all also very well done. "You Fucking Love It" in particular can be attributed as being the sharpest and rowdiest the band has sounded in a very long time. If nothing else, this album should prove that the Libertines aren't dead after all, and that Carl Barat certainly knew what he was doing when he decided to form his own group. While Libertine fans will almost instinctively compare this album for better or for worse to all previous Babyshambles/Libertines work, relative newcomers that are looking for a dose of addicting british punk rock music should be satisfied with Waterloo to Anywhere.

Overall Rating: 83

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Lollapalooza 2006: In review

2006-08-13T20:42:00.000-05:00

Jeff Tweedy (Wilco frontman), in all his shaggy glory, was very happy to play in front of his hometown crowd.

Going into Lollapalooza this year, there were two things almost everyone in attendance were sure of: One is that Lollapalooza would be much bigger than last year and two being that there should be three days of incredible live music. What wasn't expected though was everyone's decision to do a cover of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy," a song that was played at least five times-- including Gnarls' own performance. Also unexpected was the genuinely nice weather that lasted all weekend long. All and all, it was an oustanding showing this year, and using Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy to sum it up, "I'm very proud of you, Chicago." With that said, here is an in-depth look at Lollapalooza 2006.

Surprises

The Go! Team got the crowd going on day 2.

Two of the biggest surprises this year came from The Go! Team and The Hold Steady, a couple of groups that I was pretty familiar with before, but had no idea what I was in for when it came to live performances. The Hold Steady really translates well live, and I was disappointed that they weren't offered a shot at getting an afterset at the House of Blues-- they're pretty much the ultimate late night party band. Between Craig Finn's incredibly witty lyrics while performing, and even funnier stories and musings in between songs (many of which were either religion or baseball related), he had the audience drawn to him in a way that's very difficult to do in such a large setting. For my money, these guys were among the highlights of the show. The Go! Team has carried quite a reputation for being an amazing live show with their unrelenting energy and crowd interaction. Yet, even knowing that going in, I still wasn't ready for what would be one of the most fun performances of the weekend. Sure, there were other bands that were better, but in terms of fun, The Go! Team were about as good as it gets, with lead vocalist Ninja mustering up more dance moves than I thought would be possible given the humidity. Another surprise was from the Austin, TX group Sound Team. While I have been a fan of many other Austin, TX groups (Spoon and perhaps lesser-known Fastball come to mind), I still wasn't expecting these guys to be as good as they were. They certainly weren't flashy, but their atmospheric wall-to-wall sound of guitar matched to solid lyrics and musicianship made for a very entertaining one-hour set. The final surprise goes to bluegrass group Nickel Creek (pictured left).

While I was already familiar with their exceptional abilities as musician, seeing them live gave a completely new perspective on them as a group-- as by setlists end they were easily one of the most laid-back groups to perform out of the three days. They threw in a few surprising covers as they did Radiohead's "Nice Dream," which came complete with a mini-rant compliments of frontman Chris Thile of how much they like Radiohead and how incredible Thom Yorke is,
and the shockingly good cover of Britney
Spears' "Toxic." Another nice touch was the band throwing in a cover of The Band's "The Weight" during their performance of "The Fox." Add in a two minute tap dancing session by bassist Mark Schatz, and you've got yet another highlight from the California-based band.

Dissapointments

Gnarls Barkley and their backup band, all adorned in Wimbledon gear, unfortunately left many disappointed.

Unfortunately, these come with the territory of having such large scale music festivals. The biggest disappointment though, and most easily preventable, was the terrible sound. While most of the sound leakage was fixed-- a problem that plagued last year's Lollapalooza-- there were far too many performances ruined by bad sound. The most infamous of these problems was during Kanye West's performance to which even he said "someone might be getting fired tonight."

"Can you hear me now?" Kanye's sound problems left many fans in the dark for the first half of the show.

Besides that, Gnarls Barkley, or more specifically Cee-Lo, dissapointed-- his voice was so shot that at times the background singers were more audible. It didn't help things that 99% of the people that were there were only there to hear "Crazy"-- a song that had already been covered by everyone from Mates of State to The Raconteurs.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers perhaps gave the crowd a bit too much Stadium Arcadium and not enough BloodSugarSexMagik

The final disappointment was the Red Hot Chili Peppers' setlist. The performance itself was incredible, even if it was the Flea and Frusciante talent show more often than not, but since the setlist only included a couple songs from before the album Californication, it was hard to be completely satisfied. Sleater-Kinney and Death Cab for Cutie round out the last two disappointments of the night. Sleater-Kinney, despite performing their second to last concert, really seemed to lack energy, and even though they went 15 minutes over in their set, they only seemed to be going through the motions. Death Cab for Cutie, after performing a marvelous headliner last year, disappointed with a fairly mediocre setlist-- leaving the majority of casual fans in the cold and even driving away a few of the die-hards.

Highlights

Mike James (frontman of My Morning Jacket) and company completely rocked out during their one hour set.

While the headliners were all quite fine and good, the band that really made the most of their hour was My Morning Jacket. They were already my pick to be one of the best bets this year, despite playing at the same time as The Raconteurs, and certainly didn't disappoint. While ordinarily it'd be a bad thing that the majority of songs were from their latest two albums, considering that they're the two most acclaimed in their collection, it seemed to be the most logical. Jim James' howling vocals were even more chill inducing live than they were on album and each of the solos were incredibly crisp as well. In addition to possibly setting the record for most props used on a Lollapalooza stage, The Flaming Lips were in top form as well, with lead singer Wayne Coyne encouraging sing alongs and fan participation all through the set. Adding a touch of nostalgia, the Flaming Lips introduced "She Don't Use Jelly" using a clip from an old Chicago performance. All in all it was a great show, with the extra flare of Wayne Coyne walking on the audience in his inflated bubble, the hundreds of extras dancing on stage, and inflatable santas and aliens all adding to the flare.

The Flaming Lips put on quite the spectacle, pulling out all the stops possible during their hour long set.

Kanye West, technical difficulties aside, put on a great show that will surely be remembered for many years to come, as it marked his first grand-scale homecoming. Similarly, Wilco, also put on an outstanding showing in front of lead singer Jeff Tweedy's hometown, and performed a number of new songs for the crowd on hand. Eels definitely put on one of the stranger shows, which was to be expected, but what wasn't expected (at least from me) was how they managed to rock from beginning to end without any hesitation, including closing out with a cover of "I Put a Spell on You" and, finally, "That's Life."

Wolfmother (bottom right)put on an outstanding show that the crowd really got into, as seen through the numerous body surfers and the giant mosh pit that took place towards the front of the stage. Each of the band members, particularly lead singer Andrew Stockdale, had a stage presence rarely seen from such a relatively new band.

Between the great crowd, relatively nice weather, and good performances all-around, I have to say that this year's Lollapalooza was even better than I was anticipating. Hopefully next year, Perry Farrell and company will look to improve both the sound as well as the number of food booths next year. As far as lineup predictions are concerned, maybe next summer will finally be the year we see a Smashing Pumpkins reunion, or maybe even a Radiohead apperance. Time will tell, but as always, I will release any info as it becomes available.

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Temporary Delays

2006-08-08T17:20:00.000-05:00

Hey folks, sorry for the delays in reporting. There've been massive technical difficulties on my end so I've had to postpone any updates until I'm able to get everything back together. My apologies once again, but all should be back to normal within the next week.

12 hours away...

2006-08-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

Lollapalooza is among us, and as such, I'll be dutifully reporting from Grant Park and giving a complete recap come Monday. In the meantime, as you can see, there's been very little to talk about. In the upcoming couple of weeks though you should expect at least a couple movie reviews coming your way. Until then, have a great weekend, and I'll do my best to keep cool.

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Fuzzy Bits: Damon Albarn forms new band

2006-07-29T10:30:00.000-05:00

The lead singer of the band Blur and Gorillaz looks to have yet another project on his hands: The Good, The Bad, and The Queen. Clever name aside, it looks like Albarn has some serious talent (as always) on hand. He will be joined by bassist Paul Simonen (of the Clash), ex-Verve guitarist Simon Tong (who also played occasionally with Blur), and Tony Allen on drums (from Fela Kuti). Their debut isn't planned for release until October but of course, as new information crops up you'll be the first to know.

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The Peter Jackson School of Film: A Look at a Disturbing Trend in Blockbusters

2006-07-27T00:42:00.000-05:00

Shortly after the release of King Kong, looking at the trailers for the then upcoming summer blockbusters, I thought to myself "Could this finally mark the year that spectacle returns to film?" It turns out I was right, and it seems as if a film that I thoroughly enjoyed can easily be made out to be the scapegoat of a recent disturbing trend in Hollywood films: The overuse of "suspension of disbelief." Now, I'm well aware that calculated blockbusters have been around forever, chief among them 1997's Titanic, but this trend that I'm speaking of seems to have only risen within the past few years, most notably with Jackson's King Kong. The issue is that on top of the jam-packed action that's all but guaranteed out of our summer blockbusters, we've also been getting a lot of what I refer to as fluff action-- fantastical action sequences so out of place that they verge on becoming tedious. Peter Jackson has long been king of this, and one needs to look no further than the Lord of The Rings trilogy (which felt more like a pentalogy if you go by running time), making films that are as all-encompassing as humanly possible. He brought this same framework to King Kong, a movie whose budget rose from roughly $175 to a mind-boggling $207 million, all because of Jackson's efforts to push the envelope in eye candy. Where did that extra $32 mil go? Your guess is as good as mine, but I have a hunch that a good chunk of that went to the senseless marathon battle between King Kong and a T-Rex. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed that whole bit (as well as the rest of the film), as it answered every young kid's (well boy's anyway) question-- especially if you grew up at the same time as Jurassic Park-- of what dominating beast would win, a brute like Kong or the also feared T-Rex. The downside of action sequences like these is twofold. First, it's becoming standard now that you have to deal with CGI which is a real shame because as advanced as computers today are, there's no replacing reality, and even quality CGI (of which there's been very few-- even George Lucas' last two Star Wars looked incredibly tacky and he's been in the forefront of special effects) will look outdated in five to ten years. The second downside is that in an already overcrowded and competitive atmosphere, there comes a point where pushing the envelope for the sake of wowing the crowd becomes pushing the envelope for the sake of pushing the envelope.

That brings us to the now, where there have been continual flops from seemingly sure-fire blockbusters and I'm beginning to wonder if this could be the reason why. Could it be that everyone is trying to outdo their counterpart so they feel the need to insert the aforementioned "fluff action" to try to grab brownie points from the audience?

Well, today I finally saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, and that is both the point of as well as the basis of my rant. Like the second Matrix, Dead Man's Chest is 95% action and 5% of (very poor) dialogue. Unlike the second Matrix, Dead Man's Chest feels about one hundredth as creative as the original.

While the cast of characters are still in tact (much to the delight of any Pirates fan), you won't get much chance to enjoy any of them-- if it weren't for Johnny Depp's astounding presence as an actor, he too would've come off like a one bit actor wasting what could've been useful time and space. Keira Knightley's character goes from playful and innocent to full on tease, while Tom Hollander (who plays the "bad guy" Cutler Beckett) is such an unfathomable bore that he appears incapable of creating such conflict. Even Orlando Bloom, a man who I would hardly say is blessed with much acting talent, should be offended as the role of Will has been reduced to either being pouty or indifferent.

The actual action sequences themselves were at times enjoyable but when the running time approached an hour it began to feel tedious. From tedious it went to tiring, and then by the end of the movie, you wondered what the hell they possibly could've left out to need a third film outside of a Keith Richards cameo. They threw everything including the kitchen sink into the action of this film, and it served no purpose whatsoever. While some scenes, such as when the imprisoned men of Captain Jack's crew were forced to swing back and forth from their hanging cage, evoked the clever playfulness that made the first film so enjoyable, there were too many moments where you would expect something as strange as Dr. Phil getting in a food fight with a puffin (with Mills Lane refereeing of course) on the moon just for the sake of doing it (and being the first ones to do it). The whole three-way fight between Jack, Will, and Norrington was pointless-- their supposed motivations were about as deep as a bird bath-- and took far too long (I'm almost certain it was thirty minutes long), ending with Will and Norrington fighting fiercely on a... giant... wheel. Apparently no T-Rexes were available to make Will and Norrington run that much faster, but the point of the matter is that these films' increase in length and increased complaints in weariness stems from this very real problem-- there's simply too much fluff. That's what plagued Pirates 2 (and if it weren't for the fact that this movie were a sequel I can guarantee that it wouldn't have done half as well at the box office), Superman, and will plague every following film until someone realizes that they need to actually insert a story somewhere to keep the audience awake for the whole three hours.

Oh, and by the way, my rating for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is a paltry 52. You should save your money and wait to join Jack Sparrow and company on a Blockbuster night (no pun intended).

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New Music Tuesday (Jurassic 5, Tom Petty, and more)

2006-07-25T23:36:00.000-05:00

Today marked the release of a few heavily anticipated albums, chief among them Jurassic 5's long awaited release of Feedback, Tom Petty's return with Highway Companion, and finally Pharrell's long talked about solo release of In My Mind.

Stinker Alert!

Looking at the last album first, Pharrell's album, in a word, is awful. Whether or not you'd like to consider him to be an innovator in the hip-hop world as a producer is one thing, but setting mediocre rhymes and worse vocals to videogame music is hardly anything groundbreaking, much less worthwhile. Even if you're a fan of Pharrell/NERD/Neptunes, do yourself a favor and make a trip to a listening booth before you put down any money on this album.

Jurassic 5 Feedback

As always, you can expect feedback to be mixed on this effort.

Thankfully, the increasingly unbearable wait of Jurassic 5's album came out much better than Pharrell's. However, it's hard to argue that Feedback was indeed worth the wait. The opener "Back 4 U" gives the album a great start before it stumbles out of the blocks with the bland "Radio" and "Brown Girl (Suga Plum)." From "Gotta Understand" until the end of the album though, J5 punches through with very well done old-school hip-hop that at the best moments certainly outdo their previous effort, and sometimes come close to matching the finer moments on Quality Control. The single "Work It Out" featuring Dave Matthews Band is a fun, laid-back summer jam, while "Baby Please" takes its inverted Al Green backdrop and matches it perfectly with well-timed rhymes. Another mentionable is "End Up Like This," which is really the tragic romantic storytelling rap that "Thin Line" should've been, and is a perfect endnote for the album. Overall, this is sometimes among J5's strongest work, but it suffers from the same thing that all previous albums have suffered from, inconsistency. Beyond that, there's a lot for fans new and old alike, and with all the touring that Jurassic 5 has been doing with bands such as DMB, maybe they're hoping to reach a new audience.

Overall Rating: 81

Tom Petty Highway Companion

It may not be the grand return to form everyone was hoping for, but it's not bad.

Tom Petty's latest perhaps should've been called "Sleepy Hollow" as Petty spends almost the entirety of the album on cruise control, methodically running through each americana-tinged track with varying degrees of success. At its best, Petty comes up with such great songs as "Saving Grace," "Flirting With Time," and "Big Weekend," which aren't great in terms of their creativity-- many of these songs feel like displaced B-sides from Petty's earlier works-- but within their simple frameworks they are impressive for both Petty's presence as well as his unrelenting knack for making even the most mundane song accessible. On the other hand, tracks like "Ankle Deep" and "Turn This Car Around," really make you want to turn your car around and return the album. They're not bad or offending in any way, especially within the context of an already laid-back album, these tracks suffer from a coma-inducing monotony that few other artists outside of Yanni can take pride in causing. With the seven remaining tracks, they are all resigned to Petty's own reclusive musings and can really only be designated as typical. There's nothing new or groundbreaking here, although, for anyone that has paid attention to Tom Petty's music for the last few years, that's to be expected. In addition, given Tom Petty's last release was the atrocious Last DJ, it's probably just as well that Petty decided not to stray too far from his most familiar path after all.

Overall Rating: 80

The Roots Pre-Game EP

I've been trying to refrain from making this statement for a few months now, but I can't hold it in any longer: The Roots' Game Theory will be, hands down, the best album of the year. Proof of this should come in the form of this Ep, appropriately named Pre-Game. The first track is the lead single "Don't Feel Right," which has been my favorite track for some time now since ?uestlove released a special mix version on the Okayplayer website. While definitely a bit of a slow burn compared to the singles the Roots have released lately-- it's more "Next Movement" than "Boom!"-- Black Thought and the crew are just as solid as ever. Where they really step it up is on the next track, "Here I Come." Malik B. gives a huge boost on this track, his intensity matching one the most dense tracks that the Roots have ever done and, frankly, makes the stuff off of Phrenology look tame. "In the Music" is yet another dark track, and while it isn't the heavy-hitter that the two previous tracks were, it's just as engaging. The last track is "Bread & Butter," yet another track out of left field (or, more appropriately, the Delta), which features a handclap-laden blues/gospel-tinged backdrop (complete with muffled wailing). From each of these four tracks, four complete differentiating sides of the Roots come through, each of them equally creative and somewhat groundbreaking. While many (including myself) would say that The Tipping Point was little more than an intriguing failure, it was already apparent that its purpose was to serve, in addition to allowing the group to move on to Def Jam, as a platform for their next great undertaking-- the upcoming release of Game Theory.

Overall Rating: 100

There will be more reviews/news coming tomorrow and after the air finally clears I'll be able to get back to the Lollapalooza preview just in time for the start of the festival.

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Fuzzy Thoughts Profiles Lollapalooza 2006: The Main Acts Pt I

2006-07-16T12:18:00.000-05:00

Here's the first of the Lollapalooza profiles, and to quote (roughly) Reservoir Dogs, we'll be going "first thing last." That being said, it'll be main acts (everyone performing post 6:30pm) first and then the other guys afterwards. Since I'll be in Vegas next week, I can't promise that I'll be churning out posts as quickly as I usually can, but I'll put some new posts up whenever possible.

Blues Traveler August 6 adidas-Champs Stage (7:30-8:30)

Alongside the now-defunct Phish, Blues Traveler carried on the jamband torch most notably started by the Grateful Dead for a new era of fans. With the big hit of "But Anyway" from their 1990 debut, Blues Travelers made it big and haven't really looked back since. Although inconsistency and tragedy plagued the band in the mid 90's, two factors which have still hurt the band to this day, they are still mildly popular though pale in comparison to fellow mates Dave Matthews Band. Despite that, Blues Traveler still knows how to perform live, so look for them to make the most of their one hour set. Besides the aforementioned "But Anyway," some other hits of theirs includes: "Hook," "Run Around," "The Mountains Win Again," "Girl Inside My Head," "Let Her and Let Go," and most recently "Amber Awaits."

Recommended Albums

Bastardos! (2005)

Truth Be Told (2003)

Four (1994)

Blues Traveler (1990)

Broken Social Scene August 6 Q101 Stage (7:30-8:30)

Indie rock group Broken Social Scene is likely one of the most critically acclaimed bands around at the moment, and that acclaim is very well deserved. Their debut album Feel Good Lost was an all instrumental effort that showed loads of potential, which they fulfilled on their follow-up You Forgot It In People. Most recently, Broken Social Scene released an arguably even better eponymous album this past year, which was listed very highly on my top albums of 2005.

Recommended Albums

Broken Social Scene (2005)

You Forgot It In People (2002)

Common August 5 AT&T Stage (6:30-7:30)

Still flying high from his most recent album BE, Common is well-regarded as being one of the better underground hip-hop artists of the past half-decade. From his frequent work with such respected artists like The Roots, Erykah Badu, Roy Hargrove, and most recently Kanye West, Common is as diverse as they come. Reflecting that, Common's audience is as varied as Common's own music, so even if you aren't necessarily a fan of most hip-hop, you might find that you like Common regardless. Most notable singles for Common include "Go," "The Corner," "Come Close," and "The Light."

Recommended Albums

Be (2005)

Like Water For Chocolate (2000)

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Fuzzy Bits: Weezer breaking up? Future releases for the month...

2006-07-15T21:47:00.000-05:00

Weezer break up rumors surfacing again

While it seems that this has been discussed almost after every release, it seems more and more like front-man Rivers Cuomo, along with the rest of his band, are ready to call it quits. Cuomo, who is now 36, had some really interesting news when he said that he had been writing a lot of songs, but doesn't see them being Weezer songs. At the same time, he said that he had no desire to pursue a solo career, so who knows what that means. My take on it is that I think fans would welcome a completely different Weezer album, especially if that means they don't have to put up with another Make Believe, so I don't really see what the big deal would be, but maybe they're just bored.

Upcoming Releases

July 25 is shaping up to be a busy Tuesday for new releases. Jurassic 5's heavily anticipated Feedback will be released as well as Tom Petty's Highway Companion, an album shaping up to be a real hit this summer. As far as more mainstream artists, Alien Ant Farm releases Up In The Attic, while Pharrell Williams releases his much discussed solo project, In My Mind.

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Concert Review: Damien Rice/Fiona Apple

2006-07-15T01:50:00.000-05:00

Just so you know, Lollapalooza mini-profiles will be on their way throughout the weekend. Due to both a busy schedule and downtime in the server, I've been unable to get them out beforehand so I'm just going to bump them back a bit and instead do this review. Sorry for the inconvenience (didn't want you to think I'd forgotten about them).

Damien Rice/Fiona Apple Live at Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island (7/13/06)

First off, I have to say that the Charter One Pavilion is an absolutely gorgeous venue, I do sincerely hope that it stays a part of the city's lakefront permanently. The space is relatively intimate, housing a crowd of about 5,000. Unfortunately, tonight's show was not sold out-- a real shame considering both of their performances.

Damien Rice opened the show with The Blower's Daughter Part II and once he started, he never lost his form. Consistently delivering exorbitantly passionate vocals and guitar solos-- especially on "Volcano", "Woman Like a Man" and "Delicate"-- Rice had much of the crowd standing on their feet by the end of his set. Fulfilling a request by the crowd, his encore entailed an absolutely superb performance of "The Professor & La Fille Danse" to which he really worked his magic by looping his vocals and guitar over and over until it finally swirled amongst the crowd.

If that weren't enough, there was still Fiona who had yet to come on stage. With Apple's performance there was a bit of a build-up, as it seemed like either her voice was shot from the night before or she just didn't quite get into it yet, but once she got there, she really made sure that everyone got their money's worth and thensome. Between her on-stage antics that would make Janis Joplin look calm, and the undeniable talent showcased by her band, Fiona Apple had a ever present connection between herself in the crowd. As such, she sung her heart out on every piece, and was especially good on "I Know," "Slow Like Honey," and "Love Ridden." On her higher energy tracks, Apple adjusted herself accordingly-- and really seemed to be energized by the end. Apple herself (as well as the crowd) was going well enough that she could've performed for an additional hour had she been able to. Instead, after her semi-intentionally funny story about bugs (in which she confesses her fear of killing them but justifies it by saying "the little f****** should move"), she performed "Paper Bag" before streaming into her other hit songs. After a five minute encore break, she returned to do a really lovely acoustic version of "Extraordinary Machine" as well as others.

This concert (and tour for that matter) is quite interesting because both Fiona Apple and Damien Rice are incredibly emotionally raw artists to the point that you can not only see or hear their emotions, but also feel them. While Rice's anger, hurt and frustration was placed solely in the form of his music, Fiona really does let it all unfold the way she wants it to, and that's pretty admirable. While some (and these people were in attendance too) were completely thrown by her antics, others embraced it-- it's hard to be in between. That being said, this is one of the finer concerts I've been to, and I look forward to seeing them whenever they may stop by the Windy City again.

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Fuzzy Thoughts: Lollapalooza Day Three

2006-07-11T19:21:00.000-05:00

So we've come to the conclusion of the Lollapalooza preview. While day three may not have the big names that day two featured, there is a lot of top talent here, so it should be arguably the most interesting of the three day set. First though, I offer the following tips for the first-timers that aren't really sure what to expect out of Lollapalooza:

More than likely, it will be really hot. Last year it was well over 100 and humid, so get to know the concessions stands really well. You can bring your own water and camelback backpacks so that is also a good plan for the thrift-minded.

There is lots of food to choose from at Lollapalooza, but if you'd like to, you can venture off elsewhere and find somewhere else to eat (and perhaps some AC in the process). While there's more than enough available for you to be able to walk around and just find something, you can always check out Metromix to find something specific.

Don't forget about the autograph tent! There's almost always someone good over there after performances, so be sure to check out their schedule, and get there early.

Stay alert for secret performances, aftershows, etc. as they're almost a certainty.

Yes, it'll be crowded, but everyone's there just to have some fun. For a first-year run event, Lollapalooza was run extremely well last year, and despite the massive growth in size this year, I'm thinking that Perry & Co. are going to pull through once again in running a great operation.

Hopefully that will clear up some of the questions and concerns and, if not, feel free to post a comment. With that in mind, I'll move right along to my picks for the grand finale that is day three of Lollapalooza.

From Opening until 2:30

Surprisingly enough, the opening set is one of my "must-see" picks, as Jim Noir is performing (appropriately enough) at the adidas-Champs stage at 11:45. For those of you that aren't familiar with Noir, his single "Eanie Meany" has served as the background music for the outstanding adidas World Cup commercials that you might've seen (I'm still upset that France lost, ridiculous head butt aside). Noir has also attained an incredible amount of hype with his full length album titled Tower of Love, which was already released overseas and will be here August 8-- making the timing of his performance at Lollapalooza all the better. Following that should be yet another great show from local band (Highland Park to be exact) The Redwalls. They absolutely blew away the crowd (myself included) last year and have been riding a high horse ever since. From one hot band to another, look for The Hold Steady to put on a very solid show for their hour-long set.

From 2:30 until 6:30

I was a bit surprised that Ben Kweller was selected once again as he hasn't released anything new since his so-so release On My Way. On the other hand there is the pop/country/bluegrass group Nickel Creek, that also knows how to put on a show. I'm picking Nickel Creek easily over Ben, as much as I like the guy, because I'm betting that Nickel Creek really puts on a big-time show. If you're looking for something under the radar, check out The Benevento-Russo Duo. Though they're only performing for 45 minutes, they're a very intriguing avant-garde jazz duo (think of a poor man's Medeski, Martin & Wood). At 3:30, Andrew Bird will be performing, and there's really no contest if you're wondering who you should see then. Bird is just about as good as it gets, and he should definitely let everyone else know that much with his performance. Coming in at 4:30 are Matisyahu and The Shins. My personal pick goes to The Shins, I can't really take Matisyahu all that seriously (bad reggae is bad reggae, period), although I might leave early to check out Of Montreal who performs (for some strange reason) from 5:00-6:00pm. It seems to me that it'd make much more sense to have them paired off against Poi Dog Pondering and She Wants Revenge (which is a little bit like choosing whether you'd like to poke your left or right eye out), but oh well.

From 6:30 until Close

Once again, I'm torn with the 6:30 performances. If it were almost any other act, I would go with Queens of the Stone Age and never look back. If you're looking to rock out and really get hyped about the Chili Peppers performance, QOTSA would be the band to see. However, seeing that this is Chicago's own Wilco that is performing at the same time, there's no way I can go against them. I've been waiting to see Wilco far too long to let the opportunity pass by, and if the heavy stuff isn't for you anyway you would more than appreciate their wonderful sound. Afterwards, I'll head over to check out Broken Social Scene, because I can't really see Blues Traveler doing all that much in a one hour set-- they fare much better when they're able to jam out. To make up for missing them, I do plan on possibly seeing their HOB aftershow, which I think would probably be more fun anyway, but I may change my mind. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are the last set of the day, so you don't really have much of a choice to see anything else. Given how incredibly happy I was with Stadium Arcadium though, I'm really excited to see how those songs transfer over live.

Aftersets?

There are none that have been officially listed surprisingly, but I'm pretty sure that will change, I'll keep you posted.

Well that's the conclusion of day three and thus also the preview of Lollapalooza. In the next coming days I'll be throwing up profiles of some of the artist to give you some information on them without having to scour the internet. Here's a breakdown of my picks for day three:

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NMT: July 11, 2006 (John Mayer, Muse, Thom Yorke, and Sufjan Stevens)

2006-07-11T13:59:00.000-05:00

Well, haven't done one of these in a while, but yes, good things come for those who wait indeed. John Mayer has resurfaced once again (although for all this time you'd think he'd do a bit better), and there are some very intriguing releases from Thom Yorke, Muse and Sufjan Stevens. Easily the most exciting week in music in a while, here's a look at new music Tuesday on July 11, 2006.

John Mayer releases "Waiting on the World to Change"

The single which is slated to be on the album Continuum (which is still coming out sometime before Sufjan Stevens finishes all 50 states albums-- or 50 Illinois albums, take your pick) was released today. After first listening to it, it sounded too familiar for its own good yet still strangely addicting in its own clichéd way, much like Lenny Kravitz at his best moments. That's a backhanded compliment, sure, but so is making a song that sounds so much like Curtis Mayfield and The Impressions's "People Get Ready." If you don't believe me, I dare you to download both and not notice a striking similarity. Besides that, this is a touching song, and while it seems like it might've been written way before the release date, it's still very much appropriate. I can see this single as being a late-summer bloomer as far as radio airplay is concerned, and hopefully Continuum will show the same kind of maturity (without the ripoffs). One final question, why name this single as being by John Mayer when the album Try! was John Mayer Trio? It still has Dino Palladino on bass and Steve Jordan on drums. Plus it seems like it'd be a better way of showing progression and maturity on Mayer's part. Either way, it'd be so much easier on everyone to just stick on one name Mr. Mayer.

Muse Black Holes and Revelations

During one of my moments of deep inner monologue-- if I remember correctly it was during my writing about Coheed and Cambria-- I thought to myself, playing devil's advocate if you will, "How could you possibly have such a strong dislike for Coheed and Cambria, a band that you find pretentious and self-indulgent (not to mention tacky and annoying), when you listen to Muse?" I remember smiling to myself, and beginning to retract my comments about C&C (and after looking at them now, I can see I did stifle myself somewhat), before I said to myself "Well, I'd much rather be a band that is accused of self-indulgently ripping off a band like Radiohead-- well regarded as one of the best rock bands around-- than sound like a mash up of the Trans Siberian Orchestra and Fred Durst with his nuts kicked in." The relation to this story and the review of this album (and I assure you, there is some sense of relevancy here), is that Muse, as much as everyone hates to admit it, is good at what they do-- almost too good. They know when to throw in the strings, when to play loud, and when to be delicate. Everything is timed so perfectly that it feels calculated and, on the occasion that the song fails, you feel yourself chuckle a bit. That's the double-edged sword involved with doing music like Muse-- you want to pull the heart-strings like Coldplay while at the same time have the urgency of Radiohead while also maintaining the massive dynamics of both bands. Where Black Holes and Revelations fits in all of this is that this is perhaps the first time where Muse has finally come into their own. They've integrated a heavy undercurrent of techno-rock (as noted when their single "Supermassive Black Hole" was released) that had yet to be seen this consistently, and have also drawn back on the heavier and apocalyptic arrangements that were evidenced on Absolution. What's been replaced is just, well, supremely well-done music. Songs like the aforementioned single, "Map of the Problematique," "Assassin," "Knights of Cydonia" and others are so consistently good, that you'd begin to wonder if this is really a Muse album. Of course, what would Muse be without a ballad on their album? The one that's on this release, "Soldier's Poem," is easily the best they've ever done, as it's just as haunting as it is incredibly beautiful. Never have they sounded so focused, so consistent, and so mature. Most importantly, they seem to really be enjoying themselves here. If they keep this up, the only people chuckling will be Muse at all the critics that have spent the better half of their career dogging these guys.

Overall Rating: 100

Thom Yorke The Eraser

The way Radiohead's been going lately, it's a good day if you hear about them even working on new music, let alone making something that is actually released. Rather than this being a Radiohead album though, this is instead a solo album by frontman Thom Yorke, which makes this a curious release indeed. Seeing Yorke's influence on Radiohead's sound, it almost seems as bizarre as when Dave Matthews decided to release his own solo album. Truth be told, I do think that there's a similar reason for it happening, that being that Yorke (much like Dave) saw Radiohead moving in a different direction while he was still interested in toddling around with Kid A/Amnesiac-like landscapes. As such, rather than risk compromising the entire band, it sounds a heck of a lot better to say that you're going to do this on your own as a solo project. Fans will go out to buy it to see what their favorite frontman has been up to, while others will simply buy it out of curiosity. That being said, The Eraser really is a bit like a sparse cousin of the Kid A/Amnesiac duo. The bizarre sonic landscapes are still in tact, but there's hardly any guitar, nor the same all-encompassing soundstage. While all of the songs are relatively solid, there are only a few true stand-outs, that being the opening title track, "Black Swan," "Atoms for Peace," and the closing "Cymbal Rush." Overall, this is a surprisingly good album (especially as far as solo projects are concerned), just not much of a departure for anyone that's been listening to Radiohead for the past five or so years. On the other hand, it certainly goes down well and is, at worst, good from beginning to end.

Overall Rating: 90

Sufjan Stevens The Avalanche- Outtakes and Extras from the Illinois Album

First of all, only Stevens would have the audacity to take a 21-track album and try to pass it off as an "outtakes and extras" record. I guess he doesn't want to admit to the fact that he's given preferential treatment to Illinois versus his home state of Michigan. Either way, there's really not much new to be had on this Illinois part two album. Stevens spends most of the album living by the old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," as he manages to pull off three different variations on the song "Chicago," and otherwise uses the same lush arrangements that made both Illinois and Greetings from Michigan famous. That's not to say that this is a wasted effort-- though it's definitely calculated-- songs like the title song, "Adlai Stevenson," "The Henney Buggy Band," and "The Mistress Witch from McClure" are way too charming to dislike, and Sufjan Stevens still presents each of the songs with such magnificent flair that it's just as fun as his previous efforts as well. The only creeping question that enters my mind is, can he really keep this going? I know all of these elements are working now, but he's already beginning to wear thin for many listeners, and if he doesn't start to change up, he might have a hard time just getting through the rest of the midwestern states. For the time being however, Sufjan Stevens is white-hot right now and can really do no wrong. His songs are about as unoffending as they get, not to mention incredibly spirited. That being said, I'd only recommend this album for die-hard Sufjan and Illinois fans, everyone else need not apply. It's not that it's a bad album, it's actually quite good, it just certainly won't make anyone change the way they see Sufjan Stevens' music.

Overall Rating: 85

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Fuzzy Thoughts: Lollapalooza Day Two

2006-07-10T13:44:00.000-05:00

Well, day one was fun, but day two looks even better. As the lineups get better though, the choices get even more complicated, and one glance at the day two or three schedule should confirm that. Of course, that's where I come in, and without further adieu I give you my picks for day two:

From Opening until 2:30

First off, for those that care, The winner of the Last Band Standing contest will be playing at 11:15. I'd like to say that I'd be out there, but more than likely, I'll just be waiting for Sa-Ra's lean 30 minute set at noon. After that warm-up, I think the show that everyone will be talking about (for the non-mainstream acts anyway) is Wolfmother at 12:30. I've seen these guys live on a couple of TV spots, not to mention some of the iTunes teasers they've released, and they've definitely got the energy level kicked up a few notches when it comes to live performances, so they should be really fun to see. Immediately following that show at 1:30 will be The Go! Team, and given what their album sounds like I can only imagine what they're like live (they're supposedly very entertaining as you can imagine). Feist would be a good back-up plan, especially if you don't think The Go! Team's cheerleaders gone indie rock antics are going to be for you.

From 2:30 until 6:30

If you're looking for a good time to take a break (and if last year didn't prove anything else, it proved that breaks are indeed good-- especially at 100+ degrees), I'd definitely look at doing one sometime between the 1:30-3:30 time period. Personally, I can live without seeing Coheed and Cambria (I don't see how even a mother could love Claudio Sanchez's voice), and if I get the chance I'd probably look to catch the last half of Built To Spill. After that, the highlights look to be nothing but hip hop acts, as there's no way anyone should pass up on Lyrics Born at 3:30 (unless your going to see Calexico, then I'd understand), and everyone should see Gnarls Barkley just to see what movie characters they'll be dressed up as this time around (not to mention they've been consistently outstanding in all their live performances). Instead of heading over to one of the 5:30 shows (Dresden Dolls and Smoking Popes oh my!) I'll keep the energy going by seeing the underrated Blackalicious.

From 6:30 until Close

This 6:30 time slot is what really gets tricky for me. Flaming Lips or Common. Yes, one is hip hop and the other rock, but at the same time you're talking about two of the top (and most creative for that matter) talents in either genre. This one is pretty much a coin flip, but if pressed, I'd more than likely check out the Flaming Lips because I've never seen them live before (and out of hope that Common will pop on stage and perform with Kanye West later on). I'm mad that Lollapalooza had to set it up that way, but one conflict out of a few dozen possibilities really isn't too shabby. After that, there are probably going to be the people that decide they're going to camp out to see Kanye or Manu Chao for that matter, and the people willing to risk not being up close and personal so they can see The New Pornographers and Thievery Corporation. I really could care less whether or not I'm in reach of Kanye's backpack so I'll more than likely be checking out Thievery Corporation. Now it's 8:30, and there really should be no question about who to see. Yes, I know, Manu Chao hardly performs in America, but think about it: Kanye West in his hometown of Chicago, performing in front of tens of thousands of fans in the largest musical festival that Chicago has to offer... what's not to like?

Aftersets?

Two really interesting prospects here: The Frames, Nada Surf, and Elvis Perkins will be playing an 18+ show at the Metro at 9pm, and Blues Traveler and Particle will be playing at the House of Blues at 10pm (18+ show).

The days just keep getting better and better, check back tomorrow for a look at the finale of Lollapalooza, and also a list of things to look for and expect out of Lollapalooza 2006. Here's a simplified look at my picks for day two:

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Fuzzy Thoughts: Lollapalooza Day One

2006-07-08T03:21:00.000-05:00

Well, with less than a month to go until Lollapalooza, it's time for me to give my picks on who to see, and what to skip. Now after much brain teasing, many sleepless nights, and a few lost brain cells, I've come up with what I think is a suitable schedule. There are definitely some surprise picks mixed in here, but all in all I hope this makes your scheduling a bit easier considering all the choices available. Onto my selections!

From Opening until 2:30

To be honest, the first half of Day One (until at least 2:30) is surprisingly weak. Of course, festivals like these give the little guys a chance to give a breakout performance and make a name for themselves, so it may turn out much better than it looks on paper. That being said, my first band pick is Sound Team at noon. I'm pretty sure more people will be going for deadboy & the Elephantmen, but frankly, I don't find the duo all that appealing, and I'm banking on Sound Team to put out the better set. Following that, I'm going to be skipping out on both The Subways and Blue October to check out Husky Rescue. While there's a good chance that Blue October might be decent live, I'm thinking that the atmospheric Helsinki-based Husky Rescue will probably end up putting the best show out of the bunch.

From 2:30 until 6:30

Staying within the mellow trend, my next pick (and the easiest one by far) is eels. No offense to Panic! At the Disco, but I'd much rather be depressed by Mr. E's songs of sorrow than want to off myself after listening to them for more than five minuets, because at least Mr. E's songs are good. Immediately following that performance is a group of equally compelling performances: Stars, Editors, Jeremy Enigk, and Mute Math all perform at the same time. An interesting predicament if you ask me, as both Stars and Editors are increasingly gaining attention, while Enigk and particularly Mute Math are not necessarily as well known. If you're looking for a sleeper pick of the bunch, it would definitely be Mute Math, and if it weren't for the fact that Stars was playing at the same time, I'd go with that pick. However, since Stars is playing, and I love their music, I have to go with them (perhaps if I get antsy though, I'll head over and check out the end of MM's set). Following Stars at 4:30 is yet another easy pick for me, and should be one for pretty much anyone that's a fan of either group (I don't know if any overlap is possible)-- Ryan Adams over Umphrey's McGee (a pick I would take any day of the week). I'm just hoping that: a) no one pisses Ryan off and b) that he actually puts out for the entire hour. I've heard about his shenanigans, but seeing that this will be the first chance I'll get to see him live (and probably many others as well) I'd like to think he'll do what he's capable of and not go off if someone should call him Brian. At 5:30, both Iron & Wine and The Secret Machines will be performing. As much as I love Sam Beam (the man that is Iron & Wine), I can't imagine him doing well in this venue, so I'm going to go with The Secret Machines and hope that perhaps there will be some kind of Iron & Wine afterset.

From 6:30 until Close

Okay, I get it, everyone loves Jack White and outside of Gnarls Barkley, The Raconteurs is the collaboration of the year. So of course, I'd have to pick them right? Well, in the words of Lee Corso "Not so fast, my friend." While I think that what Jack White is doing is great, unless he's going to bring Meg out on stage and start performing White Stripes songs and then let Brendan Benson do some of his own stuff, there's no way I'm going to pass up My Morning Jacket (yes they're the special guest), a group I consider to be one of the most underrated right now. In my mind, with their release of Z last year, an album that was ranked #1 on my 2005 list (and cracked the top 3 on many others), MMJ has finally broken through and proven that they're not just a fluke. I'm sure that the crowd will be small compared to what The Raconteurs will be getting, but I'm almost 100% certain it'll be worth it regardless. After that set is over, I will be thoroughly enjoying myself as I watch Sleater-Kinney tear it up. While I don't blame anyone, particularly fans, for picking the Violent Femmes, if you're not familiar with SK, you should definitely at least give them a listen as it will be their last performance ever (yep, they're breaking up). Finally, battling certain claustrophobia, I'll be watching Death Cab for Cutie close it out for the second year in a row. They put out too good of a show last year for me not to see them again, and maybe they'll even top the previous performance.

Aftersets?

There's quite a bit to choose from in this department. Of Montreal will be playing at Schuba's (21+ show) at 10pm. Thievery Corporation will be playing along side Govinda and Husky Rescue at the Metro (18+ show) at 9pm, while Blackalicious and Lyrics Born will be performing with Ohmega Watts at the House of Blues (18+ show) at 10pm. Also of note, Lake Trout will be at the Abbey Pub for an 18+ show at 9pm.

Phew, that's quite a lot of music for one day, and we're just getting started! Check back tomorrow for the Fuzzy Thoughts' Day Two overview of Lollapalooza. Just to simplify things a bit, below is a summary table of my picks for Day One:

Dave Matthews Band Live at Alpine Valley 7/1/06

2006-07-04T11:39:00.000-05:00

Even without the strongest setlist, DMB still puts out the best performances money can buy.

Say what you'd like about Dave Matthews Band, there are many that love them and many that dislike them, but no matter where you stand there's one thing that should go unquestioned-- DMB is about as good as it gets when it comes to live performances. The opening night setlist suffered from a bit of inconsistency, particularly with the latter half of the set, but yet there were so many great moments during that time that it was hard for even the most discerning Davehead to fault it. The favorite of the new songs were played, that being "Kill The King," "Break Free" and "Sister," which was played only by Dave. Also, the new segway entitled "Can't Stop" (no relation to the Red Hot Chili Peppers song), which serves as an intro of sorts to "Crush" was played quite nicely in it's first relatively full-length rendition. Outside of the new stuff highlights included a rarely-seen "Pay For What You Get", and outstanding jams on both "Seek Up" and "Jimi Thing." Another crowd favorite was the "So Much To Say"->"Anyone Seen The Bridge?"->"Too Much" jam, the latter which had a brief Lil' Jon "YEAH! WHAT? OKAY!" vocals on the part of Dave Matthews (yeah, it's about as funny as what you're picturing I'm sure). All in all it was a very, very good show, I just wish I had tickets for night two as they definitely kicked it up an extra notch for that night. Overall though, the setlists this year have been incredibly exciting and really encouraging in terms of signaling a sense of where the band is going, especially given the addition of Rashawn Ross (from the Hip-Hop/Jazz outfit Soulive) at trumpet. If you can manage to get a ticket to one of the remaining shows this year, I'd say it's a must see. Otherwise, check back in the fall/winter, as they might sneak in a tour in between recording their upcoming album (due early next year).

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Les Poupees Russes (Russian Dolls) reviewed

2006-07-01T12:54:00.000-05:00

Les Poupees Russes (Russian Dolls)

Simply put, Russian Dolls is a remarkably fun and stimulating film.

Every so often there's a film that comes around that unexpectedly strikes the very core of human nature to the point that you're almost enraptured by the very characters that you're watching. Russian Dolls, which is a sequel to L'Auberge Espangole (The Spanish Apartment), is a film that perfectly follows the aforementioned statement. Writer/director Cedrick Klapisch does a superb job in recreating a world that for most other directors, let alone writers would've been far too overwhelming, as it manages to focus just enough on each of the supporting cast of characters to get across a good understanding of Xavier's (the main character) friends, but at the same time there is so much insight into Xavier, as he serves as the narrator, that you're often spending time in his head. Like Amelie, Russian Dolls should be remembered as being an incredibly intelligent romantic comedy, except this time around, from the perspective of a male character. The cinematography is absolutely astounding, and the soundtrack is just as well done. As it's playing in very limited release currently in the states, you may not have the opportunity to see it in theatres, but if you do manage to find a theatre that is showing it, do yourself the favor of watching it. While the fast pacing of the film may be off-putting for some, I can pretty much guarantee that for most it'll be worth the price of admission and then some.

Overall Rating: 100

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Corinne Bailey Rae's debut album reviewed

2006-06-26T23:48:00.000-05:00

Corinne Bailey Rae Corrine Bailey Rae

An impressive debut effort that hopefully hints to an even better sophomore release.

As if releasing a debut album wasn't hard enough, it seems to be even tougher for female singer/songwriters, particularly in the R&B segment. An already crowded field, this genre has more one-album wonders (not to mention the one-hit wonders) than I'd care to remember. So, once again, we have another seemingly talented artist by the name of Corinne Bailey Rae. An import from across the pond in England, she already has a along hit single with "Put Your Records On," which hovers somewhere around the top of my feelgood singles of the summer, so in that regard she also follows many who came before her. However, there is a sense of genuine quality to her sound, which makes her more along the lines of India.Arie than other artists who tend to rely more heavily on slick production. If "Put Your Records On" isn't enough evidence of that, there's also the gorgeous opener "Like a Star," and the breezy and equally intoxicating "Breathless." While some of Bailey Rae's tracks run the risk of being somewhat generic and almost too mellow for their own good, there is a ton of potential here. Her status as an artist is already starting to blossom here, and will probably only get better as her name gets out, and by the time she reaches the brink it should be about time for her second-release that will hopefully showcase an even more mature singer/songwriter.

Overall Rating: 79

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Fuzzy Bits: June 22, 2006

2006-06-22T22:51:00.000-05:00

Lollapalooza Schedule Finally Announced

For all of you planning to attend Lollapalooza this year, the schedule has finally been released, so start planning your days now so you don't miss anyone! Tickets are still available for $140, but if you don't act soon, prices will jump another $10. A full guide to Lollapalooza will be coming up in the next few days, but I have to say overall I'm very impressed by the scheduling-- I won't have to make as many critical decisions as I thought I would. That being said, the three tough choices will be choosing between the following bands: Secret Machines or Iron & Wine, Common or The Flaming Lips, Ben Kweller or Nickel Creek. An interesting side note, there looks to be a special guests that will be playing opposite The Raconteurs on Day 2, time will tell what that turns out to be (I know I'm setting myself up for disappointment by saying this, but I'm still holding out for a Smashing Pumpkins reunion).

Intonation Festival this weekend

Speaking of Chicago-related festival, the Intonation Music Festival will be held this Saturday and Sunday at Union Park (near the United Center). If it weren't for the unpredictable weather and the lack of in-and-out privileges, I'd probably be there, but nonetheless, here are a few artists that are performing: Bloc Party, The Streets, Ghostface Killah, Dead Prez, Jon Brion (yes, the guy that did the soundtracks to Eternal Sunshine, Magnolia, and I Heart Huckabees), up and coming star (and Chicago native) Lupe Fiasco, and Rhymefest. Obviously the theme is mainly hip-hop oriented, with more than a few wrinkles to keep you guessing, but it should be a very intriguing event.

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Cunninlynguists' latest reviewed

2006-06-20T01:44:00.000-05:00

Cunninlynguists A Piece of Strange

The only strange thing about this album is how good it is.

Incorporating so many different genres while maintaining a strong tie to southern hip-hop is something that hasn't been seen since Outkast's early days (think Aquemini or a more organic ATLiens). To add to that solid foundation, the rhymes are so intimate and personalized they feel like a confessional, especially on tracks like "Hourglass" and there is no posturing to be found (thank goodness). The opener "Since When" incorporates rock guitar licks and an organ riff in a very timely matter, it never overpowers the rest of the production or the vocals for that matter, but rather set the tone for the rest of the album. More of this, particularly the rock influence can be found sprinkled throughout the album and in that regard, the heterogeneous nature of the music presented makes the experience all the more interesting, not to mention entertaining. Other highlights include the provocative "America Loves Gangsters," which deals with the issues of the iconic status that gangsters have carried in much of the media, and the centerpiece of the album, the atmospheric "The Gates." The latter track is probably the one in which all of the previously mentioned elements reach their pinnacle, as the avalanche of incredibly smart lyrics match perfectly with the sleek guitar and gospel based production. Overall this is yet another superb album from the southern rap group, and well worth the wait.

Overall Rating: 97

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Nacho Libre review

2006-06-17T21:51:00.000-05:00

Nacho Libre

Mildly entertaining and endearingly silly, Jared Hess creates yet another quirky comedy with a heart.

If there's one major difference between Nacho Libre and Napoleon Dynamite, it's that Nacho Libre will never go down as being even half as memorable as its predecessor (and given how incredibly quotable the movie is even now, that could be considered a good thing). Despite that, there is still a similar cast of eccentric, well, outcasts, this time around though Jack Black is playing ringleader. While there are plenty of opportunities for Jack to work his magic, which he does admirably on more than a few occasions, there isn't enough from the supporting cast to really hold water. It's as if either Hess or perhaps Nick Movies were so focused on having a vehicle for Jack Black they forgot they needed the tires to go with it as well. Because of that, the movie isn't really what it could've been. Too bad really, as Ana de la Reguera (who plays Sister Encarnación) and Héctor Jiménez (who plays Nacho's trusty sidekick) are both very likeable in their own right. Pairing that with Hess' stellar as usual directing, and off-beat wordplay, (not to mention the admittedly cute interplay between the kids and Jack Black), there's about 3/4 of a good film here. It's that other 1/4 that's missing that really hurts what could've been the sleeper family film of the summer. Instead, it's a decent film, that serves well for its caricatures, comedic nuances and the overall fun that can be brought from seeing Jack Black enjoying his role as a friar-gone-wrestler, don't expect much more.

Overall Score: 72

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A Prairie Home Companion reviewed

2006-06-14T22:40:00.000-05:00

A Prairie Home Companion

Altman and Keillor create easily one of the most fun movies I've seen in quite a while.

While they may be appreciated, APHC fans need not apply, this movie truly has something to offer beyond being a good-natured feature length radio show. The characters are incredibly charismatic, most notably with Guy Noir's (Kevin Cline) hilariously well-timed wannabe detective narration to the unabashed crude humor featured by Lefty and Dusty (John C. Reilly and Woody Harrelson), and the music also is some of the best heard since O Brother Where Art Thou? Like any other Altman film, the film takes its sweet time in unfolding and-- almost appropriately given the old-time subject of the film-- moves at a snails pace, but all the meandering is really just to get you further involved into each of the characters and to finally get a sense of what it is that they're all living for, that being the radio show. The inclusion of Virgina Madsen as the role of Dangerous Woman adds a flair of not only the supernatural but also brings to light one of the darker layers that can continuously be felt throughout the film. As an Altman fan, I would have to say that this is one of the best projects that he has been a part of, and everyone from Garrison Keillor to Lindsay Lohan do an outstanding job in their portrayal of a forgotten art form that's well worth hearing about.

Overall Rating: 98

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The Break Up and X-Men: The Last Stand (finally) Reviewed

2006-06-03T22:02:00.000-05:00

The Break Up

An entertaining yet moderately underwhelming movie.

Everyone's talking about them, and if all this overexposure isn't going to get you to at least think about seeing the movie, nothing will. The Break Up, starring Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Anniston, really doesn't have much more going for it than said couple. Sure, there are elements of it being the great break-up movie that it claims to be, but it never really accomplishes that. The writing is incredibly inconsistent, almost as if the writers were arguing as to whether or not this should be a serious drama or a lighthearted comedy. Then as a last ditch effort, they drew straws and wrote each part on their own with total disregard to how it will fit in with the other writers' stories. On the upside, when it's good, it's very good. Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn are just as entertaining a duo as they've ever been (see Swingers and Made), and Jennifer Anniston even shows that she can act a little bit-- this being the best performance by far of her career (this may not be saying a lot, but it's still quite an accomplishment that should be recognized). Problems arise in the total waste of time spent on the families of the couple, and even to a certain extent their respective friendships. Outside of Favreau's character, nothing is really given as far as background, so it's essentially up to the audience to fill in the blanks. Where the depth lacks though, there is a lot of heart to make up for it, and that's really what makes it a charming movie. Between the relatively well-done acting, and a breezy yet occasionally effective plot and storyline, The Break Up is well worth the time if you understand what it is: A summer movie with a bittersweet twist.

Overall Rating: 67

X-Men: The Last Stand

A film that's as engrossing as it is inconsistant.

It isn't an accident that this film is rarely brought up without some passing mention of the major instability that came prior to even the shooting of the movie. While the project originated with returning director Bryan Singer, he left (and brought essentially everyone working behind-the-scenes with him) to work on the upcoming Superman film. Matthew Vaughn (long-time associate of Guy Ritchie and director of Layer Cake) then stepped in, only to back out 9 weeks later after deciding he would not be able to commit to the rigorous schedule needed to do the film. Finally, in came Brett Ratner, and just as it seemed that the dust would settle, Halle Berry essentially demanded that Storm receive a larger role in this upcoming film, thus causing a change in storyline to suit her request. All of this backstory gives a lot of insight to why this X-Men film, which is really the most pivotal in terms of plot, was all the more difficult to pull off, and trust me, it shows. The fact that this film is as good as it is really is quite an accomplishment for Ratner and company, as there was outstanding development not only of the main characters (Wolverine, Jean Grey, Storm, and even Magneto and Professor X), but also the "students" and a bevy of new characters get a chance to shine as well. Combine that with absolutely superb action scenes, a healthy dose of well-done CGI, and a few twists that will make any X-Men fanatic tingle, and you've got a very well done film. Of course, there are going to be problems in such an elaborate movie, especially given the said complications. The first problem is that Storm is in way too much of the film, and considering she was never really a major player in the series anyway, I don't see why Berry had to take it upon herself to decide that she should be the main character. The second problem, which is somewhat related to the first is that there were points in which the story seriously wasn't flowing as well as it needed to, wasting time on half-baked characters such as Angel (who is really an unfortunate waste in this movie). All that said, this is a relatively well-done movie that might be one of the first comic book films that sway more to the demands of fanatics rather than the causal fan, but should still be enjoyed by everyone.

Overall Rating: 75

Fuzzy Thoughts: June 2, 2006

2006-06-02T11:18:00.001-05:00

What's going on in film?
While X-Men: The Last Stand's the success story of the week, there are a couple of major films that are out today. The first of which is The Break Up, which hopefully won't be ruined by Jennifer Anniston. Also coming out today is Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, which investigates global warming. Another noteworthy film that's coming out today that will particularly interest those looking for a fast-paced action flick is District B13, which was written by Luc Besson.

What's going on in music?
You might've also noticed I didn't do a Tuesday update. Well, in truth, there was nothing really to update as far as albums are concerned, but there were a few newly-released singles that are worth talking about that I was going to cover now. Fatboy Slim, the DJ that never goes away (for better or worse), is back with a new single entitled "That Old Pair of Jeans," that also features a nifty new video. Featuring Lateef on vocals once again, it sounds somewhere between "Wonderful Night" (which also had Lateef on vocals) and "Demons," but deals with a bit more of a serious issue from most other Fatboy songs as it's essentially a break-up song. Also out this week is the single "Kick Push" from Lupe Fiasco. You might remember him from Kanye West's "Touch the Sky," Lupe, like West, is from Chicago and his debut album Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor is rumored to be finally released in August. The original release date was to be June 27, but since the original album has been leaked heavily on the internet, Lupe went back into the studio to record eight new tracks. If the skateboard influenced single is any indication, Fiasco's debut may very well be worth the hype. Muse is also back in action with their new single "Supermassive Black Hole." It's completely different from every other song I remember Muse releasing, with it's incredibly dense, almost Eurhythmics like techno-rock backdrop. It's a little creepy, especially if you watch the video (S&M anyone? Actually NIN's "Closer" and those creepy leather-clad 80's vids come to mind [for those of you at work though, it's definitely not explicit, just creepy]), but it's strangely addicting. The single is from their upcoming album entitled Black Holes and Revelations, which comes out July 3rd.

What's going on in the concert scene?
Well, last night I saw the Walkmen in concert with Mazarin and Rockwell as the opening bands. Needless to say, the Metro was a perfect venue for both Mazarin and even more so for the Walkmen, as the latter got even the most apparently uptight rocker going by the time they got to their third song "The Rat." Hamilton Leithauser's howling vocals are all the more impressive live, even if he begins to lose his voice on the higher notes (something that's a lot more forgivable than you'd think, as everyone else is so incredibly loud you'd be hard-pressed to really notice), and in general they played a very solid setlist. They stuck to playing mainly their harder songs, which worked very well, and only faltered a bit with their encore, which began with their two-minute song "They're Winning" and ended with "Louisiana."
The latter was surprisingly impressive and complete with horn and saxophone to back the band, which made it all the more fun, but it still seemed a bit unbalanced considering they performed their strongest and perhaps best songs so early in their performance. Overall though, this was a very, very good show, the energy that the Walkmen maintained was enthralling to say the least.

Brick

2006-05-27T12:05:00.000-05:00

Brick

Film Noir high has tons of appeal.

Rian Johnson has taken the rugged Film Noir genre made famous by such films as the Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep and applied it into a high school setting. An intriguing concept sure, but is it really all that viable? Well, yes, in more ways than you may think, and that's what's so clever about the idea. In a society in which teenagers (seemingly more now than in recent memory) have been continuously scrutinized and under a microscope for their actions and decisions, Rian Johnson presents the material that is long attached to being a part of youth culture and takes advantage of it by setting it in a world full of gangsters, bad habits, heartbreakers and backstabbers. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the assertive "detective" role of Brendan, with The Brain (played by Matt O'Leary) serving as his right-hand man. With a supporting cast full of very well written characters, Johnson paints a convincing world of deception that exists so readily that it's almost self-reflexive in that every character literally narrates each of their moves. As the entire events of the world unfold with each running minute of the film, Brendan's growth from being the edgy outcast to eventually becoming the ultimate inside man and mastermind behind the whole story. There are plenty of twists and turns along the way, just like any other whodunit, to keep you interested as well. All in all, this is an incredibly strong showing from Rian Johnson and much of the cast. As such, this is one of the few movies this year that I'd consider a must see.

Overall Rating: 95

NMT: May 23, 2006 (Phoenix, the Walkmen and Roy Hargrove reviewed)

2006-05-23T13:42:00.000-05:00

This Tuesday shaped up to be a pretty interesting one. A few days after the Dixie Chicks lead singer decided to take back her apology (suddenly it's second grade all over again) they released their latest album Taking the Long Way. Despite being produced by Rick Rubin and featuring such artists as Sheryl Crow, Keb 'Mo, and many others, it feels like a pretty routine album. Despite many claims, Dixie Chicks haven't really abandoned their country sound; they've simply matured and grown as artists. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean that their songs are necessarily any better, and for that reason even curiosity wasn't enough to get me to purchase their new album. As it is the major release of the week however, I did feel the need to at least mention that about their latest, and it will be interesting to see how the sales turn out. Moving right along though, there are three very good (and slightly under the radar) albums that I'll be reviewing for the week, and hopefully you'll get the opportunity to check them out!

The Walkmen A Hundred Miles Off

Sadly not as good as their first two albums, but very good nonetheless.

The Walkmen made a very interesting attempt their third time around. Much like their contemporaries, they're attempting this time around to branch out somewhat as their sound matures and perhaps, if said band is lucky, they'll hit a couple of pleasant surprises along the way. This is ever-present on A Hundred Miles Off, perhaps most with the opening "Louisiana," a sleepy lounge induced Bob Dylan knock off, that is an intriguing miss at the very least. "Danny's At The Wedding" is a bit less foreign for fans, so it's no surprise that it comes off a lot more polished than the aforementioned effort. The first two tracks reveal what essentially should be expected from the other ten tracks: either a familiar, yet more polished (in a good way) track or an interesting attempt that somehow falls short. That's not to say that the familiar is boring at all as "Good For You's Good For Me" and percussion-driven "Emma, Get Me a Lemon" both are very, very good songs. The biggest surprise that truly works is the closing "Another One Goes By," a cover originally done by the band Mazarin. It has a timeless feel to it as the guitars, piano and drums all blossom and swirl as the song slowly fades out. Despite such a strong closing, it's still hard to overlook many of the albums faults, especially considering how concise and powerful the Walkmen have always been. As many famous people have quoted previously, the best people know their limitations, and perhaps that's what this album will teach the Walkmen.

Overall Rating: 80

Roy Hargrove Nothing Serious

Very impressive work, indeed.

Released at the exact same time as another release of his under the RH Factor name, it's almost more impressive that Roy Hargrove is such a diverse talent, being able to indulge in Hip-Hop and R&B and traditional Jazz almost seamlessly, than Hargrove's talent in terms of his interpretative work. Immediate standouts are the opening "Nothing Serious" and "A Day In Vienna," as they both feature Hargrove and his quintet in impeccably sharp form, breezing through even the most complex sections effortlessly. It's on these that it seems that the quintet work best, as "Trust," while smooth, almost feels mellower than what the musicians even feel comfortable with, and they're perhaps just itching to be able to finish the song and move on to something with a bit more pace. That said, the majority of the tracks are very well done and all have something special about them really, it's just that the spark exemplified on the opening tracks and sharpness isn't necessarily there all the way through, otherwise a very well done album. A definite recommendation.

Overall Rating: 85

Phoenix It's Never Been Like That

The first perfect summer album.

A release that came completely out of left field, Phoenix has gone from the disco to the rock arena. It's in no way an ill-fated attempt either, as each and every track deliver a sharply executed rock gem. If you think about it, it almost makes perfect sense: While every other rock band is trying to sound like they're from the 80's (most notably of late the Strokes), Phoenix has always pretty much been steeped in 80's electronica, so perhaps the rock transition wasn't as difficult, and perhaps, that's why it works so darn well. It's songs like "Rally" that sound so incredibly airy that you could swear it came from the speakers of a summer radio. The single "Long Distance Call" probably incorporates the most of Phoenix's "old" sound, as the synthesizers that highlighted Phoenix's first two releases underline the otherwise straightforward rock tune. Truth be told, there isn't a bad song on here, and I'd be very surprised if this album doesn't help Phoenix to get on the map as yet-another recognized indie-rock group. As long as you're out in the sun, this album shouldn't be too far away, it's just that good.

Overall Rating: 95

New Music Tuesday: May 16, 2006 (The Raconteurs and Serena Maneesh reviewed)

2006-05-16T23:57:00.000-05:00

After a couple of hectic release weeks, things finally slowed down with only one major release, that being The Raconteurs. While traditionally I would give a preview of other albums that came out this week, the theme that is shared between Cam'Ron's, Christina Milian's, and Hoobastank's latest release is: awful. Yes, there's really nothing good about any of them, and unless you feel like being underwhelmed to the greatest degree I wouldn't even bother sampling them. On the upside, there is the latest T-Bone Burnett album to check out-- I may have a review of that release coming later. Beyond that, there's not much else, and as such here is the review of the Raconteurs album which was released today and a vault review for the group Serena Maneesh. Enjoy!

The Raconteurs Broken Boy Soldiers

Far too short, Broken Boy Soldiers is nonetheless an interesting venture.

Whether or not you want to call it a side project is up to you (just make sure Jack White and Brendan Benson can't hear you), but it's hard to feel like it's much more given the incomplete feeling of this 11-track album. That's not to say it's at all bad though, there's definitely some good stuff within the near 35-minute album. The problem is just that it's almost obvious on certain occasions that Benson, White & Co. were writing some of these songs on a whim. The majority of the songs are relatively simplistic to say the least, and despite NME's massive overstatement that the Raconteurs' album is the greatest rock album since Nirvana's Nevermind, the sound never really materializes into anything, thus making it feel not only bland but also incomplete. If they're not exercising their 60's pop-rock demons with tracks like "Hands" and "Together," chances are the track that conceivably sounds like it would have otherwise been made a White Stripes B-Side ("Broken Boy Soldier" and "Store Bought Bones"). By the end of the album, you wonder if you bought a finished CD or managed to walk away with a demo. In defense of the Raconteurs, Jack White and Brendan Benson at 75% is better than the majority of other artists at 100% and the rating will reflect that, it's just disappointing that this album had to feel so rushed. I'm hoping that perhaps next time they'll be able to work on something more substantial.

Overall Rating: 81

Serena Maneesh Serena Maneesh

As challenging as it is rewarding, an incredibly provoking album.

While living up to the hype of such groups is My Bloody Valentine and particularly Velvet Underground is never easy, in fact almost impossible, Serena Maneesh not only meets those expectations but also surpasses them with ease. The proof of that comes immediately on the first track, "Drain Cosmetics," which is easily one of the best introductory songs to an album I've heard since Interpol's "Untitled" on Turn out the Bright Lights. Starting out in familiar VU-like territory, the guitar riff suddenly echoes and all sense of familiarity becomes lost once the vocals echo in, and from here the stage has been set for the world that is Serena Maneesh, and what a beautiful world it is. "Selina's Melodie Fountain" continues with a bit more of a hurried pace as the guitars slice their way through the seemingly infinite background effects. Despite being incredibly involved and atmospheric, the album is never overwhelming if you don't allow it to be. Instead, just kick back and relax and let the sound soak in after a few listens, and I guarantee you'll be hooked. Another plus, particularly considering this is a downfall of many atmospheric-oriented rock bands, is that there is little to no filler on this album. It is immediately apparent that every note serves a purpose in the overall composition of the album, and that makes it all the more beautiful. Even the shortest tracks like "Un-Deux" and "Simplicity" make the most of their time, serving as timely transitional pieces. This is particularly true with the latter as it preludes the closing 12-minute epic of "Your Blood in Mine," a hauntingly beautiful piece. It's often said that, for better or worse, the best music is the music that takes you on a journey to another world, and that is precisely what makes Serena Maneesh so good.

Overall Rating: 97

Fuzzy Bits: May 13, 2006 (100th Post!)

2006-05-13T20:48:00.000-05:00

We've finally reached the 100 postmark here at Fuzzy Thoughts, woo! While this is an abnormally short entry, I do have a couple of gifts that tie in with the major headline for the day, so enjoy!

Upcoming singles leaked (and albums [finally] coming)

Both Jurassic 5 and Outkast have left fans waiting for quite a while for their respective upcoming releases. Finally, Outkast's soundtrack to their upcoming film Idlewild will be released August 22, with their film coming out the following Friday (Aug. 25). This is a definitive date, as the first single has been set, so barring any major setbacks, you can mark this on your calendar. In the other camp, Jurassic 5 has been fine tuning their album for quite some time, performing a lot of new materials in live performances but leaving much to the unknown as far as studio work. However, as recently as a couple of days ago, J5 has put their upcoming single on MySpace, which features Dave Matthews Band (yes, you read that correctly). The album, which will be entitled Feedback is due out July 25. Now in honor of this being the 100th post, I'm putting up links to both of these singles. After taking a few listens, feel free to contribute your thoughts on each:

Outkast "The Mighty O"
Like every Outkast single that precedes it, "The Mighty O" is a really good song, but will probably pale in comparison to everything else that's on the album. Besides taking a page out of Cab Calloway's book for the chorus, both Andre 3000 and Big Boi provide pretty good rhymes, a bit on par with "The Whole World" for comparative purposes. Overall this is a must have/listen, especially if you're a fan.
Overall Rating: 90

Jurassic 5 "Work It Out" (feat. Dave Matthews Band)
While this song is decidedly vibe over actual substance, there's one hell of a vibe here. Dave Matthews sings the chorus, while each of the other members chip in for other minor contributions. Despite knowing that these guys are relatively good friends (particularly of late as J5 has opened for DMB on many an occasion and they also did the Vote For Change tour together), I was still a bit shocked at the idea of a collaboration between the two bands, but it works.
Overall Rating: 86

New Music Tuesday: May 9, 2006 (Paul Simon, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Snow Patrol reviewed)

2006-05-10T00:28:00.000-05:00

It's that time of the week once again, and there are three more big-time releases-- one of which falls under the highly anticipated category-- that I will be getting to in just a second, but beforehand let me break down a couple of the other releases for this week:

New Music Tuesday 5.09.06

Nick Lachey What's Left of Me
Preview Verdict: Sad bastard music for the overly pop oriented, Lachey surprisingly seems to have poured his heart into this album and it definitely shows. While it's still a sound that only teeny-boppers and VH1 moms can appreciate, it's nice to see that there is still some honest to goodness pop music out there.

Neil Young Living With War
Preview Verdict: I have a strong feeling that if anyone else had released this album they wouldn't be praising it, but wonder how on Earth it even got made. This album feels like a rushed attempt by another artist trying to make a political statement. I get the point now, celebrities don't like Bush, get in line and let's move on.

Grandaddy Just Like the Fambly Cat
Preview Verdict: This is Grandaddy's curtain call, and as such it works quite well as it gives fans a taste of what will soon be missed from the band. While I've never understood the Radiohead comparisons (especially the Sophtware Slump-OK Computer one), they have accomplished a very solid career in their own right.

Jolie Holland Springtime Can Kill You
Preview Verdict: Although I'm a huge Jolie Holland fan, I think she's become way too comfortable in her psuedo-folkie Americana realm. This album feels more like a generic collection of songs, rather than her personal voice.

The Stills Without Feathers
Preview Verdict: While there are undeniably some good songs on here ("In the Beginning" and "Destroyer" come to mind), the album overall seems to come a bit short. It'll definitely appeal to anyone that's already a fan of the Stills, though I warn you that their sound on this album is nowhere near as dark as what was on their debut, but I don't think it's enough for anyone else to stick around for much more than possibly a select few tracks.

Now for the big reviews:

Paul Simon Surprise

A pleasant surprise indeed.

On this, Paul Simon's tenth album, Simon finds himself paired up with Brian Eno-- an interesting collaborative move indeed that really shifts Simon's sound to territory unheard of previously. That's not to say it's alienating, the core Paul Simon sound is still definitely in tact, but Eno adds an intriguing electronic edge to the album, making it both organic and abstract all at once. Where this production also helps is in increasing Simon's sense of urgency, particularly on his most politically motivated songs "How Can You Live in the Northeast?" and "Outrageous," the latter of which has Simon vibrantly singing "It's outrageous for a man like me to stand here and complain, but I'm tired, 900 sit-ups a day." Paul Simon's sense of crafting incredibly eloquent pop songs are still in tact as well and after the first few tracks it is incredibly easy to get used to the new sound that Paul Simon has developed. He has truly re-invented himself on this album, and after a few slumping records, it seems as if Simon may have outdone himself this time, as he has created his best album since Graceland.

Overall Rating: 96

Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium

Two discs of absolute bliss

While it would've been easy for the Red Hot Chili Peppers to fall under the recent curse of 2-disc releases that have been too indulgent for their own good, these guys somehow avoided that. Not only is this their best album since their classic Blood Sugar Sex Magik, this is the best each individual member has sounded since then as well. This is the best I've ever heard John Frusciante as far as consistency over an entire album, with Flea and Chad Smith following through on equally solid performances. While their sound isn't a departure from their previous album by any means, it is nice that Anthony Kiedis lets loose on the most rap-filled tracks since their earlier funk days. While their funkier moments lack the outlandish or rawness that the Peppers used to have, the refined sound that replaces it just shows how far these guys have come in terms of musicianship, and that's really what is the keystone of this album, and what makes each of the 28 tracks so amazingly good-- Red Hot Chili Peppers are wickedly good, and they show it. Whereas the strongest moments on Californication and By The Way were the ballads, there is something to be had for everyone on Stadium Arcadium and then some. This is, I have to say, the perfect double album.

Overall Rating: 100

Snow Patrol Eyes Open

Ever hopeful and anthemic, this is a nice step from Final Straw.

After striking gold with their previous album Final Straw, impressing fans everywhere and even U2, it seems almost impossible to be able to follow up the album without being tempted to just make a Final Straw 2.0 as it were. Thankfully, that isn't really the case here. No, Snow Patrol doesn't stray from their formulaic anthems, but at the same time it doesn't come off as being forced, or worse, contrite (here's lookin' at you Coldplay). The opening track "You're All I Have," "It's Beginning to Get to Me," and "Headlights on Dark Roads" are all linear rockers that work incredibly well, but it's on the slower ballads that Snow Patrol's maturity comes to surface. "You Can Be Happy," the appropriately titled "Make This Go On Forever," and the superb closer "The Finish Line" are all great songs that really help differentiate this album from their previous release, as Gary Lightbody's vocals linger with every verse. It's not the masterpiece that Snow Patrol is capable of, and there are a few missteps that hamper the album-- namedropping Sufjan Stevens in the middle of "Hands Open" probably wasn't the best idea (I like him and the song "Chicago" too, but you don't have to sing about it)-- but overall this is still a solid release from the band.

Overall Rating: 84

Mission: Impossible 3

2006-05-07T13:36:00.000-05:00

Mission: Impossible 3

It feels a little forced, but there are some worthwhile performances here.

With this film being the third installment of the series, which has now been around for a decade, it'd be easy to assume that this is a set of films that is definitely on the decline. While the first Mission: Impossible was a relatively fun bit of Hollywood espionage, the sequel was pathetically forgettable and got lost in the shuffle of every other action flick that came out around the same time. So how does M:I-3 stack up? Well, what helps it is the absolutely stellar acting of Philip Seymour Hoffman, who takes on the role of black market runner extraordinaire Owen Davian. His incredibly understated delivery makes his character all the more sinister, easily outdoing the previous villains in these films. Likewise, Billy Crudup and Lawerence Fishburne provide solid supporting roles, and Tom Cruise is clearly having a ball playing Ethan Hunt. There are a number of very nicely done subtleties within the film, whether it be Tom Cruise getting into character of a priest (he originally was going to go into the priesthood before deciding on acting), or some styling cues from the previous films, or the fact that Tom Cruise's love interest (played by Michelle Monaghan) is made up to look an awful lot like a certain real-life counterpart. Speaking of the love story, this is really the only thing that brings down the movie. While the question of whether or not Ethan Hunt (or any agent) can have a personal/family life while serving could have been somewhat intriguing (if a bit clichéd), the way in which the story continuously reminds the audience of that is relatively irritating, as it wastes the first twenty minutes of the film and many points in between. Perhaps since the entire basis of the movie is on the impossible, they'll figure out they don't need to attempt to add a personal story to make it more realistic. Other than that, the only other major fault of the film was the hyperkinetic cinematography that goes overboard when you can't figure out the background from any individual actor. In some of the scenes it works really well in that it heightens the intensity of the action or a given scene, particularly in the exchanges between Tom Cruise and Philip Seymour Hoffman, but for many other scenes it's completely unnecessary and almost sickening. Other than these two glaring faults within the movie, there is a lot of fun to be had here and for that I'd consider Mission: Impossible 3 the first blockbuster of the year.

Overall Rating: 76

NMT May 02, 2006 (Part II: Gnarls Barkley, Dios (Malos), Pearl Jam, the Rakes and Wolfmother reviewed)

2006-05-02T23:43:00.000-05:00

Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere

Despite all the hype, it's hard to walk away disappointed.

As explained in Part I, Gnarls Barkley has suddenly surged from being a moderately-anticipated, yet primarily underground release to what could very well become one of the few indie hip-hop acts to fully impact the mainstream. The album opens beautifully with "Go-Go Gadget Gospel," featuring hard-hitting productions brought on by Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo almost effortlessly singing along. From here the album then transcends to the hit single "Crazy," which will probably win the award for "Most Overplayed Song for the Summer," but it will be worth every single play, it's just that solid. Both the title track and "Gone Daddy Gone" (which is a Violent Femmes cover) are very intriguing. With the title track it remains effective despite being a somewhat disjointed track, and never feels over the top. Similarly "Gone Daddy Gone" carries over the somewhat minimalist vibraphone background, which contrasts nicely to the otherwise grandiose production that takes place on many of the other tracks. "Feng Shui" is one of the few tracks on which Cee-Lo raps, and for the most part he strays on the conservative side in terms of his delivery, only going along with the beats that Danger Mouse feeds him and never overdoing it. What is most surprising about this album is that despite having a duo of fun-loving, crazy guys like Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse, there is certainly a dark atmosphere on this album, much like the darker tinge that Danger Mouse used in the production of Gorillaz Demon Days. While it does have its flaws, this is an exquisite exercise in eccentricity brought on by a couple of incredible talents, and hopefully they will be working together again.

Overall Rating: 95

Dios (Malos) EP

A nifty EP, especially if you're a fan.

While I should first note that this is an iTunes exclusive EP, I'm sure that you'll find these songs popping up on another release, if the EP itself isn't officially released at some point later on. The EP contains six tracks, and all of them are very good, if a bit experimental. Their sound is quirky as is, but it is interesting to see that each of the songs are around three and a half minutes as you wonder how long they would be without the synthesized atmospheric quirks that start and end most of the songs. The lyrics range from bizarre to smart to funny and sometimes hit all those spots at once, particularly on the opening "Hermit" and "Freq Modulation." The most pop friendly of the bunch is the closer "I See the Light," which teeters between alternative and experimental rock yet is never alienating. If you're looking for something new and, in particular, can appreciate their Pixies-like quirks, then you're in for a treat.

Overall Rating: 85

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam

In a word, wow. This is the best album Pearl Jam's released since it was cool to be grunge.

The success of Pearl Jam came almost overnight, after having a trio of successes in Ten, Vs., and Vitalogy. Then, almost as quickly, Pearl Jam faded away into oblivion, lost in the shuffle of their massive number of pointless live releases and albums where they were, quite frankly, trying too hard to be something they're not. Now, over a decade later, they return with an eponymous release, almost signifying an awareness that the band is essentially starting from scratch. Let me tell you, long story short, this formula works. I had a feeling that Pearl Jam might've struck gold with their singles of "Worldwide Suicide" and "Unemployable," but their raw energy that manages to sustain over the duration of the entire album captures the band at their relative best. Granted, there have always been magical moments in Pearl Jam's releases, but I can't think of a time in their career where each component (lyrics, musicianship, focus, etc.) of their music was at the peak all at once. Harder rockers like "Life Wasted," the aforementioned "Worldwide Suicide," "Comatosed," and "Big Wave" all mesmerize with such vibrancy that you'd swear you were listening to a much younger band. Meanwhile, the sincere maturity shown on the slow to midtempo rockers such as the absolutely gorgeous "Parachutes," "Unemployable," and the prolific "Come Back" and "Inside Job" are equally impressive in that they offset the louder tracks perfectly without any sort of inconsistency. Most importantly, the entire album succeeds in its social and political relevance, as it is that core that serves as the fuel for Pearl Jam's fire. After such incredible results, it'll be interesting to see if they can keep the fire going.

Overall Rating: 98

The Rakes Capture/Release

Mmm, punk.

I was excited about this release since their fantastic Retreat EP came out a little while ago, which included three of the tracks that are featured on the album, "Strasbourg," "Retreat," and "22 Grand Job." While these tracks are arguably the three best (well, at least among the best) songs on the album, the other nine certainly aren't slouches. "Open Book," "We Are All Animals," and "Work, Work, Work (Pub, Club, Sleep)" are really just as good, and the latter I would argue is the best out of them all. While they definitely are a little late coming to the punk resurgence party, there's a lot to offer in this release, and they show a great amount of potential. Unlike the Arctic Monkey's, there's a sense of polish, and unlike Art Brut, you tend to actually take these guys much more seriously. The band's journalistic style of lyrics and smart social musings and observations make their sound all the more interesting. Throw in a couple of spunky guitar riffs and you've got yourself a very good debut album.

Overall Rating: 85

Wolfmother Wolfmother

Impressive debut from this Australian band.

Do you miss the days when 70's metal ruled the charts? Do you think that the rock out now just doesn't rock hard enough? If yes, then this is definitely a band worth checking out. Steeped heavily in 70's heavy metal with a dose of psychedelia, these guys really sound like a blast from the past. The singles "Dimension" and "Woman" exemplify this perfectly while maintaining enough of a mainstream angle that it can be readily accessible to fans that wouldn't ordinarily embrace such a distinctive sound. The thing that really works with this band, and is most impressive for a debut is while they dabble in their sound-- "Apple Tree" definitely shows a hefty White Stripes influence-- they sound so incredibly sure of themselves and so entrenched in the music that they're creating that they don't suffer from the identity crisis that exists within so many other bands where you get the feeling that before every song they say "Okay, next we're going to do our (Put Artist's Name Here) impression." That being said, if Wolfmother suffers from anything, it's almost so brooding that it can almost become off-putting by the time you reach the end of the disc. However, if you like nothing better than to rock out, this is definitely the album to have.

Overall Rating: 90

New Music Tuesday: May 02, 2006 (Part I)

2006-05-02T16:31:00.000-05:00

Well, I said that the big week in music would be coming, and now I finally have reviews from some of the biggest albums to come out this year. For those of you that have managed to stay out of the music loop for the past year, Gnarls Barkley is comprised of Cee-Lo (of Goodie Mob fame) and master producer Danger Mouse. If you're not familiar with Danger Mouse, he most recently collaborated with MF Doom for the acclaimed DangerDoom project which I reviewed last year, and also ranked #12 on my top albums of 2005 list. The lead single "Crazy" is still the #1 song in England, and has been since its release, and record sales will almost certainly follow suit, and there has been nothing but positive feedback for their performance at Coachella (which, notably, was only the second time the duo performed together live), so it'll be interesting to see how they fare at Lollapalooza in August.

Speaking of Lollapalooza, I'm currently working on a guide for the festival this year, so if you have any suggestions just let me know. Among the ideas being tossed around is making it available in a format that will be easy to print out and take with you, so we'll see about that, but just wanted to give a heads up about it.

The juicy reviews (Gnarls Barkley, Dios (Malos), Pearl Jam, the Rakes, and Wolfmother) will be in Part II of this update, so if you're looking for them go ahead and skip there. In the meantime, here are some other releases that came out today that are worth noting.

New Music Tuesday 5.02.06

Jewel Goodbye Alice in Wonderland
Preview Verdict: I personally couldn't cough up the money for the full album, but I could easily see why a person would. Jewel has definitely found herself on this album, and if you don't mind sitting through 15 tracks of cavity-inducing super-sweet pop songs then you will definitely enjoy this album.

Mobb Deep Blood Money
Preview Verdict: There is nothing good that can be said about this "effort", it just seems like another forgettable, hardcore-posturing rap album. The sad thing is how amateurish they sound on this record, with dumb rhymes and even worse beats. You'll find your money better spent on just about anything else.

Charlatans Simpatico
Preview Verdict: Having somewhat high expectations, I was surprised to find Simpatico so dull. Each track feels forced and lacks energy of any kind, and even the previously lauded single "Blackened Eye Blues" seems to lose some of its luster in the scheme of things. Too bad, this release just made it that much tougher for these guys to crack into the US market.

DMB to play in Chicago (sort of)

2006-04-27T23:17:00.000-05:00

Well, it wasn't what everyone was hoping for, but DMB will be playing at the newly renamed First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre (formerly known as the Tweeter Center, The New World Ampetheatre, etc.) on September 15, 2006. While it isn't the Grant Park show that everyone was predicting, some would say it's better than nothing (although, many more would say nothing would be better). On the upside (depending on your point of view), opening for the band will be George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, which could make for a very interesting opportunity should the two groups collaborate. Many avoid the Tinley Park dates like the plague due to the poor acoustics and iffy crowd, so it will be interesting to see the reception to this news in the coming days.

Gnarls Barkley "Crazy" video

2006-04-27T18:04:00.000-05:00

Click here to check out the hot new video from what could turn out to be the biggest indie release of 2006. The video is pretty cool and I'm pretty sure it'll be on demand just like everything else Gnarls Barkley related.

New Music Tuesday, Love Monkey, and 24

2006-04-27T10:13:00.000-05:00

In the World of Music

It's odd not having anything to really write about with a new music tuesday having come and gone, but yet again, I've been nothing but underwhelmed with the albums that have come out. Here's a look at some of the major releases that came out yesterday:

Bruce Springsteen We Shall Overcome- The Seeger Sessions
Preview Verdict: I know critics and Springsteen fans will drool over this album, because, honestly, Springsteen has reached the point where he could release a blank album and have audiences raging. As I'm personally not much of a fan, I can't really recommend it, you're either going to love it or hate it, just like everything else he's ever done.

Goo Goo Dolls Let Love In
Preview Verdict: I mentioned when discussing the release of their single that they appeared to have reached the point of releasing totally generic music. That pretty much sums up how I feel about the album as a whole. I'd only recommend it if you're a fan of elevator music and yet need something that will make you feel current.

Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris All The Roadrunning
Preview Verdict: It seems like albums like this have been done a million times before, but despite being formulaic, it does seem to work to a certain extent. While I personally could not put down the money to purchase the album, I could see why a person would want to.

Avant Director
Preview Verdict: Yeah, I know he's from Chicago and all, but that doesn't give permission to be an exact carbon copy of R. Kelly. True there are worse artists to rip off, but copying a confused artist isn't exactly the best move a person can make. I mean seriously, what's next, a series of twelve songs entitled Trapped in the Basement? Really, just stop now.

The Streets The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living
Preview Verdict: I read the reviews that were building prior to the release and couldn't believe that there's any way that Mike Skinner could've lost his touch, but it appears as if he might've made the first misstep of his career. I could forgive a few tracks here and there having Skinner singing the choruses, but every track is a bit much, not to mention the seemingly forced and calculated nature of the production and rhymes. It almost sounds too polished for it's own good, and that's too bad because he's a truly talented artist. You may like it, but I have a feeling a number of fans will leave scratching their heads thinking "wtf mate?"

So yeah, as you can see it's been a pretty disappointing week. Something else that's been interesting to me is the string of releases from Nelly Furtado. I know that she's been very well-connected with many in the hip-hop community, but I never thought she'd be one to get involved in the mainstream reggaeton/hip-hop fusion hype that has become somewhat popular lately. "No Hay Igual (Club Mix)" is almost like a mainstream take on M.I.A., while her newer single "Promiscuous" is almost dominated by Timbaland's hard hitting beats. It always takes an album or two before fringe artists like Furtado take their crack into the mainstream, so I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, but I didn't think she would take such a watered-down approach.

At this point I've been addicted to Pearl Jam's "Worldwide Suicide" and am anxiously anticipating their new album (which I've already pre-ordered), which is strange because up to this point I have never been much of a fan, but they really seem to have gotten everything together on this album. Also, of course, I'm heavily anticipating Red Hot Chili Pepper's latest, but considering that's a further while off, I'll just have to be content with "Dani California" for now.

In the world of TV

Love Monkey, which has been airing once again on VH1, is really progressing nicely and given the character development taking place, it confuses me even more why CBS was so ready to ax the show. I won't give away any details, but once again I encourage you (particularly if you were a fan) to watch them again, and I do think that there's a chance that the show will be picked up for additional seasons at some point. Other than that, I'm starting to get the feeling that the writers of 24 just spin a wheel to determine what character they decide is going to be somehow involved in a plot that has become so convoluted that it would easily outdo the zaniest storylines from any Mission Impossible or James Bond-related flick. In a way, however, it is very smart in a creating such a conspiracy theory given today's environment where the nation as a whole heavily doubts anything that our president and cabinet are up to, and in that sense I greatly appreciate the story line... it's still absolutely nuts though.

Scary Movie 4 and Spank Rock

2006-04-19T11:39:00.000-05:00

Scary Movie 4

I'd like my brain cells back please.

It's impossible for anyone to walk into a film like Scary Movie and expect anything more than silly fun, but apparently even that was a lot to ask. The reason why the first ones worked more or less is that despite being ridiculously off-the-wall, they were focused enough where it didn't feel like a moshposh of ill-fated skits that would barely be amusing on their own and only try to outdo each other in pure stupidity rather than humor. Considering this is the only movie that had absolutely no involvement from the Wayans Brothers, it seems like that can be the only reason for this movie to be so terrible. While many of the things that happened within the movie could've very well been funny (and on some rare occasions are), there isn't any time for the jokes to really work their magic as the high-strung pace of the movie could only be fitting for six year olds with the shortest of attention spans. Perhaps next time they shouldn't focus so hard on the name dropping (there are almost too many cameos in this film if that's possible) and steer the movies back to being a bit more of a commentary on the films they're making fun of; possibly something more interesting than the "let's speak faux-Japanese by naming every Japanese company or food we can think of" gag that died out the same time it stopped being hip to have white guys play Native Americans. If you really need to escape, there are about a million things that I can think of that I'd rather do (a million more that are illegal), so really, just don't bother.

Overall Rating: 0

Spank Rock YoYoYoYoYoYo

The most innovative thing to happen in hip-hop in a long, long time.

Right off the bat, after listening to "Backyard Betty" you would think that you'd stumbled on yet another incredibly inventive, if a bit cacophonic, British trip-hop duo. You would be wrong, as the very group that could save the fading creativity that exists within hip-hop comes from the city of Baltimore, MD. Now I should warn right off the bat that they do call themselves Spank Rock for a reason, as essentially every song thrives on its very nastiness that is accentuated with the rugged production. The lyrics though are never really spoken seriously, and often times appear to mock everyone from 50 Cent to Neptunes and others for their fake "hardness" and misogynistic lyrics. Of course, there's always the edited version, and as good as this album is there should be no reason not to buy it if it'd sit better with you. First and foremost, the beats and production provided by XXXChange are superb and while some tracks wouldn't sound too out of place as a backdrop for Roots Manuva or The Streets, MC Naeem Juwan does an even better job of spattering in his raps without ever overpowering the production making for an incredibly spartanic-yet-smart sound that hasn't been heard since the earliest days of hip hop. The aforementioned "Backyard Betty" is an outstanding opening track, with its avalanche of beats matched with quirky video game affects, while "Bump" and "Sweet Talk" deliver a hammering one-two punch. "Bump," shows off Juwan's lyrical ability and the additional rap by Amanda Blank elevates the song to an even higher level. "Sweet Talk" is an all-out party track, and shows off XXXChange's dexterity as a producer, as the sound ranges everywhere from Electronica to Rock to Motown R&B as Juwan once again matches him point for point. This is an incredibly addicting album and is one of the most inventive debut albums I've ever heard, let alone in the hip-hop genre. I do think that Spank Rock might've caught onto something that should kick the door open for other artists if this hits the mainstream. A must have.

Overall Rating: 100

Fuzzy Bits: April 17, 2006 (Countdown to 100, TV notes, and more)

2006-04-17T11:59:00.000-05:00

Things have been relatively quiet, but that will change in a couple of weeks with a few major releases coming (The Streets on Apr 25, Gnarls Barkley, Pearl Jam, Tool and Ludacris in the first week of May). Also, we're coming up to 100 posts here on Fuzzy Thoughts and in honor of that I'll work to come up with something worthwhile to commemorate.

The Return of Love Monkey
On the TV front, it looks like Love Monkey is coming back, this time on VH1. Starting tomorrow night at 9pm ET you'll have the chance to see the rest of the unaired episodes from the first season. Whether or not it goes any further will probably depend on ratings, so we'll see what happens.

Movies, movies, movies!
The heavy hitters of film are soon lurking as well. I admit I had the great displeasure of seeing Scary Movie 4, which was awful beyond belief. I'll probably have a full report on it in the coming days, but it won't be pretty. Coming up however are some pretty interesting films to keep an eye on. First, there's American Dreamz which I've been eagerly waiting about six months for (since the teasers/trailers first started coming out) as I'm a big fan of Paul Weitz (American Pie, About a Boy, In Good Company). Essentially the movie is a satire of American pop culture, spurring Hugh Grant on an American Idol-esque show. In addition when you have Dennis Quaid as a whacked out president and a few other interesting twists you've got the makings of what should be a huge success. Also coming soon is Flight 93, and while I have absolutely zero intentions of seeing the film, it will be interesting to see the response it gets from the audience and critics and how it affects the other 9/11-related projects that are in the works. Also, the blockbuster season is starting early with Mission Impossible 3 coming out May 5, soon to be followed by The DaVinci Code, and X-Men: The Last Stand.

Music reivews: Ben Harper, J Dilla (aka Jay Dee), Shout Out Louds, and the Walkmen

2006-04-10T18:23:00.000-05:00

Ben Harper Both Sides of the Gun

Despite suffering from the same faults as most other double-album releases, this is still one of Ben Harper's best efforts.

Ben Harper's always been known as an artist whose capability has seemingly evolved into the mastering two types of music. For one, Harper has written some incredibly beautiful ballads and heartbreaking songs over the course of his career. Likewise, he has also improved greatly in his writing of more uptempo folk/rock songs and more recently funk-infused rock songs. Both Sides of the Gun capitalizes on this as disc one is full of slow songs while disc two is nothing but mid- to uptempo goodness. Granted, like any other double-album (with the only recent exception being Outkast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below), Ben Harper runs into the problem of redundancy, as he could have easily taken the best tracks of each of the discs and made what very well would've been his pinnacle record, rather than yet another solid yet imperfect release. While the first half of the slow side (disc one) is incredible as "Never Leave Lonely Alone" is the most haunting song Ben Harper's ever done and if it weren't for the vocals could almost be seen as an Elliott Smith B-Side; It is the second half that falters badly, with the closing trio of "More Than Sorry," "Crying Won't Help You Now," and particularly "Happy Everafter In Your Eyes" all but erase the high points that were experienced earlier in the album. Once getting to disc two, there's a much better balance of good and bad songs. The opener and single "Better Way" is a very inspiring song and leads into the equally good "Both Sides of the Gun." The title track is an interesting experience as many of Ben Harper's previous attempts at funk-rock have been relatively poor to say the least (the tacky "Bring the Funk" from the last album comes to mind). On this track though as well as "Black Rain," it doesn't seem like Ben Harper is forcing the issue, but rather taking his already hard-edged lyrics and allowing them to do the work themselves while his band pumps out the funk to match the piece. "Black Rain" in particular smartly uses orchestration to emphasize the political message of Harper's piece. Other highlights include the classic rock stomper "Get It Like You Like It"-- horrible reference of the Red Sox winning the World Series aside-- and the awesome closer "Serve Your Soul" which really show off the talent of Ben Harper's backing band, The Innocent Criminals. While it's great to see such a strong showing from Ben Harper, it's slightly disappointing that he decided to go the dreaded double-album route. Despite that, this is a recommended album for fans and outsiders alike, with 18 tracks, you're bound to find something you like.

Overall Rating: 82

J Dilla (aka Jay Dee) Donuts

Simply put, Donuts is a genius' curtain call.

To be honest, I was at first very skeptical about this album. While Jay Dee has always been one of my favorite producers, I didn't see how 31 tracks of one-minute songs could amount to anything substantial, and if it weren't for the tragic circumstances immediately following the release it probably wouldn't be so highly acclaimed. While the last point is certainly up for debate, there is simply no denying the great effort put into this album. Jay Dee implements and toys with old-school soul and R&B to perfection, crafting an album that stands almost like a curtain call of sorts. Tracks like "The Diff'rence," "Stop," and "Two Can Win" take you for a trip down memory lane, with a sense of breezy nostalgia unheard of since The Avalanches released Since I Left You, while "Mash" and "Time: The Donut of the Heart" truly show off Jay Dee's ability to take various elements of both instrumentals and vocals (spoken and sung) and combine them to make it his own sound. An album any fan will love, and should be held close specifically for any inspiring DJs. It's really too bad that we'll never get to hear the talent of Jay Dee again.

Overall Rating: 91

Shout Out Louds Howl Howl Gaff Gaff
Fuzzy Vaults Review

An impressive debut, but not for everyone.

Shout Out Louds are a quirky indie rock outfit from Sweden that, based on the debut, appear to specialize in crafting bittersweet songs in which the somewhat dreary lyrics are heightened by beautiful and/or inspiring melodies. Perfect examples of this can be seen in the single "The Comeback" as well as "A Track and a Train." Much like earlier Belle & Sebastian, the sound of Shout Out Louds is one that will either immediately click or its bright, poppy vocals will be somewhat off-putting. Shout Out Louds do have a couple of very well done upbeat songs in "100º" and "Hurry Up Let's Go," both of which should lead to serious head bopping or toe tapping if nothing else. Another highlight is the closer "Seagull," which is probably the greatest departure for the band in terms of sound. While maintaining the semi-quirkiness that defines the other songs on the album, there's a much more apparent connection to the atmospheric psychadelia that serves as one of the bands sonic influences. This combination makes for a very engaging, and wholly entertaining eight and a half minutes. Overall, this is a noteworthy debut from a talented band well worth keeping an eye on.

Overall Rating: 84

The Walkmen Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me is Gone
Fuzzy Vaults Review

Better after each listen, Everyone Who Pretended... is quite possibly one of the most subtly outstanding since 2000.

From the transition of the opening intro of sorts "They're Winning" to the song "Wake Up" there's a sense of discovery in a band that, while possibly not easily accessible, is almost wickedly talented. The dissonant piano offsets the guitar riff perfectly, creating a sharp, haunting sound that's become the staple of The Walkmen's music. Dissimilar to their follow up Bows + Arrows, the finest moments don't come from their brash, hard-hitting tracks-- as a matter of fact, you'd be hard pressed to find anything to liken to "The Rat"-- but rather their involved, and sometimes endearingly tedious songs that really bring the album together as a whole. Each track contributes in its own manner to the entire puzzle of the album, adding in textures while taking away others, and all in all creating such a wonderfully solemn atmosphere that you feel as if you're being taken into a world created specifically by the band. Appropriately enough the biggest highlight of the album sits comfortably in the middle of the record entitled "We've Been Had." With the lush toy piano fading in, and vocals perfectly swaggering along without ever overpowering the hushed-yet-rough feeling of the song, the song creates an amazingly balanced dynamic-- in the same way the album does-- by molding together seemingly dissimilar elements and making them not only sound good, but also making you want more. While it will almost certainly take repeated listens to settle into the record, this is certainly a worthwhile album that is all the more impressive considering it's a debut effort.

Overall Rating: 96

The Inside Man reviewed

2006-04-09T00:20:00.000-05:00

The Inside Man

Tired, dull and painstakingly stupid, Spike Lee would have needed an act of God to save this film.

Dear Mr. Lee,

I know times have been hard for you and apparently the three other minority film directors in Hollywood right now, and after your disaster of a movie She Hate Me, just about everyone for once had a reason to have it in for you. The ultimate solution comes through with the film Inside Man. It's the perfect template for a Hollywood genre movie that will surely bring in the most money out of any film you've ever made (and probably will ever make), and with its cast of surefire A-list actors you might actually *gulp* crack into the mainstream audience for the first time since people learned that "Plymouth rock landed on us." So what do you do with a conceptually great movie that follows an all-too-familiar Hollywood pattern? That's right, you do everything you can to make it better, and bless you for doing so. It's funny in a way, I mean, you've worked with Denzel Washington since the beginning of time it seems-- and long before he was known simply as "Denzel"-- and now, what the hell's happened to him? I know he's gotta be your main man and everything, but you've got to tell him that not every movie calls for him to act like the amalgam of all of his prior roles (if you don't think there's any truth to this, I want you to watch Denzel act in every movie from "Crimson Tide" on and come back to me). On the plus side you do have Willem Dafoe and Clive Owen who can both make just about any role relatively interesting. Then there's Jodie Foster... yeah.
Anyway, while I do truly thank you for making a visually entertaining film, it still doesn't help the fact that the screenplay could've been better written by an inebriated Paris Hilton. That's not to say that I think your film was a complete disaster. I mean, you did after all have some outstanding shots and really smart camera matches that are rarely seen by many other directors (at least not as subtly). But it doesn't help that the watered-down storyline is further hindered by equally simplistic social commentary, which I don't want to blame you for. I mean, considering all of the masterful films in the past I'd hate to think that you'd have anything to do with a line like "So I'm guilty of violating Section 34DD?" Not to mention that all of the social/racial jokes made in the film have been picked out of the Hollywood rhetoric recycling bin and have probably been used in much more interesting ways previously as well. But once again, I don't blame you for any of this, because I understand that this is probably a stepping-stone and that you were really just trying to show Hollywood that you can after all make a blockbuster film. Congratulations for pulling that off, but next time, please make use of a better script. I hope you don't take this too hard, because I really am a big fan, and on the plus side, I'm sure in a month or so I'll forget I've ever seen this movie.

Sincerely,
Your Average Moviegoer

Overall Rating: 63

More music reviews: Ghostface Killah, Jaheim, Van Hunt

2006-04-07T21:56:00.000-05:00

Ghostface Killah Fishscale

Fishscale encompasses all that is great about Ghostface Killah, a mesmerizing album.

While Ghostface Killah is easily one of the most entertaining, not to mention talented, lyricists around, it always seems like his productions and overall composition have fallen short (see Pretty Toney Album). That's not at all the case on Fishscale, one of the few albums in recent memory that doesn't have a single throwaway track despite being 24-tracks long. Ghostface is sharp is ever and this time he's got the focused productions to back it up with MF Doom, Madlib and Pete Rock as the men behind the scene. "The Champ" hits hard with Ghostface's vicious rhymes and appropriately uses a boxing match as the backdrop. On a good chunk of the tracks, namely "Kilo," "9 Milli Bros." and "Dogs of War," members of the Wu-Tang Clan contribute successfully, even pushing the already impressive productions further and it really seems to also bring the most out of Ghostface's lyrics. There's not much more to say about this album other than it's a truly compelling listen and exemplifies the true talent that Ghostface Killah possesses. Highly recommended.

Overall Rating: 100

Jaheim Ghetto Classics

More consistent than his previous effort, Jaheim returns with a solid album.

On Ghetto Classics, Jaheim is very well versed in recreating the "slow-jams" era R&B to a stunning effect a times, while other times just falling short. At his best, he creates tracks like the openers "The Chosen One" and "Everytime I Think About Her." Both songs feature sweeping melodies that create a classically dynamic sound once characterized by such artists as Teddy Pendergrass, while songs like "Forgetful" more closely resemble the sound that Jaheim had on Still Ghetto. The biggest departure from Jaheim's typical sound is on the track "Like a DJ" which is an interesting 80's electronic/r&b fusion that's actually relatively successful. The super-smooth ballad of "I Ain't Never" and laid back "125th" are also noteworthy tracks. It seems as if Jaheim has found his stride as far as his music is concerned, now if only his lyrics could improve to match his voice.

Overall Rating: 78

Van Hunt On the Jungle Floor

On the Jungle Floor is the sound of Van Hunt fully realizing himself as an artist and having a good time doing it.

While his eponymous debut relied more heavily on the linear croons and grooves that noted such influences as Stevie Wonder among others, Van Hunt really lets loose on On the Jungle Floor, sometimes sounding like he's trying to even outdo Prince in funkified strangeness (see the opener "If I Take You Home (Upon...)"). While there's nothing as striking as the singles from his previous effort, overall Van Hunt seems to be much more focused and has progressed greatly as an artist. The absolutely gorgeous "Daredevil, Baby" shows a sense of maturity rarely seen so early in a career. "Ride, Ride, Ride" gets closer to Jimi Hendrix than Lenny Kravitz could ever dream of, while "Being a Girl" is a lazy and airy groove with such an outstanding baseline it's hard not to get into. Nikka Costa guests on "Mean Sleep" and despite the seemingly odd coupling, she actually does a great job in complimenting Van Hunt and helps elevating what would otherwise be an easily disposable song. "Priest or Police" and the single "Character" are also very nicely done grooves, and show Van Hunt at his most comfortable vocally. One of the most intriguing songs on the album is Van Hunt's cover of Iggy Pop & The Stooges' "No Sense of Crime" which features the Sonus Quartet. It shows an interesting dynamic not only in Van Hut's musical influences but also in his approach to making a song, particularly rock song, his own, and on "No Sense of Crime" he is very successful in accomplishing that. If there's a weakness to this album, it would be that there is nothing on here that is going to be immediately accessible to anyone; On the Jungle Floor is best enjoyed in it's entirety and will begin finding its way into heavy rotation after repeated listens. Considering how much better this album is over the debut overall, I'd say that's a pretty good trade off.

Overall Rating: 86

Fuzzy Bits: April 6, 2006 (New Pantheon Award Winner and Concert News/Info)

2006-04-06T01:37:00.000-05:00

Although I've had the Flaming Lips on repeat and haven't quite settled down over how impressed I am with this album, I'd like to take this time to reflect on the top albums of 2005 as the New Pantheon Award Winner was announced a few days ago. The winning artist was a bit of a surprise for me, only because I was sure he wouldn't win despite my feelings of him being the most deserving. Fortunately, the winner was no other than Sufjan Stevens for Illinois, which ranked #3 on my list of top albums. Beating out such famed acts as Bloc Party, Arcade Fire, M.I.A., and the rumored favorite Antony and the Johnsons, Stevens was easily the most deserving of the bunch. Congratulations both to him as well as the Pantheon Awards for a successful inaugural launch!

Pearl Jam announce second leg dates for summer tour

Pearl Jam, on the heels of their upcoming eponymous album, have released the dates for the second leg of their tour for which Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers will be opening three shows for. Petty will open for Pearl Jam on June 26 and 27 in St. Paul, Minnesota and also on the July 2 and 3 shows in Denver. After July 6, Sonic Youth will serve as the opening band. Here's a list of the complete dates for this summer:

04/20 - London @ Astoria
05/09 - Toronto @ Air Canada Centre
05/10 - Toronto @ Air Canada Centre
05/12 - Albany, NY @ Pepsi Arena
05/13 - Hartford, Conn. @ New England Dodge Music Arena
05/16 - Chicago @ United Center
05/19 - Grand Rapids, Mich. @ Van Andel Arena
05/20 - Cleveland @ Quicken Loans Arena
05/22 - Auburn Hills, Mich. @ Palace of Auburn Hills
05/24 - Boston @ TD Banknorth Garden
05/25 - Boston @ TD Banknorth Garden
05/27 - Camden, N.J. @ Tweeter Center
05/28 - Camden, N.J. @ Tweeter Center
05/30 - Washington, DC @ MCI Center
06/01 - East Rutherford, NJ @ Continental Airlines Arena
06/03 - East Rutherford, NJ @ Continental Airlines Arena
06/23 - Pittsburgh @ Mellon Arena
06/24 - Cincinnati @ US Bank Arena
06/26 - St. Paul, Minn. @ Xcel Energy Center
06/27 - St. Paul, Minn. @ Xcel Energy Center
07/02 - Denver @ Pepsi Center
07/03 - Denver @ Pepsi Center
07/06 - Las Vegas @ MGM Grand
07/07 - San Diego @ Cox Arena
07/09 - Los Angeles @ Forum
07/10 - Los Angeles @ Forum
07/13 - Santa Barbara, Calif. @ Santa Barbara Bowl
07/16 - San Francisco @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
07/18 - San Francisco @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
07/22 - George, Wash. @ the Gorge
08/25 - Leeds, England @ Leeds Festival
08/27 - Reading, England @ Reading Festival

Damian Marley joins Ben Harper & Innocent Criminals for tour

As if Ben Harper isn't enough on his own, he's going to be joined by the one and only Damian Marley for some shows in August and September. Here are the dates:

August 2006
10 - Phoenix, AZ - Dodge Theatre (w / Damien Marley)
11, 12 - Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre (w / Damien Marley)
13 - San Diego, CA - Bayside Concerts (w / Damien Marley)
15 - Santa Barbara, CA - County Bowl (w / Damien Marley)
18, 19 - Berkeley, CA - Greek Theatre (w / Damien Marley)
20 - Stateline, NV - Harvey's Lake Tahoe Amphitheatre (w / Damien Marley)
22 - Salt Lake City, UT - USANA Amphitheater (w / Damien Marley)
23 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre (w / Damien Marley)
25 - Kansas City, MO - Starlight Theatre (w / Damien Marley)
26 - Somerset, WI - River's Edge (w / Damien Marley)
27 - Chicago, IL - Charter One Pavilion (w / Damien Marley)
31 - Noblesville, IN - Verizon Wireless Music Center (w / Damien Marley)

September 2006
1 - Rochester, MI - Meadow Brook (w / Damien Marley)
5, 6 - New York, NY - Central Park - Rumsey Playfield (w / Damien Marley)
8 - Boston, MA - Bank of America Pavilion (w / Damien Marley)
10 - Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion (w / Damien Marley)
11 - Philadelphia, PA - Festival Pier @ Penn's Landing (w / Damien Marley)
13 - Cary, NC - Koka Booth Amphitheatre @ Regency (w / Damien Marley)
14 - Knoxville, TN - World's Fair Park (w / Damien Marley)

The Flaming Lips At War With the Mystics

2006-04-05T02:13:00.000-05:00

The Flaming Lips At War With the Mystics

An outstanding achievement and well worth the wait.

The Flaming Lips are an odd band to review. With this being their 12th album in their 22-year existence, you would think people would have figured this lot out by now. Instead, we've relied on this group, much in the same way we've relied on Beck, to be predictable in their unpredictability. Because this album fits sonically between and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and The Soft Bulletin it appears that some have already rendered the band tired... please excuse me while I pick my mouth up off the floor. If you spend your every waking moment trying to pick apart a band just because they're different, you're occasionally going to miss the point. Just like Beck's Guero it was almost intimidating that the masters of weird could have come up with an album that's at all familiar. But seriously, if you think about it, you could take the world's supply of mind-altering drugs and a Virgin rocket trip around the moon and still may have a hard time pushing the envelope much further than The Flaming Lips have. That being said, At War With the Mystics is a masterpiece and if I wanted to be incredibly bold I'd say that this will be the album of the year when it's all said and done, but since it's only April I suppose I'll hold off on that statement for awhile. The opening trio of songs are as solid as anything the band has ever released, particularly "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" which is almost too fun for it's own good. The political overtones are much more abundant in this homage-if-you-will to President Bush than they've ever been in any other of their albums working in literal commentary rather than metaphors. What is amazing about this album is how alienating yet radio-friendly it is, thus combining the best of both worlds of the aforementioned previous two releases. "It Overtakes Me" is an absolutely superb seven-minute opus that never gets tiring and leads to the equally poignant "Mr. Ambulance Driver," which is a wonderfully bittersweet song. "The W.A.N.D." is by far the best song on here, and after one play will likely be stuck in your head for the rest of the day, it's just that addicting. The song carries an impeccable energy, particularly through the awesome electric guitar riff is enhanced through the punchy vocals and handclaps really make it a worthwhile three and a half minutes. Another great track is the closing "Goin' On" which serves as a great social commentary and appropriately gives a sign of hope in what's been to say the least a difficult time. If you haven't bought the album already, I do recommend getting it on iTunes as you'll get three incredible bonus tracks including an outstanding cover of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody," that can almost match the original. Otherwise, this is an astounding record that shouldn't really be viewed so critically. No, they didn't reinvent the wheel, but when you're still ten years ahead of everyone else, maybe you don't need to.

Overall Rating: 100

New Music Tuesday Info 4.04.06

2006-04-04T17:14:00.000-05:00

Today's new music Tuesday and iTunes has some pretty significant additions going for this week. First and foremost, the entire Dave Matthews Band studio library has been added, which is huge news as most fans are more than familiar with the band's previous stance on online music store distribution. Also very noteworthy is that the Red Hot Chili Peppers have a sweet pre-order offer running. If you feel like putting down $20 for their upcoming double album Stadium Arcadium, you not only get the single "Dani California" immediately, but you're also eligible for the Ticketmaster pre-sale of any of their summer concert dates, and entered for a chance to win a limited edition Red Hot Chili Peppers iPod (which I'm guessing will be an iPod with the RHCP logo on it and have all their music pre-loaded). That's not it though, as you'll also receive the making of the "Dani California" music video and audio commentary from the Peppers. Considering I'll be seeing RHCP at Lollapalooza, I'm not sure if I'd take advantage of the Ticketmaster offering but it still seems like a pretty good deal, if nothing else it's an awesome promotion. Here are the New Music Tuesday previews for today, and you might have noticed I left off a certain highly anticipated album that came out today. Yeah, I did that on purpose, the Flaming Lips review will be done later tonight. In the meantime, enjoy!

New Music Tuesday 4.04.06

The Vines Vision Valley
Preview Verdict: It seems like the Vines can only be counted on their singles. With each song coming in around 1-2 minutes (with exception for the six minute closer), I can't see myself putting down any more than $5 for this album. If you're the Hives, that's one thing, but really, I don't think these guys have much left in the tank.

Massive Attack Collected
Preview Verdict: If you're a big Massive Attack fan like I am, you have no real reason to purchase this album as it's nothing more than a greatest hits record (the only new track is Live with Me). However if you're a casual fan or new to the duo, definitely check it out as it's a sweet compilation of their more famous music. With an atmospheric group like Massive Attack it's a bit difficult to come up with a greatest hits type album (they're the kind of band that does better from an album standpoint rather than individual songs), this is a nice collection.

Bubba Sparxxx The Charm
Preview Verdict: It's sad that of all songs in the world, "Ms. Fat Booty" had to become the hit record from the album. Ideally, signing with Big Boi's label would be a good thing, but everything on here seems either clichéd, tired, or idiotic (sometimes all three). Maybe eventually he'll figure it out.

The Charlatans Blackened Blue Eyes (single)
Verdict: Wow, good stuff. I've always been a fan of the Charlatans and this song is no exception, definitely worth a listen. 90

The Goo Goo Dolls Stay With You (single)
Preview Verdict: These guys just won't go away. Sure they were (reasonably) cool in the 90's, and then they had a breakthrough (as far as audience reach) with the heartbreaking "Iris" from the City of Angels soundtrack. But now, I don't know, it kind of sounds the same as anything else you'd hear on the radio. Snore.

Chicago Chicago XXX
Preview Verdict: Speaking of not going away. Apparently back from being cryogenically frozen, Chicago releases an album that would ruin their legacy if it weren't for the fact that their legacy was lost for quite some time. XXX should really stand for the dirty feeling you'll have after purchasing such a god-awful CD.

Morrissey Ringleader of the Tormentors
Preview Verdict: I'm admittedly not a Morrissey fan, but this doesn't appear to be bad for him. I know his fans will eat it up like candy, but I don't imagine it bringing in a new audience. So if you liked You Are The Quarry my guess is that you'll find plenty to appreciate on this album.

Snow Patrol Hands Open (single)
Preview Verdict: U2's favorite band is back in action with this single. I'm guessing I'll like it much better when I hear it in the context of the new album, but as of right now it's not doing a lot for me.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs and People In Planes reviewed (Brief news intro)

2006-04-03T00:04:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of music reviews that I hope you enjoy. Before I get to them though, I'd like to say that there have been a couple of really great performances lately on the late shows. Firstly, on Craig Ferguson's Late Late Show, the New Cars (yeah they're actually just The Cars with a couple of new guys) appeared and sounded absolutely amazing performing their new single "Not Tonight." I actually had to keep checking the screen to make sure that it was in fact the same band. The single is available for download on iTunes now, but it will be featured on a Greatest Hits album that they have coming out in a few weeks. The second performance relates to a band whose album is reviewed in this piece and that is the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Performing their single "Gold Lion" on David Letterman a few nights ago, they did an awesome job of bringing a lot more life out of the song than I realized existed from listening to the studio version. It also confirmed that Karen O. (Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman) is exceptionally quirky but incredibly cool, and that was an added bonus. So without further adieu I give you some reviews. Enjoy!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Show Your Bones

While produced to a glossy sheen, Show Your Bones does nicely to avoid a sophomore slump.

After honing their skills for sometime, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs released the brash yet lovely debut
Fever to Tell in 2003. For anyone expecting a similar sound you should probably just stop reading this review now and forget about it. While you may very well end up liking the album, it'll be for a completely different reason than it was before. That isn't to say that Show Your Bones and Fever to Tell are night and day, it's just that on this album, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs sound is so much more controlled that it's not surprising that there are fans calling the band a sell out after hearing the single "Gold Lion." While the song has definitely grown on me since I first heard it and works well within the context of the album, it's difficult to listen to it (particularly for the first time) and think that you might've accidentally slipped onto a Teagan & Sara track (or if you're feeling generous, Sleater-Kinney with half the punk). However, listening to tracks like "Fancy," which is just as solid as most anything you'll find on the debut, the catchy "Phenomena" and the surprising closer "Turn Into." With that said, if you wanted to be cynical about the album, you could once again refer to either of the dreaded terms that bands never want to hear. The first would be a "sell out," and with songs like "Gold Lion" and the nursery rhyme like "Dudley" you could have yourself an argument. After all, it's the "rough around the edges" bit that made them big in the first place right? On the other cynical path you could say that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs hit a bit of a sophomore slump. That would be another feasible argument, as like any other band that hits it big on the first album, what direction do you go in if you want to do something different? More often than not, that direction is sideways, and that's precisely the case with Show Your Bones. But, to that person I'd have to ask, if your debut album was deemed as being a great album, is going sideways so bad so long as you're actually making progress? I think not.

Overall Rating: 89

People In Planes As Far as the Eye Can See

Well hell, this is the band people should be talking about...

You know, hype is a funny thing. Every now and again, more true recently than in the past, we put certain bands on a pedestal and claim them to be everything but the greatest band to ever come into existence. Sometimes that hype is warranted (White Stripes, The Hives) and sometimes it leads to destruction (The Libertines, The Darkness) or they're simply never heard from again. While the Arctic Monkey's have been the latest band to win the media's hearts, with SXSW performances from bands like Art Brut amping up the critics attention as well, it seems that these blokes from Wales have completely gone under the radar, and that's really quite a shame. Comparisons to such bands as Muse aside, People in Planes have really got a good thing going on As Far as the Eye Can See. The opening track "Barracuda" is a seething piece, sweeping almost effortlessly between quiet and loud tones without ever losing energy. "For Miles Around" is the track that will probably be the track people look at most to make their Muse comparisons, especially with the swirling guitars over the anthemic chorus. The thing with People in Planes though, is that it's rarely overdramatic or overly indulgent. Case in point being the appropriate lead single "If You Talk Too Much (My Head Will Explode)," which not only marks a perfect marriage of rock and pop music, but also delivers just enough to bring you in without ever going over the top, as a matter of fact, it's pretty linear in arrangement. Another standout is the unsuspectingly catchy "Moth" which thrives on its great rhythm and bass lick. As the album progresses People in Planes' songs become increasingly experimental which is a relatively rare thing to see on a debut album. They are all within the same realm as the other songs, so it doesn't feel as if you're listening to another artist, but it is nevertheless intriguing that the final three tracks clock in at over five minutes each, and focus a bit more on atmospheric tones as opposed to the earlier tracks, which is a very good thing. "Penny," for example, is a lush downtempo track that constantly evolves and morphs throughout its six and a half minute length. For a debut album, this is a very impressive release and is truly worth checking out. The only main drawback is that for as strong as the arrangements and instrumentals are on each of the songs, the lyrics sometimes lag behind. While they certainly won't make you cringe, and is something that will surely improve over time, it is worth noting for those of you that go for lyrical substance over other elements in music. Once again, this is a great debut from People In Planes and here's hoping they get their share of hype soon, because they do deserve it.

Overall Rating: 90

Back in action...

2006-03-31T14:35:00.000-06:00

Apologies for the long away, but there's a lot of good stuff on tap for the upcoming updates, so look for those pretty soon. For now, I've got two movie reviews for you.

Thank You For Smoking

With razor-sharp wit and superb acting, Thank You For Smoking is a pop culture masterpiece.

From the moment the movie begins, with the hilarious accompaniment of "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigarette!" by Tex Williams and the Western Caravan, Jason Reitman (son of the Ivan Reitman of "Ghost Busters" and "Twins" fame) presents you with a hard-hitting piece of social commentary that's unlike anything that's been seen in years. Aaron Eckhart, playing the role of lobbyist Nick Naylor, is once again fulfilling the "likeable asshole" quality much like he did in the 1997 film In the Company of Men, and is just as outstanding in this film as he was in the aforementioned movie. The same holds true for Katie Holmes, who plays an exceptionally crafty news reporter, and gives such a convincing performance that she may very well have established herself as a credible Hollywood talent. What really made the movie work however was the relentless storyline, as Jason Reitman really made the most out of what was already a great platform in Christopher Buckley's novel. Also, the performances of William H. Macy, Rob Lowe, and most notably youngster Cameron Bright (who plays Nick Naylor's son Joey), make this film an incredibly fun yet smoldering ride from beginning to end.

Overall Rating: 92

Match Point

Steamy, seductive and absolutely brilliant.

Woody Allen has enjoyed one of the most paradoxical careers in Hollywood. While attaining a core cult audience, Allen has garnered quite a lot of critical acclaim as well lately, despite having a number of ill-fated works for the past decade. The ideas behind every single Woody Allen movie is always good at least, and is more often than not brilliant, but the issue that has almost always plagued his movies is the transition from the paper to the big screen that's occasionally been lacking. Case in point would be Allen's last release Melinda & Melinda, which had its bright spots but was nowhere near what it could be, despite having a very thoughtful concept. With Match Point, Woody Allen has finally executed an idea from start to finish that is impeccably perfect. To make the movie all the more worthwhile, Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Scarlett Johansson put out the best performances of their careers, as they continue to best each other not only in the plot of the story but also in their acting, it shows how far they were pushed by Allen's direction. The writing, as always, is remarkable, and the story effortlessly flows from being relaxed to seductive to intense to funny and all points in between. What Woody Allen has accomplished within Match Point, is a perfect slice of life where moral ambiguity is the norm and it's within those imperfections that an audience can find themselves wrapped up in the world of what would otherwise be a very disturbing story. While the Match Point experience is still definitely on grounds for being disturbing, it's difficult not to get attached to any particular one of the characters, or at the very least their particular stories, and that takes a true gift in filmmaking.

Overall Rating: 100

A couple of Music Reviews

2006-03-19T20:54:00.000-06:00

Here are the first set of album reviews. The rest will be coming shortly along with other news. Enjoy!

David Gray Life In Slow Motion

Sadly overproduced, David Gray's latest still manages to compensate with incredibly well-written songs.

It must be known that David Gray is easily one of the best singer/songwriters to come out of the 90's. While US fans are most familiar with him from the outstanding 2000 release White Ladder, many don't realize that he indeed had a couple of very notable releases prior to that album in Sell, Sell, Sell and A Century Ends. After White Ladder, Gray faced heightened expectations and released A New Day at Midnight to a mixed response. There were moments of the same sheer brilliance as featured on Gray's previous albums, but in the end it fell short. Feeling as if he might've hit his creative peak, I hadn't bothered in his latest album, which was released in 2005, until recently. What caused the change was that once I dug a little deeper than the overly-glossy single of "The One I Love" I realized that the same insightful Gray was still there. Unfortunately, the slick nature of a number of his songs cloud what would otherwise be a readily apparent sign of Gray's strength in songwriting. Also gone are his intricate drum and bass lines, replaced by either softer guitar or orchestral tones, this is a different sound yet not at all alienating. The evolution of David Gray's sound is clear from the opening track of "Alibi," which begins almost atmospheric before evolving into an all out anthem. By far the best track on the album is the simple yet beautiful "Lately" which highlights Gray's talent with the song's sparse instrumentals that swirl around his vocals. Other noteworthy songs are "Slow Motion," the bittersweet "Hospital Food," "Now and Always," and the great closer "Disappearing World." When everything clicks, Gray puts on some of his best work to date, however there are moments where the amount of slick overproduction reaches a point of superficiality, and for an emotional writer like David Gray, it really can detract from his music. While more of a cd for true David Gray fans, I would recommend the selected titles above for those who, if nothing else, would like a bit more exposure to the artist.

Overall Rating: 84

Beth Orton Comfort of Strangers

Simply put, this is Beth Orton's best album ever

Continuing the trend of prominent 90's singer/songwriters, Beth Orton has established herself as being one of the more prominent female singer/songwriters, while in the process becoming overshadowed by such artists as Fiona Apple and Sarah McLachlan. On this album, Orton's focus extends from start to finish, with absolutely no filler whatsoever (something that's evident given that the longest track clocks in at 4:30, and most tracks are around the three minute mark). Each of her songs posses such an earthy, organic quality that her music almost seems like an effortless extension of herself. "Worms" is a perfect opener for the album, and tracks such as "Heartlandtruckstop," "Rectify," and "Conceived" are such great slice-of-life stories that, when combined with Orton's charming and breathy vocals, make for a very intriguing and worthwhile album. It may come off as being too simplistic for it's own good, but with a talent that's as generally diverse as Orton in terms of her sound, the idea of her honing in on a specific focus truly showcases her abilities. An album that's best enjoyed when played straight through beginning to end, Comfort of Strangers, is an incredible album.

Overall Rating: 98

A Brief Announcement and Two Movie Reviews

2006-03-17T19:10:00.000-06:00

Album reviews will be coming up next, in the meantime I have a couple of movie reviews for you all-- one old and one new. Before I get to that though, I'd like to point out the little box at the bottom of the webpage. No, it's not an ad, but rather a list of my top listened to artists for the week, just in case you're ever wondering what I'm listening to. The website responsible for it is last.fm, a really nifty webpage that allows you to download a program that will track what you listen to purely for statistical purposes, and from that you can access the website and find other similar artists or even meet other people that like the same music as you. So in case you were wondering what that was, now you know.

Dave Chappelle's Block Party

An incredibly inspiring piece, this is a film everyone should be talking about.

It's a shame that this film will probably go unnoticed when Oscar-time comes around again, as it has been unable to even make a dent in terms of ticket sales. Directed by Michel Gondry (who directed Eternal Sunshine... as well as an immense number of music videos), Block Party offers some great insight into a world that's not often explored, much in the same way of the festival that this documentary was somewhat based on Wattstax. The movie begins by watching Dave Chappelle in his hometown of Dayton, OH, interacting with locals as he talks to them about going to see his Block Party, as he appropriately enough hands out "golden tickets" as invites. It's both here and in the Bedstuy neighborhood of Brooklyn-- the locale in which the concert takes place-- that the foundation of the film shines through. The audience is given a sneak peek into the humble life of Dave Chappelle as well as many of the musicians who in some cases grew up in the very same area that they were performing in. For those going to see it only for Dave Chappelle's humor, you'll more than likely be sorely disappointed, although he does have a few skits within the piece that are simply hilarious. For anyone else that is even remotely interested in hip-hop culture and music, or just wants to see a feel-good story in which people of all backgrounds are able to not only come together but enjoy each others company for hours on end, this film is for you. Gondry has always been outstanding in capturing the human fabric within the realm of music, and this documentary is no exception. The quality of the film might be crude, and the rough cuts and handheld camera angles might be off-putting to some, but it truly just solidified how down to earth all these people are. In a world where people like 50 Cent get the headlines or all the "rap" artists that are getting in fights (or "beef") for no apparent reason, its projects like these where people who usually don't have access to true hip-hop can see that there's a lot more to it than that, and hip-hop is a unifier of a culture, not a divider. If you're willing to soak it all in, you'd be hard pressed not to leave the theatre with a smile on your face.

Overall Rating: 93

Jarhead

Not perfect, but a very thoughtful and engaging film.

I picked Jarhead up on DVD this past weekend, as it's a movie that I really wanted to see but never had the opportunity to. Not usually one to blindly purchase DVDs, I had a very good feeling about this one given that it was both directed by Sam Mendes (of Road To Perdition and American Beauty fame) and starred Jake Gyllenhaal (of Donnie Darko and Brokeback Mountain fame). The problem with war films, particularly now, is that you never know what to expect from them. It has reached the point where there are now genres within the war film genre. There are the psychological war films, the grandiose epic war films, and then the brutal war film. The intriguing aspect of Jarhead is that it doesn't fit into any of those categories, the commentary of it being an anti-war film is apparent just through its cinematic qualities. There are no major-scale battle scenes here, no dramatic classical score, nothing. Now while it might seem disappointing, it really is such a poignant film in the sense that it doesn't meet any expectations and then the more you process the movie, the more everything becomes clear. Sam Mendes once again does a stellar job directing this film, and both Jamie Foxx and Peter Sarsgaard were so compelling in each of their roles that they essentially made the movie from an acting standpoint. That being said, there still seems to be something missing from the film, and in a way, that might've been the point. To me however, it's the only thing that kept it from being in the same company as all the other great war films.

Overall Rating: 86

Fuzzy Bits: March 16, 2006 (The Big One!)

2006-03-16T13:34:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the long delay, but at least I'm back with great news. I've got the lineup for Lollapalooza 2006, and this will be by far the best show Chicago will see this summer (and could be arguably better than every other summer festival going). So first, let me get to that and then I will give my long-overdue award show recap.

Breaking News! Lollapalooza 2006 Lineup Released
With over 130 bands on 8 stages, it's impossible to get the entire list down without dizzying you, so if you're interested in the full listing please visit the webpage. Here are some of the bigger headlines:

Red Hot Chili Peppers
Kanye West
Wilco
Death Cab for Cutie
The Raconteurs
The Flaming Lips
The Shins
Common
Ryan Adams
Queens of the Stone Age
Matisyahu
Thievery Corporation
Sleater-Kinney
Blues Traveler
Broken Social Scene
Iron Wine
The New Pornographers
Eels
Andrew Bird
Gnarls Barkley (Cee-Lo Danger Mouse)
Stars
Of Montreal
and many, many, more...

So long story short, there's absolutely no reason not to go unless you just don't like music-- even if you can't afford it, just volunteer and get in for free. Thankfully we can put the Smashing Pumpkins rumors to rest, although you never know with them, it is good to see though that there have been so many Chicago acts picked up this year as I think that was one of the weaknesses last year. For those that don't know some of the more famous Chicago artists that will be here are: Kanye West, Common, Wilco, and The Redwalls. I'll be sure to let you know if any more developments take place.

Additional Details on DMB/Sheryl Crow Fenway Park show
There are two options available as far as tickets are concerned: for those willing to spend the money you can get a VIP Reserved pass for $250 while reglar priced tickets will be $65. The shows once again are July 7 and 8 at 8pm. Ticket reserves are available now for Warehouse members, while the general public will be able to get their shot at tickets starting April 8.

Oscar Briefs
Yeah, it was a while ago, but I still wanted to make a few points. First off, Jon Stewart must've thought that it was amateur night-- he was so nervous in his delivery you would've thought he was at the Source Awards. For those unfortunate souls that had never experienced Jon Stewart, I direct you to the incredibly famous The Daily Show which comes on nightly on Comedy Central and really shows off Stewart's comedic genius. George Clooney's acceptance speech was awesome, and it's really too bad he didn't get anything for Good Night and Good Luck, because that really was an incredible film. Whether or not they deserved it is up to you, but I was quite happy that Three 6 Mafia won the oscar for best song, which has the thoughtful title of "It's Hard Out There For a Pimp." Now, I've personally never been a fan of the song, much less would think of it as being Oscar-worthy, but I have to hand it to the Oscar committee for at least attempting to make people think that they're hip. Kudos to Philip Seymour Hoffman and Reese Witherspoon as well for their well-deserved wins. When things started going downhill though is when Crash won for both best screenplay and picture of the year. Outside of possibly Match Point, I don't see how Crash could've beaten all those movies for best screenplay, and I had pretty much given up hope that a movie other than Brokeback Mountain would win for best film, so that was a huge surprise to me as well. My main problem with the Oscars this year was that they were acting like films like Brokeback Mountain and Crash were envelope-pushing movies. Hate to break it to everyone, but they're not, they're both "safe controversial" movies in that they've been presented in such a manner that anyone can relate to them. However, because they feature a couple of gay characters or a "diverse" cast that are all equally racist, we immediately want to say that the movies stand for something. Spike Lee has been making stimulating race movies for years and no one has handed him an award. There have also been a number of other movies that have dealt with the issues of homosexuality more directly than Brokeback Mountain as well, and none of those have been embraced either.

Fuzzy Briefs: March 9, 2006 (More Breaking News!)

2006-03-09T20:56:00.000-06:00

Over the course of the weekend I will have reviews for the following albums:
Asheru and Blue Black of the Unspoken Heard Soon Come...
David Gray Life In Slow Motion
Jaheim Ghetto Classics
Shout Out Louds Howl Howl Gaff Gaff
The Walkmen Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me Is Gone

In addition, I'll have my wrap up of the Oscars (and my overall sentiments of the movie awards) complete during this time as well. In the meantime, I've got some news that just can't wait, so I'm going to go ahead and post that info and I'll have more for you in the next coming days, enjoy!

News!
Dave Matthews Band and Sheryl Crow to perform at Fenway Park July 7 and 8
I didn't think it would happen, but it appears to be true. I have no further information than what was stated in the title, but expect more to be coming soon. Of course, given that Sheryl Crow has been recovering from her battle with breast cancer, she is only expected to make her appearance as the opening act if her health allows her, but other than that the shows should continue without a hitch.

More DMB-related news!
Soulive has been slated as being the opening act for the July 28 show at Hartford. The funk/jazz group has been around the DMB circles for a while, most famously of which is the performance Louisiana Bayou that was televised from the Red Rocks show which featured Robert Randolph and Soulive trumpeter Rashawn Ross. The final piece of DMB news is that David Gray has been added to the Randall Island concert schedule on August 6, with Slightly Stoopid and Tea Leaf Green being added to perform on the side stage for both dates.

Red Hot Chili Peppers release trailer for new album containing clip from upcoming single
Here's the trailer from the band's upcoming album Stadium Arcadium. At the end of it you can catch the new single, "Dani California." Click here to play.

New Beck album?
While this hasn't been confirmed there are rumors spreading that Beck has a still untitled album in the works that was actually recorded shortly before what became the album Guero. If these rumors are indeed true this would be Beck's tenth album (11 if you want to count Guerolito, the remix companion to his recent release). Also of note, Beck has a couple of very well-done Nick Drake covers on his webpage that are worth checking out. If you're too lazy to look for yourself, the songs are "Which Will" and "Parasite."