Ever since the advent of Wholphin, McSweeney’s short film DVD series, The Believer’s annual Film Issue has included films that do not belong on Wholphin–typically longer films, which is a cool way to see things you normally wouldn’t. This year’s issue includes a feature-length film by Laurel Nakadate, The Wolf Knife.
Readers of this blog know that I love the McSweeney’s empire. I read McSweeeney’s and The Believer, Grantland and Lucky Peach. They’ve gotten me to enjoy things I never thought I would. I also really love Wholphin–the films are weird and cool and unexpected.
So you can imagine how disappointed I was to be so disappointed by The Wolf Knife. The introduction to the film in the magazine is by Deb Olin Unferth. She made it sound amazing (even though she admits that people did walk out during the first fifteen minutes in some screenings). And yet, after going through what some critics have said she concludes: “to some [seeing the film] might sound like the best possible use of ninety minutes of their lives.”
SOUNDTRACK: REAL ESTATE-Tiny Desk Concert #202 (March 12, 2012).
I enjoyed some Real Estate songs, but i never listened to their whole albums. I thought this Tiny Desk show would give me more sonic information about them.
This three song set is very pleasing. The music is soft and nonabrasive, with a very smooth feel (as you can see they are dressed in sweaters and cardigans, so this is not really a shock). It’s poppy without having any real hooks. They remind me of a less catchy Guster or a less dramatic Smiths (“Green Aisles,” especially for the bass and guitar solo) or gentler Death Cab for Cutie (“Municipality”).
There’s nothing to radically distinguish these three songs (radical is not a word that would apply to Real Estate), although “Green Aisles” has a few more dynamic moments (mostly from the change in drum patterns).
This review sounds like I didn’t like the set, but that’s not true. As I said, it’s very pleasant. And sometimes pleasant is what you want.
First Second continues to publish some of the most beautiful and thought-provoking graphic novels around. This is a republication of a story that first appeared in a collection (and proceeded to win an Eisner, Harvey and Ignatz Award).
The story is about Simon and his close friend Nancy. It opens with them in a Vietnamese Restaurant in Oakland, CA. The first scene of the book is wonderfully drawn–we look in on the characters through a fish tank–fish are practically littering the panels–it’s very cool.
The two of them are with their friend Ian and they are shooting the breeze, talking nonsense. And then Simon sees a woman that he knew from high school. She is sitting at the bus stop and Simon wants to, but can’t, talk to her. Her name is Irene, she seems sad, eyes downcast looking at the ground. And then Simon reveals that she is blind.
In high school, he and Irene were very close. He helped her out, described films to her in class, and “rescued” her from bullies. And then she invited him to a Sadie Hawkins dance. He doesn’t like her that way, so he lied to get out of it. She never found out about the lies, but it has haunted him for the last seven years.
Later, Nancy figured out the truth of the matter, and even though we the readers probably guessed it as well, it still hit hard when it was spoken aloud. (more…)
This was the song of the day on NPR on March 14th. While NPR describes it as like 90s indie rock, I find it to be much more like early 2000s indie rock (think The Strokes or Arctic Monkeys). True, those bands were playing in the spirit of 90s rock, but they had a slightly different take on things–cleaner, perhaps.
So, while the guitars are buzzy and distorted, the vocals are up front and clear (even if the words aren’t entirely understandable–a neat trick that). The song is under three minutes and has a catchy, powerful chorus. I’ll bet it’s a lot of fun to hear live, although honestly I don’t think it’s anything all that special.
[READ: March 9, 2012] “Ever Since”
I’ve enjoyed many of Antrim’s stories in the past. And, I rather enjoyed this one as well.
This was a fairly simple story of a man who has not let go of the woman who broke up with him a year earlier. And how she haunts him and his current relationship still.
The opening of the story is really quite wonderful. It didn’t really have an impact on me at first but when I reread it, I realized it’s a wonderful precis of the story:
Ever since his wife had left him–but she wasn’t his wife, was she? he’d only thought of her that way, had begun to think of her that way, since her abrupt departure, the year before, with Richard Bishop [I’m interrupting to say wow, has he packed a lot into a dependent clause. And then he continues with the rest of the powerful descriptor]–Jonathan had taken up a new side of his personality, and become the sort of lurking man who, say at work or at a party, mainly hovers on the outskirts of other people’s conversations, leaning close but not too close, listening in while gazing out vaguely over their heads in order to seem distracted and inattentive waiting for the conversation to wind down, so that he can weigh in gloomily and summarize whatever has just been said.
Now, THAT, dear readers, is a SENTENCE!
To make him even more pathetic, when he summarizes an idea he often claims that his ex-wife felt a certain way about it…and then explaining that she wasn’t really his ex-wife.
The crazy thing is that Jonathan has a new love in his life: Sarah, the kind of woman who appears by his side at a party (a work party for her) and says, “Hey Buster, lets’ go fuck in the bathroom.” It’s unclear whether she was joking, which makes it even more fun. (more…)
This Caesars disc is the final of the donated library discs that I received. And the guy who donated these has some great taste. I feel like I need to track him down and see what else he likes. I was initially skeptical of this disc because it is so crazy poppy, but it has a few cool elements to it that make it more interesting than typical pop music. I’ll claim that it’s because they’re from Sweden, where they skew things a little differently.
The melodies are wonderfully catchy, and yet “Fools Parade” starts with some crazy noises and wild drumming before switching over to pure pop sensibilities. “Waking Up” features that sure-fire sign of a pop hit, the word “alriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight” sung with many changes in pitch. It’s not always easy to pull off but they do it perfectly.
“Boo Boo Goo Goo” is as crazily catchy as its title suggests it would be. The lyrics aren’t as inane as the title suggests with the catchy ender: “you’re not gonna get that far climbing those monkey bars”. “Crystal” has some great old-time Farfisa organs on it which make it sound simultaneously retro and (because of the guitars and such) very contemporary.
It’s actually hard to write about this disc effectively because there are so many great catchy pop songs on it–it would just be “this is poppy and fun” over and over again.
I think the poppiness of Caesars can be summed up by “Stuck with You” in which there’s a wonderful “ooh ooh ooh ooh” section, but it’s a little fuzzy and distorted, just slightly off from pristine. Similarly, “No Tomorrow” has great fuzzy guitars and more oh oh ohs, this time ending in a super catchy “oh yeah!” Or how about the “oooh wee oooh” that opens “In Orbit” which sounds spacey and otherworldly.
“Up All Night” introduces a minor key song to this intrinsically poppy album, and even the minor key song is upbeat.
This is a great album if you’re looking for something catchy and easy to sing to, but which isn’t completely made of bubblegum.
[READ: March 11, 2012] “Citizen Conn”
Michael Chabon does not shy away from comics. I almost fear he’s endangering himself as being the guy who writes about comics (fortunately he has written very well about other topics too). But for this short story he’s back in that familiar realm.
This story is about two men, Morton Feather and Artie Conn. They were comic book artists back in the day, writing failing books for a failing company. But they’re in the right place at the right time when an accidental mailing reveals that men in tights are making a comeback.
So Feather and Conn work together to creator some of the most powerful and long-lasting comic book superheroes. They ride so high that they are offered to sell their creations to a very high bidder. Feather refuses but Conn accepts. And so begins the rift between them. Later, since Feather lost the fire of his convictions after the sell-out, he is fired and Conn becomes solely responsible for these creations. (more…)
I received this disc when it was donated to our library. Clinic is an art-punk band from Liverpool. This is a collection of B-Sides (that’s an unusual place to start when you’ve never heard a band before). As such, it’s hard to tell if this is what the band sounds like or if these are crazy experiments (because the songs are pretty crazy). Even if they are experiments, they’ve got me very interested in hearing what the rest of their stuff sounds like. And since these songs are all over the map I’m still not sure what their albums may sound like.
There are twelve songs on the record: only three are over 3 minutes long, the rest are just over 2 minutes (with a couple under 2 minutes). This whole collection is under half an hour. And yet it feels like they take you all over the place, music-wise. The collection covers from 1999-2007, but they’re not in chronological order, so you can’t even tell if any of this is a progression in musical styles or just a bunch of experiments. The willful obscurity is quite exciting.
“The Majestic” is a grand, building monstrosity. It is full of pomp, which is immediately deflated by the slightly off-key organ. “Nicht” is a 180 degree turn—a blistering hardcore song. It’s played very fast and yet it is not sloppy (and it’s 90 seconds long). “Christmas” flips the sound again, with a delicate, slow song about, yes, Christmas. “The Castle” has a lot of organ sounds, which reminds me of early weirder Who songs and even Stereolab. “You Can’t Hurt You Anymore” is an instrumental (with cowbell!). “Dissolution” has a distorted guitar and tribal drums. It breaks after a few riffs to showcase some bizarre distorted spoken words.
Speaking of lyrics. A lyric sheet is included which is very helpful because the lyrics are utter nonsense: “Pork pie had to know uncle now you can elope” “Diktat no fat fun eyebrow shhhh for the one and the one with horrors” “Cheat the bored, cheat thee sup at the toast.” I suspect they are just making sounds while they play and then figuring out what the words might be later.
“Magic Boots” returns to that punk sound with distorted guitar solos at the front (and distorted vocals in the back). “The Scythe” has a kind of western guitar feel (simple, but interesting). “Lee Shan” is the slowest song on the disc (spoken/chanting vocals are low in the mix). “J.O.” is a slow keyboard song. “Circle I” is another blistering noisy punk song. The collection ends with “Golden Rectangle” which is a slowish surf-sounding song, but with keyboards.
It amazes me that this band has so many full length records out. They must have a cult following, even though I’d never heard of them before. I’d really like to check out what their main releases sound like.
[READ: March 11, 2012] “A Rooting Interest”
Hot on the heels of Jonathan Fraznen saying he hates Twitter, I get to read how much he loves Edith Wharton.
It’s no secret that Franzen is a curmudgeon–he is an emotional guy who believes in authenticity; there is absolutely no surprise that he would hate Twitter. And, while I think Twitter is good for some things, he is absolutely correct when he says, “Twitter stands for everything I oppose…it’s hard to cite facts or create an argument in 140 characters…it’s like if Kafka had decided to make a video semaphoring The Metamorphosis.” [Actually I’m not sure that that simile is apt, but I get the point.]
He may be a little overstepping with the rest: “Or it’s like writing a novel without the letter ‘P’…It’s the ultimate irresponsible medium … People I care about are readers…particularly serious readers and writers, these are my people. And we do not like to yak about ourselves.” I think there is some fun to be had yakking about ourselves, but the point is well taken.
It also seems quite appropriate for this article in The New Yorker in which he lauds a writer who wrote almost one hundred years ago. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: ARMY OF LOVERS-Massive Luxury Overdose (1991).
The only way that I, and I suspect any American, knows this band is because they were mocked on Beavis and Butthead for their video “Crucified.” In the video, which I have thoughtfully tacked on at the end here, the three members of the band are dressed up like extras from a Duran Duran by way of Adam and the Ants music video (and maybe that’s not over the top enough). This, by the way, seems to be their regular costumery (a French-seeming design despite their Swedish origins).
Beavis and Butthead cheer for the (impressive) cleavage and then gag at the lead singer’s largely naked hairy body dancing in a bathtub. It’s pretty confusing. But it’s also super catchy in a really over the top Europop way.
I have learned over the years that while I don’t really like pop music, I like Europpop a lot more than Ameripop. It’s much crazier and outlandish, hence: Army of Lovers.
“Crucified” is a really fun, over the top bit of nonsense. The chorus is incredibly catchy with a wonderful choral voice singing, and the verses are catchy too, they are spoken and in part French. It’s good campy fun.
Having said that, the rest of the album is a mix of songs that aren’t quite as good as “Crucified” and songs that are just really bad.
The opening of “Candyman Messiah” is dreadful. “Obsession” features a very mousey-voiced guy singing. It’s a change and an interesting one, although like a lot of Europop, there’s not a lot of substance to it.
But it’s clear that the Army are not taking themselves seriously, “Dynasty of Planet Chromada” anyone. The band has some really catchy choruses and I’ll bet it ‘s a hell of a lot of fun to dance to. Especially if you have a pencil thin mustache.
Believe it or not, Army of Lovers were not just a one-hit wonder . They released four albums. And although their website seems to be updated often, I’m fairly certain the band broke up in 1995. Well, why should that stop anyone?
[READ: Week of March 5, 2012] Gravity’s Rainbow Sections 1.19-2.3
I postulated that Section 1 (called Beyond the Zero) was a mostly expository set up (in one way or another). And that seems to have been true. Yes there was some plot development, but it was a lot of setting up new people. New people are introduced in Section 2, but it is primarily about Slothrop (so far). These first three sections don’t do a lot to advance the “plot” (I don’t really know what the plot is exactly but it must have something t o do with the war, right?) Section 2 zooms in on Slothrop. And while we do learn about the monitoring that goes on with him, for me, Section 2 is all about providing character depth and sympathy for Slothrop.
I found this week’s read to be the easiest so far, with only a few moments of stream of consciousness or reverie to get lost in. And there were a lot of farcical moments–moments that were practically like a sitcom, which were fun to read and enjoyably insubstantial.
Towards the end of the reading, when Katje ultimately leaves Slothrop, she uses a metaphor comparing the rockets to sex. And I wondered if maybe that’s why there is so much sex in the book–is it a physical manifestation of the theoretical idea? Or does he just like using the word cock?
This is, as the title implies, a Smiths song done in the musical style of Super Mario Bros. And, why yes, it certainly is.
This song is especially amusing to me as we just got a Wii for Christmas so I am now far more familiar with the Super Mario Brothers musical style than I ever expected I’d be. The opening notes are spot on and while it is a bit long for something of a joke, at under 3 minutes it never wears out its joyousness..
The little sound effect of scoring points at about the 2 minute mark is as wonderful of a surprise as when you get the unexpected point in the game and it easily sustains the song until the end.
It doesn’t honestly warrant repeated listens, but two or three will certainly make you smile.
Check it out
[READ: March 6, 2012] The Great Gatsby
I knew I’d be reading Gravity’s Rainbow for a while so I wanted some shorter, easier works that I could use as occasional diversions. I’d read The Great Gatsby in college and really enjoyed it, but clearly, as I learned by reading it again, I didn’t remember anything about it and what I remembered, I’d remembered wrong.
The other thing I was thinking about is that I didn’t read this in high school. In fact, I didn’t read many books that I know people are supposed to read in high school. I don’t think it’s because I didn’t feel like reading it (that;s possible), I think it wasn’t assigned to us. My high school, as I recall, has a weird selection of texts that we read. For instance, I recall reading Táin bó Cúailnge (and hating it). Who is reading The Tain (which is an Irish epic) and not Gatsby? Kids in Ireland, that’s who!
Anyhow, this book is considered number 2 in The Modern Library’s 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century (Ulysses is #1–that’s a 1 and 2 that couldn’t be much more different!) and, as I said it’s on virtually every high school curriculum.
As I was reading it I wondered how well high school students could relate to this story. There are two cases of infidelity, there’s murder and suicide, there’s bootlegging alcohol and false identities. I mean, sure they should love it, but how well can they relate to it?
The novel opens with Nick Carraway reciting advice that his father gave him: “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantage that you’ve had.” This is an interesting quote to open with since the quote both applies and does not apply to the great Gatsby who is Nick’s neighbor. (more…)
I took a course on Woody Allen’s films in college and, as a result, I had seen everything he had done (and a lot of what had inspired him). After college, I made a point of seeing everything he released. Often on opening day. (My double feature of Deconstructing Harry and Good Will Hunting on Christmas Day is still a highlight).
But after The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, which was okay, but just barely, I basically gave up on him. I watched Match Point in three parts (no time at the time) and really enjoyed it, but I never really got back on track with Woody. And then came Paris.
Despite its huge popularity, I knew nothing about this Woody Allen film. I knew Owen Wilson was playing the Woody Allen character in this one and it was getting amazing reviews. Now, it’s very true that critics don’t always get Woody Allen, but when they unanimously get his film it’s pretty safe that it’s a good one.
Dave Bidini was a driving force behind Rheostatics. Although when I think of the band, I think of Martin Tielli’s wackiness and Tim Vesely’s hits, which kind of makes Bidini the sort of stable, middle of the road guy. But I don’t think that’s right either as Bidini has both a wacky side and a hit-making side. But this “solo” project focuses mainly on Bidini’s storytelling skills. Most of the songs are little narratives, which is always enjoyable.
“Desert Island Poem” is actually a story of the dissolution of the Rheostatics–when they survived a plane crash in Drumhella and ate the drummer. “Memorial Day” surprises because of the clarinet solo (which works wonderfully). “We Like to Rock” and “Song Ain’t Any Good” are the other kind of song that Bidini writes–songs about playing music. These kind of songs are always dopey and “We Like to Rock” is no exception–I think I ‘d like it more if it weren’t so tinny sounding. “Song Ain’t Any Good” is kind of funny, especially if you get through the whole song, although I don’t know if multiple listens are rewarded.
On the other hand, “The Land is Wild” is a great song about Bidini’s other passion: hockey. This is a lengthy (nearly 7 minute) story about Bryan Fogarty, a young hockey player who was a star at 21 but a forgotten addict by 31. It’s a sad, cautionary tale about how the hockey establishment all but ignored him as he wasted away. “How Zeke Roberts Died” is a very similar song, it’s an 8 minute biography of Liberian singer Zeke Roberts. This song has lead vocals by a variety of singers.
“Last Good Cigarette” is a delightful ditty about smoking with famous people (and it is super catchy–ha-cha!). “Pornography” is a funny political song about George W. Bush that is also quite catchy. And the wonderfully titled, “The Story of Canadiana and Canadiandy” is about living close to America.
Although the album is mostly folky and kind of mellow, “Terrorize Me Now” shows some of Bidini’s more wild guitar noises. And the final song, “The Ballad of 1969” is a great song that is reminiscent of the kind of highs that the Rheos would hit. There’s a bonus untitled song [later called “The List (Killing Us Now)”] which is a simple song of people who have aggrieved him. It’s funny, especially in the live context it is given.
While not as great as a Rheostatics album, this release is like an extension of the band. Bidini has a new album out which I haven’t heard yet, but I’ll certainly be checking it out.
[READ: March 5, 2012] “Haven”
Munro is back (talk about prolific!) and she has created a darkly claustrophobic house in which to place the young protagonist of this story.
The story is set in the seventies. The protagonist is from Vancouver, but her parents are heading off to Africa for a year so they have sent her to live with her Uncle Jasper and Aunt Dawn. Despite this mission to Africa, they are not going there for a missionary purpose, they are going there to teach (and haven’t come across many heathen). They’re also Unitarian. Uncle Jasper, on the other hand, insists on saying grace before meals and gets on the protagonist when she starts eating before the prayers.
It turns out that Uncle Jasper is the man of the house. Aunt Dawn does not begin eating her meal until the discussion of grace is over (after receiving an invisible nod from Jasper). More examples of her deference are given, but the quote that sums up Aunt Dawn (whether she said it or not) is “A Woman’s most important job is making a haven for her man.” Although, given that, Jasper does show her some affection: a gift and some closeness towards the end of the story. (more…)
I got this album when a patron donated it to the library. I had never heard of this band, but the other CDs he donated were really cool so I grabbed this one, too. This is an almost entirely instrumental album (vocals are whispered when present) that feels like a soundtrack to a futuristic Western. “Tarantula” opens with some creepy, ghostly sounds and then what sounds like spurs walking across the landscape. When the guitar comes in it sounds like an old Western. In many ways this album reminds me of a great band called Scenic, although this one makes more use of electronics, which gives it a more eerie feeling.
“Custom Car Crash” has a very Western feel. Over creepy scraping sounds, a clean guitar plays very simple guitar lines and chords. When the keyboard lilts over the noise, it’s quite eerie. This song has vocals; deep, almost whispered vocals, and I can’t really make them out, There’s also a live bonus version at the end which really captures the studio version, but which I think is better. “June” has a slow droney sound: more atmospheric than anything else–it seems maybe ten years ahead of its time). The 8 minute “Only Drowning Men:” introduces more guitars and a lit of tension. From the noise a delicate guitar pattern emerges for the last minute of the song.
“Elsewhere” is full of buzzy guitars; there’s a live version at the end of the disc as well. “Truth About Robots” is my favorite track, a real melody over the noise. Despite its length (just over 2:30), it tells a full story.
“Trinidad” comes a surprise because it opens with bass (you don’t hear much bass on this album). But “Keyes” is so quiet as to be almost not there. “Awake and Under” on the other hand has a great guitar and bass sequence with spoken lyrics (reminiscent of many indie bands of the 90s) but which is very effective here. There’s a live version as a bonus track and it is a highlight.
This is more interesting music for creating atmosphere, but not something I’d listen to a lot. I was surprised to find out how many albums they had out.
[READ: March 2, 2012] “A Prairie Girl”
I’ve enjoyed Thomas McGuane stories before, but I wasn’t sure if I’d like this one as it opens with a brothel. Since I’m thinking about the implications of sex in Gravity’s Rainbow, the last thing I needed was a hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold story. But this isn’t that. And it has a brothel with a very funny name: The Butt Hut . The Butt Hut closes down when the madam dies. Most of the women moved away (either with local men (to the dismay of many) or on their own). But one girl who stayed was Mary Elizabeth Foley.
Mary Elizabeth attended church weekly, but most of the people gave her a wide berth—literally an empty pew. It was finally decided that someone should speak to her since she wasn’t going away. And so Mrs Gladstone Chandler, wife of the town’s bank owner and all around respected individual, sat near her during the mass. Afterward, she asked Mary Elizabeth: “Where are you from?” Mary Elizabeth answered “What business is it of yours?” And she soon had her pew back. (more…)
Ever since the advent of Wholphin, McSweeney’s short film DVD series, The Believer’s annual Film Issue has included films that do not belong on Wholphin–typically longer films, which is a cool way to see things you normally wouldn’t. This year’s issue includes a feature-length film by Laurel Nakadate, The Wolf Knife.
I Just Read About That... 