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Archive for the ‘Star Wars’ Category

Shumon Basar, Douglas Coupland, Hans Ulrich Obrist–The Age of Earthquakes: A Guide to the Extreme Present (2015)

Posted in All Songs Considered, Courtney Barnett, Douglas Coupland, Financial Times, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Michael Stipe, Shumon Basar, Star Wars, Technology, The Future, The Guardian on April 4, 2015| Leave a Comment »

ageSOUNDTRACK: COURTNEY BARNETT-Live at SXSW, (March 21, 2015).

cbsxswI enjoyed Barnett’s single “Avant Gardener” a lot.  Then I got a little sick of it (I love WXPN, but man they can overplay a song).  And yet I still like Barnett’s wordplay and her sense of melody.

I was really psyched to hear how noisy her latest single “Pedestrian at Best” was.  When she played the NPR SXSW showcase, a night in which she played exclusively songs from her then unreleased new album, I did not expect her to be so rocking.

But she really embraces the noise.  The sharpest, clearest sound in this show is Dave Mudie’s ever present snare drum–a cracking sound that keeps the beat and the song steady while Courtney thrashes away on her guitar and Bones Sloane’s low bass thuds along.

The set is short, and Barnett seems genuinely delighted at the size of the crowd.  They run through 8 of the songs of the new album, and they sound great.

  • “Elevator Operator” a great opener, familiar sounding but new.
  • “Pedestrian at Best” noisy and rocking–she has a ton of fun with this.
  • “An Illustration of Loneliness (Sleepless in New York)” is a bit mellower
  • “Depreston” a slow song with great lyrics.
  • “Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go to the Party” a bratty fast rocker with Barnett slurring her lyrics in a fun way.
  • “Aqua Profunda!” a song about swimming in Melbourne.  2 minutes long which she describes as “stupid.”
  • “Dead Fox” super catchy and poppy.
  • “Kim’s Caravan” closes this short show with a long song.  It starts slow and moody, But Barnett starts wailing on her guitar by the end.

It’s kind of a shame that the show is only 36 minutes, but it’s a great way to get in, play some great songs and get out leaving us wanting more.  I hope the full length rocks as much as this show does.

You can watch her whole set at NPR.

[READ: March 20, 2015] The Age of Earthquakes

I saw this book at work and could tell just from the typeface that it was a Douglas Coupland book (he is that much of a brand).  I was a little thrown off by the other names on the book as I’ve never heard of them, but it is clearly a Coupland production, even if he is alphabetically second.

I’m not even sure what the other two authors contribute (or who they are), as the book is so clearly Couplandy.  Of course, having said that, the majority of the book is pithy aphorisms about the age of technology and the future.  So truly any one could have said them.

There is something kind of staid and conventional about Coupland writing about the craziness of the future and all that.  He’s been doing it for decades now.  But I found this book enjoyable.  Not mind blowing (although some ideas are pretty fascinating), not life changing, but enjoyable. (more…)

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The Best of McSweeney’s Internet Tendency (2013)

Posted in Alyssa Lang, Andy Bryan, Anthony Sams, Babymetal, Ben Jurney, Billy Joel, Bob's Burgers, Christopher Mah, Christy Vannoy, Colin Nissan, 王蓉Rollin, Dan Kennedy, Deadwood, Ellie Kemper, Elton John, Eric Hague, J.M. Tyree, Jason Roeder, Jesse Eisenberg a, John Flowers, John Frank Weaver, John K. Peck, John Moe, John Ortved, Jory John, Josh Freedman, Kari Anne Roy, Kate Hahn, Katie Brinkworth, Kristina Loew, Luke Burns, Matthew Duverne Hutchinson, Megan Amram, Melinda Taub, Meredith K. Gray, Michael Ian Black, Mike Lacher, Mike Sacks, Oyl Miller, Pasha Malla, Rachel Klein, Rebekah Frumkin, Rong "Rollin" Wang, Ross Murray, Sarah Schmelling, Sarah Walker, Sean Walsh, Star Wars, Teddy Wayne, The Sound of Music, Wendy Molyneux on November 20, 2014| Leave a Comment »

internetSOUNDTRACK: 王蓉Rollin-小雞小雞(Chick Chick) [RONG “ROLLIN” WANG-“Chick Chick”]. (2014)

chickchickDon’t call it a novelty! You must watch it.

Is it a kid’s song?  I have no idea.  But it is mesmerizing.  I have now watched it about a half a dozen times and somehow it gets better each time.  Not as awesome as Babymetal (who are Japanese), but awesome in a wholly different (Chinese) way.

So far it only has 8 million views, the number must be increased!

[READ: November 15, 2014] The Best of McSweeney’s Internet Tendency

Although I have been a fan of McSweeney’s from the very beginning, I have never faithfully read their online Internet Tendency.  Of course I have read the often circulated ones, and a few years ago I said I would read the old posts from the beginning (I didn’t).  Now I discover that in the years since I said that, the Internet Tendency has 283 pages of archives (with something like 30 entries per page).  Get moving on that.

Having these best pieces in a book form is nice, as is anything with “It’s Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers” printed on the cover.  Since I haven’t read all 8,000 entries, I can’t say what qualifies as the best.  Although I have to wonder if some of these were picked more for their contributors than their actually bestness.  (Take a look at some of the heavy hitters represented below).  Regardless of how these were chosen, it is an excellent collection of funny stuff.

When I finish reading all of the online pieces (in about two years), I will have more authority to say if these 50 are the best, but in the meantime, I’m just going to enjoy this very funny selection. (more…)

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Tom Angleberger–The Strange Case of Origami Yoda (2010)

Posted in Children's Books, Funny (ha ha), Origami, Pinback, Romance, Set at School, Short Books, Star Wars, Tom Angleberger on October 4, 2013| Leave a Comment »

yodaSOUNDTRACK: PINBACK-“Fortress” (2004).

pinbackMy friend Jay just introduced me to this band.  I’m surprised I didn’t know them since they have been on Touch & Go Records and now Temporary Residence, two labels that I like.

He didn’t suggest any particular songs to start with, but this was the first one that came up with a search.

Over a simple guitar line a quiet voice sings near-whispered lines.  The bridge moves up an octave or so, but keeps the gentle sway of the song.  The chorus adds an angular dimension to the vocals but doesn’t change the gentle guitar melody–it’s an interesting example of contrasts working well together.

It’s a very pretty song and what I like about it is that based on just this one song, their other songs could go in any direction from here–more angular, more mellow, even heavier.  I’m looking forward to hearing more from them.

[READ: September 29, 2013] The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

Clark brought home the second book in this series (Darth Paper Strikes Back) and seemed to enjoy it.  I didn’t really know anything about the series so I decided to check it out, especially since we enjoyed Angleberger’s other books so very much.

This is a fairly simple story of some kids in 6th grade.  Tommy is a sort of uncool kid.  He’s shy and has no luck with girls.  He’s not picked on (I liked that this story never got really nasty), but he’s certainly not a cool kid or a jock.  He’s the perfect underdog character.  For this book, he is assembling a case file about Origami Yoda.

Origami Yoda was created by Dwight.  Dwight is a weird kid.  We hear from his neighbor that she used to see him digging holes in his back yard and then sitting in them for hours.  Dwight doesn’t seem to care about much–he wears crazy clothes, doesn’t do great in school and, weirdest of all, he wears an origami Yoda puppet on his finger.  Seemingly all the time (possibly even in the bathroom).

But the thing is that people have been asking Yoda questions and he (well Dwight, with the worst imitation of Yoda ever) answers them.  And, weirder still, the advice seems to be very good.  Which is especially weird because Dwight is not very smart and doesn’t seem to follow any of the advice that Yoda gives to others.  So what gives? (more…)

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Jeff Alexander and Tom Bissell–Speak, Commentary: The Big Little Book of Fake DVD Commentaries, Wherein Well-Known Pundits Make Impassioned Remarks About Classic Science-Fiction Films. It’s a Gas! (2003)

Posted in Aliens, Anachronisms, Brad, Fantasy, Funny (ha ha), Jeff Alexander, Lord of the Rings, McSweeney's, Pearl Jam, Planet of the Apes, Political Humor, Religion, Short Books, Star Trek, Star Wars, Stone Gossard, Tom Bissell, Violence, War on June 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

speakSOUNDTRACK: STONE GOSSARD-“I Need Something Different” (2013).

stonegossardmoonlanderStone Gossard is the rhythm guitarist for Pearl jam.  He’s also one of their major songwriters.  He has one or two songs that he sings with the band.  This is a solo effort which indicates that he might be a heavier influence on the band.

Stone Gossard last released a solo album 12 years ago.  There’s a new Pearl Jam album in progress and Stone’s other band Brad put out an album not too long ago, so why not release a solo album?

I don’t know how much Gossard does on this song, but I rather imagine he plays everything (the solo is fine but not amazing and the drums are solid but don’t really standout).  And while that sounds dismissive, it’s not meant to be.  Gossard creates a solid sound of simple rock.

The guitars are loud and bouncy.  Stone’s voice is rough and workmanlike—there’s a reason he’s not a lead singer.  But his voice works great for this aggressive slice of rock.

The riff is continuous and non stop, while he sings I need something different.  And then at the mid way part the keyboards start—perhaps this is the something different.  The keys break the propulsion with a poppiness that you wouldn’t expect in the song.

Then the song returns to its original style.  It’s not a terribly original song, but it would be a fun bar anthem.

[READ: June 10, 2013] Speak, Commentary

When this book first came out I was pretty delighted.  What a funny concept—overblown writers and political pundits do DVD commentary about films they had nothing to do with.  It seemed like it would be very funny indeed.

And here’s the thing.  It is. For a few pages. But each one of these things feels as long as the actual movie they are commenting on.  Alexander and Bissell have done their research—they know what these figures will say.  And say.  And say.

As I said the premise is awesome, check out these wonderful combinations:

  • NOAM CHOMSKY & HOWARD ZINN on The Fellowship of the Ring
    ANN COULTER & DINESH D’SOUZA on Aliens
  • TERRY DWIBBLE & STEVEN McCRAY on Start Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
  • JERRY FALWELL & PAT ROBERTSON on Planet of the Apes (1968)
    WILLIAM BENNETT & DICK CHENEY on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

[Terry Dwibble & Steven McCray are (presumably) fictional characters—die hard Trekkies who are thrilled to be able to add this commentary and, frankly, this is the best one of these pieces.]

I think part of the problem with the book is the sequencing.  The first piece is incredibly dry.  I recall reading this when I first got it.  I don’t know if I read all the way through Chomsky and Zinn.  And I know I didn’t make it through all of the second one (Coulter and D’Souza)—my d0g eared page failure still lingers to this day.

But I finished this time. (more…)

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Hergé–Tintin: Cigars of the Pharoah (1934) [translated 1971]

Posted in Adventure, Africa, Ben Folds, Children's Books, Culture Shock, Egyptology, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Gangsters, Hergé, Kids Corner, Leslie Lonsdale-Cooper, Michael Turner, Ralph's World, Star Wars, The Board of Education, Travel, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on January 24, 2013| Leave a Comment »

cigarsSOUNDTRACK: THE BOARD OF EDUCATION-“Why is Dad So Mad?” (2012).

dadI heard this song on Kids Corner and I am frankly shocked that it didn’t make the top ten songs of the year (kids have no taste).  Why is dad so mad?  Because of what George Lucas has done to the Star Wars movies!   “Why does dad get so mad about Star Wars.  Mr Lucas what have you done?”

 The lyrics are so good I didn’t even really notice the music at first (check out: “and I wonder why it’s so bad that Greedo shoots first at Han.”  “He’s always excited when those yellow words come on, but by the end he’s mad about that new Ewok song.”

But the music is great too.  It has a kind of Ben Folds vibe (in the slow piano section) mixed with a little Ralph’s World, but the whole package is a wee bit heavier–the guitars are a  little distorted (but not very) and the pace is brisk and fun.

The song is also full of cool spacey sound effects (and a nice nod to the soundtrack).  The chorus is catchy and poppy.   A wonderful song.  I’m going to investigate The Board of Education a bit more.  In the meantime, check out Why is Dad So Mad?.

[READ: January 19, 2013] Cigars of the Pharoah

This second (technically fourth) Tintin book was a lot more focused than In America, which, although excellent, tended to ramble all over the country.

This book sees Tintin in the Mediterranean Sea on a cruise.  The action starts right away when a bumbling man named Dr Sarcophagus, an Egyptologist, crashes into Tintin saying that he lost his valuable papyrus.  The papyrus blows out to sea, but the Dr says, that indeed it wasn’t the valuable papyrus at all, which is safely in his coat.  It’s a weird moment, but we slowly learn that the Dr is more than a little absent minded.  Nevertheless, the papyrus has a map on it that he believes will lead to the undiscovered tomb of the Pharaoh Kih-Oskh (nice joke there).

I said that the last Tintin book wasn’t quite for kids and the same is true here.  Two men, Thompson and Thompson (more on them) accuse Tintin of smuggling opium and cocaine (again, did kids read this in the 30s?).  Thompson and Thompson are funny in that they look alike and when one says something the other twists the words slightly to radically alter their meaning while using most of the same words.  Anyhow, they “arrest” Tintin, but as in America, he escapes in an unlikely way and meets up with Dr Sarcophagus.

Tintin, Snowy and Sr Sarcophagus escape some violent deaths in a number of funny ways (like when the sheik who hates Westerners recognizes Tintin from his adventures (he even has a book–although in this later edition it is actually a book that came out after this one.

In another scene, Tintin rescues a woman who is being beaten, only to find out that he is actually on a film set.  Later, he winds up on a ship of smugglers, is forced to enlist in the Arabian army and is eventually made to face a firing squad. (more…)

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Tony Abbott–Danger Guys series (1994-1996)

Posted in Adventure, Boredom, C., Children's Books, Chris Rock, Fantasy, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Mad Scientists, Madagascar, Star Wars, Technology, Tony Abbott, Waffles on August 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: “Neverending Afro Circus” (2012).

If you’ve seen the movie Madagascar 3, you’ll recognize this song as the earworm that you will be singing all the way home.  And that your kids will no doubt be singing for days.

I actually want to jump in and say that I saw Madagascar 3 without seeing Madagascar 2 and I was quite lost (and missed a lot of in-jokes, apparently) for the first 20 or so minutes.  Who would have guessed that a kids movie could do that to you?

Anyhow, back to this song.  C. and T. love it.  And it turns out that YouTube loves it too.  There are dozens of different videos of varying lengths (from 10 seconds to 59 minutes!!) repeating this wonderful nonsense.  But for real neverending Afro Circus, please visit AfroCircus.com and see how much you can stand.

For a measly ten minute loop, please enjoy this:

[youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aELcXyjpts%5D

[READ: July 2012] Danger Guys series

We loved Droon so much we had to see what else Tony Abbott had written.

Turns out that he has written a lot of books and a bunch of series.  In addition to Droon he has written four books that are not part of any series, a series called The Haunting of Derek Stone and a brand new series called UnderWorlds.  UnderWorlds looks like a great series for C., although Haunting and the stand alone books seem like they might be a little too old for him.  He also has some older series like Don’t Touch That Remote!, Goofballs, Time Surfers and The Weird Zone.  (I think that’s all of them).

He also has this Danger Guys series, which I believe comprised his first novels.

My major complaint about the series is…why is it out of print?  Why was it so hard for me to find?  I had to do an Inter Library Loan and the copies I received were so beat up that we may wind up being the last people to read them!  This is a real shame because these books were fantastic!  The series is about two boys Noodle (the smart one) and Zeke (the athletic one).  They are best friends and do everything together.  I’m not exactly sure how old they are…I’m guessing middle school?  In each book they get into an escalating series of adventures which can be resolved by logic, brains, strength and sometimes a little luck.  The books are mildly scary (the Halloween one is the most scary but even that…not really), they’re not violent or gross, but they are full of adventure and they’re very funny (an Abbott specialty).  There were several moments that C. was laughing very hard at these.

There are six books in total in the series.  And because the books aren’t radically different from each other, I’m only going to say a few lines about each. (more…)

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Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm–Babymouse Burns Rubber [#12] (2010)

Posted in Cars, Cats, Children's Books, Cupcakes, Fears, Funny (ha ha), Graphic Novel, Jennifer L. Holm, Matthew Holm, Mice, Short Books, Star Wars, Woody Guthrie on December 21, 2011| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: WOODY GUTHRIE-“The Car Song” (1944).

Several years ago when I was first buying music for our kids, I found a number of Woody Guthrie discs.  I always liked Woody Guthrie in theory (this guitar kills fascists and all that).  But I was unfamiliar with his children’s music.

I was surprised by his stuff for one major reason (Besides the fact that he looks like Sean Penn).  This was later confirmed by his son Arlo when Arlo tried to work with his father’s masters: Woody didn’t really believe in rhythm or conventional timing or anything like that.  And that’s fine, but when it’s combined with the primitive recording equipment that Guthrie had access to, these songs sound, shall we say, rough.

Of course, Woody is mostly known for his excellent lyrics (This Land is Your Land).  So it’s especially funny to hear “Car Song” in which the first verse (according to Woody’s official site) is:

Brrrm brm brm brm brm brm brm, brrrm b’ brrrm,
Brrrm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm b’ brrrm,
Brrrm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm b’ brrrm.
Brrrm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm.

Arlo has said that Woody wasn’t exactly a good dad, but it’s clear that Woody expressed his love for his kids in song.  And this song is a fun and silly one that any kid can enjoy (as long as they don’t mind the really raw recording quality).

[READ: December 4, 2011] Babymouse Burns Rubber

This is the last Babymouse book that I had to read before getting caught up with all of the books (except for 2011’s Christmas book, which is the most recent release!).  It’s number 12, and it continues the later book’s excellent streak.  I was a bit concerned about the book when it opened because it begins with a NASCAR fantasy and I don’t watch NASCAR.  But as with most of the opening fantasies, it doesn’t bear on the actual plot of the book.

This book features a lot of screen time for Babymouse’s friend Wilson (it’s always good to see him and nice to see him get so much attention).  We quickly learn that Wilson is the go-to man when something breaks.  More to the point, he’s the go-to man (or ferret, I guess) that Babymouse goes to whenever she needs something (homework help, fixing a bicycle, whatever).  And Wilson is happy to help (what are friends for?).

When Wilson fixes Babymouse’s bicycle (again–Babymouse is a terrible driver) Wilson shows off his new car!  This car is one for the downhill derby–he’s wanted to race for years and he’s finally old enough to participate.  When Babymouse hears that there’s a race which she could actually enter she gets very excited and wonders what she’ll wear.  Wilson points out that she actually has to build her car first.

Of course, Babymouse can’t build anything, so she asks Wilson for “help.”  And more help and more help.  But now Wilson’s car needs work of its own.  Oh, and let’s not forget that in this year’s race is three-time derby winner Chuck E. Cheetah (nice) who is likely going to win again this year.  (more…)

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