Pop Culture Will Eat Itself

The Only Good Thing About Twitter…

Sean — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:29:32 +0000

In general I think Twitter is pretty effing lame. But just because something generally sucks doesn’t mean there can’t be one or two good things about it. One guy has actually found a way to make Twitter entertaining. He’s posting random things his dad says, and his dad is freaking hilarious. Fittingly the feed is called “shitmydadsays“. Here are some excerpts:

“Son, no one gives a shit about all the things your cell phone does. You didn’t invent it, you just bought it. Anybody can do that.”

“Oh please, you practically invented lazy. People should have to call you and ask for the rights to lazy before they use it.”

“Does anyone your age know how to comb their fucking hair? It looks like two squirrels crawled on their head and started fucking.”

“That woman was sexy…Out of your league? Son. Let women figure out why they won’t screw you, don’t do it for them.”

“Remember how you used to make fun of me for being bald?…No, I’m not gonna make a joke. I’ll let your mirror do that.”

“I wanted to see Detroit win. I’ve been there. It’s like God took a shit on a parking lot. They deserve some good news.”

As you can see, this man is a sage that should be sought out for his wisdom. Don’t believe me? Here’s the best one: “Sometimes life leaves a hundred dollar bill on your dresser, and you don’t realize until later that it’s because it fucked you.”

Wait, the more I read on the more I realize this may be me in 40 years:

“I’m having a Makers Mark, you want one? What? 7up? I ain’t mixing fucking makers with 7up. Might as well put a lil’ fucking umbrella in it”

“Your mother made a batch of meatballs last night. Some are for you, some are for me, but more are for me. Remember that. More. Me.”

Scary.

Sunday Music Spotlight – Holiday Shores

Sean — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:53:24 +0000

Holiday Shores isn’t just the name of a street in Florida. It’s also the name of a band. A band whose leader grew up on that street. A band who takes timeless formulas for building songs, drenches them in reverb, and gives them an inward-looking feel. A band so good, so powerful, that they managed to turn “Columbus” into a verb.

Ok, I’ll admit, anyone can turn a noun into a verb these days. But still, Holiday Shores is good. Their first full-length album, Columbus’d the Whim is rooted in classic songwriting, wrapped in a thin coat of shoegaze, and finished with a touch of post-modern irony.

“Reruns”

It takes a minute or so to get going, but once it does the album’s opener is a good mix of subtle, subdued verses and more outspoken choruses.

“Bradley Bear”

At its heart this song is something you’d hear on an oldies station, only with more reverb. That’s not a slight either. The band seems to recognize that classic songs are classic for a reason. So they take old formulas and apply their style to it. And it works.

Videos
“Phones Don’t Fued”

“Edge of Our Lives”

Links
Download Columbus’d The Whim
MySpace

Friday Night Video – The Felice Brothers Play in a Cab

Sean — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:17:23 +0000

For some reason I’ve been in a big Felice Brothers mood recently. Something about their country-flavored rock seems to fit the colder weather for me. Consequently I’ve listened to their latest album Yonder is the Clock about 10 times this week. When I started searching for their stuff on YouTube I stumbled across this little gem. It’s from a series called Black Cab Sessions. They get bands into the back of a London cab and have them play a song. I remember watching a few of these a while back, and in general they’re very good. But this one with The Felice Brothers is great. They play “Ruby May”, a true story of a cabaret singer who gets murdered and buried in Times Square. And the cramped quarters make for an intimate performance.

Random Cover of the Week – Pearl Jam Dresses Up and Covers Devo

Sean — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:42:23 +0000

Ah, Devo. Classic minimalist rock. Not exactly what Pearl Jam is known for. But they celebrated Halloween by dressing up as Devo and playing their classic “Whip It”. Kind of awesome.

New Video for Bishop Allen’s “True or False”

Sean — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:37:28 +0000

Bishop Allen is back with a new video. If you don’t know who Bishop Allen is you really haven’t been reading this site long, have you? Well let this video for their song “True or False” serve as an introduction to you then. It features Darbie Nowatka Rice on lead vocals. Fun fact: she and lead singer Justin Rice just got married. Congrats you crazy kids! Fun fact #2: I get to see these guys live in two weeks!

via StereoGum

Trailer for Viggo Mortensen in The Road

Sean — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:39:47 +0000

I have to admit, I’ve never actually read one of Cormac McCarthy’s novels. But I did see No Country for Old Men, which was based on one. And now I’ve seen the trailer for The Road, which is based on another. Based on this second-hand exposure to his work I think I’m qualified to say he’s probably not a happy dude. The Coen brothers’ adaptation of No Country for Old Men, while brilliant, was bleak as can be. Not a lot of chuckles. The Road is a post-apocalyptic father/son road movie. By “road movie” I don’t mean a charming Bob Hope film where he traipses around Europe. I mean the father and son are on a road beset with obstacles like bandits, starvation, and dehydration. Not exactly Tommy Boy. But it stars Viggo Mortensen, and he tends to make pretty good decisions about movies to be in. And the trailer looks pretty interesting, so I think I’ll give it a shot. Check it out:

The Road comes to theaters November 25th.

Sunday Music Spotlight – Joe Bonamassa

Sean — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:51:35 +0000

Joe Bonamassa doesn’t fit the normal mold of a Sunday Music Spotlight. Typically this space is reserved for young, up-and-coming artists. Artists who are just finding themselves musically and could be poised for a big break. Joe Bonamassa is relatively young, but he’s a long-time veteran of the music industry. It’s been 20 years since the guitar virtuoso opened for B.B. King. He was 12. Rather than being poised for a major breakthrough, Bonamassa already has a devoted following of folks who live and breathe the blues. So why is he here? Because he may be the world’s greatest living guitar player, and I’d bet that if you aren’t an avid blues fan you’ve never heard of him. Let’s fix that.

Joe Bonamassa didn’t set out to be a guitar master. He was just a kid that wanted a Nintendo. Since he’d been playing guitar for a few years, he figured that was a good way to make a little money to get it. He did a little better than that. At age 11 he was mentored by Danny Gatton. By age 12 he had opened for B.B. King, who was amazed at his potential. Since then he’s played with a who’s who of guitar greats: Clapton, The Allmans, and Buddy Guy to name a few. Along the way he’s released seven studio albums. Not bad for a guy who’s only 32.

It’s clear that Bonamassa was a bit of a musical prodigy, but does he suffer from the imbalance of technical prowess and musicianship that many prodigy’s have? Um, no. If anything his musicianship and emotional connection to the music actually outweigh his considerable technical skill. And that’s saying something. Because technically he’s nearly flawless. He draws upon influences from the Delta and from the English blues revival, from Robert Johnson to John Mayall. From Stevie Ray Vaughan to Eric Clapton. He manages to synthesize these influences and add to them, creating something that is instantly recognizable as “the blues”, but pushes the genre past what you know. He’s the blues’ greatest living ambassador and the best hope for the genre’s future.

Bonamassa’s latest album is The Ballad of John Henry, his most mature and complete album to date.
“The Ballad of John Henry”

The tale of John Henry should be familiar to every American, whether they know it through stories or through classic songs by Pete Segar and Johnny Cash. Bonamassa tells the story, but with a distinctly different feel. Instead of focusing on the story of John Henry’s demise, Bonamassa focuses on the aftermath, of those who came after the legendary railroad builder. And he does it a healthy dose of regret and blues.

“Jockey Full of Bourbon”

Tom Waits fans will recognize this cover immediately, though possibly only from the name. The barroom piano ties this musically to Waits’ original, but Bonamassa takes the rest of the song to other, more traditional places. And, though I hate to admit it, his take is better than the original. Sorry Tom.

Videos
“Stop!”, behind the scenes studio footage

“The River”, live

“Blues Deluxe”, live

Links
Download The Ballad Of John Henry
Official Site
MySpace

Mini Movie Review – Zombieland

Sean — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 01:46:34 +0000

Some movies are art. They exist to enrich culture, to inspire thought, and influence their viewers. Zombieland is not one of those movies. It’s about two things: making you laugh and making you go “OOOOOOHHHHH!”. And it does both of them. Very well.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

New Trailer for Avatar

Sean — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 01:29:02 +0000

Remember a while back when I posted the first trailer for James Cameron’s Avatar? I was confused and underwhelmed. Well there’s a new trailer out, and it’s much longer and give much more insight into the plot. Take a look and we’ll discuss:

So, what have we learned? It’s about humans invading another planet to steal their natural resources. When the natives won’t just give us the resources we decide to destroy them all. Is this a sci-fi movie or a criticism of Bush-era foreign policy? Anyway, this trailer does show off the film’s special effects, and they are very good. But overall it just doesn’t do anything for me. What do y’all think?

Leftovers: Inglourious Basterds, Klosterman, and Psycho Tom Cruise

Sean — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:48:31 +0000

Just in time for Christmas, Quentin Tarantino’s masterful Inglourious Basterds is coming to DVD and Blu-Ray. And it’s not some sort of slapped together, bare bones, rush job either. It’s a two-disc edition, with all sorts of bonus material. It comes out December 15th, but you can pre-order it 50% off at Amazon. Mom, if you’re reading, you don’t need to ask what I want for Christmas…

Let’s shift from movies coming out on DVD to movies getting ready to made. If you’re a fan of Chuck Klosterman’s writing you’ll be happy to know that his book Fargo Rock City is getting made into a movie. That, in and of itself, is kind of interesting. But what makes it more interesting is WHO is making the movie: Craig Finn, lead singer of The Hold Steady, and Tom Ruprecht, a writer for Late Night with David Letterman. No word on a release date yet, but you can bet I’ll be there.

Speaking of Chuck Klosterman, I just finished reading his new book Eating the Dinosaur, and it’s really, really good. It’s a collection of essays about topics ranging from the connection between Nirvana’s In Utero and the ATF’s raid of the Branch Davidian complex to the artistic merits of ABBA and the proliferation of the read option in college football. Yeah, it’s all over the map, but each essay is well written and thought-provoking, and comes from Klosterman’s slightly off-kilter perspective. If you’re a fan of his writing, or of any writing that entertains and makes you think, I highly recommend it.

Moving from writing about music to the music itself, uber-hip rock band Spoon has announced that their followup to 2007’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga will be called Transference and will be out in January. Can’t wait.

Going back to movies, there was a pretty big casting announcement this week for Thor. Anthony Hopkins has signed on to play Odin, Thor’s dad and chief muckety muck of the gods. I have no idea if this movie will end up being good or not, but it certainly has some talent associated with it. Kenneth Branagh is directing it and Natalie Portman is on board to play Thor’s love interest. We’ll have to wait a while to see how it comes together though, since it isn’t set to hit theaters until May 20th, 2011.

In slightly funnier movie news, Christian Bale revealed the influence for his maniacal portrayal of serial killer Patrick Bateman in American Psycho: Tom Cruise. Apparently Bale got the idea from seeing Cruise on Letterman. He said Cruise had “very intense friendliness with nothing behind the eyes”, which seems like code for “batshit crazy” to me. Congrats to Bale on noticing this long before most people realized just how nutso Tom Cruise is.

Finally, BoingBoing posted a video of what seems like the best possible use of office time: lip-synching “I Want it That Way” by the Backstreet Boys. There are five co-workers involved. Four of them are really into it, dancing and acting out the song. One is not. She’s what makes this funny. Check it out: