The Art of the Sell — Cookie Monster and His iPhone 6
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. I’m not saying all commercials would be improved by the addition of Cookie Monsters, but I’m also … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — Cookie Monster and His iPhone 6
College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #281 to #279
281. The Housemartins, The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death (1987) With their bright, buoyant melodies and crisp pop sound, the Housemartins hardly sound like the sort of band that would inspire outrage. At around the time the PMRC was … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #281 to #279
Outside Reading — Big Lie Country edition
Falsehoods Meddle in Humble Bid to Honor Past by Reid J. Epstein The news story out of Montana is an object lesson in the way right-wing brain worms have demolished the ability to get the simplest public works accomplished. A … Continue reading Outside Reading — Big Lie Country edition
This Week’s Model — Shygirl, “Cleo”
On her new single “Cleo,” Shygirl takes the groove seriously. Augmented by strings, the song locks in to a smooth house beat as Shygirl claims the name Cleopatra and coos “You got me feeling like a movie star.” The track … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Shygirl, “Cleo”
Now Playing — Dune
Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival is a science fiction film dominated by ideas. His Blade Runner 2049 is a science fiction film dominated by imagery. Dune strikes me as the filmmaker’s attempt to mesh those two divergent approaches together into a singular … Continue reading Now Playing — Dune
Then Playing — Without You I’m Nothing; Love Is Strange; The One and Only Dick Gregory
Without You I’m Nothing (John Boskovich, 1990). Too much of an iconoclast to have an easy path in the world of entertainment, Sandra Bernhard had to make her own way. In the late nineteen-eighties, she mounted a one-woman stage show … Continue reading Then Playing — Without You I’m Nothing; Love Is Strange; The One and Only Dick Gregory
Now Playing — The Worst Person in the World
The Worst Person in the World lays out its structure at the very top. The film consists, viewers are informed, of a prologue, twelve chapters, and an epilogue. The table of contents presented, the film introduces Julie (Renate Reinsve), a … Continue reading Now Playing — The Worst Person in the World
Now Playing — Petite Maman
The core conceit of Petite Maman emerges with gentle grace. A young family — mother, father, eight-year-old daughter — returns to a childhood home to clear out the belongings of a recently deceased relative. It is a somber affair, but … Continue reading Now Playing — Petite Maman
College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #284 to #282
284. Dire Straits, Dire Straits (1978) Dire Straits were looking only for advice when they handed their five-song demo tape to Charlie Gillett, an influential BBC radio host. The band had only recently formed, mostly as a creative outlet for … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #284 to #282
Programming Note
As must happen from time to time, I’m going to briefly step away from my self-set obligation to sling new words at my little corner of the digital world on a daily basis. We’ll turn the lights down here until Sunday, when the College Countdown brings us back to grind. Continue reading Programming Note
Coffee for Two 