Give your heart to somebody soon right away, right away
It’s hard to fathom an odder milieu for an Oscar-nominated film than the world of professional wrestling, particularly the seedy version of it that appears in Darren Aronofsky’s new film, The Wrestler. But then, it’s equally hard to find any … Continue reading Give your heart to somebody soon right away, right away
If we holler loud and make our way we’d all live one big holiday
As before, we present the following as a public service. Twenty-eight Ways to Celebrate in the Month of February 1. Celebrate National Freedom Day. 2. Celebrate Hedgehog Day. 3. Celebrate African American Coaches Day. 4. Celebrate Liberace Day. 5. Celebrate Weatherman’s Day. 6. Celebrate Bubble Gum Day. 7. Celebrate Ballet Day. 8. Celebrate Man Day. 9. Celebrate Read in the Bathtub Day. 10. Celebrate Plimsoll Day. 11. Celebrate White Shirt Day. 12. Celebrate Darwin Day. 13. Celebrate Get A Different Name Day. 14. Celebrate Ferris Wheel Day. 15. Celebrate Susan B. Anthony Day. 16. Celebrate Presidents Day. 17. Celebrate My … Continue reading If we holler loud and make our way we’d all live one big holiday
C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
After calling Kraft to voice my considerable dismay with purchasing an entire package of Oreo Fudgees entirely without the promised three fun dunking messages when determining the content of those fun dunking messages was my sole inspiration for the purchase, I was sent a nice letter from the Consumer Relations department. It was a fairly bland offering, sadly including no details of my complaint. I was offered condolences and regrets that the product “did not meet [my] expectations,” but whatever low level drone charged with composing and printing such letters for the affixed signature of the Associate Director had no … Continue reading C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
One for Friday: Harm Farm, “Daisy, I…”
Since I’ve committed to only posting out-of-print music for this humble weekly feature, there’s a very good chance that I’ll be continually hearkening back to my college radio days. I find it less likely that this will become an exercise in CMJ nostalgia, but that seems a surprisingly fertile area for me this week. The weekly trade journal used to be the sole source for reading about the music that was likely to cross our desks and turntables (and eventually CD players) at the radio station. There was no Pitchfork, there was no collection of ultra-hip blogs. All we had … Continue reading One for Friday: Harm Farm, “Daisy, I…”
Well Cherry says she’s gonna walk ’cause she found out I took her radio and hocked it
Recently, I referenced my current purchasing patterns when it comes to new music. A specific occurrence this week got me to thinking about a time when I approached new music quite differently. Bruce Springsteen released his sixteenth studio album. When I was younger, so much younger than today, Springsteen was one of my favorite artists. During my teenage years, he was one of the prime creative forces in weaning me away from dreadful drivel to music that could be listened to without overt embarrassment. I got Born to Run, Nebraska and Born in the U.S.A. within a short stretch of … Continue reading Well Cherry says she’s gonna walk ’cause she found out I took her radio and hocked it
Well, it would’ve been, could’ve been worse than you would ever know
Some time back, I noodled around with a comparative theory about the stylistic methodologies adopted by members of the small, influential group of acclaimed British theater directors who started working in film during the nineties. These are the sorts of … Continue reading Well, it would’ve been, could’ve been worse than you would ever know
And what you though was a hurricane was just the rustling of the wind
When in doubt, there’s always the dog photo option. Continue reading And what you though was a hurricane was just the rustling of the wind
Party at ground zero, a B movie starring you
CMJ Anniversary Compilation Part IV 1989 I’ve previously included a mix tape constructed by someone other than me in this nostalgic exercise, but this time is a little different. In some respects, this isn’t a “mix tape” at all. Some … Continue reading Party at ground zero, a B movie starring you
Light all the fires, it’s the king of the rumbling spires
Sometimes I simply have to concede that no amount of fancy words I chain together can compare with a big ol’ drawing by Jack Kirby: (Note: I yanked this from someone else’s spot on the Interweb; I now have no … Continue reading Light all the fires, it’s the king of the rumbling spires
I’ll have to follow the way what I was wont to say
Years ago, when I started dispensing my smart aleck movie opinions across the central Wisconsin airwaves, I decided on an evaluative approach that entailed treating each film entirely as its own entity. I made no assumption that viewers would go into the average new release with a full working knowledge of the filmmakers involved, so it made sense to me to do the best to set aside my own preconceptions. Though done with the best intentions, that methodology proved to be extremely difficult, unduly limiting and, frankly, not all that much fun. It was more interesting to consider, say, Martin … Continue reading I’ll have to follow the way what I was wont to say
