Tuesday, May 18, 2004
(8:04 PM) | Anonymous:
Come Truly, Come Cold
I cried at a movie for the first time ever last night. The movie was The House of Sand and Fog. And it was freaking Ben "Ghandi" Kingsley, freaking Ben "Sexy Beast" Kingsley, who all got a full fledged tear. I can't describe the scene without ruining it all, but I think the only reason that movie didn't get more accolades in the great year of 2003 was because it's so dang sad. I'm glad Andre Dubus is dead, or I'd have to do some damage, as that is how my masculinity responds to being threatened. But, this movie is so sad because you can see so visibly how extremely simple it is to completely screw up our lives. All along the way the characters keep letting their own pride and fear lead them into the stupidest decisions possible, but this isn't some contrived plot, because about the time you're yelling at them for doing such stupid things, you realize it's exactly how you would have responded. So good.That said, I also haven't done a CD Change post in a long time. This is one of those stupid things that I do that can completely screw up my life unless I swallow my pride and fear of rejection and just get it over with. I need to do this, I need to have some routine, and though you all may hate me, I need to review the 18 CDs that were in my car the last 3 weeks. This need is, of course, false, and merely an attempt at the worst possible tie in ever made. Except for one time when I watched a guy on Buffalo's Empire Sports Network give a 5 minute story about an earthquake in India and all the devestation before saying "Speaking of shaking things up, The Buffalo Bandits lacrosse team was looking to do just that against Calgary tonight." So ridiculous.
Oh, but before I move on, I have to update my post from so long ago detailing the greatness of Modest Mouse's new album. I've gotta say, the other day while mowing the lawn, "Float On" was on the headphones. It was then that it happened - I realized that Modest Mouse was simply Dexy's Midnight Runners for the 21st Century. Seriously, listen to that song, and every once in a while throw in a "too-ra loo-ra too-ra loo rye-aye" every once in a while, you'll see.
So, without further ado, I'ma do this. I'ma is what the cool kids say now. I am a cool kid. DANGIT ALL I MEANT I'MA COOL KID!
Week 1 (The Week Of Vulgarity)
Tori Amos - From the Choirgirl Hotel
When I was in high school, I heard the song "Both Hands" by Ani Difranco on Detroit's 105.1 The Edge. They used to play it a lot, sandwiched in between Korn songs. It was really good, and I thought I'd like all girls with piano. Then I eventually got that full album, and discovered that it largely sucked. I'm sorry, I'm enhancing my girl hating status, but I mean no offense by insulting that great standard of "girl-made music"..It's just largely rambling guitar and rambling vocals. From this, and from the time Tori appeared with freaking Jesse "I'm homeless so make me an annoying MTV STAR!" Camp on MTV and seemed to truly like that miserable loser, I assumed I would hate Ms. Amos. I've been pretty avid in this, and it lasted until THE SYSTEM made me break down and hear this album a few weeks ago. And it's actually pretty good. It's not hands-down amazing, but it is definitely no slouch in the CD player. I think her other stuff might be good too. Some day I'll have to investigate that. But, she'll still remind me of when Saved By The Bell "jumped the shark" with the "Tori" season. They robbed me of BOTH Jessie and Kelly for a full season and replaced it with THAT? My pubescent heart cries out for JUSTICE! However, I guess that was the season where Zack was all like "TEEN LINE, NITRO HERE" in that terrible Australian accent. I answered the phone like that for a week after seeing that, and elicited many a laugh. And THAT was even before Caller ID.
Ben Harper - The Will To Live
Ben Harper is a bit of an enigma to me. At times he seems almost to be trying too hard to be that artist who dances between the spiritual and the playful. When this doesn't work, it comes off like that guy in the quad singing "Lord, I Lift Your Name On High" after an especially rousing chapel. When it does work, it's great. This album is great. His new one, Diamonds On the Inside, I just haven't been able to get into yet for the above reason. There also, at the time of first listening to "Diamonds..", could have been some holdover resentment of the fact it was Ben Harper's "Fight For Your Mind" that had me distracted in the car when I had my accident that has permanately screwed up my knee and back. Or at least left me complaining about my back a lot more, though it's probably just fine. I am a poser with you Ben Harper, to whatever extent you are a poser, therefore, I love you. No, but this album really is great.
Some Guy Who Sang In Chapel Freshman Year - Dancing In The Rain I can't remember this guys name. All I know is that his last name comes alphabetically somewhere between Shorthanded and Silage. It may be a little off that too, sometimes, in the massive project that was putting new CDs into the folders back when I kept ALL of my cds in alphabetical order, rather than just each folder, I would get a little off, and invert a cd or two. If you know his name, please inform me. But, all in all, it's appropriate I forgot his name, because the music is totally forgettable. I remember thinking this guy was pretty cool at the time of his performance, but, after hearing the CD, realizing how pitiful it was compared even with Caedmon's Call and Jars of Clay. Yeah, it was freshman year, the summer before I had been music manager at a Family Christian Store, so sue me. However, my main fault with this guy is his earnest stupidity. He almost seems to think he's very clever at turning a phrase. Yet, when songs are based around such novel phrases as "I'm taking it one step at a time", I'm afraid this guy is just making a fool of himself. Seriously, whenever a TGIF series derives its name from a concept, it stops being "novel' and starts being "cliched". Everyone drops a cliche in a song now and again, but to base your whole song around it, and sing it with such a conviction that you really must think you're the first to see the analogy, is totally unacceptable. Poo on you, random chapel singer with guitar, poo on you, all random chapel singers with guitars ever. Except Derek Webb, who used the word "Bastard" in a song and spoke out against the theology of "The Prayer of Jabez", but will never, ever, be invited back, mainly because his music was actually good.
U2 - The Best Of 1990-2000 (Disc 1)
I think this could have been a great CD, but apparently impressed by the widespread re-birth of the rare(ish) track "The Sweetest Thing" off the 1980-90 CD back when we were in high school, U2 decided to do all remixes and some songs that weren't hits, and to leave off a lot of good stuff from the time period. So this isn't really that representative of the decade for U2. Maybe Disc 2 will be better. But, the expected hits are still good, but don't quite have the all surpassing power of the early stuff. Don't get me wrong, the albums still are awesome, but the standout songs just don't seem too stand alone-ish, they aren't what you'll replay over and over even now 5-10 years after you first heard them, thought the variance of the album you may go for. But..I'm far from the world's biggest U2 fan, and I got into them way late, so perhaps I'm totally wrong.
Camerata Academica des Salzburger Mozarteums f. Geza Anda - Mozart: Concertos 22,23 & 3
The trouble with 8 CD sets is that, no matter how great, you just eventually run out of things to say. Unless you're the type who knows each particular of every piece really well, and in Carmen Sandiego language, I am a gumshoe/flat foot/whatever-Where-In-Time-called-their-beginning-level people. So, I merely say "I'ma call this good" in my head, and move on.
Ms. John Soda - No P Or D
Glitch pop. It is the good. I don't know, is this what the Pitchforkaneers are calling IDM? I don't really know what IDM is. Is it Independent Dance Music? that's just my first guess. If so, this might barely qualify. It's pretty "dance-ish". However, I prefer to call it Glitch-pop, because it brings in all the skips and pops and crackles, and somehow melds them with the music in such a great way. I guess in that way it reminds me of a Kotsko favorite, Hood's Cold House..except this is happy where Hood is sad. For some reason, talking about dance music, and then describing this as happy music has "Groove Is In The Heart" totally running through my head. This is not like that, I assure you. But - that song will now be stuck in your head. GAME SET MATCH I WIN! Oh, and I just checked Pitchfork - it is confirmed, this is apparently IDM. I still think mine's better - better AND more amazing AND more gratifying if you ever have to make an acrostic about Ms. John Soda out of the word G-O-O-D.
SO THERE.
I'm tired, and have to watch Elephant and Pretty Dirty Things before tomorrow at noon, or Blockbuster will Kite my money. Is it Kite or Kipe or something totally different? There aren't enough people who use that expression, and none who use it in print, so maybe I'll never know. Anyway, if interest is notified to me, I'll do the other two weeks. I would have skipped to this week, but I really wanted to see if anyone knew the name of the dude from freshman chapel.
Seriously.
