Right on schedule, this week's post o' randomness, with some Boston-centric stuff first...


Tickets for Sarah Silverman's November 3rd appearance at the Brookline's Coolidge Corner Theatre went on sale earlier this week, so get clickin'. She'll be hosting a screening of her live stand-up comedy film, 'Jesus Is Magic', as part of the Boston Jewish Film Festival.

The full lineup for the fest has been posted, and it includes an appearance by Peter Falk on November 7th. Yeah, most people know him as Columbo, but to me he'll always be an ex-angel walking the earth in one of my favorite films.


Speaking of quality cinema, it saddens me greatly to learn that The Brattle Theatre in Cambridge is in financial trouble. That place is one of the many reasons I love the Boston area, and I can't even imagine its absence. To save themselves, the non-profit Brattle Film Foundation has started an unprecedented fundraising drive called 'The Legacy Campaign', and it has a seemingly lofty goal of raising $400,000 by the end of 2005, in just three short months. And I quote: "If BFF is not successful at meeting [the $400,000 goal], BFF will be forced to cease operations at the Brattle Theatre, effectively ending the 52-year legacy of repertory film programming at the Brattle."

Painful to read, harder to imagine. Do yourself and The Brattle a favor and check out the donations page. If you want some immediate payback for your buck, go ahead and become a member, or even sponsor a seat. Whatever you do, give 'em some cash, even if it's just by checking out an extra movie or two this month. Here's the current schedule.


A great show was just announced, and it's happening at the relatively small Middle East Upstairs. On Wednesday, November 23rd, Belgian electronica genius/master remixer Styrofoam will be here, along with the also-excellent Ester Drang from Oklahoma. Check out Styrofoam's myspace page for some songs, and pick up some $10 tickets when they go on sale this Saturday. I predict a quick sellout, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if it got moved to a larger venue.


The "Glowlab : Open Lab" kicks off on Friday, October 14th, and runs through December 11th. But what the hell is is, you might ask? Well, it's billed as "an eight-week psychogeography festival and exhibition" at the Art Interactive Gallery in Cambridge's Central Square. And still you're asking, um, what is it? Well, each weekend during the run, several Glowlab artists will be "in-residence" at the gallery, and they'll lead interactive public events in the neighborhood. Things like a wearable trash workshop, a laughing bike tour, a lesson in text-messaging the sky, and an informal conversation with a suitcase. More details and links can be found in the official press release.


Ears up: There's a new Crashing Dream podcast with a lot of great new (and older) music. Oh, and congrats to one of my favorite music sites, donewaiting, for getting their very fine podcast plugged in Spin Magazine.


Thanks to Chromewaves for posting some details of the upcoming Slowdive re-releases. Those are must-owns, people. Glad that's finally going to happen, although my original edition of 'Pygmalion' will feel just a bit less special when it does.


If you haven't seen it yet, take a look at the beautiful looking (and sounding, of course) new Sigur R�s video for 'Glosoli' ( wmv / rm ). via warren ellis


I'm getting so, so sick of hearing this, but Arrested Development is still in trouble. I need to find some people with Nielsen boxes and throat-punch 'em 'til they watch it. Does anyone out there actually know a Nielsen family? And no, I won't actually hurt them if you do.


Obviously I'm a big fan of Dennis Lehane, as I've mentioned him a bunch here... and I'm doing it again. He's got a new short story out in "A New Omnibus of Crime", and here's what the New York Sun had to say about it...

"... American authors more wholly reflect the concept of the modern mystery, in which "who" or "how" ride in the back of the bus driven by "why." In no story is this better illustrated than in Dennis Lehane's compelling "Running Out of Dog." How a young man born and raised in a blue-collar part of Boston can write a story so convincingly Southern is beyond my understanding or imagination, so it's best to simply allow oneself to be captivated by the voices and rhythms of his sad tale."

Sounds great, put me down for a copy.


I saw artist Dave McKean's directorial debut Mirrormask the other night, as I needed some some serious escapism after the harsh reality of that first Sox-on-Sox playoff game. It's a remarkable film, and having been a fan of McKean's gorgeously freakish artwork for many years, it was a real thrill to see it come to life on the screen. The story, written by McKean and Neil Gaiman, took a back seat to the visuals, which is a very good thing. When the tale lagged, you could just sit back and get lost in the beauty of the thing. At times it was almost hypnotic, I often felt myself getting lost in lead character Helena's dreamworld. I was in the perfect mental space for it, and I ate it up.


Speaking of the Sox, Red that is, you'll notice that I haven't said much about them this year here on the 'Nac. After the craziness of last year, I'd sorta burned out on 'em. While I had a lot of fun at the few games I was able to go see, and did watch a bunch on tv, I just haven't been able to get as excited as past seasons. I suffered from information overload during last years post-party, and the early media storm during the spring (books, articles, late night tv, Queer Eye, etc) had me learning far more than I'd like about the guys behind the skills (or lack thereof, Mr. Millar).

In the end, I found myself getting more excited about the possibility of the Yanks not making the playoffs than I did about us actually making them, which is just plain wrong. I'm just not a Yankee hater, and I'm a little bit less of a Red Sox lover. Yeah, I wanted ol' George to learn again that more money doesn't make a difference, but in the end, it did.

So when our season officially ends this weekend (and it will, kids... we're just not up to it), we can always say "Oh well, there's always last year...".


A personal blast from the past: My friend Eric forwarded me a link to this picture from a 1991 show by his band Jazzin' Hell (which also included artist James Kochalka and studio/Zamboni guy Peter Katis, among others). Yes, my glasses were way too big back then, but that show sure had me smilin', didn't it? And look at how cutting edge goth I was... I'm sporting a homemade Crow t-shirt, three years before the film came out. No early-90s flannel for this boy, thank you very much.


And now, I'll do something I rarely do, and take part in a little musical internet meme, found over at Brian Wood's place.

The Task: Choose a band/artist and answer ONLY IN SONG TITLES by that band:

Artist/Band: Afghan Whigs
Are you male or female: Gentlemen
Describe yourself: My Enemy
How do some people feel about you: Retarded
How do you feel about yourself: Crazy
Describe what you want to be: I Want To Go To Sleep
Describe how you live: Bulletproof
Describe how you love: I'm Her Slave
Share a few words of wisdom: If There's Hell Below (We're All Going To Go)

Hey, what can I say... it's the Whigs. You weren't going to get sunshine and rainbows outta their titles. I'd have used 'Debonair' in there, but nobody would buy it. Besides, that's totally Kevin. Tag: Hey Matt, it's your turn.


I'll end with an actual comment overheard in the comic shop yesterday.

A college kid, flipping through a new book, says to his friend: "Y'know, I love comics that have really good art."

Do you have any idea how tough it was to resist saying "Personally, I prefer it when the art SUCKS."?