Posted on December 9, 2002 at 4:50 pm | No Comments
A better than average weekend, kicked off by the Bazaar Bizarre and capped off by the season finale of the Sopranos (man, can Edie Falco act). In between there was dinner at the Rosebud in Somerville, another couple visits to Vice City, a little holiday party (including a Yank-Me Swap) at John and Audrey’s pad, a tasty meal at Pho Pasteur, a rock show at Planet Aid in Harvard Square, an overnight visit from Matt n’ Mary, breakfast at Steve’s in Allston, a bit of football watchin’, and finally, some time in the basement making rock music with pals. Whew. And I’m not even tired. (still a little sick, though. g’way ya dang cold.)
Tried to see Equilibrium yesterday, which is getting rave reviews from all around, but absolutely no advertising to speak of. I’ve heard it’s stylish (and very matrix-y), with the best filmed choreography and gunplay of the year. But few have heard of it, and fewer are seeing it. Guess it doesn’t help that it’s only playing on 300 screens total, and one of those is the extremely sucky Copley Place here in Boston. They are so severely sucktastic that they decided to make their Sunday schedules different from the rest of the weekend. Weak. Going to try and catch it in the next few days, since come Friday, I’m guessing it’ll be gonzo.
Wow. The soundtrack to my morning has been two startlingly amazing mp3s, played on alternating repeat. I just can’t get sick of ’em. Both are from albums that won’t be out for a couple months, and both are kicking me squaw in the noots.
First off, head on over to Lookout Records‘ site, where you’ll find info on Ted Leo’s upcoming cd, “Hearts of Oak”. I was lucky enough to hear it over the weekend (thanks to Jay), and luckier to be told that Lookout has a preview track called “Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone?“. I’ve been waiting to hear the recorded versions of the songs he’s been playing live for a long time, and Ted and his super-tight band, the Pharmacists, do not disappoint.
As for the second song… I’ve been waiting even longer for this one. Over 10 years, actually. The Throwing Muses are back, kids… and they brought Tanya along with them. Y’see, she left the band back in 1991 to play with Belly and put out a couple solo records, while the Muses continued on. The Tanya-less Muses put out some great stuff, but to my ears it never measured up to the Real Ramona, their last album with T. Regrettably the band called it quits in 1996… until earlier this year when rumors of sweet-sounding studio sessions started floating. Well, the wait’s over and the rumors were true… the album’s out in March on 4AD. Hell yeah. And judging by “Mercury”, a preview cut on a new 4AD record sampler, it’s going to be like getting together with an old friend that hasn’t aged a day. The song is raw, punky, energetic, powerful, dirty, and beautiful all at once. Tanya and Kristin’s voices together…. chills. A sound I never thought I’d hear again, which makes it all the mo’ betta.
How can ya hear it? Well, email me and ask nice, or better yet… head to Beggar’s Banquet for a list of record stores where you can grab 4AD‘s latest sampler, called Doctor Tiger’s Deathless Promise. Just buy any 4AD album, and it’s yours for the asking.
We Are So Screwed …
Seriously. If this is true, then it’s only a matter of time before more people start leaving this country than are arriving at it’s shores. A mass exodus to new lands will begin, and I might be in line. We’re going to need another clean slate to give this whole democracy experiment a try.
Sweet Sweet Justice …
What goes around, comes around, folks. Here’s proof. Alan Ralsky, the so-called “King of Spam“, got a lot of press lately when he was involved in a couple of high-profile lawsuits against him. Once the pointy finger of spam got directed his way, it spelled the end of his consequence-free run. Y’see, the address of his mansion (built on the backs of our inboxes) got put on the web… and the junk mail started flowing… and flowing… and flowing. He’s getting buried. Man, do I love Slashdot.
Stopping the Startup…
Ctrl-Alt-Delete. Open Task Manager. You see all that junk listed in your process list? What is all that crap, anyway? Well, this site will tell ya. It will also tell you what you really need to have starting on your machine, and how to get rid of the stuff you don’t. Speed your computer right up, it will. Good find, Mr. Matt.
Hellmouthy Goodness …
Hey, it’s a Buffy Blog. Ryan McGee comments on new Buffy episodes over on his site “Sunnydale Central”, and it’s some good readin’.
Search Party…
I was looking at my search logs for the past week (stuff people have entered in that little search window on the left), and found the following queries : “bastard samurai“, “dirty hippies“, and “mutual fund accounting“. Now there’s some variety for ya.
Posted on December 5, 2002 at 6:53 pm | No Comments
Started this week off with a virus that knocked me on my behind… and my behind ended up on the couch, home from work and alternately sleeping, watching TiVo, or playing Vice City. As annoying as a fever and sore throat are, they relieve me of any guilt associated with not exercising. No treadmill for sick-boy.
The mini-plague mutated into a flemmy mess, so I’m dealin’ with serious sniffles, a hacking cough, cold temperatures, and a whole buncha fresh snow. Ok, ok. It’s winter. I get it.
Caught a story on CBS News Sunday Morning this past weekend about the in-progress Richard Avedon exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. Stunning photographic portraits on display from throughout his over 60-year career. It’s only running until January 5th, and a Christmastime visit to New York is sounding like a good thing.
Avedon’s “Beekeeper”
Shutter next Summer…
Finally, some news on Dennis Lehane’s next novel, which will be titled “Shutter Island”. This follow-up to the brilliant Mystic River will be out in May 2003, and it’s another stand-alone, rather than a return to the Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro series. Here’s the skinny …
“This is set in 1954 on a small island in Massachusetts, where US marshals Chuck and Teddy come to the institution for the criminally insane to find an escaped patient. She has left them a load of clues which lead them to think she summoned them there.”
My love for Samurai Jack, which was sealed right from the premiere last year, continues to grow with each episode. Thanks to TiVo, I just caught episode 19, which featured a surprise (well, at least to me) appearance by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima’s Lone Wolf & Cub. The 8000-page illustrated story of Ogami Itto and his son Daigoro started in 1970, and was first published in the U.S. in 1987. I discovered it during my senior year of high school, and rediscovered it two years ago when Dark Horse started republishing them in 300 page mini-book installments. I just picked up #27 today, and the final one is out next month. Getting to see them in animated form, and seeing that they were a direct influence on Samurai Jack, was a real treat…
Addicted to the Nue Noise…
Well, hot damn. I just discovered Neumu, a goldmine of new music reviews, interviews, mp3s, and other assorted randomness. Great design, excellent content, I’m sold. It’s not surprising this site comes from the same guy who started Addicted to Noise. I loved that webzine in it’s early days, and I’m glad a reconnection has been made. Just sorry it took so long.
Geek Tweak…
Hey, if you’ve got Windows 2000 or XP along with a cable or dsl modem, here’s some nifty tweaks for ya. Should help speed up your interweb connection. Make sure you back up your registry first, and don’t go blamin’ me for your blue screen of death.
Monkey Boy George…
Excellent. Make Your Own Bush Speech. Drag and drop, then let the words stumble out.
the Beard gets the Blame …
Well, that makes sense. I thought I knew the reasons for the untimely death of my rock band… but I was wrong. Ends up it was my fault all along: I broke rule #29.