Old 97's Concert Review

I was a passing fan of the Old 97's meaning I had the Hit By Train compilation. I enjoyed their music but didn't feel the need to own everything. Well, this show changed my mind about them and to a lesser extent the venue as well.

They didn't rely on the songs from Hit By a Train as much as I thought they would. They did play all of my favorites. In fact, I would have been happy if I only got to watch them play "Rollerskate Skinny." However, not being familiar with most of the material actually made me enjoy the show and songwriting talents of Mr. Miller and co. even more. They definitely had the crowd enjoying the show, but I think they were having just as good of time as we were -- if not more. That to me is the test: If the band is enjoying themselves, the crowd and their own music, then how can I not. I budget myself to two cd's a month. Want to guess what band is going to be the one who is receiving my money?

Sleepercar was good enough also for me to want to discover more about them. Learning that Ward was in At the Drive In is a good start. I didn't know who was opening for the Old 97's since my going was a gametime decision basically. I'll explore hypem.com to learn more about them, and if I like what I hear I'll spend the money on them as well. Acatually, with the very notable exception of Radiohead opening for R.E.M., they were best opening band I've seen.

As for the House of Blues, I finally truly enjoyed a show there. I've seen Paul Westerberg twice there...and honestly I would enjoy watching Paul Westerberg anywhere he performs but I would rather it not be the House of Blues. I've also seen Ryan Adams there. He had one of his tantrums during that show, but the crowd deserved it. He was putting on a great show, but too many comp tickets and maybe it was an all-ages show that put a damper on it. It was hard to hear the band play, forget the acoustic numbers. I know that's partly Ryan's fault, but I also blame the comps. However, the Old 97's didn't have that problem as badly (acoustic numbers can still be hard to hear). Basically, this is my plea to HoB concert patrons...if you really don't like the band or if you don't know how to be respectful and shut up so I can enjoy what my hard earned money has paid for then please stay home. Please.

Quick Shots

• I broke down and bought Guitar Hero. I never thought I would actually enjoy Slow Ride, but I do.
  
• On concert.tv, they have a R.E.M. show from 85. Stipe has blond hair and looks...normal. It's a great show. My favorite part was hyena where Stipe starts on one side of the stage and practically stalks Mills until he almost attacks him on the last chorus.
  
• Saw Get Smart and Wanted. Paid matinee prices. Not a waste of that money. Full price, probably so.
  
• I admire the new coldplay cd, but i'm not sure if I actually like it.
  

Steam of Consciousness on the AFI Top 10's

this was written as i watched it...some spell checking but not much and no attention to grammar, punctuation, and usage

The beginning of the AFI seems to be the part most people like. I’m speaking of the montage. I just find it weird to juxtapose the Bridge Over the River Kwai with the music from Gone With the Wind?

Jennifer Love Hewitt and Jessica Alba are going to talk about movies. Hopefully not their own.

Ha! First joke, Jennifer Love Hewitt introduces animation. Well, I find it funny? Nemo is tenth? Seriously. I know I will object to at least five that will be ahead of it. It’s a perfect film. Ok, I prefer it to Cinderella. Is it just me or the princes dull in all of the early fairy tale films, with the notable exception of Sleeping Beauty. Shrek great…but not Nemo great. Wouldn’t Shrek had been really great if she would have remained beautiful and have them be a mix species couple? Beauty and the Beast was great… No complaints with Toy Story…great animation, great story, great cast…fantasia I have mixed feelings about…some parts are genius…others not so much…Lion King not number 1…to me it’s the greatest film of the genre…looking forward to wall∙e…”a monkey’s uncle” is a great joke…bambi is good and scary…but I still stand by the lion king…Pinocchio number two…going kind of dark with these last couple of choices…ok so snow white was first that makes it the best….now don’t get me wrong…none of the films are bad…but there are some plot devices that don’t work for me in the top three…yeah lion king and Nemo are my favorites…and in my opinion the best.

Fantasy: Big is 10th. Good film…amazing how many other films were like it but it was so much better…need to see thief of Bagdad…need to see lots of silent films…it’s a great art form…another reason why I’m excited about wall e….yes groundhog day….my mom will say why?...I say why not?...bill Murray is so great…wow…I’ve never seen Harvey….how did that happen…ah field of dreams…did they do that on purpose…people that don’t like it are horrible vile people…I like miracle on 34th but not sure it would be on the top ten…I would like to see other films…king Kong belongs there…I would put it’s a wonderful life at the top…It’s a film about a man contemplating suicide that makes people feel good…that has to be a masterpiece…for most of the film it’s so dark that the light that comes through at the end is just glorious….lord of the rings was great entertainment…basically a great 9 hour film (13 if you watch the special editions)….the cgi never outweighed the performances…I saw wizard of oz when it was rereleased…loved it…but still would put it’s a wonderful life above it

Sci-Fi: Sigourney Weaver is like a fine wine…gets better with age…”mcfly…mcfly” I still do that joke in my class…not a bad performance in it…none were overshadowed by the special effects…invasion of the body snatchers…good film…the remake in the 70s was also good…please be terminator…no terminator two is nowhere as good as terminator one…Arnold has a bad guy was so great b/c who could stop him?!?...I like the film but terminator two doesn’t belong… alien…great horror house movie…b/c you can’t leave the house….how scary is that….blade runner, either film is good…I mean the villain is not really one and he quotes William Blake….never saw the day the earth stood still….not straight through….a clockwork orange plays to me more like fantasy…one that goes all wrong…why does fantasy have to be good…still great film…et not number 1…that’s an upset even if it is star wars (which really should be empire)….who doesn’t like this movie….btw greatest retelling of the story of Jesus ever…and that’s from a Jewish director…amazing…if star wars is number two what is number 1…aliens???....I hate saying this but nothing was better than star wars in 77…I remember it more than I remember my birthdays…how could I not tell that 2001 was number one…wow what a great list….required movie watching here….kier dulla’s performance is so underrated….he is overshadowed by everything else but he gives a remarkable performance…

Sports: I’m guessing rocky is number one….do we really need the lecture afi on each genre…better yet tell us what is the criteria…jerry McGuire…got a love a movie that has a replacements song in it…my favorite tom cruise performance…and I’m actually a big fan…think of all the directors he has worked with and done well with…never saw national velvet…ok…Dennis hopper creepy moment number 1…breaking away great movie great title…don’t remember caddy shack…saw it but don’t remember it…the hustler…I forgot about it…I’m straight but damn Paul Newman was beautiful and on top of his game…sometimes I think his speeches are about acting as much as they are about pool…bull Durham….what man doesn’t know that speech…Kevin Costner is at his best when is not a totally nice guy…I’m not sure about Hoosiers and I’m a basketball coach…will they have a comic book movie genre?...I hope so…ah pride of the Yankees…that movie, along with field of dreams, makes me cry every time…and I’m not a big baseball fan…hell I just got teary eyed…and Michael j. fox just pushed it over the edge…rocky is number 2…it’s a great film…the courage to have him not win the fight was a great move…and that score…I’ve never liked raging bull….I know I’m in the minority…I have never been able to finish it before…I might be of an age to able to do it now…it might speak to me now…

Western…ok now I don’t mind the lecture if eastwood is giving it….I predict the searchers as number one…wow start off with an offbeat one…are they going to put blazing saddles in this category too…john Wayne sighting number one with stagecoach…and I’ve just realized I’ve never seen it…never say . McCabe…I need to redo my Netflix list…ah butch and Sundance….I love the rules scene…the wild bunch…that little grin Ernest borgnine is a great acting choice…I truly believe this is the film the matrix wanted to be…ah, red river…the film that made me realize how good john Wayne could be…he’s better than Monty cliff and Monty was great in the film…the ending is not my favorite…but it’s still a great film…I remember seeing a trailer for unforgiven and asking myself why are they making a western…no need…thank god they did…moving film…Shane…the mere thought of the ending can make me feel like the young boy…I remember a girlfriend almost in shock watching me watch it…she never felt a film like I felt it….wow a really solid list…high noon…throw that badge down…yep the searchers…to me it wasn’t even a decision…they had to choose that first and then pick the rest… it’s shot so wonderfully and the cinematography is a character….john Wayne gives a towering performance...that last shot

Gangster…again QT giving a lecture is not a bad idea…please make martin do one…I never liked Scarface, the pacino version…not sure why…haven’t seen little Caesar…nor public enemy…pulp fiction my favorite audiobook…I sometimes put the DVD on…turn the tv on and just listen to the film while I clean around the house…I want a pack of red apples…this should be the first genre where a sequel is listed….even though sci-fi could have a case for aliens and empire and actually revenge of the sith as well…never saw the original scarface either…the new York times had a great piece about bonnie and clyde a while back and what it’s violence signified…again never saw white heat…I like godfather ii more, but that’s me…goodfellas…another movie I can just listen to it….a good day to me is watching all three godfathers….yes all three b/c the story can’t stop pacino and Michael in three…wow wait a great observation from tailia shire about the violence.

Mystery: The Usual Suspects is a very entertaining, but really it is in its entirety a red herring….wow critics like blue velvet…it’s good maybe great but top ten?...i need to watch again…my beloved north by northwest…this would be in my top five list of only five movies I can ever watch again…the third man is a perfect flim…orsen welles is brilliant…and how great of the departed to rip it off…laura only movie to not be as good as it’s score…and it’s a great movie…I want to be Dana Andrews….been so long since I saw rear window...need a hitchcock day soon….roman polanski’s Chinatown…the film should have his name in front of it…vertigo…so brilliant, so beautiful…how great was 12 monkey’s love making to this film…sorry but had to go on a tangent

Romantic comedy: I’m afraid comedy as it’s own genre won’t be on it’s own…so no duck soup or any other marx movie…half of chaplin…sleepless in seatle is good but not great…not even in that genre…Harold and maude is a movie that makes me happy…like really happy to be on the planet….that’s hard for a movie to do…I love the her stealing the priest’s car…never saw moonstruck…when harry met sally is deserving…damn it channel 4…cut out the phildelphia story…roman holiday is great but has far as Audrey goes I love Sabrina…Sabrina makes me believe in love…I just watched annie hall…I agree rob reiner it is the gold standard…I laugh out loud when I watch it alone…the great city lights…I need to find a reason to show this in class…to expose my students to chaplin is to expose them to art…

Courtroom dramas: not sure why this has it’s own category….judgement is a great film in that you can see everyone’s side but know that only one is right…in cold blood is eriee especially now knowing what blake can do…a friend of my is writing a book on tyrone power…can’t wait for it to come out….one great scene doesn’t make a few good men a great movie…it needs at least two more scenes…let’s see…the galactically stupid is a great scene…can’t think of another…help…the verdict I need to see again…don’t remember it…I remember seeing Kramer vs. Kramer in the theater…yeah I’m old…I remember closing my eyes at one point…I think my sister was right…lee j. cobb was an amazing actor…always watchable….and to kill a mockingbird…I love how the kids call their father by his first name…I’ve always thought that was wonderful and showed you how great a man he really was.

Epic: Ah Charlton Heston, you hero of the epics…we miss you, even if this film is way too long…I’ve never seen reds…must remedy this…diane Keaton I’ll marry you…right now…to hell with age difference…saving private ryan…yes it can be hookey and forced in some points but when it’s strong not much else is stronger…the death of the medic, the scene where tom hanks doesn’t share his memory, the opening and ending battles…hanks was brilliant and deserved an Oscar…yes he should have three (hell maybe four for Apollo 13)…never saw all quiet…ok I guess titanic should be on the list…speaking of epics where is the big Lebowski? That’s epic man. I love Spartacus…Olivier is so great…tony Curtis is not so great…my sister is officially pissed…gone with the wind is 4…haha…gone with the wind is one of our most beloved films but it’s a film in which no one is loveable with the notable exception of mamie…creepy moment ii, vanessa Williams talking about gone with the wind…schindler’s list…how amazing was Ralph Fiennes in that film….i remember a person saying behind me someone needs to shoot that fat nazi bastard…you know he is doing a great job…ben hur gets better every time I see it…Stephen Boyd is so wonderfully evil…Heston is at his finest…and Wyler does some remarkable work even if he didn’t do the chariot scene…he does these small moments like the fingers of jesus on Judah when he gives him water and then vice versa at the end…Lawrence of Arabia not what I thought would be number one (I really thought GWTW)…the catwalk on the top of the train…the boldest choice is a movie full of bold choices…

a couple of ommissions: the aforementioned big lebowski; how can babe not be on the fantasy list...did it lose favor with critics and audiences since it came out; it was nominated for a best picture and damn it is just great; and shouldn't on the waterfront be considered as a gangster film.

In Between Days

Wow. It's been a while. I should have kept this blog up. One of the problems I had was the lack of time. I will try to keep up. I do want to talk about some books, music, films, and art that has been on my mind the last year.

• Daft Punk's 2007 Alive was my favorite album of last year. And it beat out some good albums (GaGaGaGaGa, The Reminder, and Boxer to name a few).
  
• I became seriously obsessed with Sufjan Stevens since my last post. There are only two other bands that I felt that way about in my life -- The Cure and The Replacements. And like them, I don't get tired of his music.
  
• 4 of the best picture nominees were great films. I really thought Micheal Clayton was the best of them. But Atonement? Seriously? What a waste of acting talent. Everything seemed forced. I truly hated that film.
  
• My favorite movie of the summer is Ironman.
  
• The reissues of the first 4 Replacements cd's by Rhino are a gift from god. I'm reading The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting: An Oral History. I will not post a review of the book. I will post what I discovered while reading the book. But here is the teaser: I've learned more about me then I did the replacements.
  
• Still haven't bought Zen Arcade
  

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Now playing: Sufjan Stevens - Chicago
via FoxyTunes

Say Yeah

GaGaGaGaGa is a glorious record. Spoon always seems to sound fresh and yet could fit in other time periods seamlessly. For my money, they are the purest rock'n'roll band out there. I know this will sound small but I think they utilize one of rock's most important and ignored sounds in a way that rivals The Beatles. Of course, I'm talking about the hand clap. I love a band that uses the hand clap.

Sticks to You

Ryan Adams's 29 has gotten under my skin only in the way that two other albums have -- The Cure's Disintergration and The Replacements All Shook Down. Like those two albums, it works as an album with repeated themes. Maybe, it is because I'm only nine months older than Ryan that I identify with it so. It could be the references to losing friends. It could be the references to friends having, and losing, babies while some act as if I am already dead. Maybe, it is all the water symbolism (death) and all the events that happened with Katrina. I'm at the point where I can't critically listen to it anymore. It is, like those two other albums, a part of me. "Elizabeth, You Were Born to Play that Part" and "Voices" gets me every time. I think of friends that I've been separated from after Katrina. I think of the kids I taught that I don't know if they are alive.

Ted Danson and Arthurian Legends

I was looking for something in my parents garage and found something unexpected. My copy of the Mission UK's
Carved in Sand. I loved this album my junior year of high school. If it wasn't for self preservation, I would have so been a goth kid growing up. I mean how can you not love this cd. The first song, Amelia, was inspired by a Ted Danson TV movie of the week in which he plays a father who abuses his daughter. And there are "darker" songs dealing with return of Arthur. There is even a book report called The Grapes of Wrath. Still, Butterfly on a Wheel was and still is a beautiful song. I have to go now to find a black cape to wear.

I really do like this cd.