Ratatat
For someone who spends a large portion of his time sorting through stock-image sites, this video really struck a chord. One of the most bizarre things I've watched in a long time (sorry about the 'bird'):
Ratatat - Drugs
New Music Monday - Toshio Hirano
Here is a little taste of what the 2nd best Japanese folk/cowboy/bluegrass singer sounds like: Enjoy.
Great Depression
Now in living color.
I never really thought about what the great depression would have looked like in color. It always just seemed appropriate for it to be a still shot in black and white. The contrast, the starkness, the bleakness, that was the depression. This Plog post [here] shows a different picture. It contains an archive of rare color photos taken between 1939 and '43 and, despite some of the subject matter, seems to cheer-up the depression a bit.
What do you think?
Sound like...
Some artists sound just like other, more famous artists. This guy, Xavier Rudd, is a nice concoction: A little Ben Harper, some Paul Simon with a splash of Bob Marley.
Xavier Rudd - Messages / Guku (from Paste Magazine)
Totally Wizard
Just in case you were wondering, and just in case you've got the time...
Dark Side of the Rainbow
Low Anthem
Nate was super excited to see the Avetts. I was super excited to see Low Anthem. Here's one of the songs they played:
Music
Last week I purchased a new LP. It cost me over 20 bucks. Granted, it was a double-album (though, only 13 songs). I really wanted the album and, as Nate will attest, it was an album worth buying.
Today I spend $14.55 and here's what I got (on vinyl):
- U2 - The Joshua Tree (in near mint condition) » This is the best U2 album, though not my favorite (if that makes any sense).
- Hall & Oats - Bigger Than Both of Us » ("She's a rich girl...")
- Grand Funk Railroad - Grand Funk Hits » Some Kind of Wonderful, We're An American Band, and so much more funk!
- Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms » Can't really say enough about this album, it's just one of the best ever. (Your Latest Trick, Walk of Life, Money for Nothing, So Far Away and of course Brothers in Arms, my favorite Dire Straits song).
- Bruce Springsteen - Born in the U.S.A. » No American's record collection is complete without this one.
- Paul Simon - Greatest Hits, Etc. » I already have this one (I think from Pop's collection) but this record was in such good condition I just couldn't pass it up. If anyone wants a copy, let me know.
- Lynyrd Skynyrd - Gold & Platinum - This is like a greatest hits and a not-so-greatest hits in one package (and two records). Free Bird, Gimme Three Steps, Sweet Home Alabama, Simple Man and more.
- Steve Winwood - Back in the High Life » You might not know this one, but it was the one I was most excited about (and the first one I have put on the turntable). Higher Love, Back in the High Life Again, Freedom Overspill.
- 38 Special - Flashback » Hold on Loosely, Caught Up in You (plus a bonus EP with some songs I don't know).
- Billy Joel - Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II » Starts off with Piano Man, do I really need to say more? Okay, New York State of Mind, Just the Way You Are, Movin' Out, Only the Good Die Young (and that's just Vol. 1!)
- Journey - Frontiers » Awesome album art, Faithfully and Edge of the Blade (plus, it's Journey, the rest of the album is probably epic too).
- Eagles - Greatest Hits » I already have this one too (though I think it says JC on it [Jon?]). Anyway, another instance of finding a perfect record that couldn't be put back on the shelf.
- Eagles - Greatest Hits Volume 2 » I didn't already own this one though Nate did give me a copy of 'Hotel California' so I do have some of the tracks. Still, who could pass this up?
- The Band - The Best of » For those of you who have not listened to The Band, you need to. Up on Cripple Creek, The Shape I'm In, The Weight, and one of the greatest songs ever, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.
So that's it. 14 LPs for $14 and change. Not a bad haul at all. And I could have had a couple Amy Grant albums, 50 cent, and Beverly Hills Cop if I had wanted. Let me know if you want to hear how you can get your grubby hands on some sweet deals too!
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Will Crum
This is not the Will Crum we all know and love, but he is pretty awesome. (Sorry if he swears once or twice)
Avatar Trailer
For all those who tried and tried to watch the trailer on Apple's site and were denied... here you go. That's right, I have the embedded video (albeit in French, but that's not important) here on my blog. I'm not sure why the video is not working over at Apple (even the high res downloads are broken) which makes me, and I'm sure you, very mad.
We already knew that Avatar would be cutting edge, but this new look makes me wonder... it actually looks a little like Delgo:
...is that wrong to say?
Right Click Here, and save link to download the high-res version of the Avatar trailer.
Elvis Perkins in Dearland - Chains, Chains, Chains
'The video for 'Chains, Chains, Chains' -- the latest single from Elvis Perkins in Dearland -- seems to be swimming (literally) in symbolism and insinuation. There are rising tides, silhouettes, aquatic birds and then, of course, embryonic sea people entangled in a womb-like waterworld. Or something of the sort. It all adds up to an eye-catching video that is mystical and imaginative and perfectly suited for Perkins' poetic hymn.' [Read More - from Spinner.com]
Commercials
For someone who does not watch TV, commercials are often the most perplexing concept. Why would someone sit and watch terrible ads for products they would never want or need for a total of 15 minutes over the course of a one hour show? Michal and I watch shows occasionally on DVD, and very rarely using Boxee. Sometimes, however, I do run across ads not only worth watching, but worth watching again. Here's one that pops up on occasion over at Wired.
Old-School Thursday - Retro Rewind Remix
Check this. Back in the day we all played the old 8-bit Nintendo (everyone meaning me, Matt, Peter, Jon, Nate and Thomas... maybe Dave too). So it's no surprise that the sound of 8-bit music has lodged itself in my musical sense. I'm no big fan of Disco-style music (and have never been to the 'teque') but this rocks:
Bit.Shifter - Hexadecimal Genome
Old-School Thursday - Pogo in Togo
Coca-Cola in Angola?
United Balls - Pogo in Togo
I love how no one, except the musicians, looks like they're having any fun.
Court Tries to Assert Itself over the Private Life of Citizens
Everyone knows that it is wrong for the government to meddle in the health issues of individuals, so it surprised me to see this statement in an article about a 13-year-old boy being ordered by a court, against his parents will, to undergo treatment for cancer:
Medical ethicists say parents generally have a legal right to make decisions for their children, but there is a limit.
Really? A limit? And how would this limit be defined? Does that mean that a parent's desire, comfort, will, even rights can be trumped by those of another, namely, their child? The parents have a belief, but that belief can be considered to be in opposition to the child's well-being?
Apparently the boy, Daniel, who according to court papers cannot read, is unable to make a decision for himself so the court is doing it's best to protect his rights to liberty and life. Now if only this could be the precedent for the millions of other children whose parents act in ways that endanger the well-being and very lives of those who cannot make choices for themselves.
From CNN