3 posts tagged “music”
In the car just now on my way to meet Dane for lunch, I put on OK Computer on a whim. It suddenly made me really motivated to do this Top Ten Of All Time thing Greg and Tim have been going on about. So I'm going to give it a whirl, and probably totally want to change it in like five minutes. And btw asking for 10 is hard enough, there's no way I'm going to put them in any actual order.
So some things I've been enjoying recently -- (because I don't know what else to talk about)...
Ok I just watched Stardust again last night, and that was a seriously fun movie. Why wasn't it bigger than it was? One thing I liked about it was that it was made from a book, but they like totally changed big parts of it, but in the best way. I guess that's what happens when you include the author in the process. But like, I'd read the book (twice?) but then seeing the movie I still didn't know what was going to happen, which is genius. Sometimes it sucks when people change a book when translating it to film, but only if they ruin it or destroy the tone. This was was just good fun, and I think it's my favorite Robert DeNiro role ever.
Saw Benjamin Button, and Dane and I talked about the visual effects alone for like 45 minutes probably. It is a beautiful movie, whatever else you think of it. Something about the romance was kind of off, I don't know, I liked the story and I liked how it all played out, I just didn't get like ANY actual chemistry or attraction off of BP and CB. Maybe because they're a kid and an old man and then an old lady and a kid. But even when they're both sort of in the middle and beautiful, I don't know. It did really well as far as that goes though portraying a couple of people that mean the world to each other but just can't get the timing right. And I kind of loved both of their life stories even if I wasn't super invested in the part where they met in the middle. Anyway, another one I'd totally recommend.
We also watched There Will Be Blood the other day which I realize everybody else was done talking about AGES ago but we're behind the times. I had heard how just utterly completely bleak and depressing it was, and I think that helped set up my expectations so that it ultimately wasn't that bad. It's just about a maniac who also happens to be a jackass. It was so well-done and super interesting though.
I always sort of ask myself after I see a movie why that movie was made. Like, whoever wrote it and greenlit it and chose to direct it and all of the big steps that got it into theaters, why did they make it? I'm sure like 99% of the people (or 100% in some cases) were involved in it for money, but somebody at some point wanted to make that movie because they wanted to say something or thought it was a new perspective or a lesson or SOMETHING. That one was obviously pretty anti-religious, but also I guess was kind of this morality tale about greed and what it costs... But I don't know, I feel like those stories have kind of been told before. I guess they mostly all have though, that's why I love people like Charlie Kaufman who are coming up with truly new things.
I got Fleet Foxes for Christmas and have been listening to it for a few days, and I think I love it more every time through. It sounds like it should have come from like the '60s or something but it's also really new and creative. I kind of want to give it to my dad, but I think he's the one who gave it to me. I also got the new Mates of State Rearrange Us which I really enjoy but haven't had time to marathon-listen yet, and She & Him Volume 1 which I also really like but I think it might end up being really great like dinner party background music or for when I'm in the mood for singing along with something. It's another total throwback and I really enjoy it but it might not be one that you like dissect and hear a new layer every time you listen to it.
I was going to talk about some books too but this is already longer than some people probably want to read so I'll do those tomorrow.
Probably five or so years ago I was looking through my CD case (remember those?) and realized that I had two Alanis Morissette albums, but other than that I had absolutely no female artists. This was not a conscious choice, I just had found and bought stuff I liked and it had been almost exclusively male.
I just realized yesterday that that has completely changed. I kind of have a "type" when it comes to female artists and I still am absolutely not a fan of the like female pop wailing power vocals, but ok, I'm not a fan of male pop wailing power vocals either. These are some of the really great girls I've been listening to a lot lately, and that are just so sweet-sounding and so easy to sing along with:
Brooke Fraser
Feist
Sara Groves
JJ Heller
Mindy Smith
Bjork
Among others. JJ Heller, last time I checked, had her whole album available for download for free on her site. So go check it out. Google her or something, I don't have the link. Sorry.
