Video: Church, Finally!
April 30, 2007Baby Cakes - Role Play
One of my favorite Baby Cakes shorts - "Role Play" - is now live at Super Deluxe. Will be especially funny to anyone with a little D&D knowledge....Continue
March 09, 2007Friday video: Bukkake Milk
Something tells me, thanks to that video title, my Google search hits are about to go through the roof....Continue
March 02, 2007Friday afternoon videos
It's Friday. Mid-afternoon. Time to watch some videos and burn some time before going home....Continue
December 13, 2006Rip and Goodbye, Follow Up
Over a year ago (good lord, where did the time go?) I wrote about how I was ditching almost my entire CD collection. I had grown tired of the physical space they consumed, and I rarely listened to any of them because of the instant accessibility of digital music. So in October 2005, I set out with a goal. To...Continue
October 24, 2005Birth
By sheer luck, I stumbled across the movie Birth this past weekend. Starring Nicole Kidman, the movie is a fascinating story about a ten year old boy who arrives at Kidman's door claiming to be the reincarnation of her deceased husband (who died ten years earlier). A spiraling mystery unfolds, with Kidman sliding deeper into mental disarray, much to the...Continue
October 17, 2005Rip and Goodbye
I started working on a new project this past weekend. Not a freelance design gig or anything web related, but something bigger, more time consuming, and potentially overwhelming -- the complete dissolution of my library of compact discs. For most 'normal' people this wouldn't be a big deal, but I'm out of the ordinary. I worked in the music...Continue
October 14, 2005Television 2.0
Yesterday was quite a day in Apple land. A video iPod, iTunes 6, FrontRow, a remote control, new iMac with built-in iSight, and the big kahuna of them all -- downloadable television shows for $1.99 each. The medium of television, for all intents and purposes, hasn't changed in decades. It's the passive, one-way, frankly dumb ol' box it's always been....Continue
September 02, 2005R.L. Burnside dies
Sad news today -- R.L. Burnside, one of the more recognizable and popular blues musicians of our time, died yesterday at the age of 78 in a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. When the music business was my day to day bread and butter, I saw R.L. perform live numerous times. I also had the opportunity to sit and talk with...Continue
July 19, 2005The new Daily Show set
Last night I tuned in to the Daily Show on Comedy Central for the first time in...I don't know, a couple of weeks...and immediately noticed how different everything looked. Surely Stewart was broadcasting from LA or Hollywood I thought, for the lighting was cold, the set was bare, and the air had the vibe of David Letterman broadcasting from LA,...Continue
February 10, 2005The final 3 on Project Runway
Project Runway has whittled its group of aspiring designers down to three -- Jay, Kara, and...Wendy? For those of you who've been following the show (which I am wildly addicted to), the inclusion of Wendy in the 'final 3' of the show probably came as a shock. For weeks I've been predicting that the final group would comprise Jay, Kara,...Continue
December 18, 2004Favorite Albums of 2004
Annual 'Best Of' lists are such a guilty pleasure. I've made a habit out of creating one every year, whether in the form of a cassette tape, a CD-R, a radio program, or newspaper bit, and have always enjoyed putting one together. For me, every year is the same -- there are albums I fully expected to be a year-end...Continue
November 19, 2004Damnation!
So here's something pretty wild to check out over the weekend -- Damnation -- a single player mod for Unreal Tournament 2004. That's right, single player, as in a entirely original game with characters, maps, weapons, and even a story. I gave Damnation a run-through, and was pretty impressed with the amount of work that went into it. Graphically, it's...Continue
November 15, 2004This and That
A few Monday morning tidbits to chew on. Sideways (movie) -- If you live in a city presenting Sideways, don't miss it. The dramedy about two guys -- one a burnt California actor, the other a middle school English teacher and full time wine aficionado -- hitting the road for a mid-life bachelor's party is hilarious, poignantly melancholy, and rich...Continue
April 28, 2004Dumpster Diving iMix
What better way to exploit the new iMix feature of iTunes than to revisit the grand ol' stinking pile of dung known as the What Do I Know Dumpster Diving playlist -- an excercise to find the worst songs on the iTunes Music Store and compile them all together in one handy playlist. Those with a strong stomach can now...Continue
April 13, 2004The Glory of HDTV
A few weeks ago I was informed by a Turner coworker that Comcast was now offering (in Atlanta at least) HDTV to their subscribers. I was already a Comcast digital cable subscriber, and I recently purchased a 32" Samsung HDTV ready television, so I thought...what the hell. For only an extra $5 a month, it was worth the hassle of...Continue
March 22, 2004Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
This weekend I had the pleasure of seeing Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the latest time-space-mashup from writer Charlie Kaufman starring Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood, and directed by Michel Gondry. If you've seen either Being John Malkovich or Adaptation (also written by Kaufman) you should have a good idea of what to expect -- twisted...Continue
January 27, 2004Thoughts on Dennis Miller
Last night was the premiere of Dennis Miller's new show on CNBC, and being the unabashed news junkie that I am, I had to tune in to see what kind of flavor Dennis Miller would bring to the CNBC table. Historically, CNBC has almost always broadcast serious, button-down, business programming, but in the last couple of years has experimented with...Continue
December 03, 2003Dumpster Diving
Lately my coworkers and I have been playing a new game with the iTunes Music Store -- searching out all the awful guilty pleasures from our younger years and playing audio previews, full volume, in the office for everyone to groan over. In the process we've uncovered lots of forgotten artists and songs, with a few leading to a giddy...Continue
October 31, 2003The Dylan Remasters
I must have been asleep at the wheel last month, for Columbia records has reissued a ton of classic Bob Dylan records. I own a number of these already, albeit the horribly dull original CD issues, but I would definitely consider replacing them with these. Interestingly, they are all SACD Hybrids (Super Audio CDs), which I don't know a whole...Continue
October 09, 2003Goodybye Emusic.com
Well, it was fun while it lasted. This morning I received an email from Emusic.com, of which I have been a very enthusiastic supporter / subscriber for the past few months, stating that they have been acquired by "Dimensional Associates LLC," and thus will be overhauling their subscription model. In short, Emusic will no longer offer unlimited downloads. For the...Continue
October 08, 2003That Billboard
How bitter is the rivalry between CNN and Fox News? For the past several years, Fox News has purchased space on two large billboards right outside the front door of CNN Center, where I drive to nearly every day as part of my ongoing work with Turner Sports Interactive. I've been meaning to snap a photo, for unless you worked...Continue
September 21, 2003Lost in Translation
For weeks I've been looking forward to seeing Lost in Translation, the Bill Murray / Scarlett Johansson dramedy directed by Sofia Coppola, and this weekend it opened in Atlanta. Watching the trailer, I had a feeling the movie wouldn't be quite as funny or light as it was being portrayed. If anything, it could be a dark, melancholic experience all...Continue
September 12, 2003The Man in Black
It's nearly impossible to express the magnitude of loss I feel this morning after the passing of Johnny Cash. His music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember; much longer than any other artist. My father used to play worn-out, warped 8-tracks of Cash in the 1970s, and his voice, lyrics, and of...Continue
September 10, 2003Scary Movie 3, Shaolin Soccer
Okay, maybe I was just in need of a good laugh, but I found these two movie trailers incredibly funny: Scary Movie 3 | Shaolin Soccer. (Tip: if your QuickTime movie is in a small-ish box, set your QuickTime Preferences to the highest connection rate possible. Will take longer to download, but the bigger movie is worth it)....Continue
August 29, 2003That Kiss
That kiss. That kiss. That kiss. Since Britney and Madonna locked lips on MTV's Video Music Awards (which desperately needs a name change since videos aren't a part of their programming any more) last night, I've felt like an unwitting participant in what will undoubtedly become a "moment" in popular culture. A kiss between two female titans -- one the...Continue
August 07, 2003The Phish Factor
I've never liked Phish. Well, except for the song "David Bowie" which still tickles my funny bone. Otherwise I nod off or shift uncomfortably in my seat when a guitar solo reaches the two minute mark. There are better things I could do with the twenty, thirty, or (gasp!) forty-five minutes required to soak in all that electric noodling. That...Continue
June 29, 2003Nemo!
After a full day of shuttling the final scraps of clothes, dishes, and assorted nostalgic crap from our old apartment to our new house, my wife and I finally made it last night to Finding Nemo. Easily the most ambitious animated feature ever created by Pixar, Nemo is a joy to behold. The animation team nailed what I consider to...Continue
June 27, 2003EMusic Picks (June, 2003)
Since I signed up for Emusic, I've downloaded gigs of great music. If you have an EMusic account ($14 a month, all the downloads your pipe can carry), and are looking for some music to download for the weekend, here are some personal picks you may like. Culture - Two Sevens Clash (Shanachie) - Classic reggae album. Title cut a...Continue
May 13, 2003The Downward Spiral
To me, season three of HBO's Six Feet Under is the best one thus far. Alan Ball's ongoing exploration of the Fisher family has reached a confident, mature plateau with slower, less frenetic, focused plot lines, and fewer hallucinatory dreamscapes or attempts at shock value. Nate, portrayed by Peter Krause, has been through numerous life-altering events (his operation, breakup with...Continue
March 14, 2003Jump Ship
Following the tradition of Ani Difranco and (to a somewhat lesser degree of success) Prince, the former lead singer of 10,000 Maniacs and successful solo artist Natalie Merchant has completely severed her relationship with the commercial recording industry. Her new album, to be released this June, won't be released by a major label, but on her own independent imprint through...Continue
February 28, 2003Goodbye, Neighbor
Fred Rogers died yesterday at his home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While it feels hardly appropriate, and a little narcissistic, to turn his passing into a personal entry of a reflective nature, I feel the need to mark, and honor, his passing. Mister Rogers, I have increasingly realized with age, made an enormous impression on my early childhood. I am hardly...Continue
February 17, 2003Zora or Sarah?
Today we have news of war, mounds of snow in New York, a bizarre trampling at a Chicago nightclub, yet most people are probably talking around the water cooler about the most important topic of all - who is Evan going to pick? Zora, or Sarah? And while we're at it, what's the big "surprise secret" to be announced? I'll...Continue
February 16, 2003The Future of "Adult" Music
Reading this NY Times piece by music writer Jody Rosen, I ran across a rather obvious, yet intriguing stab at what "adult" music, the same genre currently occupied by groups like Coldplay, Dixie Chicks, Norah Jones, etc., will sound like when today's teenagers innevitably become adults. Before too long, hip-hop will lose its vitality and its grip on young listeners;...Continue
January 20, 2003Donnie
This is how I see it. The jet engine that fell into Donnie's bedroom came from a parallel, tangent universe through one of the worm-holes, or black-holes, and had no place (or reason for being) in the reality of Donnie's world. You hear a media report at the beginning stating (somewhere, I swear I heard this) that authorities couldn't explain...Continue
January 09, 2003The Two Towers
Last night my wife and I finally had a free evening with 3 hours to burn, so we went to the biggest, baddest, loudest movie theater we know of in Atlanta to see LOTR:The Two Towers. It was an extraordinary experience, to say the least. Perhaps it is rooted in the logical, technology-soaked side of my brain, but in my...Continue
January 05, 2003Goodbye IFC
Mr. Dominey - five months ago we quietly killed the Sundance Film Channel from your digital cable lineup, and we're still waiting for you to send in that extra five bucks a month for its return. Well today we're contacting you with more good news! Beginning February 2003, we will shuffle our lineup once again to include "more sports!", "more...Continue
December 23, 200210 Videos on MTV
According to this article at CMJ.com, MTV will soon be employing a new programming initiative known as "The Big Ten," where the channel will cut their already short list of music videos even shorter and concentrate solely on ten - ten - music videos a week. No word yet on when MTV plans to drop the M....Continue
The Clash Have Fallen
Mortality and rock 'n roll simply don't mix. When the two shake hands, especially with notable, groundbreaking artists, there is a profound sense of loss among longtime fans. Such is the case with the news today that Joe Strummer of The Clash has died at the relatively young age of 50 from a heart attack. I own pretty much all...Continue
December 22, 2002Poor Ralphie Cifaretto
The next season of The Sopranos will inevitably feel a little hollow to me without actor Joe Pantoliano, aka Ralphie Cifaretto. Some people I know rejoiced at Ralphie's - ahem - disappearance into drug rehab, but his crass, obnoxious, wildly entertaining character added a certain comedic element to the show that was missing before his arrival. Time Magazine seems to...Continue
December 13, 2002Moby Attacked Outside Nightclub
Normally I don't write about celebrity news, but this one is different. One, it involves one of the few globally recognized celebrities who uses the web in a smart, personal way to keep in touch with fans and offer personal insights (and thus, in a way, makes him a distant colleague), and two because (from what I can tell) this...Continue
December 11, 2002Eddie Izzard
Considering my former infatuation with the Naked Chef, which quickly disolved after the launch of his other, more serious cooking show, I have no idea what the average English bloke thinks about comedian / actor Eddie Izzard. According to the media he's quite popular in Britain, and has been for quite some time, but most Americans don't have a clue...Continue
December 09, 2002Separated at Birth
A record company art director, in a tall building, with a deadline rapidly approaching. AD: "Okay, we need to get this J-Lo campaign out fast. Here's what we're going to do for the album cover. Let's put her in a clingy white outfit, with a hip hat, and sit her down in an all white room. Then we take some...Continue
December 06, 2002386 David Hasselhoff Fans Can't Be Wrong
This simply made my day. What happens when hundreds of supposed David Hasselhoff fans flood Amazon.com with five star critiques of David Hasselhoff's Greatest Hits? Why, some of the funniest music reviews you've ever read. [Thanks to MeFi]...Continue
December 01, 2002Far From Heaven
Last night I had the pleasure of seeing Todd Haynes' brilliant, unforgettable "Far From Heaven" starring Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid and Dennis Haysbert. Moore, as perfectly described in this Salon.com review, is "blazing at its center in red and gold, like a bouquet of autumnal foliage in a fine china vase." In other words, simply ravishing. Moore portrays a privileged...Continue
November 21, 2002The Human Body is Obscene
You can blow up buildings, smack people over the head with folding chairs, and tunnel through sundry orifices on CSI, yet people get all bent out of shape and flood the FCC with complaints over the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show last night on CBS. If anything was obscene, it was the packaging of an hour long advertisement as entertainment. Then...Continue
November 11, 2002Tori Amos Songwriting Map
There is a magic that happens in graphic design when a visual concept is thoughtfully created by combining an appropriate, emotive aesthetic with the rigidity of information architecture. Data doesn't have to be confined to grids, tables, rows, and soulless typography. In the right hands, it can be presented in a way that ascends the content to a higher, sensorial...Continue
October 14, 2002Curb Your Enthusiasm - Where's The Love?
Chances are if you have cable TV and some available free time on Sunday night, you're doing what myself and millions of other people are - watching The Sopranos. For days after each new episode, I often talk with other watchers and trade lines, reenact favorite parts, and hypothesize potential plot twists in upcoming episodes. When those topics run dry,...Continue
September 01, 2002Those Crazy! Royal! Tenenbaums!
Last night my wife and I watched The Royal Tenenbaums for the first time after months of hearing how great it was. Because it was directed by Wes Andersen, who also directed the hilarious Bottle Rocket - also staring the Wilson brothers - we thought we'd give it a go. Tenenbaums probably cost millions of dollars more to produce than...Continue
August 30, 2002MTV, MTV, MTV
Hard to believe a year has passed since I wrote about the MTV Video Music Awards. Why I subject myself to watching the show, year after year, is truly beyond me. Every year I hate it. Every year I groan and how overproduced, how phony, how bad a lot of the music is MTV so proudly shoves down America's throat....Continue
We Need a New MTV
After watching the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards last night, I wrote a pretty mean spirited rant about the entire affair - everything from Michael Jackson winning yet another award invented by MTV to Eminem getting booed to Axl Rose appearing as Guns n' Roses minus everybody else in the band. This morning I erased it. The root of my...Continue
August 17, 2002Elvis is Dead. So What.
With American television and print media tripping over themselves this week publicizing the 25th Anniversary of Elvis Presley's death with front page headlines and live remotes from Graceland, leave it to Howard Kurtz of CNN to put an honest perspective on all the feel good nostalgia. According to Kurtz on Saturday's "Reliable Sources," guess how many major news networks (ABC,...Continue
August 05, 2002Anna Nicole
I'll admit it - I watched the premiere of the Anna Nicole Show last night. If I liked to lie, I would brush it off as a "well there wasn't anything else on," but the truth is I wanted to see it. The show is basically a rip of MTV's Osbournes but with Anna Nicole Smith, that blonde Guess jeans...Continue
Goodbye Sundance
Thanks to the programming boneheads at AT&T Broadband, the company that provides our digital cable service, we no longer receive the Sundance Film Channel. Part of the reason why I signed up for digital cable in the first place was for channels like IFC, MTV2, and yes, Sundance. In order to receive the aforementioned, plus HBO, we had to pay...Continue
July 26, 2002Rock Group Graveyard
This German web site features twenty-one pages of the "worst [band] photos of all times" (page title translated with Babelfish). Scrolling through the endless collection of rock group publicity photos, none with any recognizable stars (except for Poison on the first page), you become absorbed by their gleeful smiles, eyes full of wonder, faces a glow with the promise of...Continue
June 24, 2002Minority Report
I rarely go to movies. Don't get me wrong, I love movies about as much as anyone. But picking up the keys, getting in the car, and driving to a movie theater is an act I never seem to have enough time (or sometimes energy) to do. To get me into a cold dark room with a bunch of munchy,...Continue
June 20, 2002Video
Typography lovers, prepare to swoon. Of all the music videos I've seen over the past couple of years, I still dream about, and watch repeatedly, the video for 's "The Child." Great song. Awesome vocal sample. Wonderful video. I want this on DVD....Continue
June 18, 2002DJ Shadow, Live
Let's face it: American radio sucks. I'm not just saying this because I once worked for public radio, but with the exception of independently run college / community radio, there isn't a whole lot to listen to. Thanks to the internet however, the good stuff is usually only a stream away. One of my all time favorite radio shows to...Continue
June 17, 2002Andy Rooney, The Psychic
My family celebrated Father's Day yesterday up at our lake house in North Georgia, sitting around on the deck, eating lots of cheese and crackers, drinking veno, and basically enjoying the insanely beautiful weather. It being a lake house, the domicile is a repository for many old books, clothes and other family hang-ons (including my old Atari 2600, which still...Continue
June 14, 2002Can't Get No Satisfaction
Someone, please, shoot me. I can't stop playing this cover of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" by José Feliciano. I'm such a sucker....Continue
New Music Picks
Since I was snotty enough yesterday to gripe about an upcoming 80's box set, I feel the need to balance everything out with a little positivity, namely a few CDs I'm really looking forward to hearing. Arto Lindsay - Invoke: Arto Lindsay is easily one of my top favorite artists. A founder of the "No Wave" jazz / art-rock scene...Continue
June 13, 2002Like, Omigod!
Chances are I'd last 30 seconds at any bar, restaurant, or party that was playing this. Okay, Gary Numan is still great, but the rest......Continue
June 06, 2002MTV Movie Awards
Somewhere tonight deep inside the Times Square studios of MTV sits a webmaster on the verge of a pink slip. Before the MTV Movie Awards even started tonight at 9pm ET, MTV's web site featured the winners in every category. Even without the gaffe, MTV's Movie Awards simply reek of insider shenanigans. Why else would Will Smith and Nicole Kidman...Continue
May 13, 2002Trading Spaces Remix
I became so enraged by an episode of Trading Spaces yesterday that I decided to take matters into my own hands. Yes, I know, you don't have to tell me. I just hate to see a good design go unfinished....Continue
April 29, 2002Tragic Rufus
Last night my wife and I saw Rufus Wainwright perform at Earthlink Live here in Atlanta, and were anything but dissapointed. Wainwright is simply too smart, too talented, and too damn pretty for his age - a classically trained child prodigy who writes insanely melodic, intricately laced compositions that sound like a modern adaptation of Tin Pan Alley mixed with...Continue
April 07, 2002Trading Spaces, Naked Chef on Sat. Night Live
God help me. Last night I discovered quite possibly the most ridiculously addicting show on cable (well, besides The Osbournes) - TLC's Trading Spaces. For those who haven't seen it, the premise goes like this. Find two families without a lick of interior design talent. Toss in a couple of professional interior designers to help both groups redesign a room...Continue
March 27, 2002Oscar Commercials: Winners and Losers
The Intermedia Advertising Group (IAG) today announced its research findings on how commercials performed during this year's 74th annual Academy Awards. Check out the winners and losers. People smiled warmly over Diet Pepsi, Apple's iMac ad, and Disney's "glass slipper," but couldn't remember anything about Cingular, UPS (I've been wondering how that "brown" campaign has been doing), and Sherman Williams....Continue
March 25, 2002The Oscars
I considered writing about the Oscars, but what's the point when Cintra Wilson over at Salon writes... Halle Berry made history last night, not so much for being the first African-American woman to win an Oscar in the best actress category, but for freaking horribly, uncontrollably out and making the worst, most hysterically rambling, discomfiting and liquefied acceptance speech in...Continue
March 24, 2002Country Radio, Where Art Thou?
Four years after Johnny Cash placed a full page ad in Billboard Magazine thanking (*cough*) country radio and the Nashville mafia for their support of his Grammy winning Unchained, a ground swell of critics are bemoaning the current state of FM country radio. How is it that in a year in when the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack won...Continue
March 18, 2002Revolution OS Tonight on Sundance
Sundance Film Channel is showing J.T.S. Moore's Revolution OS tonight at 9pm. Summary: In opposition to large corporations like Microsoft, many independent software creators are freely sharing program source code and collaborating internationally via the internet. This revolution has been dubbed the Open Source Movement and its story, told in this documentary by J.T.S. Moore, features interviews with computer visionaries,...Continue
March 16, 2002What's On Beck's ?
Click here to see....Continue
March 15, 2002Fox News, Please Grow Up
If you happen to flip on Fox News during lunch breaks or in the afternoons, you will often see live "Opinion Polls" where they pose questions and open the phone lines for callers. Most of the time the questions are empty, silly, and obvious, but today, just when I thought Fox News' reputation couldn't sink any lower, they jumped all...Continue
March 11, 20029|11 - The Documentary
I couldn't sleep last night after watching 9|11, the "accidental" documentary of the World Trade Center attacks captured by French filmmakers Jules and Gedeon Naudet. To see a clean, business-as-usual lobby full of uniformed people, desks, chairs, and bright sunlight pouring in the windows was like confronting a ghost. Watching the firefighters, quietly slinging oxygen tanks over the shoulders and...Continue
March 07, 2002Michael Greene, Part Two
The venerable music critic for The New York Times, Neil Strauss, has written an article that pretty well debunks the speech Michael Greene gave at the Grammys. [Free registration required] Turns out one of the three students "hired" was a minor, and that Greene's claim of "6,000 downloaded files" wasn't even true. A fave quote from Ken Waagner, a digital...Continue
March 04, 2002E-Dreams Tonight on Sundance
Boob-toob alert > tonight at 9pm ET Sundance is showing E-Dreams - a documentary chronicalling the dot-com bust of Kozmo.com. The documentary is part of a Hi-Tech Triple Feature with additional net related documentaries coming later, including "Startup.com" (Friday, March 22nd - 9pm ET) and "Revolution OS" (Monday, March 18th - 9pm ET) which tackles the Open Source Movement. Try...Continue
February 28, 2002Michael Greene at the Grammys
Last night at the Grammy Awards, NARAS director Michael Greene popped up on stage to deliver his annual self-serving speech about how "music is changing the world" and other fluffy, narcissist Hollywood crap. Except this time, acting like a wounded animal backed into a corner, Greene came out swinging against online music file trading. In a speech that border lined...Continue
February 24, 2002Impressions of Salt Lake
Tonight the sun will set on the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Up until now I haven't written a word about the games, though I have watched it just about every night for the past two weeks. I am by no means a sports fan, or expert, or someone who can intelligently compare the Olympics coverage to other...Continue
February 20, 2002Joey and Maria
What's happening on Wall St. What's happening at the Stock Exchange I want to know What's happening on Squawk Box What's happening with my stocks I want to know I watch you on the TV every single day Those eyes make everything okay I watch her every day I watch her every night She's really outta sight Maria Bartiromo Maria...Continue
February 18, 2002Rust Lust
Today is a very good day. After five long years of searching for a used copy of the infamous Complete Bill Evans On Verve box set, I finally found one for my record library. The Complete Bill Evans was, and still is, one of the most exhaustive retrospectives of any jazz musician in history. 18 CDs filled with the pianist's...Continue
February 15, 2002Fela Kuti's Funeral
Today, while looking around for discography information for the late great Nigerian superstar Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, I stumbled across some amateur videos of Fela's burial that makes western funerals seem awfully tame. It's encoded in RealVideo, and the video quality is poor, but you get the idea. What a way to go....Continue
Villain Chic
Hollywood villians must shop at the same furniture store. Whenever a set designer for a motion picture needs to portray a particularly vile character as being cold, calculating, or untrustworthy, they always plunk down in their evil lair a few Barcelona chairs offset by a Le Corbusier sofa. I'm not sure what it says about my profile, but if I...Continue
February 08, 2002Greta? Is That You? Part 4
Okay, I swear to God, this is the last time I post anything about Greta Van Susteren's facelift. I have absolutely no idea why I'm so intrigued, or borderline obsessed with this, but I just can't take my eyes off her, or get over how different she looks. Looks like the people at People thought it was a worthy enough...Continue
February 07, 2002Poor Misunderstood Moulin Rouge
A few weeks ago I wrote a lengthy impression of Baz Luhrmann's polarizing quasi-musical Moulin Rouge, and even to this day I'm running the movie over in my head. Is it a work of staggering genius? An apogee of Hollywood glamour and pop culture? Or just a silly gay romp? I still can't make up my mind. Looks like Salon...Continue
February 06, 2002But Britney, What About Me?
I didn't watch the Super Bowl, but I've seen just about all the ads that were shown during the telecast thanks to news outlets like CNN. Perhaps I live in a vacuum, but I didn't hear anything about the Britney Spears' Pepsi commerical leading up to Super Bowl Sunday. Truth be known, I could really care less. However after seeing...Continue
February 04, 2002Greta? Is That You? Part 3
Yes, Greta's new show on Fox debuted tonight. And yes, Greta took the smart route by announcing up front, within the first few minutes, that she would "talk" about "what she had done." And yes, she predictably waited until the very last minute of her maiden voyage to address her...alteration. Yet in the end, Greta wimped out. She explained, in...Continue
Greta? Is That You? Part 2
Holy smokes! I was planning on tuning in to Greta Van Susteren's debut on the Fox News Channel tonight (10pm ET) to see how she looks after undergoing what was rumored to be pretty major plastic surgery, but Fox News' website has a publicity photo of Greta ver. 2.0 already up. Now, the photo is kind of small, and press...Continue
February 01, 2002Greta? Is That You?
Greta Van Susteren, formerly of CNN, has moved over to Fox News Channel and will debut her new show, "On the Record" on Monday. Before joining rank with the other ladies in dripping wet lip gloss and tight skirts, Greta got a face-lift. Okay, we all know that face-lifts are standard game for the news biz (I once dated the...Continue
January 28, 2002CNN Redesigns...Again
After months of splashy, jagged, jumbo-sized typography and semi-transparent color bars on the bottom of the screen, CNN has changed their on-air graphics once again. Instead of the bold, loud, and useless headlines, which looked like Bodoni Italic run through a noise filter in Photoshop, CNN has gone back to a cleaner sans-serif face, less clutter, and a lot more...Continue
January 18, 200225 Most Intriguing People
If there's one magazine I can't stand to see sitting in front of me at the grocery store as I stand there with my sushi, tonic, and crackers, it's People. Thankfully, the "Farmer's Almanac of Celebrity Worth," aka Fametracker has tackled People's "25 Most Intriguing People" head-on. My favorite stab: #18 Diana Krall. "Why she's intriguing: America needs one jazz...Continue
January 13, 2002Moulin Rouge
Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge, a movie that has graced numerous "Best of 2001" and "Worst of 2001" critical nods, has been bouncing around in my cranium now for three days. I had little interest in seeing the movie while it was in theaters, partially because of that awful "Lady Marmalade" video MTV wouldn't stop airing, and the fact that Nicole...Continue
January 11, 2002Ethan Wins
I wasn't all that surprised that Ethan won the African version of CBS' Survivor last night, but what did surprise and utterly fool me was the location switcheroo they pulled on the audience at the show's end. Fortunately I had taped the show to watch later instead of live, so afterward I was able to rewind and try to find...Continue
January 09, 2002Zipper Zahn
My my. How truly sad it is to watch CNN's precipitous fall from grace. CNN has ripped from their airwaves a self-produced promo for Paula Zahn's new morning show, "America Morning." It goes something like this: with the sound of what seems to be a zipper in the background, a commentator ooohs-and-aaaahs over a smiling video of Zahn, "Where can...Continue
January 06, 2002MTV Cribs
Great. Just when I thought I was going to have a very productive Sunday, I flip on MTV during breakfast and see that they're having a Cribs marathon this afternoon. "Cribs" is the only MTV produced show I can stand to watch for more than a few minutes, mainly because it has nothing to do with MTV. If MTV could...Continue
December 27, 2001Fave Albums of 2001
My top 10...er, 13 fave albums of 2001 in no particular order. Avalanches - Since I Left YouManu Chao - Proxima Estacion:EsperanzaR–yksopp - Melody A.M.Cornelius - PointOzomatli - Embrace the ChaosBjork - VespertineRadio Tarifa - Cruzando el RioRufus Wainwright - PosesZero 7 - Simple ThingsJill Scott - ExperienceTravis - The Invisible BandKings of Convenience - Quiet is the New LoudDaft...Continue
December 14, 2001Buy Lynch
Is this a sign of where the web is going? No thanks. Besides, I'm still pissed over the last half of Lost Highway....Continue
December 11, 2001My Daddy Steals Cable
My digital cable television provider, AT&T Broadband, must have a plethora of dead advertising space to fill this holiday season. On every channel, day and night, you'll inevitably see one of their public service announcements. Child safety? Nope. Toys for Tots? Wrong again. No, it's that oh-so inspiring topic known as cable theft. AT&T seems to feel it's worth clogging...Continue
December 08, 2001Britney
Okay, I'll admit it. I actually watched a healthy portion of Britney Spears' HBO special, because I've tried, many times, to see her as the so-called "star" that Carson Daily and People Magazine seem to believe she is. In my eyes, she's always been just another vacuous peroxide blonde from South Florida (I have a certain personal distaste for women...Continue
November 30, 2001IT's Looking Real
After a few days of silence, mystery, and general confusion, the unveiling of IT, a.k.a. "Ginger" appears to be a bonafied news event. ABC News has posted confirmation to their web site that Good Morning America will indeed reveal IT next Monday....Continue
November 08, 2001Hey! Isn't That...?
Have you ever been watching television, seen someone and thought, damn...they look so familiar? I'm notoriously bad keeping names and faces straight, so I've never positively matched someone. My wife on the other hand, never forgets a face. Never. So last night, with the volume of megaton bomb, my wife ran through the house yelling that one of her old...Continue
October 03, 2001The West Wing
I'll admit it -- I rather enjoyed NBC's "The West Wing" when it premiered. I like dramas, despise most sitcoms, so the creation of an ER-like melodrama in the halls of the White House was just too good to pass up. And besides, that artful angelic lighting on Rob Lowe is oh-so magnetic. But then, damn't, the show became popular,...Continue
September 22, 2001Doh!
It looks like Homer may have been running the news desk over at Fox News Channel yesterday. In continuation of the network's "Fair and Balanced" style of inflammatory "journalism," the network ran an 800 number for "National Mental Health Assistance" throughout the day on Friday. The network blindly added the number to their newscast, which they received from an e-mail...Continue
September 18, 2001No "Killing an Arab?"
Handed down from the Clear Channel Communications mothership, a long list of 150 "Songs with Questionable Lyrics" that all DJs should avoid playing. There are some expected picks, like "Drop a Bomb on Me" and "It's the End of the World as We Know It," but some must have been selected by a song title database query, including "Fire and...Continue
September 08, 2001Zahn coming to CNN
I have had an ongoing fascination with the Fox News Channel for quite a long time -- not because of their transparently conservative editorial agenda, but because they constantly promote themselves as the "fair and balanced" news channel when they're obviously anything but. They're nothing more than a cheerleader for Bush, defending his every action, and brushing any criticism of...Continue
September 07, 2001MTV makes me wanna smoke crack
Ahhh yes, here we go again. The MTV Video Music Awards is quite possibly (no I take that back, IT IS) the most overhyped program in the history of television. For the past two weeks, MTV aired virtually nothing but self-promotional "specials" hyping the event. "Behind the Scenes at the VMAs" // "Classic Moments at the VMAs" // "VMA's Sexiest...Continue
September 06, 2001The Fourth Dimension
Tonight on the boob tube were two of the strangest celebrity interviews I've seen in quite a while. First up, Anne Heche interviewed by Barbara Walters on 20/20. In case you don't remember, the last thing most people remember about Heche, was that she was found by police about a year ago in the backyard of a stranger's house in...Continue
