And the Glee version, just for funsies.
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
New video & Tour Dates From fun.
When I first went to check out this video, I was going CRAZY because I knew I had heard the song but not the original version, so I kept wondering if it was a cover or what. Then I realized I had heard it on Glee. To be honest I think I like the Glee version better, but it's still a good song, a fun(.) video (...get it?) and Janelle Monae (*heart*) is in it briefly. The one other weird thing: it has more likes than it has views. How does that happen, YouTube? (Tour dates after the jump)
And the Glee version, just for funsies.
And the Glee version, just for funsies.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Friday Night Lights - Vol. 2 - GIVEAWAY!
Friday Night Lights is one of my favorite TV shows, so imagine my elation when the Friday Night Lights vol. 2 soundtrack showed up in my inbox. And I was even more excited when I was offered a signed copy to give away (signed by the band AM). The soundtrack is stellar, with lots of great indie rock and folk. So many of my favorite bands and songs! White Rabbits, Sufjan Stevens, Band of Skulls, The Avett Brothers, Heartless Bastards, A. A. Bondy... I really couldn't be much happier with the soundtrack - it's so reminiscent of all the best things about the show: the grit, the emotion, the contemplative quietness, the excitement, the tension. A great soundtrack for a great show.To enter to win (for all US and Canada readers), please email us with "I want the FNL soundtrack!" in the subject line and your name and address in the body (as always, we won't stalk you or anything, it just saves us all a step). You have until Friday, June 25th at 11:59 EST to enter. The winner will be announced on Saturday.
Sway [mp3] Heartless Bastards
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Thursday, May 14, 2009
Exclusive interview with Previously on Lost!
Last night I headed over to the Lost season 5 finale party at Bell House, at which my favorite recap band was playing. That's right, Previously On Lost. I had the pleasure of seeing them at the season 5 premiere party, also at Bell House, earlier this year. This time they obviously had a few new songs from season 5, so that was fun to see. Man, I really wish that I could see them perform before every episode of Lost that I watch. Anyway, I got the chance to ask the boys a few questions beforehand and here's what they had to say:
What made you decide to form a Lost recap band?
We're wholly dedicated to all JJ Abrams' earthly creations. We could have easily been a band devoted to Felicity as everything JJ touches becomes equal and "as one." But Lost was in our present, so we had to go with it. People think Lost is full of puzzles and unclear plot trajectories, but really it's all pretty simple to explain: they're havin' a blast on an island vacation retreat of a lifetime! Some people feel the need to speculate about things that haven't happened yet, but we like to focus on what's already happened and tell people about it with kazoos and casio keyboards. And we like the leisure luau lifestyle.
If you're wholly dedicated to JJ Abrams, are you going to do some Star Trek songs?
We completed a sci-fi opera about deep space travel last year called Champollion, so Star Trek is territory where we've already boldly gone. Listen to it at myspace.com/champollion. Star Trek is one of the greatest TV shows of all time and it would not be surprising if JJ becomes the first to successfully present a chapter that will be treasured beyond the loyal Star Trek fan base. If Michael Giacchino wants to team up to do Star Trek the animated series with us, we'd have to say "yes." Or Lost the animated series for that matter.
What are your plans for the band when Lost ends in May 2010? Are you going to dissolve the band, live on as a tribute band, or start recapping episodes of a different show?
I think you've received some incorrect information. Lost lives on. Always. If my sources are right, Lost will be the first show ever to run for 300 Seasons. Needless to say, we'll be in business for QUITE some time. Recap rock will always survive, we've got major plans to recap the 2010 World Cup, as possibly some historical educational recaps. We aim to push the boundaries as to what can and can't be recapped. Lost will likely be our only televised fictional subject matter, but anything is possible.
Who are your favorite Lost characters?
Let's start with our LEAST favorite: Jack. He's a crier and his hands are shaky. Dan Farraday is the greatest hero of Lost. Sawyer and Juliette are the smoken-est couple on the show (way hotter than Desmond and Penny no question). Kate and Jack don't deserve true love. Miles and Hurley have the best superpowers. Locke has the oldest soul and the baldest head.
If Dan Farraday is your favorite character, how did you react to his being killed in the second to last episode?
It was sad, for sure. But, as many already know , the sixth season will be the "zombie season" where every deceased character comes back to life for a series of challenges on the island. Whoever has Mr. Eko on their beach volleyball team is going to win for sure.
What do you think the deal is with the smoke monster?
I think she probably has one of most lucrative deals in show business, the first of it's kind for a cast member that is neither human nor animal. It's definitely one that's locked her in for the duration of the show, and really maintains a mandatory character development, which is awesome for her since the back-story is huge and it would be a shame to shortchange such a significant smoky history. I'm assuming there's a pretty solid rider that caters to the smoke monster's daily intake of trees and Lost extras, which craft services no doubt has under control.
How do you know the smoke monster is a "she"?
As with iguanas, it is difficult to tell smoke monster's gender at a young age, so when we first got her we weren't sure. But we started taking her on walks to the park and her behavioral patterns developed among other smoke monsters. People would ask us questions - "Oooohhh, how big does she get?" and "Have you had her fixed?" Finally, we took her to a vet, and had the sex determined for sure to be female. We would never get her fixed though.
What would be your ideal way for Lost to wrap up it's last season?
JJ ended Felicity by sending the college students back in time and reviewing an alternate chain of events, but with Lost...that already happened. So whatever JJ forsees will be done and treasured by all viewers without qualm or question (Carleton and Damon too I guess). For them to bust the space-time continuum beyond repair and have everything dissolve into abstract tropical dream where everyone rides polar bears while drinking Coronas would be fine. They don't have to explain the 4-toed statue. It's ok with me.
I know you guys have other side projects that I've heard are equally hilarious. Talk a little bit about those.
There's nothing funny about a space opera titled Champollion, inspired by the musings of Carl Sagan. There's something a little funny, but mostly endearing about a band dedicated to re-imagining old Disney and children's music, titled Long Live King Richard. There's something really funny about an absurdist hip hop group titled Berzerkulosis, with a single all about Big League Chew.
And on one final note, I (Em) have to say that I am both intrigued and slightly annoyed by the season finale. I can't wait for the new season to start, but that's mostly because they keep posing questions and not answering most of the millions we already had. Great cliffhanger though. Props for that.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Previously on Lost - The World's First (and so far only) Recap Band
On Wednesday night I had the privilege of being a part of something very special - a Lost season premiere watching party at the Bell House, before which the band Previously on Lost played. If you don't know, Previously on Lost is a recap band - the first and at this point only recap band, in fact. What does that mean you ask? It means that most (if not all) of their songs are recaps of various episodes of Lost.
Even if you're not a fan of the show Lost, you should definitely see these guys if you have a chance. They put on one of the most fun shows I've been to in a long time. They were a large band with a lot of energy and they were quite zany, with fun costumes (props to the guy in the speedo - that takes guts!) and cool instruments like a Theremin. My one wish was that the sound mixing were better because I found it really hard to understand the lyrics or hear the vocals a lot of the time, and the lyrics are part of the fun since they're recapping episodes of Lost. But considering how much fun I still had even though I couldn't understand half the lyrics, I would recommend them to even those of you who don't like the show Lost.
As for Lost itself, I would say they are off to a pretty good start this season - though I still wish they would close some loopholes instead of opening more and more and more and more. But they've definitely got my attention and it seemed like they had the attention of the couple hundred people at Bell House too. It's definitely more fun to watch it in a group and hear everyone's reactions. I highly recommend finding a bar that throws Lost parties and going. It's an interesting experience.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Tim Harrington (Les Savy Fav) is Beardo
Ok, so I am kind of in love with this little pitchfork channel starring the slightly outrageous Tim Harrington from Les Savy Fav. It's called Beardo, and it's (mostly) freaking hilarious. My favorite episode is actually "Ghost Writer," because I have a really dark sense of humor... But I posted the most recent episode because it's a song, because it is appropriate for this time of year, and because it has lots of cool guest stars.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog
I just found this amazingness starring the awesome Neil Patrick Harris and created by Joss Whedon (from the cult TV classic Buffy the Vampire Slayer). For those of you who particularly enjoyed the Buffy musical episode "Once More With Feeling," you will love this - a musical video blog by a guy trying to become a super-villain. Watch it, love it.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Combining My Loves
Here is the video I edited together for my friend that was a nice chance for me to combine my loves of music and film production. It's a trailer of sorts for a TV series or web series that my friend is going to pitch. This particular episode is about Ann Arbor, so it's got some familiar faces for those of you who read my blog regularly - Matt Jones, Chris Bathgate and Fred Thomas. Please keep in mind that I was not involved in the shooting so I am not responsible for the less-than-stellar sound and lighting (the girl who shot it has no background in film, so it's actually pretty good considering). Obviously if this became a series, my friend would not be doing the shooting herself. Also, the quality on youtube is super crappy. I promise it looks better than this uncompressed.
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Monday, March 3, 2008
We Need Girlfriends
I was perhaps a little late in stumbling upon this, as it's been around for a while, but I have a new obsession: We Need Girlfriends. We Need Girlfriends is a web series (which was picked up by CBS in November but hasn't been developed because of the strike) by three guys in New York. It sounds like it's kind of autobiographical (the show is about three guys in New York). As you can probably tell from the title, it's about them trying to find girlfriends or date. I discovered this little gem two weeks or so ago in a New York Times article. I went online and watched the first episode - less than 6 minutes long - and I loved it. The production value was low, true, and it seemed a little bit amateurish, but it was funny and awkward and it had a lot of heart. They have done 11 episodes in all, plus a few holiday messages. I have to say, they've gotten much stronger with each episode, like the boys found their groove.
My favorite character is Henry. I even bought the "Team Henry" t-shirt (see left), available on their website... Yeah, I'm that big a dork. But I'll feel really cool when the show hits the airwaves and I will have had the shirt long before. Henry (played by Seth Kirschner) is the lovable, extremely awkward, least confident one of the bunch. Rod (Evan Bass) is the overly-confident, chauvenistic pig and general all around jerk of the group. And Tom (Patrick Cohen) is the sensitive balance between - the straight man in a sense, as he counters Henry and Rod's antics.The show is really quite sweet, but I can't help like feel that maybe there should be a girl version. Because Sex and the City is not really an accurate representation of most NYC girls' dating experiences, and for those slightly awkward girls like me, it would be refreshing to see similar female characters to these guys - who weren't rich, fashionistas and maybe had a little trouble getting a guy every now and then (because as all single NYC girls know, we way out number the single guys in this city, so we're at a very unfair advantage).
I'm not really sure when it will be airing on CBS, but hopefully soon, so keep your eyes peeled. Oh and for those of you who want to carry We Need Girlfriends with you on your commute, you can download the episodes for free as podcasts on iTunes.
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Saturday, December 15, 2007
Kid Nation
This week was the season finale of the CBS reality series, "Kid Nation." Before the show even aired it caused a great deal of controversy with legal disputes about child labor laws and the like. Dealing with kids is always messy legally, which is why I think most networks have avoided it until now. But frankly, I think "Kid Nation" is one of the most innovative reality shows on television and even though I didn't start watching until almost half way through the season, I became completely addicted. I think the concept - of taking 40 kids and putting them in a little miniature town away from the rest of society, without TVs and the internet and other various luxuries, and without adults - is pretty genius.Of course, saying that they were completely on their own without adults is a lie. There's the obnoxious host who shows up for the challenges and town hall meetings - both of which are adult designed. In fact, the kids may not have to follow specific rules about things like when to go to bed or when to do the dishes, but the whole structure of the show and their time in "Bonanza" is adult-manipulated and scheduled - from the basic organization of the town into districts with a town council to the reading of the "journal" that clues them in to what they should be doing (which usually is what the challenges revolve around too) for the next few days to the challenges that decide what "class" each "district" is (and in turn decides their jobs and their wages) to the ritual town hall meetings where they give away $20,000 (in the form of a solid gold star) to one deserving kid. And the rewards that the kids received for winning the challenges were always totally loaded and manipulative - like the episode where they had to pick between religious texts and a put-put course. I mean, the kids are smart enough to know that if they didn't pick the religious texts, the world would point fingers and say "look at what our children have become!" but I bet you a million dollars that the kids deep down inside really wanted that put-put course. And why shouldn't they? They're kids. They should enjoy their youth while they still can. They have the rest of their lives to figure out their spirituality.
But the best parts of the show were the parts that weren't so adult manipulated - like when kids would come up with ideas of their own to make things and sell them for money (yay for future entrepreneurs of the world) or when they would get in fights and make up an hour later because they realize that holding grudges just isn't worth it. These kids on this show were so mature sometimes, it was pretty impressive. Kids are much wiser than people give them credit for. My favorite quote of the whole season came from the finale when DK said something to affect of "As a leader, my decisions affect other people, not just me. I have to remember that there are other people out there." Our current administration could learn a thing or too from these kids. DK said it much better than that too and he's 14. I think he probably came out with the most wise quotes of any of the kids. But almost all of the kids had their moments of wise revelation. And I think "Kid Nation" shows us that kids are sometimes wiser than adults - or they see things more clearly - because they don't have so much baggage and stuff from life influencing their thoughts and actions and they haven't been influenced by society for as long. And all of the kids - even the most spoiled of brats at the beginning - grew and became better people by the end, and I think that just goes to show that part of the reason kids are like that in the first place is because of adults.
Overall, despite a rather excessive amount of manipulation (but it wouldn't be reality TV without it...) I think this show is probably one of the highest quality reality TV shows on the air. I laughed and I cried (a lot actually...) and I felt uplifted and maybe a little less afraid for the future of this country. I think if adults can watch it and reflect on the wisdom of these kids, we could all learn a few things. Plus I think it's just a really neat idea that no one else has really had the guts to tackle. I'm really glad that despite all the legal hullabaloo it looks as if there may be a Kid Nation 2 (applications were due back in October).
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Saturday, October 6, 2007
Friday Night Lights
Taking a slight departure from music today... Back at the New York TV Festival earlier this fall, I won the 1st season of Friday Night Lights on DVD. I had never seen the show and I didn't think I was going to like it based on the subject matter (I am not a big football fan), but it was free and I was bored one day so I popped in disc 1. I think I watched three episodes in one sitting. And I proceeded to watch 2-3 episodes every single day after that until I finished the 1st season. I was completely addicted and I was very disappointed when I finished the 1st season and found out it was going to be 3 whole weeks until the 2nd season started. I may have even gone through withdrawl.Some stuff about the show takes a little getting used to, like the grainy look and the shaky hand-held camera work. But you get so sucked into the plot and the characters that you get used to the raw style of it and you stop noticing. The two things I don't like about the show: I have to suspend disbelief quite a bit at times (like Jason - who hasn't even technically graduated high school - being hired as an assistant coach). And, in the first season, there was an episodic formula where each episode revolved around a game and somehow the stakes for every single game were so high and they would be losing until the very last minute and they would make a touchdown just as time ran out and win it. That little formula started to annoy me.
One thing I love about the show is the characters. My favorite character is Tim Riggins. He could easily be a one-dimensional "macho, getting in fights all the time, jerk" type character. But he's much more complex than that. In fact most, if not all, of the characters are complex - rarity in TV these days.
The Season 2 premiere was last night, and I can't say I loved it. However, the previews for the next episode and rumors that I've heard gave me lots of hope for the coming season. Some parts of the premiere were great, but others were not. What's with Julie being so angsty and bitchy? She was so well-adjusted before. And I was very unhappy in the preview for next episode when it showed her kissing "The Swede." And why do they call him "The Swede"? He's not Swedish. But like I said, everything I've heard gives me great hope for the coming season. And I did like how they didn't follow the episodic formula from last season. In fact, there wasn't even a game in this episode. I wonder what they're going to do when half the main characters graduate at the end of the season.
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Monday, September 24, 2007
Getting the ball rolling
So a friend of mine and I are shooting a TV pilot. We have been trying to put this together for a while and it's finally getting moving. I'm really excited, but stressed. And I have been so busy the past few days that I actually haven't really had time to listen to much music. So today's post is going to be film related, since that is all I have been doing the past few days. I'm going to post on the subject of casting. Actors, pay attention.
Here are some rules that I thought were very obvious that actors are supposed to follow when they are applying for roles, but apparently I was wrong and some people don't know this stuff:
1. Send your headshot. If you don't, you're stupid. We need your headshot. And the only reason I can see for not sending one is if you know you don't fit the role or if you are dumb. In either case, I don't want to work with you.
2. If you know you don't fit the role, don't even apply. We don't appreciate our time being wasted and you shouldn't want to waste your time either applying for jobs you know you're not right for and you're not going to get. For example, if it says "white/caucasian" then don't apply unless you're white. It's not that we're racist but sometimes (like in my case) we already have some roles cast and my white, blonde actress' fraternal twin brother can't be Indian. Sorry. If it says the character is 26, don't apply if you're 60. Even if you're 30, unless you look younger, don't apply. We're not going to change the age of our character for you. If someone puts that the character is 26 they have something very specific in mind. If they put that the character is 30-50 then clearly the age of the character is more flexible and then maybe you can apply.
3. Send professional, clear headshots. We don't want to see pictures you took in Photo Booth, we don't want to see pictures of you that you photoshoped all sorts of weird effects on, and we want to be able to see what you look like so the picture had better not be grainy or blurry.
Now, hopefully all of you reading this are thinking "duh." Because that's what you should be thinking. But I am really honestly appalled at some of the submissions we've been getting. I would've thought people who wanted to be professional actors would know better. We've especially been having trouble with guys. The girls actually seem to get it for the most part and have only been applying for roles they fit. But we haven't gotten a single guy that fits the description we posted.
I guess it's because we made the mistake of posting to Craigslist. We posted a bunch of other places too - slightly more exclusive casting postings - and Craigslist was kind of "well, we might as well just in case we get one or two gems." But seriously actors, if you use Craigslist that doesn't give you the right to be stupid or lazy or unprofessional.
Here are some rules that I thought were very obvious that actors are supposed to follow when they are applying for roles, but apparently I was wrong and some people don't know this stuff:
1. Send your headshot. If you don't, you're stupid. We need your headshot. And the only reason I can see for not sending one is if you know you don't fit the role or if you are dumb. In either case, I don't want to work with you.
2. If you know you don't fit the role, don't even apply. We don't appreciate our time being wasted and you shouldn't want to waste your time either applying for jobs you know you're not right for and you're not going to get. For example, if it says "white/caucasian" then don't apply unless you're white. It's not that we're racist but sometimes (like in my case) we already have some roles cast and my white, blonde actress' fraternal twin brother can't be Indian. Sorry. If it says the character is 26, don't apply if you're 60. Even if you're 30, unless you look younger, don't apply. We're not going to change the age of our character for you. If someone puts that the character is 26 they have something very specific in mind. If they put that the character is 30-50 then clearly the age of the character is more flexible and then maybe you can apply.
3. Send professional, clear headshots. We don't want to see pictures you took in Photo Booth, we don't want to see pictures of you that you photoshoped all sorts of weird effects on, and we want to be able to see what you look like so the picture had better not be grainy or blurry.
Now, hopefully all of you reading this are thinking "duh." Because that's what you should be thinking. But I am really honestly appalled at some of the submissions we've been getting. I would've thought people who wanted to be professional actors would know better. We've especially been having trouble with guys. The girls actually seem to get it for the most part and have only been applying for roles they fit. But we haven't gotten a single guy that fits the description we posted.
I guess it's because we made the mistake of posting to Craigslist. We posted a bunch of other places too - slightly more exclusive casting postings - and Craigslist was kind of "well, we might as well just in case we get one or two gems." But seriously actors, if you use Craigslist that doesn't give you the right to be stupid or lazy or unprofessional.
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Tuesday, September 11, 2007
New York TV Festival
I spent a large portion of my time this weekend at the New York TV Festival. There were some really great ideas, and some pilots that were really well done technically, but it seemed like most of them either had one or the other and very few actually had both. Overall though, I'm really glad I went. I did get to see one that my professor directed and two of my friends were in - "The Band." I felt cool sitting with the cast. And theirs was actually pretty good. Not a show I would watch on TV (because of the content... a little too ABC Family for my tastes) but it was well made and well acted. And one of my favorite pilots - "Here On Earth" - had two friends of mine in it too, which I didn't know until right beforehand. This one was very much like The Office, but on the set of a public access documentary show. It was pretty great. Very dry humor. I also really liked "The Agency," though I have to admit I didn't totally understand a few things about it and I'm not sure I would watch it due to its content either. The acting was good though and it looked great, and it's an interesting idea - an agency of guardian angels.
Anyway, today is going to be a crazy day for me as the boss comes back from being in France today and UPS screwed us over so we have no furniture in our office, so I'm going to keep this brief and just post a few songs I like at the moment.
Anyway, today is going to be a crazy day for me as the boss comes back from being in France today and UPS screwed us over so we have no furniture in our office, so I'm going to keep this brief and just post a few songs I like at the moment.
Ingots [mp3] - Kaki King - "Legs to Make Us Longer" (iTunes)
G.P.T. [mp3] - Martha Wainwright - "Martha Wainwright" (iTunes)
The Get Go [mp3] - New Young Pony Club - "Fantastic Playroom" (iTunes)
G.P.T. [mp3] - Martha Wainwright - "Martha Wainwright" (iTunes)
The Get Go [mp3] - New Young Pony Club - "Fantastic Playroom" (iTunes)
Monday, September 10, 2007
"It's Britney, Bitch"
Despite my blog title "Guilt Free Pleasures" and the fact that I try really hard to not feel guilty or bad about liking things that other people might look down on me for (I try to just be who I am and like what I like), I have always had a little trouble admitting my love for Britney Spears out loud.
But here it is. I love Britney Spears. Her music is catchy and danceable, and she puts on a great performance. She's a mess, but I honestly don't think that's entirely her fault. I am pretty sure I would be a mess if I grew up the way that she did - in the public spotlight under the constant scrutiny of the paparazzi with all sorts of people pushing her to be a certain way or using her for her money and fame. As George Clooney said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, I would be shooting coke under my eyeballs if I had to deal with that stuff too, especially at such a young age.
I really want Britney to come back. I want her to succeed - to rise above all this crap she has to deal with and to say "I'm back and I'm better than ever. Screw you all for the way you've treated me." I just don't know if Britney wants to come back... In fact, I'm not so sure she ever wanted any of this in the first place and I sometimes wonder if maybe her super duper stage mom didn't push her into a career she wasn't ready for or really wanted. I mean, every little kid "wants to be famous" because they don't know about the bad things that come with fame, and so it's easy to get caught up in that if your parents are pushing you to be a star at a young age and you're actually successful. And I'm sure she enjoyed/enjoys performing. But I wonder if that was ever really her dream, or if she just assumed it was because that's the life she lived and she never knew anything different.
I know the internet has been buzzing with her new tracks. Unfortunately, it seems like everyone just loves to hate on the poor girl right now. While I will agree Cold As Fire [mp3] is pretty bad and I hate the affected baby voice she sings in for that song (she sounds younger than in "...Baby One More Time"), I actually really like Gimme More [mp3]. It's no Toxic, but it's a solid, sexy dance song. People are saying "it's not original" and things like that. But hello? It's Britney Spears. We don't listen to her because she's breaking new musical ground. We listen to her because you can dance to her music, it's catchy, and you have a good time. It's not like she's the one even writing most of the stuff anyway. And I think it's definitely a good start to a comeback.
Last night Britney opened the VMA's. Beforehand, the way people were talking, it seemed like how she did was going to determine the entire rest of her career and this whole comeback business. Like, if she failed last night, she would've been written off for good. I myself do not have cable so I was unable to actually watch the performance live. But thanks to the miracle of the internet, I got to see it about one hour later. I think she looked good. Her performance was definitely not one of her most impressive and everyone's loving to hate on that too. The dancing was mediocre at best (which is really her strength...). And I have to admit she looked a little nervous. But, especially for someone who had two kids, a nervous breakdown of sorts and shaved her head, she looked good in her little sparkly bikini costume, blonde wig (it actually looked pretty real to me and it didn't fall off, which is key) and high-heeled stiletto boots (which I'm pretty sure weren't easy to walk in, much less dance in). And I'm sure she felt the pressure for this performance to go over well, so I can understand her being a nervous. And the most important thing: there were no major disasters. She didn't throw up or pass out or fall down. Her wig didn't fall off. She didn't attack anyone with an umbrella. She showed up and on time as far as I know. So maybe this is a new - though cautious - beginning for Ms. Spears. I just wish she would stop partying so hard and hanging out with the likes of Paris Hilton. But maybe she can get on the right track yet.Here's to you Britney. May your comeback be splendid and may you rise above all the crap in your life to find happiness. Tata dahlings.
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Tuesday, August 21, 2007
So You Think You Can Dance?
Television generally kind of sucks during the summer, especially for people like me who don't have cable and tend not to like reality TV. However, there is one reality TV show I've really gotten into and that is So You Think You Can Dance. Seeing as the season just ended a few days ago, I thought I would write a post about it.
I love this show for a lot of reasons:
1. The dancing is so much fun.
2. It actually takes a great deal of talent, unlike a lot of other reality/competition/game shows where people get famous for just being extreme personalities. You have to compete in all different kinds of dance, so almost no matter how much training you've had, you really have to learn quickly.
3. It's bringing dance back as a popular medium. There aren't really many famous dancers out there right now that people who aren't really into the dance world know.
I stumbled on the show toward the end of last season (2nd season) and was immediately addicted. I was really happy when Benji won, because I really thought he deserved it - although I really liked all of the final four last year and thought they were all amazing.
This season I started watching from the beginning, although I definitely missed a lot of episodes. I have to say, despite how much the judges went on and on about the level of talent this season, I didn't really feel most of them were all that spectacular and I was not as happy with the final four this season. My two favorites were Pasha (who was in the final 6) and Sara (who was in the final 8). Pasha had a lot of training so I'm not surprised he was so good, but he just seemed super sweet and down-to-earth. Sara was a B-girl with (I believe) no formal training and she just kicked ass round after round. I was so impressed. And she is one of the few girls who didn't rely so completely on her "hotness" factor (meaning she didn't dress like a slut at every opportunity, because she is plenty gorgeous). She was also one of the less ditzy girls, which was refreshing. I was very disappointed when both of them got eliminated and I have to say I think the voters made the wrong choice.
Unlike last year, where I had a hard time choosing who I thought should win because all of the final four were just so awesome, this year I had a hard time choosing because I really didn't like any of them. Of the final four, though, I was glad that Sabra won. Lacey is a good dancer, but she certainly had the training for it (I think she may have had more training than anyone else in the top 10 if not on the entire show in general) and she just seems so phony and she is always performing out to the audience instead of really living in the moment of the dance with her partner. Plus she doesn't even really seem to like dance that much. She quit numerous times in her life and only took it back up when her brother, Benji, won last year's show - seems like a competitive thing to me or fame-seeking moreso than a love of dance. Danny is also very good, but I didn't think he did so well across all mediums. He was good at what he did, but he had some trouble with other genres. And Neil... he actually is not really a very memorable person in my mind. I was really surprised when he was in the final four because I was kind of like "who?" I'm not going to give an opinion about his dancing because I honestly can only call to mind one of the numbers he's done (although I did like that one). Sabra was very good across all mediums, not fake like Lacey, and she has only been dancing for four years, which is pretty unbelievable. I think she definitely deserved to be in the final four. But I still wish that Pasha or Sara had won because those two stood out consistently to me as very good, whereas Sabra didn't really start standing out to me until the toward the end. If I had my way, the final four would've been Sabra, Danny, Pasha and Sara.
Other people I liked who got voted off rather early so I can't really say too much about them were Ricki (voted off in the first round of the top 20... I think he could've gone really far if he had made it past that round and I think Cedric deserved to go a whole lot more than he did. Plus he seemed like a really interesting character), Hok (who made it to the top 12 and was such an interesting character, seemed like a very nice guy, and did very well in the various mediums for a B-boy. Plus I'm a sucker for accents), Kameron (I knew somebody who knew him, so I felt like I should route for him, and he just seemed like a cool guy) and Jessi (who I actually hated at first and was not that impressed by, but I felt really bad for her when she couldn't dance because she was in the hospital and then she got eliminated. I felt like she did really well in her solo and when she re-did the dance with Pasha and she didn't deserve to be kicked off that round because the other two girls' solos sucked. I think she probably got eliminated because she was a "liability" to the show).
The two things I don't like about the show:
1. Mary Murphy. That woman is possibly the most annoying woman on earth. Every time she speaks I want to gouge my eardrums out with a fork.
2. The ration of dancing to extra stuff. So much talking. When the judges are critiquing that's one thing. But there's so much inner-promoting (ie of Hairspray) and I just wish that there was more dancing and less other stuff, because the dancing is what's so awesome about the show.
I'm glad they got picked up for one more season though. To keep with the music theme, I will post an artist that the show introduced me to, Roisin Murphy:
Here are some good "highlights reels" of sorts for the third season. Not that these were necessarily my favorites, but they're all pretty good. The last one on here is one of my all time faves though because it's really cool and it is my two favorite dancers together:
And from Season 2, the Benji/Travis one at the end of this one is one of my faves. And I think one of the Roisin Murphy songs is in this one (it's in one of the season 2 highlights reels):
I love this show for a lot of reasons:
1. The dancing is so much fun.
2. It actually takes a great deal of talent, unlike a lot of other reality/competition/game shows where people get famous for just being extreme personalities. You have to compete in all different kinds of dance, so almost no matter how much training you've had, you really have to learn quickly.
3. It's bringing dance back as a popular medium. There aren't really many famous dancers out there right now that people who aren't really into the dance world know.
I stumbled on the show toward the end of last season (2nd season) and was immediately addicted. I was really happy when Benji won, because I really thought he deserved it - although I really liked all of the final four last year and thought they were all amazing.
This season I started watching from the beginning, although I definitely missed a lot of episodes. I have to say, despite how much the judges went on and on about the level of talent this season, I didn't really feel most of them were all that spectacular and I was not as happy with the final four this season. My two favorites were Pasha (who was in the final 6) and Sara (who was in the final 8). Pasha had a lot of training so I'm not surprised he was so good, but he just seemed super sweet and down-to-earth. Sara was a B-girl with (I believe) no formal training and she just kicked ass round after round. I was so impressed. And she is one of the few girls who didn't rely so completely on her "hotness" factor (meaning she didn't dress like a slut at every opportunity, because she is plenty gorgeous). She was also one of the less ditzy girls, which was refreshing. I was very disappointed when both of them got eliminated and I have to say I think the voters made the wrong choice.
Unlike last year, where I had a hard time choosing who I thought should win because all of the final four were just so awesome, this year I had a hard time choosing because I really didn't like any of them. Of the final four, though, I was glad that Sabra won. Lacey is a good dancer, but she certainly had the training for it (I think she may have had more training than anyone else in the top 10 if not on the entire show in general) and she just seems so phony and she is always performing out to the audience instead of really living in the moment of the dance with her partner. Plus she doesn't even really seem to like dance that much. She quit numerous times in her life and only took it back up when her brother, Benji, won last year's show - seems like a competitive thing to me or fame-seeking moreso than a love of dance. Danny is also very good, but I didn't think he did so well across all mediums. He was good at what he did, but he had some trouble with other genres. And Neil... he actually is not really a very memorable person in my mind. I was really surprised when he was in the final four because I was kind of like "who?" I'm not going to give an opinion about his dancing because I honestly can only call to mind one of the numbers he's done (although I did like that one). Sabra was very good across all mediums, not fake like Lacey, and she has only been dancing for four years, which is pretty unbelievable. I think she definitely deserved to be in the final four. But I still wish that Pasha or Sara had won because those two stood out consistently to me as very good, whereas Sabra didn't really start standing out to me until the toward the end. If I had my way, the final four would've been Sabra, Danny, Pasha and Sara.
Other people I liked who got voted off rather early so I can't really say too much about them were Ricki (voted off in the first round of the top 20... I think he could've gone really far if he had made it past that round and I think Cedric deserved to go a whole lot more than he did. Plus he seemed like a really interesting character), Hok (who made it to the top 12 and was such an interesting character, seemed like a very nice guy, and did very well in the various mediums for a B-boy. Plus I'm a sucker for accents), Kameron (I knew somebody who knew him, so I felt like I should route for him, and he just seemed like a cool guy) and Jessi (who I actually hated at first and was not that impressed by, but I felt really bad for her when she couldn't dance because she was in the hospital and then she got eliminated. I felt like she did really well in her solo and when she re-did the dance with Pasha and she didn't deserve to be kicked off that round because the other two girls' solos sucked. I think she probably got eliminated because she was a "liability" to the show).
The two things I don't like about the show:
1. Mary Murphy. That woman is possibly the most annoying woman on earth. Every time she speaks I want to gouge my eardrums out with a fork.
2. The ration of dancing to extra stuff. So much talking. When the judges are critiquing that's one thing. But there's so much inner-promoting (ie of Hairspray) and I just wish that there was more dancing and less other stuff, because the dancing is what's so awesome about the show.
I'm glad they got picked up for one more season though. To keep with the music theme, I will post an artist that the show introduced me to, Roisin Murphy:
Night of the Dancing Flame [mp3] - Roisin Murphy - "Ruby Blue" (iTunes)
Rama Lama (Bang Bang) [mp3] - Roisin Murphy - "Ruby Blue" (iTunes)
Rama Lama (Bang Bang) [mp3] - Roisin Murphy - "Ruby Blue" (iTunes)
Here are some good "highlights reels" of sorts for the third season. Not that these were necessarily my favorites, but they're all pretty good. The last one on here is one of my all time faves though because it's really cool and it is my two favorite dancers together:
Oh, but I have to say for this one that, as happy as I am that they used "The Moment I Said It" by Imogen Heap (one of my favorite songs of all time), I'm not sure I like the dance that was choreographed for it. And I thought that the dance at the end with the flowers wasn't really that impressive. I felt like people only praised it so much because of the fact that the choreographer was like "this is about my father who passed away last year." I mean, you can't say it's bad after she says something like that:
And from Season 2, the Benji/Travis one at the end of this one is one of my faves. And I think one of the Roisin Murphy songs is in this one (it's in one of the season 2 highlights reels):
And the park bench one is probably my all time fave from both seasons (I know a lot of people love it, but it's just really beautiful and truly moving):
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Monday, July 16, 2007
Let them eat cake
Last night I went to see Anni Rossi at the Cake Shop. Anni Rossi went to my high school. I didn't know her or anything. We didn't have classes together and we never spoke, but I had seen her perform at the music concerts (I went to an arts high school) and thought she was very talented. I also really liked her because I hated the Arts High School and she wrote a song called "Arts High" making fun of the school (although she probably meant it in a loving way, whereas I did not). Anyway, so I happened to notice that she was playing at Cake Shop, so I thought I would go.
We didn't see the first band (we were eating delicious - but expensive - vegan "death by chocolate" cake). But we did catch the second band, The Mad Gregs. I actually didn't think I would like them based on what I had listened to on their MySpace (I fell asleep listening to it before the show, which doesn't make it bad but I didn't think it would make the best concert-going experience). However, I was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed them. Their music, while very calm, still kept my interest. They played all sorts of different kinds of instruments - synthesizers, bass clarinet, glockenspiels, their laptops, and they even used the cords to the amp to make music, among other things. It was really neat. And the guys were so adorable and sweet and awkward. I wanted to hug every single one of them. One of them at one point was like "awkward is the theme of the night" because everyone thought they were done but they weren't.
Awkward definitely was the theme of the night too, as I knew Anni Rossi wouldn't remember me (she had no reason to. I wasn't in music and we never had any classes together) but my mean and cruel friends made me (there was lots of pushing, dragging and threatening involved) go talk to her about the arts high school. It was so awkward. No, make that mortifying. I wanted to die. She didn't remember me. I didn't expect her to. It would've been fine if I just went up and bought the CDs and told her great show. She never would've known who I was. But no. My friends just had to make me embarass myself.
But so back to the music. So then Anni Rossi went up. It was just her and her viola. She's definitely gotten better since high school, though her style is still very similar. Considering that a large portion of the show was just her and her viola, I was quite impressed at how full her songs sounded and how engaging she was. Plus, having played the violin myself, I know it is not necessarily easy to sing and play an instrument that is supposed to be held under your chin. But she makes it look quite effortless. I wish there had been a piano there because she's an amazing pianist too, and it would've been nice to see her show off all of her skills. And it was definitely much more engaging when The Mad Gregs came up and played with her for her last few songs. She's much more impressive with a band behind her. If you like Regina Spektor, you'll like Anni Rossi. Unfortunately for Anni Rossi, this means she will probably be compared to Regina Spektor all her life, as she has a very similar sound (not to say that Anni is influenced by Regina or not. I suspect when she first started writing music, she hadn't been since Regina Spektor wasn't really on the radar 6 years ago, which means she came up with that style all on her own.)
Lastly was Boo & Boo Too, who (the opposite of The Mad Gregs) I expected to like but didn't. The music on their myspace kind of reminded me of Electric Six (who I'm seeing in concert, on a cruise, on Thursday! yay!) and so I expected them to be really interesting performers. They weren't really. Before they started playing, they turned everything up about as loud as it would go for no real reason since we were in such a small venue. Luckily they provided ear plugs. But this further made me expect a really high energy, interesting performance. I must say I was disappointed. Besides a lot of flailing and twitching by the guitar players (which was only interesting for a few minutes), they basically lacked energy. The one flailing about the most wasn't even on the stage (there wouldn't have been room for him to flail) and had his back toward the audience basically the entire time. And at least one of them (if not all of them) was totally wasted and kept falling off the stage (the stage was only like 4 inches off the ground, but still). Plus I hate people who act like rock stars when they're not and the wasted guitar player at one point knocked the microphone stand over for no reason really aggressively, which is just disrespectful to expensive equipment. If you can't afford to replace it, that means you don't have enough credibility/reason to throw it on the ground. Sorry guys.
Overall, last night was a positive experience. I also watched a few episodes of Flight of the Conchords with one of my mean and cruel friends (I don't have cable so it was my first time seeing the show). I highly recommend it. The great thing about it is how they are just so deadpan. Plus it's kind of a musical and it takes place in NY, which immediately gives it bonus points in my book. The musical sequences are hilarious. And Jermaine looks just like this Czech guy who worked with my study abroad program in Prague. It's kinda weird actually.
Ok, sorry these songs took me so long to put up. I actually had to work at work today... imagine that ;-) And I haven't even really had much of a chance to listen to her CDs, so I will post some old songs from the arts high school too. I think she is one of those artists that I like live better...
First is Ecology, though I like the version on her myspace better (odd that the best one isn't on her CD...). Next we have Venice. I really like this one. I feel like she may have done it in high school, or something similar because it sounds so familiar to me. I wish the song was mixed better. Her voice is so quiet and distant-sounding.
Now I'm going to post some of the live recordings of songs she performed at the Arts High School so you can hear how awesome she is at the piano: Arts High, Unwrinkled T-shirt, and Sleepy Head. I don't actually know if that's what the titles were, but that's what I call them. I just have these CDs from our concerts with no labels of any kind... And sorry to the guy on Unwrinkled T-shirt because I have no idea who it is. Unwrinkled T-shirt is probably my favorite. Sleepy Head was a good example of some of the more experimental music she did (and believe me it got way more experimental than that). And actually, maybe I'll post Public Transportation too. I'm pretty sure that is the correct title of that one. She performed that one a lot and it was an Arts High fave.
We didn't see the first band (we were eating delicious - but expensive - vegan "death by chocolate" cake). But we did catch the second band, The Mad Gregs. I actually didn't think I would like them based on what I had listened to on their MySpace (I fell asleep listening to it before the show, which doesn't make it bad but I didn't think it would make the best concert-going experience). However, I was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed them. Their music, while very calm, still kept my interest. They played all sorts of different kinds of instruments - synthesizers, bass clarinet, glockenspiels, their laptops, and they even used the cords to the amp to make music, among other things. It was really neat. And the guys were so adorable and sweet and awkward. I wanted to hug every single one of them. One of them at one point was like "awkward is the theme of the night" because everyone thought they were done but they weren't.
Awkward definitely was the theme of the night too, as I knew Anni Rossi wouldn't remember me (she had no reason to. I wasn't in music and we never had any classes together) but my mean and cruel friends made me (there was lots of pushing, dragging and threatening involved) go talk to her about the arts high school. It was so awkward. No, make that mortifying. I wanted to die. She didn't remember me. I didn't expect her to. It would've been fine if I just went up and bought the CDs and told her great show. She never would've known who I was. But no. My friends just had to make me embarass myself.
But so back to the music. So then Anni Rossi went up. It was just her and her viola. She's definitely gotten better since high school, though her style is still very similar. Considering that a large portion of the show was just her and her viola, I was quite impressed at how full her songs sounded and how engaging she was. Plus, having played the violin myself, I know it is not necessarily easy to sing and play an instrument that is supposed to be held under your chin. But she makes it look quite effortless. I wish there had been a piano there because she's an amazing pianist too, and it would've been nice to see her show off all of her skills. And it was definitely much more engaging when The Mad Gregs came up and played with her for her last few songs. She's much more impressive with a band behind her. If you like Regina Spektor, you'll like Anni Rossi. Unfortunately for Anni Rossi, this means she will probably be compared to Regina Spektor all her life, as she has a very similar sound (not to say that Anni is influenced by Regina or not. I suspect when she first started writing music, she hadn't been since Regina Spektor wasn't really on the radar 6 years ago, which means she came up with that style all on her own.)
Lastly was Boo & Boo Too, who (the opposite of The Mad Gregs) I expected to like but didn't. The music on their myspace kind of reminded me of Electric Six (who I'm seeing in concert, on a cruise, on Thursday! yay!) and so I expected them to be really interesting performers. They weren't really. Before they started playing, they turned everything up about as loud as it would go for no real reason since we were in such a small venue. Luckily they provided ear plugs. But this further made me expect a really high energy, interesting performance. I must say I was disappointed. Besides a lot of flailing and twitching by the guitar players (which was only interesting for a few minutes), they basically lacked energy. The one flailing about the most wasn't even on the stage (there wouldn't have been room for him to flail) and had his back toward the audience basically the entire time. And at least one of them (if not all of them) was totally wasted and kept falling off the stage (the stage was only like 4 inches off the ground, but still). Plus I hate people who act like rock stars when they're not and the wasted guitar player at one point knocked the microphone stand over for no reason really aggressively, which is just disrespectful to expensive equipment. If you can't afford to replace it, that means you don't have enough credibility/reason to throw it on the ground. Sorry guys.
Overall, last night was a positive experience. I also watched a few episodes of Flight of the Conchords with one of my mean and cruel friends (I don't have cable so it was my first time seeing the show). I highly recommend it. The great thing about it is how they are just so deadpan. Plus it's kind of a musical and it takes place in NY, which immediately gives it bonus points in my book. The musical sequences are hilarious. And Jermaine looks just like this Czech guy who worked with my study abroad program in Prague. It's kinda weird actually.
Ok, sorry these songs took me so long to put up. I actually had to work at work today... imagine that ;-) And I haven't even really had much of a chance to listen to her CDs, so I will post some old songs from the arts high school too. I think she is one of those artists that I like live better...
First is Ecology, though I like the version on her myspace better (odd that the best one isn't on her CD...). Next we have Venice. I really like this one. I feel like she may have done it in high school, or something similar because it sounds so familiar to me. I wish the song was mixed better. Her voice is so quiet and distant-sounding.
Now I'm going to post some of the live recordings of songs she performed at the Arts High School so you can hear how awesome she is at the piano: Arts High, Unwrinkled T-shirt, and Sleepy Head. I don't actually know if that's what the titles were, but that's what I call them. I just have these CDs from our concerts with no labels of any kind... And sorry to the guy on Unwrinkled T-shirt because I have no idea who it is. Unwrinkled T-shirt is probably my favorite. Sleepy Head was a good example of some of the more experimental music she did (and believe me it got way more experimental than that). And actually, maybe I'll post Public Transportation too. I'm pretty sure that is the correct title of that one. She performed that one a lot and it was an Arts High fave.
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