tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43393588700845540492024-03-13T09:54:44.657-07:00Colin's DinerThe any-day, any-hour ramblings, rantings and remembrances of GeekGems.com's handsomest contributor, Second-Most-Interesting Man In The World . . . and definitely its most eclectic, anachronistic, esoteric insomniac.S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-38842405839364441012011-05-12T10:03:00.000-07:002011-05-13T13:31:23.738-07:00When I Grow Up, I Want To Be . . .<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br />
</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>(NOTE: It's good to be back. I've had a lot of things change personally that demanded I take some time for personal reflection, and actually a little bit of maintenance. During that time, I realized some thoughts and concerns have been living rent-free in the back of my mind for a while. It's eviction time. This won't be the last thing I write like this, but it won't exactly become a site theme, either. This is me not being entertaining, but just being real . . . for me. In all honesty, this isn't "Sleepless Colin" writing. This is Sean.)</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.arkansaselectricenergylaw.com/uploads/image/iStock_000003028312Medium%5B2%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://www.arkansaselectricenergylaw.com/uploads/image/iStock_000003028312Medium%5B2%5D.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This isn’t about jobs. It isn’t about careers.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s not about being astronauts, Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks, cowboys or President of the <st1:country-region><st1:place>United States</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Those are big things, granted. This is bigger.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What you do doesn’t define you. It speaks volumes about you. It can hint at your values, it can describe your paradigms and can even change you for better or worse. But it never defines you. That definition lies somewhere beneath, supporting everything.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What do I want to be? What I am never really changes. It can be hidden, obscured by battle scars, wounds, dents, dust and debris. But what we are never leaves once we define it and place our faith in it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do I want to be . . . “extraordinary”? Hm. Extra . . . ordinary. “Beyond ordinary.” Why should I care what defines ordinary? That’s far too subjective. It’s too fluid. That’s defining myself by someone else’s level. Screw that.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I perform a dead-lift, does it have some material impact on me what the next guy at the rack lifts? Never. It never does. What he lifts won’t make me stronger. What I lift won’t make him stronger. It’s inconsequential. Odds are, we train differently, eat differently and maybe even have completely different builds. Sure, I can lift double my bodyweight on just about any given day. But I’m not a big man (5’9”, anywhere between 170 and 185 pounds, usually), so that may not seem like much to some. Likewise, I know guys with my height and weight who could probably lift about 50 percent more than I.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I respect that. But it ultimately doesn’t define who I am, what I achieve or how I approach what I do.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How about . . . “phenomenal”? Well, what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> phenomenal, exactly? That’s somehow even more vague. That, to me, speaks to impressing somebody. That’s a path to misplaced priorities. I speak from experience.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why care who I impress? I’ve many times steered myself off of good road trying too hard to impress people that I couldn’t see were inconsequential until I had the blinders off. The people I long hoped my blogs would eventually end up impressing, I’ve come to realize I probably should want nothing to do with because I ultimately can’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">respect</i> them. In the last year, I’ve learned some things about an early influence to how I write and my desire to generate an Internet media brand that frankly make me despise him. I wouldn’t have anything to do with him now, personally or professionally. The only thing left that I can respect is his talent. And ultimately, we can’t change to any significant degree how much talent for anything we all possess.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I will be . . . “electrifying.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s a word often associated with one of my greatest personal influences, Dwayne Johnson. That’s right, snicker. The Rock.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was always a phrase he associated with his character. “The most electrifying man in sports entertainment!” That’s because it’s active. It’s dynamic. It screams “change” and “impact.” It’s rooted in something that is really neither subjective nor deniable: causality.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Electrifying” causes an effect. In any given sold-out arena since, oh, 1999 or so, when those throngs of fans heard “IF YA SAH-MELLLLLL . . .” the atmosphere became . . . electrified. The roar became deafening. I have been to professional sports events that haven’t even approached the explosion of excitement when Dwayne Johnson steps through a curtain and becomes The Rock. He changes the atmosphere when he enters any given arena at any given time. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That is electrifying. That is impact. But it goes beyond the reaction. He carved a niche for himself bigger than professional wrestling that few ever have, and none have on the level he’s achieved. He’s a Make A Wish Foundation legend and helps promote healthier lifestyle choices for parents and children through his The Rock Foundation charity – quite possibly the most electrifying things the former <st1:place><st1:placetype>University</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename>Miami All-American</st1:placename></st1:place> defensive end, multi-time WWE Champion and future WWE Hall of Famer has ever achieved. The world has been his spark’s conductor, and it’s carried the charge amazingly. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I want the things that I do to have a definite, undeniable impact. I want to be a game-changer. That doesn’t mean talking a big game. I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">can</i> do that, and I often do. But it means I always want my actions to speak vastly louder than anything I could say. Being electrifying might be among the most liberating things one could be, because it's ceiling will never be talent-based, genetically-based, gender-based, creed-based, race-based, culture-based or based in anything else but the limits you give your desires. If you have the audacity to want something and make no bones about what you want, you can be truly electrifying. When I write a blog, I want it to generate views. I want it to generate buzz. I want comments. If you love it or you hate, either way, I have caused a reaction. I made you think for a moment.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I write something for Geek Gems, nothing ever pleases me so much as high tweets and Facebook “likes”. That’s because I’ve sparked something. I’ve entertained somebody enough, informed them enough, that they passed it along and said “Check <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this</i> out.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If I review a movie and shred it, I hope that some laugh and others disagree. I want to be persuasive enough with what I say that I can win many over to my side, but the next best consolation is to start a conversation by making a sound point and having someone disagree. I’m bringing back mass communication’s inoculation theory: that unless your views and convictions are challenged, you’ll never be strong enough to defend them.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Make no mistake: this isn’t about popularity for me. Popularity is great. Being liked is, in fact, crucial to what I do. But the most important things lie beneath. The very worst sound I could possibly hear will never be “boo.” It’ll be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">silence</i>. Wherever I write, whatever I do, I want it to be electrifying by being an example. That’s something distinctive. That’s something that echoes. That’s something truly remarkable, worth aspiring to be.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">electrifying</i>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(While I’m at it, I don’t exaggerate that The Rock Foundation may rank among my favorite charities. I’ve you’ve ever chatted five minutes with me and seen the fire in my eyes when discussing health and fitness, you know that nothing frightens me in this world more than the possibility that the public will increasingly fund universal healthcare, despite more and more Americans taking worse care of themselves and hiking that shared burden. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most of the most useful life lessons that have sunk in my life have been cemented in gyms, on basketball courts, in weight rooms and on treadmills. What Johnson does truly is valuable. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please, visit <a href="http://www.djrockfoundation.org/">www.djrockfoundation.org</a> to learn how you can help this cause.)</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-14440102660567222062011-05-02T15:27:00.000-07:002011-05-02T15:29:33.614-07:00Going With the Flo<h3 class="post-title entry-title"></h3><div class="post-header"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://musosguide.com/public_html/musos.wp/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/florence_and_the_machine.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="467" src="http://musosguide.com/public_html/musos.wp/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/florence_and_the_machine.jpg" width="467" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">I usually write about music that I like that nobody knows, or very few people know. There is so much good quality music out there that is being ignored by the masses, and I’ve made it my job to present the internet public with my opinions on it, as it appears in my iTunes library in alphabetical order. That trend sort of continues with the letter F, yet this is a band that has already gotten some moderate-level recognition in the States, and COULD possibly get more attention. This is Florence and the Machine.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Florence Welch and her session musicians (called the Machine) released their debut disc <i>Lungs </i>in the UK in the summer of 2009. It wasn’t until over a year later that they made their mark on the States, first with their music featured in the trailer for <i>Eat, Pray, Love, </i>and (rightfully) stealing the show at the 2010 MTV VMAs. Since then, the public ands media appearances still occur, but not to the extent of more popular but less talented “stars” who thrive more on gimmicks.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">So do Flo and her Machine deserve more mainstream attention? Is <i>Lungs </i>an album full of audible art, or is it just not catchy or commercial enough to tussle with the perceived “big guns”? And no, that was not a direct reference to Katy Perry’s whipped cream-vomiting bra. Not really.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Dog Days Are Over,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">We open the album with the song that was used in the aforementioned <i>Pray </i>trailer, and the song that inspired a VMA performance that made Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, et al look like a bunch of circus rejects that failed to make the list of <i>Water For Elephants</i> extras. The lilting ukulele, tambourine-infused cadence, and rich vocals against a production that made it sound like it was recorded in Westminster Abbey give the song a very majestic feel, and I really love the chorus of “Run fast for you mother, run fast for you father/Run for your children/For you sisters and brothers.” A very energetic and uplifting tune. <b>Grade: A+.</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Raise it Up (Rabbit Heart),” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This song has a bit of an 80s, Human League-type feel, with the synth and piano and vigorous snare drum cadence. Flo’s voice gets a little lost in the production during the chorus, but it’s still a cool song. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“I’m Not Calling You a Liar,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">The slow, flowing hand-clapping beat is enough to get you swaying, and the subtle use of the harp make me feel like I’m listening to this song in a forest straight out of <i>Stardust</i>. You think she’d make a video for this song and use Robert DeNiro dressed in drag? No? <b>Grade: A-</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Howl,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This is a song that sounds like it could have been used in <i>Red Riding Hood</i>…*chorus of boos*….kidding! I’m kidding! This song is above that trite of a film. The eerie piano chords that kick in after a few seconds and stay throughout the song, coupled with the violin cadence, sounds just flat-out cool, and Flo basically, well, howls the chorus. The live versions I’ve heard show cracks in Flo’s vocal armor, but the sound is just as big and bold, and the song is still a highlight of her shows. <b>Grade: A</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“A Kiss With a Fist,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Flo has stated that this song is not about domestic violence, but the lyrics seem to suggest otherwise. I mean, seriously…black eyes, beds on fire, kicking and slapping? Yeesh. I guess you could take it to mean that the relationship portrayed in the song thrives on violence and is at least not boring and dead, but that does not make it any less disturbing. And the punk-like arrangement seems somewhat fitting for the lyrics. <b>Grade: B</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Girl With One Eye,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This musical tale of revenge really showcases what Flo’s voice is capable of. It’s mournful, scheming and blues-y, yet soulful at the same time. Flo’s voice shows great range and nuances that are a little more covered-up in the other songs on the album, and that wail on “<i>Cryyyyyyyyyyyyy!!</i>”? Rich and gorgeous. Best song on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Drumming Song,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">There is a lot of drumming here. Literally and lyrically. Those pounding tympanis are really resonant and overpower Flo in a few spots. The repetitiveness of the chorus gets a little grating, but it’s a nice song, nonetheless. <b>Grade: B</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Between Two Lungs,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">I love how the choir in the background gradually swells throughout the song, especially when matched with an alternating tempo of djimbe, tambourine and hand-claps. I hear a little She & Him influence in this song, and I like that. <b>Grade: A</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Cosmic Love,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Another movie trailer song, as this one was used heavily in the <i>Water for Elephants</i> trailer, among TV promos for <i>The Office, The Vampire Diaries, </i>etc. The harp, the tympanis, the keyboards…all of it comes together to form this gorgeous, space-like symphony that can be used as a majestic anthem for any big, momentous occasion. The second-best on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“My Boy Builds Coffins,”</span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"> From the majestic to the dark. This song is, of course, about a coffin maker/undertaker. It’s much more low-key and quiet, and the way Flo sings about making coffins for him, her, and the listener is spine-tingling and creepy. And I think the point of this song is to remind us that death is inevitable for everyone. Good to know. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Hurricane Drunk,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">It seems that this song is the token drinking song on a British album. Though the lyrics seem to subtly portray the setting of Mardi Gras, and the subject goes on a major Hurricane binge after seeing her boyfriend with another girl among the massive throngs of party-goers. The tempo is a nice mid-tempo groove, and Flo’s voice, though not magnificent, powers nicely through it. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Blind,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">We go back to another big, anthemic song, though this one is much more ethereal and minor-key. The violin riffs are really cool, but the rest of the song drags a little in places. <b>Grade: B</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“You Got the Love,” </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This is a cover of a song by 70s singer Candi Staton, and while it’s a nice, uplifting closer for the album, it also seems slightly out of place, as many of the elements that are showcased in the rest of the album are absent here. Flo does, however, use more of her upper register and conquer the lyrics with gusto, but I think this song would have been put to better use in the middle of the album instead. <b>Grade: B.</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">And there you have it! <i>Lungs </i>is one of my favorite albums of last year, and while I get excited to see it used in the mainstream media in one way or another, I do remain cautiously optimistic. If the band does take off and become r<i>eally </i>well-known, I hope it doesn’t dumb down their music into commercial fluff crap. It just needs to go with the Flo and let them be.</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"><b>Recommended Tracks: </b>"Cosmic Love," "Girl With One Eye," "Between Two Lungs," "Dog Days Are Over," "Howl"</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Until next time....Long live the harp</span></div>TigerCubGirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05629714202680086160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-66635939340426037322011-04-22T13:44:00.000-07:002011-04-22T22:07:59.444-07:00Super (Beautiful) Freak<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTksWZ2UQVOvMmT_-UcS1RStz3pu2GON3jieSiC_7G-k-_Cvu4" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTksWZ2UQVOvMmT_-UcS1RStz3pu2GON3jieSiC_7G-k-_Cvu4" width="225" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I’ve been in quite a freaky mood lately (Heads out of the gutter….I don’t meant <i>that</i>!!). I just finished a manga series about a freaky notebook owned by freaky death gods that kills people. Now I’m reading <i>Water for Elephants</i>, with its freaky animals (a horse with a tail where its head should be! Auuuggghhh!!!) and freaky bearded people. Yet while my eyes are looking at these words and pictures of freaks, my ears yearn to participate in the show. They long to get their freak on and experience these things that my eyes are snottily keeping from them. To remedy that, I give them <i>Beautiful Freak</i>, the 1996 album by E (aka Mark Oliver Everett) and his indie band, The Eels (stylized as eels).</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">This is the band’s third set, and if the album cover art is any indication, then we are in for hopefully some of the freakiest sounds to ever come out of plastic and silicone and brush up against my eardrums. So let’s not waste any time….let’s explore the <i>Beautiful Freak</i>. And let’s take a drink for the number of times I’ve already used a variation of the word “freak”.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Novocaine for the Soul,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">We start of with a track that has a nice little mid-tempo groove and a neat, ethereal synthesizer mix to it. The song talks about needing things to numb yourself and get away from the stresses of life, and the feel-good vibe it has seems appropriate. Either that or it’s a subliminal message to off yourself completely. <b>Grade: B+.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Susan’s House,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">The only sung lyrics in this song are the ones in the chorus. The verses are just E talking and describing things he’s seeing in different neighborhoods as he goes to his girlfriend’s house. It’s a pretty simple song, but the structure of the lyrics, coupled with the cool piano riffs make this one of the best on the album. <b>Grade: A-.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Rags to Rags,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">This is a song that relates to a lot of current events, as the songs narrator tells of his financial hardships and losing his wealth. The menacing guitar riff and slow build at the beginning are neat, and when the band kicks in full gear, the track turns into a good car jammer. <b>Grade: B+.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Beautiful Freak </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">(Drink!)<b>,” </b>The title track is a haunting, gorgeous song about loving and accepting someone for their differences. It’s a wonderful social commentary that’s lyrically simple and straightforward. The keyboard and synth work create a lullaby-like atmosphere, and E croons softly and smoothly to the object of his affection, despite how freaky (Drink!) she really is. Another highlight. <b>Grade: A.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Not Ready Yet,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">We go back to the edgier, electric guitar-laden sound and pounding drums. I’ve read that this song is about E’s sister, who suffered from depression and/or agoraphobia and how she struggled with doing day-to-day activities. It’s a song that’s appropriate for lounging around on a rainy day, but may also be to depressing considering the subject matter. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“My Beloved Monster,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">We now come to the band’s most well-known song. For anyone not living under a rock, “My Beloved Monster” was used in the first <i>Shrek</i> movie. And appropriately so…it’s basically a great little buddy song with a jaunty guitar riff and cute lyrics. It’s also the shortest song on the album. Viva <i>Shrek</i>! <b>Grade: A-.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Flower,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">This is a slow-tempo song with a drum cadence that you can still bop along to and a simulated choir in the background that adds an uplifting element to an otherwise depressing tune. The subject is paranoia, and E mourns the fact that everyone is against him and out to get him and basically make him feel like a freak (Drink!). A solid track, though it fades into the background. <b>Grade: B.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Guest List,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Like “Beautiful Freak” (Drink!), this song also deals with acceptance. The subject is wondering if he’s doing all the right things in order to be included and be on the “guest list.” The tempo drags a little, and the guitar riff isn’t the most interesting, but the overall message of the song is still important. <b>Grade: B.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Mental,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">The bass line and guitar work really well with the sarcasm in E’s voice. The subject is frustrated and confused with not knowing the truth (of what?), and the aggressive arrangement of the song marries well with the lyrical content. Another good song to jam to in the car. <b>Grade: B+.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Spunky,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">The lyrics are cryptic and give many ideas as to who Spunky is (Sister? Girlfriend? Pet Affenpinscher?) and what she’s trying to do. This is a very piano-keyboard heavy track with a nice, flowing 6/8-time rhythm and a very soft overall feel. It’s short, yet sweet. <b>Grade: B+.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Your Lucky Day in Hell,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">This song is choc-full of freaks (Drink!). From a Winston Churchill dressed in drag to a Father Theresa, you really never can tell who’ll be at your doorstep, as the song suggests. The arrangement has sort of a sixties-seventies influence, and E’s voice has a cool echo-y sound. Probably the most sonically creative song on the album. <b>Grade: A.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Manchild,” </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">What a beautiful way to end the album<b>. </b>Everything about this song is gorgeous, from the slow, lilting arrangement, to the positive, uplifting lyrics of reassurance, to the snippet of a phone call from E’s sister…it’s a sad song, yet a great one to listen to on a really bad day…especially if you’ve gotten sick from all the drinking at the mention of the word “freak” (oops…Drink agai…eh, not to this song). <b>Grade: A.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And there you have it! Freaky (Drink!) stuff, huh? A very solid sonic effort from the band. Also an important album to listen to if you’re an advocate of inclusion and other social and mental issues. While it got some minor to moderate attention in the mid-nineties, many strong songs still managed to go under the radar. So check it out, and find out if you are indeed a <i>Beautiful Freak </i>(Drink!).</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Recommended Songs: </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Susan’s House,” “Beautiful Freak,” “Your Lucky Day in Hell,” “My Beloved Monster,” “Manchild.”</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Until next time…Long live Sprite (That’s what I drank. Ha ha.)</span></span></div>TigerCubGirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05629714202680086160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-88770545139517384632011-04-22T13:23:00.000-07:002011-04-22T13:26:19.878-07:00Not Quite Geek Gems: Cthulu Fish T-shirt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4ldvx2Jyrxs/TbHjXYqcJ4I/AAAAAAAAAA0/Bne19HnDfNw/s1600/CthulhuFish1-4-2011-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="226" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4ldvx2Jyrxs/TbHjXYqcJ4I/AAAAAAAAAA0/Bne19HnDfNw/s320/CthulhuFish1-4-2011-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">OK, creationists and evolutionists. Points made. You will both go further out of your way to antagonize and bait one another than anyone guessed you would. Nothing will stop either side from shouting louder than the other. Got it.<br />
<br />
But consider this argument settled.<br />
<br />
First, people displayed ichthys ornaments (casually, the "Jesus fish") celebrating their devotion to the Book of Genesis' creation of the Heavens, Earth and all creatures great and small including humans. Then one day, a snarky evolutionist fired a dramatic shot across the bow and drew legs beneath the fish. Then the creationists drew the enhanced ichthys dead on its back, legs pointing skyward, and labeled it "Darwin."<br />
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All the while, a certain Great Old One who has probably lived long enough that he knows what <i>really </i></span>happened was too polite to just say "You are stupid, and so is your bickering. Time to eat you now. Om nom nom." <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
Or, you know . . . <i>something</i> like that. </span> </div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>You'd really do well not to test Cthulu's patience and just click <a href="http://www.tshirtlaundry.com/The-Cthulhu-Fish_p_1581.html">here</a>. </i></span>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-69454082305922071702011-04-20T14:29:00.000-07:002011-04-20T14:29:46.589-07:00Not Quite Geek Gems: Dirty Harry PotterEvery so often, I find an incredible product. Something that screams "YOU MUST HAVE NOW!" until my quivering digits start keying my Visa number and I'm suddenly a few dollars poorer for my weak will.<br />
<br />
Thankfully, Scarlett is kind enough to be OK with my posting a few unused Geek Gems write-ups right here, for your viewing/reading/purchasing enjoyment. Know this, before reading onward: some of these products indicated some fairly strong opinions that I have toward certain franchises/trends/memes/people/kittens, etc.<br />
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This one . . . . OK, won't rankle <em>that</em> much. But you cannot convince me this movie shouldn't happen.<br />
<br />
******<br />
<br />
<img $j_extended="true" $j_uuid="37" class="" height="auto" src="http://www.tshirtlaundry.com/assets/images/photos/DirtyHarryPotter11-16-2010-3.jpg" style="display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; position: static; top: auto; width: 100%;" width="100%" /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-myflb0cEpQE/Ta9Pabax5_I/AAAAAAAAAAw/fCCjn07Xqrc/s1600/HP.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
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"I know what you're thinking, Malfoy. 'Oy! What sort of stupid-looking, muggle-made wand is that? Does he even know how to use it?!' Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I kind of lost track myself. But being as this is what the 'muggles' call a '.44 Magnum', the most powerful handgun known to man -- and pretty quickly, to a snotty soon-to-be-ex-wizard -- and would blow your head clean off way better than a stick with a feather inside it, you've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky enough to cast a spell faster than a speeding bullet? Well, do you, PUNK?!"<br />
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-Excerpt from Sleepless Colin's first installment of a re-imagining of J.K. Rowling's acclaimed Harry Potter saga, titled <em>Harry Potter And The Second Amendment</em>. Soon to be a major motion picture directed by Clint Eastwood.<br />
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<em>Go on, get to clickin'! Get your</em> Dirty Harry Potter <em>T-shirt right </em><a href="http://www.tshirtlaundry.com/Dirty-Harry-Potter_p_1508.html"><em>here!</em></a>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-4020097141293769342011-04-18T20:54:00.000-07:002011-04-18T20:54:14.657-07:00Crysis 2 A Virtually-Perfect FPS<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"></span><br />
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />
</div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="crysis_2_fire_feature" src="http://gamerxchange.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/crysis_2_fire_feature.png?w=576" /></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Though I’ve played a few stand-out titles, first-person shooters don’t rank highly among my most preferred games. That prejudice alone handicaps most FPS titles (admittedly, not always fairly) and amplifies every grating minor irritation like dragging a rusty nail across a chalkboard next to a microphone plugged into a Marshall stack. That acknowledged prejudice toward what I often regard as a repetitive genre that’s ever reinventing the wheel actually amplifies my respect for what a complete, enjoyable game this really is.</div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Crysis 2</em> is developed by Crytek for Electronic Arts and powered by the debuting CryEngine 3. Over-the-top bastardization of a single prefix? Perhaps. But when your game looks and plays this smoothly with nary a hitch, you’ve more than backed up the bravado. An engine producing graphics, textures and shadows this crisp, detailed and flawless comes along rarely. Only one other engine truly belongs anywhere near this one in terms of visual presentation, and it’s another engine forever bearing the name of its legendary debut appearance: Unreal.</div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>What sets EA's latest superb shooter head-and-shoulders above nearly every other I've played? Find out right <a href="http://gamerxchange.net/2011/04/18/crysis-2-a-virtually-perfect-fps-single-player-campaign-review/">here</a>, right now.</i></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-2537489542065971802011-04-16T12:10:00.000-07:002011-04-16T12:10:45.583-07:00From GamerXChange.net: "Unremarkable coda" or "effective bridge"?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What praise could I possibly heap upon <strong style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mass Effect 2</em></strong> that wouldn’t be redundant at this point?</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve heard even critical gamers who consider the presentation too dialogue-heavy and the story too slow-developing and even “boring” concede it’s put together unquestionably well and an exceptional game overall – just not necessarily one they particularly enjoy.</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Flip the coin, and the gamers who love BioWare’s opus revere it among gaming’s greatest total-package titles that hits every possible high note a single game can hit, from captivating visuals and practically flawless gameply, to its sweeping-epic story and virtually bottomless replay value. That goes doubly so for PC gamers, who have had far longer to foster and grow their love affair than the console crowd.</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But even the greatest of all great things reach an end. <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Shenmue</em> fans will tell you that. So it goes now that before <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mass Effect 3</em> emerges and likely propels Commander Shepard’s saga full-circle, BioWare resolves the last chord in <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mass Effect 2</em>’s movement in this starry symphony with the final downloadable chapter before <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mass Effect 3</em>’s late-2011 release,<strong style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Arrival</em></strong>.</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And for all BioWare’s promotional focus on <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Arrival</em> as a must-have finale to <em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mass Effect 2</em>, it makes an enjoyable but unremarkable and anti-climactic coda.</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mass Effect 2'<i>s developers made precious few overall mistakes</i> . . . . <i>but</i> Arrival c<i>ontinued one of them. Click right <a href="http://www.gamerxchange.net/">here</a> to find out what went wrong, and for more from GamerXChange, my Home Away From The Diner</i></span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-89154242028484605702011-04-16T09:56:00.000-07:002011-04-16T09:57:37.543-07:00Big Things Poppin' . . . . Little Things Stoppin' . . . .<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you read this often, you might’ve noticed TigerCubGirl has been posting here more frequently than I have, and I haven’t really churned out a good, proper review or blog in a while. Well, there’s a reason for that, and it means a few changes to how I do things.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve recently accepted two blogging positions that came across my “desk” – OK, more like my BlackBerry and Twitter – right around the same time. First, I’m the newest blogger and reviewer at GamerXChange.net, a gaming blog that launched just this past January. I learned that GXC’s founder, Geoff or @GxC_SimplyG on Twitter, was seeking six new writers a few months ago. I submitted an application, he read and was impressed by my reviews of <i>Homefront</i> and <i>WWE All-Stars</i>, and he decided I would be a good fit for his site. In fact, my first review will post hopefully sometime later today, a run-down of the final downloadable <i>Mass Effect 2</i> chapter, <i>Arrival</i>. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is where the changes start.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, I will not be posting my <i>full</i> game reviews here any longer, unless I do a one-off exclusive or feature. If I post the same thing here in its entirety that I post at GXC, that starts hurting my eventual Google rating and costs me searches. What I will do is post brief <i>previews</i> of my reviews, with a link to the website. I hope the people who visit and like the other things I write will similarly be intrigued enough, if gamers they be, to open a whole new window/tab and check out what I do elsewhere, just as I hope you’re also regularly checking out GeekGems.com. This is great exposure that I stand a chance to gain with a more frequently viewed site, and I’m grateful to have an opportunity to continue getting my name out. I may eventually establish a Facebook page solely for my writing under the Sleepless Colin name and check into whether or not I could include a full archive of my reviews there.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another reason I haven’t posted as much: I’ve taken on something fairly unusual to help make my ends meet. For the next month, I’m a paid volunteer in a Quintiles clinical research trial. For those outside the <st1:city><st1:place>Kansas City</st1:place></st1:city> area who don’t know the name “Quintiles”, they’re a firm that assists with the testing of non-FDA-approved medications. I’m undergoing three four-night overnight stays during April and May to help test two drugs that treat urinary tract infections. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For that four weeks of doing little more than laying in a bed watching TV, reading, gaming and letting nurses repeatedly draw blood from me, I’m being paid $2,650. At least some of that is going to end up re-invested in my freelance writing/media ventures. Specifically, I’m eyeing a laptop and a microphone set. This probably won't be my last trial, either. I would like to do a couple more of these by August so I can set aside still more funds. God knows, I have the time right now.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That also means that my writing is restricting to the banks of PCs with high-speed Internet located in the Quintiles rec room. They’re good computers, but I can only use them when available. I’m actually going to try to step up my production during this time, though. Yeah, I know, leave it to me to attempt the most ass-backwards, illogical things possible. But I’m going to try!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s in part because of the third big change: at least on a trial basis, I have a paying freelance gig as a new “reporter” for Yidio.com. That means I’ll be getting paid by the 150-word-plus article to summarize and stylize TV and movie news. If I play my cards right, this could be another gig that not only nets me exposure, but lets me become essentially self-employed. I’ve always told Scarlett that I envied the freedom of setting her own hours more than a little bit. Well, now I get to try that hat on for size myself.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The BEST news, though? Writing is about to essentially become my life. I cannot begin telling you the sense of freedom and accomplishment I’m feeling right now . . . but I assure you, very soon, I am going to try.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the meantime, I hope you all keep reading. Because I don’t see my writing stopping anytime soon.</span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-10251229134294902412011-04-14T20:26:00.000-07:002011-04-14T20:26:25.852-07:00Forget Disgruntled Postmen....How's About a Disgruntled Sailor?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQx-LfSGy_PDavCcfZVHePpr5LkOvjsU1eZhBjl0fMxKGot6uqD" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQx-LfSGy_PDavCcfZVHePpr5LkOvjsU1eZhBjl0fMxKGot6uqD" width="160" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Uggggghhhhh….stupid s’mores. I ate so many last week that I tried to walk it all off this week. I got some good workouts in, but I also got some really sore hips. Add in the fact that I'm running on 4 hours of sleep, and I’m a total bum today with not much energy.</span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">“Oh, but you can’t be a bum, Tiger!” you say. “You have a job to do! You have to sit around and listen to really weird music that nobody’s ever heard of, and you have to convince us that it’s really really really awesome and the bestest stuff we’ve ever heard, and if we don’t listen to it, the universe will implode, and….and…”</span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Ok, you all probably didn’t just say that. At least I hope not. But I’m sure that many of you are thinking I’m not going to have something ready for you to read since all I want to do is relax and refuel. Though while I’m not much of a multitasker, I’m still able to both relax and listen to a band that is alphabetically next in line and also produces music that doesn’t always require me to get up and do the Running Man. That band, my friends, is Colin Melloy’s Baroque-pop band The Decemberists and their 2005 story-song album <i>Picaresque.</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">So enough of my whiny rambling….let’s roll.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"The Infanta": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Ooh, coyotes! I’m really loving the blend of the piano, organ, and percussion here. The Cavalry-like rhythm and cadence give it a great bounce and make me feel like I’m riding a horse. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"We Both Go Down Together": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This mid-tempo track tells a very <i>Wuthering Heights-</i>ish tale of star-crossed lovers, set to pounding drums, subtle piano, and a light, yet somewhat wistful violin riff. While the subject is a bit morose, the music has a curious little toe-tapper quality. <b>Grade: B</b></span><br />
<br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"Eli, The Barrow Boy": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Dear Lord, this is depressing….more death! First Eli’s lady love is dead (murder? Suicide?) and then Eli himself is found dead (murder? Suicide?)….and then, in the last verse, he’s a ghost pushing his wheelbarrow! Creepers! The guitar with the very soft accordion in the background does a brilliant job of bringing out just how truly sad this situation really is. I love it, yet at the same time, I’m getting the urge to go jump off a bridge. <b>Grade: A</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"The Sporting Life": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Ahh, finally, we go to something a bit more humorous! Well, at least the percussion and bass work give it that funny, quirky feel. However, getting humiliated on the football field is really no laughing matter, especially if your coach and family have such high hopes like this song suggests. Still though, Colin Melloy’s voice works well as the failed athlete. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"The Bagman’s Gambit": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Yet another star-crossed lovers tale, but I think government espionage is involved in this one. The guitar riff is nice, but starts to drag a little fairly early in the song. Finally, two minutes in, the rest of the band kicks in and juices everything up for a few seconds before going back to just the guitar. This goes on for a little while before letting a great string section take over on the bridge, transitioning to a big cacophony of sounds, and finally back to just the guitar. With the lyrics the up-and-down playing of the band is well-done, but at times it feels like it goes on for way too long. <b>Grade: B-/C+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"From My Own True Love": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">More lost love….this time, a ship supposedly went down, and the subject is waiting to see if he gets a letter from his wife who was supposed to be traveling on it. The melancholy nature of the man’s yearning blends gorgeously in with the guitar, tympanis, and mandolin. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"16 Military Wives": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">This isn’t so much a story-song as it is a war protest song. Though the topic is pretty controversial, the beat and chorus are insanely catchy, and Colin’s use of numbers throughout the songs lyrics is pretty genius. I also love the balance of drums, tambourine, horns, and organ on the bridge. The best song on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"The Engine Driver": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">What’s cool about this song is the way that the snare drums and guitar play off other to create a subtle train-like sound. The female backing vocals really help enhance the chorus, and the accordion is a nice touch. <b>Grade: B</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"On The Bus Mall": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Right from “Engine Driver” we segue into the next track, about two male prostitutes in Portland (!!!) using the public transit system to, um, do business. Colin’s guitar work is heavily featured here, as is some great rim percussion work. It’s the type of song that, while long, is one you can just sit on your bed listening to on a quiet afternoon. <b>Grade: A</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"The Mariner’s Revenge Song": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">And now we get to the song that inspired this article’s title. Oh, this is a fun one. Basically, the subject is telling a fellow sailor, whom he is trapped with in the belly of a whale (not sure if that literally or figuratively) the story of how this guy was taken in by the narrator’s mom, only to completely screw her over. As he relives his mother’s situation, the female band member briefly takes over as the mother and tells her son to go get revenge in very graphic and gruesome ways. While the narrator is telling his “friend” the story, his tone becomes increasingly creepy and obsessed with revenge, and the song ends just before he can finish him off and become vindicated. While all this is going on in the lyrics, accordion and tambourine accompany, and make me want to do a Russian folk dance. And I don’t mean that as a bad thing. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">"Of Angels and Angles": </span></b></span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">The last song is a stark contrast to the long, raucousness of the previous track. This one is short, soft, and only has some acoustic finger-picking. And yes, lyrically, it’s about yet more death and suicide. Whee. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">And there you have it. Considering the many songs about death, one would think this album was just a flat-out downer. However, there are enough up-tempo tracks to keeps a little variety in the album, and even the depressing songs have some really beautiful elements. It’s a great album worth checking out, especially if you like hearing unique instruments tied in with more traditional ones.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Recommended Songs: “16 Military Wives,” “On The Bus Mall,” “Eli, The Barrow Boy,” “The Mariner’s Revenge Song,” “The Infanta”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Until next time…..long live sore hips and ticked-off sailors.</span></div>TigerCubGirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05629714202680086160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-59983264694386172662011-04-09T10:00:00.000-07:002011-04-09T10:00:05.715-07:00Shortcuts By Steve: How To Appear Muscular Without Working OutHe's back. He remains better than you. Do not cross him. He smells fear.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/41rSuOECWE0" title="YouTube video player" width="425"></iframe>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-62871901391835136852011-04-08T08:55:00.000-07:002011-04-08T08:55:05.843-07:00Tiger Tunes: Stromata - Dancing, Milk Jugs, And A Bunch Of Pills<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi kids. Are you in the mood for some s’mores? I sure am. Oh, but not just because I long for the feel of smooth, velvety chocolate. Not because I have a carnal hunger for billowy, fluffy marshmallows. Not because I know my body will be satisfied with the sweetness and semi-healthiness of graham crackers. And certainly not because I want to see a bunch of mindless Greek pledges and middle schoolers try to egg each other on in a game of Chubby Bunny.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"> No, I mainly want some s’mores because I feel like sitting around a campfire and telling you all a story. A story of hope, rejection, and redemption. A story of underappreciation and recognition. A story of a fair musical maiden by the name of Charlotte Martin.</span><br />
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<img src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSEX28KbtLbdlS-9b5aupCzOytdF8FQY71LCm_-T7x2g5LZhLDg" /><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before going into the music industry, Charlotte competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant, then went to Eastern Illinois University to study opera and vocal performance.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small; line-height: normal;"><img src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTBH1HteP-1vyYXgSb4Hed4n-cLf64uGuKq3f7TXaV9qHIb49u9" /></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;"><br />
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</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">OMG! Did you hear that, Music Industry?! An artist that actually knows a lot about music! Sacre bleu! Que horror! H</span>oe afschuwelijk! <span style="line-height: 14px;">Oh il mio dio!! Oh mein Gott!! OH ο Θεός μου! </span><span style="line-height: 14px;">哎呀</span><span style="line-height: 14px;">!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyhoo, after graduation, she moved to Los Angeles and began writing albums and EPs independently, before signing with RCA Records in 2002. While RCA released one of the EPs shortly after her signing, they pretty much messed around and “sat on me” (according to one interview) until late 2004, when her first full-length album, titled <i>On Your Shore</i>, was released.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course, Charlotte isn’t the only artist that RCA and Clive “The Dinosaur” Davis has screwed the pooch with, but that’s for another article down the road.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Charlotte left RCA in 2005, just before touring to promote 2 EPs she had written in preparation for her second full-length album, <i>Stromata. </i>She signed with Dinosaur Fight Records in early 2006 and released <i>Stromata </i>in September. Since then, she and husband Ken Andrews own their own label, where Charlotte continues to write, record, and produce her own music. While her foray into the mainstream music world was brief, she still continues today to bring new and interesting music to fans and music lovers all over the world.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I discovered Charlotte’s music 2 years ago with <i>On Your Shore,</i>and subsequently purchased <i>Stromata </i>plus several extra songs. Between the 2 albums, I was at a loss as to which one to review. <i>On Your Shore</i>, though controlled more by The Dinosaur and his minions, was a very solid effort with great acoustic piano material and a very Tori-meets-Sarah sound. However, after splitting from RCA, Charlotte really let her artistic creativity rip and came up with an extremely different yet extremely intriguing album that includes everything from piano to synthesizers to milk jugs. Yeah, you read that right.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">So, my lovelies, I’ve decided to take a deeper look into the weird, wonderful world of <i>Stromata. </i>Make more s’mores, mix more hot chocolate, sit back, and enjoy the melodies.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Stromata": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Right off the bat, we get a pounding, piano-synthesizer tune and more influence from Tori Amos. Lyrically, it’s very unclear what the song is about, but the song title refers to connective tissue frameworks of bodily organs. So maybe she minored in Biology. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Cut The Cord": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Here Charlotte talks about the difficulty of freeing oneself from a toxic relationship. Though the lyrics almost get a little drowned out in places, the jungle drum beats are really really cool. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Drip": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">I’ve heard conflicting information on what this song is about. Some say it’s about being aware of your body and sexuality (like a “birds and the bees” song). Some say it’s about eating disorders. Some say it’s about a struggling relationship. Whatever the meaning, the synth work is really neat, and the chorus really catchy. One of the top songs on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Little Universe"": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is probably the most experimental track on the album, with major synth and keyboard work. While it’s a cool sound, it’s almost a little TOO electronic sounding and comes off as a little creepy. <b>Grade: B-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Civilized": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Here Charlotte takes on a more angry, Fiona-esque vibe, with fast-pace piano and drums. And I think this song is about a breakup after the guy got caught cheating. Maybe. It’s a little hard to tell. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"A Hopeless Attempt": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The keyboard takes on a very melancholy tone as Charlotte sings about the pointlessness of rekindling a dead relationship. It has almost a bit of a “lullaby” feel to it, like the subject is supposed to be crying herself to sleep. It’s both soft and powerful at the same time. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Four Walls": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is another heavily-synthed arrangement, though it’s not as intense and creepy as “Little Universe.” It’s a smidge on the filler side, but still an interesting track. <b>Grade: B</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Inch": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Here, it’s a simple piano arrangement to a song about not letting a significant other get too close. The riffs are beautiful, though a tiny bit draggy. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Keep Me In Your Pocket": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The pace of the album picks up with this track, which uses a quirky, absurdly catchy mix of finger-snapping, clock-ticking, and the aforementioned milk jugs. The chorus and the bridge especially stick in your head for days. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Pills": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Now THIS is artistry! On the surface, you have simple lyrics describing a list of different kinds of pills, set to a jaunty, quirky piano rhythm and a fun little chorus of “Baaaaa-ba-ba-ba-ba-baaaa.” Sounds cute and fun, right? Actually, this song is about a drug addict who has taken so many pills that he goes out and steps in front of a train (yes, there are train sounds, too). The cleverest song on the album. Gotta love morbid irony. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Just Before Dawn": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Charlotte shows off more of her versatility and immense talent by composing and singing an operatic track entirely in German. Though it’s very short at 1:15, the song does a phenomenal job of allowing Charlotte to show off a powerful, 3-octave range. It’s heartbreaking that artists like her get passed up for bimbos like Ke$ha. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Cardboard Ladders": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">It’s another lyrically cryptic song, but the piano and the echoing vocals give it a lush, majestic beauty. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"The Dance": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is probably Charlotte’s most well-known song, and, in an album of very strong songs, the strongest one on the entire thing. It has been used in the show <i>So You Think You Can Dance</i>, among other places. Its play count on my iTunes is one of the very highest. As for the arrangement, the knee-slapping cadence is incredibly infectious, despite giving me the urge to go leaping thought a meadow playing a piccolo. However, the slow build of the intensity of the piano throughout the song, mixed with the backing vocals singing “Amen” like a choir is absolutely exquisite. There really aren’t enough words to describe how cool this song is. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">"Redeemed": </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The title and lyrics to this song are self-explanatory. I love the soft, lingering piano riff transitioning to a more pounding intensity halfway through the song. It’s a great way to end a really cool album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is usually the point where I sum up my overall feelings about the album and bid you all adieu for the week. However, there is one more song that is not on the album that I want to review anyway. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the EPs released before <i>Stromata</i> was titled <i>Veins</i>, and included several songs that were included on the album. Yet the title track was not. So I’m going to review it. Why? ‘Cause it’s cool. And I just wanna.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Veins: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This song uses a little bit of religious imagery within the lyrics to portray self confidence and self-acceptance without the need to be revived. The arrangement is electronic, ethereal, and creepy, yet very cool with pounding drums and a bridge of repeated hallelujahs. It’s another song that has had many repeated plays on my iTunes, and I do think it’s a shame that it wasn’t included on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">NOW you have it! <i>Stromata </i>may have its fair share of strange, experimental arrangements, but the array of sounds does a brilliant job of showcasing Charlotte’s musicianship and versatility. Many of the lyrics take a page from Tori Amos and become a bit confusing, but they also make you think and try to come up with your own interpretations. And if you ask me, someone who can write music that triggers lots of thought and deciphering is someone who deserves all the recognition in the world.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Recommended Songs: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">“The Dance,” “Pills,” “Drip,” “Veins,” “Keep Me in Your Pocket,” “Cut The Cord,” “A Hopeless Attempt,” “Just Before Dawn,” “Redeemed”</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"></span>Until next time….long live s’mores.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;">.</span></span></span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-85634064567839431682011-04-08T08:40:00.000-07:002011-04-08T08:41:38.402-07:00WWE All-Stars Review: Ladies and Gentlemen, the "Soulcalibur" of wrestling games....<div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img src="http://www.gamingunion.net/newsimg/wwe-all-stars-review.jpg" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ugh. Know when I should’ve started thinking better of putting <b><i>WWE All-Stars</i></b> under the microscope? The moment someone first explained the game’s outlandish, stylized tone and I observed, “Oh, so you mean it’s going to be a lot like <i>WWF In Your House</i>?”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Second hint: when the Blockbuster clerk made the same comparison. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For those wrestling fans who don’t remember <i>In Your House</i> – well, first off, who’s your shrink? I’m still trying to forget.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But for those who don’t remember it and didn’t play it, it was a World Wrestling Federation title more in the style of <i>Mortal Kombat</i> with its motion-captures of actual wrestlers. Instead of a true in-ring experience, the Undertaker chucked ghosts at people, Yokozuna belly-bumped opponents into submission and Doink The Clown electrocuted bitches with a joy buzzer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was every bit as stupid as that sounds. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since then, World Wrestling Entertainment’s games have stuck with replicating the presentation and action of actual matches, not cartoony crap. Simultaneously, for years, fans clamored for and Vince McMahon’s Flying Circus and THQ finally put together a concept of pitting wrestling legends against current talent. They first tried it with <i>WWE Legends of Wrestlemania </i>last year, in the style of the current <i>Smackdown! Vs. Raw</i> series. It wasn’t good. In fact, despite a stellar legends roster, it just wasn’t a great overall game compared with other recent ones. That castle sank into the swamp.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then King Vinnie built another castle . . . on a different swamp. But this one . . .</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, it fell over, caught fire, <i>then</i> sank into the swamp. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This time, the bites the most recent <i>Street Fighter</i> title’s pumped-up character outlines and ties them with controls that will make <i>Soulcalibur</i> fans wet themselves with joy. Whereas the <i>Smackdown!</i> series has at least historically employed somewhat more <i>Tekken</i>-like style and strategy elements with often less user-friendly and intuitive control schemes – but also with great graphics and a more true-life experience – this one combines admittedly amusing WWE caricatures with a frustratingly skill-free set of controls.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I admit, it’s amusing – if not a little off-putting – seeing John Cena, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock rendered as cinderblocks with musculature. But unlike <i>Smackdown!</i>, they don’t even get fully animated entrances. They cut off about halfway down the ramp, more like the old-school <i>WWF Wrestlefest</i> arcade game. Make every steroid joke you want, folks. In this case, there’s no reason I should stop anybody.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not only do the combination attacks once the match actually begins look physically impossible – however amusing they are to watch – but blocking or countering takes nearly millisecond-perfect timing and breaking a c-c-c-combo will just have you wondering “Wait, how’d I do that? How do I do that again?!” No game should ever make a veteran gamer feel like an octogenarian picking up an NES controller for the first time.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s a button-masher. That’s it. An arcade-style button-masher that requires absolutely no skill whatsoever. Changing opponents provide little difficulty variance at all, except that predictably the Ultimate Warrior seems very nearly invincible. Sure, wrestlers have varying classes that include Grapplers, Big Men, Brawlers and High-Fliers. But unique attacks aside, they all perform about exactly the same way. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even the game modes don’t exactly smack of originality. There’s a fantasy-warfare mode of unlockable past-versus-present dream matches like The Rock versus John Cena, Randy Orton versus Jake “The Snake” Roberts and The Big Show versus Andre The Giant. There are also three story modes, in which you must run a 10-match gauntlet to face your choice (depending on the story) of the Undertaker at Summerslam, Randy Orton at Wrestlemania or DX at Wrestlemania. Once more, it’s pretty much exactly like the <i>Wrestlefest</i> arcade mode.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Considering the dumb luck and wild button-mashing involved, it’s also a reasonable difficulty comparison.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s to your advantage, no matter which mode, to just keep constantly attacking. Keep pounding the buttons and sooner or later, you’ll pull off something cool which will give some fans a 30-second, get-a-towel fangasm watching The Rock leap about 15 feet into the air when delivering a Rock-Bottom. Ultimately, though a blind kid could play this game as well as anyone actually <i>trying</i> to play it well.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s honestly not even worth renting, unless you have a drooling seven-year-old John Cena fanatic who will just be mesmerized by all the pretty, pretty colors. Honestly, though, THQ and World Wrestling Entertainment would really be better off just once more including more decent unlockable legends with each year’s <i>Smackdown!</i> iteration.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Building castles gets expensive after a while.</span></span>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-65527565703087660052011-04-08T07:43:00.001-07:002011-04-08T07:48:35.856-07:00Homefront Review: Well-begun is half done....where's my other half, though?<img src="http://www.thatvideogameblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/homefront.jpg" /><br />
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</i></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Homefront</i></b> is an exceptional first-person-shooter. That makes it a disappointment only because it clearly could’ve been so much more.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Milius (writer of <i>Apocalypse Now</i>, writer/director of <i>Red Dawn</i>) penned <i>Homefront</i>’s single-player campaign. He revisits his <i>Red Dawn</i> vision – ever rooted in contemporary international realities – of an <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region> first caught unaware and then overwhelmed and conquered, and stains it with <i>Apocalypse Now</i>’s grit, humanity, blood and naked horrors of war.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From its very initial moments, <i>Homefront</i> never lets you escape or withdraw from an emotional involvement in Milius’ bleak, near-future American landscape. The game’s opening moments aren’t a rendered cut scene, but a roughly five-minute crash course montage of both real newscasts and fully-produced live mock-ups that begins with Hillary Rodham Clinton addressing the press regarding true-life 2011 sanctions against <st1:country-region><st1:place>North Korea</st1:place></st1:country-region>. From that point, <st1:place>Asia</st1:place> spiraled into chaos following North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il’s 2012 death and the ascension of his son Kim Jong-un – the one this speculative <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region> quickly realizes should’ve been the one they were <i>really</i> worried about. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kim Jong-un unites North and <st1:country-region><st1:place>South Korea</st1:place></st1:country-region> and drives American forces from the Korean peninsula. Meanwhile, continuing conflict between <st1:country-region><st1:place>Saudi Arabia</st1:place></st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region><st1:place>Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region> drives gas prices above $20 per gallon, crippling <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s infrastructure. Elsewhere, <st1:country-region><st1:place>Japan</st1:place></st1:country-region> surrenders to and becomes a vassal state to the Greater Korean Republic as <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region> declares Martial Law in the face of its crumbling society.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally – following the combination of a deadly bird flu epidemic, drastic Korean military expansion and detonation of an EMP over <st1:state><st1:place>Kansas</st1:place></st1:state> – the Korean People’s Army invades and occupies <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region> starting with <st1:city><st1:place>San Francisco</st1:place></st1:city> and <st1:state><st1:place>Hawaii</st1:place></st1:state>. That brings us to 2027.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The relentless pacing won’t so much “suck you into” or “draw you into” the game. From the moment the 16-year opening rehash ends, it throws you violently out your present-day comfort zone’s door and deadbolts it behind you. You’re now former U.S. Marine helicopter pilot Robert Jacobs and his eyes will be your eyes for the next five to 10 hours of game-play. Including not a single third-person cinematic cut scene is a brilliant tactic for a first-person game rendered in such striking real detail as this one via the Unreal Engine 3.0 with its dynamic lighting and shadow, destructible backgrounds virtually perfect NPC and enemy movement. There will never be a moment where you will detach </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and an end-of-mission summary or seeing your character from a different vantage point will remind you make a subtle reminder that it’s a game.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As the Korean People’s Army rousts you from your home and onto a bus bound for a re-education camp, never look anywhere but left. You’ll see fellow Americans similarly taken and swept away. Blood flies against your window as a countryman is executed curbside. See a child toddle howling to the parents just executed before his eyes. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later, following an intense and vengeful firefight through a Korean prison camp, you’ll hide helpless from KPA patrols beneath a mass grave’s blanket of nameless corpses – with a dead man’s hand dangling over the camera and another victim’s empty eyes staring into yours.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until a brief fly-over pan of a battle-torn <st1:place>Golden Gate</st1:place> Bridge you just fought and clawed your way across minutes earlier, this will be your vision. This will be your world. Jacobs’ face may as well be your face, because his eyes won’t cease being yours.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s something in gaming that rarely ever receives the praise it deserves, but a nod for such an immersive experience must be given to the sound design. My ears still echo now with the whistle of every bullet that whizzed inches from Jacobs’ ear on the battlefield and every equilibrium-rocking RPG and frag grenade that detonated at my fight. It’s a complete sensory battlefield replication right down to the challenge of adapting to finding enemies in rifle sights backlit against the blinding sun. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The game-play itself is smooth as could possibly be. Credit to Kaos Studios for a game in which I never experienced a single hit-detection, wonky clipping or many cheap deaths. Even at a default difficulty, Kaos found a line between challenging enough to taunt a gamer into continuing and the “f*** this” line of obscene difficulty. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s a tremendous, white-knuckle experience that has just one drawback, and if you ask me, it’s a big one: a seven-mission campaign? Just seven? Really? Five to 10 hours to complete the single-player mode? It’s a gripping, harsh experience that doesn’t feel remotely like an equivalent to the two-hour <i>Red Dawn</i> or the two-hour-plus <i>Apocalypse Now</i>. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel like the FPS genre should <i>somehow</i> be past this by now. I get that few genres – fighting and traditional sports included – lend themselves so well to great multiplayer experiences as the FPS. Thus, I can understand that being an emphasized selling point, and thus the most emphasized aspect of a shooter’s development. But without the kind of incredible storytelling that the <i>Gears of War</i> and <i>Halo</i> franchises displayed, so many shooters just feel like half-completed games to me.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe it or not, some people don’t game online frequently. It might not even be so frustrating if the single-player mode had been very, very bad. But on the contrary: it’s extremely good and highly intense, but what’s there is burned through too quickly and reaches a rushed, sharp conclusion. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve heard rumors that <i>Homefront</i>’s saga will continue later this year with downloadable content. That’s even <i>more</i> disappointing. I love great DLC but only in a context where it expands upon an already great ending and the main game’s ending doesn’t drop off sharp. DLC should be an optional but attractive expansion on a complete game, not a means of bilking me out of coin for game-play that would’ve made the main game even better had it been included in the first place.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My verdict? Rent it. Play through it, even play the predictably enjoyable multiplayer maps. It’s a memorable experience while it lasts, and an admirable effort of a gripping solo campaign. It can be finished over a single lazy afternoon, with really little single-player replay value outside ratcheting up the difficulty setting. If you only care about multiplayer, I must wonder why you wouldn’t just buy <i>Call of Duty: Black Ops</i>.</span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-32786519131352642622011-04-07T19:34:00.000-07:002011-04-07T20:03:07.824-07:00What MTV is missing out on.....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/qybUFnY7Y8w?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Snooki and her ilk aren't worth passing up gems like this (yeah, I know it's a year old, but still...)</span>.TigerCubGirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05629714202680086160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-40958886074186695572011-04-02T11:09:00.000-07:002011-04-02T11:09:06.383-07:00Shortcuts By Steve: Karate ChopKip Dynamite lives. He moved to Virginia. He has discovered public-access cable. There's a very good chance he's better than you.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BhLaD0XYHd0" title="YouTube video player" width="425"></iframe>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-78030329463440695152011-04-01T10:11:00.000-07:002011-04-01T12:03:00.801-07:00Let Wrestlemania Weekend Begin Again...<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a wrestling fan, there just is no weekend of the year for me quite like Wrestlemania Weekend.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This year is particularly bittersweet, though. This marks 20 years almost exactly from the time I fell in love with the wrestling business not long right after seeing Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter for the (then-WWF) Championship and the Ultimate Warrior vs. "Macho King" Randy Savage in the company's first "Career-Ending Match" at Wrestlemania VII. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In that intervening two decades, I've watched the evolution of both professional wrestling and its popularity. I was a loyal fan throughout the early-'90s transitional period when the business was finding its new way. I shook my head in puzzlement with the meteoric, unprecedented, and never-equaled explosion of wrestling's popularity when <i>WCW Monday Nitro</i> and <i>WW(F) Monday Night Raw</i> engaged in mortal combat during the "Monday Night Wars" when every Monday night really was wrestling night. But when that boom ended, there I remained during a time when I'd say that I'm a wrestling fan and like Pavlov's most annoying dogs, those bandwagon fans that jumped on board in the late '90s said that they stopped watching when the careers of Goldberg, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock came to an end.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which, to this day, always makes me think one thing: "No, you're not a wrestling fan. You're a Rock/Austin/Goldberg fan. There IS a difference."</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But through every high and low wrestling has endured, Vince McMahon and Co. bring the A-game in the three months leading up to this one weekend. And almost every year, there's one storyline -- two, if we're really lucky -- into which the now-WWE production teams pours their every drop of creativity to build the drama that reminds fans like me why we're fans: because every great, memorable moment I've witnessed was one that I never saw coming. And I never know when that next one will hit that will change the business like some bald Texan telling an opponent that "Austin 3:16 says (he) just whipped your ass" or maybe just a match so good, it lives forever in my memory (there's a Shawn Michaels-Chris Benoit match from <i>Raw</i> that fits that latter description which, sadly, will probably never again see the light of day.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I think about those moments, I think of three great promo videos that aired leading up to marquee Wrestlemania match-ups. Whether you're a fan or not, you cannot deny that these three are more like trailers to grand epics with music and footage paired as perfectly as any combination of those two could be paired to generate goose-bump drama.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So if you're a fan, please enjoy these. On these three occasions, WWE reminded me why I'm a wrestling fan and probably will be for life. If you're a bit of a noob, watch 'em anyway. Maybe they'll get you just curious enough to dip a toe on Sunday and maybe enjoy this form of entertainment as much as I do.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">******</span><br />
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<i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"In time, your time will be no more . . ."</span></b></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Those unexpected moments I mentioned? Behold Exhibit A.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I grant that this isn't even a week old, having aired just this past Monday. But a feud has been built between these two last remaining giants of wrestling's last boom period. With Kurt Angle now wrestling elsewhere, Steve Austin and The Rock retired, Mick Foley a nostalgia act, Shawn Michaels entering the Hall of Fame this year and Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit tragically dead, Triple H and the Undertaker are the last two titans standing -- each wanting to be "the last outlaw." They are WWE's two John Marstons -- the last two cowboys at the end of a dying, lawless, wild age.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've enjoyed this match's build-up, particularly since they met at arguably the greatest Wrestlemania ever produced exactly 10 years ago in Houston. It's a sense of history, and of a full circle. But then I watched this promo and heard Mark Collie's eerie, tense, whispered vocals and the hair stood on the back of my neck.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you've ever seen the Thomas Jane version of <i>The Punisher</i> and read the sub-head, you have a pretty good idea what's coming.</span><br />
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<i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"There ain't no grave, can hold my body down . . ."</span></b></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a very, very short time, this two-year saga of the two greatest performers wrestling has ever known or may ever know has become already the stuff of immortal legend.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Heading into Wrestlemania 25, the Undertaker was 16-0 at Wrestlemania. Shawn Michaels had already cemented his reputation as reaching a different performance level that one time per year. But he had one thing he hadn't yet achieved: he wanted to end what has become known in reverent terms simply as The Streak.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At Wrestlemania 25, he almost did what 14 others before him hadn't. But where fans thought this great feud had reached a climax, the people writing it knew that was only the penultimate chapter. For the next year, Michaels would plant seeds for the true climax by acknowledging that he'd wrestling a "near-perfect" match and only made "one mistake." He started telling the world he believed -- no, he <i>knew</i> -- that he could beat the Undertaker on the one stage where no other had.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, after months of goading, the Undertaker laid down one final challenge: Streak Versus Career.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In twenty years, I've never seen long-term booking and story-planning quite like this. And it will probably never happen again. But in the meantime, I witness the second greatest Wrestlemania-hype video in 20 years following this business.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I never expected who would provide the soundtrack . . .</span><br />
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<i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Best. Period.</span></b></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I saved the best for last. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sadly, this video also puts me into a tough position. If you didn't come of age as a fan during the late '90s, you just can't fully appreciate what Steve Austin and Dwayne Johnson shared as performers. The two greatest, most popular, entertaining performers of their era, who each helped launch wrestling to unprecedented and yet unequaled heights and became almost bigger than the business itself, actually wrestled comparatively few times but every single time was magic. Their charisma and ability told a story every time the two locked eyes. This was Joker and Batman. This was Michael Jordan and Isiah Thomas. This was Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Austin was returning to Wrestlemania after taking off nearly a full year to finally repair a legitimately long-broken neck. In the meantime, The Rock had become arguably -- depending on who you asked and the day -- either the company's most popular star or a damn-close second. One more spark to light the fire? Austin would main-event Wrestlemania in his home state of Texas. It was a moment at a time in the wrestling business that words just don't do justice. You can't define it with verbiage to someone who's never seen it. And those who are seeing it just now, can't really appreciate its full context because it was the end of an era they never experienced from its rise, to its fall.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But few will ever forget this one video. It may be the only truly awesome contribution to humanity Limp Bizkit have ever made. Top to bottom -- pacing, footage, cuts -- it is promotional, hype-building genius.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But it speaks for itself better than I ever could for it. Enjoy.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C4tIFmj9oNA" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This year won't be without its sad moments, though. For the first time since Wrestlemania 22, I won't be watching with some combination of my best friends, whom I've affectionately dubbed The Horsemen -- Chris Faughn, Jeremy "J-King" Hulshof and John Inman. Finances and circumstances just put a bullet in a once-a-year tradition that always involves home-cooking, watching both the annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony on USA and tons of past wrestling matches on DVD, and a yearly four-handed poker game in tribute to our departed friend, fellow wrestling fan and tournament poker player Steve Black, who passed away between seeing Wrestlemania 23 live in his hometown of Detroit with Jeremy and I and being able to see Ric Flair's *ahem* "retirement" match at Wrestlemania 24. I'm unemployed and cash-strapped, Chris has a baby on the way and John will be watching on pay-per-view with Jeremy. For the time being, I must hit the pause button on a tradition about coming together with my band of brothers over something we've all loved for years.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But what this weekend is about won't change. At 6 p.m. Sunday night, I know where I'll be. That's because I know where The Miz, C.M. Punk, Randy Orton, Edge, Alberto del Rio, Triple H and the Undertaker will be. Once a year, everything culminates. And once a year, I might witness that next great memory's birth. You never know.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm Sleepless Colin. You're not. And that's the bottom line.</span>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-22185468318692210012011-04-01T08:37:00.000-07:002011-04-01T08:37:46.335-07:00Tiger Tunes: Glee Folds Five<img src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQxwyKFm82XEg6mtF2fAeIK0sjOqDu-5tgh0iukEVgDPfOv2sOe" /><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">Choir was a big part of my life growing up. Each year in middle school, our class would put on a recital singing songs about Christmas or spring. In high school, I participated in concert choir (called Honor Choir), which led to stints at district choir and State Music Contest. And in undergrad, I was lucky enough to successfully audition for 2 university choirs (I also auditioned for the university’s jazz choir, but my scat-singing sounded like a baby blowing one big, long raspberry). I was a complete choir nerd, and proud of it.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So naturally, I was excited to see last year that Fox had developed a delightful little choir show called <i>Glee, </i>and that it had become a gigantic success. It was becoming cool again to be a choir geek, whether it was because of the hot football players, the lovely-and-talented-yet-annoying Rachel Berry, or the hilariously intimidating villain Sue Sylverster and her one-liners about Will Schuester’s hair. Yet while the show’s hype was well-deserved, not ALL of the choir geek resurgence credit went to Schuester and the gang. Someone else got there first.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Right around the time that <i>Glee</i>’s first season was being filmed, singer-songwriter and cult music hero Ben Folds was developing a little choir geek project of his own. Released in April of 2009, <i>Ben Folds Presents: University A Capella! </i>is a compilation of various university <i>a capella</i> choirs around the country singing Ben’s songs<i>. </i>The only exceptions are two tracks where Ben himself arranges and sings <i>a capella</i>. But since this project was a compilation album that wasn’t going to garner any radio play, and not a TV show on one of the biggest networks in the world, it sadly went under the radar.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yeah, yeah….I know <i>Glee </i>is about high school choir and<i>University A Capella! </i>puts the emphasis on collegiate choirs. Just work with me here, kids.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">It should also be mentioned that making the album helped get Ben the gig as one of three judges for the NBC <i>a capella </i>group show <i>The Sing-Off, </i>which has already had 2 very successful seasons, and will probably come back later this year.</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 14px;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">So without further ado, let’s dive into <i>University A Capella!</i></span><br />
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<b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Not The Same; The Spartones (UNC-Greensboro): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This R&B choir brings an interesting soulful vibe to Ben’s homage to a friend who got high at a party, climbed a tree, and came down a born-again Christian. The background singers overpower the male lead in a few spots, but they blend well together in the bridge and again towards the end. Plus, I’ve always liked this song.<b>Grade: A-/B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Jesusland; The Loreleis (UNC-Chapel Hill): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The original—from Ben’s 2005 album <i>Songs For Silverman</i>—was used in Bill Maher’s documentary <i>Religulous. </i>This version is beautifully sung by the all-girls choir The Loreleis. The lead has a slight tremolo in her voice, but it enhances the overall quality of the track. The backups provide an interesting mix of middle and low harmonies, along with light vocal percussion. It’s a very well-done performance that is among my favorites on the album. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Brick; The Leading Tones (Ohio University): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">It was this very performance that inspired Ben to do the album in the first place. He heard this recording, and got permission from the university to use it without needing the all-male choir to rehearse it more. It’s a little strange hearing the R&B spin on it, but the soft lead vocal and light backing vocals work well with the story of the lyrics. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">You Don’t Know Me; With Someone Else’s Money (University of Georgia): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">I absolutely love the work of the background on this song. It’s bouncy, the baritone part is incredibly catchy, and the soprano take-over during the bridge is musical chocolate—sweet and light, yet simultaneously smooth and rich. As for the two leads….the male lead sounds scarily just like Ben (in a good way), but the female lead sounds nothing like Regina Spektor. Which isn’t bad; it just makes the lead vocals lack a little <i>oomph</i>. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Still Fighting It; Mosaic Whispers (Washington University in St. Louis): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This performance shows more traditional choral elements, mixed with the vocal percussion of R&B groups. The male lead has an excellent voice that exhibits the emotions that the song requires, and the background, though a tiny bit on the loud side, uses an even balance of male and female harmonics. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Boxing: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">We take a break from the choirs and go to a track from Ben Folds Five’s eponymous debut that has Ben himself singing with an unnamed backing choir and some lady singing opera (?!). Ben and the choir blend seamlessly, but the lady is a bit of a distraction at times. Still, it’s a creative choice. <b>Grade: B</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px; margin-top: 12pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Selfless, Cold, and Composed; The Sacramento State Jazz Singers: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This choir was the perfect choice to cover this song. The original (from Ben Folds Five’s <i>Whatever and Ever Amen</i>) is extremely jazzy, with intricate piano riffs and a jazzy bass line, and this choir portrays the original beautifully. It’s the longest track on the album, but there are enough fascinating things going on that I don’t want it to end. The female lead exudes an interesting simplicity in her voice, the harmonies are flawless, and the scat-singing is absolutely delicious. Well-done, guys! <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Magic; The Voices in Your Head (University of Chicago): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Ok, first thing’s first: Best. Choir. Name. EVER. That alone gets major points from me. Second, this is such an ethereal-sounding song that requires just great voices without fancy riffs and vocal percussion. And this group definitely does it justice. There is not a hint of R&B here, nor is there an actual lead vocal….just beautiful blends, wonderful harmonies, and lots of dynamics. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Landed; The Buffoons (University of Colorado): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This all-male choir does a great job on this cut from <i>Silverman, </i>though I have to say that the lead vocal sounds like a weird mix between Death Cab For Cutie front man Ben Gibbard and Owl City. That’s not a bad thing at all, but it does stand out significantly more than the backing harmonies. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Time; The Princeton Nassoons: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Yet another song from <i>Silverman,</i>and this all-male traditional choir gives it a very collegiate, alma mater-esque vibe. The lead vocal has a heckuva voice, and the backing harmonies help bring it out even more. Gorgeous. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Effington: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is the other track that has Ben doing his own<i>a capella </i>arrangements, and while the original is somewhat giggle-worthy, this version is even more so. The backing vocals are bouncy and almost clown-like, which emphasizes the song’s silliness. The kids saying the opening and closing lines are a cute addition as well. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Evaporated; The Newtones (Newton South High School): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is the only group on the album that is from a high school, and it shows for the most part. They do have a very nice blend and good vocal percussion, but their overall performance leaves me a bit cold. Technically, they are very impressive, especially with the variety of voices they use for the lead vocals. However, they definitely lack the maturity of the other groups. It also doesn’t help that I’ve always thought this song was a little on the boring side. <b>Grade: C+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Fred Jones Part 2; The Gracenotes (The Westchester University of Pennsylvania): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This is the poorest fit between choir and song choice. The all-girls choir sounds lovely on the backing vocals, but the lead vocal has way too much of a tinny quality, and sometimes comes off as Tiny Tim in an earthquake gargling vinegar. It just doesn’t sound pleasing to the ears at all. But like I said…the background sounded nice, especially on the bridge. <b>Grade: D+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Army; The Midnight Ramblers (University of Rochester): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Just the fact that a college choir dropped the f-bomb in a song is enough to make me spray my monitor with Diet Dr. Pepper. But this whole track is just a big ball of hilarious fun that you can jam to in your car. The lead vocal injects the lyrics with a very subtle sarcasm, while the backing vocals completely rock out, especially on the bridge (where the original had a big brass solo). I also love the ad-libbed “real American hero” at the very end. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Fair; Eau Claire’s Fifth Element (University of Wisconsin): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">There is so much going on in this track. The lead vocals are solid, but the backing vocals become the real star of this performance, using a great bass line, subtle references to past Ben Folds songs (there is a lyric from “Zac and Sara” thrown in there, as well as a couple other songs), and some catchy falsetto work on the chorus. It’s another totally fun track that you don’t want to end. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The Luckiest; The Amateurs (Washington University in St. Louis): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">We end the album on a traditional choral performance on Ben’s ode to his family from <i>Rockin’ the Suburbs</i>. The background vocals sound like they’re performing in a church and singing to the heavens, especially when they blend with the lead on the chorus (that’s a good thing, in my book). The lead vocal has an absolutely wonderful range, and this song is an excellent showcase for it. A beautiful choice for a closer. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there you have it! Despite a couple of hiccups, this is a really enjoyable album, and I’d love for there to be a second volume some time down the road. I do admit that I had thought Ben would be performing all the songs with the choirs all in the background, so this sound was a little unexpected at first. But what a concept, and what an impressive collection of talented choirs! And I’m willing to bet that even Ms. Sylvester would enjoy it.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Recommended songs: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">“Jesusland,” “Army,” “Fair,” “Selfless, Cold, and Composed,” “You Don’t Know Me,” “The Luckiest,” “Still Fighting It”</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">U</span><span style="line-height: 14px;">ntil next time….LONG LIVE CHOIR GEEKS!!! HEEEYYYOOOO!!!</span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small; line-height: 14px;"><br />
</span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-14669017132564272832011-03-26T13:37:00.001-07:002011-03-26T13:37:49.527-07:00Inappropriate Use Of Bacon?<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hnRVJTbtSec/TY5OnQ1YZKI/AAAAAAAAAAo/3Zppxx7_9oQ/s1600/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDAwNDEtMjAxMTAzMjYtMTUzNS5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-769527"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hnRVJTbtSec/TY5OnQ1YZKI/AAAAAAAAAAo/3Zppxx7_9oQ/s320/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDAwNDEtMjAxMTAzMjYtMTUzNS5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-769527" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588490624054092962" /></a></p>Why not just call this "The Pregnancy Craving" and be honest about it?<br>Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerryS.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-48570042325441882512011-03-25T12:00:00.000-07:002011-03-25T02:56:16.289-07:00Tiger Tunes: Not A Pretty Girl....But a Pretty Album<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;"><a href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRaaP9lZBkq7_jnvG_wcOjNwHIHBaOhNztoJaW96SeScIvjiuouxA" imageanchor="1" style="color: #cccccc; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: underline;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRaaP9lZBkq7_jnvG_wcOjNwHIHBaOhNztoJaW96SeScIvjiuouxA" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.199219) 0px 0px 0px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #222222; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: transparent; border-bottom-left-radius: 0px 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px 0px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: transparent; border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: transparent; border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: transparent; border-top-left-radius: 0px 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; border-width: initial; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.199219) 0px 0px 0px; padding-bottom: 8px; padding-left: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px; position: relative;" width="225" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
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</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 14px;"><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi kids. As promised, I’m back with the kickoff to my new series, Tiger Tunes: A-Z. The first victim is none other than indie folk goddess Ani Difranco and her 1995 album <i>Not a Pretty Girl. </i></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was given this album when I was in high school (a few years after it had come out, mind you…I’m old, but not THAT old!), and it’s still one of the standouts from my music collection, and an essential to those of you who have a substantial amount of indie music in your collections. Here is a track-by-track review, including grades for each song.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Worthy: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The album starts off with a mid-tempo groover set to hippie poetry percussion. Ani basically talks about how she and her boyfriend don’t deserve each other. Simple message, cool song. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Tiptoe: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This one really isn’t a song so much as it is Ani reciting a free verse poem about a girl about to get an abortion who is contemplating suicide. Is it autobiographical? Who knows, but it IS different and clever. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Cradle and All: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The tempo picks up, and Ani rocks out here. The irony of the arrangement, juxtaposed with the lullaby lyrics of the chorus, does a brilliant job of showcasing Ani’s creativity. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Shy: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This track comes off as more of a background track than the previous three. It’s another mid-tempo song that does have a catchy bass line, but doesn’t really pick up until about halfway through. Still, it’s solid. <b>Grade: B</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Sorry I Am: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This one is pretty self-explanatory, as it’s pretty much an apology song. Yet Ani’s vigorous guitar-strumming exhibits both loud and soft dynamics that make this a great song to listen to while just lying on your bed on a gloomy Sunday afternoon. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Light of Some Kind: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The aforementioned vigorous guitar-strumming is back in full-force, and Ani’s voice exhibits a growing frustration as the song progresses. However, as with many Ani songs, I listen to this and fear that she’s going to break a string right in the middle of the song. <i>Boinnnnnngggggg.</i></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Not a Pretty Girl: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The title track is one of many songs thatAni has written over the years that express her individuality and feminism. She talks about how being her own woman might be misconstrued by some as being angry, bitter, and in need of help to survive in the world. The awesome line “I ain’t no damsel in distress and I don’t need to be rescued/ So put me down, Punk” particularly stands out for me. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The Million That You Never Made: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Another song where the guitar strings take a butt-kicking. This one starts out with a vigorous, fast, yet soft riff that crescendos gradually as the song progresses. Ani’s voice grows increasingly pissed-off as she hisses to the subject of the song that she could be the millions of dollars that he (she?) could and never made. The climax explodes with guitar and pounding drums, and the last chord ends with a melancholy sound that, quite frankly, always creeped me out a little. That’s a good thing. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Hour Follows Hour: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Ani slows it down by crooning out another lazy day ballad accompanied by some gorgeous guitar work. However, the song tends to drag quite a bit in places, and ends with a bit of a whimper. It’s another good song to play in the background, but it’s also the weakest track on the album. <b>Grade: B-/C+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">32 Flavors: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">From the weakest track, we go to the strongest track. This is Ani’s most well-known song, and some outside of her fan base might recognize it by the cover Alana Davis did the same year. It’s another long track, but the interesting percussion, infectious guitar riff, brilliant lyrics, and unique African chants towards the end make it an absolute gem. It’s a song that I really relate to, because the lyrics talk more about individuality and a refusal to be stereotyped. The line “I am a poster girl with no poster/I am 32 flavors and them some” is a tagline I often use for e-mails and my social networking pages, and I have Ani to thank for it. Amen, Sister. <b>Grade: A+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Asking Too Much: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The things that stand out for me on this track are the interesting syncopation of the rhythm and the brief tempo change during the last 30 seconds. It’s short, yet cool. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">This Bouquet: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;"> This is the shortest track on the album, and it curiously seems to go by a little too fast before I can get a really good listen on it. It’s a bit on the “filler track” side, so it’s not Ani’s best, but it’s not the worst either. <b>Grade: B</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Crime For Crime: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Ani gets more political here, tackling the subject of the death penalty. However, not only is the subject matter heavy and well-expressed, but the rhythms are intricate and heavy enough to jam to in the car, and the riffs are uniquely catchy. Yet another example of a creative genius. <b>Grade: A</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Coming Up: </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">I’m not exactly sure what to make of this song. I have no idea what it’s about, since Ani pretty much rambles off another free verse poem against the background of guitar and tambourine. But then again, it’s pretty awesome in its own way. <b>Grade: A-</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="line-height: 14px;">Tiptoe (Outtakes): </span></b><span style="line-height: 14px;">The album ends on a self-explanatory note, with Ani basically laughing and cursing her way through the Tiptoe poem. A weird way to end, but you at least get a laugh out of it. <b>Grade: B+</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">And there you have it. <i>Not a Pretty Girl </i>is definitely not perfect, but all of the songs have enough interesting elements so that there is not a clunker in the bunch. Still, it remains one of my favorite Ani Difranco albums due in large part to 32 Flavors. Ani’s creativity with metaphor always impresses me, and by the way she churns out her multiple albums, I’ll be continuing to enjoy her for years to come.</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 14px;">Recommended Tracks: "Worthy," "32 Flavors," "The Million That You Never Made," "Cradle Will Rock</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time….long live healthy guitar strings.</span></span></div></span></div></span>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-86956606300646786652011-03-24T20:15:00.000-07:002011-03-24T20:38:38.041-07:00Bulletstorm Review<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Bulletstorm</i></b> does so many things exceptionally, outrageously well as to eclipse the one area where I could argue it fails.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You’re Grayson Hunt. He’s a perpetually sloshed 26<sup>th</sup> century dime-store-Duke-Nukem space pirate and ex-assassin who wants off the horror-show wasteland of a former resort planet called Stygia where he crash landed with his crew’s sole survivor, the bitten, sullen half-cyborg Ishi Sato. See, getting off that rock full of genetically enhanced mutants, Godzilla-esque monsters, criminals and flesh-eating flora would make getting revenge the Army General that lied to and betrayed him and his crew <i>so</i> much easier.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m really not dumbing much down. That’s your story. It plays out over seven acts plus a prologue, and completing “Campaign” mode shouldn’t take a first-person-shooter veteran much more than a lone lazy afternoon.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s really a damn shame, because despite an unremarkable single-player campaign scenario, the big-and-loud action, hilarious voice performances and acerbic script, and refreshingly skill-based mechanics make a very enjoyable FPS experience.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Look, it’s not an Earth-shaking generality that whatever game aspect a developer emphasizes gets the extra loving at some other area’s expense. It rarely occurs to us as gamers that there’s a finite amount of data, code and of course time – however astronomical “next-generation” technology has made that ceiling – that developers have to craft any given game. Nor is it beyond comprehension that studios and developers realize something very simple: gaming is the business of capturing an audience. Gamers who buy first-person shooters buy them mostly for the online/multiplayer experience. Therefore, if that’s what the audience wants, sliding attention from the less-important-to-buyers single player campaign to the crucial-selling-point multiplayer experience makes perfect sense.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Still, the game feels so incomplete without a solid single-player mode. If EA’s sports franchises can develop infinitely deep full-season, single-player franchise modes for Madden every single year without ever sacrificing a satisfying online experience, I don’t see how developers emphasizing other genres can’t match that.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Bulletstorm’</i>s game-play mechanics and presentation simply couldn’t excel beyond the standard run-gun-and-melee FPS pale with any engine except Unreal Engine 3.5. When you tag a game’s packaging “Kill With Skill” because you’re encouraging and giving players almost unheard-of tools to kill and destroy as creatively as possible, every viscera-coated death’s ultimate visual had better be worth the carnage’s elaborate, skillful execution. From dynamic rag-doll physics to some glorious bullet-time style slow-downs to ratchet up painful impact, Unreal just does what Unreal always does best: some of the most satisfying game-play visuals any engine can provide.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unless you’re playing a FPS for the first time since the original <i>Goldeneye</i> or <i>Perfect Dark</i>, I have some bad news: this game won’t exactly overwhelm your eyes. This isn’t exactly cel-shading, but then again, this isn’t exactly <i>Mass Effect 2 </i>or<i> Halo </i>in tone. Given the game’s raucous, dumb-fun tone and dark humor, though, something a little more cartoonish and bigger-than-life rather than life-<i>like</i> feels appropriate. After so many visually stellar games like <i>Mass Effect 2</i>, <i>Heavy Rain</i>, the upcoming <i>L.A. Noirre</i> and <i>The</i> <i>Godfather</i>, a game like this is a good reminder that sometimes a game can’t really help you escape while playing it without a little exaggeration and insane bombast. All the more reason I can’t and won’t fault Gray reminding me of an alkie Deadpool who looks like a ridiculous Hugh Jackman caricature.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But any hot-rod can look pretty when standing still in “Park.” You only appreciate its power when it moves you. Playing <i>Bulletstorm</i> actually made me a little bit . . . . well, <i>angry</i>. Oh, not at People Can Fly or Epic. But developers like Bungie can quite frankly die in a fiery fire, because these lower-on-the-totem-pole developers just proved that there can be much, much more to FPS combat than “run, point, shoot.” I haven’t played many shooters except <i>BioShock</i> and <i>Mass Effect 2</i> that so effectively combine melee/ranged attacks and firearms to create so many free-form attacks that keep the game so fresh. Using the ranged “leash,” Gray can rip armor from mini-bosses, fling enemies off structures and into nearby hazards or simply rip enemies toward him and riddle them with a mid-air shower of lead.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I must admit, two hours in, and I was one happy little gore-hound. It's not every day I get to laud praise upon a game because it rewards me for the ultra-specific combo of blasting an enemy in the gonads, then kicking him in the skull to finish him off, or rewarding me with this games XP equivalent because I dispatched a foe by literally pumping his anal cavity full of lead. But I've also played few games that make a little resourcefulness so rewarding. Environmental attacks can feel like an after-thought sometimes, when really using them well can be the hallmark of an intelligent, cagey gamer. In <i>Bulletstorm</i>, creative and effective use of the environment can often be preferable over chewing through clips of ammo.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Personally, I several times disposed of enemies that repeatedly dodged my push-kicks with backward jumps by kicking at them until they either backed against a wall against which I could stomp them, or occasionally kicked them straight off a ledge.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It really goes beyond that, though. Not only does the game give players that violently creative freedom and provide big rewards for honing actual technique, but it ties doing so to surviving the game. The bigger and more skillful the kills, the more “skillpoints.” And those skillpoints buy ammunition and upgrades from checkpoint “dropkits” scattered randomly across the maps. Anyone who wants to survive this, especially at higher difficulty settings, won’t think of settling for standard 10-point kills when just a little extra effort could keep you alive by affording you timely upgrades to keep up with the ramping-up strength of enemies.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Best of all, I must admit my admiration for a perfectly balanced difficulty. Things absolutely get hairy, but nothing ever feels insurmountable. I particularly adore the “sniper” mechanic of POV-steering a bullet around obstacles and into a fleeing enemy’s soft tissue. Even when I fired a near-miss, it was never actually frustrating. It just made me knuckle up and say “So damn close! OK, I know I can do this, let’s get this done . . .”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Those are the hallmarks of every truly great game I’ve ever played, the best of the best: difficulty that challenged me but never broke me, and free-form control to pull off visually-satisfying, skillful feats in-game.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I picked on Bungie above for a reason. I must admit, <i>Halo</i> tells a magnificent story throughout the series. That’s never been my problem with the franchise. The combat has just always felt too static to me, much in the same way that the first two <i>Assassin’s Creed</i> games’ combat grew repetitive and would’ve made wanting to see the games through to the end difficult had it not been for those games’ phenomenal visuals and intriguing stories. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To be fair, the frustration with Bulletstorm makes a U-turn and sprints to almost the precise opposite extreme: the game-play and controls could set a new standard for dynamic FPS combat mechanics but just as it proves that the genre can do so much more than run-gun-and-melee, it misses Bungie’s <i>Halo</i> high-water mark for a FPS with an epic, compelling, lengthy solo campaign. In my opinion, it makes <i>Bulletstorm</i> feel like three-fifths of a truly great game – just a little more than halfway there. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can’t recommend buying <i>Bulletstorm</i> unless one could either find it very, very cheap, or truly loves online gaming and can’t wait to go mano-a-mano with friends using the distinctive combat mechanics. Make no mistake, that’s truly a worthwhile experience and should keep multiplayer-shooter lovers coming back.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just start that party without me.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m Sleepless Colin, and you’re not.</span></div></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-88593538342460672222011-03-23T19:12:00.000-07:002011-03-23T19:12:29.160-07:00Taiwanese Animated Chris Brown "Good Morning America" Mad Flip-Out Good Time!Brace yourself. The Sims have gone bat-shit.<br />
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<img style="visibility:hidden;width:0px;height:0px;" border=0 width=0 height=0 src="http://c.gigcount.com/wildfire/IMP/CXNID=2000002.0NXC/bT*xJmx*PTEzMDA5MzI2OTA5MjEmcHQ9MTMwMDkzMjcxMjM1OSZwPTEwNjM2NjImZD*mZz*yJm89MmQyYTBhYjliZWQ1NDcyNWI1/MGExODUyNmUwNmE*YjQmb2Y9MA==.gif" /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="410" data="http://vids.perezhilton.com/plugins/player.swf?v=12c4a08cf9df8&p=vega4-without-ads-transparent-flp&autoplay=false" height="308" id="embedded_player"><param name="movie" value="http://vids.perezhilton.com/plugins/player.swf?v=12c4a08cf9df8&p=vega4-without-ads-transparent-flp&autoplay=false"/><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"/><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"/><param name="base" value="http://vids.perezhilton.com"/><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"/></object>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-91326507328940345492011-03-23T11:35:00.001-07:002011-03-23T11:35:48.027-07:00"8 Mile" coming this eveningRouter issues forced me to postpone getting the "8 Mile" review up this morning. Once I play catch-up, it's coming sometime this evening. Watch Twitter and your e-mail (if you're a follower....if not, get on that!) for notification when it's up.<br />
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Thanks!S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-69945453457313204872011-03-22T08:08:00.000-07:002011-03-22T22:36:43.738-07:00Lather, Rinse, Retort #1: Let's Not Mistake WWE For Wrestling...<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>(A writer who writes more than he or she reads is called “a hack.”</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>My multi-thousand-dollar collegiate journalism education taught me nothing useful, if not that indelible truth. Reading great writing instills the qualities that make great writing great. Reading poor writing conversely reminds one gently, “Please, don’t be this guy.”</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Dialogue has to start with somebody reading, hearing or seeing something somewhere. For that information intake to become a dialogue, somebody at some point must discuss information that’s presented and present a viewpoint. That’s the early strains of conversation, in which information flows one way, and feedback flows back the opposite way.</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>That’s sort of what I’m going for here. That conversation isn’t always the most intelligent discourse. Read YouTube comments sometime. That “conversation” alone convinces me that English will one day be a dead language. But at the very least, I can some expressed opinions I find here on these Interwebz, and maybe generate some talking points of my own. Keep in mind, I’m an ex-journalist, so expect what I sometimes write to center on the responsibility – or I warn you, more commonly, the lack thereof – exhibited by journalists and the blogosphere.</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Because I assure you, they are not the same thing.)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I read about this originally via 411mania.com, who re-posted a rare accurate article synopsis from the original TVweek.com posting. Believe me, the more of these I write, the more you’ll see how much I hold myself back from week after week from simply defaulting to attacking 411mania’s columnists.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It seems TVWeek.com received a cease-and-desist bitch-slap from World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) publicist Kellie Baldyga for calling a spade a spade, and having the audacity to juxtapose “World Wrestling Entertainment” and “professional wrestling” within scant sentences of one another.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writer Chuck Ross had written a brief piece announcing – per official WWE press release – that none other than Drew Carey would be inducted April 2 into the WWE Hall of Fame.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spelled out, that would be the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame. It’s honor roll consists vastly of professional wrestlers, professional wrestling promoters and announcers who lent play-by-play and color commentary to professional wrestling matches. Even its “Celebrity Wing” members – so far including Pete Rose, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, William Shatner, Bob Uecker and soon Carey – have all created memorable moments associated with professional wrestling events.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For those that don’t already realize that significance, the Hall of Fame induction ceremony has become a showpiece tradition among the company’s festivities during it’s single biggest annual weekend: the Saturday night before Wrestlemania. See, ring announcer Howard Finkel first suggested the name because when the first event was born 27 years ago, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and some orange fellow calling himself Hulk Hogan partnered with MTV in a campaign both parties dubbed “Rock and Wrestling” that spread professional wrestling’s popularity to a magnitude Finkel likened to Beatle-mania.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hence, the then-World Wrestling Federation birthed an event celebrating professional wrestling nationwide . . . “Wrestlemania.”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But boy-howdy-doody-tutti-frutti, did Ross say exactly the wrong thing about Carey’s Hall-of-Fame credentials! I’m sure that the classic tease-don’t-tell headline initially looked great – the kind that evokes a “Tell me more!” curiosity that keeps eyes panning down, down, down the text.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes, such a headline only takes combining just the right odd-but-true elements, such as “Drew Carey Inducted Into Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame. Huh? Drew Carey??!!”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In his finest hour, Ross made his gravest error. The fool – the clever, clever fool! – in his tangled web of deceit to incite wonder by associating a famed and successful actor and comedian with brief past professional-wrestling exploits over-generalized that a Hall of Fame established by a company whose full, proper name included the noun “<b>wrestling</b>” would indeed be a <b>pro-wrestling</b> hall of fame.</span><br />
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</div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b><i>Believer us, Drew: </i>everything<i> about this situation makes about as much sense to us as it apparently does to you.</i></b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But Ross then hit bottom and began digging. His brief article detailed, per the press release, that it was indeed the WWE Hall of Fame that would induct Carey. What came next must have seemed so logical once: explain why <i>World Wrestling Entertainment</i> would honor Carey. Well, few may realize this, but Carey and wrestl- . . . *Ahem* McMahons, pardon my impertinence . . . “WWE Superstar” Kane once engaged in a little schtick inside a ring during a <b>professional wrestling</b> match called the WWE (mind, that’s World <b>Wrestling</b> Entertainment . . .) Royal Rumble.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The backlash didn’t keep Ross or TVWeek.com owner Rance Crain waiting. Ross claimed that both quickly received Baldyga’s email “demanding” that Ross make a crucial correction.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"We are no longer a wrestling company but rather a global entertainment company with a movie studio, international licensing deals, publisher of three magazines, consumer good distributor and more,” Ross quoted from the e-mail in a March 18 piece on the site.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ross then quoted this snippet from a follow-up conversation with the yappy little lapdog, after Ross referred to the 2001 Royal Rumble as a “wrestling” event. Please, every deity in Heaven, Paradise, Nirvana and the Farplane, let this be accurate because it is among the funniest things I’ve ever read.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“No, we don't do wrestling events. They're entertainments. And we don’t call them wrestlers. They’re Superstars and Divas,” Baldyga allegedly said.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(NOTE: I capitalized “Superstars” and “Divas” because for Zombie-Jesus-Only-Knows what reason, World Wrestling Entertainment constantly does. I have about the patience for this that Ross does.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Entertainments.”</span><br />
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</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But of course, I see the point. Of course it isn’t a<b> wrestling</b> company. It’s an “entertainment” company – an entertainment company that the general public and more importantly the company’s core fan-base, customers and source of revenue associates with its two weekly two-hour television programs, 12 annual pay-per-view events (including one clearly dubbed “<b>Wrestlemania</b>,” so as not to confuse anyone) and one web-exclusive series featuring action and activities that many mistakenly confuse with <b>professional wrestling</b>.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Yeah, we really want to think before calling what this guy does "professional wrestling" . . .</b></span></i></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Reading that again, “mistakenly confused with professional wrestling” sometimes rings true on so many more levels . . .)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But I won’t sell short the movie studio! No, not the movie studio – the very same movie studio bearing the name “WWE (remember, that’s World <b>Wrestling </b>Entertainment) Films” and prominently features performers that coincidentally engage weekly in that thing that everyone keeps mistakenly deeming “<b>professional wrestling</b>.”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nor the merchandising – which includes replica rings in which performers do that thing which looks like that “W” word I’m not supposed to use, action figures bearing the likenesses of the not-wrestlers that people recognize because they’re on TV every week doing that not-wrestling thing.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But the magazines! I won’t besmirch the magazines, either – you know, the ones that tie in with the not-wrestling that takes place weekly on national cable and network television inside the not-wrestling ring.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because doing that would be a disgrace and an insult to what so many performers gave their health – and, in some instances, ultimately their lives – to do: perform what I’m sure Owen Hart and Chris Benoit in their time on Earth proudly called “entertainments.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I won’t go into all that. Instead, I will stick to head-butting my monitor hoping that concussing myself repeatedly until I think two-plus-two equals “Jello” will put me into something close to Baldyga's mindset wherein this resembles <i>logic</i>.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First and foremost, I commend Ross simply for not personally flying to Stamford, Conn. to bitch-slap this nitwit for “demanding” that he do a damn thing. We’re a free press. As long as what’s printed or aired can be conclusively proven to be factually correct, the U.S. Supreme Court recognizes precious few mechanisms for forcing the media to do a single solitary damn thing. “We think your accurate description conflicts with our delusional, flimsy public-relations line” doesn’t rank among the grievous exceptions to the Court’s standard that a free press is among the most sacred, vital liberties – especially not when World Wrestling Entertainment couldn’t possibly prove any actual malice if they’d tried, let alone any damage incurred.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More to the point, every single additional revenue stream Baldyga rattled off flows forth from the intellectual properties made recognizable by a product that could loosely be defined as “professional wrestling.” I could start a baseball league in which teams play games by rules universally established and recognized as “baseball.” Just because I sell concessions between innings, doesn’t mean I can rationally jump down the throat of anybody who calls it “baseball” and insist that what the people playing the game are doing is actually called “nachos.”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good Lord, even when McMahon made an ill-advised pass at creating a football league, he tapped ex-professional wrestler Jesse Ventura to join the announce team. When he started the equally stupid and equally ill-fated World Bodybuilding Federation, he advertised it most prominently during World Wrestling Federation events. No enterprise even remotely near the World Wrestling Entertainment umbrella lacks a tie to that thing so many people call “professional wrestling”!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can’t undo what you’ve done. If I carved a Mount Rushmore of the four faces responsible with anybody making a living in professional wrestling today, it would be composed of Gorgeous George, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan and Vince McMahon. Of those four, Gorgeous George (a man history credits with not only igniting wrestling’s first popularity boom, but doing so through the advent of television) died decades before he could ever witness Hogan’s staggering surge to becoming a pop-culture icon bigger than just the wrestling business; Hogan’s years as a wrestler have left him with replaced hips and knees and persistent, chronic back pain; Austin in many people’s minds eclipsed even Hogan’s success and drawing power, but broke his neck and lost multiple marriages doing so.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">McMahon? He’s a billionaire living in denial of where those billions came from.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You run a successful wrestling company, Vince. Trust us, we thank you for it.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now quit treating us like idiots.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm Sleepless Colin, and you're not.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>To Chuck Ross' TVWeek.com account of this whole stupid mess:</i></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.tvweek.com/blogs/2011/03/whoaa-nellie-when-brands-go-horribly-wrong-pstvince-mcmahon-and-the-wwe-are-no-longer-in-the-wrestli.php">http://www.tvweek.com/blogs/2011/03/whoaa-nellie-when-brands-go-horribly-wrong-pstvince-mcmahon-and-the-wwe-are-no-longer-in-the-wrestli.php</a></span>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-82398403990484876862011-03-20T05:02:00.000-07:002011-03-20T05:09:12.950-07:00Why Do I OWN This?: Defined By Limits<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stop me if you’ve heard this one: once upon a time, a publisher made a writer a bet.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This gifted writer was so artful with language, painting in so many vivid hues, that a contemporary felt like testing him. The writer’s previous book used a total 223 words over an entire story. The publisher bet the writer that the writer couldn’t write a good story using a mere 50 different words.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good news! The writer won the bet! Bad news! You’ve probably never read the story. Who really remembers a story about some kid talking an adult into eating questionably colored eggs and ham, anyway?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The <i>best</i> news? The most inspiring, brilliant things sometimes arise not when the sky’s the limit, but instead the ceiling.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I could spend hours parrusing Netflix and never finish finding interesting movies – new ones that I can slip comfortably into like a hot tub, or awful ones that, like biting into a green egg, remind me what makes the good stuff so good.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But there’s the rub. I think I rely <i>too much</i> upon Netflix. At least a few hundred DVDs sit upon my shelves and draw dust whilst I forget little by little why I treasure them so much in the first place. Disturbing, considering that it’s <i>those</i> items – and not my Netflix queue – that hints to anyone at what I really value, movie-wise.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I’m casting down my own gauntlet: Sleepless One, cast your analytical eye upon yourself and honestly assess what your collection says about what you actually <i>like</i> about movies. I’ll traverse my entire library, in alphabetical order, and ascertain exactly why I love and own the movies I do. So often among Internet critics, it’s eviscerating shitty movies that comes easily, and makes the best entertainment. I won’t lie, I own some awful bad movies myself. But I bet I can do something few other personalities can: make an intriguing case for actually <i>loving</i> certain movies.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For this purpose, I’m leaving out complete TV-series seasons and wrestling DVDs. Tv-on-DVD would just take too long, and some collections have their own dedicated reviews in the pipeline. The wrestling DVDs just don’t lend themselves to this format. Besides, if you’re not a wrestling fan to begin with, even what I really love about those DVDs probably wouldn’t register with you, anyway.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But I’m starting with “numerical” titles. That constitutes exactly what it implies: any title that begins with numerals. The first candidate? Well, here’s a hint:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/eminem_lead_narrowweb__300x376,2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/eminem_lead_narrowweb__300x376,2.jpg" width="255" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You know as well as I do that something about “Academy Award-winner Eminem” will never, <i>ever</i> fully register just right.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until then, I’m Sleepless Colin and you’re not.</span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4339358870084554049.post-82562747994168216462011-03-18T10:38:00.000-07:002011-03-20T04:29:12.490-07:00Meet TigerCubGirl!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(<i>S.C.'s NOTE: While I take care of a little business and ready a special little story to tell around the campfire's glow a little later, I'm leaving you scamps in the company of a trusted sitter!</i></span><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meet someone who's been on a wild, nine-year ride with The Sleepless One. She and I go way back to my early, early college days and she's seen many stretches of good and bad road with me since. That is to say, she's that one friend everyone has who knows where the bodies are buried . . .</span></i><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She also has a unique approach toward traversing her iTunes library's twisting, vine-choked aural jungle.</span></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>So be good to the Diner's server of top-flight tunes, TigerCubGirl!</i>)</span><br />
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<b><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><i>A to Z #1: Mr. Monk Has Nothing On Me</i></span></u></b><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">A friend of mine once said that he believed that we all had a little bit of OCD in all of us. Not necessarily pathological, but a little tiny part of our personality has a weird need for order, or cleanliness, or rituals, or all of the above. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ok, “all of the above” would probably put someone in the same category as Adrian Monk, but you all know what I mean.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_BQfJyQQmjbw/THYQuQ9WKOI/AAAAAAAAAmo/ODaovNp5gSw/s1600/a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_BQfJyQQmjbw/THYQuQ9WKOI/AAAAAAAAAmo/ODaovNp5gSw/s320/a.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Anyway, I believe that my friend’s theory is definitely true, as I have had a weird thing for order my whole life. I love saving the best for last. If I’m reading a stack of books, I like to read my least favorite first and my absolute favorite last. If the stack is new, I start with the one that appeals to me the least, and work my way up. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The same goes for my music. I listen to my least favorite first, and save the album I’ve been dying to get for months as the very last album I listen to in my continually growing music collection. I love the feeling of anticipation as I listen to music that I like, yet knowing that I’m going to be listening to music that I will absolutely love and will be putting on repeat for hundreds of times. This type of behavior is quirky enough for someone to raise an eyebrow at, but not so weird and creepy that I’d need 500 mg of Efexor 4 times a day.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Yet as much as I practice this ritual with my physical CD collection, I use a different approach whenever I listen to my iTunes: Alphabetically.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Being both a computer and music junkie, I get much pleasure out of listening to music on my desktop, regardless if it’s out of order concerning my favorite albums. With my CD collection, that type of thing would normally bother me. However, it’s not a problem with the digital stuff. Perhaps, it’s because the music is already automatically sorted into some order, even if it’s not the system I usually use. Whatever the reason, I’ve been listening to my iTunes in alphabetical order for the past several months, and that’s not going to change until I get to the end of my library. And, starting next week, I will give you all a taste of what I like.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Each week, I will review an album in my library in alphabetical order. One album from each letter. And it will not necessarily be new stuff. It will be any freaking thing I want. One week, I could give you all ABBA, the next week it could be Bon Iver. One week it could be Cake, the next it could be Dean Martin.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Of course, I should mention that alphabetical order in the iTunes world means that with solo artists, they are sorted according to their first name instead of heir last name. So Ani Difranco, who I will be reviewing next week, is a legitimate artist to go first instead of fourth for the letter D.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">So kids, I present to you iAnne: A-Z. Next weeks review for the letter A….Ani Difranco’s <i>Not A Pretty Girl. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time…..long live OCD-type quirks.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>S.C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00818745141117656126noreply@blogger.com0