BUSY WEEK & HOT TUNES: It's only Tuesday, but this has already been a long week. We are in production for the February mags, which is ratcheted up a notch by my rushing to finish things before leaving for my SoCal gigs next week and watching focus groups tear the mags apart as we work toward finding our "purpose" in the community. Sitting behind a one-way mirror watching people does appeal to the voyeur in me, but the first group was way too young and didn't get us at all and the second group just seemed to be tired. We're watching other groups tomorrow, so another long day and night.
Backing up a bit, Theresa Davis and Jason Komro read at my open mic/reading series at B&N @ Tech on Friday night. We had a nice audience and both Jason and Theresa did great work. We also heard good work from Steven Shields and Rupert Fike. On Saturday, I interviewed Steven (who has a new book called Daimonion Sonata) and LA poet Kate Gale for The Business of Words. I met my pal Malory for dinner and a movie that evening, but it turned into a giant cluster fuck. Our first restaurant choice had an hour wait, so we decided to leave and go get tickets early to find that every show of Million Dollar Baby was sold out, along with every other film at Phipps Plaza. We wound up having dinner a cafe in the mall that was so-so and going home early. Now I realize why, more and more often, I'm waiting until films come out on DVD. Going to a theater is a pain in the ass.
On Sunday I nested and watched telly, then went to the Java Monkey Slam, where I was a judge again. Lady Hardin won easily, and I was glad. She can bring drama and passion to the stage. She pretty much left everyone else in the dust.
Here's some tunes I've been grooving to:
Galvanize by the Chemical Brothers. One of my favorite UK bands of all time. This tune from their forthcoming album finds them in fine form and utilizing the vocals of Q-Tip from one of my fave old school groups, A Tribe Called Quest. The video features a fairly old trend that is suddenly going mainstream - krumping. This is where hip-hop dancers put on clown make up and do really high energy dancing. I'm not kidding. Missy Elliott featured it in her video for I'm Really Hot last year and photographer David Lachapelle has made a documentary about the phenom. You can watch the Galvanize video at Top of the Pops.
Get Right by Jennifer Lopez. She's finally dropped the J.Lo tag, Ben and the shite films and made a new album under her old name. The first single kicks some serious ass. Her acting is often hit or miss, but her music has been pretty good. You can hear it at her website.
Somebody Told Me by The Killers. Heard this on the BBC, then saw the vid on MTV. Now this is the edgy kind of rock n' roll I like. Another great UK band carrying on the tradition while America continues to pump out "frat rock" that all sounds the same. I mean, come on, can you tell the difference between Yellowstank, Good Charlotte, Hoobacard...or whatever the hell they're called. Yawn. Check out The Killers at their website.
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield. She's already a huge star in the UK thanks to this song (which is also the name of her album). For my money, she's got a better voice than brother Daniel and catchier hooks and songs with more substance. This tune is an anthem, backed by the powerhouse chorus from the legendary Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Here's her website.
And here's a few oldies, but goodies that seem to keep popping up: Walking on Thin Ice by Yoko Ono, Let Go by Frou Frou, She's Already Made Up Her Mind by Lyle Lovett, and The Real End by Rickie Lee Jones.
Backing up a bit, Theresa Davis and Jason Komro read at my open mic/reading series at B&N @ Tech on Friday night. We had a nice audience and both Jason and Theresa did great work. We also heard good work from Steven Shields and Rupert Fike. On Saturday, I interviewed Steven (who has a new book called Daimonion Sonata) and LA poet Kate Gale for The Business of Words. I met my pal Malory for dinner and a movie that evening, but it turned into a giant cluster fuck. Our first restaurant choice had an hour wait, so we decided to leave and go get tickets early to find that every show of Million Dollar Baby was sold out, along with every other film at Phipps Plaza. We wound up having dinner a cafe in the mall that was so-so and going home early. Now I realize why, more and more often, I'm waiting until films come out on DVD. Going to a theater is a pain in the ass.
On Sunday I nested and watched telly, then went to the Java Monkey Slam, where I was a judge again. Lady Hardin won easily, and I was glad. She can bring drama and passion to the stage. She pretty much left everyone else in the dust.
Here's some tunes I've been grooving to:
Galvanize by the Chemical Brothers. One of my favorite UK bands of all time. This tune from their forthcoming album finds them in fine form and utilizing the vocals of Q-Tip from one of my fave old school groups, A Tribe Called Quest. The video features a fairly old trend that is suddenly going mainstream - krumping. This is where hip-hop dancers put on clown make up and do really high energy dancing. I'm not kidding. Missy Elliott featured it in her video for I'm Really Hot last year and photographer David Lachapelle has made a documentary about the phenom. You can watch the Galvanize video at Top of the Pops.
Get Right by Jennifer Lopez. She's finally dropped the J.Lo tag, Ben and the shite films and made a new album under her old name. The first single kicks some serious ass. Her acting is often hit or miss, but her music has been pretty good. You can hear it at her website.
Somebody Told Me by The Killers. Heard this on the BBC, then saw the vid on MTV. Now this is the edgy kind of rock n' roll I like. Another great UK band carrying on the tradition while America continues to pump out "frat rock" that all sounds the same. I mean, come on, can you tell the difference between Yellowstank, Good Charlotte, Hoobacard...or whatever the hell they're called. Yawn. Check out The Killers at their website.
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield. She's already a huge star in the UK thanks to this song (which is also the name of her album). For my money, she's got a better voice than brother Daniel and catchier hooks and songs with more substance. This tune is an anthem, backed by the powerhouse chorus from the legendary Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Here's her website.
And here's a few oldies, but goodies that seem to keep popping up: Walking on Thin Ice by Yoko Ono, Let Go by Frou Frou, She's Already Made Up Her Mind by Lyle Lovett, and The Real End by Rickie Lee Jones.
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TJ