Here we are, another week, another Top 5 Tuesday. It's my week to choose the topic…ALL MINE.
…ahem. Anyways.
I decided to veer back towards music on this one. So this week's top 5: TOP FIVE OPENING ACT SURPRISES.
I've been to lots of shows. I've seen lots of bands. I've seen lots of godawful opening acts, but I've also had some bands REALLY surprise me. So here we go.
#5. Chris Mills
Chris Mills is a fantastic singer-songwriter out of Chicago, and I got to see him open for Ben Folds at Lupo's back in 2006. (By the way, it was the best time I ever saw Ben Folds…we got "Emaline" and "Underground". My shit was flipped.)
Mills' albums are generally grandiose affairs, beautiful horn arrangements, a full string section, lots of flutes. This time though, it was just Mills on an electric guitar accompanied by a drummer. I'd never heard of Chris Mills before this show, but I was pleasantly surprised. He played some solid Power-Pop tunes with a HUGE amount of energy.
#4. Pela
This one is funny. I first saw Pela during the CMJ Festival in 2007. I actually went to the show for the first opening band, Stardeath and White Dwarfs, who were pretty good. I was followed by my buddy Ian, who was there for the headliners, British Sea Power (they were terrible. He would disagree, but this is my blog, goddamnit.).
I really didn't know what to think when they took the stage. The bass player looked like the blue Power Ranger, the singer resembled an army douchebag, and the lead guitarist was wee and Spanish looking. The second they started playing, however, everything changed. The singer, Billy, had a smile as wide as the stage, and was just putting all of his heart and joy into the music. As they kept on playing their early U2 inspired indie-rock, I was hooked. The passion, the happiness, and the hooks caught me.
Unfortunately, they broke up about two years later, never releasing their second album. I heard rumors that they have reformed under a different name. I certainly hope so, because they were / are amazing.
A nice touch is that this video is from the show I was at. You can see me nodding my head in front, between the singer and bassist. Random side story, but this is also the night that I met MTV's John Norris, and talked to him for about 10 minutes about how good it was that real Rock 'N Roll seemed to be coming back. It was funny how much he didn't seem to care about my rambling.
3. Titus Andronicus
When I first saw Titus Andronicus, I really didn't know what to think. I saw them open for Lucero at Pearl Street in Northampton in 2009.
I had heard things about them. Ted Leo talked about them constantly in interviews, I'd heard that they had some Hardcore influences, as well as some Shoegaze. This made me very skeptical that I'd like them. Then they took the stage. They were filthy, had gear that was half falling apart, and had terrifically terrifying beards.
All Sara and I could do was stand in the back of the room and take in the explosion that was happening on stage. Patrick Stickles' yelps were almost painful, but they were rocking the fuck out. This was less than a month into Sara and my relationship. The entire time I was terrified that Sara was hating this, and that she was going to leave me immediately after the show. But as Titus Andronicus left the stage, after finishing up a cover of Elvis' "Jailhouse Rock", Sara turned to me and said: "That was amazing…"
Funny enough, we left two songs into Lucero's set, because of some stomach problems, and since then I haven't listened to Lucero once. Their fans were so terrifying that I kind of realized that I didn't want any part of that scene.
#2. The Figgs
The Hold Steady played about a half-hour from my house this past October. My former band tried to get on the bill, to no avail. I came into the show kind of frustrated, and I expected to shit on the opening act a bit, because they weren't us, and I was so sure that we would have been a better fit. (Note: We wouldn't have.)
The Figgs took the stage, and needless to say, I was taken aback. These guys were older than the Hold Steady. I settled in expecting some boring-ass Dad rock. That didn't happen though. Instead I got the best set of Power-Pop / Rock that I'd ever heard. It was also the first time that I've ever seen an opening act get called back for an encore.
After their set, I was basically ready to leave. I didn't really care about The Hold Steady at that point, because I'd just had my face melted off with pop-rock. I was convinced to stay, and while The Hold Steady were great that night, The Figgs were outrageously good. On the way out I bought five of their albums, spending money that I absolutely did not have. I didn't care though, it was worth it.
#1. The Hold Steady
I saw The Hold Steady a week after I finished my Junior year of High School. They were opening up for the Get Up Kids on their "farewell tour" (only to come back less than 5 years later…)
I'm not gonna lie, I thought the Hold Steady was fucking terrible. The singer couldn't sing, he kept on clapping really fast, and there weren't any chorus' in the songs. I made jokes about them on the way home, in-between talking about how blown away I was by The Get Up Kids performance. (They really were great, they played a good deal of everything, unlike last year when I saw them in New Haven, and were painfully bad.)
The next morning though, I had "Your Little Hoodrat Friend" stuck in my head. I went online and streamed it at their website about 6 or 7 times, and it started growing on me. A few weeks later I went to the record store and bought their most recent album, "Separation Sunday". I gave it a listen and thought it was only okay. Then I started listening to it more and more. I got pulled into the stories, and the songs hooked me in.
Within the next six months, The Hold Steady was my favorite band. I tried to convince everyone I knew as to how great they were, a few people even listened.
Cut to six years later. I've seen the band thirteen times. I've travelled up and down the eastern seaboard to see them, and I've met some amazing people, along with making some great friends. This band literally changed my life. To think, I wouldn't have gotten to hear them unless I loved Pop-Punk so much in High School.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
TOP 5 TUESDAY: BATMAN.
Here we are, another week, and another Top 5 Tuesday. Continuing on Sara's theme last week, I'm doing the TOP 5 BATMAN MOVIES.
For those of you that don't know me, I love Batman. In my opinion he's the best superhero ever created. He's not unkillable like Superman, nor does he have overly cheap powers. The dude is just crafty. He knows how to use weapons, and is stealthy, as well as intimidating. He's the only superhero I could actually believe to be real.
In the many Batman films out there, he's been portrayed many different ways, some better than others. For my Top 5, I have to say with great glee that George Clooney will be nowhere close to making it on this list.
Anyways, on to the list.
#5. Batman Forever
I know this isn't a good movie. Val Kilmer is his usual stiff-as-a-board self, and Robin still sucks. The movie reeks 90's, and while that CAN be a good thing in some places, it's not a good thing here. It may just be me, but I hate Tim Burton's style (note: I know that Schumacher directed this one. Burton still produced, so shut up.) Gotham doesn't need to be this stylized.
However, I think that like the 60s series, this is good camp fun. Jim Carrey was nearly perfectly cast as the over the top Edward Nigma / Riddler, and for how it was written, Tommy Lee Jones did great as Two-Face.
I grew up with this one, so I can't knock it too much. Go back and watch it. It's not great, but it's better than Batman on Ice.
#4. Batman - Mask of the Phantasm
The left field choice. The definitive animated Batman film. The 90's series is gorgeous in how it was drawn, and it was actually a cartoon that had incredible writing on it too. Characters were fleshed out, things took time to grow, a backstory was present, it was amazing.
They didn't really skimp on the violence either. I rewatched this again last year, and I'm still baffled at how violent this was for what was supposed to be a children's cartoon. Something like this couldn't be made today for network television.
Anyways. This is dark, violent, well-written, and honestly, well acted. C'mon, it has Luke F'ing Skywalker as the Joker. Even though I love Heath Ledger's Joker, when I imagine the Joker laughing, I still think of Mark Hamill.
#3. Batman Begins
I saw Sara's post last week where she talked about her great dislike of Batman Begins, and because of this, I get to say something I've wanted to say for a while in the actual context where it makes sense:
"Sara, you ignorant slut."
Batman Begins was a kick in the pants to my childhood conception of what Batman was. I grew up with Burton's Batman. While it could be dark (see: Returns), it also always had that subtle wink and nod saying "this is still camp".
Batman Begins however, was dark, moody, and had character development for Christ's sake. We still know that Bruce's parents are dead, but we also get to see why he's this incredibly violent force. We get to see that he's a real person, he gets injured, he sucks at his job, but he still has a buttload of money to back him up on being Batman.
The voice is hilarious at points, I'm not going to deny that, but it makes sense. It feels real. Dude's gotta hide his voice. It's not a magical world where Clark Kent can look EXACTLY like Superman (exception of the glasses), and talk the same way and have no one notice. Batman has a cover. It's more realistic.
#2. Batman
Michael Keaton was great as Batman. Not the best Bruce Wayne, but a hell of a Batman. I grew up on this movie. Heck, I think we wore out our original VHS copy, but I'm pretty sure we dubbed a new copy on to a blank VHS we had laying around. I really do hate Tim Burton, but for some reason this movie really works for me. The characters pop out like they're from the comic books, the colors are all there, the story is there, and while it's dark, it's never really brooding.
Jack Nicholson was perfectly cast as the Joker here. He's over the top, funny, and sadistic. The only scene where it's a bit over the top is the art gallery scene, but then again, the strong majority of movies have their faults, and this one is fairly minor. (I'm trying to ignore the Batdance as much as possible…)
#1. The Dark Knight
Might be one of the few perfect movies in my opinion. Certainly the best Comic Book film ever made. Note that I said "Film" rather than "Movie". There is a difference. This can sit up there with the Godfather.It's beautifully shot, it's intelligent, and it doesn't pander to the audience.
I've probably seen this about 30 times now, and it has yet to get old. I saw it on midnight the night it came out, and throughout the entire film I had the largest shit-eating grin on my face. For the first time in my life, I actually yelled in a theater. (Gordon getting killed! C'mon! You had me going, Nolan!)
The only mark against The Dark Knight is the terrible CGI for Two-Face. It just looks cheesy. Aaron Eckhardt did AMAZING as Dent/Two-Face, but that CG…blegh.
There's not much more I can say about it. I'm not even going to write about Heath Ledger's Joker, because it's not worth it. Everything that could have been said about that amazing performance has been said better elsewhere.
I'd be lying if I said I weren't counting down to the next Batman movie. I'm really curious to see where Nolan goes next...
For those of you that don't know me, I love Batman. In my opinion he's the best superhero ever created. He's not unkillable like Superman, nor does he have overly cheap powers. The dude is just crafty. He knows how to use weapons, and is stealthy, as well as intimidating. He's the only superhero I could actually believe to be real.
In the many Batman films out there, he's been portrayed many different ways, some better than others. For my Top 5, I have to say with great glee that George Clooney will be nowhere close to making it on this list.
Anyways, on to the list.
#5. Batman Forever
I know this isn't a good movie. Val Kilmer is his usual stiff-as-a-board self, and Robin still sucks. The movie reeks 90's, and while that CAN be a good thing in some places, it's not a good thing here. It may just be me, but I hate Tim Burton's style (note: I know that Schumacher directed this one. Burton still produced, so shut up.) Gotham doesn't need to be this stylized.
However, I think that like the 60s series, this is good camp fun. Jim Carrey was nearly perfectly cast as the over the top Edward Nigma / Riddler, and for how it was written, Tommy Lee Jones did great as Two-Face.
I grew up with this one, so I can't knock it too much. Go back and watch it. It's not great, but it's better than Batman on Ice.
#4. Batman - Mask of the Phantasm
The left field choice. The definitive animated Batman film. The 90's series is gorgeous in how it was drawn, and it was actually a cartoon that had incredible writing on it too. Characters were fleshed out, things took time to grow, a backstory was present, it was amazing.
They didn't really skimp on the violence either. I rewatched this again last year, and I'm still baffled at how violent this was for what was supposed to be a children's cartoon. Something like this couldn't be made today for network television.
Anyways. This is dark, violent, well-written, and honestly, well acted. C'mon, it has Luke F'ing Skywalker as the Joker. Even though I love Heath Ledger's Joker, when I imagine the Joker laughing, I still think of Mark Hamill.
#3. Batman Begins
I saw Sara's post last week where she talked about her great dislike of Batman Begins, and because of this, I get to say something I've wanted to say for a while in the actual context where it makes sense:
"Sara, you ignorant slut."
Batman Begins was a kick in the pants to my childhood conception of what Batman was. I grew up with Burton's Batman. While it could be dark (see: Returns), it also always had that subtle wink and nod saying "this is still camp".
Batman Begins however, was dark, moody, and had character development for Christ's sake. We still know that Bruce's parents are dead, but we also get to see why he's this incredibly violent force. We get to see that he's a real person, he gets injured, he sucks at his job, but he still has a buttload of money to back him up on being Batman.
The voice is hilarious at points, I'm not going to deny that, but it makes sense. It feels real. Dude's gotta hide his voice. It's not a magical world where Clark Kent can look EXACTLY like Superman (exception of the glasses), and talk the same way and have no one notice. Batman has a cover. It's more realistic.
#2. Batman
Michael Keaton was great as Batman. Not the best Bruce Wayne, but a hell of a Batman. I grew up on this movie. Heck, I think we wore out our original VHS copy, but I'm pretty sure we dubbed a new copy on to a blank VHS we had laying around. I really do hate Tim Burton, but for some reason this movie really works for me. The characters pop out like they're from the comic books, the colors are all there, the story is there, and while it's dark, it's never really brooding.
Jack Nicholson was perfectly cast as the Joker here. He's over the top, funny, and sadistic. The only scene where it's a bit over the top is the art gallery scene, but then again, the strong majority of movies have their faults, and this one is fairly minor. (I'm trying to ignore the Batdance as much as possible…)
#1. The Dark Knight
Might be one of the few perfect movies in my opinion. Certainly the best Comic Book film ever made. Note that I said "Film" rather than "Movie". There is a difference. This can sit up there with the Godfather.It's beautifully shot, it's intelligent, and it doesn't pander to the audience.
I've probably seen this about 30 times now, and it has yet to get old. I saw it on midnight the night it came out, and throughout the entire film I had the largest shit-eating grin on my face. For the first time in my life, I actually yelled in a theater. (Gordon getting killed! C'mon! You had me going, Nolan!)
The only mark against The Dark Knight is the terrible CGI for Two-Face. It just looks cheesy. Aaron Eckhardt did AMAZING as Dent/Two-Face, but that CG…blegh.
There's not much more I can say about it. I'm not even going to write about Heath Ledger's Joker, because it's not worth it. Everything that could have been said about that amazing performance has been said better elsewhere.
I'd be lying if I said I weren't counting down to the next Batman movie. I'm really curious to see where Nolan goes next...
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Top 5 Tuesday: I'm Batman
As I write this, my dad’s in the living room watching Daredevil and I’m wondering what happened to Jennifer Garner’s career. (Answer: Ben Affleck)
So it got me thinking. What Superhero movies do I actually like? Can I even come up with five? Not really. But I do like me some Batman movies.
Now, I know nothing about the comics; literally all I know are the Tim Burton movies, the series from the ‘60s, and the Christopher Nolan reboot. So, if you happen to be a Batman aficionado, I apologize and you will hate my list. Except for number one. Everyone will probably agree with number one.
Note: There is a dearth of Batman Begins on this list. The reason is simple: I don’t like it. When I first saw it, my friend turned to me after it was over and said, “You do realize that wasn’t a comedy, right?” I can’t help it. I can’t take Christian Bale’s Batman voice seriously. I get the whole covering up the sound of your actual voice thing, but it’s so cheesy. And the worst part is, unlike the series from the 1960’s, the cheese is unintentional. Yell at me all you want, but my opinion still stands: Christian Bale has a terrible Batman voice.
#5: Batman & Robin
You might think that this is a joke. That I actually enjoy Batman & Robin, especially over Batman Begins. But, you know what, I do.
Come on. It’s hilarious. First off, let’s talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger for a minute. “What killed the dinosaurs? The ice age!” and “Allow me to break the ice. My name is Freeze. Learn it well. For it's the chilling sound of your doom.” And of course “Tonight's forecast... a freeze is coming!” Add in Arnold’s voice and it’s just comedy gold.
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| This is even funnier. |
#4: Batman (1989)
Michael Keaton is by far my favorite portrayal of Batman. And I liked Vicky Vale and all, but the winner is Jack Nicholson. Could they have found a better Joker at the time? (Note: We all know what number one is going to be and why, but bare with me here on the whole Joker front.) Like, seriously, I don’t think they had to do the prosthetics.
#3: Batman (1966)
Two words: Shark repellant. Two more words: Adam West. One word: Camp!
Need I really say more?
#2: Batman Returns
My whole scale for rating these movies seems to have a lot to do with the villains. I mean, you need a villain in order to have a hero, right? In this case, it’s Catwoman. I’ve always liked her. She’s my favorite superhero villain pretty much ever. (Well, no, maybe Mystic is my favorite… but that’s another list for another day.)
And, come on, Christopher Walken!
A little off topic: So, there’s this webcomic I read called Shortpacked! that features Batman a lot. It’s where the title of this post comes from (you’ll have to check it out to understand what I am saying.). Anyway, talking about this movie made me think of this comic:
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| Click on the picture to see it full sized. |
#1: The Dark Knight
This one is so obvious that I don’t even feel the need to talk about it. So I’m not going to, because I think it speaks for itself.
Note: If for some reason you haven't seen it and you don't know what the pencil trick is, it will probably be a little disturbing.
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