The Best Albums of 2010

Here be my second annual favourite albums of the year list.

Last year's list was dominated by concept albums and the heavier side of the musical spectrum.

By January I had devoured NPR's best of the year/decade lists and had been turned (innoncently enough by my friend Blythe) to Pitchfork's lists. I had said that I thought Arcade Fire's Funeral may have been my favourite album of the decade (though in hindsight...probablyYs by Joanna Newsom) and Blythe had pointed out that Funeral was Pitchfork's #2. Anyway, long story short. I have read Pitchfork pretty much everyday since January and this year's list reflects that...almost painfully. Everyone of my picks for this year are of those that Pitchfork has labeled "Best New Music."

This list, like last year's, is in alphabetical order.

The Best Albums of 2010:

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot...The Son of Chico Dusty

This may shock some people who know me. A Hip-Hop album? In your top 5? Yes. It's true (There'll be two). Hip-Hop has always had a soft place in my heart; I love the energy, the beats, the syncopation, the SWAGGER. It's electrifying. Unfortunately, like any genre, there is a lot of crap to sort through. And, unlike some genres, I don't want to spend the money/effort to sort through the rap game. There are a few rap artists that I trust though, and Outkast is definitely one of them, so when I heard about Big Boi's solo album, I was excited. Then "Shutterbug" came out as the first single and I was sold. So much originality packed into one song: the thundering acapella bass line alone could make a song worth listening to! Still, I don't just go out and buy hip-hop. But after hearing a couple more tracks and reading Pitchfork's review I went and got it and was not disappointed. There are a few lulls, yes, but none are long or painful enough to disrupt the record (perhaps Hustle Blood...). There are plenty of guest appearances (like any self-respecting rap album) but my favourite is definitely Yelawolf's redneck spiel in "You Ain't No DJ". Every track is brimming with creative ideas, beats and samples - and the skits are actually funny to boot! A fun, and energertic album.

Favourite Track: "General Patton" - so. hardcore. and over a classical loop for the hook!

James Blake - his three 2010 EPs: The Bells Sketch; CMYK; Klavierwerke

I'm lumping 21 year old James Blake's EP together because I just can't pick, and together they'd about make up a full length. This kid. This freaking guy is a classically trained pianist who makes some of the most unique electronic music I've heard. It's dark, it's subdued, its glitchy, it's organic, it's melodic, but most of all, it's beautiful. Like other artists influenced by Burial and the Dubstep scene, he takes vocal tracks - sometimes his own- and screws with them until they speak their own language. Each EP showcases another side of this diverse young artist:The Bells Sketch is glitchy; CMYK is more of a dance oriented EP; and Klavierwerke is (as it's name implies) an album of mostly (haunting) piano tracks. Steeped in classical music, current electronic trends, jazz, and 90s R&B(?!) Blake has created a whole new, and exquisite world. Look for his first LP (out in Feb)to almost definitely show up on my best of 2011 list.

Favourite Track: "I Only Know (What I Know)"

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me*

Joanna Newsom is easily one of the most creative artists of the new millennium so far. Her pixie like voice, incredibly complex and beautiful harp playing, and her poetic long-form story telling combine to create sometimes whimsical, but always beautiful, worlds. Her first album was light-hearted and filled with short, fun little tunes. Her second (and still her best) albumYs, is, as I said, one of my favourite albums of the last decade and was full of complex arrangements and emotional allegories. Joanna's voice has matured considerably since Ys, and it shows. She has more control and more emotional range than before and she uses it... A lot.Have One On Me is 2 hours worth of music over 18 tracks and 3 LPs. This is intimidating and for the first few listens I had to take an LP at a time. The arrangements are more sparse, but they fit the tunes which are more personal than before. Lyrically Joanna Newsom is as sharp and elusive as ever. You could spend many many hours just pouring over her lyrics quite aside from her music. Have One On Me has her sitting at the piano quite a bit, but my favourite tracks are still harp-centered. Now, almost a year later, when I listen to the album I hear how much the 3 LPs tie together; it is definitely a single unified whole, but like a tapestry you have to stand back to truly see the remarkable achievement that this album is.

Joanna also put on the best show of the year. Live she is charming and funny and plays impeccably. She's also really pretty. A true joy to behold.

Favourite Track: "Baby Birch"

*Best Album of the Year

Robyn - Body Talk Pt. 1

Robyn is my new favourite pop star. If she doesn't quite warrant stardom yet, she should. She has a much better ear for melody than most of the crap on the radio these days and works with interesting producers (Royksopp among others) who help make her dance floor beats stand out from the pack. Robyn released 3 EPs this year in the Body Talk line and each of them was great, but Pt. 1 stands out as the best. It's the most diverse; despite it's dance floor grounding it encompasses elements of reggae and ends with a beautiful traditional tune from her homeland of Sweden. Lyrically, Robyn walks a fine line between being really sweet and really hard. (Swagger is kind of a theme this year...) From being heart broken on "Dancing On My Own" to telling everyone how much they're "killing" her on "Don't F***ing Tell Me What To Do" to warning young girls that "love hurts when you do it right" on "You'll Cry When You Get Older" Robyn covers a large range of emotion in a short EP.

Favourite Track: "Dancing On My Own"

Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

The Lords of the Fork have been obsessed with Yeezy all year; Kanye garnered Best Track, Best Album, even best Twitter Feed. All the hype has not been for nothing either. Kanye has always put out great tracks - "Gold Digger"; "Stronger"; "Jesus Walks" - but after the nearly fatal blow of the Taylor Swift debacle he really needed something huge to stop the blood. And he delivered. Free tracks every week for 3 months - some from the album, some not; some great, most good - that's what got my attention: I love free music! But what really woke me up was my favourite track of the year: "Monster." Featuring Jay Z, Nicki Minaj and others, the song blows the doors off. "Best living or dead hands down huh?" Ye raps, then Jay Z claims that his achilles heel is love and then Nicki destroys every other great verse before it with the weirdest rap verse I've ever heard: "First things first I'll eat your brains!" My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is aptly named. It walks the fine line between between delusions of grandeur and self destruction. And it's more musical than any rap album I've heard (lots of Bon Iver contributions help). Great guitar tones, sick beats, creative writing, impeccable rhythmns and interesting structural modulation are on the plate with nearly every track - each could almost be an EP unto itself. Plenty of great moments but some of the more interesting ones include Kanye toasting himself as a "douchebag" and a "jerk off that'll never take work off" on "Runaway" as well as a confession that he was "never much of a romantic" because of intimacy issues. The album is obsessed with rebirth and the final suite of "Lost in the World/Who Will Survive in America?" almost feels like a rite of spring, a crazy dance of rhythmic ecstasy giving way to a sobering end to Ye's fantasy with a long excerpt from Gil Scott-Heron about false freedom in America. Kanye knows it's a fantasy, but can't help indulging. "I gotta have it." But luckily, we get to too.

Favourite Track: "Monster"*

*Favourite of the Year

Honourable Mention:

LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening

Favourite Tracks: "I Can Change"

Best Tracks (that aren't on my Best Albums):

Arcade Fire - "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)"

A disco giant filled with Regine's haunting voice.

Girls - "Carolina"

A slow melancholy build that ends with a great jam session.

Janelle Monae - "Tight Rope (feat Big Boi.)"

Swagger and amazing vocals with a dash of James Brown.

Titus Andronicus - "A More Perfect Union"

If a band has ever channeled Springsteen better, I haven't heard it yet.

Wavves - "Post Acid"

Drugs and summer equals a great pop-punk track.

Best Non-2010 purchases:

Ornette Coleman - The Shape of Jazz to Come 1959

Neu! - Neu! 1972

Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady 1963

Van Morrison - Astral Weeks 1968

Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom 1974

Biggest Disappointment:

The Ocean - Heliocentric/Anthropocentric

True Grit (2010) ****

Directed by Ethan and Joel Coen

The Coen Brothers are not to be pigeon-holed. Their last 4 movies were a ridiculous re-make of a classic comedy, a 4 Oscar-winning tense and thoughtful modern western, an exercise in paranoid chaos incarnate, and modern allegory for the book of Job. Now they're doing a classic John Wayne flick and making it, well, Grittier.

The brothers are always character driven which is what makes even my least favourite of their films better than almost any other films. This is probably that least favourite (of the ones I've seen), however the characters are delightful. Haillee Steinfeld plays Mattie Ross, a tough as nails young girl who won't take no for an answer. She knows what she wants and she gets it. Jeff Bridges plays Rooster Cogburn, an alcoholic bounty hunter who's rival/counterpart in this film is Matt Damon's LaBeouf, a chatty and cocky Texas Ranger who, despite a knack for getting himself in trouble, is an honourable sort of fellow. All of them are after Josh Brolin (quickly riding up my favourite actors list) who plays the villainous (and terribly stupid) Tom Chaney.

A few people I know - including some I saw it with - found themselves bored and frustrated at it not being more of an action movie, but the action is in the right places: It's called pacing, something people rarely have patience for anymore. Thank you Coen Brothers for caring.

The movie is up for a lot of Oscars and it might win some of them too. It's the chemistry that makes this movie magic. The banter, the hate, the rivalry, the love. And best of all, every major character - even the outlaw Lucky Ned Penner, and, stranger still, Mattie's horse) display true grit, fighting hard and admirably for whatever goal they set out to achieve, even to the point of danger, or even death. And there's something might admirable about that.

Bruce Springsteen - The Promise (2010) CD [6/10]

I have a weird relationship with Bruce Springsteen. Everytime I see a video of him performing my jaw drops and I can't stop watching, but the music doesn't have the same spell over me. But I can't even say that. More than a few of his songs get lodged in my soul the instant I hear them, but rarely is there an album that doesn't bore me by the end (Nebraska being the exception along with most of The River) Part of what makes him great is that he can make romance out of depression, but it can be cheesy. The Promise has those great moments and those cheesy moments. It's a collection of songs written and partially recorded in the years between the blow-up success of Born to Run and the hard depression of Darkness on the Edge of Town. In those three years there were legal battles with record labels and a lot of pressure, and Springsteen was struggling to stay true to himself. Thus, although he wrote a lot (a LOT) of material in that time, he was ruthless with what he selected for the next album. These are the songs he skipped, and they definitely show the transitional years well. Darkness has never been an album I've been crazy about (except for "Badlands"), and a lot of this material hits home better, but there are only a few really A-grade tracks. "Because the Night"'s strong battle cry of love could fit right in with Born to Run. That's really the only track I love on disc one, which is mostly inundated with a bawling yell which I never felt was a strong suit for Bruce's voice.

Disc two opens up more. It's fun. It's rock and roll. The softer tracks thankfully croon rather than wail. And it's stronger for it. It's the kind of album I could listen to. Unfortunately disc one often makes me skip the whole album. The gem, the power, that keeps me coming back however is "Fire." It's Springsteen's Elvis tribute and it's everything an Elvis tribute should be: Sexy and Swaggering. I just can't stop listening to it. The bass riff alone is a piece of gold...and it's the same thing the whole song. And Big C's sax solo is gritty, not fluffy lameness. It's one of Bruce's best. The Pointer Sister's did a great version of this song, which I love, but this is a torn out and refit paired-down version which adds a mystery to it.

Disc one bores me and I'd give a 4 or 5, while disc two has sits comfortably up in the 6 range and carries the the rest. Who knows maybe with time the other songs will find they're place in my heart, but so far, disc two has all the Fire.

[6/10]

Tron: Legacy (2010) **

Directed by Joseph Kosinski

Ok. So Tron: Legacy is definitely 3 things: Shiny, Daft Punked and 3D. Let's deal with them in order.

Shiny: The visual esthetic on the grid is really cool. All blue orange and black. And as I said, shiny. You can tell that Kosinski made his name doing car commercials. Everything is sleek and beautiful and well shot. Visually I was very impressed. Kosinski also manages something that few directors (*cough* Nolan *cough*) do well any more: linear action sequences. Because (I think) of his car background, he knows how to follow the action and keep it in focus. Each moment can actually be processed instead of using the tactic of overwhelming the audience with fast-pan fast-cut tactics. I love that about this movie. Laser disc battles and lightcycle battles (and whatever fancy name they had for the planes) they're all cool and multidimesional and followable. There is lacking however a real sense of peril that accompanied the 1982 original. The consequences don't seem as real.

Daft Punked: Daft Punk is obviously one of the great musical groups of the 21st Century, and their driving strings and electronic beats definitely add a great atmosphere to the world of The Grid. The best musical moments are reserved for the club scene (where our french friends are cameoing as DJs) where it actually feels like it's Daft Punk, not just strings and beats. My other favourite musical moment was a faded, through the walls version of Eurythmix' "Sweet Dreams." Nothing was altered except it feels really far off which adds a level of menace and suspense to the nostalgia.

3D: I despise 3D movies. They're more expensive, they're less clear, and they're just annoying. This film was blessedly shot in 2D for the real world shots so I could take my glasses off for part of it. But it's a lame gimmick.

So, visually and musically impressive...how about plot and characters? Ya, not much really. Jeff Bridges is hard to screw up, and he didn't really, but it wasn't amazing. The best moments were his more "Dude"like moments of "Radical" - Best line: You're really screwing with my whole Zen thing, man! The pretty boy, Garrett Hedlund, wasn't terrible, but didn't have much character. The whole time I kept thinking...Chris Pine (a la Star Trek) was sooo much better (very similar roles.) The potential love interest (Olivia Wilde) was indeed cute, and her naivite/badassness made a charming dichotomy, but she was kind of shallow (she is after all computer DNA). It is nice to have a cute heroine who doesn't have to bend over a bike or a car to be enticing (Megan Fox?).

The best scene in the entire film is that with Zeus. Michael Sheen is a brilliant actor who I have admired in many films: The Queen and Frost Vs Nixon stand out. And he lights up an already fluorescent film with his great character - definitely channeling some Bowie.

One last disappointment: Cillian Murphy (Scarecrow in Batman Begins and Robert Fischer in Inception) is another great actor who will no doubt be a bigger deal in the impending sequel, however it was disapointing to have only about 4 lines from him in this film (though awesome to seem him sporting some Colin Meloy hair.)

The plot is fairly weak, and the characters weaker (which is crazy coz three of them are Jeff Bridges), but there are some great visual moments and Michael Sheen saves the day. Over all I kind of felt like I did back in elementary school when I'd go over to a friends house and he would play video games and I would watch. It's cool, but I'd rather play.

Inception (2010) ****

Directed by Christopher Nolan.

As the most hyped movie of 2010, it's hard to write a review of Inception - ask Armond White. I've seen the movie three times now and would like to share some thoughts.

Inception is a Movie's movie. It has a cool concept - dream thieves - which allows Christopher Nolan to do whatever he pleases without much need for any sort of continuity or reality. The results are impressive: confused gravity fight scenes; physics defying structures; and a whole lot of time and brain twisting. The result is a pretty tense and packed two and a half hours - it almost feels like you're playing a video game. If you go along with everything it's hugely enjoyable. Second and third time through though I started picking it apart more. Almost half of the movie is spent on explaining whats going on filled in with action sequences. The explanation is part of the joy first time round, but it means that the movie will not remain a movie that I want to go back to over and over.

Third time round I really noticed how much Nolan loves graphic novels. (Yes, the Batman movies should have been a bit of a give away.) Inception, I think, could have functioned better as a Alan-Moore-wannabe graphic novel than a movie. The pseudo-philosophical monologues (Characters often feel like they're talking to the audience rather than to the other characters) function on a slightly cheesy level which befits comics better than film. An unmoving medium would also really complement the cross timeframe action lending more forward momentum to the film and a better sense of proportion. But it's not a comic. Too bad.

I've always had beef with Nolan's action sequences. Batman Begins was essentially a bunch of figures dressed in black moving quickly while shaky camera effects panned this way and that. I only really knew who'd won a fight after it was over (you just assume it's Batman unless he's making groaning noises). Inception cleans it up a bit and I appreciate that I could follow the action more. More linear sequences. Good step in that direction.

Cillian Murphy is again the best actor in Nolan's cast, playing the target of this particular heist. I find it sad seeing Michael Caine reduced to minor, and uninteresting roles. (Go watch Sleuth again...either of them...to remember why he's great.) I've come to really like DiCaprio over the years, if not entirely for his acting then for his movie choices, but this year with two pretty decent reality-confused characters I wonder whether he will get past that confused and pained expression which he does so well and pull off another Aviator. I hope so.

Nolan had a dream and created one. Like a dream it's exciting and vivid while you're in it, but it fades as you enter reality once more. This dream isn't likely to fade as quickly as others, but reality is breaking in.

Ornette Coleman - The Shape of Jazz to Come (1959) Vinyl [9/10]

Another attempt at Jazz discussion.

The Shape of Jazz to Come is a fierce and daring album, which comes as quite a surprise after seeing the relaxed, sweatered and mustached Ornette Coleman looking terrifically nerdy on the cover. When it was released in 1959 the album shocked people; blew the doors off previous jazz conceptions. Coleman nearly single handedly created free jazz by removing the restriction of...CHORDS! Up until this point all Jazz, no matter how complicated or out there, used to chord structures and often hand a piano just in order to keep the chord structures moving. Coleman's quartet had no piano and followed no chord structures. Instead, each piece begins with a melody and then breaks into several minutes of free improvisation, held together -barely!- by the rhythm section which itself was improvising freely. This wasn't quite free jazz without key or any structure at all whatsoever, but it opened the doors!

Chord structure wasn't the only tradition Coleman discarded. Jazz etiquette at the time required a soloist to finish his solo before another player began; The Shape of Jazz has moments in it where multiple musicians solo at the same time. This became one of the building blocks of jazz-fusion (though this album is not a fusion album by any means).

Throwing out traditions is not enough to become the father of a new genre, it needs to be accompanied by artistic mastery, and Coleman is a brilliant saxophone player. Incredibly fast runs swirl and dance around each other as Coleman and Don Cherry (not the Hockey guy) exchange music explosions with each other; Cherry's cornet - a higher trumpet - the soprano to Coleman's alto-sax. And the rhythm section that holds it together is near rabid with frantic galloping drums and nonstop walking bass lines following no clear path, but never seeming to lose it's footing.

And yet. And yet! The album, unlike later free jazz, remains enjoyable to more than the avid jazz nerd. The melodies are catchy, and it is not a hard album to listen to.

A phenomenal undertaking and accomplishment.

Summary: Free Jazz is born.

Best Track: "Peace"

Rating: [9/10]

The Usual Suspects (1995) ***

Directed by Brian Singer

"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Charles Baudelaire

The Usual Suspects is one of my favourite suspense films. It's one of those movies you wish you could watch for the first time over and over, not knowing until the end...what the end is. I won't divulge any details in order than anyone who has not seen it might still be caught up. I will however say that it does a wonderful job of combining flash backs with police interviews to keep you confused while always filling you in at the same time. And the character's are wonderful. Pre-Bio-Dome Stephen Baldwin, with his piercing blue eyes and totally mad smirk is delightfully dangerous. Benicio Del Toro as a swaggeringly tough, yet weirdly distant and feminine mexican. Gabriel Byrne as the bad cop gone-straight-gone-bad is cool and calculating and trying to regain control of his destiny. Kevin Spacey as the bright gimp. and that other guy.

All these guys end up in the same jail cell in a shake down and end up doing a job together which gets them way over their heads, and over the viewer's head as well. There's enough mystery to draw you in, enough action to keep you sharp - though not so much to be mind numbing , and enough tension between the characters and the situations they find themselves in to keep you hooked till the end.

Some gratuitous over-swearing aside, a totally solid film well worth watching.

One final little aside: Peter Greene is super awesome and totally underrated. He was the bad guy in The Mask and the twisted cop Zed in Pulp Fiction. He has a small role in this film but he just makes every scene he's in. Apparently he improvised the scene where he flicked his cigarette into Baldwin's face in The Usual Suspects. That's just awesome.

Robyn - Body Talk Pt. 3 (2010) [6/10]

Swedish pop rebel Robyn released 3 albums this year. Body Talk Pt. 1 is going to appear on my Best of the Year list in a couple weeks. Parts 1 and 2 were 8 songs each and then she released Body Talk which had 5 tracks off each of those plus 5 new tracks. This is a review of those 5 new tracks available on iTunes as Pt. 3. As with Pt. 2, Pt. 3 does not match the first installment of the Body Talk trilogy in either scope or cohesiveness, but it does not disappoint in that it collects another 5 great pop tracks, full of swagger as only Robyn can deliver.

These tracks are the poppiest of the bunch, straight-up tunes with pumped up beats. "Indestructible" is a song of seizing the moment on a dance floor as she says "I'm gunna love you like I've never been hurt before." "Time Machine" is a song of regret. Love songs and songs of confusion and hurt. Classic pop stuff.

And then there's "Call Your Girlfriend," easily the best track of the bunch. The melody and structure catches you up and you feel like Robyn is reassuring a friend that everything will be ok and that she'll move on...and then you realize...Robyn is telling a guy who she is stealing how to break up with his gf. It's vicious. But...so deceptively sweet and catchy. This is why I love Robyn. She screws with your perceptions of what a pop song can be.

And that's just the lyrics.

Musically, yes, fairly straightforward dance floor beats. But it's more alive than most of what's on the radio. Beats oscillate and shimmer with more texture than your run-of-the-mill fist pump music. And, thank goodness, there's a heck of a lot more melody. Lines carry, they build, they resolve. This is music. Not just pop hooks with filler. It's not all mind blowing by any means, but it's certainly refreshing.

"Call Your Girlfriend" really makes Pt. 3, the rest is just solid pop, but sometimes solid pop is what you need right? If you had to pick one part - Pt. 1 is definitely the way to go. And while Pt. 3 doesn't have any disappointing tracks like Pt. 2 did, it lacks some of the swagger as well (Duet with Snoop on "U Should Know Better" anyone?). Regardless, all-in-all it's been an impressive year for Robyn.

Summary: Pop Pop Swagga Pop

Rating: [6/10]

Best Track: Call Your Girlfriend

Pirates of the Carribean Trilogy

Just a few thoughts.

The first movie introduces brilliant characters with a lot of charm and witty dialogue interspersed with moments of action. The second movie relies far too much on the first and lacks much real innovation. Fun, but by no means great. The third movie regains some of the splendor of the first but still falls quite short. Jack Sparrow is one of cinema's great heros, a lovable rogue worthy to be up there with Indiana Jones. The highlight of the third movie is easily the scene with 20 different Jack Sparrows trying to run a ship and fighting over a peanut. Johnny Depp has created a masterpiece, it's a shame that he often sails the seas of cheese. Delightful, and despite its shallows, it bustles with adventure and wit.

The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)***

Dead Man's Chest (2006) **

At World's End (2007) ***

Enter the Dragon 1973 ***

Directed by Robert Clouse

Possibly the ultimate kung-fu movie, Enter the Dragon was the last film Bruce Lee made before his death (the film was released 6 days after he died.) The plot is pretty cliche by now, but we watch because of the incredible feats displayed by those who have mastered their bodies, not because of a hugely compelling story. It goes like this: Evil villain invited the best fighters from around the world to join him on his island fortress/martial arts school for a tournament. This is merely a front for finding potential recruits for his army. Bruce Lee is invited to go and recruited by the British Government to be a spy. Nefarious activity is discovered, crazy fight scenes ensue.

With some variations the villain/tourney has been used a lot (Mortal Kombat/Dragon Ball Z anyone?) but Bruce Lee is a master of his art and the film displays this amazingly. Combining philosophy with self mastery, Lee creates a brilliant display of self control and strength. Just how dedicated these artists are to their craft is exemplified by one scene in the film where Lee performs a flying kick to another fighter's chest, sending him flying. In consulting how to do this beforehand the receiver of the blow insisted it be real despite knowing the danger of physical harm. Shot in slow motion, and to a 21st century viewer used to cheesy effects, this is surprising. No one is willing to be hurt for film anymore. The kick sends Lee's opponent flying into a group of people, knocking over chairs and spectators alike. The opponent's sternum was broken, as were the arms of two people who tried to catch him. One kick! Filming was halted for three months to allow for recuperation. But that's incredible! Not to mention that some of the fighters' actions are so fast that camera has trouble catching them. This isn't bullet time, or sped up cheesy knockoffs. This is the real deal. And the film is worth it for that.

Summary: Tons of cheesy cliches do nothing to ruin the physical feats of Bruce Lee and company.

Rating: ***

The Maltese Falcon 1941 ****

I love the old school private detective stuff. It's gritty and smart and sharp. I read The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler this summer and could't put it down. The Maltese Falcon has Humphrey Bogart as PI Sam Spade who's a fast and tough and cheeky as hell. Bogey is great. I like him better in this than in Cassablanca even though Cassablanca is over all superior as a film.

As in a lot of old movies, every character is a character, but in this one nearly everyone is loveable in his own way. The women are frankly a little disappointing: Mary Astor's character is one of the most manipulative characters I've ever seen, but, while well written, it's not acted as convincingly as I'd have hoped, and she's not even that pretty. That's maybe superficial, but it affects how you see her womanly wiles. On the other hand Peter Lorre as Mr Cairo and Sydney Greenstreet as Kasper "Fatman" Gutman are a joy every moment they are on screen. Gutman is a delightful crook who revels in Spade's antics and has a genuine fondness for him despite being pitted against him. Lorre has the craziest eyes and manner of any actor I think ever. "Look what you did to my shirt!" he complains after waking from being one-punched in the face by Spade.

Speaking of one-punches - this movie is a prime example of how tense action can be summed up in one movement. There are I think maybe 5 scenes with action in them, but the intensity of the film makes them matter. Cairo's punch to the face, Spade getting punched in the throat and later kicked in the head, and Archer getting shot, are all explosive little moments. Many films today focus on extended action scenes, and don't get me wrong, they can be awesome. However, too often blurry fast-pans and quick cuts disguise the action rather than intensify it. Being disoriented can be exciting, but it can be annoying too. Action is much cooler when you can SEE it. And it should be the result of real tension, not contrivance.

"You...you imbecile!"

The Maltese Falcon was a great movie full of great characters and great lines. Some issues with Mary Astor aside I loved it and definitely recommend it.

Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady -1963 mp3 [9/10]

I straight-up do not know how to talk about Jazz.

Mingus is a genius and The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady may be his master piece. He is an exceptional bassist, band leader, and composer/arranger and Black Saint proves it. A jazz ballet in 6 parts (3 crammed into the fourth and final track) this album is an artistic achievement up there with Kind of Blue and A Love Supreme. This is more of a challenge than either of those albums tho, with Mingus' 11-piece band painting the pictures of dancers on the stage. I really can't say much more except go listen. Then listen again. And again. And again.

Best Track: Medley: Trio and Group Dancers / Single Solos and Group Dance / Group and Solo Dance

Rating: [9/10]

Movie: How To Train Your Dragon ***

How To Train Your Dragon was bundles of fun. Yes it rehashed tons of cliches: wimpy kid trying to impress his macho dad; independant chick falling for wimpy kid; highschool loser becoming the popular kid; finding your own voice rather than trying to be like everyone else...etc. However! It does so using Scottish Vikings and Dragons, not to mention great visual effects. The movie is definitely a kids movie, but it has a lot of heart and is a lot of fun. Plot wise there isn't anything exceptional about it, but the voice acting is smart and quick. One of my favourite moments is when Hiccup (the above mentioned wimp) is presented a helmet by his father...but the helmet is made from his dead mother's breast-plate...his dad has the matching pair- "Keeps her close." Surprising moments like this make the movie stand out among other childrens movies, though I must reiterate that the visual style is truly excellent. it combines cartoonish proportions with incredible detail - the same way Sergio Aragone's Groo comics did.

One thing irks me though, and it's a common thread in most Disney/children's movies: defying tradition to find your own way. I struggle with this. I see tradition as a really healthy thing, something our society needs more of. It's something that grounds us and gives a sense of community, and not just contemporary community, but a community through the generations. However, traditions can err, and like the dragon hating vikings, can be driven to extremes by a lack of understanding of the "others" real position. Hiccup, because he is different, is forced to cope with reality in a way that isn't traditional, and in doing so brings peace to his people. That's great, but underlying it is an implication that all tradition is blind and unwise. Often in movies the person who is unable to let go of tradition is made to be the bad guy or made to look the fool. And there are times where they truly are one or both. Is interests me that the only time someone standing for tradition is the good guy - Sir Thomas More in A Man for all Seasons for instance - it is not because he is supporting tradition necessarily but because he is a man who listens to his conscience. More is essentially the inverse of Hiccup, defying where everyone is going because his conscience deems it right. It's the same formula. I love A Man for all Seasons and recommend it highly, but it again bothers me that our society so highly favours following one's own conscience as supreme to any sort of status quo. Yes, it's inspiring. Yes, it's very modern and progressive. But what will it lead to if we throw out all tradition. Hell, we nearly have. Will we be better off?

Movie: The Informant! - 2009 ****

Directed by Steven Soderbergh

Starring: Matt Damon

The Informant! is fast. Sometimes so fast it can be confusing. But you're supposed to be confused. Everyone in the film is, so why shouldn't you be? Mark "Corky" Whitacre is a biochemist working for ADM, a company which - as you find out immediately - is all about making YOU eat corn. When lysine (a derivative of corn) production begins to drop in the plant at ADM, Corky goes to his boss, Mick Andreas, with the information that there's a mole from a competitor sabotaging their lysine plant. An individual wants $10 mill for the information of who. Soon the FBI gets involved at which point Whitacre goes informant on ADM's shady business practices. The result is a crazy rollercoaster ride of lies, greed and baffled government officials.

Mustached Matt Damon is a joy. There are strange appearances by comics Tom Papa and Patton Oswalt, although neither is a comic centre of this film. It should be noted that this is a Clooney-produced movie. Which makes the soundtrack and anti-american greed theme make more sense.

The Informant! is smart, funny and baffling. Who's the real bad guy?

Neu! - Neu! 1972 mp3 [9/10]

Neu! came in to existence in the wake of break up of krautrock pioneers Kraftwerk. Neu!'s eponymous 1972 debut retains much of the sleek and mechanical instrumentation that was a staple of Kraftwerk's techno-robot-rock, however this album veers from the any of the techno elements that made Kraftwerk's brilliance slightly cheesy. There are also no vocals on Neu! This is pure instrumentation. The album kick's off with "Hallogallo" who's driving beat and sweeping guitar/keyboard soundscapes evolve over the course of 11 minutes, and although it never strays far from home, it never gets boring. That really could sum up the whole album. Neu! is in some senses a drone album, each track sticking around a certain sonic plateau and just playing around on it. However, it balances it's ambient drone with hard groove. For such a mechanical album, there is a whole lot of soul.

One of the greatest moments on the album is on "Negativland." The 9 minute track drives and grooves on relentlessly before just dropping you, mid-bar into silence. It's testament to Neu!'s compositional skills that I was truly shocked and started when it the groove I had become lost in disappeared.

Neu! has been ridiculously influential on everyone from Radiohead to Iggy Pop (Negativland's bass line could be straight from a Joy Division song too) as well as most electronic music. It's hard to imagine where we'd be with out this album. You shouldn't listen to this album because it's a prototype tho. Rather you should listen to it because it's still fresh and vibrant today.

Summary: Sleek and beautiful, this thing hums along and never tires you out.

Best Track: Negativland

Rating: [9/10]

Movie: Luther - 2003 **

Directed by Eric Till

To me, the Reformation is one of the most, if not THE most, unsettling of historical periods. Division in Christ's church pains me to no end as does any abuse of her power. Luther narrates the rise of Brother Martin Luther into prominence and his disagreements with the Roman Catholic Church which led to the Protestant Reformation.

Luther, fearing death in a storm, promises that if God will spare him he will become a monk. He struggles in his monastic life with the problem of God being a vengeful and angry God, asking why God would make us tainted with sin and expect us to be perfect or be thrown to hell. Joseph Fiennes portrays Luther as a man tortured by the Devil, being thrown around his monastic cell and screaming at Satan to leave him alone. I know that Martin Luther was continuously distressed by his own Sin and spent hours in confession confessing to the most minute sin, but I don't know about his being tortured by the devil. Luther is sent to Rome to get out of the monastery and there he sees more clearly the abuses of Church power. Eric Till gives shot after shot of what was wrong with the Church: indulgences, brothels for Clergy, artificial relics. It's interesting that one of the main supporters of this film is a Lutheran society, and it shows. With the exception perhaps of Luther's father Abbot, there is not a single positive thing to be found in the Catholic church in this film.

The film's strongest moments are mostly those that involve Frederick the Wise, played excellently by Sir Peter Ustinov, who is the most reasonable character in the film. A well know collector of relics, Frederick is convicted by Luther's arguments against them and defends him as an intellectual force, using his influence to grant Luther a fair trial after he is convicted for heresy following the publishing of his 95 Theses. Luther's defense is well known:

Unless I am convicted by scripture and plain reason

- I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other

- my conscience is captive to the Word of God.

I cannot and I will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe.

Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise.

God help me. Amen.

One of the film's strengths is how well it shows Luther's distress at being called an enemy of the church. He constantly uphold's the Pope and says that he is writing against those who are corrupting the name of the Pope by actively abusing his authority for their own ends. When asked to recant he continually asks to be able to debate using scripture as to why his views are wrong or against the Pope and the result is the quote above.

Unfortunately there are a few points in the film which do not explain themselves and can be confusing as to what is taking place if one is not aware of the history.

Over all a decent film but I felt that the one sidedness of it and a few plot gaps left it wanting.

Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom 1974 mp3 [9/10]

This is the first album after Soft Machine drummer Robert Wyatt fell out of a window and was rendered confined to a wheel chair. Not to be stopped, Wyatt switched (mostly) from drums to focus on songwriting and piano. This is an album of restrained but fully realized emotion. Wyatt's voice has a strained quality but rarely seems to leave the realm of sighing-semifalsetto. The arrangements build in complexity on each side of the record until the madness of Little Red Riding Hood Hit the Road/Little Red Robin Hood Hit the Road which are full out noodling improv sessions with horns, drums, keys, bass, guitar all layering up into an emotional and dynamic climax. Other tracks such as "Sea Song" have a Bowie-esque quality to them with long piano chords and interesting structures which allow the other instruments to dance around Wyatt's voice.

Lyrically, Sea Song is the most straightforward - a song of yearning and mysterious love. Many other tracks seem to be mostly nonsensical, but there is an underlying emotion and lyricism even to the very strange love song, "Alifib."

There are moments on this album that seem to have influenced Radiohead and other more recent experimental groups, but this album stands as a great musical and artistic creation regardless of any later influence.

Summary: A challenging and emotional album, definitely requiring multiple listens to appreciate. Soulful and intense prog/jazz.

Best Track: Alifib

Rating: [9/10]

Frank Zappa "Sheik Yerbouti" 1979 2xLP [7/10]

Sheik Yerbouti, Zappa's 20th album, remains his best selling out of 62(!) albums.

"Some of you might not agree

'Cause you probably likes a lot of misery

But think a while and you will see...

Broken hearts are for assholes"

First listen:

Zappa in any era was experimental and goofy, but this album is hilarious. He somehow touches on pretty much every genre of music you can think of, but this is probably the most punk rock I've ever heard his meanderings. It's definitely not for everybody, and any album requires some concentration to really appreciate. A lot of people pass him off as random, and at some point it seems so, but Zappa is a master craftsman of the mad scientist variety, and also a very talented guitar player.

My pressing interestingly has Side 1 and 4 on one LP and 2 and 3 on another... each side ringing in at around 18 minutes of madness.

Side one has a whole lot of stuff on it (as does any one side of Zappa's collection) including Bob Dylan impressions, Peter Frampton "covers" and the above quoted "Broken Hearts are for Assholes" which is pretty self explanatory. 2 delves more into the unconventional with short spoken word quips between tracks (though nothing like on his early material like 1966's Freak Out!) Zappa has got himself a solid jam band which is well exemplified on the instrumental "Rat Tomago" and "The Sheik Yerbouti Tango." "Bobby Brown" is a brutally funny commentary on the hypersexuality of America which was banned in a few countries because of it's lyrics which I will not quote here...

"Tiny is as Tiny Does"

Side 3's "Dancin' Fool" hates on Disco, which, let's be honest, is totally ok.

Side 4's "Yo' Mama" is a 12 minute diss with a whole lotta guitar noodling.

There's a lot to absorb and I've been doing reviews of a lot of albums today so I obviously haven't done this album justice. But it's pretty awesome and I'm excited for more delving into it.

First listen:

Summary: Zappa mad hilarity

Best Track: Broken Hearts are for Assholes

Rating: [7/10]

Led Zeppelin "4" 1971 vinyl [8/10]

"You JUST got Zeppelin 4?"

yes. i know. i'm sorry. and I've never listened to it before this either.

"WHAAAAT?!"

i know. i know. i have heard tracks of course, "Stairway" of course (though only 3 times probably) and "When the Levee Breaks" and I think "Black Dog."

There is obviously very little to say about his album. Everything has been said. Though I must admit that I now understand. I now believe. Here's a play by play of my first listen of one of the greatest rock records ever made. From "Black Dog"'s first howl of "Hey, hey, mama, said the way you move, gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove" I'm sold. "Rock and Roll" just keeps me moving. Which is good, because honestly "The Battle of Evermore" is kind of goofy. It someone never quite hits "Cheesy" territory tho, and for that it gets some kudos. "Stairway" is, well, "Stairway." Though that guitar solo had more punch than I remember.

Side Two: The stoned monotone of "Misty Mountain Hop" broken up with Robert Plant's squeals is just freaking rad and groovy. Is Bonham using "Four Sticks" to play this song? coz it's thumpin'! "Going to California" is really gorgeous. I like the mellower side of Plant's voice - see his collab with Alison Krause.

"Levee" is just a great freaking song. That beat, the howling harmonica, the moan. It's the track I'm most familiar with on the album and the track that made me start liking Zeppelin in the first place.

What an enjoyable listening experience. "Evermore" was the single lull for me. I haven't said a thing about Jimmy Page's guitar work because it's a given. However, for the record, it's amazing.

Summary: Legendary Rock 'n' Roll

Best Track: When the Levee Breaks

Rating: [8/10]

Phil Ochs - Gunfight at Carnegie Hall 1970 [7/10]/Pleasures of the Harbour 1967 [8/10]/All the News That's Fit to Sing 1964 [7/10]

"I could never strip, that would be cheap."

Phil Ochs is just amazing - I bought 3 of his LPs today haha two of which I've loved for a while but never owned and the infamous Gunfight. Ochs is a first class protest folker. Maybe (dare I say it?!) better than Dylan. His biting wit and heartfelt concern for social issues in America and second to none. That combined with one of the richest voices, and that tell-tale vibrato, not to mention impressive arrangements, set him apart. All The News..., his first album, established him as a singer-songwriter of depth with songs about totalitarian gov't, Vietnam, and the Black Civil Rights movement.

Pleasures of the Harbour is a master work. It's one of my favourite albums and I'm pleased to have it on vinyl. Complex arrangements depart from Ochs' classic guitar and voice, but at no expense to the heart. "Outside of a Small Circle of Friends" is probably the most famous track from Pleasures and the first verse is worth quoting in full as an example of his sharp irony.

Look outside the window, there's a woman being grabbed

They've dragged her to the bushes and now she's being stabbed

Maybe we should call the cops and try to stop the pain

But monopoly is so much fun, i'd hate to blow the game

And i'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody

Outside of a small circle of friends

There is not a single track on Pleasures that is not amazingly rich and beautiful.

Gunfight at Carnegie Hall was released in the wake of the 1968 Chicago Police Riots and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.. Depressed and disillusioned, Ochs, ever one to challenge any status quo, even those of his leftist hard-core protestor fans, Ochs decided to put on a show...a ROCK show. He came out on stage in a gold Elvis suit and played a mixture Buddy Holly and Elvis and other rock and roll mixed in with his classic folk songs. The shock was nearly as great as Dylan's plugging in at Newport. Ochs' antics brought on audible "Boo's" and shouts of "Bring on Phil Ochs," which he answered sarcastic with "Let's not be closed minded Americans" and other witty remarks. By the end of the concert the "Boo's" were replaced with cheers and an encore. Amazing. He spits in his fan's face to show their hypocrisy and comes out head high.

One of the best moments is when he gets the power shut off on him for playing to long and he get's everyone to chant "This is bullshit, we want power!" until the staff are forced to turn the power back on and he keeps playing. Punk. Rock.

One of the great American songwriters.

Summary: Folk Rock Protestor Extraordinaire

Best Tracks: All the News That's Fit to Sing - "Power and Glory"

Pleasures of the Harbour - "The Party"

Gunfight at Carnegie Hall - "Buddy Holly medley"

Rating: ATN [7/10]

POTH [8/10]

GFCH [7/10]

Music: Dillinger - Dillinger (1974) - vinyl - [6/10]

First Listen:

This is a pretty obscure Canadian prog record. No wikipedia for the band (except a later manifestation called The Hunt), no lyrics found. Side A has three tracks: "People," "City Man" and "Nature's Way" totally 14:30 and Side B is one 17 minute track called "Live and Return"

It's pretty classic prog music: synths, solos, and constant tempo and time changes. "Nature's Way" is pretty Pink Floyd-y. Actually a lot of the palette is reminiscent of Floyd, but the playing is more frantic which lends some really good energy to the album, especially "City Man".

"Live and Return" starts out kicking with some pretty frenetic drums and bass and which works itself into a slow jam with some pretty cool vocal harmonies (all 4 members contribute vocals to the album). Half way through it picks up again into a sweet jam session and multi-minute drum solo which shows off drummer Robert Harrison's impressive chops. Not a huge fan of his tone, but he keeps it interesting.

Chops is definitely one thing this band is about, and they've all got them, except maybe in the vocal department, but it's more about the music here.

On first listen this album is all about "Live and Return" which was really enjoyable. I'll try and listen to the lyrics more in subsequent takes and want to pay more attention to the sax solo on "City People."

Summary: Canadian Prog Rock

Best Track: Live and Return

Rating: [6/10]

Music Catch-ups *update to /10*

First of all I will list albums released in 2010 which I have purchased. I will then list all albums purchased since August.

Albums 2010 (not in any order particularly):

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot, Son of Chio Dusty **** 7

Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid **** 7

LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening **** 7

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me **** 8

Pantha du Prince - Black Noise **** 7

Robyn - Body Talk Pt. 1**** 7

The Dead Weather - Sea of Cowards *** 6

Dillinger Escape Plan - Option Paralysis *** 5

Isis/Melvins Spilt 12" *** 5

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - I Learned The Hard Way *** 5

Charlotte Gainsbourg - IRM *** 6

The Ocean - Heliocentric *** 6

Albums since August:

- Arcade Fire - The Suburbs **** (2010) 6

- Wavves - king of the Beach *** (2010) 6

- Bob Dylan - Down in the Groove *** 5

- The Surfaris - Wipeout *** 5

- Oscar Peterson/Count Basie - Night Rider **** 7

- Elvis Costello - My Aim Is True *** 6

- Robyn - Body Talk pt 2 *** (2010) 6

- Destroyer - Street Hawk: A Seduction **** 7

- James Brown - Cold Sweat *** 6

- The Masked Marauders - ST **** 6

- M+M - Mystery Walk *** 5

- Oscar Peterson + Count Basie - Josh and Satch **** 7

- Michael Stanley Band - Heartland * 4

- Frank Zappa - Waka/Jawaka *** 5

- Frank Zappa - apostrophe (') **** 6

- Bob Dylan - Nashville Skyline **** 6

- James Blake - The Bells Sketch EP **** (2010) 7

- James Blake - CMYK EP **** (2010) 7

- James Blake - Klavierwerke EP **** (2010) 7

Beginnings

Ah so I am attempting a review blog for the films and albums I consume on an all to regular basis. I have, for the past two years reviewed every album and film I buy/watch out of four stars and have TWICE lost these to computer errors. So this is slightly more permanent. The stars are somewhat arbitrary but basically represent thumbs up or down. Some are qualified. For example The Expendables should receive one star aka two thumbs down for being a terrible movie, but it gets two complementary stars because I enjoyed the mindless stupidity of it quite a lot. I dont even know who's going to read this but whatever. This format also allows me to update reviews later on on further viewings/ listenings.

My first post will end with all the movies I've seen since August and my second post will be of albums purchased/acquired since August. I do not count borrowing albums or those received off of a friend's memory stick as being acquired.

Without further ado, smash goes the champagne and the SS Terrible sails away into the ... something:

Movies with stars but no reviews seen since August:

- Badlands ****

- Expendables (*)**

- Scott Pilgrim vs the World***

- The Long Goodbye ***

- The Hurt Locker ****

- The Outlaw Josey Wales **

- Tekkonkinkreet *** (re)

- Doctor Zhivago **** (re)

- Bonnie and Clyde ****

- Iron Man 2 *** (re)

- Scott Pilgrim vs The World *** (re)

- The Last Samurai ****

- Burn After Reading *** (re)

- No Country For Old Men **** (re)

- Memoirs of a Geisha ****

- The Social Network ***

- Good Willing Hunting ****

- Psycho ****

- Lost in Translation **** (re)