gorram_feds

That Yellow Fever video was very well-done and quite funny, thanks! Here's two to enjoy: - a funny voice-over parody of the Rivendell council meeting from Fellowship of the Ring and just in time for Christmas... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyZ6tQP0kiY - The Trans-Siberian Orchestra's performance of Carols of the Bells (over visuals from Revenge of the Sith, if you can stomach that)

Wow, I found that video sped-up to be more tolerable and entertaining than the original at normal speed. Thanks!

Plenty of American teenagers do. I tend to agree with shade on this one. Compare their first two albums to these most recent two; regarding the latter, not much catches my interest or stands out at all. I still respect them as musicians though and even if Light Grenades isn't selling as well as ACLOTM at least it made #1 on the albums charts - that's something to be proud of.

Beside the obvious male singer, I submit Erika Amato of the LA-based indie band Velvet Chain (who?). She has a wonderful range, can really hit high notes, sounds perfectly at ease with ballads, straight-ahead rockers, jazz standards, to name a few styles. Too bad they've got so little exposure but the band is very creative and her voice is just beautiful to listen to (plus she and her husband, the band's bassist Jeff Stacey, definitely have a gift for songwriting). Give them a try sometime if you like -> check out <www.velvetchain.com> for song samples (and consider one of their 'Custom Albums', a very cool concept).

It might just be a bit difficult for me to mentally disassociate that video and song from the phrase/name "unicornsof911", at least for a few days, but I shall try.

Wow oh wow, did that ever suck. He is quite the crap actor and it's rare that I find a something with him in it to be worth watching...the only exception for me is "Session 9"; it's an excellent horror movie (and very low on gore and violence, most is implied or offscreen), his role isn't very central and his overacting is kept to somewhat of a minimum (though his utterance of "Fuck...you!" and the quick camera pull-in are just too funny).

I finally got to see The Fountain last night and I heartily agree with Muran, it is beautiful. I'd waited so long for it to finally get released in theatres and was not disappointed in the least! Wonderful performances, especially by Hugh Jackman (pretty much as always, IMHO) and it sure was nice to see Ellen Burstyn again (particularly not messed up like her character in Requiem For A Dream - although she was fantastic in that as well). I found the look and the tone of the film much more focused and relaxed than that of Requiem (but that film's style suits itself very well) and again I agree, the music is simply incredible. Absolutely right, it fits and elevates the film so well. Truly worth the wait (and the tears).

...which is just a goddamn shame. I wonder how much of that could be due to his own personal preference and whether he'd even be able to get any bookings in the US outside the northeastern states. With his reputation for being "outspoken" (which is just such a BS way to say "honest") I imagine that there are plenty of venues, booking agents and promoters in the US that won't touch him. Of course, I'm making some assumptions here: how well known is Matt (or even MBG) in the US? I honestly have no idea. Anyone?

compared to a short 10-minute walk down the street, I think it most certainly is.

Ahh, "cheaply made and totally unnecessary promotional item" - those are the very words that I was going for. Thanks for the recap, AnOceanPearl. I guess I was just too lazy to go and grab it off the shelf (though I do love the sparse CD liner notes, especially the "activate musical redundancy beam").

I loved that whole sequence - totally unexpected, totally hilarious! That bit and the part with him jerking off outside the Victoria's Secret store in New York got the biggest reactions from the nearly packed house I saw it in last weekend.

Yeah, I love this movie a very lot but it's definitely one that I can only watch once every few years (I've only actually seen it two, maybe three times and one of those was in the theatre when it opened); it's just too much to take in and deal with emotionally and definitely not one that I could watch repeatedly with little gaps between viewings. That might (for me, anyway) somehow diminish the experience and the effect if I do see it multiple times. I have similar feelings with regards to Life Is Beautiful; I absolutely love it through and through, makes me cry every single time but again, I've only seen it two or three times, including in the theatre. However, I am feeling ready to see it again soon... Anyway, bring on The Fountain! Hopefully that one will also be viewed in school one day too ;)

I'm still holding out for Survivor: Congo or Survivor: Darfur. Why not? Boring old reporting on the genocide and conflicts in those two regions doesn't seem to get much done, might as well set a popular "reality" television show there instead.* (* - I seem to have misplaced the 'sarcasm' font)

Sooo...The Fountain is now in theatres. Has anyone seen it yet? If so, any exclamations, gripes, concerns, insights and the like? I've not seen it yet, too busy with school this past week but I hope to see it soon, maybe even this Sunday. Too bad it's not playing at the Paramount downtown; there's no way in hell that I'd go see a movie that promises to be so badass in a crap theatre like the Granville 7. If I must go all the way out to Richmond to see it in a decent theatre (ex., SilverCity) then I simply must.

Yeah, "accurate lyrics" - that always made me laugh. That book, although IMO more than just a meaningless promotional item, is not my first choice when I need to track down an MGB lyric.

"Iraqi Road Ice Cream" - ;) how about "Stuck in Recoupment Hell" (although I sincerely hope that that is not the case!)

Yeah, that's sort of how I feel (just the reverse; you'll see). I had heard some MGB stuff (mostly just singles) a few years before really getting into the band and the music - really, how could someone in a Canadian high school in the 90's (especially in BC) not have heard songs like Automatic, Apparitions, Time Bomb and Load Me Up? However, it wasn't until Audio of Being that I really got interested. My best friend lent me his copy of the disc and that was just it for me - I charged down to record store and bought a copy of everything I could find (which was all the major label stuff released up to that point, save Lo-Fi B-Sides, of course). Unfortunately, the band is no more right at the point that it became my favourite! But look at what's come since then: two excellent solo albums, four (?) amazing tours and plenty of new songs, plus a new record on its way next year. Matt never lies down for too long without picking himself up and bouncing back, even now. Back O-T, without discounting Beautiful Midnight, Audio of Being is still "it" for me because it really introduced me to Matt's incredible songwriting ability and an impressive vocal range (Rat Who Would Be King and Man of Action, for example). When it comes to 'the band' proper, AoB will always be my favourite. However, I'm confident that he can surpass it on his own and I sure can't wait!

I was hoping that someone would mention this! I first heard Symbolistic White Walls on the Avalanche Tour, 21 March 2003 at the Royal Theatre in Victoria; he closed the show with that song and just blew me away. Like so many of his songs done acoustic, a new dimension reveals itself and simply amazes. I can't decide now whether I like the album version or the acoustic performance better, they're both excellent.

"technology affliction" - ;) (no offense intended) Something about that phrase makes me laugh, thanks

Judging from his post on 3 November here, it doesn't sound like the cowardly turd (or turds) who did this are going to be getting theirs too soon (but somewhere down the line they had better). Matt brings up a great point about the lack of support from the major labels in regards to embracing new and emerging technologies to promote the talent on their rosters. No surprise, since their contracts often consider CDs to be 'new technology' (no matter what the head of EMI is saying these days).

I think that 20th Century Fox scaled it back from approx 2,000 screens because some initial test screenings weren't very positive (how that could be, I've no idea). So they reduced it to about 800 screens for opening weekend and apparently will widen the release depending on its first weekend take and resulting word of mouth. Probably a good idea if it really takes off (which I hope it will) and becomes a late-season favourite. Wouldn't that be awesome (though unlikely) if it's still in theatres come Christmas time?

Haven't seen Pi but I thoroughly enjoyed Requiem For a Dream (not a date movie, as it turns out... ;) though the soundtrack album is fantastic), so I've been waiting for The Fountain for a looong time. The trailer and website are very intriguing, though I sure would have enjoyed seeing the trailer again before The Prestige (I was misinformed). I'm deliberately keeping myself from learning too much about the film in advance, so I've stayed away from cast and crew interviews, set visit reports and the latest photos. This is near the top of my list for movies to see in 2006, up there with Pan's Labrynth.