Hits and Misses of 2005

Everyone is doing this, so I guess it's time I latched onto the trend and did the same. I don't have a top ten, and I don't have a bottom five. I can't even remember all the albums that came out this year. I've been a little behind, I'll admit. What I can tell you though is that there are albums I've liked and albums I haven't. So instead of doing the whole list them thing, I'm going to do hit and miss, starting with hit.

Hit: Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
I've read a lot of people's lists and they call this a disappointment. All I have to say to that is you've got to be kidding me. I can't find anything disappointing about Illinois. I have listened to Michigan, and yes, they're very similar in mood, but what do you honestly expect from two albums that are supposed to be part of a series? Like it or not, they have a connection, a similar purpose. You can't tell me that Illinois is a bad album just because it's reminiscent of Michigan. I don't think that's a good enough reason. I love Illinois because it is big. It's not just big; it's huge. There's so many layers, so much to listen to. The lyrics are incredible, sometimes haunting, occasionally challenging to hear, but always insightful. I've listened to it a hundred times by now and I can't find anything wrong with it. It's pretty much my favorite album so far.

Miss: Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
You know I hate this album so I won't talk much about it. It's not that it's completely awful. The instrumentals are incredible. They're very talented musicians. I simply cannot stand that girl's voice. It irritates me, and I don't find it the least bit enjoyable to listen to. I don't know how anyone can handle listening to the entire album. I would go nuts.

Hit: Beck - Guero
I have to say that this album surprised me. I haven't listened to Beck regularly in a very long time. In fact, I don't think I ever listened to an entire album before Guero. I simply love this album. I'd throw it in the CD player and walk to class listening to it on sunny days, and it put a bounce in my step. It's the kind of album that makes me enjoy myself.

Miss: Weezer - Make Believe
This album is actually not a disappointment at all. I never really had high hopes to begin with. The days of "Say it Ain't So" and "Buddy Holly" have long gone. There's nothing left of what Weezer used to be, and what remains is a man simply making money by putting out catchy tunes. There's no substance to the album at all. I have no desire to listen to it ever again. Let's face it, guys. Weezer isn't really Weezer anymore.

Hit: Gorillaz - Demon Days
I didn't listen to the self-titled album. My only knowledge of Gorillaz up until Demon Days was that song about sunshine in a bag. I think it was called "Clint Eastwood" or something. Maybe I'm totally making that up. Anyway, my boyfriend made me listen to the album. I was expecting that same kind of hip-hop sound that was catchy but not enough that I'd listen to the entire album. I was very surprised to find out that Gorillaz isn't just hip-hop. They're actually a band, and they actually sing and make beautiful music. When I first heard the single "Feel Good Inc.," I didn't realize it was them. In fact, neither did Claude. We were like, "What's this?" and then it was like a light bulb turned on in our brains and we looked at each other with wide eyes and open mouths. What a difference. Totally blew me away, and I'm glad.

Miss: The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
Without sounding like a broken record, I'll just say that this album sounds like a bad White Stripes cover band. I think Jack White was too consumed doing side projects to put any real effort into this album. That's too bad, because before this I actually liked them.

Hit: Doves - Some Cities
It seems like it's been a year since it was released in February, but don't forget about Some Cities. It's a considerable departure from The Last Broadcast, and that has led to a certain amount of scrutiny, but in my opinion I think the new direction was necessary. There's no way to improve on The Last Broadcast. They took that road about as far as they could, but it was time to change things up a bit. And really, why not spice it up? Some Cities is a successful change of pace. It lacks the epic feel of The Last Broadcast, but makes up for that in creativity and innovation. It's probably the best follow-up they could have released.

I really can't think of any other albums that struck me. Coldplay's X&Y is good, but I'm finding that the more I listen to it the more I can't really stand listening to the entire album at once. Oasis' Don't Believe the Truth I haven't actually had the time to listen to. I'm listening to Clap Your Hands And Say Yeah! for the first time, so I can't tell you how I feel about them yet. I haven't heard the new album from Hot Hot Heat, and I haven't given The Sunlandic Twins by Of Montreal a good enought listen. I guess that about covers it. If you want me to give my opinion on any other albums, feel free to comment.

In other news...

The MGM v. Grokster case has certainly grabbed a lot of attention in the last few weeks, especially now that the ruling has been postponed until Monday. But don't let the case fool you. Forbes.com has a very interesting article about what the case may or may not hold in store for the future of digital music. One of the points it makes is that downloading is already illegal, and this isn't going to change that. The question is whether or not the makers of the programs used by people to illegally transfer digital media are at fault.

But there's something else going on in Congress right now that may have more of an impact on piracy than the Grokster case: copyright law reform. What's going down, I honestly can't explain to you. I have no working knowledge of the laws or what has been introduced into Congress. I've skimmed and read through a couple articles, but I still can't understand it. Here's the actual transcript of the testimony of the Register of Copyrights Marybeth Peters, and if you can figure it out, please let me know.

Please accept the sincerest apologies of the boys of Explosions in the Sky. Yes, they've been out of touch and the website is not finished, but do bear with them as they work on their new music. In the meantime, you can look forward to the re-release of How Strange, Innocence on October 11th.

The currently untitled new album from Sigur Ros is nearing completion. In addition to not having a title, it also doesn't have a release date. So really, who knows what might happen.

In totally unrelated news, Tom Cruise is a creepy creepy dude. Check out his tense Q&A with Matt Lauer on The Today Show, which includes many words of wisdom from the Scientologist guru:

Tom on War of the Worlds: "I think it's Spielbergian scary."

Tom on talking and writing: "But they're still writing it. You got to understand. All that stuff, they'd still write it. They'd still talk about it. And the thing is, I still feel I will talk about what I feel, what I want to talk about."

Tom on life: "I'm just living my life, Matt. It's something that — I mean, I'm living my life. And I'm doing the best that I can, and doing it in a way that I feel is right. I like hearing good news, you know. I like hearing, you know, if something good happens to you, it's nice. I like sitting here talking to you." (Tom Cruise, the hippie.)

Tom on love: "Because, you know, it — but what it is, it's that thing where you just — in life, when it just happens, Matt. You know? It just — you meet someone. And it's — I can't even describe it."

Tom on mental illness: "There is no such thing as a chemical imbalance."

Tom on multiple personalities: "I think that there's a higher and better quality of life. And I think that, promoting — for me personally, see, you're saying what, I can't discuss what I wanna discuss?" (That was from wayyyyy left field.)

Tom on Matt Lauer: "Matt, you don't even — you're glib. You don't even know what Ritalin is." (Say what?!)

And Matt Lauer's zing back at him: "You're now telling me that your experiences with the people I know, which are zero, are more important than my experiences."

Dang, guys! Isn't that a little heated for a morning show?! Save it for Jerry Springer. Go watch the video and read the whole transcript. It ranks up there with Noel Gallagher.

Upcoming Columbus Shows

7.07 - Reel Big Fish - Newport Music Hall
7.14 - Blowfly - Little Brothers
7.16 - Pete Yorn - Newport Music Hall
7.19 - Dressy Bessy - Little Brothers
7.20 - Howie Day - Promowest Pavilion
7.20 - Luna Halo w/ Modena Vox - Skully's Music Diner
7.22 - Tegan and Sara - Newport Music Hall
8.11 - Ben Folds w/ Ben Lee and Rufus Wainwright - Promowest Pavilion
8.20 - Pretty Girls Make Graves - Little Brothers
8.23 - Thunderbirds Are Now! - Little Brothers
8.30 - Xiu Xiu w/ Das Yellow Swans and Nedelle - Little Brothers
8.31 - Coldplay w/ Rilo Kiley - Germain Ampitheater
9.06 - Of Montreal w/ The Management - TBA
9.10 - The White Stripes w/ The Greenhornes - Ohio State Theater
9.14 - Sufjan Stevens - Southgate House (Newport, KY)
9.24 - The Rolling Stones w/ Beck - Germain Ampitheater

Daily Downloads
from the regnyouth archives

Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism (link, mp3)
The Arcade Fire - Us Kids Know EP (link, zip, I think this may be the self-titled, just under the wrong name)
Clap Your Hands And Say Yeah! - Clap Your Hands And Say Yeah! (link, rar)
Hot Hot Heat - Elevator (rar)

Last night, I went to the Ohio Theater downtown with Claude and our friends Tercio and Giselle to see a showing of the 1927 silent film Metropolis. The theater is a really old restored theater, with high ceilings and an incredibly ornate decor. I'm sure not everyone has seen the movie, so just to give you some background, the movie was originally 210 minutes but was cut to 90 for American theaters. Much of the cut footage has been lost, but what has been found was restored and included in the version of the film we saw last night. This version also included synopses where scenes are missing to explain what those missing scenes should have had. Where possible, stills of missing scenes were shown to give us an idea of what was happening. The original film score was written for a 60-piece orchestra, which is clearly impossible for a small-scale showing of the movie. Instead, the house organist played the entire score by himself. It was so well done, though. He is such a talented man. He received a standing ovation at the end of the film. I highly recommend seeing the film in its restored version. I know the idea of seeing a silent film might be strange to some people, but when you take into consideration the time period during which Fritz Lang produced it, you'll realize that it's a very powerful film. It was amazing. Have a good weekend.