The list of songs to pick from this year wasn't quite as long as last year but I still had to leave off about 10 truly great songs. Just like last year, you can listen to the Spotify playlist of my favorite songs from 2013 to hear them all for yourself. I've only included one song per band or album so the whole list doesn't fill up with my two or three favorite records of the year.
30) Nine Inch Nails - Everything
29) Kid Cudi - Immortal
28) The Ceremonies - Land Of Gathering
27) Bad Rabbits - Get Up and Go
26) Youth Lagoon - Mute
25) Charles Bradley - Victim of Love
24) Rhye - The Fall
23) The Shouting Matches - Seven Sisters
22) Dan Croll - From Nowhere
21) Sigur Ros - Isjaki
20) Houses - The Beauty Surrounds
19) Blood Orange - You're Not Good Enough
18) Junip - Line of Fire
17) Daft Punk - Doin' It Right (feat. Panda Bear)
16) The Appleseed Cast - Barrier Islands (Do We Remain)
15) Beck - I Won't Be Long - Extended Version
14) M83 - Oblivion (feat. Susanne Sundfor)
13) Queens of the Stone Age - The Vampyre Of Time And Memory
12) CHVRCHES - Recover
11) Foals - Inhaler
10) Vampire Weekend - Diane Young
9) Arcade Fire - Afterlife
8) Wise Blood - Alarm
7) Haim - The Wire
6) Har Mar Superstar - Lady, You Shot Me
5) Kavinsky - Odd Look (feat. The Weeknd)
4) The National - Graceless
3) Typhoon - Young Fathers
2) Lady Lamb the Beekeeper - Bird Ballons
1) Volcano Choir - Byegone
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Best of 2012: Film
This was a strange year for movies. Over forty times I went to the movie theater and although I only saw a few terrible movies (Savages, The Campaign, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax) it wasn't a very impressive year overall. I can't remember ever having so many action films make my top ten list but they were some of the best films of the year. Without further ado, here are my ten favorite films released this year.
10) Sleepwalk With Me
A stand-up comedy routine turned one man show turned movie might sound like an odd choice for one of the best films of the year. However, Mike Birbiglia is very likable playing himself even if at times he's not doing likable things. It's a very keen self-examination and probably the most accurate portrayal of making it as a stand-up comedian that's been put to film.
9) Prometheus
With rare exception I'm not excited about a remake, sequel, prequel or anything that has been done before being revisited because it's usually just a cash grab. When Ridley Scott is involved it's a pretty good bet that it wasn't just a cash grab. More than thirty years after introducing the world to his vision of the future in Alien, Ridley Scott has revisited that world for Prometheus.
8) Skyfall
With Javier Bardem cast as the Bond villain Roger Deakins behind the camera and Sam Mendes at the helm, it was going to be hard to screw this one up. That being said, all they did was make what in my opinion is the best James Bond film of all time. Skyfall was a critical and financial success that many people, including myself, thought was overlooked for a Best Picture nomination.
7) Jeff, Who Lives At Home
It's hard to recommend Jeff, Who Lives At Home on a general basis because I've never felt before like a movie was specifically tailored for me. The family dynamic is so close to mine in terms of members and age that it's frightening. Ed Helms and Jason Segel are great as brothers Pat and Jeff even if they physically don't like anything alike. Written and directed by brothers Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass, they do an excellent job of capturing a dynamic between two brothers who are jealous of each other's lot in life without seeing the turmoil beneath the surface.
6) Argo
Ben Affleck had a few swing and miss movies as an actor but so far as a director he's been three for three which each film getting better than the last. To show how far he has come as a director, Affleck not getting a nomination for Best Director at this year's Academy Awards was regarded as the biggest snub of the whole ceremony. In Argo, he seamlessly goes from edge of your seat tension to laugh out loud moments while continuing to move the story along. Not to mention staring in the film based on the real life events of CIA Agent Tony Mendez.
5) Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson's interpretation of young love is exactly what you would expect it to be but that's not in the least bit disappointing. I was a huge fan of Fantastic Mr. Fox but felt that Wes Anderson's last two live action films left something to be desired following on the heels of Rushmore and The Royal Tenebaums. Moonrise Kingdom is a terrific return to form and the terrific ensemble cast including the two unknowns he cast in the lead roles were uniformly great.
4) The Raid: Redemption
I'd be hard pressed to think of a movie with more action per minute than The Raid: Redemption. That's exactly the movie that Gareth Evans has made. The story is very simple, which isn't to say it's bad, and explained in the first ten minutes of exposition which leads to 90 minutes of the most amazing fight choreography you'll ever see.
3) Zero Dark Thirty
The title Zero Dark Thirty is fitting for more than the obvious reason that it was the time when the mission that led to the death of Osama Bin Laden was carried out. It's fitting because from the opening scene of the film, it's a dark and unsettling subject. The controversy surrounding the torture scenes in Zero Dark Thirty have seemed strange to me because the director Kathryn Bigelow clearly doesn't endorse it and the central character Maya played brilliantly by Jessica Chastain is ambivalent about what is taking place. Even though it's a long film, there are no wasted moments and every scene helps make the payoff at the end that much more meaningful.
2) Looper
Looper is my favorite science fiction film since Gattaca and has cemented writer-director Rian Johnson as a filmmaker to watch for the foreseeable future. Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues to streak of picking great projects (I'm willing to overlook Premium Rush) as he re-teams with his close friend Johnson who cast him in his first film Brick. Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are both excellent as the same character at different points in his life who happen to meet.
1) Django Unchained
There is no mistaking a Quentin Tarantino film. It probably only takes a page of his script being read by a computer before you'd recognize that dialogue that isn't heard anywhere else. The experience of a Quentin Tarantino film is unlike anything else in modern film. I would make the argument that Christoph Waltz has now joined with Tarantion alum Samuel L. Jackson as the two actors who were born to read his dialogue. Jamie Foxx is the title character and is terrific but it is Waltz who again steals the show after winning an Academy Award for his last Tarantino role as Col Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds. Django Unchained is possibly too long and overindulgent but it is so well written and acted that it was still my favorite film of the year.
10) Sleepwalk With Me
A stand-up comedy routine turned one man show turned movie might sound like an odd choice for one of the best films of the year. However, Mike Birbiglia is very likable playing himself even if at times he's not doing likable things. It's a very keen self-examination and probably the most accurate portrayal of making it as a stand-up comedian that's been put to film.
With rare exception I'm not excited about a remake, sequel, prequel or anything that has been done before being revisited because it's usually just a cash grab. When Ridley Scott is involved it's a pretty good bet that it wasn't just a cash grab. More than thirty years after introducing the world to his vision of the future in Alien, Ridley Scott has revisited that world for Prometheus.
With Javier Bardem cast as the Bond villain Roger Deakins behind the camera and Sam Mendes at the helm, it was going to be hard to screw this one up. That being said, all they did was make what in my opinion is the best James Bond film of all time. Skyfall was a critical and financial success that many people, including myself, thought was overlooked for a Best Picture nomination.
7) Jeff, Who Lives At Home
It's hard to recommend Jeff, Who Lives At Home on a general basis because I've never felt before like a movie was specifically tailored for me. The family dynamic is so close to mine in terms of members and age that it's frightening. Ed Helms and Jason Segel are great as brothers Pat and Jeff even if they physically don't like anything alike. Written and directed by brothers Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass, they do an excellent job of capturing a dynamic between two brothers who are jealous of each other's lot in life without seeing the turmoil beneath the surface.
Ben Affleck had a few swing and miss movies as an actor but so far as a director he's been three for three which each film getting better than the last. To show how far he has come as a director, Affleck not getting a nomination for Best Director at this year's Academy Awards was regarded as the biggest snub of the whole ceremony. In Argo, he seamlessly goes from edge of your seat tension to laugh out loud moments while continuing to move the story along. Not to mention staring in the film based on the real life events of CIA Agent Tony Mendez.
5) Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson's interpretation of young love is exactly what you would expect it to be but that's not in the least bit disappointing. I was a huge fan of Fantastic Mr. Fox but felt that Wes Anderson's last two live action films left something to be desired following on the heels of Rushmore and The Royal Tenebaums. Moonrise Kingdom is a terrific return to form and the terrific ensemble cast including the two unknowns he cast in the lead roles were uniformly great.
I'd be hard pressed to think of a movie with more action per minute than The Raid: Redemption. That's exactly the movie that Gareth Evans has made. The story is very simple, which isn't to say it's bad, and explained in the first ten minutes of exposition which leads to 90 minutes of the most amazing fight choreography you'll ever see.
The title Zero Dark Thirty is fitting for more than the obvious reason that it was the time when the mission that led to the death of Osama Bin Laden was carried out. It's fitting because from the opening scene of the film, it's a dark and unsettling subject. The controversy surrounding the torture scenes in Zero Dark Thirty have seemed strange to me because the director Kathryn Bigelow clearly doesn't endorse it and the central character Maya played brilliantly by Jessica Chastain is ambivalent about what is taking place. Even though it's a long film, there are no wasted moments and every scene helps make the payoff at the end that much more meaningful.
2) Looper
Looper is my favorite science fiction film since Gattaca and has cemented writer-director Rian Johnson as a filmmaker to watch for the foreseeable future. Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues to streak of picking great projects (I'm willing to overlook Premium Rush) as he re-teams with his close friend Johnson who cast him in his first film Brick. Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are both excellent as the same character at different points in his life who happen to meet.
1) Django Unchained
There is no mistaking a Quentin Tarantino film. It probably only takes a page of his script being read by a computer before you'd recognize that dialogue that isn't heard anywhere else. The experience of a Quentin Tarantino film is unlike anything else in modern film. I would make the argument that Christoph Waltz has now joined with Tarantion alum Samuel L. Jackson as the two actors who were born to read his dialogue. Jamie Foxx is the title character and is terrific but it is Waltz who again steals the show after winning an Academy Award for his last Tarantino role as Col Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds. Django Unchained is possibly too long and overindulgent but it is so well written and acted that it was still my favorite film of the year.
Honorable mention for the following films that almost made my list:
21 Jump Street
The Cabin in the Woods
The Dark Knight Rises
Friends With Kids
The Grey
The Cabin in the Woods
The Dark Knight Rises
Friends With Kids
The Grey
Perks of Being a Wallflower
Searching for Sugar Man
Searching for Sugar Man
Silver Linings Playbook
Ted
This is 40
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Best of 2012: Television
There are a few glaring omissions this year on my best of television list. The truth is that I got behind on Mad Men and still haven't caught up. It's a great show and I'm sure would land in the middle of this list but I don't want to include it without having seen the full season. I know some of you are fans of Louie, Son of Anarchy and Downton Abbey but those are shows I've yet to really delve into.
10) Modern Family
Modern Family has managed to increase viewership in each of the first three seasons. After I felt the show had been resting on its laurels over the last year or so, it's been as good as ever in its fourth season.
9) The Walking Dead
Another show that's seen a dramatic rise in viewers each season is The Walking Dead. Although still not the same quality drama series it was in the first season with Frank Darabont at the helm, it has been highly entertaining over the last year since they freed the audience of the Sophia storyline. Even if the show is flawed, we still tune in every week to see how Rick and his group of survivors get out of one predicament after another.
8) Girls
Writer, creator and star Lena Dunham has been at the center of controversy since the first episode of Girls hit the air- whether it was people upset that the cast of a show about four white girls in New York wasn't diverse enough or the amount of nudity by Dunham herself. The show has silenced most critics and recently won a Golden Globe for Best Comedy Series. As Reggie Jackson famously said "They don't boo nobodies."
7) Community
While it seemed like NBC was actively trying to kill Community by delaying the second half of the third season then burning the last three episodes of the season on the same night, it still managed to air some of the best comedy on network television. While I concerned about the show moving forward after NBC fired its creator Dan Harmon, I'm optimistic the goal of six seasons and movie remain a possibility.
6) Veep
While Girls garnered all of the attention and awards, for my money, Veep was the best new comedy of 2012. The show's creator Armando Iannucci, the man behind the very biting political satire In The Loop, segued nicely into HBO's Veep which battles 30 Rock as the two shows with the most jokes per minute on television. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the cast that surround her as uniformly excellent.
5) Homeland
I was worried at the end of Homeland's first season that it would be impossible for the show to keep moving at such a frenetic pace. Halfway through this season it looked like there were going to be able to pull it off but then the plot became convoluted and they stretched the audience's ability to suspend disbelief. It's still highly entertaining but if it hasn't jumped the proverbial shark already, it's getting damn close.
4) Justified
Justified is the best show on television that you're not watching. Plain and simple. It was hard to top the second season which had a spectacular performance and character from Margo Martindale and Mags Bennett respectively. While the third season wasn't quite on par with that season, it did introduce another great villain and contained another 12 episodes of Raylan Givens as perhaps the coolest character on television.
3) Parks and Recreation
What makes a great series more than anything else is the characters. You can have great writing and terrific actors but without interesting characters to inhabit the fictional world, you've got nothing. Parks and Recreation is so strong each year because the characters are so well defined. It doesn't hurt that they have a terrific ensemble cast and an all star lineup of great comedy writers. What makes Parks and Recreation eclipse what has been done by so many other comedies is that you actually care what happens to these ridiculous people and they can play awkward for a laugh and not just for the sake of making their audience uncomfortable.
2) Breaking Bad
Since I watched the first three seasons of Breaking Bad in span of just over two weeks immediately before the start of the fourth season, it's hard for me to differentiate between the seasons. When a few friends told me they thought season five was the weakest of the series (which is in no way to say it was bad), it was hard for me to agree or disagree. I wish AMC had allowed the series to end with two full 13-episode seasons instead of two mini-seasons of 8 episodes each but it's so well done that I'll clearly take anything they will give me and can't wait for the final episodes starting this summer.
1) Boardwalk Empire
Placing Boardwalk Empire above Breaking Bad was the toughest decision on the list. That being said, I believe that Boardwalk Empire was the best television series of 2012. After killing off one of the show's major characters at the end of the second season, the future seemed unclear for Boardwalk Empire. However, the writers delivered a new indelible character that made the third season the best so far.
Other shows I've watched in the past year that I've enjoyed (at least somewhat):
30 Rock
Dexter
Game of Thrones
Key & Peele
The League
The Life and Times of Tim
Life's Too Short
The Office
Workaholics
10) Modern Family
Modern Family has managed to increase viewership in each of the first three seasons. After I felt the show had been resting on its laurels over the last year or so, it's been as good as ever in its fourth season.
9) The Walking Dead
Another show that's seen a dramatic rise in viewers each season is The Walking Dead. Although still not the same quality drama series it was in the first season with Frank Darabont at the helm, it has been highly entertaining over the last year since they freed the audience of the Sophia storyline. Even if the show is flawed, we still tune in every week to see how Rick and his group of survivors get out of one predicament after another.
8) Girls
Writer, creator and star Lena Dunham has been at the center of controversy since the first episode of Girls hit the air- whether it was people upset that the cast of a show about four white girls in New York wasn't diverse enough or the amount of nudity by Dunham herself. The show has silenced most critics and recently won a Golden Globe for Best Comedy Series. As Reggie Jackson famously said "They don't boo nobodies."
7) Community
While it seemed like NBC was actively trying to kill Community by delaying the second half of the third season then burning the last three episodes of the season on the same night, it still managed to air some of the best comedy on network television. While I concerned about the show moving forward after NBC fired its creator Dan Harmon, I'm optimistic the goal of six seasons and movie remain a possibility.
6) Veep
While Girls garnered all of the attention and awards, for my money, Veep was the best new comedy of 2012. The show's creator Armando Iannucci, the man behind the very biting political satire In The Loop, segued nicely into HBO's Veep which battles 30 Rock as the two shows with the most jokes per minute on television. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the cast that surround her as uniformly excellent.
5) Homeland
I was worried at the end of Homeland's first season that it would be impossible for the show to keep moving at such a frenetic pace. Halfway through this season it looked like there were going to be able to pull it off but then the plot became convoluted and they stretched the audience's ability to suspend disbelief. It's still highly entertaining but if it hasn't jumped the proverbial shark already, it's getting damn close.
4) Justified
Justified is the best show on television that you're not watching. Plain and simple. It was hard to top the second season which had a spectacular performance and character from Margo Martindale and Mags Bennett respectively. While the third season wasn't quite on par with that season, it did introduce another great villain and contained another 12 episodes of Raylan Givens as perhaps the coolest character on television.
3) Parks and Recreation
What makes a great series more than anything else is the characters. You can have great writing and terrific actors but without interesting characters to inhabit the fictional world, you've got nothing. Parks and Recreation is so strong each year because the characters are so well defined. It doesn't hurt that they have a terrific ensemble cast and an all star lineup of great comedy writers. What makes Parks and Recreation eclipse what has been done by so many other comedies is that you actually care what happens to these ridiculous people and they can play awkward for a laugh and not just for the sake of making their audience uncomfortable.
2) Breaking Bad
Since I watched the first three seasons of Breaking Bad in span of just over two weeks immediately before the start of the fourth season, it's hard for me to differentiate between the seasons. When a few friends told me they thought season five was the weakest of the series (which is in no way to say it was bad), it was hard for me to agree or disagree. I wish AMC had allowed the series to end with two full 13-episode seasons instead of two mini-seasons of 8 episodes each but it's so well done that I'll clearly take anything they will give me and can't wait for the final episodes starting this summer.
1) Boardwalk Empire
Placing Boardwalk Empire above Breaking Bad was the toughest decision on the list. That being said, I believe that Boardwalk Empire was the best television series of 2012. After killing off one of the show's major characters at the end of the second season, the future seemed unclear for Boardwalk Empire. However, the writers delivered a new indelible character that made the third season the best so far.
Other shows I've watched in the past year that I've enjoyed (at least somewhat):
30 Rock
Dexter
Game of Thrones
Key & Peele
The League
The Life and Times of Tim
Life's Too Short
The Office
Workaholics
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Best of 2012: Albums
I'm not sure if it has more to do with the way I've consumed music over the past year but there haven't been nearly as many stand out albums this year than in past years. There were a ton of artists who released great songs but very few albums that I listened to from start to finish multiple times. After writing mini-reviews for about half of the albums I found to be much more monotonous than in previous years. So presented without justification or hyperbole, here are my 10 favorite albums from 2012.
10) The Life And Times - No One Loves You Like I Do
9) Daniel Rossen - Silent Hour/Golden Mile
8) Beach House - Bloom
7) Menomena - Moms
6) Tanlines - Mixed Emotions
5) Sea Wolf - Old World Romance
4) Geographer - Myth
3) Zeus - Busting Visions
2) Grizzly Bear - Shields
1) Twin Shadow - Confess
During my first listen to Confess shortly after it was released in July, I was pretty sure it was going to be my favorite record of the year. The entire album has a very specific and unique sound yet each song can stand on its own. As mark of most of my favorite albums, my favorite track has changed several times during my many listens but sums of its parts have stayed uniformly excellent.
Honorable Mention:
Chad Valley - Young Hunger
Deftones - Koi No Yokan
10) The Life And Times - No One Loves You Like I Do
9) Daniel Rossen - Silent Hour/Golden Mile
8) Beach House - Bloom
6) Tanlines - Mixed Emotions
5) Sea Wolf - Old World Romance
4) Geographer - Myth
3) Zeus - Busting Visions
2) Grizzly Bear - Shields
1) Twin Shadow - Confess
During my first listen to Confess shortly after it was released in July, I was pretty sure it was going to be my favorite record of the year. The entire album has a very specific and unique sound yet each song can stand on its own. As mark of most of my favorite albums, my favorite track has changed several times during my many listens but sums of its parts have stayed uniformly excellent.
Honorable Mention:
Chad Valley - Young Hunger
Deftones - Koi No Yokan
Electric Guest - Mondo
Father John Misty - Fear Fun
Grimes - Visions
Porcelain Raft - Strange Weekend
Father John Misty - Fear Fun
Grimes - Visions
Porcelain Raft - Strange Weekend
Vacationer - Gone
The Weeknd - Trilogy
The Weeknd - Trilogy
Yellow Ostrich - Strange Land
The 1975 - Sex EP/Facedown EP
The 1975 - Sex EP/Facedown EP
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Best of 2012: Songs
This was much more difficult than I remember it being last year. I suppose since I had to narrow down the list from the 200+ songs on my 2012 Spotify playlist and once I whittled that list down to 50 songs it became increasingly hard to pick just 30 of them. As you'll see shortly, there is a big difference between the bands who released the best songs of the year and the best albums of the year. Same rules apply that I only picked one song per band/album.
30) The Big Sleep - Ace
29) Oberhofer - oOoO
28) Daughter - Youth
27) The Life And Times - Day Nine
26) Father John Misty - Only Son of the Ladiesman
25) New Build - Medication
24) Haim - Go Slow
23) Trailer Trash Tracys - You Wish You Were Red
22) Yeasayer - Henrietta
21) Anais Mitchell - Coming Down
20) Grimes - Oblivion
19) The Samuel Jackson Five - Ten Crept In
18) Orbital - New France (feat Zola Jesus)
17) Passion Pit - I'll Be Alright
16) Yellow Ostrich - The Shakedown
15) LP - Into The Wild
14) Perfume Genius - Hood
13) Sea Wolf - Priscilla
12) Torche - Kicking
11) Grizzly Bear - Yet Again
10) Japandroids - The House That Heaven Built
9) Schoolboy Q - There He Go
8) Twin Shadow - Five Seconds
7) Daniel Rossen - Saint Nothing
6) The XX - Chained
5) Tanlines - Not The Same
4) Alabama Shakes - Hold On
3) WZRD - Teleport 2 Me
2) Nada Surf - When I Was Young
1) Wye Oak - Spiral
30) The Big Sleep - Ace
29) Oberhofer - oOoO
28) Daughter - Youth
27) The Life And Times - Day Nine
26) Father John Misty - Only Son of the Ladiesman
25) New Build - Medication
24) Haim - Go Slow
23) Trailer Trash Tracys - You Wish You Were Red
22) Yeasayer - Henrietta
21) Anais Mitchell - Coming Down
20) Grimes - Oblivion
19) The Samuel Jackson Five - Ten Crept In
18) Orbital - New France (feat Zola Jesus)
17) Passion Pit - I'll Be Alright
16) Yellow Ostrich - The Shakedown
15) LP - Into The Wild
14) Perfume Genius - Hood
13) Sea Wolf - Priscilla
12) Torche - Kicking
11) Grizzly Bear - Yet Again
10) Japandroids - The House That Heaven Built
9) Schoolboy Q - There He Go
8) Twin Shadow - Five Seconds
7) Daniel Rossen - Saint Nothing
6) The XX - Chained
5) Tanlines - Not The Same
4) Alabama Shakes - Hold On
3) WZRD - Teleport 2 Me
2) Nada Surf - When I Was Young
1) Wye Oak - Spiral
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Best of 2012: YouTube Videos
I still can't explain why I made this list last year. I'm sure there are other more comprehensive lists available online but here you go.
Top 12 Music Videos from 2012:
12) Gotye - Giving Me A Chance
11) Alabama Shakes - Hold On
10) Foals - Inhaler
9) Hot Chip - Look At Where We Are
8) Electric Guest - This Head I Hold
7) M83 - Wait
6) Menomena - Plumage
5) Ben Folds Five - Do It Anyway
4) Tanlines - Not The Same
3) The xx - Chained
2) Gotye - Easy Way Out
1) Grizzly Bear - Yet Again
Top 12 YouTube Videos from 2012:
12) Collective Soul Cat
11) Somebody That I Used to Know - Walk off the Earth (Gotye - Cover)
10) PETE WEBER GOD DAMMIT I DID IT WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE
9) Mister Rogers Remixed
8) A Conversation With My 12 Year Old Self
7) World's Largest Rope Swing
6) Pepsi MAX & Kyrie Irving Present: "Uncle Drew"
5) Batman Chooses His Voice
4) This is SportsCenter - John Clayton
3) THE MOST AWESOME DRUNK VIDEO ON THE PLANET
2) Don Cherry's Piano Desk
1) Jon Dore Stand-Up 12/17/12 - CONAN on TBS
Here's the link to a bonus video that YouTube has taken down that's incredible.
Top 12 Music Videos from 2012:
12) Gotye - Giving Me A Chance
11) Alabama Shakes - Hold On
10) Foals - Inhaler
9) Hot Chip - Look At Where We Are
8) Electric Guest - This Head I Hold
7) M83 - Wait
6) Menomena - Plumage
5) Ben Folds Five - Do It Anyway
4) Tanlines - Not The Same
3) The xx - Chained
2) Gotye - Easy Way Out
1) Grizzly Bear - Yet Again
Top 12 YouTube Videos from 2012:
12) Collective Soul Cat
11) Somebody That I Used to Know - Walk off the Earth (Gotye - Cover)
10) PETE WEBER GOD DAMMIT I DID IT WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE
9) Mister Rogers Remixed
8) A Conversation With My 12 Year Old Self
7) World's Largest Rope Swing
6) Pepsi MAX & Kyrie Irving Present: "Uncle Drew"
5) Batman Chooses His Voice
4) This is SportsCenter - John Clayton
3) THE MOST AWESOME DRUNK VIDEO ON THE PLANET
2) Don Cherry's Piano Desk
1) Jon Dore Stand-Up 12/17/12 - CONAN on TBS
Here's the link to a bonus video that YouTube has taken down that's incredible.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Fifty Years of Dodger Tradition: From Clayton Kershaw to Sandy Koufax
It was fitting that the first glimpse of Clayton Kershaw most Dodgers fans saw was in the spring of 2008. It was one of only a couple games that Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully called from Vero Beach, FL in the Dodgers last season at Holman Stadium which Sandy Koufax called home for his 12 major seasons. In the top of the 4th inning with two outs, Kershaw, still ten days away from his 20th birthday, threw a curveball to Sean Casey so devastating that it buckled the knees of the veteran hitter and prompted Scully to exclaim "What a curveball! Holy mackerel! He just broke off public enemy number one." He had been blessed by Vin Scully whose smile could be heard through the microphone. Then it was the waiting game for fans. Along with the wait came the hyperbole and comparisons, or to be more accurate, the comparison.
I was not the first and certainly won't be the last to draw parallels between the careers of Dodgers current ace pitcher Clayton Kershaw and Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.
In fact, Tony Jackson of ESPNLosAngeles.com wrote a piece detailing the first meeting between the two pitchers. The similarities are so numerous it's hard to know where to begin, but for the uninformed they are both left-handed starting pitchers with a similar build and great stuff who to this point spent their entire careers with the Dodgers.
Let's look at the numbers through the first 138 starts of their career, which for Koufax was until the end of the 1961 season and for Kershaw was his complete game shutout against the San Francisco Giants on Sunday afternoon.
Sandy Koufax:
It wouldn't be an asinine statement to say that to this point in their careers, Kershaw has outperformed Koufax. Their ages were also very similar to this point with Koufax turning 26 after the 1961 season while Kershaw will turn 25 just before the start of the 2013 season.
However, the reason there is a plaque in Cooperstown, NY for Sanford "Sandy" Koufax is because of the subsequent five seasons and the 176 starts therein. Over that span, Koufax won the Major League Cy Young three times, won the Major League Triple Crown three times, threw 4 no-hitters including a perfect game and put up the following numbers: 111 wins to just 34 losses, 1377 innings pitched, 100 complete games including 33 shutouts, 1.96 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 316 BB, 1444 K (4.57 K/BB ratio).
In the World Series, Koufax sported a 0.95 ERA with a record of 4-3 including two wins in 1963 against the rival New York Yankees which resulted in a sweep. This was the second World Series title over the Bronx Bombers in eight meetings between the two teams. After game one of the 1963 World Series, the ever quotable Yogi Berra said of Koufax who went 25-5 in the regular season "I can see how he won twenty-five games. What I don't understand is how he lost five."
After I was halfway through writing this I found an article on Bleacher Report by Richard Leivenberg which is similar to what I was writing. It's definitely worth a read but I decided to go ahead with my own comparison piece since I was taking a more in-depth look at the numbers. However, his piece included a very interesting poll question which asked "Who would you rather have at this stage of their career, Kershaw or Koufax?". I'm not sure if the question implies the reader knowing that Koufax would go on to have a historic five year run and also have his career cut short by injury. Either way it's an interesting question and there is no wrong answer, which speaks volumes about what Kershaw has been able to do through this point in his career.
Obviously Kershaw won't be able to touch Koufax in the categories of complete games or shutouts and matching the ERA of 1.90 for five combined seasons in today's game seems unfathomable, but if he continues to improve upon the impressive foundation he has laid thus far, it wouldn't be far fetched to imagine that twenty years from now Clayton and Sandy could meet again- only this time in Upstate New York.
I was not the first and certainly won't be the last to draw parallels between the careers of Dodgers current ace pitcher Clayton Kershaw and Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.
In fact, Tony Jackson of ESPNLosAngeles.com wrote a piece detailing the first meeting between the two pitchers. The similarities are so numerous it's hard to know where to begin, but for the uninformed they are both left-handed starting pitchers with a similar build and great stuff who to this point spent their entire careers with the Dodgers.
Let's look at the numbers through the first 138 starts of their career, which for Koufax was until the end of the 1961 season and for Kershaw was his complete game shutout against the San Francisco Giants on Sunday afternoon.
Sandy Koufax:
- 947.1 Innings Pitched
- 54 Wins
- 53 Losses
- 37 Complete Games
- 7 Shutouts
- 3.94 ERA
- 1.37 WHIP
- 115 HR Allowed
- 501 BB
- 952 K
- 9.04 K/9
- 1.90 K/BB Ratio
Clayton Kershaw:
- 865.2 Innings Pitched
- 55 Wins
- 34 Losses
- 8 Complete Games
- 5 Shutouts
- 2.89 ERA
- 1.15 WHIP
- 57 HR Allowed
- 317 BB
- 888 K
- 9.23 K/9
- 2.80 K/BB Ratio
It wouldn't be an asinine statement to say that to this point in their careers, Kershaw has outperformed Koufax. Their ages were also very similar to this point with Koufax turning 26 after the 1961 season while Kershaw will turn 25 just before the start of the 2013 season.
However, the reason there is a plaque in Cooperstown, NY for Sanford "Sandy" Koufax is because of the subsequent five seasons and the 176 starts therein. Over that span, Koufax won the Major League Cy Young three times, won the Major League Triple Crown three times, threw 4 no-hitters including a perfect game and put up the following numbers: 111 wins to just 34 losses, 1377 innings pitched, 100 complete games including 33 shutouts, 1.96 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 316 BB, 1444 K (4.57 K/BB ratio).
In the World Series, Koufax sported a 0.95 ERA with a record of 4-3 including two wins in 1963 against the rival New York Yankees which resulted in a sweep. This was the second World Series title over the Bronx Bombers in eight meetings between the two teams. After game one of the 1963 World Series, the ever quotable Yogi Berra said of Koufax who went 25-5 in the regular season "I can see how he won twenty-five games. What I don't understand is how he lost five."
After I was halfway through writing this I found an article on Bleacher Report by Richard Leivenberg which is similar to what I was writing. It's definitely worth a read but I decided to go ahead with my own comparison piece since I was taking a more in-depth look at the numbers. However, his piece included a very interesting poll question which asked "Who would you rather have at this stage of their career, Kershaw or Koufax?". I'm not sure if the question implies the reader knowing that Koufax would go on to have a historic five year run and also have his career cut short by injury. Either way it's an interesting question and there is no wrong answer, which speaks volumes about what Kershaw has been able to do through this point in his career.
Obviously Kershaw won't be able to touch Koufax in the categories of complete games or shutouts and matching the ERA of 1.90 for five combined seasons in today's game seems unfathomable, but if he continues to improve upon the impressive foundation he has laid thus far, it wouldn't be far fetched to imagine that twenty years from now Clayton and Sandy could meet again- only this time in Upstate New York.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
The Hunt for a Bloody November
"Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." - George Bernard Shaw
The presidential election is still almost four months away but judging from the media coverage and posts on various social networks, you'd think it was just weeks away.
The idiom that one should never discuss politics, sex and religion among polite company clearly doesn't apply when referring to the internet. One thing is certain; the internet has made the world smaller. What is unclear is if that has created more hatred, divisiveness and bigotry or just made it more visible. The most rational explanation is that it is a little bit of both. There are those who are always seeing red on the other side of the aisle and are now emboldened by the anonymity of the web. You may not say anything to your coworker who mentions who they are voting for over fear of a face-to-face confrontation but it's easy to cast stones from behind a keyboard.
The lack of decorum from the online journalism community is especially shocking to those who are used to objective reporting. When Ted Kennedy died in 2009, writer and self described "Reagan conservative" Andrew Breitbart took to twitter with some choice words about the long time U.S. Senator. So it wasn't a complete surprise that when Andrew Breitbart died of a heart attack earlier this year, several left leaning journalists didn't hesitate to write some disparaging things of their own. Within hours of Breitbart's passing, Matt Taibbi of Rolling Stone had posted an article titled 'Andrew Breitbart: Death of a Douche' that spread around the internet like wildfire.
Of course both Breitbart and Taibbi are protected under the 1st Amendment to state whatever they think of any person but by spewing such vitriol they are just adding fuel to a fire that needs no more accelerant. I'm all for a spirited debate and have been known to engage in a few myself but there is a time and place which is probably not 2AM on your friend's Facebook wall.
I posted the above status update earlier today and received mostly positive feedback but lost two Facebook "friends" within a few hours.
Sadly, the quote at the top from George Bernard Shaw is accurate and the reason we see such little change in politics or the world in general is because most people aren't open to change. So I'll close this out by reminding you to think for a second before you send out your next politically charged tweet, YouTube comment or Facebook update and ask yourself if you have the right audience, the right intentions or if it might upset someone you consider a friend.
The presidential election is still almost four months away but judging from the media coverage and posts on various social networks, you'd think it was just weeks away.
The idiom that one should never discuss politics, sex and religion among polite company clearly doesn't apply when referring to the internet. One thing is certain; the internet has made the world smaller. What is unclear is if that has created more hatred, divisiveness and bigotry or just made it more visible. The most rational explanation is that it is a little bit of both. There are those who are always seeing red on the other side of the aisle and are now emboldened by the anonymity of the web. You may not say anything to your coworker who mentions who they are voting for over fear of a face-to-face confrontation but it's easy to cast stones from behind a keyboard.
The lack of decorum from the online journalism community is especially shocking to those who are used to objective reporting. When Ted Kennedy died in 2009, writer and self described "Reagan conservative" Andrew Breitbart took to twitter with some choice words about the long time U.S. Senator. So it wasn't a complete surprise that when Andrew Breitbart died of a heart attack earlier this year, several left leaning journalists didn't hesitate to write some disparaging things of their own. Within hours of Breitbart's passing, Matt Taibbi of Rolling Stone had posted an article titled 'Andrew Breitbart: Death of a Douche' that spread around the internet like wildfire.
Of course both Breitbart and Taibbi are protected under the 1st Amendment to state whatever they think of any person but by spewing such vitriol they are just adding fuel to a fire that needs no more accelerant. I'm all for a spirited debate and have been known to engage in a few myself but there is a time and place which is probably not 2AM on your friend's Facebook wall.
I posted the above status update earlier today and received mostly positive feedback but lost two Facebook "friends" within a few hours.
Sadly, the quote at the top from George Bernard Shaw is accurate and the reason we see such little change in politics or the world in general is because most people aren't open to change. So I'll close this out by reminding you to think for a second before you send out your next politically charged tweet, YouTube comment or Facebook update and ask yourself if you have the right audience, the right intentions or if it might upset someone you consider a friend.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
See Spotify Run
On a Satuday afternoon in January I went out to lunch with a few of my closest friends while their wives and girlfriend were at a baby shower. In between sips of beer, we started talking about new music and I mentioned how much I liked Spotify. In fact, I said the following sentence that I instantly regretted; "If you don't have Spotify, then you don't truly like music." That statement was met with understandable disagreement but to be honest with you, I think it's true.
I realize Spotify is already quite popular and writing this almost feels like saying "I'm telling you guys, personal computers are the wave of the future!", but I feel so strongly about Spotify that I have to spread the word. If you're reading this, it's safe to say that you probably own a computer or use someone's computer on a regular basis. Good, because that's pretty much all you're going to need.
Now, I can really only speak to you as a premium Spotify subscriber because I only had the free version for about two days before realizing that I needed to have this on my iPhone and have it commercial-free (two perks of paying for the premium subscription). They've figured out the perfect price point for the premium subscription, which is currently $9.99 a month, because it feels like a bargain but if it were to increase I'm sure they'd lose some customers. Let's hope they learned from the mistake Netflix made with Qwikster.
The comedian Arj Barker had a very funny bit about why anyone would need an iPod with enough memory to store music that it would take 3 weeks to listen to every song. Well, according to a Spotify it would take over 100 years to listen to every song in their catalogue and I believe it. Every week there are probably a dozen or more new albums released that I get to check out to see if something jumps out at me.
My playlist for the best songs from 2011 has well over 200 songs by 200 different artists. My playlist I am currently building for my favorite songs from albums released this year already has songs from 120 different bands which is one of the reasons why whenever someone tells me "They just don't make good music anymore", I get unreasonably upset.
There has been a lot of debate about how to monetize music. It was again the topic of conversation this week because of an NPR blog post from a 21 year old intern who bragged about having 11,000 songs in her iTunes library while only having paid for 15 CDs in her lifetime. I won't get into a lengthy debate about the ethics of buying music but I believe an artist should be compensated for their work in a way no different from any other profession. I've spent thousands of dollars on iTunes, owned about 1,000 CDs, started a nice vinyl collection over the past couple years and paid for well over 100 concerts. I haven't procured any music in an illegal or unethical way since I started using Spotify.
I'll leave it to Sean Parker (founder of Napster and majority investor of Spotify) to say that Spotify is the future of music. However, a service that offers a both a desktop and mobile version as well as a pay subscription and plays advertisements for users who opt for the free version seems like it might be close. While the business model isn't perfect and there is still some controversy about whether all artists are compensated fairly, the artists are receiving money and are getting exposure to fans that might pay to see them, buy a t-shirt or get their album on vinyl.
If you still aren't using Spotify, I won't say you don't like music (not to your face anyway) but I will encourage you to give it a chance.
I realize Spotify is already quite popular and writing this almost feels like saying "I'm telling you guys, personal computers are the wave of the future!", but I feel so strongly about Spotify that I have to spread the word. If you're reading this, it's safe to say that you probably own a computer or use someone's computer on a regular basis. Good, because that's pretty much all you're going to need.
Now, I can really only speak to you as a premium Spotify subscriber because I only had the free version for about two days before realizing that I needed to have this on my iPhone and have it commercial-free (two perks of paying for the premium subscription). They've figured out the perfect price point for the premium subscription, which is currently $9.99 a month, because it feels like a bargain but if it were to increase I'm sure they'd lose some customers. Let's hope they learned from the mistake Netflix made with Qwikster.
The comedian Arj Barker had a very funny bit about why anyone would need an iPod with enough memory to store music that it would take 3 weeks to listen to every song. Well, according to a Spotify it would take over 100 years to listen to every song in their catalogue and I believe it. Every week there are probably a dozen or more new albums released that I get to check out to see if something jumps out at me.
My playlist for the best songs from 2011 has well over 200 songs by 200 different artists. My playlist I am currently building for my favorite songs from albums released this year already has songs from 120 different bands which is one of the reasons why whenever someone tells me "They just don't make good music anymore", I get unreasonably upset.
There has been a lot of debate about how to monetize music. It was again the topic of conversation this week because of an NPR blog post from a 21 year old intern who bragged about having 11,000 songs in her iTunes library while only having paid for 15 CDs in her lifetime. I won't get into a lengthy debate about the ethics of buying music but I believe an artist should be compensated for their work in a way no different from any other profession. I've spent thousands of dollars on iTunes, owned about 1,000 CDs, started a nice vinyl collection over the past couple years and paid for well over 100 concerts. I haven't procured any music in an illegal or unethical way since I started using Spotify.
I'll leave it to Sean Parker (founder of Napster and majority investor of Spotify) to say that Spotify is the future of music. However, a service that offers a both a desktop and mobile version as well as a pay subscription and plays advertisements for users who opt for the free version seems like it might be close. While the business model isn't perfect and there is still some controversy about whether all artists are compensated fairly, the artists are receiving money and are getting exposure to fans that might pay to see them, buy a t-shirt or get their album on vinyl.
If you still aren't using Spotify, I won't say you don't like music (not to your face anyway) but I will encourage you to give it a chance.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
My Movie To-Do List
I'm pretty certain I'm not the only one who does this; your friend, coworker or family member brings up a movie that's near and dear to their heart so instead of telling them you missed that one when it was in theaters you simply nod in agreement while trying to change the subject fast enough that they never notice.
I consider myself somewhat of a film buff and have seen an average of 50 movies a year for the last 15 years but that doesn't mean I've seen everything. In fact, in looking over the list of the top 100 film at the domestic box office all-time, I've missed 36 of them. There are many, many of those movies I don't like to admit I've never seen and some which are more embarrassing omissions than others. I decided to compile a list of the films on the AFI Top 100 and the IMDb Top 250 that I've never seen. I will make it my goal to see at least one of these movies a week for the next year and I will update the list to cross off the movie I've seen.
AFI Top 100:
Singin' in the Rain*
Gone With The Wind*
Lawrence of Arabia*
City Lights*
The Searchers
Sunset Blvd.*
The Graduate
The General*
On The Waterfront*
The Grapes of Wrath*
High Noon*
All About Eve*
Annie Hall*
The Bride on the River Kwai*
The Best Years of Our Lives*
The Sound of Music
Midnight Cowboy
The Philadelphia Story
Shane
It Happened One Night*
A Streetcar Named Desire
Intolerance
M*A*S*H
The Gold Rush*
Nashville
Sullivan's Travels
Cabaret
The African Queen
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid*
In The Heat of the Night
All the President's Men
Modern Times*
The Wild Bunch*
The Apartment*
Spartacus
Sunrise*
A Night at the Opera
12 Angry Men*
Bringing Up Baby
Swingtime
Sophie's Choice
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Ben-Hur*
IMDb Top 250:
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Seven Samurai
Once Upon a Time in the West
M
Paths of Glory
The Pianist
Amelie
The Lives of Others
Aliens
Das Boot
A Separation
Cinema Paradiso
The Great Dictator
Bicycle Thieves
Amadeus
Metropolis
Old Boy
Unforgiven
The Sting
The Untouchables
Downfall
Die Hard
Grave of the Fireflies
The Seventh Seal
The Elephant Man
The Great Escape
Yojimbo
Rebecca
Witness for the Prosecution
For a Few Dollars More
Ran
Wild Strawberries
Ikiru
Cool Hand Luke
Strangers on a Train
The Kid
The Wages of Fear
The Secret in Their Eyes
Donnie Darko
The Thing
Notorious
Diabolique
Life of Brian
My Neighbor Totoro
Amores Perros
How to Train Your Dragon
The Terminator
Judgement at Nuremberg
The Manchurian Candidate
The 400 Blows
The Night of the Hunter
Mary and Max
Harakiri
Gandhi
Persona
The Battle of Algiers
The Killing
8½
La Strada
The Hustler
The Passion of Joan of Arc
Howl's Moving Castle
Sherlock Jr.
Ratatouille
Fanny and Alexander
Kind Hearts and Coronets
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Stalag 17
Barry Lyndon
Night of Cabiria
All Quiet on the Western Front
Infernal Affairs
Rope
Roman Holiday
Tokyo Story
Ip Man
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
High and Low
Come and See
Stalker
Rosemary's Baby
The Celebration
Let the Right One In
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
Anatomy of a Murder
Throne of Blood
In the Mood for Love
La Haine
3 Idiots
(* means the film appears on both the AFI Top 100 and the IMDb Top 250)
I consider myself somewhat of a film buff and have seen an average of 50 movies a year for the last 15 years but that doesn't mean I've seen everything. In fact, in looking over the list of the top 100 film at the domestic box office all-time, I've missed 36 of them. There are many, many of those movies I don't like to admit I've never seen and some which are more embarrassing omissions than others. I decided to compile a list of the films on the AFI Top 100 and the IMDb Top 250 that I've never seen. I will make it my goal to see at least one of these movies a week for the next year and I will update the list to cross off the movie I've seen.
AFI Top 100:
Singin' in the Rain*
Gone With The Wind*
Lawrence of Arabia*
City Lights*
The Searchers
Sunset Blvd.*
The Graduate
The General*
On The Waterfront*
The Grapes of Wrath*
High Noon*
All About Eve*
Annie Hall*
The Bride on the River Kwai*
The Best Years of Our Lives*
The Sound of Music
Midnight Cowboy
The Philadelphia Story
Shane
It Happened One Night*
A Streetcar Named Desire
Intolerance
M*A*S*H
The Gold Rush*
Nashville
Sullivan's Travels
Cabaret
The African Queen
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid*
In The Heat of the Night
Modern Times*
The Wild Bunch*
The Apartment*
Spartacus
Sunrise*
A Night at the Opera
12 Angry Men*
Bringing Up Baby
Swingtime
Sophie's Choice
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Ben-Hur*
IMDb Top 250:
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Seven Samurai
Once Upon a Time in the West
M
Paths of Glory
The Pianist
Amelie
The Lives of Others
Das Boot
A Separation
Cinema Paradiso
The Great Dictator
Bicycle Thieves
Amadeus
Metropolis
Old Boy
The Sting
The Untouchables
Downfall
Grave of the Fireflies
The Seventh Seal
The Elephant Man
The Great Escape
Yojimbo
Rebecca
Witness for the Prosecution
For a Few Dollars More
Ran
Wild Strawberries
Ikiru
Cool Hand Luke
Strangers on a Train
The Kid
The Wages of Fear
The Secret in Their Eyes
Donnie Darko
The Thing
Notorious
Diabolique
Life of Brian
My Neighbor Totoro
Amores Perros
How to Train Your Dragon
The Terminator
Judgement at Nuremberg
The Manchurian Candidate
The 400 Blows
The Night of the Hunter
Mary and Max
Harakiri
Gandhi
Persona
The Battle of Algiers
The Killing
8½
La Strada
The Hustler
The Passion of Joan of Arc
Howl's Moving Castle
Sherlock Jr.
Ratatouille
Fanny and Alexander
Kind Hearts and Coronets
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Stalag 17
Barry Lyndon
Night of Cabiria
All Quiet on the Western Front
Infernal Affairs
Rope
Roman Holiday
Tokyo Story
Ip Man
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
High and Low
Come and See
Stalker
Rosemary's Baby
The Celebration
Let the Right One In
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
Anatomy of a Murder
Throne of Blood
In the Mood for Love
La Haine
3 Idiots
(* means the film appears on both the AFI Top 100 and the IMDb Top 250)
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