Blog
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American Idol – Danny Gokey
It is for stories like this that I watch American Idol every year. I still don’t own any music from any of the contestants, but the show has become its own microcosm, it’s own beginning and end.
Also, I predict Danny Gokey, featured in the heart-wrenching video below, will win American Idol. I predicted it after the second round of cuts, and I’m sticking to it. As of this posting, he is in the top 36, which will be cut down to 9 next week.
UPDATE: Last night, Danny made the cut, and is now part of the top 9. So far so good.
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Bye Bye Red Balloon
The art of Mike Garlington.
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Google’s New Auto Complete.
It’s amazing what you can learn about our culture by entering just a few words. Try it for yourself.
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Ground Control Et Al
The art of Broomberg & Chanarin.
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Shuffle Madlib
Not sure where this originated, but I saw that my friend Lee Gardner had done the list on Facebook. I did one of my own for fun (see the comments), and it was amazing. Check it out, and post your own results in the comments. I impolore you!!
RULES:
1. Put your iPod, iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Have Fun!If someone says ‘are you okay’ you say….?
How would you describe yourself?
What do you look for in a guy/girl?
How do you feel today?
What is your life’s purpose?
What’s your motto?
What do your friends think of you?
What do your parents think of you?
What do you think about very often?
What do you think about your first kiss?
What do you think of your best friend?
What is your life story?
What do you want to be when you grow up?
What do you think when you see the person you like?
What will you dance to at your wedding?
What will they play at your funeral?
What is your hobby/interest?
What is your biggest fear?
What is your biggest secret?
What do you want right now?
What do you think of your friends?
What will you post this as?
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Top 5 Films I Haven’t Seen
(BUT VINCE THINKS I REALLY SHOULD.)
5. Let the Right One In (2008)
Director: Tomas AlfredsonVince: Two kids, ones a vampire both in love. What a great plot. This film is beautifully shot, a stunning and original horror film.
Ryan: I actually really want to see this. It was not at many theaters and I didn’t get a chance to see it when it was out. I’ll be renting this DVD.
4. Reprise (2006)
Director: Joechem TrierVince: Really fresh movie making. One of the few movies that can make you happy, sad, happy, sad every 15 minutes.
Ryan: Sure, why not?
3. Paris, Texas (1984)
Director: Wim WendersVince: This is one of my favorite movies. A great achievement in style, characters, film making.
Ryan: Seems like a boring but beautiful film to me. And the protagonist, Harry Dean Stanton (he’s in Big Love now I think), I find to be somewhat turnoffish.
2. Before Night Falls (2000)
Director: Julian SchnabelVince: Beautiful movie. Rich with texture, great film making, amazing story. Javier Bardem’s performance is stunning, one of the best true story reenactments that I have ever seen.
Ryan: I like Javier Bardem, but that Julian Schnabel dude really irks me in interviews. I don’t know why. I’ll give this film (and his Diving Bell films) a chance, eventually.
1. The Wrestler (2008)
Director: Darren AronofskyVince: No explanation needed here. Hands down one of the best movies this year. Mickey Rourke, Darren Aronofsky, Pro Wrestling and Marrisa Tomei are enough to get me in the theater.
Ryan: This one is heavy on my radar, as in NEXT UP. I want to see it before the Oscars so I can firmly say whether or not Slumdog is as unbeatable as I think it is. -
Addicted to Tiny Buildings
Made of business cards, retail flyers, packaging and other “nice papers”, Sharon’s pass time has become my obsession. I love reading about how she builds these tiny buildings. The passion in her descriptions carry into the works themselves.
The three houses made from the Kido cards is special to me, as it was one of the first baby stores I looked at in NYC, before we had our first baby, Grace, whom you may have noticed popping up on my blog from time to time.
View the Buildings.
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Between Dogs & Wolves
The art of Jodi Bieber.
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Graphite Genomics
The art of Isobe Ichiro.
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Prime Mates
The art of Kiki Lamers.
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Quote of the Week #035
“It’s not where you take an idea from, it’s where you take it to.” – Jean-Luc Godard
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Sans-Serif Synonyms
The art of Mel Bochner.
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Quote of the Week #034
“It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” – Pablo Picasso
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Kara Walker meets The Brothers Grimm
The art of Kate Simmons.
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The Divided States of America
Why does this map scare the ever-living crap out of me?
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Quote of the Week #033
“I pride myself on my inability to guffaw.” – Boober Fraggle
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Don’t Let the Serpents (W)in
The art of Brian Stauffer.
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Solitude, Stages and Supermarkets
The art of Lee Balterman.
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Addicted to Les Concerts à Emporter
Early in 2006, a Frenchman by the name of Mathiew Saura (aka Vincent Moon) hit the streets of Paris with The Spinto Band and recorded a mini-documentary performance in an apartment and a restaurant. He called these glimpses into the psyche of bands Take Away Shows (Les Concerts à Emporter), and since that evening he has gone on to film over 100 more Take Away Shows, and has been involved with several feature-length documentaries, one of them centered around the band Beirut, entitled Cheap Magic Inside.
What is so great about these shows is that you get a different look at musicians you love, as well as exposure to new bands you may never have heard of. Most of these shows are set in Paris, France (though other directors have gotten involved around the world), and use ingenius ways of presenting the songs to us. Whether we’re following Andrew Bird down the street as he whistles and sings amidst passerby, or listening to St. Vincent confess her intimate thoughts in a lush crimson bedroom, the connection is always there.
One of my favorite shows is Yeasayer’s voyage through the underbelly of Paris’ subways, singing acapella until they arrive in a 5th floor flat and find an old piano along with several willing listeners. I also enjoyed following Zach Condon down the streets with his ukelale, until he surprises us all by wandering into a restaurant where the rest of his band awaits to continue his song in epic fashion. Arcade Fire has an awesome setting in the bowels of some old building, with a megaphone and hundreds of fans crowded around them like a swarm of ants.
View the Shows.
Here are a few noteworthy shows, but please check out all of them.
Andrew Bird
Arcade Fire
Yeasayer
Beirut
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Inherent Spectral Symptoms
The art of Dan Estabrook.
