June 2013 Reviews

Self-portrait by Seattle photographer Jini Dellaccio

These are the reviews and other pieces I'm working on this month.










Amazon Theatricals: The Spectacular Now (with Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley), Before Midnight (Richard Linklater directs Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy), Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing, The Bling Ring (Sofia Coppola directs Emma Watson and Leslie Mann), The Way, Way Back (Steve Carell and Toni Collette).

Line Out: Music and Photography Trailblazers at SIFF: Her Aim Is True and A Band Called Death, The Mantles' Paisley Throwback Track "Hello," Rick Springfield's Affair of the Heart: Flattering, Yet Strangely Compelling, Jenny Hval's Splendidly Schizophrenic "I Called," Parquet Court and Lil Bub: On the Road to Win Your Heart, John Grant: The Greatest Motherfucker You're Ever Gonna Meet, King Khan & the Shrines - "Born to Die," Sub Pop Signs Ominous Italian Noise Trio His Electro Blue Voice, Colleen Weighs Her Heart on New Album, The Latest from Saturday Looks Good to Me: Same Song, Different Singers, Chad VanGaalen and METZ Pay Tribute to Heavy Metal in New Video, The Self-Titled Debut from Tim Presley's White Fence: A Magnificent Mess.

A Pitch Perfect PR one-sheet about their "Mean Maybe" video quotes from 
me on Yellowbirds' Songs from the Vanished Frontier, "I hoped for the best 
from the band's second full-length, and Cohen and company have delivered." 

Seattle Film Blog: Blurry Pictures of Dynamic Directors, Pt. 3.

The Stranger: I praise Pony Time in this collective effort.

Video Librarian: OMD Live - Architecture & Morality & More 
[Blu-ray], Steel Magnolias, An Affair of the Heart, A Tribute to 
Ron Asheton, Wine, Women & Friends, Sommore: Chandelier Status, Mosquita & Mari, and Of Two Minds.

 
For more about Her Aim Is True, visit the official site. 

May 2013 Reviews

These are the reviews and other pieces I'm working on this month.

Amazon DVD: Women in Love (with Rosamund Pike and Rachael Stirling).

Amazon Theatricals: Mira Nair's The Reluctant Fundament-
alist (with Riz Ahmed), Noah Baumbach's Frances Ha (with Greta Gerwig), Scatter My Ashes at Bergdorf's (documentary with Gior-
gio Armani, Marc Jacobs, etc.), and Scot McGehee and David Sie-
gel's What Maisie Knew (with Julianne Moore and Steve Coogan).

Still playing: Admission, Disconnect, Life of Pi, Quartet, and The Sapphires.

Line Out: The Phoenix Foundation Goes Deep, Scout Niblett: No
Wigs, No Scrubs, Psych-Glam Band the Burnt Ones' "Web" and You'll Never Walk Alone, UV Race and Life Stinks at Barboza, Sic Alps' Top-of-the-Pop-Tart Jam "Biz Bag" Is Rocking My World, King Khan Signs to Merge Records, Issues Statement Filled with Movie References, Shannon & the Clams' Newish Single "In a Dream" Is Dreamy, Black Moth Super Rainbow Live on KEXP, RocketNumberNine's Productive, Sci-Fi Post-Post-Punk Will Make You Move, Ernest Greene's Washed Out Gets Kaleidoscopic and Paracosmic in New Album Trailer, Two Documentary Stars at This Year's SIFF: a Punk Singer and a Freeze-Dried Pomeranian, Vanished Frontier.       

Drag City quotes my Scout Niblett review in the "Gun" press release: 
"Her emotions lie just below the surface, threatening to escape in full, 
spilling out all over the place, incinerating everything in their vicinity. 
It's as if her instrumental restraint keeps them in check." - The Stranger
 
Pitch Perfect PR quotes my RN9 review in the "Deadly Buzz" press release:  
"This percussion extravaganza from the London duo RocketNumberNine (brothers Tom and Ben Page) gets my vote for the best song of the week. No vocals to get in the way, lots of drums to clear your head...The forward momentum makes me want to work, and I mean that as a compliment." 

Video Librarian: 110%, Face 2 Face, Flirting with Danger - 
Power & Choice in Heterosexual Relationships, It Was Rape, 
Love, Hate and Everything in Between, Saving Face, Still Around,
Wonder Women! - The Untold Story of American Superheroines, 
Paul Anka - Live in Switzerland [Blu-ray], and Save the Date. 


Frances Ha opens in Seattle on May 24. Still from IFC.

April 2013 Reviews

These are 
the reviews 
and other 
pieces I'm 
working on 
this month. 

Amazon 
DVDs: A Late Quartet [Blu-ray] (Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Catherine Keener), Weeds - Season Eight: The Final Season [two-disc set], and Parade's End (with Judi Dench and Ronald Hines).

Amazon Theatrical: Disconnect (Alexander Skarsgård).

Still playing (or yet to open): Admission, Amour, Beyond the Hills, The Guilt Trip, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Quartet, and The Sapphires.

Line Out: Herbcraft's Fantastic Voyage, Ellen Alien Composed a Score for You, New Video and Song: The Cyclist's "Bones in Motion," King Tuff: Bad Words and Classic Beats, New Dark Dark Dark Song: "What I Needed," Colleen Green Makes Pure Pop for Now People, The Burnt Ones Are on Your Side, Carmen Villain's Video Focuses on Faces, Angel Olsen's New Record & Tour, A Trip to the Past with Dead Ghosts, Angel Olsen's Stunning Set at Barboza, New Helado Negro Video: "Relatives," It Came from Toronto: Odonis Odonis, Bobby Whitlock: Rock & Roll Survivor.

Video Librarian: Barbie in the Pink Shoes [Blu-ray], Sousa on the Rez - Marching to the Beat of a Different Drum, I’m Now - The Story of Mudhoney, Spirit of the Church, Vol. 1, Miles Davis with Quincy Jones & the Gil Evans Orchestra - Live at Montreux 1991 [Blu-ray], GLOW - The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrest-
ling, Michael Jackson - Moscow Case 1993 - When the 
King of Pop Met the Soviets, and Future Weather.

Herbcraft image from Woodsist.  

March 2013 Reviews

Still from Beware of Mr. Baker

These are the reviews and other pieces I'm working on this month. 

Amazon DVDs: The Sessions [Blu-ray] (with John Hawkes and Helen Hunt) and Secrets of Highclere Castle.

Amazon Theatricals: The Sapphires, Admission (with Tina Fey and Paul Rudd), At Any Price (Dennis Quaid and Zac Ephron), and Cristian Mungiu's Beyond the Hills.  

Still playing (or yet to open): Amour, Bless Me, Ultima, The Guilt
Trip, Life of Pi, Lincoln, The Master, Quartet, and Rust and Bone.

Line Out: The Asshole Glory of Ginger Baker, Cellist Julia Kent Has Character, Yellowbirds - "Young Men of Promise," Helado Negro - Calm Cool, and Collected, The Music and Movies of the L.A. Rebellion, Web of Sunsets - "Fool's Melodies," Odonis Odonis's "Better" Brings Me Back, Julian Lynch's Psych-Jazz-Folk Lines, Carmen Villain: Model, Musician, Dreamer, RocketNumberNine's Get-to-Work Music, METZ and Master's Freddie Quell: "Wasted."  

Video Librarian: The Big Picture - Rethinking Dyslexia, Lost and Sound, The World Before Her, No Way Out But One, Phineas and Ferb - Animal Agents, Starlet, and Wuthering Heights.



Ginger Baker image from Snag Films.  

February 2013 Reviews

Paul Williams (Paul Williams: Still Alive) at the Egyptian on 5/12

These are the reviews and other pieces I'm working on this month. 

Amazon DVDs: Downton Abbey -Season Three [two-disc set] and Boardwalk Empire - The Complete Third Season [five-disc set].

Amazon Theatricals: Carl Franklin's Bless Me, Ultima. 

Still playing (or yet to open): Amour, Anna Karenina, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Quartet, and Rust and Bone.

Line Out: Feeding People's Island Universe, Yo La Tengo - Steadfast and True, Sleepwalking in Space with Psychic Twin, Julian Lynch's Lovely "Carios kelleyi I," Mouse on Mars Are on the Move, Pony Time - "What If You Caught Me," White Fence's Fuzztastic "Pink Gorilla," Sonny Smith Contains Multitudes, Anika Covers Chromatics on New EP, Mouse on Mars, Matmos, and Horse Lords, "Bitter Buddha" Eddie Pepitone at NWFF, Barren Girls - "She-Devil," Melt Yourself Down's Life-Fixer.

Video Librarian: Chicken with Plums, Color Me Obsessed -
A Film about the Replacements, Gossip Girl - The Complete
Sixth and Final Season [three-disc set], 28 Hotel Rooms, Face-
book Follies, Loving a Stranger, Paul Williams - Still Alive,
Sext Up Kids - How Children Are Becoming Hypersexualiz-
ed, and Transgender Tuesdays - A Clinic in the Tenderloin.

Image from my personal collection. 

January 2013 Reviews

These are the reviews and other pieces I'm working on this month.

Amazon DVDs: The Life & Times of Tim - The Complete Third Season [2-disc set], The Hour - Season Two [2-Blu set], Scarecrow and Mrs. King - The 4th and Final Season [5-disc set]. 

Amazon Theatricals: Amour (Michael Hanecke
directs Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva) and Quartet (Dustin Hoffman directs Maggie Smith and Tom Courtenay).

Still playing (or yet to open): Anna Karenina, The Guilt Trip,  
Life of Pi, Lincoln, Playing for Keeps, and Rust and Bone. 

Line Out: Raw Balls and Bad Eggs: The Ballad of UV Race, Listen to Broadcast's Semi-Final LP, Girls Names - "Hypnotic Regression," New Year's Greetings from Michel Gondry, Nick Cave Knows Who You Are, Woodsist Signs Eat Skull, the Woolen Men, The Return of Camper Van Beethoven, Back from the Grave with Segall and Cronin, Surf Party with the Traditional Fools, LISm: Ellen Allien's Headphone Dance Score, Haunting New Videos from Angel Olsen, Lonnie Holley: Before Music, Outside Time, On Her New Single, Colleen Green Has All the Time in the World, Julia Kent's Dramatic Tourbillon, and Herbcraft's Flute-Saturated Stunner.

Video Librarian: (A)Sexual  - A Minority No Longer Silent, Jason Becker - Not Dead Yet, The Boy Game, From Dust to Dreams - Opening Night at the Smith, Grrrl Love and Revolution - Riot Grrrl NYC, The Light in Her Eyes, Mama C - Urban Warrior in the African Bush, Patti Smith - Live at Montreux 2005 [Blu-ray], Strong!, World Peace and Other 4th Grade Achievements, Ike & Tina - On the Road: 1971-72, Lady Antebellum - Own the Night: World Tour, Let the Music Play - Story of the Doobie Bros., Joan Rivers - Don’t Start with Me, Playing for Keeps, Rust and Bone.

British poster image from Artificial Eye. 

Songs for Cineastes: 2012 Edition

Cate Le Bon (The Control Group)

Click here for the 2011 edition. 

Rather than a list of film scores or soundtracks, the following represents an assortment of music recommended for movie lovers such as myself. Some independent film fans prefer mainstream movie fare. Similarly, some art house aficionados prefer major-label music. There's nothing wrong with that; I just can't relate to it (and try to avoid giving the Man my money whenever possible). If you share my taste in movies, there's a good chance you might share my taste in music. Links lead to reviews and previews for Line Out.

The Tops:
1. Cate Le Bon - CYRK (The Control Group)
2. Julia Holter - Ekstasis (RVNG Intl.)
3. Tie: Neneh Cherry - The Cherry Thing
    and The Cherry Thing Remixed (Smalltown Supersound)
4. Niobe - The Cclose Calll (Tomlab)
5. Tie: Ty Segall - Twins and Ty Segall
    and White Fence - Hair (Drag City)
6. Black Moth Super Rainbow - Cobra Juicy (Rad Cult)
7. FRKWYS Vol.9: Sun Araw & M. Geddes Gengras
    Meet the Congos - Icon Give Thank (RVNG Intl.)
8. METZ - METZ (Sub Pop)
9. Django Django - Django Django (Ribbon Music)
10. Melody's Echo Chamber - Melody's Echo Chamber (Fat Possum)

 
Runners-up: 
1. Air - Le Voyage dans le Lune (Astralwerks-EMI)
2. Black Bananas - Rad Times Xpress IV (Drag City)
3. Frankie Rose - Interstellar (Slumberland)
4. Scott Walker - Bish Bosch (4AD)
5. Tie: Field Music - Plumb (Memphis Industries)
    and Play the Hits... limited ed. EP (Field Music)
6. Sic Alps - Sic Alps ( Drag City)
7. Soft Moon - Zeros (Captured Tracks)
8. Six Organs of Admittance - Ascent (Drag City)
9. Chrome Canyon - Elemental Themes (Stones Throw)
10. Redd Kross - Rehearsing the Blues (Merge)


Second runners-up: 
1. Cat Power - Sun (Matador)
2. Shintaro Sakamoto - How to Live with a Phantom
    (Other Music Recording Co.)
3. Moon Duo - Circles (Sacred Bones)
4. Bobby Womack - The Bravest Man in the Universe
    (XL Recordings)
5. Blues Control - Valley Tangents (Drag City)
6. Holly Herndon - Movement (RVNG Intl.)
7. Matmos - The Ganzfeld EP (Thrill Jockey)
8. Beak> - >> (Invada)
9. Tyvek - On Triple Beams (In the Red)
10. Lavender Diamond - Incorruptible Heart (Paracadute)

Also worthy of note: Willis Earl Beal - Acousmatic Sorcery (XL Recordings), the Babies - Our House on the Hill (Woodsist), Erik Blood - Touch Screens (self-released), Ceremony - Zoo (Matador), Deep Time - Deep Time (Hardly Art), Dirty Three - Toward the Low Sun (Drag City), Martin Eden - Dedicate Function (Lefse), Elephant and Castle - Transitions (Plug Research), ESP - ESP EP (self-released), Robert Glasper Experiment - Black Radio (Blue Note-EMI), La Sera - Sees the Light (Hardly Art), Shawn Lee - Synthesizers in Space (ESL Music), Levek - Look a Little Closer (Lefse), Dent May - Do Things (Paw Tracks), Marisa Monte - O Que Você Quer Saber De Verdade (Blue Note-EMI), MV and EE - Space Homestead (Woodsist), Nude Beach - Nude Beach II (Other Music Recording Co.), Onuinu - Mirror Gazer (Bladen County-Bad Cop Bad Cop), Parquet Courts - Light Up Gold (Dull Tools), Robust Worlds - Emotional Planet (De Stijl), Ty Segall Band - Slaughterhouse (In the Red), Mariee Sioux - Gift for the End (Almost Musique-Whale Watch), Standard Fare - Out of Sight, Out of Town (Melodic), Terry Malts - Killing Time (Slumberland), THEESatisfaction - AweNatural (Sub Pop), Tomten - Wednesday's Children (Flat Field), the Unthanks - Diversions Vol. 1: The Songs of Robert Wyatt and Antony & the Johnsons (Rough Trade), UV Race - Racism (In the Red), Various Artists - FAC. Dance 02 (Strut) Various Artists - We Are the Works in Progress (Asa Wa Kuru), Vex Ruffin - Same Thing Tomorrow (Stones Throw) [cassette], White Fence - Family Perfume Vol. 1 & 2 (Woodsist), Andre Williams - Hoods and Shades (Bloodshot), Woods & Amps for Christ split LP (Shrimper), and Young Magic - Melt (Carpark).


Love what I heard (need to hear more): A Place to Bury
Strangers - Onwards to the Wall (Dead Oceans), Flying Lotus -  
Until the Quiet Comes (Warp), Royal Baths - Better Luck 
Next Life (Kanine), Andy Stott - Luxury Problems (Mod-
ern Love), and Thee Oh Sees - Putrifiers II (In the Red).

Top Reissues and Archival Material: 
1. Various Artists - Listen Whitey! Sounds 
of Black Power 1967-74 (Light in the Attic)
2. Sensations Fix - Music Is Painting in the Air (RVNG Intl.)
3. feedtime - The Aberrant Years ( Sub Pop)
4. Royal Trux - Accelerator (Drag City)
5. Golden Calves - Collection (Woodsist)

Note: Can's Lost Tapes box set set is on my wish list.   

Love what I heard (need to hear more): Francis Bebey -
African Electronic Music: 1975-82 (Born Bad), Michael Chap-
man - Rainmaker (Light in the Attic), Alex Chilton - Free Again: 
The 1970 Sessions (Omnivore), Franco Falsini - Cold Nose
(Spectrum Spools), Lee Hazlewood - The LHI Years: Singles 
Nudes & Backsides: 1968-71 (Light in the Attic), Patrice
Sciortino - Chronoradial (Omni Recording Co.), Various Artists -  
Beat Frauleins: Female Pop in Germany 1964-68 (Grosse
Freiheit), and Leslie Winer - Leslie Winer &c. (Wormhole).

Songs I didn't hate...at all: Maroon 5 - "Moves Like Jagger" and Gotye - "Someone That I Used to Know." A great melody is a great melody is a great melody. I don't care where it comes from.



Cate Le Bon image from The Control Group (R.I.P.).