Best album I've heard this year

Just listened to Temple Beautiful by Chuck Prophet. Excellent.

I like the melodies a lot. The songs are honest and direct. There are some dark turns lyrically, along with a coy wit, but these pieces are so exuberant it's easy to just get caught up in the momentum of the tune.

Temple Beautiful makes me smile in the same way Jonathan Richman's albums used too. It sucks that I'm stuck in the Midwest; I'll probably never get a chance to see Prophet and the Mission Express play...ah that sucks....

You should go to iTunes and buy this album now.

It's a new day

Yes. It is a new day...please stay tuned for new fresh perspectives from the old ironlung, himself...

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Diaz has a talent for prose that allows him to balance the atrocities of Trujillo in one hand and the adolescent struggles of his characters in the other--without weighing the reader down with either. His prose is funny, detailed, and emotionally taxing. A damn good read.

Tree of Smoke

Quickly, I am over half-way finished with Denis Johnson's new book. It is the best, most-well-rounded view of the Vietnam War ever put into the novel form. I was overwhelmed at first by the detail. But this book quickly grew on me. I highly recommend it, if you're not afraid of a serious work of art.

Review from The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/02/books/review/Lewis3-t.html?scp=4&sq=tree+of+smoke&st=nyt

Yard Sale - 10/13 - 10a-2p - Fashion & Accessories

I'm celebrating David and Rachel's wedding day with a fashion sale. Women's clothing and accessories $1/per item! Great brands: Gap, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor!!!

Tell a buddy, bring a friend.

Link to classified ad:
http://cincinnati.backpage.com/buyselltrade/classifieds/ViewAd?oid=oid%3A537271&name=yard%20sales

Bergman

I read that Ingmar Bergman passed today. And while I was not aware that he was alive, the news still saddened me. Bergman made some of my favorite movies: The Seventh Seal, Persona, Cries and Whispers, Fanny and Alexander. In the last few years several of these have been released or re-released on DVD. I hope that his death will at least renew interest in his work.


On a lighter note, I can't help but think of The Seventh Seal and Max Von Sydow playing chess with Death. Near the end of their match, Death accidentally knocks over the pieces. Von Sydow's character is furious. "You cheated," says the knight in a thick Swedish baritone.

Additional content: nytimes.com, allmovie.com

Tapes N' Tapes - The Loon

Great album. The Pixies/Pavement/Modest Mouse comparisons are deserved but a little shallow. (I love those bands, but am sick of the pigeon-holing). The lyrics are cryptic, weird, and passionate. The production is low-fi, but works well with the general aesthetic of the recording. Nice mixture of sounds--a twinkling keyboard here, a few chimes there--to balance out the garage tones. The best part of the album is the composition of the songs--great melodies and enough left-turns to keep things interesting.

I'm not sure why some reviewers say that this recording is rough around the edges; the band is incredibly tight. I think a lot of them have confused the musicianship of the band with production values. The songs could hardly be played better.