New and Old!

     I love when bands and artists make it far enough to release acoustic albums! Joey Cape is one of my all time favorite lyricists and song writers. This song makes me feel so much from my youth, it's almost disturbing. However, it also provides a sense of comfort. It makes me think about my best friends in middle and high school and how we have all slowly drifted apart. Actually I guess that is still kind of sad, but just part of life. No one could have ever warned anyone about how important time is, it is just the sort of thing you have to learn once some of it has gone by. Still, Joey Cape and No Use for a Name's Tony Sly have always been excellent heralds of these types of real life dilemmas and really play on my heart strings. If you were into the punk and pop-punk of the late 80's and 90's, then you might very well already know about this  album, but if not you should check it out immediately.

Vinyl or Mp3 here: http://www.fatwreck.com/record/detail/790

Concerned Cinema: Prometheus

   
     This film flattened me! It had a little bit of everything that blows my skirt up. On top of being immaculately produced, the story digs deep into the human soul and our desire to know about our origin. This movie is generally about the creation of life, the pain of life while we are alive, and ultimately the power of free will and the questioning of existence. It really gives me the chills just thinking about it. It was so wonderful to see Ridley Scott approach the sci-fi genre in this brooding manner.
     A quote from one of the main characters, Peter Weyland (Guy Pierce), that is actually a quote from Lawrence of Arabia says a lot about the films intent, but also remains a little mysterious. A young Weyland is sitting at a table extinguishing matches with his thumb and forefinger without flinching. He says to the men spectating the exhibition, "The trick is to not mind that it hurts." I interpret this as pushing the viewer in the direction of understanding that, "Life is hard but it's all we have. You'll get more done if you waste less time crying about the things that only hurt superficially." A broad generalization, but also the impression that is left on me.
    Although the film had a few loose ends and a few character actions that just seemed a little tough to be believe, I think Ridley Scott did an excellent job with Prometheus and even left an opening for a sequal.  I don't think, however, that it will happen as there are not enough people willing to entertain a concept this science fiction as science possibility. 

Bleeding.

Just a little every now and then is good to remind us that we can. 

A life.

     We all exist from day to day, bound or shackled in some way. No one is exempt from the feeling of helplessness from time to time, or all of the time for that matter. I can feel my head get lighter as I learn more about myself and the world of people around me. I want to be alone in the woods. I want to speak no human's tongue to the tree bark and to the air. Just get it all out. Probably just wind up cussing and crying towards the stars. Not only for my mistakes and shortcomings, but for the mistakes and shortcomings of everyone before and after me. I guess I'm not really sad or anything. I appreciate more these days. Sometimes I feel tired and think about how rare inspiration is. Like a rocket that never took off, just realizing it's too late to satisfy that wanderlust. But I know that I've really just started, or at least I'm hoping so. 

Everyone is stupid.

Let's fight. 

Heavens.

     Just the other night we were wondering how accurate the depiction of Mercury passing by the Sun was in the film "Sunshine", and how weird is it that we could have probably gone outside and looked at Venus doing the exact same thing the next day?

More here:
http://www.transitofvenus.org/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/jun/06/transit-venus-captures-public-imagination

Concerned Cinema: Snow White and The Huntsman

     An interesting take on the classic German fairy tale, I believe Snow White and the Huntsman was a successful production altogether. Clocking in at just over two hours, the film does not waste much time expediting the story; it breezes through the usurping of King Magnus to the introduction of the dwarves to the waking of Snow White to the climactic battle. Although some of the fighting was a little lackluster, a few battle selections are pretty exciting as well as visually appealing and the film only drags for maybe two or three minutes during some perhaps cheesy, but somewhat necessary, monologues by Prince William and the Hunstman. All in all I'll say that my anticipation of this film for the last several months was met and satisfied. How rare. 

Sunday is the best day to be metal.

     Torche's new album, "Harmonicraft", came out last month. They are pretty awesome as far as doomy/rock/metal bands go. Like The Sword, but with a romantic, whimsy. Do I use the word romance/romantic too often in music review or not enough?