Things

Small update for 2010

Chick Lit/Chick Flicks
Over the past week or so I watched Julie and Julia on DVD and read Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner. I had long intended to see J & J, but never intended to read Certain Girls. I got it off a free shelf, it was an impulse-take. For months it's been the insomnia book on my nightstand. I've been sleeping fairly well, so, until my awesome stomach virus last weekend, I hadn't made it past page 50. It's a 400 page book. Both Julie and Julia and Certain Girls feature scenes in which a protagonist is upset by a cobb salad lunch with other women. Both scenes depict and/or discuss the ritualistic ordering of cobb salad minus as many ingredients as possible. This is actually a near-universal female malady, I'm pleased to been relieved of my ignorance.

Rihanna's Rated R
This is a great album. It only has two real throwaways, "G4L" and "Te Amo", the latter of which is a real problem. I guess this is a post-Katy Perry thing? It's a really cheesy "Latin" themed sexysong about how Rihanna will dance with a lesbian because everyone needs love, but she should watch where she puts her hands because "I'm not afraid to feel the love/ but I don't feel that way ". Rihanna sings the thing like she's two seconds away from throwing the poor dear a pity fuck (and she's like it.) It would almost be awesome but it just feels too contrived (by someone who isn't even Rihanna) and offensive. Maybe it'll work as camp in a minute. For now I usually skip it.

Otherwise the album is great. I like "Photographs", the song with Will.i.am. The part when her comes on is actually exciting. He's good at what he does. I can't listen to the Black Eyed Peas for the life of me, much as I like pop music, but he's a talented guy. I saw him freestyle at a Talib Kweli show some years ago and he was fucking awesome. He's a great rapper, and a smart songwriter, even if I don't like most of what he does. It works here.

"Cold Case Love", the track Justin Timberlake co-wrote, is delightfully grand, with welcome strings. "Russian Roulette" sounds better in the context of the album than as a confusing first singe, it's really grown on me. It's still scary, but it's also gorgeous and fits into the album's emotional arc. It's also followed by the punky-guitar infused "Fire Bomb", a rousing song worthy of Kelly Clarkson. My favorite moment right now, though, is "Hard" featuring Jeezy, who sounds energized and is in fine fun form. My favorite part of his spot is the awful/awesome "Cardiac arrest?/Cardiac a-wrist!" following a discussion of his really expensive watch. It's so expensive that it will give you a heart attack. Rihanna sounds fabulous, even when asking "where them bloggers at?"

Seriously though, if you like pop music, buy this album. It's weird and ambitious and fun and solid.

If you are a nerd and like hip hop
You might like Rap Genius. Copiously footnoted hip hop lyrics. My bf writes for it now. And he'll probably do some of the Rihanna album soon, at least that song with Jeezy.


Funny Tom Waits thing
I read this last Sunday, when I no longer had a fever, could eat toast, and was no longer vomiting, but could not stand up for very long at a stretch and kept falling asleep instead of making an ice cream cake. I put on Glitter and Doom for caking music, and ended up googling "Tom Waits Voice Evolution" instead. I have a long standing disagreement with someone who shall remain nameless re: Tom Waits voice. This person doesn't like most of Wait's work because they really like his voice on the early stuff and find his latter day vocal stylings obnoxiously contrived. I actually kind of respect that, even as I clearly disagree. Anyway, I found, like, nothing, except this, which in my state seemed hilarious. Tom Waits fandom wank. Someone suggests that maaaybe cigarettes and bourbon weren't the only culprits, others go apeshit. Also one reader had another theory:

My theory is that he was really straining to sing like that on his first albums. Then he realized he didn't need to.

That's beautiful. Hold on to your dreams, sweetie! Hold them tight!

Oscar Season is in almost-swing!

Only a month til the noms are announced! Now that I'm not vomiting I plan to get right on seeing as many likely noms as possible! I'm going to start with the White Ribbon though (srs best foreign film contender!) because I've been chomping at the bit for that anyway. I should make Michael Hanake film criticism bingo cards. Dismissive accusation that Haneke wants to "shock/stick it to the bourgeoisie". Accusation of sadism. "Cold", "pretentious", accusation that the film is somehow unfair. I have more.

The Golden Globes are on next Sunday. Amanda Palmer will be there, walking the red carpet with Neil Gaiman. How weird is that? How jealous am I?

What else? I think I'm gonna go watch some season one Gossip Girl. My bf is taking it on faith that Chuck becomes more of a likable prick when he's not trying to rape people anymore.