A: You must have to be Catholic.
Q: What was Mom Martens' response to Mel Gibson's The Passion?
Input by Mike at 12:09 AM
Please don't sing us a melody
A fairly big pet peeve of mine is when when people sing along to pop songs (whether they be rock, hip-hop, country... whatever) in their "pretty voices."
Yesterday, one of my coworkers was singing very melodically along with the Beatles "I'm Looking Through You" in this soft, passionate way like it was "Yesterday" or "Amazing Grace". The problem is that the glory of the imperfections is lost; "You're not the same," instead of being this coarse, assertive holler that -ahem- fits the music turns into this loungey whine. Blegh.
My favorite part of "Build Me Up Buttercup" is the "WhhhhYYYYY do you..." Specifically, the "WhhhhYYYY" because it's a dry. strained exhale that just builds all the tension for the chorus. This part gets mauled by sing-alongs all the time. It's like the entire song is getting sold out in one second.
And these are the most fun parts to sing. So, I just cannot stand it when someone sings over them with their crappy, trying not to sound crappy crap crap voices. I mean, what fun is singing along with Bob Dylan if you don't contort your voice like a Cirque De Soleil clown... What's the use of a rendition of "Beast of Burden" without an accentuated imitation of Mick Jagger singing "Pre Ty Pre Ty Pre Ty Pre Ty."
There are people out there wasting the best moments of pop music with their classically-trained for karaoke voices; IT NEEDS TO STOP!
Input by Mike at
12:07 AM
Wednesday, February 25, 2004
Things that make you go hmmmmm
While watching Dennis Miller, I saw a new commercial for Viagra featuring "We Are the Champions" by Queen.
I'm not sure if the good people at Pfizer knew the song is a major gay anthem or if they're just trying to appeal to a new set of consumers. After all, homosexuals have erectile dysfunction too, right?
Input by Scot at
12:01 AM
Tuesday, February 24, 2004
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...
William Ligue, Jr., the man who attacked Kansas City Royals coach Tom Gamboa two years ago, violated his probabtion over the weekend.
What a surprise.
Ligue allegedly tested positive for marijuana three times during the month of December, and will now, god willing, head to prison. Prosecutors urged the judge in the case to give Ligue jail time to begin with, but the judge gave him probabation. Since then, the state of Illinois has passed a law making it a felony to illegally enter restricted areas, such as a playing field, basketball court, locker room or stage. A violation carries up to three years in prison and a fine of at least $1,000.
Ligue used the death of his infant daughter to explain away his actions from that night, saying he turned to drugs after her death. (No word if Ligue had another infant daughter die in November of this year) He was under the influence of five drugs that night, including cocaine, marijuana and Valium. While chaperoning his nephew's 13th birthday party.
"That was not me that night," Ligue told the Daily Southtown. later. "I was going through so much stress. ... I see on the videotape (that) I was out of my mind. I had to let anger out and it came out that way."
Sure. The real him is just a loser druggie, not a violent lunatic.
I never quite understood why White Sox fans got such a bad rap over this case. The criminal element in our society will almost always find a way to commit a crime if he really wants to. This was not a reflection on Sox fans or basball fans. This was a criminal committing an act of violence. Where the system failed was in the sentencing. As I said, criminals will find a way to commit their activities -- it's up to the legal system to punish the criminals for their actions and deter others from doing the same thing.
After Ligue another fan did the same thing to an umpire at Comiskey (fine, U.S. Cellular Field) last year. Determent failed. Ligue now has found himself on the wrong side of the law yet again. Punishment failed.
There is good news -- the man who attacked the umpire was sentenced to jail time. I believe he got three months. We'll see if he decides to violate his probation.
Input by Scot at
2:03 PM
Grey Tuesday
So, if you haven't heard... DJ Danger Mouse (a guy who reportedly has done gigs wearing a large mouse costume) has mixed a cut-up of Jay-Z's Black Album and the Beatles' White Album to create... The Grey Album.
On a purely critical level, the Grey Album is an interesting reenvisioning of Jay-Z's album but shouldn't be considered a tribute to the Beatles. While the mixes are smart, they are frequently sloppy with the White Album samples. As a an album, it pales to a great number of official releases and really doesn't deserve some of the frothing accolades it is receiving.
But.
It's free.
And.
It's become the centerpiece of a copyright litigation protest called Grey Tuesday, which is occuring right now as I type this. EMI has threatened lawsuits on sites distributing the free musical experiment, and so these sites and many others (maybe on principle, maybe caught up in the excitement) are distributing the album anyway on this day.
However, as neat as it is, I don't think the Grey Album is strong enough a piece of art to become a rallying banner for actual change. And, as I've said before on other issues, the problem is that the protest groups are stirring the muck, but they're not guiding the solution. Grass-roots groups like Downhill Battle do an excellent job of piquing public interest, but they end up losing the long term debate by not engaging law-makers and officials with sensible solutions or interpretations.
But. Hats off to Downhill Battle (and all other Grey Tuesday participants)for standing up to the internet-infamous Cease and Desist letters. Even if there could be better long-term strategies, their short-term efforts are a noble attempt to seize back the power on the internet from corporate powers that are claiming it as their own.
Input by Mike at
11:50 AM
Save the Pinata
Turnpike Films has a series of very funny mock-up ads for various brands. Check out this one and then click on next or previous to work your way through the cycle.
Input by Mike at
9:09 AM
Monday, February 23, 2004
Technologically Proficient
Got to spend a good chunk of today working on the site as you may or may not notice.
As those links show, the graphic menu system on the main page is starting to take form and promises endless fun for everyone involved. Also, there is now a working archive section to the blog. So, if you missed my post in December about Outkast's "Hey Ya" and are now wondering what I would have to say about it... well, you can try and find it. Good luck, chump. I've updated the link bar once again taking the out-of-season Carnivale link off and switching Tuesday Morning Quarterback to Gregg Easterbrook's non-football column/blog on the New Republic. Good stuff, highly recommended for frequent reading.
I'm learning more and more about Blogger script and honestly, enjoy the power and customizability of it. I've been thinking about switching to a MySQL based server blog script, but I think this gets us a little more exposure and certainly does the job in a simple fashion.
Finally, comments are now available and I encourage you to use them. Follow up on a post with your own witty remarks, ask the author important questions, just waste everyone's time with random statements... the power is yours!
Input by Mike at
12:53 AM
Sunday, February 22, 2004
New Merchandise from Oak Street Park
Over the summer I decided to try and design some Abercrombie-esque t-shirts publicizing fake locations or events. The t-shirts would be ridiculous but (like their A&F brethren) would have just enough realism that people might have to give them a second glance.
The only idea that really came to fruition was the Oak Street Park Hippie Burn... An annual event where, presumably, hippies are burned to the great entertainment of spectators. I think this event may occur with the hippies being willing participants as it cleans them of pachouli stink and pachouli dirt like a prairie fire rejuvinated the plains of the New World. Of course, no hippies are forcibly ignited. They do, however, run like antelopes out of control once ablaze.
Oak Street Park Hippie Burn T-Shirts are now avaliable for a limited time at the RF Store. The Hippie Burn logo is vibrantly colored and captures the true essence of this fictional event. Future incarnations of the shirt will be one-color printings, so this is a good chance for hippies and not-hippies to get their hands on this celebratory memorabilia.
Input by Mike at
8:13 PM
Fall of the House of Mouse
Saw Michael Eisner on Larry King Live the other day.
Ouch.
As well as he did trying to hide his worry about the upcoming board meeting (which might result in his ousting) with descriptions of attractions as "awesome", it was painfully obvious the kind of stress he is under internally.
The guy obviously loves what he does, but his tragic flaw may be that he believes too strongly in the power of the brand. With attacks from all sides, it is becoming increasingly apparent that Disney isn't a media superpower; it can't expect creative talent (like the folks at Pixar) to come groveling to its feet anymore. Disney needs to work to regain its mythic status and its going to require an about-face turn around. Because of his love for his place and the company itself, Eisner, if he continues to be obsessed with brand power, will ride the company into the ground.
Input by Mike at
12:56 PM
