I am nothing short of amazed. I have a girlfriend who likes soccer and comics. Eat a dick, every girl I ever dated up until this point. Yeah, I'm immature or whatever. I guess that's what the rolling eyes have always meant. But that doesn't mean a fucking thing. Just because someone enjoys a sport that a bunch of meatheads say is for "fags" (good one, totally original) and enjoys a form of literature that isn't compounded with the pretensions of over-written authors trying harder to prove themselves, rather than make osmething worth fucking while. Seriously, don't fucking knock it. Comics and graphic novels are fucking amazing. You appreciate cinema, right. Yeah? You thought Starsky and Hutch was pretty funny, right? Yeah, same fucking thing, shithead. Words+pictures=some pretty good stuff sometimes. Give it a shot and stop beign a bunch of elitist assholes with nothing better to do than make yourselves feel better by making other people feel bad for liking funner shit than you. Butthole.
(This had nothing to do with soccer or D.C. United. My bad.)
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Sunday, October 22, 2006
The Best Comics Right Now.
I like comics a whole lot. I originally got into them when I was in the eighth grade. My friend's Kevin and Nick started reading a comic called "Spawn", which turned out to be the best thing a 13 year old with delusions of violent grandeur could ask for. A comic where the main character is a man sentenced to a life in hell given a chance to redeem himself or fall forever mixed with a dash of ultimate bad-ass antagonist who likes ripping the hearts from his victims (I'll always love you, Violator). After reading that comic I become rabid for anything with the "Image" logo; Wildcats, Gen 13, Savage the Dragon, or whatever. Not long after I got into comics though, I discovered girls. I soon realized that girls and comics are oil and water and if you want one then you have to give up the other.
Now, 26 years old with a girlfriend who knows more about comics that I do, I am free to love any damn superhero/antihero/social delinquent/mysoginistic aardvard. It's good times. But now, my knowledge has widened and my interests changed (thanks, college!). Several years ago I got my first copy of Cerebus and also read the graphic novel, Watchmen. Twedo very different books focusing on very different themes, but both changed me. Cerebus focuses on a power-hungry Aardvark who spends most of his days as a mercenary/bishop/politician/thief/pope. As you may have guessed, it's somewhat elaborate, but its focus on feminism, politics in government and in religion fascinated me. Granted, the intent of the author was to criticize and show feminism as fraudulent, but I'm not too smart and thought the exact opposite. Watchmen, well, it's complicated and would take at least five hundred words. I don't have time for that. Needless to say, I didn't "get it" at first, but it worked its way into my mind slowly and got me into a whole other world of comics.
From then on it was a slippery slope into more slippy things that I like: Sin City, Bone, Ultimate X-Men, Astonishing X-Men. The list kept growing. Now, I feel I'm pretty much at the top of my game and can say whether or not a comic is worth the time with some validity. I pride myself on knowing good writing, or more precisely, writing that lacks the stench of pretension and is filled with wit, humor and themes that are much greater than the characters or books themselves. The books that make this list?
Ex Machina, Y: The Last Man and Runaways are all on that list. I put the together here and not individually because they're all written by the same man; Brian K. Vaughan. This guy is amazingly talented and has the ability to bring complex themes together with humor unlike anyone else in the industry. Ex Machina goes after post 9/11 politics ina way that is simply jawdropping. Y: The Last Man is about a man, the only man, to survive I-don't-know-what (I'm only two books in) and his life and times being hunted by a world filled with only women. Runaways, my favorite of the bunch, focuses on a group of teenagers that find they're all the sons and daughters of super-villains. Soon they find they all have powers or are aliens or have Velociraptors that they can communicate to through telekinesis. You know, all the usual stuff that teenagers find out once puberty arrives. The book is amazingly seductive with its smart ass teenage rebellion and its unflinching mistrust of all adults and what is considered "right", but its main draw for me is its realism. People die. Kids die. Main characters die.
On top of all that, there's also Planetary. Warren Ellis is the writer, I'm not familiar with much else that he's done in the past, so I can't go much into that. He has an amazing knowledge of literary figures and pop culture icons, which he uses to give each issue a mythos all its own that is very reminescent of the serialized comics of the forties and fifties. You're likely to find ghost cops roaming the streets of Hong Kong, Area 51 victims and Godzilla in just about any issue. The larger picture comes out by issue twelve though and the story begins to look closely at man's penchant for violence among other things. Honestly, I haven't made it past issue twelve, so I'm not sure what happens after that. I'm sure it's TOTALLY mind-blowing though.
Right on. I think I'm gonna go now. That Ryan Reynolds movie, "Just Friends" is on and I think I might be in love with the girl in it. You know, the one in all the Scary Movie movies.
Now, 26 years old with a girlfriend who knows more about comics that I do, I am free to love any damn superhero/antihero/social delinquent/mysoginistic aardvard. It's good times. But now, my knowledge has widened and my interests changed (thanks, college!). Several years ago I got my first copy of Cerebus and also read the graphic novel, Watchmen. Twedo very different books focusing on very different themes, but both changed me. Cerebus focuses on a power-hungry Aardvark who spends most of his days as a mercenary/bishop/politician/thief/pope. As you may have guessed, it's somewhat elaborate, but its focus on feminism, politics in government and in religion fascinated me. Granted, the intent of the author was to criticize and show feminism as fraudulent, but I'm not too smart and thought the exact opposite. Watchmen, well, it's complicated and would take at least five hundred words. I don't have time for that. Needless to say, I didn't "get it" at first, but it worked its way into my mind slowly and got me into a whole other world of comics.
From then on it was a slippery slope into more slippy things that I like: Sin City, Bone, Ultimate X-Men, Astonishing X-Men. The list kept growing. Now, I feel I'm pretty much at the top of my game and can say whether or not a comic is worth the time with some validity. I pride myself on knowing good writing, or more precisely, writing that lacks the stench of pretension and is filled with wit, humor and themes that are much greater than the characters or books themselves. The books that make this list?
Ex Machina, Y: The Last Man and Runaways are all on that list. I put the together here and not individually because they're all written by the same man; Brian K. Vaughan. This guy is amazingly talented and has the ability to bring complex themes together with humor unlike anyone else in the industry. Ex Machina goes after post 9/11 politics ina way that is simply jawdropping. Y: The Last Man is about a man, the only man, to survive I-don't-know-what (I'm only two books in) and his life and times being hunted by a world filled with only women. Runaways, my favorite of the bunch, focuses on a group of teenagers that find they're all the sons and daughters of super-villains. Soon they find they all have powers or are aliens or have Velociraptors that they can communicate to through telekinesis. You know, all the usual stuff that teenagers find out once puberty arrives. The book is amazingly seductive with its smart ass teenage rebellion and its unflinching mistrust of all adults and what is considered "right", but its main draw for me is its realism. People die. Kids die. Main characters die.
On top of all that, there's also Planetary. Warren Ellis is the writer, I'm not familiar with much else that he's done in the past, so I can't go much into that. He has an amazing knowledge of literary figures and pop culture icons, which he uses to give each issue a mythos all its own that is very reminescent of the serialized comics of the forties and fifties. You're likely to find ghost cops roaming the streets of Hong Kong, Area 51 victims and Godzilla in just about any issue. The larger picture comes out by issue twelve though and the story begins to look closely at man's penchant for violence among other things. Honestly, I haven't made it past issue twelve, so I'm not sure what happens after that. I'm sure it's TOTALLY mind-blowing though.
Right on. I think I'm gonna go now. That Ryan Reynolds movie, "Just Friends" is on and I think I might be in love with the girl in it. You know, the one in all the Scary Movie movies.
Monday, October 16, 2006
weekend review by Jeff
Weekend end review
Youtube-here are the highlights: Dog Police, Phone Tag, Rocket From the Crypt on Craig Kilborn, Ladysmith Black etc. in OuterSpace, Sesame Street from the 70’s clips.
Killers “Sam’s town”- I don’t listen to Bruce Springsteen so I can’t make the same comparison like every rock critic has been making. I hear more Cars and U2 than anything else. The songs are stuck in my head but you got to wade through some shit to get to “the good stuff.” You can see me running through the streets of Richmond in a drunken stupor soon mixing up lyrics with this record and Alkaline Trio pretty soon.
Cursive “Happy Hollow”-Another small town themed record. This one is a little more saturnine dealing with the concepts of getting older and losing ambition/dreams. It spoke to my macabre inclinations a little more than the Killers’ Sam’s Town. It’s really good once you get used to the brass section.
Young Widows “Settle Down City”-I like Jesus Lizard, too. SDC is not as good to run to as Breather Resist’s “Charmer” but the Young Widows debut does make me air drum and whisper shouted lyrics out loud. Then my boss walks by and notices.
M Ward “Post War”- music to chill too. “To Go Home” is really catchy.
Dig!-As much as I love seeing a bunch of douchebags dicking each other around before serving their cocks on a platter to a bunch of suits, the rental was worth watching Brian Jonestown Massacre dude kick a man in the head. And that scene where the band self destructed on stage was pretty killer. But can anyone not admit that this movie kind of drags and it sort of depressing?
Thank You for Smoking- I really related to this movie because I a)am a lobbyist b) have a son c) feel it’s important to teach my son about valuable life lessons d) am generally despised by most people e)smoke f)copulate with young hot reporters from Washington D.C. g)get myself involved in scandalous actions. h) like watching movies more than reading books.
Rola’s watch selling hustler costume- Best pre-Halloween costume. Hands down.
Chuck Klosterman “Killing Yourself to Live”-I like cultural references as much as the next guy but this read like an advertisement for a lifestyle that most mid-20’s people lead right now. Despite this gripe, this was an excellent book and I suggest it to most people who enjoy the non fiction sector of literature.
Too Many Stars-comedy benefit for Autism hosted by Jon Stewart. I was impressed. I don’t think Chris Melloni was topped.
Commercials during Too Many Stars-What’s up with advertising? Give me a job!
Hot Peppers-Kickstart your night.
Nat’s Tofu (home brewed)-I’d eat it again.
Toscanini in Cambridge-the yogurt was a little too tart. The coffee was on point.
FUBU-they’re a working man’s band. For Us By Us. They liked Against Me! And Flogging Molly. A lot. Maybe too much. They also screamed “Firestorm Motherfucker!” at the end of a song. Did I mention that they’re an acoustic band?
Middle East in Cambridge-The veggie burger while I was eating it was good despite the price. The after burps reminded me of falafel. All evening, I tried to wrap my mind around the reason my breath reminded me of cumin.
5th Annual Welcher block party in Boston-jam band reggaefying The Band’s “I Shall Be Released.” You be the judge of that concept. Six beers an hour later and I was jumping on the Moonwalk blow up thing.
The Baltimore Ravens- I was not pleased with their performance. Hopefully they’ll take the Saints two weeks from now.
Youtube-here are the highlights: Dog Police, Phone Tag, Rocket From the Crypt on Craig Kilborn, Ladysmith Black etc. in OuterSpace, Sesame Street from the 70’s clips.
Killers “Sam’s town”- I don’t listen to Bruce Springsteen so I can’t make the same comparison like every rock critic has been making. I hear more Cars and U2 than anything else. The songs are stuck in my head but you got to wade through some shit to get to “the good stuff.” You can see me running through the streets of Richmond in a drunken stupor soon mixing up lyrics with this record and Alkaline Trio pretty soon.
Cursive “Happy Hollow”-Another small town themed record. This one is a little more saturnine dealing with the concepts of getting older and losing ambition/dreams. It spoke to my macabre inclinations a little more than the Killers’ Sam’s Town. It’s really good once you get used to the brass section.
Young Widows “Settle Down City”-I like Jesus Lizard, too. SDC is not as good to run to as Breather Resist’s “Charmer” but the Young Widows debut does make me air drum and whisper shouted lyrics out loud. Then my boss walks by and notices.
M Ward “Post War”- music to chill too. “To Go Home” is really catchy.
Dig!-As much as I love seeing a bunch of douchebags dicking each other around before serving their cocks on a platter to a bunch of suits, the rental was worth watching Brian Jonestown Massacre dude kick a man in the head. And that scene where the band self destructed on stage was pretty killer. But can anyone not admit that this movie kind of drags and it sort of depressing?
Thank You for Smoking- I really related to this movie because I a)am a lobbyist b) have a son c) feel it’s important to teach my son about valuable life lessons d) am generally despised by most people e)smoke f)copulate with young hot reporters from Washington D.C. g)get myself involved in scandalous actions. h) like watching movies more than reading books.
Rola’s watch selling hustler costume- Best pre-Halloween costume. Hands down.
Chuck Klosterman “Killing Yourself to Live”-I like cultural references as much as the next guy but this read like an advertisement for a lifestyle that most mid-20’s people lead right now. Despite this gripe, this was an excellent book and I suggest it to most people who enjoy the non fiction sector of literature.
Too Many Stars-comedy benefit for Autism hosted by Jon Stewart. I was impressed. I don’t think Chris Melloni was topped.
Commercials during Too Many Stars-What’s up with advertising? Give me a job!
Hot Peppers-Kickstart your night.
Nat’s Tofu (home brewed)-I’d eat it again.
Toscanini in Cambridge-the yogurt was a little too tart. The coffee was on point.
FUBU-they’re a working man’s band. For Us By Us. They liked Against Me! And Flogging Molly. A lot. Maybe too much. They also screamed “Firestorm Motherfucker!” at the end of a song. Did I mention that they’re an acoustic band?
Middle East in Cambridge-The veggie burger while I was eating it was good despite the price. The after burps reminded me of falafel. All evening, I tried to wrap my mind around the reason my breath reminded me of cumin.
5th Annual Welcher block party in Boston-jam band reggaefying The Band’s “I Shall Be Released.” You be the judge of that concept. Six beers an hour later and I was jumping on the Moonwalk blow up thing.
The Baltimore Ravens- I was not pleased with their performance. Hopefully they’ll take the Saints two weeks from now.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
The First Words Back in Richmond.
Sometimes I genuinely miss the city of Richmond when I leave it for awhile. This weekend I went out of town to play a show in the sleepy college town of Blacksburg. The show is a whole other story unto itself, but when we got back into Richmond. It was one of those moments that I realized what kind of a surreal and singular place I live in.
We had just finished emptying out the van and we were saying our goodbye's and what-not when a man walked passed us in the middle of the street.
"Anyone want some mushrooms?", he said.
"No" was the unanimous answer and we awkwardly looked to one another for some kind of comfort.
"Which one of you is the drummer?"
Mike: "Uh, me."
Man with sketchy hallucinogenic drugs: "You good, man. I gotta holla at you, man. I gotta holla. Yo, you know who you guys sound like?"
Me: "Who?"
"Rush, man. You know them?" What would happen for the next thirtys seconds is an obviously crazed man giving his best Geddy Lee, blingly ignoring the fact that he was in the middle of a busy one-way street. We went back to what we were doing and no one said a word. Thirty minutes later it finally hit me. I sometimes regret that experiences like this kind of get put in the same box as all the other forgettable things that happen in a day. Being offered mushrooms from a stranger and then being compared to Ontario's best is rare. Anytime you can catch those times and put them where they belong (i.e. blog that bitch!) is great. Take advantage.
We had just finished emptying out the van and we were saying our goodbye's and what-not when a man walked passed us in the middle of the street.
"Anyone want some mushrooms?", he said.
"No" was the unanimous answer and we awkwardly looked to one another for some kind of comfort.
"Which one of you is the drummer?"
Mike: "Uh, me."
Man with sketchy hallucinogenic drugs: "You good, man. I gotta holla at you, man. I gotta holla. Yo, you know who you guys sound like?"
Me: "Who?"
"Rush, man. You know them?" What would happen for the next thirtys seconds is an obviously crazed man giving his best Geddy Lee, blingly ignoring the fact that he was in the middle of a busy one-way street. We went back to what we were doing and no one said a word. Thirty minutes later it finally hit me. I sometimes regret that experiences like this kind of get put in the same box as all the other forgettable things that happen in a day. Being offered mushrooms from a stranger and then being compared to Ontario's best is rare. Anytime you can catch those times and put them where they belong (i.e. blog that bitch!) is great. Take advantage.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
