Deeper Shade of Gray

Surely many of you have heard of Detroit’s double act The White Stripes or Akron, Ohio’s duo The Black Keys. Both bands goals are simple they want to rock the shit out of you. The two bands have unique aesthetics simply being a two-man blues rock duo composed of a guitarist and drummer. Each band has there own way of playing, songwriting, and recording. Whether you love Meg White’s simplistic drumming or you melt at the sound of Dan Auerbach’s voice, both groups differ in variety. But, which of the two is the odd band out? We’ll take a look at the guitarists, drummers, and 3 albums starting from the first, to the magnum opus record, and latest.

Jack White is now known as one of the contemporary bluesman of our generation. His high shrieking voice similar to that of Ray Davies and Robert Plant. Hits home with his fast paced guitar work and spastic guitar solos. Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys voice is very grizzly and baritone usually compared to deceased delta blues player Junior Kimbrough. Auerbach uses his thumb to play bass notes and ring finger to pluck the higher notes, giving a melody with both rhythm and bass; A great trait of The Black Keys. Generally White uses a pick to play guitar, but is a master of soloing and performing catchy guitar hooks. Both White and Auerbach play slide guitar (a glass or lead pipe worn on the finger) astonishingly, picking up sounds of the great delta-blues players such as John Lee Hooker or Robert Johnson. Jack blends different genres of music with his old time rock and roll that involve punk, folk, and yes, even heavy metal. Dan just sticks with dirty southern delta blues but sometimes dabbles in folk, country, gospel, jazz, and psychedelic rock. As far as songwriting goes Jack’s lyrics deal with love, heartbreak, existentialism, and eccentric vaudevillian acts. With lyrics such as “Well the windows turning blue, and the waters overflowing. And I hope I’m not a fool, for laughing at myself as you were going.” Dan’s lyrics are if anything, sub par, nothing we’ve already heard in typical blues music, such as the song “Keep Me.” “Keep me clean, keep me warm. Keep my soul away from harm.” Dan does have one great song where his songwriting really shines. In the song “The Lengths,” the first acoustic song by the band, the lyrics really come out and show the imagery of a love that is no more. With lyrics such as, “ Tell me what you were thinkin’/ to treat somebody so/ the care, he took the lengths/ to which he’d go/ Coals are hot to walk across/ without your shoes, but in the end/ you know that you have nothing to loose.”
Both bands perform a diverse selection of cover song on their albums. The White Stripes always create innovative arrangements of Bob Dylan, Cab Calloway, Robert Johnson, and many more. The Black Keys will usually make a more heavier version with lots of distortion and fuzz, such as The Beatles “She Said, She Said,” and The Kinks “Act Nice and Gentle.” On the whole The Black Keys have a thicker richer sound, whereas The White Stripes base their outfit on punk, blues, and garage rock, so normally it’s going to be more intense. Jack will play a simple progression of two to four chords on the guitar and immediately have his audience’s undivided attention. Both guitarists do approach there music with a minimalist style playing a couple of chords notes, Dan’s playing is very hypnotic and slick, once you listen to his playing you’re drawn into his beam of rhythm and blues. Dan uses Gibson Guitars to get a bulky sound when he adds fuzz. Jack uses cheap plastic guitars such as Airline, to get a twangy sound when he performs and records; a perfect sound for solos.
As far as everyone’s concerned most people will usually go with Jack as being the greater part of the two man band, he has rhythm and can solo a madman. His lyrics are brooding, fun, ironic, and catchy. No doubt that he is a true revivalist about blues music. But what about Dan, he uses old blues-guitar techniques, sings more like a delta-blues player, he has the ebb and flow of a true bluesman. When it comes down to it both show great excellence and stamina in rock and roll music. But how about soloing? Well when it comes down to it both are very good at soloing. Jack White is definitely the victor in this department, and it’s not the fact that he has lightning quick solos, it’s the fact that he can mimic so many different genres of music into his guitar “Conquest” has a Latin-matador influenced sound and Jack dabbles in all sorts of genres, being a big leader in the alternative rock community. Dan Auerbach can solo but not as well as Jack, Dan tends to fill little solos in between drum fills of drummer Pat Carney. But if anything The Black Keys aren’t about crazy solos they just want you to lay back and enjoy the music. Ff anything Dan would probably make a great bass player in the long run.
As far as two piece bands go guitarists would be nothing without their drummers, Meg White’s childish minimalist drumming and Pat Carney’s jazzy drum style both exceed excellent in playing the drums. Pat’s solos are loud and rhythmic, yet soothing, his use of cymbals and snares give a neutral sound not too soft and not too loud. Giving the band an excellent beat and mood. But this doesn’t mean that Meg’s a bad drummer, if anything Meg White is the perfect drummer for Jack. She plays along with Jack’s strumming using the bass drum, and the jingle of the ride cymbal to give a perfect garage rock revival sound. She even has a great singing voice an example is in the song “In The Cold, Cold Night,” “St. Andrew (This Battle Is In the Air)” and “It’s True That We Love One Another.” She does have a childish style to her drumming but that’s what’s charming about the White Stripes is there childish attitude and stage presence. But she can definitely rock out and make her drums sound thunderous, almost tribal. A great example is in the track “Black Math” she practically sounds like John Bonham of Led Zeppelin. Pat’s drumming is a lot more organized and structured, giving him the option to perform stunning drum breaks, solos, and time signatures together he and Dan coordinate through rhythm and bass almost taking over one another, such as the song “Girl Is On My Mind,” the way the two switch of there timing and fills is mind blowing. Pat is a very big factor in The Black Keys personally he has the perfect drive and rhythm to accompany Dan’s magnetic guitar riffs. He is the perfect drummer for Dan. In fact, if anything Pat’s drumming brings out Dan’s guitar even more, the two literally count on each other to make there music spring out. What’s fascinating about Meg though is not only does she play drums but she also uses percussive instruments such as maracas, egg shakers, castanets, and even bells. There’s definitely a more “do-it-yourself,” aesthetic to Meg’s drumming and percussion. In a way she’s almost like a child playing it simple to the beat of Jack’s guitar.
Both drummers are stunning and innovative, and possess a natural talent with their instruments. But truthfully Pat Carney has the upper hand when it comes to being a drummer. He has more of a say in The Black Keys than Meg does in The White Stripes. Pat also helps out in recording, and producing most of their albums, he even plays lap steel guitar on “The Lengths.” He has an amazing sense of timing, drive, and can rock out and loose control any second. Seeing Pat perform is always a treat as well, his glasses will usually fly off his face when he’s soloing. He just has more attitude and looks like he’s having fun on stage, he looks like how a real musician should look when playing. Meg just sits there with a blank expression waiting for Jack to start off. Point goes to Pat Carney of The Black Keys.
Now most people know that when looking back on both these bands. They’re quite different now to what they were back then. Recording processes changed, overproduction is used; the band gets bigger, blah, blah, blah. But that’s what makes bands and music in general so unique? The first White Stripes album, 1999 self-titled “The White Stripes” was recorded in what used to be a run-down chicken-processing factory, but then became Ghetto Recorders studio in Detroit. The Black Keys debut album came out a few years later in 2002’s “The Big Come Up”. It was recorded in Pat’s basement, within seven hours. Both bands used a four-track recorder for a more lo-fi homemade sound. And it’s very apparent in both albums. With reverberating guitar, background hiss, peaking mics, and echoing drums, fit with raw rock and roll. “The Big Come Up” as a whole flows really nicely, the opening track, “Busted” is a great opener for the album showing off Dan’s rhythm and slide guitar techniques along with Pat’s crash cymbal, snare, and bass drums booming. Other tracks such as “The Breaks” and “Heavy Soul” show that The Black Keys can play 3 different notes over and over for three minutes and still make it sound catchy, and alive. Pat’s drum work is another great thing that gives this album texture and movement, especially in the tracks “Them Eyes” and “Yearnin.” The whole album is fantastic there isn’t a single song to skip, The Black Keys have a huge vintage sound to there playing, almost as if your listening to an old blues record from the 1930’s. Each song lasts about two to three minutes, so every song is catchy, heavy, and addictive as the album progresses. The album is mostly delta blues mixed in with garage rock it’s a simplistic album nonetheless, just two guys jamming out in their basement. With simple three to for chord progression; easy and simple, just like old rock n roll.
As for “The White Stripes,” not so much, there are a lot of great songs on this album but it flows too weirdly, leaving the listener bored at times, a lot of the songs almost sound similar both “Astro” and “Cannon” are fairly comparable sounding and both songs play after one another. However, Meg’s drumming is thunderous and loud which compliments Jack’s guitar in both songs. A lot of the songs can be repetitious and points, it seems that some songs are too long and really drag out for a while. It’s a very eclectic album; the track “Sugar Never Tasted So Good” is a good folk-blues acoustic song with Meg on the drums giving a garage-rock jingle to her drums. The track “Screwdriver” shows that Jack can really shred on guitar, the opening solo sounds like a cluttered mess at first, then it tears into this sly bluesy riff sounding similar to The Stooges. “The White Stripes” is a great album, but it doesn’t hold a candle up to “The Big Come Up,” the album is too long in general, it would’ve been better if they had taken a couple of tracks off the list.
Now for the magnum opus of the two bands, in 2003 The White Stripes released there album “Elephant,” which is a masterpiece at it’s best. The opening track, “Seven Nation Army” caught the ears of a new generation, and started bringing the band to higher places. “Elephant” is a lot different in comparison to the self-titled album; it’s angrier, darker, deeper, and even more whimsical than the first. This album flows amazingly, it is more overproduce with piano and guitar riffs overlay with Jack’s backing vocals during the gospel-soul track, “There’s No Home For You Here” and the melodramatic Burt Bacharach cover, “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself.” The album is not overproduced to where it’s obnoxious or noticeable. With heavy blues driven crashing drums and loud fuzzy guitar in “Black Math” and “Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine,” The Whites Stripes have progressed even beyond blues-punk, and as your listening to this album it’s crazy to think that it’s only two people making all this music. With bizarre songs such as “Little Acorns” The White Stripes got Detroit newscaster, Mort Crim, to do an opening audio skit to this surreal Black Sabbath sounding song. Meg’s drumming really improved in “Elephant,” her jungle-like tom and bass drum give a heavy epic beat in “Hardest Button to Button” and makes Jack’s minimal guitar use not wasteful. “Elephant” has everything a listener needs great songs, catchy melodies, and ball busting drumbeats.
The Black Keys released the album “Rubber Factory” in 2004, which was oddly enough recorded in a rubber factory. This album pretty much put The Black Keys on the map and brought on their later success. The album was finished in two weeks, and shortly thereafter the record caught on quick. The start off, “When The Lights Go Out” is an eerie and dark, sounding like the track came crawling out of the swampy delta. The Black Keys also started working with psychedelic rock; having many overlays of backwards guitar solos that would make The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix proud. Like “Elephant” “Rubber Factory” is a little overproduced than the last two albums, leaving it with overdubbed and backward guitar solos. “Aeroplane Blues” is a great example of Dan’s psychedelic sounding drone from his guitar, while Pat lays down a dirty trashy beat on his drum set. Dan and Pat’s showmanship really show in the track “Girl Is On My Mind” when each is left doing rhythmic patterns and switching duties of playing notes. They do a cover by The Kinks called “Act Nice And Gentle” and it’s one of the corniest songs in the whole Black Keys discography, nothing special, just a whiny song, with whiny lyrics, and a whiny guitar solo. The one track that really stands out in “Rubber Factory” is “The Lengths” as said earlier, this is one of the first acoustic folk, alt-country, blues whatever you want to call it song that The Black Keys have ever done. It features Pat playing drums and lap steel guitar, giving the track a country-like sounding ballad. The lyrics are sad and heartbreaking and you can hear it in Dan’s voice how emotional he was feeling when singing this melancholy song. “Rubber Factory” isn’t as raw as the debut album but it’s a great album nonetheless.
Nothing will compare to what comes next in The Black Keys line-up; their latest album released in 2007, “Attack & Release” is there most diverse album by far. The album itself is deeply inspired by gospel and soul music. Produced by Danger Mouse, “Attack & Release” is highly overproduced. Even the first track, “All You Ever Wanted” shows off the extravagance of overproduction, with overlaying acoustic guitars, church organs, and altered vocals. It doesn’t even sound like there’s two guys playing, it sounds like a band; it sounds like The Black Keys got a back up band. However the track “I Got Mine” sounds like an older version of The Black Keys. There are a few guest musicians in this album as well, such as Pat’s uncle Ralph Carney (Tom Waits saxophonist), jazz guitarist Marc Ribot, and folk singer Jessica Lea Mayfield. Ribot’s surf style guitar solo in “So He Won’t Break” is spine chilling and dark, and Mayfield on backing vocals through out the album mesh perfectly with Dan’s low voice. Carney’s flute playing in “Same Old Thing” sounds as if Jethro Tull and Jimi Hendrix combined forces. Not going to lie I wanted to take a shower after hearing this album. It’s basically The Black Keys selling out, pulling a Dylan, whatever you want to call you it. This album is very overproduced and the songs can be boring at times. The songs are repetitious and far too long to be Black Keys songs. “Attack & Release” is different and in some ways good with composing arrangements in music.
Finally the latest album from The White Stripes comes 2007’s “Icky Thump” which a lot more diverse than “Attack & Release.” The White Stripes take “Icky Thump” to a whole new level with traditional Scottish, Latin, and of course blues music. This album is fun and zany “Icky Thump” if anything would be “The White Album” of The White Stripes. The first track “Icky Thump” has very political lyrics towards the immigration laws, and the dark corrupt consumerist nation that is America. Same thing goes for the track “Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn” a Scottish folk song accompanied by bagpipes. With lyrics such as, “One sound can hold back a thousand hands, when the pipe plays a tune forlorn. And the thistle is a prickly flower aye, but how it is sweetly worn.” No doubt the album is about the current events of ’07. “Catch Hell Blues” sounds like an old White Stripes song with great slide guitar and lyrics about digging for water, and testifying religious views. Another epic song is “Conquest” the song is accompanied by horns sounding similar to a matador bull fight, Jack’s shrieking vocals echo as he’s accompanied by Meg on backing vocals and jungle like drums. “Icky Thump” as a whole is a great album, a staple in any music collector’s collection.
Both bands are amazing but now it’s the time for the verdict. Which two-man band has the better part to the blues-punk outfit? The White Stripes are great, but in all honesty The Black Keys are better than The White Stripes, but I still like The White Stripes a lot. When I was fifteen I picked up “The Big Come Up” it was the first album I owned by them. Looking at the pictures in the records I saw two guys sitting on a porch dressed in normal clothes just hanging out. It looked like I could have a beer with them. And I connected to that cause they two normal guys. The White Stripes base their band around three colors of white, red, and black, and that’s why I don’t fancy them too much. It’s all about theatrics, and the fact that Jack and Meg play off like their brother and sister even though they were married once. The Black Keys can play heavy or sot blues and make you feel good to dance. The two bands are great and excel in amazing talent and fusing blues music with different genres of music. It’s the future that makes us wonder what these bands will sound like later on in life.

“Adventure Time With Finn and Jake” (Season 1, Episode 2: “Slumber Party Panic, Trouble in Lumpy Space,” Cartoon Network)

“Adventure Time With Finn and Jake,” is a new prime-time show on Cartoon Network. The plot line to the show is simple. The two main characters are Finn, a human and his talking yellow dog Jake. The two want to aspire to become great adventurers in doing so they protect The Land of Ooo who is ruled by the intelligent Princess Bubblegum. The people of Ooo are all made of candy and desserts as is the Land of Ooo itself.

The first episode, Slumber Party Panic, starts off in a graveyard with Finn and Princess Bubblegum. Princess Bubblegum creates a potion to bring the dead people of Ooo back to life. Unfortunately she doesn’t perfect the potion and in doing so accidentally spills the solution all over the graveyard, reviving the dead sweet people into candy zombies that crave sugar. In doing so The Princess tells the People of Ooo to come to her palace cause she’s throwing a slumber party, when really all she wants to do is distract the people from the zombie horde. She tells Finn to make a royal promise not to tell the People of Ooo about the zombie fiasco. If the people find out they’ll explode in fear. The zombies make there way to the palace and Finn finds a way to distract everyone. He tells the group to blindfold themselves because they’re going to play piñata. In doing so the people kill all the zombies with bats without ever knowing that zombies were even there. But Finn breaks his royal promise by telling Jake it was the Princess who spilt the solution that brought the dead to life. So the Bubblegum Gods, yes, The Bubblegum Gods, freeze time and tell Finn that he broke his promise and must answer the simple question of 2+2. Finn answers correctly and everything is back to normal. Princess Bubblegum perfects her potion and turns all the zombies back into normal people.

Sounds kind of weird right? Wait till you hear the next episode Trouble in Lumpy Space. Our two heroes are having teatime on Marshmallow Mountains with the Lumpy Space Princess (imagine a purple cloud with a mouth). When the Lumpy Princess accidentally bites Jake’s arm, Jake is cursed by The Lumpy and has until sundown to get cured or he will forever be lumpy. The Lumpy Princess takes Finn and Jake to a forest where they must be devoured by a frog in order to get to Lumpy Space. They get eaten and arrive at their destination. The cure to Jake’s illness is located at Makeout Point, and the only way to get there is by car. Princess Lumpy is grounded by her parent’s cause she brought two outsiders or “softies” into the Lumpy World, and in doing so loses her car privileges. Princess Lumpy calls one of her high school friends to drive them to Makeout Point but it’s too late. Jake turns into a Lumpy and doesn’t want to be friends with Finn. Jake goes with The Princess and her friend to The Lumpy Prom. Finn goes to Makeout Point anyway and is given the antidote by some Hipster Lumpys; the antidote is a giant magical pearl in which you sit on it to be cured. Finn runs to the prom and gets Jake to sit on the pearl, where he is cured of his illness.

This show is what happens when you take a couple of 5 year olds, gave them a few hits of acid, and then gave them a 12-pack of Red Bull; and it’s awesome! You know you’re in for a treat when the last line of an episode is “Don’t squeeze me, I’ll fart!” This show is rated TV-PG but is still shown on Cartoon Network, rather than Adult Swim. It’s nice to see Cartoon Network has started putting on more shows that can appeal to an audience both young and old. The show loves to make fun of fads and cliques such as hipsters, bros, and valley girl bimbos. If you’re a fan of Ren and Stimpy and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy books, then look no further, “Adventure Time with Finn and Jake,” is the perfect show for you.

Hollis Sigler at Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E Washington St

They say a picture is worth a thousand words in this case Hollis Sigler’s artwork is worth a million words. Born in Gary, Indiana on March 2^nd, 1948 Sigler began painting when she was really young, she would paint many pictures of women swimming underwater. After receiving degrees at both Moore College of Art and The Art Institute of Chicago Sigler took her art in a new direction, she began to use the art style of faux-naïve, which is making a work of art look childish on purpose. Her early faux-naïve work during the mid 70’s through the mid 80’s focused on her love life, and deals with themes of intimacy, vulnerability, heartbreak, and the fear of death.

Breast cancer was hereditary in Sigler’s family, her grandmother died from it as well as her mother who died in ’83. In one of her paintings she uses the brush strokes to spell out the word “HEREDITARY,” to show how her genes were passed onto her in the painting “The Fates Do Exist.” Sigler was diagnosed with breast cancer in ’95 and this affected her artwork in many ways. She had lost the battle with her cancer on March 29^th, 2001.

Sigler’s work as an artist is stunning she works with many different mediums such as pastel drawings, acrylics, pop-up books, collages, and even life-size models of her drawings. You really get a feel for Sigler’s pain and worry for her life, you can see through the intense brush strokes through out all her acrylic paintings. Sigler loves to incorporate herself throughout her paintings she’ll put a lawn chair in a vast canyon that looks out to the ocean. She has a series of these certain paintings; perhaps it symbolizes a place she wanted to escape to? Sigler painted texts and information on cancer treatment and statistics on the frames of her work, a lot of the information revolves around the painting. The frames are also painted using a smudge sponge and other objects to give a blurry visual around her art. She uses this technique in all her work.

Sigler’s collages are also awe-inspiring. Using many different layers of colored paper and her use of geometry, dimensions, and depth. Sigler creates hypnotically dark images with paper cut outs of women and snowflakes. Her pop-up art is also abstract taking on a three dimensional story about her trips to the hospital for check-ups and chemotherapy. What really stands out in her exhibits is the life size model called, “I Can’t Even Get The Pictures to Hang Straight.” Sigler created this for an art festival at Navy Pier and it won first prize. “I wanted to create a world with drama, and feminism, and what it truly meant to be a little girl.” If anything the model does give a nostalgic feel and practically dwarfs your sense of perspective and makes you feel small and insignificant.

Hollis Sigler’s artwork is inspiring as it is whimsical. The lush landscapes, the destroyed rooms, really give you a feel for the pain that Hollis was going through. She definitely captures the struggle she had with her breast cancer and her fears of dying, and the conflict of if there really is an after life. Hollis’ work is charming and dark no doubt, she had some serious talent and will continue to inspire other artists around the area.

Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe, 2000)

Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous,” is a nostalgic film that takes place during the 70’s. The film focuses on Cameron Crowe’s life as a fifteen-year old boy though the name of the main character is named William Miller (Patrick Fugit). The film starts off with him as an eleven-year old living with his over controlling mother (Frances McDormand) and his rebellious sister (Zooey Deschanel). His sister leaves home to become a stewardess and leaves a massive record collection under his bed. William learns the true meaning of rock and roll and writes critiques on music for his school paper. He then runs into famous rock and roll critic Lester Bangs (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) at a radio interview, Will and Lester hit it right off and become good friends. Bangs gives William an assignment to interview Black Sabbath where he meets “band-aide” Penny Lane (Kate Hudson) and her entourage. Penny helps William get backstage with the opening band Stillwater. He interviews singer Jeff Bebe (Jason Lee) and meets the guitarist of Stillwater, Russell Hammond (Billy Crudup). Russell and Penny begin to “hit it off” backstage. William and Penny get to see Stillwater perform, and after the show he be-friends Penny and the members of Stillwater. The next day he gets a call from the editor of Rolling Stone Magazine, Ben Fong-Torres (Terry Chen) to do an article in the magazine, William disguises his voice to sound older, and convinces Ben to do an article on Stillwater for one thousand dollars. He leaves home to go on tour with Stillwater, and the “band-aides”. Where hilarity, trouble, and relationships ensue.

This film is great for anyone who loves music and looking for a good time to re-live the 70’s. Most of the events that happened in the film happened to Cameron Crowe when he was following The Allman Brothers Band, Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and The Eagles. The film has a lot of memorable moments and lovable characters. Patrick Fugit’s performance is top notch as well as Kate Hudson’s performance as the promiscuous Penny Lane. Another great thing about “Almost Famous” is the soundtrack; all the songs set a perfect mood for each scene. A great example is when Russell “quits” Stillwater and William runs into a fiasco cause Russell takes too much acid at a party out in the suburbs of Topeka, Kansas. The next morning the band comes to pick up Russell and William, and everybody in the tour bus rejoices by singing Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer.” It’s moments like this where “Almost Famous” really stands out. “Almost Famous” is a great film for all ages and a classic that will go down in film and music history.

Money Mark, "Mark's Keyboard Repair'" (Mo' Wax Records, 1995)

Money Mark, real name Mark Ramos- Nishita, is a keyboardist whose worked and produced with artists such as Beastie Boys, John Butler Trio, Jack Johnson, Beck, and Omar Rodriguez- Lopez of The Mars Volta. During the mid 90’s Money Mark came out with his debut album “Mark’s Keyboard Repair,’” The album is innovative cause most of the tracks are instrumentals that last between 1-3 minutes, there are a few tracks that have vocals but since the album is called “Mark’s Keyboard Repair,’” it’s obvious what the 30 track album entails.

The album opens with the track “Pretty Pain,” the song has funky guitar riffs and keyboard solos with mumbling vocals, it’s clear that the listener is in for one hell of a ride. The next song “No Fighting,” dapples in reggae and dub influences where Money Mark lays down some groovy keyboard melodies that melt like butter. On a whole this album fuses together many different genres of music such as soul, jazz, reggae, funk, blues, hip-hop, electronic, and Latin music. The track entitled “Cry,” has Money Mark singing about his heartbreak, but when you listen to the words you realize that Money Mark doesn’t really care too much for lyrics, as an example, “I don’t feel like a man cause I don’t know, I’m gonna lean on it and play my organ solo.” Money Mark is a very bizarre musician but the track “Sometimes You Gotta Make it Alone,” really shows his musicianship as a singer and keyboardist. With melancholy lyrics and jazzy piano this track is sure to mellow you out. The track afterwards called, “Pinto’s New Car” has a Santana-esque style. The track uses bongos, flutes, and horns to master a latin-rock jam. Another song, “Revolt of the Octopi” has a jazzy-psychedelic vibe to it, sounding like a Miles Davis song. The rest of the tracks are really good, the album has a real nice to flow to it. But, the one song that really stands out in this album is the last song called, “The Grade,” this song will put a smile on your face and make you get up and dance, guaranteed. The melody is so funky and catchy you’ll be humming it all day. Who would have thought that kazoos and keyboards could be mixed together so well?

This album is so much fun, each song on the album is contagious and groovy. It will definitely put you in a good mood, or as James Brown would say, “put you on the good foot!” If you’re a fan of funky/jazzy jams then look no further. “Mark’s Keyboard Repair’” by Money Mark is the perfect album for your summer.

Down by Law (Directed by Jim Jarmusch, 1986)

Take a deadbeat disc jockey, a deadbeat pimp, and a deadbeat tourist and put them in New Orleans. You get the film “Down by Law”. This film is directed and written by acclaimed indie-director Jim Jarmusch. The film starts out with musician/actor Tom Waits, who plays Zack, an arrogant unemployed disc jockey, and a rookie pimp Jack, played by actor John Lurie. Zack gets framed for a murder he didn’t commit, and Jack gets framed for raping a child. The two end up in New Orleans Penitentiary where they become cellmates, and eventually get another cellmate, a spastic Italian tourist, Bob played by Roberto Benigni. This is when the film really shines because you get to see Jarmusch’s charm in the film. Jarmusch is known for developing characters in his films by taking long single shots that last 10 about minutes, so the actors can “become” the characters. You begin to learn about each character’s past, and start having a special bond with the dysfunctional trio. The three begin to plot a way to escape from prison, they do so and become fugitives on the run.

This film is filled with dark comedy, and hilarious conflicts that entwine into the story. One thing that really stands out in “Down by Law” is the cinematography. The shots in the film are beautiful; you could pause any point in the film and the shot looks like a professional photographer took it. The pace through out the beginning of the film has a tendency to drag on at times but as the film progresses it gets better and better. Waits, Lurie, and Benigni’s acting is top notch and since Jarmusch uses long single shots you have a lot of respect for the actor’s talents. The best part of the movie is the ending, but I won’t spoil it. “Down by Law” is a funny, gritty film with bizarre writing and great visuals, Jarmusch really shows his flair in this film.

“In the Realms of the Unreal” (Directed by Jessica Yu, 2004)

There are many unsung heroes of Chicago, such as outsider-artist Henry Darger. For those that are unfamiliar with Darger’s work, he would take old coloring books and illustrations and trace, paste, or copy pictures to make a collage on a 10 foot long piece of paper. Many of his illustration are colorful and filled with whimsy, but some of his illustration can be morbid, disturbing, and very controversial. Because Darger was very much a recluse, he had no intentions or interests in the real world. He would create his own world called The Realms of the Unreal. This novel has up to 15,000 pages of Darger’s illustrations and texts and was discovered by his landlord only a few days before Darger’s death in 1973 (he was 81 years old).

Not too much is known about Darger’s life because of his reclusive lifestyle. But in this biographical documentary director, Jessica Yu, shows the life of Henry Darger in three different ways. One is through Darger’s autobiography that Darger wrote, with ghostlike narrations read by actor Larry Pine. His autobiography shows the hardships that Darger dealt with while growing up, his views of the Catholic religion, and the symbolism behind his illustrations and stories. Second is through the very few people that knew Darger, such as neighbors and previous landlords. Third is through the illustrations that Darger drew in his books The Realms of the Unreal and The Vivian Girls. Dakota Fanning narrates through the illustrations and other parts of the film as though she is one of The Vivian Girls. The segments that show the illustrations are computer animated, giving the animations a choppy and cheesy look.

This is the only flaw of the film. Everything else is astonishing; the interviews given to the few people who experienced Darger’s presence are answered with detailed information on Darger’s attitude and living. Yu’s way of showing how society viewed Darger as a whole is a lonesome story, throughout the film you have a lot of sympathy towards Darger and truly see why he shunned society. The narrations given by Larry Pine and Dakota Fanning are spine tingling, giving the film a very eerie and isolated vibe. Another thing that makes this film stand out is the use of Darger’s illustrations compared with the events that happened to him in his life. The film has a real nice flow to it, and transitions well into each different perspective of the viewers. Interviewees in the film constantly say, “Henry’s only audience was himself.” “In the Realms of the Unreal” is a great movie that will truly make you see the passion, beauty, and charm in Henry Darger’s art, just the way Henry saw it himself.

Timeout Blog Critics

After reading the article in Timeout, it seems that out of all of the blog critics Donna Seaman’s view on a blog criticism is the most accurate. She seems to be the most passionate and dedicated to her work with her saying, “Passion must be lead to discipline and immersion. Expertise is gained from sustained attention”. This is a very unique way in looking at what makes a good critic, discipline and sustained attention. Donna explains, “A critic has to be able to imagine many responses, and see the experience in a greater content”. In a way it’s almost like saying “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. A critic should gain knowledge and experience through their reviews and reactions to the readers, that’s how a critic can evolve them even if the results are good or bad. Donna also says, “Trust is crucial. As is integrity. We won’t like everything, but when you slam something, you have to be sharp and precise”. Couldn’t agree more though since Donna does write reviews for books, she would probably have to go into greater detail onto why the book was bad, for film and music you could probably get away with a lot more. The discussion then shifts to the critic’s discussion about Internet blogging, Donna says that, “We’re seeing a rapid evolution of websites, however. As print may go to the way of the dinosaurs, there is more traditional editorial professionalism online. We want everything for free. Especially in Cyberland”. Donna explains that those who work in print actually work double time to cover an online edition of a book, but for no extra money. Showing that this critic is willing to read the exact same version of a book online all over again.

The digital world is also much more free driven and open to criticism, it’s a lot easier being yourself and writing a review online than writing something for a newspaper. You can envelop on information easier and you don’t have deadlines or limited word count either. The interviewer asks “For those of us who do get paid for our writing, would you still do it if you weren’t? Would you head to Blogspot and keep cranking it out”? At the end of the day all the critics say “yes” to this question showing that all the critics are the real deal. It doesn’t matter if you make money or not it’s just the thrill of the hunt and a deep compassion for writing and journalism.

Reviewing Two Reviews

Pitchfork Media has always been bias for the most untalented hipster garbage bands that walk the planet. After looking at the review for the Deluxe Edition of “Daydream Nation” by noise rock pioneers Sonic Youth, Nitsuh Abebe gave a slack-jawed review of this innovative album. Yes everyone always talks about the “modified guitars, the weird tunings, and shimmering pop epics that always lay beneath”, but whenever people review this album they always seem to review it as a whole and Pitchfork is no different than the other reviews. Nobody ever dissects each song individually. They always compare it to other bands like Pixies, The Velvet Underground, or The Stooges, sure there are some subtle influences of The Underground, but if you put them side by side, there’s a huge gap on how different both bands are. Another thing this review failed at mentioning was the unique b-sides given to the reissue of this album. They actually cover The Beatles “Within You Without You” and “Touch Me I’m Sick” by Mudhoney. Both covers have the use of original style that Sonic Youth never disappoints; using drone-like guitars with violin bows they practically imitate a perfect sitar for “Within You Without You”, and a spastic punk rock version of “Touch Me I’m Sick”. Abebe’s article doesn’t even hold a candle to how ground breaking this album truly is. Any Sonic Youth fan will probably tell you “Daydream Nation is the best indie-rock album ever” and it’s true. But Pitchfork’s review will never truly see the way “Daydream Nation” affects the teenage angst in all of us.

The next review is about “Pink Moon” by Nick Drake. The reviewer, Adrien Begrand gives his utmost respect to one of the greatest folk-singer/guitarist of all time. “Nick Drake is the classic example of a rock n roll poet who wasn’t appreciated in his time and died far too young”, Begrand pretty much explains Nick Drake’s burden that he had to carry in the first sentence, eventually leading to his suicide. But he describes “Pink Moon” as, “one of the most musically stripped down and emotionally naked albums ever recorded”. Couldn’t agree more this is the only album with Drake playing by himself without any back up musicians, and unfortunately it was his last album he would ever record. Begrand does a fantastic job at breaking down each song on the album, between the melancholy lyrics and autumnal compositions, Begrand knows exactly what he’s talking about. He even talks about the 1-minute instrumental called “Horn” saying, “So gorgeous, Drake doesn’t even need lyrics to convey what he’s feeling”. Begrand also talks about Drake’s “nakedness” towards the album, the track “Parasite” really shows Drake’s pain and Begrand clearly knows and feels the pain in which Drake is experiencing during the recording of the album. The one thing that really stands out in this review is Begrand’s imagery. The way he describes the last track on the album called “From the Morning”. “It’s like seeing the first rays of sunlight glow on the horizon after the saddest night of your life”. Anyone who listens to this album from start to finish can sympathize with this quote, it’s true, this is a very gloomy and bleak album but “From the Morning” is pure earthy joy, almost makes you think nothing was wrong with Drake. It’s sad that Pink Moon was Drake’s final album but Adrien Begrand explains the vibe of the album as if he knew Nick Drake himself.

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/10326-daydream-nation-deluxe-edition/

http://www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/d/drakenick-pink.shtml