Ideal Beach Car…
paper.li - The Future of News?
July 13, 2011
I’ve discovered something that I think is actually pretty cool. paper.li is a way to draw together the news and notices that are of interest to you based on the people you follow on Twitter or Facebook. Check it out here: http://paper.li/CathRach/1310573665!
-R
Could This Really Be the Future?!
July 9, 2011
Way cool video that shows a futuristic (albeit smudgy) world that doesn’t seem all that crazy…
-R
Homage to My Favorite Wrestler
May 31, 2011
In case you didn’t hear the sad news: Macho Man Randy Savage — my one-time hero — passed away last week. And now, a photo montage in remembrance:
-R
My $12 Tuesday
May 18, 2011
Music, like any other art, is funny in that people tend to appreciate it more when it’s popular. Yet, somehow, the acts that rise to fame are not always the most talented. How many times have I spent over $100 to sit in the nosebleed seats of some vast arena to hear highly produced versions of songs that I’ve gotten obsessed with because I have heard them repeatedly on the radio? I’m really low-balling myself here…my taste in music isn’t that bad, but I’m making a point here.
Last night I spent a whopping $12 to stand in the front row at Schuba’s, a small performance venue situated at the back of a bar on Southport Ave in Chicago. The performing acts were ‘Elizabeth & the Catapult’ and ‘Harper Blynn’. I had no frame of reference, had never heard their songs before and was there exclusively because my friend Tyler had said “come see some live music with me on Tuesday.”
We showed up a few songs into E&C’s set. Elizabeth is immediately likable. She has a broad and warm smile that she flashes frequently while she performs. Her voice is soulful and embracing. If you like Ingrid Michaelson, Sarah Bareilles, and Regina Spektor then you’ll definitely like Elizabeth & the Catapult. Elizabeth floats effortlessly between keyboard and guitar, but it’s really her voice and her stage presence that shine ahead of everything else. Her songs are easy to relate to with fresh lyrics and playful tunes and Elizabeth seems to be genuinely having fun when she is on stage. Her self-deprecating humor, seemingly keen self-awareness, and whimsical attitude adds to her stock. Last night she performed with Harper Blynn’s drummer and lead guitarist. If she comes to your area - go see her…you won’t be disappointed. I plan to go see her at Bowery Ballroom when I’m home in NYC this summer.
When Elizabeth finished performing, Harper Blynn took the stage. If Maroon 5 and the Kings of Leon engaged in some cross-pollination, you might arrive at Harper Blynn, yet this still doesn’t even do them justice. It was half way through the second song of their set that I began to realize: these.guys.are.awesome. Really, really, really awesome. Like, wow.
J. Blynn is the band’s lead guitarist. He looks like a young Art Garfunkel crossed with Daniel Stern (the burglar in Home Alone). His energy is remarkable. After playing an entire set with E&C, Blynn rocked the stage with his own band for an hour and a half. He’s your typical Brooklyn guy, but it’s not off-putting. Instead, I found it somewhat comforting to be in Chicago and see someone who reminded me so much of home. His bandmates - Peter Harper, Sarab Singh, and Whynot - are a motley crew of talents. Drummer, Sarab Singh, is a really skinny guy (probably a function of all the calories he burns from hammering away on the drums) with a penchant for rim shots. His unique style of playing contributes tremendously to the band’s sound and energy. Whynot, whose birthday is today (we all sang to him last night - remember T?), has a waspy hipster air about him. And, Peter Harper - who plays keyboard and guitar and shares in the vocals with J. Blynn - is your typical handsome petite guy. His voice is awesome, his keyboard skills are stellar and by the end of the show, you find yourself gazing lustfully at him (ahem, S).
I’ve put together the playlist below so that you can sample some of the tunes that I heard last night. I think you’ll be impressed. I’ve also included at the bottom of the post a video of Harper Blynn performing their cover of Beyonce’s ‘Halo’…rad.
-R
March 27, 2011
Just returned from a fun-filled European adventure. Here are some shots I snapped while I was in Denmark (with my new favorite application: Hipstamatic).
-R
March 10, 2011
FUN with Hipstamatic during a recent trip to Fort Lauderdale.
-R
Lady Gaga: ‘Born This Way’ Stock Goes Up With Release of Music Video
March 2, 2011
Weird? Yes, but what did you expect? I think it’s awesome. Thank you Lady Gaga for bringing back the music video. I’d been missing these grandiose manifestations of music’s visual identity.
‘Born This Way’ is the ultimate anthem of individuality. This was evident before Gaga released the ‘Born This Way’ music video. With the video, however, Gaga intellectualizes the song in a way that would never have resonated by hearing it on the radio. The video commences with a pink outlined triangle (upside down triangles have traditionally been a symbol for gay rights but are also used to symbolize female power as the triangle is evocative of female parts). I am not sure if this was the intended effect, but the image calls to mind Judy Chicago’s ‘Dinner Party’ (which the Brooklyn museum website calls “an important icon of 1970s feminist art and a milestone in twentieth-century art”). Much of the ‘Born This Way’ video’s introduction, which Gaga narrates, reminds me of the aesthetic evoked by Chicago’s famous piece. Was this intentional? There are certainly parallels between what Chicago was trying to convey and what Gaga purports to be advocating: it is a celebration of the marginalized that elevates everyone in the process.
The narrated portion of the video is set against music from Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Vertigo’ (Gaga has cited the master of psychological thrillers as an inspiration and she even dedicates an entire verse of ‘Bad Romance’ to naming his films…Vertigo among them). She weaves a plethora of other artistic influences together throughout the video as well, each of them poignant and none of them gratuitous. [If you are interested in learning about more of the nods Gaga gives in her ‘Born This Way’ video, I’d suggest reading this piece published in The Atlantic.]
I hesitate to give her too much credit, but Gaga’s shtick about being an artist is pretty legitimate in my opinion. Having studied art history and pored over the influences and messages that great artists of our past worked tirelessly to incorporate into their work, I can say that Gaga is no different. While her work may be cheapened by the backdrop of Hollywood that it is inevitably set against, her ability to synthesize influences and weave messages together makes her a true talent. And she’s smart. I appreciate this fact about her a lot because so many famous people are not intelligent.
The ‘Born This Way’ video makes me like the song (I was a little bit disappointed initially) a lot more than I did before. And Gaga looks gaga…hello ripped abs. Could touring and boozing be the new fitness and diet goldmine?
-R
This Spot is MINE.
February 18, 2011
Take a look at how Chicago-ans reserve their parking spaces at this hilarious blog: http://chicagodibs.tumblr.com/. Some highlights are below:
-R
Quincy Jones Still Knows What’s Up
December 1, 2010
Quincy Jones may be 77, but his finesse as a musical producer has not diminished a whole lot since the glory days of the early 1980s when he produced Michael Jackson’s Thriller album.
Soul Bossa Nostra is a compilation of fifteen of QJ’s biggest hits re-imagined and recorded by some pretty big names in music. The all-star line-up that QJ assembled for this album is pretty legendary with a single track (“Secret Garden”) featuring Usher, Robin Thicke, Barry White, LL Cool J, Tyrese Gibson and Tevin Campbell. Among the other artists featured on the album are Amy Winehouse, Snoop Dogg, and John Legend.
Each of the participating artists selected a song from QJ’s large body of work. QJ produced each of the tracks on the album. The resulting work is the first put out by QJ since 1995.
While Soul Bossa Nostra includes a few definitive duds (Ironside and Hikky-Burr), several of the tracks are nothing short of awesome. Musically complex with strong funk and soul undertones, the album’s shining moments occur during Snoop Dogg’s rendition of Get the Funk Out of My Face, Ludacris/Naturally 7/Rudy Currence’s Soul Bossa Nostra, and Secret Garden (performed by the six notable voices mentioned above).
Also noteworthy is Amy Winehouse’s re-make of Lesley Gore’s It’s My Party. While much was made of AW’s slip into a seeming drug-fueled state of insanity in the years since she put out her epic (at least in the opinion of this author) Back to Black, Amy has remained below the radar for at least the last year and a half. In fact, her involvement in QJ’s project marks the first new track put out by Amy in some time. Originally approached by QJ to perform You Don’t Own Me, Amy expressed an interest in covering the sad girl at the party anthem instead. Her rendition is uniquely Amy Winehouse. I like it. See what you think.
I have mixed feelings about T-Pain and Robin Thicke’s take on Michael Jackson’s PYT, which is heavily auto-tuned. If nothing else, TP and RT’s rendition is rich, bold and interesting…certainly worth a listen, or two (just maybe not ten).
Jennifer Hudson’s version of You Put a Move on My Heart is pretty strong as well.
You can listen to Ludacris/Naturally 7/Rudy Currence perform Soul Bossa Nostra here:
-R
