slide 1
February 2012
Photo by Lauren Dukoff
Exclusive Interview with
The All American Rejects
slide 2
Photo by Katie Lee
Photo by Claire Vogel
MUTEMATH
by Brian Palmer Contributing writer, Brian Palmer got a chance to chat with Darren King of Mutemath about their new release, Odd Soul and more!
wHAT WE THINK
This month we bring you reviews on Lana Del Rey, Goat Rodeo Sessions, and more!
One year ago.
slide 3
First sip...
Happy Leap Year everyone! Yes that's right, this year we get a free day. I am not sure exactly what that means for every day life, but the last few I recall were pretty off the hook, if you know what I am saying....I don't even know what I am saying.
Anyway, whatever you choose to do, whether it be skydiving, swimming with sharks, cuddling grizzly bears, cycling naked (shout out to my Portland peeps, yeah you know who you are) or stealing fancy cars (but we don't condone that....ok?) we wish you the best February 29th ever.
As you all know, I am a huge fan of award season, so it goes without saying that I am pretty damn excited about the Oscars later on this month. In fact I watched all nine Best Picture nominees just so that I could tear them apart for you in this month's issue, so I hope you all enjoy that piece and will tune into the Oscars on the 26th to see just how in touch with the Academy I am.
Some exciting news happened between January and February's issue, Many of you may remember Juliet Simms as basically being the face of Lemonade for our first year, so we were very excited and proud to see her blow away the judges on the season premiere of NBC's
The Voice
that aired after the Super Bowl this year. We wish her all the best for the remainder of the competition, she's going to be huge no matter what. We've been fans since the start.
I hope everyone is surviving the last bit of winter. Personally I can say that I am super stoked that the next issue (which will feature Anya Marina on the cover) will be coming out right before spring starts.....I can almost smell summer already.
Enjoy our chats with The All American Rejects and Mute Math, as well everything else we have to say in this issue. Until next time......
-Brandon
Staff:
Editor in Chief: Brandon Lemons
Contributing Writers: Mimi Page, Brian Palmer, Aaron Mannari and Rose Pendleton
slide 4
-
02 Cardboard Box...2011...Air Show Demons (1).mp3
-
03 Comin With Me.mp3
-
04 Run Like Hell...2011...Air Show Demons.mp3
-
25-03 Outta Control.mp3
Listen before you see them!
Photo by Jazmine Conyers
slide 5
The Mimi Page...Pages
brought to you as always by Mimi Page
Born To Live (Mimi Page VS. Lana Del Rey)
So yeah...…I sing about video games too. Maybe Lana and I have a few things in common – except that I AM the nerd, and my boyfriend is the one coming home and telling ME to put down the XBOX controller. Those of you who follow me closely know I’'m sheepishly obsessed with the game
Skyrim
. I inspired my latest two songs after the game’s soundtrack by Jeremy Soule.
(( On a side note: I’m a big gamer and here’s why: A video game is the best vacation you can buy for 60 dollars when you can’'t afford to go anywhere else. Let's face it, times are tight for a lot of us these days. Also it’s a great de-stresser when you need to escape reality for a couple hours and virtually slay some dragons or blow some crap up until you chill out a bit. I highly recommend it.))
Anyway, I found out about Lana Del Rey this summer when someone sent me the youtube link of “
Video Games
via email because it was apparently going “viral” and doing the down-tempo piano/vocal thing. She was supposedly unknown and coming out of nowhere but predicted to be the next big thing. SO I clicked play and heard these 6 beautiful and melancholy piano chords and a breathy, Hope Sandoval-esque voice slither over them…. Then I saw her retro barbie, too pretty to be real looks and I thought, "FUCK – she beat me to it – she'’s the next deep/dark mysterious indie girl of 2012. (Or so says every single blog / magazine / music critic. )" And thus started my neurotic obsession with Lana Del Rey’'s career – much like how the straight A’d semi-cute nerd envies the
beautiful popular cheerleader in high school. But yuck; –I’'m better than this. I hate feeling like this! I'’m not a jealous person, and I like to support and cheer on my female peers even if they’'re not my style. Why am I feeling so pissed off about this girl’'s rise to fame!?
I know I know, my music is unique in it’s own right and my behavior is completely juvenile. BUT I'’m a chick and I’'m sensitive. I'’ve been writing songs for years and –done everything humanly possible to try and personally master the art of not only the singer/songwriter but the producer, the orchestrator, the pianist, the engineer and mixer, and most of all- the authentic artist. Past the make-up and the hair, the fashion, the curse of being a female –and the lust for perfection….....the bottom line is: I am what I am, period. Love me or hate me or don’'t give a damn about me, I am my music and nothing but. I gave birth to every lyric, melody and sonic frequency you hear and if there is an illusion or a fantasy surrounding me, it is because I am one with my art and rarely exist outside of it. What matters most is the passion, honesty, and creativity inside my sonic world. My image matters last to me because I think sound should hit the ears first before it meets the eyes.
Del Rey seems to be quite the opposite of me. The more I dived into blogs and critiques, this big Lana Del Rey media frenzy….I realized that it was beyond her songs. It was her looks, her
slide 6
caricature, her fantasy. There were more photo shoots and modeling shots than actual songs. I actually liked her singles
Born to Die
,
Blue Jeans
and
Video Games
. What I hated was the hype. Her songs are pretty and catchy, but calling her songs HERS is questionable, being that she’'s got several co-writers, producers and orchestrators behind her. I think she’'s got a beautiful voice and she takes the songs where they need to go, but it’'s definitely a collaborative effort, not solo. With Lana herself, I think what lost me a bit was that she didn'’t write those 6 dark piano chords I liked so much in
Video Games
– or that sexy bluesy guitar line in the intro to
Blue Jeans
, or those string arrangements and contrasting trip-hop beat in
Born to Die
. Put her behind a piano, guitar or laptop and play the "sad sex kitten protagonist while singing" thing and you may win me over. BUT I just can’'t get that emotionally invested or even be inspired by “the next big 2012 female songwriter” when she didn’'t write everything in the studio, and when performing live just stands there and looks pretty. I want to feel the pain and the longing her lyrics suggest. …I love sad music, if this album brushes on aspects of darkness, death and emotional destruction, why am I not feeling the hellish sorrow?
We both have our debut albums coming out at the same time – hers two weeks before mine. She’'s had every journalist eating out of the palm of her hand with only a few songs while I’'ve been banging on doors begging for people to give me a listen. This is a tough industry, and it plays favorites. It'’s hard to shine in someone else’s shadow. But then....….BAM! Her SNL fiasco….and then the media downward spiral that immediately followed.
I watched everyone who built this girl up, tear her completely down in a matter of minutes. She was nervous and she obviously wasn’'t ready for something that big. It'’s true, super established bands who’ have been around for a long time haven'’t even gotten their shot on that show, yet she magically appears after a couple of songs go “viral” on the internet? It isn’'t fair….......but is the brutal backlash fair either? I don't know. I mean, my God, I'’m not bad live but how many gigs have I had where I completely screwed up,– blacked out on a lyric and missed a pitch because I was affected by stage fright. I felt extremely bad for her that night – I’'ve emotionally been there too, but thank God it was in a half empty dive bar singing for a crowd of 15 instead of national television. And despite my "“it'’s not fair”" attitude that she'’s broken into the mainstream in a matter of months, she’'s just a girl following her dream like I am. The judgement ends when people go too far –and I do believe the critics have gone too far. BUT, to the critic’s credit, I don’'t think their anger is entirely directed at Del Rey, but the people behind and around her who’ have hyped her up to be this mega goddess when infact behind the facade of glitz and glamour she'’s just a pretty girl with a pretty voice just trying to live her own dream like the rest of us are.
In this TMZ new media world, reality stars and private lives are the main attraction. It'’s not even about the music anymore...…it’s about the rise of and fall of a fantasy which was created and destroyed by the media itself. The blessing is…....I'’ve learned a lot from this. I'’m honing my craft, I'’m rehearsing like crazy, and already working on my second album. I'’m also film scoring, and collaborating with other artists so that I can keep growing, –because I can never stop learning about my craft and this gift I’'ve been given. There'’s always more work and more exploration with the art of music making itself. Lana Del Rey’s experience has helped me embrace the fact that my musical journey has been such a so slow climb, so rough, on such a steep incline. Maybe I’'m blessed to be in the shadows so that I can keep living my life and building my life experiences outside of this modern day goal of “fame” that appears to be round-the-clock glamour shoots, red carpets and trailing paparazzi.
I don'’t know if Lana Del Rey is currently living the high life or locked in a living hell with all this newfound buzz and fame. All I know is, a few years ago I wanted nothing more than the life she'’s living right now. I longed for the stardom, physical perfection, to be lusted after and idolized
slide 7
just for being myself. That’s not so appealing to me anymore. I'’ll be turning 25 next week and all I can say is- I’m grateful for my private life, this musical gift I was given and how it touches and affects people. My fan base is relatively small compared to Lana'’s 50 thousand facebook likes a day, but I have a core group of listeners who I know will follow me wherever I go, even if I’'m not the hottest girl in town and I don'’t become a mega millionaire, fashion icon celebrity. My fans know I write from the soul… and my music speaks a positive message of not giving up no matter WHAT life throws in your path (Come What May)…… and that in contrast to this femme fatale "“Born to Die"” message Lana Del Rey'’s album suggests, my message is that life is short, but I'’m born to live.
www.mimipage.com
Photo by Katie Lee
Now available on Amazon and iTunes
slide 8
Introducing...Late To The Party
So first tell us how you guys met?
Well...Greg and Paul played in a band together years and years ago ( The Heavy Arthurs ) and stayed in touch in the same circles. And Greg and I played in separate bands ( Greg was in Hustlero GT and I ( Scott ) was in Polyplush Cats ) in the Baltimore area back during that time, I didn't know Paul then but he was in the Octonauts during that time. Then after my band the Polyplush Cats broke up ( after 12 years ) I put a band back together that I played guitar in in 2005 ( the Filthy Rotten Sex Machine ) and asked Greg to play drums. He did and when our bassist left a year later the FRSM he asked Paul to join. We went on for a year or two and then parted ways with our singer a week before we were going out to do some out of town dates and just after finishing what was going to be the 2nd FRSM CD. Then I became the singer and we reworked a bunch of our tunes and started writing new ones. Now we are finally finished the 1st LTTP CD.
There's obviously some Black Sabbath inspiration in your music...how much inspiration did bands like them have on you guys?
Scott:
Oddly Enough, the songs that sounds the most like Black Sabbath (
She's A Mystery
) isn't actually getting released with this batch of tunes. Maybe we will release it next time. But to answer your question Sabbath influenced me for sure, but the New York Dolls ( Johhny Thunders ) and the Sex Pistols influenced me even more, and KISS and shit like that.
Greg:
Zepplin...Besides that I don't get influenced by bands, I influence them... : ) ...
Paul:
Beatles, Love and Rockets, The Cure and Guns n' Roses
Photo by Stephanie Crankshaw of Lucid Dreams Photography
slide 9
You mentioned in another interview that you wore a jacket endorsed by Justin Timberlake...so here's the big question: Would you rather be Justin Timberlake in
Alpha Dog
(opposite Olivia Wilde),
Friends With Benefits
(opposite Mila Kunis) or
Yogi The Bear
(opposite Dan Akroyd)?
Scott:
Yeah, and that Jacket is the BOMB!
Can't I be J.T. Opposite Jessica Biel? If not I will go with opposite Mila Kunis. Crap, I change my mind, I'm gonna go with Dan Akroyd. He has some way better movies than either of the other 2 like,
The Beach Boys : It's OK -
TV Movie,
The Blues Brothers
and
Ghost Busters
.
Greg:
Mila Kunis for sure... Paul: Yeah Yeah Yeah, Mila Kunis it is...
Most shocking music on one or all of your iPods?
Scott:
Hold Please while I charge it so I can look...............shocking, as in I can't believe I have it would be Gavin Degraw ( just one song ) ...shocking, as in Heavy...Converge or Devil Driver...
Greg:
I have a cover of
November Rain
by Selena Gomez, Fred Durst and Alien Ant Farm on my iPod...That's Shocking right? ...and Mastadon...
Paul:
For me, let's see..................Savage Garden, Truly Madly Deeply...Yep that's the one that is shocking on my iPod.
You guys are from Baltimore, how are you handling the Ravens post season loss?
Scott:
Well I have been a Washington Redskins fan since I was around 8 so I have been feeling pain for about the passed 12 years now.
Greg:
I'm Disappointed, but there are much more important things to worry about these days.
Paul:
I Pray that Ray and Ed Reed don't Retire and throw trash into my new Billy Cundiff Trash Can.
Give us an idea of what your on tour food menu will look like...
Scott:
Hopefully some NW Seafood and Burgers, but most likely Hot dogs, Pizza ( hopefully NW Pizza is good ), Alchohol and Swedish Fish.
Greg:
Leftovers and Beer, Broken Drems and Broken Promises............
Paul:
Swedish Fish and Humble Pie...
Page 11
The Return of... The All American Rejects
by Brandon Lemons
They've made the kind of songs that last forever (
Move Along
,
Gives You Hell
,
It Ends Tonight),
so you may be a bit shocked when you hear that it's been over three years since their last album (
When The World Comes Down
) was released.
We are sure you are as excited as we are to hear that their fourth studio album
Kids in the Street
is set to come out this spring. Lead guitarist and founding member, Nick Wheeler took some time to chat with us about their upcoming release, life on the road again, and more.
Page 12
How's the tour going so far?
Nick: The tour is going good, it's called the "Shaking Off The Rust Tour", since it's the first headlining tour we've done in over two years. We're so pumped to be out here doing shows, it's probably the most fun we've had in a decade. We're playing some of the longest sets we've ever played, it's hard to get us off stage, because we're having a fucking blast.
You're headed out to the UK later this year, have you played there often?
Nick: Yeah, we've played in the UK since 2003 - I think was the first time we played there - and they've always been great to us. London's a great crowd, same with the rest of England and I think we are doing a little bit of Ireland this time as well.
You guys seem to balance being this funny, happy band so well with your serious side. Not a lot of bands can do that. What's your secret?
Nick: We have a lot of fun doing this, but we take what we do very seriously. The two years it takes us to write and record an album are really intense for us and then we balance that out while we're touring. We take what we do seriously, but we don't take ourselves too seriously, we still know how to get on stage and have fun and bring new songs to people, as opposed to getting up there and boring everyone to tears, because we think we're too important. There are so many bands that do that these days and really it's fucking old.
The first single off the new album is titled
Beekeeper's Daughter
. Tell us a little more about the song.
Nick: It was one of the songs that was written earlier on for
Kids on the Street
, we wrote it almost two years ago now. Supporting
Gives You Hell
in 2009, you know that was the biggest ride we'd ever been on, it was insane, so you know coming back down to earth and getting our heads bumped straight....it was a trip. Tyson and I both moved to Los Angeles and he really got into it, as far as everything LA has to offer. Like I said it was written early on and it was about the time when he really thought he was bullet proof , it's somewhat autobiographical. We wrote it up in Sequoia Grove National Forest. That's where we took our first road trip. We were making breakfast or something and the bottle of honey they had stocked in the cabinet was called "Beekeeper's Daughter" and so I thought it was funny with the bee, the honey and the flower lyrics, so I titled the song
Beekeeper's Daughter
, assuming we would change it to something more appropriate, but nobody would let me change it. *laughs*.
You have some real gems on the upcoming album, my favorite being
Affection
. What's your favorite song off of
Kids on the Street
?
Nick: Shit, awesome I haven't got to talk about
Affection
yet! Dude that's a great pick, we were in Chicago right after Warped Tour in 2010 trying to write some more tunes. It was this idea that Ty brought to me and at the time I was watching all these episodes of
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia
. The intro to the show has a lot of woodwinds, a lot of
Page 13
fluttery sounds. Just for fun I built this string and woodwind section kind of in a similar style around that song and again I thought we'd change it once we got to the studio, but we actually ended up blowing it even more out of proportion and we got a guy named Joel McNeely - who is a very talented string arranger - and he helped get together a 30-40 piece orchestra and we actually played the song live with them, so when it gets to that big band section at the end, that is us playing with them on the floor. It was a lot of fun, that was a great day. It was one of these things where all the string players are union guys, so we had like two hours to capture this song. It's a total time crunch, some of the songs we spend up to two weeks recording and this one we spent only two hours.
I hear rumor you guys recently shared a trailer with a pretty inconic Las Vegas resident. Care to fill us in on the story?
Nick: *laughs* We shot a video for
Beekeeper's Daughter
a couple weeks ago now and the director (Isaac Rentz) brought to us this treatment that was kind of similar to the Ferris Bueller parade scene and we really wanted to blow it up and make it weird. I thought it was a joke, there were all these ideas I was giving and this e-mail chain going back and forth for the video, finally Ty was like "oh yeah and Wayne Newton."
I thought it was a joke, like "hey let's throw everything into it". Then a week later we are in rehersal for the tour and I get this text message saying "hey are you guys ok with sharing a trailer with Wayne Newton?" and I am like "What!? We got Wayne Newton!?"
*laughs*
Nick: *laughs hard*, so yeah....we got Wayne Newton in our video and we got to hang out with him a
Photo by Lauren Dukoff
bit and his family. Super nice people and he invited us out to Shenandoah, so that should be dope.
It has to be a bit surreal considering his career and image.
Nick: Yeah I sent a picture to my mom and she's like "tell him I remember seeing him on Bonanza in the 60's" and I was like "Holy shit mom! I am not telling him that!" *laughs*
What's up with hitting Portland, Spokane and Boise on your current tour, but not us Western Washingtonians?
Nick: *laughs* I know! It was so weird, I was like "why are we going through these places in the dead of winter?" it's nearly suicidal! I think we wanted to work it out so that we could end up at Sundance and play at the ASCAP Music Cafe which is always a good time, but yeah man, we traveled over some fucking treacherous terrain on this tour just to do that! Hopefully we'll be coming through in the spring, so you can catch a show.
Page 14
Photo by Claire Vogel
MUTEMATH
by Brian Palmer
It has been a rough few years for drummer Darren King and the rest of the guys in the popular alt-rock band MUTEMATH, but with their latest release,
Odd Soul
, the band seems to have purged its emotional, spiritual and creative demons. In this interview King talks with us about the importance of laughter, improvising, “chilling your ass out,” faith and pyromania.
BP: Tell us a bit about the dynamic of Odd Soul. It’s frenetic and a bit all over the place with all the influences coming from varied genres like rock, electronica, blues and even shades of Gospel and psychedelia. It has starts and stops and this odd sort of rhythm to it throughout. The whole thing feels very wild and exploratory. Was that your goal from the start?
DK: The only thing we started out with was the idea that we wanted it to mimic our live show more. We felt like we were…we’d always tap into something whenever we’d start to arrange our songs and play them live, that we were making the mistake of turning off once it came time to get into the studio. So we simply wanted to leave all those fun things in there. We’d be talking about different songs and we’d be like, “Well, let’s just put that into the recording. It will be better for it (laughs).”
And one band I thought did that really well was The Dead Weather. Them doing that…I heard that in their record and it kind of made me jealous of that. I wanted to try something that had that sort of sonic quality to it, the starts and stops and all that.
Photo by Scott Trindle
Photo by Scott Trindle
Page 15
BP: Now with
Odd Soul
this was the first time you were involved in the writing process with Paul Meany as fully as you were this time around, so how much more did you bring to the process by helping out? What sort of dynamic did this pairing create for you guys?
DK: Well Paul and I always worked side by side. And Roy (Mitchell-Cardenas, the bassist) as well. Roy worked really hard. He’d drive all the way up from Miami and play guitar and he worked pretty tirelessly with us. But it was often up to Paul and me to edit it all together and finish it and turn it into finished stuff, and we would trade roles. We would trade the producer role from time to time. Sometimes he would be the artist and I’d be the producer and try to get the most out of him, try to encourage him; other times I was the one trying to create and he was the one challenging me; other times it was much more collaborative, and then there were even a number of times where it was just the two of us in separate rooms cooking up different things and then the next day we would bring everything together and see what came of all that, you know? He’d have a piece of the puzzle and I’d have a piece to fit somewhere else. So it was pretty great. I thoroughly enjoyed the process. It’s a challenge to be in Paul’s house. Logistically, it was complicated to be living and working in that same space, and me sort of taking over his whole house, so my dream of course is that we can get our own little studio where we can work in New Orleans.
BP: Where did the idea for
Blood Pressure
come from?
DK: That one started with me. That was dealing with my feelings of (long pause) it came about just through reminiscing about the way that families work, and it was as much through observation as it was from personal experience, but the idea I had in my brain was this question: Why you can’t you be more like your older brother? As a kid I was raised with this understanding that you were supposed to make Jesus your standard. And yet the whole idea of that, right or wrong, the whole idea that you were supposed to make Jesus your standard, you quickly realized that that was impossible (laughs) but that was supposed to help you chill out, like “Chill your ass out” whenever you realize you’re not perfect. I thought that since Jesus was my standard I wasn’t a good person until I could be like him, and I would drive myself crazy. If you watch
Jesus Camp
, maybe you’ve seen someone like that or been there yourself where you’re just killing yourself…just absolutely burning yourself out trying to be perfect and finally the pressure of the expectation gets to be too much and you just kind of lose it (laughs) you go nuts for a little bit. And that’s what that song’s about, it’s about that kind of pressure, but it’s also framed in the context of the story of a parent who’s putting the pressure on the kid. And that was not my story at all. My mother was actually patient with my intensity. I was the one who was giving her crap about the fact that she was listening to Garth Brooks and how she ought to have been listening to something more wholesome, you know? (Both laugh) How ridiculous is that, you know?
BP: I think a lot of us have been there at some point. I went to a Christian high school and a guy came and spoke once about the ills of secular music and so afterward a bunch of people wanted to just trash all of their secular music because it was evil and all that. And there’s something to that, in a way, but it’s not how everyone is going to respond, and it shouldn’t be that way either.
DK: Yeah, I had a bonfire with my friends and we burned ‘em all.
BP: Oh yeah, the bonfires! I remember that fad and people doing that.
DK: Yep, I did it. And the plastic smells so gross when you’re burning it. That had to be so unhealthy for all of us (Both laugh). Like, dancing around a flaming pile of compact discs cannot be healthy. (laughs) That’s gotta be a health hazard.
Page 16
BP: Yeah, no doubt! So how did you guys come up with the vision for the music video for
Blood Pressure
?
DK: I had done two videos prior to this. “Odd Soul” is kind of similar, but I also did this thing called “Drums + Bass” which was just something we filmed together and then everything was chopped up. We realized that we had a very compressed deadline and needed to make a video while we were in L.A. because we weren’t going to be together again until we were on tour. So we met up in L.A., we met in the parking lot of the record label on the day we were doing press and stayed up all night filming it, and we kind of…to be honest with you, it was pretty improvised. It was so fun and I was so proud. It was definitely spur of the moment. And while filming it we would sometimes (laughs)... we would be frozen in place and talking to each other. “Okay now what do we do?” “Now what’s going to happen is we’re going to do this, all this stuff,” and so all we were left with at the end was this big pile of video that we’d recorded. And…yeah (laughs). It was quite a bit of work.
BP: Well it turned out great. It looks like you guys had a blast doing it.
DK: Yeah, we did. We had so much fun making the video. I’ve learned that that’s how video shoots are supposed to be, and I also think that’s also how working in the studio should be. I think the more you find yourself laughing, probably the better you’re doing when it comes to creating music and video. There should always be lots of laughing.
Page 18
Oscar
My
Brandon Lemons
by
Power
Rankings
When it comes to entertainment there's nothing quite like award season. If you know me, you know that I am quite possibly the only person to look to when you ask yourself that question "Who's going to win Best Picture?". The Academy may not agree with me, but deep down you know that what really matters is who I think should win. This year features some of the biggest names in the movie industry and something for everyone, even stoners! That's right
Tree of Life
, I am talking about you.
Enough of that though, let's get to it....I present to you my 2012 Oscar Power Rankings for Best Picture.
Snubs:
The Ides of March
Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Filament Features
by Brandon Lemons
Photo by Leigha Hodnet
Page 19
9. The Artist
Directed by Michel Hazanavicious
Starring: Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo
I can already sense the crucifixtion I will receive after people read this. It's no secret that
The Artist
is one of the front runners for Best Picture and has a nearly perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes, but I completely disagree. You may argue I am not artistic enough to fully understand the beauty of a silent film, but nothing could be further from the truth. Truth is, I love silent films and that is the reason why I dislike this film.
For starters the score is completely detached from the story line, it felt like I was on hold with my bank, while cheap waiting music
is repeated over and over again. The story itself was boring and lacked originality entirely. If you are going to bring back a classic medium....please have some creativity.
It is sad how predictable and typical the reaction to this film was. I would have bet my life on the fact that hipsters and pseudo intellectuals would name this as one of their favorite films simply by seeing the poster for it, as it always seems to happen with imported "art" pieces that fall so far short of creating anything, but a conversation piece for the uppity and ironic to annoy us with. Again, as I said, the most important part of a silent film is the score and the emotion it evokes from the storyline, this one evoked nothing, but Zzzzzz's. If you disagree with me, I hope that you'll look into the silent movies of old and you will get exactly what I mean.
8. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Directed by Stephen Daldry
Starring: Thomas Horn, Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock
There were points of this film that I loved and then parts that I thought were too predictable. The acting job by the young Thomas Horn is outstanding. His role is extremely hard and emotional to play and I do believe worthy of a Best Actor nomination if I am honest. What I didn't like about it was the fact that you had to invest yourself into the story rather than it pulling you in. The storyline is eratic and sometimes even seems pointless. That all said, I can't say that I didn't enjoy
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,
I just didn't feel it grabbed me like it should have.
Page 20
7. The Help
Directed by Tate Taylor
Starring: Emma Stone, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer
Films like
The Help
can be hard to watch. It wasn't an attractive time for the human race and nobody likes to be reminded of the ugliness that is racism. Thankfully Tate Taylor delivers this story in such a way that you never tend to feel uncomfortable watching it. It's empowering on so many levels and you are left with a feeling of hope rather than a feeling of disgust towards how some of our ancestors treated one another at a point in time. Emma Stone proves time and time again that she is capable of taking on nearly any role and Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis and Jessica Chastain support her perfectly. Although I would suggest this film to everyone, I do feel it may have reigned itself in a bit at
times in order to keep a more family friendly feel. There are also some over the top moments that make you scratch your head a bit. That doesn't mean it isn't a great film, it just doesn't match the quality of the top nominees.
6. Hugo
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Starring: Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moritz, Ben Kingsley and Christopher Lee
With one of the best casts in the bunch, Hugo never falls short in the acting department. Everyone from Sacha Baron Cohen to Christopher Lee create what is a very enjoyable character driven story. Not to mention the cinematography for
Hugo
is beautiful. Where it falls a little short is in it's plot. Although an enjoyable story, it really is one that's been told in one way or the other in the past numerous times. Although I personally have it ranked over three other movies, I can't say I am not a little bit shocked that it was nominated for Best Picture. All things considered though, it is definitely worth your time if you are looking for an easy to follow, enjoyable story.
Page 21
5. Midnight in Paris
Directed by Woody Allen
Starring: Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams and Marion Cotillard
I won't lie, I am a huge fan of Woody Allen. I love how he always stays true to who he is without becoming boring and repetitive.
Midnight in Paris
is no exception. Once again Allen takes a simple story and ads the simplest of other worldly twists to shake it up. Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams make great additions to the group of actors that Allen tends to stay loyal to and include in multiple projects.
Midnight in Paris
is 100% charming. It has what
The Artist
completely lacked. However even compared to past Woody Allen films such as
Match Point
and
Scoop
it doesn't have the moment
that makes you feel it is worthy of a Best PIcture win, but it is certainly deserving of it's nomination.
4. Tree of Life
Directed by Terence Malick
Starring: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain
Oh what an interesting nominee this is. On one hand I am trying to figure out how it ever got nominated and on the other I can't help, but be completely intrigued by it, as well as love it entirely.
I am not always one for experimental film, but the way Malick ties in the character part of the story with the existential part of the story is as fascinating and beautiful as it is completely whacked out strange - it's not very often you go from a 1960's family drama to a dinosaur choking another dinosaur. In some ways I feel the film could have carried itself just fine without the experimental "Birth of the Universe" portion of it. In other ways I
kind of feel like that's one of the parts that made me love it so much, as trippy as it may be. Brad Pitt gives us an amazing performance as a very strict (borderline bullying) father and Jessica Chastain plays the perfect balance as the soft spoken, calm mother. The storyline is deep, engrossing and it sticks without for some time afterward. What more could you ask for?
Page 22
3. War Horse
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring: Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson and David Thewlis
It's amazing how quickly Hollywood forgets that sometimes you can produce a winner with lesser known actors. Most movie goers have probably never seen any of the lead actors in this film before, yet I can't think of any other cast that could have been better.
When a movie hits you so hard that it brings out a flood of emotions that is when you know it's gone above and beyond doing it's job.
War Horse
does just that. Every single character - including the horse - tie into each other so beautifully and you can't help, but feel like you are one of them. On somewhat of a sidenote, a young actress by the name of Celine Buckens gives
an extremely touching and sad performance in this film that in my opinion has been overlooked. She is one part of a large supporting cast that makes
War Horse
what it is. Small "Disney-esque" moments and extremely tough competition land it at number three on my list, but overall
War Horse
is already one of my favorite movies of all time.
2. Moneyball
Directed by Bennett Miller
Starring: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill and Philip Seymour Hoffman
It's funny, people ask me "Why do you love sports so much? It's the same thing every year, it's not like you're a part of the team.". My response is always "Well obviously you just don't get sports then".
Moneyball
shows the world exactly why I love sports so much.
If you didn't know any better you would think
Moneyball
was a work of fiction, because there is no way you could have a storyline quite like it in real life, but the truth is....it did happen, in fact it happened barely nine years ago! Jonah Hill makes the transition from Judd Apatow to Best Picture nominee perfectly
and Brad Pitt.....again gives a spot on performance as Oakland A's GM Billy Beane. Both the story of Beane's relationship with his daughter and ex wife, as well as his triumphs and tragedies as a baseball GM are tied in perfectly in the end by Bennett Miller and make
Moneyball
a contender for one of my favorite sports films ever.
Page 23
1. The Descendants
Directed by Alexander Payne
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller
I actually didn't know what to expect before I watched
The Descendants
and I'll even go as far to say I thought I was going to be bored stiff....shame on me! I should have known George Clooney could do no wrong (just keep your mouths shut
Batman
fans).
This film reminds me of why I not only love film, but also love the art of film making. To bring such a relatable and simple story to life the way Alexander Payne does with
The Descendants
is amazing. It pulls you in from the start and keeps you there. I can't state how much I loved this film enough. Hands down this is my
pick for Best Picture and SHOULD be the winner this year.
The Descendants
is everything that an Oscar winner should be and it would be a shame if a poorly executed gimmick beats it out with perceived artistry, when
The Descendants
embodies the effectiveness of art and simple beauty that is film perfectly.
Page 24
2012 Female Breakout Artists
by Aaron Mannari
Happy New Year to everyone! What does 2012 bring besides a lot of accidental uses of 2011, a leap year and the potential end of the world on December 21st? New music! I know shocking, right? Come on, what is more exciting than trying to find the next big thing and potentially being the first of your friends to discover a new artist? Well, I have put together a list of some of the potential candidates that you should keep an eye and ear on for 2012. This will be a multi-phase article and we are going to start with the ladies!
So let’s just get right into it!
Brooke Annibale
After Brooke’s 2011 release,
Silence Worth Breaking
, she should have been on everyone’s radar with her stunningly genuine vocals and expressive lyrics and songwriting. If you have not had the pleasure of listening to Brooke, you should search her out on iTunes, Spotify or visit her website right now. It’s okay. I will wait. No, seriously, go check it out!
Okay, welcome back. As you now have heard, Brooke’s poetic, soulful lyrics are deep and unyielding. Her smoky and deeply passionate vocals on songs like
Under Streetlights
and
Tryin
show her versatility and emotional fortitude. You can feel every single lonely heartbeat and tear rolling down her cheek. It permeates on every single note on every single song Ms. Annibale sings. It's no shock that over the last few months, the CW has featured Brooke’s songs on episodes of
Hart of Dixie
and
One Tree Hill
.
Page 27
Halie Loren
The Seattle-born Halie Loren has released five studio albums since 2004, but has flown under the radar in the North America (though she does have quite the following in Japan) except for the select few fans lucky enough to have discovered her lovely, soulful music. I think it is time that this treasure from the Northwest is given some recognition for her jazz-infused pop music. As a friend described her to me, Ms. Loren reminds me of a female version of Michael Bublé. For the uninitiated, Mr. Bublé is superstar bringing back the sounds of big band, jazz and the musical style of crooners like Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby.
Halie Loren’s newest album,
Heart First
, was released in Japan late last year and will be released here in the US in March 2012. It promises to be something different than the typical bubblegum pop and overworked guitar riffs that we are currently seeing in popular music today and is a bit of a throwback to crooners of the 1950s. If you are looking for a sound that is uniquely American and is not overly commercial, Halie Loren is your girl.
Mandi Perkins (of Verona)
If you have kept up with Lemonade Magazine, you probably saw the interview in the June 2011 anniversary issue with Mandi Perkins from of Verona. If you did not, the electric EP,
Fall Like Roses,
is just a sample of what is to come for the Los Angeles-based band. The group, headed by vocalist and Toronto-native Mandi Perkins, will release their first full-length album,
The White Apple
, this February. I personally cannot wait to see it explode up the charts.
Of Verona’s unique, dance-inducing sound engulfs the aural sense with stunningly gentle melodies set to a solid techno/electronica beat and combine it with the sensual, addictive vocals of Ms. Perkins. The perfect storm of tempo, rhythm and melody are made for the masses and of Verona is ready to make landfall in 2012. They are already a hot commodity in and around Southern California area, but the full exposure that of Verona will experience in 2012 could be blistering.
Page 28
Meiko
This talented singer/songwriter from Roberta, Georgia has been working on her new album for a while now, but is expecting to release the currently untitled album in 2012. She graces the cover of Lemonade Magazine’s January 2011 issue and has been diligently performing numerous concerts and putting the finishing touches on her album.
Page 33
What we have to say...
Ok so we didn't like it
It was just alright
Enjoyed listening to it
Definitely going on my iPod
Epic, out of this world, future classic
Page 34
Yo Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile The Goat Rodeo Sessions Sony Masterworks
Page 35
True Mad North True Mad North
Page 36
Lana Del Rey Born To Die Interscope
Page 38
Jillian Edwards Headfirst EP
Page 39
Anya Marina Felony Flats Atlantic
