welcome to the summer of skills

Vonnegut probably said it best in the closing lines of Breakfast of Champions, "make me young! make me young!" That being said, out of all the films being released this summer, Son Of Rambow seems to be the one most worthy of hyperactive anticipation. If you haven't realized already...

Here's a taste of two others that are either so absurd (for the mere fact that the project was even accepted into production) or have the potential to be something inescapably sweet, despite the bizarre concept. Still, it goes without saying, they MUST be seen.



Skills Like This
[Clutch usage of The Wedding Present!]


Mister Lonely

new dark night trailer

"Until then, read the Sears & Roebeck catalog"

Apparently PFoH doesn't like music anymore. But what we do like are serial killers, and letters from children, and letters from serial killers. Creepy? Oh my god satisfyingly so.

A man named Bill Geerhart apparently posed as a 10-year-old boy in the 90s and sent letters to a large range of sensation "celebrities" including Charles Manson, The Unabomber, Larry Flynt, and even Miss Oprah Winfrey. (Larry Flynt provided the best quote: when asked if Billy should wait until he's 18 to order Hustler, Flynt responds to "Read the Sears & Roebeck catalog" until he turns 18.)

These letter are highly entertaining, and a great reason to buy Radar mag this month. Fortunately, you can get a few of the letters online. Worthwhile: Charles Manson (is frighteningly crazy even in print).


Click here to check them out.

i actually really like this song.

Since we are on the subject of Garfield...

There may be nothing funnier to me right now than Lasagna Cat. If you ever thought John was always portrayed in the comic strip as some white dude with a styrofoam afro, imagine him dancing to Tom Jones in front of a green screen. A new brand of unbridled genius, really!

for example:

John's self-prescribed mantras

There may be nothing funnier to me right now than Garfield Minus Garfield. If you ever thought John was always portrayed in the comic strip as a hopelessly neurotic loner, imagine him talking to himself the entire time. A new brand of unbridled genius, really!

for example:

Bringing new meaning to the term "newsworthy"

For some time it's been common knowledge that headline goof-ups, particularly CNN's, are highly entertaining, often misleading, and sometimes offensive. So what? I've read a few, thought they were funny, and moved on. Well now a whole blog has been created to illustrate the ridiculous scenarios that CNN finds newsworthy. The blog is eloquently titled CNN is like the worst news source. Ever. and everyday the blogger lists some ridiculous headlines and then chooses to draw a picture for one of them. Here are some of my favorites (click images for larger size):

"Pit bulls kill cancer boy's miniature horse"



"Man wears skirt to mow lawn, breaks law"



"Principal had teens, porn, pot, cops say"



And remember to check out the full blog for more fun with news. I also watched a few of these videos. The one about the man in the skirt is slightly disturbing due to his creep mouth, the term "heat rash", and the image of him sitting on his lawn mower with no panties on (thank you censor blur, thank you).

?

japanese bruce springsteen ftw!

six packs to french knacks

Between La Blogotheque & the timeless chronicling of street performers, the Take Away Shows profile an endless amount of vital artists churning out selected material. Their main focus is on the origin of songs, & their placement in everyday situations. From Scout Niblett & The Black Lips to Yeasayer and Carbiou, and even R.E.M., there is an unlimited supply of sweetness all over this place.


#55.1 takes on The Dirty Projectors, who have already established themselves as innovative & oddly infectious with Rise Above, their re-imagining of Black Flag's classic record Damaged. This lengthy, but totally intimate, performance of "Police Story" is the real deal. Their arrangements blow my mind with every listen &, if you have the time to spare, these two installments are a feast for the starving cerebrum!

#55.1 - The Dirty Projectors - pt. 1


#55.1 - The Dirty Projectors - pt. 2

Sexuality (or should we say sexualité)

Sebastian Tellier just released this video for his single "Divine" and it's off the wall intentionally weird. This is the first time I've heard of the artist, but apparently he's a huge popstar in France and has been topping the charts for a few years now. His new album (a concept album, I might add) is called Sexuality and it's produced by Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk. Considering there's another song called "Sexual Sportswear", I'm kind of excited. It's ridiculousness packed into well-produced music. If this guy doesn't inspire a thousand fabulous Halloween costumes I don't know what will:

ian shwartz... again.

gone fishin'. they're claiming this is ian shwartz's 'scrap footage' for the new sunday! video, that video is going to be ridiculous. ian's signature sunday! 2nd wave is about to come out, i've wanted a t-1 barcode since i was 14 (i've been contemplating buying the garrett for the past few monthes) but i think i'm going to have buy a 2nd wave as my birthday present to myself.

united mega tour webvid on defgrip too.

deer tick - these old shoes

I've never even heard of filler.

For anyone that loves cheesy horror movies, Thor, or just super buff guys with huge hair and sparkly outfits, Rock and Roll Nightmare is a must. Especially the finale (or maybe only the finale, the movie's pretty bad). 

Things to note:
  - The one eyed, shouldered penises that come to back up the demon
  - At the 2:10 mark, Thor showing off his ability to look in a dictionary.
  - 4:07, thor has 3 sets of boobs
  - Skip to 4:40 to view his full costume
  - And if you're really in a hurry, just skip to 5:27 where things get pretty epic. Are they playing a Double Dare challenge game here?

el coolest bromea en la ciudad

From the youthful exuberance of Be Your Own Pet & The Sex comes JEFF. As a two-piece brotherhood, one being the founder of their Infinity Cat record label, they are wired for angular guitar insanity. To be honest, there is virtually no way to do their sound justice outside of this video. BEHOLD, the Tennessee underground!

JEFF - Nooo Sixties

Let's make vibrations in the plains

In keeping with the trend of overwhelming line-ups of artists (homegirl Caitlin's mention of Outiside Lands) Let's venture to the land of humid winds & overweight baseball fans. Sweet home (really!) Chicago is the place & Union Park is the space.

The Pitchfork Music Festival [July 18-20] is an unmissable experience to say the least. Each year I've been just keeps getting better. & With ticket prices that won't drain your finances [along with a forum that boasts DIY artist booths, a enormous poster art sale & delicious beer] you really can't go wrong.



Throw in the fact that Chuck D & Flava Flav are reuniting as Public Enemy and performing It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back in it's entirety, All Tomorrows Parties style, the odds of a kick-in-the-teeth good time are in your favor I'd say. Other party-starters that are sure to entice include: Animal Collective!!! is reason enough, No Age!! will pierce my cranium like a psychedelic glass of OJ, Dinosaur Jr., The Dirty Projectors, Spiritualized, Boris for christ sake!, M. Ward, the Fuck Buttons, Ghostface Killah & Raekwon, & Apples In Stereo...with way more TBA. Come live the mid-western dream. We'll eat deep dish pizza & Chicago-style hot dogs, and maybe even run into Oprah! What better way to spend your summer?



Here are some steller highlights from 2007's festivities:

Girl Talk - Summer's Smoke


GZA/Genius (Liquid Swords performance)

An ode to the internet. And pregnant men.

There are very, very few times when I'm upset about not having cable television in my house. Really, I'm not upset that I don't understand jokes referencing The Office and I couldn't care less about watching Americans make fools of themselves and their stylists on American Idol. Even fabulously produced HBO series about serial killers (Dexter) can't persuade me that it's worth it to own a TV hooked up to anything besides a VCR.

But today things have changed. The single most important TV show of my young life is airing today and I am missing it. (And also crossing my fingers for the miracle of yootoob to come through.) To put it simply: our favorite pregnant man, Thomas Beatie, is on Oprah today.



Pretty much every question you had about Mr. Mom will be answered on this show that I will be shamefully not watching. Thankfully, there's something better than cable television. It's called the internet and it's called liveblogging. My favorite blogger ever, who I once dreamed of being exactly like until I realized I simply was not as hilare, adorable, or Jewish as her, is live-blogging the whole show. It's pretty much hilarious, especially the Juno-esque screenshot and the homecoming court picture. If fascination gets the best of you, or you need a little humor in your life, or you like people that I like to pretend to be, I suggest you read a little of Michelle Collins' brilliance. You might even get hooked.

Go to Best Week Ever probably right exactly now if you're at all a decent human being.


UPDATE: Thank you internet. I got the first half and therefore can collect my own screencaps.


She's totally psyched. And probably belongs in a John Waters film.

Let the festivities begin.

Get it? Because the best music fest evvvvvvs is happening this summer. I can tell from the start that Outside Lands is going to be totally rocker from his skinny jeans and funky hair*. I'm desperate to go so I'll start saving all my pennies now if you join me. Highlights include Broken Social Scene, (who isn't my favorite band or anything so I'm not flipping out at all.), Andrew Bird, Radiohead, Devendra Banhart, Beck, and Regina Spektor. And these are highlights baby dolls, not everyone. Although I kind of feel like I would be an ungrateful child to not be happy with these way too solid acts. Click here for the full lineup.

Alright. Huddle yee readers. You start saving a little bit everyday now. Then come August 22-24 you drive me and accompany me to a few of my dreams come true. The excitement in my anime eyes will be worth it, I promise. Alright. BREAK!






*It was a poor reference to the teenagers. I'm sorry.