#an ode to one of my favorite established crews

[silksdream]

*  🃏  ›  a  𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑤  of  𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐬  ?  or  a  𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑔𝑢𝑒  of  𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐬  ?  answer  remains  𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞  .

THE  DECK  OF  CARDS  ,  dir .  @goldwinged  .

[eastsideofthemoon]

(I'm reposting this since I made several changes to the original post.)

If Star Trek Discovery were to be resurrected and given its much-deserved 6th and 7th seasons, here’s what I would like to see. Mind you, everything from season 5 and the Coda is staying.

Episode Ideas:

1. Horror. I want a horror episode. Context is for Kings incorporated some horror elements, which is one of the reasons it's one of my favorite episodes. But we haven't had horror since and I want it back. I'm thinking either a psychological horror or a cosmic horror.

2. An ER-style episode. I really want an episode centered around sickbay so that we can center Dr. Culber and Dr. Pollard.

3. An ode to Blaxploitation films. This will require a Black director (I'm thinking Cheo Hodari Coker. On the original post, someone mentioned having Olatunde direct it. He can. I just know Cheo was the showrunner for Luke Cage, which had Blaxploitation elements, so I figured he would do a really good job on incorporating it) and Brandon Schultz (one of Disco's writers) to take the lead. I've had this idea for a while. I want it to be a "What if DSC came out in the 70s". So 70s hairstyles, make-up, costumes, music, even redesigning the bridge to have a 70s look. Even adjust the theme music to a Funk or Cosmic Jazz version of itself. All the Black characters rocking afros. Imagine Capt Burnham in the captain's seat with an afro or Cleveland Booker on his John Shaft vibe. 

Stamets and Rayner rocking pork chops. Detmer in go-go boots. The story would still tie into the overall season plot, but more loosely. This is purely for fun. After all, the show is nicknamed DISCO.

5. Owo/Detmer episode where they are the A plot line. Maybe we can find out what happened on the Mirror-verse Enterprise they took back to HQ, and tie it into the S6 plot.

6. The Return of Mama Burnham. I love her relationship with Michael. I'd like to see their relationship deepen. I'm thinking maybe an episode where Michael calls on her mom for a science issue. Dr. Burnham is a scientist and inventor, so this would give her a chance to step away from the Qowat Milat and just be Dr. Gabrielle Burnham.  A mother/daughter science mission. Also, I'd like to establish where specifically they're from on earth. I've been assuming the United States, but it would be nice to establish which city/state.

7. A Book and Rayner episode. We're going to address the portion of the fandom that runs behind Rayner to undermine/villianize our Black leads, Michael and/or Book. So, in this episode, Book and Rayner end up on a mission/assignment where they have to work together, thus developing a mutual respect for each other. (They don't have to be friends, just a mutual respect, more so on Rayner's side). Book was raised by hunters, and Book stated Rayner fights like a hunter, so it's a Hunter’s Escapade! Saru will be overseeing the mission.

Character Arcs

Captain Burnham. Basically, just have her keep being the phenomenal Captain she is. I would like to see her promote someone, a solo promotion. We’ve seen the crew get promotions as a group, but I would like to see an individual get a promotion from her. Also, I want to see Captain Burnham encounter the Klingons. I understand why DSC has pretty much avoided the Klingons since going to the 32nd century, but it would make a great full-circle moment for Michael. And to raise the emotional stakes, have Mama Burnham aboard.

Tilly. Since she's at Starfleet Academy, the best we could hope for is cameos. Same with Jett Reno.

Adira. I'd like to see them stepping up more with taking the lead on assignments. I like their growth over S4/S5, and I'd like to see them become more confident and more assertive.

Culber. His spiritual awakening was my favorite character arc of season 5, and I'd love to see more of his and Dr. Pollard's hologram therapy idea.

Stamets. I felt like his arc got lost in S5. His trying to redefine his legacy really intrigued me, and I wish we got more of it. So, for S6, I'd really like to see this be fleshed out much more. We need to learn more about the pathway drive. The show started with the spore drive being groundbreaking and central to the USS Discovery. This needs to be a bigger plot point or something.

Saru. Doug Jones said in an interview that he would have returned for all 10 episodes of S6 had it happened. Therefore, I'd like to see more of Ambassador Saru and how his and T’rina’s marriage affects Ni'var politics.

Book. Since we know Michael and Book are together forever, I want to see Book return to couriering, and like Kasidy Yates, I want to see him become a freighter captain, which means the return of the Tallawah (Book’s ship)! Then, I want to see him helping with reinstating the Endangered Species Act as something like a contractor for Starfleet. This way, he still has his freedom and full autonomy and is still doing his conservationist work, but with the backing of the Federation now.

Rayner. If they're giving him Burnham's arc, on a fast track (of which I have opinions but that’s not for here), then by the end of S6 give him the choice of regaining his captaincy or joining Starfleet Academy. That opens the XO position again, and I really want to see Rhys become the official new XO for S7.

[biglisbonnews]

Fresh Pressed: Tony or Tony's Headline Debut This is Fresh Pressed, in which photographer Matt Weinberger takes us inside some of the rawest moments happening in NYC and beyond. Fresh Pressed is all about encountering the juicy ideas, aesthetics and people shaping culture through the lens of the city's many creative scenes.Tony or Tony's Headline Debut @ Elsewhere (2/11/23)Tony or Tony gave an absolutely electric performance at their debut headlining concert at Elsewhere, where they performed a number of unreleased songs. The band consists of Tony 1.2, Tony Z and Quick Tony. Tony 1.2 and Tony Z grew up together in Arkansas. They escaped a cult together when they were 18 and moved to NYC and started a band. They describe their music as a “combination of late style thumper rave and glissando core.” Some main influences on the band include Tiny Leg, DJ Klub Foot, The Five Discs, Chris & Cosey, Neubauten and Beethoven. Tony or Tony is making music you can dance to. Their next song, "New Toy," is coming out at the end of March. LaQuan Smith NYFW After Party @ Silver Linings (2/13/23)LaQuan Smith walks into the club. Young Paris is dancing around with a big smile on his face. A dapper-looking man introduces himself to you as “Food God." One table over is Teyana Taylor looking sharp as a tack, chilling with her crew. Diplo walks into the club with Eric Andre and Emily Ratajkowski. Eric and Emily start making out in the VIP section. You try a few times to get a good photo of them kissing but kissing is awkward so the photos look awkward, too. Also, taking photos of people kissing is an awkward thing to do. Whoops. Ice Spice walks into the club and gets established at a table next to Laquan Smith’s booth. Ice Spice gets on the table and does an impromptu performance. She slays. You peer to your left and dancing in the crowd is none other than Lil Nas X. He is super friendly and dressed like a fuzzy rainbow. This all might sound like a weird dream born out of picking celebrities' names out of a hat — but this wasn’t a dream. This was my night at the LaQuan Smith NYFW FW23 after party.Dion Lee NYFW After Party @ Boom Boom Room (2/10/23)Fashion is culture and, at the Dion Lee NYFW FW23 after party at Boom Boom Room, culture turned up. The party celebrated Dion’s newest collection, one undoubtedly worthy of praise, following an epic runway show earlier in the day. There was a surprise guest performance by Azealia Bank,s who hopped up onto the bar and sang to the room filled with an absolutely stoked crowd. Everyone had their phones out to record the performance and capture a glimpse of Azealia as she rocked the room. The fashion world was treated to a very special night and Dion Lee re-confirmed his spot as a fashionista cool-guy favorite — a shining light within the New York fashion scene.Acne Studios Loves Larry Stanton After Party @ The Hotel Chelsea (2/9/23)Sometimes fashion is bigger than what you wear. Acne Studios, in partnership with Visual AIDS, hosted an exclusive exhibition of work by Larry Stanton, followed by an after party to celebrate his memory and accomplishments. The event was a respectable ode to Larry Stanton, who died of AIDS in 1984. Despite the somber circumstances on which the event was predicated, the atmosphere of the event was cheery and optimistic, serving as a celebration of fashion, art and the community we have amongst one another. With slick fits and knits, stripes and a dash of elegant sleaze, the Acne Studios crowd pulled up looking undoubtedly stylish while carrying a creative, street-inspired edge. Cocktails and champagne were flowing and chatter echoed throughout the venue as fashion industry creatives and models intermingled within the multi-room event space at The Hotel Chelsea. R.I.P. Larry Stanton — may his memory be a blessing. Viktor & Rolf FLOWERBOMB Party @ Jeans (2/9/23)Fashionistas, iconic style, couture galore, and flowers, flowers, flowers. Viktor & Rolf’s FLOWERBOMB party celebrated Emily Ratajkowski as the face of the fragrance. EmRata showed up in style — wearing a chic outfit with her hair done up in a manner that Aphrodite herself might have been jealous of. Everyone pulled up dressed to impress, with outfits that had all the Ts crossed — attention to detail was not spared. Partygoers were treated to DJ sets by Mona Matsuoka and Bambii while dancing between the two floors of the event, with the occasional stop at one of V&R’s fragrance discovery stations. Bright, flashing, flower-filled video installations brought the whole party together to create an overall immersive FLOWERBOMB experience.The Lifionized: A "Grace" Release Party (2/4/23)NYC got treated to the often taken-for-granted luxury that is typically only seen in the suburban and rural parts of America: A classic rock and roll house show. The crowd was treated to performances by both The Life and Stella Rose and The Dead Language. Both bands ripped legendary original tracks worthy of becoming part of NYC lore. Curtis Everett Pawley of The Life hit the audience deep in the nostalgia gut, granting us a taste of throwback bliss while also carving a musical path into the future of what the genre of rock can be. Stella Rose’s vocals and stage presence are equally worthy of praise and her guitarist, Ben Arauz, is easily one of the best shredders in the scene, creating a genuinely heart-pounding experience. Related | Stella Rose Reveals Her 'Angel' SideAF94's Valentine's Dance (2/2/23)It’s not even Valentine’s day yet but with AF94, Halsey’s beauty brand, everyone is already celebrating love. This dance was straight out of a 1980s romantic comedy. Delicious small bites were passed around in excess and a table of treats, constantly refilled, gave all attendees something to feel sweet about. The evening had an absolutely wonderful guest list filled with beauty industry sweethearts and online style influencer heartthrobs. Balloons filled the ceiling and the open bar sported a generous menu of delicious concoctions. The analog photo booth was a big hit, sporting color photos printed via chemical processing, spitting out images of all the partygoers eager enough to brave the long line. The beauty crowd came through. A truly glamorous night. MegSuperstarPrincess' "F List" Party @ Studio 151 (1/31/23)Beloved downtown indie-sleaze grunge girl and major trendsetter MegSuperstarPrincess is the queen of the F List. She threw a release party for her new Film, titled F List, at Studio 151, a fun upstairs East Village venue known for its sushi nights and for having been the haunt for Rachel Rabbit White's iconic birthday party this past year. At Meg's F List party, the whole F list "celebrity" crew came through. The party was comprised of a solid crowd of people you may have heard of if you're into niche downtown club scene DJs, grifters, writers, fashionistas or the post-Dimes Square debutantes of tomorrow. https://www.papermag.com/fresh-pressed-tony-or-tony-2659362969.html

[mandareeboo]

SU Music Rankings

Bc I can and I wanna start some Disk Horse rip. These are all in order of preference, with explanations, etc. It’s a long bitch. That said, I’m not counting little short jingles or small joke songs like Little Butler. This is the meat and potatoes of SU music- just under 30 songs. I might do the rest if people like my takes lol.

I scored it mostly on three bases- how dear it was to my heart, how much/often I relisten to it, and also what it means to the plot. That said, little fun songs don’t automatically go farther down than big, plot-heavy songs either! It’s a strange little balance.

Special Note: I don’t dislike any of this music! I love SU and that includes its bumps and glitches. I just pick favorite children lol.

1.) Change

Was there ever a more Steven moment than when he wiped the blood off his face and kissed it into sparkles? I think not. 

If “Be Wherever You Are” is an ode to young Steven, then this is teen Steven’s. Talking about change, and how much and how little it can do. How he holds his arms up for Spinel to hug him, so trusting. How he seems able to just. Break into soft tears at will, and not to be manipulative- it’s just his kind nature. The warmth in his voice. Fuck yesssss.

2.) Change Your Mind

This song is only fifty five seconds and it’s EVERYTHING to me. It really felt like someone was speaking the words I’d always held deep inside of me, unsure of how to say. It feels like a goodbye to someone who never really loved me. 

As much as I enjoyed Future, if this was the finale of SU, I would’ve been perfectly okay with that.

3.) Drift Away

This song gave me legitimate shivers the first time I heard it, and it still haunts me to this day. Spinel stayed, and waited, and all she got was a transmission thousands of years later. Fuck.

4.) Here We Are In The Future

THE MOVIE IS SU AS ITS BEST AND I WON’T BE SWAYED ON IT. Steven being a teen who loves his weird family but is growing just a bit sarcastic to their drama. The adorable love he and Connie share. His slow realization that he will always be working, always have things to do, is both somber and real. The Crystal Gems won’t be safe with one epic battle. They’ll be safe with years of hard work and love. HIS LITTLE HANDSHAKE WITH AMETHYST.

This is a helluva bop and a great way to summarize the main character’s backstories.

5.) Let’s Only Think About Love

Did ya’ll know that Zach Callison killed his throat with that last note? He gave his all for this performance in a vocal range he no longer comfortably do and by god did it SHINE. The FLAIR. The FORESHADOWING. All of the Gems all being awkward about Rose and Steven trying to bring them to the present. Peridot having a mini-existential crisis in a cute yellow dress. I love Zach Callison’s normal singing voice but man is that a fucking bop. Nothing will ever beat it.

6.) Here Comes A Thought

This bad boy helped me out a LOT with some mental issues I was dealing with in high school. I was unmedicated, unsupervised, and full of anxiety. I’d have break downs when I tried to speak about certain things. I couldn’t function. This song inspired me. It helped me feel okay with my intrusive thoughts.

And the episode! -chef’s kiss-. Once again bringing up the morally gray area of training child soldiers. Connie expanding her social group. Steven’s trauma hauling ass in that second half. The ANIMATION. Stevonnie’s gorgeous singing voice. GOD yes.

7.) It’s Over Isn’t It?

Just barely squeaking above Stronger Than You, this ballad is everything gorgeous. The whole episode is. I think Mr. Greg stands in the top five of my episodes for the entire show. It even got nominated!

There’s just so much about this song that I love. The gentle melancholy of Pearl’s voice. How the crew had to redo the shots for this bit bc Deedee went so fucking hard. The hard cuts between Pearl, remembering the love of her life, and Steven, who has begun to feel like he took her away. I’d recommend this song to anyone, regardless of what they do or don’t know about SU, simply bc it tugs so many heartstrings of love, loss, and responsibility.

8.) Stronger Than You

Did you realize this episode aired SEVEN years ago? This bitch was what got me into SU! Hearing about Ruby and Sapphire made my little gay heart so happy inside, and then getting a whole song confirming that they were a couple, that their love powered the strongest Gem on the team? Aaaaaaaaa

To this DAY I get excited when I hear Estelle start singing. This song is timeless. This song will live in media history. God I fucking love this song.

9.) Other Friends

I’m not the biggest musical person, so I hadn’t heard of Sarah Stiles before her casting as Spinel, but JESUS CHRIST the lady went hard. She went SO fucking hard. Sarah Stiles started on 100 and somehow just kept CLIMBING. You can just hear the sheer manic energy building in her voice, the anger and resentment. 10/10 Sarah Stiles is a queen.

10.) Independent Together

This made the list entirely bc the crew was like “you’re gonna get a himbo ass Steven-Greg fusion singing with Opal while Garnet flies across the moon on Lion while floating” and I am forever thankful to them for it

11.) Who We Are

Bismuth deserved more songs. ‘Nuff said.

12.) Peace and Love (On the Planet Earth)

It Could’ve been Great is EASILY one of my favorite s2 episodes. I love the entire concept of this song. Of Steven making music to reflect how much Earth means to him and his family. Of him teaching Peridot some self-care. Also Peridot’s singing voice is really cute and squeaky. 

I know it’s silly, but I would’ve really enjoyed a flip around of this in Future! Like Peridot reminding Steven how much he loves music, that he needs to take time to relax for himself, maybe with a new verse or just a remix of the original song!

13.) Something Entirely New

I watched this episode as it aired, and I legitimately almost cried. I love Charlyne Yi’s voice so much ya’ll- her raspy, not perfect singing voice against Sapphire’s deep soothing lull is great.

And to have Ruby and Sapphire’s meeting be the way it was- for Ruby to bemoan Sapphire losing Homeworld, to being stuck with a single Ruby, while Sapphire is a noble who has always been taught everyone in her “caste” is vitally important (and has, in her own mind, taken that to mean every Gem, as she should) and how they come together and make each other happy. Good shit good shit.

14.) I’m Just a Comet

The fact that Greg’s music career never really blasted off pisses me off to this day bc Tom Scharpling’s voice is fucking BUTTER. Also the song really feels like a jab at his parents now that we know the kind of dynamic he had growing up. “This life in the stars if all I’ve ever known” is definitely him wiping away their existence after reminding them (and himself) the things they used to say about him.

15.) Do It For Her

This episode. This fucking episode. This episode got me permanently hooked on SU. I’d just binged season 1 and was kinda meh about it overall after the bop of Stronger Than You. “Oh,” I thought to myself, foolishly, “I’ll probably just casually watch this from time to time.”

Like three days later Sworn to the Sword aired and that was it. I was hooked! Pearl’s gentle training song turning darker and darker, Connie’s accompaniment from nervous to determined to fully into such a toxic mindset. The fact that SU had the BALLS to discuss the repercussions of training child soldiers, now and later. This episode was everything to me, STILL is everything to me.

Six years and well over 100 fanfics written later, I think it’s safe to say this show swallowed me whole and never let go.

16.) System/Boot.pearl_final(3)

I debated putting this on the list because it’s not anything crazy important, just a way to show things are Wrong, but I had to do it entirely bc Pearl is so damn SALTY.

Like telling us about the Gems makes sense, she felt like she was given a duty, but she went so damn petty. WHY is that Ruby alone. Gross. This Amethyst is a trash dump. Wtf are you people.

17.) Full Disclosure

This episode really feels like a turning point for SU. Before, the show had its dark moments- but now we’re in the thick of it, and it’s not going away. Full Disclosure felt like an rebuff to the idea of returning to any normal we’d established in season 1. Gems are actually a giant species now. Gems tried to kill us now. There’s this Yellow Diamond bitch who got namedropped. Something about a Cluster. 

The song itself is BALLER, with its ingenious use of Steven’s ringtone and photos as he tries to decide whether to clue in Connie on all this nonsense. Meanwhile we, the audience, already know damn well Connie about to yeet some common sense into him.

18.) What’s the Use of Feeling Blue?

I’mma admit it- I’m a Yellow Diamond stan. I’ve always loved her- her anger, her poise, her hardworking nature. I actively argued against the “Yellow Shattered Pink” theories back in the day. But, man, when this arc leaked? I got so overexcited I was too jittery to watch it for like two days. It’s easily my favorite arc of the series. The sheer alien nature of the zoo, the Famethyst, and absolutely Patti Lupone’s beautiful ballad. Goddamn. Yellow singing to Blue to try and help her regain her old status, the warble in her voice as she reminds Blue she misses Pink too, the movement of the bubbles as she talks about attack. It gives me shivers to this day. FUCK.

19.) Tower of Mistakes

This is, fun fact, that only SU song I have completely memorized. The story itself is kinda funny! See, we lost internet at my house for a solid 5 to 6 months when these episodes aired, so I only got a very brief window to view them all. But this was the first Amethyst song in a long while, and I didn’t want to forget it! So I keep replaying it in my head for ages. And that’s still definitely a thing.

Anyway will never not be sad that this entire song was about making it up to Garnet for Amethyst’s perceived slights with Sugilite (which was a two-way road), only for Garnet to pressure her into fusion later when pissed and never discuss it again bc Garnet probably never thought twice about it and Amethyst has the emotional openness of a clam that’s just been told its ugly. Helluva way to make someone feel like shit, G. Helluva way to bottle that shit, Ames.

20.) On the Run

I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times: Amethyst! Needed! More! Songs! 

The dichotomy between Steven’s play and Amethyst’s honest desire to run away from home is so well-done, especially when you consider a lot of Steven and Amethyst’s actions are playing together. The song is also near and dear to me simply bc it’s my favorite Amethyst episode to exist (well, maybe second to What’s Your Problem, but not by much). Moments like these are all the proof I need that they were right to fuse first.

21.) Be Wherever You Are

This tune really just feels like an ode to who Steven was as a kid. Trapped on an island with no way home, and he’s just happy to be with his friends. The stars are beautiful and not oppressive. Also that one animatic with Lars and the Off Colors playing in the Homeworld Kindergarten to this music was iconic and made this song get stuck in my head for a solid month.

22.) Familiar

I ADORE how the crew use bright neon colors to show how alien Homeworld can be. And Steven recognizing that the Diamonds treat him how the CGs used to, and how prepared he is to “fix” a broken family. It’s a soft, gentle tune about melancholy. Also the Pebbles are beautiful.

23.) Let Me Drive My Van Into Your Heart

Such a cute little love ballad, but every time I listen to it now I just imagine the heart attack Rose must’ve had at the line “And if we look out of place/Well, baby, that's okay/I'll drive us into outer space.” like there’s a Vietnam war flashback if I ever heard one

24.) What Can I Do?

I’m kind of neutral on this one? Rose and Greg both have great voices, but the song itself lacks many lyrics. I think it was definitely a good way to show Rose’s flaws in thinking.

Also, I’m shocked they managed cram that much vaguely sexual innuendo into two minutes, followed by how Not Hetereo that dance between Rose and Pearl was, and not get their asses chewed by it. You go guys.

25.) Cookie Cat

I love a lot of the vibes this song has. The lyrics are so damn prophetic, but they also sound like the kind of weird 90s commercials I grew up on. It’s been like two decades since I saw the Shirley Temple commercial but I’ll be damned if I don’t remember “Animals crackers in my soup! Monkey and rabbits loop-de-loop.”

26.) Giant Woman

I am. NOT the biggest fan of Steven’s original singing voice. I feel bad saying that, since it was just Zach Callison as a kid, but he never jived well with me for some reason. So I wouldn’t listen to this on the fly. 

The song itself is still really good though, with all sorts of fun animation of Amethyst and Pearl being bitchy to each other. It’s a bit sad in hindsight to see tiny Steven trying to get his moms to get along. Ahh, season 1.

27.) Strong in the Real Way

This song has SUCH a strong start. Pearl reflecting on Sugilite’s problems, but the show making sure to show us that Pearl’s lack of enthusiasm towards her also lends itself to jealousy as well as just general malaise. How much she cares about Steven, and wants him to grow up strong. 

And then Steven just kinda. Ruins it? I appreciate his enthusiasm for tryna bulk up but to take what was starting as such a rich, personal song and broadcasting it to random strangers just makes me a bit sad. Almost a bit angry on her behalf?

28.) That Distant Shore

I KNOW this is gonna create some discourse, but I’m just not the biggest Lapis stan. I love her voice. I love the visuals of the song. And I get why she felt afraid and needed to flee.

But Lapis never got to take responsibility for her own actions. And, in the end, the song feels hollow to me- because we all know she’ll never talk to anyone about it, know she’ll burst back in and destroy the barn, and no one will ever question it. I like Lapis a lot, but I feel like her arc never was fully finished. She never got help. She never learned to feel safe.

29.) Dear Old Dad

I’ve yet to meet a single human being who likes this episode tbh. There’s some great discussion about what kind of parent Greg is from it, and what kind of dynamic he has with the Gems that he felt he had to fake an injury to hang out with his son. Honestly the first half was fine and dandy. It’s just that then they Greg just went out of his way to drag Steven away from missions and such. It never jived well with his character before or after.

Also, is it just me, or does Zach himself sound like he hates the song as he sings it? There’s no passion or heart in his voice. It sounds like they told him to read off cue cards and he did. Tom Scharpling’s best attempts didn’t save this one for being a skipper. But the episode, unfortunately, isn’t, so it gets a spot on here.

[daleisgreat]

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

A movie podcast I listen to, The Big Picture, did a recent episode on the 10th anniversary of 2010’s Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (trailer). Coincidentally enough, that film remains in my backlog box all these years later, so I made sure to re-watch it before giving that podcast a listen. For those unfamiliar with this film, it is based on a series of six graphic novels of the same name by Bryan Lee O’Malley released between 2004 and 2010. The basic gist is that Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) falls for newcomer to town, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). In order to win her over Pilgrim has to defeat Ramona’s “Seven Evil Ex’s.” Scott spends the rest of the film exploring Ramona’s mysterious past and dueling her ex’s while practicing with his band, Sex Bo-Bomb, as they progress through a battle of the bands tournament. Sex Bo-Bomb is one slick act! Stephen Stills (Mark Webber) is the doom-and-gloom frontman of the band. Kim Pine (Alison Pill) is a 2010 take on Daria and effectively nails her vintage expressionless glares and blunt quips. Young Neil (Johnny Simmons) is the affable, DS-loving, always ready alternate for Sex Bo-Bomb. Their #1 fan and also other girlfriend of Scott Pilgrim is one Knives Chau (Ellen Wong). Knive’s arc is probably my favorite of this ensemble cast as her journey from adoring fan and girlfriend to her final destination is a fascinating quest to see develop and a faithful translation from the books.

I first heard of the books on the videogame podcast, Team Fremont Live where they reviewed the first book and their breakdown of it caught my attention when they dissected all the nonstop videogame references that are peppered regularly throughout it. The film captures that imagery to a T where it feels like Pilgrim is living in a real life videogame. In this world suspending disbelief is required because it is jam-packed with extraordinarily choreographed battle scenes, makes anyone capable of instantly pulling off bombastic martial arts moves in the blink of an eye without any training whatsoever, and quirky little animations of objects like Mario Bros.-esque coins and pixelated items inserted throughout that any videogame fan will pick up on. The fighting game fan in me popped a little each time a thunderous “KO” blared out each time Pilgrim emerged victorious after an evil ex duel. As a lifelong fan of videogames, it was fun picking up on all the references and Easter eggs in the background throughout. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World hit at an interesting time where Michael Cera was the only established star at this point in 2010 and was riding the last wave of critical success coming off of Arrested Development, Superbad and Juno. Brandon Routh is noteworthy appearing here as one of the evil ex’s after flaming out in his single appearance in a Superman film. However, a few other stars are here right before they exploded into bigger success like the aforementioned Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Chris Evan is here as another evil-ex shortly after his two Fantastic Four films, but a year before donning the Captain America costume for the first time. Anna Kendrick is here in a small role as Scott’s sister Stacey while in the midst of her initial Twighlight run. Finally, Brie Larson is here as Scott’s evil-ex, Envy Adams and she is the lead for her band, Clash at Demonhead in my personal favorite musical performance of the film as they belt out “Black Sheep.”

It is worth repeating that I highly recommend suspending all disbelief going into Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and simply roll with it. The battle scenes are a hoot to take in and feature a ton of CG that holds up well ten years later. It is also worth pointing out this film is part absurd videogame battles, part early 20s love triangle drama and to a lesser extent part musical with several performances from Sex Bo-Bomb and other bands throughout the film. Director Edgar Wright tracked down a few bands to play the tracks for some of the featured bands in the film such as Beck performing the handful of Sex Bo-Bomb songs in addition to a slew of other tracks from artists like The Rolling Stones and Blood Red Shoes that perfectly supplement the outlandish tone of the film. It is not too often on here I recommend hunting down the soundtracks for a film, but the soundtrack for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World I wholeheartedly recommend! I think the Scott Pilgrim vs. the World BluRay may have set the record for amount of extra features for a single film in the near seven years of movies I have covered on this blog. A rough tally on my notes gives an approximate sum of nearly five hours of bonuses, and then four feature length commentary tracks on top of that! I will not detail every bonus, but will give some highlights of the ones that stood out for me. There is just under a half hour of deleted scenes with or without commentary from Edgar Wright. Most of them are extended scenes from the first act to trim out excess background info, but an alternate ending is what stood out the most that Wright explained he changed because it did not go over that well in test screenings. I can always appreciate a good blooper reel, and an excellent 10 minute reel is compiled here that I would rate right up with the stellar ones in the Marvel films.

There are three features grouped together in the ‘Docs’ section of the extras tallying up to a little over an hour. If you only had time for one of the five hours of bonuses I would go there because that has the core making of documentary which breaks down collaborating with Bryan Lee ‘O Malley, nailing the casting, detailing the extensive stunt training and interviews several of the bands about being featured in the soundtrack. Speaking of the soundtrack, there are four music videos included. Definitely check out the four minute animated short, Scott Pilgrim vs. Animation that is essentially a prequel to the film that dives into Scott and Kim’s former relationship. There are 12 ‘Video Blogs’ totaling 45 minutes that are raw on set interviews with the cast and crew between takes that sees the crew up to all kinds of mischief to kill downtime. This BluRay easily has the largest photo gallery of any home video I have covered with several hundred photos. One gallery is labeled ‘storyboards’ but each storyboard panel is nearly identical to the excellent quality of the art in Bryan Lee O’Malley books so that is essentially a free comic book adaptation of the movie buried in the extras! I experienced all four of the commentary tracks in one re-watch of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World via jumping around to a different commentary about every five minutes. Edgar Wright is on two of them, one with Bryan Lee ‘O Malley and writer Michael Bocall and the other with photography director Bill Pope. The other two commentaries are split among nine cast members, with Michael Cera and the rest of the leading cast on one and the ancillary cast members on the other cast commentary track. Wright has tons of nonstop insight and production facts on his tracks, and the cast tracks are have a lot of fun anecdotes such as Cera failing at trying to get additional people on the commentary via phone call. On top of the commentary I had on during my re-watch was also a factoid subtitle track to really take in the extra features. Despite going on now for three paragraphs about the bonus features, I think I only touched on about half of what is available, and it is truly astonishing to see how much they crammed into one BluRay disc.

A part of me thought going into this that Scott Pilgrim vs. the World would not hold up after 10 years. I would chalk that up to thinking I may have got easily won over with all the hype from being vastly into the books back then and being too caught up into the build to the film’s initial release. I can put those reservations to rest thankfully as I immensely enjoyed this ode to videogame fandom as much as I first did in 2010. Throw in a plethora of extra features to last all year to make Scott Pilgrim vs. the World one of my highest recommendations yet! If you want even more commentary from me about this film than below I have embedded the podcast I originally recorded 10 years ago shortly after seeing the film on its opening weekend. I bring on a couple other special guest hosts that are also ardent Scott Pilgrim fans and we review the film, soundtrack, the books and the videogame. Enjoy!

I brought on a couple other Scott Pilgrim experts on as guest hosts on my podcast to review the film, books, videogame and soundtrack shortly after they all released 10 years ago. Check it out in the embed above for more Scott Pilgrim goodness or click or press here to queue it up for later. Other Random Backlog Movie Blogs 3 12 Angry Men (1957) 12 Rounds 3: Lockdown 21 Jump Street The Accountant Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie Atari: Game Over The Avengers: Age of Ultron The Avengers: Infinity War Batman: The Dark Knight Rises Batman: The Killing Joke Batman: Mask of the Phantasm Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Bounty Hunters Cabin in the Woods Captain America: Civil War Captain America: The First Avenger Captain America: The Winter Soldier Christmas Eve Clash of the Titans (1981) Clint Eastwood 11-pack Special The Condemned 2 Countdown Creed I & II Deck the Halls Detroit Rock City Die Hard Dredd The Eliminators The Equalizer Dirty Work Faster Fast and Furious I-VIII Field of Dreams Fight Club The Fighter For Love of the Game Good Will Hunting Gravity Grunt: The Wrestling Movie Guardians of the Galaxy Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 Hell Comes to Frogtown Hercules: Reborn Hitman I Like to Hurt People Indiana Jones 1-4 Ink The Interrogation Interstellar Jay and Silent Bob Reboot Jobs Joy Ride 1-3 Last Action Hero Major League Man of Steel Man on the Moon Man vs Snake Marine 3-6 Merry Friggin Christmas Metallica: Some Kind of Monster Mortal Kombat Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpions Revenge National Treasure National Treasure: Book of Secrets Not for Resale Pulp Fiction The Replacements Reservoir Dogs Rocky I-VIII Running Films Part 1 Running Films Part 2 San Andreas ScoobyDoo Wrestlemania Mystery The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Shoot em Up Slacker Skyscraper Small Town Santa Steve Jobs Source Code Star Trek I-XIII Sully Take Me Home Tonight TMNT The Tooth Fairy 1 & 2 UHF Veronica Mars Vision Quest The War Wild The Wizard Wonder Woman The Wrestler (2008) X-Men: Apocalypse X-Men: Days of Future Past

[trek-b]

Discovery Season 3: A Look Back

Season four of Disco is underway so it seems like a good time to take a look back before getting into what the new season has in store (I mean...whenever I get to it which my odyssey with season three has demonstrated might not be immediate).

Frankly I'm still staggered that it took me as long as it did (about seven months) to watch the thirteen episodes of Discovery's third season, even granting that I didn't start when the season premiered. But enough of that. What to say about season three? Well, as I've said, I didn't think launching ship and crew 930 years into the future was really necessary but doing so certainly made for an intriguing set-up for the 3rd season - what kind of future would Michael Burnham et al find themselves in? It didn't take too long for us to start to learn (once material teasing the new season started coming out) it would be a somewhat broken one but that in itself didn't tell us that much--broken futures are, of course, very much a sci-fi trope, as with many things, it's the execution of the idea that counts. So what did I think of that execution? of Trek’s 32nd century? Read on and find out...

(Spoilers ahead, naturally)

To be honest, I feel a little underwhelmed by the 32nd century we got as I was a little underwhelmed by the season as a whole. Anthony Pascale of trekmovie.com called season three Discovery's best but I find it hard to agree--I think it was possibly DSC's weakest. Now this doesn't mean there weren't plenty of bright spots too--David Ajala as Book (courier, empath, and cat-lover; a not-exactly Han Solo type) was an excellent addition; Adira Tal played by Blu del Barrio and Gray Tal played by Ian Alexander were interesting if a bit underserved, there's plenty to potentially explore but the season only really set up that potential—and let me say I'm sure a lot of people have continued bitching about DSC and that adding a non-binary actor and character and a trans actor is only to tick "w%#@" boxes to which I say...Star Trek has always been about humanity and it's always reflected—if imperfectly—that there are a lot of different kinds of people in the world, adding those two characters and the people who portray them is just an extension of that. If you only want to see straight white male heroes you're watching the wrong franchise (also you're just wrong). Also a fine addition was Oded Fehr as Starfleet CNC Admiral Vance who already might be my favorite reoccurring admiral (not that there are that many); also an honorable mention to Vanessa Jackson as Lt. Willa (though she didn't get as much screen time as the others).

There were good episodes, there were not-so-good episodes: overall, I thought the season was rather uneven with a theme with potential and a somewhat interesting mystery whose solution didn't entirely live up to the set-up while also reaching for the humanity that's at Star Trek's heart. I don't want to get too negative, I feel like I’ve had a tendency to focus on the things that frustrate me about Discovery rather than the things I like so before getting to what I found problematic in the season...

One of the season's most striking methods of establishing the new setting was via the massive debris fields left by wrecked starships, one of which Burnham crashed through in her introduction to the 32nd century. I was a bit critical too of their giving us no hint of the future Burnham et al would find themselves in in the finale of season two but that did allow for her literal collision with the future to be a surprise (though it’s not like they couldn't have given us some hint without showing that particular scene (which I'm sure wouldn't have been shot yet if it had even been written) but I suppose there is also something to be said for having left the state of Disco's destination a complete mystery until the new season (I mean, other than the trailers and such).

Anyway, in time-honored storytelling tradition, Burnham arrives and things go awry immediately, throwing us and Burnham right into the action, immediately putting Burnham and us a bit off-balance by unexpectedly putting her there without Discovery; granted, if you watched the trailers you would've had a sense of this but what the trailers didn't really show was the immediate aftermath of her arrival...

Other things I liked:

Also striking were the landscapes in episodes one and two which they shot in Iceland....

The guy waiting alone at an otherwise abandoned Federation station (he and his station are actually our first glimpses of the 32nd century; kind of a quiet introduction to this new reality before the action)

The broken Federation, the idea that there were remnants but that our protagonists didn't know exactly where (rather than finding the Federation immediately)

Burnham arriving a year before Discovery and forging a new life for herself

Discovery's arrival in the 32nd century and showing Disco's people dealing with this, specifically Culber's log in episode four

Burnham's arc - being torn between her newfound freedom and Starfleet, the Federation - still committed to their ideals but, not sure she still wants to be in Starfleet or wants to be in the center chair...which was kind of an interesting roundabout way of ultimately bringing her to the captaincy

The Trill and the idea of a human (Adira) being joined - only explored very deeply in one episode but another new unexpected turn

Starfleet/Federation HQ being a hidden space station

Starfleet and Federation headquarters co-located

More about the Mirror Universe and, quite unexpectedly, a little about the Kelvin Timeline (I often get tired of the Mirror Universe but this return was actually pretty great)

An even more unexpected return - the Guardian of Forever (!)

David Cronenberg's mysterious Kovich with his extensive and, presumably classified knowledge

While I'm not sure it made chain of command sense (it didn't), in practice I did like Tilly's turn as Saru's first officer

The music that seemed to exist across disconnected space - which was an intriguing idea that however seemed to be resolved pretty quickly

An interesting re-invention of the Discovery itself (mainly externally)...though why is it now the Discovery-A? Seems an important point they never actually addressed (there are some possible explanations here)

Grudge!

Vulcan/Romulan re-unification has actually happened...to an extent - interesting dynamics there, I'd be interested in seeing more

The closing triptych of episodes - the end of season one was messy but two and three were brought home with plenty of panache

Guy waiting at station (Aditya Sahil*) - returning in the finale, now a newly-commissioned officer - after he didn't appear in episode two I thought we might not see him again

(*A rare case in DSC of someone of other than European descent actually having a name that isn't of European descent)

Honorable Mentions:

The Burn and its ultimate cause (not sure I loved it but plenty of it was interesting)

The holo fantasy-scape in Su'Kal's ship

Burnham literally fighting for her ship and the Federation

Rebooting the ship's OS in the finale

Book offering a new way/person to navigate the spore drive

Looking at that list I actually liked quite a lot (far from all negative, so there, me)..but I wish I liked even more, unfortunately there are plenty of...

• Things I didn't like:

Melodrama / unearned sentimentality which DSC likes to do - yes, emotion is fine but it has to be justified by story, character and situation: you shouldn't have emotion without giving the audience reason to believe it's authentic and that's something DSC seems to have trouble doing

The writers seem to have completely forgotten the term first officer (or XO) and used nothing but "number one" throughout the season as if trying to make up for all the time Trek didn't use "number one" between "The Cage" and TNG

There was less wandering than I expected, the crew fell quickly back into the familiar Starfleet hierarchy once they found Starfleet/Federation HQ in the fifth episode...it might've been interesting to see how Disco and crew would handle being on their own for an extended period (I mean, of course they would fall back into said hierarchy once they found Starfleet just I thought early on finding what remained of the Federation might take most of the season)

Control "threatened all life in the universe"—huh??? They had Michael say something like this in back-to-back episodes which is absolutely astounding because she's a science officer and should know that that's an absurd thing to say because the universe is big, really big (you may think it’s a long way down the street to the drug store but that’s peanuts compared to space...*ahem*) and even Trek science hasn't really gone beyond the galaxy (not to mention I have questions as to whether Control could've even threatened all life in the galaxy)

We went to Book's homeworld...and it doesn't feel like we really learned much about Book or his people

Again with giant voids in the ship...though they've gotten increasingly inventive with it it's also still completely absurd (I may have a thing or two to say about this in the future)

Osryaa and the Emerald Chain weren't very interesting as antagonists

Zareh - the one-episode baddie (from the second episode of the season) who they brought back for no discernible reason

Andorian guy (Ryn) - he's just hanging around the ship? For weeks? And I don't really feel like he added much for the amount of screentime he got (and no, I don't care if the actor is Mary Wiseman's husband)

Those my general thoughts—and, as usual, that was plenty—but next, more detailed thoughts on season three, some follow-up on my thoughts here and further on where the series is after season three. Until then...

[dougmeet]

Tyler Mahan Coe presents Cocaine & Rhinestones”  «Addicting Country Pōdcast & Coe» Season II | |||| |||| || |||| || |||| |||||| ( ||| i have worked on this project long and hard.  I only hope that its author and subject enjoy its fervency as I now celebrate its final end || ). | | ?| by Sarah Larson, The New Yorker Sarah Larson is a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her column, Pocasting Depo appears on newyorker.com. Addicting Cocaine, Country, & Rhinestones       On one episode of “Cocaine & Rhinestones,” we learn why Loretta Lynn’s song “The Pill” was banned  in 1975.           In 1975, Loretta Lynn, by then an established country singer-songwriter for more than a decade, released her single “The Pill.”           At that point, Lynn had won hearts and raised eyebrows with songs like “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (with Lovin’ on Your Mind),” whose themes are self-evident, and “Fist City,” warning a woman to stay away from her husband.               (“You’d better move your feet / if you don’t want to eat / a meal that’s called Fist City.”)           “I was the first one to write it like the women lived it,” she has said.           “The Pill,” which she didn’t write but performed with gusto, is a wife’s celebration of freedom:               “I’m tearin’ down your brooder house, ’cause now I’ve got the pill.”           The song—like several of Lynn’s singles—was banned.           In “Blow & Sparklers,” an opinionated, feverish, in-po-tain-cast about twentieth-century American country music, written and hosted by TyManCo, we learn why, from a progressive guy with an arsenal of doggedly presented research.           The Co. Man, thirty-three, grew-up country; his father is the outlaw David Allan Coe.           In childhood, T traveled with his Coe-dad’s outlaw band; in young adulthood, he played rhythm guitar and shredded a little.           He now lives in Nashvegas.           When asked how he turned out so centered after moving all the time AND his peripatetic, outlaw upbringing among musicians, he paused and said,               “Well, I’ve done a lot of acid.”           Also, books: as a kid on the road, he’d disappear into stuff like James Clavell’s “Shōgun;” he’s still  obsessive, often his books have never been digitized and may never be published.           “Cōgun & Rōgun” references a thorough bibliography.               For “The Pill,” this includes Lynn’s memoir, “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” and the collection “Feminists Who Changed America, 1963-1975.”               (Cōgun, who is currently working on the second season of the PC, was recently invited to use the private archives in the Country Music Hall of Fame, where he wrote a digitized, secret e-mail.               “THERE are at least 500 unwritten books in that data, and probably closer to 1,000 . . . Half-or-more of those books are not even written.”           The pōd has a distinct, essayist sound, narrated entirely by PōdCōe, delivered in a tone between that of a new anchor, or TMC's mentor-brōcaster-teacher, Malcolm Gladwell,  or a prosecutor WAITING FOR A JURY TO COME BACK.           I often laugh while listening.           In the “Pill” episode, PōCō begins by talking about the “Streisand effect,” in which an attempt to stop the public from being exposed to something makes it go viral, THEN goes on to discuss the Comstock laws, on obscenity; the history of contraception in the U.S.; a bit of Lynn’s biography, and the lyrics and authorship of the song—all to set up why “The Pill” was banned.               “I’m about to prove it wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction to a country song about birth control,” he says.           He forensically plays songs by men about birth control and abortion TO WOMEN.           “Pretty gross,” he says of callous Harry Chapin lyrics.           “But it was not banned.” None of the men’s songs were. There’s a double-standard in music, he explains:           “Men have to go way over the line.   All women have to do is get near it.” He plays FURTIVE samples of banned songs by women, including Jeannie C. Riley’s hit “Harper Valley P.T.A.,” about a mother telling off a bunch of small-town hypocrites. (Mindbogglingly, Cosign gives that song a three-episode deep-dive in season UNO.)           By the end of the episode, he’s proved his point, case closed:               “Female artists have their songs banned simply for standing up to society, or for fighting back.”           A primary thrill of listening to “Coke & Stones,” for me, a classic-country fan of modest insight—I love Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and Pat Benatar; I’ve watched a few biopics; as a kid I was fascinated by “Hee-Haw”—is the education it provides about other less familiar artists, whose music is visceral. (if you can explain that sentence, i'll blow ya - ed.)           (Plenty of music lovers know all about the Louvin Brothers and Doug and Rusty Kershaw; I do not.)           Another provides cultural context; each story reflects larger themes about the artistry and business of country music. And MC CoCo’s writing—like a good country song—is provocative.           “Those bastards deregulated radio in the Telecommunications Act of 1996;” Buck Owens’s vocal delivery is “stabbed-in-the-back-sincere;” a racist song about school desegregation “ends with a chorus of, I assume, ghost-children, singing ‘My Country ’Tis of Thee.’ ” As the acid kicks in, we both laugh at the absurdities of life.  I question my own journalism and wish I could be more like Hunter T.           In one of my favorite episodes, about Bobbie Gentry’s eternally mysterious “Ode to Billie Joe,” from 1967, Coe develops a catarrh in one eye, an inward view of his "self;" eyes stare through distance, presciently decoding a past recording session on a dark night before his birth.                “You can tell it isn’t going to be a normal song right away, from those wheezing violins'  intro.”           The arranger “was working with an unusual crew of four violins and two cellos.” One of the cellists pizzicatied his unwell beast, “while the others weave in and out, like Steve McQueen in Bullit, responsive to drama.” The denouement is unknown to the A-team; cinematic, the strings rise up, up to the bridge “with the narrator up on Choctaw Ridge to pick flowers,” and down, “when the he throws the flowers down.” I get a chill. Suddenly Tyler the Oracle's chin hits his chest --his breathing shallow. He continues weakly, "We hear them, falling eerily, and they chill us. In the past I tried resolving my internecine preoccupation with “Ode to Billie Joe,” a childhood oldies station still plays in my head, trying to discover the protagonist, Billie Joe, and the package.  What were they throwing off the Tallahatchie Bridge; searching for Gentry; watching for inchoate clues, the horrible 1976 movie mocking the song’s success. No one was satisfying my quest, until listening to “Coke & Tone,” TMC both celebrated the song’s mystery and provided to me insight into its strange power.           I ask Podcone about his style; he doesn’t sound like many other P-ghosts.           “I would describe it as performative,” he mutters, "explicitly performative!" "You're [hereby] fired."                   "I now pronounce you man and wife."                   "I order you to go!" "Go—that's an order!"                   "Yes" – answering the question. "Do you promise to do the dishes?"                   "You are under arrest" – putting  me under arrest.                   "I christen you."                   "I accept your apology."                   "I sentence you to death."                   "I divorce you, I divorce you, I divorce you" (Islamic: see: Talaq-i-Bid'ah)!                   "I do – wedding."                   "I swear to do that." "I promise to be there."                   "I apologize."                   "I dedicate this..." (...book to my wife; ...next song to the striking Stella Doro workers, etc.).                   "This meeting is now adjourned." "The court is now in session."                   "This church is hereby de-sanctified."                   "War is declared."                   "I resign" – employment, or chess.                   "You're [hereby] fired."           He was influenced by “the Radio”—dramatic radio shows from his childhood—“specifically Paul Harvey, ‘The Rest of the Story’" —which, when I heard it in the eighties, felt like it had been beamed there from the forties—“and Art Bell, the guy who does ‘Coast to Coast AM,’ which has gotten super political and weird now, but when I was a kid it was on AM radio overnight, which meant clear airwaves; you could pick it up in most of the country.”           Bell had a “weird voice,” Coe said, and listeners would call in to talk to him about normal things like about ghosts, alien abductions, and telepathy.           “We had a driver who loved listening to it,” he said. “You’d be driving through the night to the next town, through the middle of nowhere, just headlights on the road  in bitumen-molasses-darkness, and all the adults are on the radio having conversations about stuff, and they sound dead serious.”           That mood made an impact.           On “Coe & Rye,” he wants to evoke of it.           He records his vocals overnight in a basement when it’s quiet outside. “Just me alone in the dark, talking to a microphone.  I'm nobody.  My father was a rusty nail!

“Cocaine & Rhinestones,” An Addictive, Sparkling Podcast About Country Music | The New Yorker  - guest-edited by mrjyn

[tinymixtapes]

Column: Favorite Rap Mixtapes of October 2018

With a cascade of releases spewing from the likes of DatPiff, LiveMixtapes, Bandcamp, and SoundCloud, it can be difficult to keep up with the overbearing yet increasingly vital mixtape game. In this column, we aim to immerse ourselves in this hyper-prolific world and share our favorite releases each month. The focus will primarily be on rap mixtapes — loosely defined here as free (or sometimes free-to-stream) digital releases — but we’ll keep things loose enough to branch out if/when we feel it necessary. (Check out last month’s installment here.) Here at Tiny Mix Tapes, mixtapes are like Halloween handouts, which is to say we recommend continual and regular consumption of sweets, sours, and suckers balanced by physical activities including but not limited to picking and carving, taking long walks, and watching so many scary movies it becomes physically tasking. To wit, my list for the month so far includes: The Omen (1976), Damien: Omen II (1978), Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981), Season of the Witch (1972), The Man in the Orange Jacket (2014), Daughter of Horror (1955), Daybreakers (2009), Nightmare City (1980), Fear X (2003), The Town that Dreaded Sundown (1976), Shock (1946), Shock (1977), The Stuff (1985), Santa Sangre (1989), Neon Demon (2016), The Lost Boys (1987), and The Skeleton Key (2005). Therein, as below, audiences can discover numerous tricks and treats. It is, of course, our privilege to help pass along both as they’re equally essential, like ODB would say, “for the children.” And speaking of the little ones, let us not gloss over this month without acknowledging that it somehow brought out releases by no less than seven (!) established “Lil” rappers: B, Baby, Gnar, Jay So Icy, Mosey, Tracy and Xelly. “The horror!” –Samuel Diamond --- Illingsworth - You’re No Fun [DOWNLOAD/STREAM] Swerve past the skeptics and you’ll find that there still are scythe-tongued rappers and producers beholden to the unseen funk. Although rapper-producers are not rare, there are few today who manage such a fluid blend of sway and spitfire as my latest chiropractor, the Detroit-bred Illingsworth. While known mostly for his beats, the plunderer can kick some nerdy flex raps too; he was nonchalantly sipping on lemonade in a pirate’s fit, while you were busy teething on cockroaches. On his latest opal with Mello Music Group, You’re No Fun, Illingsworth’s pearly bounce is as live as ever. The lasting sapphire in the mix might just be “Wind (No Clues),” a “Love’s Gonna Get’cha”-esque ode to a young have-not, searching for a path where shards of systemic violence won’t sink into the soles. In the grubby fists of a lesser MC, the concept might ring out as corny. But in the studious grasp of Illingsworth, it feels as if the ghosts of SV sprinkled steez over construction gravel to help the whole damn thing glisten. –Cirrus Slump --- Kodie Shane - Stay Tuned … [STREAM] Some two years after stealing the show on the Sailing Team’s “All In,” Kodie Shane’s just about ready for her close-up. Young Heartthrob, her full-length debut, drops early November, meaning that Stay Tuned … is the last in a long line of EPs by which she has built a fanbase and a reputation, (mostly) escaping Lil Yachty’s shadow and establishing herself as an artist who deserves a spotlight of her own. Packed front-to-back with brand-name features, Stay Tuned … scans as a set of songs too pedestrian for the album but too expensive to discard entirely, less interesting for Rich the Kid’s continued interrogation of the phrase “dat way!” than for the promising glimpse it provides into Shane’s musical development since last year’s Back From the Future. I can’t imagine listening to this once Young Heartthrob is out, but I won’t be listening to anything else until then. –Corrigan B. --- MihTy - MihTy [STREAM] Here you have it folks: the long-rumored, widely-anticipated eponymous collab between the foremost crooners in hip-hop. That’s right — Jeremih and Ty Dolla $ign have teamed up in true Rhythm-and-Blues Brothers fashion to give us MihTy, which apparently might have been completed as far back as 2017?? The original release was supposed to come August 2018, but, as happens so often these days, the drop date was pushed back to October. So, here we are! Dolla and ‘Mih apparently churned out some 60 songs in the studio, then picked out these 11 from said batch, which explains why this project doesn’t hit me as incredibly cohesive or focused on a particular idea, aside from, of course, romance, sex, and various forms of decadence. But if you know these two at all, that shouldn’t surprise you, and perhaps all that intimacy is exactly why you (and I) listen. It’s a solid and varied tape, with a good list of producers (exec. produced by Hitmaka, with appearances by Go Grizzly, Keyz, et al.) and suave harmonies. In a most satisfying way, it’s the tape I’d expect from the two — a wonderfully romantic, melodic, and smooth-hip-hop-R&B ditty to cuddle up with as the weather gets colder. –Alex Brown --- Bambu - Exrcising A Demon | Article 1 | A Few Left [DOWNLOAD/STREAM] Filipino-American California MC Bambu has been kicking bloody street soliloquies as far back as the early 2000s and even released a critically acclaimed full-length collaboration with L.A. rap royalty’s DJ Muggs in 2010. However, if there’s ever been a moment better suited for this particular audio document, it must have occurred in some alternate timeline, because Exrcising A Demon | Article 1 | A Few Left arrives at a juncture that demands more than ever for stories of American immigrants and their children and the struggles they share to be told plainly, without glorification, political comment, or other modes of curated re-contextualization. The truth, like humanity, is brutal, war-torn even, but above all else, necessary. And if this release is truly the first in a five-part series, as the Bandcamp page describes, then Bambu and OJ The Producer have set the bar incredibly high for themselves out the gate. Clearly, though, this is a matter of both exercising and exorcising, show-and-prove a given. –Samuel Diamond --- Shy Glizzy - Fully Loaded [STREAM] For a couple years now, the Washington Wizards have stood pat in free agency, keeping their roster’s core intact in order to develop their existing players rather than compromising their identity in pursuit of new ones. Their horrific start to the current season aside, it’s worked pretty well; the John Wall era has been one of consistent success, salad days not only for Wall, but also for a host of young stars under his tutelage: Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, and most recently Kelly Oubre. Yet in their consistency, the Wizards have raised questions about untapped potential, about complacency in the face of the consistently “pretty good,” and about who is really to blame for a series of failed attempts to integrate new play styles and personalities. Luckily, rap isn’t basketball. Probably. –Corrigan B. --- Lil B - Options [STREAM] –Lovebug --- Gangsta Boo & BeatKing - Underground Cassette Tape Music Vol. 2 [STREAM] Being a consumer of contemporary “rap” music in 2018 without recognizing Gangsta Boo is a privilege. As a member of Three 6 Mafia, she helped collapse geographical and aesthetic distinctions between Southern rap, experimental horrorcore, and radio music without burying Memphis signifiers in common ground. Her new mixtape with Houston-hailing BeatKing is a conservation of both artists’ distinct regional styles, revealing by way of phonogeographical survey just how deep trap’s roots go. Fortunately, Underground Cassette Tape Music Vol. 2 is also a banger in its own right, reminding Migos fans why this historical primrose path was worth nourishing and following. Plus, remember Paul Wall, Danny Brown, and RiFF RAFF? They’re all on this, too. It’s a scary good time, so fly that you won’t even remember they’ve been doing this since before I could talk. If there ever were a laurel-draped whip, this whole crew has scrapped it for a brand new ride. And it bumps as hard as everything before it. –Jazz Scott --- D Savage - D Phoenix [STREAM] I’m not entirely sure where D Savage came from, but “a neural network trained on 10,000 Soundcloud rappers” isn’t out of the question. Yet amidst opaque mythology — “3900,” “2700,” and a dozen variations of “Phoenix” reappear endlessly across songs and IG captions — and thoroughly ambiguous authorship, there’s an undeniable grasp of melody that refuses to be ignored. As often as not, it’s a mere moment; “What You Want” justifies its existence on the strength of half a hook alone. And that’s more than enough: with tracks rarely exceeding two minutes, D Savage’s best work is so immediate that it can’t even begin to wear out its welcome before its time to rewind. There’s little here that warrants repeated listens, but what sticks will be looping in my mind for months on end. –Corrigan B. http://j.mp/2RmZRpo

[crzyactr2-blog]

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Spoilers ahead)    Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is a confusing movie. Not in scope or story (though some character decisions go beyond the pale). No, it is confusing in both quality and identity. If this movie had a sexual preference, it would be a bi-curious virgin.    From the very beginning, the movie sets out to identify itself as something outside the normal Star Wars universe. It would have you believe that this is not a “Star Wars” movie, but a movie set in the Star Wars universe. So there is no title crawl. Smart. There is no John Williams score. Also smart. There is no Darth Vader, though there is someone in a Halloween costume pretending to be him. And that’s where it lost me. (More on this later).    For all of the filmmaker’s attempts to differentiate the movie from the ongoing space opera that we know and love, there are an equal number of clumsy attempts to cram in fan service, reminding everyone that the other movies exist. (Looking at you Jimmy Smits.)    But let’s get down to brass tacks for a second and talk about the narrative; Rebel Girl and discount Red Viper are on a mission to find out what everyone in the galaxies should know about: The Death Star (Where else did everyone think their space taxes were going). Now she doesn’t care about the rebellion because reasons and he is ordered to kill everyone he meets because script and this is supposed to create… conflict? infatuation? A bloated, nauseous sensation when you lie down? Again, I’m not sure the movie knows what it wants to be.    So how are these star crossed platonic colleagues supposed to expose the galactic misappropriation of public resources? By finding Pouty’s father, whom she hates because all Star Wars movies have to be about people with daddy issues, apparently. Along the way they pick up a rag tag team of unremarkables who serve as little more than cannon fodder and sloppy pandering to the Asian markets.    A few action beats later and no one in the audience will be surprised when they successfully steal the Death Star plans and get them into the hands of Cartoon Princess Leia. That’s it. That’s the whole story.    With the exception of some poor editing and cartoonish CGI, the overall product is well polished and delivered in a palatable manner. Much like the KFC carbohydrate bowl of years gone by.    So why doesn’t it work? I mean the core concept is good, right? A motley crew teaming together to topple the evil empire in an epic galactic war? Brilliant! Who doesn’t love an underdog story!? Go Cubs Go!    I suppose the biggest flaw with the story is that there are no stakes. We already know that the Death Star plans were successfully stolen and delivered to the rebellion. There’s a whole movie about what happened next. Now that isn’t a death knell, it just means the movie has to work harder to engage the audience. Which it doesn’t. As an audience member, I needed to care about these characters. To watch their journey, become emotionally invested in their arc, and root for them to make it all the way to the end.    And this is where Rogue One takes its biggest missteps. The characters aren’t bad, they’re just aggressively one dimensional. You don’t hate the heroes, which is apparently a new trend in Hollywood, but you don’t care about them either. The villain(s?) are just as bland, with no menace or intrigue.    Forrest Whittaker and Mads Mikelson are woefully under-utilized, and whoever they hired to voice Cartoon Peter Cushing brought no gravitas to the role. Without his menacing tone, it was hard to get past the poorly rendered CGI (which I totally accept needed to be done. You can’t have the construction of the original Death Star without Grand Moff Tarkin). No one should be surprised to find Alan Tudyks K-2SO stealing every scene he’s in (sometimes by force), which is probably why he’s the only new character whose name I can actually remember. This isn’t because K-2SO resounds emotionally with the audience, but because he has the pithiest one-liners. This lack of character development, plus the plodding storyline, is what make me degrade the quality of the film. It felt more like a film school graduates ode to Star Wars than a guided and thoroughly considered Hollywood production. As if the director was a big fan boy who really wanted to see those guys from the Mos Eisley Cantina again. Walking down the road. On some random planet. And not saying anything. Or contributing to the plot in any conceivable way. But hey you can point them out to the person next to you, hoping that you identified them first to maintain your nerd street cred. Then you get R2-D2 and C-3PO literally crammed into the corner of a what should be a sobering and serious moment, making non-story based quips so the mouth breathers can go “Yay!”. And this brings me to my third and final gripe, which is the tone of the film. Again, this feels confused, like the movie (or the producers) didn’t know how to approach a suicide mission where everyone dies at the end. So many choices! Funny one-liners have always, and should continue to be, a part of the characters we love in the Star Wars universe. My favorite part about Darth Vader, however, has never been his mad pun skills, especially while choking someone. This particularly clashes with the orgy of establishing shots which preceded it. You can’t tell us that he spends his time in a glass tube, living in Sauron’s tower on an evil lava planet, then have him running around in a benny hill routine. Either James Earle Jones has forgotten how to play Darth Vader, the writers forgot who the character was, or someone else *Cough*Disney*Cough* was too concerned about the darker tone of the movie. My guess is that this scene, amongst others, was a victim of the producer’s panic and hasty reshoots. They probably thought kids would be ok with someone being choked to death if there was some witty back and forth at the same time. You know how kids love reading Oscar Wilde while they play GTA. And I have no problem with a darker Star Wars movie, especially when that darkness comes at the hands of realistic and relatable situations, like self-sacrifice during war, and not just because Anakin kills the younglins. But it has to be earned, which the first hour and a half of this movie didn’t do. Is it a terrible film? Heaven’s no. I would happily pay to watch it again over watching a Transformers movie for free. But honestly, I’d rather just keep my money. And my two hours. 6.5/10 Who Cares

[dougmeet]

Addicting Cocaine, Country, Rhinestones        | |||| |||| || |||| || |||| |||||| ( ||| || ). | | ?|                Tyler Mahan Coe «Addicting Cocaine Country & Rhinestones Pōdcast & Coe» by Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, pōcast dept., filed March 7, 2018                Sarah Larson is a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her column, Podcast Dept., appears on newyorker.com.        On one episode of “Cocaine & Rhinestones,” we learn why Loretta Lynn’s song “The Pill” was banned after its release, in 1975.            In 1975, Loretta Lynn, by then an established country singer-songwriter for more than a decade, released her single “The Pill.”            At that point, Lynn had won hearts and raised eyebrows with songs like “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (with Lovin’ on Your Mind),” whose themes are self-evident, and “Fist City,” warning a woman to stay away from her husband.                (“You’d better move your feet / if you don’t want to eat / a meal that’s called Fist City.”)            “I was the first one to write it like the women lived it,” she has said.            “The Pill,” which she didn’t write but performed with gusto, is a wife’s celebration of freedom:                “I’m tearin’ down your brooder house, ’cause now I’ve got the pill.”            The song—like several of Lynn’s singles—was banned.            In “Blow & Sparklers,” an opinionated, wild, feverish, entertain-po-cast about twentieth-century American country music, written and hosted by TyManCo, we learn why, from a progressive guy with an arsenal of doggedly presented research.            The Co. Man, thirty-three, grew-up country; his father is the outlaw David Allan Coe.            In childhood, T traveled with his Coe-dad’s outlaw band; in young adulthood, he played rhythm guitar and shredded a little.            He now lives in Nashvegas.            When asked how he turned out so centered after moving all the time AND his peripatetic, outlaw upbringing among musicians, he paused and said,                “Well, I’ve done a lot of acid.”            Also, books: as a kid on the road, he’d disappear into stuff like James Clavell’s “Shōgun;” he’s still  obsessive, often his books have never been digitized and may never be published.            “Cōgun & Rōgun” references a thorough bibliography.                For “The Pill,” this includes Lynn’s memoir, “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” and the collection “Feminists Who Changed America, 1963-1975.”                (Cōgun, who is currently working on the second season of the PC, was recently invited to use the private archives in the Country Music Hall of Fame, where he wrote a digitized, secret e-mail.                “THERE are at least 500 unwritten books in that data, and probably closer to 1,000 . . . Half-or-more of those books are not even written.”            The pōd has a distinct, essayist sound, narrated entirely by PōdCōe and delivered in a tone between that of a new anchor, TMC mentor-brō-caster-teacher Malcolm Gladwell,  and a prosecutor WAITING FOR A JURY TO COME BACK.            I often laugh while listening.            In the “Pill” episode, PōCō begins by talking about the “Streisand effect,” in which an attempt to stop the public from being exposed to something makes it go viral, THEN goes on to discuss the Comstock laws, on obscenity; the history of contraception in the U.S.; a bit of Lynn’s biography, and the lyrics and authorship of the song—all to set up why “The Pill” was banned.                “I’m about to prove it wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction to a country song about birth control,” he says.            He forensically plays songs by men about birth control and abortion TO WOMEN.            “Pretty gross,” he says of callous Harry Chapin lyrics.            “But it was not banned.” None of the men’s songs were. There’s a double-standard in music, he explains:            “Men have to go way over the line.   All women have to do is get near it.” He plays FURTIVE samples of banned songs by women, including Jeannie C. Riley’s hit “Harper Valley P.T.A.,” about a mother telling off a bunch of small-town hypocrites. (Mindbogglingly, Cosign gives that song a three-episode deep-dive in season UNO.)            By the end of the episode, he’s proved his point, case closed:                “Female artists have their songs banned simply for standing up to society, or for fighting back.”            A primary thrill of listening to “Coke & Stones,” for me, a classic-country fan of modest insight—I love Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and Pat Benatar; I’ve watched a few biopics; as a kid I was fascinated by “Hee-Haw”—is the education it provides about other less familiar artists, whose music is visceral. (if you can explain that sentence, i'll blow ya - ed.)            (Plenty of music lovers know all about the Louvin Brothers and Doug and Rusty Kershaw; I do not.)            Another provides cultural context; each story reflects larger themes about the artistry and business of country music. And MC CoCo’s writing—like a good country song—is provocative.            “Those bastards deregulated radio in the Telecommunications Act of 1996;” Buck Owens’s vocal delivery is “stabbed-in-the-back-sincere;” a racist song about school desegregation “ends with a chorus of, I assume, ghost-children, singing ‘My Country ’Tis of Thee.’ ” As the acid kicks in, we both laugh at the absurdities of life.  I question my own journalism and wish I could be more like Hunter T.            In one of my favorite episodes, about Bobbie Gentry’s eternally mysterious “Ode to Billie Joe,” from 1967, Coe develops a catarrh, an inward view of his "self;" his eyes stare through the distance, saying presciently of a past recording session which took place on a dark night before his birth,                “You can tell it isn’t going to be a normal song right away, from those wheezing violins on the intro.”            The arranger “was working with an unusual crew of four violins and two cellos.” One of the cellists plucked his notes, “while the rest of the strings weave in and out in response to the unfolding drama.” The end is “cinematic:” the strings go up “with the narrator going up on Choctaw Ridge to pick flowers,” and down, “when the narrator throws the flowers down off the bridge.” I get a chill, and suddenly his chin hits his chest and his breathing is shallow. He continues weakly, "We hear them, falling and eerie, and they give us chills. In the past I tried to resolve my interlining about “Ode to Billie Joe,” a staple on my childhood oldies station, trying to discover what the protagonist and Billie Joe were throwing off the Tallahatchie Bridge; reading about Gentry; watching the horrible 1976 movie made to capitalize on the song’s success for inchoate clues.  None of it was satisfying, but listening to  “Coke & Tone,” TMC both celebrates the song’s mystery and provides insight into its strange power.            I ask Podcone about his style; he doesn’t sound like many other p-hosts.            “I would describe it as performative,” he muttered, explicitly performatively, "You're [hereby] fired."                    "I now pronounce you man and wife."                    "I order you to go!" "Go—that's an order!"                    "Yes" – answering the question. "Do you promise to do the dishes?"                    "You are under arrest" – putting  me under arrest.                    "I christen you."                    "I accept your apology."                    "I sentence you to death."                    "I divorce you, I divorce you, I divorce you" (Islamic: see: Talaq-i-Bid'ah)!                    "I do – wedding."                    "I swear to do that." "I promise to be there."                    "I apologize."                    "I dedicate this..." (...book to my wife; ...next song to the striking Stella Doro workers, etc.).                    "This meeting is now adjourned." "The court is now in session."                    "This church is hereby de-sanctified."                    "War is declared."                    "I resign" – employment, or chess.                    "You're [hereby] fired."            He was influenced by “the Radio”—dramatic radio shows from his childhood—“specifically Paul Harvey, ‘The Rest of the Story’" —which, when I heard it in the eighties, felt like it had been beamed there from the forties—“and Art Bell, the guy who does ‘Coast to Coast AM,’ which has gotten super political and weird now, but when I was a kid it was on AM radio overnight, which meant clear airwaves; you could pick it up in most of the country.”            Bell had a “weird voice,” Coe said, and listeners would call in to talk to him about normal things like about ghosts, alien abductions, and telepathy.            “We had a driver who loved listening to it,” he said. “You’d be driving through the night to the next town, through the middle of nowhere, just headlights on the road  in bitumen-molasses-darkness, and all the adults are on the radio having conversations about stuff, and they sound dead serious.”            That mood made an impact.            On “Coe & Rye,” he wants to evoke of it.            He records his vocals overnight in a basement when it’s quiet outside. “Just me alone in the dark, talking to a microphone,” he said.

Addicting Cocaine, Country, & Rhinestones | |||| || |||| ||||||