Cunningham turns Morton into a Parasite

After the release of his über-brilliant music video for Björk's "All is Full of Love," director Chris Cunningham took an extended hiatus from his promo work to focus instead on art installations and short films, the most notable of which was Rubber Johnny, a freaky six-minute short film starring Cunningham in the title role, and featuring re-worked music by Aphex Twin (YouTube link, not safe for work!)

Anyway, Cunningham has returned to music videos after his seven-year sabbatical, delivering a brief minute-and-a-half promo for UK punk group The Horrors and their single "Sheena is a Parasite." According to the director file, Cunningham discovered the band off MySpace (nice to see that place is good for something). The promo was shot on a shoestring budget in an airplane hangar, and stars Oscar-nominated actress Samantha Morton (In America, Minority Report) in the title role as a woman who seems to emit squids from her...well, you'll just have to see the video for yourself...IF YOU DARE!

Devin is out right now.

If you need me, I'll be over here 'till 2.

Later!
Devin

Stranger Than Fiction trailer

I'm not a big Will Ferrell fan, but this movie just might change my mind:

Doin' It For Tha Shorteez!

My close, personal friend and self-proclaimed blogophile Bethanne (of the excellent Clever Titles Are So Last Summer) is holding a Blogothon this Saturday, July 29. The deal is that she has to come up with two new blog posts every hour (in case you can't count, that's 48 posts!) Now, seeing as no mere mortal can ever hope to accomplish this feat single-handedly (unless you're Scott from Stereogum), she has asked for the help of her blogging cohorts to contribute, and I am happy to say that I have obliged. I will be contributing four posts to her blog, from 12 PM to 2 PM that afternoon. I don't know what I'm going to write about yet, but I can assure you it will be quite interesting and almost grammatically accurate (also, free of any sort of political slant).

If you would like to donate to the Blogathon (Bethanne, by the way, is blogging for Global Fund for Women), you can click this link! They accept cash, credit, rubles, or wampum (not really).

Movie Reviews Written as Comment Cards for a Test Screening

My Super Ex-Girlfriend:

I found this movie to be harmless fun. Nothing groundbreaking or brilliant, just a simple, fun summer comedy. Uma Thurman finally breaks the habit of giving terrible performances for any director but Tarantino, and Luke Wilson proves he's a funny actor as long as he doesn't try to act funny. I don't know what Wanda Sykes was doing in the film, since her character wasn't utilized at all, but Rainn Wilson was a scream. Just get rid of that horrid animation that plays during the end credits, as well as the terrible Top 40 soundtrack, and you've got something.

P.S.: I'm sure it must surprise you, Ivan Reitman, to have a son that turned out a much better film (Thank You for Smoking).

Lady in the Water:

Shyamalan, you are an anomaly in the filmmaking world. People call you the next Hitchcock, but you and I both know you're nothing of the sort. Rather, you're the guy that brings back the idea of being scared of what you can't see (or what you can't see clearly). And for the most part, it's paid off. It certainly helped that Signs also carried a fascinating subplot of a man severely questioning his faith. It didn't help that you pinned all your hopes of making The Village a success by having a ludicrous and, frankly, obvious "surprise" ending. Thankfully, Lady in the Water feels like a direct response to all the flak you got for The Village. It has no surprise ending (surprise!), a totally implausible story (which I had no problems with), a great sense of humor, and Bob Balaban, who's role appears to be that of a mean, spiteful movie critic, who receives his just desserts at the film's coda. All in all, a fun experience and entirely original film from M. Night, though it certainly won't be winning you any new fans.

Another free EP from Spec. Fantastic!

Last summer, indie rock group The Spectacular Fantastic released an EP of killer tunes for free on their official website (you can still get those tracks here!) Well, now they've created another totally free EP of songs available for download! Click here to get your Spectacular on! Or, just listen to the tracks using this player:



As for the previous EP, I strongly recommend downloading "60 Cycles" as well as their cover of Del Shannon's "Runaway". Oh, and pick up a copy of their latest full-length, The Spectacular Fantastic Goes Underground, while you're at it.

Hodgman Goes A-Haunting

"Daily Show" resident expert and DiMattiaFilms' favorite John Hodgman has contributed a six-page article on the Japanese horror movie craze to the New York Times, readable here. Very interesting, very informative, and his interview with the Pang brothers, identical twins who happen to be Hong Kong's top filmmakers, is quite fascinating, as is his analysis of the Pangs' horror classic, The Eye.

Gotta Catch 'Em All!

I just received Tap Tap's Lanzafame, the fifth and newest release from Catbird Records, the indie record label run by Ryan, the creator of The Catbirdseat. I have always enjoyed each new release from the label, especially since all of them have come in such cool packages. The Tap Tap release comes in two formats: regular jewel-case and a special edition book. Naturally, I got the book, in color #3 out of 8 possible color choices.

Tap Tap - "100,000 Thoughts" (mp3)

I look forward to receiving the next Catbird release, Maestro Echoplex's Last Night I Saw God on the Dancefloor.

Maestro Echoplex - "My Eyes Are Disconnected From My Head is Disconnected From My Body" (mp3)

Awesome-News-of-the-Month Award!!

From The Decemberists news page:

"The band has been in deep, top-secret hiberno-mode as they labor to finish their 4th LP– which, we are happy to announce, has been titled "The Crane Wife." This lovely would've-been-a-double-in-the-seventies-record (which tip-toes over the temporal finish line at just over 60 min.!) will hit the shelves (and e-shelves) of discriminating record stores (and e-stores) promptly on October the 3rd. Which is two days shy of Colin's birthday. The day (the 5th) also happens to be Carson Ellis' (illustrator extraordinaire, former art-slave, now graciously well paid art employee) birthday, but frankly, Colin got to it first by a year. The band will be doling out bits and parcels of information regarding this record over the coming months as a way to soothe and placate you, the salacious music enthusiast."

Twenty bucks says at least one song is about a whale.

Visit their MySpace page, where you can download two exclusive tracks: a live version of "A Cautionary Song," and an early demo of Part 1 of "The Tain."

The Summer Movie Report Card (so far)

Cars	A-
The Da Vinci Code	B+
Ice Age: The Meltdown	C
Over the Hedge	A-
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest	A
A Prairie Home Companion	A+
A Scanner Darkly	A
Superman Returns	B-
Thank You for Smoking	A-
X-Men: The Last Stand	D

So, what movie am I most looking forward to seeing? I'll give you a hint:

The Kindness of Strangers

Before I start, just wanted you to know that I'm trying something new with my Amazon.com links. Now if you roll your mouse over any music links (like the ones under the "Choice Cuts" sidebar) a mini-window will open with the price and purchase info from Amazon.com. I figure it's not really a pop-up ad since they're very unobtrusive and they go away once you take your mouse off the link. If you guys think it's a bad idea, let me know and I'll take 'em off.

Moving on...

I recently received an e-mail from Musical Family Tree, "an archive of mostly Indiana music," asking me if I would like a free copy of their new compilation, Delicious Berries. Naturally, I said "hell yeah" (not in those exact words) and a couple days later, I received a package not just containing the aforementioned comp, but an extra CDR of additional music, and a ton of buttons. The compilation itself is very good, and very eclectic. I especially enjoyed the selections from Margot and the Nuclear So and Sos and Emperor Penguin (I'm such a sucker for vocoders). And while I was told not to post songs from the comp on my site, I am allowed to let you guys listen to all the tracks on the CD-R. You can stream all the tracks using the player at the bottom of this post.

Also, any other bands or record labels out there who would like me to give a shout-out, I will happily do so in exchange for free stuff. Don't worry; I'm an equal opportunity sellout! E-Mail me and maybe we'll do lunch! I've got coupons for Quizno's.

Good Lord! The Too-Much-Music Post

On the disc of Sufjan Stevens' new compilation, The Avalanche: Outtakes & Extras from Illinois Album, the words "Oh Boy! Oh No!" are drawn. I believe those four words perfectly describe the mood I was in all this week. There is simply too much good music out right now...and my ears (and my wallet) can't take it. I mean, new albums from Sufjan, Thom Yorke, Guster, not to mention the tons of CDs I've been trading on La La.

The whole thing finally came to a head when Daytrotter pointed me to a blog where you can download THREE Christmas albums by Sufjan Stevens. That's over an hour of yuletide Christmas in July goodness!

New Trailer for Nolan Pic "The Prestige"

Apple has just released a trailer for The Prestige, the new film from Christopher Nolan, who directed Batman Begins, as well as Memento. The screenplay is co-written by Christopher and his brother, Jonathan, whose short story was the basis for Memento, and the film stars Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, and Scarlett Johannson.

The film looks quite interesting. That Michael Caine narrates most of the trailer just adds to the awesomeness.

In addition to this film, you can also see Jackman and Johannson star alongside Woody Allen in Allen's new comedy Scoop, whose trailer can be found here. While the jokes in the trailer aren't all that funny, it does have a sort of Manhattan Murder Mystery vibe going through it, and that would definitely help.

Camera Obscura, Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

My relationship with Scottish pop group Camera Obscura has only lasted for the better part of three weeks, but that didn't stop me from taking in their live show at Carrboro, North Carolina's Cat's Cradle. All in all, I must say that I was very impressed. Lead singer/songwriter Tracyanne Campbell is the tiniest person I have ever seen perform on a stage, yet she carried the show without hogging too much of the spotlight. They performed nearly every track off their latest LP, Let's Get Out of This Country, as well as an ABBA cover, to satisfy, in their words, all the "Swedophiles in the audience tonight." They even took the title track of their last album and worked the ending so that it segued into a brief cover of Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al."

Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out of This Country (MP3 - sorry, no Paul Simon cover)

All in all, I think that my money was well-spent. The opening act, Georgie James, was most impressive as well, consisting of former Q and Not U drummer John Davis on vocals and guitar, and singer/songwriter Laura Burhenn, as well as a really cool bass player (Adam Robinson) and drummer (Cale Parks).

Georgie James - More Lights (MP3)







And even though my brother and I had a really good time, I doubt we had half as good a time as this guy:

CSS - New band on Sub Pop

I know I'm the last to get on the blog train about this one, but here it is anyway. The newly signed to Sub Pop group CSS, a Brazilian electro-pop band, has released their first single, entitled "Let's Make Love and Listen to Death from Above." While the video references everything from Shout Out Louds to Threadless, I just don't think it's all that clever. Personally, they sound a little too much like a South American Art Brut. Didn't we already go through all this when LCD Soundsystem had that song "Daft Punk is Playing at My House"?

Decide for yourself. Download the track here.

Their debut album, Cansei De Ser Sexy, is out now. I gotta give points to a band with tracks like "Art Bitch" and "Music is My Hot, Hot Sex."

New Summer Mix!

Another year, another entry to Yewknee's Summer Mix Series. This year, I submitted an indie mix I pieced together a couple of months ago entitled "Don't Come Knocking". And before it gets posted on Michael's site, I'm giving my readers the first chance to download it.

The artists are varied, from mainstream musicians such as Keane, Gnarls Barkley (sorry, I had to put "Crazy" on here), Beth Orton, and The Raconteurs, as well as obscure and independent musicians like Dr. Dog, The Heavy Blinkers, Petra Haden, and Colin Meloy of the Decemberists. 20 tracks total, and over 70 minutes of music!

Click here to view the tracklisting and album art, or if you're in a hurry, just click here to download the whole thing (it's a 85 MB zip file, so make sure your connection can take it).

Exclusive Tracks from Maritime on Daytrotter.com

Daytrotter is a blog that features exclusive studio sessions with up-and-coming indie rock bands. Tomorrow, they'll be posting a quartet of new songs from Maritime, whose second album, We, the Vehicles, is slowly becoming one of my favorite albums of the year.

Before the free songs become available, visit the group's official website and click on Jukebox to stream the whole album. I highly recommend "Tearing Up the Oxygen," "Parade of Punk Rock T-Shirts," and "German Engineering."