Friday Six: NHL, Random Access Memories, Bob’s Burgers, Star Trek, & More
[dc]P[/dc]lenty of stuff on my mind this week: the new Daft Punk album, Star Trek Into Darkness, hockey, Star Wars, comic shops closing, and Bob’s Burgers.
And seven is RIGHT OUT
[] I streamed all of Daft Punk’s new album, Random Access Memories via iTunes the other day. I’m sold. I’ll buy Random Access Memories when it is officially released.
This experience reminded me of what a professor in college told my audio production class: people hear music, but don’t always listen. Meaning, for many, music is background stuff, not an experience. Most of us multitask while listening to music, I know I do (while cleaning, running, or writing ALF fan fiction). I’ll confess to multitasking while listening (or rather, hearing) Random Access Memories. For most the album, I added gifts to Steph and my’s wedding registry. I’ll say this: I find Bed, Bath, & Beyond’s lack of Ernest films disappointing.
When I stopped and listened to Random Access Memories, I was glad I did. It is a very layered and interesting album (and best enjoyed with headphones). I couldn’t say the last time I listened to a new album start to finish in one sitting.
There is something Pink Floydian about the album–by which I mean, it reminds me of Dark Side of the Moon, with its different tones, styles, and layers.
Keep in mind, I’m probably the last person who should opine about music. My last few iTunes purchases are: Danzig, Tom Waits, Lindstrøm, and the barking dog versions of Jingle Bells. My tastes are complicated.
[] More on the geek front, Stark Trek Into the Darkness opens this weekend, and I’m already seeing a variety of reactions. I’m not going into it expecting anything less than space-action, so I’ll likely enjoy it. Plus, it stars Benedict Cumberbatch. He could be the voice of Bumblelion in a Wuzzles movie, and I would still check it out.
All this online chatter about Star Trek Into the Darkness reminded me of a favorite joke from the cartoon, The Critic. Jay’s boss, Duke, tells him, as a critic his job is to ‘rate movies on a scale from good to excellent.’ This made me think of the changes The Critic would go through if repackaged for today. Jay would probably be a movie blogger, or podcaster, or both. He might even be a critic for a film review aggregate site, ideally spoofing Rotten Tomatoes (Moldy Cabbage?). Who watches film review TV shows, like Jay’s Coming Attractions, these days? I don’t. I read film blogs and listen to podcasts though, and social media is a big part of how I learn about films too.
[] My latest My’brary Adventure for the Capital Area District Libraries blog is all about Star Wars. See previously: On J. J. Abrams Directing Star Wars VII
[] Season two of Bob’s Burgers is now on Netflix. Huzzah. I love that show. I really love all the original songs, especially those in the end credits. I wish Fox would release an official soundtrack. I would buy it.
Seriously. Image via Know Your Meme.
[] In local geek news, 21st Century Comics and Games in East Lansing is closing. Sad, as it was a favorite stop in EL. 21st Century Comics and Games sponsored the MSU Comics Forum, and it was the first place I went after Nick Bertozzi’s keynote address (I picked up Scott McCloud’s Making Comics and a couple Usagi Yojimbo books). What really made the place special was a trio of Battletech simulator pods. Yes, giant robots with lasers and missiles, fighting each other.
[] The Red Wings beat the Ducks in a tense game seven last week. Those last few minutes had my stomach in more knots than a shoe tying Pinterest board. The win was bittersweet though, as Teemu Selanne‘s future in the NHL is in doubt after being eliminated.
The Red Wings and Blackhawks series will be interesting, if game one is a sample of what is to come. Jimmy Howard looked solid, but the young defense has me concerned. I can’t remember the last time I yelled at the TV so much. Maybe when the remote batteries died and the channel became stuck on Dance Moms.
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Responding to the Friday six is going to make the comments almost as long as the post…
I am a new convert to Daft Punk, and only then because of the Tron Legacy soundtrack which I liked a lot, now I am trying to listen to the back catalog and see which I want to purchase first. Should I start with the new one or can you recommend another?
Star Trek Into Darkness is a movie I am looking forward to. Not because it’s great Star Trek but because it’s going to be an entertaining movie. If we learned anything from the last movie it’s that while this isn’t your fathers Star Trek, it is a heck of a ride. A few less fire-fights and explosions and a bit more story would be nice, but hey sometimes you just want to see a federation ship blow the snot out of the bad guys…
I am sorry to hear about 21st Century closing. I have never made it there, as the one time I have been in Lansing my tour guide didn’t add it to the itinerary. 😛
You should take a photo or two of the interior before it closes and post them. I would like to see it and I don’t know when I can make it back to Lansing. When are they closing? I have to admit, I am not doing my part anymore to keep Comic Shops open. At one time my pull list at my local comic shop was upwards of 100.00 a month, but the poor economy hits everyone hard and that was the first thing to go. Even now, when I do purchase a comic I buy it digitally directly from the publisher so I don’t have to add yet another comic box to my already over stuffed basement.
Highly, HIGHLY recommend Alive 2007. Like most live albums, it is a ‘greatest hits’ of sorts, but it flows extremely well. Discovery is their ‘break out’ album with the big hits, and worth getting, but Alive 2007 is a great sampling. I recommend listening to both or either before trying out Random Access Memories.
21st Century is closing soon, maybe the end of the month. There are a few pictures of the interior on their website. From what I have heard, the owner just didn’t want to run the store anymore and has been trying to sell it for awhile–his lease is up at the end of the month.
Well, for a change I actually get to use the emusic subscription I have because for once the music I want is available there. I just purchased Alive 2007 and it’s downloading now. I will listen to it this afternoon.
Enjoy! Headphones are recommended.