10 movies worth checking out this fall (Commentary)
I’ve perused Entertainment Weekly’s Fall Movie Preview, watched the trailers and come up with my list of 10 movies I wouldn’t mind seeing in the fall.
Music
R.I.P. Dick Clark. And I miss ‘American Dreams’ (TV commentary)
I was shocked — pleasantly so — to find the first reference to “American Dreams” only five paragraphs into the Associated Press’ feature obituary on Dick Clark, who died on Wednesday at age 82.
First episode impressions: ‘Smash’ (TV review)
I have to confess that I generally don’t enjoy musicals. With the notable exception of the “Buffy” musical episode, the genre doesn’t work for me. Most musicals are repetitive, using songs to emphasize what we […]
These were the catchiest singles of 2010 — for better or worse (Music commentary)
I don’t actively seek out mainstream pop hits like I used to, so when two songs are bouncing around my brain at the end of 2010, you know they were the two most ubiquitous songs […]
John’s top 5 albums of 2010 (Music commentary)
1. Jenny and Johnny, “I’m Having Fun Now” — When two musicians in a relationship make an album together, it rarely results in good music; at least that’s the stereotype. We think of John and Yoko or […]
Folds/Hornby collaboration Lonely Avenue a compelling but mediocre experiment (Music review)
Author Nick Hornby writes the words and musician Ben Folds puts the music to them. The September album “Lonely Avenue” is, on the surface, hard to resist. It features one of my favorite authors and the man […]
Latest Belle & Sebastian disc ‘Write About Love’ a step down, but still good (Music review)
Chance, a commenter on these threads, feels that Belle and Sebastian’s October release, “Write About Love,” is weak; I think it’s decent. Actually, we’re both right. It may be weak by B&S standards, but it’s decent by […]
Jenny Lewis finds musical soulmate on new album (Music review)
Continuing Las Vegas Musician Week at my blog, Jenny Lewis recently released a new album, and although it’s not as lyrically substantial as some of her previous efforts, it does achieve a nice, beachy sound […]
Killers frontman Flowers’ versatility blooms on ‘Flamingo’ (Music review)
I think Brandon Flowers or his band, The Killers, will make a better album than “Flamingo” in the future, but this is a step in the direction of greatness. Working sans band, Flowers’ most impressive feat on […]
First episode (of new season) impressions: ‘Glee’ (TV review)
Here are my first impressions of the Season 2 premiere of “Glee” (7 p.m. Central Tuesdays, Fox).