Oh my god -- remember Saved By the Bell: The College Years?!!?

Hey there, it’s been quite a minute since we’ve talked…while I’ve still been floating a bunch of ideas around my head about interesting things to write about, lately it’s been kind of the “Oh, hey…that’s pretty cool — I should write something about that…later…” mentality, in which “later” somehow conjures up a few extra and less letters to form “never.”  I’ve had a lot on my mind, though…[cue Saved by the Bell dream sequence music]

Oddities:

• Heroes Season 3, “Villains” — You know, I kind of enjoyed Heroes Season 1.  And fuck it — I even tuned in every week to watch the mediocrity of Season 2, but this show has turned into a damn mess — a conglomeration of attempted “Oh, Shit!” moments without the “Oh, Shit!” factor to them.  In a way, it’s sad — the show is starting to beef up backstories and mythology (somewhat), but it’s performed in a way where it’s blatently obvious the new team of writers are just pulling plot-lines out of a hat on a week-to-week basis.  Say what you will about Lost, but at least you can go back to previous seasons and learn more based off newer episodes.  And seriously, what is up with Ali Larter still on the show?  Maybe all of the “Oh, Shit!” moments are catered directly to the baffled set of writers mumbling to themselves “oh…shit…what are we gonna do now?”

Ends:

• Blogging about my blog?  Laaame!: You know, I never really liked the term “Odds and Ends.”  But it’s a direction I want to go with this blog…a way of clearing a lot of the racing thoughts running through my head that I let stress me out way too much.  If you “know me” in real life, I keep a lot of stuff in, suppressing it — I like to think of it as my way of concentrating the good things in life and backstocking the bad ones.  Writing has always been sort of been a therapeutic means of self-medicating for me, and hey, since we’ve last talked (4 months ago) I’ve been feeling like a bit of a mess…go figure.
• It’s fun…it’s easy!: …and let’s face it, writing short lists, ideas, and random thoughts is a super relaxed way for me to keep myself busy with writing.
• On the not-so-lighthearted note: Yesterday I found out my Uncle is on his death bed…yet again.  The past year has been a constant struggle for him and my family…and I’m not really sure how to feel/deal with this.  I’ve never known anybody that’s passed away before…and worse yet I feel I barely even knew him.  To be honest, it’s only really starting to feel real as I’m writing this…I remember last time I really spoke to him I was just an ignorant little kid…and now, well, I hope that’s changed, but we’ve never been “close” as growing up hundreds of miles away there was never the opportunity for that.   What I’m worried about most is how my Dad is going to take it…my brothers and I are so close…I can’t even imagine losing my dog, let alone someone I shared a childhood with.

Sounds:

• I’ve got a lot to say about music, but we’ll start that discussion up next time we talk.  In the mean time, here’s a short list of songs I’ve been playing the living hell out of lately:

1. Say Anything – “Thoughts on a Liberal Education”
2. Young Jeezy – “Trap or Die”
3. Manchester Orchestra – “Where Have You Been”
4. Gucci Mane – “Aw, Man”
5. Daath – “Sharpen the Blades”

So, I’ve had this post in various drafts for quite a while now. It’s not nearly as fleshed out as I wanted it to be — I think I had some kind of analogetic relationship between one of those lizards that run on water, and …well, not running on water, but that’s kind of lost. So take in this picture and think what could have been. Now, onto the post…

I hate to delve too deeply into personal garbage, but holy crap did Summer go by way too fast. The first week back to school is through, and to be honest, it feels damn nice to finally have a goal to work towards once again. Though, I won’t lie — the past month or two have been gracious enough to grant me with some of the more entertaining, significant, and fun moments in recent memory — it’s tough to put into words, but things feel so much different lately (in a good way).

If you’ve kept up with this blog (and really, who hasn’t?!!) you’d know that most of my “writing” background is primarily videogame-based, but I haven’t really been able to pick up a controller long enough to extract any entertainment value out of it lately. I’ve always had this strange sort of semi-obsessive-compulsive reaction to adapting to hobbies, in which I seemingly surround myself in a bubble of culture. For the longest time it was skateboarding, which eventually moved to guitar, to videogames, and now I’m sort of at a crossroads between music and once again, guitar. The former of which I’ve discussed a few months ago.

Music…yeah — I can’t really seem to get enough of it lately. I’m at the point where my music consumption is increasing faster than I can accumulate it, and there’s always that one “new” band out there to fall in love with. Presently, it’s The Raconteurs and their latest album Consolers of the Lonely, which is reverberating quite well with the kind of bluesy guitar sound that made me pick up an instrument in the first place. I’ve always been able to say I liked The White Stripes, but they never completely clicked with me — for the most part, The Raconteurs settle most of my differences I had with Jack White’s prior efforts.

And maybe I’ve been staling out on the rock genre lately, but I’ve found myself listening to quite a bit of rap lately…and significantly enjoying the crap out of it. Lil Wayne is downright terrible for the most part — but I’m not really sure how many times I’ve listened to the awesomely-produced “A Milli” or Jay Z-cameoed “Mr. Carter” (OK, I am sure — and it’s way too many!). Maybe it’s that the lyrics are intentionally ridiculous and that’s always been something hilarious enough to keep me listening — I still to this day listen to one of “Weezy’s” first collaborations, The Big Tymers…and it’s still fucking incredible.

Oh yeah, and Say Anything. They’re (in my opinion) damn amazing. They’ve been pretty much the sole focus of my guitar playing, and singer-songwriter Max Bemis‘ lyrics are fairly often floating through my head. They’re not for everybody, but I’ve always been a fan of the written word (surprise!) and the density of Bemis’ lyrics keep me coming back to Say Anything daily.

In the end, I’m not really sure where I’ll end up in the whole writing game — whether I jump back into the “games journalism” bandwagon or not — but writing in some capacity is still definitely on the agenda. I know I’m hardly the first “writer” to ever say this, but I tend to immediately hate everything I post not long after I hit the temporarily-gratifying “Publish” button next to a post. That Say Anything post? It feels embarrassing already…but it’s fine. If anything it’ll be a reference point in the future when I (hopefully) write something I feel a little more proud about. I’ve really been into music and movie journalism lately, and I’d like to explore that avenue a little bit more in the coming months, so keep an eye out for that.

Speaking of the written word (well, not really), I’ve found it pretty interesting to check out how a lot (and by that I mean very few) of people end up here. WordPress has this handy blog stat feature that takes into account what users search for on, well, search engines to get here. It’s pretty cool flattering interesting to know that I, or more likely, some other Devin Grimes is Google-worthy, if only on an extremely small scale. I try to remain as interesting of a person as possible, and I’m sure that if you know me “in real life,” you’ll see my writing voice is a little different than my spoken one — but yeah, enjoy. I now leave you with some words of wisdom:

Damn, I hate a shy Bitch
Don’t you hate a shy bitch?
Yeah, I ate a shy bitch
She ain’t shy no more
She changed her name to My bitch
Yea nigga, that’s my bitch
So when she ask for the Money
When you through
Don’t be surprised bitch
And it ain’t trickin if u got it
But u like a bitch with no ass
You ain’t got shit

I’ll just come out and say it: Say Anything’s 2004 release …Is a Real Boy may just be one of my top albums of all time.  The combination of singer/songwriter Max Bemis’ exponentially deep lyrics, clever guitar arrangements, and melancholy message throughout each song make you think, while still maintaining the memorable hooks and choruses seen in the “radio rock” scene of today.  And then there’s the live acoustic performances with Bemis practically pouring out his soul to anyone that will listen — something which really made Say Anything “click” with me.

In a recent show at Anaheim’s Chain Reaction, we got to learn a little more about the band’s upcoming record, currently titled This is Forever, with Bemis stating, “I’ve written the whole thing.  It’s done, it’s gonna be recorded, and it’s gonna come out,” before treating fans to “Ahhhh…men,” a (so far) acoustically-driven song from the new album that he describes as “the weirdest song on the record.”

Unlike last year’s In Defense of the Genre — a record many fans see as a side-step for the band — “Ahhhh…men” feels like more of a return to form for Bemis.  Reminiscent of the slower paced “Walk Through Hell” and “I Want to Know Your Plans,” the version out there on “the internets” is goosebump-worthy in the emotional touch on display — of course, it’s Say Anything, so the song kicks off as sly and humorous as ever, with the opening lines:

Staring out the window of our tour bus
And it’s just the horny driver and us
We sit and trade wit, and smoke and we cuss
Talking about our friendly border drug bust
And i know the future’s cloudy and gray
Record like mine, give up or go gay

Packed with metaphor, and a rather simplistic, yet effective acoustic guitar arrangement, Bemis closes the song, painting a picture that only his closing comments to the audience can describe, stating “that was amazing.”

There’s a crack in the edge at the end of the world
Where I will sit with my love in this fluorescent swirl
Eat us up, break it down to the tiniest cell
In our room with a view and a window to hell
Where the room with the bodies will display what they’ve done
And march through museums that repel what they’ve done
And shot up through the sky by a cannon of sin
Who will reluctantly let them in

“Ahhhh…Men” has already become an instant favorite on my iPod, and shows a lot of promise for the rest of This is Forever.  So far, the only versions of the song that exist are from live shows, but assuming the album version doesn’t get too over-produced or severely altered, and with Bemis displaying some of his strongest songwriting chops yet, things are looking very promising for the future of the band.

…while I clean up this mess of a blog.  I’ve never been 100% comfortable with how “typical” things look around here, and I still hate the fact that I haven’t actually bought a real domain, but hopefully things should start to clean up within the next few weeks.  Also: I’ve been continuing the headings into the actual blog entry way too often — pretty lame.

Also: Dino Riders.

To This:

(sorry, cannot find an embeddable version — click through to the YouTube Page)

Flipping through BET today (lol), G-Unit’s new video for “Rider Pt. 2″ made me think of a few things:

• Why has auto-tuning become so damn popular lately? Seriously. It was cool when 2 Pac came out with “California Love”…what, 13 years ago.
• Granted it’s probably not the version the ringtone rap-loving crowd listens to, but what’s the point of even putting this song on TV in an edited form? Yeah, that “chorus” that 50 keeps reiterating sure is memorable…
• WHY THE HELL AM I WATCHING BET.

In all seriousness, maybe the rap industry isn’t doomed:

When you look at this list of 10 “Off-limits Travel Destinations” brought to you by the UK’s Telegraph.  The problem with this place?  It was a “French nuclear test site until the mid 1990s.”  Yeah, and they don’t really get much more humane than that…

I’d be a total liar if I said I’m not liable to get swept up in the hype of an extremely over-publicized new release at the box office.  After watching hours of re-runs and specials on TV dealing with the first three Indiana Jones flicks, I was convinced: how hard could it be to ignite fans’ imaginations and convince them that the barely sub-octogenarian Harrison Ford could pull off the classic cheesy one-liners and crack his whip a few times?  Boy was I wrong.

The sad thing is that it’s not necessarily Ford’s acting chops and maneuverability that hamper Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls‘ potential — at times I could get past it in my head, but the dialogue and way-too-crazy plot point involving [SPOILER] aliens, of all things feels far too zany to make any sense.  Sure, thousand-year-old guards aren’t exactly commonplace, but adding extraterrestrials to the universe of Indiana Jones brings it to a level where I just can’t really see where Lucas and Spielberg plan to take the series from here (assuming another one is in the works).

Also of note: Shia LaBeaouf takes an impromptu vine-swinging lesson from a few CGI monkeys and chases down a speeding car employing his newly-perfected ability.

Here, I think they call this “laughing all the way to the bank.”

And it wouldn’t be a proper grilling of KotCS without mentioning Indy’s best escape yet, in which he survives not only the blast of an atomic bomb, but the radiation effects afterward.  I guess cancer would be as good as any way for Dr. Jones to go out, so I’m just questioning whether or not this will be used in future iterations in the series.  Which, if the shot of Jones’ newly-discovered son “Mutt” picking up his father’s hat at the end, only to quickly have it swiped back means anything, it’s definitely going to happen.

I don’t really know how to feel about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.  I had such high expectations, but it’s hard to think of many non-nostalgic reasons why one would want to check it out.  It’s too over the top, too unbelievable, and hardly feels like it’s in the same series as such masterpieces as Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Here’s some random thoughts and responses I’ve been juggling through my mind lately:

Music

I’ve been getting crazy into music lately.  Formally close-minded towards anything not-classic-rock, I’ve actually discovered that they do make great music these days–you just have to dig for it and look for it in unconventional ways.  What kind of music you (probably didn’t) ask?  Well, here’s a few bands I find myself listening to recently:

• Say Anything
• Death Cab for Cutie
• Queens of the Stone Age/Kyuss
• Saosin
• LCD Soundsystem
• Every Time I Die
• DAATH
• Chimaira

It runs the gamut from Electronica to near-Death Metal, but along with some of the classics it feels great to have a little variety.

I set up a Last.FM account (Dgrimes14), which is actually a really cool service that catalogs every single track you play on your computer, integrating charts (exciting, I know) and other data about your music-listening habits, coupled with a few social networking tools (something I don’t really feel like I need another website for).  I have it set up to sync everything from my iPod and iTunes library, but I’m pretty sure it works with other music players as well.  You can actually see a sample of this in the sidebar to the right of this blog.

Writing

Just over a year ago I started writing for GameStooge.com — a smaller gaming-related blog that most gamers (or anybody else) have most likely never heard of.  Thanks to college taking over the majority of my writing time, I kind of lost track with posting and even following the gaming industry — and I totally regret doing so.  I occasionally would check out a few of the bigger blogs out there, but for the most part my role and interest in the gaming community was severely diminished.

But that’s behind me now.  I’ve resumed duties in posting news and the occasional review over there, but it’s hard to get the same feeling of love for the site when all of the other writers that I enjoyed “working” with stopped contributing.  I’m not really going to go into details on here, but several factors just left me feeling uninspired to continue what I was doing there.  Ideally, I’d like to move on to a blog I’d feel more comfortable writing for, but in the meantime all of my gaming-related posts can be found at GameStooge.

I’ve also been looking at the way music and movie reviews are handled in comparison to videogame reviews (something I’m more familiar with).  Because their media is inherently different and absent of a lot of the things you see in gaming reviews (graphics, framerate, story, controls, etc…) there really isn’t a set “mold” or structure to the way a review of a movie or album is penned out.  Instead, it’s more about the emotional response to, and analyzation of what’s presented.

To me, gaming reviews typically follow the same trend of describing the story, the controls, the visuals, the sound — it’s very dull and boring, and feels like something that belongs in a Consumer Reports magazine, rather than something that seriously critiques the artistic merit of a given title.  Movie and music reviews tend to stick to what an artist has accomplished, and game reviews seem all too much like a “Should you buy it?” reccomendation.  I feel like there should be some kind of lapse here that will allow us to talk about games in a new way, because frankly, most people have already made up their mind about purchasing a game months before it comes out.  A more interesting take should be considered, and it’s definitely something I’ll keep in mind when writing in the future.

Often regarded for their psychedelic fugues and iconic stage presence, The Mars Volta have entered heavy circulation into my music diet as of late. The Bedlam in Goliath marks the latest release from guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and co-frontman Cedric Bixler-Zavala, and with it, creates a significant footnote in the prog-rock music scene.

While far from the downright trippy compositions found in 2006’s Amputechture and its predecessor Frances the Mute, Bedlam manages to channel The Mars Volta in perhaps their most energetic performance yet — but longtime fans should not be dissuaded — you’ll still find the classic segue ways and stylistically cryptic lyrics that leave you scratching your head, but all come together in an otherworldly fashion that just feels so right.

Much of this energy channels from the latest addition to the team, drummer Thomas Pridgen. You’ve probably never heard of him, but believe me in saying: dude’s got credentials. While the fuss over his technical skill continues to be debated among the hardcore, Pridgen’s unique patterns and rhythm prove to be a healthy acquisition for the Mars Volta — and referenced in a live performance, it seems singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala seems to be of the same opinion:

“Before we go on, There’s a little mess I wanna dispel about our band. I want everybody to take a look at this fuckin’ bass drum right here. You can see inside this bass drum right here. Does that look like a double pedal to you? Does it look like a double pedal bass drum? No that’s right its a single fuckin’ pedal bass drum. So you fuckin’ tech geeks out that accuse us of heavy metal bull shit, well fuckin’ suck our dicks. [Because] his name is Thomas Pridgen and he does it with one fuckin’ foot.”

Sans Pridgen, it’s still immediately obvious that you’re listening to the work of guitarist and producer, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. Quoted as an individual who’s less than fond of his musical outlet in the band, stating that he is in a “war against the guitar,” Rodriguez-Lopez brings his trademark chops to the table en masse, providing much of the composition and direction for the rest of the band, as well as his signature blistering solos and can’t-get-them-out-of-your-head licks.

The Bedlam in Goliath stands out as an album wildly different from what we’ve seen in prior releases from The Mars Volta, and looks to only further cement the cult-like following established just seven years ago. It’s louder, heavier, trippier, and better yet, more of what die hard fans come to expect from the band.

Score:

Key Tracks:

• Ilyena
• Metatron
• Goliath

Sources:

• PopMatters [image]
  
• Omar Rodriguez-Lopez – Wikipedia

Throughout Hollywood’s antiquated history, the mob movie has always reigned supreme. We’ve seen the juggernauts of the genre (Scarface, Casino, Donnie Brasco), and as of late, the underlings that fall in the shadows of these aforementioned giants that do nothing more than tug on the bottom of your shirt seeking even the slightest bit of praise.

When we were first introduced to the Corleone family in 1972’s The Godfather, America quickly became hooked on the depiction of the underground crime ring. Martin Scorsese’s spree of hits, namely Goodfellas, only further cemented this infatuation with the mob and built up quite a legacy for Scorsese as a filmmaker. His gritty, no-holds-barred take on the mob provides an immense sense of realism that reverberates in all the right ways with his audience. Now, Scorsese is back with The Departed — a modern take on the mob that works extremely well on so many levels, all while featuring a Godly melting pot of some of the film industry’s best actors.

That last sentence wasn’t just fluff — The Departed presents a stellar cast of some of Hollywood’s best A-listers: Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, and Alec Baldwin stand out most notably and all present a better than average performance — and each brings their own distinctive syle to boot.

Of course, this conglomeration of names wouldn’t mean anything if the movie, itself were terrible — which it’s far from. The plot is full of cliches such as the whole good cop/bad cop situation that’s been done to death, though in this case, everything just works. As played out as mob portrayals have become on the big screen, The Departed just feels plain fresh, offering plenty of “Oh, shit!” moments that seemingly come out of nowhere.

Usually praised for his roles as “the good guy,” Matt Damon shares the lead role as Sgt. Sullivan — a baby-face cop who quickly advances up the ranks in the Massachusetts State Police force. It sounds exactly like another good guy situation…that is until you’re introduced to his backstory.

Sullivan has another role that precedes his protectorate position: he’s an undercover member of the mob brought up by the organization’s boss, Frank Castillo (Nicholson). He’s there as Castillo’s mob informant and quickly does all he can to reroute the police force according to his “true” employer’s agenda. As you’d expect from a Sergeant of the police force, he has it made: the beautiful girlfriend, nice apartment, and the respect and authority of his fuzz coworkers.

This is all in stark contrast to DiCaprio’s lowlife character, William Costigan Jr. With a family that already has ties to the mob, and a permanent record that’s not exactly fantastic to begin with, Costigan attempts to clean himself up. He goes through the police academy training program aspiring to do good — only to be quickly shot down during a job interview with smartass cop Sergeant Dignam (Wahlberg). They work out a deal that puts Costigan on the police force, but only as an undercover agent within mob boss Frank Castillo’s regime to perform the exact function as Damon’s character — only from opposite sides of the spectrum.

As you can imagine, paths cross, and while it’s all bad news bears for the characters portrayed in the film, it makes for one hell of an entertaining ride all the way up to the out-with-a-bang end. Dialog exchanges between characters are smart, witty, and do a great job to sell the movie alongside the intersecting plot-lines that unite DiCaprio and Damon’s characters. The tension between each character and their respective agency is just as enthralling and intense as the abrupt ending that’ll smack you across the face and leave you begging for more, but oh-so-pleased with the outcome.

To put it simply, The Departed proves that Director Martin Scorsese still reigns as one of the mob movie’s top yarn spinners, while providing viewers with one of the most entertaining flicks in quite a long time.

Score: