BuzzSugar

Link Time! 7/28

BuzzSugar — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:30:57 -0700

Sex and the City 2 casting call: Your big chance to be (sorta, in the vicinity of) Carrie Bradshaw. - Popwatch
What's the best year for TV premieres in history? - TV Squad
Lost actor Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Eko! R.I.P.) says he's been talking to Marvel about bringing the African warrior king known as The Black Panther to the big screen. - MTV Movie News
A whopping 25 shows worth watching in August. - TV.com
Discuss: Who is America's next sweetheart? Pretty sure it's not Heigl. - Cinematical
Heck yeah, it's a new Mountain Goats song. - Stereogum
Aziz Ansari talks Funny People, Parks and Recreation, and chatting up Diddy on Twitter. - Vulture
Well, this is an easy one for me - Do, Dump, or Marry: Jon Hamm? - TrèsSugar

Noise Pop Diary, Part 1: Magnetic Fields and Mountain Goats

BuzzSugar — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 07:30:13 -0800

Last weekend, San Francisco was thoroughly rocked by the 16th installment of the Noise Pop music festival. For six nights, local favorites played alongside national stars at some of the city's greatest music venues. I had the pleasure of attending four of this year's Noise Pop shows, and today and tomorrow, I'll be letting you in on my Noise Pop diary. Up today: The Magnetic Fields and The Mountain Goats.

The Magnetic Fields, 2/28, Herbst Theatre - When you have as many songs as the Magnetic Fields do, and as many projects as singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt (pictured at right) has, I imagine picking setlists for shows is close to torture. But the Fields managed to cram an incredible range of songs into their Thursday set, drawing from albums old and new, with a sprinkling of music from side projects The Sixths and the Gothic Archies along the way.

Though known for their synth-y sound - and, as of late, guitar fuzz on top of everything - the group plays acoustic live, owing in part to Merritt's hearing condition that makes certain noises unbearable. Merritt sat far off on one side of the stage, cradling his bouzouki and leaving most of the talking to singer Claudia Gonson, who introduced the songs in between telling stories about having her pants stolen at a local laundromat. From time to time, Merritt would chime in with a snide remark or sarcastic comeback; the overall effect was that of an elderly couple bickering over the morning paper - and a surprising amount like what I imagine life with Stephin Meritt would be like. Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket, chimed in with the accordion on a few songs.

Highlights from the set included a moving version of "Book of Love" from 69 Love Songs, the spirited "Too Drunk to Dream" from Distortion, and a rocking rendition of "I Don't Believe You" from I. For me, though, the show's greatest benefit was getting to hear the Distortion songs stripped of their, well, distortion. Though I like the album as it is, hearing pure, acoustic versions of the songs let me appreciate what I really love about the Fields: their smart and clever lyrics.

Up next: The Mountain Goats, so read more.
The Mountain Goats, 2/29, Bimbo's 365 Club - As good as the Mountain Goats are on record, I've always thought of them more as a live band. There's nothing quite like seeing the emotion singer/songwriter John Darnielle puts into every word out of his mouth, sometimes even turning away from the microphone in the middle of a song to unleash a primal scream. The best Mountain Goats shows I've seen in my life have been the rowdiest, with the crowd hooting and hollering and buying Darnielle and bassist Peter Hughes shots of whatever they'd like to drink and egging them on to the point that they cover Ace of Base's "The Sign"; Friday's show wasn't like that. But the relatively staid atmosphere didn't keep Darnielle from getting into it, engaging the crowd in sing-alongs and slapping the hands of the fans at the front of the stage.

As a fan from the Goats' olden days of songs recorded directly into a tape recorder in Darnielle's living room, I'm still getting used to the fact that they've added a drummer; time was that if they wanted to play one of their few songs that required percussion, they had to drag the opening band's drummer back on stage. But for the first time, I realized that some of the songs from the Goats' Heretic Pride, their newest album, actually sound better with more instruments. Instead of longing, just a little, for the days of just Darnielle on stage, I actually wished their pianist and violinist had been on tour to give some of the new songs their full, rich arrangements.

Highlights included fan favorite "Going to Georgia" (prompted by Darnielle's inability to remember one of the new songs), "You or Your Memory" from 2005's The Sunset Tree, and an extended period of quiet time where Darnielle - just him and his guitar - played songs from his back catalog, outdoing himself each time with the intro: "Really, almost nobody knows this one."

Up tomorrow: Tilly and the Wall and She & Him

Source and Source

Super Tuesday: Primary Election Inspires Mountain Goats Song

BuzzSugar — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 06:30:00 -0800

I don't know about you guys, but I am getting myself pretty pumped up to vote in today's exciting primary election here in California. The folks at American Public Media were probably in a similar mood when they got one of my favorite bands, The Mountain Goats, to write a song about Super Tuesday called "Down to the Ark." It's a totally great way to keep my civic-minded mood up all day. To take a listen for yourself and help me understand what some of these lyrics have to do with this election read more.

"Down to the Ark"

The candidates met up in North Dakota
And they donned their black robes there in the chapel hall
They said a brief invocation to their cloven-hoofed prince
And they signed their names in blood on the vestry wall

In Christ you know there's neither high nor low
And the void will claim all creatures small or bright
Seal up the borders or let everybody in
In the order of the serpent, there'll be neither left nor right

And we pull down our blindfolds
And we reach out for the lever in the dark
Get a sticker for our shirts as we head into the sun
Proudly bearing the mark
Headed down to the ark

The applicants went down to Oklahoma
And they hired an accent coach to teach them the western twang
And several post-born babies learned the hard way:
Vampires only kiss you if they've sharpened up their fangs

And as Minnesota fell, so went Missouri
We met at VFWs in the snow
And we voted down the tax codes, and we voted down the war
So many names to choose from, just one way to go.

Source

BuzzSugar's Must-Haves for February

BuzzSugar — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 09:30:00 -0800

February is a big month here in entertainment-land, with both the Grammy Awards and the Oscars on the docket and this weekend's Super Bowl unleashing a new crop of commercials (not to mention a new Paula Abdul song) on the world. But I have my eye on plenty of other things, too. Want to see what I've got to have (and do, and see, and rent) this month? Just hit "Start."

View Slideshow ›

Link Time! 1/29

BuzzSugar — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:31:29 -0800

Cinematical found the poster and some behind-the-scenes footage from the next James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace.
Check out Stereogum for the new Erykah Badu video for "Honey."
Speaking of music videos, Spinner makes me happy by premiering the new Mountain Goats video.
TV Filter has the video of Craig Ferguson taking his citizenship test.
Meanwhile, YouAintNoPicasso has an MP3 of Belle and Sebastian covering David Bowie's "Space Oddity."
Television Without Pity wonders: Why isn't Victor Garber more famous?
Pop Candy wants to know what random TV shows you've discovered during the strike.
Popwatch learned a whole load of information about No Country for Old Men, straight from the Coen Bros.' mouths.
Give Me My Remote has the new strike video that's making the rounds, starring Josh Radnor.
Desperate for Desperate Housewives, TV with MeeVee has turned to Amas De Casa Desperadas.

Song of the Day: The Mountain Goats, "Sax Rohmer #1"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 06:30:00 -0800

I have a huge soft spot for the Mountain Goats, the lo-fi and insanely prolific band fronted by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. His songs are more like stories - sometimes personal, sometimes about his rotating cast of characters - and his albums are maybe the most literary things I've ever blasted at the gym.

The Goats' next album, Heretic Pride, comes out Feb. 19, tackling subjects including "a pulp spy novel writer, an imaginary cult, breakup sex, a lake monster, Prince Far I, and slasher films." It's a typically eclectic mix, backed by more instruments and vocalists than Darnielle (who for years recorded his songs at home with nothing but a guitar, a tape recorder, and an occasional Casio keyboard) has ever used.

Despite all the new collaborators, the opening track from the album, "Sax Rohmer #1," has a lot in common with some of the best Goats songs of old. Sure, the arrangements are more complex, but Darnielle's passionate lyrics and insistent vocals remain front and center. To hear the song, just read more.

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