Monty Park

Goodbye

2011-08-20T12:19:00.000-07:00

If you're reading this, and much to my shock you are, you've realized that the age of Monty Park has long ended. I kept it going a lot longer than I should have and I don't know why. Also, people keep calling me Monty Park and I don't want to end up like Leonard Nimoy.

Now resigned to be myself (and maybe even get some work) you can find me at thewritersamhuddy.wordpress.com

It's Arrested Development - S1 E1 - Pilot

2010-10-04T22:03:00.000-07:00

I often indulge myself in a game called Monkees Equals Monkees, about which read more in the link. The strange thing is, I can never find a band to match Arrested Development, simply because there is no musical artist important or good enough to live up to this show. If anybody's out there who can help, that'd be great.

When you really think about it, a show like Arrested Development couldn't have come at a worse time. It was 2003, and everybody else was still enjoying trashy reality shows unironically. It debuted the same time as Two and a Half Men, and while that show is still on today, Arrested is the clear winner, its unique style spawning 30 Rock, The Office, Flight of the Conchords and the new Running Wilde, for which my high hopes remain.

"This fall," says a random article from 2001, "8 out of the 46 sitcoms filmed in prime time across the six broadcast networks will be shot like movies, with a single camera, on film and without a live audience." This fall's new comedies are split 50/50, but combined with already existing shows, videotape is now in the minority.

Rather than continue to wax poetic, I'm here to do recaps of The Greatest Television Comedy Ever Made (tm), because neither The AV Club nor Alan Sepinwall have done it yet. Summaries for "Pilot," just as soon as I get some new fucking attorneys...

So the basic plot: Michael Bluth is living in a model home with his son. His father George, the CEO of The Bluth Company, is retiring, and Michael is expecting to take his place. But he doesn't. As it turns out, the SEC is after him for...something...and he doesn't want Michael to be an accomplice. Meanwhile, we get a snapshot of the other major players, as the Fünkes move in with the Bluths. Overall, it's very comprehensive, though some of the characters are portrayed in a somewhat kinder light than normal (Tobias and Lindsay especially).

Bananas and Nuts:

Hey, it's 2003! Protesters for gay marriage, at a time when it was illegal in every state.
This manages to be something everyone else misses, but GOB's whore line was changed from "cocaine" to "candy" in the pilot that aired. I don't understand how that makes any difference, but I'm sure the legendary actuaries at Fox's S&P had a good rationale.
"Some say money is an illusion. One minute it's here, and the next...Monopoly."
Tobias' "How are you" catchphrase didn't last very long, did it?
Correspondent Trisha Thoon is played by friend of the blog Stacey Grenrock Woods in the first of many appearancces.
"Somebody is a rude Gus."
Sitwell Housing makes a startlingly early appearance as the Bluth Company's main competitor.

iCarly, Adverbs, and Christopher Nance

2010-08-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

So, I started this thread on the AV Club. I was just contextualizing Nathan Rabin's series on the Now That's What I Call Music franchise with my own personal experience, but what came out of it was way different.

Eventually the thread had two subjects; one, denigrating the band Jet (which is totally right) and the other, contrasting the relative merits of the Nickelodeon show iCarly, two things that are related solely through my vodka-addled sense of nostalgia. Obviously, this was video-worthy.

Note 1: Sam and I originally had a more extensive 45-minute conversation, but it was unintelligible due to background noise.

Note 2: I also claim that iCarly stole their idea from me, but as I stole my idea from Chester Tam, let's call it even.

~MP~

The Summer Replacement: The Knights of Prosperity

2010-07-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

If you read the various online summaries for the 90s' perpetual underdog Newsradio, they'll always say that it's "smarter than Friends, funnier than Frasier." Which is...simplistic, but what are you going to do?

2007's The Knights of Prosperity is in a similar situation. It's smart, fun, and guaranteed at least one belly laugh every Wednesday for 13 weeks.

I myself was an early watcher of this show, intrigued by the idea that someone would make a show about robbing Mick Jagger, and even took inspiration to do a heist of my own that winter. Of that I cannot say any more.

It's still available on Hulu, so I highly suggest you watch it before they make you pay for it.

Up next: Better off Ted and Party Down

The Summer Replacement: The Ben Stiller Show

2010-07-09T21:53:00.001-07:00

It's late, and Wonder Falls was so fucking twee I couldn't get beyond the pilot, so I'm going to sum up this show with bullet points.

1. This was a TV show on Fox that started as a joke on MTV. It's 1992, Ben Stiller is a nobody despite his famous parents, and the S&L crisis still qualifies as a "recession."

2. Ben Stiller does not mug. Jeannine Garofalo isn't yet skinny, sleeved, and shrill. Andy Dick is totally not a dick. Yet.

3. This show, despite only nine episodes, has some excellent work like Woody Allen's Bride of Frankenstein, the pig latin lover, and Tony Bobbins' let-go clinic.

4. It also has some serious duds like the "do it, doit," guy that was later reused for the film remake of Starsky and Hutch. Also, Skank.

5. Awesome neon early 90's aesthetics that take me back to my mom's ceramics class at Cal State LA.

6. Bob Odenkirk is the definitive Charles Manson.

But don't conflate my dispassion with a general wind-down of this series. Far from it! Up next, Donal Logue is back, and he's robbing Mick Jagger; and Victor Fresco comes back with a vengeance in Better Off Ted.

Good Bye SF State

2010-06-24T19:37:00.001-07:00

Also I would have liked to be a member of a secret society.

Death of a Scene

2010-06-24T16:29:00.000-07:00

So I've left San Francisco for good, but I'm not the only one. You see, Tyler Cornfield has decamped for Europe, thus creating a domino effect that will soon end the wave of ironic hipsterism that defined the past ten years.

Cornfield was one of the good ones; rejected by Williamsburg, he turned his handlebar mustache into a full beard and acknowledged the fleeting trendiness of veganism. Yet he still took part, leading America's 12th-largest city through a cultural period that lasted longer than disco.

Both involved Chloe Sevigny. Coincidence?

Now that Tyler has decamped for the more distraught corners of Europe, there is a power vaccum in San Francisco, and nobody is taking up the charge. Cornfield's most likely successor, Jordon Jo, divides his time between NorCal and crumbling Phoenix, which doesn't help very much.

Now that the one man who brought legitimacy to the indie movement has left America, the following months may very well see a domino effect, thus putting a merciful end to a culture that told us what was arbitrarily good or bad based on what day of the month it was.

Ultimately, a tiny, seemingly inconsequential action may very well move the nation's cultural nexus and finally breathe new air into what we listen to, watch, and read.

The Summer Replacement: Life

2010-06-20T09:38:00.000-07:00

The problem with this show is that it is ungoogleable. That's it.

I could go on about how Life helped open the door for Fox's The Good Guys (likely to be a future installment in this series!), or that it was a breath of fresh air for NBC after Law and Order: MTV. But that's not what makes this show great.

Life is the most accurate depiction of Los Angeles I've ever seen. Except for the fact that LAPD homicide's reach appears to go far beyond the city, you can tell that the writers cared to correct years of smug manhattan-based slander. Of course people ride the subway!

Damian Lewis' character Charlie Crews is a breath of fresh air as a detective whose seeking out the bad guys without being one himself, and his zen musings amuse and inspire. Perhaps most importantly is that this is the rare show that overcame its own canellation. Sure, Rand Ravich could have left things open-ended, or put together a choppy happy ending like Pushing Daisies, but instead he rewarded the viewer with a conclusion that was satisfying without feeling rushed.

Atherton!

So make sure to put this on your list, and I assure you this blog entry will make sense.

Next time: Tweegasm at Niagra Falls, and when Ben Stiller was unfamous.

The Summer Replacement: Andy Barker, P.I.

2010-06-02T21:46:00.000-07:00

I'll be the first to admit that The Summer Replacement is not an episode-by-episode deconstruction of cancelled TV shows. Nobody is paying me to do this, and to do otherwise for free would make me hate what I'm doing. It's the same reason I've branched out in my videos: I'm sick and tired of doing the same thing I did in 2007, and I can't jump the shark, so I might as well do what's fun and see what becomes of it.

I say this because I was considering a review of the unresolved four season wonder My Name Is Earl, except that that show was popular enough to begin with, and had so many episodes that watching them in succession was enjoyable, but exhausting. And why go after fare like Earl when there's a lot more underappreciated stuff out there, like the Conan O'Brien-produced pilot Lookwell?

Bless you if you watched all of that, because I'm about to introduce you to another Conan production that got a few steps further: Andy Barker, P.I.

I wish I could say that Andy Barker, P.I. was a defining show of my favorite year (2007), but I didn't watch it. Never mind that I was a dorky adventure junkie with an eye for the quirky-but-not-twee, who happened to live in the city where the show was set, but the only thing I heard about Barker when it was on, was that it was on. Nobody else I've talked to remembers it. Yet a parsing of it's scant six episodes (our shortest series yet) can be as fulfilling as a whole season of television. It redeemed Andy Richter in the wake of Quintuplets, and gave Tony Hale the best role this side of Arrested Development. (and about time!)

Rather than go into the murky details of Andy's white-bread accountant-turned-detective, you should see it for yourself, in at least some way to make up for the mistakes of the past.

And, in case you were wondering, the stats thus far are: Fox 4, NBC 3, and everyone else at 3.

Next time: A cowboy cop gets a second chance at Life.

Monty Park Aging Timeline

2010-05-09T15:09:00.001-07:00

Jumping on the Aging Timeline bandwagon.

2001.

2003.
2005.
2006.
2007.
2008.
2010.
and beyond...

fin.

The Summer Spring Replacement: Pushing Daisies

2010-04-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Poor Bryan Fuller. After abandoning the semi-successful Showtime series Dead Like Me, he went to Fox with the mindblowingly short-lived Wonderfalls. With a show as unusual as Pushing Daisies (our first ABC entry!), the possibility of a second season was ignored by fans— until it happened.

Obviously, it's a difficult show to get into. A man who can revive the dead but only for one minute before somebody else dies but if he touches them again they die permanently goes around waking up murder victims to find the killers and get the reward but out of possible selfishness brings his childhood crush back to life. If you followed any of that, Pushing Daisies is for you.

The show's real strengthm in the tradition of Roald Dahl (and later the Harry Potter books) was to establish a sugary, over-the-top environment that belies a dark underbelly. The second season considerably expanded on this, bringing in characters from an earlier generation in the hopes of establishing a multiple-season arc. Alas, it was not to be. Cancelled in the second season, the show's writers scrambled to tie up loose ends, but the result was ultimately quite anticlimactic. So I'm not rating it as high as Firefly, but definitely higher than Andy Richter Controls the Universe.

Next time: Andy Richter returns to television and Damian Lewis gets his Life back.

Monty Park Takes on Los Angeles: Part I

2010-04-07T09:24:00.001-07:00

~MP~

In High School they called me Samuel L. Jackson

2010-03-13T18:26:00.001-08:00

~MP~

Skinny Ties and Semi-Famous Women

2010-03-09T10:07:00.001-08:00

~MP~

All You Need Is Smiles

2010-02-06T16:02:00.000-08:00

~MP~

The Summer Winter Replacement: Firefly

2010-02-04T08:53:00.000-08:00

When I watched the pilot, I realized that there was no sound in space and I thought, thank God.

That's just the kind of care and attention to detail that Joss Whedon is known for, and perhaps there was no better outlet for his creative energy than Firefly. As I dutifully explained to my cousin, "It's like Star Trek but with sex and money and libertarian underpinnings. It's dark and funny and semi-realistic!" This is different from regular science fiction; Whedon's future doesn't feel like a fantasy, people talk and act like us, just a little different.

The story of Firefly's cancellation is just like anything else on Fox: pre-emption, out-of-order airing, etc. And that allowed the producers to get away with a lot of things. Ultimately, with Serenity, the show manages a well-paced and logical conclusion. Whedon still says that the cancellation still haunts him, but while that battle, like Serenity Valley, has been lost, only a dao dan gui like him would have had the balls to start it.

Up next: Pushing Daisies

~MP~

Mashups and Randomness 2

2010-02-03T19:17:00.001-08:00

~MP~

Mashups and Randomness

2010-02-03T19:12:00.001-08:00

~MP~

Contra - A Review

2010-01-11T19:56:00.000-08:00

When did enjoyability stop being part of the quality of an album? When Vampire Weekend's first album came out, it was generally accepted that they sounded good, yet were rejected wholesale as part of the twee Williamsburg culture.

Perhaps to avoid that stigma, perhaps to satisfy their own intellectual needs, the aforementioned band released Contra, intended to be a response to The Clash's equally troubled 1980 release, Sandinista!

The trouble with these reviews is that I'm just as much a consumer as the rest of you, and without early access can't determine whether I'll like this album in the near future. The plain fact is that with Contra, Vampire Weekend is going further down the Paul Simon-Graceland rabbit hole, but with less tact. Some of the tracks are off-puttingly slow, while very few stand out. At a time when Rock music is floundering, and New Wave Revival is it's last hope, Ezra Koenig and company are taking a big risk, and whatever payoff it has will come from other, newer bands.

~UPDATE~ To quote Ashley Macquarrie, "Yeah, it's really boring."
~MP~

The Summer Winter Replacement: Mr. Show

2010-01-10T21:33:00.000-08:00

Where did they come from? Nobody knows. But it is because of Bob Odenkirk and David Cross (seen above, older, balder, and fatter), that alternative comedy exists.

Armed only with cynisism and absurdity, Mr. Show was one of the best social commentaries of the '90s. Who else would make jokes about Ruby Ridge, Heaven's Gate, or Tupac--- when they were happening? Would Saturday Night Live ever criticize the state of television, or would GE shut it down?

At a time when HBO original programming toiled in obscurity, Mr. Show was a welcome respite for aspiring comedians, stoners, and future television historians (yay!), but by the late '90s, cable was becoming a serious medium, and Mr. Show was canned, ending cleverly with a ridiculously long goodbye:

Mr. Show, we hardly knew ye. But you probably saved American comedy.
~MP~
Full disclosure: I got a job offer from HBO, and I'm taking it.

Predictions for the Teens

2010-01-02T12:44:00.001-08:00

Mixed Feelings, Episode 3 and Montage

2009-12-31T15:07:00.000-08:00

~MP~

Mixed Feelings, Episode 2

2009-12-22T21:05:00.000-08:00

~MP~

SEMI-LIVE: THE OCCUPATION OF SFSU

2009-12-09T23:27:00.000-08:00

Part one of my end-of-decade retrospective

2009-12-06T20:37:00.000-08:00

~MP~

A Tribute to Lake Avenue

2009-11-30T07:49:00.001-08:00

~MP~
And the sequels:

The Summer Replacement: Star Trek

2009-11-19T18:00:00.000-08:00

It was a different age for television. Network was a second-class medium, nielsens ruled the day, and shows with long narratives with definite endings were an experiment that The Prisoner was only just testing.

Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek got a hell of a lot done with a low budget and managed to become the most famous show of its time, yet it was cancelled due to low ratings and ended unceremoniously, far short of the famous "Five-Year Mission."

The only reason the original series stayed on as long as it did was because Lucille Ball, as the main underwriter, worked so hard to keep it running. But eventually it worked. And after nearly 20 years working its way into America's hearts, they made the gamble of making a whole new show, The Next Generation, which to an 80s-born person like myself, was Star Trek. Even so, the original series is so ubiquitous that I came into this experience knowing perfectly well what I was in for: classic characters, goofy William Shatner posturing, the odd heavyhanded morality play...

I'd go further into the details, but what is left to write about this show? I simply find it amazing that something so culturally monumental toiled in obscurity for all but its earliest days.
~MP~

The Great American Psych-Out Continues...

2009-11-13T00:11:00.000-08:00

~MP~

Oh, The Butts.

2009-11-07T18:22:00.001-08:00

~MP~

Monty Park Live

2009-10-27T18:37:00.000-07:00

Traiteurism/Alison Brie

2009-10-22T21:21:00.000-07:00

~MP~

Cat Pandering

2009-10-12T23:57:00.001-07:00

~MP~

Big Trouble in Little Portugal

2009-09-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

~MP~

Just the Numbers

2009-09-28T17:44:00.000-07:00

In both celebration of my first thousand-hitter and anticipation of the upcoming season, here's a collection of statistics about my videos:

Tenure: 2 years, 4 months, 16 days
Total video views: About 13,076
Total Subscribers: 23

Most watched videos:
1. The American Healthcare System explained for foreigners (25 August 2009)
2. Cenk Uygur Interview (Part 1) (13 August 2008)
3. The Last Bosco Report (28 April 2008)
4. Laughing at Lieberman (18 November 2008)
5. Stacey Grenrock Woods (16 November 2007)
6. Cenk Uygur Interview (Part 2) (19 August 2008)
7. Sure, You can secede, but first... (16 April 2009)
8. Cathedral Fairies! I Hate You (10 November 2007)
9. Jimmy Dore Interview (25 March 2008)
10. Yes We Can! (27 January 2008)

Catch up at my YouTube channel.
~MP~

Be a Steve

2009-09-22T23:11:00.000-07:00

Unexplained Phenomenon?

2009-09-05T08:54:00.000-07:00

You tell me.
~MP~

The American Healthcare System explained for foreigners

2009-08-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

Humbug - A Review

2009-08-24T20:56:00.000-07:00

I came into this particular album feeling a little apprehensive. As bootlegs began to surface, Arctic Monkeys seemed to be moving away from their pop sensibilities in an attempt to follow the great tradition we call the "departure album." It may have taken the entire Mojave Desert to get them back on track- but keep in mind, this is far from perfect.

Upon first listening, Humbug would appear to be what a band makes at the end of its existence. But like many recent albums, it improves with successive listenings. It's definitely something different, but sometimes you just gotta take the old with the new and stand back a little bit, and figure out what a band is trying to do.

In the meantime, let's wait and see what more these guys have up their sleeves.

Update: Humbug has jumped to #4 on iTunes in a mere four hours, beating Third Eye Blind's latest snoozefest and seems poised to ~~fucking finally~~ outsell Only By The Night. At the end of what has been an exceptionally good day, I once again have faith in humanity.
~MP~

Season 4 Teaser Trailer

2009-08-13T21:59:00.000-07:00

The Summer Replacement: Andy Richter Controls the Universe

2009-08-10T20:27:00.000-07:00

Poor Andy Richter. After leaving Late Night, he tried his hand at no less than three sitcoms (two good, one mindblowingly awful), all of which floundered in the ratings, eventually bringing Richter back to Conan O'Brien's side. None of these received more critical praise than the first Andy Richter Controls the Universe, the story of an everyman as told through his own imagination.

This show has one and only one goal: to make you laugh, and it does that in spades. Few shows rejoice in classical farce like to this extent, and Andy himself sometimes delves into insights about real life. Though mercifully free of a laughtrack, it's a more traditional sitcom than other cancelled classics, so it's a bit of an adjustment for someone who's been watching the other shows I've written about. Nonetheless, it's a fun watch, and certainly not something to be forgotten.

Now that the summer replacement is over, I've suddenly realized how much I've still left out: Firefly, Nothing Sacred, and the particularly obscure Bakersfield P.D. Maybe I should just keep going. In the meantime, I have to get ready to review Arctic Monkeys' new album.
~MP~

Season 3 Finale

2009-08-06T15:33:00.000-07:00

Tony is made of awesome

2009-08-01T09:39:00.001-07:00

The Summer Replacement: Spaced

2009-07-27T09:52:00.000-07:00

When you think about it—and you will—Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen have the perfect English counterparts in Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg. Both of them made two sitcoms that went into relative obscurity (Asylum has yet to make it to home video) and ten years later they're making nearly every movie that's coming out. Word just came out that the two teams will be working together on the film "Paul."

Spaced was not the first Wright-Pegg show to come out; they had limited success with the sitcom Asylum and sketch comedy show Is it Bill Bailey? Spaced, however, has achieved the most commercial success, mostly after-the-fact, and that's why it's here.

The strange things about this show is that it can mean so many things at different times yet flow so well. One day Daisy can be karate-chopping secret agents, the next Tim can be squaring off against his nemesis Duane in paintball, but somehow there's no disconnect; perhaps this is part of the charm of later projects like Hot Fuzz. It's something that is meant to be enjoyed, and isn't that what Television is all about?
~MP~

The Summer Replacement: The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

2009-07-16T19:52:00.000-07:00

While playing a game of Monkees = Monkees, I found The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. to be a perfect match for The La's. Both existed in the early '90s, when they should have been around in the '60s. Both were a tribute to earlier work, and yet a portent of things to come, most notably for Brisco, which was the first television project for Carlton Cuse, best known as co-creator of Lost. See how many Losties turn up in this show.

I couldn't help but watch with Dharma-colored glasses. The show is really in two parts— the first, in which Brisco and company track down the dangerous but colorful John Bly gang who killed his father, while pursuing a mysterious orb (think orchid-light); and the second, in which Brisco and his former Rival Lord Bowler are recruited by the feds to do whatever— which were crammed into a single extended season, at the height of Fox's experimentation period.

Pictured: the ravages of time

Made at a time when serial story arcs were virtually unheard-of and Television couldn't effectively be stored on home video, the show is hard to take in all-at once, and it's best to pace yourself. But as Brisco himself searches for the "coming thing," this obscure little show gives us a window into the coming thing that was the kind of TV we tune into reguarly.

~MP~

Coming up: Spaced

Twisted and Resisted Trailer

2009-06-27T23:30:00.000-07:00

Breaking Trends

2009-06-25T22:59:00.001-07:00

1. The new bathing suits are out, and they are pretty split between weird-shaped but cool-looking, or pointless. Is it odd that the less fabric they use, the more expensive? Leave it to economic chaos to put people's priorities back in order.

stupid. Also, is that a penis?

2. My ironic crush on Sarah Palin.

You're no better.

3. I would say celebrities dying in threes, but no. I remember when Johnny Cash and John Ritter died on the same weekend and there was no third, so fuck you, superstition!

Meanwhile, I'm still working on the summer replacement, and going from two classic comedies to a campy western revival is an incredible shock to the system.
~MP~

The Summer Replacement: Undeclared

2009-06-20T18:55:00.001-07:00

When people think about the Fox network, they see a network that is unwilling to take risks and running good shows into the ground. But when you actually think about it, Fox has always been a paragon of experimentation. Would it have been likely for any other network to pick up shows like The Simpsons, In Living Color, The X-Files, 24, and myriad other successes at a time when nothing like them had been on TV?

When I started this project, I briefly considered doing the complete Paul Feig trilogy by talking about Arrested Development. Unlike Freaks and Geeks, I remembered the show and watched it fairly regularly, but decided against the piece because it's quite possibly the most written-about television show ever.

Not so for Undeclared, the spiritual sequel to Freaks and in many ways a prelude to Arrested. Arriving only a year after the demise of Judd Apatow's previous project, the face of television was rapidly changing, and Freaks' legacy was becoming apparent through shows like Scrubs. It seemed like the perfect climate for a this college comedy. So what went wrong?

As one of the few, few people who periodically watched this show, the problem was Fox. While in retrospect the show was mainly a character-driven piece like Scrubs, the network relentlessly advertised it as a raucous varsity extravaganza in the mold of Animal House.

Though it had it's wild moments, this tended to be the exception, not the rule.

Unlike Freaks and Geeks, the setting and pacing of the show allowed almost everyone to step forward and have their own moments. Among the more genius characters were Jason Segel as the female lead's crazy-but-dorky boyfriend, and Jarrett Grode as the guys' perpetually sarcastic hipster floormate.

While Freaks and Geeks and Arrested Development were given new life through home video, now as popular as any show on today, Undeclared has mostly gone unnoticed in the seven years since being cancelled. But as word of the show's existence is slowly resurfacing through the internet, only time will tell what kind of legacy it may yet have.

~MP~

Coming up: The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

The Summer Replacement: Freaks and Geeks

2009-06-11T22:10:00.001-07:00

My personal theory on this: If you could make a list of the 100 best, most influential television shows ever made, at least half of them would have been canceled due to poor ratings. If anyone tells you otherwise, say the following words: Star Trek.

The summer replacement is my attempt to shine light on three of these shows and what they have done for television, the first of which is Freaks and Geeks.

At a time when networks demanded rigid formulas and canned laughter, the very fact that this show made it onto the air is nothing short of a miracle. Striking out with shows like Jesse and Veronica's Closet, NBC made a gamble with two obscure producers named Paul Feig and Judd Apatow, intent on making a show about what High School was really like, with a cast of nobodies, and a period piece at that!

who-gen?

It certainly didn't hurt that Apatow pitched the show as a mannerist dramedy along the lines of Northern Exposure, at a time when filmmakers like Whit Stillman were trying their hand on such a concept, so NBC gave it a go.
However, Freaks and Geeks was shown with several episodes out of order, and was frequently preempted, not exactly conducive to loyal fans. Either way, it was canceled after 18 episodes, in August of 2000.

Why is it great?

Freaks and Geeks doesn't pretend to be something it's not, and doesn't bother setting up the story, opting instead to jump right in. (It ends in a similar way, though the conclusion is somewhat more satisfying). It was a meeting of relative unknowns who would become superstars, from Paul Feig (Arrested Development) to teenage comedians Seth Rogen, James Franco, and Jason Segel (with whose character I most strongly identified). Strangely enough, the main stars (John Francis Daley and Linda Cardellini) have been less successful. I mean, let's be real.

You. Tina Fey. My office.

Ultimately, Freaks and Geeks was both a martyr for cinema-quality television, and a portent of things to come. History has vindicated it to the point that it is vastly more popular now than it was ten years ago, making it, for me, a reason to have faith in humanity.

You. Tina Fey. My office.

Coming up whenever I damn well feel like it is this show's spiritual sequel, Undeclared.
~MP~

The Absolute Truth

2009-05-26T08:02:00.001-07:00

Two Years of Monty Park!

2009-05-13T18:41:00.001-07:00

Viva Sacramento!

2009-05-10T13:32:00.001-07:00

13 Year Old Book Suddenly Relevant

2009-05-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

* Rush Limbaugh is the leader of the republican party.
* Newt Gingrich is making headlines for some reason.
* Arlen Specter is also making headlines for some reason.
* The seeds sowed in the 90s are coming back to roost.
* Wheeeeee!

The Back to the Future Curse

2009-04-27T13:53:00.000-07:00

Update to the Update

2009-04-16T17:10:00.001-07:00

~MP~

I'm confused

2009-04-14T23:47:00.000-07:00

Is Texas not a state anymore? Is Wes Anderson not a citizen!?
~MP~

Update: almost.

The More I Hear About the Central Subway, The More I Like It

2009-04-13T21:32:00.000-07:00

For those of you not familiar with the Central Subway, it's San Francisco's ultimate transit improvement. Any San Franciscan will tell you that the hardest thing about using mass transit in the City is getting between Downtown and North Beach. At this point, there are three ways of doing this:

(a) you take a cable car on Powell Street, which cost $5 and have unbearable 20-minute lines made up mostly of irksome tourists.
(b) you take the F Line around the hills, though it's currently being used more as a tourist operation, and bypasses a lot of important places like Chinatown.
or (c) you take the Dirty 30, which has none of those problems, but is unimaginably slow.

The Central subway would essentially eliminate the 30, instead opting for a subway line from 4th and King to Washington Square, a distance of two miles with intermediate stations at the Moscone Center, Union Square, and Chinatown. The project will cost a mindblowing billion dollars, which is one of the first reasons why I was originally turned off by it. And it would have to be very deep underground to avoid other subway lines, but the cost would be made up fairly quickly based on the usership for the modes of transportation currently supplanting it.

Equally mindblowing, the initial stimulus bill back in Washington has come out ahead of schedule and under budget, with bids low and contractors eager to make work. Perhaps the left over money should be parlayed into a further stimulus, such as the construction of said subway.
Think about it.

~MP~

Everybody Loves San Francisco

2009-04-13T10:28:00.000-07:00

Despite some weird posturing by right-wing politicians and frothing YouTube commenters, Research2000 shows that a majority of Americans have a positive view of San Francisco. What's more, the dynamic cuts more or less across party lines, gender, race, and geographical regions (except for the South, but even there the Iron City gets more love than hate. Same goes for New York and France, though I could never personally live in either. If I had to live somewhere else, it'd have to be the Boston Area or the DC Area.
~MP~

...And Spaceships are buried in your beautiful mountains!

2009-04-12T13:32:00.000-07:00

I just couldn't help myself:

"[Glen Beck] is basically like [Howard Beale], only crazier and played by Paul Giamatti in a blond wig."
~MP~

After Culture Shock

2009-04-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

1. Realizing that having my own kitchen is within reach.
2. Remembering how I used to live before San Francisco, and wanting to take a ride on the freeway through rolling hills in Ferg's Beemer, under the hot sun.
3. Remembering what TV shows I liked before, and missing Rose all over again.
4. Understanding that the Pasadena I knew and loved is gone, and regretting that all the people that made it special are still there...for now.
5. Having to find a suitable barber and pizza place.
6. Realizing that I talk differently from people here. Some would say more correctly.
10. Wanting to finish this top 10 list early.
~MP~

Are You On The List?

2009-04-10T13:55:00.000-07:00

Representative Spencer Bachus (R-Alabama) claims to have compiled a list of 17 Socialists in the House of Representatives. While I find the idea that so many actual socialists would be in that august chamber to be laughable, I am a betting man, and 17 is my lucky number.

Barring that there's nothing in Al Capone's vault, here are my picks (all Democrats):

Steve Cohen (TN)
John Conyers (MI)
Peter DeFazio (OR)
Keith Ellison (MN)
Chaka Fattah (PA)
Barney Frank (MA)
Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX)
Mary Jo Kilroy (OH)
Dennis Kucinich (OH)
Barbara Lee (CA)
Eleanor Holmes Norton (WA)
David Obey (WI)
Charlie Rangel (NY)
Bobby Rush (IL)
Chris Van Hollen (MD)
Henry Waxman (CA)
Robert Wexler (FL)

So, mostly folks from the Midwest and Northeast. I'll bet that at least eight of these people are on the list. If I'm wrong, I'll do my next video either underwater or in a dress (or both, which would be both humiliating and difficult, but hi-larious). HOWEVER, if it turns out there is no list, or 17 is not the actual number; no deal.
~MP~

Backwards and Bitchy

2009-04-08T18:28:00.000-07:00

Once you live outside of Southern California, you start to realize that you're homeland is part of the South. I don't mean that in a bad way, but there's been a lot of anti-Southern and anti-Californian sentiment lately, and these people need to understand that this place is my home, and even though there might be better places to be, I can't abandon it anymore than I can America.

But it gets worse. Growing up, I was often chided for my liberal leanings, even though I've never been much of a leftist. If I were a congressman, the NRA would give me an A and NARAL would flunk me. But I'm not a demagogue and I believe that there are far bigger issues at hand.
Under these criteria, Michael Moore has classified me a "southern progressive."

By northern California standards, I'm a conservative. It's not a label that bothers me; the Republicans of today aren't conservatives, they're borderline anarchists. But I see a lot of conspiracy theorists and communists getting free range in my school, and it pisses me off. I understand where they're coming from; that was the culture they grew up in and they're not bad people, but it still makes me feel uncomfortable. I feel like Taylor Nichols in Barcelona--- alone in my sanity.

I need to get my spirits back up.
~MP~

Super Strikeback!

2009-04-07T20:57:00.000-07:00

I can glean several things from this:
1. Rush has no politics. He aligns himself with a group of people who accept him regardless of their own principles or lack thereof. He pretty much explains his belief that he knows everything and anyone who doesn't agree with him is not a Republican, resulting in a "Sharks vs. Jets" scenario.

2. True conservatives still exist in this country; people who stand for ideas and discourse rather than blind allegiance to a party (I'm looking at you, Stremel). Unfortunately, they are breathtakingly unorganized and any leadership they had would probably marginalize themselves.

3. STRIKEBACK!
~MP~

The Age of the Curmudgeons

2009-04-07T14:22:00.000-07:00

Why America has more violence than Europe

2009-04-06T17:19:00.000-07:00

I just figured it all out.

I was watching Bowling for Columbine, and I had before, but this time I came to a realization. A lot of people are under that the impression that the film's argument is for gun control. But as Michael Moore himself demonstrates, Canada allows everybody to have guns, and there's much less crime. In addition, other countries have a much larger welfare state that keeps people pacified (I don't mean that in a bad way, there's just no other way to say it). But the difference is historical.

Both Europe and the U.S. have had their share of violent times, but the American media has a tendency (intentional among some, but not all) to perpetuate a paranoid and distrustful environment in public discourse. Every night we hear, "What's in your (accessible, necessary household utility) may kill you!" Bowling for Columbine makes this painfully clear, especially with the rash of assorted scares that came after Columbine. These types of scares range from the reasonably worrisome (nuclear war) to the stupid (D&D suicides).

Europeans keep being told that there's a lot of crime in America, that it's very dangerous and that people are not to be trusted. That's ridiculous. But Americans hear this more than anyone, and a select few take it as a sign that their sociopathic behavior is acceptible.

Opinion media is often worse. The conservative media of the 20th century, personified by the calm, calculating Bill Buckley, is long gone, replaced by a veritable cadre of Howard Beale-wannabes who continually make shit up and shout down anyone who challenges them. Increasingly, these people are credited with inciting violence against our government and citizens alike.

Everybody knows this, and that's not the problem. This group is a tiny minority of the population, but they are justified by our media as being just another part of the world we live in. It's time to stand up for sitting down.
~MP~

Colbert gets it perfectly again.

2009-04-01T12:44:00.000-07:00

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

The 10/31 Project

comedycentral.com

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor

NASA Name Contest

How to Steal Someone Else's Girlfriend

2009-03-31T11:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Cesar Chavez Day. Having never had it off before, my mood is irreversibly improved. But there'syet another potential new girl in my life, and she still doesn't know enough about me to read this, so I should be in the clear.

I'm pretty sure she's into me, but paradoxically she is also very much involved with someone else. Those of you familiar with my personal history will know that I faced a similar situation four years ago, and that it resulted in a passionate but brief summer romance that ultimately backfired.

But that was then, and less was expected of me at that age. It is common knowledge that I make for a good boyfriend, but that I am also a cheap motherfucker (more so now than ever). And I'm also worried about Billy Crystal's bane.* Can I make it work? Hmm.

*Billy Crystal's bane: the idea that men will accept any voluntary female attention as an invitation to start a relationship, as described in When Harry Met Sally.
~MP~

Even more uncomfortable!

2009-03-28T21:42:00.001-07:00

Spring Break update

2009-03-25T17:35:00.000-07:00

SLO County has become a post-soviet kleptocracy.
Stay tuned for when I extoll the virtues of furry goodness.
~MP~

Happiness is easily suceptible to earthquake damage

2009-03-11T07:42:00.000-07:00

While watching Hardball (in all my wonkiness), I discovered that residents of California's 14th district, i.e. the western suburbs of San Jose, were the happiest group of people in America, at least at a parliamentary level (the unhappiest of course was Compton).
Personally, I like that area. I'm especially fond of Mountain View, home of Google. However, I'm not thoroughly familiar with the people there. Based on those I do know, life in Sunnyvale or Saratoga is worryingly reminiscent of Summer Heights High.

Typical Silicon Valley Rats.

I would be more pissed off about an overjoyed Palo Alto if I weren't so scared for my own health. Currently I have problems with my head, throat, neck and ears as a result of impacted wisdom teeth, or so I believe from online research. I got a nosebleed this morning and told my mom I thought I had a brain tumor. She told me to get over myself.

Anyway, because my dental problem cannot be resolved (or really made certain, either) until I back down south in a week, I can't make any videos. Sorry folks.
~s~

Crash Course: Blur

2009-03-05T19:11:00.000-08:00

Part II: The New Garage Rock

When we last left off, Blur was facing off against the upstart Oasis for the heart and soul of Britpop. After releasing several competing singles over the course of 1995, Albarn and company were starting to outsell, and Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher's comments about their rivals were no help.
The so-called "Battle of Britpop" ended with the release of two studio albums, (What's the Story) Morning Glory and The Great Escape. Morning Glory far outsold Blur's latest release, but while Oasis may have won the battle, they lost the war.
4. The Great Escape
September 11, 1995

Along with Leisure, Damon Albarn called this a "bad album," claiming it was "messy." Though it's probably their most underrated album. Albarn claims that every song is really about him, though that really doesn't matter. It's by far their most political album (until Think Tank, which is itself messy, but I'll save that for later), and utilizes a number of different genres and styles to get its point across.
At this point, Blur's star and Britpop in general began to wane, and under the direction of Graham Coxon, the band tried their hand at the resurging wave of Garage Rock bands like the Hives and the White Stripes.
Yes, there was more work to be done, and it was going to be very different...

5. Blur
February 10, 1997

Woo-hoo.

Though I believe that Blur's earlier work is far superior, their self-titled album was a gift to TV advertisers and Soccer Hooligans alike. Graham Coxon leads on the best songs, and I would probably like this album a lot better had it not devolved into a droning genre experiment at the end.
Regardless, Blur opened the gates for the return of real rock, a breakthrough without which bands like the Vines and the Strokes would've fallen flat on their faces.*

6. 13
March 15, 1999

Since recording Blur, Damon Albarn broke up with his girlfriend, experimented with hip-hop and formed Gorillaz. Meanwhile, Graham Coxon started making solo albums and didn't do half bad. Alex James tried repeatedly to start a supergroup, and Dave Rowntree just kind of stayed put. Though 13 may not have been Blur's last album, it was the end, in the same sense that the Rolling Stones ended with Exile on Main Street and the Clash ended with Combat Rock.
I still have mixed feelings about this one. It has quite a few good songs, but it also has some terrible ones, not to mention the droning clamor that appears throughout.
7. Think Tank
May 5, 2003

Blur may have killed the overintensive overproduction that plagued their last two albums, but with almost no contribution from Graham Coxon, this album is inessential. It's almost impossible to listen to without the stigma of the time it came out, and as such tends to get a little preachy. I'd reccomend cherry picking a few songs from this one, mainly "Crazy Beat," "Good Song," "Brothers and Sisters," the surprisingly Clashish "Morroccan Peoples' Revolutionary Bowls Club," and nightclub favorite "Jets."

Lesson learned:
If the Jesus and Mary Chain saved Rock, then Blur made it great again. They brought the genre out of shoegazing exile, made it commercially viable in the face of grunge, and established a plethora of evolving styles to come.
Blur reunited early this year, and though talk of a new album is nowhere to be found, the possibility is always there. But this time, is it something we want?

~MP~

*I would've included the Caesars on that list, except they did fall on their face.

Jon Stewart: NOT PLAYING!

2009-03-05T10:25:00.000-08:00

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

The Pantheon of Girls with Green Eyes

2009-03-04T12:12:00.000-08:00

I've spent a lot of time on my videos proclaiming my adoration for girls with green eyes, but I never made the connection until now.
And since everyone is entitled to their own taste, you can't really call me a girl-racist.
~MP~

Meditations on the Flu

2009-03-01T22:50:00.000-08:00

I was lying in bed all day watching Arrested Development and thinking to myself "the Bluth company must be really fucked right now."
~MP~

Oh Shit.

2009-03-01T01:17:00.001-08:00

I think I might have the flu.

The Legend Lives On!

2009-02-27T11:12:00.000-08:00

Everyone who went to Bosco knows that I would not have been possible but for a legendary alumnus by the name of Peter Nguyen. Well, his paper on Walt Whitman found its way onto buzzfeed (a full nine years after being written) and it's blowing up all over again. More power to you, Peter.

Monkees = Monkees

2009-02-25T17:02:00.000-08:00

A time-wasting exercise invented by Chuck Klosterman while he was high.
How to play:

Match a band to a Television show based on era, longevity, critical acclaim, commercial success, and overall aesthetic soul.

Here's what I got from my own collection:

The Clash = Happy Days

R.I.P.

2009-02-20T16:03:00.001-08:00

1989-2009

Public Service Announcement

2009-02-14T22:20:00.001-08:00

Crash Course: Blur

2009-02-14T12:38:00.000-08:00

Part I: The Britpop years.

First, a little story:
When I was a little kid, a song got stuck in my head, and it never went away. I tried to make sense of it, but couldn't. I heard it only once. When I downloaded Blur's first album, I decided to put one of the songs on my (then) newest video, without even hearing it.
When I watched the finished video, I was shocked to discover it was that very song.

There are certain musical artists and bands that we all hold to a certain esteem, above the myriad tranks, lobos, and zipheads. Of all these bands in the twentieth century, Blur was the last. They built upon decades of rock music and created something new; and when music at large seemed to be going in a new direction, Blur took it in stride and changed with the times. It's no wonder, then, that they helped inspire bands as diverse as Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs, and The Hives.
But it would be impossible to go through Blur's history in a single article, so I've divided this into two parts: the first three albums, or the Britpop era; and the last four, or the Garage era. And yes, I know The Great Escape should be in this article, but I haven't gotten there yet.
1. Leisure
August 26, 1991

In 1991, grunge was the new hot thing. American bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Alice in Chains were burning up the charts in the UK, and four upstart musicians absolutely hated it. Cribbing from lo-fi rockers of the late '80s, college friends Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James, and Dave Rowntree former the band Seymour. Under the direction of Food Records, however, they decided to change their name to the more commercially viable "Blur."
While Damon Albarn has since disowned their debut album, Leisure, it was well received and stands pretty well on its own, and established Blur as "The new wave of new wave." Despite the terminology, it would be a couple of years before '80s new wave made its way into Blur's sound.

2. Modern Life is Rubbish
May 10, 1993

Again pressured by Food Records, Albarn and company began reinventing their sound by incorporating signature styles and themes from Bowie, the Kinks, Syd Barrett, and assorted New Wave groups. The result, Modern Life is Rubbish, is an album that is vastly more textured and layered than Leisure, what some have called the first Britpop album, but it was only the beginning...

3. Parklife
April 25, 1994

Recovering quickly from poor sales of their previous album, Albarn and company began writing and recording at breakneck speed. Less than a year after Modern Life, Blur released what is considered by many to be one of the greatest albums ever made, Parklife. Rather than go in a new direction, Parklife was really a more elaborate version of what they were already doing. Several songs allude to genres like space rock, classic rock, hardcore punk, '60s europop, and weird little instrumentals.
Unfortunately, Blur's status as the spearheads of britpop was being challenged by a small group of mentally challenged Mancunians.
Will the brothers Gallagher defeat our heroes? Or will they make fools of themselves? Will they get repeatedly attacked at shows, while Blur resurges to prominence?
To be continued...

Bring Cenk Uygur to the MSNBC family!

2009-02-12T19:16:00.000-08:00

I am not impartial.
Some of you may be wondering why I like everything I listen to and everyone I interview. As a self-employed person, I am not a professional critic, and am thus unwilling to put money into something I won't like.
On that note, this is an email I just sent to MSNBC:

To whom it may concern,
It would do MSNBC a great deal to Put Cenk Uygur in the currently open 10pm timeslot, both as a fresh new voice for television, and to finally acknowledge the contributions of the internet to politics and policy today.
Good luck with your choice.

You can also voice your support by emailing MSNBC at letters@msnbc.com

~MP~

More crap I thought up in the shower

2009-02-10T18:37:00.001-08:00

New Material I Just Improvised

2009-02-08T20:32:00.000-08:00

I used to be friends with a bunch of girls in middle school, well there was one guy, he was in the closet, but unfortunately for him that closet had a glass door.

Meanwhile, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dick are still in my room.

How to Absorb an Album

2009-02-05T23:13:00.000-08:00

Some of my album reviews have not been as good lately. That is to say, they are not as well written as the reviews I did when I was still in High School. Tonight I figured out why: It's a lot harder to absorb an album now than then.

In High School, absorbing an album, listening to the point that it becomes etched in my memory, that I know how it is structured and so on, only took about three listens. Nowadays, I have to do that five times or more. Living far away from school spoiled me.

In High School, I had a commute that was long enough to listen to an entire album, as well as revisit some of the songs I particularly liked. Having already listened to the album the night before, I had an understanding of it after 24 hours.

Now I live on campus and I can only get about two songs in before I get to my first class (this is particularly frustrating). So more often than not, I end up listening to parts of the album over and over again, while other parts go unheard.

I've figured that the only way around this is to take a train or bus for an hour (now is not important), except I don't really have anywhere to go.

On the other hand, it's only a matter of time before there's somewhere else I have to be.

~MP~

Actually quite a lot has happened...

2009-02-05T18:30:00.000-08:00

Since We Last Spoke....

2009-02-01T18:56:00.000-08:00

A modest proposal to Scott Bateman at Salon to work together on an animated collection of my deepest thoughts.

Fake news is the best news

2009-01-28T17:12:00.001-08:00

disclaimer: I lifted this from DailyKos.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Guantanamo Baywatch - The Final Season

Daily Show Full Episodes
Daily Show Tickets

Tonight: Franz Ferdinand - A Review

2009-01-26T20:54:00.000-08:00

Even as I watch the songs download, I know this will either be awesome or awful. So many songs have depressing or off-putting titles. There are two songs with the same name, and one of them is eight minutes long. Ho boy.

The album starts with a fairly slow, vaguely theatrical track, and plunges into a few soulful yet danceable numbers. All the while, I feel like we're going toward something, but what exactly is unclear. A panoply of sounds are employed early in Tonight from folk to ska to old school hip-hop; but where bands like Cake parlayed that into albums that were diverse yet distinctive, Franz Ferdinand is starting to sound like a Timbaland wet dream. Only when the band returns to its classic style does the album start to pick up.
It might take a few listens, but eventually Tonight will shine through. It's certainly Franz's weakest album, but that's not saying a whole lot.

Note: "Can't Stop Feeling" is doing something for me.

Crash Course: Kaiser Chiefs

2009-01-09T21:40:00.000-08:00

1. Employment
March 7, 2005

First of all, the name thing. No, not Kaiser Chiefs, I'm talking about Ricky Wilson. That he shares a name with another rock musician continues to bother me.

Anyway, the Chiefs are one thing and one thing only: new wave. Though objectively their first album is good from start to finish, it all seems very forced. Where's the heart?
Wilson and company have their influences, but they don't seem to match. The real influences show up seemingly one at a time in songs like Modern Way (Morrissey), Saturday Night (Franz Ferdinand), and Time Honoured Tradition (Madness).
2. Yours Truly, Angry Mob
February 26, 2007

Whatever heart Employment was missing, Angry Mob makes up for it in spades. The eccentricity involved here is breathtaking, and instead of hearing a 80's new-wave tribute band, we finally get a window into the minds of the artists. This nameless quality especially shows in the songs "Highroyds," "Nothing I Can Do," "Boxing Champ," and "Try Your Best."
This is a far more cohesive album than Employment. Rather than just being a collection of songs, each track leads into the other (stylistically, rather than literally). It is an album you lose yourself in, and as is rare for second albums, it is an improvement from their debut.
3. Off With Their Heads
October 20, 2008

And riding on the success of their first album, the Chiefs went headfirst into what they do best: classic new wave. Ah, but this is more than new wave, it's louder, somehow bigger. At times it can border on hard rock (Spanish Metal) and psychedelia (Tomato in the Rain). It's something you can dance to. But overall, it's more epic. More epic than new wave, more epic than this band has ever done before. The only downside about this album is that it's over before you know it.

Overall, the Kaiser Chiefs are now on a very short list of bands that, having a new album come out, I would buy immediately. Definitely worthwhile for lovers of rock history.
~MP~

Starbucks+366

2009-01-05T10:32:00.001-08:00

Things I still hate in 2009

2009-01-02T23:58:00.001-08:00

1. I still hate Twilight, though I do not hate Kristen Stewart.
2. I increasingly hate Harry Reid.
3. I still hate Claire and the Hall Monitors, but I'm not going back to Pasadena after college.
4. I still hate the cold. God willing, I always will.
5. I still hate Orange County. Maybe even more than before.*
5. I really still hate Roseville. I don't remember why, but at this point it really doesn't matter.
6. I loathe Starbucks. I don't even know anyone who goes there anymore.

On the other hand...

Things I now like in 2009

1. I like the pin-up look, but it seems kind of forced.
2. I like RJD2.
3. I like trip-hop, but I'm not reviewing it.
4. I love High Fidelity.
5. I'm into the East Bay and the South Bay, but Marin County can kiss my ass.
6. I tolerate/accept Barenaked Ladies.
7. I apologize to Matt Kook. I'm sure he feels the same way. But that Doesn't excuse Tom O'Connor from what he did. They know what I'm talking about.

*the awful place, not the great movie

Crash Course: The Dandy Warhols

2009-01-01T23:22:00.000-08:00

1. Dandys Rule, OK?
April 6, 1995

The album opens with the kind of theatrics usually reserved for a more experienced band, then then a bang, then the Portland natives waste no time going into a big, sprawling album that, despite its weak spots, keeps you listening. It ends with a repetetive, surprisingly un-commented-upon 22 minute long screed, yet you still want more. Add that to the inescapable feeling that what I'm listening to is much older than it really is. Altogether, this is one of the strongest debut albums I've ever heard.

2. ...The Dandy Warhols Come Down
July 15, 1997

It only takes four songs to ruin this album for me; take them out and you've still got a fairly strong album, but it isn't nearly as distinct as their debut. When I hear this album, I don't hear the Dandys, I hear The Vines by way of Phil Spector. It would take over three years to get back on the level.
Which brings us to one of the greatest albums of all time:3. Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia
August 1, 2000

Thirteen great songs, or one great song in thirteen parts? Upon the first listen, the sprawlingness of OK comes to mind, but there is something more at work here. The Dandys seem to have channeled RJD2, Rush, Bowie, Cake, and Beck, all in a single breath. Bohemian Like You is the most popular song off this album, but this is one album you have to listen to in its entirety.

4, 5, and 6. It's all downhill from there. Though there are a few really good songs, the Dandy's reign ended with the 20th century.

This is Not the 50th Epsiode

2008-12-24T12:54:00.001-08:00

Oy. (More deep thoughts)

2008-12-21T22:26:00.000-08:00

Just as I am about to leave San Francisco for an entire month, I discover a playlist being shared on iTunes... this girl, Shannon, has so much in common with me musically, Flight of the Conchords, the Vines*, even Nural! This girl is clearly from Greater Pasadena, or at least the upper Southland.

It would probably do me well to use her as a reference (I think she just got me into the B-52's and the Fratellis in one night) Maybe if she's good looking, I would look into things more thoroughly.

Alas, I am leaving San Francisco for an entire month, and this thought will probably leave my mind, like so many crazy notions before, the moment I step onto the train at Emeryville. Probably sooner.

Whatever.
~s~

*and Winning Days, of all albums! (surprise/concern)

Crash Course

2008-12-16T13:42:00.000-08:00

I know my taste in music may seem very limited, but I'm not a professional critic. There are a great many bands I've missed out on this year, mostly because I wasn't paying attention to them in the first place.
Long story short, nobody wants to hear me review a twenty-year-old album without a good excuse. So here it is: along with 2009's new albums, I'll be catching myself up on other artists, in the hope that we can watch for them in the future. It's called crash course. That's about it.

~MP~

2009: Music to watch for

2008-12-12T21:32:00.000-08:00

The musical year of 2008 may be spilling over. There are increasingly high expectations for some of the decade's most popular artists as their release dates draw closer. Some of bands have defined the era, some are returning from a long journey in the wilderness.
OK, I'll stop being weird and academic now. Let's get down.

1. Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
Album #3
first album: 2004
Seemingly years ago, I declared high expectations for what would be an inescapably weird album from a fairly mainstream band. With two singles already out from their next album, I can say with confidence that we won't be disappointed. A politically oriented pseudo rock-opera is almost guaranteed to kill a good deal of the fanbase, especially in the U.S., but that may ultimately work out in their favor.
However, I wouldn't be surprised if two or three of the tracks were near-unlistenable.
Expactations:High, with some reservations.

2. Untitled Album (but they've probably got one)
Album #3
first album: 2006
Four men go into the desert. They return with a great album.
Disclaimer: that's probably going to be the beginning of my review when this thing comes out, because the Sheffield's own lo-fi chavmasters have declared their intention to do something "different." Judging by the multitude of leaked tracks, expect something like a cross between Santana and Gorillaz.
But will it be fun? The Arctics started out as Hendrix-style hard rockers in their 2004 demo Beneath the Boardwalk and quickly evolved into irreverent indie-rockers. But their second album was an almost premature departure--- dark and angry, from beginning to end. All evidence is that Turner and Company have found a way to match the brooding quality of their last album with the thoughtfulness of their first.
Expectations: High and loving it.

3. Untitled Album (and the title probably won't be very clever)
Album #6
first album: 1992
Following the seminal (if undersold) 1996 album Tiny Music, Stone Temple Pilots knocked off two schizophrenic albums which got little to no play, and disappeared, after which time they became enormously popular. It's hard to say whether this album will be that good, as all of the new songs the DeLeo's claim to have written are still under lock and key. Expect a few good songs to cherry pick. Nobody's expecting another Purple, but if they can pull it off, the Pilots might redeem themselves after all.
Expectations: Cautiously optimistic.

4. Untitled Album (and the title will probably be very cool)
Album #4
first album: 2001
Throughout the early 2000s, the Strokes were heralded as the band for their time. Casablancas and Hammond were regarded by all as consummate songwriters, and nothing could go wrong.
Then one of their singles got leaked, they freaked out and rushed out their third album, and just kinda blew it. All of their goodwill dried up and they went their separate ways.
Then, out of the blue, Pharell Williams declared his intention to produce their next release, all that goodwill returned, and the five Manhattanites, fresh off assorted side projects, were ready to go; but weren't planning to work on their next album until...now. All evidence is that they've sped up production, or at least are getting a lot press so they can milk the fuck out of all the speculation.
But regardless of when the album comes out, it's probably going to be just as focused and loud as the band's members seem to be right now.
Expectations: Way too high.

Also keep an eye out for the ever-enjoyable theatrics of the Hives, who have been working on their music nonstop since 2004. Nick Arson announced work on their new album almost immediately after finishing a yearlong tour, which is both impressive and kind of fucked up.

Third Eye Blind are also on the warpath. They were a major influence on the already commented-upon Kooks, both in their musical style and passive-aggressive lyrics.

Speaking of the Kooks, there's a good chance they'll just release an album without much notice, so watch it.

~MP~

District 7

2008-12-09T21:27:00.000-08:00

After many months of silence on the issue, I have decided to make the mistake of blogging about Pasadena politics once again.

Full disclosure: I stopped caring about the school board elections when I started going to Catholic School, but from what I can tell, things have improved a bit.

For those of you who are unaware, local badass Sid Tyler is retiring from his seat on the city council, representing a district that contains motorcycle gangs, college students, and the super-rich (Lamanda Park, Marceline, and Oak Knoll, respectively). Though there are a flurry of candidates, the main race is between former County Police Chief (and Mrs. Lance Ito) Margaret York, and planner Terry Tornek. One favors slowing growth overall, another favors taking on growth on a case-by-case basis. Right now I'm throwing my support behind York, as I believe preservation should not be an impediment to smart growth (as opposed to Claire Bogaard and the Taste Police*). I think Todd at Pasadenacenteroftheuniverse.com would agree with me on that one.

Having said that, I seriously regret switching my voter registration to San Francisco, when Pasadena politics is so much more fun. When I was but a young boy, my mom would take me to City Council meetings to watch Rick Cole and Isaac Richard fight each other. It was a magical time. Also, going back to my old precinct would keep me open to run for office there once I get out of college (AP, speculate away!)

~MP~

*that would be a great name for a band.

No, I'm Not

2008-12-05T09:43:00.001-08:00

I'm just a shill for the papacy, and have had issues with women of late. Fear not, readers!
~MP~

Am I Becoming a Republican?

2008-12-05T00:03:00.000-08:00

I would rather defend the Catholic Church than my own city.
I find that I am reliably conservative on an increasing number of issues.
I take major steps to keep myself from being elitist.
I've taken a liking to Richard Shelby.
I find Republican girls to be friendlier, or at least more submissive.

What should I do?
~MP~

A Modest Milestone

2008-12-02T22:50:00.000-08:00

I was just watching the Seinfeld episode where Jerry brags that he hasn't vomited in thirteen years. Which reminded me that I haven't vomited in thirteen years. I remember it well: August 5, 1995. I had eaten way too much ahi jerky during a marathon of Pee-Wee's Playhouse.

Also: DANCE PARTY!

New Word

2008-11-25T16:39:00.000-08:00

transcalifornian

(n) someone who regularly inhabits or travels between both Northern and Southern California

(adj) connecting both Northern and Southern California.