sureshot

Does anyone else find Skyler an incredibly annoying character? I always thought she was pretty horrible, even going back to the beginning of the series, where Walt seemed almost like the stereotypical henpecked husband and she seemed like the ultimate ball-busting beeyotch. (Your husband has to work a part-time job washing his students' cars so you can be a stay-at-home mom? Really?) I found her more than a little sanctimonious when she learned that Walt was cooking, but now that she has come into the business on some level, and is telling lies left and right, it's kind of oddly amusing to observe her moral decline.

She is annoying, but Walt has become far more annoying. Theyve done a really great job with the character arcs to now basically see how Walt has swapped places with Jessie, on an emotional level.

Bumping this. Recent mix I made, though some might enjoy

Early Morning Train:

http://www.mediafire...q94ulkkoh34tcsv

00:30 Lewis - I Thought The World Of You

02:53 Neu! - Leb Wohl

11:03 Idaho - On The Shore

14:30 Zelienople - More Than That

19:40 Console - A Homeless Ghost

25:20 Aphex Twin - Xtal

30:09 The Garbage and the Flowers - Carousel

34:23 Nick Drake - Far Leys

37:46 Arthur Russel - Love Is Overtaking Me

41:16 Damon and Naomi - Sometimes

45:49 Cocteau Twins - Carolyn's Fingers

48:52 Talk Talk - I Believe In You

54:50 Bedhead - The Rest of the Day

1:01:08 - Early Day Miners - In These Hills

Ash Ra Tempel

YES. Also. Manuel Gottsching's solo work is top notch.

More descendents of the genre than members of it, but

Visited Numero Group's one day pop-up store:

And the haul:

Tom Waits- Heart of Saturday Night

Numero Group: Eccentric Soul- Smart's Palace

Numero Group: Wayfaring Strangers- Guitar Soli

The Flamingos- Requestfully Yours

Rain Parade- Explosions in the Glass Palace

Surfin' With the Astronauts

John Martyn- Solid Air

Flying Saucer Attack- Further

Souvenir of Jamaica- Sounds of the Caribbean

The Underneath- Sun of '67

The Best of John Lee Hooker

Thanks for posting this. this raises my opinion of DM considerably, plus the line-up is worthy of support even if you split before he and his alleged frat boy fans come on. Lollapalooza is on the lakefront and alot of the other fests, including Pfork are not that far from where the majority of the hipster/hippies of Chicago live. But this site is a pretty good haul from all of that and certainly in areas were are in need of some economic development.

 

If you see the Chicago stuff to do thread I have often suggested a trip down this way to see the "real" Chicago. The southeast side looks like what you would imagine Chicago looked like in the first half of the 20th century and certainly what the rust belt Chicago looks like now. It is a part of both Chicago and US history which is being lost and which if the development of this site ever occurs will also disappear in this part of Chicago. A bit of a side trip into the neighborhoods of this area would be most interesting. There are large tracts of land that are abandoned, along with railroad tracks that are no longer used and housing that is quite old and interesting. (On top of it you may spot a parrot or two winging through this part of town.)

 

LouieB

This is the most recent proposal for that parcel. Obviously highly conceptual at this stage, but one can only hope something worthwhile and coherent gets pieced together over the coming decades.

The Calumet region in general that hugs the Skyway from SE IL/ NW IN is a pretty fascinating microcosm. If you can find it, I highly recommend grabbing this book from the library, as it does a really good job of distilling down the essence of what still remains a very unique place in America's fabric.

Im pretty curious how this experiment will go. For the neighborhood's sake, I hope its successful and more artists consider venturing out of the same tired northside enclaves. The biggets obstacle is good public transit, which unfortunately is woefully lacking on the far south side.

The most intriguing part of this fest is the location; the former Southworks on the now depressed southeast side. For that alone I would go, but certainly not for Dave Mathews himself.

 

LouieB

Agreed, its an interesting choice. This is a great synopsis of what was/is..

You Look Nice Today

Possibly the funniest podcast in existence (although you need a nerd sense of humor). Unfortunately the update pretty rarely these days, but theres still a huge back catalog to keep you busy.

I think those Michael Bay releases were Criterion's way of testing the waters, see if their fanbase would accept these sort of blockbusters, I think they got their answer pretty quickly. I'm sure they regret the inclusion of those films nowadays; definite low points in their catalogue.

This user submitted comment on the Armageddon page which explains why those films got released is spot on. (emphasis mine)

The only reason Criterion added this title – and The Rock for that matter – to their illustrious roster is because Michael Bay asked them to before even Criterion knew what the collection would eventually represent.

 

You see, before production companies realized the big money there was to be made in releasing special editions, limited editions, 2-disc sets and noticed the general interest in special features and featurettes among consumers, Criterion was ahead of that game and began… The Collection. Michael Bay noticed, and he wanted Armageddon to get the whole shebang – features, commentaries, the complete package. That’s just how much Michael Bay loves his own movies, and CC were the only people willing to go forward with such a project. And why not? They were still establishing the business, and at the time it was a big license… art-film or not. Bay made some calls, got the licensing together, blah blah blah… and there we have it, Armageddon in the collection and licensing for The Rock on the way. Years after, the Criterion collection has expanded and expanded and gained loyal buyers and collectors who eagerly await their every release with bated breath. But alas, the stain remains. They can’t just banish these titles from Criterion history, but I sure wish they’d tell the story and set the record straight to avoid such confusion among collectors.

Another really great new company is Oscilloscope. Great list of films, and the DVDs get top-notch treatment and unique extras. Plus, it's headed up by Adam Yauch!

Speaking of Yauch, its pretty awesome that the Beastie Boys anthology got the Criterion treatment. I doubt something like that would get released today since Criterion has changed so much as a company, but its still one of the most fun things theyve ever put out. Its worth it for the audio commentary alone. Theres also a mind-boggling amount of customization options on each video (from alt camera angles, alt shoots, and remixes)

Todays haul

Army of Shadows

Death of a Cyclist

An Autumn Afternoon

The Thin Red Line

Ivan's Childhood

The Night Of The Hunter

Why did you only watch it once, I think it's a great film - very funny.

Disembowelment gang-bang rape and child murder is kind of a buzzkill.

I own a copy of SALO, even though I think it's crap. Like I said, you can find anything at the right price eventually!

I havent seen Salo, but I do own Man Bites Dog, which I only viewed once...

I already splurged during their summer sale, but I will still probably pick a couple up this time around. Criterions are the only DVDs I can still justify purchasing, although it seems like they're starting to get overboard with what they put out. It used to be Criterion was a stamp of approval, a film you needed to see before you die, or something that was at least widely neglected and had never gotten proper exposure. Thats no longer really the case, as they're putting out just about anything they can get their hands on. But I still appreciate what they do.

My mom told me they were owned by Trader Joes.

Aldi was founded by Karl Albrecht, Trader Joe's was founded by Theo Albrecht. They are brothers, but the companies are completely independent of each other. Both of them made an insane amount of money off their respective businesses and are 2 of the richest people in the world (9th & 10th).

Like others have said, its virtually all their private label stuff.

Is Makers Mark strong? I got some Buffalo Trace a few weeks ago, and man did it have a kick! A little too strong for my taste.

 

Also a fantastic song

Eight hours to get to Heaven Hill

Head down - due south - past Louisville

Dont stop until the bourbon still

Parker says we can drink our fill....

Me And The Devil is more intense and relevant than stuff put out by guys 1/2 his age.

I actually like his voice now more than before. Its got that aged, weathered, whiskey soaked feel to it that instantly makes him sound more interesting.

Its definitely an interesting album to say the least. 28 minutes long, about 1/2 of which is spoken word collages, the other 1/2 is a mix of covers (Bill Callahan ?!) and some original stuff. It shouldnt work..but somehow it does. Love the dubby production job. The content is much more personal than political. Its really a work you have to take as a whole. I love the liner notes...

There is a proper procedure for taking advantage of any investment.

Music, for example. Buying an album is an investment.

To get the maximum you must

 

LISTEN TO IT FOR THE FIRST TIME UNDER OPTIMUM CONDITIONS.

 

Not in your car or on a portable player through a headset.

Take it home.

Get rid of all distractions, (even her or him).

Turn off your cell phone.

Turn off everything that rings or beeps or rattles or whistles.

Make yourself comfortable.

Play your album.

LISTEN all the way through.

Think about what you got.

Think about who would appreciate this investment.

Decide if there is someone to share this with.

Turn it on again.

Enjoy Yourself.

 

-Gil Scott-Heron

I can only read parts of this at a time. I keep tearing up.

The part where he's talking about Gene...just damn.

It hasn't been mentioned because it's not accurate. The Wire was always an HBO product.

As was The Corner, and as will be Treme when it premiers in April (which I'm really excited about).

Gillo Pontecorvo (The Battle of Algiers)

Andrzej Wajda (Ashes and Diamonds, Kanal, A Generation)

You know, I get pretty tired of writers placing the burden of laziness (best name I can come up with) on the children, and not enough on the parents. I only skimmed this article, but they blame children for not working very well in unstructured environments. I don't care if their parents messed up and made them this way over the course of 18 or 22 years, but if they're the ones that don't say, "Suck it up and take the damned job," then they're also contributing to this mess.

Yea, its a cliche argument at this point, although I dont think that was necessarily the focus of the article. Its more an examination of the effects of being unlucky enough to wind up in a horrible job market. The earning gaps, health issues, change in personality, declining neighborhoods, etc...its not their fault, its just bad fucking timing. And besides, even those who do have the ambition to become entrepreneurial most likely cant get funding in this kind of climate anyway.

New article in the Atlantic. Pretty sobering outlook:

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/201003/jobless-america-future

How should we characterize the economic period we have now entered? After nearly two brutal years, the Great Recession appears to be over, at least technically. Yet a return to normalcy seems far off. By some measures, each recession since the 1980s has retreated more slowly than the one before it. In one sense, we never fully recovered from the last one, in 2001: the share of the civilian population with a job never returned to its previous peak before this downturn began, and incomes were stagnant throughout the decade. Still, the weakness that lingered through much of the 2000s shouldn’t be confused with the trauma of the past two years, a trauma that will remain heavy for quite some time...

For those Chicagoans who misssed the Double Door reunion shows last year, you're in luck:

http://www.h-u-m.net/index.php

There's another Hum reunion show coming up! May 31 @ Millennium Park (Pritzker Pavillion) in Chicago. More info coming as I get it! I suggest you subscribe to the Mission Control Twitter since it is sorta acting as a mailing list for now.