TheMaker

I finally went out and saw this earlier tonight, and holy frig, it's quite possibly the funniest movie I've seen in the nine years since the Brothers Coen gifted us all The Big Lebowski. The British in general seem to have a knack for balancing broad slapstick-y humour with dry and subtle wit, and I don't think I've seen it done quite this well since the days of Monty Python. The way Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg take the piss out of familiar/tired American action movie cliches in their script is simply hilarious, and the Robert Rodriguez-style shoot-'em-up at the end, given the context, is

I'll second the love for Brad Bird. He's one of those guys (like Seth MacFarlane) who truly does it all. Writer, animator, director, voice actor. A part-time artist (and occasional writer) myself, I'm frankly in awe of his talents. Dude's a damned Iron Giant himself, and I'm looking forward to Ratatouille like few other flicks this year. And hey, uber-geek and genuinely nice guy Patton Oswalt voices the lead rat! How cool is that?

I'm a newcomer to Spoon (Gimme Fiction had me hook, line and sinker), so I'm looking forward to what will be my first new album from them. I'm sending out powerful Leak Vibes.

Cool! I love it, personally. It's so overwrought that he almost has to be in on the joke, y'know? Granted, it doesn't suit every artist, but I genuinely adore stuff like Full Moon Fever and the Wilburys.

Definitely one of the most important songs in the rock 'n' roll canon. I saw a doco a few years back about the VU's short-lived '93 reunion, and Lou comments on the song, saying something about how the trick of the thing is in the fact that it's neither a ringing endorsement nor a condemnation of the drug. It's just a song about taking heroin. Amazingly raw stuff.

Are you sure Let's Not Get Carried Away isn't one of them? I distinctly recall reading in one of the myriad SBS interviews Jeff has given over the span of the last month or two that LNGCA and One True Vine were the bonus tracks.

Yeah, if you don't like "Seeds," dude, just listen to the record now and save yourself an additional two weeks of suspense before your eventual letdown. Because, honestly, you're probably going to hate it. Me? Love it.

I always kinda blew Wilco off when they came to came to town 'til YHF leaked, and then I started going to shows. Love that rekkid! Spring of '02, stuck in the balcony at the U of T, but the set was great (if entirely too short at under 100 minutes including encores) and the "Bach lineup" really ripped it up on songs like "Ashes" and "Laminated Cat" (for which performance they were joined by the drummer from the Neil Michael Hagerty Band). I enjoyed the quieter numbers and straightforward rockers even more, and when I remember that show, I'm reminded that the "Leroy era" is pretty underrated by

You're not even on notice. You're not allowed in my apartment.

You're on notice. You're definitely on notice. Wow.

Is my dismissal really overcooked, though? You think Modern Times is "clearly in the midrange." I disagree strongly, hence my wild frustration when discussing its "merits." Honestly, the only Dylan records I think less of are Empire Burlesque, Down in the Groove, Good as I Been to You and Knocked Out Loaded. At least Bobby wrote most of the songs (take that whichever way you'd like) on three of those himself...

I've been listening to this almost non-stop for the last few days. There are a number of real heartbreakers on here. "Angel in the Snow" and "Georgia, Georgia" are amazing, and I've never heard these versions of "Either/Or," "See You Later," or "Thirteen."

Since it seems to be okay, here's a batch of songs that helped Dylan write some of the L&T songs. If posting these is actually a no-no, give me a yell and I'll remove them. I won't say which songs they inspired because if you have ears you'll figure it out around four seconds after playing each track. Johnny and Jack, "Uncle John's Bongos http://download.yousendit.com/270BD4E415D809C6 Gene Austin, "Rebecca" http://download.yousendit.com/21CC4FC45FD748B4 Gene Austin, "Lonesome Road" http://download.yousendit.com/501F16586681D7BF

So when has he actually lifted from Woody, out of curiosity? Woody's style and approach informed Dylan's early songs, but Zimmy has only fallen into the habit of truly swiping songs in recent years. "Masters of War" takes its basic melody from a specific arrangement of the traditional "Nottamun Town," but can you call that outright theft? I think it becomes even more difficult to fault Dylan for that one when you consider the fiery, soul-stirring words he wrote to accompany the music, as opposed to the slight little ditties he slapped together for MT. I don't have a problem with artists be

Yeah, L&T borrowed something like a dozen lines (out of a few hundred) from a pulpy and obscure Japanese book. That's fair play in my book, especially when Dylan managed to wring really great songs like "Floater (Too Much to Ask)" and "Bye and Bye" out of them. He also rewrote a couple of Gene Austin and Johnny and Jack songs to get "Tweedle Dee," "Summer Days," and "Sugar Baby," but there was never any big stink in the media about that. I'd upload some of these source songs just so you could check out the undeniable (basically identical) similarities between them and the Dylan tunes, but

I really like that song, especially in concert. (No, seriously!)

Randomly: Impossible Germany, I Hate It Here, Monday, Why Would You Wanna Live, Muzzle of Bees, Company in My Back, Jesus Etc., War On War, She's a Jar, When You Wake Up Feeling Old.

You know, I find Wilco's output so consistently satisfying that I'm having a hell of a time thinking of five songs by the band that I don't like. That's just about the highest praise I can offer 'em. Here's my list after five minutes of thinking long and hard about it. 1. Spiders (Kidsmoke) 2. Wishful Thinking 3. Spiders (Kidsmoke) 4. It's Just That Simple 5. Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Hey, I never said "you're wrong to like this." I'm just baffled by some of the things people have said in this thread. Modern Times was the best record of 2006? Yeah, well, then by default it was also the best record of 1866, 1928 and 1955, because it sure as hell didn't add anything new to the words and music it had its way with. "Spirit on the Water" is Dylan's best vocal? Come on, tell me you didn't laugh out loud at that. I mean, whatever, the dude can think what he wants, but I'm just as free to find his opinions bewildering.

Who else thinks Straightaways is just downright bad? I almost never hear people talk about this album, so I'm probably not alone on this one... (Farrar haters need not apply, as y'all'd only pollute the opinion pool.)

I don't particularly like Pitchfork. I sometimes write for Playbackstl.com, though. The snark is kept to a dull roar on that site, believe it or not, mostly because the conversations are one-sided and concerned strictly with the art at hand. The readership is miniscule compared to Pitchfork's, so nobody particularly cares about trying to act the part of the hipper-than-thou "tastemaker." I think the problem with Pitchfork is that it's entirely too aware of its audience anymore; I sometimes wonder if a lot of their reviews and features aren't just bullshit thrown together to baffle whatever tre

Yeah, A.M. is a fine record, but it's nothing special as debuts go. Sniff. Sorry, but I don't think many people will agree with your assessment, AWATT.

Diamond Jubilation is a great record, as is Campbell's recent solo instrumental album, Rooftops. He's a class act!

Oh, and as for my greatly exaggerated negativity: you should read the other 75% of my posts on this forum someday. Huuuuugs!

Ha ha. Oh my god, yeah, it's amazing. Turn up the volume so you can hear him wheeze out the last few syllables of every line! The hyperbole some people will reach for in an attempt to gain ground in an argument never fails to amuse or amaze me. Before y'all jump on me again, I'm certainly not claiming to immune from this practice myself, but for Christ's sake, this is a discussion about the man who recorded songs like "Idiot Wind," "Abandoned Love" and "I'll Keep It With Mine." What's not to like about Modern Times? In brief: Dylan shamelessly stole at least half the songs from other artis