It's been awhile, how you've come back in style..

Music Review // Coconut Records // Nighttiming

Coconut Records is Jason Schwartzmann's solo indie band..  i like Jason Schwartzmann.  but! even if i didn't know it was him, i would probably still like this album.  it's very sweet and catchy.  his voice is quiet, bluesy and quirky.  Jason Schartzmann's quirkiness is my favorite thing about him.  i adored him in I Heart Huckabees!  but back to his music, there are four songs that are super awesomely fantastic and great on their own.  having them together on one album = a really good listen.  by far, the best song is Nighttiming.  it has an old timey feel, delightfully indie sound and with all the upbeat string instruments, just makes you want to get up and dance even though you're not really sure how to dance to this kind of music (lots of alternating shoulder movements).  what's fun is if you've seen him act, you can imagine him singing with his nonchalant goofiness which makes it even cuter.  thanks to his connections in Hollywood, he gets Zoey Deschanel and Kirsten Dunst to sing back up vocals on one song each.  they're not credited, but if you pay attention, you'll know which songs it is.  his slower songs are really folksy.  i have a low tolerance for slow songs so i favor the faster, more upbeat ones.  overall, if i had to pick one word to describe the whole album, it'd be funhappyquirk.

the super awesomely fantastic songs, in order of fantasticness: Nighttiming, It's Not Me It's You, West Coast, Minding My Own Business

Nighttiming


It's Not Me, It's You



fun facts about Jason Schartzmann time! 

i really like him.  that is a fact. 

his brother, Robert Schartzmann aka Robert Carmine is the lead singer of Rooney.  i think he must have played guitar on some, if not all, of the songs on Nighttiming.  the beginning of It's Not You It's Me sounds very Rooneyish.  i really liked their first album, Blue Sides, but i haven't listened to them since.  must be fun to do show biz stuff with your family  which leads us to the next fun fact!

Jason Schwartzmann is a Coppola, as in Francis Ford Coppola (director of the Godfather movies) and Sofia Coppola (writer and director of some great of Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation).  his mom played Connie Corleone in all the Godfathers.  and just a little movie trivia, Sofia Coppola is Francis Ford Coppola's daughter and played Mary Corleone in part three. 

he acts, and he acts good.  i love the parts he chooses.  he's weirdly funny and funnily weird and he knows it.  like i said, i love I Heart Huckabees.  he was also really, really funny in The Darjeeling Limited, which he co-wrote.  that movie was funny and delightful in so many ways!  the chemistry between Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schartzmann was perfect.  who knew Adrien Brody was so funny?  cinematography was great, setting was great, dialogue was hilarious.. etc, etc, etc (p.s. i'm a huge fan of Wes Anderson, so excuse the gushing)

this is a cute video of his brother, Robert Carmine of Rooney, lip syncing along to Minding My Own Business



what? you've listened to a couple songs and now you're hooked and want more Jason Schartzmann?  mm, me too.  he has a show on HBO called Bored to Death about an unlicensed private detective.  costars are Zach Galifianakis (the retarded brother Alan from The Hangover) and Ted Danson (from Cheers, and yea, he looks really old now).  if that isn't enough premise for hilarity to ensure, i'm not sure what is.

These boots were made for walking

Opinion // Fashion // Shorts + Boots

I love to wear boots.  Every time I get dressed, I try on some boots just to see how it'll look, even when I don't feel like wearing them.  Shorts aren't just for when you're too hot for pants and boots aren't just for when your feet are cold.  Funnily, I googled "shorts and boots" and found a bunch of fashion blogs blasted how the look is trailer trashy and odd looking, especially with black boots.  I disagree.  These are how famous people wear it:

         

I like the fitted blazer look even though I'm more of a cardigan girl.  It looks refined and fancy, great for day to night.  Also, Victoria Beckham opted for heeled, just-above-the-ankle boots.  Kate Moss's knee highs are a nice casual-edgy look and the lace adds a feminine touch that balances the rest of the outfit (p.s. I would never wear that top, it looks like a doily).  Random fun fact: Kate Moss is dating Jamie Hince of The Kills (see August 10th entry).  Both of these outfits have a really different feel.  This is how I wear it:

     

I love me some cardigans.  I feel like cardigans and boots are both things that I use to dress up the rest of my outfit, so the shorts and shirt should be casual.  In the first outfit, I wore a dangly heart necklace and headband with a bow to balance out all the solid black.  In the second outfit, I threw on a delightful pink and white patterned scarf I found in Athens for a whimsical touch and to balance out the bookish look.  I usually like to button my cardigan, which makes me look more librarian than casual cool.

What got me into the shorts n boots are these slouchy ankle boots I'm wearing in both pictures.  I only bought them because they were mistakenly marked for $5 at Forever 21.  I scooped them up and didn't wear them for over a year because I thought they were ugly.. but! after I gave them a chance, they're one of my favs.  They're flat and very comfy and not as stuffy/suited-for-cold-weather as my now neglected flat knee high boots.  There's so much to play around with when you vary the length/color of the boots with the material of the shorts (see, fashion blogs?! not always denim) and how you accessorize.

In a couple weeks, it'll be Fall, that wonderful in-between weather where all the beautiful clothes that you've (I've) been itching to wear, but didn't want soaked with sweat, get to come out to play.

For the benefit of Mr. Kite

Art // Acrylic on Canvas // the splitter splatter of my heart

Created: 07.04.10
Music: The Beatles // Love - the Cirque du Soleil soundtrack
Mood: Frivolous, amused, happy

I've always wondered how people get that speckle affect.  It's not that hard at all and it's really fun to do!  I just thinned the paint with a lot of water, loaded it up on the brush and flicked away.  It's a little messy but so satisfying to fling around.  I used a couple different shades for the speckle colors to give it more dimension.  I wished I had used a different background color.  I used almost that exact color on a different painting, not realizing it until I was done.  Maybe I subconsciously did it on purpose?  After finishing the speckles, I was quite pleased but felt like it needed it a little bit more of a.. personal touch.  So I painted little hearts all over.  It's so busy that it's pretty difficult to see them.  So difficult that I lost track of where they were while I was painting them and accidentally placed a couple right next to each other when I was trying to space them out.  There's at least 30.  I really don't know, I can't find them now.

I've always wanted to fill water balloons with paint and throw them against a giant canvas.  I love that scene of Across the Universe where Jim Sturgess is throwing strawberries dipped in red paint against a canvas.  Looks very satisfying.  Splat.  Splat.  I guess this is good enough for now.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

 Movie Review // Vicky Cristina Barcelona

This movie is about restless Americans, love, romance, art and yearning set in Barcelona.  It's one of those movies about romance but isn't romantic.  Kind of like the warning before (500) Days of Summer.  "You should know upfront, this is not a love story."  The setting goes a long way in adding charm to the overall feel of the movie.  There are two friends, Vicky and Cristina who go to Barcelona together.  Vicky is extremely intelligent but seems reserved and suspicious of anything unconventional.  Cristina is the complete opposite, spontaneous and craving to be different.  Everyone knows a Cristina.  That person that seems so fun and open minded and refreshing.. though often times my opinion of these sort of people are tainted when I realize that being different just for the sake of it is pretty stupid.  Then there's Antonio, the dashing Spanish artist who is that perfect balance of cool and smart and disarming and artsy.  Then there's Elena, who's Antonio's crazy ex.  She's so beautiful and bursting full of poetry, passion, emotion and creativity that it only makes sense that she's batshit crazy.  She the perfect woman to hate and love, has it all but emotional stability and sanity. 

I'm not even sure why the movie is called Vicky Cristina Barcelona, except that it sounds really cool.  It should have been called Antonio Elena Cristina Barcelona.  Most of the movie displays the complex relationship that Cristina has with Antonio and Elena.  Oh, and I should probably give a warning that this is one of those movies where "nothing happens."  There is no formulated obstacle for the protagonist to conquer to get the girl/get the job/prove himself.  It just follows these people around in their strange little lives.  Cristina and Antonio are the perfect cliché of the sexy American shacking up with the sexy European and living it up in the beautiful countryside.  Then Elena comes back in the picture with a semi-sensical excuse that forces her to live with them.  Penelope Cruz is so good in this role.  She makes you laugh and want to strangle her at the same time and by the end, you can't help but have a little crush on her.  Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) tries really hard to get along with her and be her friend, pushed by her need to be liked and be cool.  You know.. it's cool to be cool with your boyfriend's ex, shows you're not the typical jealous girlfriend.  Of course, with that many beautiful people under one roof, they begin a three-way relationship.  They nurture each other's creative energies, talk about how sad it is to be close minded, and soak up each other's awesomeness.  I'm skipping through the Vicky storyline because I didn't really find it that interesting, but Rebecca Hall is pretty and engaging in a really subtle way.  I'd like to see what other movies she's in.

Things I liked:

The European feel of the movie.  It was slow paced but interesting.  I really liked that Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz spoke so much Spanish and had a heavy accent when speaking English.  It felt very authentic.

All the art.  Antonio is an abstract artist who splashes paint on a gigantic canvas in the backyard of his country house.  So cool.  I often see paintings that I like so much and wonder why I can't do stuff like that.  This is another one of those times.  Elena is a painter too and is somehow able to convey her chaotic nature onto canvas in a similar style to Antonio's, yet unique to herself.  Cristina picks up photography and has her own dark room.  SO COOL.  I took photography in high school and loved being in the dark room.  Processing your own black and white film is so completely different from digital photography today. 

Casting was right on.  Scarlett Johanssen is smoldering and tantalizing with her I-know-I'm-hot little smiles.  She's overall underwhelming as an actress, but it works in this role.  She gets called out as being "chronically dissatisfied" after having a wonderful life, creative and unconventional like she always wanted, and then deciding she needs to leave to find herself.  Penelope Cruz's Oscar was well deserved.  Supportive actors were all really good.

Tastefulness of the story.  Although Antonio has sex with three women, nothing distasteful was shown.  Pretty surprising considering the actresses involved.

Things I didn't like:

Scarlett Johanssen.  I find her annoying, even though she plays the blandish American à la Lost in Translation very well.

I liked this movie for its slow charm.  The different relationships, whether romantic, sexual, or platonic, are all realistic and natural.  Good job Woody Allen.  Find another muse, please.

I'm sick of social graces, show your shark-tipped teeth

Music Review // The Kills // Midnight Boom

The Kills are noisy and dark, sometimes punkish, sometimes soulful.  I'm not sure if I liked them the first time I heard them, but sometimes that happens.. you have to be in the right mood and then suddenly, you connect with a song.  Just one song.  And there's the motivation to listen to the rest of the album.  Tape Song did it for me.  Time ain't gonna cure you, honey, time don't give a shit.  It made me chuckle because people are always saying "just give it time."  I hate generic reassurances.  They are true sometimes, but I still hate it.  Can't you think of something better to say to comfort a friend?

I like Alison Mosshart's voice.  It's a little gritty, like she's not girly and she's okay with that.  The songs that Jamie sings on just sound off.  Some of their songs are off beat, like the drums and guitar are crashing against each other, but it works.  They're White Stripes minimalist with a stoned Karen O.  Appropriately, Alison is the singer for Jack White's newest band The Dead Weather.  They have a much darker sound then The Raconteurs which I'm sure is the product of Alison and Jack bonding over their favorite black hair dye.

Songs to check out: Cheap and Cheerful, Tape Song

Fly away to what you want to make

Art // Acrylic on Canvas // Fire and Brimstar

Created: 08.04.10
Music: Feist, Radiohead
Mood: Calm, focused, content

Partially inspired by Leslie Feist's The Reminder album cover.  In retrospect, it seems the image and colors have a slightly religious shade to them.  Huh.  That was not my conscious intention.  But, I guess, since I didn't have any conscious intentions when I began, that it could have been..?

This is my eighth painting as a total amateur with no training or technique.  Inspired one day by a good friend who is a real painter, I found it to be supremely relaxing.  And I love mixing colors.  I probably spend more time mixing colors to a particular shade than I do actually applying the paint to the canvas.  In any case, it's a wonderful way to be a little expressive.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Movie Review //  Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

This movie is based on a series of teen books about a young boy that discovers he is the son of Poseidon and has to deal with the tribulations of being a demigod.  In this world, there are hundreds of demigods roaming Earth, the result of the gods "hooking up" with mortals.  I really liked this movie because I love Greek mythology and it did a good job of incorporating major mythical themes into the modern world.  Some things honestly didn't make sense, but that's probably because unimportant details like, explanations of why the entrance of Mount Olympus is located at the top of the Empire State Building in NYC, were dropped in favor of action scenes and special effects.  What can you do, though?  All the details of a book will never make it to the screen, but that doesn't necessarily make for a bad movie, just a bad adaptation.  I didn't read the books but I'm well versed on Greek mythology in general, so I enjoyed a few inside jokes.

My favorite parts of the movie:

Alexandra Daddario who plays Annabeth, daughter of Athena.  She came across as a really strong, smart female character without being the cliché I-won't-accept-help-from-boys-tom-boy.  That and she has the most amazing blue eyes.  There's something about blue eyes + dark hair á la Angelina Jolie and Megan Fox that is so arresting.  I'm keeping an eye on this girl.

Inclusion of some cool monsters.  Medusa, the hydra, a fury, a minotaur, satyrs and centaurs are always fun to see on the big screen.  I think the book had more details, but I disliked the way they modernized Medusa in the movie and didn't include the other Gorgons.  Also, last time I checked, the hyda's head multiplies by 10 not 2.

Casting.  Kevin McKidd as Poseidon.  This was awesome for me because I'm a big fan of the HBO series Rome and Kevin has a great old world aura.  Same for Sean Bean as Zeus.  He played Odysseus in Troy and didn't really get to do much in that role, but he's perfected that old world accent that somehow signifies being Ancient Greek/Roman in Hollywood movies.  I'm also a fan of CSI, so Melina Kanakaredes as Athena was a pleasant surprise.

Camp for Half Bloods.  This is where all the demigods, kids of the gods, go to train and live and explore their powers.  It was pretty cute seeing the freakishly aggressive sons of Ares play capture the flag and  the flirtatious daughters of Aphrodite as teenagers in a summer camp setting.  Also, the daughter of Athena impatiently dismissing a bunch of nymphs plays really nicely into the attitude of a teen movie.

Modern updates of old themes: Herme's winged sandals turn into chucks.  Percy's sword being transformed from a pen (the pen is mightier than the sword pun, cute).  I would like the cover up of the satyr living in the modern world with crutches, posing as a cripple so no one would notice his odd gait, IF I believed anyone would trust a satyr as a protector.  Grover did show the typical fun loving, flirtatious side of a typical satyr so I guess that's okay.

Things I disliked:

Descrepancies from Greek mythology that I consider to be cannon.  This is just me being a stickler, because every modern movie puts a spin on old stories.  Besides Medusa and the hydra, the underworld was very obviously missing Cerebus and the Elysian Fields.  Those are the best parts of the Greek underworld!  Also, Athena having a daughter.  No one who knows anything about the Greek gods would buy that she would have half mortal daughter.  Also, the basis of the main character being so special because he's the son of Poseidon.  In this world, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades are The Big Three.  They're not allowed to have children because they would be too powerful in the mortal world.  Really?  Zeus not allowed to have illegitimate children?  C'mon now.  If Hera can't stop him, no one can.  I'm sure there are more, but I'm trying to hold back from sounding like a total weirdo.

Besides that, the cheesiness of the story is totally appropriate to the target audience of young teens who read the books.  It's a nice alternative for Harry Potter/teen fantasy movie fans as this is just the first of (I think) six Percy Jackson books.  Overall a really good movie that I'd watch again though I'd understand if other people aren't as into it because they don't have the background knowledge.  Just watch it with me, I'll whisper all the inside jokes to you.

First Blog (ahem... test, test)

So.  This is my blog.  Hello.

I've been needing a way to express myself, in a focused way.  I like to engage in creative things.  Note: liking something doesn't imply talent, training, or technique.  I just like to pause my life at times to paint, daydream, watch movies, listen to music, enjoy art, and overall absorb the world around me in an enjoyable way.

Here I come blogosphere.