Check IT #6

Music:
Here are the top 5 songs for April:
1. At Least I'm Not As Sad (As I Used to Be) // fun.
2. Can You Tell? // Ra Ra Riot
3. There Is a Light That Never Goes Out // The Smiths
4. Sleepyhead // Passion Pit
5. No One Does It Like You // Department of Eagles

Movies:
The Royal Tenembaums
Due to my recent realization that Gweneth Paltrow is one of my favorite actresses, I've decided to make The Royal Tenembaums the movie of the month. Filled with great shots, an amazing screenplay, and a stacked cast, this movie should for sure be put on your Netflix.



Final Note:
Check out this website, you will NOT be disappointed.
http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/

Check It #5

Music:

Here are the top 5 songs for April:
1. The Laws Have Changed // The New Pornographers

2. Bridges and Balloons // Joanna Newsom
3. Without Mythologies // The Weakerthans
4. Dead Sound // The Raveonettes
5. Willow Tree // Chad VanGaalen

Movies:
(500) Days of Summer
Though I haven't yet seen this film, I am going to the West Coast premier this Thursday at the Newport Beach Film Festival. This is Zooey Deschanel's newest movie, and by the looks of it, could be my favorite one. Well that is about all I can say without actually seeing the movie, but just watch the trailer, it will change your life.



Television
Dead Like Me

Dead Like Me is an incredible show I have stumbled upon. It is a post-modern view of the after life and Grimreapers. The story is of George (short for Georgia), an 18 year old girl who dies at the hands of a Russian toilet seat falling from space. She is then taken into the fold of new age Grimreapers. The show is complicated to explain but is worth watching. The show is canceled as of 2004, but you can sure still rent or buy it. Also, their is a movie of it entitled Dead Like Me: Life After Death watch it.

Check It #4

Music:

Here are the top 5 songs for March:
1. Hallie and Henry // Say Hi

2. I've Got Friends // Manchester Orchestra
3. Flight 180 // Bishop Allen
4. The Rabbit, The Bat, & The Reindeer // Dr. Dog
5. Chariot // Page France

Movies:
Rachel Getting Married
When sister Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) gets married to the love of her life, musician Sidney (Tunde Adebimpe), recovering addict Kym (Anne Hathaway) starts to bring up a family history that was better left forgotten. This movie is for sure worth anyone's time. The acting , on everybody's part is incredible. This really helps accent the almost documentary-esque style that the movie is shot in.



Last Notes:
Albums! Check out Say Hi's New Album "Oohs and Aahs," which came out March 03. I have personally been a fan of the one man band for a little over a year now, so I give you the go. Second, look out of the new Manchester Orchestra, entitled "Mean Everything to Nothing," out in stores April 21. This is said to be alot harder than their sophomore album "I'm Like A Virgin Losing a Child" but not veering too much from their original style.

Check It #3

Music
Here is the top 5 songs for the month of February:
1. Left and Leaving // The Weakerthans
2. Everyday // Rogue Wave
3. In the Sun // Michael Stipe & Chris Martin
4. Colly Strings // Manchester Orchestra
5. Id Engager // Of Montreal

Movies
Though it isn't new by any standards, Sideways is the movie of the month. It is one of my favorites for a couple of reasons, the first being the it has a bomb cast, including Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy), Paul Giamatti (Lady in the Water), Thomas Haden Church (George of the Jungle), and Virginia Madsen (Cutlass). I am not the only one that thinks it is a keeper. Apart from being nominated for 5 Academy Awards, it won 2 Golden Globes, one for best picture. I strongly recommend it.



Funny Websites
www.fmylife.com :)

Check It #2

Music:

Say Hi/ Say Hi to Your Mom

Well I found this indie-rock band about 2 years ago or so. Based in Seattle, Eric Elbogen records most of his stuff in his basement on his Mac. It is sort of like Playradioplay! were he records it mostly by himself and then takes a band with him. Anyway, if you were to only download one song from this band it would have to be Let's Talk About Spaceships.

Movies:

The Wrestler

Well there is a couple reasons I enjoy this, the main one being that wrestling has always held a special place in my heart. The second... okay so I originally saw because it was about wrestling. Anyway if you do see it let me know, I have some questions for you. Mickey Rourke makes his on screen return after almost 14 years and did really well, being nominated for an Oscar and winning a Golden Globe for his part in the movie.


Internet Videos:

Maraka the adventurer

Check it! #1

So I have always wanted to have a reoccurring segment on this here blog and I finally came up with one I liked. The new project, titled "Check it!" will feature things that I am enjoying at the time and would recommend to my friends. The plan is to be posting these maybe twice a month.

Music:

"The 59th Street Bridge Song"/Simon and Garfunkel
This song can always make me smile and appreciate life. It is the first song I play when I am making the long trip back home. I love it.

Stars
I am just recommending this band. I really like all of their songs so I can't just recommend one. Well, actually I can. They actually play my favorite song of all time "Your Ex-Lover is Dead." When you listen to it, make sure you listen to the lyrics. But the same thing could be said for all of their songs, the lyrics are just great.

Movies:

Slumdog Millionaire
This is one the best movies I have seen in a while. I was planning on telling what the movie was about and I actually wrote out a small summary about the movie, but it did not make sense, so I am just going to show what Fandango had to say about it: "Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions. Intrigued by Jamal’s story, the jaded Police Inspector begins to wonder what a young man with no apparent desire for riches is really doing on this game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out."
I mean the music to the trailor is by the Ting Tings so it must be cool right?

Internet Videos?:

SNL Digital Short: Pony Express