The New killers Single

It's brilliant, and you don't have to take my word on it. Though I couldn't see why you wouldn't: I am a music taste god. All faux egotism aside, the song, Human, a really good song. People are hailing it as a return to their previous sound. I do see the resemblance. But what it reminds me of is if I were to travel the globe and return home. The suttle changes in my personality and beliefs could be paralleled to the changes in the Killer's sound.

Also! In the background there's a distinct beat derivative of a type of music called either chiptune or chip music. Essentially it's music made using only sounds from old 8 bit video games. Like the gameboy, and old Nintendo systems. www.8bitpeoples.com has a lot of samples. Also my previous blog talks about it HERE. The point being, I liked to hear a generally unknown type of music fused into a Killers song.

The Dark Knight

Yes, this deserves its own post. This movie is quite simply one of the greatest things I have ever witnessed. The story of an epic and the visual realization to send chills down a photographers spine.

In Bruges

If you plan on seeing this movie don't read on. Or do. In fact, please read this. You'll at least be an informed viewer.

One of the funniest jokes contained in the movie In Bruges is how hilariously mismarketed it was. Please indulge me and look at this Trailer before you continue reading.

The thing about the trailer is that it contains within it every single instance of humor that is in the movie. Hell there's even a joke in the trailer that wasn't in the movie at all. In Bruges was marketed as a quirky action-comedey. When in fact it was a drama with some comedic relief. For the love of god the central event upon which the movie turns is the fact that the main character accidentally killed a 6 year old in a church. The main character is suicidal, and his friend is asked to take him out.

Don't get me wrong, it's a brilliant movie. Really good, twisted entertainment. But an "action packed comedy" it is not.

Recommendations.

See Stop Loss.

Listen to This music.

Especially This.

Review of Dexter.

Oh man. So I have found a new obsession. I don't encourage digital piracy, but I will say that both seasons of Dexter are available online in many places. This show has stolen my life for the past three or four days. I'm not sure how many days it's been because it's caused me to not sleep very often. The show has a masterfully crafted character development, and a plot the feels complete. It also helps that the cinematography is brilliant, and the score is amazing. Please, enjoy this show. It's the best 24 hour (12 episodes a season) media binge you'll ever encounter.

Link

Link 2

Ramble.

So it's my personal opinion that The Killers are one of those bands that will go into history as music that defined a generation. They are the real music that keeps my faith in the music industry. Bands like (and I'm just picking at random here) Flyleaf and System of a Down just sort of create the same song again and again. The same goes for other bands I really like (Disturbed, Kill Hannah, blah blah). The Killers take emotion and spin it into epic Ballads that will reverbate throughout time. Part of what makes them so eternal is that they simply create stories.

There are bands that make "I'm misunderstood, Fuck, why don't you underdstand?" music.
There are bands that make "I hate you, and I hate that, and I hate me, and I hate hats!" music.
There are bands that make "My relationship is really sad/broken/gone" music.
There are bands that make "WAAAAAAAAHHHH!" music.
And there are bands that make music about the full spectrum of emotion. The Killers is one of those bands.

Epic ballads for a generation caught inside a descent into target audiences and mediated reality. That's what The Killers provide, that sober moment inside the haze of manufactured reality.

Book Reviews!

Please enjoy this undoubtedly boring review of two books I've recently read.

Beneath the Neon by Matthew O'Brien

The book is good in that it exists. It is a first person account of O'Brien's exploration of the storm drain system in Las vegas. It's well written, but reads a lot like a newspaper article which sometimes becomes draining at times. I find myself comparing it to Brokeback Mountain, not for it's subject matter of course. But It's existence is important. Beneath the neon gave voice to an underexplored culture, as did Brokeback Mountain. The only things I would have really changed are the pull out quotes (which seem redundant in that they are already in the main text) and perhaps include a few more photos. But the photo thing is coming from me, so take that as you will.

Shooting War by Anthony Lappe' and Dan Goldman

This is a compilation of a web comic that I never read till its book form. Joe gave it to me as a gift, and I thank him. The art is a fusing of real images and drawings that work seamlessley together to create a beautiful and startling vision of the future. In this future, the war in Iraq has created a plague of tension and war that has spread across borders. It follows a video blogger through his expirences inside Iraq. The story is very well constructed, and contains realistic and interesting commentary on the world we live in today. Simply a good read.

If anyone wants to read either of these I do own them and trust people pretty readily.