Girl Talk Illegal Art

Get ye some rap/dance remixes. That’s the first commandment from the Girl Talk Doctrine of Jam. The second says something about disco sucking and correct “club dosages” of Ketamine, but the first is definitely about remixes. Turns out Girl Talk is actually just one man: a wildout, sometimes hairy, biomedical enigineer from Pittsburgh named Gregg Gillis. He mixes and matches the hooks and beats from all sorts of artists (Notorious B.I.G., Elton John, Nirvana) to create new tracks super-saturated with dance rhythms. It sounds fairly risky considering the legal ramifications for not getting permission to use other people’s songs, but he’s been doing it since 2002 and hasn’t been incarcerated yet. Though he’s been on the scene for a while he garnered a lot of attention with his 2006 album Night Ripper and has been added to several music festival lineups to weild his special brand of high intensity live performance. I prefer to weild a sword, or at least watch movies with people weilding swords. Did you see Kill Bill? That movie is sweet…

Brandi Carlile Columbia Records

In keeping with the Olympic spirit here at Pop Culture Coast-to-Coast, today’s artist has a special song that true Olympic fans will enjoy. If you’ve been watching the games as closely as I have, you’ve probably seen that GM commercial a billion times with its signature tune “The Story” blaring over images of America’s perceived automotive dominance. I think it’s fair to say that the song draws much more attention than any of those sweet new ‘09 Saturns - so just who does that raspy, hauntingly familiar voice belong to? Good question. It’s Washington state’s own Brandi Carlile. She’s a devastating mix of Patsy Cline, Janis Joplin and Bonnie Raitt and broke onto the scene back in 2005 after none other than Dave Matthews heard her band play at Sasquatch! Music Fest. On a side note, why haven’t I been to Sasquatch Fest? Anyway, she’s gone from being dubbed an “Artist to Watch” to touring Australia with Maroon 5 and playing all the alt-country she can handle with the likes of The Fray, Tori Amoss and Chris Isaak. So support our great nation’s athletes with a true country-rock song about heartache and pain, sung by a beautiful girl with big brown eyes - what’s more American than that? Maybe if you got an eagle tatooed on your back while you listen. An eagle breathing fire on Communism. And laying eggs of justice across the galaxy. That would probably be the most American…

On the latest edition of pop culture’s greatest achievement, John and Rhett get a case of Olympic Fever and decide to examine movies that have captured the essence of traditional Olympic events, and in the process distribute medals to the deserving champions. Who will reign supreme in fencing? Can a movie commanded by Hulk Hogan deliver gold in wrestling? Will Raging Bull live up to its expecatations? Who will pull a Michael Phelps or Shawn Johnson and assert their dominance and who will go home with only memories of what could have been? All that, plus a long-awaited GTM showdown with Rhett trying to regain his swagger (see dragon post below) and John looking to continue his stunning streak of brilliance. So much drama. So much action. Don’t miss out - listen in the car, on your Ipod, or even at work. Tell the boss that you have to do what you have to do. Assert your dominance…

Download: Pop Culture Olympics

This summer marked the return of two of my favorite entertainment franchises of all time: Indiana Jones and The X-Files. Even though both films opened to mixed reviews, I was very excited to see the current series installments, and finally got around to doing so last week. I first took in a late night screening of Dr. Jones and company with K-Dogg, as I assumed it was probably on its last big-screen legs, since it came out in May. I really didn’t have a lot of prior knowledge about the plot and figured I’d be fine with watching Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf trapsing around jungles, dodging bad guys and solving clues in search of some mysterious treasure. I wish I’d had a little prior knowledge. Not sure what George Lucas was thinking, maybe he’s an X-Files fan too, but he had the good doctor tracking down mystical alien skulls in the amazon rain forest, eluding lame CGI monkeys (part of a ridiculous, Tarzanesque rope swinging sequence for Shia LaBeouf) and eventullay winding up in an alien chamber that turns out to be a spacecraft of some kind. What? What happened to punching Nazis in the face and hunting for biblical treasures? What happened to awesome booby traps and using supreme historical knowledge to uncover hidden catacombs? I’m all for the fact that Indiana Jones does have some fantastical elements to it - heavenly ghouls, melting faces and archaic guardian knights - but aliens? The kind from outer space? Really? It just didn’t work for me. From the get-go something was off. The lighting in the opening sequence was almost washed out, Ford’s comedic timing and delivery weren’t very crisp, Cate Blanchette’s acting prowess was completely wasted and LaBeouf’s 50s-greaser persona was overembelished. It all felt forced and really only delivered in the disappointment category. For the record, I wasn’t someone who felt that the franchise should have been left alone. In fact, I think it’s the perfect type of series that can sustain additions as long as they’re consistent with what has already been done. The third movie with Sean Connerey is a perfect example of that guideline. I’m not trying to completely destroy the movie either; it did have a couple of really well done, classic Indiana Jones chase scenes that honored the glory of the preceding films and Harrison Ford was physically up to the task and looked the part in every way - something that was of concern for fans before opening day. Be that as it may, it wasn’t enough to carry the movie. Maybe this was just a segue movie for the studio to transition LaBeouf into the starring role in order to perpetuate the Jones legacy (a terrible idea) and maybe Indianapolis LaBeouf (a rogue CIA agent) and the Curse of the Internet Hackers is just around the corner, poised to make $400 million. If so, the studio can laugh in my face, but I just felt like there were lofty expectations for such a storied franchise I happen to love and it just fell short. Really short. Not saying I wouldn’t watch the fake Shia-movie mentioned above, but I’d probably wait for it to come on HBO.

Upon entering into a Sunday matinee of X-Files 2 with Nealworld I had a little bit to go on: mysterious killings, weird priest, stand alone-non conspiracy plot line and most critics thought it sucked. I thought the plotline sounded promising and all the negative reviews in the world couldn’t keep me away from the movie I wanted to see most in 2008. That’s right, I was looking forward to The X-Files 2 more than Batman. What can I say: I love the show and the thought of a Mulder and Scully reunion dwarfed all other cinematic debuts. It’s just how I’m living. Anyway, the opening credits instantly sparked fond memories of my beloved show and when the siganture music played I was right back into that supernatural world and ready to see Duchovny and Anderson bring it all together for me. Before I go any further I think I need to explain that I really love the X-Files, especially the characters of Mulder and Scully. I would watch a movie about them taking a nice afternoon bike ride together followed up with Fox reading to Dana aloud from whatever is laying around. Perhaps it’s even the phone book - whatever. I’ll watch him read to her from the phone book. I feel it’s important for you to be aware of my bias as you read the rest of this. Overall, I felt the movie was good - not great, but good. The plotline was solid and had the right balance between legitimate FBI case and traditional X-Files mysticism, and Duchovny and Anderson had their usual perfect chemistry. I was actually a little surprised coming out of the theater that the movie had been so poorly received; I certainly didn’t see any glaring problems with the film and found it to be quite entertaining. In fact, the only real problem was with the script. There wasn’t enough backstory about what Mulder had been doing since his departure from the bureau and for the first half of the movie it was completely unclear as to the status of his relationship with Scully. Not sure why that was so ambiguous, but it felt like the writers were in a hurry to just get Mulder and Scully back to working for the FBI so they could progress the primary storyline, so more personal issues were glossed over or resolved too quickly. I really liked the struggle between faith and personal strength that Scully went through - Gillian Anderson is such a great actress, she should really be cast in more movies - I just wish it had been used to tie Mulder and Scully together rather than serve as a weak device to temporarily separate them. The supporting cast was good, with the exception of a disappointing Xzibit, and some familiar faces provided nice cameos along the way. I felt it was a solid sequel that X-Files fans will enjoy and those with no ties to the show should also find entertaining. Plus, it’s just good to see Mulder and Scully back in action. Don’t see myself getting tired of that.

Indiana Jones vs. Mulder & Scully. Battle of the movie gaints. When the smoke clears, The X-Files is the clear winner of the cinematic brawl (despite what box office totals will tell you) and presides as the reigning champion of revived franchises. America’s favorite FBI agents stand tall and remind Dr. Jones that they’ve got way more experience with the paranormal and that perhaps he should leave alien encounters to the experts.

-John

The Black Keys Nonesuch Records

A blues-rock band from Akron, Ohio comprised of frontman/guitarist Dan Auerbach and percussionist Patrick Carney, The Black Keys are one of those bands that can’t seem to crack a widespread audience even though they consistently receive praise from critics and fellow artists alike. They’ve been on the scene since 2002, put out five albums, appeared on Letterman and Conan and had tracks featured in movies and commercials, but still haven’t garnered real attention from the public. Let’s see if we can’t change that right now. Their sound is rough and grizzled, and partially the product of their fondness for recording with tape-recorders and using analog instruments. They have the unconventional spirit of Beck and the raw energy of The White Stripes, so it’s no surprise they’ve toured with the likes of Radiohead, Sleater-Kinney and even Beck himself. Maybe a couple of certain podcast hosts should form a musical duo - I hear Rhett plays a mean recorder and mouth harp. Until then, here’s to making more fans for The Black Keys.

So, for those of you that have been following our podcasts closely, you know that Mr. John Short has been on a Michael Phelps type of run at everyone’s favorite game, Guess The Movie. To be quite honest with you, it’s been eating me up inside over the last four weeks. I haven’t been sleeping very well, I’m a bit more agitated at work than normal, and I can tell that I really lose my enthusiasm for our podcasts after John has successfully guessed the movie. To make things worse, I have really tried to pick movies that John would have a tough time getting…I mean, The Contender?? What were the chances he just saw that movie the week before? And I’ve heard from multiple sources that John has been bragging about his recent victories in GTM in order to climb up the social ladder in the Queen City. I must say, it really hurts the integrity of the game to see this type of boorish behavior…it just goes against everything GTM stands for…which of course is honor, pride, and not rubbing victories in Rhett’s face.

So, we are recording a brand-spanking-new podcast tomorrow evening and I vow to you, the good people out there in podcast land, that I will successfully slay the dragon so his reign of terror will be over. (Please look above for a visual interpretation of this). Good luck Mr. Short, you will need it.

RN

Check out the latest podcast, where your favorite pop culture wizards explore Gotham City and the summer’s hottest blockbuster, The Dark Knight. Rhett and John weigh in on the movie that’s got everyone talking and then delve into a few other summer titles that may not be making as much noise, but are still worth examining. Before all of that, John tries to capitalize on his previous, stunning GTM victory from the last show. Will he be successful? Will Rhett stump him with his vast movie knowledge? Will they rate Batman as highly as everyone else? Will The Love Guru go down as the one of the worst movies of all time? Only the podcast can reveal these answers, and more. Maybe not more, but definitely those answers…

Download: Why So Serious?

HBO is bringing the heat lately, or shall I say packing the heat? (wait, you’ll get the joke soon) Anyway, for those of you that don’t know, Thomas Jane has been cast as the lead in HBO’s hour-long pilot entitled, “Hung.” Jane’s character plays a well-endowed middle-age high school basketball coach who figures out a way to use his best asset. The pilot will also be directed by Alexander Payne who is most known for writing and directing About Schmidt and Sideways.

And today, I also just read that Martin Scorsese is in negotiations to direct HBO’s drama pilot “Boardwalk Empire” which is based on Nelson Johnnson’s book that chronicles the 1920s origin of gambling capital of the east coast, Atlantic City. Scorsese is already the exec producer on the pilot so it looks like this will probably happen.

HBO is really getting their act together when it comes to their original series. With these two pilots, along with the Jason Schwartzman writer/private investigator pilot, (discussed in an earlier podcast) it looks like they are really making strides in bolstering their original series. My recommendation, a new season of Flight of the Conchords needs to get on the air as soon as possible. I need my fix of Brett, Jemaine, Murray, Mel, and Dave.
RN

Space, the final frontier…or something like that.  Look, there has only been three good movies about Space; Galaxy Quest, Space Camp, and Spaceballs.  Oh wait, in Project X, do the monkeys ever get to space?  I can’t remember….ok; there might be more than three.  I guess my point is that I wasn’t that intrigued when I caught the beginning of the documentary In the Shadow of The Moon on the Sci-Fi channel the other day.  But, for some crazy reason, I got sucked in by some wicked-crazy space vortex and I was transported back to the mid to late ‘60s when putting spacecraft, let alone human beings into space was simply inconceivable.

This moving documentary delves into the early stages of the NASA program and really focuses on the first expedition to the moon by Apollo 11.  The film blends old, and at some points extraordinary, NASA footage with interviews with all the living astronauts that went to the moon. (I believe it had guys ranging from Apollo 11 to Apollo 17.)  I think, and I will speak for everyone in my generation, (because I can, I have a blog) is that we take it for granted that we went to the moon.  It’s just a fact.  And it doesn’t seem like a big deal, except of course to Lloyd Christmas in Dumb & Dumber.  However, this film really gives you a better perspective on how this was really a pipe dream and seemed pretty impossible at the time…especially when JFK announced that we would put a man on the moon by the end of the decade.  The sheer courage that it took for these men to even attempt space exploration is astounding considering that NASA was in its infancy back then. 

There was a great moment in the film when one of the astronauts has to eject out of a spacecraft during a practice run and the other astronauts find him a few hours later in his office working as if nothing had happened just a few hours earlier.  If I were in his shoes, I probably wouldn’t be heading back to the ol’ cube to work on that memo that my boss wanted right after I nearly died.  The lesson here: those astronauts were tough as nails.  Anyway, it’s a fascinating movie about one of mankind’s greatest achievements and is certainly worth a look if you like space movies, unless the space movie that you do like is Space Chimps, in that case, you are just dumb.   

RN

Rodrigo y Gabriela Rubyworks

Current residents of Dublin, but born of the thrash-metal scene in Mexico City, this guitar splintering duo has put quite a hold on European audiences over the past couple of years. Playing only two guitars at blistering paces, they have put a new spin on what acoustic guitar sets can provide for an audience. They cite Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Overkill as influences and make sure that people know, just because they rock acoustically, doesn’t mean they’ve parted ways with their metal roots. Plus they’re a favorite of our very own WCH: Big Rhett. Plus…you know what - I’ll just stop right there. Listen to their cover of Stairway to Heaven below. That’s all you’ll need.