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Thursday, January 01, 2009

"Of the Month" January '09 

Link of the Month:
io9
A news aggregate site dedicated entirely to Science Fiction and futuristic science fact. Y'know, the kinds of things that I'm interested in.

DVD of the Month:
The Fall
The best movie of 2008. Read my full review of it over in my Movie Reviews section.

BOOK of the Month:
Ghosts/Aliens by Trey Hamburger
Are you freaked out by the mere thought of a bird winking at you? Or do you panic when you hear an unexplained gurgling sound? Well, listen to this. On Saturday, March 8, at 7:12 PM, Trey Hamburger heard a secondhand account of a teleporting Hot Pocket and started wiggin' out bad. So he and his amigo Mike Stevens basically went into combat mode and ended up encountering some of the most seriously messed-up s**t ever. And they're STILL FREAKED OUT ABOUT IT. This is their story.

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Monday, December 01, 2008

"Of the Month" December '08 

Link of the Month:
My Wish List
It's that time of year again: Time for you to buy things for me for Christmas! BUY THINGS FOR ME! Don't forget to sort the wish list by PRIORITY. Thanks in advance!

Game of the Month:
Mega Man 9
The original Mega Man series is tied with the Mario Kart series as my all-time favorite series of video games. Imagine my surprise and delight when suddenly out of nowhere Capcom released Mega Man 9 this year... with Mega Man II era graphics and sound effects! So far it's only available as a WiiWare download (and it only costs ten bucks). Easily the best Mega Man game since Mega Man IV, Mega Man 9 is like a distillation of everything that made those original games so great 20 years ago. It proves you need not have 10,000 polygons per character and photo-realistic lighting effects to have a good game. All you need to have is A GOOD GAME. And it's frikkin' difficult, which I appreciated quite a bit. It actually took me several days to beat it! And with downloadable content, there are tonnes of reasons to go back and keep on playing it!

Album of the Month:
Sixpence None the Richer: The Dawn of Grace
I'm kind of a sucker for a good girl-pop/rock band, so I've always kinda liked Sixpence None the Richer. Even back when they were much more overtly a Christian band I didn't find them terribly offensive; it was surprisingly catchy stuff. Leigh Nash has an endearingly quirky voice. Well, now they've released a Christmas album, so it's okay that there are Christian songs on it. Surprisingly, there are only a few standards: Angels We Have Heard on High; O Come, O Come Emmanuel; Silent Night; and Carol of the Bells. The rest of the album is made up of very unusual choices like the old Spanish carol Riu Riu Chiu (in Spanish), the delightfully laconic Christmas Island, and the thoroughly bizarre Some Children See Him, which tells how children of different ethnicities all see Jesus looking like them.

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Saturday, November 01, 2008

"Of the Month" November '08 

Link of the Month:
Woot!
Woot.com is an online store and community that focuses on selling cool stuff cheap. They sell one item per day until it is sold out or until 11:59pm central time when it is replaced. A new product is released every morning at 12am central time, seven days a week. You can find some insanely cool things for insanely cheap prices.

DVD of the Month:
Pushing Daisies - The Complete First Season
 The premise: The protagonist can bring anybody or anything dead back to life with a touch. If he touches it again EVER, then it dies again forever. If he doesn't touch it again within 60 seconds, though, something of equivalent life value nearby will spontaneously drop dead. A private detective learns this and uses the protagonist to solve murders by having him touch the victims and asking what happened, then touching them again before the 60 seconds elapse. Beyond the premise, though, Pushing Daisies is an absolutely delightful, whimsical, colorful fantasy mixed with romantic comedy and good old-fashioned detective capers. It is an absolute delight and like nothing I've ever before seen on TV. A cheery, quirky, Tim Burton-esque romp with quick, snappy dialogue and not a single boring/standard character or situation.

Album of the Month:
Three Ninjas: Live at Studio 7
Aaaah. Good times. Good times. 6 songs performed with special guest Geoff Gibbs (of the Crazy Boy Floyds) on bass live in front of an actual, real-life audience. Includes an improvised "Rap Fight," the never-before-heard "Going Gay For House" and an astonishing "Beluga Calf" medley! Best of all, this album is a FREE DOWNLOAD over at Three Ninja's blog, jeffthefish.com

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Wednesday, October 08, 2008

"Of the Month" October '08 

Link of the Month:
Monstrous.com
An aggregate site for all things horror, weird science, paranormal, and cryptozoological in the real world and in popular culture. The Monstropedia sub-section has detailed articles of over 1,500 different monstrous things.

DVD of the Month:
Bill's Big Pumpkins
A fun, inspiring look at an offbeat corner of American gardening and the dedicated, hard-working, and slightly nutty people who inhabit it. Follow giant-pumpkin grower Bill Foss (he grows giant pumpkins; he's not a giant himself) as he attempts to grow the biggest pumpkin in Minnesota history.

Album of the Month:
Black Eyes & Neckties: Apprarition!
A local (Bellingham-based) horror-punk-rock band who owe much to the Misfits and Murder City Devils. They rose from th same dirty rock scene that also spawned USS Horsewhip and the Wastelanders. Apparition! is a fierce blend of loud, buzzing guitars, spooky organ lines, pummeling rhythms, gravelly, shouted vocals, and horror-inspired lyrics. It has suitably horror-themed songs such as "Ghosts in Our Clothes," "Tide of Bones," "Bloodbath," and "Dirty From the Grave." Repeatedly voted the best rock band by readers of What's-Up Magazine.

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Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Of the Month Dilemma - Please Help 

Every year for my "Of the Month" choices in October I like to choose more horror-themed things. It's October 1st and I haven't updated yet. That's because this year I am stumped. I just can't think of anything good. So I need your recommendations!
    I need:
  • 1 WEBSITE
  • A total of 2 of the following:
    • DVD
    • BOOK
    • VIDEO GAME
    • ALBUM
Check out my "Of the Month" archives for the kinds of things that I've already chosen, and then recommend stuff in the comments section. Your help is greatly appreciatated (sic).

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posted by Christopher at 6:11 PM

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Monday, September 01, 2008

"Of the Month" September '08 

Link of the Month:
Garfield Minus Garfield
A fascinating project: Garfield Minus Garfield is a site dedicated to removing Garfield from the Garfield comic strips in order to reveal the existential angst of a certain young Mr. Jon Arbuckle. It is a journey deep into the mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and depression in a quiet American suburb.

Book of the Month:
Runaways: Dead End Kids by Joss Whedon
After Brian K. Vaughan left his own creation, the wonderful comic book series Runaways, who could possibly be found to fill his shoes? Well, they did a pretty good job by getting Joss Whedon to do it. His run on Runaways finds the kids desperate to escape from Iron Man and his registration forces. After a couple of bad decisions, they end up running farther than they've ever run before. It's a good story arc, and it gets plenty crazy with dozens of new characters and basically an entirely new setting for the Marvel Universe.

Game of the Month:
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People
Hey. You. You want to be cool? You want to attract… the ladies? Well, then, young mister, look no further than Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People! Thrill at the hours of pre-recorded dialogue! Kick the Cheat into a clothes dryer over and over again! This point-and-click adventure for PC and Wii will thrill you with its state-of-the-art 3D graphics (they're CGI!!!!). Made by some of the same people who made recent Sam & Max games, SBCGfAP relies on a lot of the same "logic" in solving various puzzles throughout the course of the game. And fear not: a new episode of this game is going to be released every month for several more months!

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Friday, August 01, 2008

"Of the Month" August '08 

Link of the Month:
Pink Tentacle
A nice little blog site that updates with interesting news and strange tidbits of information about those exotic lands across the Pacific Ocean. No, farther north. I mean Asia, idiot.

Book of the Month:
When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
David Sedaris (Amy's brother) is a really great essayist, and this is his latest collection. Funny, funny, funny collection.

Album of the Month:
Ballzack: Yeah Indeed
Ballzack, an hilarious bounce rapper from N'Orleans. This album is one of his bounciest to date with lots of great call-and-response, commands (especially in "Wine Candy," which is basically just a series of commands to do a bunch of different, made-up, food-related dance styles), and full as usual with Ballzack's special brand of humor. Where most rappers write songs about (A) how good they are with the ladies and (B) how much prowess they have at rapping, Ballzack generally writes songs about (A) how horrible he is with the ladies (there's a great bit in one song where he tries to do a call and response with an audience and they play along until he tries to get them to say good things about him), and (B) how he can't really rap worth a damn. The songs are also full of references to specific New Orleans institutions, so they're a big hit with my Katrina evacuee friends. Yeah, indeed.

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Wednesday, July 02, 2008

"Of the Month" July '08 

Link of the Month:
Star Pirates
This is just a really fun text-based MMORPG. It's easy to log on, play for a couple of minutes, then log off. Or if you want, you can log on and play for hours. Plus its absolutely free! It has a great sense of community with fleet building and fleet wars. But it's also a game in which everyone is a pirate, so there is a lot of player-killing and theft, so you gotta think strategically and watch your back. If you want you can use real-world money to purchase advantages in the game (such as regenerating fuel and energy at a must faster rate), but I've been playing for a couple of weeks now without spending a dime, so I know first-hand that it's a great game even if you're dirt-poor. Like me!

DVD of the Month:
My Boys: The Complete 1st Season
I would never have thought that I'd like this show. It's about sports writers in Chicago. It's 100% baseball metaphors. But I just think it's hilarious. I knew that it was one of my favorite shows on television when they actually had a "douchebag intervention" when one of their friend started acting too "douchy." These characters are really funny, and actually seem like they've known each other for years. Hugs, not drugs.

Album of the Month:
Natalie Portman's Shaved Head: Glistening Pleasure
This album from a great Seattle-based indy group hasn't even come out yet, and I'm making it my Album of the Month. I feel justifiably confident that it's going to kick ass because I've heard it. Several songs are available on their MySpace page, and beyond that I've seen them live and the show was an absolute hoot. Hoot, I tell you! They're like a brilliant parody of 1980s, high-energy, synth-rock. With songs like "Beard Lust" and "Me Plus Yr Daughter," Natalie Portman's Shaved Head is just awexome. And the band named after it is pretty awexome, too. Be like me and pre-order Glistening Pleasure! Support your local awexome!

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Sunday, June 01, 2008

"Of the Month" June '08 

Link of the Month:
Hulu
A website where you can watch TV online. It has a lot of really great, hard-to-find shows like Andy Barker, P.I., Exosquad, The Time Tunnel, Land of the Giants, She-Spies, etc. It also has recent fare like the new Battlestar Galactica, Ghost Hunters, and even recent episodes of Late Night with Conan O'Brien in case you fall asleep before it comes on. Good quality video with full-screen capability.

Game of the Month:
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
The best of the console Prime series (I haven't played Hunters yet). Corruption is an enormous game that defies the usual Metroid formula by taking place on several different planets and having your spaceship be a useful game mechanic (besides using it as a save point and to fly between locations, you can use it to pick up objects and also do strafing runs in rooms that are open to the sky). The controls with the Wii remote are fantastic (as long as you have it on Advanced with High Sensitivity) and really feel like a mouse-plus-keyboard control scheme. Missions are surprisingly varied, and it took me upwards of 20 hours to play all the way through it (only getting 81% of items, though I later went back and collected all the ones I missed).

Album of the Month:
Takako Minekawa: Fun 9
Takako Minekawa is part of Shibuya-kei, the same musical genre that produced the Pizzicato Five and Cornelious (whom she would later marry). This 1999 offering from Takako (partially produced by Cornelious) is delightfully eclectic, with vocals layered over jazz/lounge samples and complex, broken electronica beats. It's really good IDM with really good vocals.

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

"Of the Month" May '08 

Link of the Month:
TV in Japan
The website that tells you: "This is what TV is like. In Japan." Often weird, often hilarious, and often starring American film actors hocking strange Japanese products.

Game of the Month:
Mario Kart Wii
Aaah. It's about durned time. The best video game franchise in the history of history has finally come to the Wii, and thanks to the included Wii Wheel, you have the option of playing it a whole new way. Other than that it's very similar to the DS version, with 16 new tracks and 16 classic tracks from previous Mario Kart games. Glorious goodness. And they've greatly improved the online play—it's a whole lot of fun, you can play up to 12 opponents from around the world, and you can play until you decide to quit without penalizing yourself or screwing up the people you're playing with.

DVD of the Month:
Juno
Very close to being the best movie of the year 2007 (only beat out by Grindhouse and Hot Fuzz). A wonderful celebration of wit, intelligence, and honesty. Go read my full review to see why you should own this movie. Plus (in case you don't trust my tastes) it was Ebert's favorite movie of 2007.

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Wednesday, April 02, 2008

"Of the Month" April '08 

Link of the Month:
My Wish List
It's that time of year again: Time for you to buy things for me for my birthday! BUY THINGS FOR ME! Don't forget to sort the wish list by PRIORITY. And DO NOT buy me Mario Kart Wii (Carrie is getting that for me). Thanks in advance! I'M SHAMELESS!

DVD of the Month:
Battlestar Galactica Season 3
Here is the of-told story of my relationship with BSG: I watched most of the 1st season and enjoyed it very much. I watched the beginning of the 2nd season, but then I just kinda fell out of habit of watching it, and I kinda forgot about it. When the 3rd season premiered I thought, "I'll give it another shot." I was immediately hooked. And to my shock every single episode of Season 3 just kept getting better and better and better and... I don't know of any other single season of any other television show that had as many "Holy Sh*t" moments as BSG Season 3.

Album of the Month:
Leeni : 8 Bit Heart
Leeni is a local (Seattle-based) woman, who made the wise decision of composing the music for her latest album almost entirely using an old-school, 8-bit Nintendo Gameboy®. She also has a very pretty voice, very soothing and highly reminiscent of someone (exactly whom... I just can't put my finger on it). The songs tend to be a bit on the long side for my taste (the shortest one is more than 3:30; I like my songs in the 2:00 to 3:00 range), leaving only room for 9 on the entire album, but the Gameboy music is just plain fun and innovatively used, and the songs never grow tiresome. This album is right up my alley and I highly recommend it.

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Saturday, March 01, 2008

"Of the Month" March '08 

Link of the Month:
Oobject
From the "About Oobject" page: "Oobject is somewhere between a blog and a directory. We pick topics for lists of gadgets . People then suggest items to go into them by tagging things as Oobject in wists. Visitors then vote on items to create something like ‘Billboard charts for gadgets’, voted by everyone. Some of the topics we pick will be standard categories such as ‘top digital SLRs’. These will be constantly updated over time, with new items. Other topics will be quirky and fun, one offs, where we find a particularly interesting topic such as ‘retro soviet gadgets.’ Each day, instead of single blog posts, we will feature a single topic which is new or has been newly updated."

DVD of the Month:
The Simpsons Movie
It's really hard to dislike a movie when you're laughing out loud every couple of seconds. Not only is The Simpsons Movie flat-out one of the funniest movies of the past several years, but it actually does a really good job of feeling like an honest-to-goodness movie and not just a long episode of the TV show.

Album of the Month:
Zero 7: Simple Things
Simple Things is my very favorite downbeat album, and by "downbeat" I don't mean depressing. I mean that the songs and instrumentals are all mellow and laid back, but they also have an absurdly smoothe groove to them that I find irresistible. Supremely relaxed/groovy/funky bass lines and beats weave under densely layered, hypnotic guitar and synth lines. The vocals are all sung by voices that excellently match the smoothness of it all. It's sexy stuff. It's "smooVe" with a capital "V"

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Friday, February 01, 2008

"Of the Month" February '08 

Link of the Month:

We The Robots
My new favorite webcomic is about (surprise) robots! Robots who hold dead-end cubicle jobs and despair over their lives, just like real people!

Game of the Month:

Super Mario Galaxy
Man-o-man, I just cannot say enough good things about this game. But the one thing I love even more than the fantastic gameplay, the unbelievable gravity rules, and the sense of epic granduer, is the game's aesthetics. The game is just gorgeous. And the design of the game's universe is so incredibly inventive and original. There has never been any game quite like this.

Album of the Month:

Blue Scholars: Bayani
This is the 2nd album by local Seattle Hip-Hop duo Blue Scholars, which consists of Geologic on the mic and Sabzi as MC. Sabzi's work on this album is truly phenomenal, weaving dense, interesting piano/synth lines with groovy horn sections and straight-up beats. Geologic grooves right along with his own hypnotic, almost monotone style. The lyrics are clever and intelligent and about things more important to life than just bitches and money. I'd really love to see them at a show.

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Tuesday, January 01, 2008

"Of the Month" January '08 

Link of the Month:
The Crime Lounge
A site dedicated to the cool world of crime, thriller, and spy music. 60s spy music is one of my all-time favorite music genres, and this site has hours and hours of it available, all free for downloading. Check out the newly-posted "Definitive Bond Soundtrack Collection." You have been authorized by Her Majesty's Secret Service to access these music files...

Game of the Month:
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
All of the fun and none of the frustration of The Wind Waker! This Zelda game for the DS foregoes any traditional notions of play control: this game can be controlled ENTIRELY using the DS stylus! Touch the screen where you want Link to walk. Tap an enemy to attack it. Make slashing motions across the screen to have link swing his sword, or draw quick circles around him to have him do his spin attack! Draw a path on the screen for your boomerang to follow! The thing is, it isn't just gimmicky; the stylus-based play control is easy, intuitive, and quickly becomes second nature, allowing you to concentrate on the fun of the story and puzzles of probably the best-ever handheld Zelda game of all time!

Album of the Month:
Cocco: Sangrose
Cocco is a female Japanse singer. Sungu Rose, released early in the new millenium, is a powerhouse of lush, rich, dramatic (some might say melodramatic), huge rock ballads. No, not ballads so much as full-on torch songs. With only a couple notable exceptions (the light and airy "Still" and the 80s Grrrl-sounding "Dream's a Dream.") these songs seem to scream straight from a tearing heart laid completely bare. It's a wonderful wall of pure, undiluted, Texas-sized emotion that pours over you in gigantic, crashing waves. But in the end the noise comes almost to envelop you in a strangely comforting warmth. Sorry if that description was a little out there, but there's no realy way for me to write intellectually about such a raw (though extremely well-produced) album.

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Saturday, December 01, 2007

"Of the Month" December '07 

Link of the Month:
My Wish List!
Christmas is fast approaching, and if you were REALLY my friend you'd buy me a dozen (or so) things off of my Amazon wish list! Go on, be a friend! I'm shameless!

Game of the Month:
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
The first Zelda game for the Wii, Twilight Princess offers up a handful of innovations, twists, and surprises, but mostly it is firmly in the tradition of the 3D Zelda games, which is a good thing. The Zelda games have routinely been called some of the best games ever made. This is certainly up there with the best of them.

Album of the Month:
The Chipmunks: Greatest Christmas Hits
Ahh... you might not remember this, but there was a time (before the 80s, really) when Alvin and The Chipmunks didn't make you want to violently vomit. Case in point is this collection of all of their best Christmas songs. These songs are simple, fun, charmingly innocent, and the interactions between the characters are honestly, legitimately funny. Listen to this wonderful album (download it from Amazon's new MP3 download service—it kicks iTunes's ass). Then go and watch the trailer for the new Chipmunks movie and cry and cry and cry.

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Sunday, November 11, 2007

"Of the Month" November '07 

I know it's more than a week late, but I been sick! And awful busy to boot. So here it finally is. Enjoy it for the remainder of the month:

Link of the Month:
The Language Log Blog
Fascinating ruminations on the world of linguistics, perhaps one of the most important fields of study EVAR. The Language Log, maintained as it is by linguists, is unsurprisingly well-written.

DVD of the Month:
The Call of Cthuhlu
Created by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, this is a to-the-story accurate filmed version of one of the most famous horror stories every written. And the filmmakers chose to make the film as if it had been made the year after the story was written: 1926. As such, it is in black-and-white, is silent with title/dialogue cards, and uses (mostly) techniques that were available at the time. Bonus <spoiler>: Cthulhu is stop-motion!</spoiler>

Album of the Month:
Ballzack: Knucklehead Memoirs
I was talking to a couple of friends of mine who are Katrina evacuees, and I mentioned Ballzack, and they were all like, "Who?" And I was like, you gotta be kidding me! You're from New Orleans and you ain't never heard of the best rapper in New Orleans? You know how most rappers rap about (a) how good they are at gettin' the fine ladies and (b) how skillful they are at rapping? Well, Ballzack raps about (a) how awful he is at gettin' fine ladies ("I lower my standards to improve my game" he raps in one song) and (b) says that Teen Wolf is the greatest movie ever made and works references to Fraggle Rock and Saved by the Bell into his songs!

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Monday, October 01, 2007

"Of the Month" October '07 

Link of the Month:
Nad Shot
A fascinating project: this website collects scans of any instance of a comic book panel where a character gets struck in the testicles. Quite horrifying if you are a guy. Probably NSFW.

DVD of the Month:
The Devil's Rejects
Mr. Zombie's follow-up and sequel to House of 1000 Corpses is a much more focused, distilled, and intense film than its predecessor. It is an incredible homage to 70s explotation-style horror, and is seriously disturbing. Highly recommended.


Album of the Month:
Poe: Haunted
A fascinating piece of a multi-media ensemble, Haunted is the companion piece to Poe's brother's landmark horror novel, House of Leaves (which I must confess to not having yet read, or else it would probably be included in this "of the month" set as well). It's a damned catchy and subtly unsettling/creepy album.

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Saturday, September 15, 2007

"Of the Month" September '07 

This, my 1,400th post, is only almost half a month late! Yikes! A lot has been going on, so fear not! There are a bunch of major updates coming down the pipeline... after next week (it's our 3rd wedding anniversary on Monday, and Carrie & I are going to Orcas Island for the week. So no updates 'til I get back). But in the meantime, here are my "Of the Month" choices for September 2007:

Link of the Month:
Gaijin Smash
Gaijin Smash is the hilarious story of an African-American who decided to live in Japan. This resulting blog is one of the funniest, well-written, and least politically-correct websites on teh intarweb tubez right now

DVD of the Month:
Samurai Jack Season 4
The final season (sad and crying) of one of the very best animated television shows EVAR. I'd only actually seen ONE (1) of these episodes when they originally aired, becuase for some reason (I suspect mild retardation) Cartoon Network practically buried Season 4. But now I can watch them whenever I want! Take THAT, jerkoffs!

Album of the Month:
Dr. Octagon: The Return of Dr. Octagon
Back in 1996 we were introduced to Dr. Octagon, a deadly, libidinous, hilarious, and doped-up doctor. Unfortunately before he could put out another album, he was apparently killed by Dr. Dooom around the turn of the century. Turns out, though, that he wasn't killed—he was abducted by aliens! After becoming embroiled in a plot by a gigantic gorilla to destroy and/or take over the cosmos, Dr. Octagon escaped to return to Earth. Now a much more enlightened being, he has dedicted himself to saving the planet from aliens, from our own destructive ways, from the afore-mentioned gorilla, and most importantly from terrible music! The Return of Dr. Octagon is an ingeniously hilarious, mind-bogglingly creative, and enjoyably bizarre hip-hop album unlike anything I've ever heard before.

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Sunday, August 05, 2007

"Of the Month" August '07 

A couple days late, but... here:

Link of the Month:
Physorg
This is my favorite website to get news about what's happening in the fast-paced, exciting world of science. Yes, I am a nerd. Why do you ask?

DVD of the Month:
Hot Fuzz
Still one of my favorite movies of the year. Shockingly funny and with a pitch-perfect third act. Read my review!

Album of the Month:
Mika: Life in Cartoon Motion
Born in Beiruit, Mika grew up listening to a lot of Queen, a whole lot of Supertramp, some Elton John, some Rufus Wainright, and a li'l bit of Prince. And you can tell. His music is bright, free-wheeling, piano-driven, falsetto-sung music, the kind that people haven't made since the heyday of classic rock in the 70s. Infectiously catchy. My favorite song on the album is "Stuck in the Middle."

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Sunday, July 01, 2007

"Of the Month" July '07 

Link of the Month:
Lifehacker
This website is an absolutely great resource on how to increase the productivity and fully utilize the customizability of not only your computer systems and programs, but your life. Everything from Firefox extensions to how to build your own air conditioner for about 30 bucks.

Book of the Month:
Runaways Vol 3
I really enjoy this comic book. It's the story of a group of teenagers who discover that their parents were all supervillains. By the time of this third volume they're relatively well established, but they're still dealing with all the usual teenage crap. It's just way more well-written than most teenage crap is.

Album of the Month:
Busdriver: RoadKillOvercoat
Speed-rapper Busdriver's latest opus, this is probably his musically strongest album ever. In addition to his usual jaw-dropping verbal agility, RoadKillOvercoat has some surprisingly melodic and beautiful songs. It is probably my favorite Busdriver album to date.

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Friday, June 01, 2007

"Of the Month" June '07 

Link of the Month:
Paleo-Future
You may not know this about me, but one of the things that I find extraordinarily fascinating is how the future has been viewed throughout the ages. From Jules Verne to George Pal to George Lucas and William Gibson, the history of the future is one of my most favorite subjects. Well, this Paleo-Future website just happens to be all about it! It isn't very in-depth, but it does have a wealth of links and videos and pictures that I absolutely adore.

DVD of the Month:
Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls
Yeah, this came out a while ago, but it's practically all I've played for the past month. I never played Final Fantasy I before, and it has a charming directness in its complete lack of character development and it's almost-complete refusal to hand-hold you. Plus it's been beefed up with SNES-level graphics and four huge new dungeons! And Final Fantasy II is my favorite of all the Final Fantasies that I've played (though I stopped playing at SNES FFIII, so I don't know about the 3D, FFVII+ games).

Album of the Month:
Amy Winehouse: Back to Black
When I first heard her voice, I could have sworn that Amy Winehouse was a large, 30ish - 40ish black soul singer from the South. Imagine my surprise when she turned out to be a tinly little Jewish girl (she's only 23) from Britain! This album has a fantastic retro feel to it, harking back to the era of the girl soul groups and jazz from the 50s and especially the 60s, with a whole lotta Motown mixed in. It's great fun, and surprisingly sophisticated.

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Tuesday, May 01, 2007

"Of the Month" May '07 

Link of the Month:
1ROM.net
Gasp! A website that actually has rom downloads for almost all of the major consoles and handhelds? In this day and age of the cease-and-desist letter and the threatened lawsuit! Jeez, you'd better get over there and grab as many as you can before this place gets shut down! For realz!

DVD of the Month:
Pan's Labyrinth
I am a bit shocked that this did not win the best foreign film Oscar. Similar in tone and setting to Del Toro's The Devil's Backbone, this one far surpasses it in intriguing imagery and some genuine shock value. This is a fairy tale that is not at all for children.

Album of the Month:
The Wastelanders: BlackHearted American Water
After many years, The Wastelanders have put out their sophomore effort. Having evolved over the ensuing years from a stripped-down country punk trio into a full-on-dirty-southern-rock-garage-sounding quartet (with the addition of an extra guitar), this album is 11 tracks of growling, screeching, shouting, wailing good times.

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Sunday, April 01, 2007

Of the Month: April ’07 

Link of the Month:
My Wish List!
It's that time of year again: Time for you to buy things for me for my birthday! BUY THINGS FOR ME!

Book of the Month:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Season 8 #1 by Joss Whedon
Buffy's back, in comic book form! And this isn't like that old Buffy comic out there. This is the official story of what happens after the end of the TeleVision series, written by series creator Joss Whedon hisself! Due to comic length and pacing, this issue is more like the first fifteen minutes of a season premiere rather than a complete episode (it basically encompasses the teaser, and then up to the first commercial break).

Album of the Month:
Mates of State: Bring It Back
I discovered Mates of State through the live This American Life stage show. They're a hard to describe but thoroughly engaging duo. A real-life couple, she plays piano/keyboards and he drums, and they both sing exuberant, joyful songs with good, quirky, eclectic, irresistible hooks and exquisite harmonies. This is their fourth and most-recent album.

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Thursday, March 01, 2007

"Of the Month" March '07 

Link of the Month:
Uncanny X-Men dot Net
Want to know what happened in a specific issue of an X-Men comic? Or how about a comic book in which an X-character made a cameo? Chances are they'll have the issue summary (both a brief and a very detailed version) at this site. They have an ungodly amount - over 3,000. Plus they have in-depth biographies of some of the movers and shakers in the X-Men's world. Insane amount of content.

Book of the Month:
The Monk From Brooklyn by Antonio Graceffo
Stick a very un-PC Brooklyn native in the Shaolin Temple and watch the cultural harmony fly! Graceffo has a very engaging writing style, says exactly what is on his mind, and is not afraid at times to be bluntly offensive. The result is a fascinating outsider's look at the inside of one of the most legendary places in the world, and a very non-reverent comparison of the perception and reality of the Shaolin Temple. I wanna read some of Graceffo's other books now.

DVD of the Month:
Teen Titans - The Complete 1st Season
I know a lot of people who don't like this show because they like all the iterations of B:tAS so much, and this show is still different. Well, they're right - Teen Titans is a completely different kettle of fish, and is unrelated to B:tAS. I also think that it is the most thoroughly enjoyable superhero cartoon to be produced since B:tAS ended. The first two seasons are out on DVD now, and I've been watching them like a mo-fo.

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Thursday, February 01, 2007

Of the Month: February '07 

Link of the Month:
Whedonesque
Yes, I am a nerd. And as a nerd I tend to like all things that Joss Whedon does. This site is a news aggregate site dedicated entirely to the Jossverse, Joss projects, as well as the careers of almost anybody who was in any way ever associated with any of his TV shows or movies.

DVD of the Month:
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr
I really liked this show when it was on originally. Now it's starting to show its age a little bit. The budgets were obviously tiny. It has a bit of the A-Team thing when it comes to how often people get shot in proportion to how much people get shot at. It wraps up its main plot about eight episodes before the end of the series. But Bruce Campbell is just so durned entertaining, and the show nevar takes itself too seriously. It's just a good, fun romp.

Game of the Month:
The Advantage: The Advantage
The Advantage is one of those NES cover bands. They're like a soft-rock version of The NESkimos. But some of their covers are surprisingly tight, and so close to the source material that you almost forget you're listening to actual people playing actual instruments! Especially good are their Castlevania covers. They also have an unusual selection of songs, including a handful of "password screen" types of songs. It's worth a listen.

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Monday, January 01, 2007

"Of the Month" January '07 

Link of the Month:
MOG
One of those social-networking sites, but this one revolves only & entirely around music. Download an inoffensive little client, and it will tell MOG what music you have on your computer, and how often you listen to what songs etc. MOG can then automatically find other people who have similar tastes in music. It's pretty spiffy.

Book of the Month:
I Like You by Amy Sedaris
Subtitled "Hospitality Under the Influence," this is a very entertaining book about entertaining. The Sedaris family is some crazy funtimes, and this book is full of fun, tacky, drug-addled party ideas! I especially like the section on how to write an effective party invitation.

Game of the Month:
Mega Man ZX
Set after the Mega Man Zero series, the line between human and android ("reploid" as they're called in the game) has blurred. This game has much of the same Mega Man mechanics that make it work so well, but adds in a more quot;adventure" feel. Instead of selecting levels from a menu, the game world is all interconnected and you have to actually travel to the entrance to each level. Instead of receiving a weapon from a defeated boss, your human character gets a full "biometal" suit of armor with which he/she can merge, and the strength of the biometal you receive depends on how badly you damaged it when you were fighting the boss character that used to use it! Plus, it's a pretty fun game.

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