Miami Weiss Is Number One New Show!
I must admit, I think I’m developing an addiction to reruns of Miami Vice on Sleuth. I used to watch the show way back when with my Dad, but all I was interested in then were the cars and the planes and the boats, I had no idea what was going on in each episode. It’s certainly dated now – the hair, the clothes, the music, the still-seedy Miami Beach, the ‘80s attitude (from a recently aired episode: "I promised myself when the Dow broke 1400 I’d buy myself a present.") – but that’s part of the fun. I don’t think network TV could handle a show like this now, 20 years later (boy that’s progress!). It’s dark, cynical, and depressing. It’s often slow and subtle, and far too complicated for today’s CSI retreads. But come on, it’s Michael Mann, and there are few things more iconic and representative of a particular time in American pop culture than that opening sequence with the neon icon, Jan Hammer’s synth theme song, the flamingos, and of course the boobies. Which got my attention even when I was seven years old, though not as much as Crockett’s Ferraris and Scarabs (give me a break, puberty was still a long way away!). So really, I’m just reconnecting with my roots. Oh damn, look at that giant cordless telephone!

(And by the way, if you’re confused about the title of this post, hit this.)
- posted by Liebs @ 9:57 PM 0 comments

 
Lazy Sunday?
Have you ever been woken by the sound of someone rummaging through the stuff in your bedroom at 6:15 on a Sunday morning? In the split second I realized something was going on, I tried to remember what the hell I was up to Saturday night, whether I locked my door, or set the alarm. Next second was spent figuring out what object within reach of the bed I could use as a weapon. I lunged for the desk lamp, and saw that there was no one else in the room. What the fuck? I still hear the sound, though. Fuck, I got mice. Then, out from behind the bookcase comes a monster palmetto bug, heading straight for me. Wrong move, asshole. Fucker buzzes his wings and makes his play, but he’s no match for me and my Adidas (and thankfully he didn’t make much of a mess on the carpet). Cleanup done, back to bed. Only that initial split second when I woke up has me so pumped on adrenaline, there’s no more sleep for me this morning. Only four and a half hours to World Cup kickoff. Awesome.

Seriously, does this stupid shit happen to anyone else?
- posted by Liebs @ 9:34 PM 0 comments

 
World Cup Roundup
The group stage of the World Cup is complete, here are my thoughts so far.

- The U.S. National Team is on its way home. It’s a disappointment, sure, but it’s not a disaster by any means. They were drawn into the Group of Death, and any two of the four teams in the group had a shot at progressing. Had the U.S. been in Mexico’s group, for example, I have no doubt they would’ve gone to the knockout rounds. Sometimes them’s the breaks, deal with it. The Czech Republic is out as well, and many pundits had them as a favorite to win the whole friggin’ tournament. As for the FIFA rankings (which Kornheiser and Wilbon have repeatedly referred to on PTI these last few weeks), don’t put any stock into the U.S.’s ranking (currently 5th) – no one is really sure what the folks at FIFA are smoking when they put the international rankings together, but it must be strong, since it has no basis in reality.

- The performance of the U.S. team, however, was extremely discouraging. Not only did they play poorly in their games against the Czech Republic and Ghana, they played like timid, weak-willed, little bitches. National team coach Bruce Arena’s defensive tactics were all wrong. Only a few teams have the talent to play a defensive scheme at this level (Italy, England, Germany - well, used to be Germany), and the U.S. is not one of them. Our defenders have always been our biggest weakness (anyone remember Agoos in 2002?), and our strengths include fearless, quick, creative attacking players. But Arena played Brian McBride as the lone striker in a 4-5-1, and Landon Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley didn’t attack from the midfield – most notably in the Ghana match, where Donovan lost his marker on the wing inside the 18, had a clear path to the goal, and inexplicably took the ball back across the middle out of the box and was dispossessed. The whole tournament, he played like a pussy, plain and simple. If there was a 50-50 ball in the midfield, he didn’t win it. He’s acquired the nicknames Landycakes and PrimaDonovan because he didn’t have the stuff to fight for a spot on the Bayer Leverkusen squad in the German Bundesliga, and his performances at this World Cup will make those names stick. The boy has no heart, no balls, no fire. He cannot be the face of U.S. soccer.

- It certainly seemed like the U.S. did a piss-poor job of scouting and preparing for their opposition. They often played confused, didn’t know where the attacks were coming from, which opposing players were the most dangerous on the pitch. That’s inexcusable.

- The U.S. roster selection also left much to be desired. Where was Taylor Twellman, Jonathan Spector? If Arena was only going to play McBride as a lone striker and waste several roster spots anyway (Brian Ching, hello), why not put Freddy Adu on the squad to cap-tie him and prevent him from playing with Ghana in 2010 (which Adu claimed on PTI this week he’s still considering – though I hope that’s just a ploy to get a bigger endorsement deal out of U.S. National Team sponsors Nike)? It seems to me that Arena was pessimistic that the U.S. would get out of the group, and figured that even if they did, they’d finish second in the group and have to play Brazil in the next round and go home early anyway, so he put a bunch of veterans on the roster as a reward for their longtime contributions to the team. That’s no way to select a World Cup squad.

- So now what for the U.S. National Team? Time for a new coach, for sure. If the U.S. wants to truly be a contender to win the World Cup, they have to take a big step up to that next level. There is no American coach who can do that – U.S. Soccer must look to a foreign coach with world-class experience. My shortlist includes Luis Felipe Scolari, Carlos Queiroz, and #1 with a bullet, current German head coach and playmaking legend Jurgen Klinsmann. He lives in Southern California (which has earned him lots of criticism from the German media in the lead-up to the World Cup this year because he hasn’t moved back to Germany), is married to an American, and has done some consulting and coaching work with the L.A. Galaxy. He doesn’t have a lot of coaching experience (his current post is his first head coaching job), but he’d be more perfect for the U.S. team than the German one – with which he’s doing extremely well so far this tournament. I’m kind of hoping Germany will lose soon so that Klinsmann will be fired and the U.S. can snap him up. Whatever it takes, U.S. Soccer, whatever it friggin’ takes. And I’m not alone with this sentiment.

- As for the referees so far, they get a big ol’ BOO. Missing calls, way too many cards. They’re slowing the pace of too many games, and affecting too many others because players are already suspended for card accumulations or worried about getting another card and missing the next match. This ain’t ballet, dammit, contact and physicality are part of the game.

- JP Dellacamera and Marcelo Balboa as the lead TV commentators? Are you fucking kidding me? Horrible, horrible, horrible. Rob Stone and Robin Fraser #1, and Adrian Healey and Tommy Smythe #2. Very simple. At least I can watch with the Spanish commentary on Univision, or the German commentary on Setanta Sports.

- But overall, so far it’s been an entertaining and exciting World Cup, and it should only get better now that we’re in the knockout stages. It’s been great to see soccer as the lead story not just on SportsCenter and PTI, but on newspaper websites too. TV ratings are apparently excellent, and that’s what the sport needs to gain prominence in America – once the corporate media sees that there’s money to be made, then they’ll climb on board. Hopefully, they’ll stay on the bandwagon for good.

- For those of you that have enjoyed the Adidas Jose +10 commercial ("Jose! A casa!"), that song is "Eanie Meany", by Jim Noir. And for those of you that still need a reason to get excited about the World Cup, how about some tasty, tasty, tasty scenery?

- Now that the U.S. is out, the teams I’m rooting for: Sweden (ouch!), the Netherlands, Brazil, Argentina (only to knock out Mexico), Ghana, and Spain.

World Cup baby, it’s faaaaantastic! Joga bonito, even.
- posted by Liebs @ 9:07 AM 0 comments

 
Boxitt
Holy crap, this entertains me to no end. It's Cecil, in a CGI homage to the car chase in Bullitt - the greatest Steve McQueen movie of them all - using audio from the film. (From Jalopnik, via Motorpasion.) The slingshot! The explosion! Who needs a Mustang Fastback when you've got a cardboard box? Just awesome. Check out the original car chase scene at Motorpasion as well. So good.
- posted by Liebs @ 11:30 AM 0 comments

 
Black Holes And Revelations
Muse are poised to become the next "biggest band in the world", after two innovative and great albums and several years of incredible performances across Europe and North America. Their new CD, Black Holes and Revelations, could break it all wide open. I’ve been looking forward to this album for months. So when the opening track, "Take A Bow", begins with the lyrics, "Corrupt, you’re corrupt, bring corruption to all that you touch", all I can think of is, "Oh no, they’ve tried to make a mature record."

I’m a drummer from the Jersey Shore. My drum teacher-slash-mentor’s most sage advice to me was that, as a musician, the whole point is just to make a room full of people have fun. I find music with a message pretentious as fuck. If it’s not fun, what’s the point? If I want to think, I’ll go back to the lab. I don’t want to ponder global politics. I simply want to listen to loud rock music and get sweaty with someone.

So the first track doesn’t do it for me. All is forgiven, though, with "Starlight". It’s phenomenal, it’s uplifting, it’s my favorite track on the album. I can see the European summer festival crowds holding their lighters glowing cell phone screens up by the tens of thousands for this one.

But suddenly we go from a stadium anthem straight to the strip club. And I’m not talking about the high-roller type gentlemen’s club – oh no, we’re in that sketchy spot where the shoe models have far more badass tattoos than you do, and you’re not sure if they’re going to dance for your money or just kick your ass and take your wallet. "Supermassive Black Hole" is sexy, sultry, and seedy, and it’s all over UK radio at the moment. It’s like nothing Muse has ever done, and it’s awesome. I’m thinking we’re on our way with this album.

But then the record careens off the rails. They’re trying too hard, and it goes all over the place. I hear Depeche Mode in "Map Of The Problematique", there’s way too much keyboards, not enough guitar. "Soldier’s Poem" is a two-minute tender acoustic ballad that sounds like Rufus Wainwright. "Invincible" is a cheesy, and failed, attempt at another anthem, falling far short of "Starlight" with a military march drum beat that’s boring and dull.

They try to go gritty and metal with "Assassin", but it just doesn’t work with Matt Bellamy’s high-pitched voice. It’s like trying to make a Lotus Exige as mean as a Hemi GTX. In "Exo-Politics", on top of clichéd lyrics about the state of the world, there’s a vocal echo in the chorus straight out of Guns N Roses’ "Sweet Child O’ Mine". Blech.

The last three tracks are overblown and overproduced. "City Of Delusion" has a full Moroccan orchestral background and a bit of Zorro-esque mariachi trumpet play. I wish I was kidding. "Hoodoo" is slow and depressing, and evokes a Spaghetti Western – a bad Spaghetti Western. "Knights Of Cydonia" kind of continues that theme, although it’s more like The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly crossed with Blade Runner. Or maybe Queen crossed with Queens Of The Stone Age. It’s not two great tastes that taste great together, it’s just strange.

So they got ambitious. And pretentious. Spent too much time in the studio. It happens. Absolution is my favorite Muse album, and Origin Of Symmetry has my favorite Muse songs. Black Holes And Revelations goes some place behind those two.

But on the strength of "Starlight" and "Supermassive Black Hole", the CD is worth a purchase when it’s released in July. And when Muse comes to your neck of the woods, do whatever it takes to get to that concert, because they are the best live act out there at the moment, and they will absolutely, unequivocally, rock your balls off. Or tits off. Or whatever.
- posted by Liebs @ 10:16 PM 0 comments

 
Some Actually Good Reality TV
I’m not at all a fan of reality TV, but this one’s an exception. Set your TiVo tomorrow to record all 7 episodes of Long Way Round, airing consecutively on Fox Reality from 3 pm. Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman on a motorcycle adventure from London to New York via Europe, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Siberia, etc. It’s just an amazing documentary, and worth checking out. Unlike Survivor or American Idol.
- posted by Liebs @ 7:30 PM 0 comments

 
Tunes Keeping Me Going
Well, one of my best friends drowned, my mother is going through chemo, and work in the lab has been relentless for months. About the only thing that’s keeping me and Henrietta from careening into a bridge abutment (I’m kind of not kidding about that), is the latest and greatest music just in time for summer. Here’s the roundup.

Boy Kill Boy - "Suzie"
Straight outta East London with some straightforward, jump-around-a-lot rock. With a synthesizer, too. It’s the first single off of the very good album Civilian. This song makes me think of a roiling, seething crowd in a small, sweaty rock club. That’s a very good thing, by the way.

Muse - "Supermassive Black Hole"
I wasn’t sure what to make of this when I first heard it, because it’s certainly not like the Muse I’m used to. But hot damn, it’s a rather sexy track, to be honest. I really want a lap dance to this one – who am I kidding, I really want to fuck to this one. And I cannot wait for the new Muse album, Black Holes And Revelations, to be released on July 3.

The Feeling - "Fill My Little World"
Piano, jangly guitars, vocal harmonies, this song just oozes summer. It’s unabashedly pop, and it’s great – you can’t help but sing along.

Keane - "Is It Any Wonder"
Holy crap, I never would’ve guessed that the new Keane single would sound like the bastard child of The Cult and The Cure (at their late ‘80s peaks). But it does, and it’s kind of rockin’. Their new album, Under The Iron Sea, will be released on June 12.

The Streets - "When You Wasn’t Famous"
Oh yes, Mike Skinner is back, and he’s chavtastic. If you have no idea what that means, then you probably won’t get this bit of white boy English hip hop, but that’s your loss, Seppo. It’s no longer the current single off of The Hardest Way To Make An Easy Living, but I’m still playing it often. Is there anyone left in the UK who isn’t a cokehead? Prang away, folks.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Charlie"
And you thought it was just British stuff. I still haven’t listened to all of Stadium Arcadium, because I get to this track and then just stick it on repeat for a bit. Back to basics funk, with a great chorus, what more do you need?

Ghostface Killah - "Kilo"
"I can’t feel my face." Continuing the cocaine theme, Ghostface is back, and though I’m still not convinced it’s up to the amazing standards of The Pretty Toney Album, the new CD, Fishscale, is absolute quality. Along with Raekwon and an irresistible chorus sampling Schoolhouse Rock!, it’s a primer on dealing and stealing. Bleak yet fun at the same time.

That’s what’s dominating my playlist at the moment. Happy listening.
- posted by Liebs @ 9:54 PM 0 comments