Songs Of Summer “Barbie Girl” by Aqua
Well, you asked for it. Actually, no one asked for anything in the comments for yesterday’s SOS installment so you get this sugary pop confection from Aqua. Much as I hated this song when I was a kid, I did appreciate how they recreated so many toys for the video. Sure they were GIRL toys, but it was still cool. Why can’t my toys have a dream house, dammit?!
Jersey Shore Season 2 Season Premiere
Man oh man. The season kicked off relatively slow with the usual scenes of everyone traveling down and getting to the house. The main pot-stirrer this season is Angelina, the cast member who left the show last year and is back now to try and get some of those Jersey Shore dolla dolla bills. And boy does she set people off, especially the ladies who all seem to hate her. Let’s just jump right into the live blog, because I know that’s what you really want. Read more…
Songs Of Summer “How Bizarre” by OMC
The missus is gonna hate me for those one. She absolutely hates this song. I don’t even know if we’ve ever heard it at the same time, but she’s railed against it a few times after I mentioned that I kind of dig the song. I actually keep an eye out for it every time I’m at a flea market or used CD place because I’m very curious to hear what the rest of the record sounds like. This is another one of those mid-90s videos I remember being on pretty regularly.
It’s kind of a strange song for an MTV hit. OMC is a group from New Zealand which isn’t a country known for churning out pop acts, let alone one that would get to #4 on the Billboard charts. I actually went on a trip to New Zealand around this time and don’t remember hearing about them, but it could have been a few years off. Anyway, the song has kind of a slow hip hop vibe but with Spanish-style horns thrown in. It’s a real hodgepodge. But, hey, this is the country that made “Mambo #5″ a big deal too, so maybe we’re more open to other musical styles than what’s smashed into our brains thanks to MTV and pop radio.
It’s been a long time since I’ve heard the song or seen the video, but I still find both of them pretty enjoyable. This is a great song to bob your head along to and think back to that summer you were allowed to ride your bike to other neighborhoods and hang out with kids you didn’t normally see, almost like an adult. Good memories.
Does anyone have a suggestion for tomorrow’s Song Of Summer? I’ve been mostly just grabbing ideas out of my memory, but I’m more than willing to take suggestions. If not, I think I’m going to start hitting shuffle on my iPod’s summer mix and see what I get.
Supergroup Showcase: Them Crooked Vultures
THEM CROOKED VULTURES
THE PLAYERS: John Paul Jones on bass (Led Zeppelin), Dave Grohl on drums (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) and Josh Homme on guitar and lead vocals (Queens of the Stone Age, The Eagles Of Death Metal).
THE HISTORY: One of the more prolific musicians of his generation, Dave Grohl gets around. He recorded drums for Josh Homme’s band Queens Of The Stone Age’s record and also worked with John Paul Jones here and there. At some point he decided to get them together and Them Crooked Vultures was born. They recorded an album and are touring now with their sites set on a second record supposedly coming out later this year. (via their site)
OFFICIAL SITE: ThemCrookedVultures.com
One of my favorite sub genres of the supergroup idea is when the group consists of musicians from different eras (like Oysterhead). It’s interesting to see how the older and younger musicians interact and what kind of music comes out of that union. That’s the case with Them Crooked Vultures as Jones is significantly older than Grohl and Homme. It’s also interesting that two of the three members were in groups that changed the face of music. The world was different after Led Zeppelin came onto the scene and the same for Nirvana years later. Homme’s kind of the odd man out in my opinion, but he does a pretty good job of holding his own, even if some of his guitar licks do sound a little too reminiscent of previous QOTSA tracks at times (like on parts of “No One Loves Me & Neither Do I”).
Unlike many of the more recent supergroups, I actually didn’t know about Them Crooked Vultures until just before the disc came out as I had been laid off around that time and wasn’t paying much attention to the music coming out. I think that TCV’s first, self-titled record might have been the first thing I bought for myself aside from food after starting to get a pretty good freelance base going, so it’s got a special place in my heart. It also helps that the record kicks ass. 
The worry, of course, with a project like this is that the musicians will turn out to be great tastes that don’t taste great together (like Chickenfoot). Thankfully, these guys pull off a great sound, which shouldn’t be surprising considering the band consists of one of the greatest living bass players of all time (check out JPJ’s Zooma if you’d like to have your mind blown by what a bass can do) and Grohl who is one of the better drummers around. Even Homme who I’m far less familiar with (I bought that QOTSA record mentioned above and only liked the one single, the rest was kind of repetitive and boring), but he brings it with the vocals and guitar work.
The record is fun because it has a distinct sound with a solid rhythm section and Homme’s unique voice, but they weren’t afraid to move around within that framework and get experimental. “Gunman” sounds like a Rush song, doesn’t it? Really, the whole record is just amazing. With JPJ and Grohl locking down the rhythm (possibly the greatest living rhythm section around?) Homme gets to play with riffs and lines. The whole thing comes together better than a lot of records by established bands.
I hadn’t listened to the record for a while and put it on today and damn, it’s just great from front to back. Everyone’s in top form, the songs are amazing and there’s something really special about Grohl and Jones combining on backing vocals that adds a layer of sophistication and class to the proceedings that I can’t really explain (maybe it’s Jones’ hint of an accent). I wonder if Grohl reminds Jones of Bonzo at all.
What sets TCV apart in my mind is that they really feel like a band, not just a few dudes who got together and did a one-off. Maybe that’s because I know they’re still touring and want to make another record. They play like they’ve been together for 15 years which is impressive considering they just kind of put themselves together in a fairly short period of time. Frankly, if it was up to me, I’d make QOTSA and the Foo Fighters side projects and get as much Them Crooked Vultures music out of these guys as possible. I would love to see them in concert, maybe once they’re back in the states I can make that happen. It’s been way too long since I’ve been to a show.
I don’t generally care for panels at comic conventions. I’d rather just read about what the big news was online than waste all that time lining up, waiting and watching the panel and go look for cheap trades and comics. But, I think that, had I gone to SDCC this year, I would have gone to the Big Bang Theory panel. As anyone who reads the blog regularly knows, I’m a big fan of the show and I know from an interview I did with Bill Prady that he’s a legit geek. Plus, the inclusion of Wil Wheaton as the moderator and the non-incarcerated members of the Barenaked Ladies performing the full version of the theme song? That woulda been priceless as would seeing the entire cast and audience sing “Soft Kitty”:
Jersey Shore Season Two Hits Tomorrow!
As I’m sure you already know, Jersey Shore’s second season which was filmed in Miami over spring break will be premiering tomorrow, July 29th at 10:00PM EST on MTV. The above clip makes everything look pretty awesome, but I worry that the already image conscious cast will just be focused on perpetuating the image they set up in the first season and not allow themselves to grow as individuals this season. Heh, just kidding. Looks freaking crazy. Fights, hook ups, the usual. I just hope Angelina doesn’t ruin things with her awfulness. What’s the deal with bringing her back anyone? Does she have pictures of a high level MTV exec?
Also, real quick, to every single moron who continues to rail against the show Jersey Shore for not actually representing New Jersey SHUT UP ALREADY. The show clearly states that these people aren’t even from Jersey plus, no shit, getting any six or seven people together and filming them isn’t representative of a larger group. TAKE A STATISTICS CLASS! Living near New Jersey (too close, frankly) I hear about a lot of this crap on the news and it just makes everyone involved sound stupid for not checking facts. Rant complete.
Real World Watcher New Orleans “Confused and Abused”
Tonight’s episode of Real World New Orleans was a bit of a roller coaster going from parade to parade with stops along the way involving McKenzie’s drinking and choice of men, Jemmye’s relationship with her friend/boyfriend/ex and, later, her explaining to Knight what happened in a previous relationship. It’s pretty crazy.
Haha McKenzie doesn’t know what Bohemian means. I’m not sure Knight does either.
McKenzie says she’s a gypsy, that her and a bunch of her friends would travel around and steal stuff. Ryan gets really freaked out about it, either because she’s lying or because he believes her. He refers to both.
Haha, Knight draws a bubble bath for Jemmye and himself, but everyone shares that bathroom so people are in and out. Preston even jumps in in his tighty whities.
The roommates are going to be on a float. It looks pretty rad. It’s called the Tucks Crew. I don’t know what that means. They’re on a float making fun of the Army Corp of Engineers who built the levies that failed. Is that what happened?
Haha, Ashlee says she’ll toss beads to senior citizens, children and any man who calls her beautiful.
Preston and Ashlee are interviewing people for their radio bit. Let’s hope they figured out how to actually use the recorder.
Preston and Knight are trading beads for food because they didn’t pack a lunch. 
Preston calls McKenzie’s drunken alter ego Mary. She doesn’t seem to get the joke.
Preston asks Ryan about squashing their beef, but Ryan comes back with saying that if they’re not going to be friends, they might as well be peaceful.
McKenzie’s drunk at a party again and letting a dude get all up on her because he bought her a drunk. The guy swears at Jemmye and she bounces. Jesus, dealing with this broad sounds like a nightmare. 
Knight’s suspicious that Jemmye’s playing down her relationship with Kodi, this dude she either met right before coming out or who she broke up with right before she came out.
Oi, Kodi plays some sport. He’s got a game at LSU and Jemmye is thinking about going with one of the roommates to visit him afterwards.
“I’m either really good friends with someone or I’m not really friends with someone at all.” – Ryan. What?
Ryan tells Knight that he lied when he squashed things with Preston and that he hates him even more. WHAT?!
Ryan also says that Knight is his best friend, which comes out of nowhere.
Sahar’s trying to tell McKenzie that she’s worried about her drinking and she just keeps playing with her beads. Ugh. She says she’s going to keep an eye on it.
Ryan tells Knight he’s not real cool with him and Jemmye being together because he (Ryan) wants to hang out with Knight. It’s weird.
Knight says he likes being with Jemmye because it’s easy and doesn’t take much effort. Also, that he doesn’t see them getting together.
Jemmye’s having second thoughts about going to visit Kodi.
Eric and Sahar are kind of turning into the lost roommates, which is funny because he’s into her. Maybe they’re sneaking off to bone!
While out at a bar, Knight’s chatting a girl up while Jemmye’s sitting right there, which pisses her off.
Hey, wow, McKenzie’s talking to a dude that doesn’t seem like a complete skeez. She’s also not drunk…yet.
At the club, Jemmye tells Knight she doesn’t think she’s gonna go to Kodi’s game. Knight tells her she might as well go. She seems upset. Commercial break.
Knight calls the girl from that night and asks her to come over to the house. Ashlee tells him he’s being an ass. Then he asks Jemmye for directions. I think he hung up on the girl. Jemmye’s pissed. She pushes him into the confessional. (I thought it was the next day at first).
In the confessional, Knight says he feels like a shithead because she’s got a guy back home. He tells her to talk to him again when she deals with Kori. He says he’ll be the Knight he wants her to be when she finishes things with Kori.
Eric’s telling her to go because it’s someone from her past.
Jemmy’e going to Kodi’s game. She thinks seeing him will help her decide if she wants to be with Kodi or Knight. Ashlee drives her.
Kodi is/was #24 for Mississippi State’s basketball team.
Jemmye’s all nervous waiting for him outside. Whoa, he’s way tall, like twice her size. Oooh, Kodi’s whole family is there too so it’s super awkward. He’s the tall, quiet type. Seems kind of like a douche, but it’s hard to tell cause he says nothing.
Knight puts McKenzie’s name over the Madame SOMETHING fortune teller machine. She’s sitting in front of the thing and everyone’s tossing out jokes, but she doesn’t see it.
McKenzie runs into Travis at a bar. Huh, Travis had a streak where he would black out and he wanted to get away from that, so he doesn’t drink as much and being around him means that McKenzie isn’t drinking as much. He seems like a good dude, but he’s only there on spring break.
Jemmye doesn’t seem thrilled with her meeting with Kodi. She comes home and gets in bed with Knight. She says she has a deeper connection with Knight than Kodi.
McKenzie brings Travis back to the house, but he leaves soon. Preston says he might have been in her life for a short time just to teach her a small lesson. She seems receptive to that.
Ah, it’s Fat Tuesday, the last day of Mardi Gras. Ashlee and Preston have a meeting soon to present what they have, but they can’t find the recorder. Man, they are just screwing the pooch on this pretty fantastic opportunity.
Preston calls the dude, but he’s not pissed. He says not to worry about, these things happen at Mardi Gras. They lucked the hell out.
Their Fat Tuesday outfits are…interesting. Jemmye’s definitely flashing for beads, I don’t know if the other girls were, but they’ve all got a LOT of beads. 
Looks like a pretty intense, yet super gross party.
Ryan comes out either naked or in a very small bathing suit and asks Ashlee and Sahar if they want to get in the hot tub. He says he has his suit on and gives them a creepy look.
Jemmye and Knight are at the bar and she’s telling him about her past abusive relationship which lasted a year and a half. This actually makes a lot of sense with how she acts with men. Like any good dude, Knight has trouble with the news.
Huh, the cops roll through late at night and wash the street? New Orleans is so weird.
Drunk in the confessional, Knight says he loves her and that Jemmye’s his girl, which seems like a flip from the last time. 
Songs Of Summer “Walkin’ On The Sun” by Smash Mouth
Much like yesterday’s SOS band Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth seems to be a band that has made all of its money based solely on coming out with great songs that people like to sing, hear and listen to in the summer time, starting with 1997′s “Walkin’ On The Sun.” Holy shit, this song was gigantically huge and it’s a damn good poppy summer song. I borrowed my buddy Randy’s copy of Fush Yu Mang (the record this song was on) and was left feeling pretty flat about the whole thing. I think I could do a whole week on just Smash Mouth songs like “All Star” and the covers they did for the Shrek movies. Like with Sugar Ray, I might actually go back and pick up their greatest hits record…if they have one. Someone should work on that.
Roseanne Comics Cavalcade: Bloodlines Poster
This will be the last Roseanne Comics Cavalcade for the foreseeable future because I’m all caught up. I should have probably gone out with a bang, but this feels like whimper. As you can tell by Sarah Chalke’s presence, it’s a later episode taking place in Becky and Darlene’s old room. Over Becky’s left shoulder you can make out just the bottom corner of a Bloodlines poster. I wanted to get a better shot and this was the best I got.
To make matters worse, the second picture, which would have shown more of the poster, is all scrambly, probably because I was moving around while taking the photo. As such, I can’t really make it out. I’d imagine it’s yet another promotional poster that DC gave out for free, but it doesn’t match up with any of the covers for the Bloodlines crossover (which you can check out here). I searched Google, Bing, eBay, MyComicShop and MileHigh and came up with nothing that looked even remotely close to the poster. Since I started doing this little feature on the site, I’ve been shocked at how few images there are of these promo posters. Considering there’s a website for everything, you’d imagine there’d be one for comic posters, but if so, I haven’t found it. Anyone got any ideas?
Cheech & Chong Invented Red Hulk 30 Years Ago
While watching Cheech And Chong’s Next Movie (1980) tonight, I saw something pretty interesting:
Cheech is visiting a movie studio where they’re filming a movie or TV show called Wamba when this guy covered in red looking like the Hulk (who was on TV from 1978 through 1982) asks Cheech which wall he’s supposed to break through. Cheech tells him a wall and the red dude bursts through. Considering Cheech and Chong wrote the movie, methinks they should get, at the very least, partial credit for creating the character that Jeph Loeb would introduce in-continuity in 2008. 
The resemblance is uncanny.
