Some stuff I like in September.

You know what? I’m about ready for this month to end. It’s true. August and September are the worst. They both go by slower than any other month. Regardless of my hostility towards this time of year, I’ve compiled this list of things that are awesome.

1. I love ABC’s new half-hour comedy Modern Family. It follows three exceedingly abnormal families trying to live, as the title implies, modern lives. The pilot episode aired on Wednesday, and has got to be one of the funniest pilots I’ve seen. I look forward to seeing where they take the show with such sharp, intelligent writing.

2. One of ABC’s other new fall shows is FlashForward. If you’ve been watching the network at all in the last two months, you know that ABC is putting all their eggs in this strange, sci-fi basket. I had huge expectations going in, and the first episode really delivered. The direction and writing, courtesy of Dark Knight co-writer David Goyer, are both on a cinematic scale that rarely sees the light of primetime. It’s more than enough to hold me over until Lost returns in January.

3. Go buy an I am Birmingham shirt HERE. Seriously, just go get one.

4. In 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby, the editor of French Elle magazine, had a stroke which resulted in locked-in syndrome, a condition in which a person is fully functional mentally, but physically paralyzed. Bauby was totally paralyzed save for his left eyelid. Using a painstaking system with an assisstant, Bauby blinked out a 139-page memoir of his inner thoughts called The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The book was adapted into a film by Julian Schnabel in 2007. The movie is a unique portrait of a man whose true feelings aren’t expressed until a near-death experience jolts them out of him. It’s inspiring, funny, devastating, and hypnotic. Netflix it.

5. Greg Holden, the English musician who opened for Ingrid Michaelson the other night at Workplay, has been on rotation on my iPod since. Check out Thinking of You and The Chase.

‘Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time.’ [or Dear Kanye West...]

Everyone will be blogging about this. Everyone. So I figured I’d join in. ‘Sorry Taylor, I’ll let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time.’ Words of a genius named Kanye West. Let’s analyze this, shall we?

‘Sorry Taylor.’ PAUSE! That’s like when people say ‘no offense’ and then say something really offensive. It’s still offensive, regardless of whether you said ‘no offense.’

‘I’ll let you finish.’ PAUSE! Taylor Swift was excepting an effing VMA. Kanye, you do not tell her whether she can finish or not. And when you handed her back the mic, she just said nothing and looked like she might melt.

‘Beyoncé had one of the best videos.’ PAUSE! Okay. It was a good video. But it was a mediocre song. And why should you get to judge the quality of a musician’s work Kanye? You’re best known for yelling over a Daft Punk song that already existed.

‘Of all time.’ PAUSE! Really? Really? Why do really unintelligent people feel the need to add ‘of all time’ to every bit of praise they give? Yes, I’m talking about Ben Lyons.

Okay, I’m done. Kanye, it’s one thing to rant about how awesome you are, but don’t drag an innocent teenager into the mix. Taylor isn’t the greatest country artist ever, but she didn’t deserve that. Good day, sir. I said good day.

Favorite things in July.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Simply the best film of the series. It took five movies, but the filmmakers have FINALLY made a movie mature and emotional enough to do justice to the books. I’ve been talking about this movie too much. I’m stopping after I post this. Just go see it.

Newton Faulkner Brilliant singer-songwriter from across the pond. Watch this.

Coraline on Blu-ray and DVD One of my favorite movies I’ve seen this year is being released for home media this Tuesday. What’s especially remarkable is that both the DVD and the Blu-ray disc sets come with 4 pairs of 3D glasses. I’m curious to see how the spectacular cinema 3D translates to the small screen, but I imagine it will look stunning on Blu-ray.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins I woke up in the middle of the night last week with an intense craving for lemon poppy seed muffins. They are grossly under-appreciated.

Songs of the moment.

Hoppipolla by Sigur Ros [youtube link/itunes link] – The title literally means ‘jumping in puddles,’ but you don’t have to know a word of Icelandic to get the emotion of this song. It’s the perfect nostalgia song.

I Don’t Worry by Bess Rogers [youtube link/itunes link] – Great song when stressed. Hence the title.

I Gotta Feeling by Black Eyed Peas [youtube link/itunes link] – I was a little disappointed with the first single from The E.N.D, Boom Boom Pow, but this is a really good song. It’s catchy without getting annoying and has more than solid vocals.

Le ciel dans une chambre by Carla Bruni [youtube link/itunes link] – This song feels like a lullaby. It’s in French and Italian, so once again I can’t understand a word. Plus, Carla Bruni’s the first lady of France. Which is cool. Michelle Obama doesn’t have any records.

This and that.

- My acting class is learning stage combat. The first day, I failed the mind-numbingly easy written test so I couldn’t participate. Today, I finally passed. Stage combat entails such frivolities as fake pushing and fake slapping and fake hair pulling. Today, I turned the wrong way when my partner fake slapped me. Like he slapped me with his right hand and I fell down to the left. Fail.

- I’m trying Twitter again. For no other reason than I’m shamelessly vulnerable to peer pressure.

- No[pr]ah’s Favorite Things for February: This blog, this song, this video, and this cookie dough.

The Best Music of 2008.

The second entry in my Best of 2008 series. Self-explanatory? Yes sir.

In The Heights – Original Broadway Cast Recording
A show chronicling three days in Washington Heights following the lives, hopes, and dreams of its residents. The music is mostly a blend of pop, salsa, and rap. It’s one of the more original broadway scores in recent years and certainly one of the best. Best tracks: In The Heights, 96000

Tangent: 15 broadway shows are closing this month. People are blaming it on the screwy economy. Worrisome. End tangent.

Ingrid Michaelson – Be OK
Not a whole lot of new material, but still a strong collection of singles, covers, and live recordings. I wish she’d release her excellent cover of Radiohead’s Creep though. Best tracks: Keep Breathing, You And I, The Chain, Giving Up [in that order]

Jon Foreman – Spring
The best of his seasonal EP’s. Kudos for the song March, a whimsical departure stylistically from his standard stuff. Best tracks: Your Love Is Strong, March (A Prelude to Spring)

The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing
British alternative duo The Ting Tings’ debut album is consistently creative and catchy [ugh, bad alliteration alert] but also diverse in rhythm and style. Best tracks: That’s Not My Name, Shut Up and Let Me Go, Fruit Machine, We Walk [in that order]

Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend
The eponymous debut album of the New York band who thinks it’s British is actually pretty great. The author of Stuff White People Like has crowned Vampire Weekend the Whitest Band in the World, and that title is well deserved. Best track: M79

Song Beneath The Song.

Darn that Amanda Hannah. Just when I think I’m on my feet with semi-substantial blog material, she tags me in a fodder post. And I’m not one to disturb the intricate rules of blog tagging. Here we go.

1. Put your music playing device on shuffle. [Gotcha.]
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer. [Well what if the song makes no sense with the question?]
3. Write the song name down. [See now that's dumb. How about I just think of cute and clever songs for each question.]
4. Tag friends who might enjoy doing it themselves. [Mmhmm. Okay? Okay.]

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
Either/Or – Wild Sweet Orange

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Crazy – Gnarls Barkley

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Sophisticated Side Ponytail – Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
The Greatest Man That Ever Lived – Weezer

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
Because We Can – Fatboy Slim

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Mr Blue Sky – ELO

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
Something to Talk About – Badly Drawn Boy

WHAT IS 2+2?
Traffic and Weather – Fountains of Wayne

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy – Glen Hansard

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
All I Want Is You – Barry Louis Polisar

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
We Started Nothing – The Ting Tings [Sad]

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Ironic – Alanis Morissette

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Just A Song About Ping Pong – Operator Please

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Waltz Of The Dearly Beloved – Emily Wells

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
Tricycle – Psapp

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
That’s Not My Name – The Ting Tings

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Far Away – Ingrid Michaelson [Oh that's depressing]

WHAT’S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Bizarre Christmas Incident – Ben Folds

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
Falling Slowly – Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
That Time – Regina Spektor

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
Everything – Michael Bublé [Yeah it's on my iPod. Suck it.]

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
Could Be Anything – The Eames Era

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
Crickets – Wild Sweet Orange

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
Traffic Light – The Ting Tings [???]

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Open Your Eyes – Snow Patrol

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
Lies – Glen Hansard

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
Human Nature – Michael Jackson

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Song Beneath The Song – Maria Taylor

I tag… Micaela Slotin. That’s it. It’s because I love you. And I think you’ll actually read this. And do it.

Blog Maintenance Fail

Okay. I definitely fail at keeping up with this blog. It’s just hard to post regularly with my bustling social life. So here come the bullet point mini-posts.

- Autumn! My favourite season has somewhat arrived in Birmingham. Leaves are somewhat less green than they were. Autumn is by far the most colourful, best smelling, and tastiest of the seasons. And Halowe’en [note the apostrophe] is just around the corner. I’ll be handing out candy to local children this year. I’m still deciding whether to dress up as Nuclear Warfare or the Large Hadron Collider.

- Homecoming was last week at school. As someone who’s never been to a ‘normal school’ before, I still don’t really know what Homecoming is. No one’s been able to give me a definite answer. All I know is that it involves dress-up days [people didn't seem to know what Prep Day meant], a football game, a dance, and a day off from school. I did not participate in 3 out of 4 of these.

- Dracula Colon The Musical Question Mark opened last week. It’s been going quite well. I’m happy with the way the show’s turned out. There are two more performances: Wednesday and Thursday at 7 o’clock at Homewood High School. Tickets are 5 dollars. You should come.

- I went to a really good concert last week at WorkPlay. The Hotel Cafe Tour stopped in Birmingham with Ingrid Michaelson, Meiko, and Priscilla Ahn, among others. I really went to see Ingrid, who mysteriously only played about seven songs. I did have a nice little chat with her afterwards though. Katie Herzig also played, and I really enjoyed her music

- Short rant: Why doesn’t Birmingham get limited release movies? We’re not miniscule or anything. I mean we’re an international city. Larry Langford said so. So why is it that we NEVER get any good limited release films? I’ve been wanting to see Rachel Getting Married or Happy-Go-Lucky forEVER. And they’re playing in Nashville and Atlanta and a few places in Texas. But not Birmingham.

Fin.

I just want to be OK.

Ingrid Michaelson’s new CD, Be OK, was released today. I’m a huge fan of Ingrid’s and this CD is amazing. It’s got several new songs, as well as a couple covers and a few live recordings. Very cool album.

Even cooler is that proceeds from the album and single go to help Stand Up 2 Cancer, a great charity for a worthy cause. You may have seen their big telethon in September.

Anyways I encourage all of you to give this album a listen and consider supporting Ingrid and Stand Up 2 Cancer. She’s also coming to Birmingham on Monday with the Hotel Café Tour. Excellent opportunity to see Ingrid, along with other artists like Priscilla Ahn and Meiko.

‘I’m like Mozart. You’re that guy that was always jealous of Mozart.’

‘Salieri?’

‘No thank you. Already ate.’

Here it is. My opus. I shall call it… Untitled. In C Minor. Let me know what you think.

Untitled in C Minor by Noah Cannon