You would think this was a parody of SuperPAC ads by former writers of The Simpsons, but alas, no, we've reached the point where reality has surpassed satire:
It's awesome if you have enough intelligence to laugh at it, but it's a clear sign of the impending apocalypse that some people will adhere to it because it's exactly what they wanted to hear and how they feel.
Nice touch on Photoshopping Rand Paul's head onto a bodybuilder's body, though, it just drives the point in deeper in the ''Republican saviour'' angle.
Saturday, May 30, 2015
Friday, May 29, 2015
Video Of The Week: Rick Astley
Let's be honest here: I could have just Rickrolled the lot of you, and I didn't.
So, be thankful. And be happy to watch Never Gonna Give You Up for the thousandth time:
Now with over 122,000,000 views, so you're not the only idiot who pressed play knowingly, let alone those of us who have been getting caught once in a while since 2007.
You know what, though? I'm happy Rick Astley's getting paid to be the butt of a joke. You could argue who's the real victim here between those forcibly listening to the 1987 ''classic'' and he who performed the kitchiest earworm we still remember, but his getting paid royalties from his own YouTube/Vevo account probably mends the embarassment a bit. And I'm happy it happened to a person who seems nice, not an asswipe like Vanilla Ice.
So, be thankful. And be happy to watch Never Gonna Give You Up for the thousandth time:
Now with over 122,000,000 views, so you're not the only idiot who pressed play knowingly, let alone those of us who have been getting caught once in a while since 2007.
You know what, though? I'm happy Rick Astley's getting paid to be the butt of a joke. You could argue who's the real victim here between those forcibly listening to the 1987 ''classic'' and he who performed the kitchiest earworm we still remember, but his getting paid royalties from his own YouTube/Vevo account probably mends the embarassment a bit. And I'm happy it happened to a person who seems nice, not an asswipe like Vanilla Ice.
Saturday, May 23, 2015
Video Of The Week: Snoop Dogg (Featuring Stevie Wonder & Pharrell Williams)
How do you waste the talents of music legend Stevie Wonder, wonderful actress Nia Long, and filmmaker Warren Fu (who has made videos for The Strokes, Daft Punk featuring Julian Casablancas, and The Killers) in under six minutes?
Like this:
It's like everything Pharrell Williams touches turns to shit, like a reverse Midas. And yet, I know I'd better get used to it, because every girl I'll want to have conversations with will LOVE the fucking thing.
Like this:
It's like everything Pharrell Williams touches turns to shit, like a reverse Midas. And yet, I know I'd better get used to it, because every girl I'll want to have conversations with will LOVE the fucking thing.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
Video Of The Week: Nine Inch Nails
As a tribute to Trent Reznor's 50th birthday tomorrow, I decided to feature Nine Inch Nails this week, and to do so with a straightforward video showing nothing but the live band (circa 2005) performing in a practice facility, filmed by Reznor and Rob Sheridan using old VHS cameras and a rundown of the pan-and-scan technique that created pixelization and distortion when rendered to digital.
In this form, NIN consisted of Reznor on vocals (and keyboards and guitar as well, depending on the song), Aaron North on lead/feedback guitars, Jeordie White (a.k.a. Twiggy Ramirez from Marilyn Manson, who has also played with Melissa Auf Der Maur, A Perfect Circle, and members of QOTSA in the Desert Sessions), Jerome Dillon on drums, and Alessandro Cortini (of SONOIO and blinfoldfreak fame) on keyboards and sound effects.
This song, The Hand That Feeds, is a staple of their live shows and a fan favourite, and while it's a decent guitar riff and has all the electronics you'd expect from a NIN track, it isn't as groundbreaking as a lot of their other songs, in my opinion. I'll listen to it when they play it at a show, but I won't be as thrilled as if they'd played The Perfect Drug or Dead Souls (a Joy Division cover).
In this form, NIN consisted of Reznor on vocals (and keyboards and guitar as well, depending on the song), Aaron North on lead/feedback guitars, Jeordie White (a.k.a. Twiggy Ramirez from Marilyn Manson, who has also played with Melissa Auf Der Maur, A Perfect Circle, and members of QOTSA in the Desert Sessions), Jerome Dillon on drums, and Alessandro Cortini (of SONOIO and blinfoldfreak fame) on keyboards and sound effects.
This song, The Hand That Feeds, is a staple of their live shows and a fan favourite, and while it's a decent guitar riff and has all the electronics you'd expect from a NIN track, it isn't as groundbreaking as a lot of their other songs, in my opinion. I'll listen to it when they play it at a show, but I won't be as thrilled as if they'd played The Perfect Drug or Dead Souls (a Joy Division cover).
NHL Playoff Predictions: Round 3
It didn't go all that bad for me in the second round, but this one will hurt a bit, if only because two of my three favourite goalies will likely bite the dust and see their playoff run stop in the Conference Finals. Not that there's any shame in losing at this point, because all four teams that are left are very strong contenders.
I don't usually pick teams who ruled the regular season to go far in the playoffs, but this time, it's hard to bet against the two teams with the most effective weapons.
Eastern Conference Finals:
New York Rangers versus Tampa Bay Lightning:
This is where my third-fave goalie (Ben Bishop) almost plays equal to the best in the world (Henrik Lundqvist), but falls just short; it's also where the Triplets line of Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov gets shut down by the deepest blue line in the league, with Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi, Marc Staal, Dan Boyle, Keith Yandle and Kevin Klein.And the Rangers have a more balanced offense, if only because a few of their top guns (Rick Nash, Martin Saint-Louis) are under-achieving. Derick Brassard is up to par, though.
Rangers in 6.
Western Conference Finals:
Anaheim Ducks versus Chicago Blackhawks:
I know, I know: Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Corey Crawford. All multiple-time winners, super-clutch performers, among the best in the world at what they do. Joel Quenneville as the coach who gives them an added edge, the third winningest of all time, with the winningest (Scotty Bowman) serving as an adviser.
But on the otehr hand, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry seem like an unstoppable bruising-and-scoring machine.
My initial thought was that the Hawks would win this with their depth (Patrick Sharp, Brad Richards) or even annoyance (Dan Carcillo), but I really feel like coach Bruce Boudreau will play his Twins for 40 minutes per game if he needs to, and if anything, that will bring us to a Game 7, where anything can happen.
Ducks in 7.
I don't usually pick teams who ruled the regular season to go far in the playoffs, but this time, it's hard to bet against the two teams with the most effective weapons.
Eastern Conference Finals:
New York Rangers versus Tampa Bay Lightning:
This is where my third-fave goalie (Ben Bishop) almost plays equal to the best in the world (Henrik Lundqvist), but falls just short; it's also where the Triplets line of Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov gets shut down by the deepest blue line in the league, with Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi, Marc Staal, Dan Boyle, Keith Yandle and Kevin Klein.And the Rangers have a more balanced offense, if only because a few of their top guns (Rick Nash, Martin Saint-Louis) are under-achieving. Derick Brassard is up to par, though.
Rangers in 6.
Western Conference Finals:
Anaheim Ducks versus Chicago Blackhawks:
I know, I know: Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Corey Crawford. All multiple-time winners, super-clutch performers, among the best in the world at what they do. Joel Quenneville as the coach who gives them an added edge, the third winningest of all time, with the winningest (Scotty Bowman) serving as an adviser.
But on the otehr hand, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry seem like an unstoppable bruising-and-scoring machine.
My initial thought was that the Hawks would win this with their depth (Patrick Sharp, Brad Richards) or even annoyance (Dan Carcillo), but I really feel like coach Bruce Boudreau will play his Twins for 40 minutes per game if he needs to, and if anything, that will bring us to a Game 7, where anything can happen.
Ducks in 7.
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Jon Stewart Vs Judith Miller
On the political spectrum, the safe bet is that I rank somewhere left of center. Even then, the demolition job Jon Stewart did when he handed Judith Miller her carcass at the end of a 20-minute interview two weeks ago made me a little uneasy.
Don't get me wrong - he was 100% right, he attacked with facts on things she wrote about and said, but being it's one of the two political issues he's most passionate about (with Veterans Affairs being a close second), he was versed in the subject matter as if he'd written it itself, and she never had a chance. She walked into a trap, except she was expecting a trap door and instead found a lion's den where the animals had been starved for a week.
Plus, with him having set his departure date to August 6th, he's leaving with a bang (interspersed with marshmallow-y small talks with long-time celebrity friends a couple of times a week; the he has circles to fill, and he looks like he won't leave any stone unturned.
If there was any time in History that Dick Cheney could be charged with war crimes, it seems like Stewart would want it to be now, and himself to be the perpetrator, like Hunter S. Thompson going after Richard Nixon.
It's beautiful and righteous, but it's also brutal and violent, calculated and without mercy. Good, because his opponents never pulled any punches themselves.
Canadian viewers can watch it here, American viewers can Google ''The Daily Show''.
Don't get me wrong - he was 100% right, he attacked with facts on things she wrote about and said, but being it's one of the two political issues he's most passionate about (with Veterans Affairs being a close second), he was versed in the subject matter as if he'd written it itself, and she never had a chance. She walked into a trap, except she was expecting a trap door and instead found a lion's den where the animals had been starved for a week.
Plus, with him having set his departure date to August 6th, he's leaving with a bang (interspersed with marshmallow-y small talks with long-time celebrity friends a couple of times a week; the he has circles to fill, and he looks like he won't leave any stone unturned.
If there was any time in History that Dick Cheney could be charged with war crimes, it seems like Stewart would want it to be now, and himself to be the perpetrator, like Hunter S. Thompson going after Richard Nixon.
It's beautiful and righteous, but it's also brutal and violent, calculated and without mercy. Good, because his opponents never pulled any punches themselves.
Canadian viewers can watch it here, American viewers can Google ''The Daily Show''.
Sunday, May 10, 2015
A Reason To Finally Like Miley Cyrus?
A head above anything else in 2014, Against Me!'s Transgernder Dysphoria Blues was an impactful and goddamn amazing record (that could have used a bit more distortion on the guitars, so it wasn't perfect). By far the best record from last year, and I'll fight Kanye West to prove it if I have to.
Miley Cyrus, well, enough about her already. Except she did perform on this, and at the same backyard-party/fundraiser event, performed Androgynous with Laura Jane Grace and Joan Jett, so there's a double-dose of street cred right there, gathering funds for kids ''facing homeless youth, LGBT youth, and other vulnerable populations''.
Decent stuff.
So is this:
Miley Cyrus, well, enough about her already. Except she did perform on this, and at the same backyard-party/fundraiser event, performed Androgynous with Laura Jane Grace and Joan Jett, so there's a double-dose of street cred right there, gathering funds for kids ''facing homeless youth, LGBT youth, and other vulnerable populations''.
Decent stuff.
So is this:
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Video Of The Week: The White Stripes
Eight years in, perhaps it's time to feature one of my favourite bands of all time for the first time, no? The White Stripes were a Detroit-based two-piece consisting of former spouses Jack White (guitar, vocals, keyboards) and Meg White (drums) who restricted themselves to playing 4/4 blues-rock (and dress in red, white and/or black), and yet with every passing album found ways to expand the sound while staying true to its roots, improving the lyrics and delivery each time.
Many times, their videos were directed by master director and borderline-illusionist Michel Gondry, a drummer himself who really understood and had a great gut feeling about how to transpose the beatiness the White Stripes had behind them to video.
One perfect example is this great video for an equally great song (one of two WS numbers I cover live at times myself), Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground (from their 2001 masterpiece White Blood Cells), with projections of good times over post-breakup scenes:
Many times, their videos were directed by master director and borderline-illusionist Michel Gondry, a drummer himself who really understood and had a great gut feeling about how to transpose the beatiness the White Stripes had behind them to video.
One perfect example is this great video for an equally great song (one of two WS numbers I cover live at times myself), Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground (from their 2001 masterpiece White Blood Cells), with projections of good times over post-breakup scenes:
15 Years For Public Sex?
So a Florida couple (of course) couldn't control their urges and had a 25-minute sex session on the beach, mid-afternoon, in plain view of onlookers who didn't do anything to stop them.
A grandmother was appalled because her grandkids started asking her questions, and instead of answering their questions and teaching the brats about Life and shit - or just taking them somewhere else and/or telling them to look away - got on her phone and filmed the thing.
Now, the two amateur porn stars face 15 years in jail.
So let me get this straight: killing an unarmed Black man doesn't even warrant a charge pressed against you.
Filming someone else having sex isn't a breach of privacy? And sharing the tape with the cops and the internet isn't spreading illegal material?
Meanwhile, in California, a pastor will get no more than 4 months for molesting a 9-year-old girl... multiple times.
Let that sink in.
Murder? Fine.
Rape and abuse of power? Fine.
Doing what God intended us to do so we survive as a species? A quarter of your life in jail.
For ''lewd and lascivious exhibition'', in a state where there might be more strippers than Nevada.
It's a wonder you've lasted this long, Mur'ca.
A grandmother was appalled because her grandkids started asking her questions, and instead of answering their questions and teaching the brats about Life and shit - or just taking them somewhere else and/or telling them to look away - got on her phone and filmed the thing.
Now, the two amateur porn stars face 15 years in jail.
So let me get this straight: killing an unarmed Black man doesn't even warrant a charge pressed against you.
Filming someone else having sex isn't a breach of privacy? And sharing the tape with the cops and the internet isn't spreading illegal material?
Meanwhile, in California, a pastor will get no more than 4 months for molesting a 9-year-old girl... multiple times.
Let that sink in.
Murder? Fine.
Rape and abuse of power? Fine.
Doing what God intended us to do so we survive as a species? A quarter of your life in jail.
For ''lewd and lascivious exhibition'', in a state where there might be more strippers than Nevada.
It's a wonder you've lasted this long, Mur'ca.
Saturday, May 2, 2015
Video Of The Week: Queens Of The Stone Age
It's funny, I had a pretty great week, full of sunshine, promise, good times, outings with friends... and yet the only video I thought to feature was an apocalyptic heavy rock animated video by Queens Of The Stone Age.
This time, the hard rocking unit led by former Kyuss frontman Josh Homme (with Dave Grohl on drums, Josh Van Leeuwen on guitar, synths, percussion and backing vocals, Michael Shuman on bass, percussion and backing vocals and Dean Ferttita on guitar) enlisted animator Liam Brazier to use characters created by Boneface (who designed the ... Like Clockwork album art) to create this angry, Todd MacFarlane-like world for the video for My God is The Sun:
This time, the hard rocking unit led by former Kyuss frontman Josh Homme (with Dave Grohl on drums, Josh Van Leeuwen on guitar, synths, percussion and backing vocals, Michael Shuman on bass, percussion and backing vocals and Dean Ferttita on guitar) enlisted animator Liam Brazier to use characters created by Boneface (who designed the ... Like Clockwork album art) to create this angry, Todd MacFarlane-like world for the video for My God is The Sun:
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